Chapter 9 (Those who have already been forged into iron and copper skin are not as soft-hearted as me...)
When Nezha returned to the mansion, the slaves had already prepared tables and chairs for a banquet.
She was dragged by Nezha into the kitchen, where he ordered a slave to bring her a copper pot. The servants in the mansion were all somewhat afraid of this third young master, so even without Nezha's orders, they all kept their distance.
This made it easier for Pingyu and Nezha to carry out their tasks.
The two men placed the yellow wine cup on a high place, attempting to pour the wine into the copper pot.
After shaking it for a while, not a single drop of wine came out of the cup.
Ping Yu felt a chill run down his spine from the murderous aura emanating from him, and stammered, "Since it's broken, we can't force it. Why don't we go out first, and then..."
Before she could utter the word "plan," she was so startled by Nezha's actions that she swallowed it back.
The boy suddenly loosened his grip, and the vessel in his hand fell straight down.
Just as it was about to fall to its death, the Heavenly Silk Bind tied it up again and hoisted it high into the air once more. This process was repeated several times, and surprisingly, the broken demon goblet actually produced wine on the third time it was hoisted up.
Ping Yu swallowed hard, remembering how Nezha had hung him up like that before he went out into the street.
Fortunately, I only ran away once. People really need to be pragmatic to have a good life.
Seeing that the wine cup had been filled, Nezha shook off the chill that had gripped him and laughed lightly, "Luckily you've filled it this time. After all, things don't happen more than three times. I won't take your wine a fourth time."
Upon hearing this, the wine cup poured out wine even faster, and Pingyu felt that these were tears it shed for its inability to live and for fear of death.
"Maybe I should just give it a quick death," she thought.
After the copper pot was filled with wine, the wine cup was placed back on the table. The pot was not yet sealed, and a rich aroma of wine wafted out as it filled. Ping Yu sniffed and found that the wine was not pungent, but rather had a mellow and sweet fragrance like fruit juice. She was a little curious, and the girl stood on tiptoe to look into the pot.
At first, the wine was clear, just as the peddler had said, but it turned bronze from the inside of the jug.
Her face drew closer, her breath spraying onto the surface, causing ripples to spread across the wine. Her reflection in the pot was disturbed by the ripples, instantly transforming into a pale, withered skeleton.
Ping Yu was startled for a moment, but involuntarily continued watching. She met the two empty eye sockets on the skull, the color of the wine deepening, and two lines of bloody tears flowed out, soaking the pot red.
Crimson, like fluff, floated and sank in the wine, adorning the withered bones. Veins wrapped around the rotten bones, giving rise to fat and muscle. Pingyu, whether from shock or something else, couldn't move his gaze, as if he were being drawn into the scene on the wine pot's surface.
The next second, everything went black.
Suddenly, a red silk ribbon was wrapped around her eyes, pulling her away from where she was.
The boy's voice boomed in my ear: "How come you were almost bewitched just by looking at the wine in the pot? Your mind is so weak!"
Pingyu snapped back to reality, realizing the aroma of wine had dissipated, leaving only a foul, rotten smell. It was as if the pot contained not wine, but the pus oozing from maggot-infested flesh. She covered her mouth and nose, and the magic ribbon was removed. The boy put the lid back on the pot, laughing mockingly, "Since we're so close, why don't we just try it?"
"It stinks! I'm not drinking it!" Pingyu shook her head so hard it was almost a blur, every fold of her clothes seeming to resist the other's suggestion. Nezha, afraid she'd shake her head off, reached out and pressed her forehead. He met Pingyu's eyes, his expression shifting from warm to dark, and snapped, "Knowing it's a demon, you still got so close! You're incredibly stupid!"
“But…” Ping Yu fiddled with his fingers, “I clearly smelled wine just now!”
"Mortals only smell the aroma of wine, but you are naturally susceptible to spiritual energy and have the ability to see between the yin and yang realms, so you will see the wine in its original form."
Nezha poked the girl's head repeatedly, then lifted the full copper pot with his other hand and shook it. Listening to the splashing water inside, he said with satisfaction, "Very good, enough for that old thing to savor!"
The boy never knew how to restrain his strength, and Pingyu felt like her forehead was about to be pierced. While the boy was examining the wine pot, she gently took his hand and pressed it back against his chest.
