Taboo Mage - Chapter 199 - Pan Yuzhi's Story

Zhou Qifang walked over to me and reached out his hand. “Did you find that thing?”

His sudden question caught me off guard, and I stared at him, confused.

Zhou Qifang looked anxious as he directly reached into my pocket, rummaging around for a while but unable to find anything.

My pocket was cleaner than my face, so where could anything come from?

As I silently criticized in my mind, my thoughts suddenly cleared. I realized he must be looking for the copper mirror.

But he seemed quite familiar with what was behind the theater stage, even knowing about the copper mirror.

It’s important to note that I was only able to find the copper mirror thanks to the blue spirit in the soul-capturing bottle leading the way. If it had been just me, it would have been impossible.

Besides, before I saw the thing with my own eyes, I didn’t even know it was a copper mirror.

But how did Zhou Qifang know?

With endless doubts swirling in my heart, I looked at Zhou Qifang with suspicion in my eyes.

Zhou Qifang understood my doubts but didn’t explain. Instead, he stood up and abruptly snatched my backpack from behind me.

“Hey! What are you doing…”

Before I could finish my sentence, Zhou Qifang yanked open the zipper of my backpack, flipped it over, and dumped all the contents out with a loud clatter.

“I swear…” I muttered as I bent down, frantically picking up the scattered items from the ground. Zhou Qifang, however, quickly found the copper mirror from the pile and snatched it away before I could reach for it.

“What the hell do you want?!” I couldn’t hold back any longer. I stood up, clutching my backpack, and shouted angrily at Zhou Qifang.

Holding the copper mirror, Zhou Qifang examined it from different angles for a long time before he slowly said, “So, it really is like this…”

At that moment, I couldn’t care less about what “like this” meant. I stuffed everything back into my backpack and walked toward the door.

“Gu Qingshu, I think I know what’s really going on here!” Zhou Qifang followed closely behind me. There was a slight tremor in his voice, filled with a mix of fear and excitement.

I had known Zhou Qifang for a while, and I had never seen fear on his face before.

As for excitement, seeing Zhou Qifang, who was used to strange occurrences, feeling excited suggested that this matter was indeed very intriguing.

With that thought, I halted my steps. Once Zhou Qifang caught up, I casually asked him, “What do you mean by that?”

Zhou Qifang held the copper mirror in his hand, excitedly saying, “Just now, I talked to several elderly villagers who have lived a long time, asking them if there was once a remarkable performer in this village.”

“And then?” I continued, intrigued by what he was saying.

Zhou Qifang shook the mirror in front of him and added, “The elders said that there was indeed a very talented woman in this village who had performed in the big city. It seems this was back in the Republic of China period.”

The Republic of China was a time known for many talented women emerging during turbulent times. For those with skills, background didn’t matter at all.

In this village, there was a famous woman.

Her name was Pan Yuzhi, a native of the village. When she was young, on festive occasions, the Village Chief would foot the bill to set up a theater troupe for the whole village to enjoy.

Growing up watching performances, Pan Yuzhi developed a strong interest in singing. However, in the society of her time, pursuing such a lowly profession was out of the question for any family that could afford to live decently.

The term “actor” has a negative connotation, especially for girls. Joining a theater troupe was not much different from going to a brothel.

Pan Yuzhi came from a good family, making it nearly impossible for her to learn to perform. Yet she was fiercely competitive and stubborn. When her family wouldn’t allow her to learn, she became determined to join a well-known theater troupe of the time.

Once in the troupe, Pan Yuzhi started to live out her fantasy of a romantic love story. She learned quickly, showcasing great intelligence.

By the time she was seventeen, she had become the backbone of the troupe, with her rendition of “Peony Pavilion” stealing the show.

That was when a very important person entered Pan Yuzhi’s life.

He was the young master of a warlord’s family, exceptionally handsome and with an impressive demeanor. The moment he stood in front of Pan Yuzhi, she was smitten.

Moreover, he was someone who was always submissive and caring toward her.

Pan Yuzhi fell head over heels, believing she had found her destined partner. However, she was unaware that the young master already had a wife at home.

How could a strong-willed woman tolerate her man indulging in pleasures outside?

The young master’s wife had continuously found various reasons to make things difficult for Pan Yuzhi at the theater. Although Pan Yuzhi cherished her feelings for the young master, she began to suspect that he might just be a spoiled playboy who indulged in women.

Ultimately, neither the young master nor Pan Yuzhi was willing to let go of each other, which led the young master’s wife to take drastic measures. One night, she hired someone to set fire to Pan Yuzhi’s room while she was sleeping.

The flames blazed fiercely, destroying Pan Yuzhi’s beauty and ultimately claiming her life.

Zhou Qifang narrated this tragic story effectively; it was full of twists and turns. It seemed he had been greatly influenced by the elderly villagers. I realized that the figure haunting Jue Chi was none other than Pan Yuzhi.

Her true face had become so disfigured precisely because of the fire that had taken her life.

While the tale was indeed tragic, it didn’t change the fact that she had been manipulated in life. That, however, didn’t mean she had the right to toy with other men in death.

Moreover, the one she targeted was none other than that detestable monk, Jue Chi.

I couldn’t muster any sympathy for her after that realization.

Looking at Zhou Qifang, I asked him what his plans were next. He told me that he had only heard the story from the elderly villagers and couldn’t verify its truth.

I snorted. Regardless of whether it was true or not, I couldn’t easily let her go this time.

Back at the inn, I checked to make sure I hadn’t missed anything in my backpack. Suddenly, I remembered something and hurried to the small grove behind the inn. I found a peach blossom tree and snapped off a large branch covered in blossoms.