Chapter 105: Hatred (Part Eight)

Lan XiChen, “Sect Leader Jin… Can you give us a full explanation?”

Jin GuangYao fell silent. His knuckles turned white.

Wei WuXian, “It seems Sect Leader Jin doesn’t want to say it.” He raised his hand, and a naked female corpse appeared beneath him. Wei WuXian placed his palm on top of her head, “But just because you didn’t say it, did you think I wouldn’t know?”

The moment he entered Empathy, before he even opened his eyes, Wei WuXian found himself surrounded by the heavy scent of rouge and powder. A flirtatious voice escaped his lips, “…She? She wanted to get married, of course. She was already over twenty when she met him. At that age, her popularity would be gone in just a few years. So she had to give birth to a son, knowing she would be scolded. After all, she just wanted to get out. But then again, he definitely wanted a son.”

He opened his eyes. What he saw was a spacious, yet somewhat beautiful, hall. About a dozen round tables were neatly arranged inside, each adorned with several clients and beautiful women. Among the women, some were baring their shoulders, some had their hair in buns, some were sitting on customers’ laps, and others were feeding them wine. All of their expressions were sweet and intoxicated.

At first glance, it’s clear what kind of place this is.

Wei WuXian thought,  So the person who burned to death in this Guanyin Temple was a prostitute. No wonder all the ghosts are naked. They were probably all prostitutes and customers.

One of the clients chuckled, “Besides, a boy is a boy. Doesn’t that guy want one?”

The woman said, “He himself said that the man was an important figure from a cultivation sect. If that’s the case, he must have many sons at home. Nothing precious is rare. Could it be that he cares about the people out there? He waited and waited, but no one came to pick him up, so he had to raise him alone, right? It’s been fourteen years.”

Some clients ask, “Important people? Does something like that really happen?”

The woman, “Oh, why would I lie about this? His son is taking care of our business right now. Well, there he is.” The woman turned her waist, waving towards a boy holding a tray, “Xiao-Meng! Come here!”

The boy did as he was told and walked over, “AnXin-jie*, what’s wrong?”

TN:  -jie  is the feminine alternative of  -xiong  .

Suddenly, Wei WuXian understood everything.

The clients eyed Meng Yao with judgmental eyes. Meng Yao asked again, “Do I need you for something?” 

AnXin grinned, “Xiao-Meng, are you still studying those things these days?”

Meng Yao paused for a moment, “What thing?”

AnXin, “The things your mother wanted to teach you, like calligraphy, etiquette, swordsmanship, meditation… How are they going?”

Before he could even finish, the clients started chuckling as if they found something amusing. AnXin turned around, “Don’t laugh, I’m telling the truth. His mother raised him as a young master from a wealthy family. She taught him to read and write, bought him all the pamphlets on swordsmanship, and even wanted to send him to school.”

The client exclaimed, “Send him to school? Did I hear that right?”

AnXin, “No! Xiao-Meng, tell these young masters. You’ve been to the library before, right?”

Client, “Is he still gone?”

AnXian, “No, he just came back a few days later. He won’t leave again no matter what. Xiao-Meng, do you not like studying or do you not like this place?”

Meng Yao didn’t say anything. AnXin giggled, then poked Meng Yao’s forehead with her bright red finger. “Little brother, are you angry?”

He pressed quite hard. A pink mark appeared in the center of Meng Yao’s forehead, almost like a shadow of the dark red mark. He touched his forehead, “No…”

AnXian waved her hand, “Enough, enough. We don’t have anything for you. You can go.” Meng Yao turned around. Before she could take a few steps, she took something from the table and coaxed, “Here’s some fruit for you.”

Meng Yao turned around and the emerald fruit hit her chest, falling to the ground and rolling. AnXin complained, “Why are you so slow? You can’t even catch a fruit. Hurry up and grab it. Don’t waste it.”

Meng Yao curled the corners of her mouth. She should have been fourteen, but perhaps because of her unusually small frame, she looked like she was only twelve or thirteen. It was truly uncomfortable to see such a smile on her face.

He bent down slowly, picked up the fruit, and wiped it on his clothes, his smile growing wider, “Thank you, Sister AnXin.”

AnXin, “Don’t worry. Just work hard.”

Meng Yao, “Call me if you need me.”

After he left, one of the clients commented, “If my child were in a place like that, I would take him back no matter what.”

Another followed, “Her father is really an important figure from a cultivation sect? Shouldn’t it be more than easy to buy a prostitute’s freedom and give her money to raise her son? With just the lift of a finger.”

