I am aging gracefully in the world of famous books

While continuing to pretend to be dead, Pei Xiang frantically thought about how to solve the predicament in front of him.

The other dancer who lives in the same room as Yuanshen is named Qianniang, she is a lovely girl whom I still feel pity for.She has a gentle personality and doesn't speak much, and she doesn't want to join the masters and young masters in this mansion. She only thinks that as she grows older in the future, she can ask the mistress for mercy and let her go out of the mansion to marry.

But recently, Qianniang changed her previous aspirations and secretly had a relationship with the master of the house, often avoiding the first lady in the backyard to have a tryst and flirt.

Yuanshen once asked Qianniang, why not let the master pass her identity to the public, and accept her as his aunt's concubine in a serious manner, which is better than being so unclear.

But Qianniang kept laughing and remained silent, and after a few times, Yuanshen didn't want to meddle in other people's business anymore.

Now, Pei Xiang recalled those details of the past, as well as Qianniang's temperament changes, and he had a clear understanding in his heart.

If the red-haired green-skinned monster not far away is really Huapigui, then the Qianniang who later hooked up with the male master of the mansion should be Huapi in disguise.

In other words, in recent days, the roommate who ate and lived with the original owner was actually a monster in human skin.

——There has been no accident these days, does it mean that Huapi doesn't want to kill her yet?

——Or, Painted Skin only kills men?

——Is the original owner's silent death tonight related to the monster not far away?

Countless thoughts were swirling in Pei Xiang's head, and she thought a lot in a short while, but before she could think of a good way to get out of the body, the monster who was suspected to be a Liaozhai painted skin not far away spoke.

"Sister Pei, since you woke up and saw my real body, don't continue to pretend to be asleep."

Pei Xiang still kept his eyes closed, not daring to respond.

There was a sound like fish swimming and spitting water in the room, followed by Pei Xiang smelling a faint fishy smell. As the smell became stronger and stronger, Pei Xiang could clearly feel that the monster was approaching.

"Sister Pei, don't worry, I really like your appearance. When I get tired of Qianniang's appearance, I will pretend to be you and live a good life for you."

The monster obviously wanted to imitate Qianniang's tone of voice, but the end of every sentence had an echo similar to that of a pig, and it had a rough voice, which made people feel irritated.

Pei Xiang knew he couldn't keep pretending to be dead.

After brewing her emotions for a while, she pretended to be scared, flustered, angry and worried, and suddenly opened her eyes.Pei Xiang suppressed his panic half-truth and half-fake, and questioned the monster standing by the bed in a trembling voice:

"Who are you and why did you appear in Qianniang and I's room? Where's Qianniang? What did you do to Qianniang?"

While talking, Pei Xiang aimed at Qianniang's bed with red eyes.

She was very scared, and worried about the little sisters who lived with her day and night. Her thin and thin shoulders trembled, as if she knew that her life was not long. However, the affectionate and innocent little dancer still cared about her friends.

Pei Xiang's performance seemed to arouse the monster's interest.

It looked at Pei Xiang, who was pretending to be strong, with its big orange and round eyeballs, and suddenly felt that this kind of reaction, which was obviously terrified but still insisted on holding on, was extremely interesting.It giggled twice, and became interested in saying a few more words.

"Are you looking for your little sister Qianniang? No need to look, she is right in front of you, look!"

After the monster finished speaking, he shook the human skin-shaped object in his hand, then threw it and put it on his body.

In the blink of an eye, the burly monster with blue face and fangs turned into a lovely and pitiful dancer. The stench that had been emitting from it disappeared, and it became the scent of jasmine powder that Qianniang used to wear.

Pei Xiang's pupils constricted, and he thought that he was indeed a painted skin ghost!

At the same time, a confused and unbelievable expression appeared on her face, and she stared blankly at the miraculous scene in front of the bed where she transformed into a living person. Suddenly, the little dancer seemed to realize something, sobbed softly, and her whole body shook even more violently up.

"Qianniang..."

The Painted Skin Ghost was very satisfied with Pei Xiang's shocked and terrified expression, he covered his lips and smiled softly against Qianniang's appearance, his winking eyes were like silk.

