Aoyama

Chapter 316: Eliminating Demons
Outside the rear hall, Princess Yongchun was jumping around in the courtyard, chasing butterflies;

In the back hall, Zhu Lingyun hid in the quilt and shivered.

In the corner of the side hall, Bai Li said nothing, quietly protecting the steamed bun in her arms, letting fists and feet fall on her. It hurt, but someone told her that everyone gets tired, even officials.

In less than an incense stick of time, Xuan Su stopped panting with his fat body.

She said fiercely, "Since you were quite obedient in the past and this is your first offense, I'll leave you a chance to live. If you do it again, I won't just give you a beating! Clean up the food on the floor for me. If I see a greasy mess when I come tonight, I'll beat you up again!"

The nuns left without a trace, and Bai Li struggled to stand up, holding onto the wall. When she stood up, her wound was pulled, causing her to gasp in pain.

She raised her hands and neatly tied up her hair, then slowly moved to clean up the food on the floor.

Bai Li left the side hall, and Zhu Lingyun rushed out from the back hall, looking at her crying, "Sister, are you okay? Don't go against them, they will beat you to death!"

Princess Yongchun in the courtyard suddenly said, "He can't be killed, he can't be killed."

Bai Li looked at her: "Why?"

Princess Yongchun smiled innocently and said, "The moment we stepped into Jingyang Palace, we were already dead. We are now just relics of the past left in this world. We have died once and will not die a second time."

Bai Li was slightly startled. She walked to Princess Yongchun, helped her to tie up her messy hair, and asked softly, "Are you hungry? I have some steamed buns here."

Princess Yongchun lowered her head and looked at the butterfly that had landed on her nails. She raised her hand and brought the butterfly in front of Baili: "Look, Brother Zhuo Yuan is here to see me. Come on, say hello to Brother Zhuo Yuan."

Baili hummed, smiled and waved to Butterfly: "I've heard a lot about you."

Princess Yongchun laughed crazily: "He flew back from Lingnan to see me. Isn't that amazing?"

"Very impressive." Bai Li took out a steamed bun from his arms and stuffed it into Princess Yongchun's hand, then handed another steamed bun to Zhu Lingyun: "Eat it."

Zhu Lingyun looked at her secretly: "Sister, are you okay?"

Bai Li smiled and said, "It's okay."

She also smoothed Zhu Lingyun's hair: "Don't mess up your hair, otherwise they will think we have given up."

Bai Li returned to the back hall and sat quietly on the bunk bed, watching the sky gradually darken. First, the orange-red sunset shone on the golden roof, and then the night enveloped the earth.

……

……

At the hour of You, the Qipan Street outside the palace was as bright as day.

Palace lanterns were hung high in front of the Daming Gate; red gauze lanterns were hung on the eaves of wine shops and teahouses; green lanterns were hung high on the eaves of bookstores; people selling supper on poles held white paper lanterns. For a while, the lights flickered like stars, which is the origin of the name of Qipan Street Lantern Market.

In Jingyang Palace, it was time to turn off the lights.

Xuan Su sat on the edge of the bunk bed and glanced at Bai Li: "Why don't you go get some water to wash your feet?"

The white carp sat still.

Xuan Su pulled out a ruler from under his pillow and sneered, "It seems that you really have a rebellious nature. I must remove the rebellious nature from you today."

Bai Li nodded: "No, I'll go right away."

She turned and went to the ear room, and when she came back she was holding a basin of boiling water and poured it over Xuan Su's head.

Xuan Su was startled and quickly pulled a Taoist nun to stand in front of her. Even so, her arms were scalded by the scorching water.

The nun who was splashed screamed in unbearable pain.

Xuan Su screamed like a pig being slaughtered. She watched the skin of her hands turn crimson red, and a burning sensation went into her heart: "She's crazy, she's fucking crazy! Beat her up, beat her up hard!"

When he finished speaking, Bai Li had already squatted in the corner of the back hall, allowing him to punch and kick him.

Seeing this, Xuan Su said shrilly, "Pull her out for me!"

A group of nuns pulled Baili out of the corner. She could only curl up to protect her organs and head. At one point, she felt that one of her ribs must be broken. But someone told her that as long as the ribs did not penetrate the heart or lungs, it would not be a big deal, at least better than a broken leg or arm.

In the midst of the fight, Xuan Su turned to look at Zhu Lingyun, then lowered his head to look at Bai Li at his feet and provoked, "You are willing to protect her, but has she protected you?"

Bai Li gritted his teeth and said nothing.

At some point, Baili fainted.

Someone asked cautiously, "Did someone get beaten to death?"

Xuan Su was shocked, but pretended to be calm and said, "If she dies, she dies. There have been deaths in our Jingyang Palace before, so why would we need her... Stop fighting, go get me some ointment!"

……

……

When Bai Li woke up again, he was already lying on the bunk bed.

The candles in the back hall had been extinguished, and the air was filled with the smell of healing medicine.

In the darkness, she heard a low sobbing sound. Turning around, she saw Zhu Lingyun lying beside her, wiping her tears.

