frightfiction Chapter 5 The Little Willow Tree Spirit's Friend's House Is Almost Gone
Chapter 5 The Little Willow Tree Spirit's Friend's House Is Almost Gone
The willow spirit thought this human mother was quite nice; after all, in his limited knowledge, there weren't many humans who could communicate with him so peacefully. He wandered around this area every day, and he knew that 3-kilometer radius area like the back of his hand. And coincidentally, Lin Yue's home was on the edge of that 3-kilometer radius.
Lin Yue said, "Little willow tree spirit, I'm sorry, I have to go home." The little willow tree spirit was very understanding and replied, "Okay, okay, bye-bye, see you next time. I have to go to my friend's birthday party, see you again sometime."
After saying this, the little willow tree spirit hopped and skipped away, the willow branches swaying merrily with his movements. Lin Yue watched his departing figure, her heart filled with mixed emotions. Then, she hugged her child tightly and hurried home as well.
Throughout the journey, Lin Yue's thoughts remained on her encounter with the little willow tree spirit. She didn't know what this meeting meant, nor whether she would ever see this special little creature again. But at this moment, she was more worried about the fact that the remnant soul Xueyang hadn't responded to her, and she didn't know how to tell her husband, Gong Yong, about today's extraordinary adventure when she got back.
By the time she got home, it was already getting dark. Lin Yue tiptoed into the house, settled the child in, and then sat on the sofa, lost in deep thought.
~~~~Cute dividing line~~~~
The little willow tree spirit crossed a small bridge, walked briskly through a street, and arrived at a corner of a park. He found a hidden little hole in a large tree and jumped down without hesitation. The passage inside the hole was very smooth; he slid along, the wind whistling in his ears. After about five minutes, he finally reached the entrance to a deep underground cave. Without pausing, he slid down the entrance again.
"Brother Gray Mouse, Brother Gray Mouse, I'm here!" the little willow tree spirit called out excitedly. "Brother Gray Mouse, Brother Gray Mouse, today is your birthday, and I brought you a birthday present!" His voice echoed in the underground space.
"And another thing, I have a surprise for you! I met an ordinary person on the road, a mortal, a human. He seemed to be able to see me! I talked to him for a bit, and I told him I'm three years old now!" The little willow tree spirit couldn't wait to share her amazing experience, her eyes sparkling with excitement as she eagerly awaited her brother Gray Rat's reaction.
Inside stood a small, walking mouse, which didn't look like an ordinary mouse. It had a tuft of golden fur on its head and a tuft of golden fur on its tail, while the rest of its fur was gray. Its ears were slightly larger than those of a typical mouse, and its mouth was shorter than that of a typical mouse, without particularly sharp teeth.
The little willow tree spirit stood in the gray rat's burrow. First, there was a front hall, seemingly a passageway for underground water. A sliver of sunlight shone into a small garden-like area in front of the burrow. There, water dripped continuously, and in the sunlight, there was a small blade of grass and a few flowers.
Stepping through the slightly lit doorway, you enter a slightly more spacious area. The items displayed are surprising; there's something that looks like a sofa, but it's incredibly small. Can you imagine? This sofa resembles one of those tiny sofas from a DIY house made by kindergarten children, complete with foam and covered in uniform gauze. I wonder where the little mouse got all this stuff, but it's undeniably beautiful. Besides the sofa, there's a small dining table, small chairs, and a small bookshelf. There's even a small bed inside! Overall, the space feels quite warm and comfortable.
In this somewhat secluded underground cave, there is such a fairytale-like little world, as if all the troubles and dangers have been shut out, making people marvel at the creativity and taste of this unique little mouse.
The little mouse stared with its big, round eyes in surprise and said, "A human can actually see you? Didn't you use any magic? Can you shield yourself from it?"
The little willow tree spirit quickly replied, "I did it! Look, my magic is still working."
The little mouse circled the willow tree spirit, coughed twice, and said worriedly, "Then why can he see you? Don't run into bad people. There are many cultivators up here. If you get caught, you'll be sealed away."
The little willow tree spirit answered firmly, "Are you sure? There are good and bad humans. Brother Gray Mouse, how old are you this year?"
The older gray mouse thought for a moment and said, "I don't know either. It seems... it seems... how old am I?" The younger gray mouse used its paw to comb its golden fur on its head, thought for a while, and then said, "It seems that my heritage doesn't say how old I am. What should I do?"
A brief silence fell over the cave as the little willow tree spirit and the little gray mouse pondered these perplexing questions. The few rays of sunlight that filtered in shone upon them, casting somewhat bewildered shadows.
Seeing that its gray mouse brother couldn't answer, the little willow tree spirit rolled its round eyes and said, "Then let's change the subject. Gray mouse brother, you told me it was your birthday today and you wanted me to come, so I came. Gray mouse brother, gray mouse brother, the reason I can still come to see you is because there are willow trees all over this area, and I can use them to get to your house. I can only move around in areas with willow trees. Wait, wait, wait, they cut down the willow trees in the park, then I won't be able to come to your house anymore, what will I do?"
