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Chapter 99 The Precious Robe
The setting sun painted the hillside orange-red, and the silver-trimmed Taoist robe shone brightly in its light. The Silver Incense Burner Boy stood with his hands behind his back, his little face serious, like a little overseer inspecting his territory.

Not far behind him, on the shady side of the mountain, the "old cat" demon, bound like a zongzi (sticky rice dumpling) for the Dragon Boat Festival, huddled in the dust. Its short, gray fur was messy and covered with grass clippings and mud. Several cuts from thorns were oozing blood, making it look as miserable as could be.

Old Cat's large, terrified eyes, listening to the sounds, guessed that the newly built village at the foot of the hillside, whose foundation had just been laid, might have been reduced to ruins by the two boys in a few blows, and his heart clenched.

These past two days have been a nightmare for it. Either it's been forced to go to Gao Village to cause trouble by those two little devils, or it's been chased so badly by that big fat pig in Gao Village that it's practically turned into pig food.

It was already as timid as a mung bean, and couldn't stand being scared. After a few times, it was almost driven to the brink of nervous breakdown.

"Oh... what sins did I commit in my past life...?"

The old cat inwardly wailed, filled with regret.
"If I'd known I'd taken this job was a death trap, I wouldn't have done it even for a mountain of gold! When will these two bastards ever stop? If they keep messing around like this, I'll be dead sooner or later..."

Especially when the "new village" completely disappeared, its foundation seemingly plowed by lightning, Old Cat's heavy heart sank into an ice cave; it panicked terribly.
"Oh no, oh no, they've wrecked the house! Are they leaving? Before they go... will they find me a burden and just slap me to death to keep me quiet?"

The more I thought about it, the more frightened I became, and my body trembled even more violently.

Just then, footsteps and voices came from the other side of the hillside. One was steady and familiar—it was the man who had directed the binding of it a few days ago. The other had a slightly childish voice—wasn't that the boy in the gold-embroidered Taoist robe?

The old cat quickly held his breath and pricked up his ears to eavesdrop; this was a matter of life and death for him.

"That guy's been here for a few days now, has he been behaving himself?" Chen Guangrui's voice came over, sounding like he was chatting casually.

The Golden Furnace Boy's voice carried a hint of pride in having completed his mission.

"Honest as ever! He'll go cause trouble in the village when you tell him to, and he runs pretty fast!"

The old cat felt a slight sense of relief.
Phew...is he praising me? Looks like I did alright, maybe...maybe he'll let me go soon?
But before it could even enjoy its joy for two seconds, Chen Guangrui abruptly changed the subject, "Oh? Then...did he confess?"

Old Cat was instantly dumbfounded. "Huh? Confess what? Confess what! These past two days, besides making me cause trouble and act like a monkey, you haven't asked me a single question!"

The Golden Furnace Boy replied bluntly, "No way. He hasn't said anything yet."

The old cat was heartbroken.

"Brother, you little devil! Why don't you ask me first? If you don't ask, how am I supposed to know what to confess? If you ask me, you'll know whether I confess or not."

It felt so wronged that it had nowhere to vent its grievances and felt like it was being wronged to death.

What Chen Guangrui said next struck it like a thunderbolt.
"Hmph, looks like he's not being honest."

Chen Guangrui's voice was cold, carrying an air of all-knowing certainty.

Sure enough! The Golden Furnace Boy immediately chimed in, his tone both innocent and cruel, "Then what's the point of keeping him around? He's a nuisance. Why not just kill him? We won't get anything out of him anyway."

The old cat's heart stopped; it was so frightened it almost lost its soul on the spot. Its fur stood on end, and only the words "kill it" were frantically swirling in its mind.

But Chen Guangrui's next words made it feel as if it had stepped into a real abyss.
"No rush to kill him. He already knows what he needs to know. The other monster is much more 'sensible' than him; he's said everything he should and shouldn't have said."

Chen Guangrui spoke at a steady pace, yet with an undeniable air of authority.

"We'll just take him directly to the Black Bear Spirit in a bit. We'll say that it was Old Cat who confessed and led the way, which is how the Black Bear Spirit was implicated. I'm sure Master Black Bear is compassionate and will deal with him according to the rules and regulations of his sect."

He paused, as if stating a well-known fact, "After all, that black bear spirit is famous for chanting scriptures and eating vegetarian food in his cave every day, so he will definitely 'discipline' this subordinate who talks nonsense."

