Lolita read out the words softly, then her expression changed from one of disbelief to a joyful smile. Her smile quickly began to widen.
Ha ha…
Never would I have thought that this bastard went through a few years of education, and even knows this quote about trustworthiness from "Analects of Confucius and Law of Dao".
Does he really think I will let him off based on trustworthiness alone? Ha ha, he seems to have thought through this situation quite thoroughly!
Wait a minute, he was educated?! Could the mystery behind the Illustration of All Creation be linked to him?
That’s not very possible, even if this bastard received some education, just based on the poor, dilapidated condition of the Southern Mountain Village alone, it is impossible to reach a level that enables one to solve the Illustration of All Creation!
General Li must be mistaken!
Lolita knew very well that a broad spectrum of deep knowledge was imperative for solving the Illustration of All Creation…
Fifteen minutes? Solving the Illustration of All Creation?
And by a bastard chicken theft in the Southern Mountain Village? This is downright impossible!
But, what if?
General Li might have claimed that the incident was an illusion triggered by the sunlight, but so many soldiers on the village square personally witnessed the incident. The possibility that it was a mistake seems low!
Unless…
It is really him?!
"Guards, catch this bas… Huh? Where is he!"
When Lolita raised her head, other than an abandoned roasting pit along with the Fire Plume Chicken that was still emitting its heavenly aroma, Fang Zhengzhi was nowhere to be found!
"He got away?!"
Lolita finally came to her senses.
What happened? How did he disappear! This… Lolita brimmed with anger. This is too humiliating! It wasn’t easy setting up this trap successfully, but how can he suddenly just… disappear?
She couldn’t contain her temper anymore.
"Shameless, absolutely shameless!" The contempt in Lolita’s tone was clearly evident.
Shouldn’t a man possess a stronger spirit?
The guards Lolita previously chased aside were standing far away, their faces crestfallen.
Hearing Lolita shout, they were instantly jolted out of their temporary depression. Yet, by this time the "dumpling" was already nowhere to be found.
Due to the almost hour-long roasting process, night had fallen on the Southern Mountain Village. The village square was completely engulfed by darkness…
"Chase him!" Some of the soldiers immediately sprinted off without further hesitation.
The villagers below the stage were at a complete loss. Why did the person roasting the chicken… disappear? Didn’t he already receive the gold ingot?
Why would he run?
Nobody could comprehend the situation.
"Shameless bastard!" Lolita’s face flushed red with anger.
Evidently, her adversary had set up a perfect plan, bidding this time till everybody had finished their roasting, and all the chickens have been sampled.
Then, making this appearance…
He had already predicted that he would be allowed to roast the chicken on stage.
Roasting the chicken slowly, time flowed on.
When night completely fell on the village, and patiently waiting till she chased away the guards, he then proceeded with his great escape. Before that, he even managed to confound her with his note "How can man not be true to his words?"
Flawless!
Even Lolita had to admit, this plan was flawless. Every individual detail was carefully thought out and planned, from the geographic conditions down to the individual people involved. And his brevity, it was indeed respectable.
And could it be that he really was the one who solved the Illustration of All Creation?
Hmph! Despite this, his shamelessness was still unprecedented. Taking the gold and then running away? Do such people even exist?
"Cruel, this is too cruel!" Lolita was relentless.
Not only was she kicked in the butt, but despite having complete control of the situation, this bastard was still able to fool with her mind.
Argh! Lolita wanted to scream out loud.
At least this bastard wasn’t shameless enough to run off with the Fire Plume Chicken...
Holding on to this thought, Lolita’s gaze was quickly drawn towards the dripping, succulent Fire Plume Chicken that was still giving off a heavenly aroma.
Gently bending her body, she brought her nose in front of the chicken thigh and inhaled softly. "Gulp" The aroma was salivating.
Her cherry-red lips parted slightly, and bit down on a chicken wing. Instantly, Lolita’s face filled with bliss. The meat was perfectly smooth, crisp on the outside and tender on the inside. The savory chicken left a distinctive aftertaste in her mouth that led her to close her eyes in bliss.
The sense of euphoria she experienced was extraordinary.
"This is too delicious!" Lolita gasped softly in delight. Reopening her eyes, her gaze was met with the wide-open eyes of the villagers staring right at her.
The villagers were not spared from the salivating aroma of the Fire Plume Chicken. The scent was too unique, as if the product of dozens of herbs and spices that when combined together, produced a heavenly taste.
"Gulp!" Staring, mouth agape, at her chicken, then glancing at their Fire Plume Chicken they held on their hands, they finally began to understand.
What makes that chicken worth an ingot of gold!
...
Fang Zhengzhi ran as fast as his legs could carry him, the thought of being caught pushing his every step.
He definitely wasn’t dumb. After personally witnessing the extent of Lolita’s violence, if he was caught, the consequences would be disastrous.
His stumpy legs provided him an advantage at this moment, not only due to his rapid cadence but also gave him a geographical advantage!
Rather than running directly out of the village square, he stealthily slipped into a small drain beside the square…
This was where people normally disposed of their rubbish, a place most would naturally avoid.
For his money and his life, he was willing to sacrifice everything else!
Making a decisive choice, he crawled into the drain, circling it till he located a huge tree which he climbed. From his high vantage point, he could generally figure out what was happening at the village square.
He then began to strip, removing the pieces of cloth around him that made his "dumpling" costume, hanging them one by one on the tree branches. In a blink of an eye, he has transformed back into Fang Zhengzhi…
…...
Back on the stage in the village square, Lolita let out a satisfactory burp, then landed her gaze on the anxious faces of the soldiers beside her.
General Li also managed to rush back upon being notified of the incident, his expression carefully controlled.
"Ah…" Lolita sighed softly, looking up at the dark skies. Did she really just let that bastard escape successfully?
The incident of the Illustration of All Creations…
After some consideration, Lolita decided to give up for the moment.
Firstly, the incident was not confirmed. Secondly, it was indeed dark, if her adversary had the intention of hiding, it would be extremely difficult to locate him within a short amount of time.
"These Fire Plume Chickens might not have lived up to my expectations, but the effort put into them is clearly evident. Purchase all these roasted Fire Plume Chickens at double the market price, and distribute them to the soldiers to eat on the move!" Satisfied from the meal, the lingering anger in Lolita subsided.
"Thank you Missus!" Upon hearing this, the villagers began to smile.
They might not have earned the gold ingot, but being able to sell off the Fire Plume Chicken at double the market price was indeed satisfactory enough for them.
"Move out of the village!" General Li ordered immediately, believing that Lolita was not intending to further impose punishments on these soldiers.
"Roger!" The soldiers rapidly left to prepare to move off, not daring to hesitate for a single second.
"General Li!" Lolita shifted her attention towards General Li.
"Missus, what are your orders!" General Li knelt down instantly on one knee.
"The Southern Mountain Village seems decent, pass down my orders, arrange for a Hall of Dao to be built immediately!" Lolita seemed to have thought of something.
"Yes Missus!"
"This Southern Mountain Village’s preliminary examinations saw a total of eight people passing the second round, we will add one slot for first batch of entrants into the Hall of Dao, totalling up to nine people, a number that symbolises longevity! Hmm….. This last entrant into the Hall of Dao will have an age limit. The entrant must be between six and eight years of age!"
"Yes Missus!"
While General Li was skeptical of the meaning behind the age limit of six to eight years, he didn’t dare to show it.
Lolita glanced at the dark skies, then picked up the coarse, yellow slip of paper again and took a look. The edges of her mouth curved into a slight smile.
"Little bastard, this is my specially prepared "gift" for you, you better not disappoint me!"
…...