Chapter 29: The Elderly Lady of the Public Son Family

  The snake king lowered his head, and a deep-seated hatred flowed out of his eyes, as if he wanted to kill someone.

  The snake king slowly spoke out his experience, and the sadness was something that even Li Yunfei could feel.

  "My family, my wife, were all killed by her. And my two children. Have you seen my children? They were clever and lively kids, only five or six years old... All gone! Everything I had is gone! I've endured for ten years, this time I will personally put an end to this karma."

  The King of Snakes took out his own sword and slowly wiped it, but his trembling hands betrayed him.

  Lu Xiaofeng looked at the Snake King's trembling hands and said, "You came here to hide in the city to avoid this vendetta because you know your enemy will never think that you have become the Snake King." The Snake King wanted to speak but ultimately remained silent.

  "It's just a pity that this hatred is something you will never be able to forget. So as long as you have the opportunity, you will stop at nothing to put an end to it."

  He suddenly walked over, supporting Snake Seven's shoulder. Staring into the eyes of the snake king, he said word by word: "Now do you have an opportunity? Have you found out where your enemy is?"

  The snake king still had his mouth closed, but his expression was even more painful.

  Lü Xiao Feng continued: "Who is your enemy after all? Is he in this city now?"

  The snake king finally spoke up, saying slowly: "You have enough troubles of your own, yet you still want to interfere with others' affairs."

  Lu Xiaofeng sighed and said, "I know you've been kind to others but don't like them returning the favor. But I'm not here to repay you. I just want to make a deal with you."

  The snake king asked strangely: "What deal?"

  Lu Xiaofeng said: "We'll go help you deal with your enemy, and you help me find Xue Bing. We won't owe each other anything. How about it?"

  The snake king sneered: "This is my business, why should I need you to help me?"

  Lu Xiaofeng still refused to relax, coldly saying: "Because your hand is shaking. Because you've been ill for ten years, because you think living is more painful than dying. But I don't want you to die at that person's hands. And I also don't want the person who made you like this to live in this world."

  The snake king looked at him, and tears gushed out of his eyes like a spring. The snake king's throat was already choked, and he croaked in a hoarse voice: "She is not human, she is a demon, her heart is more venomous than a snake or scorpion, her methods are more terrifying than an evil spirit. She is an evil spirit that has escaped from hell."

  Li Yunfei interrupted: "So is he a woman or a man?"

  "He said: 'She's a witch. A hell of a witch.'"

  "What's her name?" asked Lu Xiaofeng.

  "King Snake explained: "Actually, her original name was Gong Sunlan. It is said that she was a descendant of the first-rate courtesan Gong Sunniang in the initial teaching institute. So people who knew her also called her Gong Sunniang."

  Lu Xiaofeng said: "How come I don't know this person? This name I haven't even heard of."

  "He said: 'She is not a celebrity because she does not want to be one. She thinks that being a celebrity always brings trouble.'"

  "It seems she's an intelligent woman."

  Although Li Yunfei is not a big celebrity, he still knows the pain and troubles of being one.

  The Snake King said: "But she has used many other names. Those names you may know instead."

  Lu Xiaofeng said: "Then you tell me."

  "Snake King Dao said, 'Female Butcher, Peach Blossom Wasp, Five Poisonous Maiden, Soul-destroying Old Woman... you must have heard of these names.'"

  Lu Xiaofeng's face changed, and he couldn't help but ask: "Are all these people hers?"

  The Snake King said: "That's right, these people are all her, she is really a terrible person."

  Li Yunfei asked: "How did you find such a terrible person?"

  The snake king said: "It wasn't me who found her, but she who found me." After finishing speaking, the snake king took out a letter that had been crumpled into a ball.

  The letter reads: I know what kind of person you are and that you must be eager to see me. On the night of the full moon, I'll be waiting for you in the Western Garden. It would be best if you brought some silver with you, so we can have some of the famous Dinghu Shangsu and Luohan Zhai Mai from there. The handwriting is very beautiful and elegant. The signature at the bottom is a bundle of orchids.

  The King of Snakes said: "This was given by her to a brother in Chengnan, and he was asked to hand it over to me personally."

  "She didn't give it to you directly, maybe she still doesn't know your address!"

  The King of Snakes said: "Not many people can find their way up to this small building."

  Li Yunfei nodded and said: "Then which Xiyuan did she let you go to?"

  The King of Snakes said: "It's the Western Garden with the Lianli Shu tree inside. Lu Xiaofeng knows about it."

