“This medicine will help you sleep, so rest for a while; everything will be fine when you wake up.”
Eventually, Xi Niang willingly closed her eyes.
When she woke up again, it was already dark outside.
A few candles were lit in the room, and there was no one else but herself, not even the baby in her arms.
A flash of panic crossed her eyes, and she immediately sat up from the bed. She was just halfway to sitting when the door to the room pushed open and Que’er walked in.
On seeing Qu’er, Xi Niang roared in anger, “Where is my baby?!”
Her voice was extremely sharp and hoarse because she had lost control.
Qu’er was startled, and her expression changed as she forced a smile: “We…we saw that you were too tired, so we let you rest. You slept for twenty hours, and although you can remain without eating or drinking, the baby can’t. So we took the baby next door to feed it before bringing it to you.”
Xi Niang also seemed to realize that her reaction was a little too much, and she coughed lightly, “I’m sorry, it’s just that I just got my baby back and I was so nervous that I reacted like that; I didn’t mean to yell at you.”
Qu’er Immediately reverted to her previous older sister demeanor, “It’s okay, everyone is mother, we understand.”
Xi Niang glanced at Qu’er with embarrassment and asked, “Where is Lord Bai Lixin? Why am I here? Did he bring me here?”
Qu’er: “Oh. He brought you here and then left in a hurry, leaving a message that you should take care of yourself.”
Xi Niang stared at the candle on the tabletop, her tone a little wispy: “He’s such a good man.”
Qu’er’s eyes lit up instantly, “Ahhh, he’s a good man! I’ve never met a better man.”
The expression on Xi Niang’s face was inscrutable as she whispered, “But since ancient times, it has been difficult for good people to live long.”
She paused and smiled at Qu’er’s astonished gaze. “But he must be different.”
“I never thought we would one day see the light of day again and live a normal life. Do you know what Lord Bai Lixin is doing?”
Qu’er: “I heard him say he was going to the ghost market to find some saint and demon baby, I don’t really know the details.”
Xi Niang had a smile in her eyes. “It doesn’t matter if you don’t understand; I didn’t either. Let’s hope it works out.”
Qu’er: “What are your next plans?”
Xi Niang: “I’ll settle here; after all, I have a child and nowhere else to go. Isn’t the baby already fed? Why don’t you return him to me? I miss him.”
Qu’er was in a trance for two seconds, “Oh, oh, yes, I’ll bring the child to you.”
Soon, Qu’er brought the child over. After putting the child down and giving a few more instructions, she quickly left again.
In the room, only Xi Niang and the baby were left.
In the distance, the shadows of the candlelight were dancing. Xi Niang lowered her head and looked at the baby in her arms with an inexplicable expression.
The baby opened its eyes and looked at Xi Niang with vacant eyes.
A woman’s eerie snicker came from the hidden, narrow room.
“What are you laughing at, huh?”
Suddenly, a cold male voice that shouldn’t have been there rung out in the room, and Xi Niang shuddered, looking towards where the voice came from in surprise.
The window had been opened at some point, and a tall, slender figure was leaning out of it.
The moonlight fell on the young man’s face, making his fair face look even more tender.
The corners of Bai Lixin’s lips curled up. He put his arm on the window sill and rested his cheek on the other as he looked at the woman leisurely.
“Long time, no see.”
The woman’s face still had a smile on it that was yet to be put away.
She stared blankly at the young man in front of her and wanted to withdraw the smile, but it was frozen on her face due to surprise, finally turning into a strange, superficial smile.
Xi Niang coughed lightly, “Um, it’s been a long time, Lord Bai Lixin, aren’t you investigating the matter of the master of the market? Why do you have time to come to me?”
Bai Lixin: “How can I investigate the master of the ghost market if I don’t come here?”
Xi Niang’s eyes flickered. “I don’t understand what you are saying.”
Bai Lixin: “You really like to have the word “mother” in your name, Xi Niang. Or perhaps I should call you ‘Li Sanniang’ or ‘Ying Niang’.”
*Niang means mother in Chinese.Xi Niang blinked. “Lord Bai Lixin, what the hell are you talking about? Li Sanniang, Ying Niang—who are they? Don’t confuse me, I’m just me, not anyone else.”
Bai Lixin sighed, “The last time I went back to the paper-tying shop, I went to the first floor to rest.”
“You don’t know, but I left a little special mark at Li Sanniang’s door.”
“I was already suspecting that Ying Niang was Li Sanniang, but what first made me suspicious was the red powder I found on the eighteenth floor of Abyssal Hell.”
“The red powder had a special floral scent, so faint that if one did not have a particularly acute sense of smell, they would not be able to smell it at all.”
