Chapter 35: Since When Do Men Not Love Foot Washing

"Has my husband returned from inspecting the three armies? Why not dispatch the elite of the Cat Battalion into the capital to clear the monarch's side and behead the demon concubine?"

As Pei Shaoqing entered the room, Xie Qingwu teased him with a smile; she had already put away her book and was lying on her side on the daybed, supporting her face with one hand.

"The Cat Battalion has only just been established and is not yet fit for major use," Pei Shaoqing replied with a straight face, sitting down beside her and shouting outside: "Bring water, I want to wash my feet."

"Young Master." Before long, Zhao Zhilan, dressed in a bright green long dress, pushed the door open while carrying a washbasin.

Xie Qingwu swept a faint glance at her; she could naturally see that this little girl had been trying to cozy up to Pei Shaoqing lately, yet she turned a blind eye to it.

One reason was that she and Pei Shaoqing were not actually husband and wife.

The second was that she felt Pei Shaoqing was feeling pent up, and having a maid who could help him vent his fire would save him from always setting his sights on her.

Even if it were just picking mushrooms, it would be very tiring after a long time.

Pei Shaoqing smiled slightly, "It is truly an honor to have Miss Zhao wash my feet; I will trouble you."

Washing feet is great!

What man doesn't love having his feet washed?

"Young Master, please lift your feet." Zhao Zhilan squatted down in front of Pei Shaoqing and, after placing the basin, went to help him remove his shoes.

She kept her head low, her heart full of misery; after all, she had never even washed her master or mistress's feet before.

And now, she had to serve this corrupt official first.

Pei Shaoqing sat on the daybed, looking down to admire the supple curve of Zhao Zhilan's back and her round, perky bottom, which looked even more prominent as her dress tightened when she squatted.

Her figure was far from as graceful and moving as Xie Qingwu's or Liu Yuheng's, and compared to Ye Hanshuang, it was even further behind, but it won out in youth and purity.

A young girl who had been cherished and treated as the apple of everyone's eye from childhood to adulthood was now completely casting aside her dignity and pride to please him; this feeling was actually quite satisfying.

Outside the window, a worried Liu Yuheng watched through a gap as her beloved disciple washed someone's feet, feeling heartbroken. What a sensible child; it was only because they, the elders, were incompetent that she had been reduced to this.

Zhao Zhilan kept her head down, her eyes red as she gripped Pei Shaoqing's feet and scrubbed them earnestly, when suddenly she felt a chill on her chest; Pei Shaoqing had suddenly used one foot to pull open her collar.

She jerked her head up, staring at Pei Shaoqing with all sorts of emotions—shame, panic, and anger—written on her face.

Pei Shaoqing, however, felt no guilt, staring at her with a half-smile while his toes nimbly pried open her lapel and slipped inside; the skin of a maiden who had not yet known a man was as smooth and delicate as congealed fat, ready to break at a touch.

Zhao Zhilan's delicate body trembled slightly; she looked at Xie Qingwu with shame and guilt, only to find that the other woman was facing away and could not see this scene at all.

She bit her red lips and lowered her head, pretending nothing had happened, her body trembling continuously as she continued to wash Pei Shaoqing's feet, letting him take liberties with her.

Everything was caused by her own willfulness; this was something she had to endure. For the sake of the Iron Sword Sect, she absolutely could not resist, and she absolutely could not let her master down.

Liu Yuheng outside the window also failed to see this sordid scene due to her angle; unaware that her beloved disciple had already opened her heart to Pei Shaoqing, she saw only a simple foot-washing and, her worries eased, left quietly.

"Young Master, it's... it's time to dry your feet." It felt as long as several decades, a tormenting experience; Zhao Zhilan, her face flushed red and her heart full of humiliation, said in a trembling voice.

Pei Shaoqing lightly kicked away the cloth she offered and said with a smile: "This cloth is a bit too rough; it wouldn't do to scratch this Young Master's jade feet."

Zhao Zhilan froze for a moment, then understood his meaning. Tears shimmered in her eyes as she slowly untied the ribbon at her neck. The moment she pulled off her bellyband and felt the waves of coolness brush against her, she knew there was no longer any covering on her chest, and in an instant, the roots of her ears were dyed pink.

Her body had been seen by a man for the first time.

She closed her eyes in shame and used the warm bellyband to dry the water off Pei Shaoqing's feet.

"That was a very comfortable wash; go and rest." Pei Shaoqing smiled gently. Looking at his decent, human-like appearance, who would have thought he never did a single decent thing?

Zhao Zhilan hurriedly pulled her lapels together, clutched the bellyband, and picked up the washbasin, leaving in a rush. Once she closed the door, she could no longer hold it back and curled up in the courtyard, weeping.

