Chapter 309 |
So back in the day, Liu An really was working as a street cleaner?
Yuan Yuanyuan shook her head. She’d been a little surprised at first, but thinking about it more, it kind of made sense. Working such late hours and making that much money… it could only be that kind of job.
Looking back on that time, it felt like ages ago, though it had only been about a year. Yuan Yuanyuan suddenly realized that playing the role of the red-clothed woman wasn’t such a bad gig. She had a way of making people open up and say things they’d normally never say.
Heh… never thought this whole world would end up being one of my sockpuppets. Yuan Yuanyuan grinned darkly. Though maybe that wasn’t something to be too proud of…
As for those people she ran into the other day, Yuan Yuanyuan did try to investigate them seriously. But there were too few clues—she couldn’t find anything conclusive.
Meanwhile, she kept running into Si Qun at the tavern. Every time it happened, he would suddenly emerge from some mysterious corner and silently stare up at her. The first time, she’d actually gotten spooked. But after several encounters, she could already walk past him without flinching.
Still, Si Qun popped out so randomly that it felt almost supernatural. Yuan Yuanyuan had to be extra careful while at the tavern—she was juggling two identities and didn’t want to risk being exposed. So she stayed on high alert every time she came and went.
Si Qun was like a little mole, always tunneling out at the most unexpected moments. After a while, Yuan Yuanyuan didn’t even bother avoiding him anymore—what was the point? He was bound to appear regardless. No wonder—he’s a bug after all… Wait, what kind of bug is he supposed to be again?
She knew he was part of the Li family, like the Li clan’s patriarch, so logically they were the same kind of insect, right? Over the past few days, Yuan Yuanyuan had been teasing him, trying to get him to show his true form, but Si Qun wouldn’t bite. Besides pretending to be spiritually aloof every day, he hardly said anything.
She secretly lurked on a website run by the students, and all of them seemed like a bunch of jokers. The filming location apparently wasn’t far from C City. A director had once said a set looked just like a famous C City landmark (Yuan Yuanyuan: Of course it does. It IS the same place.), so they decided to shoot on location.
The C City students even made posts expressing concern that the actors wouldn’t be able to capture the real “aura of slaughter” of true demons. So they planned to give them a “pre-experience session.” Yuan Yuanyuan didn’t know what that entailed, but if it was too intense, those actors might be dead before filming even started.
Still, if they did film there, the result could be beautiful—a group of humans shooting a story about demons right inside a major demon hub, using stories that were actually based on real local events. Yuan Yuanyuan was starting to understand why the students cared so much. These were C City’s signature stories. If the production turned out bad, wouldn’t that reflect poorly on C City itself? (Well, not really.)
So now Yuan Yuanyuan had a new hobby—stalking the production team. She kept close tabs on all their updates, basically like a die-hard fan… though she couldn’t remember any of the actors’ names. She was just curious: if they really came to C City, would the students actually go scare them like they said they would?
Who knew? Anyway, while the humans were busy filming, the demons were just as busy doing their thing. Yuan Yuanyuan, caught in the middle, couldn’t do much except comment from the sidelines. Not that she minded—she also enjoyed the drama.
The new issue of Demon Memoirs would be released within two days. The Monday issue always followed up on Saturday’s story. After all this time, Yuan Yuanyuan had started to get the hang of their routine—Saturday’s issue usually teased some plot points, and Monday’s issue would follow through. The two were almost always connected.
As she opened this week’s issue, she frowned at the very first panel. Why?
Because the cover character… was Si Qun.
Despite his high popularity, let’s be real—Si Qun was just a fringe character in Demon Memoirs. He had an air of mystery but wasn’t particularly relevant most of the time.
For a side character like him to suddenly be on the cover? That set off some red flags. Especially since he’d been acting suspiciously all week. Yuan Yuanyuan’s guard shot up.
Did something happen with Si Qun this week? She’d thought he was just being his usual weirdo self, but now…
She was starting to get worried. Then she saw it: a flashback scene where someone had actually gone to find Si Qun.
They managed to catch him during one of his rare appearances at the tavern. Pretty impressive, considering Si Qun was practically a hermit who never left the kitchen. The only time he’d previously appeared in the comic, he’d left a strong impression on readers. He had that one iconic panel—cool and mysterious, glancing over his shoulder. Total fan-favorite moment.
It looked like someone had gone to find him recently—Yuan Yuanyuan guessed it happened a few days ago. That day, she hadn’t seen Fa Ning at all. Maybe he’d gone to see Si Qun?
On the screen, Fa Ning was visibly nervous. The guy actually looked a little intimidated facing Si Qun—probably still traumatized from getting beat up last time.
Fa Ning asked him, “Do you know what this whistle is made of?”
Yuan Yuanyuan, watching from her screen, rolled her eyes. Seriously? You’re asking Si Qun? He’s lucky if he remembers his own name.
That was exactly why she had never gone to ask Si Qun anything. For some reason, despite his strength, she always saw him as a kid—not someone she could confide in.
Still mildly annoyed, she kept reading. Si Qun, true to form, activated his “invincible manga filter mode,” morphing into some ultra-cool salt-type handsome guy. Who knew what the scene really looked like? Fa Ning might’ve been scared stiff.
【He took the bone whistle in his hand and turned it over slowly. Fa Ning shivered. He’d touched that whistle too, and just holding it gave him a deep, icy chill. He never dared keep it on his person. But this guy—he held it like it was nothing.】
【Fa Ning wanted to ask if he felt cold, but he remembered the beatdown from last time and swallowed the question. It was Yuan Yingli who had pushed him to ask about the whistle’s origin, so now he had no choice.】
【Si Qun kept turning the whistle in his hands without saying a word. Fa Ning thought he might be dazed by it—that was the only explanation for his silence.】
【Finally, after a long pause, Si Qun looked up and said, “Where did you get this?”】
【Fa Ning let out a breath of relief. “The red-clothed woman gave it to me. Why?”】
Then the scene cut to the day Yuan Yingli went to talk to Yuan Yuanyuan.
She recognized it instantly—because of the red curtains. They were hung before Yuan Yingli showed up, and the whole tavern had that antique, charming aesthetic. The curtains were hung by two little demons in charge of decoration. Though they looked randomly placed, the effect had been stunning.
Especially in the comic, where they were drawn with a dreamy, ethereal quality. Yuan Yuanyuan had always thought they were pretty, but the comic made them look gorgeous.
【“I’m here to ask you something… about the bone whistle,” Yuan Yingli said.】
That really was what he’d said that day. Yuan Yuanyuan racked her brain trying to remember how she had replied.
【The red-clothed woman stayed silent. Yuan Yingli’s expression slowly darkened.】
【Then suddenly, he said, “Alright. I understand.”】
Yuan Yuanyuan blinked. So his face had looked that gloomy? With all those curtains in the way, she hadn’t noticed. No wonder she’d thought it was weird when he left mid-conversation.
The scene shifted back to Fa Ning. Yuan Yuanyuan leaned in to see what Si Qun would say next.
【“It’s made of bone. A rib,” Si Qun said.】
【“I know it’s bone… I meant whose bone?” Fa Ning asked. He hadn’t been too interested at first, but Yuan Yingli had been oddly insistent.】
【“This bone belonged to Seventeen. He gave it to you—so keep it safe,” Si Qun replied, handing the whistle back.】
Yuan Yuanyuan sat there frozen, her expression unreadable.
A rib.
And it belonged to Seventeen.
She had just casually tossed it to them… and now it turned out to be that.