Chapter 17: Sick?
Mortals falling sick is normal, and in this backwards era, there is a higher probability of falling sick due to the bad living conditions.
However, the bodies of cultivators have been nourished with Qi, making it much more difficult for normal illnesses to plague them.
At higher cultivation levels, unless it was from poison, curses, or other mysterious cultivation-related means, it might not even be possible for cultivators to get sick.
As a late stage qi-refiner who had nourished his physical body, there should be no reason for Manager Qin to become sick… at least not from normal means.
Taking a step closer to Ah Ji, Bubai continued to interrogate in a low voice, “Did she say anything else?”
Ah Ji looked at Bubai strangely, taking a step back, “Miss WeiWei said she will stay in Manager Qin’s residence to take care of him and said none of us can enter to avoid disturbing him.”
Bubai furrowed his brow, “Anything else?”
Ah Ji fell silent for a moment, scratching his head as if thinking, “Oh, and Miss WeiWei said she will be in charge of the farm until Manager Qin recovers.”
When Bubai heard this, he almost cursed out loud. Son of a witch, he knew it! The magpie occupying the nest!
He had an ominous premonition that this day would come sooner or later, but he didn’t expect it to be so soon. How many days had it been?
Okay, there were many months before this point, but it had only been a couple of days since he got mixed into the mess. That is why it seemed so abrupt.
It all seemed as if the demoness could continue the charade with Manager Qin, but suddenly decided to drastically change everything on a whim. What caused her to make the changes? It couldn’t be him, right?
If other men discovered that a woman made changes to cater to him, he might have been overjoyed. Is there a better way to stoke a man’s ego?
But Bubai wasn’t happy with these changes because he knew that his situation had just gotten more dangerous, from code orange to red!
Manager Qin had been taken down. This meant the demoness had means to deal with a late-stage qi-refiner, let alone him, a mere mortal on the surface.
Heck, even if he used his full-blown Qi-refining level three cultivation, it would still be useless!
Bubai did his best to avoid changing his expression, keeping his silly smile intact, “Haha, thanks.”
Out of politeness, Bubai patted his chest confidently, “Ah Ji, if there’s anything you don’t understand, you can come to me.” Then, Bubai walked away with steady steps.
“Oh…” Ah Ji nodded as he watched Bubai walk away.
After Bubai was far away, Ah Ji patted his head, as if remembering something, “Oh, I forgot to tell him about the new field-rotation schedule due to there not being enough workers… Well, he’ll find out eventually when Miss WeiWei announces her selection for the chore boy for Manager Qin.”
Well, the group of workers gathered around the residence for a reason, and it was clearly not for a simple announcement. Only something important could cause them to forgo their work and waste time waiting here.
Of course, no one wanted to tell the latecomers of the situation, but most of the workers on the farm were already here. Not everyone chose to wake up late because they weren’t confident they could complete the designated task on time.
Only a couple had that leisure: Tie San, Ba Fang, and the honest Chen who had just walked away.
As for the rest, they could only give up sleep, working hard everyday, and it was all for an opportunity to climb. Now, their chance was here!
Even though Ah Ji was new here, naturally, he had selfish intentions.
What if he gets chosen? Who would want to work in the fields when they can be a direct servant to a cultivator? One less competitor means a higher chance of being picked.
So what if that honest Chen was an old-timer. The early bird gets the worm. Hasn’t he ever heard of that popular saying spreading amongst the farmers?
The clueless Bubai, who missed out on a timely clue, returned to his plot on the field. No one stopped him, so he began to mindlessly hoe away as usual, his mind churning, hesitating whether to directly run away.
“Even without Manager Qin, there is no good reason for her to directly come into contact with me under the gaze of others. So, I should be safe… at least for now. At most, it’s just preparing a fresh meal every night. I should be able to handle it. And as soon as I see an opportunity…”
He will bolt his way out of here, regardless if he gets reported to Ling City.
Right now, the bureaus in Ling City were busy dealing with the influx of cultivators and will not have the time to deal with a mortal escapee like him. It was the best chance to escape.
Suddenly, Bubai heard the ruckus coming from the crowd. Looking over, he saw the crowd of workers dispersing, some glancing in his direction with displeased expressions.
