darknovel Chapter 660: Evil intentions
Chapter 660: Evil intentions
Chapter 660: Evil intentions
Situ Ao may be greasy, but he's not stupid, so when the female knight-errant in front of him opened her mouth, he realized what was going on...
"Such a beautiful face, wielding a mushy iron rod, and uttering such foul language... Could she be..."
After silently muttering to himself, Situ Ao immediately dropped his frivolous expression and asked in a somewhat awkward tone, "Uh... Miss..." He realized his mistake as soon as he uttered those two words, so he quickly corrected himself, "Oh no... Heroine, may I ask... is your surname Cao?"
Upon hearing this, the female knight glared at him again, then replied while spitting out half-chewed rice grains and vegetable scraps, "What's it to you?"
You all have mouths, so you can imagine what it would be like to forcefully make a "fart" sound when your mouth is full of food.
So, as soon as the female knight finished speaking, Situ Ao's fair face was covered with a layer of greasy food residue, and even a piece of vegetable leaf had fallen into the glass of wine he was holding.
"Hmm..." Even so, Situ Ao did not react, because at this moment, he was even more convinced that he had guessed correctly. So the next second, he just smiled awkwardly and said, "Hehe... Yes, yes, you are right. I was being presumptuous. Please continue eating... I won't bother you any longer."
After saying that, he got up to slip away.
Seeing this, some people might find it strange that Situ Ao suddenly became so timid.
It's very simple, because the woman in front of him, Lady Cao... is notoriously difficult to mess with.
Some may recall that "Cao Wei'er" made a brief appearance in the previous book (Volume 8, Chapter 11), and we provided a fairly detailed introduction to her at that time:
Cao Weier, whose original name was Cao Shi, was from Jinhua. Her family was originally a wealthy family, but due to a family tragedy, she ended up at Xinghui Tower under the Youjia Gang, where she became the top courtesan, "Qian Meimei," who sold her art but not her body.
But this "Qian Meimei" had a secret that even her then-boss Ding Buzhu didn't know—she was a patient with "multiple personality disorder (now called dissociative identity disorder)".
Hidden within her is another extremely insane male personality named "Cao Le," the same "righteous thief Cao Le" who was active in Shanghai County.
Unlike the "the crazier you are, the stronger you are" trope in many martial arts stories, this "Cao Le" is indeed crazy and a martial arts fanatic, but he is not very strong.
Cao Le's martial arts talent can only be described as above average, but he has a huge advantage that ordinary people do not have: he can practice his skills day and night in the "spiritual world".
Whenever Cao Wei'er's personality is using the body, even while sleeping, Cao Le's personality is constantly engaging in "imaginary practice."
To be honest, Cao Weier and Cao Le themselves don't know the reason behind this. Perhaps multiple personality disorder activates some brain potential that even modern medicine cannot explain...
Of course, "meditation" or simply "comprehension" must be combined with physical training to be realized as real strength. Therefore, although Cao Weier's martial arts progress is faster than others, it is not to an extraordinary degree.
Anyway, among her peers, she might not be the top, but she's definitely one of the outstanding ones, and that's enough.
After all, Cao Le's personality didn't just appear recently; she had it since childhood, and over the years, she had naturally become a top-notch expert.
More than a year has passed since she left Xinghui Tower and began her journey in the martial arts world under the name "Cao Weier." With her strength and speaking style, she has clearly already made a name for herself in the martial arts world.
Situ Ao had heard of Cao Weier's fearsome reputation and realized he had made a huge mistake, which is why he immediately backed down and tried to run away.
But while it's easy for you to approach and strike up a conversation, is it so easy for you to leave?
"Wait!" Seeing that the other person was about to run away, Cao Weier put down her chopsticks.
“Uh…” Situ Ao, having been called out like that, had no choice but to turn around and reply, “Does the heroine have any other advice?”
"You were sitting here talking, and this whole table of food is covered in your saliva. How am I supposed to eat it?" When it comes to picking a fight, there's no need to reason. Cao Weier looked at the other person with disdain, and these words of turning the tables came out of her mouth without hesitation.
Upon hearing this, Situ Ao's eyes widened in surprise, and he stood frozen for a few seconds. Then, he slowly raised his hand and wiped the food scraps off his face, as if making a silent protest with this gesture.
But after doing all that, he finally swallowed his anger and gritted his teeth, saying, "I understand... I understand..."
After squeezing out those words through gritted teeth, Situ Ao turned to the innkeeper and two waiters who were trying not to laugh: "Shopkeeper, please get this lady a new table of food and wine, on my tab..."
Seeing that he had given up, Cao Weier stopped making things difficult for him and let him go back.
But in Situ Ao's heart, he was already seething with hatred, ready to bite someone...
As you can probably tell, this isn't the first time Situ Ao has acted this way—seeing someone's beauty and making frivolous remarks.
He also knows how to adapt his approach to situations... If he encounters a group of people, quite a few, with both men and women, or someone who clearly comes from a prestigious or powerful family, he generally won't dare to approach them to strike up a conversation, because he'll most likely just make a fool of himself.
However, if the other party doesn't seem to belong to a prestigious sect, and there aren't many people, mostly women, or they are simply alone, then Situ Ao might very well pull such a stunt.
To put it simply: we're all fellow江湖人 (jianghu people, people from all walks of life), so what's wrong with me coming up to say hello and have a drink with you? I'm not harassing ordinary people or respectable women; I just see you as a fellow江湖人 (jianghu people, people from all walks of life) and want to get closer to you... Even if you were a man drinking alone here, I would still come over and offer you a toast.
