Chapter 38
Xie Wen assumed that Ali was trying to strike up a conversation with her in such an old-fashioned way, so she naturally couldn't let her feel awkward and replied, "Speaking of which, little sister, I feel like I've seen you somewhere before."
Shen Lizhi's eyes seemed to brighten, and she put her hand on Xie Wen's shoulder, facing him familiarly, and said, "You really remember me! Then the person I met before must have been you. It really is you again! I've seen you again. I've been waiting for you."
Seeing Shen Lizhi's serious and determined expression, Xie Wen realized that what Shen Lizhi had said earlier was not just a polite greeting. Xie Wen's smile slowed down; no matter what, she couldn't lie to her.
Xie Wen searched his memory but couldn't recall anything about Shen Lizhi, concluding that Shen Lizhi must have mistaken him for someone else. Xie Wen removed Shen Lizhi's hand from his shoulder and said, "I'm sorry, I've never actually seen you before. Are you sure you haven't mistaken me for someone else?"
Shen Lizhi tilted her head, then suddenly leaned closer, staring at Xie Wen with her clear, large eyes, as if trying to see right through him. Shen Lizhi shook her head. "No, it was you. Back then, in Leling City, it was you who gave me a white radish in Qingshui Town!"
Xie Wen: "..." When did this happen? Who would remember giving someone a white radish when they were young? Besides, she wasn't the original owner of this body, and her memories were fragmented. Xie Wen genuinely didn't remember anyone named Shen Lizhi.
Xie Wen tried to break free from Shen Lizhi's grasp and said, "I really don't remember you. So what if I gave you a white radish before? What do you want?"
Chu Xianyue and Yun Yan, who were standing to the side, watched Shen Lizhi warily, clearly feeling that she was not as simple as she seemed on the surface. Then they heard Shen Lizhi happily say to Xie Wen, "I want to repay your kindness."
Xie Wen: "It's just a white radish. I don't need you to repay me."
Shen Lizhi: "Does Sister Wen dislike me?" Shen Lizhi turned her gaze to Chu Xianyue and Yun Yan and asked, "Are they your friends?"
Xie Wen: "I guess so."
Shen Lizhi: "Then, how about I spend the night with them for free? Consider it repaying Awen's kindness."
Xie Wen frowned, not understanding Shen Lizhi's logic. Shen Lizhi said, "What? So many people outside are offering me money to accompany them, but I won't go. I'll accompany you. And you still complain? You don't know what's good for you."
Chu Xianyue and Yun Yan both twitched at the same time, equally baffled by Shen Lizhi's thought process.
Xie Wen said, "But we really don't need it."
As Xie Wen spoke, he turned to look at Chu Xianyue and Yun Yan. Chu Xianyue and Yun Yan simultaneously shook their heads, their lips twitching slightly.
Shen Lizhi sat down at the coffee table, poured herself a cup of tea, and said, "Alright, I only did this because you're my benefactor. Since you don't want it, then forget it."
Shen Lizhi turned her head and saw the three of them standing there like idiots, not moving. She said, "If you don't want to, then what are you doing here? Get out of here and stop blocking my business."
Xie Wen looked at Shen Lizhi, who appeared to be only a teenager, so beautiful and charming, yet he couldn't understand why she was forced to live in a brothel. Xie Wen turned to look at Chu Xianyue and winked at him. Chu Xianyue sighed, immediately realizing that Xie Wen's "saintly heart" was overflowing again. He sighed, as if agreeing.
Xie Wencai asked, "Ali, how much money do you need to redeem her?"
Shen Lizhi asked incredulously, "What? You want to redeem me?"
Xie Wen thought Shen Lizhi would be very happy and touched, but instead she looked at Xie Wen with disdain, as if she were looking at a fool. "Awen, are you just jealous of me? Why should I leave here? I don't need you to redeem me."
Xie Wen asked in surprise, "Why?"
Shen Lizhi: "I have countless men who like me, and most importantly, I have countless amounts of money and silver notes. Why should I leave here?"
Upon hearing this, Xie Wen's expression turned serious. Shen Lizhi's words sounded perfectly reasonable and justified; this was exactly what Shen Lizhi believed deep down. This was the value system instilled in her by those who raised her from childhood. Therefore, Shen Lizhi didn't realize how pathetic it was to sell her body like this.
Xie Wen said, "But those men didn't truly love you; they just coveted your body. The madam took all the money; you only got a meager amount, didn't you? Ali, this isn't right."
Shen Lizhi was utterly disdainful; she didn't listen to a word Xie Wen said. She shooed them away, "Alright, alright, you can leave now. Don't bother me while I'm making money."
Now that things had come to this, the three were about to leave the room when Xie Wen suddenly turned back. Chu Xianyue and Yun Yan had already stepped out of the room when the door slammed shut.
The two people outside the door: "..."
Chu Xianyue was about to break down the door when Xie Wen's voice came from inside, stopping him.
Xie Wen said, "Master, you should go first. I'll stay here and keep her company for the night." He also wanted to find out why the man in the brothel was so enthusiastic.
Inside the door, Xie Wen said, "If we leave, you'll still be accepting other guests, won't you?"
Shen Lizhi replied matter-of-factly, "Of course."
Xie Wen: "You just said you would repay my kindness, does that still stand?"
