With virtue

Inside the main room, Zhao Yunshu and Young Master Wang were drinking and eating meat, chatting about various matters.

"Oh? I don't know where Jiuyan is from," Young Master Wang said with a knowing look in his eyes, "but I have indeed heard of the name Meixian."

He took a sip of wine to moisten his throat, and then began to tell the story of Mei San Niang.

As Zhao Yunshu listened, he secretly compared his words with the records in the yellow book and found that what the young master said was roughly the same as what was recorded in the book.

Mei San Niang's real name was Wang Huanmei. She was the top courtesan of the Wu County Jiaofangsi during the Tianbao era of the Tang Dynasty.

A wealthy merchant once offered a thousand taels of gold for a single meeting with her but failed. Later, she was taken in by a military governor's advisor. Before three years had passed, the advisor was convicted and imprisoned, and Mei Niang was implicated. She wandered to Youzhou, where the An Lushan Rebellion broke out and Youzhou fell. Wang Huanmei was captured by the rebel army and imprisoned in their camp, where she was humiliated day and night.

Unable to bear the humiliation, Wang Huanmei slit her wrists with broken porcelain and died, her blood splattering the tent curtains. The garrison commander, enraged by her bad luck, skinned her and abandoned her body in the wilderness. She became a vengeful spirit and returned to the military camp to seek revenge, but was nearly killed by the garrison commander. After escaping by chance, her resentment lingered, and she went around harming people.

These are all things written in the book; there are no other deeds or events.

"Oh... so you don't know what her relationship with Jiu Yan is?" Zhao Yunshu stroked his chin, thinking for a moment.

At this moment, the white ape holding the sword spoke up: "I do know the Nine Beauties."

"Hmm? Mr. Yuan knows?" Young Master Wang said to the white ape.

"May I ask for your guidance?" Zhao Yunshu immediately stood up, picked up his wine cup, and said, "I hope you will not hesitate to share your insights with me."

Seeing his impeccable manners, the white ape's previously indifferent expression softened somewhat.

It gently placed the longsword in its arms to the side, put its front paws in front of it, and even nodded like a human, as if to return the greeting.

After the ceremony was over, the white ape finally spoke: "Actually, there's nothing special about it."

"After Wang Huanmei died, her soul had nowhere to go and wandered around until it finally came under the command of a great demon. As for the name of that great demon, I can't say more. You only need to know that he was a lecherous man who kept eight female ghosts like Wang Huanmei under his command. Each of them was extremely beautiful and had their own unique skills. They were known as the 'Eight Beauties.' That great demon also taught them a set of red powder techniques, using their bodies as vessels to both bewitch people and protect themselves."

After he finished speaking, he looked at Zhao Yunshu again and saw that he was still holding the wine cup and had not put it down. He was quite satisfied and continued, "As for the Nine Beauties, they have similar backgrounds. They were originally female ghosts and were quite beautiful, but they were ultimately inferior to the Eight Beauties."

"She heard at some point that the great demon was lustful, and seeing that the Eight Beauties were favored, she also wanted to climb up to them. So she gave herself the nickname 'Nine Beauties' and introduced herself as 'the younger sister of the Eight Beauties' to everyone she met, spreading the word everywhere. However, the great demon had high standards and never gave her a second glance, let alone took her under his command. She had been mingling among demons and ghosts for many years and had accumulated some fame, but this fame was full of jokes and was not something respectable."

"I see. Thank you for your guidance, Mr. Ape. Now I have much less to worry about." Zhao Yun breathed a sigh of relief. "It seems that it's just a little brat; it's nothing to worry about."

Zhao Yunshu said this not because he truly thought Jiu Yan was no threat, but simply to put on an act.

Upon hearing this, the white ape indeed cautioned, "When traveling the martial world, one should not underestimate anyone. Jiu Yan herself possesses extraordinary seductive skills and is adept at absorbing people's yang energy. An ordinary strong man can become infatuated with her every smile and frown when she gets close, and be completely at her mercy. And this is only herself; she also has two powerful generals by her side, neither of whom are easy to deal with."

Upon hearing this, Zhao Yunshu had already guessed seven or eight parts of the truth, but on the surface, he still pretended to know nothing, only slightly frowning and adopting a posture of listening attentively.

Seeing his seriousness, the white ape was even more satisfied and continued, "This first one is a wandering sorcerer who calls himself the Three Yin Old Man. He is skilled in using Yin energy, can summon Yin wind, and drive away evil spirits. He has a bamboo whip in his hand that is used to strike people's souls. Those who are hit suffer unbearable pain, their souls are shaken, and it is difficult to heal for a long time. He also has a magic weapon called the Three Yin Gourd. This gourd is even more magical. If he calls your name and you respond, a stream of green water will spray out of the gourd and automatically follow you until you die. If the green water touches you, your skin will rot, your flesh will decay, and your bones will be corroded. Even those with profound agility will find it extremely difficult to dodge. It is very terrifying."

"The two are monks, whose Dharma name is Yuanmeng. This monk can control snakes and has a male snake under his command. This snake monster is extremely difficult to deal with. It is impervious to swords and spears and can also spew poisonous smoke. The cries it makes can make people lose their senses and not even know they have been eaten. The monk himself is no pushover either. He is skilled in water and fire magic and has many insidious magical artifacts on his body. He is very difficult to deal with."

The white ape said solemnly, "Even I wouldn't dare say I can take them down if the three of them join forces. If you, little Taoist, aren't careful, you might really fall into their trap."

Hearing this, Zhao Yunshu felt completely relieved.

The Three Yin Elder was already lying dead on the official road, the Dream-Fulfilling Demon Monk had been blown into several pieces, and the Nine Beauties' left and right arms had long been unintentionally cut off by him. Now only she was left, and she was carrying ten newly drawn talismans. Her confidence was naturally incomparable to that of the day before.

However, he still spoke respectfully, saying, "Thank you for your guidance, Mr. Yuan. I will be careful when I go to find the Ghost General!"

The white ape nodded slightly, picked up the sword again, closed its eyes, and struck a pose.

Young Master Wang chuckled from the side, "It's rare for Mr. Yuan to say so much; you, a Taoist priest, certainly have a lot of face to offer."

He raised his wine glass, clinked it with Zhao Yunshu's, and exchanged a few pleasantries.

In his conversation, he asked Zhao Yunshu where his teacher was, whether he had ever been to Sichuan, and what he thought of the mutton from Dingzhou compared to other places.

Zhao Yunshu answered each question perfectly, spouting nonsense and telling jokes from his past life that made Young Master Wang laugh heartily.

While drinking and eating meat, Liu Qimei played another tune on her pipa to accompany the wine, the sound of which was melodious and graceful.

After several rounds of drinks and several dishes, Zhao Yunshu realized it was getting late and got up to take his leave.

Young Master Wang didn't insist on keeping him and waved for him to leave.

Zhao Yunshu cupped his hands and said, "Until we meet again," then nodded to Liu Qimei before turning and leaving the inn.

The sun was high in the sky outside, its bright white rays dazzling the eyes.

The young Taoist priest stood in the middle of the street, squinted to determine the direction, tightened his bundle on his shoulder, and strode towards the west of the city.

The deserted village is only ten miles west of Dingzhou City. If we set off now, we will arrive in no time.

Taking advantage of the midday sun, they captured the two female ghosts, Mei San Niang and Jiu Yan, and found out about their master!

Having made up his mind, the young Taoist priest scurried off towards the deserted village.