Pingyu dared not look at the copper kettle. Her eyebrows were furrowed, revealing her troubles: "Are we really going to give this to Uncle Li?"
Hearing her hesitant words, Nezha assumed Pingyu was about to change her mind and speak for the opposing side. He glared at her angrily, his voice heavy: "You want to betray us?"
The golden ring hummed, like an explosive fuse about to burn out.
"I'm worried that with so much alcohol, he might drink himself to death."
Pingyu didn't think too much about it. She just felt that the wine was made from the blood of a rotting corpse, and she was afraid that if Li Jing drank it, she would also be implicated: "How about we just give him a small cup?" Nezha was stunned. Such an unpleasant worry, coupled with the girl's scrunched-up face, looked really ridiculous.
Snap!
A loud bang came from both sides, followed by excruciating pain.
Nezha slapped the girl's cheek hard, squeezing the soft flesh of her face inward. The burning pain brought tears to Pingyu's eyes.
.
.
.
Carrying the copper kettle, she rubbed her face and followed Nezha out of the kitchen.
Pingyu felt annoyed and didn't want to walk alongside Nezha. She deliberately walked slowly, keeping a full shadow's distance from him.
The emptiness beside him irritated Nezha. His fingers twitched beneath him, and his Universe Ring locked onto Pingyu, attempting to forcibly pull her back to his side. Pingyu looked at Nezha warily, clutching her cheeks tightly: "What do you want to do!"
"She got so worked up over just being touched on the face; she's so petty." Nezha thought to himself, but on the surface, he calmly said to her, "Hurry up, I won't pinch you anymore."
"don't want!"
Ping Yu wasn't buying it.
"If you walk this slowly, you'll miss the start of the banquet."
“Then you go first, why do you have to wait for me? Unless…” Pingyu paused, then raised his chin, saying in a tone of “it has to be this way”, “You let me pat your face and touch it too!”
Nezha looked at her without saying a word.
His eyes were large and dark, with little white showing. Even if the moonlight and the candlelight held by the slave were completely obscured, they would still appear startlingly black. Pingyu felt as if she had been doused with cold water by being stared at. She lowered her raised chin little by little and slowly moved towards the boy's side.
To console himself, Pingyu muttered to himself as he walked, "You're as tough as iron, not as cute and soft-faced as me. If I were to actually pinch you, I wouldn't even bother!"
Timid and talkative, like a little sparrow caught in a hand.
Nezha glanced at the girl and let her go.
Without delay, they quickly arrived at the banquet venue.
As they approached the hall entrance, they saw Lady Yin and Li Jing talking to a stranger. From a distance, the man appeared to be six feet tall, with his hair tied in a topknot, and dressed in a pale yellow robe—the attire of a Taoist boy. Pingyu, oblivious to the stranger, remained close to Nezha. Noticing the girl's probing gaze, and with Li Jing's approval, the man walked directly towards the two of them.
"You are Pingyu?"
"Is there any smaller print?"
The young man asked.
He spoke with an air of maturity, a smile playing on his lips, trying to appear grown-up. Ping Yu knew this man was teasing her, and a rebellious thought arose within her. Before the girl could retort, the boy beside her spoke up for her: "Don't tell him."
Nezha stepped forward, shielding Pingyu behind him.
He looked back at him and said childishly, "You didn't even tell me, so why should I tell him first?"
After saying that, Nezha turned back to look at the young man, showing no mercy like a provoked tiger cub: "Jinzha, if you have nothing better to do, go and chat with that old man Li Jing more often. Otherwise, he'll have nowhere to vent his pent-up teachings and end up coming to me every day to annoy me!"
It was Jinzha!
No wonder they appeared at the Li family banquet.
Jinzha was both amused and exasperated by his younger brother's outburst. He had only taken the initiative to greet his youngest brother because he saw him being so close to someone his own age and, as the host, he felt obligated to do so.
Ping Yu breathed a sigh of relief; she was just one step away from being caught in the middle between these two brothers.
“I…” Nezha wanted to tell his brother all the bad things Li Jing had done, but then he remembered the wine flask in his arms and changed his tone, saying, “How could that be? We haven’t been getting along lately, and I even specially found some fine wine to bring him today.”