"Why, my sister Pei, don't you know my sister?" At this time, its voice was exactly the same as Qianniang's.

Pei Xiang keenly discovered that this monster likes to intimidate and tease humans, and also has the desire to confide in her. In order to buy more time, she quickly asked another question:

"You, you pretended to be Qianniang? Why? You, did you do it because you admired the master in the mansion?

However, the master likes Qianniang, he will definitely find the difference between you and Qianniang.Also, how is Qianniang doing?is she still alive "

Painted Skin Ghost chuckled, it sat down by the bed, smiled and looked at Pei Xiang who was huddled in the corner of the bed, and said leisurely:

"Because Qianniang is so good-looking, I have to dress up as her.

As for the master you mentioned, that man has always been in my hands.Hee hee, you think Qianniang is so stupid, she doesn't want to take advantage of such a beautiful skin, but likes those rude and boring farmers, tsk tsk. "

Pei Xiang burst into tears: "You, you are using Qianniang's appearance to do bad things, what will Qianniang do after that?"

"There is no more Qianniang, do you understand? She is already dead! Of course, for the sake of using her skin, I didn't dig out her heart, and left her with a whole body. Now, you Are you relieved?"

Painted Skin Ghost's temperament is fickle, she suddenly turned cold, as if she was very impatient with Pei Xiang's slowness, and immediately shattered her self-deceiving extravagant hopes:

"So, don't be afraid of the pain, sister Pei. I treat beautiful women differently from men who betray me. I won't dig your heart, sister Pei. I will let you die without pain."

Pei Xiang immediately stopped worrying about Qianniang's affairs, she was just delaying time with one question after another.

Since Painted Skin Ghost is bored with Qianniang's topic, she will change it to a new one:

"A man with a heartless heart? Heart-digging? You, you eat people's hearts? Do you eat the heart of a heartless man?"

Pei Xiang raised his voice slightly, his eyes full of disbelief.

Questioned by such a weak thing, Painted Skin Ghost sneered and stretched out a hand, making a heart-gouging motion in the air.

Pei Xiang only felt an afterimage flash across his eyes, and saw that there was a steaming human heart in the palm of Painted Skin Ghost, which was empty just now.

"Of course I eat people's hearts. I especially like to eat the hearts of men who like me, because it is an excellent delicacy. Look, sister Pei, this is the heart of our master. I just picked it tonight and it is fresh. .”

Painted Skin Ghost was talking with a smile, while bringing the bloody heart to its mouth, it showed a salivating expression, as if the heart in its hand was exuding a seductive smell, and even stuck out its tongue to lick it.

Pei Xiang was really terrified this time. She watched Painted Skin Ghost show her her favorite "food", and then put the heart of the master of the mansion back into an exquisite food box.

Painted Skin Ghost looked at the food box reluctantly, and sighed softly:

"It's perfect to eat this kind of delicacy with Wang Ji's burning knife. Alas, I have to bear it for a more delicious taste."

Pei Xiang really couldn't pretend anymore this time, she couldn't help showing a disgusted expression.

After Painted Skin Ghost withdrew his "nostalgic" gaze, he happened to see Pei Xiang's reaction, and suddenly felt a lack of interest.

It also thought that this human being would be more interesting, but it didn't expect that it just heard about its recipe, so it didn't adapt to it, and it was no different from the human beings it had terrorized before.

Pei Xiang felt the strong killing intent emanating from Huapi's body, and immediately shivered. She couldn't care less about the overwhelming nausea in her stomach, and her life was the most important thing at the moment.

"Do you only eat the hearts of those who are unlucky?"

"Hee hee, of course not, it's just my taste preference."

"Why, why?"

"Because I like to see their unbelievable expressions before they die, and I think such people have endless aftertaste after chewing."

Painted Skin Ghost licked his lips with the scarlet tongue, and confided softly:

"Sister Pei, tell me, why are they so fickle? One moment they were tender and affectionate to me, and they swore to each other forever, and the next moment they moved on.

Isn't the skin I carefully painted beautiful?With a beauty like me, why would they bother with other women?Why do you want to go back to your wife?

