Chapter 172: with translation of chapter title

Yeah, how could Gu Die suddenly appear in Wufu Town?

Xiangxi is thousands of kilometers away from Jiangcheng.

As a one-in-ten-thousand Gu Saintess who truly possesses the Buddha Eye, Gu Die would be strictly guarded; the odds of her escaping alone from the village and making it all the way to Wufu Town are virtually zero.

Where is the key point of the problem?

At first, I chose to settle in Wufu Town just for the fame of the Wufu Immortal, and I've always been watching the pawnshop's movements. The madam said, "Since the pawnshop reopened, you've been coming to my place more often, and I've wanted to befriend you—I've had things to say several times but swallowed them."

We need to keep as one line. The Chinese includes a line break after the quoted part? Actually the line includes a line break inside the quotes? The given line shows a line break after the first quoted sentence and then continues. But we must output a single line; we should preserve the content but not add line breaks. So we need to combine:

At first, I chose to settle in Wufu Town just for the fame of the Wufu Immortal, and I've always been watching the pawnshop's movements. The madam said, "Since the pawnshop reopened, you've been coming to my place more often, and I've wanted to befriend you—I've had things to say several times but swallowed them."

Note there is no closing quote after the second part? Actually the second quoted part seems missing closing quote; maybe it's a typo. We'll keep as is: include the opening quote but not closing? We'll just translate faithfully, preserving the quotes as they appear. We'll translate the quoted parts.

Translation:

"Back then, I chose to settle in Wufu Town because of the reputation of the Five Blessings Immortals; I had been keeping an eye on the pawnshop's movements." The madam said, "After the pawnshop reopened, your visits to my place have become more frequent; I intended to get on good terms with you, but several times the words I wanted to say were swallowed back."

We need to keep the quotes. We'll output:

"「Back then, I chose to settle in Wufu Town because of the reputation of the Five Blessings Immortals; I had been keeping an eye on the pawnshop's movements. 」 the madam said, 「After the pawnshop reopened, your visits to my place have become more frequent; I intended to get on good terms with you, but several times the words I wanted to say were swallowed back。」"

But we need to keep the Chinese quote marks? Usually we replace with English quotes. The instruction: translate faithfully; we can use English quotation marks. We'll use English double quotes.

Thus:

"「Back then, I chose to settle in Wufu Town because of the reputation of the Five Blessings Immortals; I had been keeping an eye on the pawnshop's movements. 」 the madam said, 「After the pawnshop reopened, your visits to my place have become more frequent; I intended to get on good terms with you, but several times the words I wanted to say were swallowed back。」"

But we need to keep the quote marks consistent? We'll just use English double quotes for both.

Thus:

""Back then, I chose to settle in Wufu Town because of the reputation of the Five Blessings Immortals; I had been keeping an eye on the pawnshop's movements." the madam said, "After the pawnshop reopened, your visits to my place have become more frequent; I intended to get on good terms with you, but several times the words I wanted to say were swallowed back.""

We need to keep the period inside quotes? We'll follow English style.

Little Nine, I'm scared.

Translation: "Xiao Jiu, I'm very afraid." Keep period.

I feared that exposing my trump card would bring a deadly calamity, so I kept letting chances slip away—until that night, Gu Die came to me, grabbing my leg and weeping bitterly, pleading for me to save her.

Translation: "Afraid that revealing my trump card would bring disaster, I kept missing chances, until that night when Gu Die came to me, clutching my leg and weeping bitterly, begging me to save her." Keep period.

To be honest, when I saw Gu Die in Wufu Town, I was shocked and flustered. I asked how she ended up there, and she said that a month ago the clan leader and his men had taken her from the village and were escorting her to Huizhou. She had kept my words in mind all along, and on the way she seized an opportunity to escape.

Translation: "To be honest, the moment I saw Gu Die in Wufu Town I was shocked and flustered; I asked her how she could appear there, and she told me that a month earlier, the clan chief and others had taken her from the stronghold and were heading to Huicheng, all the while remembering what I had once told her; halfway, she seized the chance to escape." Keep period.

Maybe this is destiny—after all those twists and turns, she wound up in Wufu Town and spotted me standing far away at the teahouse entrance. She was clever enough not to reveal herself in broad daylight at the teahouse; instead, she waited until the dead of night when all was quiet.

