The spirit market was quiet during the day, as its rhythms were opposite to those of the human world. At this time, the spirits were resting. Wu Zhen came to the Yan Tower to find something and unexpectedly discovered her friend Liu Tai Zhen, whom she hadn’t seen for several days.
“Little Snake!” Wu Zhen walked up behind Liu Tai Zhen and suddenly patted her shoulder.
Her footsteps were silent, and Liu Tai Zhen was lost in thought, so she was startled. However, Liu Tai Zhen had a steady temperament, unmovable as a mountain. Even when startled, her face didn’t show it. She remained seated, overlooking the endless expanse of gray-blue rooftops below the Yan Tower.
Wu Zhen swung her leg over to sit astride the railing, turning her head to look at her friend. “What’s wrong? Usually at this time, aren’t you at home? Why are you here alone at the Yan Tower when nothing is going on?”
Liu Tai Zhen finally turned her head to look at Wu Zhen but didn’t answer the question. Instead, she said, “You’ve been causing quite a stir these past couple of days.”
Of course, Wu Zhen knew what she was talking about. She had previously found some small spirits in the spirit market to scare Lü Zhi. These past few days, the small spirits had been taking turns, and when they returned, they would excitedly describe in detail how they had scared Lü Zhi, like storytellers. Some of the more responsible ones would even collect opinions from other spirits, striving to scare Lü Zhi in new ways every day. So these days, the bored small spirits spontaneously gathered at the Yan Gate square, waiting for the spirits who went to scare people to return and chat, making it quite lively.
This wasn’t their fault. The lives of these small spirits were as boring as humans’, so when something happened, it was easy to get overly excited. Moreover, this kind of opportunity was rare – after all, if it wasn’t for the Cat Master’s request, they couldn’t scare ordinary people without reason, or they would be severely punished.
Perhaps this was the joy of bullying people under orders.
Wu Zhen certainly knew that what she was doing was a bit inappropriate, but she had always been thicker-skinned than her friends. She didn’t take this small mistake to heart, and even cheerfully invited her friend to join in. “Little Snake, do you want to join in the fun? I remember you didn’t like that Lü Zhi either. Why don’t you transform into a snake and go scare him?”
Liu Tai Zhen let out a cold laugh but ultimately didn’t say anything about ‘arbitrarily selecting small spirits to harass ordinary people being wrong’. She just calmly reminded me, “Know when to stop.”
Wu Zhen nodded readily, “I know. I won’t scare him to death, just make him stay honestly at home for a year or so, to prevent him from bullying my fiancé again.”
Hearing about this fiancé, Liu Tai Zhen looked at her friend seriously. “Wu Zhen, are you serious this time?”
Wu Zhen: “Everyone else has already asked, and I was wondering when you would ask me about this. Finally, you couldn’t hold back, huh?” After laughing, she rubbed her nose, a bit uncertainly, and said, “I should be serious, at least more serious than the previous times.”
Putting aside that bit of psychological burden, Wu Zhen put her arm around Liu Tai Zhen’s shoulder and teased, “Alright, Little Snake, I’m getting married. You’re only a year younger than me. From now on, you’ll be the oldest unmarried lady in our circle.”
Liu Tai Zhen coldly replied, “So what? I won’t marry. Who dares to say anything?”
Wu Zhen: … Indeed, no one would.
Their Snake Master, in her human identity as the only daughter of Imperial Censor Liu, was seen by outsiders as weak and sickly since childhood, always looking pale and frail. Imperial Censor Liu protected her like the apple of his eye, wanting to take care of his daughter by his side for life, not daring to let her marry. With Imperial Censor Liu, who dared to criticize even the emperor, standing in front, who would dare say anything bad about Miss Liu? They’d have to be prepared to be spit on by dozens of stern-faced censors in turn.
However… Wu Zhen reached out to pinch her friend’s excessively white face, looking carefully. “I say, Little Snake, this sickly appearance you inherited from the previous Snake Master is too deceptive.” Outsiders who didn’t know Liu Tai Zhen’s identity might be fooled, but Wu Zhen had personally seen her strangle a black bear spirit to death with one hand. A black bear spirit as tall as a city tower was killed just like that. But even knowing she was a terrifying being inside, seeing her pale appearance, Wu Zhen still couldn’t help but take extra care of her. This might be a habit formed since childhood.
Liu Tai Zhen brushed off Wu Zhen’s hand and quietly looked at her for a while. She didn’t ask any more questions, turned her gaze away, and continued to look towards the distant horizon.
Thinking carefully, Liu Tai Zhen and Wu Zhen had known each other since childhood. They were of similar age and status, only their personalities were as different as heaven and earth. Liu Tai Zhen still remembered the first time she met Wu Zhen, right here at the Yan Tower. At that time, the previous Cat Master had already left, and her mother brought this new ‘Little Cat Master’ to introduce to her.
Back then, Wu Zhen was very mischievous. The little girl a few years old feared nothing, running up and down the Yan Tower, touching everything. While she sat quietly in place waiting to meet this new friend, Wu Zhen almost pried off the pearls on top of the Yan Tower. When she finally managed to sit still opposite her, she suddenly threw out a small bug to scare her. She was a naughty child.
Her mother held both their hands and said to her, “Tai Zhen, this is the new Cat Master. From now on, you two will be companions in managing the spirit market together.” At that time, she was very happy because, as a child born of human and spirit, she could naturally see all sorts of inauspicious things but couldn’t talk about them with anyone other than her mother. So she had no friends from childhood to adulthood. From that day on, she had a friend who could also see all kinds of spirits and ghosts, although this friend loved to cause trouble and was too playful. But undeniably, after her mother left, in these years of managing the spirit market together, this friend was also a companion who could put her at ease.