Although anyone can tell that this is a rather greasy nonsense, Situ Ao just insists on saying it, and you can't refute him, after all, you're not a mind reader.
When encountering female warriors with ample experience in the martial arts world, who speak and act with propriety and tact, they can easily rebuke Situ Ao with just a few words or glances.
However, it is inevitable that some young, inexperienced, or taciturn female warriors will be caught up by Situ Ao.
Regardless of whether he ultimately gains any advantage, or how much advantage he gains, he suffers no loss even if he fails, so he continues to do so with great enthusiasm, seizing every opportunity.
Well, I didn't expect him to run into a brick wall today.
Cao Weier is at the other extreme. She has far crossed the line of knowing when to advance and retreat. She speaks with the purest filth, showing no respect whatsoever, and even tries to take advantage of you before letting you go.
If you accept defeat, that's fine. But if you're indignant and start arguing with her, she's the kind of person who can hold her own against Sun Yixie in a shouting match, and most people probably couldn't handle her. As for fighting, she's not afraid either, especially since you were the one who initiated the conversation. If it escalates into a physical fight, it won't look good even if you win.
Situ Ao knew he was in the wrong and couldn't win, so he could only swallow his anger and suffer in silence.
However, if it were just being extorted for a meal, it wouldn't be a big deal. The problem is that this happened in public, with not only the restaurant owner and ordinary bystanders, but also a few people from the underworld...
If nothing unexpected happens, the rumors that he, the "Chrysanthemum Prince," was publicly humiliated by Cao Weier will be spreading like wildfire tomorrow, and he can't stand it.
Even in the entire martial arts world, very few people knew who he was... but for Situ Ao himself, this was a matter of the sky falling down.
He was filled with regret, hatred, sorrow, and anxiety...
The malice in people's hearts is often born from the vortex of such negative emotions.
Before he had even finished his meal, he was already thinking: "I hope this woman doesn't fall into my hands, or I'll make her pay."
Once this idea is in mind, it's easy to follow the next thought: Is there any way to get her into my hands as soon as possible?
Let's leave that aside for now and get back upstairs to Yun Shili's guest room.
After "listening" to the whole little commotion downstairs, Yun Shili remained completely unmoved. To him, it was just a trivial matter that happened every day in the martial arts world, and it had nothing to do with him.
Brother Yun had seen that humiliated young master in the inn's lobby before, but he didn't recognize him, so he must be just a lackey.
As for the female knight surnamed Cao, Brother Yun recognized her name as Cao Wei'er. He knew the name, but he didn't think she was a character worth paying attention to.
Therefore, after confirming that the situation downstairs had ended and there was no sign of a fight breaking out, Yun Shili still began to meditate and regulate his breathing as planned, and prepared to "sleep" for the night in this cross-legged sitting position.
But just as his consciousness began to relax...
"I'm telling you... don't actually fall asleep."
Suddenly, a woman's voice rang in Yun Shili's ears.
This one, you should all remember her, is the fox spirit, Jade Tail Immortal, who followed Yun Shili ever since he visited the Sun family and was involved in the "Encountering the Immortal on the Lake" incident.
Logically speaking, the Jade Tail Immortal's two enemies were Liu Yufang, also known as Guan Hengzi, who had already been crippled by the people of the Taihao Sect... At least in this matter concerning her, Liu Yufang had already received his karmic retribution; and the other culprit, Han Yu, had already died at the hands of the Dead Xiao... So the Jade Tail Immortal actually had no reason to follow Yun Shili anymore.
Moreover, as you may have noticed, back during the Thirteen Zodiac Animals incident, the Jade Tail Immortal's fragmented soul had already been partially restored. At that time, she no longer needed to possess the "Encountering Immortals on the Lake" painting, but could instead follow Yun Shili around like a guardian spirit.
In other words, she can leave whenever she wants... Her continued following Yun Shili is simply an option.
Seeing this, many people might be wondering: Are these two going down the path of "human-demon love"?
Oh, that's not true at all.
Yuwei stayed behind for no other reason than to repay a debt of gratitude.
As we mentioned earlier, this Jade Tail Immortal has always been a good demon. Her cultivation relies entirely on absorbing the essence of the sun and moon and accumulating merit. When she helped Han Yu back then, she didn't ask for anything in return.
But why did fate still arrange for her to encounter a calamity of being repaid with ingratitude?
Because her "not seeking anything in return" was actually another form of seeking something in return—when she wanted to exchange this unconditional good deed for merit, that merit itself became a condition for doing good.
However, spiritual practice, or enlightenment, does not emphasize judging actions over intentions; in fact, it is often based on the mind.
The Jade Tail Immortal did not understand this principle in the past. She only gradually realized it after Han Yu died, when her "hatred" and "karma" had been eliminated.
Then she understood: this tribulation, which seemed to have caused her cultivation to regress by a lot, actually helped her overcome the bottleneck, let go of the utilitarianism in cultivation, and brought her a big step closer to enlightenment.
Therefore, she has no other thoughts now, she only wishes to be a "guardian spirit" following Yun Shili, and it will not be too late for her to find a place to go when this person's lifespan ends.
As for Brother Yun, to be honest... after the Death Zodiac incident, he once thought that the Jade Tail Immortal had already left.
For a long time after that, the Jade Tail Immortal neither showed herself nor spoke to Yun Shili. It wasn't until recently, when she saw Master Wang's spiritual bone at Wudang Mountain, that she couldn't help but remind Brother Yun.
But later, when they were alone, Yun Shili tried to call her out, but she didn't respond.
Now, in this inn, Yuwei suddenly started talking to Yun Shili again, which clearly indicates that this place... is haunted.