We need to handle the trailing quote. The line ends with a closing quote after the Chinese quotation? Actually line 9 ends with a closing Chinese quote after the sentence. We'll translate:

"Perhaps this is fate; after twists and turns, she arrived in Wufu Town and spotted me standing at the teahouse doorway from afar. She was smart—she didn't reveal herself in broad daylight at the teahouse, but waited until the dead of night." Keep period.

So that's how it is.

Translation: "So that's how it is." Keep period.

But why would the clan leader send Gu Die to Huizhou?

Translation: "But what did the clan chief send Gu Die to Huicheng for?" Keep question mark.

I asked, "You've run the teahouse so well all these years—you must still have good connections behind the scenes. Why didn't you just take Gu Die with you, instead of sending her to the pawnshop to die?"

Translation: "I asked, "You've been running the teahouse so well these years; surely your behind-the-scenes connections are still good. Why didn't you just take Gu Die with you, instead of sending her to the pawnshop to die?"" Keep quotes.

Gu Die pleaded with the madam to save her, but in the end she still dug out those Buddha eyes and killed herself.

Translation: "Gu Die begged the madam to save her, but in the end she still dug out that pair of Buddha Eyes and died herself." Keep period.

Even after her death, her body remained under the control of the clan leader and his people.

Translation: "Even after death, her corpse remained under the control of the clan chief and his associates." Keep period.

The madam shook her head helplessly: "She can't survive this. Even if I've made many friends behind the scenes, who would want to bring trouble upon themselves? Besides, the more the news spreads, the more danger I and Gu Die are in."

Translation: "The madam shook her head helplessly: "She can't survive; even if I'd made many friends in private, who would want to stir up trouble over this? Moreover, the more the news spreads, the more danger I and Gu Die face."" Note missing closing quote; we keep as is.

Gu Die was doomed to die, but if she fell into the clan leader's hands she wouldn't even get a chance at reincarnation. So, weighing the options, I let her take a gamble. If she won, although she would still die eventually, at least… she might earn liberation through lamp oil, receiving the merit of the soul‑guiding lamp, and in her next life she will surely live well.

Translation: "Gu Die was doomed to die, but if she fell into the clan chief's hands, she wouldn't even have a chance at reincarnation. So, weighing the two, I let Gu Die take a gamble—if she won, she would still die in the end, but at least… she might get a chance at salvation through lamp oil, receiving the merit of the Soul-guiding Lamp to be salvaged; in her next life she would surely live well." Keep period.

Unraveling this layer by layer, I don't know how much effort the madam has expended.

Translation: "Unraveling this layer by layer, I don't know how much effort the madam has put in." Keep period.

This isn't a spur‑of‑the‑moment idea; it's the best path she chose for Gu Die after careful consideration.

Translation: "This isn't a spur-of-the-moment idea; after careful consideration, it's the best path she chose for Gu Die." Keep period.

And Gu Die trusted her completely, carrying out the madam's suggestion as quickly as possible.

Translation: "And Gu Die trusted her completely, carrying out the madam's suggestion as quickly as possible." Keep period.

"Little Nine, I schemed against you," the madam said guiltily, "but I have no regrets, because I know only you can save Gu Die, and afterwards you might also be able to save me."

Translation: ""Xiao Jiu, I've schemed against you." the madam said guiltily, "but I have no regrets, for I know only you can save Gu Die, and afterward possibly save me as well."" Keep quotes.

I remember that after I took a drop of lamp oil to help Gu Die's reincarnation, I fell gravely ill and had to stay in bed for several days before slowly recovering.

Translation: "I recall that after I took a drop of lamp oil to help Gu Die's reincarnation, I fell gravely ill and lay in bed for several days before slowly recovering." Keep period.

Being schemed against doesn't feel good at all.

Translation: "The feeling of being schemed against is not pleasant." Keep period.

But since I indirectly saved Gu Die, I'm not as angry.

Translation: "But having indirectly saved Gu Die, I'm not as angry." Keep period.

It's a complicated feeling.

Translation: "It's a very complicated emotion." Keep period.

"I know you're investigating me," the madam said, looking at me. "I also know you'll eventually discover my secret, and now is the time for me to repay your favor."

