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Upon leaving the house, Xing Ruyi headed straight for Li Siniang's Tavern, unaware of the events happening at home.
Now, the business at Li Family Tavern was thriving. Before she even arrived, she could hear the bustling sounds from a distance. Li Siniang, delicate as a flower but with a personality like a warrior, was surrounded by a crowd, nearly losing her voice from shouting. It was Lingling who, spotting the Fox Demon from afar, called out "Sister Ruyi! Sister Ruyi!" and ran over. Although Si Niang saw the Fox Demon through the crowd, she was helpless to escape and could only nod at her while continuing to deal with the customers buying alcohol.
"Is the business at this Tavern really that good?" the Fox Demon casually asked, only to hear Lingling sigh.
"What's wrong? The business is booming, yet Lingling doesn't seem happy!"
"I'm not unhappy!" Lingling pouted. "Sister Ruyi, do you know what these people are here to buy?"
"Of course, they are here for the signature Peach Blossom Wine from Li Family Tavern!"
"Not at all!" Lingling pointed at the people in front of them. "They are all here for the Exorcism Tonic Wine."
"Do their family members have rheumatism?" Xing Ruyi frowned.
The Exorcism Tonic Wine was a formula provided by Xing Ruyi after she invested in the Tavern; it was a type of Medicinal Wine. Its main ingredients included Liu Jinu, Weylingxian, Stretching Grass, Tuo Gu Cao, Chicken Blood Vine, Deer Antler Glue, Achyranthes Bidentata, Papaya, and Wu Jia Pi. These herbs were crushed and tightly packed into fine cloth bags before being placed in a container filled with high-quality white liquor for sealing and soaking. This concoction could dispel wind and dampness, promote circulation, and strengthen bones. It was particularly effective for those suffering from rheumatism caused by fatigue, cold, or humidity. Originally intended for Si Niang as a prescription to help those poor families tormented by rheumatism who couldn't afford medicine, the Tavern catered to common folk from both the city and outskirts. Thus, the Exorcism Tonic Wine sold quite well; however, with so many people suddenly showing up, it left Lingling frustrated and even puzzled Xing Ruyi.
"What is going on? If someone at home were truly ill, Si Niang wouldn't be surrounded like this. They are all here because of the exorcism aspect; when Si Niang explained that our wine only treats illnesses and does not exorcise spirits, they accused her of looking down on them and refusing to sell them wine. Sister Ruyi, you see, this Medicinal Wine can be considered medicine; if Si Niang sells it and something goes wrong after drinking it, what then?"
"Exorcism?" Xing Ruyi became intrigued. "So they are buying our wine for exorcism purposes."
"Exactly! They are all from the same village." Lingling glanced at those people with annoyance. "They have blocked Si Niang for so long; not only has she lost business but they won't even let her have a sip of water. These people are more difficult to deal with than those stubborn scholars in the city."
"Alright, alright. My Lingling, go to the back and brew some soothing tea for Si Niang. I'll handle things up front!" Xing Ruyi urged as she pushed Lingling into the shop and then found a higher spot to stand on. Gathering her energy in her dantian, she shouted out: "If you want to buy Exorcism Tonic Wine, come find me!"
Shouting out like that without drawing attention is fake. The group that was originally surrounding Li Siniang instantly shifted their gaze to Xing Ruyi. Someone, quick to speak, glanced at Xing Ruyi and asked Li Siniang, "Who is she?"
"Our Li Family Tavern's head manager, Xing Ruyi, Miss Xing!" Li Siniang exhaled lightly and took advantage of the crowd's distraction to squeeze her way out.
"The head manager of Li Family Tavern? Does that mean her words count?" Someone doubted and shouted again.
"If she is the head manager of Li Family Tavern, how could her words not count?" Li Siniang shot a glance at that person. "Miss Xing's words are my words, and whatever Miss Xing does is what Li Family Tavern does."
"What about the Exorcism Tonic Wine? Si Niang refused to sell it to us; surely Miss Xing would be willing?"
"Our business at Li Family Tavern is selling wine. If customers come in with real money, why would I refuse?" Xing Ruyi supported Li Siniang as she came down from a higher spot. "It's just that my Exorcism Tonic Wine is different from other wines. If you want to buy it, you need to see if you can afford it."
"Whether we can afford it or not is not something for the lady to worry about. We have Silver to buy the wine. Today, I, Wang Peng, state here that if we drink this wine and cannot handle it in the future—whether we die or get hurt—it has nothing to do with Li Family Tavern. So, Miss Xing, are you willing to sell this wine to me?"
"Not willing!" Xing Ruyi replied with three simple words.
"Why not?"
"Not willing is just not willing; why are there so many whys?" Xing Ruyi rolled her eyes. "I am the head manager of this Li Family Tavern. If I want to sell, I will sell; if I don't want to sell, then I won't. What can you do about it?"
"Miss Xing's words are quite unreasonable!"
"You think you are reasonable? You think you're reasonable when you've surrounded my Tavern like this? Do you see those people standing outside?" Xing Ruyi pointed at a group of onlookers outside and continued without losing her composure. "They are all customers who come to buy wine from my Tavern. You don't listen to advice and act unreasonably by blocking my Tavern's entrance, making it so I can't conduct business properly. Is this your idea of being reasonable?"
