The Ghost Insists on Giving Me a Beautiful and Powerful Wife! - Chapter 53.2

The final decision rested with the Taoist priest. When she said sharing the flesh was good, the villagers naturally followed suit.

Soon, the small children were sent away, and a large cauldron was brought over. The priest and the little nun dragged Xia Yu down and forced her into the pot.

Xia Yu tried to run, but the little nun raised a shovel and struck her violently on the back of the head.

Blood splattered everywhere, a few drops landing on the priest’s robes. She frowned in disgust: “Vile creature!”

She pulled off her outer robe and wrapped it around her fingers several times. As she whispered a mantra, a cluster of sparks suddenly ignited at her fingertips. She jabbed forcefully at the wound on the back of Xia Yu’s head; the flames crawled from her fingers onto Xia Yu, instantly incinerating her hair and clothes.

The fire scorched her skin, and chunks of charred flesh began to emit a savory aroma.

The flames burned through her throat. Xia Yu could no longer make a sound; she could only stare at her tormentors with eyes full of despair, unable even to shed tears.

Xia Yu was shoved into the pot, the flames on her body extinguished by even hotter boiling water. Hands reaching out from the pot were smashed, and feet trying to climb out were hacked off. Yu Ruoyin was truly frantic: “Sister Xia Yu!”

She tried to rush forward, but Kang Miaoxian stopped her casually: “What are you afraid of? She is a Spirit. This level of damage won’t kill her.”

Spirits don’t die. Humans do.

Xia Yu’s bones were snapped inch by inch, and her flesh and bone filled the entire cauldron. The terrifying thing was that she hadn’t stopped breathing; the faint sound of her respiration reached their ears, proving she was still alive. For a moment, Yu Ruoyin couldn’t distinguish whether the one alive was Xia Yu or the original Miss Zou.

If Miss Zou had been alive back then too, wouldn’t she have watched herself be boiled to death?

Yu Ruoyin’s heart constricted; she felt like she was going to vomit.

They pressed a wooden board over the pot and placed a heavy stone on top to ensure the person inside could no longer struggle.

Yu Ruoyin’s limbs went cold, and her breathing slowed. She was terrified, yet the Village Chief—who had practically watched Miss Zou grow up—was actually laughing: “I never thought at my age I’d get to eat demon meat.”

The little nun laughed along: “Hehe, I wonder what it tastes like.”

The Taoist priest also had a smile hanging on her lips, stroking a non-existent beard with an air of profound mystery: “Soon.”

What was “soon”? The meat was almost cooked.

Yu Ruoyin could no longer stay still. When she stepped forward again, her feet were no longer bound.

She successfully rushed out, and the red moon in the sky suddenly changed. Many crimson stars appeared around it, increasing in number until they formed a giant square. From a distance, it looked like a screen divided into two halves, both suddenly displaying images.

One side showed the story that had just unfolded, but the appearances of the people had changed—men, women, young and old—and Xia Yu was replaced by a frail young woman. That was the real story from over four thousand years ago. Not an enactment, but the true Zou Ruolian.

The other side showed Xia Yu—a Xia Yu dressed in ancient clothing, lost in the enjoyment of fine wine. She was drunk, sipping small mouthfuls from her cup and murmuring: “Tomorrow… I’ll go pick up Miss Zou tomorrow.”

Tomorrow. There would be no Miss Zou tomorrow.

Yu Ruoyin understood instantly. Xia Yu likely wasn’t the Mountain Demon; she was the Mountain Demon’s friend. It was Xia Yu who left Miss Zou in Mingchan Village and forgot to take her away, causing the final tragedy.

As the stars appeared, the characters in the historical vision seemed to freeze.

Yu Ruoyin retracted her gaze and rushed to the cauldron. She shoved the stone and the wooden board aside, rummaging through the heap of shredded meat for Xia Yu’s head: “Sister Xia Yu! Sister Xia Yu!”

The mangled meat in the pot was illuminated by the red moon and began to regroup at incredible speed. Gradually, it pieced back together into a whole Xia Yu, even her clothes and hair returning as if nothing had happened. This allowed Yu Ruoyin to breathe a sigh of relief: “Sister Xia Yu!”

She wanted Xia Yu to get out of the pot, but Xia Yu didn’t move.

Yu Ruoyin wasn’t sure if she was still being controlled. Just as she was about to pull Xia Yu out by force, she saw the woman’s eyelashes tremble.

Xia Yu pushed Yu Ruoyin’s hand away and sat in the pot by herself, having no intention of climbing out. She hugged her knees, sitting there dazed, speaking in a tiny voice: “So it hurts this much… no wonder… no wonder Chun hates me. I deserve to die. I deserve to die!”

The answer was clear now. The Mountain Demon Jiang Huaining spoke of was Chunchen. Chunchen’s memory only lasted three months, so a year later she would forget Miss Zou and need the girl to help her find her memories again. That was why she promised to leave Miss Zou with her friend after taking her back to Mingshan Village—because her “shift” lasted only three months, and once the time was up, she had to fall into a deep sleep.

