Chapter 52: Chapter 52: Selling Herself
Linglong was at a loss for words, stammering, "I was only following orders. It was a direct command from Saint Envoy Jing Hong. She ordered me to find a way to kill you, Senior, and your son."
’Jing Hong!’
Chen Li snorted. He had never met this woman; it was most likely another one of Chen Zhengping’s schemes. He then asked, "Weren’t you always active in the Commandery City? What is your purpose in coming to Mirror Mountain this time?"
Linglong shook her head. "I don’t know either."
Chen Li’s gaze was like a knife as he stared at her. "Where is Jing Hong now? How can I contact her?"
Linglong’s breath hitched, and her pretty face took on a pitiful expression. "How would I know Saint Envoy Jing Hong’s whereabouts? However, the Xiang Sect has its own methods of contact. If you wish, Senior, I can help arrange a meeting."
Chen Li waved his hand dismissively and asked, "How many other Spirit Realm individuals are at the Drunken Creek Pavilion in Mirror Mountain? What are their cultivation levels?"
Linglong answered, "Only Saint Envoy Jing Hong is in the Spirit Realm. I don’t know her exact cultivation level, but she only just broke through to the Spirit Realm the year before last."
After asking a few more questions, Chen Li fell silent for a moment, then stared at her and said, "Your life is now in my hands. If you want to live, you will do exactly as I say."
"Please give me your orders, Senior." Linglong lowered her head, seeming to have completely accepted her fate.
...
「The twenty-seventh of the twelfth lunar month.」
The weather was freezing, and the withered grass on both sides of the main road was covered in frost.
Chen Yongquan was driving his family’s mule cart, returning from the county town after purchasing New Year’s goods.
The cart was piled high with New Year’s goods like red paper, firecrackers, and bolts of silk, a full load for the journey home.
He was humming a tuneless little song, in quite a good mood.
About five or six li out of the county town, he saw a woman by the side of the road. She was dressed in coarse hemp mourning clothes, with a white flower pinned by her temple, kneeling beside a tattered straw mat and sobbing softly.
From one end of the straw mat, a pair of stiff feet protruded, clearly indicating a corpse was wrapped inside.
In front of the woman, a dry branch was stuck in the ground. A crooked wooden sign hung from it, its ink blurred by the frost, but the words "Selling Self to Bury Father" were still faintly discernible.
A cold wind swept by, lifting the corner of her clothes and making her seem even more slender and pitiful.
Chen Yongquan stopped the mule cart. He saw that although the woman’s face was full of sorrow with tear stains still visible, it couldn’t hide her clear, elegant beauty. Her slightly upturned eyes, shimmering with tears, seemed as if they could speak, instantly making his heart itch with desire.
"Whoa..."
He jumped down from the cart, straightened his robes, and walked over with a deliberately stern air. "You there, what’s all this?"
The woman raised her head, tears rolling down like broken strings of pearls. "Replying to you, Master, my father and I were fleeing disaster and came here. Unexpectedly, my father fell ill and died. I have no money, so I must sell myself to afford a simple coffin and lay my father to rest."
As she spoke, she began to sob again, her shoulders trembling slightly.
Her frail and helpless appearance instantly filled Chen Yongquan’s heart with pity. He sighed, "Ah, what a pitiful sight. In this freezing weather, leaving your father’s body exposed in the wilderness... that’s no way for anyone to act! I’ll pay for it!"
He immediately took out a few pieces of broken silver from his robes and, with a grand gesture, stuffed them into the woman’s hand. "Go find a coffin shop quickly, buy a decent coffin, and then hire someone to bury your father."
The woman took the silver coins and looked up at him with tear-filled eyes. "Thank you for your great kindness, Master. Wan Niang... I, Wan Niang, have no way to repay you. I am willing to become your servant and attend to you, Master..."
As she spoke, she gracefully prostrated herself, her slender body shivering in the cold wind, looking utterly pitiable.
Chen Yongquan felt a rush of hot blood to his head.
It wasn’t that he had never seen a beautiful woman before, but the stunning beauty revealed amidst this woman’s fragility and helplessness struck the most hidden desires of his heart.
A strong desire to protect and possess her welled up inside him.
"Quick, please get up!"
Chen Yongquan hurriedly stepped forward to help her up.
Just as his fingertips were about to touch her cold arm, an extremely subtle, almost imperceptible aura that could sway one’s mind quietly brushed past his Heart Spirit.
