Chapter 183: Merry Manor

The rice-ladling man raised the red-hot iron rod and stared at Miss Chu. "That bearded man isn't an Ascetic Cultivator at all. Since he isn't one, why did he come to Bitter Greens Manor?"

Earlier that day, during their brief but unpleasant clash, he had sensed something unsettling about Li Banfeng. The man's cultivation had felt... different. He didn't know the man's purpose for coming here, but that brief confrontation had shaken his standing within the manor.

And ever since then, things hadn't quite sat right.

He might have been nothing more than the man who handed out rice, but he valued that position deeply. In Bitter Greens Manor, it gave him real authority. He did not simply ladle out bowls; he oversaw the distribution of grain. That meant control. He controlled who ate and who went hungry.

"Just tell me his name. I only want his name."

The rice-ladling man moved forward one slow step at a time, the iron rod glowing in his hand. Miss Chu's body trembled uncontrollably.

It would have been a lie to say she was not afraid.

Miss Chu bit down on her lip until it nearly bled. Her eyes were bloodshot as she shouted, "Come on! Do it! Burn me right here! Let's see if I'm afraid! If you don't dare, you're nothing but a bastard!"

The onlookers were stunned.

How could this woman be so mad?

She was only a level-two Ascetic Cultivator. If that iron truly pressed into her flesh...

He was only asking for a name. Why wouldn't she say it?

Miss Chu did not truly know Li Qi. The only thing she knew was that Li Qi did not want others to know anything about him.

The rice-ladling man gave a cold laugh. "Little girl, you've got guts. I have prepared more than a dozen iron rods. I'll take my time with you. Don't say I didn't warn you! If your door is unscrewed, you won't be considered a woman anymore. But that might be for the best because us Ascetic Cultivators shouldn't have those distracting thoughts. If you are truly that strong-willed, you better not scream later on!"

Sizzle!

Miss Chu did not scream. The rice-ladling man screamed instead.

"Ahhhhhhhhhhh!!!"

His scream burst out, loud and shrill. A moment earlier, the iron rod had been clutched tightly in his hand. Then Li Banfeng's kick struck. The rod flew upward, flipped once in the air, and came down with dreadful precision straight onto his own face.

There was a vicious hiss. The blazing metal carved a burning line from the center of his brow all the way down to the corner of his mouth.

These people had originally planned to ambush Li Banfeng. But when they saw him appear without warning and brand the rice-ladling man instead, their plan collapsed at once.

The group of Ascetic Cultivators turned and fled, scrambling back into the Free Meal Hall in a panic. Only the rice-ladling man remained before him, already knocked flat onto the ground by two swift kicks from Li Banfeng.

Li Banfeng planted one foot on the man's chest, iron rod in hand, and asked calmly, "What did you just say about unscrewing someone's door? What exactly is this door?"

The rice-ladling man's voice trembled. "A door... it's just a door..."

Miss Chu spat and said, "The door is something on the body."

"Something on the body?" Li Banfeng repeated. He stared at the rice-ladling man for a long moment, as though expecting a door to pop open at any second. "Then where's yours? Where is it?"

The rice-ladling man had no idea how to answer.

Miss Chu murmured softly, "He doesn't have a door..."

Li Banfeng felt so confused. "Didn't you just say it's something on the body? Why doesn't he have one?"

"He's a man," Miss Chu replied, her voice shrinking to almost nothing. "Men don't have doors..."

"Men don't have doors?"

Such a thing truly existed?

Li Banfeng looked as though someone had just informed him that men sprouted wings at night. He was deeply shocked by the answer.

"No means no..." Miss Chu muttered, though she no longer seemed certain what she was saying.

"Really none?" Li Banfeng glanced down at the man pinned beneath his foot.

"None! Really none!" the rice-ladling man cried, shaking his head so hard it looked as if it might fall off.

Li Banfeng slowly lifted the iron rod.

"In that case," he said thoughtfully, "how about I make one for you?"

Miss Chu was so frightened that she froze where she stood, her mind going completely blank.

The rice-ladling man begged again and again for mercy.

Sizzle.

A thin thread of scorched smoke curled into the air.

The rice-ladling man's wails turned shrill and unbearable, loud enough to make the walls tremble.

Granny Bitter stood at a distance and watched. She did not move. She did not speak.

As long as no one died, she would not interfere in matters of suffering.

Cultivation. All of this, in her eyes, was cultivation.

***

A "door" had been made on the rice-ladling man.

He did not die. Instead, he lay there "sleeping" very peacefully.

Li Banfeng glanced at the man on the ground and muttered to himself, "Should I start calling him Auntie from now on?"

Miss Chu was still hanging from the wooden post. She lowered her head and looked down at Li Banfeng. "Did you come to save me?"

Li Banfeng did not know how to answer. He had not come to save Miss Chu. He had come to cause trouble at the Free Meal Hall. However, just moments ago, she had straightened her back and refused to give him up. She would rather have her "door" destroyed than reveal his name.

Because of that, Li Banfeng's impression of her changed.

I suppose I will lie to you just this once

, Li Banfeng thought. He looked up at Miss Chu with a steady, serious expression and gave a firm nod.

