Water Reflects Peach Blossoms

"This is... your tail?" Nanzhi was surprised.

"Ah." Ying Lei turned his head away and didn't dare look at her. He felt a burning sensation all over. "Have you ever touched a cat's tail? Mine is longer and thicker than a cat's tail. Most importantly, it's soft and furry... Yes, if you don't like it, just ignore what I said..."

As he spoke, Yinglei began to lose confidence. Maybe he should let her touch his paw pads?

Nanzhi saw how awkward he was and said, "I don't mind."

She reached out for the yellow and black tail in Yinglei's hand.

Yinglei suddenly felt his heart beating faster and he could hear nothing but his own heartbeat.

Haven’t you touched Nanzhi’s hand yet?

Why so slow?

Should I move the tail forward?

Speaking of which, Nanzhi was the first person to touch his tail, even his grandfather had never touched it.

"Nanzhi."

A cold female voice was heard, and Nanzhi retracted her hand that had just touched the tip of the tail. Yinglei, who didn't feel anything being touched at all, instantly got furious, and even his tail exploded!

He looked nervously towards the source of the sound and found it was Pei Sijing, who was wearing a black tights and had a cold expression.

Almost! I was almost touched!!! Ying Lei screamed in his heart.

Pei Sijing felt a little embarrassed when she realized that Ying Lei was looking at her with a strange look in his eyes. She blinked and said, "I'll come back later."

She couldn't wait to hear about her brother from Nanzhi.

"No need." Nanzhi stood up and walked towards Pei Sijing: "I have already applied the medicine to Yinglei."

"Hey?" Seeing Nanzhi stand up, Yinglei was stunned for a moment: "No... no need to touch the tail?"

Nanzhi looked back at him: "It's a bit prickly."

With just one sentence, the little mountain god's face instantly transformed from disappointment to joy. He stood up, caught up with the two men in front of him, and explained without thinking, "Of course a tiger's tail is prickly. Not only is it prickly, it's also very powerful! It's not like a kitten's tail that's soft and powerless."

Pei Sijing: "..."

This child is silly and doesn't want to listen to him.

……

The meeting room of the Demon Hunting Bureau.

Everyone sat around a low table, on which was a map of Tiandu City. The three circled points on the map were the locations of two previous cases and the murder that had just occurred this day.

The three murders used the same method of killing: the victims were hung on the roof and their hearts were dug out alive, and blood-colored symbols similar to deer antlers were found at the scene.

Wen Xiao was giving a report on the case, but Pei Sijing took over just as he started.

She wants to tell the story of her own brother herself.

Three months ago, a case exactly the same as these three cases occurred, with the same murder method and the same deer antler symbol at the crime scene. At that time, Chongwu Battalion was responsible for investigating this bizarre murder case.

Pei Sijing is the main person in charge and the commander of the Chongwu Camp.

She found out that the murderer was her younger brother Pei Siheng, and arrested him on a rainy night. He was caught red-handed and could not deny it, so... she shot her brother to death with her own hands.

Bai Jiu was puzzled: "Why kill him? Wouldn't it be better to arrest him, bring him to justice, and convict him?"

At least Sister Pei’s brother might be able to save his life.

Pei Sijing looked at Bai Jiu, and in a trance, she seemed to see her own brother: "Because... he turned into a demon."

She personally examined the body three times and found that it was always a demon. She had no way to prove it, so she finally burned her brother's body according to the method of dealing with demons.

"What's wrong with monsters?" Ying Lei was puzzled. "Not all monsters should be killed."

Zhu Yan silently gave Ying Lei a thumbs up.

"Because he killed someone, the Chongwu Camp always treats demons with a stern attitude, preferring to kill the innocent rather than let them go. If he were to be brought to justice, it would be even more terrifying than death." Understanding Pei Sijing's pain, Nanzhi looked at the woman, whose coldness had become a protective armor. "Could there be a misunderstanding? Is it possible that he was wrongly accused? The Ah Heng I know is very kind and has a strong sense of justice."

Pei Sijing looked at Nanzhi, suppressed the sob in her throat and shook her head: "No."

"My brother has been weak since he was young. He always takes medicine and never leaves the house. That's why I want to know how you know my brother."

Nanzhi said: "I met him three months ago."

Pei Sijing looked at Nanzhi in disbelief and suddenly clenched her hands!

Zhuo Yichen looked at Nanzhi worriedly: "Three months ago, my uncle was wrongfully imprisoned, and Nanzhi, you were also..."

"Yeah." Nanzhi nodded and told everyone what happened three months ago.

"Three months ago, my father impeached the Chongwu Camp for being too cruel in their treatment of demons and for violating the law in Tiandu City, implicating many innocent people in their efforts to eliminate demons. The day after impeaching the Chongwu Camp, my father was imprisoned on charges of accepting bribes, and hundreds of taels of gold were confiscated from our home."

Nanzhi continued, "My father is in prison, so naturally I can't escape responsibility."

"I was imprisoned in a small, dark cell, surrounded by the families of officials who had been arrested for crimes, awaiting their fate. For people like us, there were only two options: exile or being sold into official slavery."

"I am my father's only daughter, and I don't have any other relatives in Tiandu City. Only Xiao Zhuo is running around for my father's affairs. I am imprisoned and can't do anything."

"Every day, I see people being roughly dragged out and then sent back. It's terrifying."

Zhuo Yichen put his hand on Nanzhi's hand, wanting to comfort her, but when she looked at him, he realized something was wrong, so he handed her the jade pendant from his waist to comfort and encourage her.

This is a tacit understanding between them.

Whenever Nanzhi was unhappy or scared, Zhuo Yichen would let her hold the jade pendant around his waist, as if holding his hand, giving her strength and the courage to overcome all difficulties.

Nanzhi smiled at him and held the jade pendant, which was warm and delicate.

It does take courage for her to recall what happened three months ago.

Wen Xiao, who was sitting next to Nanzhi, reached out and held Nanzhi's hand, whose fingertips were cold.

Zhao Yuanzhou's face was eerily gloomy, his hands clenched tightly on his knees, obviously trying to suppress the anger in his heart. Otherwise, if his anger got out of control, the first people he would hurt would be their friends.

"What about you, Nanzhi?" Yinglei was so angry that he almost let out a low growl: "Were you beaten? Were you tortured?"

"No. Thanks to Xiao Zhuo's arrangements, I can live in peace." Nanzhi shook her head. The feeling of being cared for made her heart warm. She smiled at Yinglei, and the tears in her eyes were particularly heartbreaking.

Zhuo Yichen, who has been upright since childhood and hates social interactions the most, took out a large amount of money to bribe the prison guards for her.

Fearing that she would be in the slightest danger, he did not miss a single jailer.

Otherwise, I dare not imagine what would happen to the officials' wives who were imprisoned in such places, those young ladies and ladies who were usually spoiled and looked down on others with their chins.

That kind of place is hell.

Listening to her experience, Bai Jiu looked at Nanzhi. The image of Chongwu Camp in his mind was severely impacted. He sympathized with Nanzhi's experience and felt extremely conflicted.