AnXin, “You can’t believe everything this woman says, right? After all, that important person only exists in her words. I think it’s possible that she was just a wealthy merchant before she exaggerated…”

Suddenly, someone screamed. The sound of cups and plates shattering came from the second floor as a guqin fell, shattering into pieces upon impact. It frightened the people playing at the nearby tables. AnXin nearly tripped over herself, screaming, “What’s going on?!”

Meng Yao cried, “Mom!”

AnXin looked up. A burly man was dragging a woman out of the room by her hair. AnXin grabbed the client beside her, either nervous or excited, “He did it again!”

Meng Yao rushed upstairs. Covering her head, she tried her best to pull her clothes over her shoulders. Seeing Meng Yao running, she rushed over, “I told you not to go upstairs! Come down! Come down now!”

Meng Yao was about to let go of the client’s hand but was kicked in the stomach and rolled down the stairs, causing a wave of cheers.

This was the third time Wei WuXian saw him roll down the stairs from a kick.

Screaming loudly, the woman’s hair was pulled again by her client, until she was dragged down, stripped naked, and thrown onto the street. He spat on her naked body, cursing, “Those old ladies were just bargaining—that bitch thinks she’s fresh meat!”

Panicked, the woman collapsed in the middle of the street, afraid to get up. With just one movement, everyone would see everything. Passersby were both stunned and delighted, lingering, pointing with gleaming eyes. The brothel doors were also cramped with women inside, giggling as they told the story of the poor old woman to their clients, just as AnXin had. Only one woman managed to get in. She removed her originally thin gauze robe, revealing half of her full, snow-white breasts wrapped in a crimson cloth, and her waist was also incredibly slender. She was more than eye-catching, and everyone rushed to look at her. 

The woman spat and cursed, “Keep looking, you bastards! Do you have the right to look at someone like me? Every time you look, you have to pay—where’s the money?! Come on, where’s the money?!”

Cursing, he reached out and asked passersby for money. The crowd dispersed somewhat, and he threw the robe he had taken off at the woman, sending them both staggering into the main hall. He grumbled as he walked, “It’s been a long time since I told you to change everything. Why be arrogant? You’ve learned your lesson, right? Remember next time!”

Wei WuXian thought,  That woman seems somewhat familiar. Where have I seen her before?

The woman whispered, “A-Yao, A-Yao…”

Meng Yao was unable to get up for a long time as a result of the kick, remaining on the ground. The woman grabbed one with each hand and dragged the mother and daughter away. 

A client next to AnXin asked, “Who is beautiful?”

AnXin spat out two sunflower seeds, “The famous Vixen. She’s quite creepy.”

Someone sighed in disappointment, “Is this the talented Meng Shi from back then? How did she end up like this?”

AnXin grinned, “Of course. She’s determined to have a child. Can a woman maintain her appearance after giving birth? If it weren’t for her being able to live up to her former reputation as a ‘talented’ person, no one would have come to her. I think it’s all because of those books.”

One client expressed his deep understanding, saying, “Of course. Those who have ever touched ink always have an indescribable pride. They don’t want to let go of the idea.”

AnXin, “If she could just feed herself with the books she reads, I wouldn’t say anything, but it’s just a gimmick to attract guys. Let me be honest—we’re all bitches, and you’ve become better just because you read books? Why be so arrogant? It’s not just outsiders who look down on her, do you think our sisters here like her too? Clients here sometimes prefer to see a young girl maintain her modesty as a diversion, but who would pay for an ugly old woman? Her fame has long faded. Everyone knows, and she’s the only one who doesn’t understand…”

At this moment, someone slapped AnXin from behind. When AnXin turned around, she saw the woman standing behind her, raising her hand to slap her. With a ”  pah  ,” AnXin received the slap. She was stunned for a moment before finally exploding, “You bitch!!!”

The woman, “You bitch!!! Chatting all day—doesn’t your tongue have anything else to do?!”

AnXin shouted, “What does anything I say have to do with you?!”

The two women fought on the first floor of the hall, using their nails and teeth, pulling each other’s hair while cursing, “Sooner or later I will slice your face” or “no one will want you even if you give him money.” The harshness of their words was almost unbearable. 

Many prostitutes came to stop them, “SiSi! Stop!”

SiSi?  Wei WuXian finally realized why he felt so familiar when he saw her face. If there were seven or eight scars crisscrossing her face, wasn’t that SiSi, the woman who came to Lotus Pier to reveal the secret?!

Suddenly, he felt a wave of heat hit his face. The entire hall was instantly plunged into a sea of ​​fiery red. Wei WuXian immediately withdrew from Empathy!