Ping Yu's gaze drifted to the heavens. No wonder only those with thick skin can achieve great things.
Jinzha was also somewhat confused. Could it be that Nezha had changed his personality during the time he had been training with his master? Just a little while ago, his mother had told him about Nezha's dream that day and how he had saved someone! He stole a glance at the copper pot in Nezha's arms, but the boy blocked his view with his arm.
Nezha breathed on him like a cat, warning him, "This is for Father, don't even think about stealing a drink!"
"I didn't... never mind." Jinzha wanted to explain, but felt that saying more would only make things worse. He couldn't very well say that he thought there was something bad in the bronze pot, could he? The young man composed himself, stepped aside to make way for the two of them, and said, "The banquet is about to begin. My parents have been waiting for some time. Let's go in first and talk."
It was a magical artifact crafted by Manjushri for his disciple Jinzha. The young man pinched his sword finger, sending a silver ring from his head flying towards Nezha.
"Nezha, watch out!"
In desperation, Pingyu shouted.
Without needing to say more, the boy had already hidden the wine jug in his robes. A crimson silk ribbon rose like a python, coiling around and seizing the silver ring. Jinzha, having failed in his first attack, had a follow-up move; a second silver ring followed closely, hurtling towards Nezha's feet with the speed of a hunter. Two fiery wheels ignited beneath the boy's feet; he leaped and somersaulted, wielding the Qiankun Ring and smashing it down: "Brother, you're quite the glutton! Unable to get wine, you resort to robbing me!"
"Nezha, you know that's not what I meant." Jinzha felt helpless at his younger brother's teasing. He had a gut feeling that the contents of the pot were bad, which made his right eyelid twitch. If he couldn't check it before the banquet, trouble might ensue.
Both brothers were disciples of immortals. One was gold and the other silver, their swords clashing in the air, creating streaks of light. After exchanging blows for over fifty minutes, both sides were now truly fighting.
The wind that brushed against his face grew stronger, and Pingyu felt increasingly anxious. Fortunately, the contest was over in no time.
Although Nezha was born with extraordinary abilities and possessed near-demonic wisdom, he was still quite young and was half a move behind his elder brother in the game. During the magical duel, Jinzha abruptly stopped, his face filled with panic, and he cried out, "Mother!?"
Nezha was taken aback by his expression, and his Universe Ring stopped abruptly half an inch from the young man's nose. Ping Yu was also fooled and turned to look, but behind him there were only swirling leaves; there was no sign of Lady Yin.
Oh no! Pingyu realized something was wrong; Nezha had been tricked by the "look at the airplane" trick!
Jinzha seized upon his younger brother's momentary opening and pointed to the third silver ring, binding his torso and arms. Before he could summon the red silk and golden ring, the young man used two more silver rings to break free from the entanglement and bind the boy's hands and feet.
Nezha was now tied up on the spot.
The more he struggled, the tighter the silver ring tightened.
The boy got angry and yelled at his elder brother, "You little rascal! You're absolutely wicked!"
Jinzha was not angry at being scolded, and he approached Nezha step by step.
"Nezha, do you know that all's fair in war? Your elder brother will only take one look, and then return it to you."
Nezha knew that Jinzha's attack was precisely to win him over. He could only hop and leap like a rabbit, his feet together.
Pingyu had never seen Nezha in such a disheveled state. She watched with great interest, but unexpectedly, the boy suddenly turned to face her and said urgently, "Quickly take the wine pot away! We can't let this treacherous villain get away with it!"
As soon as he shouted, Jinzha looked over at Pingyu.
ah……?
Ping Yu, who had been caught in the middle, blinked. She looked at the two men's powerful weapons, then at her own delicate hands, and hesitated, "Are you sure you want me to do this?"
Under Nezha's intensely intimidating gaze, she stepped forward and took the bronze pot from his arms. The girl hugged it tightly, then met Jinzha's eyes and gave a weak smile: "Or... considering we just met, could you let me go?"
"no."
Jinzha found it amusing and simply pulled the wine jug from the girl's arms.
He finally opened the wine pot that Nezha had been cherishing like a precious jewel. Jinzha's gaze shifted downwards, but before he could examine the wine inside, he was overwhelmed by the pungent demonic aura emanating from it. The vapor emanating from the spout was purple, so thick it seemed almost tangible, stretching out like boneless hands beckoning him. Taking another sniff, he could smell the stench of rotting flesh and pus.
