The empty city was destroyed (26)
Gu Wusi's life was already ruined before she met Shaoling. She and her mother depended on each other for survival, but one day, her mother died. Before she died, her mother took her to a wealthy family and begged the master there to take her in.
She was then taken to a secluded courtyard and told that she would live there from now on.
She was grateful to the kind-hearted master for giving her a place to stay, so she treated everyone around her with utmost respect and prayed for the master's health and safety every day. But for some reason, she never saw the master again, or rather, she never left that courtyard again.
At first, the servants would make up excuses to keep her from leaving. But as time went on and she asked more and more questions, the servants lost patience and simply told her the truth—that she was a bastard child who couldn't be brought into the light and only deserved to stay here for the rest of her life.
She panicked instantly and tried to leave the courtyard to find the kind master outside and ask him for an explanation, but how could the servants let her out? Three or four maids lifted her up and threw her into the storeroom, and locked the door.
She was locked in a dark and gloomy storeroom. No matter how much she cried out, the people outside ignored her. Even her daily food was thrown in through the cracks in the window.
At first, she went on a hunger strike to resist, determined to see the master, but was mocked by those outside for being ungrateful. Later, when she was starving, she picked up dirty food from the ground and stuffed it into her mouth. The taste was nauseating, and she couldn't help but feel nauseous, but she forced herself to swallow it in order to survive.
The maids took a liking to her, and their greatest pleasure each day was teasing her like a dog when they brought her food. Only when they were happy could Gu Wusi "honored" to eat a bite or two of the spoiled food.
She lived like this for an unknown period of time, so long that she became smelly, her hair turned dry and yellow, and her nails grew long, yet no one noticed.
During this time, Gu Wusi's greatest skill was flattery and pandering. Even when the steward came to investigate and finally discovered the maids' misdeeds, she seemed to have suddenly become enlightened, speaking fluently and sweetly, pitifully begging the steward not to punish her maids, saying they were just playing a joke on her.
The person in charge could see what Gu Wusi had gone through. But she was just an unloved bastard, so there was no need to worry about her. It was better to avoid trouble.
So the steward didn't make a big deal out of it, only gave a verbal warning to a few maids and then left the courtyard.
Gu Wusi, who had been brought back to light, not only did not report the maids, but also helped them. The girls thanked her verbally, but secretly plotted how to kill her so as to eliminate any future trouble.
But these maids were ultimately lulled into a false sense of security by Gu Wusi. Before they could come up with a plan, the courtyard caught fire. They were all burned alive in the courtyard. When the people outside arrived, they only saw Gu Wusi, soaking wet, curled up in a corner, crying loudly.
She mournfully called out the names of her maids and cried out for people to come and save them.
Everyone felt pity for this unloved illegitimate daughter.
The fire that night reached the master's ears, and when he found out, he arranged for Gu Wusi to live in a larger courtyard.
From then on, Gu Wusi had a new group of maids and became the respected Third Miss. When she walked on the street, all the servants had to greet her and bow to her. Gu Wusi finally understood what those maids who had teased her outside the window felt.
But not everyone in the manor was friendly to her. The group led by the madam and her two older sisters always openly or secretly mocked her background, ridiculed her for being unruly, and called her a vulgar wretch.
Gu Wusi listened attentively, but her face remained all smiles. She responded to everything they said, doing her best to please them.
In the end, even the master privately praised her for being virtuous and polite, showing no trace of her former wild woman nature, proving that she truly resembled him.
Gu Wusi smiled obsequiously, showing no sign of anger. She was waiting, waiting for an opportunity.
She had waited ten years for this opportunity, but thankfully it wasn't too long. That day, the firelight illuminated the night, and Gu Wusi calmly watched her biological father, who was lying on the ground with his Achilles tendons severed, in the mansion that had been reduced to a sea of flames.
The bodies of ladies, young ladies, and servants lay scattered all around, their blood staining the ground. Only the man continued to repent, desperately begging for mercy, pleading for his life.
Gu Wusi smiled and replied jokingly, "Dance for me. If you dance well, I'll let you go."
She laughed loudly amidst the flames, which engulfed the entire mansion but spared her.
Having avenged her great grudge, she hid in the mountains to escape capture, but unexpectedly entered the territory of Michen Mountain. There she met the Ghost Calculator, a gloomy, mad old man who seemed capable of taking her life at any moment.
To protect herself, she willingly became the Ghost Calculator's subordinate, doing all sorts of dirty things for him.
She discovered that although the fortune teller was unpredictable, he generally wouldn't control her as long as she didn't offend him. Gu Wusi experienced unprecedented freedom on Michen Mountain—a freedom that was unrestrained and without limits.
She reveled in the joy of freedom, roaming freely between heaven and earth, and tirelessly toying with those in adversity. She loved watching how these people eagerly caught the poisoned bait she threw out, only to fall step by step into the abyss, never to recover.
