Chapter 278: Bao Shu
Chu Li frowned and asked, “What’s nice to see about killing people?”
Xiao Shi replied, “I want to see how the bandits look like, such immoral people!”
Chu Li said, “They’re no different from commoners. That’s enough, I’ll be back in a while!”
He disappeared right after that, without a trace.
Xiao Shi was baffled so she stomped her feet.
Yang Xu laughed and said, “Lady, the Chief is just being considerate. You really shouldn’t witness people killing.”
“You’ve seen people kill before?”
“I’ve seen it once, and I still feel uncomfortable just by the thought of it. My whole body feels uneasy and I even had nightmares for a long time back then!”
“What’s the big deal about death? Everyone dies anyway.”
Yang Xu continued, “Anyway, it’s best not to witness it.”
“He can watch so why can’t we? Is he much braver than us?” Xiao Shi said unsatisfyingly.
“After all, he’s a man. He has stronger positive energy. It’s better that us as women, avoid watching those atrocities,” Yang Xu continued.
While the both of them continued, Chu Li arrived at a Mountain Village.
It was a dilapidated Mountain Village. There was a big hole in the door of the village that only allowed one person to enter at a time. The Protector at the door was dozing off. He carried a long knife.
At dusk, smoke curled up from the kitchen chimney in the Mountain Village. People in the village started preparing for dinner.
On the other hand, the village further down was not preparing for a meal but it was raging with smoke and fire. As Chu Li thought about this, he became even more furious and his wish to kill these bandits became even stronger.
Chu Li glided in the wind and landed before the Protector who was on guard. When his sword flashed, the Protector died instantly as his knife pierced through his heart. Although the sword technique that was transformed from the First Form of Divine Blade was unsatisfactory, its power was still shocking.
Chu Li flew into the Mountain Village.
When the children who were playing and running around in the stockaded village saw him, they screamed instantly and ran away one after another.
Chu Li did not bother about those children. He only looked at the bandits who charged out with their knives and swords. As he saw that they were full of killing intent, Chu Li’s face turned dark and he charged towards them ferociously with his knife constantly flashing. Each time it flashed, a heart was pierced through.
With just minimal effort, dozens of men had fallen to the ground. Only the children, the elderly and the infirm watched him blankly. They were stunned by what Chu Li had done.
Chu Li scanned the place with the Omniscient Mirror. He zoomed away as he found a few men who had slipped away and killed them one by one before flying away once again.
When Chu Li left, earth-shattering cries, screams, and insults were heard from behind him. They were from the women.
Chu Li showed no mercy and he did not slow down.
When he appeared before the two ladies again, Xiao Shi stared at him.
She was curious as Chu Li had a relaxing smile on him, which made him look like he had just saved someone instead of killing someone.
Yang Xu checked him out too.
Chu Li smiled and said, “Let’s go.”
Since he had exterminated a whole village full of bandits and saved countless innocent lives, his deeds were praiseworthy and were worthy to be congratulated. Hence Chu Li was in a good mood.
As for the bandits who died, Chu Li had not treated them as humans in the first place – they were like pigs and dogs to him.
——
The three of them arrived at Qing Yun Town in just a night’s time.
Chu Li followed the address given to him and found the three residences.
Xiao Shi checked out the courtyard then turned around and looked at Chu Li. She looked confused.
The courtyard had no garden, no bamboo forest, and no pagoda. There was only one well in the empty courtyard. From the entrance of the courtyard to the living room, there was only one pathway made of stones which functioned as a footpad on rainy days so they would not fall into the bog.
They were at the poorest residence, which was completely different from what Xiao Shi had expected.
The residences around them were similar to theirs and it was obvious that the people living there were poor.
Chu Li nodded his head satisfyingly, although his residence was a run-down, its location was good.
The three residences were next to the town wall so they could leave the town anytime.
“Is this really the place? Chief, isn’t this too miserable?” Yang Xu laughed and asked.
Chu Li replied, “Only this place will be unexpected by the others so it won’t attract attention.”
“But the Lady is out of tune with this place,” Yang Xu said.
Even if Xiao Shi covered her face, her graceful body and elegant temperament would certainly stand out and people would certainly stop and stare.
“Then don’t go out. We won’t be staying for long.”
“That’s it then. It’s not bad either. I’ve never lived in such an old and ruined place.” Xiao Shi smiled and said.
Yang Xu sighed. “I’m just afraid that the Lady will not be used to it.”
