Taiheiki

Chapter 70 Mountain Ghost
"Untie her shackles!" Wei Cong said, "I don't want a drop of blood to be shed unless it's necessary—even if it's a leopard!"

A soldier untied Lu Ping's shackles. She stretched her numb ankle, stood up, and walked to the edge of the platform. The firelight cast a shadow on her graceful figure against the night sky. Diwu Deng made a threatening gesture and aimed his powerful crossbows at the woman in the night. Lu Ping ignored the crossbow bolts from behind her and let out a sharp cry into the distant forest. A few minutes later, a nimble figure emerged from the forest. It looked around warily and paced back and forth several times, clearly aware of the threat behind its hostess.

Ew!
Lu Ping began speaking to the leopard in a strange language. The leopard seemed to understand, growling and moving closer to her. Lu Ping waved her arms vigorously, shouting, "Leave! Leave quickly! Never come back! We have nothing to do with each other anymore!" But the leopard still came to the woman's side and began to rub its head against her waist. The woman, in turn, stroked the leopard's head and the back of its neck with her bound hands. The firelight cast the figures of the man and the leopard into the night, like mountain ghosts in the Chu Ci poem.

"Sir!" Diwudeng lowered his voice, "With just one order from you, both of these problems can be solved!"

"What do I need a dead woman and a dead leopard for? To skin them and make a cloak?" Wei Cong sighed helplessly: "Remember, a living person is always more useful than a dead person!"

A few minutes later, the leopard left its mistress and disappeared into the night without looking back. The girl returned to the fire, tears streaming down her beautiful face. "You can put the shackles back on me now. He'll never come back!"

"Actually, you don't have to be so sad!" Wei Cong tried to comfort him, "If you cooperate with me, it shouldn't be difficult to regain your freedom. Then you can come back here and find this leopard!"

"Impossible!" The girl smiled sadly. "You'll probably kill me after draining me dry. Even if you do release me, Ahri won't come back to me. I've just severed its relationship with me. It's completely free now. No one will ever get close to it again, not even me!"

Wei Cong felt a little embarrassed when he heard this. He wanted to explain, but found that he had no way to tell. After all, this woman knew too much, was involved in too many things, and was too powerful. If he let her go free, there would be endless trouble. The best way to deal with it was to squeeze out all the information and kill her once and for all. The reason for his hesitation was probably because of her beauty. If it was an old witch in her forties or fifties, he would probably just be indifferent. So he decided to change the subject: "How did you let the leopard go free? Was that strange sound you made just now a spell?"

"That's right!" The Taoist woman nodded. "My ancestors were great sorcerers who served the royal family of Chu. They used special secret words to form a contract with young wild beasts, making them obey your commands like an arm!"

"Sounds impressive!" Wei Cong nodded. He carefully questioned the man about witchcraft, trying to find flaws. After all, back in college, he'd devoted considerable time to anthropological works like The Golden Bough, which explored primitive religion, mythology, witchcraft, ritual, and the psychology of primitive people. But as time went on, Wei Cong increasingly found the man's words clear and logical, even supporting them with facts. This made him increasingly anxious.

"If what you said is true, and the witchcraft inherited from your family is so powerful, then why weren't the alchemists, witches, and Taoists like you ascended to the throne?" Wei Cong's words unconsciously became sharp.

"Because if the world is peaceful, our magic will become ineffective, or even useless, and can only be used as a trick!" Lu Ping replied: "Only when the world is in chaos and falling apart will our skills become effective!"

"What do you mean?"

"When I was little, my mother told me that all the various schools of thought originated from the royal officials of the Zhou Dynasty. Confucianism originated from the Minister of Education. They assisted the ruler, followed the principles of yin and yang, and clarified the teachings of the people. Taoism originated from the historians, who recorded success and failure, survival and destruction, disasters and blessings, and the ways of the past and present. They believed that one must grasp the essentials and stick to the basics, maintain a clear mind, and maintain self-control through humility. This was the art of ruling from the south. Yin-Yang School originated from the officials Xi and He (who observed the stars and established the calendar). They respected and obeyed the Heaven, observed the sun, moon, and stars, and taught the people the time. This was their strength. Legalism originated from the officials in charge of governance. They rewarded the righteous and punished the righteous. , to assist the ritual system. The School of Names emerged from the ritual officials. In ancient times, people's titles and positions varied, and rituals also varied in number; this was their strength. The Mohists emerged from the guardians of the Qing Temple. Thatched huts with rafters valued frugality; supporting the Three Elders and observing the five watchtowers emphasized universal love; selecting scholars for archery emphasized virtuousness; worshipping the strict father emphasized respecting the spirits; following the four seasons emphasized non-fate; viewing the world with filial piety emphasized unity. The School of Diplomacy emerged from the officials who served as travellers (diplomats). At that time, the Mandate of Heaven rested with the sage king. No matter how powerful we were, we could only hide in the shadows and could do nothing.

