Chapter Fifty-Two: Duck vs. Ugly Fish

On the tranquil riverbank, a group of wooden-faced people stared out over the water.

“What... should we do?” Han Hua asked, gazing at the river as a gust of wind passed by.

“Um... I have no idea either,” Old Meng said, clutching Fubao in his arms, admitting his own cluelessness.

“Ahem! Why don’t we try this: Fatty, hang the prayer beads around your neck and see what happens?” Bai Zhanshuang suggested, offering a most unreliable idea.

Suspicious glances drifted over from the village chiefs nearby—is this really a team sent by the imperial court?

“Ew—so ugly!” Fubao lowered her head to examine the beads around her neck and declared her distaste.

“There’s no reaction at all!” Old Meng watched as Fubao scampered about, wondering if they had the wrong method.

“My lord, this won’t do, I’m afraid we’ll have to go to the middle of the river!” said the village chief whose old mother was afflicted by illness. “The thing is in the river! Why are you lingering on the shore? Are you here to play?”

“But, there’s evil lurking in those waters! How could I let the child go? Absolutely not!” Old Meng was growing frantic—he only had this one precious granddaughter! It was out of the question!

“Perhaps we should send an adult to accompany her,” another village chief ventured.

“Who?” Bai Zhanshuang’s gaze swept over the group. In an instant, a puff of smoke and not a soul was left in place.

The village chiefs: A disgrace!

Bai Zhanshuang: Useless.

Old Meng: Oh, my precious granddaughter!

Han Hua: Should I run? Is it too late to escape now?

In the end, trembling uncontrollably, Old Meng climbed onto the little bamboo raft with Fubao in his arms.

“The little bamboo raft floats along with the current...” Hearing his granddaughter’s innocent song, Old Meng was on the verge of tears. Oh, my dear child! If we make even the slightest misstep, we’ll both be lost here!

He looked back at the rows of black heads on the shore—a bunch of heartless people! Just because he was close to Fubao, they picked him to go!

Sobs.

The sorrowful old man had no inkling of the danger that was drawing near. As the bamboo raft drifted farther and farther from shore, anxiety grew in the hearts of those watching.

Fubao looked at the prayer beads on her neck, then at the duck flapping about in her arms, and decided the ugly thing should go to the duck instead.

“Duckie, duckie, here’s something nice for you!” Under the blank gaze of the silly duck, Fubao hung the beads around its neck. “Hm—too big!” So she wound them around a few more times.

Duck: I’m being strangled.

Fubao: “Looks good!”

“Child, what are you doing?” Old Meng, having barely managed to compose himself, turned to see the beads gone from Fubao’s neck and was alarmed.

“Where are the beads your great-uncle gave you?” Old Meng searched Fubao from head to toe but found nothing. This was disastrous!

“The beads?”

“Yes, where are they? Grandfather will put them on for you.”

“They’re with duckie! Duckie likes them.”

“Duckie? Who’s duckie? Where is it now?”

“There!” Fubao pointed with her chubby hand.

Old Meng spotted the fat duck in the river, swimming merrily with its head held high, prayer beads draped around its neck—and fainted dead away.

Grandfather and granddaughter, both doomed!

“Looks like things are going smoothly! Uncle seems so happy he’s lying down!” Han Hua said with sharp eyes.

“Indeed! Not bad, not bad. The old fellow is actually useful at a critical moment!” Bai Zhanshuang stroked his small mustache in approval.

Old Meng: ...

Just then, something began to stir in the calm center of the river. To outsiders, the water still seemed placid, but Fubao, holding her unconscious grandfather, fixed her gaze on the black shape rising from the surface.

“Oh—look, a little mud eel?”

But what had actually surfaced was some sort of fish monster.

Its two red eyes stared hungrily at the old man and the plump girl before it. Not much meat, but at least enough to get between its teeth. As for the “fat duck”—sorry, it didn’t even notice.

Fubao, seeing the fish monster, tossed her helpless grandfather aside and lifted her chubby face.

“You’re filthy!”

Fish monster: ???

“My duckie is clean!” Fubao added. Of course it was clean—with a mother obsessed with cleanliness at home, the “fat duck” was scrubbed every time it set foot indoors by Lin Sanlang, just shy of being thrown in the pot.

The fish monster was enraged! Roaring, it opened its bloody maw and charged at Fubao.

“Ah! Duckie, time for meat!” Fubao shouted.

At once, the fish monster found its path blocked by the fat duck!

The fish monster looked at the duck—too small to fill the gap between its teeth, yet so full of self-satisfaction.

Fish monster: ??? What’s with the hungry look in your eyes?

Driven to a frenzy, the fish monster resolved to eat them both!

To everyone’s astonishment, the fat duck began flapping its wings and took to the air!

Thus began a battle between two very different creatures. The surface of the river churned with waves, and after being splashed countless times, Old Meng finally regained consciousness!