“I had a vague feeling that I had smelled this scent somewhere, but I couldn’t remember where.”
“Until the day I came to you at the Naihe Bridge and you asked me to pick three Manzanita flowers for you.”
“When the wind blew, the fragrance of the manzanita flowers carried that faint, familiar scent as well.”
“Then I finally remembered why it was familiar, that scent reminded me of Li Sanniang.”
“When you disguise yourself as Li Sanniang, you always wear a thick powder on your face. Because it is so thick, you don’t even notice that you still carry that scent from when you are Ying Niang.”
“It’s this scent that can’t be eliminated that exposed you as Ying Niang and Li Sanniang.”
“The moment I entered the basement of the auction house, I smelled your distinctive scent.”
“When we came back with you, Qu’er kept staring at you because she had never seen you at all. Of course, how could she have seen you before? You have an even more mysterious identity in addition to these three, that of master of the ghost market.”
“Li Sanniang has a big belly not because of fat, but because she is pregnant.”
“You gave birth in there, not because you were caught. The snake man and the horned man stood there solemnly, not because of the baby, but because the person giving birth in there was their master.”
“I could have revealed your identity when I was sure that Li Sanniang was Ying Niang, but I didn’t. I wanted to know what you really wanted and what your plot was.”
Xi Niang’s shrinking gaze gradually grew indifferent; she gave Bai Lixin a cold look and asked, “This is nonsense, how can I, a weak woman, do so many things? Then tell me, if I am so powerful, what is my purpose? And why am I doing this? And how can I appear in so many places at the same time?”
Xi Niang gathered the child into her arms, her cold eyes gradually sharpening. She didn’t look like a weak woman anymore.
“You don’t just have these four identities; you have a fifth, and that’s the fake King Yma.”
“As for why you did all this, you already told me.”
Xi Niang’s gloomy face suddenly became dumbfounded. “I told you, when did I ever tell you?”
“Hehe,” Bai Lixin replied, “do you remember the medicine that Qu’er fed you earlier? How can you forget the taste of the Men Po soup you brew?”
Xi Niang’s expression cracked for a moment as she gave Bai Lixin a ferocious look: “What the hell did you make me do?!”
“I asked you a few questions while you were delirious from drinking Meng Po soup.”
“I remember you saying that the effects of the Meng Po soup don’t last long on you, it’s been exactly three hours since then, and you will soon remember what happened.”
Just as Bai Lixin’s words fell, Xi Niang’s brain hurt as if struck by lightning.
Several unfamiliar memories also quickly pushed their way into her mind.
As the memories came back, Xi Niang sat dumbly on the bed.
—“Why did you get so many women to have children?”
—“To make the most suitable vessel for my child.”
—“Your child?”
—“I was pregnant when I died, and the child was still in my womb. It was so small, so innocent.”
—“I was unreconciled, I wanted revenge, I wanted to resurrect myself and my child.”
—“So you induced the saint after he had entered the underworld?”
—“Oh, he is just a hypocrite who fears death and lusts after beauty. I have long since put a stain on his merit book because I died in vain and was pregnant. Do you think he came to the underworld because he adored me?”
—“A ridiculous love story invented by the later generations.”
—“He came to the underworld to erase his sinful relationship with me. Because such a thing would damage his merits and prevent him from becoming a full saint and an immortal. He has always been a selfish hypocrite; all the good things he did were just for a good name and future ascension, just like he couldn’t hold back from having my body at that time.”
—“But what happened between me and him was already recorded in the book of life and death; I told him to go to King Yama and all will be revealed.”
—-“I tried to provoke him, and sure enough, the fear and terror made him go crazy. Having gone off the deep end, he had one thought in mind, and that was to erase his sins.”
—“That was my plan. I hated him so much, how could I resign myself to just being reincarnated and forgetting everything? Not only did I want revenge, but I also wanted to expose the ‘saint’ as a hypocrite. Hahaha, I wanted to watch him build a tall building and watch it collapse.”
—“Do you know why he ended up saying that love caused him to do all those ridiculous things? Because that way, the story changes; I became the thorn that “seduced” him.”
—“Beauty brings disaster, and to everyone, *he rushed to the crown for the beauty.”
*An idiom to mean getting angry for one’s lover.
—“He killed to clean up, but remained with a clean reputation, I was really unlucky.”
—“I hibernated for so long for revenge.”
—“The page he erased had not only my name but also the name of my child.”
—“But my child had no form at that time; I only caught a glimpse of his ghost.”
—“In order to bring him to life, I needed to find a suitable shell.”
