"This is worth far more than a single copper coin," Li Ping'an said helplessly.
"Then can we sell it for money?"
"We'd be taking quite a loss."
"Then what can it do?"
"This is your fated opportunity, Fairy. You can eat it."
Kitten said, "This fairy wants to eat mice, not leaves."
"If you eat it, you'll become very powerful."
"How powerful?"
"You'll be better able to protect me and Niu Niu."
Kitten hesitated, then put the leaf into her mouth.
She chewed it a little and found it quite fragrant.
But she felt nothing else.
Li Ping'an smiled and nodded at the old man leaning on a cane.
The old man returned a faint smile.
Li Ping'an turned his gaze back to the Osmanthus Tree.
His gaze fell on the ground where the Osmanthus Tree took root.
Even with his Dharma Eye, he could not make out what lay beneath.
The Small Town was not particularly large.
They had walked through all of it in a morning.
They found an open spot to sit down.
After their earlier experience, they no longer dared enter just any shop.
They could only take out the dry provisions they had brought.
Kitten said, "It's beautiful here. Can we stay for a while?"
"I'm afraid not."
"Why?"
"One radish to a hole. If we stayed, we'd be taking someone else's place."
Kitten did not quite understand.
Li Ping'an did not explain in any greater detail.
Just then, a middle-aged man in Confucian robes passed by.
He held a book in his hands and looked like a teacher.
He saw Li Ping'an, then caught sight of the black ox beside him.
After a brief pause, he strolled over.
"May I ask whether you are Li Ping'an, Mr. Li?"
"I am. And you are?"
"My