Welcome to the Bizarre Games

Chapter 367 Bad Fate
"First of all, let me tell you something: we are all virgins. Secondly, although 'whore' has always been the term for prostitute, if you dare to say that word again, I'll tear your mouth apart!"

With that angry shout, the woman playing the piano emerged from the shadows.

Only then did Zhou You get a clear look at the man's face.

Strangely enough, despite her seemingly mature and sophisticated demeanor, she actually looked to be only around thirty-six or thirty-seven years old. Although her youth was clearly fading, she showed no signs of radiant beauty whatsoever—she wore a bright red women's dress, her face was as beautiful as a peach blossom, yet she also possessed a touch of inexplicable elegance.

At this moment, her phoenix eyes were glaring at Old Man Li, making no attempt to hide her hostility and anger.

However, Old Man Li scoffed at these angry words.

He first carefully examined Zhou You, and after finding no major problems, he patted Zhou You on the shoulder and introduced him.

"Come, come, disciple, let me give you a heads-up. See this guy? Her surname is Hua, you can call her Lady Hua. She's one of our lowest social classes, the most despised of all, the brothel. As they say, lust is a double-edged sword. You often don't even know when you've fallen into their trap. So for your own safety, it's best to stay away from them."

Upon hearing this, the woman known as Flower Lady immediately became anxious.

"Li bastard, how many times have I told you! We Tao Clan are all virgins, virgins! Prostitution is something the Li Clan does! I, for one, never touch those kinds of flesh-selling businesses."

Old Li responded with a snort through his nose.

"You think you're all innocent prostitutes? Who knows what dirty work you do behind the scenes? As the saying goes, it's never believable for a prostitute to reform, let alone your seductive skills—are they fake?"

Hua Niangzi said through gritted teeth.

"Li Wangba, I just said you have to mention that word again."

Seeing that the two men had already rolled up their sleeves and were about to start fighting, Zhou You quickly stepped forward to stop them.

"Calm down, both of you calm down first. Also, do you two know each other?"

The two pointed at each other and started cursing.

"Who knows this bastard?/Who knows this bitch?!"

You two really have great chemistry!

Zhou You could tell that his master and this woman were obviously old acquaintances—whether there was any illicit affair was another matter—but for some reason, the two of them disliked each other very much.

Just as he was about to say something, a shard suddenly landed on his shoulder.

Then came the second piece, and the third piece.

Looking up, I realized that the entire old house was beginning to collapse. It seemed that after the three ghosts died, the place lost all its support and began its irreversible march toward destruction.

Seriously? The evil spirits were resolved so easily?
However, at this moment, Old Man Li suddenly tugged at his clothes and scolded him.

"Hey kid, what are you looking at? This place is about to disappear, hurry up and run!"

Zhou You glanced at the building that resembled a slaughterhouse one last time, then turned around and followed Old Man Li out.

About half an hour later.

In the most upscale restaurant in the city.

The waiter was looking at the group of guests with the eyes of someone eyeing a rare and unusual item.

To be honest, as a waiter with decades of experience, he felt he had seen all sorts of customers, from arrogant and unreasonable to extremely difficult to serve, but someone like him today was truly a rare sight.

On the left is a noblewoman and her maid. At first glance, they seem normal, but a closer look reveals a restless and agitated feeling. The noblewoman is like the embodiment of all the allure in the world. Just looking at her makes his long-dormant manhood show signs of wanting to rise again.

The other side is even more interesting.

One of the old men was wearing a tattered sheepskin coat, looking more like a refugee than a beggar. Next to him sat a ragged young man, who looked a little better than the old man, but was still disheveled, as if he had just been in a fight.

These two groups of people, if not completely unrelated, are like geese in the sky and toads on the ground—they have absolutely nothing in common.

While the waiter was making malicious guesses, the old man had already quickly glanced at the menu and then expertly started announcing the numbers.

