Nothing in this world can stop the passage of time, and it's already the next day in the blink of an eye.

The troupe prepared their gear and set out for their performance.

However, due to the events of the previous day, they made some adjustments: Xiuer stayed at home, the women went out to collect money, and they also left behind the big monkey, fearing it would scare people again, locking it in the iron cage.

Xiuer saw everyone out the door while one woman muttered complaints to the dwarf about having to go out and show her face.

The dwarf pretended not to hear.

Xiuer watched everyone leave, then closed the door and went back to her room to prepare some good food for when they returned.

As everyone turned the corner of the street and Xiuer closed the door, two figures emerged from the corner of the courtyard.

It was none other than the young marshal and his sidekick.

Neither of them wore military uniforms today, but their waists were bulging, indicating they were armed.

With a smile, the young marshal glanced at the low courtyard wall, turned around and tossed a dozen coppers to his sidekick.

He told the sidekick to go across the street and have some tea, and wait for him to come out.

Understanding the order, the sidekick took the money and entered the teahouse across the street without looking back.

The young marshal adjusted his pants, tightened his clothes, and with a single leap, he was over the courtyard wall.

The big monkey locked in the cage heard the noise and saw the young marshal who had jumped into the courtyard.

The big monkey snarled, showing its teeth, and roared at the young marshal, the scars on its face twisting and looking terrifying.

The young marshal was startled by the monkey, but seeing it locked in an iron cage with a padlock, he felt somewhat reassured.

Then, he thought about how the dead monkey had scared him twice before, and he kicked the cage in anger, while the monkey bared its teeth at him.

The monkey's roars alerted Xiuer inside the house. When Xiuer came out, she saw the young marshal looking at her maliciously.

Her heart sank, knowing something was wrong, and she turned to leave, but the young marshal rushed up and grabbed her.

Xiuer opened her mouth to scream, but the young marshal covered her mouth with his hand. Xiuer could only make muffled cries, trying to struggle free.

But a young girl was no match for the young marshal.

He forcefully dragged her into the room and shut the door with his foot.

The monkey kept baring its teeth and roaring at the young marshal from the cage, shaking the iron bars, wanting to get out, but it couldn’t.

Crying and shouting came from the room, accompanied by the young marshal's wild laughter.

……

A long time passed… a long time…

The room fell silent.

The monkey glanced around in confusion.

The door was pulled open from the inside, and the young marshal walked out, adjusting his clothes, looking satisfied.

When the monkey saw him come out, it went crazy, roaring furiously.

The young marshal turned to look at the monkey.

“Damn it! You keep making noise while I get things done. See if I don’t kill you today!”

He thought about getting his gun, but realized that the gunfire might draw others, so he looked around the courtyard.

He saw the pole used by the young master yesterday, picked it up, and struck the iron cage with it.

The cage rattled loudly.

The monkey wasn't backing down, shaking the cage crazily, trying to get out.

The young marshal, seeing the monkey's futile rage, felt triumphant and struck the cage several more times.

The bar spacing on the iron cage was small, so the young marshal couldn’t hit the monkey directly, only pound on the cage.

But he didn’t notice that one hit landed right on the cage lock.

The lock, worn by years of exposure, loosened a bit from that hit.

The young marshal didn’t notice, but the monkey did, and it began to provoke him even more.

The young marshal kept hitting the cage with the pole.

After an unknown number of strikes, there was a “clank.”

The young marshal and the monkey stopped and looked at the fallen lock.

The young marshal knew something was wrong and, dropping the pole, retreated while drawing his gun.

Before he could draw it, a black figure leapt down on him.

A miserable scream echoed far and wide.

One scream after another followed, each more chilling than the last.

Until the courtyard gate was kicked open from the outside.

The young marshal’s sidekick rushed in, seeing the scene before him and freezing in fear.

He saw a monkey sitting on the ground, facing the gate, gnawing on a round object.

The sidekick recognized the object in the monkey's arms as the young marshal's head.

The young marshal’s headless body lay beside the monkey.

The sidekick, seeing it all, pulled out his gun and shot.

One shot hit the monkey’s arm. The monkey dropped the head in pain, rolled away to dodge the next few shots, and with a leap, it was on the courtyard wall.

The sidekick kept shooting, but the monkey was too agile. It leapt onto the roof and disappeared overhead in a few bounds.

The series of gunshots finally alerted the young and old masters in the back courtyard, as well as neighbors who came to see.

The old master, seeing a body in his courtyard, almost fell to his knees in fear. The young master, not knowing who the dead person was at first, ran to Xiuer’s room, afraid something had happened to her.

But he saw a corpse hanging from the beam when he entered.

Xiuer had hanged herself!

By now, someone had already informed the troupe about the incident at home.

The troupe members hurried home, seeing a crowd at the door. Sensing something was wrong, they pushed through the crowd and were shocked to see the body in the courtyard.

