The Gusu Mistake - Chapter 12

“My professional name is Ruyi, but my real name is…” By the riverbank, bathed in moonlight, Shui Mei was recounting her past. She suddenly covered her forehead with her hand. “I can’t remember… Ah.”

Seeing Shui Mei’s distressed state, Yuan Ruo moved forward and placed two fingers on her crown, gradually calming her down. “Just tell me what you remember of your past. There’s no need to force yourself to remember!”

Shui Mei lowered her hand, her eyes looking dazed for a moment, and continued, “That year, I must have been thirteen. I was sold by my parents to the Drunken Bloom House, and within a month, the madam arranged for me…”

“How did you die in this river?” There was no need for her to finish. Everyone could guess what Shui Mei had gone through in her life. Jiang Yilan skipped ahead and asked about what happened later.

“There was a young Master Wang who asked me to accompany him on a boat. When we were in the middle of the river…” As Shui Mei said this, she painfully closed her eyes. “I was already a woman of the night, a fallen flower. I didn’t mind a few more people, but… but they put a lit candle inside…”

“Animals!” Before Shui Mei could finish, Jiang Yilan cursed. “What a bunch of animals!”

Yuan Ruo glanced at Jiang Yilan, a slight smile on her lips, and then asked Shui Mei, “What happened next?”

“Later…” Ruyi covered her face. “I couldn’t bear it and struggled, falling into the water. I couldn’t swim, and no one saved me…”

“It turns out you are so pitiful!” The formerly terrified Widow Zhou, after hearing so much, felt sympathy and bravely patted Ruyi’s shoulder.

Ruyi looked up, her red eyes frightening Widow Zhou into pulling her hand back. “You don’t need to be afraid of me. I won’t harm you!”

“I…” Widow Zhou lowered her head, not daring to speak.

“What happened later?” Yuan Ruo pressed on.

“Later…” Ruyi recalled. “I don’t know how long I was here. No one cared, and no one collected my spirit, until she came here that day…”

Ruyi looked at Widow Zhou, and Yuan Ruo followed her gaze. “She was trying to drown herself that day. As a water spirit, if you had taken her as a substitute, you could have entered the cycle of reincarnation!”

“Ah?” Widow Zhou was shocked. “Are you saying I almost became her?”

“Yes,” Yuan Ruo nodded. “If she had let you drown here at that time, you would have been freed by now!”

Ruyi gave a bitter smile. “My own fate has been so tragic. How could I bear to see others suffer the same?”

Yuan Ruo said, “But you ended up harming so many people!”

“How can you say I harmed them?” Ruyi retorted. “The day I saved her and followed her home, men came knocking on the door. If it weren’t for me, what do you think would have happened to her?”

This was a truly heartbreaking point. Neither Jiang Yilan nor Yuan Ruo had a response. It was Widow Zhou who once again took Ruyi’s arm. “Thank you!”

“You don’t need to thank me,” Ruyi looked at Widow Zhou again. “After that day, I realized these men were still of some use to me. If they loved to come here so much, then so be it!”

“What you did was not wrong,” Yuan Ruo finally spoke, with no hint of blame.

“You…” Ruyi was surprised. “You don’t blame me for harming those men?”

Yuan Ruo raised an eyebrow. “Do you think I’m that kind of a person?”

Ruyi’s heart was filled with joy. “Then… can you…”

Yuan Ruo, however, followed a different train of thought. “I will help you seek justice!”

“What are you going to do?” Jiang Yilan asked Yuan Ruo.

Yuan Ruo instead asked her, “Don’t you want to handle such a heinous matter?”

“I…” Jiang Yilan pursed her lips and smiled. “Of course, I can’t ignore it!”

Ruyi became worried. “That young Master Wang has a powerful family and is in league with the officials. How will you handle it?”

“Well,” Yuan Ruo looked at Jiang Yilan and then frowned. “It’s true we might have a difficult time handling it.”

Ruyi’s eyes drooped in disappointment. “Then let’s just forget it!”

“We can’t handle it,” Jiang Yilan understood what Yuan Ruo meant. “But you can, right?”

“Me?” Ruyi looked confused.

“You are no longer a living person and have spiritual power,” Yuan Ruo said. “Why can’t you go to them and seek revenge for your grievances and hatreds?”

Ruyi’s eyes glinted with a bloody color. She finally reacted, lifting her hand and looking at her blood-red fingernails. “Yes, I can seek revenge myself!”

“Go on!” Yuan Ruo said. “I will be waiting here for you at this time tomorrow night to help your spirit pass on.”

The bloody hue in Ruyi’s eyes intensified, and her form gradually returned to its previous wicked appearance. But as she was about to leave, she landed back on the ground. “It’s not working. I can’t leave, and I don’t know where to find them!”

Jiang Yilan was puzzled. “How did you leave before?”

Ruyi looked at Widow Zhou. “I don’t know either. I was just able to follow her when she left, and I could stay when she placed that water jar here.”

“The two of you are truly fated. You saved her, and she will lead you,” Yuan Ruo said, and then asked Widow Zhou, “Are you willing to help her one more time?”

“Me?” Widow Zhou bit her lip. “How can I help her?”

Yuan Ruo said, “Guide her to the places she wants to go!”

Widow Zhou hesitated for a moment and finally nodded. “Okay, I’ll help her!”

“Thank you!” Ruyi joyfully took Widow Zhou’s hand, the icy touch making her shiver.

“You are so cold!”

Ruyi lowered her eyes. “I’m sorry!”

“It’s okay,” Widow Zhou asked Yuan Ruo again, “What do I need to do to help her?”

“Lead the way! Go to the places where the people who harmed her are,” Yuan Ruo said, and then handed her a small bottle she was carrying. “Remember to give it back to me when you return.”

Support The Gusu Mistake