When he opened his eyes, Lan WangJi asked, “How?”

Lan XiChen spoke up, “Young Master Wei, what do you see?”

Wei WuXian took a breath to calm himself before answering, “I suspect Guanyin Temple is where Sect Leader Jin grew up.”

Jin GuangYao remained calm. Jiang Cheng, “Where did she grow up? Didn’t she…” He was just about to say ‘didn’t she grow up in a brothel’ when he suddenly understood as well, “This Guanyin Temple used to be a brothel. She burned the place down and built the Guanyin Temple on top of it!”

Lan XiChen, “You really started the fire?”

Jin Guangyao, “Ya.”

Jiang Cheng laughed coldly, “You admitted it well, didn’t you?”

Jin GuangYao, “At this point, is there a difference between one thing being more and one thing being less?”

After a moment of silence, Lan XiChen asked, “Is it to remove traces?”

Although many knew that LianFang-Zun grew up in a brothel, for many years, no one knew exactly which brothel she belonged to. This was truly bizarre. Everyone understood that LianFang-Zun was in control behind the scenes, but few expected that she would burn down the entire place where she was born and raised.

Jin GuangYao, “Not entirely.”

Lan XiChen sighed and didn’t continue. Jin GuangYao, “Aren’t you going to ask why?”

Lan XiChen shook his head. A moment later, he spoke, but without answering the question, “Back then, it wasn’t that I didn’t know what you were doing, but that I was sure you had a reason behind your actions.”

He continued, “But, you’ve done too much. And I… don’t know if I should trust you anymore.”

The exhaustion and disappointment were evident in his tone.

A storm raged outside. Wind seeped through the gaps between the temple doors. Amidst a shrill wail, Jin GuangYao suddenly fell to the ground.

Everyone was stunned into silence. Wei WuXian, who had just retrieved the sword from his waist, was also shocked. Weakly, Jin GuangYao began, “Big Brother, I’m sorry.”

“…” Hearing this, even Wei WuXian felt embarrassed for her. He couldn’t help but say, “Eh, I mean, it’s better for us to have a good fight than to talk. Can’t we just fight?”

His face changed abruptly, and his legs went weak. There was no dignity or anything else. Lan XiChen’s face was filled with mixed emotions. 

Jin GuangYao continued, “Brother, you’ve known me for many years. After all, you know how I treat you. I no longer desire the position of Chief Cultivator, and I’ve also destroyed the Stygian Tiger Seal. After tonight, I’ll be leaving for Dongying without ever returning. For this, let me live, okay?”

Going to Dongying, in simpler terms, was tantamount to running away. It might sound a bit embarrassing, but Jin GuangYao had always been known for his flexibility—if he could soften, he would never meet steel with steel. With its strength, the LanlingJin Sect could only surpass a few sects, but if all the sects united against it, treading the path of the QishanWen Sect’s destruction, it would only be a matter of time. Rather than lingering until then, it was far better to retreat now to hide and conserve energy. In the future, there might be a chance to rise again.

Wei WuXian, “Sect Leader Jin, you said the Tiger Seal was completely destroyed. Could you take it out for me to see?”

Jin GuangYao, “Young Master Wei, that restored version isn’t the original. There’s a limit to how many times it can be used. It’s completely useless. Besides, you know best how much dark energy it contains. Do you think I’d bring a piece of junk that’s no longer useful and will only bring disaster?”

Wei WuXian, “I don’t know. Maybe you could find another Xue Yang?”

Jin GuangYao, “Brother, everything I said is true.”

His tone was more than sincere. Ever since he had captured Lan XiChen, he had indeed treated him with respect. At this point, Lan XiChen couldn’t resist. He could only sigh, “Sect Leader Jin, I told you, when you go your own way to wreak havoc at Burial Mound, you no longer need to call me ‘Brother’.”

Jin GuangYao, “What happened at Burial Mound was an accident, a mistake. But, I can’t go back.”

Lan XiChen, “What do you mean you can’t go back?”

Lan WangJi frowned slightly, his voice cold, “Brother, don’t engage in excessive conversation with him.”

Wei WuXian also reminded her, “Sect Leader Lan, do you remember what you said to Sect Leader Jiang? Don’t talk to him for too long.”

Lan XiChen knew full well how capable Jin GuangYao was when he opened his mouth. However, whenever he heard the possibility of a hidden motive, he had to listen. This was what Jin GuangYao wanted to achieve.

He lowered his voice, “I received a letter.”