Urbaner Blumentraum - Kapitel 223
The man in the yellow shirt remained silent, gazing blankly downstairs, his eyes revealing a mixture of joy, melancholy, sorrow, and helplessness.
After a long while, he slowly said, "I see the person I've been missing!"
Her voice was low and captivating, filled with deep emotion, enough to break one's heart and enchant one's soul.
Zhu Huihui and Feng Xuese rode together on a single horse, slowly traveling along Dongting Lake.
Under the setting sun, the blue water met the sky, a vast expanse of one color, shimmering with golden light. Water birds fluttered, hundreds of boats raced, and the islands in the center of the lake appeared and disappeared in the distance—a truly magnificent scene of lake and water beauty.
Even though Zhu Huihui was completely illiterate, standing amidst this magnificent natural scenery, he felt refreshed and his mind was opened up.
The journey from Zhuma Village to Dongting Lake took more than half a month.
Firstly, Zhu Huihui had a fractured calf bone. Although the injury was not serious, she should not overexert herself. Secondly, she was constantly being chased along the way.
Since her whereabouts had already been revealed, Feng Xuese simply reverted to her white attire. However, she became ruthless, killing anyone she encountered and vanquishing even Buddhas in her path, her methods now far more cruel and merciful than before.
Since the assassins had managed to find them, the troops of Maple Snow City had naturally arrived to meet them. Maple Snow simply gave some instructions and then refused the escort from her subordinates, instead riding her Flying Lightning Snow Steed, taking Zhu Huihui with her at a leisurely pace.
The people of Maple Snow City dared not disobey their young master's orders, so they could only secretly follow and protect him, while Maple Snow pretended not to know.
Insert bookmark
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Author's Note:
I'm up early today and updating early!
It's Friday! Let's all keep going until the last bit of energy is gone, then we can take a little break!
Nestled among green bamboo and flowering trees, a mountain villa is built along the lake, with exquisite eaves peeking out from between the city walls and battlements. As you approach, you see a magnificent vermilion gate, above which hangs a vermilion wooden plaque with four large, flowing characters that gleam in the setting sun.
Zhu Huihui loudly proclaimed, "Shuixing is gone!"
Feng Xuese was startled, remained silent for a moment, and secretly raised her hand to wipe her sweat. She remembered that Fang Jianwu's branch in Dongting had a plaque above the door with four large characters in cursive script: "Xuan Yue Shui Yu" (Mysterious Moon Water Island)—it was truly remarkable that this girl actually recognized one of the four characters!
Zhu Huihui was still puzzled: "Master, there is no place you mentioned, only 'went to Shuixing'."
Feng Xuese said gently, "This is it, we've arrived."
He came here because he received news that Fang Jianwu had specially invited people from Beikong Valley to visit him and treat his injuries.
"Have we arrived?"
Is this place called "Quli Shuixing" the Xuan Yue Shui Yu that the old man mentioned? Although Zhu Huihui felt a little strange, he knew that he had probably mispronounced the word again, but he didn't care at all. He just held the reins and looked at the elegant and exquisite, magnificent manor with boundless joy: "Great hero, have we really arrived?"
The old man said that all his friends had "gone to Shuixing," and she no longer had to worry that someone would chase after them and kill them both! She dismounted, leaning on her cane, and prepared to go up and talk to the gatekeeper.
Maple Leaf smiled and said, "Yes, we've arrived!"
"Yes, you've finally arrived!" A wisp of red smoke rose from the high wall of the manor, flashed twice, and a beautiful monk in scarlet robes, as serene as a maiden, stood before the horse.
“Master Kongkong!” A warm smile appeared on Feng Xue’s eyebrows and eyes, but his eyes, which looked as deep as stars, were so empty that no emotion could be seen.
"Snowy color!" Nishino En exclaimed excitedly, reaching out to push Zhu Huihui aside and personally taking the reins of the horse.
The manor's vermilion gates swung open, and a refined and handsome young man stepped out slowly. His long silk robes billowed with each step, creating a breathtaking scene where the water and sky met.
