Of Course I Choose to Forgive Her!

"Do you think I'm just having a run of bad luck? I run into ghosts as soon as I go out, and they're all different. Now I'm stuck at home, not going out, and I've gotten myself into this mess."

Wang Longqi looked at Li Chu and Li Xinyi with a bitter face, saying with grief and indignation.

Li Chu thought about it and felt that if vengeful spirits came to him even when he stayed at home... that might actually be quite good.

Monster Grinding would be very convenient.

But then he thought again, one must first find an opportunity before getting involved with such vengeful spirits, so forget it.

It's too troublesome.

But then again, there are no such things as free lunches in this world.

If Wang Longqi could see what he was thinking, he would surely be impressed by his god-like causal logic.

Li Chu was lost in thought, while Li Xinyi pouted at Wang Longqi: "Hmph, if it weren't for your heartlessness and abandonment, would you have ended up like this?"

From the perspective of Facing Heaven Pavilion, she naturally had to protect Wang Longqi's life and prevent citizens from being harmed by vengeful spirits.

But from a woman's perspective, she deeply despised such shameless behavior from Wang Longqi.

"Heaven and earth as my witness, I don't know why Mei Xiang would hold a grudge against me. I wasn't the one who abandoned her," Wang Longqi pointed his finger and swore, "Li Chu, remember a few days ago I told you that there were a Popular Courtesan and a Madam badmouthing me at Spring Full Pavilion? That person was Mei Xiang!"

Li Chu nodded.

"Alas--" Wang Longqi sighed again, "Back then, she and I were in each other's arms, whispering sweet nothings, and we had developed feelings over time and secretly betrothed ourselves. But who knew, after I was bewitched by a female ghost, not only did she not care about me, but she deliberately avoided me and mocked me behind my back! It was from then on that I saw her true colors and completely distanced myself from her."

"She's the type of person who uses you when she needs you and discards you when she doesn't. Yesterday morning, she suddenly sent the Little Maid to call me to Spring Full Pavilion for a chat. Perhaps she needed money again. Originally, we were also..."

As he spoke, he suddenly glanced at Li Xinyi. Cultivators from Facing Heaven Pavilion still carried some authority, so he retracted some of his vulgar words and paused for a moment.

"After all, we have a long-standing friendship. She may be heartless, but I am righteous. But just as I was about to agree, I suddenly remembered that scoundrel Zhao Liangcai. If he found out I went to Spring Full Pavilion during this time, he would definitely go and badmouth me to Gongsun Girl. So I said we'd meet another day and just had the Little Maid take back a hundred taels of silver for her."

"You could say I was benevolent and righteous to her in this way. For her to complain about me even before she died, and even turn into a Fierce Ghost to seek revenge on me, is truly unreasonable."

Li Chu listened to his words, thought for a moment, and said, "Then if she comes to find you tonight, you can try to explain things to her. Perhaps you can purify her resentful energy."

In his opinion, since the First Wife was able to dissipate her resentful energy just by seeing an unfamiliar face that day, perhaps purifying resentful energy wasn't that difficult...

"Let's forget it," Wang Longqi flinched. "You guys just give her a quick end. I'll go to her grave later and explain slowly."

"We can't relax our guard on Spring Full Pavilion either," Li Xinyi said. "From what you've said, Mei Xiang's resentment towards you doesn't seem that strong... so perhaps her vengeful spirit might still appear at Spring Full Pavilion."

"Mm," Li Chu agreed with her statement.

Li Xinyi said, "Then let's split up. One person stays here to protect him, and one person stays at Spring Full Pavilion. How about it?"

Li Chu pondered for a moment, feeling it was slightly inappropriate.

It was an accident last time when Li Xinyi dealt with the vengeful spirit...

He hadn't decided whether to object yet when Wang Longqi preemptively shouted, "Great, then let Li Chu stay with me!"

His tone was notably eager.

Li Xinyi's willow brows shot up. "What do you mean?"

Wang Longqi blinked, weakly asking, "What do I mean?"

"You're so eager for Little Daoist Priest Li to stay, do you think he's stronger than me?" Li Xinyi asked.

Of course!

That's exactly what I think!

Wang Longqi said righteously in his heart.

So loud.

But such dangerous words were best kept in thought; he certainly wouldn't be foolish enough to say them out loud.

He smiled evasively. "No, no. If he has to protect me, we'll inevitably have to share a room late at night. We're a man and a woman alone, the implications would be bad. My father taught me from a young age that reputation is heavier than Mount Tai!"

Only then did Li Xinyi nod in satisfaction.

She understood this clearly in her heart, of course.

Li Chu was indeed stronger than her.

But.

How could this matter be known to outsiders?

If word got out that I, the dignified Purple-Clad Guard of Facing Heaven Pavilion, relied on outsiders to solve cases, how could I make a name for myself?

She stole a glance at Li Chu. Li Chu was still pondering something, looking completely unconcerned.

Li Xinyi smiled faintly. This little daoist priest's disregard for fame was truly wonderful.

Love it, love it.

At this moment, Li Chu finally looked up and said to Wang Longqi, "Why don't we go to Spring Full Pavilion together?"

"Huh?" Wang Longqi froze, then a strange smile appeared on his face. "Us going together... that wouldn't be good, Miss Li is still here... Or are you two not even avoiding that between yourselves?"

