North of Goose City, there was an inn called the Porridge and Rice Inn, managed by a woman. No one knew her full name, only that she called herself Third Lady, an outsider widow without children, and was likely in her thirties, still quite charming.

The sight of a widow running a business was rare and indeed raised eyebrows. However, in the remote and impoverished Nan County, people were less particular. Moreover, Third Lady had a good reputation in the martial world.

Whenever travelers found themselves stranded without shelter at nightfall, Third Lady was willing to rent them rooms at a low price.

The inn boasted a large number of mules, donkeys, sheep, and other livestock. If travelers didn't have a mount, or if their mounts were injured and unfit for riding, Third Lady would always sell donkeys and horses at a low price, taking in the sick and injured mounts in exchange, assisting passing travelers.

Thus, her reputation spread, and travelers from all corners of the earth would willingly spend the night at the inn, making the business of Porridge and Rice Inn even more prosperous.

Zhao Jihe was one of the travelers who visited the inn.

He was a Scholar Zhao on his way to the capital for the imperial examinations. His horse had injured its foot on the journey the night before and was unable to be ridden, so he had followed the guidance of locals and sought shelter at the inn.

The inn was already full of guests and had no vacant rooms. However, true to her reputation for warm hospitality, Third Lady managed to find a bed by the wall in one room for Zhao Jihe, where he could stay with seven or eight other travelers.

That evening, Third Lady instructed her staff to prepare a feast. She drank heartily with the travelers, eating meat in large bites and engaging in lively conversation, delighting both the hostess and her guests.

Scholar Zhao observed Third Lady's valiant and lively demeanor. She interacted with travelers from all corners, completely unlike the shy young ladies hidden away in deep courtyards. He couldn't help but adore her, becoming a bit infatuated.

At night, all the other travelers, drunk, lay sprawled on their beds. Meanwhile, Scholar Zhao, who couldn't drink, tossed and turned, his mind filled with Third Lady's image. Just as he was lost in these thoughts, a sound of something being moved came from the next room. His heart skipped a beat; the adjacent room was Third Lady's bedroom. Remembering her enchanting daytime figure, he momentarily forgot the rule: "Do not watch what is not proper." He sat up, tiptoed to a crevice in the wall's corner, and peered through the crack between the bricks.

Well... this wasn't peeping, he rationalized. He was merely protecting Third Lady from potential wrongdoers. However, the scene he anticipated—Third Lady undressing for bed—did not materialize. Instead, in her bedroom, Third Lady wore a solemn expression as she retrieved an antique wooden box from the bottom of her wardrobe. She placed it on the table and exhaled slowly. Seeming somewhat uneasy, she tiptoed to the door, pulled it open to confirm no one was nearby, then closed and locked it from the inside.

Why was Third Lady being so cautious? Scholar Zhao wondered. Was the box containing a portrait of her husband? Or the umbilical cords of her children? Or perhaps... a backscratcher?

As he pondered, Scholar Zhao saw Third Lady open the wooden box and remove a Farmer figurine, a wooden calf pulling a plow, and a wooden farmland miniature.

All were exquisitely small and delicate, just like toys made by carpenters for wealthy families' children.

What was this?

Scholar Zhao immediately imagined that every nightfall, the lonely Third Lady would take out the box and gaze at her children's once-favored toys, reminiscing about her family back home.

With such thoughts, Scholar Zhao felt even more compassion for Third Lady.

The next second, Third Lady took a sip of tea from the teapot, and with a stern look, she sprayed the liquid onto the wooden figurine and the wooden calf.

Upon contact with the tea, the Farmer figurine and calf shuddered as if they were finely crafted mechanisms. They began moving by themselves on the wooden field, diligently toiling away as real farmers would, earnestly tilling the land.

!!

Scholar Zhao was astounded. He had only heard of such strange and fantastical methods in tales of unusual folk; never before had he witnessed such an oddity with his own eyes.

...

With a glint in her eye, Third Lady murmured an incantation. She took a packet of buckwheat seeds and placed them in front of the wooden Farmer.

The wooden Farmer skillfully scattered the seeds across the field. In a moment, seedlings sprouted from the wooden earth, growing rapidly.

Using a sickle, the wooden Farmer harvested the wheat, threshed it into flour, and filled a wooden bucket that Third Lady had brought.

