CHAPTER 80

The Massacre Case

"Miss, take a look at my rouge, it's all top-quality and would surely suit you!"

"Miss, check out my accessories, each one is stylish and unique, perfect for you!"

"Miss..."

The stall owners crowded forward, competing with one another to push their goods with everything they had. Half of it was for their livelihood, and the other half was to seize the chance to get close to a beauty. Their frantic behavior made them look like sharks smelling bl0od.

In the eastern alley near Guihua [Osmanthus] Street, Lingnan Liuzhou, a surge of people gathered, all because of two unfamiliar women, or, to be precise, just one of them.

She was an aloof and ethereal woman, her face veiled with mermaid silk, hiding her breathtaking beauty and revealing only a pair of deep, ink-black eyes that captivated all who saw her.

Her figure was slender and graceful, her demeanor elegant, and her every movement carried an indescribable ease and charm.

Such a beauty.

No one knew how cold her expression was beneath the veil.

Only the young girl beside her sensed the chilling aura emanating from her and couldn't help but shiver.

Gently tugging at her sleeve, the girl whispered, "Senior Brother, what's wrong? Are you unhappy? This dress is made from the finest silk brocade, crafted by the most skilled seamstresses. Even a royal princess would rarely see something like this!"

'In other words, what more could you possibly want?'

"Hmph." With a haughty flick of her sleeve, her eyes glinting coldly, she ignored the stunned gazes around her and strode forward without a sideways glance.

"Hey, what's wrong? I really think this outfit looks great on you..." Jogging to keep up, she chattered incessantly, the mischief in her eyes undiminished.

The two of them, pulling and tugging at each other, became the most eye-catching sight on Guihua Street.

These two were, of course, Su Yan and Tong Tong, who were currently on the run.

It had been three days since they teleported from Niutou Village to Liuzhou, a hundred miles away, but Su Yan still couldn't adjust to her new attire.

She was convinced that something must have gone wrong during the teleportation, causing her to lose her senses, which was why she had agreed to Tong Tong's suggestion of disguising herself in women's clothing to avoid detection.

From the time she could remember until now, nearly a hundred years, she had never once worn such flowing, ethereal dress that swayed with every step, let alone imagined what it would be like to adorn her dark hair with pearls and hairpins, even though she knew she was, without a doubt, a woman.

"Senior Brother, you said it yourself, we're being hunted by several major sects. They've surely posted our descriptions everywhere, maybe even plastered our portraits all over the streets! As for me, I have some self-awareness. My face is so ordinary it disappears in a crowd, the epitome of average." Tong Tong spoke with a hint of disappointment and reluctance, but a sly glint flashed across her face, leaving Su Yan unsure of her true thoughts. "But you're different!"

Growing excited, Tong Tong boldly lifted Su Yan's well-shaped chin, her eyes gleaming with what she thought was sincerity but what Su Yan saw as lecherous delight. "Such a pretty little face, unforgettable at first sight, captivating at the second, enchanting everyone regardless of age or gender. If you swagger down the street like this, you'll definitely be recognized!"

She spoke with conviction, nodding emphatically to drive her point home.

Her fingertips brushed against the delicate skin of Su Yan's jaw, and she couldn't resist the urge to caress it, lingering over the flawless texture. She narrowed her eyes slightly, smiling like a cat that had gotten the cream, and the words tumbled out without a second thought: "Senior Brother, the enemy is in the open, we're in the shadows. To maintain this advantage, we need to disguise ourselves."

"Oh?" Enduring the tingling sensation on her chin, Su Yan raised an eyebrow and asked coolly, "And... what do you suggest?"

'This silly girl, her skills haven't improved, but her audacity has certainly grown!'

"Hehe, I have a brilliant plan!" Tong Tong showed no intention of retracting her unruly hand, her smile so bright it was almost blinding. "Hehehehe..."

Su Yan shot her a cold glare, though a trace of indulgence flickered at the corner of her mouth.

Half a moment later.

Clenching her fists inside her sleeves, Su Yan glared at Tong Tong with a cold sneer, barely holding onto her last shred of composure. "So this is your so-called 'brilliant plan'?"

'Good, just wonderful!'

She must have been kicked in the head by a donkey to believe this silly girl's nonsense!

Pointing at an exquisitely crafted wide-sleeved silk dress, Su Yan felt her expression twist in disbelief: She'd rather fight Zhu Ligang for three hundred rounds than wear something like this!

Could it be that this idiot has already guessed she's actually a woman and is using this to test her?

When had she become so cunning?

Had she grown without her noticing, or had she simply never truly understood her?

With these thoughts, Su Yan's panic and anger instantly melted into melancholy, tinged with an indescribable sense of loss.

Yet Tong Tong beamed with delight, like a child who had just pulled off a successful prank. She tugged at Su Yan's sleeve and earnestly persuaded, "Don't be like that, Senior Brother! I know you're a man of integrity and unyielding spirit!" As Su Yan shot her a disgusted look, Tong Tong playfully blinked her eyes and shifted her tone. "But precisely because of that, our enemies would never expect you to 'dress as a woman'!"

Holding up the flowing, ribbon-adorned dress, Tong Tong delivered an impassioned speech: "Think about it! Who would ever guess that the esteemed disciple of the Chonghua Sect's leader would stoop to such a great sacrifice? This is what we call catching the enemy off guard and securing victory! Think the unthinkable, do the undoable!"

'Ahahaha, Su Yan, just give in and obey me!'

'There's nothing more delightful than cross-dressing!'

The mere thought of her stoic senior brother's expression crumbling, or even blushing shyly, in women's clothing filled Tong Tong with uncontrollable excitement. This inexplicable thrill was far more captivating than any potentially confirmed suspicions.