“We won’t be here for long anyway. Clean up the place. I’m getting tired,” Xiao Shi said.
“Yes,” Yang Xu agreed helplessly, then entered the house.
Chu Li said, “Both of you stay here. I’ll stay on the other side.”
He pointed towards the courtyard in the East direction.
“You’re not staying with us?” Xiao Shi was surprised.
Chu Li continued, “If we stay together, I’ll ruin your reputation. Get some rest soon. If you need anything, please let me know. I’ll buy them tomorrow so both of you should avoid going out!”
“Alright.” Xiao Shi looked at him for a while then nodded gently.
Chu Li flew and went over the wall before entering the courtyard on the East.
Although the courtyard was quite ruined, the bedding in the house was all brand-new. Jiang Kuai was very thoughtful as he had prepared everything well.
He sat on a pit and exercised with his legs crossed. The night passed by quickly.
In the morning, after Chu Li had completed his training, he went over to the courtyard on the West side.
Xiao Shi was pacing back and forth in the courtyard. It was her Health Technique. As she walked, she curiously checked out each corner of the place.
Once Chu Li saw her clothes, he could not help but laugh.
Xiao Shi was wearing an old-fashioned, green floral coat, which was significantly different from how she looked yesterday.
If people did not look at her face, they would not have thought that she was the prettiest lady in the Great Ji.
On the other hand, Yang Xu was hustling and bustling around. She made a fire to make meals and dressed like a countryside maid, clean and neat.
“She’s really good,” Xiao Shi said while yawning.
Chu Li laughed and asked, “You didn’t sleep well, did you?”
Xiao Shi answered, “With a sudden change of bed, it was quite odd but I felt at peace nonetheless.”
Chu Li felt relieved after seeing her. He flew back to his courtyard and continued his training to prepare his self-cultivation for the Heavenly Demonic Power.
He waited for Yang Xu to finish her meal preparation and asked her to call him when the meal was ready so he could join them to eat.
For the following days, they settled down in the house.
The three residences that they stayed at were located on the far West side of the avenue. They were right next to the town wall, so they had no neighbors.
On the East side of Chu Li’s residence was a family with a middle-aged woman and her twenty-year-old son.
Xiao Shi and Yang Xu almost never stepped out of their house.
Instead, Chu Li had to make the rounds every day. He had to buy vegetables, meat, rice, and other miscellaneous things, on top of the daily necessities which were trivial matters to him.
Other than running errands, Chu Li became used to roaming around the town. He would walk around and explore the terrains while listening to hearsays among the people.
Chu Li found out that the son from the household on the East side of his house belonged to an association and that he was a disciple of the Swan Goose Association.
That evening, he carried braised pork and returned to the residence as he showered in the sunset.
On the avenue, wisps of smoke were seen rising from the chimneys from all the houses.
Suddenly, Chu Li saw a boy snatching an old lady’s basket.
He recognized the boy. He was Yang Baoshu, the son of his East side neighbor.
“Baoshu, there’s really no need for that. I can carry this.” the old lady held her basket to herself and shook her head hard.
“Madam, I’m not trying to lecture you, but you’re old. There’s no need for you to flaunt your superiority so leave this to me and I’ll settle it for you!” Yang Baoshu was tall and had a well-built body. He had a long face with squinty eyes and was everything but handsome.
There were two bruises on his face, which obviously indicated that he had been in a fight.
As he said that, Yang Baoshu forcefully snatched the old lady’s basket and carried her into the house. After a while, he left the place with a happy face.
When Yang Baoshu raised his head, he saw Chu Li so he greeted him with a smile.
Chu Li nodded and paced forward slowly with his hands behind his back.
Yang Baoshu scratched his head as he watched Chu Li leave.
He thought to himself that his neighbor was an odd person too.
He thought that Chu Li looked like a scholar since he always idled about. Other than watching people play chess, he would hang around casually, so it seemed like he had nothing to do all day long.
Moreover, Chu Li wore a white robe all the time, which allowed him to show affectation.
But if he wore a white robe at such a place, how could he work?
There was mud everywhere in the avenue. If it rained, he would be splattered with mud easily. That would be deliberately finding trouble for himself!
As Yang Baoshu turned his head quietly, he rubbed his face. He was very anxious to rub away the two bruises on his face. He returned home ploddingly.
Soon after, Chu Li heard screams from his neighbor’s house. Yang Baoshu was being chased and beaten by his petite mother with a broom.