From quiet and lively little girls to now mature women, one dignified and one carefree, they understood each other better than blood relatives…
“At this time, he should be at the Ministry of Justice,” Wu Zhen suddenly smiled, thinking of something, and said, “Little Snake, I’m leaving first. I’m going to see my young master. You continue daydreaming here, and please help me keep an eye on those few spirits who are scaring people tonight. I won’t be coming over tonight.”
She left after saying this, leaving only her back view to Liu Tai Zhen.
Liu Tai Zhen watched that familiar figure disappear from her sight, inexplicably feeling a bit melancholic. She could only let out a soft sigh, trying to dispel this melancholy. Her best friend was getting married, seemingly setting off on a different path from her. It felt a bit… lonely.
At noon in Chang’an, the sun was blazing, and even indoors it was starting to get hot. Mei Zhu Yu finished his lunch in the Ministry of Justice’s dining hall and returned to his office. Unsurprisingly, he again saw a familiar tabby cat on the parasol tree outside the window.
These past few days, he often saw this tabby cat. If he couldn’t sense any spirit energy from this cat, he would think this ordinary tabby cat was unusual.
The parasol flowers outside the window had long since withered, and now the branches were full of green leaves. The cat was still comfortably lying on a branch, seeming quite satisfied with this spot for an afternoon nap. Mei Zhu Yu only glanced at it twice before returning his attention to the official business in his hands, paying no attention to the additional cat nearby.
Wu Zhen transformed into a cat again, and hugged her paws, occasionally opening one eye to look at the figure working at the desk. She wasn’t intentionally peeping, but after the incident with Lü Zhi a few days ago, she came to keep an eye on things when she had nothing else to do, to prevent her young master from suffering any undeserved calamities. After all, ahem, when she was younger, she was completely unrestrained and offended quite a few people. Those shameless individuals might not care about involving family members in their grudges.
These days, Wu Zhen often transformed into a cat to follow Mei Zhu Yu. This future husband’s life was regular and ordinary, even more boring than most people. If he wasn’t handling official business at the Ministry of Justice, he was resting at home, with no entertainment life at all. Even the most upright and low-key young masters would occasionally find three or five friends to go to a pleasure house, drink some wine, and chat about feelings. But this young master could be described as reclusive.
Wu Zhen had followed him for several days, watching him treat colleagues and strangers with the same cold attitude. She couldn’t help but wonder if the things she had seen before when meeting him – the blushing and smiling – were all fake, just her imagination.
“Mei Lang Zhong, Assistant Minister Xu wants you to run an errand for this case,” a minor official hurriedly came over.
Wu Zhen, listening from outside the window, stood up and shook her fur, following Mei Zhu Yu out. Mei Zhu Yu was going to the Ministry of Justice’s prison to interrogate a newly brought-in criminal. This wasn’t his job, but since Assistant Minister Xu had assigned it to him, Mei Zhu Yu didn’t think much about it. He accepted it and went to the prison alone with a gloomy-faced minor official.
Wu Zhen had never been to this prison before. It wasn’t a fun place, and it was full of foul energy. But since the young master was going, she still followed to take a look.
The outside of the prison looked fine, but the inside was indescribable. After all, it was where criminals lived, so conditions couldn’t be good. As soon as one entered, they could feel a chill creeping up from their ankles, followed by various unpleasant and pungent odors hitting their face, almost enough to make one stagger from the stench. The minor official following Mei Zhu Yu involuntarily took a step back, but seeing his superior walking forward without stopping, he could only smile bitterly, pinch his nose, and follow.
Wu Zhen also smelled that odor and instantly understood this wasn’t a good job. She hesitantly looked at the suspicious puddles on the prison floor, disgustedly twitched her whiskers a few times, and finally leaped lightly, running along the wall to catch up with Mei Zhu Yu.
Interrogating criminals and recording confessions wasn’t difficult, just annoying, especially in such a terrible environment. It made one particularly impatient. If you add an uncooperative troublemaker, it would be a disaster.
The criminal was a middle-aged man with a sorrowful and weathered face. He had accidentally killed his wife and was sentenced for it. He started crying as soon as he saw Mei Zhu Yu, sobbing with snot and tears. Mei Zhu Yu sat expressionlessly in his seat, writing records, occasionally stopping to ask a question. At first, the man was vague and unwilling to answer, just crying painfully. But Mei Zhu Yu was incredibly patient, coldly watching him cry, and continuing to ask questions when he finished. After quite a while, the man finally shrank his head and stutteringly began to answer questions.
Wu Zhen stood on an oil lamp stand in a hidden position. During this process of recording the confession, she counted how many times the minor official behind Mei Zhu Yu impatiently rolled his eyes, and how many times the man cried out “Sir, please spare me! I didn’t mean to!” And Mei Zhu Yu didn’t even move an eyebrow the entire time, just dipped his brush in ink and recorded, asking concise questions about identity, native place, the process of the crime, and nothing extra.
If it were Wu Zhen, she might have been annoyed enough to press the man’s face onto the record book the second time he bowed and begged for mercy. Wu Zhen admired the young master’s patience and good temper, while once again feeling that the flustered young master she had seen before might have been fake.
Halfway through the interrogation, Wu Zhen declared surrender, abandoning the young master to wander out of the prison on her own. However, she didn’t go home, just wandered around near the Ministry of Justice office. As a result, she accidentally overheard someone speaking ill of the young master behind his back.
This was the advantage of being a cat – when encountering unfamiliar people chatting, there was no need to avoid them. She could directly squat nearby and openly listen.