“This medicine will help you sleep, so rest for a while; everything will be fine when you wake up.”
Eventually, Xi Niang willingly closed her eyes.
When she woke up again, it was already dark outside.
A few candles were lit in the room, and there was no one else but herself, not even the baby in her arms.
A flash of panic crossed her eyes, and she immediately sat up from the bed. She was just halfway to sitting when the door to the room pushed open and Que’er walked in.
On seeing Qu’er, Xi Niang roared in anger, “Where is my baby?!”
Her voice was extremely sharp and hoarse because she had lost control.
Qu’er was startled, and her expression changed as she forced a smile: “We…we saw that you were too tired, so we let you rest. You slept for twenty hours, and although you can remain without eating or drinking, the baby can’t. So we took the baby next door to feed it before bringing it to you.”
Xi Niang also seemed to realize that her reaction was a little too much, and she coughed lightly, “I’m sorry, it’s just that I just got my baby back and I was so nervous that I reacted like that; I didn’t mean to yell at you.”
Qu’er Immediately reverted to her previous older sister demeanor, “It’s okay, everyone is mother, we understand.”
Xi Niang glanced at Qu’er with embarrassment and asked, “Where is Lord Bai Lixin? Why am I here? Did he bring me here?”
Qu’er: “Oh. He brought you here and then left in a hurry, leaving a message that you should take care of yourself.”
Xi Niang stared at the candle on the tabletop, her tone a little wispy: “He’s such a good man.”
Qu’er’s eyes lit up instantly, “Ahhh, he’s a good man! I’ve never met a better man.”
The expression on Xi Niang’s face was inscrutable as she whispered, “But since ancient times, it has been difficult for good people to live long.”
She paused and smiled at Qu’er’s astonished gaze. “But he must be different.”
“I never thought we would one day see the light of day again and live a normal life. Do you know what Lord Bai Lixin is doing?”
Qu’er: “I heard him say he was going to the ghost market to find some saint and demon baby, I don’t really know the details.”
Xi Niang had a smile in her eyes. “It doesn’t matter if you don’t understand; I didn’t either. Let’s hope it works out.”
Qu’er: “What are your next plans?”
Xi Niang: “I’ll settle here; after all, I have a child and nowhere else to go. Isn’t the baby already fed? Why don’t you return him to me? I miss him.”
Qu’er was in a trance for two seconds, “Oh, oh, yes, I’ll bring the child to you.”
Soon, Qu’er brought the child over. After putting the child down and giving a few more instructions, she quickly left again.
In the room, only Xi Niang and the baby were left.
In the distance, the shadows of the candlelight were dancing. Xi Niang lowered her head and looked at the baby in her arms with an inexplicable expression.
The baby opened its eyes and looked at Xi Niang with vacant eyes.
A woman’s eerie snicker came from the hidden, narrow room.
“What are you laughing at, huh?”
Suddenly, a cold male voice that shouldn’t have been there rung out in the room, and Xi Niang shuddered, looking towards where the voice came from in surprise.
The window had been opened at some point, and a tall, slender figure was leaning out of it.
The moonlight fell on the young man’s face, making his fair face look even more tender.
The corners of Bai Lixin’s lips curled up. He put his arm on the window sill and rested his cheek on the other as he looked at the woman leisurely.
“Long time, no see.”
The woman’s face still had a smile on it that was yet to be put away.
She stared blankly at the young man in front of her and wanted to withdraw the smile, but it was frozen on her face due to surprise, finally turning into a strange, superficial smile.
Xi Niang coughed lightly, “Um, it’s been a long time, Lord Bai Lixin, aren’t you investigating the matter of the master of the market? Why do you have time to come to me?”
Bai Lixin: “How can I investigate the master of the ghost market if I don’t come here?”
Xi Niang’s eyes flickered. “I don’t understand what you are saying.”
Bai Lixin: “You really like to have the word “mother” in your name, Xi Niang. Or perhaps I should call you ‘Li Sanniang’ or ‘Ying Niang’.”
*Niang means mother in Chinese.Xi Niang blinked. “Lord Bai Lixin, what the hell are you talking about? Li Sanniang, Ying Niang—who are they? Don’t confuse me, I’m just me, not anyone else.”
Bai Lixin sighed, “The last time I went back to the paper-tying shop, I went to the first floor to rest.”
“You don’t know, but I left a little special mark at Li Sanniang’s door.”
“I was already suspecting that Ying Niang was Li Sanniang, but what first made me suspicious was the red powder I found on the eighteenth floor of Abyssal Hell.”
“The red powder had a special floral scent, so faint that if one did not have a particularly acute sense of smell, they would not be able to smell it at all.”
