So here’s what happened. A few months ago, Hou Xianpin met a beautiful girl named Taotao at a classmate’s wedding.
Taotao seemed to have some kind of magic about her. The first time Hou Xianpin saw her, he was deeply drawn to her. And Taotao appeared to be interested in him too. They exchanged phone numbers privately.
After spending some time together, Hou Xianpin felt that Taotao was gentle, pretty, and considerate—exactly like the girl of his dreams.
He had already made up his mind that in this lifetime, he wouldn’t marry anyone but Taotao.
But over the past week, Hou Xianpin realized something was wrong.
Even during work hours when he wasn’t with Taotao, his mind was completely filled with thoughts of her. Sometimes, just one phone call from her would make him stand there grinning like an idiot for several minutes.
Hou Xianpin isn’t the kind of person who lacks self-control. He started to feel that something was off—like his mind was being controlled by someone.
So he tried to deliberately stop thinking about Taotao. Then, something terrifying happened.
Taotao would actively appear in his mind at regular intervals, and no matter how hard he tried, he couldn’t push her out. And during those times when she appeared in his thoughts, it was as if he were being controlled—he would do things that were completely out of character.
Today, Wang Yan, the secretary to the chairman of the Zhao Corporation, came to Hou Xianpin to ask about the bidding for the Hu Corporation’s assets.
Having been a secretary for many years, Hou Xianpin naturally knew what he should and shouldn’t say. He was just about to send her away.
But right then, Taotao suddenly appeared in his mind, constantly hinting to him that he should tell Wang Yan everything he knew.
His conscious mind told him not to say anything—absolutely nothing. But somehow, his mouth was out of control, and he spilled everything he knew.
And as luck would have it, Mayor Tang happened to walk past his door and witnessed the whole thing.
Furious, Mayor Tang gave Hou Xianpin a severe tongue-lashing and kicked him out.
Hou Xianpin wandered the streets all day.
As he reflected on everything that had happened recently, the more he thought about it, the more frightened he became.
What scared him was that the whole situation with Taotao was completely beyond his understanding—like a witch from a fairy tale had taken control of his mind. The more he thought about it, the more terrified he felt.
What worried him was whether Mayor Tang would stop trusting him because of this incident.
He thought about how he had started as a young man from the countryside, worked hard, put in a hundred times more effort than ordinary people, and finally made it to where he was today. If everything were to be ruined by one unintentional confession, he would regret it forever.
Overwhelmed by fear and despair, Hou Xianpin sank deeper and deeper into hopelessness. He felt like a lost soul, as if his life was completely over.
It was under those circumstances that Hou Xianpin nearly got hit by Lin Hai’s car, which led to everything that followed.
After hearing all this, Lin Hai’s expression turned serious.
From Hou Xianpin’s description, it was clear that this Taotao was no ordinary person. But Lin Hai’s knowledge in this area was severely lacking. Apart from somehow recognizing that the glow above Hou Xianpin’s head was the Calamity of Romantic Entanglements, he knew nothing else.
“Xiao Lin, that’s the situation. So, is there any way to break the curse?” Hou Xianpin asked with a hint of nervousness.
“Brother Hou, your situation is pretty complicated. Let me think about it, and I’ll give you an answer tomorrow,” Lin Hai said, buying himself some time. He figured he’d go back and ask those goofy immortal guys first.
“Tomorrow?” Hou Xianpin’s expression dimmed noticeably, but he quickly recovered. “Alright, Xiao Lin, I’m counting on you. Here’s my business card. Give me a call when you have news.”
“Okay,” Lin Hai said. He drove Hou Xianpin back and then headed home himself.
When he got home, his parents were already asleep. Lin Hai went straight to his room.
As soon as he entered, he saw Chu Liner sitting there, completely absorbed in playing Gomoku on her phone. She didn’t even look up when he came in.
Lin Hai couldn’t help but sigh.
There goes another promising young person, hopelessly addicted to gaming.
If her father ever found out that Lin Hai had turned his daughter into an internet addict—well, actually, a solo-game addict—he wondered if the old man would personally drag him down to the underworld and deep-fry him in a cauldron of oil ten or twenty times over.
Lin Hai lay down on the bed and took out his phone. After a moment’s thought, he decided to send a message to Sun Wukong first.
