The three of them walked into the woodshed.
The moment Xie Yuantang stepped across the threshold, she detected a peculiar odor—a mix of decay and a fishy stench.
She narrowed her eyes slightly and discreetly tightened her grip on Si Tu Yan, signaling him to stay close.
“Sister, everything inside is just what you like~”
As Xie Yumo spoke, she subtly took a step back.
“Is that so?”
“Of course, I went through all sorts of hardships to prepare this for you~”
Xie Yuantang raised an eyebrow. Out of the corner of her eye, she noticed Xie Yumo retreating and curled the corner of her lips without making a sound.
In the next instant, there was a loud “creak” as the door was shut from the outside.
The room instantly darkened, with only a half-broken window letting in a sliver of light.
“Xie Yuantang, enjoy yourself in there! Ahahahaha!”
Xie Yumo let out the signature laugh of a malicious female antagonist, making Xie Yuantang roll her eyes.
“Wife, why is she laughing?”
“I don’t know, maybe she’s high on laughter farts.”
Xie Yuantang casually made up an excuse, then whispered to Si Tu Yan, “Stay close to me, don’t wander off.”
She could already hear the sound of animals squirming on the ground.
Quietly retrieving a vial of reagent from her Space Research Lab and tossing it, Xie Yuantang’s ears twitched slightly as she listened to the direction the creatures were moving. A faint smile touched her lips.
“Wife, I’ll listen to you and not run around…”
Si Tu Yan swallowed nervously, his large hand tightly clutching Xie Yuantang’s fingers as he whispered, “But… it’s so dark in here, and it stinks.”
“Yeah, it’s dark. I used to live here.”
Remembering his fear of the dark, Xie Yuantang patted the back of his hand reassuringly and said, “Don’t be afraid, I’ll show you something fun in a bit.”
“Something fun?”
Hearing there was something to play with, Si Tu Yan’s Peach Blossom Eyes instantly lit up: “Where is it?”
Xie Yuantang made a “shush” gesture, signaling him to keep his voice down: “Let me tell you, my sister loves dark and smelly places. Didn’t you bring her a gift? Let’s quietly hide it and make her come in to find it, okay?”
“But she locked us in.” Si Tu Yan pointed at the door behind them.
Xie Yuantang blinked playfully: “Don’t worry, I have a way to make her come in.”
As she spoke, she curled her fingers and knocked on the door.
“Knock, knock, knock~”
Outside, hearing the knocking, Xie Yumo sneered triumphantly: “What’s wrong, Xie Yuantang? Scared? Beg me! Too bad even if you kneel and kowtow, I won’t let you out!”
“No, I just wanted to say…”
Xie Yuantang picked her ear and replied nonchalantly, “Xie Yumo, with so much ‘water’ in your name, did your brain get soaked in the sea too? How about I just call you Xie the Sea from now on?”
“I’m perfectly fine in here, Sister Sea. What are you imagining out there?”
“Xie! Yuan! Tang!”
Hearing Xie Yuantang’s calm yet deeply insulting words, Xie Yumo was so enraged she slapped the door: “Your brain is the one soaked in the sea! You’re the one who should be called Xie the Sea!”
“If you have the guts, don’t just stand by the door—come inside!”
“Tch~”
Xie Yuantang’s words were deliberately infuriating: “I won’t. If you have the ability, come in and hit me!”
Xie Yumo: “…”
Ahhhh! She was going to die of anger!
“Someone! Where’s the key? Give me the key!”
She was going to go in and personally press Xie Yuantang’s head into that pile of filth! Let’s see if she’d still dare to speak so boldly!
Hearing Xie Yumo frantically searching for keys outside the door, Xie Yuantang snorted contemptuously, “Idiot.”
Then she pulled Si Tu Yan toward the window. Passing by the pile of filth, she reminded him, “Close your eyes, don’t look at the ground.”
“Okay.”
Si Tu Yan obediently closed his eyes.
Meanwhile, Xie Yuantang quietly reached into her clothes and pulled out Zombie Zero…’s head.
“Little treasure, it’s all up to you now!”
“C-c-click~”
The stiff jaw made mechanical, rasping sounds, startling Si Tu Yan so much he trembled all over. “Wife, I’m scared. I think I heard a strange noise.”
“Oh, that’s the Symphony of Revenge. It brings good luck.”
Spouting nonsense, Xie Yuantang tossed Zombie Zero onto the ground.
“R-really?”
Even with Si Tu Yan’s limited intelligence, he felt a tiny bit skeptical about Xie Yuantang’s blatant lie.
Symphony of Revenge?
Was there really such a piece?
Xie Yuantang didn’t care what Si Tu Yan was thinking. She quickly pulled him to the window and told him to open it.
“You go out first,” Xie Yuantang urged.
The next second, someone lifted her by the legs and placed her on the windowsill. Those clear Peach Blossom Eyes held nothing but sincere concern. “Wife goes first.”
Xie Yuantang froze for a moment. She was used to being the protector, the one who shielded others. Even after transmigrating, she often forgot she was still just a child.
But this foolish husband of hers remembered every time. Even when afraid, he would stand firmly by her side.
Her heart felt strangely warmed. Xie Yuantang smiled, jumped down from the window, and waved at him. “Come out quickly.”
Si Tu Yan nodded. As he climbed out the window, a beam of light allowed him to catch a glimpse of something on the floor.
“Wife, I think I saw a lot of toads…”
“No, you saw nothing.”
Xie Yuantang covered his mouth and pushed him into a crouch.
Just then, they heard a “click” as the door opened again, and Xie Yumo stepped inside.
“Xie Yuantang, why aren’t you making a sound? Could it be you’ve been scared to death? Hahahaha!”
Laughing triumphantly, Xie Yumo walked further into the room.
“Squelch~”
Suddenly, her foot stepped on something slimy, and she instantly lost her balance, tumbling forward.
Immediately, countless slimy things began squirming onto her body and face.
“Ahhh! What is this? Get away from me!”
Xie Yumo was mentally breaking down. She distinctly remembered these things weren’t in this spot before!
And why were they only targeting her? Where was Xie Yuantang? Why weren’t they going after her?
“Xie Yuantang, show yourself!”
Furious, Xie Yumo tried to get up, but suddenly there was a “crack,” and she tripped over something, falling flat on her face again.
Her swollen little face landed squarely on Zombie Zero’s hard skull.
A solid “thud” echoed, and even Xie Yuantang winced in sympathy for her face!
“Ahhhh! My face, my face!”
Listening to Xie Yumo’s screams, Xie Yuantang felt thoroughly satisfied. She tugged Si Tu Yan’s hand. “Let’s go. It’s time to establish our alibi.”
Si Tu Yan asked, puzzled, “But she hasn’t found our gift yet?”
“No rush. She’ll find it soon enough.”
Xie Yuantang said with a smile, “What’s the point of finding them now? When everyone is gathered later, we can capture her and Wei Lian in one fell swoop!”
Xie Yumo wanted to frighten her with toads, but Xie Yuantang had never intended to play petty games with her from the very beginning.
What she wanted was for Xie Yumo and Wei Lian to pay the price!