Zhu Lingyun choked up and said, "Sister, I'm so useless. I didn't dare to help you just now..."

Bai Li took a deep breath. She felt that when the air entered her chest cavity, it opened and a heart-wrenching pain began to come from the broken bones.

She let out a long breath and whispered, "It's okay. It's normal to be afraid."

Zhu Lingyun hurriedly said, "Sister, I won't cause you any more trouble. Starting tomorrow, I will recite the Taoist scriptures and work hard. I won't be a spoiled child anymore."

Bai Li didn't say anything.

Zhu Lingyun added: "Sister, let's not get angry with them. Just give in. They will really beat you to death."

Bai Li still didn't speak.

After a long silence, Zhu Lingyun asked in a low voice: "Sister, do you think anyone will save us? The Liu family is gone, and the Queen Mother has never been to Jingyang Palace for some reason... Didn't you and your brother make friends with a swordsman named Liang Gou'er? There are also so many chivalrous men who our father helped. Will they find a way to redress our father's innocence?"

Bai Li endured the pain and said, "It probably won't happen again."

Zhu Lingyun asked in confusion: "Why?"

Bai Li said softly: "Lingyun, there is no Jianghu anymore."

Zhu Lingyun asked again, "You and your brother have also made friends with the apprentice of the Imperial Medical Clinic. What's his name? I think it's Chen Ji? If he joins the Imperial Medical Clinic in the future, will he have the opportunity to come to Jingyang Palace to help us?"

When Bai Li heard the name, he was suddenly stunned.

She just felt as if someone had punched her in the heart. The pain was like being engraved on her heart, and it hurt every time it jumped.

Bai Li said softly: "Ling Yun, we can only rely on ourselves."

Zhu Lingyun pleaded, "Sister, don't go against them. Let's live a good life in Jingyang Palace." Bai Li looked at the dome and beams of the rear hall and said, "Lingyun, either you get out alive or die here. These are the only two choices. I'm not afraid of either."

After saying that, she struggled to stand up, pulled out a chopstick that she had hidden at noon from her sleeve, and broke it with a little force with both hands, leaving a sharp wooden splinter.

The next moment, she endured the piercing pain in her ribs, held a half-broken chopstick in her hand, and stepped on more than ten Taoist nuns on the bunk bed and ran towards Xuan Su. There were cries of pain from the bunk bed, and the Taoist nun whose stomach she stepped on curled up like a shrimp.

Xuan Su opened her eyes in a daze, only to see Bai Li striding towards her. She said in panic, "You!"

Baili suddenly pounced down, and stabbed the half-broken chopsticks in his hand down fiercely, straight into Xuansu's right eye.

But the chopsticks that were supposed to pierce through the head were blocked by Xuan Su's hands and could not pierce any further.

“Ahhhhhhh!” Xuan Su cried hysterically, “Kill her, kill her for me! I want to kill her!”

Bai Li jumped off the bunk bed, opened the vermilion lacquered door of the rear hall, and ran out barefoot.

Under the moonlight, she stepped on the cold blue bricks and fled through the main hall of Jingyang Palace. But this time, no one would hold the reins for her and let her cross the narrow skylight.

Just as Bai Li was about to step over the threshold of the main hall, the door of the side hall suddenly opened, and a Taoist scripture flew out and hit her calf squarely.

Baili fell to the ground, and the pain from new and old wounds was excruciating.

She lay on the ground and turned to look at the open door. Master Xuan Zhen walked out of the door leisurely, holding a whisk, and stood beside her.

It was not until this time that Xuan Su and others caught up.

When they saw Xuan Zhen, their faces suddenly changed and they all knelt on the ground: "I didn't mean to disturb the immortal's pure cultivation, please forgive me!"

Xuan Zhen lowered his head and quietly looked at the white carp that couldn't get up from the ground. He said with compassion, "The saints said, 'I treat the good with kindness, and I treat the bad with kindness as well.' This means that we should treat the good with kindness, and we should also treat the bad with kindness. Xuan Su was unfair in dealing with things, and he didn't treat people with kindness, and he didn't complain with virtue. He should get rid of the evil in his heart and understand himself clearly."

Xuan Zhen said calmly: "Slap your face."

For a moment, Xuan Su didn't care about the blood on his face. He slapped himself in pain until his cheeks were swollen and blood splattered everywhere.

Xuan Zhen looked at the bloodstains splattered on the blue bricks, and said calmly: "Bring the filth to the Three Pure Ones and slap them in the face."

Xuan Su gritted her teeth and slapped herself again. Suddenly, she lowered her head and spat out a mouthful of blood into her palm, with a back tooth mixed in the blood.

She subconsciously looked up at Xuan Zhen, and seeing his cold expression, she quickly swallowed her tooth with blood.

At this time, Xuan Zhen no longer embarrassed her, and turned to look at Bai Li: "The princess has been taught many times but has not changed. She has a very evil heart. It seems that the evil root of the devil has entered her body. We should remove it for her."

