Little Coal Ball lay on Su Qing's shoulder, watching the raindrops fall outside the umbrella.
After a moment of silence, she said, "Actually... there's nothing I can't say. If you want to know, this General will tell you."
At first, Little Coal Ball hadn't really wanted to speak of it.
But she felt... perhaps it would be better to share these things with Su Qing.
After all, keeping it bottled up inside served no purpose.
Of course, she was still a little worried.
She worried that Su Qing would laugh at her.
Because Su Qing's personality had always been rather mischievous.
In the end, however, she chose to tell Su Qing everything.
"Since you're willing to speak, then don't keep it inside," Su Qing said calmly through Sound Transmission.
She was indeed quite curious. Why was this little fellow afraid of thunder? If it were simple fear, it wouldn't be strange... but her behavior didn't strike Su Qing as simple fear.
It was more like a shadow cast by something terrible that had happened in the past.
Su Qing felt she had a certain knack for these things.
She wouldn't claim to be an expert, but she could generally see the big picture.
That was why she was curious.
Little Coal Ball glanced at Su Qing, her silvery-white whiskers brushing against Su Qing's face, making her feel a bit ticklish.
"It has to do with some things from when I was small."
Little Coal Ball fell silent for a moment, then shifted her gaze back to the heavy rain outside.
"Back then, I was very small and wasn't as smart as I am now... I was just ignorant and muddled, but I still remember that rainy, thundering day."
"My siblings and my mother all died on that day."
Hearing this, Su Qing paused slightly and asked, "What happened?"
"It was raining, thundering, and windy... the place where we were hiding was blown down by the wind. Those things fell and crushed my mother."
Little Coal Ball said:
"Actually, with Mother's agility, she definitely could have dodged it herself. But to protect us, she was crushed to death... in the end, I was the only one who survived."
"..." Su Qing nodded and said, "A very tragic thing... So since then, you've been afraid of the same kind of weather?"
Little Coal Ball nodded and said, "Speaking of which... I suddenly remember that I seemed to have been saved by a Daoist back then. Because I was also pinned under those logs, but since I hadn't died on the spot... I could still make a sound. That's how that Daoist eventually found me."
"What happened to that Daoist in the end?"
"He died."
"He died?"
"Mhm, of old age." Little Coal Ball nodded and said, "I lived with the Daoist for about ten years. I even learned to speak from him. Later, the old Daoist's health declined day by day, and finally... he also died on a rainy, thundering day."
"I see..." Su Qing gave a helpless smile and said, "You really are at odds with rainy, thundering days!"
"Will you die too?" Little Coal Ball seemed to suddenly think of something and asked via Sound Transmission, "Will you die on a rainy, thundering day?"
"I will die, but I can live for a very, very long time."
"Why?"
"I am no ordinary person! I am a Divine Immortal from the heavens."
"Do Divine Immortals from the heavens die too?"
"Of course... nothing lives forever." Su Qing smiled and said through Sound Transmission, "Just accept it with peace of mind! However, you can rest assured that we can accompany you for a long time."
"Is that so?" Little Coal Ball said, "Can you really accompany me for a long time?"
"Why would I lie to you?"
"That's good then..."
"Mhm!" Su Qing nodded, looking at the kitten on her shoulder.
She didn't seem to be shivering anymore.
And the temperature of her body was exceptionally warm.
Fluffy things really were the best.
Always warm and cozy.
Su Qing withdrew her gaze and continued walking slowly.
However, the thoughts in her mind did not stop.
The fluffy kitten on her shoulder had fallen asleep at some point.
If Su Qing hadn't been quietly supporting her with magic, the little fellow probably would have fallen to the ground long ago.
"Still... even this little fellow has her troubles! I thought she truly had none at all!"
Su Qing thought to herself, then looked at Su Qingyu by her side. Seeing the girl's urge to jump into a puddle, she couldn't help but smile inwardly, thinking:
"This brat, on the other hand, is indeed heartless. She looks like she truly has no worries... if I had to name her biggest trouble, it would probably be doing her homework."
Su Qingyu seemed to notice Su Qing's gaze.
For a moment, she was a bit confused and asked, "Master? Why are you... looking at me?"
"It's nothing... I was just thinking about what new homework to assign you."
"..."
Su Qingyu felt... perhaps she shouldn't have opened her mouth to ask.