"Yes."

After saying that, he lowered the brim of his hat and walked away.

Yes. He had come to save me.

That single word carried enormous weight for Miss Chu. It made her realize that there was still someone in this world who cared about her.

Watching Li Banfeng's back grow smaller in the distance, tears welled in her eyes. "If you came to save me, why didn't you take me down?"

Miss Chu was still hanging from the wooden post.

Li Banfeng stopped immediately, turned around, and hurried back. He quickly untied her from the post.

Ah I really forgot! I forgot!

While untying the rope, Li Banfeng still found the time to ask, "Do you have a door?"

"Yes," Miss Chu replied softly.

"You really do..."

"What woman doesn't?!" Miss Chu snapped, unable to endure any longer.

Li Banfeng paused. He thought about the pendulum and the earring, then slowly shook his head. "Not necessarily."

Crimson Lotus and the liquor gourd probably have one

, he thought.

Wifey has a door too. The cabinet door on her casing... would that count?

Miss Chu wiped the blood from her face and said to Li Banfeng, "When we get back to Greenwater City, I will take you to a hospital to check your..."

"Rest here for a bit. I'll go invite them to take a bath." Li Banfeng turned and walked toward the Free Meal Hall.

He rubbed the teapot and spoke under his breath. "Oldie Brodie, I don't need to remind you about the water temperature, do I?"

"Little Brodie, you are causing quite a mess," the teapot replied. "I am afraid Granny Bitter will not let you off lightly."

It would be best if she did not spare me

, Li Banfeng thought.

She won't kill me anyway. As long as she kicks me out of Bitter Greens Manor, anywhere would be better than here.

He sprang onto the roof. Soon after, waves of wailing rose from inside the building.

Granny Bitter, where did you go? Don't you forbid the people in the manor from bathing? I have broken the rules again. Hurry and throw me out,

Li Banfeng screamed inwardly.

***

That night, Granny Bitter did not appear.

At dawn the next day, when it was time for breakfast, everyone stood in the Free Meal Hall with bowls in hand, waiting with a kind of nervous anticipation.

The rice-ladling uncle could no longer cook. He had become an "auntie" now and was still lying on a straw mat, recovering in silence.

If he could not cook, then Li Banfeng would.

Miss Chu chopped the firewood. Miss Chu lit the fire. Miss Chu hauled the water. Miss Chu washed the rice.

As for Li Banfeng? He controlled the heat, adjusting it with careful precision.

That morning they had porridge, still accompanied by bitter greens. However, there was no sand in it this time.

The Free Meal Hall always had more than enough grain. At noon, they had plain rice, and everyone ate until full.

In the evening it was porridge again, but this time there was meat. Li Banfeng took out ten cans and poured them into the pot.

It was a fine meal. The Ascetic Cultivators, whose faces had long been as green as the bitter greens they ate, finally showed a trace of healthy color.

Granny Bitter stood outside the Free Meal Hall. The corner of her eye twitched.

You think this will make me let you go? Very well. Let me see how long you can keep up this madness.

The madness would only grow worse.

Late that night, Li Banfeng lifted the liquor gourd and asked, "What is the strongest liquor in the world?"

"Little Brother, that is difficult to answer," the gourd replied. "How strong do you want it?"

"Can you knock out sixty people with 500 grams of liquor?"

"Yes," the liquor gourd said confidently.

"Don't let the flavor be too obvious."

"I can make it so they will not taste the alcohol at all."

Li Banfeng smiled. "We are having porridge again tomorrow morning."

***

The next morning, the Free Meal Hall served porridge again.

After finishing two bowls, a woman suddenly burst into tears. "If that man hadn't deceived me, I would never have ended up in a place like this."

Her name was Qian Jiafeng. She had once come from a respectable family. Like Swallowie, she had been tricked by a man who trampled her heart without mercy. In her despair, she had chosen the path of an Ascetic Cultivator.

A man moved over and sat beside her. His voice was gentle when he asked, "What kind of man was he?"

His name was Ou Haidong. In Bitter Greens Manor, his lodging was close to Qian Jiafeng's, and the two often looked out for one another. However, the manor had its rules. No one was allowed to ask about another's past. As a result, he knew very little about her history.

Qian Jiafeng sobbed. "He is the most shameless man in the world. He came to my home as a tutor. With the few poems he could write, he managed to deceive me. When my father found out, he threw me out of the house. I still wanted to live with him, but in the blink of an eye, he had already found another woman."

Ou Haidong sighed. "Don't cry. A man like that isn't worth your tears."

He wanted to put an arm around her, but before he could, a middle-aged woman carrying a bowl of porridge plopped down beside them.

"If you ask me, not a single man is any good," she declared. "All of them are heartless wolves."

With that, she tipped her head back and drained the entire bowl in one gulp.

A middle-aged man nearby leaned over with his face flushed, "That's not reasonable. I am quite a good man."

"Pfft!" The woman spat. "Stay away from me. I don't trust you people and your dangling dongs!"

"I have one!" the former rice-ladling uncle cried as he slurped his porridge. "I really do!"

Another man laughed cheerfully. "They say you have got a 'door' now. Let me take a look. I haven't seen one in ages."

