Chapter 121

【Besides, because Duan Zhengchun was a man of Dali, she came to deeply hate the people of Dali and anyone surnamed Duan】

【Whenever these two kinds of people fell into her hands, she would bury them alive—no reasoning could be applied at all】

【Even those who were not from Dali, so long as their hometown was within five hundred li of Dali, would also be treated as people of Dali and put to death along with them】

【Buried alive, used as (well-fertilized Zhao) flower fertilizer… beneath that seemingly radiant, beautiful flower grove, who knew how many corpses lay buried】

"¨「 Ah…"

Seeing this, Huang Rong, Zhao Qiying, Bai Feifei, and Jin Lingzhi were all startled.

Earlier in the day, when they had seen the incomparably beautiful Li Qingluo, they had wondered why such a lovely person had no diary copy.

Now they understood!

Such a vicious, snake-scorpion-hearted woman—at Jiang Sishui's place she would at least be marked "disgust," or even "hostility"—she couldn't possibly meet the conditions to obtain a diary copy.

No wonder, no wonder.

Only this truth was simply too horrifying to hear.

They never imagined that the seemingly fairyland-like sea of flowers, the Mantou Shanzhuang, actually concealed such a secret.

And yet it was precisely such a place that had raised Wang Yuyan and Li Qingluo—two of the world's most delicate and gorgeous beauties…

Such an extreme contrast, without anyone noticing, revealed a hair-raising eeriness.

134 Karmic Retribution? The Frightened Li Qingluo

The night was still and lonely; a dark cloud drifted across the sky, covering the moonlight.

Jin Lingzhi, who had been strolling through the flower grove, suddenly felt a chill run through her entire body. She rubbed her forearms hard, then leaned closer to Bai Feifei.

Bai Feifei glanced over in surprise: "What's wrong?"

Jin Lingzhi's gaze drifted, her eyes panicked, her brows full of unease, as she kept peering anxiously into the surrounding flower bushes.

Bai Feifei suddenly spoke, and although her voice was soft, it still gave Jin Lingzhi a fright.

Patting her chest, Jin Lingzhi simply threw an arm around Bai Feifei's and said in a trembling voice: "Sister Feifei, you…do you think there might be…might be…might be those dirty things in there?"

Ever since learning the truth of the buried bones beneath the flower grove, beyond her shock she couldn't help but start imagining ghosts everywhere.

The once poetic, picturesque flower grove now seemed to have suddenly turned into a den of ghosts, and the outlines of buildings and the dancing shadows of trees in the night looked to her like a horde of demons running wild.

In the thickets, on the branches, it seemed as if one mangled, limbless fierce ghost after another was hiding, watching her with hungry eyes, ready to pounce out at any moment and tear her to shreds.

The more Jin Lingzhi thought about it, the more frightened she became.

Fear formed a great hand in the darkness, gripping her throat, choking her.

Fortunately Bai Feifei was by her side; otherwise she would have broken down completely.

Bai Feifei looked at the usually fearless, dauntless eldest daughter of the Jin family turned into a "quail," her voice even carrying a hint of a sob, and couldn't help but smile: "The great heroine Jin is actually afraid of this?"310

Jin Lingzhi's face stiffened, a little awkward.

Wanting to argue back, yet afraid Bai Feifei would leave her, she obediently backed down: "Everyone's afraid of something. Those ghosts are formless, drifting here and there—swords and fists can't hurt them at all. How could one not be afraid?"

Bai Feifei gave a slight smile: "The people of Mantou Shanzhuang have lived here all these years without incident—it's just you who loves to let her imagination run wild."

Jin Lingzhi thought about it and agreed.

If those poor souls buried alive as flower fertilizer could truly become fierce ghosts, Li Qingluo would probably be the first to be unable to sleep peacefully, and she wouldn't have lived so comfortably all these years.

Having steadied herself a little, Jin Lingzhi suddenly sighed: "Sister Feifei."

"Mm?"

"Tell me, why are there so many perverts in this world? The scariest part is that on the surface they're gentle and refined, bright and beautiful—you simply can't imagine what they really are."

Bai Feifei burst out laughing despite herself: "Saying that in front of me—don't you think it's a bit inappropriate?"

Jin Lingzhi shook her head: "At worst you're just ruthless; those people are perverted beyond being human."

Bai Feifei, however, said: "Wrong—that's exactly what people are. All kinds, never the same."