I always can't figure it out, so I especially hope to find out what my lovers think, hee hee, sure enough, after getting their hearts, they will never betray me again. "

Pei Xiang thought, this is probably a painted skin ghost with a story?However, as a monster, you are so obsessed with the love and hatred of the human world, don't you feel ashamed of your racial identity?

——Is a monster like Painted Skin Ghost born with nature, or transformed by humans?Does it belong to the ghost series, or the monster series?

——Does the magical human skin it wears make a new one every time it kills a person, or does it always use the only one?

——Painted skin, painted skin, is it just depicting the appearance of different human beings?Are additional process steps required?

——It just said, leave a whole body for Qianniang.Can I infer from this that the painted skin ghost does not need that person's skin to change into a different human form, but needs to be depicted on a specific painted skin?

——Painted Skin Ghost changes appearance, the core step is to peel off the human skin, or to paint the human skin?

Pei Xiang calmly researched and guessed the attributes of this magical creature called Painted Skin Ghost, while at the same time giving full play to his acting skills forced by the problem of survival.

"Why are the hearts of those who are unlucky and unlucky so delicious? Their hearts are all black. You actually like to eat this. It's so disgusting. It really is a monster!"

Pei Xiang's sudden sharpness and rebuttal immediately aroused the curiosity of Painted Skin Ghost. It was the first time that a human being discussed with it what kind of human heart is more delicious. This is a novel experience.

"Then what kind of human heart do you think is the best food?"

Pei Xiang's thoughts changed sharply, and he said quickly and firmly:

"I think whether it is delicious or not has little to do with the kind of person the owner of the heart is. We are all human, and the only difference between healthy and unhealthy internal organs is that there is not much difference in taste.

However, I figured in private that the human heart is different from other internal organs, because our human emotions are closely related to a heart.To like someone is to be moved, to be joyful, to hate someone is to be bored, to be indifferent.

From this, I think the difference in the taste of people's hearts lies in the emotional state of that person towards you when you dig it out.

If it is sincere obsession and love, the human heart should be delicious and sweet. If it is false, the taste of human heart will definitely be worse.

Now you say that the heart in your hand is a delicacy, I absolutely cannot agree, because the master in our house has always been romantic, no matter how much he likes Qianniang's skin, it is just a momentary lust, and it is impossible to touch his true feelings .

No matter how tender and sweet he said, he actually forgot about it when he turned his head. This heart is full of selfishness and false friendship. There is only lust and the excitement of greed for new things. The taste is definitely not first-class. "

When Pei Xiang said this passage, she was flustered and apprehensive at first, but as she spoke, her tone gradually became stronger and became eloquent.

She threw away her fear and wandering, and seemed to feel that what she said was the truth, and conveyed a convincing force to the audience.

At the same time, the way she looked at Painted Skin Ghost changed from evasive and fearful to bright and firm, which made the other party believe that this argument between sincerity and falsehood was from her heart and was well-founded.

Probably because Pei Xiang's tone was too aggressive, and the emotions exuded were too confident, Painted Skin Ghost was unconsciously bewitched a bit, and it suddenly felt that Pei Xiang's analysis was somewhat reasonable.

"You haven't tasted the human heart, how do you know which is delicious and which is not? Moreover, human tastes are different from mine."

"Then have you tasted all of them?" Pei Xiang asked Hua Pi.

Now she can figure out some of the monster's temperament.Coupled with the painted skin story she had read before, although the various versions are slightly different, it can be inferred that:

Huapi likes to pretend to be a helpless, beautiful and weak woman to seduce human men, and after enjoying herself for a while, she will kill the seduced man and eat his heart.And this kind of men who can be easily seduced, most of them have a romantic nature, it is indeed difficult to be called a sincere person.

——Even if there is sincerity, I have to break it into a superficial person who is greedy for beauty.

Sure enough, Pei Xiang's question made Painted Skin Ghost hesitate, and it followed Pei Xiang's hints to recall its past predation experience.

Painted Skin Ghost discovered that most of the people it attracts are flirtatious people with weak wills, and flirting with women is the norm, and there really is no such thing as a "sincere person".