Later, as the Zhou dynasty weakened, those who mastered official learning drifted into the ranks of the people. Confucians became clowns seeking to attract attention, neglecting fundamental principles for superficial ends; Taoists became unruly villains who abandoned propriety and benevolence; Yin-Yangists became charlatans who played tricks on others; Legalists became lunatics who lacked education, abandoned benevolence, and focused solely on criminal law, harming their loved ones and betraying their gratitude; Logicians became annoying prying into others' privacy and finding fault with them; Mohists became petty loners who ignored their relatives; and the Diplomats became treacherous, shameless, and unfaithful thieves. As a result, people's hearts were scattered, and the Mandate of Heaven was no longer with the Zhou dynasty. All we need to do is display a little skill to attract their hearts. The more hearts we attract, the greater our power! In the end, the false will become true!

"You mean if you believe it, it will work, but if you don't believe it, it won't work?"

"Yes, that's right!" Lu Ping laughed. "That's what my mother meant, but not as well as you said!"

"Then for you, don't you really hope that the world will always be unstable and in the midst of war?" Wei Cong asked.

"That's exactly what they are!" Lu Ping nodded. "At least a lot of us think so. Mother said they've all been blinded by power and turned into evil spirits. They won't have a good ending!"

"Your mother is truly a wise person!" Wei Cong sighed. "By the way, you just mentioned the Hundred Schools of Thought. Which school did your ancestors belong to? Which path did they choose?"

"Have you forgotten?" Lu Ping laughed. "My ancestors were great witches who served the royal family of Chu for generations. All the schools of thought originated from the Zhou Dynasty. Our Chu State is not under the jurisdiction of the Zhou King. We are the southern barbarians, so of course we are not one of them! If you ask us which path to choose, it's actually very simple. We witches worship this land, rivers, mountains, forests, and all things that grow in them. We will help whoever rules this land and supports us. The Chu royal family supports us, so we use fine wine, cloth, and silk coins to worship Shao Siming, Da Siming, Yunzhongjun, He Bo, and Shan Gui, asking them to bless Chu, defeat the enemy, and make Chu stronger and stronger!"

"But the Chu State has been destroyed for hundreds of years!"

"But those gods are still there! For example, the mountain ghost. I am the great witch who worships the mountain ghost!" Lu Ping said, her expression becoming gloomy. "But you are right. After the fall of the Chu State, those gods also became weak. Otherwise, I would never have been caught by you today!"

"Of course!" Wei Cong laughed. "If the Chu Kingdom still existed, you, as a great wizard serving the royal family, would be surrounded by dozens or even hundreds of guards. I couldn't even get close to you, so how could I possibly catch you?"

Lu Ping knew that her statement that Wei Cong couldn't have captured her if the Chu State still existed was just empty talk. She expected to be ridiculed, but she was surprised when Wei Cong actually nodded in agreement. "Forget it, there's no point in saying this. I'm already your prisoner, and no one can change that. So, what are you going to do with me next?"

"First, let's finish Nie Zheng's business!" Wei Cong said, "Then we need to find that Qinghe King Liu Suan. His plans are truly enormous. As long as he's not killed, there will be no peace in the world!"

"Haha!" Lu Ping laughed. "You say that as if the world would be peaceful without him. In my opinion, if he had become the emperor, the world might have been more peaceful! Forget it, if you agree to one condition of mine, I can help you find that person!"

"Conditions? What conditions?" Wei Cong asked.

"Tomorrow at sunrise, let me dance by the pond, untie the ropes on me, and let me dance!" "Dancing?" Wei Cong became alert: "What are you trying to do?"

"Entertaining the gods!" Lu Ping said with a smile, "I am a great witch serving the mountain ghosts. This is what I should do!"

"Entertaining God? What does that mean?"

"To entertain the gods, to make them happy! You can offer money, spices, wine, and stews. You serve the gods as you would serve a human being. I have nothing now, so I can only dance to entertain the gods!"

"Every day?" Wei Cong looked at him suspiciously. "Does it have to be at sunrise tomorrow morning?"

"That's not necessary!" Lu Ping said, "But now I'm in your hands and could be killed at any time. I've served the mountain ghost since I was young. As soon as I became sensible, I danced in front of the altar in the mountains to entertain the gods. Naturally, I have to dance once before I die. It can be considered a good beginning and a good end." She paused for a moment and said, "In fact, when the King of Chu offered sacrifices to the gods in the past, the dance to the mountain ghost was the most popular. Do you know why?"