Seeing Ah Ji walking over towards him with a hesitant expression on his face, Bubai leaned on his hoe, raising a brow, “What’s wrong?”
Ah Ji squeezed out a smile, saluting with hoe in hand, “Congratulations Brother Chen, one step into the sky. Don’t forget little brother here when you look back.”
Bubai tilted his head, confusion clearly present on his face, “You mean…”
Ah Ji’s forced smile twitched, bowing his head to hide his facial expression, “Honest Chen, Manager Qin called for you to go meet him. You will understand when you do.”
Ah Ji then stomped away towards his plot, dragging his hoe behind him, cursing softly, “Lucky idiot…”
The soft-spoken words drifted into Bubai’s sensitive ears, leaving him befuddled. Lucky? How? He felt unlucky all over right now.
Entering Manager Qin’s residence, Bubai saw WeiWei waiting for him in the courtyard. “Brother Bubai is here. Manager Qin has been waiting to meet you ever since yesterday.”
Giving him a sweet, innocent smile, she led him forward with a skip in her steps, heading towards Manager Qin’s study.
Pausing in front of the door, she pushed it open and stepped aside to let Bubai enter.
When Bubai glanced inside, his eyes widened in shock, retreating a couple steps in horror. Merlin’s beard, he should’ve known! It was Code: Black!
However, before Bubai could escape any further, a strong shove propelled him forward, forcing him into the study room. Barely stabilizing himself, he swiftly turned around, just to see the wooden door already closed behind him. And at this moment, WeiWei was already slotting a lock in place. Click.
“You-”
Turning around slowly, WeiWei’s innocent smile remained unbroken as she clasped her hands behind her back, tilting her head innocently, feigning confusion, “Hmm… what’s wrong Brother Bubai?”
What’s wrong? Still need to ask?
Peering back, Bubai took another glimpse at the gruesome sight behind him. A corpse sitting at the desk, its facial expression seemingly still distorted in ecstasy.
But there was nothing arousing about the current situation because the body was clearly completely sucked dry- even the outlines of its bones could be seen over the stretched skin, an ending even worse than Wu Gou.
Although he had become a hollowed husk, Bubai could still make out his identity from his wrinkly face and his familiar clothes.
It was Manager Qin all right. Just that, he wasn’t sick, he was sent to heavens by WeiWei… literally. She wasn’t lying when she said she would send him to heavens yesterday night.
With her slender body charmingly swaying back and forth, WeiWei danced over to Manager Qin's lifeless form, her movements radiating a strange charm as she toyed with a lock of her black hair.
"This dirty old thing," she said with a disdainful expression, "Still wants WeiWei to serve him. How can that be possible? WeiWei belongs to Brother Bubai now."
With a casual yet forceful push, she sent the corpse sprawling to the side. It hit the floor with a sickening thud, its limbs flopping unnaturally. Bubai almost couldn't tear his eyes away from the lifeless body of the man who had been in charge just yesterday.
It only took one night for a late stage qi-refiner to meet his end. Were the cultivators of this world this weak? Bubai certainly don’t remember them being this weak when he watched the competitions in the Cloud Sword Sect…
Is the problem with the loose cultivators then? No… in fact, there was no need to speculate any further where the problem lies.
Turning back to Bubai, WeiWei sashayed towards him, her demeanor shifting once again. She wrapped her arms around him as usual.
This time, Bubai tried to peel WeiWei away from him, but her grip was surprisingly strong, her slender frame pressing against him with an eerie intensity.
It didn’t take long for him to give in because it was confirmed… his own body had been strengthened by his golden finger, but what he was facing… this wasn’t the strength of a mortal.
After his struggle ceased, WeiWei’s head rested on his chest as she inhaled deeply, a contented smile playing on her lips.
Feeling WeiWei’s softness rubbing against his chest, Bubai felt his palms becoming a bit clammy as he stared at the example still laying on the ground, causing his stomach to feel a little sick.
"From now on, WeiWei will only serve Brother Bubai," WeiWei murmured sweetly, yet her words sent a chill down Bubai's spine.
Serve him, and when she finds someone ‘better’, will his ending be the same as Manager Qin?