Chapter 83: The Pale Little Bird Egg

“Don’t worry, miss. It doesn’t dare kill you. If it were to do so, the old master would come to their fox den himself and slaughter every last fox, no matter how many generations they’ve raised,” the middle-aged man said casually, though his tone was chillingly severe.

The girl in red was terrified, but the moment the middle-aged man mentioned the old master, she mustered up her courage.

“Stand back, all of you. Let me take her away,” the fox maid demanded, her face fierce yet betraying her weakness as she clutched the girl in red.

“Put her down and I’ll let you leave,” the middle-aged man replied.

“That’s impossible. Step aside and let me take her!” the fox maid insisted.

The man merely sneered, then lunged without warning.

From the start, he held the advantage—the fox maid was no match for him. Yet each time she was threatened, she thrust the girl in red before her, forcing the man to hold back. His caution let her escape death repeatedly.

But he didn’t give up. This time, spotting an opening, he struck forcefully.

Again, the fox maid tried to use the girl as a shield, but suddenly her legs buckled and she fell forward, face-first.

Seizing the moment, the man sent the fox maid flying with a palm strike, rescuing his young mistress.

The girl’s guards rushed up, and though the fox maid struggled, she couldn’t avoid capture.

“Was it you who attacked me?” the fox maid glared furiously at Qinghu.

“I swear it wasn’t! It was that Shao Kaiyun boy who threw the stone,” Qinghu protested at once.

“Shao Kaiyun, so you do have feelings for Murong Xue. Admirable as your devotion may be, she’s never cared for you,” the fox maid mocked for all to hear.

Murong Xue’s face darkened, as did the middle-aged man’s, and the ragged boy’s expression grew even gloomier.

He was now exposed, the people around him shrinking away.

He shot Shen Qinghu a fierce look, then turned to leave.

“Doing good deeds without leaving a name—what a truly good man,” Qinghu remarked as she watched him go.

“Will you stop attracting trouble?” Qingjing grumbled at his sister. “First you exposed the fox maid, then you gave away Shao Kaiyun’s identity. Do you even want to enjoy the market in peace?”

She really was a magnet for trouble.

“Well, I can’t take the blame for things I didn’t do, can I?” Qinghu replied helplessly.

“Shrimps usually end up in the pot. Just be a little shrimp instead,” Qingjing said, ruffling his sister’s hair with fond indulgence.

Only then did the others realize: her big shrimp wasn’t a great hero at all!

“In any case, if it weren’t for you two siblings, my lady might truly have been in danger. The Murong family never forgets a favor. Our thanks will be sent to your home,” the middle-aged man said politely.

“No need, really, it was nothing,” Qingjing waved his hands modestly.

“One more thing—I advise you both to be careful. That maid likely hails from the fox den of Ghost Fox Mountain. They’re powerful in the East Wilds and never forgive a slight. You may have been only indirectly involved, but they might still come after you.

If you face their revenge, come to the Murong family for help.”

Qingjing’s face changed instantly. He glanced at the man, then at Qinghu.

“This is bad. That fox might have accomplices.”

“It’s fine, we have our older brother,” Qinghu reassured, patting his shoulder.

Thinking of their big brother, Qingjing felt much better.

“Thank you for the warning, sir, we’ll be careful.”

The middle-aged cultivator didn’t linger, taking his recovered young mistress away.

Qingjing, however, hesitated. “Qinghu, do you think I should give up brewing and become a beast tamer instead? Maybe you could help me find some fish fry.”

“Fish? Why not raise chickens, Fourth Brother? Then we could have a dragon and phoenix alliance. Who would dare challenge us?” Qinghu teased.

A burst of laughter came from behind them. “That’s the funniest thing I’ve ever heard. A flock of chickens and a school of fish—do you really think that’s the same as true dragons and phoenixes? Do you know what those truly are?” Shao Kaiyun, now back at their side, sneered.

“Where did you come from?” Qingjing asked, exasperated.

“I was following to watch the excitement. Who’d have thought you two would dream of raising dragons and phoenixes? Even the great lords of the Dao Court wouldn’t dare hope for that,” Shao Kaiyun mocked.

“People need dreams. We’ll start with fish and chickens—maybe one day we’ll raise dragons and phoenixes,” Qingjing retorted.

Shao Kaiyun laughed in scorn. “Fish and chickens, dragons and phoenixes—there’s an unbridgeable gap between them. You’re dreaming.”

“What does it matter to you what we raise? We’re not eating your rice!” Qinghu snapped, hands on her hips to defend her brother.

“Fine, raise what you want. I’ll be waiting to see what kind of dragons and phoenixes you manage,” Shao Kaiyun replied with a cold laugh.

“Come on, Fourth Brother, let’s go find some chickens that could become phoenixes,” Qinghu said, dragging her brother toward the market.

The market was bustling with shops and stalls selling all sorts of young beasts, and the siblings were quickly overwhelmed.

“What kind of chick is this?” Qinghu asked, pointing to a red-feathered chick.

“That’s a firephoenix chicken chick,” the vendor replied enthusiastically. “It carries the blood of the fire phoenix. Only ten thousand red gold coins each—not expensive at all.”

Qinghu immediately put the chick back. “Ten thousand red gold coins? That’s way too much.”

“Thirty red gold coins sounds fair,” Qingjing said, naming the price he could accept.

Behind them, Shao Kaiyun burst out laughing.

Really? A chick with phoenix blood for ten thousand red gold coins—where could you buy such a thing?

That wasn’t a firephoenix chicken at all; its red feathers were dyed. It was just a regular yellow-feathered chick.

“Thirty red gold coins? You won’t get even a feather for that. Move along, move along!” the vendor shouted arrogantly.

“Fine, let’s go,” Qinghu said, pulling her brother to the next stall.

“Hey, don’t really go! We can negotiate—how about eight thousand red gold coins?” the vendor shouted after them when he saw they were leaving.

But the siblings didn’t look back. With so many chicks in the market, why buy from him?

They hadn’t gone far before Qinghu spotted an old woman selling bird eggs.

She tugged her brother over excitedly.

“Granny, are these bird eggs for sale?” Qinghu asked, pointing to four tiny, white eggs, each no bigger than a fingernail.