Wasn't this just looking for trouble?
However, she didn't say anything more... because if she spoke more, the homework would only increase in the end.
Just like that, the two people and one cat returned to the medical clinic.
By the time they arrived, the rain had unknowingly lessened.
"Miss!" Seeing Su Qing return, Hu Lin'er walked out and said, "Why didn't you ask me to go?"
"You didn't know where the little fellow was... take this little thing. Give her a bath later when we go back; she got covered in dust at the Earth God Temple. She even knocked over someone's incense burner!" Su Qing said, looking helplessly at the kitten sleeping on her shoulder.
Hearing Su Qing's words, Hu Lin'er couldn't help but smile, then took Coal Ball from Su Qing's arms.
She could tell that although Su Qing was complaining about Coal Ball, she wasn't actually angry.
After all, if she were angry, she wouldn't have let Little Coal Ball stay on her shoulder all the way back.
After Hu Lin'er picked up Little Coal Ball, the cat woke up.
She stared blankly at Hu Lin'er, somewhat surprised that she had suddenly fallen asleep.
She had even returned to the clinic without realizing it.
Then, she wriggled out of Hu Lin'er's hands.
With her tail held high, she walked a circle around the clinic, her gaze landing on Su Qing, who was sitting behind the counter tending to her nails.
"That strange woman... how magical!" Little Coal Ball muttered to herself.
She clearly felt like Su Qing hadn't done anything... yet unknowingly, she seemed to have integrated into this family.
It was as if there were something unique about her.
Little Coal Ball didn't understand it, but she felt... meeting her was a stroke of immense good luck.
Just like how she had been able to meet that Daoist after that great rain.
"I am lucky after all." Little Coal Ball thought, her tail curling even higher. "Hmph, this General is indeed a Great General favored by the heavens!"
Little Coal Ball did not fall into any depression; after returning, she quickly reverted to her usual self.
As if patrolling her territory, she walked freely through the clinic.
As for Su Qingyu, she didn't know about all those things regarding Little Coal Ball.
Once she finished her own tasks, she went to find Little Coal Ball to play again.
This little girl was the truly heartless one!
Although Little Coal Ball found Su Qingyu a bit annoying, she didn't refuse to play with her.
Because being idle was being idle.
Life in the clinic was peaceful and comfortable.
In the blink of an eye, another month had passed.
During this time, nothing special happened in Linzhou City.
The flames of war still hadn't reached the city, but they had taken away more young men.
It made Linzhou City even quieter.
Even the beggars on the street had been rounded up to join the army.
This naturally included those martial artists who had blended into Linzhou City long ago.
They had disguised themselves far too well.
Those without a discerning eye couldn't possibly tell the difference between them and ordinary beggars.
It wasn't strange that they were caught.
As for whether they could eventually escape, that was another matter entirely.
Regardless, Su Qing didn't care much about it.
With no major events occurring in Linzhou City, Su Qing was happy to enjoy the peace.
However, over at the Changbai Mountains, an unexpected guest arrived today!
To call him an unexpected guest wasn't quite right.
Because this guest could barely be considered a regular.
In recent years, he had been running to the Changbai Mountains quite often.
At this moment, Su Qing was sitting by Heaven Lake fishing, as was her habit.
The fish in these waters tasted exceptionally good... although she could just catch them directly to eat, there was no sense of accomplishment in that. So, fishing in her spare time was a good way to pass the time.
As for Wukong's arrival, Su Qing naturally noticed it.
She didn't even look at Wukong, only watching the float in the water as she spoke, "Wukong, why are you here again? Could it be there's some demon you can't handle, and I have to help you find reinforcements again?"
Hearing this, Wukong huffed, "It's not because I can't handle a demon! It's that Master of mine—he's far too infuriating."
Upon hearing this, Su Qing knew exactly what was happening, but she feigned ignorance and said, "What happened? Tell me about it. By my count, this is the second or third time you've come to me after being angered by your Master. What is it this time?"
Wukong sat on the railing, briefly recounting the events with a face full of resentment.
Then he continued:
"That Master of mine is far too heartless. I've endured so much toil and hardship to protect him on the journey to the Western Heaven to fetch the scriptures. Now, just because I beat a few petty thieves to death, he actually told them to go and sue Old Sun! Even if I was the one who struck them, it was only for his sake! If he weren't going to the Western Heaven, and I weren't his disciple, how would I have ended up there, and how would I have killed anyone?"