The little willow tree spirit's voice was filled with worry and anxiety, and its tiny willow leaves trembled slightly due to the fluctuation of its emotions.
The little gray mouse frowned upon hearing this, lost in thought, unsure how to answer the little willow tree spirit's question. The atmosphere in the cave became somewhat heavy, the once warm environment now seemingly shrouded in this sudden worry.
The little mouse said, "I can come see you."
Then the little willow tree spirit said, "Brother Gray Mouse, I saw them digging up willow trees. Won't that affect you? Won't your burrow collapse after the willow trees are gone?"
The little gray mouse exclaimed in surprise, "What? They've already dug in from the outside? I felt the vibrations every day, and I thought they were only digging the surface. Are they digging really deep?"
The little willow tree spirit nodded and said, "It seems like they're building a house over there, like they're laying the foundation. Yes, it seems like there's a basement level and a second basement level, it's very deep underground, and it seems like it might damage your house."
Upon hearing this, the little gray mouse looked worried and began pacing back and forth in its burrow, pondering a solution.
The little mouse spirit suddenly stopped and said to the little willow tree spirit, "Little Willow, shall we go check on his construction site tonight? Are we going to dig right up to my house? Or should I scare them away? Do you think that's likely?"
The little willow tree spirit tilted its head and thought for a moment, then said hesitantly, "Brother Gray Rat, scaring people doesn't seem like a good idea. What if powerful people find out? We'll be in danger. Besides, humans might not be so easily scared away."
The little gray mouse frowned and said unwillingly, "What can we do? We can't just stand by and watch my home be destroyed."
The little willow spirit gently shook the willow branch and said, "Why don't we go and see what's going on first, and then think of other ways? Maybe we can find a way to protect your home without putting ourselves in danger."
The little gray mouse nodded helplessly: "That's all we can do. Hopefully, things won't get too bad."
As night fell, the darkness deepened, and the little gray mouse and the little willow tree spirit quietly arrived at the construction site. It was quite dark, and to ascertain whether it would damage his home, the little gray mouse mustered his courage and searched the entire construction site.
The little gray mouse darted about cautiously in the darkness, as if afraid of being discovered. It carefully observed every corner, not missing a single detail.
Then, it confirmed with the little willow tree spirit again that this was the area marked by their workers. After careful inspection and comparison, the little gray mouse's heart sank; it was certain that the construction would dig up its home.
The little mouse thought for a moment, then sighed, "If I go and scare humans, what if a cultivator or Taoist priest takes me in? It wouldn't be good. I've worked hard for many years to cultivate my skills." It paced anxiously in circles. "And what should I do? I need to think of something."
The willow branches of the little willow spirit drooped low, seemingly worried about the little gray mouse's predicament. The night deepened, the wind howled, and the little gray mouse and the little willow spirit remained standing by the construction site, racking their brains for a solution.
~~~Cute dividing line~~~~
That evening, Mingyue and the children packed up their outdoor gear, and then she and Gong Yong took the children home. Along the way, the little ones held their mother's hand, looking up at her with innocent faces and asking, "Mommy, Mommy, when can we go out to play again?" Lin Yue smiled and replied, "Next week, we'll go there again during the holiday, okay?" "Okay, okay! I still want to fly a kite!" the little ones said excitedly.
At this moment, the two children, Da Bao and Er Bao, also came over. Da Bao and Er Bao said, "Mom, shall we go again next weekend?" Lin Yue patiently said, "Okay, we'll talk to your dad and go again next weekend. We'll bring more delicious food next weekend, okay?" "Okay!" the children responded in unison.
Back home, Lin Yue and Gong Yong busied themselves helping the children get ready. After a flurry of activity, they finally got them all to bed. Watching their adorable, peaceful sleep, Lin Yue and Gong Yong quietly left the room and gently closed the door. The day's fatigue seemed to lessen considerably at that moment.
Hearing Gong Yong's familiar snoring, Lin Yue knew her husband was fast asleep. She gently closed her eyes and called out in her mind, "Remnant Soul, is Xueyang there? Is it convenient for us to chat?"
The remnant soul Xueyang's voice, tinged with confusion, rang out: "What happened? Where did you suddenly go this afternoon? Why did you isolate me?"
Lin Yue was also puzzled and quickly said, "Yes, I kept calling and calling you back then, but you didn't come out. It wasn't until I came back tonight, and it's now, that I was able to contact you. What happened?"
After pondering for a moment, the remnant soul Xueyang said, "Perhaps there's something there affecting the magnetic field, which is why it's hindering your communication with us. What happened to you?"
Lin Yue replied, "I saw a little willow tree spirit hopping around, it was quite cute, like a three-year-old baby."
The remnant soul Xueyang then asked, "So, are you on good terms with him?"
Lin Yue replied, "Sure, I'm on good terms with him."
Lin Yue then asked, "How come I can suddenly see him? Why can I understand what he's saying?"