The young man sneezed, but within moments he had closed the lid again.
"What is this?"
Finally, he realized what Nezha meant by the contents of the pot, and looked at his immobilized younger brother and the seemingly well-behaved little guest with disbelief, saying, "You call this wine?!"
Pingyu looked at the sky and the ground, his gaze wandering, his head almost buried in the dust.
“What wine goes with what person?” Nezha grinned, revealing his teeth, and then turned fiercely at Jinzha, saying, “You promised I’d only take one look, give it back!”
“That won’t do.” Jinzha shook his head. “I can’t let you feed this to Father. As for this pot… I’ll keep it for you for now.”
Nezha watched helplessly as Jinzha put away the wine gourd, cursing him for his filth. He continued muttering, oblivious to the fact that the magical artifact binding him was gradually expanding. Pingyu went to help him remove the silver ring, only to be met with a cold glare from the boy.
"It's all your fault for letting him steal the wine jug! Now look what happened, Li Jing escaped a disaster for nothing!" He complained to Ping Yu, but the girl just guiltily admitted, "I can't beat him!"
She was so frail and open that Nezha was speechless for a moment.
The boy stretched his wrists and reluctantly entered the hall.
Pingyu's father was Li Jing's sworn brother, which means that she was not only Li Jing's junior, but also a source of pride for her father.
To show his respect for his old friend, he hosted an extremely lavish family banquet, with delicacies served in abundance.
The copper lamps were lit with candles, their flickering flames illuminating the banquet hall. The slaves laid out the food: three kinds of sacrificial animals stewed in a cauldron, as well as fish soup and snail soup. There were several kinds of meat, mostly steamed, boiled, or roasted.
In addition, there are desserts.
Pingyu immediately noticed the millet cake on the table, which came from her family's shop. It was topped with plenty of dried peaches, plums, and apricots, adding a touch of sweetness to the meaty smell that filled the room.
In the hall, there is a chorus of eight notes, dancing clothes and singing fans.
Li Jing, seated at the head of the table, raised his glass to the girl:
“Pingyu, your father and I have known each other since childhood, and we are as close as brothers. Now that you live in my home, I will treat you as my own son. If any slaves neglect you, you may deal with them as you see fit.” Li Jing finished speaking and looked at Nezha. His youngest son was sitting casually, fiddling with the wine cup on the table. Li Jing was annoyed by this, closed his eyes for a moment to calm down, and continued, “My son Nezha is mischievous and naughty. If he does anything improper and offends you, you must tell me. Once I know, I will certainly give you an explanation!”
"Although Pingyu hasn't stepped out of the house for ten years, he has heard a great deal about you, Uncle Li." Pingyu stood up and raised the bronze goblet filled with honey water. "My father always talks about you. He talks about the fun things you did with him when he was a child, and he says that you are brave and extraordinary, an upright official who serves the people. Seeing you today, it is indeed true. With such a respected and upright man like you in charge, how could anyone in the Li family possibly neglect their guests?"
"And the Third Young Master." She glanced at the grumpy-faced devil beside her, and although she was facing Li Jing, she spoke ingratiatingly to Nezha: "He is a young hero who exorcises demons and monsters, so he wouldn't offend Pingyu. I got along very well with him today, and we even made plans to play again tomorrow!"
Nezha snorted coldly and ignored him.
Ping Yu thought to himself that he was petty and stingy, with a heart so small that he couldn't even hold an ant.
Nezha was so angry with Jinzha that he didn't even want to argue with Li Jing's words. He glared at Jinzha the whole banquet, making the young man feel like he was being pricked by thorns. He could only lower his head and drink cup after cup of tea, pretending not to know anything.
Pingyu was angered by this, so she silently took a piece of millet cake and put it on Nezha's plate.
“This is from my shop,” she said. “Try it.”
Children can't resist sweetness. Nezha smelled the aroma of honey and dried fruit and took a few bites.
It's delicious, but I'm very angry.
He ate a few bites, and Pingyu put a few more pieces on his plate.
So many things happened, and by the end of the banquet, quite a lot had been eaten.