"Then according to what you mean, I have to choose a few men with firm minds?"

Pei Xiang shook his head: "You still don't know much about human beings, and a man with a firm mind may not be sincere.

Men prefer power and wealth, and their firm will may be used in other places, not in the relationship between men and women.It is actually very difficult to be sincere to someone, but because it is not easy to get, it is the most precious.

I think you have lived among us human beings for a long time, and you should have heard the folk proverb, it is easy to find a priceless treasure, but it is rare to find a lover. "

The Painted Ghost sharpened its nails irritably, and made a squeaking sound on the bedpost. It frowned and asked Pei Xiang in a vicious voice:

"You said a lot, which aroused my interest, but now you say it's difficult to do, do you think I have a good temper?

Come on, what can you do?Otherwise, I don't mind trying it with your heart first. "

Pei Xiang had a face full of disbelief, and she said smartly:

"Are you scaring me? If you want to eat my heart, you will definitely disembowel me. If you do that, you won't destroy my skin."

While talking, Pei Xiang touched his face:

"I'm prettier than Qianniang, it's such a pity to be ruined like this."

Painted Skin Ghost sneered contemptuously, and shouted unpreparedly:

"What do I want your skin for? As long as I kill you myself and paint your appearance on my painted skin, I can become you.

So, when I say I want to eat your heart, I don't mean to scare you.Tell me the method quickly, and then I will leave you a whole corpse, don't you humans care about this the most?Do you hear me? Say it! "

Pei Xiang had discovered at this time that the Painted Skin Ghost actually didn't like her being too timid and cowering, so she ignored the Painted Skin Ghost's reprimand threats at this time, and instead carefully looked at its appearance at this time.

"So, your current appearance is based on Qianniang's appearance, um, painted by yourself?"

——Sure enough, the key to changing the appearance of the Painted Skin Ghost is to paint on a special painted skin, not to kill and pick the skin...

"Of course I drew it myself." When Painted Skin Ghost answered this question, his expression was smug and proud.

It caressed its own face, and sighed pretendingly:

"I didn't draw so well at the beginning. I have practiced for a long time, and now I have such a lifelike skin."

Painted Skin Ghost's reaction and tone at this moment made Pei Xiang gradually find a way to save himself.

She carefully looked at the painting skin ghost's half a cup of tea, and when the painting skin ghost's patience was about to run out, she suddenly showed an expression of enlightenment:

"Sure enough, you really drew Qianniang's appearance, no wonder, no wonder..."

"No wonder what?" Pei Xiang's abnormal reaction made Painted Skin Ghost frown displeased.

"Recently, I always feel that Qianniang is not as beautiful as before. I thought it was because she changed her mind and aspirations, which led to a change in temperament and charm, so she became mediocre and gaudy, and even lost that attractive tenderness. like water.

It turns out... I was thinking about it!Now take a closer look, it is not only the reason for the change of temperament, but also the reason for your lack of painting skills. Look, your brows are drawn in a rigid way, not as delicate and flexible as a real person. "

The smile on Painted Skin Ghost's face completely disappeared, and it felt that it had been greatly insulted and provoked:

"You, you say that I can't draw well? You say that my current appearance is not as good as the real Qianniang? Is it dull?"

"Well, that's what I think. Of course, your level is still good, but it's a bit lacking in charm."

As soon as Pei Xiang finished speaking, the Painted Skin Ghost on the opposite side became violent. It dragged Pei Xiang to him, grabbed her by the neck, and said sharply:

"Take a good look at me again. How am I not as good as Qianniang? Look at it, and if you talk nonsense again, I will make your life worse than death!"

"Ahem, cough, don't you believe me? So, are all you monsters so self-willed?

Can't hear the truth?Cough, cough, you are no different from the heartbreaker you hate!

Ahem, you are all conceited and hypocritical people, you can't see the sincerity of others, you can't see the truth and true feelings, and you can't hear the truth. "

These soft words didn't anger Painted Skin Ghost further, but made it a little weaker.

It sneered a few times, and suddenly felt that if Pei Xiang was pinched to death like this, it would really lose.It now hates the pitiful and contemptuous eyes of the woman in his hand, and hates her transparent indifference that seems to see through everything.