Shen Lizhi smiled innocently, "Of course."
Xie Wen walked up to Shen Lizhi and said, "Then I want you to stay with me for three nights."
Upon hearing this, Shen Lizhi smiled gently, "Of course, Awen."
Xie Wen's cloud-shaped ornament at her waist stirred. She picked it up and heard Chu Xianyue's voice, "Xie Wen, are you alright?"
"fine."
After a moment of silence, the other end repeated, "If there is any unusual activity, summon me, Yundang."
Xie Wen hummed in agreement, but the conversation was interrupted by Shen Lizhi, who said, "Awen, take off your clothes."
Chu Xianyue: "..."
Xie Wen: "..." She immediately cut off Yun Dang's telepathic communication. Her brow twitched, and she stopped Shen Lizhi from undressing, feeling a headache coming on. "I'm a woman." Xie Wen was also puzzled. She clearly hadn't disguised herself as a man at all. How could Shen Lizhi... do this?
Shen Lizhi looked at Xie Wen as if he were an idiot, "I know. I have eyes."
Xie Wen: "Then what are you doing?"
Shen Lizhi: "Didn't you want to sleep with me?"
Xie Wen: "..." She realized that Shen Lizhi might also entertain female guests, and felt a little sad.
Xie Wen sighed, walked to the coffee table, took a sip of tea to calm down. Just as Shen Lizhi was about to come over, Xie Wen said, "Don't come over. You sleep there. I'll sleep here. Let's keep to ourselves."
Shen Lizhi found Xie Wen to be a very strange person, extremely strange. No one had ever treated her like this before. However, Shen Lizhi felt that his actions made her feel very comfortable, both physically and mentally.
Xie Wen indeed spent three days with Shen Lizhi. During the day, he and Shen Lizhi ate, drank, and had fun at the restaurant, ordering entertainers to sing and dance, and chatting about all sorts of things, enjoying themselves immensely. But at night, Xie Wen and Shen Lizhi kept to themselves, each going their own way.
The men who came to Zuixianglou had not seen Shen Lizhi for three days in a row, and their patience had reached its limit. They gathered together downstairs at Zuixianglou, shouting for Shen Lizhi to come out and see her.
The three-day period had passed, and Xie Wen had no choice but to part ways with Chen Li.
As Xie Wen stepped out of the restaurant, two people greeted him. He shared all the useful information he had gathered over the past few days: "The Drunken Fragrance Pavilion's business suddenly became incredibly booming six months ago. It's said that the madam who runs the pavilion visited the local earth god temple and prayed there six months ago. As a result, business suddenly skyrocketed." This was all information Xie Wen had extracted from Shen Lizhi during their conversation.
Over the time Xie Wen spent with Shen Lizhi, he discovered that she was truly naive, with only money in her eyes.
“It’s another Earth God Temple,” Chu Xianyue said. This Earth God Temple should be the same one that Mei Tingshan and Ying Yue visited back then.
Xie Wen: "Have you also discovered any clues?"
During the three days Xie Wen spent with Shen Lizhi, Chu Xianyue and Yun Yan were not idle either. They went to the Green Lamp Forest where the Ghost Palace Master was located.
Back then, the Mei family lived at the foot of the capital of Jin, in a bustling and prosperous area. Now, more than a decade after the Mei family was wiped out, their remains have become a desolate wasteland. The area within a ten-mile radius is lifeless.
It wasn't that the Mei family moved; rather, all the families in the surrounding area moved away because of this "ghost temple," and even the imperial city was relocated.
When Chu Xianyue and Yun Yan inquired about the Mei family on the road to Qingdenglin, almost everyone's face changed upon hearing the mention of the Mei family. They seemed extremely unwilling to get involved with the Mei family and were very wary of them.
Later I learned that after the Mei family had their accident, the nearby town of Qingshui was haunted by evil spirits for a long time, and the whole town was almost wiped out in blood!
At the time, everyone in the town believed that the Mei family's house had become a ghost temple, and that the Mei family members had all turned into evil spirits and were causing trouble. Later, a disciple of a celestial being came to exorcise the evil spirits and said that the Mei family's house had indeed become a ghost temple, and that a ghost temple master lived inside.
The immortal disciples demand that all families within a ten-mile radius move here immediately, or they will suffer unforeseen calamities, and this place will become a river of blood!
The massacre of Qingshui Town by evil spirits back then was a nightmare for countless people! Even now, many still dread and avoid the name of this Ghost Temple Master. Just hearing about him sends shivers down their spines.
Furthermore, the scene outside the Green Lamp Forest was similar to what they had seen in the illusion: overgrown weeds, yellow sand everywhere, and a group of beggars squatting outside the Green Lamp Forest, their eyes gleaming, muttering incantations, seemingly saying things like "Long live the Lord."
They also went to the Green Lamp Forest to ask for Green Lamp Fruit, saying that the Lord had sent them here, that this was a paradise with inexhaustible wealth! One of their companions had followed the Lord's words and come to the Green Lamp Forest, and had transformed into a wealthy master.
When asked who their lord was, they were told that it was forbidden to address him by his name. However, the direction they were pointing was the location of the local temple.
At this point, things are quite clear: the source of all the strangeness lies in that local temple, and the truth about the Mei family from over a decade ago may also be hidden within it.
Once you go there, you'll find the answer.
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