Shen Moyang rolled his eyes at him: "How could I possibly do that with my abilities? I escaped unscathed last time."
Jiang Huai'an scoffed, "Tch! I don't believe it. I think you're just impotent."
"You silly goose, I'm perfectly fine..."
Seeing that the two were about to start arguing again, Chu Yu quickly stopped them: "Alright, is it appropriate for two grown men to be discussing erectile dysfunction in the middle of nowhere? If word gets out, people will think you're impotent gay men. You two wait for me at the foot of the mountain. I'm going up now."
She waved to the two of them, took her flashlight, and strode up the mountain.
The mountain was filled with a heavy yin energy, and the further in you went, the stronger the yin wind became.
It was unusually cold in the mountains, as if it were the dead of winter. Chu Yu quickly took out a thick coat from his Qiankun bag and put it on to ward off the cold.
Before long, a gust of wind blew in, and black mist rose up all around.
Chu Yu's eyelids grew heavy, and she became sleepy. She quickly took out a pill and swallowed it, which made her much more awake.
She walked around in the mountains when she suddenly heard voices ahead. She followed the sound and saw lights ahead.
Upon closer inspection, a quaint and ancient village came into view.
Chu Yu raised an eyebrow. How could there be a village in the middle of a desolate mountain? It must be a ghost village.
She composed herself and strode into the village.
The village is full of houses with white walls and black tiles. Two red lanterns hang on the front door of each house. The red light shines on the bluestone slabs, giving it a slightly eerie feel.
Chu Yu walked along the bluestone path into the village.
In the center of the village, there was an open space with a well nearby. Beside the well grew a tall maple tree with leaves as red as blood. When the wind blew, it made a wailing sound, giving people a creepy feeling.
Upon closer inspection, it was found that a number of women had gathered there.
The women were dressed in coarse linen clothes from ancient times, with their hair simply tied up in buns. Some were drawing water from the well to wash clothes, some were sitting on the stones nearby to cool off, some were mending clothes, and others were singing and dancing. It was a very lively scene.
Chu Yu noticed that the women had no feet and were floating on the ground, so they must be female ghosts from the village.
The third senior brother said that there used to be a widow village here, and these female ghosts must be the residents of that widow village.
Chu Yu's arrival quickly attracted the attention of the female ghosts, who all looked at her with dark, murderous intent in their eyes.
Chu Yu had just arrived and it wasn't appropriate to fall out with them yet. She put on a kind smile and stepped forward to explain, "I got lost in the mountains and accidentally wandered into this village. Please don't blame me, ladies."
The female ghosts remained silent, their faces cold, and an eerie silence descended upon the surroundings.
Seeing the murderous aura surging around her, Chu Yu's eyes shifted, and she immediately put on a pitiful look, saying with tears in her eyes, "I am a college student from Beijing. Because my family is poor, I went out to do part-time work, but I didn't expect to run into human traffickers. They drugged me and when I woke up, I found myself tied up in a car."
I found an opportunity, jumped out of the car, and escaped. I ran for a long time, and unintentionally ended up in these mountains, and then came to your village. Sisters, please don't despise me, and please don't drive me away. Otherwise, I'll be caught by those human traffickers and sold to some remote mountain village, and I won't survive."
Upon hearing this, the female ghosts exchanged glances. After a moment of silence, one of them spoke up: "Go and invite the village chief over."
The other female ghost nodded, stood up, and hurriedly left.
A moment later, a female ghost wearing a long red dress floated over.
The female ghost had a beautiful hairstyle, wore a red rose, and had an extremely beautiful face. Every gesture she made exuded charm.
Chu Yu looked up at her. This female ghost was unfathomable and was dressed in red. She must be the female ghost who protected the widow's village.
"The village chief is here."
The group of female ghosts quickly made way.
The female ghost in red approached Chu Yu, scrutinized her sharply, and asked, "The Ma Gu who came to report earlier told me that you are a college student who was abducted by human traffickers?"
Chu Yu nodded.
The red-clad female ghost's gaze softened slightly as she comforted her, "Don't worry, once you're here, we'll protect you."
Chu Yu thanked her gratefully, "Thank you, sister."
The woman in red smiled gently and said to her, "This is a widow's village. The women who live here are all persecuted by their own families or husbands. They couldn't survive outside, so they fled here."
Everyone settled here, united as one, and gradually improved their lives. I am the village chief here; you can call me Red Peony.
Chu Yu smiled and greeted her, "Hello, Sister Red Peony. Thank you for your kindness in protecting me."
Red Peony said to her warmly, "Little sister, you must be hungry after running all this way. I have some food in my house. Come with me and have something to eat."
Chu Yu didn't believe she would be so kind, and was somewhat wary. After hesitating for a while, she decided to see what tricks she was up to.
She nodded: "Okay."
Red Peony took her hand and led her forward. Before long, they arrived at a courtyard.
The courtyard was simple, with a large patch of red peonies planted in the open space. The peonies were in full bloom, their red color like blood; they were undeniably beautiful, yet they gave off an eerie feeling.
Pointing to the peonies, Hong Mudan smiled and said, "I love growing flowers, and I especially love peonies. I planted some in the yard. Aren't they beautiful?"
Chu Yu nodded: "Yes, very beautiful."
"Come on in."
Red Peony pulled her into the house and brought out a plate of steamed buns, a dish of boiled beef, and a dish of shredded pork with green peppers from the kitchen.
The food smelled delicious and looked appetizing, but Chu Yu had the ability to see ghosts. Upon closer inspection, she realized that what was on the plate was not food at all, but rather some excrement and maggots, which smelled terrible and made her want to vomit, but she couldn't show it.
Red Peony handed her chopsticks and said with a smile, "Come on, eat quickly."
Chu Yu couldn't eat anything, and forced herself to say, "I'm not very hungry right now, I'll eat later. Are you hungry? Why don't you eat first?"
She handed the chopsticks back to Red Peony, but Red Peony politely declined, saying, "I've already eaten, I'm not hungry, you eat."
She forcefully shoved the chopsticks into Chu Yu's hand, staring at her sharply, as if she was going to force the food into her mouth if she didn't want to eat it.
Seeing that she was caught in a dilemma, Chu Yu's eyes darted around, she put down her chopsticks, and changed the subject: "Sister, how long have you been in this village?"
Red Peony smiled and said, "I've been here for a long time, but I haven't calculated exactly how long."
Chu Yu then asked, "Have you ever thought about leaving here and going somewhere else?"
Red Peony shook her head: "I don't want to go anywhere else. The outside world is too dangerous, especially those men. They are selfish, treacherous, and vicious. They especially like to deceive girls' feelings. They are despicable."
Chu Yu raised an eyebrow. The fact that she harbored such malice towards men suggested that she had been hurt by men before, or that she had died at their hands.
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