The male supporting character was actually myself.

"No wonder, no wonder! I only just realized the reason now, how stupid of me!" The more Taurus Star Lord pondered the change in his attitude, the more he felt that he was right.

The male prostitute is a lazy, greedy, short-sighted gigolo who lives off a woman!

I, Old Niu, was truly blind!

The two men acted in stark contrast; while it resented the useless and inherently wicked Cowherd, it also pondered whether the young man could shoulder the heavy responsibility.

In terms of appearance, the Cowherd was indeed handsome, even though he was born in a mountain village and had a very outstanding appearance. However, the young man had absorbed the essence of heaven and earth to cultivate into a spirit, so he was naturally not bad either. Moreover, he had the advantage of age and temperament over the Cowherd.

In terms of manners, the cowherd was poorly clothed and starving since childhood, not to mention illiterate, and was no different from the men in the village. He walked in a slovenly manner and spoke in a vulgar way. On the other hand, the young man was refined and cultured, and his words and actions were well-mannered.

In terms of character, the Cowherd is short-sighted, greedy, lustful, and spends his nights among flowers. He also speaks ill of the Weaver Girl at the slightest disagreement, so his impression of her is definitely not good. The young man, on the other hand, is kind-hearted and pure-hearted. Even when he encounters an old ox, he takes good care of it. He lives a secluded life in the mountains, unlike those shallow-minded people who use their magic to bully others in the human world...

This is the most important point: the mountain spirits are honest and hardworking, not greedy for money or burdened by fame and fortune. The Cowherd desperately made the celestial maiden weave cloth for a few taels of silver. How could the Weaver Girl, who worked tirelessly day and night, have the time and mood to talk about love?

"If I were with that young man, practicing in the deep mountains, discussing the Tao, and traveling together, given enough time, we should be able to spark a romance, right?" The old ox thought it over and over, and if he were the Weaver Girl, he probably would also prefer the young man.

Moreover, if he could get the other party to rescue the Weaver Girl in a "hero saves the beauty" manner, and if the Cowherd, a mere mortal, were to suffer another mishap and be annihilated, his theft of the fairy robes would be even more discreet.

Even if the Queen Mother of the West leads heavenly soldiers and generals to find me in the future, no matter how much they investigate, there will be no way to verify the truth, and even the soul will be scattered. They will never trace it back to an old ox with no magical aura.

The union between the Weaver Girl and the mountain spirit, though heartfelt, was also a helpless act born of the loss of her fairy robes, and was similar to being forced into the original plan.

At that time, the magpie spirit's work will be much easier; she will only need to lend the young man a hand so that he can catch up with the Weaver Girl.

The two had shared hardships, developed genuine feelings, and even had a child, only to be forced apart. It was anticipated that the Weaver Girl and the young man would not give up, and would be more inclined to cooperate in pressuring the Jade Emperor to amend the Heavenly Laws. As for herself, she would naturally remain calm and collected, avoiding exposure and involvement, awaiting her pardon…

Seeking great things always involves risks. The old ox believed that this approach was more logical and would minimize his own risks. Besides, he couldn't count on the utterly hopeless cowherd anyway, so he might as well try anything, even if it seemed like a last resort.

Recalling the young man's words and actions, the old ox was just like a mother-in-law looking at her son-in-law and becoming more and more satisfied. He unilaterally decided to replace the cowherd and let the handsome young man take over. With his help, the cowherd took the weaver girl into the deep mountains and brought them together as a couple!

"Where could the fairy robe possibly be hidden?" Having communicated beforehand and knowing that the little tree spirit would pretend to bump into the old ox and get close to him, the Weaver Girl hid at the cave entrance and watched from afar. After the little tree spirit left, she sat on the dry grass with a worried look on her face, resting her chin on her hands, completely puzzled.

Although immortals possess magical powers that allow them to transform in countless ways, they remain true to the fundamental principles. Even the Heavenly Emperor, Buddha, and Bodhisattvas must abide by the most basic rules.

The old ox was bound by the Heavenly Laws, and its restored magic power could not transform into human form, so its power was naturally limited. If that was the case, where could it hide such a large and absolutely indestructible immortal robe?

Upon closer inspection, no magical energy fluctuations were found on it. Could it be that after the immortal robe was stolen, it was handed over to someone else and was no longer with the old ox?

Fortunately, the little tree spirit inquired and found that there were no reports of any cultivators causing trouble. However, things could change over time, and while protecting themselves, they had to find the whereabouts of the immortal robes!

