Xuanji finally reacted and let out a low cry, immediately wanting to go forward. Unexpectedly, Yu Sifeng gently grabbed her wrist and shook his head slowly. She froze and turned her head to see Linglong hugging Zhong Minyan and crying. Zhong Minyan first held back, but finally he couldn’t hold back and wrapped his arms around her waist and soothed her.
She only had to stop the impulse, not to disturb the two of them.
Chu Lei said coldly, “You still have the face to come back?”
Zhong Minyan hurriedly pushed Linglong away gently and whispered, “I know my mistake, I have gone astray. I dare not ask for forgiveness, please master punish!”
Chu Lei smiled and said, “Who is your master?”
Zhong Minyan hung his head and did not say anything. Chu Lei said, “I do not kill you, that is already a favor! You still have the face to come back!”
“Please punish me, Master! I would never dare to defend myself!”
Chu Lei said, “Good! Then I ask you, what about the matter of Minjue? It’s only right to kill someone to pay for his life! You compensate a life?”
Zhong Minyan silently untied his sword on his waist, holding it in both hands, and said in a deep voice, “Please punish me, Master!”
He said only these four words, Chu Lei burst into a fury, said, “Are you threatening me?” Before finishing the sentence, he had already grabbed his sword and pulled it out with a click. He Yang said urgently, “Master think twice!” The disciples at the side, seeing his anger, immediately fell down to their knees. For a moment, the scene was dead silent.
Linglong stood up abruptly and stood in front of Zhong Minyan, saying sternly, “Father! You know very well that Mingan was deceived! You …… also know that he saved me! You want to kill him, why don’t you come and kill me first!”
Chu Lei coldly looked at Zhong Minyan, who was kneeling behind her, for a long time, before saying, “Don’t you have anything to say yourself?”
Zhong Minyan straightened up his body, patted Linglong, as a sign of reassurance, and said in a low voice, “I have made a big mistake, I dare not plead for my own mercy. But I implore Master to give me a chance to change my ways, and I would like to explain the past before I am punished.”
“What else is there to explain? Minjue has just been buried, and the mourning hall is still standing, so what do you want to explain?”
“Second Brother was not killed by me!”
Chu Lei said in a deep voice, “Do you think thousands of eyes up and down the Shao Yang Sect are wrong? Didn’t you send the body back that day?”
“I did, but I didn’t know beforehand that the body in the box was the Second Senior Brother’s body!”
“Sophistry!” Chu Lei pushed away Linglong, the sword in his hand flashed, and cut down quickly amidst the crowd’s alarm. Zhong Minyan closed his eyes, only to feel sharp wind rush past his face, brush his chest, followedby a “boom” crack on the ground, only a few inches away from his feet.
He slowly opened his eyes, looked up at his master, once he met Chu Lei’s sorrowful gaze, his heart trembled, hanging his head, trembling voice, “Please master …… kill me!”
Chu Lei stared at his pale face in a daze, and for a time, scene after scene from of he brought him up from childhood flowed in front of his eyes. How to teach him to read and write, how to teach him swordsmanship and martial arts. The child grew older each year, every year to make new clothes, He Danping can not throw away the old clothes, they are pressed at the bottom of a box, small clothes. In the blink of an eye, he was so big, and left without a second thought.
No matter what, he can not stab that sword, finally let out a long sigh, with a ‘bam’ sound, the sword fell in front of Zhong Minyan. Chu Lei turned around with his hands behind his back and said in a low voice, “Okay, I’ll listen to your explanation. Only this one chance.”
Zhong Minyan heart had a moment of confusion, does not know how it feels. Finally gritted his teeth, about to open his mouth, but heard Chu Lei and said: “What are you doing kneeling here? All up! Don’t lose face outside!”
Everyone got up one after another, Linglong cried and laughed, jumped over to help him. She kept calling, “Minyan! Min-Yan!” Zhong Minyan smiled astringently and said in a low voice, “Don’t you call me Little Six anymore?” She hugged his neck and choked back a sob, “Why are you talking nonsense at this time? Just come back!” He sighed, stroked her hair twice and said softly, “Let’s go to the island first, then we’ll talk later.”
The disciples of the Fuyu Island saw that their personal business was finished, so they led the way and flew towards the Fuyu Island with their swords.
Xuanji couldn’t resist going up to talk to Zhong Minyan, but she hesitated and came back. The world of the two people across from each other seems to be beyond her ability to intervene. Yu Sifeng seemed to see her thoughts, squeezed her hand, and said softly, “Let’s go find him together tonight. Let them talk now.”