Throughout the Free Meal Hall, sobbing and laughter tangled together until the whole place rang with a chaotic chorus.

𝗳𝗿𝐞𝕖𝘄𝗲𝕓𝗻𝚘𝚟𝕖𝐥.𝚌𝕠𝕞

Granny Bitter stood at the entrance of the Free Meal Hall, watching everything in silence. The corner of her eye twitched once more.

Fine. Let me see how long your madness lasts!

***

After three days of free meals, everyone returned to their own lodgings.

That night, Li Banfeng and Miss Chu did not go back. Instead, they followed Qian Jiafeng to her quarters.

Li Banfeng lowered his voice. "Are you sure there's something going on between those two?"

Miss Chu nodded. "They were already making eyes at each other. But neither of them dared to tear through that thin sheet between them."

Li Banfeng gave her a look of mild disdain. "You never went to school, did you? You don't tear it. You poke through it."

Miss Chu froze for a moment. "Are we talking about a window... or a 'door?'"

***

They did not have to wait long before Ou Haidong arrived.

Miss Chu nodded as if this proved her point. "I knew it. Every time the free meals end, he comes to Qian Jiafeng's place to help tidy up."

Li Banfeng shot her a sideways glance. "Did you come to Bitter Greens Manor to cultivate or to watch the drama?"

Miss Chu lowered her head. "I just happened to notice..."

The Miss Chu in Bitter Greens Manor seemed like a completely different person from the one in Greenwater City. Li Banfeng could not tell which of the two was her true self.

Before long, the room was tidy again. Qian Jiafeng invited Ou Haidong to stay for tea. He accepted one cup out of courtesy, then rose to leave like a proper gentleman.

Qian Jiafeng walked him to the door. Just as she stepped outside, she saw a woman standing at the entrance, her face was covered in scars and fresh wounds and her expression was grim and gloomy.

Qian Jiafeng shuddered, and Ou Haidong quickly stepped in front of her.

"You are the girl who was beaten earlier, aren't you?" he said, recognizing Miss Chu. "We didn't dare offend the rice-ladling man. We couldn't help you, but we didn't lay a hand on you either."

Miss Chu looked at Ou Haidong, then at Qian Jiafeng. "You two really didn't hurt her?"

Ou Haidong answered solemnly, "I live openly and uprightly. I won't deny anything I've done."

"Fine. I believe you." Miss Chu turned and walked away.

Qian Jiafeng trembled for a long while before whispering, "Sh-she's so frightening..."

Ou Haidong's expression grew grave. "She's pitiful, but she seems unstable. She might come back."

Qian Jiafeng grabbed his hand. "I... I'm scared."

"Don't worry," Ou Haidong said. "I'll stand guard at your door all night."

"At the door..."

He lowered his head. "I won't enter your room. Rest assured."

He remained outside her doorway. After more than half an hour, Qian Jiafeng stepped out again.

"How about another cup of tea?"

"No." Ou Haidong took a deep breath. "You should rest early."

"Just... a cup of tea..."

Ou Haidong thought for a moment, then nodded. "Alright."

He drank another cup.

The tea was unusual. It carried liquor, yet he could not taste it at all. The drink was potent. It warmed the blood, bolstered a man's vigor, and heightened the mood.

They drank several more cups. After a while, Ou Haidong suddenly reached out and touched Qian Jiafeng's cheek. Qian Jiafeng clasped his hand and pulled him into the inner room.

***

Li Banfeng and Miss Chu crouched beneath the window, peering inside with complete concentration.

After a time, Li Banfeng tugged lightly at her sleeve, signaling that they should leave. Miss Chu did not so much as blink.

They watched a while longer, and Li Banfeng signaled again that they should go.

Still, Miss Chu refused to leave. The veins on her forehead were beginning to stand out, yet she remained rooted to the spot as though nailed there.

At last, Li Banfeng reached over and pinched her backside. Miss Chu winced at the pain, savoring the pinch in a strange way, and finally left reluctantly.

On the way back, Miss Chu grumbled nonstop. "You dragged me all over the place tonight, and you wouldn't even let me finish watching?"

"Do you know where that middle-aged woman lives?" Li Banfeng asked calmly.

"I do, but what could possibly be worth seeing there?"

Li Banfeng glanced ahead, sounding faintly mysterious. "It is worth seeing. You wouldn't understand..."

As they walked toward the next house, they quietly compared their "observations."

Granny Bitter watched them from behind and thought,

Fine. Keep up the madness. Fine. Let me see... No. I can't keep watching this anymore.

Unable to endure any longer, Granny Bitter gave Li Banfeng a thorough beating the next day. Li Banfeng did not mind. He treated it as tempering his body.

Afterward, Granny Bitter returned to her dwelling and plucked bitter greens one leaf at a time. When more than half a basket was filled, she suddenly heard Li Banfeng's hearty laughter again.

"Hahaha! This place is pretty nice!"

What is this madman going to do now?

Granny Bitter muttered inwardly as she tossed the bitter greens into the basket and ground her teeth.

Author's Note:

PS: Bitter Greens Manor is almost Merry Manor now.