The Weaver Girl was secretly annoyed. She was clearly a goddess, yet she couldn't even find her own fairy robes. She was really too useless.

"Shut up!"

Just past noon, Mu Jiuxiu hurriedly drove the mule cart back into the mountains.

"How many bolts of cloth have you woven?" His stomach was growling with hunger. He jumped off the cart and rushed into the cave. His first question was about the progress of the work. Seeing a pile of cloth on the side, he counted it as he carried it back onto the cart. After a moment, Mu Jiuxiu said angrily, "Have you been slacking off again? How come you've only woven ten bolts of cloth in so long?"

The Weaver Girl was already sullen when she saw this, and her face fell. She said coldly, "You come to ask me? You only gave me this much cotton thread. How much cloth can I weave? I could have made quite a bit of money selling those fifteen bolts of cloth yesterday. You can't get fat in one bite. Why are you in such a hurry? Instead of shouting, you should buy some fine silk thread for me to weave. I'll earn much more that way."

"You've used up all the thread?" Mu Jiuxiu, whose mind was filled with thoughts of wine, women, wealth, and power, only then noticed that the Weaver Girl was resting, and immediately felt a pang of regret for wasting time.

On the way back, he calculated that there were too many places where he would need money. He couldn't keep borrowing other people's mule carts every day; he needed to buy a horse-drawn carriage.

Living in a cave without even doors, windows, or a decent bed, how could he possibly sleep on a straw mat after sleeping on Pearl's soft and fragrant bed? He needed to buy a decent house with a comfortable bed, but he was now troubled about where to buy it.

The village is really inconvenient, and the houses are all dilapidated.

Why not just move to the town and live there all at once!

Ideally, one should buy a house with a storefront in the front and a yard in the back. These days, women in respectable families don't show their faces in public. Weavers stay at home and weave cloth, using scarcity marketing to promote their branded fabrics and grow their business.

The starting price of a carriage alone would cost fifty or sixty taels of silver, not to mention a courtyard in a good location in town that would easily cost two or three hundred taels of silver. Money was needed everywhere, but the weaver had no cotton thread to rest on. Mu Jiuxiu's anger flared up instantly.

"Snap!" He happened to be holding a whip for driving the carriage, and he casually lashed it at the Weaver Girl.

You're still thinking, "I can't touch you, but I can't hit you?"

If you're so capable, your magic will at most reflect back onto the whip, it won't interfere with my business!

The moment Mu Jiuxiu lashed out with the whip, a thought flashed through his mind: Damn it, I must have lost my mind! If I can't touch it with my hands, I can use a weapon to hit it!

Whether it's a whip or a stick, they'll beat her until she's covered in wounds and suffers constant torment. They'll either exhaust her magic or make her bones go weak so she has to beg for mercy. Anyway, the mirror world has a story outline, and the Weaver Girl will definitely be suppressed and unable to turn the tables.

Thinking happily, he lashed out at her with the whip. The next second, Mu Jiuxiu felt something crawl up the whip. He didn't hit the Weaver Girl, but instead injured his right arm, causing it to bleed profusely. He screamed in pain as he rushed out of the cave.

"Brother Niu! Quick, help me stop the bleeding!"

Mu Jiuxiu rushed over, clutching his bloodied arm, and shouted, disregarding the possibility that the Weaver Girl might discover the secret the Old Ox was unwilling to reveal: "That little bitch is too ruthless! I was trying to subdue her with a weapon, but I ended up getting hurt like this!"

"Moo~" The old ox noticed that the Weaver Girl was standing at the entrance of the cave, watching them coldly. Not wanting to reveal his identity or care about this good-for-nothing, he could only pretend to be stupid and let out a moo before lowering his head to nibble on the grass.

Long since worn down by the hardships of ancient life, Mu Jiuxiu was furious. He poured water to wash his wound, tore off a piece of cloth to bandage it, and sat under a big tree, watching the Weaver Girl enter the cave before venting his anger on the old ox. "What were you doing? What can you do with so little cotton thread? Why didn't you conjure up some more?"

He pointed to the fabric in the car and said with great distress, "I didn't even have time to eat lunch. I was in a hurry to make another trip to sell the fabric and turn it into money. Wasn't it all for our family?"

Brother Niu, we've relied on each other for so many years and still don't have our own house or land. You see how powerful the Weaver Girl is, right? I guarantee that even if she wanted to leave now, unless you use magic to trap her, I couldn't stop her.

