Chapter 597: The Exorbitant Spider Silk
"Spring Wind Town bully? Never heard of it. I only heard from my dad about the nuisance of Spring Wind Town, Chen Ahmao."
Master Yang's son, Yang Xi, was twisting the ear of a young man with dyed purple hair and wearing ripped jeans in the freezing weather, topped with a nouveau-riche-style leather jacket. "Sister Yuanyuan, this guy has been sneaking peeks in the yard since just now, all sneaky! Do you think he could be in cahoots with the man who harmed our family?"
I was startled to see Chen Ahmao, who should have gone home last evening, suddenly appear before me. "It shouldn't be, last night, when dealing with a large number of Spider Gu, Chen Ahmao was a big help and even escorted me and Master Yang back to the village."
I was wrong about Yang Xi. I had just assumed that his sudden disappearance was to attend to some unspeakable matter.
"Hear that, you brat? I'm your dad's lifesaver, and you still don't call me your benefactor!" Chen Ahmao, feeling grievously wronged, yelled indignantly.
Yang Xi and I exchanged glances, and he let go of Chen Ahmao's ear. "Sister Yuanyuan, are you sure you're not mistaken? This guy... he's not a good person."
"No mistake, Ahmao's nature isn't bad."
I gave Yang Xi a serious look, then turned to question Chen Ahmao. "What are you doing here? Didn't I tell you to go home last night?"
"I was worried about your safety, Sister Yuan," said Chen Ahmao, shrinking his neck but looking earnest.
After getting to know Chen Ahmao better, I understood his character too well. "Worried about me? I think you're just too curious."
Chen Ahmao protested his innocence. "I do want to protect your safety, but as for curiosity, that's just a little bit."
"Curiosity killed the cat. You'd better go. You can't even protect yourself, let alone me." I had gathered Spider Gu from every household and could feel this place was like a lair of Ten Thousand Poison Hall.
Even if it wasn't the main lair, it was probably a branch.
I ventured into the village alone to investigate the truth.
Apart from wanting to eradicate the harm for the people, it was more so for revenge.
For that bit of curiosity, it really wasn't worth putting oneself in danger.
Chen Ahmao looked at me deeply, turned around reluctantly, and walked towards the village entrance, muttering, "I... want to be your disciple."
The kid had no foundation in Mysterious Art whatsoever.
And he was talking about becoming my disciple.
He was the only son at home; if something went wrong, his parents would skin me alive.
"Gathering spider silk, collecting spider silk." Just then, a white-haired old lady, jingling a bell, was going house to house to collect spider silk.
The neighbors were delighted, selling the silk spun by the Heavenly Spiders in their homes.
The old lady was dressed in rags but was very generous, paying two thousand yuan for just a couple strands of spider silk.
Chen Ahmao loved to watch the excitement and soon joined in as well.
While the people were trading, they saw that Chen Ahmao looked unfamiliar and began inquiring about who he was.
I worried that his identity might be suspected and he might encounter danger.
I gave Yang Xi a look. "Ah Xi, please help him out of the encirclement."
"Got it."
Yang Xi nodded gravely.
"Granny, he's the son of a friend of my dad's, here to visit me," Yang Xi stepped in to help Chen Ahmao out of the predicament.
The old lady collecting the silk seemed quite astute, with a sharpness in her eyes that belied her age. "It's okay for a friend to visit, but the village is worshiping the gods today. People coming and going could offend the deities, so let him leave in the afternoon."
"Why do I have to leave only in the afternoon?" Chen Ahmao scratched his spiky hairstyle, looking simple and naive.
The old lady probably didn't suspect him due to his foolish appearance and scoffed in contempt, "The temple fair ends in the afternoon. It's the rule of our village that no one is allowed in or out during the fair. It disrupts the local energy."
"Oh oh oh, got it, old, no, Granny. I'll follow the village rules," said Chen Ahmao, feigning humility, his acting terribly awkward.
Next, the old lady was busy collecting the silk and left for other places on her tricycle.
Chen Ahmao, happily hopping back, wore an expression of 'it's not that I want to stay, it's that the village won't let me leave.' "Sister Yuan, I'm back and can't leave now. How about... you take me in for half a day?"