Under One Person: The Taoist Priest Descends the Mountain

Xia He turned to Cheng Mo and said, "When I was little, my grandpa would bring me here during holidays. His stir-fried eel was absolutely delicious."

Cheng Mo looked at the greasy menus: "This is the feast you were talking about?"

Xia He declared confidently, "It was a feast I had when I was a child!"

Cheng Mo was silent for two seconds: "But we're not children anymore."

Xia He suddenly clasped her hands together and blinked, "Oh, please take me back to the taste of my childhood! This was a real feast back then!"

Cheng Mo said expressionlessly, "No, you want me to show you around? You want me to pay for it?"

"..."

Xia He remained silent for a while, then said softly, "Little Taoist, I think you're most handsome when you're not talking."

Cheng Mo raised an eyebrow: "That's a good point. I'm handsome when I talk too."

Xia He stared at him for three seconds, then surprisingly nodded: "That's true, otherwise I would have just taken action."

Cheng Mo laughed: "You talk as if you can beat me."

Xia He gritted her teeth: "...Would it kill you to let me win just once?"

Cheng Mo leaned back in his chair and said slowly, "It depends on my mood."

"..."

Xia He turned her head to look out the window, not wanting to talk to him anymore.

Cheng Mo didn't mind, picked up the teapot on the table, poured himself some water, and drank it slowly.

Occasionally, someone walks by on the street outside the window, their footsteps clattering.

Not long after, the dishes were served.

The eels were arranged in concentric circles and fried until golden brown and crispy.

The pork hock is sliced ​​thinly and arranged on a plate, with alternating layers of fat and lean meat, and it looks delicious.

Sanpiwa is actually just vermicelli stir-fried with minced meat, served on a tile, sizzling and steaming hot.

Stir-fried cured pork with bean curd strips: the cured pork is sliced ​​thinly, and the bean curd strips are stir-fried until soft and glistening with oil.

Xia He picked up her chopsticks, took a piece of eel, put it in her mouth, chewed it, and squinted her eyes.

"Mmm—it still tastes the same!"

Cheng Mo picked up a piece and nodded, "It's alright."

The two stopped arguing and started eating.

Chopsticks twirled and flew, swirling away the remaining clouds in the wind.

In no time, the plates on the table were empty.

Xia He called the owner over to settle the bill, took out her wallet, and paid.

The two walked out of the store.

Xia He was still complaining to him: "It's all your fault, you made me not get to enjoy it properly."

Cheng Mo walked slowly with his hands in his pockets: "Sometimes, food has a memory-enhancing effect. The taste of childhood is always the most unforgettable, but when you taste it again, you find that it's completely different."

Xia He glared at him sideways: "Nonsense! You were the one interfering with me!"

Cheng Mo was about to retort with a couple more words—

Suddenly he shut up.

Xia He also frowned.

An eighteen or nineteen-year-old girl rushed over from the side and bumped into Xia He.

Cheng Mo saw it clearly: the moment the two made contact, the girl reached into Xia He's pocket and took out her phone.

Cheng Mo was so angry he laughed.

Did they steal from him?

He reached out and grabbed the girl's wrist.

The girl immediately panicked: "You're hurting me!"

Xia He slapped Cheng Mo's hand away: "Oh dear, it was just an accident, don't take it so seriously."

She waved her hand.

Cheng Mo saw a small note flash across her palm.

He released his grip, frowning, and said, "You hit someone and didn't you know how to apologize?"

The girl quickly bowed to Xia He, saying, "I'm so sorry, sister, I was wrong."

Xia He waved her hand: "Be careful next time."

The girl ran away in a panic.

Xia He pulled Cheng Mo to a secluded corner and unfolded the note.

There are only four words on it—

"Save us!"

The two men's expressions changed, they exchanged a glance, and immediately chased after the girl in the direction she had left.

On the way, Xia He suddenly said, "I've heard of a kind of 'flower hunter' who steals people and then teaches them to cheat and swindle. If they can't learn the skills, they make them disabled so they can beg."

Cheng Mo nodded; he knew this was what was known as the modern-day Beggars' Guild.

But he had one question: "Why did that girl contact us?"

Xia He thought for a moment: "Maybe they're not just looking for us?"

Cheng Mo shook his head: "Those who can be released to work must be performing very well in the team. Such people are unlikely to ask for help from just anyone; otherwise, they might get themselves into trouble."