Since she's being silly and won't run away or let us touch her, we might as well keep her calm and let her weave cloth to earn money for us. At least then we'll have a decent home and you won't have to suffer from the wind and rain anymore.

Why can't you understand this logic? You have such high magical power; if you find she's short of thread, it wouldn't be difficult to replenish it with magic. Why waste time and delay our important business?

Seeing that the old ox was only focused on eating grass and ignoring him, Mu Jiuxiu sighed and tried to reason with him, "I originally planned to buy you a cow hair brush in town so you could relax, but you don't know how expensive things are in town, and we only have the cheapest cotton cloth, which doesn't sell for much."

"We're both having a tough time right now, it's just the beginning, so let's be understanding. In a few days, when we have more money, live in a big house, eat and drink well, and the weaver girl's pregnancy is stable enough that her protective spells won't work anymore, I'm sure I can get her to have two children in three years!"

"Moo~" the old ox bellowed again in a low voice, rolled its eyes and thought to itself, "I don't believe you for a second!"

Hemp cloth doesn't sell for much money; cotton cloth doesn't fetch much.

You don't have much money, yet you go to a brothel!

If I hadn't witnessed that scene, I might have believed you a bit more. But now, even the gods combined can't save her. Get lost! The old ox is going to find a new man for the Weaver Girl!

Chapter Twenty: A Three-Way Pull

"Brother Niu, hurry up and conjure up more cotton thread for me! Making money is urgent, we can't afford to delay!" Mu Jiuxiu slapped his thigh anxiously. "Don't worry, I guarantee the Weaver Girl won't run away. No matter how tough she is now, she'll have to obediently give birth to my children in the future!"

What a joke! I'm the protagonist of my own self-written, self-directed, and self-acted world in the mirror; you could even call me the creator.

If Lao Tzu hadn't personally input the story into it to generate the entire world, where would all of you chaotic monsters and demons have come from?

The story is written very clearly, so it will definitely develop to the point where the Weaver Girl obediently submits, and even you, this nagging old ox, will have to be slaughtered by my own hands.

Seeing the other party pretending to be oblivious and eating grass while ignoring everything, the anxious Mu Jiuxiu couldn't help but frown. Tch~ In the original story, the cowherd killing the old ox must have been driven by some personal grudges. Just think about what it did!

The Cowherd treated it so well, but after it gained magical powers, it kept them to itself. Aside from helping it abduct a celestial being as its wife, it didn't offer any help whatsoever. In the end, its wife was captured by the Queen Mother of the West, and its good life was ruined by the Cowherd. Who else should it retaliate against if not the Cowherd?

Knowing full well that abducting a celestial being is risky, yet still encouraging it without informing them of the risks, isn't that just harming honest people?

If only the old ox were a little more honest and learned from the spirits in Strange Tales from a Chinese Studio, using his magic to conjure up something to buy a house, land, a wife, and concubines, the Cowherd would be rich and powerful, living a happy and fulfilling life with a bunch of wives and children.

It deserved it!

Just like now, look at that arrogant attitude, ignoring me completely. Does he really think that a cow with a little bit of skill can become something big?

Hmph! Fool, you don't even know that you're facing the creator of the world, the number one male protagonist of the mirror world.

Let you show off for now. When it's time to sharpen your knife and kill the cow to win back your wife, you'll know how powerful I really am!

"You..." The more Taurus Star Lord looked at the Cowherd, the more displeased he became. His resentment deepened, and he wished he could immediately take the Weaver Girl to the mountain boy. With a long sigh, he conjured up the remaining cotton thread and placed it on the grass in front of him. "If you had been even a little nicer to the Weaver Girl, she wouldn't have hurt you like this."

It's best to be down-to-earth and kind to others.

That's all I have to say; these years of friendship are my final piece of advice to him as we come to an end.

Whether the cowherd can heed that advice or not depends on his own fate.

Perhaps if the Weaver Girl had married the young man and left this place, the Cowherd would have been able to reflect on himself, reform himself, and start a small business with the few taels of silver he earned selling cloth, and then live a stable and prosperous life.

Everyone has their own destiny; he won't force the fate that he didn't marry a celestial being.

Having made up his mind, the old ox felt he had a bit of a Buddhist-like indifference to life and death, and decided to let things take their natural course.

"Am I not reliable enough?" Mu Jiuxiu muttered, glancing at her as he picked up the cotton thread. "We've depended on each other for over ten years. Don't you know how honest and simple I am? Alright, you keep a close eye on her. Remember to replenish the cotton thread she finds missing this time. Don't let the Weaver Girl be idle. Otherwise, she'll miss out on our good opportunities to make money."