Jin Lingzhi was stunned for a moment upon hearing this, then silently nodded.

…(chdh)…

In her room, Li Qingluo had already finished reading through the past records.

Seeing Jiang Sishui expose her entire history, bit by bit, Li Qingluo's heart thumped wildly with fright.

Although she had rarely done those things in recent years, what was done was done—it couldn't be erased.

She also knew her deeds were heinous against Heaven, but she was simply an unreasonable person, and because no one could do anything to her, she grew increasingly arrogant and domineering.

But now, facing the unfathomable Jiang Sishui, she couldn't help but feel guilty.

Li Qingluo turned to the diary's title page—

【Character: Li Qingluo】

【Appearance: 10】

【Favorability: 5】

She couldn't help but muse: "In the past I had no diary copy—it must be because my favorability was too low, below '4,' so at best his feeling toward me was 'disgust.'"

"And now my favorability has risen—is it because of Yuyan?"

"No, he's known Yuyan for several days already, and I only got my diary copy today, which means…"

Li Qingluo's heart gave a sudden lurch, and Jiang Sishui's earlier words once again echoed through her mind.

After reading the diary's contents, she had a fairly clear idea of what kind of person Jiang Sishui was—romantic and domineering, and one who trampled the Rites and Laws of the world.

In others' eyes it was a perverse act against human morality, but in his eyes it was beneath notice.

Moreover, whatever he wanted, he would certainly snatch into his hands.

Wang Yuyan, A Bi, and Jin Lingzhi, whom he had forcibly taken today—all were examples of this.

"Yuyan and me…would he really do such a thing?"

Li Qingluo's heart was in turmoil, and for a moment she sat dazed and stunned.

In fact, although Neo-Confucianism flourished in the four prefectures of the Great Song, most of those rules were used to bind the common folk below; among the upper echelons — the great noble houses and high officials — many played in far more extravagant ways.

The so-called "having both mother and daughter" was, behind closed doors, nothing more than routine.

Li Qingluo knew all this, but now that the matter had landed on her own head, she still could not stop the panic, nor accept it.

She would not even share a single husband with another woman, let alone with her own biological daughter?

But Li Qingluo also knew clearly that if Jiang Sishui were to force himself on her, she had no power to resist.

After a long silence, Li Qingluo softly sighed, her eyes brimming with quiet grievance: "Duan Lang, oh Duan Lang, I have waited for you over a decade too, yet you never once turned back to look at me again."

"Now I… it seems the fate between us has truly run its course."

"And Yuyan? Yuyan, do you have any idea what your fine husband-to-be is scheming?"

……

At this very moment, the precious daughter in Li Qingluo's mouth was beset with worry of her own.

But what she worried about was not the same matter, because she had never even thought along those lines.

What Wang Yuyan was worried about now was that Jiang Sishui, because he "disliked" Li Qingluo, might do something to hurt her.

"No good, I have to raise Big Brother Jiang's affection for Mother, but how am I supposed to do it?" Wang Yuyan fretted inwardly.

But then she thought again: "Still, for Grandfather's sake and mine, he probably won't do anything to Mother, right?"

Sure enough, the diary wrote —

【Li Qingluo is a hidden villain in "Demi-Gods and Semi-Devils"; if she were ranked among the 'Four Great Evils,' she'd probably come in third.】

【It's only because her status is special — both Master's daughter and Yuyan's mother — that I wouldn't rough her up a bit.】

【But I will absolutely not allow anything like this to happen again.】

【Such a peerless beauty, yet she insists on living like a monster; does she not fear that there is such a thing as karmic retribution in this world?】

"Karma? Retribution?"

Li Qingluo was first stunned, then leaped up in fright.

A ravishingly beautiful face went deathly pale, drained of all color.

In the past, she would never have believed such things existed in the world, which was why she dared to be so cruel and vicious.

But after obtaining the diary duplicate, learning of countless secrets, and even seeing Jiang Sishui's heaven-defying abilities with her own eyes, she believed!

She believed, and she was afraid.

Looking back on the past, at all the monstrous deeds she had done, her body must be stained with boundless karmic debt — no amount of good works could wash it clean.

If there really is an underworld, once she dies, wouldn't she be cast into the eighteenth level of hell?!

Mountains of blades, cauldrons of oil, steamers, bronze pillars… every manner of cruel punishment awaited her, tormenting her day and night without cease.

"No! No! I don't want it! I don't want to go to hell! I can't die! I don't want to die!"