Little Confused Immortal: Great Sage, do you know how to break the Calamity of Romantic Entanglements?
Sun Wukong’s reply came quickly.
Sun Wukong: Brother, did you get hit by the Calamity of Romantic Entanglements? Hahaha, why break it? Just enjoy it!
Ugh… Lin Hai’s face darkened.
Little Confused Immortal: Great Sage, it’s a friend of mine who’s afflicted. He’s in extreme pain and desperately needs a solution.
Sun Wukong: That’s easy. Find the source of the calamity and smash it to death with one strike of my staff.
Oh my god, Lin Hai was about to lose it. Every time he asked this monkey about something, the answer was always this violent. Does he think everyone is as powerful as he is?
Lin Hai realized he wasn’t getting anything useful from Sun Wukong. After thinking for a moment, he decided to ask Tieguai Li instead. Tieguai Li seemed more reliable.
Little Confused Immortal: Do you know how to break the Calamity of Romantic Entanglements?
Tieguai Li: The Calamity of Romantic Entanglements! (followed by a row of shocked emojis)
Damn it, I’m so done! Lin Hai cursed under his breath.
Why can’t this guy ever have a conversation without being shocked?
Little Confused Immortal: What do you mean?
Lin Hai was starting to get impatient.
Tieguai Li: Ah, the peach garden holds the calamity of love, the blossom is in the garden, but the calamity lies in the heart.
Oh man, Lin Hai was so annoyed. He had just thought this guy was reliable, and now he’s suddenly reciting poetry.
Little Confused Immortal: Just speak normally!
Tieguai Li: My third brother, Lü Dongbin, has gone through several lifetimes of romantic calamities. They all arise from the heart. If the feelings don’t end, the calamity has no solution.
Lin Hai was dumbfounded.
Wait, so this means the Calamity of Romantic Entanglements can’t be broken?
What’s he supposed to do then?
Little Confused Immortal: So there’s really no way?
Tieguai Li: If there are only the calamity without the feelings, it might be broken through external means.
Lin Hai rolled his eyes.
So basically everything before that was just useless nonsense, and this was the real answer.
Little Confused Immortal: What kind of external means?
Tieguai Li: The romantic calamity is also known as the Xianchi Pool. But Xianchi is just the mortal name for it. It’s actually the Jade Pool of our Heavenly Court. You just need to find the Jade Pool Fairy, take one ladle of water from the Jade Pool, and pour it over the head of the afflicted person. The calamity will resolve itself. However, the emotional bond between the source of the calamity and the afflicted person will be severed forever.
Now Lin Hai understood. All he had to do was find the Jade Pool Fairy.
Lin Hai opened the Heavenly Court Trading Group.
Little Confused Immortal: @JadePoolFairy, are you there?
He waited for a moment.
JadePoolFairy: @LittleConfusedImmortal, I’m here. What is it, fellow cultivator?
Little Confused Immortal: Could I trouble you for one ladle of water from the Jade Pool?
As soon as Lin Hai sent this message, it caused an uproar.
Sun Wukong: @LittleConfusedImmortal, Brother, I never would have guessed you had this kind of hobby (followed by a string of mischievous grinning emojis)
Moli Qing: @LittleConfusedImmortal, wahaha! A kindred spirit! I can’t believe you’d openly ask for it in the group. Outrageous enough—I like it!
Chang’e: @LittleConfusedImmortal, how annoying! Did you just see me come out? (followed by a shy emoji)
Seven Fairies: @LittleConfusedImmortal, handsome, a true master doesn’t show his skills. You’ve been hiding deep. (followed by a hand-over-mouth laughing emoji)
Zhu Bajie: @LittleConfusedImmortal, haha, old Zhu here secretly went to the Jade Pool just yesterday. It smells so good there.
……
What the hell is going on?
Lin Hai stared at the messages from these goofy immortals, each one tagging him and saying bizarre things. He was completely dumbfounded.
Damn it, something’s off here.
Lin Hai quickly sent another message to Tieguai Li.
Little Confused Immortal: What’s going on in the group? What exactly is Jade Pool water?
Tieguai Li’s reply came quickly.
But the moment Lin Hai read it, he almost fell flat on his face.
Are you kidding me? This is a total scam!
Looking at the group messages where people were still tagging him, Lin Hai let out a miserable howl.
“Give me back my good image!!!”
