She rushed out of the room and quickly brought back a small white jade bowl, placing it on the table. Lan Wuxie lowered her eyes, took out a small, light blue dagger from a drawer in the table, and loosened the gold bracelet on her wrist, revealing her wrist covered in crisscrossing knife marks.
Hua Chongyang's heart turned cold. Seeing his indifferent expression, he raised his hand and slashed his wrist with a knife, leaving a mark. He then lowered his hand towards the rim of the bowl.
Blood gushed out, trickling down his little fingertip and into the bowl.
A chill ran through her body. She wanted to speak, but her throat felt like it was being choked, and she couldn't utter a sound. The small bowl filled with blood. Lan Wuxie raised her hand, slashed off her sleeve with her knife, and tore off the cut edge, wrapping it around her wrist.
"Drink one bowl a day, seven times a day. Come again tomorrow. Stay until the Double Ninth Festival."
Ye Qinghua didn't even glance at the jade bowl, only smiling at Hua Chongyang:
"Chongyang, if you stay here today because of me, I'll end my own life right now. Be good, come with me now."
She raised her hand and smashed the jade bowl to the ground, then grabbed Hua Chongyang and started to walk out. Lan Wuxie stepped forward to block them, but Ye Qinghua, as if possessed, swung her hand and shoved a palm at him.
Blood was splattered all over the ground.
Hua Chongyang was thrown four or five steps away by the force of the two men's internal energy, knocking over a table and falling to the ground, covered in blood.
She knew Ye Qinghua's martial arts were not low, but she hadn't expected them to be this high. Lan Wuxie exchanged a palm strike with her, and the two were almost evenly matched, but after a moment of stalemate, Ye Qinghua's face turned pale, and blood trickled from the corner of her lips. For some reason, a sense of panic gripped her heart, and she cried out to Lan Wuxie, clutching Ye Qinghua's arm:
"Qinghua, I'll go with you!"
Lan Wuxie was clearly momentarily distracted.
Taking advantage of the moment, Ye Qinghua suddenly pulled back her hand, grabbed Hua Chongyang, and rushed out. In the blink of an eye, she was out of the Half-Limbed Drunken Gate. She released Hua Chongyang, leaned against the street wall, and suddenly spat out a mouthful of blood.
47. Bo Jiang
After helping Ye Qinghua back to the brothel and settling in, Hua Chongyang was so exhausted that he almost collapsed. He dragged his feet to the wooden couch under the window in the outer room and lay down.
It's rare for a brothel to be so quiet at night, with only the faint sounds of zithers and lutes playing in harmony with a light and joyful melody.
She frowned, wanting nothing more than to close her eyes and sleep until dawn; but as soon as she closed her eyes, all she saw was Lan Wuxie's pale face, the crimson blood in the jade bowl, and the blood gushing from Ye Qinghua's lips, all intertwined.
Her head was throbbing with anxiety, so she turned over and pressed her hand to her forehead.
She never imagined that one day she would face such a melodramatic choice: Ye Qinghua on one side, and a ruthless killer who was all sweet talk and gentleness towards her while secretly sleeping with other women on the other. The most ridiculous thing was that even with this choice, she found herself hesitant and indecisive.
The moon was full on the fifteenth, its light hazy and misty. Hua Chongyang sat up abruptly, leaning her head against the windowpane, staring blankly at the vast blue sky. She remembered the last time she saw a full moon; Lan Wuxie had held her hand tightly as they walked through the bustling streets, his eyes full of gentle smiles. He seemed to want to please her, yet couldn't shake his usual arrogance, so he kept pulling her along, awkwardly but tenderly asking if she wanted this, if she wanted that…
When she came to her senses, she reached out and her face was covered in tears again.
She silently wiped away her tears, got up, put on her shoes, and silently went to the inner room. In the flickering, dim candlelight, Ye Qinghua leaned against the headboard with her eyes half-closed, her lips and face pale. Hearing Hua Chongyang enter, she glanced up at her.