"Are you afraid the souls of those thieves will go to the Underworld and sue you?" Su Qing asked with a smile.
"How could I be afraid of them suing me? I'm just furious at that Master of mine!"
Wukong said:
"I don't resent him for not remembering my kindness; I resent him for blaming me despite not remembering it! He's a kind-hearted, good Bodhisattva, but if this kind-hearted Bodhisattva didn't have me protecting him, he would have long ago become a demon's lunch or a thief's loot."
"This time, I killed a few people to save him and cut down the bandit leader. If he only had a few words of complaint, it would be one thing, but he wants to sever our ties as master and disciple and drive me away!"
"He even chanted that tight-fillet spell to force me to leave!"
"Fine, fine, fine! Since he's driving me away, I'll go. Let's see if he can reach the Western Heaven without me!"
Seeing this, Su Qing knew Wukong was truly enraged.
However, as far as Su Qing was concerned, she also felt that Tang Sanzang had indeed gone too far.
Therefore, Su Qing didn't blame Wukong for throwing such a tantrum.
After all, based on the Journey to the West in her memory...
Tang Sanzang driving the monkey away wasn't entirely out of a compassionate heart; it was more out of fear that Wukong's killing karma would implicate him... preventing him from obtaining the true scriptures in the Western Heaven.
One could only say that this Tang Sanzang of the Journey to the West was, after all, not the Grandmaster Sanzang of history; he was indeed difficult to like.
At times, he was even more annoying than the talkative and lustful Bajie.
Regarding this matter, if it were Su Qing, she would probably be fuming as well.
Su Qing shook her head and said, "This time, your Master is indeed in the wrong... he has a kind heart, but it's a kind heart that lacks the ability to distinguish right from wrong. Some people deserve to die; why not let them die?"
Su Qing's viewpoint was relatively simple.
Those who deserved to die should be killed.
Although she saved people and killed demons, she only saved those worth saving; she didn't save everyone, nor did she kill every demon.
This Tang Sanzang was different... he called it good whether a good or bad demon was killed, yet he blamed Wukong when bad people were killed, simply because killing carries so-called killing karma and would make it difficult for him to obtain the true scriptures.
But what this Tang Sanzang didn't know was...
In the eyes of the Buddha, those people could still be killed.
Buddhism does have the precept against killing... but precepts are never dead rules.
Even the number of evil people who had died at the hands of Guanyin Bodhisattva was definitely not small.
Hearing Su Qing's words, Wukong couldn't help but nod in great agreement. He said, "It's a pity my Master only has a heart for goodness but lacks an eye for distinguishing right from wrong!"
Su Qing chuckled and said nonchalantly, "Since you've left again this time, what are your plans? Do you intend to go back in a couple of days? Or will you go straight back to Flower-Fruit Mountain?"
"I'm not going back, I'm not going back! I originally intended to go back, but as soon as I do, Master chants that tight-fillet spell. It hurts so much my brains almost come out; I'm not going back!"
Wukong shook his head and said:
"Since he's so determined to drive me away, why should I be thick-skinned enough to go back? Going back only means suffering that tight-fillet spell again."
Su Qing nodded and said, "Since you're unwilling to go back, then you should return to Flower-Fruit Mountain and continue being your Handsome Monkey King!"
"That is my plan... it's just that I have one more thing to ask of you, Big Sister."
Hearing this, Su Qing paused, then shook her head and said, "I have no way to undo that Tight-Fillet of yours... the one who tied the bell must be the one to untie it. Why don't you go and ask Guanyin Bodhisattva?"
How could Su Qing not know what it was Wukong wanted to ask of her?
It was just that she had never truly studied the tight-fillet spell.
Much less did she know how to break it.
So, of course, she couldn't help.
In fact, even if she could truly help...
Su Qing wouldn't undo it for him.
If it were to be undone, it would have to wait until after the journey to the West was complete.
After all, the path that needed to be walked had not been finished, and the tribulations that needed to be experienced were not yet over. How could the shackles be removed?
Wukong was a bit disappointed to hear Su Qing's answer and said, "Even Big Sister has no way? It seems I'll just have to go and ask Guanyin Bodhisattva."
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