Her snow-white face turned towards him, and she called out with a smile, "Brother Fang!"
This extraordinary man was none other than Fang Jianwu, the young leader of Jietianshui Island. He stepped forward and stopped Feng Xuese, who was about to dismount, saying, "We're brothers, no need to be so polite!" He glanced at Feng Xuese's face a few times and then said, "Miss Mu from Beikong Valley is in the manor. Her medical skills are entirely inherited from Madam Wan. Let's go and ask her to take a look at your injury. With the divine physician from Beikong Valley here, there's no poison that can't be cured!"
As they talked, the group led Feng Xuese into the mountain villa.
Zhu Huihui was left out in the cold, completely ignored. She leaned on her crutch, took a few steps, then stopped, stared blankly for a while, and felt utterly bored. She wanted to turn around and walk away, but after hesitating for a long time, she couldn't move an inch.
Alright! Let's wait here and inquire whether the old man's eyes can be cured by the miracle doctor. If they are cured, we can leave with peace of mind.
But what if it can't be cured?
Well—at most, he'll leave out of concern! Anyway, we've already seen the old man off to his final resting place; what happens to him afterward is none of our business!
Forget it, no matter what the outcome, as long as I ask, I'll have a clear idea, and then I'll leave immediately to pick up Huahua!
After struggling for a while, she finally found a reason to stay, and so she waited patiently. Her leg injury hadn't healed, and she felt unbearable pain after standing for a short time, so she sat under the willow tree at the entrance of the villa. After looking around for a while, bored, she picked up a stone and drew a turtle in the mud.
She never drew anything else that looked like a turtle, except for turtles, which she drew thousands upon thousands of times. She would draw a few lines on a large circle to make the shell, and then draw limbs, head, and tail around the edge of the circle. Although it still didn't look good, no one would mistake it for what it was.
She drew a big one, then a small one, with the big one in front and the small one biting the big one's tail. The two crawled together in a row, looking rather clumsy. She examined the two ugly, clumsy turtles and chuckled to herself.
Draw it, smooth it out; smooth it out, draw it again...
As the sun gradually set, the slanting sunlight cast a long shadow over her.
A shadow fell over her head: "You are Zhu Huihui!" He remembered that the original Zhu Huihui was like a lively monkey, always either in a tree or on the wall. Suddenly she became so quiet that he didn't even recognize her.
Zhu Huihui looked up at the bald man in the scarlet robe: "Huh?" This bald man is really good at pretending. He almost strangled her last time, and now he's pretending not to know her! She was in a bad mood and cursed him a few times in her heart.
“Come in with me,” Nishino En said.
They could have sent a servant to fetch her, but Xue Se was worried, saying the girl was too unruly and might cause trouble if left unattended. So he insisted on going himself. Alas! And since he was temporarily blind, he, as her brother, had no choice but to do it in her place.
"Did the hero send you to find me?" Zhu Huihui dropped the stone, patted the dirt off her hands, and then wiped it on her clothes—actually, she really wanted to wipe it on the bald man's big red robe, but she was afraid he would strangle her when the old man wasn't around.
"You'll see when you go in." Nishino En looked at the pattern on the ground and saw her squatting under the tree, grinning foolishly. She was actually drawing a turtle, and it actually looked quite like one!
"Oh!" Zhu Huihui hesitated for a moment, but finally leaned on her crutch and limped after him into the village.
After passing through courtyard after courtyard, they arrived at a spacious hall. The hall was bustling with activity, filled with many people—men and women, old and young, tall and short, fat and thin. Zhu Huihui didn't recognize any of them, and her gaze was fixed on Feng Xuese, who was sitting on a brocade chair in the hall.
Although surrounded by admirers, Feng Xuese still heard the familiar limping footsteps. She turned around and faced her direction: "Zhu Huihui!"
"Yes, sir!"
"Come here!"
"Yes, hero!" Zhu Huihui walked to his side, leaning on his cane.
This dialogue has been refined through countless trials; you can predict what the other person will say next without even thinking.
Feng Xuese said slowly, "Does your leg hurt? Please have Miss Mu take a look at it in a moment."