  Lü Xiao Feng said: "Tomorrow is the night of the full moon?"

  The King of Snakes said: "That's right, so you have to rest for a night and recover your spirits tomorrow before seeing Madame Gongsun. I think I'm absolutely not her opponent, but as for you, I still don't feel at ease."

  Lu Xiaofeng smiled and said, "Nothing to worry about, I've seen people ten times more formidable than her and I'm still alive. Moreover, Li Yunfei is with me, his swordsmanship isn't something to be underestimated. Besides, he's also a master of the Innate Realm."

  Li Yunfei said to the Snake King, "I'm not worried that we can't defeat Grand Aunt Gongsun, but rather, we can't recognize what she looks like. Moreover, with so many layers of identity and no one has seen through her, it shows that her disguise skills are extraordinary. How do we know who is really her?"

  The King of Snakes said, "That's right, Gong Sun's disguise is indeed unparalleled, and she rarely shows her true face to people. However, she has a habit, if you know this habit, you will definitely be able to recognize her."

  Li Yunfei laughed and said: "Oh, such a formidable figure, what kind of illness could he possibly have?"

  "This quirk of hers is quite special," said the Snake King. "No matter what clothes she wears or what appearance she takes on, her shoes will never change."

  At this time, Lu Xiaofeng's eyes seemed to light up, and he pulled the Snake King's hand and asked: "What shoes is she wearing?"

  The snake king said: "It's a pair of red shoes."

  Lü Xiao Feng jumped up and shouted "It's Red Shoes."

  "Not bad, a pair of bright red embroidered shoes, just like the ones a bride would wear, but instead of mandarin ducks, they were embroidered with owls." The snake king nodded and said.

  Xī yuán zài chéng xī, shì gè dà huā yuán. Xiàn zài yǐ guò le huáng hūn. Huā cóng lǐ, shù yīn xià, tíng tái lóu gé jiān. Liàng qǐ le yī zhǎn zhǎn fén xīng bān de dēng guāng. Wǎn fēng zhōng dài zhe huā xiāng, yě dài zhe jiǔ xiāng. Yuè yuán rú jìng, zhèng guà zài shù shāo. Shì lián lǐ shù. Gāo dà de hóng mù mián, liǎng zhū lián lǐ shù hé chéng yī zhū. Jiù xiàng shì qíng rén men zài yōng bào zhe yī yàng.

  Li Yunfei and the others sat in the hall waiting for Grandmother Gongsun, the bright moon like a plate of ice had gradually risen high, its hazy light beautiful to the point of heartbreak.

  Just then, Li Yunfeng saw an old woman walking out from under the tree. A very old woman. Wearing a blue garment with patches and stitches all over it, her back seemed to be carrying a huge boulder that was about to snap her waist in two.

  When she walks, it's as if she's always bent over, searching for something on the ground. The moonlight shines on her face, which is full of wrinkles. It looks like a sheet of crumpled paper that has been smoothed out again.

  "Roasted chestnuts!" She was carrying a large bamboo basket in her hand, covered with a thick cotton cloth. As she walked, she shouted: "Freshly roasted chestnuts, fragrant and hot roasted chestnuts. Only ten cents per catty." An old woman, lonely and poor, had reached the twilight of her life. Yet she still came out to peddle her roasted chestnuts in a voice that was almost completely hoarse.

  Lu Xiaofeng suddenly shouted: "Old lady, come here, I'll buy two catties." The chestnuts were fragrant and hot, and they had just been put on the market.

  "You said ten cents a catty?" Lu Xiaofeng exclaimed, "For such good chestnuts, at least it should be ten taels of silver per catty. I won't buy it even if it's one cent less."

  The old woman laughed, her wrinkles deepening across her face.

  "Ten taels of silver for one catty, if you're willing to sell, I'll buy two catties." Lu Xiaofeng said with a smile. "But there's still something else I need your help with."

  The old woman smiled bitterly and said: "What can an old woman like me still help you with, sir?"

  "This matter can only be done by you, no one else is suitable."

  The old woman asked strangely: "Why?"

  Lü Xiao Feng smiled and said: "Because your waist is already bent, it's as if you're always looking for something on the ground, so I want you to go find something for me."

  "What are you looking for."

  "Find a woman wearing red shoes with an embroidered owl on them."

  The old woman also smiled. This kind of thing was just right for her to do. Even if she were to crawl under someone else's skirt, no one would suspect a thing.