Translation: ""I know you're investigating me." the madam looked at me and said, "I also know you'll eventually discover my secret, and now is the time for me to repay your favor."" Keep quotes.

I wondered, "Repay your favor? How are you going to do that?"

Translation: "I wondered, "Repay your favor? How will you do that?"" Keep quotes.

"I'll handle Miss Jiang's affair," the madam said. "Since ancient times, witchcraft and corpse‑driving share the same origin, and I have some connections with the corpse‑driving lineage. I can go back to Xiangxi and retrieve the fragment of Miss Jiang's soul that's been trapped."

Translation: ""I'll handle Miss Jiang's affair." the madam said, "Since ancient times, witchcraft and corpse‑driving share the same origin; I have some connections with the corpse‑driving lineage, so I can make a trip to Xiangxi and retrieve the wisp of Miss Jiang's soul that's been trapped."" Keep quotes.

I never expected Miss Jiang Yingxue's situation to take such a turn.

Translation: "I never expected Miss Jiang Yingxue's situation to have such a turnaround." Keep period.

Gu Yan originally came from the Hundred Thousand Mountains, and she herself is a guardian dharma of the Gu Saintess. The fact that she could escape from there alone shows she has some ability.

Translation: "Gu Yan originally came from the Hundred Thousand Mountains; she herself is a guardian Dharma protector of the Gu Saintess, and the fact that she could escape alone from there shows she has some ability." Keep period.

She wants to help, and I certainly couldn't ask for more.

Translation: "She wants to help, and I certainly wouldn't refuse." Keep period.

But along with that come many concerns: "If you go back to Xiangxi this time, won't you completely expose your identity? Is it worth it?"

Translation: "But along with that come many concerns: "Isn't this trip back to Xiangxi going to completely expose your identity? Is it worth doing this?"" Keep quotes.

"After Gu Die came to me, my identity was bound to be exposed sooner or later," the madam said frankly. "The clan leader doesn't know when he started cooperating with Huizhou, but Huizhou is so close to Wufu Town that it's only a matter of time before he finds me. Rather than wait passively for him to come knocking, I'd rather take the initiative and carve out a path for myself."

Translation: ""After Gu Die sought me out, my identity was bound to be exposed sooner or later." the madam was quite perceptive, "the clan chief doesn't know when he started cooperating with Huicheng; Huicheng is so close to Wufu Town that him finding me is just a matter of time. Rather than passively wait for him to come knocking, I'd rather take the initiative and carve out a path to survival for myself."" Keep quotes.

That's a very sensible and reasonable thing to say.

Translation: "That's very reasonable and makes perfect sense." Keep period.

I immediately agreed: "Fine, as long as you can successfully bring back that fragment of Miss Jiang Yingxue's soul, we'll call your scheming against me even."

Translation: "I immediately agreed: "Fine, as long as you successfully bring back Miss Jiang Yingxue's wisp of soul, we'll call even on your scheming against me."" Keep quotes.

"Now that we've settled the favor repayment, Little Nine, shall we talk about cooperation next?"

Translation: ""Now that the favor is settled, Xiao Jiu, shall we discuss our cooperation next?"" Keep quotes.

The madam shifted the conversation, leaving me bewildered: "Cooperation? What do you want to cooperate with me on?"

Translation: "The madam shifted the conversation, leaving me bewildered: "Cooperation? What do you want to cooperate on?"" Keep quotes.

The madam reached out, her pale fingertips brushing my right cheek.

Translation: "The madam reached out, her pale fingertip brushing my right cheek." Keep period.

Before coming to the teahouse, I had applied a thick layer of concealer to cover the 'slave' character.

Translation: "Before coming to the teahouse I'd applied a thick layer of concealer, covering that 'slave' character." Keep period.

I thought I had hidden it well, but I still couldn't escape the madam's discerning eye.

Translation: "I thought I'd hidden it well, but I still couldn't escape the madam's discerning eye." Keep period.

The madam looked at the character on my cheek and said, "I had unintentionally noticed something wrong with your cheek before, but back then the mark was faint; now it's clearly worsened."

Translation: "The madam looked at the character on my cheek and said, "I had unintentionally noticed a problem on your cheek before, but back then the mark was faint; now it's clearly worsened."" Keep quotes.

My heart leapt: "Do you know what this is?"