The headless body lay there, with a bloody head not far away, and the cage that held the monkey was open, with no sign of the monkey.

The old master was sitting limp on the side, and Xiuer’s room door was wide open.

Xiuer’s father rushed to her room, only to see the young master sitting by the door, holding Xiuer, with a white cloth hanging above.

Xiuer wore only her undergarments.

The dwarf, woman, and tall man followed the old man, and the young master explained what he saw.

The man outside raped Xiuer, causing her to kill herself out of humiliation. Somehow, the monkey escaped and killed and decapitated the man outside.

After hearing this, the old man staggered back, and the tall man quickly caught him.

The tall man looked at the dwarf, who had already recognized the head outside as the young marshal's.

This cannot end well, the tall man thought, and he motioned for the tall man to help the old man leave, knowing they couldn’t stay here.

But before they could leave, soldiers with guns had already separated the crowd at the gate.

Coming in was the furious marshal, with his sidekick who had gone to inform him.

They were followed by the eldest son and the adjutant.

The eldest son glanced at his brother’s tragic death without changing his expression, but his eyes glimmered a bit.

The adjutant, seeing the troupe in the courtyard and hearing the sidekick’s account, roughly understood the situation.

But the marshal, seeing his youngest son’s severed head, became red-eyed with rage.

Shouting, “Damn it! None of you will live! Kill them all!”

At his command, over a dozen soldiers raised their guns at the people in the courtyard.

The adjutant rushed forward to stop the marshal from ordering the shooting.

“Marshal! You mustn’t!”

The marshal kicked the adjutant away and was about to order again, but the adjutant rushed back, held the marshal, and whispered in his ear.

“You mustn’t, Marshal!” The adjutant motioned to the courtyard walls and gate, indicating the crowd surrounding them.

Gossipy onlookers had already spread the news among themselves, talking and watching events unfold!

“Marshal, we just conquered this place, our foothold isn’t secure yet. We can’t start a massacre!”

The marshal, red-eyed and determined, tried to break free from the adjutant again.

The adjutant urgently continued, “We can’t kill openly! Do it secretly!”

Hearing this, the marshal calmed down a bit, and the adjutant sighed in relief.

But then the marshal kicked the adjutant away again.

He walked to his son’s side and finally let his tears fall. The little monkey, which used to sit on the old man’s shoulder, was now by the young marshal's body.

The marshal recalled the sidekick saying a monkey killed his son and drew his gun.

“Bang, bang, bang.” Three shots, and the little monkey was dead.

The marshal stood up and shouted, “Damn it, whose monkey is this?”

Turning to his sidekick, he yelled, “Whose monkey is it?”

The sidekick stepped forward, having seen the old man performing with the monkey the previous day, pointing at the old man. The old man glared back fiercely.

“Damn it, your monkey killed my son?”

“Your son caused my daughter’s death!”

The old man shouted back.

“Fine, let’s settle this!” The marshal’s anger didn’t diminish.

He grabbed the old man’s hair and dragged him outside. The tall man wanted to intervene but was stopped by several gun barrels.

They watched as the marshal dragged the old man to the middle of the street.

The street was surrounded by onlookers.

A group of soldiers kept the people at bay, guarding around the marshal with guns.

“Damn it, today let’s settle this!”

The old man glared back.

“You said my son caused your daughter’s death, fine, my son’s death at your monkey’s hands pays for her life!”

The old man stayed silent. The marshal looked around and shouted, “Isn’t my logic sound? My son’s death paid for your daughter, so who is paying for my son?”

No one dared to answer.

“It was your monkey, so your life for his! Fair, right?”

No one dared speak.

“Your monkey bit off my son’s head, so I will cut off yours!”

He looked around and asked, “Fair, right? No objections?”

Scanning the crowd, no one dared respond.

The tall man, fearing the old man would be beheaded, tried to step forward but was held back by the dwarf. They looked at the old man who subtly shook his head.

The old man had already given up hope. With his daughter gone, he saw no point in living.

The old man then rushed at the marshal like a madman, trying to headbutt him.

Someone held him back, twisted his arms, and made him kneel before the marshal.

“Alright? Looks like there are no objections!”

The marshal drew a large knife from a soldier’s side, and without hesitation, swung it at the old man.

The blade flashed, and the old man’s head fell.

No one expected the marshal to execute him so quickly; everyone gasped.

The old man’s head rolled to the eldest son's side, startling him into a step back.

The adjutant quickly supported the eldest son.

The marshal turned to the people in the courtyard, his eyes cold, his anger not alleviated by the old man’s death.

The marshal and his men left.

The bodies were taken to the command post’s morgue.

The young marshal and the old man’s heads lay on the table.

With the affair settled, the marshal left, and the crowd slowly dispersed.

The events in the area quickly spread.