Feeling angry, Hua Skingui, who couldn't stand the provocation, threw Pei Xiang to the ground.

"Since you think I'm not good at drawing, then come and draw a Qianniang. I'd like to see if you have the real ability to speak so boldly?"

Pei Xiang was just waiting for this sentence, she felt relieved, but there was a feeling of embarrassment and hesitation on her face.

"I draw? That's okay. But, if I really draw better than you, can't you just admit it if you lose?

Also, you can't force me to dress up and paint for you in the future, I don't want to help monsters who kill humans. "

Painted Skin Ghost almost laughed at such brash speech.

It felt that Pei Xiang's face was thicker than its painted skin. Hearing what she said, why would it be possible for her to make up and describe its appearance in the future?

Painted Skin Ghost thought to himself, it had never thought of this before, if it wasn't for Pei Xiang's unreasonable worries, heh, it would never have had similar thoughts at all, it's so irritating!

Pei Xiang walked to the desk slowly, facing the mocking and angry eyes of Painted Skin Ghost.

After fiddling with the pen, ink, paper and inkstone that Painted Skin Ghost had used before, she began to carefully sketch Qianniang in her memory on a brand new piece of white paper.

Pei Xiang knows how good his painting skills are. It has been tempered in his previous life, and he has learned from everyone, blending Eastern and Western styles.

Although she forgot the specific details of the process of learning to draw, she remembered how to draw and how to draw.Especially portraiture, in Pei Xiang's perception, she is best at this.

She lowered her head and drew seriously. When she concentrated on the work, her temperament became calm and extraordinary. Such a silent and unignorable change made Painted Skin Ghost gradually restrain her anger.

After it sat by the bed and waited for a while, An Nai finally couldn't help being curious, and quietly walked to the table.

Originally, Painted Skin Ghost only intended to glance at it, but it didn't expect that it couldn't separate its eyes from Pei Xiang's works.

Painted Skin Ghost is proud of its own painting skills, and it does have some real skills, so it naturally sees that Pei Xiang's painting skills are extraordinary...

Half an hour later, Painted Skin Ghost stared at Pei Xiang's Qianniang in a daze.

It looked down at the portrait, and then looked back at itself in the mirror. After many comparisons, Painted Skin Ghost had to admit that Pei Xiang's Qianniang was more in line with the real Qianniang.Whether it's facial features, posture, or temperament, they are more beautiful, pleasant, agile and delicate than the painted skin on its body.

"Look, what I drew is Qianniang. Is she more beautiful than you are now? Besides, I didn't deliberately beautify her. Whether you admit it or not, compared with the Qianniang I drew, yours is Substandard."

Painted Skin Ghost smiled coldly: "So what if you draw well? I can kill you at any time."

As soon as these words were said, the pride and freshness in Pei Xiang's eyes were immediately extinguished.After putting down the brush, the calm and confident energy in her disappeared.

Pei Xiang became that beautiful, weak and courageous little dancer again, and trembled because of the threat of Huapi. She timidly glanced at the food box containing the heart, twisted her fingers and lowered her head.

"Even if you don't kill me, I won't live long.

You killed the master tonight, tomorrow morning, this matter will definitely be discovered.At that time, I, the little dancer who lives with you, will definitely be implicated.

The mistress may order someone to kill me with a stick, or sell me to the brothel Chuguan, or send me to the official prison once and for all.

There is no way I can live in such a dirty place.

In short, I am an involuntary dancer, my life is like grass, and my body is like duckweed. It is not easy to protect my innocence every day, let alone being implicated in this kind of murder case.

In the future, I won't have many good days to live.Rather than being abused and tortured by others, it is better to die by your hands.Just like what you said, if you can still leave me with a whole body and innocence, that might be the best ending for me. "

Speaking of the future fate, Pei Xiang's tone was depressed and his expression was gloomy. It was completely different from the vivid appearance before. She suddenly resigned to her fate and did not resist, but Painted Skin Ghost felt unaccustomed to it.