Vegetarian diet and Buddhist chanting? Proper discipline? The old cat's soul is about to fly away!

At first, he thought Chen Guangrui was lying to scare him, but now that he heard it, he was sure it was true.

It knows all too well what a ruthless character its "boss" really is behind the scenes!
Compassion? Chanting Buddhist scriptures? Anyone who dares to reveal his secrets and push him out to take the blame will only end up as the softest piece of "cat meat" in the pot, dying a death a thousand times worse than if he fell into the hands of those two little boys.

The Golden Furnace Boy, however, was a little curious. He blinked his big eyes, clearly not yet having reached that level of knowledge, and asked Chen Guangrui with childlike doubt,

"Eating vegetarian food and chanting Buddhist scriptures? A demon... can be that good?"

Chen Guangrui's voice carried a faint smile, adding to its credibility.
"You don't understand. This black bear spirit is no ordinary person. He has real skills, a thorough understanding of Buddhist scriptures, and is very strict in his practice. He usually only has three or five subordinates, and he keeps them under strict control, forbidding them from doing anything wrong outside."

His last, seemingly casual remark struck Old Cat's heart like a hammer blow.

"So, just send this unruly old cat back to its rightful owner."

Old Cat was completely convinced. The other party even knew the boss's secret details, such as "having only a few subordinates," "being extremely low-key," and "being particular about scriptures." Outsiders could never know these things.

It's definitely because the youngest brother couldn't withstand the torture and confessed everything, even selling himself out. Now he's in a situation where he can't clear his name no matter what.

The sound of their footsteps grew closer, rounding the bushes and appearing atop the hillside. The setting sun outlined Chen Guangrui's calm profile and the Golden Furnace Boy, who was peeking out with a curious expression.

The Golden Furnace Boy looked at the old cat trembling on the ground, its eyes brimming with tears, and a hint of surprise appeared on his little face.
"Huh? Why are you crying? We're going to send you back to your boss. Aren't you happy? Or are you just too excited?"

The old cat could no longer hold back! Overwhelmed by immense fear, it struggled violently against its bound body, crying and wailing with tears streaming down its face. Its voice was hoarse and desperate, and it kowtowed repeatedly, its sobs filling the air.

"No...don't send me back! I won't go back, please! I'll confess! I'll confess everything! I'll tell you everything you want to know! I won't hide a single word, just don't send me back, please, gentlemen, spare my life!"

Seeing the old cat so terrified that it spilled everything as soon as it was asked a question, Yuan Shoucheng, who was squatting to the side, almost burst out laughing.

His lips twitched, and he muttered to himself,
"Well, this Scholar Chen is really wasting his talent if he doesn't set up a fortune-telling stall. With his ability to bluff and intimidate, even if he doesn't know how to calculate or deduce, he won't starve just by talking."

This little demon was clearly stunned by Chen Guangrui's elaborate scheme of "the youngest brother confessed everything" and "the Black Bear Spirit is going to clean house," and spilled all the pitiful bits of knowledge he knew. Yuan Shoucheng was smugly thinking about how he had seen through Chen Guangrui's tricks when suddenly a chill ran down his spine, and he felt a chill run down his spine.

"Wait a minute... this kid is so good at conning people, could it be... he even managed to fool me, this old Taoist priest?"

He quickly went through his interactions with Chen Guangrui in his mind before he felt a little relieved. "No, no, I, Yuan Shoucheng, have been in the business for so many years. How could I be so easily fooled by a junior? No way."

Chen Guangrui then asked,
"The gold and silver you earn by 'working' outside, does it all end up with the Black Bear Spirit?"

"Yes, yes, yes, they all belong to the boss."

The old cat nodded vigorously, readily admitting it.

“We little demons who have just gained sentience have shallow cultivation. What use are those glittering gold and silver to us? We can’t eat or drink them. But… but our boss really likes them. He especially loves looking at those shiny things, especially those precious robes adorned with gold thread and embroidered with Buddhist treasure patterns. His eyes light up whenever he sees something good!”

He glanced furtively at the "men" in front of him, afraid that speaking too slowly would make them think he was being dishonest, and quickly added...

"We only know that the boss took them, but... but what exactly does he need those precious robes for? We lowly underlings really have no idea."

Yuan Shoucheng, listening nearby, grimaced and silently complained to himself.