The chaos of the world four thousand years ago really was related to the Four Spirits.

Was it Chunchen who was gathering souls? She had caused the deaths of so many people—how could Jiang Huaining tolerate her continued existence?

No, it wasn’t a matter of whether Jiang Huaining wanted to or not. Chunchen had to stay alive.

Yu Ruoyin’s mind raced when it came to matters involving Jiang Huaining. Without anyone reminding her, she understood the crux: the Four Spirits influence the changing of the seasons. If Spring were gone, the seasons would break. The extreme heat they felt in Yin City when Xia Yu was seriously injured was the best explanation. An injury was already that severe; if one truly vanished, the situation would likely become catastrophically unpredictable.

Then the question circled back to what Kang Miaoxian had asked her at the beginning: Who controlled the seasons before the Four Spirits?

“Chun… Chun, I…”

Yu Ruoyin had almost never seen Xia Yu this fragile. She was still worried: “Sister Xia Yu.”

Yu Ruoyin called her softly. Xia Yu slowly raised her head, her scattered gaze gradually focusing on Yu Ruoyin’s face. In an instant, a wave of torrential hatred surged in her eyes: “Jiang Huaining deserves to die too! She deserves to die!”

Xia Yu suddenly reached out and grabbed the red jade nut at Yu Ruoyin’s chest, her voice thick with resentment: “Jiang Huaining, you deserve to die too!”

Yu Ruoyin’s concern for Xia Yu vanished instantly, her eyes turning cold: “What does you causing someone’s death have to do with Aunt Ning!”

Facing Yu Ruoyin’s interrogation, Xia Yu laughed: “Then why don’t you ask what she was doing while I was drinking!”

Xia Yu didn’t leave Yu Ruoyin to guess; she screamed the answer: “She was with you!”

“Cough, cough!” A metallic sweetness surged in Xia Yu’s throat, and she coughed up blood uncontrollably. It was as if she had violated some taboo and suffered a backlash; her face turned pale instantly.

She hurriedly wiped the blood away, having no intention of stopping, and continued to roar at Yu Ruoyin: “You short-lived ghost! You’re going to die anyway, why couldn’t you just die sooner!”

Yu Ruoyin didn’t like the term “short-lived ghost,” and she liked her talking about Jiang Huaining like that even less.

She still couldn’t remember her past with Jiang Huaining. From the snippets in Xia Yu’s words, Jiang Huaining and she must have had stories spanning many lifetimes. This made her secretly joyful yet anxious. She had only seen the blurred shadow of one young girl—she probably couldn’t compare to that version of herself, but what about the others? Would she lose to her other past lives too?

Yu Ruoyin felt she was being very strange. It was clear that those were all her, yet she couldn’t help but separate herself from them. The result was that instead of having one romantic rival, she had many, which distressed her greatly.

How could she win? If they were all short-lived, would she win if she lived longer?

Strength and longevity… the red jade nut on her chest grew hotter, and the impulse to flee grew stronger. It was that familiar feeling; she was certain Xia Yu possessed the power she needed. This time, she didn’t feel ashamed of her greed.

She couldn’t help but think: how wonderful it would be if she could really take Xia Yu’s power. Actually, she could be a Guardian Spirit too. She would definitely be more obedient than Xia Yu; she wouldn’t wish for Jiang Huaining’s death, and she certainly wouldn’t side with those who opposed her.

Yu Ruoyin didn’t think she was perfect—she certainly had her biased moments—but she could be very “good.” Since she couldn’t figure things out herself, wouldn’t it be better to listen to someone who was clear-headed?

Yu Ruoyin stroked the red jade nut and murmured softly: “I am very good.”

She was comparing herself to Xia Yu. A conversation she had with Jiang Huaining previously echoed in her mind.

“Beautiful wife, I’ll definitely be obedient next time!” “Don’t listen to me. You must not.” “…”

Jiang Huaining didn’t seem to like her being “good.” Yu Ruoyin silently changed her tune: “I can also be ‘bad’.”

It seemed… things were becoming a bit abnormal again.

Even Yu Ruoyin noticed she was acting strangely, but Xia Yu didn’t. She was still shouting at Yu Ruoyin: “Short-lived ghost! If you had died earlier, Jiang Huaining would have found time to deal with us. If she had been watching over us, I wouldn’t have… why… I blame you, it’s all your fault…”

No wonder Xia Yu had been so hostile since they met, and was hot and cold toward Jiang Huaining—sometimes caring, but mostly indifferent. It turned out that in her mind, the blame for her own mistake was placed on them.

Yu Ruoyin felt she should be angry, but in the end, she just looked at Xia Yu calmly: “Xia Yu, you were the one who loved wine and forgot to take Miss Zou away. It wasn’t me or Aunt Ning.”

Her voice paused, suppressing the impulse to flee as she spoke again: “Xia Yu, I don’t think you are a competent Guardian Spirit at all. Do you want to give your power to me?”

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