"Hey, give me a serving of shark fin soup, a serving of scallops, a serving of turtle soup, a whole roasted lamb, a serving of roasted venison, and then let me see... a serving of fish lips, please. What, you don't have any? What about bear paws? You don't have any either? Tiger penis? Abalone and sea cucumber, all out of stock? Never mind, just give me a serving of clear-broth grouse. Oh, and by the way, bring me two jars of your most expensive wine. I'll drink one and pack the other to go."

Seeing that Old Man Li was going too far, the noblewoman opposite, the woman who was also the beggar, had veins bulging on her forehead and finally couldn't help but slam her hand on the table.

"Li Xiangming, don't go too far!"

To everyone's surprise, in the face of such a scathing rebuke, Old Man Li seemed to have no shame whatsoever. Instead, he rolled his eyes and retorted confidently.

"Didn't you say you were treating? Why are you being so stingy? Besides, your brothel isn't like our righteous sect, where you can just play a tune or sing and get tons of money. Why are you being so stingy?"

"you!"

Hua Niangzi pointed at Old Man Li for a long time, but finally pressed her temples and sat down weakly.

After rubbing her chest for a while to calm herself down, she finally gave instructions to the waiter.

"Don't listen to what he says. Just pick a few easy dishes, two jugs of wine and a pot of tea. We just got here and are exhausted, so our appetites aren't great. It's best to keep it light."

After seeing the other party leave, Hua Niangzi turned to look at Old Man Li.

"So tell me, what exactly are you doing here?"

The tension in their conversation had lessened considerably, but Old Man Li simply rolled his eyes.

"Look at what you're saying. What could I possibly be here for? Of course, I'd be here to exorcise evil spirits and earn a little money through hard work."

Hua Niangzi immediately scoffed.

"Exorcising evil spirits? With your cowardly nature, I originally thought you'd only choose the lowest-level evil spirits you were confident you could handle." As she spoke, she turned to look at Zhou You, scrutinizing him carefully before sighing, "What's truly remarkable is that you've actually taken on a disciple, and one with such skill and temperament! Even before formally accepting the apprenticeship, he managed to hold his own against two vengeful spirits for half a day. With such talent, following you is a waste of his potential."

Old Li selectively ignored the last sentence, then pulled Zhou You along with a smug grin.

"Of course! How could my judgment be wrong? Let me tell you, my disciple is a genius among geniuses. If he studies with me for another three years, I guarantee he'll inherit the position of leader of the White Gate."

However, the next sentence from Lady Hua interrupted his boasting.

"—Now that you've already taken on a disciple, you're planning to participate in this conference, aren't you?" These words only made things worse; Old Man Li's expression immediately turned from sunny to stormy—but for some reason, the usually sharp-tongued man suddenly fell silent, managing only a few stammering words after a long pause.

"I will not participate."

Hua Niangzi sighed.

"You... I don't know why you're so afraid to participate. For over ten years, it's been the only White Gate that's been absent every single time. Everyone else has a lot of complaints about you."

She wanted to say something more, but seeing the old man's expression, she could only shake her head and shut up.

Before long, the food was served, but in the awkward atmosphere, no one touched the dishes on the table. After a while, it was Old Man Li who broke the awkward silence.

"Hey, I haven't seen you for a while, why is there a different apprentice by your side?"

Only then did Zhou You notice the girl who had been silent next to Hua Niangzi.

It's not his fault; the other person's presence was simply too faint. Apart from that time in the dilapidated house, this person just followed behind Hua Niangzi like a shadow, without making any unnecessary movements or saying anything out of line.

Looking closely now, one can see that this girl, who is about fifteen or sixteen years old, is not bad-looking, but she is nowhere near as stunning as the Flower Maiden. She can't even be called a beauty; at best, she is of average appearance, and at most, one could add the word "pretty."

Just then, Lady Hua elegantly picked up a piece of fish, but upon hearing this, she put down her chopsticks and said...

"As you know, our sect's curse is the exact opposite of the Li sect's. We cultivate the art of seduction, yet we are completely averse to any desire. The disciple you met before couldn't resist the temptation and succumbed to depravity. After several days and nights of indulgence, she and those ten or so men melted into one, turning into a fleshy mass several stories high. To prevent her from causing chaos, I had to deal with her myself."