“I had a vague feeling that I had smelled this scent somewhere, but I couldn’t remember where.”
“Until the day I came to you at the Naihe Bridge and you asked me to pick three Manzanita flowers for you.”
“When the wind blew, the fragrance of the manzanita flowers carried that faint, familiar scent as well.”
“Then I finally remembered why it was familiar, that scent reminded me of Li Sanniang.”
“When you disguise yourself as Li Sanniang, you always wear a thick powder on your face. Because it is so thick, you don’t even notice that you still carry that scent from when you are Ying Niang.”
“It’s this scent that can’t be eliminated that exposed you as Ying Niang and Li Sanniang.”
“The moment I entered the basement of the auction house, I smelled your distinctive scent.”
“When we came back with you, Qu’er kept staring at you because she had never seen you at all. Of course, how could she have seen you before? You have an even more mysterious identity in addition to these three, that of master of the ghost market.”
“Li Sanniang has a big belly not because of fat, but because she is pregnant.”
“You gave birth in there, not because you were caught. The snake man and the horned man stood there solemnly, not because of the baby, but because the person giving birth in there was their master.”
“I could have revealed your identity when I was sure that Li Sanniang was Ying Niang, but I didn’t. I wanted to know what you really wanted and what your plot was.”
Xi Niang’s shrinking gaze gradually grew indifferent; she gave Bai Lixin a cold look and asked, “This is nonsense, how can I, a weak woman, do so many things? Then tell me, if I am so powerful, what is my purpose? And why am I doing this? And how can I appear in so many places at the same time?”
Xi Niang gathered the child into her arms, her cold eyes gradually sharpening. She didn’t look like a weak woman anymore.
“You don’t just have these four identities; you have a fifth, and that’s the fake King Yma.”
“As for why you did all this, you already told me.”
Xi Niang’s gloomy face suddenly became dumbfounded. “I told you, when did I ever tell you?”
“Hehe,” Bai Lixin replied, “do you remember the medicine that Qu’er fed you earlier? How can you forget the taste of the Men Po soup you brew?”
Xi Niang’s expression cracked for a moment as she gave Bai Lixin a ferocious look: “What the hell did you make me do?!”
“I asked you a few questions while you were delirious from drinking Meng Po soup.”
“I remember you saying that the effects of the Meng Po soup don’t last long on you, it’s been exactly three hours since then, and you will soon remember what happened.”
Just as Bai Lixin’s words fell, Xi Niang’s brain hurt as if struck by lightning.
Several unfamiliar memories also quickly pushed their way into her mind.
As the memories came back, Xi Niang sat dumbly on the bed.
—“Why did you get so many women to have children?”
—“To make the most suitable vessel for my child.”
—“Your child?”
—“I was pregnant when I died, and the child was still in my womb. It was so small, so innocent.”
—“I was unreconciled, I wanted revenge, I wanted to resurrect myself and my child.”
—“So you induced the saint after he had entered the underworld?”
—“Oh, he is just a hypocrite who fears death and lusts after beauty. I have long since put a stain on his merit book because I died in vain and was pregnant. Do you think he came to the underworld because he adored me?”
—“A ridiculous love story invented by the later generations.”
—“He came to the underworld to erase his sinful relationship with me. Because such a thing would damage his merits and prevent him from becoming a full saint and an immortal. He has always been a selfish hypocrite; all the good things he did were just for a good name and future ascension, just like he couldn’t hold back from having my body at that time.”
—“But what happened between me and him was already recorded in the book of life and death; I told him to go to King Yama and all will be revealed.”
—-“I tried to provoke him, and sure enough, the fear and terror made him go crazy. Having gone off the deep end, he had one thought in mind, and that was to erase his sins.”
—“That was my plan. I hated him so much, how could I resign myself to just being reincarnated and forgetting everything? Not only did I want revenge, but I also wanted to expose the ‘saint’ as a hypocrite. Hahaha, I wanted to watch him build a tall building and watch it collapse.”
—“Do you know why he ended up saying that love caused him to do all those ridiculous things? Because that way, the story changes; I became the thorn that “seduced” him.”
—“Beauty brings disaster, and to everyone, *he rushed to the crown for the beauty.”
*An idiom to mean getting angry for one’s lover.
—“He killed to clean up, but remained with a clean reputation, I was really unlucky.”
—“I hibernated for so long for revenge.”
—“The page he erased had not only my name but also the name of my child.”
—“But my child had no form at that time; I only caught a glimpse of his ghost.”
—“In order to bring him to life, I needed to find a suitable shell.”
