Pei Shu’er returned to the cell with Liu Xu and Tang Qingning, and Mrs. Li looked at Liu Xu and Tang Qingning with spite.
"Hehe, you two filthy sluts, slept with the bandit leader, how dirty."
Tang Zan’s eyes sharpened, and a stone struck heavily onto Mrs. Li’s chest, almost knocking the breath out of her.
Just as she caught her breath, Pei Shu’er walked up to her.
Mrs. Li, looking at this fierce bandit, took a step back in fear.
But Pei Shu’er slapped Mrs. Li hard across the face.
"Are you slandering our Second Master? Just wait, tonight it’s your turn."
Hearing this, Mrs. Li was stunned, a look of regret crossing her face.
She never should have, under any circumstances, spoken such words while the two bandits were still present.
She should have waited until they had left before speaking out.
Seeing her reaction, Pei Shu’er delivered another fierce slap.
"What, not convinced?"
Mrs. Li was stunned, repeatedly shaking her head while covering her cheek: "No, I am not."
Pei Shu’er sneered: "Fine, then tonight you’ll serve the Second Master."
Liu Xu and Tang Qingning, though not entirely untainted, felt pleased in their hearts.
Clearly, Pei Shu’er deliberately withheld Mrs. Li’s food, yet she still had the energy to clamor daily.
Early the next morning, Pei Shu’er brought sweet and sour fish and fried pork ribs to Ling Niang, who nodded with a smile.
Seizing a moment when the guard outside was not attentive, Ling Niang spoke to Pei Shu’er.
"He said last night, in our room, but I didn’t find anything unusual. Come look again in an hour after lunch, he won’t be around then."
Pei Shu’er nodded, handing some powder to Ling Niang.
"This is something that drains strength. Just add it to a few people’s meals each day."
Ling Niang hesitated at first, then sighed: "That’s unlikely. How could he let me handle his meals? He is so cautious."
Pei Shu’er said: "You can give it a try."
"If it doesn’t work, we’ll think of another way."
Ling Niang nodded, seeing no other choice.
She didn’t want to be stuck in this mountain stronghold indefinitely, nor did she want her husband’s wrongful death to be in vain.
Pei Shu’er and Tang Zan were together in search of the map. Ling Niang was a cautious person; if she said it was in the bedroom, it must be.
But since even Ling Niang couldn’t find it, Pei Shu’er suspected there was some sort of mechanism.
And Tang Zan would surely be familiar with ancient mechanisms.
The two searched around the room but found nothing.
Just then, Ling Niang’s coquettish laughter came from the main hall.
"Big Master, what brings you back?"
The Big Master walked a few steps and then stopped, his voice was very close to Pei Shu’er and the others.
"I’ve come to see my lady."
Pei Shu’er noticed the Big Master’s footsteps grew a bit heavier, probably as he lifted Ling Niang into his arms.
The room was simple, with nowhere for them to hide.
She hurriedly searched the bedroom for some mechanism to hide them.
But to their disappointment, there was none.
As the footsteps grew closer, Tang Zan suddenly grabbed Pei Shu’er’s hand and pulled her under the bed to hide.
The two faced each other, staring, as the bed creaked ominously, giving Pei Shu’er a bad feeling.
Then they heard strange noises coming from above the bed, and Ling Niang protested slightly.
"Big Master, in broad daylight, isn’t this inappropriate?"
The Big Master chuckled softly: "I’ve missed your body and want to sleep with you. I don’t care if it’s day or night."
Just listening to that sultry voice, Pei Shu’er knew how intense the situation was.
Her face flushed red as she looked up at Tang Zan, who was also watching her with deep eyes.
Pei Shu’er dared not move, given the closeness, even the slightest rustle of fabric would be loud.
His ears reddened slightly, his eyes watching Pei Shu’er intently, as if she possessed some magic that drew his attention, despite her unattractive disguise.
Pei Shu’er’s scent and her damp eyes transfixed him.
He closed his eyes, took a deep breath.
Then turned his gaze to the window, waiting for the couple’s encounter to end.
Meanwhile, Tang Zan did not give up searching for the mechanism, moving as slowly and quietly as possible.
Just as the couple approached the end, his fingers suddenly felt a raised floorboard.
But he didn’t activate it, knowing that if he triggered something, it would make noise.
That would ruin all their plans, possibly endangering others as well.
Pei Shu’er closed her eyes, reciting socialist core values in her mind, keeping the surrounding noise at bay.
Once the Big Master finished, took a rest, then dressed and left.
Before leaving, he even lingered warmly with Ling Niang.
Pei Shu’er realized that the rough man, when speaking sweetly, had such a gentle voice.
Ling Niang responded indifferently throughout.
Once he was gone, Tang Zan pressed the raised floorboard,
the floor under them suddenly opened, dropping them into a hole unannounced.
With Tang Zan cushioning below, Pei Shu’er felt her head strike his chest, sparking stars in her vision.
After a few minutes, seeing Pei Shu’er hadn’t spoken,
Tang Zan felt a sudden unease.
He then softly called: "Pei Shu’er."
Pei Shu’er felt that Tang Zan was urging her.
So she stood up immediately.
"I’m here, let’s go."
She took out the fire lighter, blew it to life, and used the weak flame to find an oil lamp nearby, then lit it.
She finally saw the full view of the small room.
It was a very small room, filled with some gold and silver jewels; Pei Shu’er guessed these were the Big Master’s collections over the years.
Pei Shu’er began searching for the map among the treasures but found nothing.
Tang Zan suddenly said: "Pei Shu’er."
Pei Shu’er turned to look at him, and Tang Zan pointed at the wall of earth before him.
Only then did Pei Shu’er notice the crooked lines drawn on the dirt wall.
There were even symbols resembling rivers and mountains, which Pei Shu’er quickly memorized.
Once Pei Shu’er had it committed to memory, she turned to see Tang Zan watching her.
Clearly, Tang Zan also had it memorized.
After all, in the original work, Tang Zan was depicted as a person with a phenomenal memory.
Indeed, if the major antagonist wasn’t astounding,
then how could they present a formidable foe to the protagonists?