"The previous owner of the brothel, Yu Beiyan, was originally a ruthless killer. He possessed superb martial arts skills but was extremely eccentric, and his business was killing for money."
Hua Chongyang sat down at the table and nodded casually:
"I've heard of it."
"Nowadays, brothels occasionally do a few of those kinds of deals too."
"Um."
"Back then, I sought refuge with Yu Beiyan. Yu Beiyan took a liking to me and wanted to cripple my martial arts to make me his captive. I couldn't defeat him, so I turned to Lan Wuxie. Later, Lan Wuxie helped me kill Yu Beiyan on the condition that I would work for him after being poisoned by a Gu poison. So, Lan Wuxie and I had a long-standing relationship."
"Um."
Hua Chongyang remained completely calm, not even bothering to raise an eyebrow in surprise. Ye Qinghua looked at her and suddenly beckoned:
"Chongyang, come here."
Hua Chongyang rose and walked to the edge of the bed, slowly sitting down. Ye Qinghua leaned against the headboard, raised her hand and gently stroked the corners of Hua Chongyang's eyes and eyebrows, along her cheeks and finally to her chin, smiling softly. Then she reached into her collar and took out a jade piece:
"Here, take this. Keep it as a souvenir."
Hua Chongyang hesitated for a moment, then took it and glanced at it.
It was a simple piece of light blue jade, its edges and corners finely polished but not very attractive, with a red string on one corner.
"Chongyang." Ye Qinghua raised her hand and pinched her chin again. "Today I'm forcing you. I know you still can't live without Lan Wuxie, and you feel you'd rather die than not see him again—"
"Stop talking."
"If I die, remember, I die so that you can live a good life. If you're not happy, you're letting me down. You can miss him, even if you cry every day thinking about him, it doesn't matter," Ye Qinghua said, her hand still gripping her chin, each word spoken with an almost pleading expression, "as long as you don't go looking for him, stay far away from him."
Hua Chongyang listened quietly as she finished speaking.
The room was deathly silent.
After a long while, Hua Chongyang, his face numb, gave a forced smile and looked at Ye Qinghua:
"What if I don't see him? That would be terrible! What should I do then, Qinghua?"
"……"
"That man who hurt you, haven't you still not forgotten him?"
"Don't mention him."
"If you forgot, would you be without a man by your side? Would you sit alone on the edge of the bed, lost in thought, all the time?"
Hua Chongyang was still smiling, holding the jade piece in his hand and presenting it directly to her eyes, his voice beginning to tremble:
"If you forgot him, would you risk your own life for his daughter?"
Ye Qinghua froze, her lips trembling, unable to utter a single word. Hua Chongyang put down the jade piece in his hand, slowly pulled open Ye Qinghua's collar, revealing two moles, one large and one small, below her collarbone. His voice trembled so much he could barely speak:
"How long are you planning to keep this from me? Until you die? Or are you going to wait until you're dead and still not tell me?"
Even though her voice trembled and her questions were somewhat aggressive, in the end, she opened her mouth but couldn't bring herself to utter the word "Mother."
Ye Qinghua was stunned for a moment, then pulled Hua Chongyang into her arms and burst into tears:
"Double Ninth Festival... Double Ninth Festival!"
Hua Chongyang silently rested her head on her shoulder. The more tears Ye Qinghua shed, the fewer tears she could shed. From age six to nineteen, thirteen years, not a single day had passed without her thinking of her and longing for her. But now, she couldn't shed a single tear. She was utterly exhausted, letting Ye Qinghua hold her tightly. Finally, she whispered in her ear:
"Qinghua... Mother, listen to me, come with me to Lan Wuxie to get the antidote, okay? He'll give it to me, he'll give it to me. I know he likes me, and I like him too. You have no idea how much I like him. Even if he lies to me, I won't feel wronged—"
Ye Qinghua suddenly tightened her grip on her back.