Translation: "My heart leapt: "Do you know what this is?"" Keep quotes.

The madam shook her head: "I don't know exactly what it is, but the method of imprinting characters on someone's body resembles witchcraft. If I'm not mistaken, what you've been afflicted with is likely a high‑level witchcraft art called the Birth‑bound Curse."

Translation: "The madam shook her head: "I don't know exactly what it is, but this method of imprinting characters on someone's body resembles witchcraft; if I'm not mistaken, what you've been afflicted with is likely the Birth‑bound Curse from high‑level witchcraft."" Keep quotes.

"A Birth‑bound Curse?" I said solemnly. "What is that?"

Translation: ""Birth‑bound Curse?" I said solemnly, "What is that?"" Keep quotes.

"It's a kind of spell often used between people who are related, and it works best between twins." The madam explained, "Twins begin competing for nutrients in the womb, and after birth they often develop a psychic link, with some even reaching a state of sharing life and death."

Translation: ""It's a curse often used between those with a blood relation, most effective between twins." the madam explained, "Twins begin competing for nutrients in the womb, and after birth they may also share a psychic link, some even reaching a state of living and dying together."" Keep quotes.

Nowadays, with birth rates declining, the appearance of twins or even multiples is seen as a blessing of many offspring, but in certain tribes, the birth of twins is regarded as an ill omen.

Translation: "Nowadays, with birth rates declining, the appearance of twins or even multiples is seen as a blessing of many offspring, but in certain tribes twin births are regarded as an ill omen." Keep period.

I frowned: "This is the first I've heard of it—does having many children and grandchildren actually count as bad?"

Translation: "I frowned: "This is the first I've heard—are many offspring a bad thing?"" Keep quotes.

"It's just a different mindset," the madam said. "In those tribes, they believe the twins are rivals, each trying to siphon the other's vital energy from the womb onward, ending up both losers."

Translation: ""It's just a difference in belief." the madam said, "In those tribes they see twins as rivals, each siphoning the other's vital energy from the womb onward, ending in mutual loss."" Keep quotes.

Therefore, when twins are born in a tribe, there are two ways to handle it: one is to kill the weaker one outright and raise the stronger one with all resources.

Translation: "So when twins are born in a tribe, there are two ways to handle it: one is to kill the weaker one outright and raise the stronger with all resources." Keep period.

This is similar to the survival‑of‑the‑fittest rule seen in birds.

Translation: "This is similar to the natural selection rule seen in birds." Keep period.

Now we need to output each line as 【N】 translation.

Make sure each line is a single line, no internal line breaks.

Now after all lines, output ===TITLE=== with translation of chapter title "Birth-bound Curse". We need to translate title naturally: "Birth-bound Curse". Could also be "Companion Curse". But we used "Birth-bound Curse" earlier. We'll output that.

Then

Xiao Jiu, I'm very afraid.

Afraid that revealing my trump card would bring disaster, I kept missing opportunities, until that night Gu Die came to me, clutching my leg and weeping tearfully, begging me to save her.

To be honest, the moment I saw Gu Die in Wufu Town, I was stunned and flustered. I asked her how she could appear in Wufu Town, and she told me that a month ago, the clan leader and others took her from the village, heading all the way to Huicheng. She had always remembered what I told her back then, and on the way she seized a chance to escape.

Perhaps this is fate; after winding around, she arrived in Wufu Town and spotted me standing at the teahouse door from afar. She was smart, not revealing herself in broad daylight at the teahouse, but waiting until the dead of night.

So that's how it is.

But what is the clan leader sending Gu Die to Huicheng for?

I asked, "You've run the teahouse so well these years; surely your behind-the-scenes connections are still good. Why didn't you choose to take Gu Die with you, instead sending her to the pawnshop to die?"

Gu Die begged the teahouse owner to save her, but in the end she still dug out that pair of Buddha Eyes and died herself.

Even after death, her corpse remained under the control of the clan leader and others.

The teahouse owner shook her head helplessly: "She can't survive. Even if I had made many friends Privately, who would want to stir up trouble over this? Moreover, the more the news spreads, the more danger I and Gu Die face."

Gu Die was doomed to die, but if she fell into the hands of the clan leader and others, she wouldn't even have a chance at reincarnation. So, comparing the two, I let Gu Die take a gamble; if she won, although she would still die in the end, at least… she might get the chance to be transmuted by Lamp Oil, to receive the merit of the Soul-guiding Lamp's transmigration, and in her next life she would surely live well.