Then she pointed to the girl who had been silent all along.

"As for Hanlu, I only took her into my household a year and a half ago. She's also a woman with a tragic fate. Her parents sold her to an old bachelor in the same village so they could find a wife for their eldest son. I happened to be passing through that village at the time, so I spent a few taels of silver to redeem her."

After that, both sides fell silent again.

An extremely awkward silence.

After a while, Old Man Li simply stopped trying to speak and started wolfing down his food, occasionally stuffing a few pieces of meat into Zhou You's bowl—while Hua Niangzi watched, a hint of nostalgia appearing on her face.

After a while, she suddenly spoke.

“I said, Li Xiangming.”

Unlike before, this statement was very peaceful, like two old friends who hadn't seen each other for many years greeting each other.

Old Li kept talking, but only mumbled something.

"What's wrong?"

Hua Niangzi said softly.

“I’m telling you, your health isn’t what it used to be, and I think there are big problems with this job—the area maintained by those two accomplices is a boundary, and the real evil spirits haven’t shown up yet. Why don’t you just give up? If you’re really short of money, I’ll make up the difference for you first.”

The words were friendly, even heartwarming, but the moment Old Man Li heard them, he felt as if he had been insulted and slammed down his bowl.

"Hua Yurong, you're insulting me! Do you think I'd give you any money? Even if I, Old Li, am so poor I have to beg for food or join a beggar's guild, I would never accept a single penny of your charity!"

Hearing this, Lady Hua was also furious.

"Li Xiangming, don't take my kindness for granted. I only wanted to help you out because you're old and frail, but you're turning around and blaming me."

At this moment, neither of them ate, and they were spitting at each other so fiercely that saliva filled the air.

Not long after, the verbal sparring turned into shouting and cursing. Old Man Li picked up a stool, while Lady Hua, disregarding her status, picked up a vase next to her.

Faced with this situation, Zhou You really couldn't stop them a second time. If the waiter hadn't come up to replenish the dishes, the two of them probably would have really started fighting.

After seeing off the dumbfounded waiter, Lady Hua took a deep breath and continued.

"Fine, you're not giving up, right? Fine, how about we make a bet?"

Old Li spat directly at the spot.

"Fine, let's bet! Who's afraid of who! What do you want to bet? Tell me!"

Hua Niangzi laughed sarcastically.

"It's simple. The evil spirits in this city haven't shown up yet, have they? You and I will each go find clues to them, and whoever finds them first wins."

"Good idea. What's the stake?"

"If you win, I'll give your master and my sister Ping'er a thousand taels of silver to make up for your bad deeds. If you lose, then you and your apprentice will have to work hard under my tutelage for a year, enduring all hardship and beatings, and you'll have to listen to whatever I say. How about that?"

"Alright! We'll see about that!"

Meanwhile, Zhou You, who was innocently shot, stood by, bewildered in the wind.

—Wait, Master, I haven't agreed yet!
Before he could speak, the two men stormed off. Old Man Li summoned a bunch of paper birds, while Lady Hua called over the waiter and told him to inform several of the city's patrons that she would be visiting them that day.

In the blink of an eye, the private room was left in a mess.

Zhou You scratched his head, genuinely bewildered as to how things had turned out this way.

He had a pretty good idea of ​​the relationship between the two. It was probably the kind of relationship where they might have an affair but wouldn't necessarily turn into enemies. He wondered how this lewd and old man, Li, had gotten involved with this beautiful and charming mature woman.

But that's not the point. The point is...
Have you two forgotten something?
Zhou You glanced around and finally could only sigh helplessly, pat his behind, and prepare to leave.

But at that moment, a pair of hands suddenly grabbed the hem of his clothes.

Looking back, the girl called 'Hanlu' was staring at him expressionlessly.

Zhou You was taken aback, then let out a wry smile.

Well, it seems I'm not the only one left behind; this person was also abandoned.

(End of this chapter)