Четвертый кампус - Глава 10
Damn! Are there really good people who are wrong? Hehe... Of course I know I'm a good person, do I need you to remind me!
"So... I... I feel it's necessary to tell you everything about myself, because I'm worried that something unexpected might happen..."
Your worries have come true, and the poor guy is still clueless... (Aside: It's a drum! Answer: I know, I like to be different, managing the bird market! Aside: That's none of your business...)
"What is it?" "About my origins, and why I'm still alive..."
I'm very curious. I've always been interested in history, and now that a living female ghost is telling me about her era, of course I have to listen!
"This is what happened..."
Xiaoyuan recounts her story: I was born in Handan. According to the saying at the time, the land of Yan and Zhao produces beauties, and this was indeed the case. Therefore, Emperor Wu sent people to recruit beauties from this region. That year, my father passed away, and life became difficult. My mother had to raise three underage brothers. Because she heard that the families recruited would receive a considerable sum of money, my mother had no choice but to offer me to the officials recruiting women. That year, I had just turned fourteen and was very beautiful. The neighbors all praised me for having the looks of Xi Shi, so my mother decided to give it a try...
I didn't hate my mother at all; on the contrary, I thought she was a person of great principle. This way, my younger brother's problem was solved, and I would no longer suffer from cold and hunger. As expected, the official chose me at first glance.
The night before I left, my mother personally cooked and killed the only egg-laying hen in the house. She chopped up the wooden plank by the bed for firewood. That night, I ate my fill for the first time. My three younger brothers were very considerate and only drank the leftover soup after I finished eating. They knew that their sister was leaving for them...
Then my mother personally fetched water, used the remaining wood to boil a bucket of warm water, and used it to wipe my body. After the bath, she led me to the bedside, took out a needle, and heated it with an oil lamp for a while before piercing a lotus flower onto my body… I knew that at that moment, her heart must have ached more than my body. She didn't say anything while piercing the flower, she just focused on doing it, but I knew what she meant. Life in the palace was extremely decadent, and my mother wanted to constantly remind me not to lose myself in all of this, but to remain pure amidst the filth…
The next morning, I was picked up by a carriage, and a completely different life awaited me. Fate then slowly drew back the curtain of my sorrow...
---janeadam
Reply [31]: Chapter Sixteen: The Seven-Colored Longevity Pill!
After being brought into the palace, I was not summoned by the emperor for the first time until six months later. Emperor Wu was fond of pure and innocent beauties, while I belonged to the charming type, but I was still kept in Weiyang Palace as a personal maid.
Time flies, and three years have passed in the blink of an eye. My body and mind have undergone tremendous changes, and I have become more mature!
I gradually and unconsciously began to pay attention to every young man who passed through the palace, and if I encountered a handsome one, I would inevitably have a lively discussion with the other palace maids.
I don't know when it started, but I've become sensitive to the sounds of passion that echo in the palace every night. I'm afraid to hear these sounds, yet I also long to hear them...
Finally, one night, it was my turn to light the lamp at the door. A peerless beauty named Wei Zifu had recently arrived in the palace; her beauty would make anyone envious. This was her first night in the palace, and Emperor Wu doted on her. That night, they made love on the dragon bed, their passion lasting for a long time. I couldn't resist and secretly peeked inside…
Just then, a hand suddenly patted my shoulder from behind. It was an old eunuch whom Emperor Wu greatly favored. He led me to some bushes. "How dare you! Do you know the punishment for peeping at the Emperor's pleasure?"
I was so scared that I knelt on the ground and begged for mercy in a low voice...
"If you want to save your life..." A hint of malice flashed in the old eunuch's smile, "I can keep your secret, but you have to repay me. Come to my room tomorrow morning..."
And so, I became this old pervert's tool for sexual gratification. He himself was incapable, yet he used all sorts of methods to please himself, and my body and mind suffered immense humiliation...
The old eunuch tormented me for a very long time.
One day, I finally couldn't take it anymore and begged him for mercy: I would rather die than endure this torture any longer... I hoped he would let me go.
"Would rather die? Fine, then I'll give you a chance..."
Remember the story I told you about the Longevity Pill? It was all a lie. Back then, I wasn't sure if I should believe you. The truth is…
"Did you know that the Emperor recently summoned an old Taoist priest?"
I nodded...
"Do you know what that old Taoist priest presented to the Emperor?"
I nodded...
"As you probably know, secrets can't be kept in the palace. The old Taoist priest presented seven Seven-Colored Longevity Pills: yellow, purple, red, orange, green, cyan, blue... The old Taoist said that whether one can achieve immortality depends on fate. Only two of these seven pills can grant immortality, and they are divided into yin and yang. Even if you choose the right color, it's useless for a man to take the yin pill, and it's also useless for a woman to take the yang pill. Furthermore, these seven longevity pills are mutually restraining. If a person takes one of them, they cannot take any of the others, otherwise their meridians will be disordered, their heart and blood will be imbalanced, and they will die suddenly!"
Emperor Wu summoned all his trusted confidants, and each took one pill. He first chose the yellow one, as it was customary for emperors to choose yellow. Next was Princess Pingyang, who favored red. Then came Wei Zifu, the emperor's most beloved woman, who chose blue. Generals Wei Qing, Huo Qubing, and Sima Xiangru each chose one. There were two left, and I thought that having watched the emperor grow up, I would surely get one. But to my surprise, he kept the orange and purple longevity pills, saying he would save them to reward the hero who could one day completely annihilate the Xiongnu! Was I worthless in his eyes? "Your Majesty, don't blame your servant for being disloyal; you abandoned this old servant first! Listen, I want you to steal those two longevity pills from the emperor. After you succeed, I promise I won't bother you anymore..."