……………………………

In the morning, Pei Shaoqing woke up in a daze, and the moment he opened his eyes, he saw a massive cat head.

"My Lord, I went to check on that suspicious person my beloved concubine mentioned last night; it is the Kaiyang Saint Son of the Xuanhuang Sect," said General Li, who was squatting on the pillow.

Pei Shaoqing raised an eyebrow, "Kaiyang Saint Son?"

Who was this? He hadn't even heard of him!

Xie Qingwu, who was combing her hair in front of the mirror nearby, said calmly, "One of the seven disciples of the Xuanhuang Sect leader, each named after the Big Dipper. The men are Saint Sons and the women are Saintesses; they hold high status within the sect."

"This is why one must read more books," Pei Shaoqing sighed, then looked at Li Jiangjun, "Anything else?"

"He came to hunt down a traitor of the Xuan Sect named Zhou Shunqing. That traitor has a spirit pill on him and also knows an evil blood-sucking technique," Li Jiangjun said, its whiskers twitching as it spilled the whole story.

"Could it be that Zhou Shunqing is the culprit behind the dried corpse cases?" Pei Shaoqing felt that as a Jing'an Guard Flag Captain, he had the responsibility and duty to bring the culprit to justice.

It was definitely not because of the spirit pill on him.

It was purely to uphold justice.

Of course, the spirit pill could also be considered a reward for upholding justice; a man should reward himself more often.

Wait! He suddenly sensed something was wrong and looked at Li Jiangjun suspiciously, "How do you know the details so clearly? It's as if you saw it with your own eyes."

"Uh... this... that..." General Li's eyes darted around, its brain spinning wildly as it stammered: "Last night, the County Magistrate happened to visit the Kaiyang Saint Son, and I overheard it with my own ears."

"Minister Li, deceiving the monarch is a capital offense," intuition told Pei Shaoqing that this fat cat was hiding something from him.

The fat on Li Jiangjun's face quivered, "I wouldn't dare!"

"You say you wouldn't dare!" Pei Shaoqing immediately reached out, locked its throat, and lifted it up, saying with a mocking smile: "If you really weren't hiding anything from me, you would have jumped up immediately to denounce me for doubting a loyal minister."

He knew this cat's character very well.

"Let go! I'll tell, I'll tell!" Li Jiangjun's tongue was sticking out as it struggled, claws flailing.

Pei Shaoqing snorted coldly and released it, "Speak!"

"Cough! Cough, cough, cough!" After landing, Li Jiangjun coughed and hissed repeatedly. Once it caught its breath, it looked at Pei Shaoqing with a guilty expression and confessed honestly.

"There was a bottle of pills in the jade pendant for enlightening beasts. I bestowed them upon a few of my beloved concubines. Although they cannot speak human language yet, they understand it. My concubine happened to be present when the Kaiyang Saint Son and the County Magistrate were talking."

No wonder this dead cat had run off so fast with the jade pendant in its mouth; there really was something inside. Pei Shaoqing asked with a dark face: "Is there anything else in the jade pendant?"

"No more! There really isn't any more this time!" Li Jiangjun shook its head like a rattle-drum. To make its words seem credible, it even confessed its psychological motive for hiding it at the time: "As a strategist and Great General, I had no soldiers under my command; wouldn't that be very shabby?"

"The reason I kept that bottle of pills was just to enlighten a few clever subordinates to better contribute to my Lord's grand cause; I have absolutely no ulterior motives!"

Back then, it had conferred titles and ranks upon every horse bandit in the mountain stronghold, but not a single one listened to the orders of its strategist and Great General; it was just a figurehead!

From that moment on, it realized it had to have a group of confidants who would follow its lead.

Pei Shaoqing watched Li Jiangjun quietly; based on his understanding of this cat, it was indeed telling the truth this time.

In that case, he was actually a bit disappointed.

They are really gone!

"In other words, how many Demon do you have under your command right now?" Xie Qingwu recovered from his shock.

Li Jiangjun explained, "No, no, no, they are just beasts with relatively high intelligence; they are far from being called Demon, at least not like this subject, who possesses Demon Qi."

"How many are there in total?" Pei Shaoqing asked.

Li Jiangjun replied obediently, "Four. There were only four Enlightenment Pills left in the bottle in total."

"I will not punish you this time. Have your cats keep a close watch on the Holy Son of Kaiyang and Wang Xianling respectively, and search the entire city for Zhou Shunqing," Pei Shaoqing said indifferently.

This was also a good thing for him; after all, Li Jiangjun did indeed need a few clever subordinates.

Li Jiangjun breathed a sigh of relief, beaming with joy as it patted its chest and said, "Rest assured, my Lord, this subject and my elite troops will certainly not let you down."

It was going to lead its Cat Battalion to redeem itself through meritorious service!

(End of this chapter)