"Surrounding Si Niang is not what we desire, and we are willing to compensate for the losses caused to the young lady. However, we kindly ask that you sell us this wine." Wang Peng was quite quick-witted; upon hearing Xing Ruyi's words, he initially felt anger rising but managed to suppress it in front of everyone: "To be honest, we need this wine to save lives, and it is the lives of our entire village at stake. If the young lady agrees to sell us the wine, she will be a benefactor to our whole village."
"You are quite sincere. How about this: you all step aside at the entrance and do not disrupt the normal business of my Tavern. As for your so-called life-saving matters, please find a quiet place with fewer people and tell me slowly. If it makes sense, I will give you this wine for free. If it doesn't make sense, I’m sorry, but please go buy your wine elsewhere."
"Miss Xing, are you deliberately making things difficult for us?"
"Not at all; I am helping you!" Xing Ruyi glanced at Wang Peng's expression: "You insist on buying my dispelling evil wine while claiming to save the lives of everyone in your village. Isn’t it because something evil has happened in your village? Let me be honest with you: I will not sell this wine! It’s not that I don’t want to save people; it’s because I know that even if you buy this wine, it won’t be of much use. This is merely ordinary Medicinal Wine, and its effects are clearly stated in its name—promoting circulation and relieving pain. Unfortunately, you are blind to its true purpose and only see the words 'dispelling evil.' But let me say this: if your story is compelling enough to touch my heart, perhaps I would personally come over to help your village dispel evil, catch a monster, or exorcise a ghost."
"Miss Xing is a sorceress?" Wang Peng asked in confusion.
"Sort of a part-time job!" Xing Ruyi replied with a smirk: "Anyway, I've made myself clear. If you trust me, then tell me everything that has happened in your village without omitting a single detail. If you don’t trust me, take your Silver and your people and leave as you came. Do not attempt to cause trouble in front of my Tavern. In this vast city of Luoyang, while I may not know many others, I do know Capital Prefecture Yamen's first Constable, Chang Tai, who happens to be my sworn brother."
"I can attest that Constable Chang is indeed our Shopkeeper's sworn brother!" Li Siniang chimed in at the right moment, adding: "Moreover, our Shopkeeper is quite capable; besides running a business, he can also investigate cases and exorcise evil spirits. You are fortunate today to have encountered him on his rounds; otherwise, you wouldn’t even be able to seek him out."
Xing Ruyi twitched her lips; inwardly she thought that Si Niang was putting too high a hat on her.
But despite her thoughts, her face remained smiling as if she didn’t care whether they believed her or not.
Wang Peng was quite conflicted; however, since Si Niang refused to sell the wine and the new arrival seemed even more difficult to deal with, he felt he had only one path left: to treat a dead horse as if it were alive.
"Miss Xing, may I invite you over here?"
"Of course!" Xing Ruyi replied as she headed towards a quieter spot. Li Siniang, feeling somewhat uneasy, instructed the bell to keep an eye on the Tavern and quickly followed after them.
Everyone settled down, and Wang Peng began to recount the events that had taken place in the village.
The village where Wang Peng lived had a very unique name: Sisters-in-law. Most of the villagers shared the surname Wang. To the north of the village, there was a large forest, home to many creatures. Sisters-in-law Village had a simple and honest culture, with most villagers relying on farming for their livelihood. In their leisure time, villagers often hunted in the forest for recreation and occasionally gathered firewood.
As the weather warmed up and there were no farming tasks to attend to, young people would often venture into the forest after dinner in groups of three or five to set traps for animals. The game they caught mostly consisted of wild chickens and rabbits, which the villagers were reluctant to eat themselves and instead sold in town to supplement their household income. The strange occurrences in Sisters-in-law Village began in this forest.
"Could it be that we encountered mountain spirits or monsters?" Xing Ruyi said sleepily, regretting coming out from home.
"It’s not mountain spirits or monsters, but it’s even more frightening!" Wang Peng rubbed his palms together. "Because we all know that person!"
"Possessed?" Xing Ruyi rubbed her eyes, forcing herself to pay attention.
"Sort of possessed!" Wang Peng said as he stood up and then sat back down again. Although his face remained calm, panic flickered in his eyes. It seemed that this past event was something he was extremely reluctant to recall.
"On the night before last, my cousin Zhuzi and I had dinner and then went into that forest. Earlier that day, we had set seven or eight traps in the woods, thinking we would surely catch something. Strangely enough, it got dark unusually early; by the time we arrived at the forest, it was completely dark. We checked two spots without finding anything, but at the third trap, we spotted a gray rabbit. Just as I was about to call my cousin over to retrieve it, I suddenly heard a strange animal sound coming from above in the trees. At that moment, I didn’t think much of it and looked up toward the sound."
At this point, Wang Peng couldn't help but shiver; his face turned pale. Li Siniang noticed and hurried back to the tavern to fetch a bottle of Peach Blossom Wine for him to warm up and regain his composure.
With liquid courage from the wine, Wang Peng drank from the bottle as if it were water, gulping down several mouthfuls until his complexion became rosy. He was about seven or eight parts drunk but still somewhat aware of his surroundings. With hazy eyes, he glanced at Xing Ruyi and continued reminiscing: "I originally thought it was just an owl or a stray cat up in that tree. But when I looked up under the moonlight and saw what it was, I nearly fell to the ground in fright! Miss Xing, do you know? There was actually a man crouching in that tree!"
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