Xuan Su asked tremblingly and inarticulately: "How do I remove it?"

In the main hall, in front of the statues of the Three Pure Ones, Xuan Zhen said calmly, "The tongue is the gateway to income and expenditure, and the root of right and wrong. Pull out your tongue."

Xuan Su was startled and subconsciously turned to look at the statue of the Three Pure Ones.

Xuanzhen looked at her: "What?"

Xuan Su hurriedly said, "We will remove the evil roots of the demon right away!"

Xuan Zhen turned and walked into the side hall, without even turning his head, he said, "Xuan Su, this is the last time. If it happens again, you know what the result will be."

"I know!" Xuan Su stood up and wiped the blood off his face with his sleeve, then ordered people to drag Bai Li to the back hall.

However, at this moment, someone outside Jingyang Palace exclaimed: "What a lively scene!"

Xuan Zhen suddenly stopped in front of the side hall door. Xuan Su looked back suddenly and saw a woman in black walking lightly into Jingyang Palace with her hands behind her back.

The other party took a look at the white carp on the ground and said in amazement: "How did Jingyang Palace become like this? How can you guys cultivate your mind and cultivate your character?"

Xuan Su was startled: "Jiaotu?"

Jiaotu walked into the hall with a smile, took out a silver needle from his sleeve and stabbed it into Xuansu's chest. Xuansu howled and fell to the ground twitching.

Xuan Zhen turned around and asked softly, "I'm sorry for not welcoming you, the Twelve Zodiac Signs. However, the affairs of my Jingyang Palace don't seem to be under the jurisdiction of the Twelve Zodiac Signs, right?"

Jiaotu did not explain that he was no longer a Chinese zodiac sign, but pretended to be surprised and said, "Isn't my secret service notorious? Who gave you the courage to speak to me like that?"

As she spoke, she took out more than ten silver needles from her sleeve and flicked them at all the nuns. In an instant, everyone fell to the ground, sweating profusely from the pain.

Xuanzhen frowned, "What are you doing?"

Jiaotu said with a smile: "Someone asked me to look after Princess Baili. I just got promoted to a higher level thanks to his help, so naturally I have to do my best to help him."

Bai Li was stunned.

Jiaotu leaned against the door frame and looked down at Baili with interest.

"Eh?" She saw that Bai Li was still holding a half-broken bloody chopstick in his hand. It was as if she saw the bloody broken porcelain in his hand that night again. "You two look quite alike!"

Xuan Zhen frowned and said, "Do you know where my Jingyang Palace is? How can you be so presumptuous in front of the Three Pure Ones?"

Jiaotu ignored her and looked up at the Three Pure Ones in the main hall: "What is Jingyang Palace? Let me think... Well, this is a place that harms people. Xuanzhen, in order not to be buried with the late emperor, you escaped here with the help of the queen mother and suffered a lot. Princess Yongchun was locked up here and became crazy because she couldn't get the love she wanted. Xuansu was sent here just because he accidentally broke a concubine's beloved thing. It stands to reason that everyone here should rely on each other, why do you go even further when you harm others?"

Xuan Zhen said calmly: "There are only women without moral integrity in Jingyang Palace. I am just disciplining them."

Jiaotu smiled and said, "Xuanzhen, I am not a reasonable person and I never argue with anyone. You only need to remember one thing, Princess Baili cannot lose a single hair in your Jingyang Palace, otherwise I will find a way to turn all of you into human pigs. Do you understand? If you don't accept it, try saying 'no' now."

Xuanzhen remained silent.

Jiaotu no longer paid attention to her, but squatted down in front of Baili and said with a smile: "Princess Baili is so beautiful. It's a pity for her to suffer in a place like this."

Bai Li hesitated for two breaths, then asked in a low voice: "Why are you helping me?"

Jiaotu thought for a moment and then said jokingly, "I have no connection with the princess, so of course I am not helping you out of sympathy.

Bai Li said softly, "Chen Ji."

Jiaotu chuckled, "Although that boy said ruthless things, how could he escape the eyes of a woman? I used to think that he betrayed Prince Jing, but now I think there might be another hidden story. I have seen so many intrigues and deceptions in Wunian Mountain that it is strange to see such a beautiful thing occasionally. Princess, live well. I also want to see if he can save you."

Baili remained silent.

At this time, Xuan Su and the others stopped feeling pain, Xuan Zhen glanced at them and said, "Go to the back hall."

Jiaotu pointed at the group of Taoist nuns and asked Baili with interest: "Who bullied you the most? I'll help you break one of her arms as a small punishment."

Xuan Su's expression changed, and he stepped back subconsciously: "Master, save me!"

But Xuanzhen held the whisk in his arms and said nothing.

Jiaotu looked at Xuansu and laughed: "It seems to be you."

Xuan Su exclaimed, "Princess, there is no life-and-death feud between you and me!"

Bai Li looked at the vermilion palace wall outside the Jingyang Palace in silence. Xuan Su's wailing sounded again behind her.

(End of this chapter)