Xia He thought about it and agreed, but now was not the time to dwell on that.

The two were no ordinary people, and they quickly caught up with the girl.

They kept quiet and followed from a distance, carefully concealing themselves.

There weren't many people on the street, so following them wasn't too difficult, but it was also easy to be spotted.

Cheng Mo and Xia He pretended to be a couple shopping, walking and stopping, their eyes constantly fixed on the figure in front of them.

The girl made several turns and entered a seven-story building.

The two couldn't get too close, so they kept a distance of several dozen meters, pretending to be looking at something by the roadside.

This alley is too narrow; if you follow me in, you'll definitely be discovered.

Fortunately, the girl turned the corner of the alley and entered a building.

It was one of the few seven-story buildings in town, with white ceramic tiles on the exterior walls.

Cheng Mo pulled Xia He around to the back of the building.

The back is a mountain, overgrown with weeds, and nobody pays attention to it.

The two of them used both their hands and feet to climb up the outer wall.

Balcony, security windows, and air conditioner outdoor units are all points of leverage.

They climbed up, one layer at a time.

The girl walked up the stairs floor by floor, and when she reached the fifth floor, she knocked on the door.

A tense male voice came from inside the door: "Who is it?"

Girl: "Me."

The door opened, the girl went in, and then the door closed.

Cheng Mo and Xia He hung on either side of the window, looking inside through the glass.

Cheng Mo and Xia He hung on either side of the window, looking inside through the glass.

……

The room was a mess, with seven or eight children crammed into a corner, the oldest being teenagers and the youngest looking only five or six years old.

Two men in their thirties stood in the middle of the room, one tall and thin, the other short and stout.

The tall, thin man opened the door just now.

The short, stout one, who looked like the boss, leaned against the window, a cigarette dangling from his lips: "Why did it take you so long to get back?"

The girl looked around and asked, "Where's Sister Yanzi?"

The short, fat man kicked her: "Damn it, I'm asking you a question."

The girl was kicked to the ground, got up, stood up, and said with her head down, "My hands were itching on the way here."

The short, fat man held out his hand: "Where's the stuff?"

The girl took out a wallet, handed it over, and asked, "Where did Sister Yanzi go?"

"Damn it!" The short, fat man took the wallet, pulled out the money, and threw it aside. "Yan, you damn sister, you've gone to buy food!"

The short, fat man took a deep drag on his cigarette: "I've already chosen the mountain roads, how did those two bastards end up in this poor place? Don't give me a chance, or I'll turn the woman into a cream puff right in front of that guy!"

The girl remained silent and sat down among the children.

The tall, thin man stood to the side, grinning obsequiously, "Brother Diao, if you'd like, we'll take care of it for him tonight."

Brother Diao kicked him, yelling, "The Medicine Immortal Society has already fallen into the hands of those two, and you're still going to keep going! What the hell are you going to do?!"

……

outside the window.

Xia He pressed herself against the wall and whispered, "They're not talking about the two of us, are they?"

Cheng Mo said coldly, "It's another group of people from the Medicine Immortal Society giving away their services. How come these guys are never finished?!"

Xia He asked, "Should we take action?"

Cheng Mo shook his head: "One more person went to buy food. We'll start cooking when she gets back."

……

In the room.

The girl sat among the children, her palms sweaty.

The wallet she just handed over was stolen by an unlucky passerby. Her phone was still in her pocket, on silent, but she wasn't sure if the two people would arrive in time.

She was actually gambling, and she shouldn't have made a move at this time.

But I couldn't wait any longer.

Sister Yanzi is very sick, and that jerk still made her go out to get food...

Just then—

Dududu.

A knock came at the door.

The tall, thin man asked nervously, "Who?"

Two coughs came from outside the door, followed by a weak female voice: "It's me."

The tall, thin man opened the door.

A woman of about twenty-one or twenty-two years old stood outside the door, her face frighteningly pale. She carried a large bag in each hand, the bags bulging with food containers.

The tall, thin man snatched the bag from the woman's hand.

The woman almost fell over when he pulled her along.

The girl rushed over to support her, saying, "Sister Yanzi, be careful."

Yanzi smiled at her, then turned to the children and said, "Come on, time to eat."

The children's eyes lit up, but they didn't dare to move and all looked at Brother Diao.

Brother Diao tossed his cigarette on the ground, grabbed his lunchbox, and was about to start eating—