Would I stop them?

No, it won't.

Even An Yirou wouldn't stop her, because if things had reached that point, it meant she couldn't be happy without a man. Stopping her would only bring more pain.

All she could do was show women all over the world other paths, provide them with opportunities for self-reliance, and let them see the glimmer of hope in the minds of countless women in the past.

But ultimately, it's up to the women themselves to choose which path to take.

Otherwise, An Zhengzheng is using her compassion for the world to control them, which is no different from how her mother stopped her from cultivating the Path of Ruthlessness out of love.

This experience made An Zhengzheng realize many things.

Looking at the stunned Zhou Yu'er, she calmly told her, "You can make any choice you want, just remember, no matter what happens in the future, head towards the center of the cultivation world. There is a place there that can accommodate women."

It refers to the Hundred Women's Pavilion.

An Zhengzheng wouldn't try every means to persuade Zhou Yu'er, but if one day Zhou Yu'er had nowhere else to go, she could still go back.

Zhou Yu'er cried helplessly, covering her face, her shoulders trembling uncontrollably.

"You are now vulnerable to attacks from demonic beasts living here, but fortunately, you still have residual spiritual energy in your body. I have a magical artifact that I can give you."

Once she calmed down, An Zhengzheng knew there wasn't much she could do, so she handed her a blanket.

That was an invisibility blanket that only required a little spiritual energy to activate, so that it wouldn't be detected by demonic beasts.

Other things, lacking sufficient spiritual energy, are unusable for Zhou Yu'er.

Past grievances had long since vanished from An Zhengzheng's mind. Now, standing before her was merely a woman.

Every woman has her strengths.

For example, Grandmother and Mother Lin Jing were hardworking, managed their affairs in an orderly manner, and were good at socializing and managing servants.

Unfortunately, unlike Lady Pei, this talent was not used to make a living, but rather to manage the inner quarters and do behind-the-scenes work for men.

Zhou Yu'er was the same; she pursued what she wanted with unwavering determination, even disregarding wealth and status. She was deeply affectionate, persistent, and never abandoned anyone.

This is very similar to An Zhengzheng.

With this kind of mentality, if she were to follow the same path as An Zhengzheng, she would probably be no less capable than An Zhengzheng.

An Zhengzheng did not interfere with Zhou Yu'er's choice, thus providing her with a way out.

This is the true meaning of the Hundred Women's Pavilion.

Zhou Yu'er was filled with mixed emotions.

The clansmen felt it was shameful that the Zhou family had produced a divorced woman who was going to marry a mortal, so they stopped caring about her. They never expected that An Zhengzheng would be the one to help them in the end.

She reluctantly accepted it, her tear-reddened eyes trembling slightly, and said in a hoarse voice, "...Thank you."

An Zhengzheng returned to the banquet.

Zhou Yu'er had to go back to spinning cloth. Women like her who hadn't given birth to a son didn't even have the chance to attend village banquets.

The two parted with mixed feelings.

\/\/

"Fairy, are you full? Would you like some more dishes?"

The fairy had a long talk with Pei's wife, and when she returned, the banquet was already halfway over. I'm afraid she hadn't eaten her fill.

An Zhengzheng smiled and declined, saying, "Those who cultivate should meditate and focus on concentration, and should not eat too much."

"so……"

Grandma Yu didn't insist. Cultivators have many rules. In the past, when the village specially slaughtered cattle and sheep for the fairies and immortals, they would refuse, saying that they couldn't eat meat that was specially killed for them.

Then, very respectfully, he got down to business: "The nearby villages all know that the fairy is frail, so they offer her longevity tablets. My wife has also prepared one..."

After saying that, he ordered someone to bring up the longevity plaque.

The village chiefs all knew that An Zhengzheng needed to offer longevity tablets; when her husband went to the neighboring village to invite a fairy, the village chief there privately gave him instructions.

An Zhengzheng glanced at it with a smile. It was indeed a very ordinary wooden sign, with very simple carvings and nothing fancy.

She smiled and nodded, "That's fine then, thank you, ma'am."

Grandma Yu was finally relieved; the fairy's satisfaction was the most important thing.

When the banquet ended, Old Madam Yu tried to persuade An Zhengzheng to stay longer: "Fairy, are you leaving already? Why not stay a few more days?"

After all, if the fairy stays for a few more days, the village will feel at ease for a few more days.

She also told An Zhengzheng, "The Pei family is having a wedding banquet tomorrow... for Zhou Da Niangzi's sister-in-law. You should come and join the fun."

Zhou Yu'er's sister-in-law?

An Zhengzheng had already intended to stay, so upon hearing this, she agreed: "That would be wonderful. I wonder if there are any inns in the village?"

Grandma Yu was very excited: "Yes! There must be, fairy, don't worry!"

The villagers can finally sleep peacefully for several days!

Everyone was very happy, and Grandma Yu even arranged for a nice house in the village to be provided for An Zhengzheng.

As they left the banquet, the villagers tidied up the tables, happily sharing the good news with those around them.

"Fairy, you must stay tonight! Given the terrain of our Qingyang Village, very few fairies or immortals are willing to stay overnight..."

With someone possessing magical powers and spells in charge, demonic beasts dare not easily attack.

As someone tidied up, they said, "The fairies we used to see were all fighting demons with the immortal lords. I never thought that a single female fairy could do it."

"A woman, that's really something..."

Someone, while talking, mentioned Zhou Yu'er: "When Master Pei first came to Qingyang Village, she was just like this fairy, otherworldly and with outstanding temperament."

"Things are not like they used to be... but the eldest son of the Pei family is still very lucky."

"The old couple in the Pei family are complaining. Their son didn't marry a virgin. After all this trouble, how can the young wife stand it? By the way, I heard she also came from the Siyue Sect."

Some people, however, couldn't understand: "Why...wouldn't it be better to be a heroine like a fairy?"

Some of the comments were regretful, while others were mocking, and some people couldn't help but look at Pei Dalang.

He drank his wine in silence, head down, reminiscing about Zhou Yu'er when she was young and beautiful.

He used to be tolerant of her; when he was young and full of vigor, he always protected her.

But women change once they get married. I remember Zhou Yu'er was too busy with housework to dress up, and after giving birth to Zhao Di, she had stretch marks on her stomach and always complained about her in-laws...

She's not as cute as she used to be.

Thinking of her past, he suddenly became indignant again and, under the influence of alcohol, spoke his true feelings.

"What does it matter if I was once detached from the mortal world, or a celestial maiden..."

"She still has to do my laundry, cook for me, give birth to my children, and take care of my parents!"

Someone came to collect his wine jug: "You shouldn't be so smug after getting a good deal. You'll regret it when you sober up."