"Why?"

"Because we dance the most beautifully!" Lu Ping laughed. "Among all the gods, Xiangjun and Yunzhongjun are both very beautiful, but they still can't compare to the mountain ghost. Everyone in Chu knows this!"

Facing the beautiful smile of the woman, Wei Cong's heart moved: "Okay, but you have to tell me how to find the King of Qinghe first!"

"I can only tell you this after I finish the Dance to Entertain the Gods!" Lu Ping said, "But I can tell you his current name as proof. His name is Liu Xin, and his Taoist name is Nanhua!"

"Liu Xin?" Wei Cong's eyes widened, unable to conceal his surprise. "Is he really this tall?" Wei Cong stretched out his hand and compared the height according to his memory. "Phoenix eyes, high nose, long eyebrows reaching his temples, a clear and elegant look, holding a nine-section staff in his hand. Yes, he also has a red mole on his right cheek."

"Have you seen him?" Now it was Lu Ping's turn to be surprised: "Yes, this is him!"

"Yeah!" Wei Cong nodded, secretly marveling at the coincidence of fate. "I ran into him by chance on my way from Wancheng to Jiangling. He was being besieged by seven or eight thieves, and I rescued him! By the way, you made him sound so powerful, how come he couldn't even hold his own against a few thieves?"

"He's good at Taoism, not swordsmanship! Whether he's performing rituals on stage or anything else, he needs to prepare in advance!" Lu Ping said, "If he had prepared in advance, even if he only had two or three Yellow Turban warriors with him, let alone seven or eight bandits, even twenty or thirty wouldn't be able to do anything to him!"

"Yellow Turban Warrior?" Wei Cong frowned. Had he traveled to a magical world? This was troubling. Even if he cultivated Napoleon cannons and flintlock rifles, wouldn't he still be doomed if the enemy summoned the Queen Mother of the Nine Heavens? Thinking of this, he cautiously inquired about the Yellow Turban Warrior. When he learned that it was just a brave warrior who swallowed talisman water and became fearless and extremely brave, he breathed a sigh of relief. "So it's just stimulants and hypnosis. What's so great about it? I was shocked!"

"If that's the case, then I'll agree to your terms!" Wei Cong weighed the pros and cons and said with a smile, "And I can also promise you that as long as you help me capture Liu Xin, I'll let you go! But don't try to play tricks, or you'll regret it!"

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The rising sun tinted the eastern sky a distinctive rosy hue. Lupin stood by the pool, gazing at the gradually spreading light. Dawn crept across the fields and forests, and beneath her feet the world shifted from pitch black to indigo to lush green. The stream broke through the rocks, cascading down the cliffs, splashing onto the lake below. She could even feel the tiny drops of water on her cheeks, like tears.

She couldn't help but recall the story her mother had told her as a child: Emperor Shun went on a hunting expedition southward, died in the wilderness of Cangwu, and was buried in Mount Jiuyi. His wife, Nüying Ehuang, traveled a thousand miles to find her husband. Passing by Dongting Lake, she learned of Shun's death. She wept bitterly, hugging a bamboo, until spots appeared on the bamboo. Then, the two of them drowned. After their death, they became deities of the Xiang River, known to the Chu people as Lady Xiang and Lord Xiang. Lu Ping couldn't help but wonder, if she died here, who would shed tears for her?

"You'd better not play tricks!" Diwu Deng opened the shackles on Lu Ping's feet and threatened viciously: "My husband is a good man and he will be soft-hearted, but I won't!" He pointed behind him, and Lu Ping could see the cold light of arrows on the crossbows.

Lu Ping smiled, flexed her numb ankles and wrists, lifted her sleeves, and began to dance. Her movements were small and stiff at first, like a butterfly emerging from its chrysalis, getting used to its new body. But as time passed, her movements became smooth and graceful, like a puppet with its mechanism greased. Suddenly, she pulled a folding fan from her sleeve. Her red skirt, her fair neck, and her rosy cheeks were all visible. With a gentle tap of the fan, she stood up, her skirt fluttering and her thin blouse billowing in the wind, like an immortal descending to earth.

"If there is a person in the mountains, he is covered with lychee and lady's vine.

It is easy to smile at the same time, and I admire you for being so graceful and graceful.

Riding on a red leopard and following a raccoon cat, riding on a magnolia chariot and hanging a laurel flag.

The stone orchid and Du Heng are wrapped around it, and the fragrance is broken and the thoughts are left behind.

I am in the deep bamboo forest and can't see the sky. The road is dangerous and difficult and I am alone.

......"

(End of this chapter)