After giving him a few instructions, he rushed into the cave with a large pile of cotton thread, handed it to the Weaver Girl, and ordered her to finish weaving it before he returned.

"You really treat me like a slave?" The Weaver Girl was wondering how the little tree spirit could cast such a powerful protective spell with such weak magic. Upon hearing this, she sneered, "Don't forget, I'm not afraid of you. If there were no mastermind behind it all, you, Cowherd, are just an ordinary mortal. What can you do to me?"

With a flick of her sleeve, her headdress, adorned with gold and jade, swayed gently in the sunlight, shimmering so brightly it hurt the eyes and made one afraid to look directly at it. "Go tell the person who instigated you to steal my fairy robes that if he wants to use me as a slave, he'll have to come and do it himself."

I used to think you were an honest and reliable man, someone I could entrust my life to. I never imagined you'd become so frivolous and shameless after making a little money. It's truly disgusting!

Am I inferior?

"Does she think she's invincible and acting all high and mighty?" Mu Jiuxiu was furious but could only glare at the beauty and sneer.

It was just a lash, but instead of getting hurt, the Weaver Girl injured herself badly. To be on the safe side, she should go to town to find a doctor to bandage her up properly to prevent infection and suppuration in the middle of summer.

In ancient times, there were no antibiotics, and even a minor cold could be fatal. Although I am the protagonist and will definitely not die, I still have to be careful to avoid suffering.

"Don't push your luck. I'm doing this for your own good." He pondered for a moment and changed his words to persuade her: "Don't forget that the mastermind behind this wants to take your fairy robe so that you have nowhere to escape and become my wife to bear my children and fall to the mortal world. Do you think you can still stay here and weave cloth peacefully if I find it?"

Mu Jiuxiu spat and sneered, "While I'm being merciful now and haven't called the Great Immortal over to break your self-defense technique, you'd better work obediently if you can weave cloth and make a contribution."

If you really anger me, I'll have a shaman break your spell, and I'll take care of you right here and now!

So what if she's a fairy? She's still just a woman without magic powers, and she still has to have children.

"You don't have any contraception methods. If you're locked up in a cave for six months to a year and get pregnant, no one can save you!"

Looking at his twisted face, the Weaver Girl wished she could tear him to pieces while the protective spell was still effective.

Unfortunately, the Cowherd was clearly afraid and didn't dare to even get close or make a move.

The powerful old ox was not far from the cave. It was only a matter of arguing with the cowherd and it had no reason to help. However, if the cowherd tried to escape, it would inevitably be trapped by the Golden Ox God's magic, which would only increase the cowherd's arrogance.

Finding the fairy robes is of no use, and it's even less helpful in figuring out the immortals involved.

"If you want to make money by weaving, you should go and buy some fine silk thread." She coldly changed the subject, "No matter how you weave cotton thread, it will only turn into cotton cloth. If I could find better silk thread, my hands wouldn't be so sore from all the friction. Weaving more exquisite silks and satins that are unparalleled in the mortal world would fetch a high price. It would make things easier for me and you could earn more money."

She pointed her slender finger to the haystack in the corner and said coldly, "You rely entirely on me to make money by weaving cloth, so at least you should have some decent beds and furniture, right? I don't even have a place to dress up, and sitting in front of the loom all day long is really tiring."

So it turns out they were just being lazy and slacking off.

Mu Jiuxiu thought about how he used to work like that, looking forward to Friday from Monday, so he could understand it to some extent.

“You weave all of these into cloth, and when I return from this cloth-selling trip, I will naturally bring you some good silk thread. As for the bed and furniture, we'll have to wait. Cotton cloth doesn't make much money, and those other things are expensive. We have to take it one step at a time.”

He thought he should try to appease her first; as long as she could obediently weave cloth, that was better than anything else.

As for buying more items, that was just a perfunctory excuse; he was actually planning to save money to buy a house in town. But since the Weaver Girl would also be able to enjoy the benefits, it wasn't entirely a deception.

"How much money can you earn by weaving like this every day?" The Weaver Girl sighed softly, recalling the little tree spirit's teachings. "I've heard that in the bustling cities of the mortal world, there are pavilions and towers of all kinds, especially in the capital city of Luoyang, where flowers are like brocade, people are like embroidery, and carriages and horses are bustling and lively."