Chapter 3

Chapter 3

News of what had happened in my family spread quickly.

Xiaohu came looking for me at once and practically dragged me back to his house.

He had only gotten married last year. It was just him and his wife, Su’er, at home.

Su’er prepared a whole table of good food and even went out to buy wine.

I felt terribly embarrassed. “I’m imposing on you.”

At that, Su’er blushed. “What are you saying, Sister Ning? If you hadn’t saved Brother Hu from those mountain bandits last year, how could we still have this home?”

“Exactly!” Xiaohu brought over bowls for the wine. “Sister Ning, we’re family. Why talk like we’re strangers?”

“That An Chao is blind as a bat. Sister Ning, don’t waste your worries on him.”

He filled a bowl for me. “Come on, Sister Ning. Have a taste.”

We drank and talked.

Before long, Su’er was drunk.

Xiaohu helped Su’er into the room to rest, then came back out not long after.

He had been drinking too, and his face was a little red.

“Sister Ning, Su’er and I are planning to have a baby next year.”

“That’s wonderful!” I was genuinely happy for them. “When the time comes, I’ll prepare a big red envelope for you.”

“Thank you, Sister Ning.”

He grinned foolishly and started telling me all about the future he had planned.

“Oh, right, Sister Ning, have you heard? That escort job our agency was supposed to take next month, from Cloud City to Capital City…”

He lowered his voice. “It’s fallen through.”

I froze for a moment. “How do you know?”

“I overheard it when I went to collect my pay today.”

That job was a shipment of fine cloth from Jinxiu Cloth Shop in Cloud City to Yunsha Fabric Shop in Capital City.

The employer had offered a high price, so we would have made quite a bit of silver from the trip.

Now that it had suddenly fallen through, Xiaohu sounded a little dejected.

Puzzled, I asked, “Why did it fall through?”

“No idea.”

He shook his head. “But maybe it’s for the best. It’s almost the end of the year anyway. I can stay home and keep Su’er company, so she won’t have to spend every day worrying about me.”

I patted him on the shoulder.

Then I lifted my bowl and clinked it against his. “Come on.”

Fragrant white wine splashed out and fell onto the wooden table, leaving specks of stains behind.

…

The next day, we learned the answer.

Why had that escort job been canceled so suddenly?

Because the owner of Yunsha Fabric Shop was dead!

And he had died a horrifying death. Blood had poured from all seven orifices, and his heart had been dug out.

In the vast meeting hall, everyone looked at one another in dismay.

Xiaohu pressed, “Chief, did they catch the killer?”

“No. But the whole of Capital City is saying the owner of Yunsha Fabric Shop wasn’t killed by a person.”

“Then how did he die?”

“A demon.”

My hand paused on the sword I was wiping, and I looked up.

The Chief continued, “They say it was a fox demon, no less.”

“Are there really… demons in this world?”

“Who knows?” The Chief did not seem very willing to discuss the topic.

“Whether it’s a demon or a ghost, anything that ruins our business is no good thing!”

He spat, then his eyes shifted. Grinning, he walked over to me. “Qiniang, the agency still has one more escort job before the new year. Old Qian’s old back injury has flared up, so he may not be able to go. How about you take it in his place?”