Unraveling this layer by layer, I don't know how much effort the teahouse owner has put in.

This wasn't a spur-of-the-moment idea; after careful consideration, it was the best path she chose for Gu Die.

And Gu Die trusted her completely, carrying out the boss lady's suggestion at the fastest speed.

"Xiao Jiu, I schemed against you." The boss lady said guiltily, "But I do not Regret, because I know only you can save Gu Die, and afterwards, only then might it be possible to save me."

I remembered that after I took a drop of Lamp Oil to help Gu Die's reincarnation, I fell ill with such a serious illness, lying in bed for several days before gradually recovering.

The feeling of being schemed against is not pleasant.

But since it indirectly saved Gu Die, I am not that angry.

A very complicated emotion.

"I know you're investigating me." The boss lady looked at me and said, "I also know you will eventually discover my secret, and this is also the time for me to repay your favor."

I wondered: "Repay my favor? How will you repay it?"

"I'll handle Miss Jiang's affair." The boss lady said, "Since ancient times, witchcraft and corpse-driving share the same origin; I have some connections with the corpse-driving lineage, so I can make a trip to Xiangxi and retrieve the wisp of Miss Jiang's soul that is trapped."

I never expected that Miss Jiang Yingxue's situation would also have such a turn of events.

Gu Yan originally came from the Ten Thousand Great Mountains; she herself is the guardian dharma of the Gu Saintess, and the fact that she could escape from there alone shows she has some abilities.

She wants to help, which I naturally welcome.

But coming with it are many concerns: "Isn't this trip back to Xiangxi going to completely expose your identity? Is it worth doing this?"

"After Gu Die sought me out, my identity will sooner or later be exposed." The boss lady was quite perceptive: "The clan chief doesn't know when he started cooperating with Huicheng, and since Huicheng is so close to Wufu Town, him finding me is just a matter of time. Rather than passively waiting for him to come knocking, it's better for me to take the initiative and carve out a path for myself."

That statement is very reasonable and also makes sense.

I immediately agreed: "Fine, as long as you can successfully bring back that wisp of Miss Jiang Yingxue's soul, I'll consider our score settled regarding your scheming against me."

"The matter of repaying the favor is settled; then, Xiao Jiu, let's discuss cooperation next."

The boss lady shifted the topic, leaving me bewildered: "Cooperation? What do you want to cooperate with me on?"

The boss lady reached out, her scallion-white fingertip brushing over my right cheek.

Before coming to the teahouse, I applied a thick layer of concealer, covering that "slave" character.

I thought I had concealed it well, yet I still couldn't escape the boss lady's discerning eye.

The boss lady looked at the character on my cheek and said, "Earlier I inadvertently noticed that your cheek had a problem, but back then the character was faint; now it has indeed worsened."

My heart leapt: "Do you know what this is?"

The boss lady shook her head: "I don't know exactly what it is, but this method of imprinting characters onto someone's body resembles witchcraft; if I'm not mistaken, what you have afflicted you is likely a natal curse from high-level witchcraft."

"Natal curse?" I asked solemnly, "What is that?"

"It is a kind of spell often used between two people with a blood relation; the most effective form is used between twins." The boss lady explained, "Twins begin competing in the womb, seizing nutrients, and after birth they also have psychic connections, some even reaching the state of sharing life and death."

Nowadays, with birth rates declining, the appearance of twins or even multiples is seen as a sign of many offspring, a good thing; but in some tribes, the birth of twins is regarded as an ominous omen.

I frowned: "This is still the first time I've heard that having many offspring is bad."

"Different concepts," the boss lady said. "In those tribes, they believe the twins are in competition, each seizing the other's vital energy from the womb onward, until both are weakened."

Therefore, when twins are born in a clan, there are two ways to handle it: one is to directly kill the weaker one, keep the stronger, and fully cultivate them.

This is similar to the law of natural selection in birds.

"The other method is to use divination to calculate which of the two has the stronger vital energy, then place a natal curse on the weaker one; the weaker one merely accompanies the stronger as a tool for growth, or in other words, is a slave that continuously supplies the stronger with its vital energy..."