The Great Bandit of Journey to the West

Chapter 46 Paying Money to Avoid Disaster

As if afraid of being implicated by Jiang Feng, Wang Yuanzhi and Qi Hui hurriedly left as soon as they left the palace.

Jiang Feng stood in front of the palace gate and watched them leave. He shook his head and sighed, "What a pity. They are two wealthy families. I'll find a way to treat them to a meal another day."

Ao Ying nodded in deep agreement, her eyes shining as she looked at the brocade cassock on Jiang Feng's body. "You actually managed to swindle a cassock! You're really something! Now think of another way to swindle a dragon robe from the Dragon King in Heaven for me!"

Jiang Feng rolled his eyes at her: "This is simple. Go to bed early tonight, and you'll have all sorts of dreams."

Ao Ying snorted in dissatisfaction, "Where are we going to eat tonight?"

Jiang Feng thought for a moment and then asked Cui Ying, "Which members of the Guo family from Taiyuan hold official positions in the imperial court?"

Cui Ying said, "Guo Rong, the Duke of Pucheng, has been with His Majesty since childhood and is highly valued by His Majesty. He is now serving as the Prefect of Tongzhou."

His eldest daughter, Guo Lihua, is still unmarried and manages the household affairs when Guo Rong is away.

As she spoke, a conflicted look appeared on her face.

"I've never met her before, let alone know her. Wouldn't it be inappropriate for us to come here so abruptly?"

Jiang Feng retorted, "How could it be considered a rash visit? I predicted she would encounter misfortune tonight, so I went specifically to avert it for her!"

Cui Ying asked skeptically, "Really? Are you sure?"

Jiang Feng said with absolute certainty, "There's absolutely no mistake, because I've also calculated that I am her calamity!"

Cui Ying: "..."

Zhang Guo: "..."

This divination was damn accurate!

After a stick of incense had burned, the group of people arrived at the gate of the Guo residence with varying expressions.

Jiang Feng approached a guard at the entrance and said, "This humble monk is Jiang Feng, the Grand Master of Monks and Taoists of the Great Sui Dynasty. I foresaw that your young lady would face a calamity tonight, and I have come to avert it for her!"

Upon hearing this, the guards immediately ran back to the manor to report.

Before long, someone led them to the reception room to wait.

After a moment, Guo Lihua, dressed in a bright green gown and adorned with pearl hairpins, emerged, radiating an aura of wealth and glamour.

Upon seeing Cui Ying, she stepped forward and bowed, saying, "It is impolite of Lihua not to come out to greet you in person, Miss Cui."

Cui Ying quickly returned the greeting: "I apologize for my unauthorized visit, sister."

After exchanging greetings, Guo Lihua turned to Jiang Feng with a look of inquiry on her face: "Master Jiang Feng, please tell me the truth about what kind of calamity my daughter will encounter tonight."

Jiang Feng sighed and said, "Alas, your family's affair of keeping a cat ghost to plot against the Empress has been exposed, and you are already in deep trouble."

Guo Lihua's expression changed drastically, and she hurriedly said, "Master, please don't speak nonsense! His Majesty treats my father very well, and we would never harm the Empress!"

Jiang Feng looked at her panicked expression, a hint of amusement in his eyes: "So, you really do keep a cat ghost at home?"

Guo Lihua's expression stiffened slightly as she argued, "My family has never kept any cat ghosts. These are just rumors; don't believe them!"

Jiang Feng said with a regretful expression, "I came here sincerely to help you."

"You should know His Majesty's temperament. If the Empress Dowager is killed by the cat demon, regardless of whether your Guo family was responsible, if His Majesty harbors even the slightest suspicion, your entire family will be executed."

Guo Lihua frowned, stood there silently, and after hesitating for a long time, she finally spoke up.

"Alas, to be honest, my grandmother did indeed worship cat spirits when she was alive. But since her death, no one in my family has known this magic. Please come with me..."

After she finished speaking, she led Jiang Feng and the others to a courtyard.

The gate to the courtyard was locked with a rusty copper lock. Guo Lihua took out a bunch of keys and opened the door, then carried a lantern to a shrine.

Opening the dilapidated door, a musty smell wafted out of the house.

The oil lamp was lit, illuminating the dimly lit ancestral hall.

A black cat statue sits behind the altar, its body covered in spiderwebs, with a green cat's eye stone inlaid in the cat's eye, emitting a soft glow under the candlelight.

Cui Ying sensed the aura emanating from the statue and said, "This aura does indeed resemble the evil spirits surrounding the Empress."

Zhang Guo released his golden pill, enveloping the black cat statue in golden light.

A moment later, he withdrew his golden core and said to the others, "There's only a trace of residual energy left. This cat demon has clearly been dead for a long time."

Seeing that they clearly didn't believe her, Guo Lihua said helplessly, "I really didn't lie. It's a matter of life and death, how could I dare to hide it from you?"

Jiang Feng asked doubtfully, "That's strange. Wang Yuanzhi and Qi Hui shouldn't be mistaken. Guo Lihua, think about it carefully again. Besides your family, who else could possibly raise a cat ghost?"

Guo Lihua racked her brains for a while, then suddenly a brilliant idea struck her: "Ani, Xu Ani!"

Jiang Feng asked, "Who is Xu Ani?"

Guo Lihua said excitedly, "Xu Ani is a maidservant that my grandmother raised since she was a child. My grandmother treated her even better than I did. If anyone can learn the art of raising cat ghosts from my grandmother, it's only her!"

Jiang Feng pressed further, "Where is Xu Ani now?"

Guo Lihua said, "My aunt took her away years ago. If she were still alive, she would be at Dugu Tuo's residence now."

"Dugu Tuo?"

"Dugu Tuo is my cousin, and my aunt, Guo, is his biological mother."

Jiang Feng was taken aback.

He killed Dugu Shan this morning and almost got into a fight with Dugu Tuo. He never expected that this matter would be related to him.

If what Guo Lihua said is true, then Dugu Tuo wanted to kill Empress Dugu? To kill the Dugu clan's biggest backer?

What's he after?

No matter how Jiang Feng thought about it, he felt that something was wrong.

After a long while, he looked at the black cat statue in front of him, his face filled with compassion, and said:

"This thing is very evil. It was made entirely from ill-gotten gains obtained through sorcery. Leaving it here will only bring ruin to your family. I'm taking pity on you and melting it down, then distributing it to poor monks like myself. Consider it a way for you to lose money to avoid disaster."

After saying that, Jiang Feng winked at Ao Ying.

Ao Ying immediately understood and stepped forward to lift the black cat statue, which weighed several hundred kilograms.

Taking a sniff, Ao Ying exclaimed in surprise, "Jiang Feng, this statue is pure gold!"

Jiang Feng gasped, "We absolutely have to take it! Pure gold has an even stronger evil aura!"

As he spoke, he turned to look at Guo Lihua, who was completely bewildered.

"Miss Guo, how about I take this and destroy it?"

Guo Lihua's mind was a bit confused: "In that case, please take him away, Master?"

Jiang Feng, radiating Buddhist light, solemnly declared, "Rest assured, I, Jiang Feng, keep my word. I guarantee you'll suffer financial loss but avoid disaster, and remain safe and sound!"

After saying that, he put his hands on the statue and ran away with Ao Ying, disappearing from everyone's sight.

[Your compassion allowed Guo Lihua to suffer financial loss to avoid disaster; your boundless love moved Heaven, and you are rewarded with mastery of "cat-loving skills."]

Guo Lihua stood there blankly, muttering, "It feels like I've run into a scammer..."

Zhang Guo couldn't help but retort, "This might be your calamity today."