Chapter 114
Chapter 114
While Liu Ye demonstrated his filial devotion, Wuxinzi was delivered to Three Hearts Temple outside the city.
“Master! Master!”
Wuxinzi wailed pitifully in the main hall. Before long, another Daoist emerged. He wore white robes, with the silver hair of an old man and the rosy face of a child. Surrounded by an ethereal air, he looked every inch a living immortal.
He was Wushenzi, master of Wuxinzi, abbot of Three Hearts Temple, and one of the three Imperial Preceptors personally appointed by the reigning emperor.
He frowned when he saw Wuxinzi’s condition.
“Who beat you this badly?”
“The new county magistrate, Liu Ye!”
“Liu Ye? Isn’t he Senior Lord Liu’s son?”
Senior Lord Liu was one of their most important partners. In fact, Wushenzi owed his position as Imperial Preceptor partly to the man’s assistance.
“That’s him! The boy has gone mad. The moment he took office, he tried to ban the sacrifices to the River God. When I went to reason with him, he attacked me without a word. Look what he did!”
Wuxinzi clutched his face and wept bitterly.
“Didn’t you ask Senior Lord Liu to seek justice for you?” Wushenzi asked.
“Don’t mention it. Senior Lord Liu came, and Liu Ye beat him even worse than me.” Wuxinzi shuddered at the memory.
Wushenzi fell silent.
It seemed Liu Ye truly had lost his mind. He even dared beat his own father.
“Master, please seek justice for me!”
Wuxinzi struggled to his knees.
Wushenzi pondered for a moment, then sighed.
“It appears Liu Ye has been possessed by an evil spirit. For the peace of Nine Worlds County, this humble Daoist has no choice but to intervene!”
Other officials had tried to interfere in the past. In the end, they either abandoned the effort or suffered unfortunate accidents.
Now Liu Ye would suffer an accident as well.
Wushenzi walked into the rear chamber, where an altar stood. A charred, arm-length figure sat curled atop it.
He flicked his horsetail whisk and sat cross-legged before the altar, muttering an incantation.
A moment later, the little figure slowly rose. A sinister wind swept through the room, and it vanished without a trace.
Because of Senior Lord Liu’s injuries, Liu Ye planned to spend the night in a bedroom in the magistrate’s rear residence.
He remained beside Senior Lord Liu and tended to him diligently.
“Father, what happened during the day was my fault. You have to forgive me!”
Senior Lord Liu gazed at him with tears in his eyes. He wanted to speak, but every tooth in his mouth was gone, and his face was swollen like a Pig-Head. He could not form a complete sentence.
I forgive you! Will you please stay away from me now?
Senior Lord Liu screamed the words in his mind.
This was not taking care of someone. Liu Ye was trying to see him into the afterlife!
When Liu Ye offered to wash his feet, he used freshly boiled water and forced both feet into the basin.
Then came dinner. Could that even be called feeding him? It was more like stuffing a pig. Liu Ye forced an entire pot of food down his throat without leaving a single grain. Senior Lord Liu was an old man with a weak stomach. The meal nearly burst him open.
Worst of all was when Liu Ye wiped his face. He grabbed the same rag used to clean the table and smeared it all over him. Even that might have been tolerable if Liu Ye had remembered to remove the rag afterward. Instead, he almost suffocated his father with it!
Senior Lord Liu could not understand. He had only one son. The entire family fortune would belong to Liu Ye one day. Was there any need to be this impatient?
Then he remembered his son’s childhood ambition.
“When I grow up, I want to become Minister of Justice!”
Senior Lord Liu finally understood.
Good grief. The little bastard was using his own father for practice!
As Senior Lord Liu was thinking, Liu Ye approached with a quilt and tucked it firmly around him. While doing so, he lectured Qiqi.
“Qiqi, children have to be filial to their parents, understand? Anyone who isn’t filial is worse than an animal.”
You’re worse than an animal!
Senior Lord Liu cursed inwardly. It was the height of summer, and this bastard had buried him under a padded quilt!
In truth, Liu Ye was not entirely to blame. Back in the countryside, his father, Liu Shuigui, ate just as much food. The water he used to soak his feet was also this hot, and Liu Ye washed his own feet at the same temperature.
As for the quilt, Liu Ye had slept under padded quilts all his life. Nights in his village were always cold, and he worried that Senior Lord Liu might catch a chill.
Every bit of it came from the goodness of his heart!
Liu Ye spread his own bedding on the floor.
“Father, if you need to get up during the night or want anything else, just call me!”
How the hell am I supposed to call you?
Senior Lord Liu seethed with grief and fury. Worse, Liu Ye fell asleep the moment the words left his mouth. Senior Lord Liu, meanwhile, was painfully overstuffed, and his face throbbed so badly that sleep was impossible.
At long last, drowsiness began to creep over him.
Then…
“Hrrr… hngh! Hrrr… hngh!”
Senior Lord Liu stared into the darkness.
The bastard snored too! How was anyone supposed to sleep through that?
As he tossed and turned, the door suddenly opened.
A small, pitch-black figure crawled into the room.
Senior Lord Liu recognized it immediately. This was the little Fiend raised by the abbot of Three Hearts Temple.
He had participated in their dealings years ago.
He had never expected Wushenzi to use it against his son!
Senior Lord Liu wanted to warn Liu Ye. Then he remembered everything Liu Ye had done to him and instantly abandoned the idea.
Better to be rid of a son like this. He could always take a few more young concubines. He was still capable.
Liu Ye, forgive me. Don’t blame your father for being ruthless. You have strayed too far.
Senior Lord Liu hardened his heart.
Then he watched the little Fiend crawl onto Liu Ye’s body… and straight across him.
Senior Lord Liu fell silent.
Why aren’t you eating him? Eat him! Take a huge bite!
The little figure continued forward and climbed onto the bed.
Senior Lord Liu froze.
Wait! Why are you coming toward me? Your target is the one on the floor! The one on the floor!
An icy chill spread through his body. The little Fiend felt like a sculpture carved from ice, and its touch made him shiver violently.
In fairness, it was not the Fiend’s fault. Its intelligence was limited. Wushenzi had only commanded it to kill an official.
In its tiny mind, no official could possibly sleep on the floor. That one was obviously a servant.
The fat, prosperous-looking man in the bed, on the other hand, was clearly a high official.
So it went straight for Senior Lord Liu.
“Mmmph… mmmph…”
Senior Lord Liu summoned every ounce of strength to make a sound, but Liu Ye’s snores were louder. He heard nothing!
What happened to your promise?!
Senior Lord Liu screamed inwardly.
The little Fiend found the center of his chest. It opened a mouth packed with fangs and bit down.
Crunch!
“Aaaah!”
Senior Lord Liu forced out a piercing scream. Liu Ye jolted awake.
He sat up, took one look, and cried in surprise, “Where did this child come from?”