After finishing everything, the Farmer and the calf fell into a still silence, motionless once again.

Third Lady gathered up her wooden figures. Using the freshly milled flour, she kneaded dough in the room and baked it into flatbread by the stove.

By this time, dawn had broken, and roosters crowed incessantly. Travelers, hungover from the night, staggered out of bed, clutching their throbbing heads, and stepped onto the floor.

Scholar Zhao hurriedly pretended to have just woken up, dressing himself along with the others.

The scenes he had witnessed the previous night were too shocking to mention, and all he could think about was escaping the eerie Porridge and Rice Inn as quickly as possible.

However, just as he grabbed his bundle and prepared to dash for the inn's entrance, a waiter blocked his path, beaming at him. "Master Zhao, don't be in such a hurry to leave.

"Our mistress has made some flatbread, which she's offering for free to the guests. After breakfast, we will provide you with a new horse to help you journey to the capital for your exams and attain honor and success."

Scholar Zhao desperately wanted to refuse, but two more waiters approached him. They smiled widely but blocked his escape route with their bodies; bulges at their waists suggested they were concealing weapons.

Scholar Zhao had no choice but to smile back and nod in agreement. He stayed in the hall with the other travelers, waiting for Third Lady to bring breakfast.

Soon, a somewhat haggard Third Lady came to the hall with porridge, cold dishes, and flatbread, serving one portion to each person.

The other travelers suspected nothing, savoring their food and praising Third Lady's exquisite culinary skills, noting the superb taste of the flatbread.

Scholar Zhao wanted to warn them, but a waiter was standing right behind him, pressing a blade against his waist. Before he could open his mouth, it seemed likely he would be stabbed through the stomach.

"Why aren't you eating, Master Zhao?" Third Lady rubbed her soft hair by her ear and yawned seductively. "Do you find it not to your liking, Master? This is the flatbread I baked overnight..."

How can I possibly eat after witnessing that eerie scene last night?! Master Zhao cursed inwardly. But under the looming threat at his back, he forced a smile and unwillingly took a small bite from the flatbread, chewing it as if it were poison.

"That's enough. I've eaten my fill and now it's time to hit the road."

A satisfied traveler, having had his fill, patted his belly and picked up his belongings from the seat. He bowed to Third Lady, who leaned against the counter. "Thank you for your hospitality, Third Lady. Next time I'm in Lvzhou, I'll still stay at this inn."

Third Lady grinned and waved her hand. "Safe travels, guest. Waiter, bring the donkey."

"No need, no need, I can get it myself."

The traveler walked towards the inn's entrance with a smile but suddenly tripped halfway, crying out, "Ouch, my foot—HEE-HAW! HEE-HAW!..."

Before his words trailed off, a thin layer of black and grey hair sprouted on his arms, and his cries of pain turned into donkey brays: HEE-HAW! HEE-HAW!

His face rapidly elongated, his ears became pointed, and he stood on all fours.

In an instant, he had turned into a donkey!

The other travelers exclaimed in alarm, scrambling to stand up from their chairs, only to tumble to the ground.

Donkey brays filled the inn, creating a cacophony. Third Lady and the waiters, however, only wore cold smiles on their faces.

So that's how it is!

Despair filled Scholar Zhao's heart. It turned out that Third Lady had amassed her huge fortune in just a few short years by using Evil Magic to turn people into donkeys, preying on passing travelers and swallowing their wealth for tremendous profit without any capital.

She could even sell the transformed travelers as donkeys across the land, erasing clues and making a good profit in the process.

The donkeys, sheep, cattle, and horses in the inn's backyard... most likely all were once travelers who had been harmed.

Perhaps because Scholar Zhao had only taken one bite, his transformation into a donkey was slower than the others.

Third Lady, unperturbed, instructed the waiters to herd the half-man, half-donkey Scholar Zhao, along with the other donkeys braying HEE-HAW, into the backyard.

Could it be that I, Zhao Jihe, am to die here today?

Without having passed the civil examinations, without having married a nobleman's daughter, without having achieved great success or established a distinguished reputation, I am to become a donkey...

Two lines of tears slid down the narrow cheeks of the green donkey.

In the last blur of consciousness, this donkey seemed to hear a man's voice coming from the front courtyard.

"Waiter, how do I get to Long County?"

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