But as a monster, it doesn't have the habit of persuading people, nor does it have the patience to comfort people, so it just wants to be a good monster who is helpful and kill this fragile human woman.

But it just came up with such an idea, and hesitated again.

Painted Skin Ghost, who had seen Pei Xiang's painting skills, would feel very unwilling whenever he thought of Pei Xiang's death.Because it not only wants to learn Pei Xiang's painting skills from a teacher, but also wants Pei Xiang to help it dress up and modify its appearance, and even help it paint its skin.

Unknowingly, because of Pei Xiang's express hint, Painted Skin Ghost had an idea that he had never had before.

Just when Painted Skin Ghost was hesitating, the depressed Pei Xiang suddenly cheered up again.The rapid ups and downs of emotions and the drastic changes in mood almost made Painted Skin Ghost look sideways.

It is now dizzy by Pei Xiang, and has never realized so clearly that human beings are such a complex and fickle species, more ever-changing than the coquettish and cunning foxes.

"Forget it, I shouldn't be so sad and depressed."

Pei Xiang suddenly showed a brisk and relieved smile, she looked at Painted Skin Ghost and said sincerely:

"Before I die, I will have no regrets if I can pick up my beloved paintbrush and splash ink again.

I am a poor man, only lived a few years of good life when I was young, and learned some poetry, calligraphy, calligraphy and painting from my father.Later, my family changed dramatically, and I became a lonely person, earning a living by dancing.

As a lowly person, I no longer dare to hope that I can continue to study and practice calligraphy, and respectfully receive the teachings of saints.It's just... this painting is really my favorite, and I can't bear to give it up.

Over the years, I have been wandering, got some adventures, and learned a little bit of the essence. Now that I am going to die, I can still paint a small portrait for the little sister who died young, which is considered regrettable.

Why should I be depressed and self-pitying, my life has not been wasted and depraved, I came and left innocently, I did not humiliate my ancestors, I have done my best. "

Painted Skin Ghost said in a complicated tone: "You can think about it."

Pei Xiang smiled and said no more.

Her expression became very peaceful and happy, with gratitude to Painted Skin Ghost and understanding of the hardships in the world, she slowly raised her slender neck, closed her eyes and waited quietly, waiting for Painted Skin Ghost to kill her.

She went to death calmly like this, and she had no resentment towards Painted Skin Ghost, which actually made Painted Skin Ghost not want to kill her.

This monster wandered among the crowd, and after occasionally revealing its true face, what it always got was fear and loathing, but never met kindness and gratitude.

It is really rare for someone like Pei Xiang to be full of curiosity about it first, then boldly refute it, and then calmly die after showing his extraordinary painting skills, and sincerely appreciate it.

Painted Skin Ghost, who suddenly didn't want to kill anyone, cleared his throat and said coldly:

"If you want to die, it's not now. Don't forget, you discussed with me which kind of human heart is more delicious. You can't die before this issue is concluded. You have to tell me how to get a heart." Heartfelt heart."

Hearing that Painted Skin Ghost didn't want to kill herself anymore, Pei Xiang slowly opened her eyes. She turned her head to look at the dying night outside the window, and asked in embarrassment:

"Don't you hurry up and get out of here? After a while, it will be daylight, and they will definitely come to arrest you.

You should hurry up and run away now. As for the question of the taste of people's hearts, that's just my guess.Well, there is absolutely no need for you to change the recipe just because of my words, although I strongly believe in my thoughts.

Let's go, if you don't leave here, you will be in big trouble. "

Painted Skin Ghost showed a trace of uneasiness on his face. It originally planned to run away overnight, but it didn't expect to waste a lot of time because of Pei Xiang.

It is good at changing, and it also has force. It is not afraid of three or five human attacks, but if it is confronted with many people or even officers and soldiers, it will still feel awkward.

What's more, there are very powerful monks and Taoists among human beings. If it encounters such a strange person, it cannot escape.

After all, the most powerful thing about Painted Skin Ghost lies in its ever-changing skin.

Painted Skin Ghost stared at Pei Xiang for a while, then bowed his head to admire her paintings for a while, and made a decision in his heart.

"You come out of here with me."