She nodded her head. On the other side Ting Nu suddenly said softly, “This matter is not necessarily simple. After you get on the Island, you have to look after him, and you can’t relax.”
Xuanji was taken aback, and said anxiously, “Wait, he was originally from here! Now that he’s back! How can you say that?”
Ting Nu said softly, “You calm down. Think about it. If he didn’t come back later and didn’t come back early, but came back when everyone was about to go to the island, there is inevitably a conspiracy behind it. The conspiracy may not be his, although Zhong Minyan is smart, but when it comes to shrewdness in dealing with people, in fact, he is not as good as even Linglong. You think about the strategy of Lord Dongfang Qingqi not to allow miscellaneous people on the island, and then think about why he came back at this time.”
Yu Sifeng frowned: “You mean, Wu Tong’s side sent him to the island to investigate?”
“It may not be impossible to do so. Anyway, you guys keep an eye on him.”
Xuanji and Yu Sifeng glanced at each other and nodded despite reluctance.
The one who did not say anything, Liu Yihuan, suddenly laughed coldly, rubbed his nose and said, “Idiot! Idiot! He is the only one in the world who can be such a fool after being cheated over and over again!”
The two of them remembered what he had said in Qingyang that day, and they were both gloomy.
When they arrived at Fuyu Island, the security inside was much tighter than the last time they came. Arriving in front of the main hall, Dongfang Qingqi has long been smiling and waiting there, Chu Lei and the other three hurriedly greeted, all of them exchanged pleasantries, and only then sat down to tea.
Dongfang Qingqi saw Zhong Minyan standing in the crowd with tears still on his face, heart immediately understood, immediately smiled and said, “This time is your Shaoyang Sect’s Min generation of disciples time to shine! All the people are here, right? Let me see …… Huh? How come Minjue is not here?”
Even if he is smart, but he also can not guess the reason, the words came out, and he saw the faces of the people do not look right, hastily shut up, dryly laughed twice, and said: “The little guys are also here! Linglong, last time you let us worry about you badly. This time you are punished to drink two more glasses of wine! Haha.”
Chu Lei laughed: “Children drink what wine! Brother Qingqi do not spoil them.”
Linglong hurriedly said: “I should, should! Uncle Dongfang Qingqi’s Hundred Flowers Wine, I can not forget it! And the Island Master’s wife’s small dishes …… By the way, Uncle Dongfang, where is your wife?”
Zhong Minyan pulled her sleeve secretly, indicating that she should not say anything, Linglong was confused and unaware.
Qingqi Dongfang was oblivious and said with a smile, “There is plenty of wine! I’m only afraid if you drink too much, your father would have to carry back.”
Chu Lei asked, “Valley Master and Palace Master, they have not yet arrived?”
Dongfang Qingqi shook his head, “Valley Master Rong will arrive tomorrow. There seems to be some private affairs at the Palace,they will arrive a few days later …… Huh, Sifeng is also here! Haha, your Palace Master is always so mysterious, really its unpredictable.”
Yu Sifeng lightly smiled, did not answer. Chu Lei saw that both sides have some embarrassing things that they do not know about each other, if they say more it would be more awkward, so instructed, “I and the Island Master have not seen each other for a long time, there are many things to say. You guys go down to rest first, call you again at dinner time.”
The children were dispersed and led to the guest room.
Xuanji sat in the room for a while, very bored, opened the door and looked outside, there are patrolling disciples of the Fuyu Island, it seems that this time the Dongfang Qingqi is determined to maintain the order of the Zanhua Conference even if that offends the Jianghu people.
She had a lot to ask Zhong Minyan, but he must be with Linglong now, and the two were reunited after a long time, so she couldn’t go over and disturb him. She turned a corner and went to Yu Sifeng to pour out her doubts. After walking just two steps, something hit her suddenly. She looked up and saw a large peach tree across the path, and Téngshé was sitting on the tallest branch, leisurely nibbling on a peach. It was his leftover peach core that hit her.
“Hey! Where are you going with that dead face?” He was as unpleasant as ever.
When Xuanji saw him, she was so angry that she bent down and picked up the peach pit and threw it at his face. Téngshé stuffed the peach into his arms, and dodged it, twisted his waist and jumped down from the tree, and said with a smile, “You didn’t hit me!”
As soon as the words fell, she grabbed the mud and smashed him squarely, and left him gnawing a mouth full of mud.