As the night deepened, the banquet was about to end. The slaves began clearing away the dishes, and Nezha rose and went straight to Jinzha.
He happened to stop his elder brother, who was about to take his leave, and said, "Elder brother, you have been away for many days, and I have missed you dearly. Since it is still early, why don't you come inside with me for a chat?"
His tone was calm, revealing nothing amiss. Only Jinzha, facing him, knew that the golden ring around Nezha's neck was trembling, and that he probably couldn't avoid it today.
The young man, drenched in sweat, said, "Haha... Of course, of course, I also have something I want to say to Nezha."
Pingyu saw that Nezha had gone to intercept Jinzha, and thought that she would be safe today. She made a plan to go to bed early today and get up early tomorrow to study the complete book of talismans given to her by Taiyi Zhenren.
She was secretly pleased, but showed no sign of it on her face. After taking a few steps away from the two men, she prepared to leave: "Since you two brothers have something to say, Pingyu will take his leave now..."
Before she could leave, the Hun Tian Ling (a magical ribbon) wrapped around her waist. The girl was roughly pulled to Nezha's side, and he said in an unquestionable tone, "Go to your room."
Pingyu: ?
If you members of the Li family want to speak, why are you in my guest room?
...Shouldn't I be held responsible for this later?!
Nezha dragged the girl into her room. Pingyu's room was simply furnished, with only a few small flowers picked from the roadside for decoration. As soon as Nezha entered the room, he saw the nearly withered flowers on the table. He frowned, rolled them up without saying a word, and threw them out.
Ping Yu rushed forward and grabbed the boy's hand: "Why are you taking your anger out on innocent flowers for no reason?"
“These are all ruined.” Nezha showed her the withered buds on the flower stem, shaking his arm as if shaking off water droplets: “I’ll pick some new ones for you tomorrow morning. These ugly flowers are annoying to look at.”
People who are good-looking will not tolerate anyone else being slightly less attractive.
Pingyu was weak and was quickly thrown aside by Nezha. She let go and gathered up the few withered leaves that had stuck to the bottle. Just then, Jinzha's voice rang out from behind her: "This wine cup is strangely made."
He didn't want to be seen looking around in a woman's boudoir, but just then the two of them got into a fight over a vase, so Jinzha turned his gaze to the table.
A gong? Where did this gong come from?
Pingyu paused in her work of tidying up the leaves, and looked up as a blinding white light dazzled her.
The white jade-like wine cup stood solemnly on the animal skin on the table.
Pingyu was on high alert. She turned to Nezha and asked the boy, "Why is Huang Kou Gong here?"
She remembered that the wine cup had been left in the kitchen and had not yet been retrieved.
"Yellow-mouthed wine cup?"
Jinzha, newly arrived and still unclear about the situation, saw the girl's terrified expression and became suspicious. He examined the wine cup, its body seemingly cast from white jade, shaped like a giant bird. Every detail was lifelike. He felt the bird's head looked somewhat familiar and frowned in thought.
A moment later, he exclaimed in shock, "This is the Heavenly Maiden?!"
"What is that?" Pingyu immediately looked at Nezha, hoping he could help her understand. She didn't understand these terms, but she could distinguish people's emotions.
Jinzha looked disgusted, clearly indicating that this bird was not a kind creature.
“The demons that women have transformed into have a particular fondness for stealing babies at night to eat.”
Nezha's words are concise and to the point.
Pingyu was puzzled: "If the wine vessel is made from the spine of a child, why is it carved with the image of a woman ghost eating an infant at night? Unless..." In a flash, a fleeting thought flashed through her mind. A chill ran down her spine, and she understood why Nezha knew the wine vessel was truly a demon with just one glance.
"How can an infant spirit returning to its own bones be considered a reincarnation? All sentient beings, from beginningless time, have been subject to the cycle of birth and death because they do not know their constant, abiding true mind, their pure and luminous nature, and instead use deluded thoughts. Because these thoughts are not true, the cycle of rebirth continues."
The boy turned over and sat on the table, his lips opening and closing as he spoke, like a freshwater fish being gutted to reveal flesh with fine, bloody veins washed out by a stream.
"To be reincarnated, one must first be inside a mother's egg."
A note from the author:
①From the Surangama Sutra
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