Perhaps deep down, she simply wanted to see what kind of breathtaking elegance Su Yan would possess once he shed his rigid, somber black robes.

Narrowing her phoenix-like eyes with a hint of danger, Su Yan glanced at Tong Tong, who wore an expression that seemed to say, "Aren't I amazing?" and "Don't praise me, I'll get shy." Her voice remained as cold as ever. "Are you that eager to see me in women's clothing?"

'Did the tailor give you a kickback or something? Why are you so invested in this? It's hard not to suspect ulterior motives.'

Unconsciously slipping into conspiracy theories, Su Yan furrowed her brow slightly, pondering how best to discipline this troublesome troublemaker.

But when she looked up and saw the sparkling anticipation in Tong Tong's eyes, the words of refusal stuck in her throat. Against her better judgment, she found herself agreeing...

The result of that momentary lapse in judgment was Su Yan's first experience wearing beautiful yet unbearably cumbersome women's clothing, surrounded by bustling crowds on the street. She wanted to lash out but had no target for her frustration, a feeling of suffocating humiliation she never wished to relive.

To make matters worse, knowing full well how uncomfortable she was in the outfit, Tong Tong still wheedled and insisted on dragging her through the streets in search of snacks, completely contradicting her earlier excuse of maintaining a low-profile disguise. If not for the need to test whether the disguise was convincing, she would never have indulged this foolish girl's whims!

As for being unable to resist her acting cute or wanting to spoil her unconditionally, absolutely not!

Su Yan snorted reluctantly, taking the stick of candied hawthorn berries Tong Tong shoved into her hands. Under her pleading smile, she frowned and took a reluctant bite. The overly sweet sugar coating made her pause uncomfortably for a moment, but when Tong Tong glanced back with a charming, expectant smile, the corners of her lips curved upward. She swallowed the bite as if it were nothing. "...Not bad."

Her voice was slightly muffled, and the tips of her ears flushed with a barely perceptible tinge of embarrassment.

'Aww, Senior Brother is blushing! Isn't he adorable?'

'So cute, so cute...' The line of subtitles kept replaying in her mind, and Tong Tong felt she was about to burst with uncontrollable laughter.

Just as expected, after changing into women's attire, Su Yan still retained her cold and aloof demeanor, yet now carried an additional gentle, water-like grace. Even her indifferent expression seemed more vivid, as if concealing a hint of unspoken tenderness... Was it just an illusion?

But this version of Su Yan was truly captivating.

Taking a big bite of the candied hawthorn, Tong Tong felt the sweetness seep from the tip of her tongue all the way to the depths of her heart.

As the two of them were immersed in their tender moment, a deafening gong suddenly rang out in the distance, "Clang!"

The noisy street corner fell into a momentary hush.

Following the gong, mournful drum music began to play, its sorrowful melody characteristic of a funeral procession, gradually chilling the hearts of those who heard it.

Tong Tong stood on tiptoe to look over and saw white funeral banners fluttering in the wind, paper money scattering like snowflakes. A procession of musicians dressed in mourning clothes, playing various instruments, marched forward, followed by pallbearers carrying coffins, fine nanmu coffins, each borne by four people. She quickly counted, there were a staggering thirty-seven coffins in total!

The entire long street was filled with the funeral procession. The solemn and dignified atmosphere made the street vendors, who had been busy with their trade, instinctively step back to clear a wider path, avoiding any disrespect to the somber occasion.

'My heavens! Whose funeral procession is this? What a grand spectacle!'

'Is it now fashionable to hold group funerals? So many people at once?'

Tong Tong thought in astonishment, not even noticing that the syrup from the candied hawthorn had stained her collar.

After what felt like an entire incense stick's worth of time, the winding funeral procession finally reached its end. Behind the last, smaller coffin walked a young woman dressed in coarse white mourning attire, her face streaked with tears, lips pale, and delicate features etched with restrained sorrow.

Beside her was a tall, thin man wearing light mourning clothes, his demeanor gentle and refined, his gaze filled with tender affection and concern.

The two walked silently at the rear of the procession, neither crying nor making a fuss, yet the profound sadness radiating from their eyes seemed even more heart-wrenching than the loud wailing from the front.

Only after the procession had gradually faded into the distance and completely disappeared from view did Tong Tong overhear the auntie running the wonton stall whisper to her husband, "The Cong family from Tangli Lane in the north, what sin did they commit? Dozens of people in the household suddenly died overnight, leaving only the youngest daughter, who married into a neighboring county, and her husband to rush back for the funeral. How pitiful..."

"Exactly!" The uncle tapped his pipe against the sole of his shoe, then lit it, squinting as he took a puff. After exhaling a smoke ring, he sighed, "They say the Cong family had climbed high, marrying into an immortal sect, but before they could enjoy their fortune, disaster struck... Some say it was bandits robbing and k!lling, but nothing valuable seemed to be missing from the Cong residence. Others say it was a plague... In my opinion, maybe they offended some deity or spirit..."

He solemnly pointed his thumb toward the sky, then abruptly fell silent under his wife's disapproving gaze. With a calm expression, he took another puff of his pipe and turned back to rolling wonton wrappers.

Eavesdropping intently, Tong Tong pursed her lips, her mind already racing with the uncle's vague speculations: 'Wow! A massacre of an entire family! There must be more to this story!'

Clenching her small fists, Tong Tong felt her inner detective spirit ignite with burning curiosity.

Watching the naive girl who had been piqued with interest, Su Yan shook her head. Yet, she couldn't help but pay a fraction of attention to that unexpectedly massacred Cong family: 'An immortal sect... Heh.'

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