"Miss Mu?"
"You've met Miss Mu from Sorrowful Valley before; she's the young lady who once gave you a bottle of elixir."
Zhu Huihui suddenly remembered that she had met that ridiculously fair-skinned young lady at the Xianyun Inn, and that her two snobbish maids had looked down on her. She glanced at the others in the hall and immediately spotted the beautiful and noble young lady sitting quietly not far from Feng Xuese.
This young lady was slender and had a fresh and beautiful face. Her eyebrows were like dark ink and her lips were like red cinnabar. She was like a beautiful flower reflected in water or a peony shrouded in mist. Her skin was still pale, but it was so pure and white that it made people feel ashamed of themselves.
Two pretty maids stood behind her, while the old man in blue who drove the carriage for her sat to one side with an air of importance.
"oh!"
So that porcelain-like young lady is actually a miracle doctor! With her tiny body that would shatter with a single poke, she can't even cure her own ischemia, how could she possibly cure others? What a load of bull!
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Author's Note:
It's raining, the weather is very comfortable. tide is holding half a watermelon and eating it with a spoon. She eats with great gusto and is in a very good mood.
My little rascal Zhu Huihui has reached the point of "going to Shuixing," and "Jianghu Tianhenqing" is also nearing its end. Xi asked her devilish editor whether Jianghu 2 could continue to be serialized. Xi's lovely devilish editor promised to try her best to negotiate with the publisher, and hopefully there will be good news.
tide is a person without perseverance. Whenever she gets stuck writing, she goes to play games. So "Mini Lovers" has not been finished yet. She just received a call from the devilish editor urging her to finish the manuscript, and she was so scared that she was like a monster. 555, tide swore to the editor for the 101st time that she would start writing as soon as she finished eating watermelon and would definitely finish "Mini Lovers" as quickly as possible.
When asked how fast this "fastest speed" actually was, tide remained silent, deep in thought—because only God knows the answer to that question…
Miss Mu clearly did not recognize the girl in front of her as the dirty child she had encountered on the road that day. Seeing her gaze turn towards her, she smiled and stood up, gracefully curtsying: "Chen Muwan of Beikong Valley greets Miss Zhu!" Her demeanor was gentle and elegant, her attitude kind and approachable, displaying the demeanor of a well-bred young lady.
Zhu Huihui was inwardly criticizing the person when she was caught off guard by their bow. Feeling a little awkward, she waved to them and said, "Um, hello!"
"Sir, is there any hope for your eyes?" She was more concerned about the old man's eyes.
Feng Xue smiled and patted the back of her hand: "Don't worry about me!" He didn't know if his eyes could be saved. Just now, Miss Mu had briefly looked at the injury but hadn't explained anything.
"Grey Grey, let Young Master Nishino take you to rest. I'll pick you up for the banquet later!"
Zhu Huihui grunted in agreement and turned to leave. She was never one for politeness, and had never been to such an occasion before. She didn't know that she should greet the host and guests politely in this situation. She only knew that the old man had told the bald man to take her to rest, so she went to rest.
Fang Jianwu, standing to the side, coughed lightly: "Brother, is this Miss Zhu who came with you?"
He had known Feng Xuese for a long time and knew that although this virtuous brother was free-spirited and unconventional, he always maintained a high level of propriety towards women and rarely showed them any affection. This was the first time he had ever seen him so gentle and caring towards a girl.
Feng Xue smiled and said, "Brother Fang, you've seen her before, guess who she is!"
Fang Jianwu was taken aback and carefully examined the girl:
The girl was rude and uncouth, dressed sloppily, and her hair was combed like a country girl's, with a few loose strands hanging casually in front of her chest. Her face seemed unwashed, with patches of gray, white, and black. Only her pair of furry, dark eyes were unusually lively and charming as they darted around.
The story had already spread throughout the martial arts world: the Snow-White Young Master of Maple Snow City had been blinded, but a lame girl had accompanied him through countless dangers, risking her life without ever abandoning him. It turned out that she was such a girl...