Hua Chongyang seemed oblivious, raising his head and taking her hand in his, his eyes almost pleading:
"Once you're cured of the poison, leave the brothel and find somewhere to hide. One day, when I'm tired of him and can't be with him anymore, I'll come find you. We'll live a peaceful life, just like when we were kids at the foot of Shaolin Temple, ignoring everyone else and just the two of us. We'd only think about what to eat and what to do every day. I'm begging you, I'm begging you—"
By the end, Hua Chongyang was already in tears. Ye Qinghua pulled her into her arms again, and after a long while, she nodded through her tears.
"……good."
The next morning, Hua Chongyang, who had barely slept all night, left the brothel.
But as soon as I stepped out the door, a hand stopped me:
"Hua Chongyang."
Hua Chongyang turned his head to look.
Even if Ren Bojiang were to wear ten layers of veils, she would still recognize her at a glance.
Bo Jiang, dressed in a light red robe, looked up at her through a thin veil:
Where are you going?
Hua Chongyang sneered:
"It's none of your business, Miss Bo."
"But what I'm about to say concerns you."
"I have other matters to attend to, so I cannot accompany you."
After saying that, Hua Chongyang waved her hand away from Bo Jiang's hand that was blocking her way and was about to leave when she heard a cold laugh behind her:
"I refuse to believe that you can just ignore Lan Wuxie when he's about to die."
Hua Chongyang stopped abruptly.
Bo Jiang raised an eyebrow and chuckled softly in a gentle voice:
"What's wrong? Can't keep up the act anymore? Believe it or not, Lan Wuxie is seriously injured and lying on the pleasure boat, barely clinging to life. He won't be alive by noon. Aren't you going to go see him?"
Hua Chongyang paused, then took another step. Bo Jiang followed behind her, his voice crisp and charming, yet with a hint of irritating slap in it:
"I heard you don't want him anymore. Did you overhear us talking on the pleasure boat that day?"
"……"
"Or did I hear him panting and wanting me in bed? Hmm?"
As he spoke, Bo Jiang smiled and casually tucked a strand of hair from his sideburns in front of Hua Chongyang's eyes:
"You can't even tolerate me? Looks like you're still a greenhorn. You're supposed to be the daughter of Hua Chuxue and Yan Zhao, yet you lack even this much tolerance. What kind of world are you in? From Lan Ying Palace to the pleasure boats, Lan Wuxie has been with countless women, probably more than enough to fill two brothels. You're just one of them. Want me to tell you all about it—"
Before she could finish speaking, Hua Chongyang turned around with lightning speed and slapped her across the face.
Bo Jianglingmin dodged half a step but was still slapped halfway, and a red mark immediately swelled up below her face. However, she didn't even frown, touched her face, raised her head, and walked past Hua Chongyang.
"I'm only telling you about his death out of kindness; do whatever you want with him. I'm only doing this because he was somewhat sincere towards you."
Hua Chongyang almost had the urge to tear Bo Jiang to pieces.
She had never understood why two people in the martial arts world would often kill each other over a mere disagreement, and why the methods were often cruel and bloody. Now she fully understood.
But as she watched Bo Jiang gracefully walk away and get into the sedan chair, she clenched her fists, turned around, and rushed towards West Lake.
...Whether it was because of Lan Wuxie or because of Ye Qinghua's antidote.
48. Painted Boat
The small boat approached, and all was quiet.
Hua Chongyang's suspicion that Bo Jiang had lied to her was now almost confirmed. Lan Wuxie's martial arts were so high, and she had only seen him last night. In just one night, and without any news of any movement from the Martial Alliance, how could Lan Wuxie have been seriously injured by anyone?
Looking across the martial arts world, she didn't believe anyone could do that.
Then it becomes even easier to explain the matter of asking Lan Wuxie for the antidote.
Just as she was about to board the painted boat, a small boat came chasing after her from behind, and it called out to her from afar:
"Double Ninth Festival!"
It's Ye Laoqi.
More than ten feet away, Ye Laoqi anxiously leaped onto Lan Wuxie's small boat:
"The landlord noticed you weren't there and sent me to come and bring you back."