"Good heavens, that black bear demon has thick eyebrows and big eyes. In front of people, he acts like a great monk, spouting 'Amitabha' and 'karma' all the time. Who would have thought that behind the scenes he's into such mundane things, even collecting precious robes? Heh, what a hobby... tsk!"

He felt there was something inexplicably sinister about the matter.

The Golden Furnace Boy also frowned, his childish face full of confusion.
"What use do cultivators have for these vulgar worldly possessions? Even this little demon looks down on them, yet this powerful demon with cultivation is obsessed with them?"

This completely overturned his limited understanding.

Chen Guangrui remained expressionless, as if he had thought of something. He didn't say anything, but pressed for details, "Where did you get those so-called precious cassocks?"

Old Cat answered honestly, "Either my brothers and I robbed those unlucky monks passing by on the road...or...or the Turks helped us get them. They seem to be specially made with a lot of gold and silver thread, very shiny..."

"Did the Black Bear Demon take matters into his own hands and steal it?" Chen Guangrui stared at him sharply.

"No, no, no!" The old cat shook its head violently in fright, almost shaking its bound body apart.
"Our boss never lifts a finger! He's a Buddhist monk and a hermit, and when it comes to bloodshed... it's always us little monsters who do it."

The old cat's voice grew softer and softer, tinged with tears, "All he wants is a clean baby."

Chen Guangrui nodded, seemingly having asked enough questions, and prepared to leave. But suddenly, he remembered a crucial point and squatted down again to ask, "Besides you and your companion Lao Yao, how many lesser demons does the Black Bear Demon have left?"

Old Cat tried hard to recall, "Originally, the boss only had a few of us little creatures in the mountains who had just gained sentience, and he led us in cultivation. A few years ago... it seems like two of them disappeared for no reason, I don't know where they went or what. Now it's just me, the youngest... oh right, there should be one more in the mountains... so there are only three of us in total."

Only after receiving this answer did Chen Guangrui truly stand up, indicating that it was time to leave.

The Golden Furnace Boy followed Chen Guangrui, looking at the terrified old cat on the ground, and asked earnestly, "Mr. Chen, this little monster has done so many heinous things and taken many lives. What should we do with him?"

Chen Guangrui glanced at the boy and stated the facts in a calm tone, "Those who commit many evils will be punished."

The boy with the golden furnace instantly showed an expression of "understanding" on his childish face, and his eyes became resolute.

Without asking any more questions, he flipped his little hand and solemnly took out a purple-gold gourd that exuded a slightly ancient aura from his bosom.

Yuan Shoucheng, who witnessed the whole thing, couldn't help but twitch his eyes, managing to suppress any hint of schadenfreude.

This seemingly delicate and adorable little child can be incredibly ruthless when she gets angry; she's not someone to mess with!
The Golden Furnace Boy put away the Purple Gold Gourd, shook it in his hand, and knew that after a while, there wouldn't be much left in the gourd.

At this moment, only Chen Guangrui and Yuan Shoucheng remained in the same spot.

Yuan Shoucheng then moved closer to Chen Guangrui, rubbing his hands together, his face once again displaying that shrewd smile typical of people who frequent the streets, and chuckled in a low voice.

"Scholar Chen, it seems that the Black Bear Spirit... has quite a few secrets. The cassock, the Turkic people, and the vanished subordinates... something's fishy, ​​definitely fishy. Do you know something?"

Chen Guangrui glanced at him, but didn't stop walking.

"Want to know more?" He paused, then said, "Calculate it yourself."

Yuan Shoucheng's smile froze instantly. He immediately pursed his lips and muttered under his breath.

"Calculate, calculate, calculate everything. Physical fitness is free, but an old man's body isn't some cabbage; it can't withstand this kind of calculation..."

At this moment, Chen Guangrui suddenly stopped and turned to look at Yuan Shoucheng, his eyes sharp and insightful. "Old Yuan."

"Ah? What's the matter?"

Yuan Shoucheng hadn't expected that after Chen Guangrui finished asking the little monster called "Old Cat" today, he would still have something to ask him.

Um, is he trying to fool me too?

Although Yuan Shoucheng was still smiling, he had already begun to be wary.

"What you just did..." Chen Guangrui asked slowly, her gaze shifting to the direction where the golden and silver boys had disappeared.
"Your attitude towards those two young boys was a bit too respectful. You weren't like this when we first met. You... did you notice something?"

(End of this chapter)