These happy days continued until the day she met Shaoling.
Gu Wusi always remembered the way Shaoling looked when he was rescued from the dark house. His neck, ankles, and wrists were marked with the marks of chains binding him, and his body was covered with red welts from whipping. At that time, he had been tied up and hung from the rafters, nearly unconscious.
She lowered the frail child from the roof beam and used a pill to pull him back from the brink of death.
She asked him his name, and the wounded child said his surname was Huo and his given name was Shaoling. The character is composed of the radical "Shao" and the character "Ling," which his mother taught him.
Gu Wusi looked at him, and the long-dormant flame in her heart reignited. So, she slaughtered everyone in the entire mansion and then burned it to the ground.
She took the child away and placed him in a clinic. She stayed by his side, watching his wounds heal little by little and his height grow taller. Gu Wusi suddenly felt at ease, and the fire in her heart was extinguished.
She was surprised to find that the child was not small at all, especially after recovery, he actually looked about the same age as her.
But he was much simpler in nature. As long as he was there, he would follow him around. Even the doctor laughed at him, saying he was like a puppy that hadn't been weaned.
Shaoling didn't care about this at all, and even suggested that she could share the same surname as her, Gu. When asked why, Shaoling said frankly, "I don't want to share the same surname as that person anymore."
Gu Wusi was somewhat stunned upon hearing this, and she refused the request without thinking. Shaoling was puzzled and asked her why, but Gu Wusi did not explain, only saying that if she did not want the surname Huo, then she could simply be called Shaoling.
Shaoling agreed and then began to ask about Gu Wusi's identity. He said that Sister Gu must be a chivalrous hero who helps the weak and punishes the strong, and he begged Gu Wusi to take him along on his chivalrous adventures.
Gu Wusi felt a sudden pang of pain in her heart. She said she wasn't as good as he thought, but Shaoling just took it as modesty.
Later, Shaoling recovered, and Gu Wusi gave him some travel money, telling him to find his own way. But Shaoling refused, wanting only to go with her. Gu Wusi couldn't persuade him otherwise, and had no choice but to take him back to Michen Mountain to face his fate.
Surprisingly, Gui Suanzi didn't react much to Shao Ling's appearance, only warning him not to disturb his weapon forging.
From then on, Shaoling was able to settle down on Michen Mountain, and Gu Wusi took him with him on every mission.
Whether it was because she had been imprisoned for too long, or because the impression of her savior was too deep, Shaoling had an extraordinary admiration for Gu Wusi.
In his eyes, Gu Wusi had become the embodiment of chivalry; she killed demons, punished evildoers, and did all the good things to maintain peace in the world.
Gu Wusi couldn't bear to expose his fantasy, so she unconsciously restrained her mischievous nature in front of him, even pretending to explain how her actions had punished those villains. As time went on, she began to believe that she had truly become the chivalrous person he spoke of.
Unfortunately, her good fortune didn't last long, as the cunning strategist dealt her a heavy blow.
He called Gu Wusi over and said that he was missing a weapon spirit when he was refining weapons.
Gu Wusi was terrified and nervously asked what it took to refine the weapon's spirit. The Ghost Calculator didn't mince words and told her that she needed to scatter the three spirits and then merge them separately into the sword and the puppet.
"Go and call him here," the fortune teller waved his hand and ordered. "Choose one between you and him."
Gu Wusi walked stiffly out of the weapon-refining room. She felt her hands and feet were ice-cold and a constant buzzing in her ears.
What should she do? What should she do? Should she just go in and kill the Ghost Calculator? But his cultivation level is too high; going there would be suicide... Gu Wusi's mind was in chaos. She wanted to take Shaoling away immediately, but Shaoling just happened to appear in front of her at that moment.
"What are you doing here?!" Gu Wusi hurriedly stepped forward and blocked his path.
"You came out much later than usual today, I was worried so I came to check on you."
Seeing that Gu Wusi's face was pale, he asked with concern, "What's wrong?"
"I'm fine, you go out first." Gu Wusi denied it while forcefully pushing him outside. But Shao Ling was no longer the frail child he used to be; he was now stronger and more powerful than Gu Wusi, and no matter how much he was pushed, he wouldn't budge.
"Sister Gu, are you sick?" Shaoling keenly noticed her unusual behavior and her expression became increasingly worried.
Gu Wusi frowned, both anxious and angry: "I already said I'm fine, hurry up—"
"Since you're here, come in."
Before she could finish speaking, Gui Suanzi's voice pierced through the closed door and reached their ears. Gu Wusi's heart pounded. She saw the door to the weapon-refining room slowly open, and Shao Ling looked at her with a blank expression. Gu Wusi could only respond silently with the most desperate look in her eyes.
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