At first I was terrified and shook my head frantically. But then I don’t know why I came to a realization. Anyway, the emperor has so many women around him, how would he know who stole it? Once it was eaten, there would be no way to prove it... So, with the help and arrangement of the old eunuch, I successfully stole the longevity pill.
"Hmm? Which one should I eat?" The old eunuch looked at the two pills suspiciously. "I personally prefer purple. Should I choose purple? No, I've always had bad luck. I don't know how much money I've lost to those bastards..." He looked at me. "Xiao Yuan, ladies first. You choose one first, and I'll take what's left!" He clearly didn't believe in his luck.
So I chose the purple one, and now it seems I made the right choice!
The old eunuch then eagerly swallowed the remaining one. "...Hmm...it would be even better if it were a little sweet..."
But later, the old man was just lying. He didn't keep his promise. He found an opportunity to ask Emperor Wu for mercy, requesting permission to retire and return to his hometown. He also asked Emperor Wu to let me marry him, and Emperor Wu agreed. That old man was not only shameless but also penniless!
---janeadam
Reply [32]: ...
Xiao Yuan was about to continue talking when the annoying doorbell rang suddenly. Damn it! Teacher Ye forgot to remove the batteries after leaving… 5555… But they were Duracell batteries… I wonder who got them!
I was really getting into it when, who was that jerk! He's disturbing me!
I opened the door with a huff, and there stood a stranger wearing a top hat and a trench coat.
"Hi! Hello, you must be wondering who I am... I'm here to see you for the same reason!" He casually tore off a piece of paper from the small notebook I had on the shoe cabinet by the door and scribbled a few words in a very messy hand: "This is my business card, please give me your feedback!"
I took the paper. "SUPER, invincible, ultimate, cool, super-cool, and also kind, compassionate, and supernatural, top-tier rare detective, Detective Feng!"
"Which one is your name?" I asked.
"The last two words, the third and fourth from the bottom!"
"Detective Feng? What do you want?" I asked again. I felt this guy was weird from the first glance, there was something sleazy about him. "Pretentious" is a term invented specifically for people like this... Handsome to the point of being stupid, cool to the point of being dead, and still acting all high and mighty!
"Your name is Lin Yugui?"
How did you know?
"Of course I'm a detective! ...Twenty-five years old this year?"
"Nonsense! Do I look fifty-two?"
"A high school history teacher?"
"Nonsense! What else would I look like, doing here?"
"Like a grave robber!"
...
I was speechless; those words carried a clear implication.
"What? I told you so... What were you doing on April 5th?" Seeing my stunned expression, he became smug and pulled out a cigar. "By the way, let me ask you something: do you know how to smoke a cigar?"
I extended my index finger and gently tapped his cigar.
"Damn it! That's not what I meant. I meant lighting the cigar with a torch!"
I took his cigar, dipped it in some liquor, lit it, took a few deep drags, and then handed it back to him.
"Thank you!" He took a drag of his cigarette and coughed violently a few times. "Now let's get back to the point. Don't think that just because you lit my cigarette, I'll make an exception for you. I'm known for being incorruptible. You can ask around if you don't believe me! Where were you on Qingming Festival?"
"Sweep...sweep the grave..." I felt a little guilty.
"What kind of tomb are you going to sweep? A Han Dynasty tomb? Hmph, what exactly are you going there for..." Feng Bu stopped mid-sentence, pushed me aside, stared directly at the vase on the table, and then pulled a strangely shaped pistol from his coat...
---janeadam
Reply [33]: Chapter Seventeen: Humans and ghosts may be on different paths, but their feelings are the same!
Feng Bu's expression was strange: "It's a very unique vase..."
"It's...very ordinary, just cheap stuff from the night market."
“I think it’s very special, don’t I?” He suddenly looked at me, his eyes fixed on me without blinking.
We gazed at each other deeply for a long time, and I gradually became unable to hold back any longer; something seemed to solidify on my forehead...
"You're sweating, are you feeling guilty?"
Even if you have nothing to hide, you'd still feel guilty staring at a grown man like that...
"It's so hot... I'm planning to buy an air conditioner as soon as I get paid."
"It's only May, it shouldn't be hot enough to make you sweat... unless..."
"Unless what?"
He didn't answer further, but instead reached for the vase: "The flowers are crooked, let me straighten them for you!"
"don't want!"
"Why are you so nervous? She's just a pretty face, not a woman!"
"This is my home, please have some self-respect! Otherwise, I'll call the police!"
"Be a man, don't call the police so easily. Don't you think calling the police is more troublesome? It was a secret that only I knew..."
This guy is no simpleton. Although he keeps spouting nonsensical things, every word seems to have been spoken by accident. It seems he's not only ugly, but also very difficult to deal with!
"What are you saying? I don't understand."
“You’re very humble. I like you more than those who pretend to know what they don’t! ...Come out, you monster! Let me see what you look like?” He pointed the gun at the vase.
...The vase did not respond.
"Not afraid? Looks like you don't recognize a gun!" Feng Bu put away the gun and took out a small yellow piece of paper covered with strange symbols. This was... a talisman!
"Do you want to test the power of my exorcism talisman?"
...
Xiao Yuan was afraid of the talisman, so she came out of the vase and revealed herself.
"It's...a female...a female ghost!" Feng Bu's face turned like a rotten piece of candy. "So beautiful..."
Clang... The pistol fell to the ground, the talisman landed on the floor...
The great detective rushed over excitedly: "Miss, I'm so sorry, I hope I didn't scare you. Are you free tonight?"
Beep beep… His phone suddenly rang. “Who is it?”
"..."
"Is there something you need?"
"..."
"Tonight? No, I have something to do, let's do it another day..."