Li Xinyi rebuked, "What are you thinking!"

She immediately understood Li Chu's meaning.

Spring Full Pavilion is dead, Wang Longqi is alive.

Bring him back to Spring Full Pavilion, no matter whose body the Vengeful Spirit's resentful qi is on, it can only come here.

Once the Vengeful Spirit appears, things will be simple.

When Wang Longqi went to Spring Full Pavilion, it was like going home. He entered the main gate, familiar with the way to Mei Xiang's Room, and habitually leaned back on the bamboo chair, saying leisurely, "Hong Zhi, bring tea."

Hong Zhi was the name of the little maid.

He called out, but there was no response. Only then did he realize that this was different from his previous visits.

"Alas," he sighed again, lamenting with deep affection, "Why did Mei Xiang have to go through this?"

Li Xinyi said softly from the side, "She used this chair to hang herself."

"Eek—" Wang Longqi quickly got up and moved to sit elsewhere.

After a while, Spring Third Madam came again with the little maid Hong Zhi.

When Spring Third Madam saw Wang Longqi, she gave him a glare. Mei Xiang was a girl she had raised since childhood, and she definitely had feelings for her. Seeing Wang Longqi now, she couldn't help but be angry.

Wang Longqi quickly pleaded, "Third Madam, please don't give me the cold shoulder. I'm already heartbroken by Mei Xiang's death."

"Oh, Young Master Wang Qi actually has a heart? Why didn't you show any concern when the person was alive? Now that you've driven her to death, you come here to put on a show."

Spring Third Madam crossed her arms, her slight anger and coquettishness still alluring.

Wang Longqi spread his hands and beckoned to the little maid, "Come, Hong Zhi, tell Third Madam carefully, did I give you a hundred taels of silver yesterday to give to the young lady? I didn't say anything harsh, just that we'd meet again another day and there's no need to rush... right?"

After speaking, he also explained Mei Xiang's badmouthing him behind his back, explaining why he had distanced himself from her and how magnanimous he had been.

It was unfair.

After listening, Spring Third Madam's expression changed: "Which madam is it that gossiped about people behind their backs? I'll teach her a good lesson when I get back. But Young Master Wang Qi, you got someone pregnant and only wanted to dismiss her with a hundred taels of silver. Isn't that too demeaning? People say you're benevolent, but those who know will think you're just humiliating our young lady."

"Ah?" Wang Longqi's face changed drastically upon hearing this: "Mei Xiang is pregnant?"

Li Xinyi said, "The Yamen's autopsy confirmed that Mei Xiang is indeed two months pregnant."

"Two months?" Wang Longqi was shocked again.

"I only found out this morning. The girls in our pavilion have always had their own ways of ensuring safe comings and goings, and they wouldn't easily get pregnant by anyone. Spring Third Madam said, "Mei Xiang must have wanted to buy her freedom, so she found a way to get close to you and use your child to enter a wealthy family. She didn't dare to tell me about this. If I had known, I would have stopped her. What a foolish girl, men are never truly sincere."

Li Chu glanced at her silently.

She quickly added, "Little Daoist Priest Li is so handsome, of course, he's an exception."

"Impossible, absolutely impossible." Wang Longqi shook his head repeatedly.

Spring Third Madam said, "She has always only been intimate with you. Could it be someone else?"

"I haven't seen her for half a year now... haven't seen her at all, let alone found an opportunity. This is absolutely impossible!" Wang Longqi flatly denied.

Spring Third Madam's brows furrowed tightly, then she suddenly looked at the Little Maid, Hong Zhi.

The Little Maid trembled all over.

"Mei Xiang is also involved with someone else?" Spring Third Madam asked.

The management of the Popular Courtesans at Spring Full Pavilion was quite strict. Ordinary good girls could naturally welcome guests with a smile, but if a Popular Courtesan did so, it would be equivalent to lowering her own status.

Therefore, Spring Third Madam had set a rule: after a Popular Courtesan was taken in by a patron, she could only have one guest for a period of time. To change to another, she had to break things off with the previous one.

Violation of this rule would result in severe punishment.

It was precisely these rules that made the Popular Courtesans of Spring Full Pavilion widely admired.

Because the scholars and gentlemen knew that as long as they pursued this girl, they would be her only one, even if only temporarily.

This mindset was completely different.

The Little Maid stammered, "Actually... actually, the girl has never been intimate with only Young Master Wang... and the child... is indeed not Young Master Wang's."

Spring Third Madam pressed, "Then who is the other person?"

"It's..." the Little Maid said, "That person is... Young Master Zhao Liangcai of the Zhao Family."

"It's him." Wang Longqi was immediately struck as if by lightning, slumping onto the chair.

This feeling was similar to a wife cheating on him behind his back. And the person she cheated with was his lifelong enemy.

No wonder Mei Xiang dared to be indifferent to him; she had already climbed onto another high branch.

Li Chu cast a glance at him.

Be strong.

Spring Third Madam's expression was complicated as she looked at Wang Longqi, "Young Master Wang, I was mistaken about you just now. I apologize. Also, I was unaware of Mei Xiang's situation, and now..."

"Now that she's dead, why should I bother with these things?" Wang Longqi gave a bitter smile.

"Of course, I choose to forgive her."