“Yuck! You stinky girl! I’ll set fire to you!” He wiped his face with his sleeve in anger, “How dare you use mud to smash Lord Téngshé! I’ll go to the Heavenly Emperor and sue you, and you’ll be in trouble!”
Xuanji looked at his face with a black and white look of trouble, could not help but snort a laugh, her stomach full of depression also seems to disappear.
“F*ck, you stupid? Just laugh …” Téngshé took out a peach and tossed it to her, “It tastes good, here you go!”
Xuanji was not polite, rubbed the hair on the peach with her sleeve, opened her mouth and chewed, it was really sweet.
“It’s not bad here, it’s much prettier than Shao Yang or something. It looks a bit like the Heavenly Emperor’s little garden.” Téngshé rested its hand on its forehead and looked around. The beautiful scenery of the Fuyu Island is famous all over the world, but in his words it became the garden of the Heavenly Emperor, which is still small.
“Is Heaven good?” After Xuanji finished eating the peach she dug a hole in the ground and buried the peach pits.
Téngshé thought about it, “The scenery is not bad. But the food is not good, no taste! It looks very beautiful, it tastes like mud, it is better to eat human delicacies.”
Xuanji smiled, and whispered, “Careful when looking at beautiful things, it is often fake.”
Téngshé clapped his hands, “Yes! So you know this saying too! The Emperor Bai always said that what looks beautiful and seductive is often unreliable. Whether it’s people, things, or food, you can’t judge until you’ve seen and tasted it for yourself.”
“He really has a point. But …… who is Emperor Bai?”
Téngshé was stunned and looked at her with pity, sighing, “So you’re already so idiotic that you don’t even know Emperor Bai …… Reincarnation is really harmful ……”
Xuanji pulled his hair hard, causing him to scream, “Say it! Don’t talk nonsense!”
Téngshé was stroking his poor hair with lingering fears, and he moved away from her before saying, “You know nothing about it, little lady! Let me tell you, the Emperor Bai is the White Emperor of the East, the whole East is under his control, and he is like a brother to the Heavenly Emperor! If it wasn’t for Emperor Bai’s intercession, you would have been dead! Would you still ask Lao Zi who is the Emperor Bai?”
Xuanji vaguely felt some impression, but only vague, and finally gave up on the memory, sighed, sat down on the ground, and said in a low voice, “He was right, the better it looks, the more often it is false. Now Linglong has been saved, the Sixth Brother has also returned. Sifeng is also here …… and Brother Liu, Ting Nu …… everyone is so good, too good, just like a gorgeous dream. But I’m still worried ……”
It was the first time Téngshé heard her confess her heart in such a serious way, he couldn’t help but to move over a little and say, “What are you worried about? Women will always worry about not salting radishes enough[1].”
Xuanji said softly, “I don’t know …… maybe I’m afraid someone will come and ruin it all, and I’m even more afraid …… it’s fake.”
“I don’t know whether it’s fake or not. ……” Téngshé also squatted down and said: “But if someone comes to ruin it, you can just beat them back. The god of war, still afraid of those demons and monsters? You used to be their bogeyman!”
Xuanji laughed: “Was I really that good?”
“That’s true! But it’s still a hundred thousand miles behind me, Lord Téngshé. Now, I’m willing to help you a little, so you should thank me for my kindness.”
It is rare for Xuanji not to get angry with him. After thinking and thinking, she suddenly felt that his straight forward thinking was also good. Someone came to destroy, can’t she just beat them back? Thinking of this, she suddenly felt enlightened, took a long breath, lay on her back on the ground and said, “Yes, this beautiful dream, if anyone comes to destroy it, I will kill them all.”
“And me! I want to fight too! I want to fight too!” As soon as he heard that there was a fight to be had, Téngshé immediately leaned forward.
Xuanji raised her hand and patted his handsome face, like a puppy dog, and said, “Okay, the bad guys are coming, so I’ll send you to be the vanguard!”
<<Previous – Chapter List – Next>>
[1]: 咸吃萝卜淡操心 (xián chī luóbo dàn cāoxīn) – metaphor that translates as: ‘worried that (they) haven’t salted radishes enough’.
When you pickle radishes, you must put more salt in them, so that they will last longer and won’t go bad easily. If you put less, you have to worry about whether it will go bad or not.
It is a metaphor about busybodies who often do not know the truth of the matter, but are there to worry about, and do not offer any help. It means minding other people’s business.
If you would like to show your support for the translator, please consider visiting my Ko-fi ^-^
Lazy Cat Translations 