Chen Yongquan felt his heart stir, and his gaze instantly grew hazy. His pity for the woman before him reached its peak.
Chen Yongquan sighed repeatedly, his tone incomparably eager. "Don’t you worry, miss. Leave the matter of burying your father to me."
He immediately helped the woman give her father a hasty burial.
The woman cried her heart out beside him, expressing her profound gratitude to Chen Yongquan. Her tear-streaked face, like a pear blossom in the rain, made Chen Yongquan’s heart itch with an unbearable urge.
Afterward, he had her sit in the mule cart, and they headed toward Lingxi.
On the way, Chen Yongquan found that this woman who called herself Wan Niang became more and more captivating the more he looked at her. Her every word and action seemed perfectly aligned with his own desires, leaving him feeling rather giddy.
’It would be wonderful if I could marry her.’
Chen Yongquan’s blood boiled with excitement, but the thought of the old, shrewish harridan at home was like a bucket of cold water dumped over him.
However, that wasn’t enough to stop him.
Before long, his eyes darted about as a plan formed in his mind. He instructed the woman, "I had a good friend who went away on business long ago. He has a daughter. For now, you will pretend to be her. If anyone asks, just say your father passed away and told you to seek refuge with me before he died. You can stay at my home first, and I’ll find a path for you later. How does that sound?"
Wan Niang was moved to tears. "I am entirely at your disposal, Master. You are so very thoughtful, Master."
Chen Yongquan was coaxed into a state of elation. He felt that this woman was not only stunningly beautiful but also incredibly sensible—perfectly suited to his tastes.
When he returned home, just as expected, he was met with the strong disapproval and intense questioning of his wife, Mrs. Wang of the Chen Family.
Chen Yongquan insisted she was the orphan of an old friend with a pitiful background. He then used his authority as an elder to scold his wife for her lack of compassion.
Although Mrs. Wang of the Chen Family was full of suspicion, seeing her husband’s firm attitude and that Wan Niang’s behavior was proper enough, she had no choice but to suppress her anger. She temporarily set aside her doubts and arranged for her to stay in the west wing.
「In the blink of an eye, it was New Year’s Eve.」
The house was decorated with lanterns and colorful banners in preparation for the New Year’s Eve dinner.
The second son, Chen Zhengtong, had also rushed back from the Tingtiao Martial Arts Hall in the county town. The eldest son, Chen Zhengping, however, had still not returned. Their father, Chen Xingjia, had gone to Chen Yongquan’s youngest brother’s home.
During the meal, Chen Yongquan paid special attention to his "niece," Wan Niang, frequently putting food on her plate and showering her with concern.
Mrs. Wang of the Chen Family watched with a cold eye, the suspicion and jealousy in her heart burning ever stronger.
She didn’t dare question her husband directly. Her gaze swept back and forth a few times between her son, Chen Zhengtong, who was eating with his head down, and the sweetly smiling Wan Niang. Suddenly, an idea popped into her head.
She suddenly said with a smile, "Wan Niang, you’re sixteen this year, aren’t you? Have you been promised to anyone yet?"
Wan Niang’s pretty face flushed red. She lowered her head and said in a soft, delicate voice, "No, I haven’t."
Mrs. Wang of the Chen Family laughed. "Well, that’s perfect. My Zhengtong isn’t married yet either. Look at him, so handsome and talented, and he’s studying at the martial arts hall—he has a boundless future. You two are of similar age. I think you’d make a fine match. Why don’t we..."
Hearing this, Chen Yongquan, who was sitting nearby, scolded his wife, "Nonsense! Wan Niang’s family has just suffered a tragedy. How can we take advantage of her situation? Do not mention this matter again!"
Mrs. Wang of the Chen Family snorted and turned to her son. "Tong’er, you must take good care of your younger sister Wan Niang in the future."
"Mother... Yes, alright..." Chen Zhengtong coughed. From the moment he returned home and first laid eyes on Wan Niang, he had found it difficult to look away.
He had never seen such an exquisite woman. Her pure and otherworldly beauty, combined with her frail and helpless air, had completely captivated him.
Hearing his mother’s words, he looked up at Wan Niang. There, under the lamplight, was a beauty with a face like a peach blossom. Her eyes seemed to dance as she shot him a shy, timid glance.
Chen Zhengtong felt his heart leap, and his face instantly flushed red to the tips of his ears. He could only manage a vague "Mmm."
Chen Yongquan’s expression froze instantly, and he slammed his wine cup down on the table.
The New Year’s Eve dinner ended on a sour note.
