The Jianghu of Feng Qingcheng and Mo Xibei

Chapter 43

For a woman, the most painful blow is not that the man she loves doesn't love her, or even that he falls in love with another woman; it's that her man would rather fall for another man than love her. Mo Xibei confirmed this conclusion in Murong Lianyun's case.

She hurriedly chased after him out of the room, but Murong Lianyun had already disappeared. It wasn't that Murong Lianyun's lightness skill was better than hers, but rather that their house had been transformed by Mo Xibei into a maze of twists and turns. When the construction was in full swing, Mo Xibei wanted to emphasize the scene of unexpected turns and bright futures. As a result, people on a small path would quickly disappear from sight as soon as they turned a corner.

When someone is wronged, they should find someone to confide in. Murong Lianyun knows very few people in the capital; those he can talk to are probably all in his own residence. Following this deduction, Mo Xibei found Chu Junfeng's courtyard, only to find Tian Xin standing at the door, hesitantly blocking it and refusing to move aside, only trying to stall Mo Xibei for conversation. Mo Xibei had no patience for her rambling; with a gentle push, he shoved Tian Xin aside, and with a forceful push, the door opened with a bang.

It really was a beautiful spring morning, Mo Xibei thought belatedly.

The room was slightly damp, and a large bathtub was placed in the middle of the room. Apparently hearing Mo Xibei's voice, Chu Junfeng hurriedly stepped out of the tub. Clearly, Mo Xibei had rushed in too quickly, and although he grabbed his outer garment in his haste, he could only barely cover his vital parts.

"I didn't see anything." Mo Xibei's first reaction was to immediately cover his eyes with his hands, then slightly open his fingers. His eyeballs rolled around.

"Um," Chu Junfeng said with a slight unease, but his expression returned to normal as he smiled faintly, "can I take your reaction as a sign that you are very satisfied with what you see?"

"Go to hell." Mo Xibei naturally understood Chu Junfeng's meaning, although she didn't think much of it. After all, she hadn't seen anything. However, she should still respect the other party's kind customs and lifestyle. Besides, her brain, which had been slightly short-circuited after seeing the handsome man half-naked, had recovered. She had come to find Lian Yun. But Lian Yun was clearly not there, so she should go somewhere else immediately.

Tian Xin felt incredibly unlucky. Not only had he been boiling water for his young master's bath this morning, but he also had to act as a doorman, and yet he hadn't even managed to guard the door properly. Then, Mo Xibei, seemingly with a light push, pushed him as he burst through the door, causing him to stumble and crash into the large lotus-shaped fish tank below the steps. The koi inside were very valuable, and he barely managed to gather his strength and grab the tank to steady himself. Shaking his head to regain his senses, he hurriedly ran back to the door, only to bump into Mo Xibei coming out from inside.

They collided head-on. Usually, they'd hit their heads. Tian Xin raised her hands to cover her head, but Mo Xibei's reaction was different. Just as they were about to collide, without thinking, she raised her leg to kick. Halfway there, remembering that this was someone from the Red and Green Earth, she quickly pulled back, but it was too late. She could only change course on the spot, "lightly" kicking Tian Xin's knee. The force wasn't particularly strong, but Tian Xin still felt a numbness and soreness in her knee, and after kneeling on the ground, she slid two steps back.

"I'm sorry, I didn't mean to." Mo Xibei said apologetically, patting his right leg that had caused the trouble, and then smiling as he reached out to help Tian Xin up.

"Don't move, Young Master Mo, please, don't come any closer." Tian Xin was so frightened that she took two steps back, afraid of being accidentally hurt by Mo Xibei again. "Misunderstanding, today's is a misunderstanding, haha, tell your young master it's a misunderstanding." Mo Xibei left with an ambiguous sentence and turned to leave the courtyard.

Murong Lianyun was in his room. When Mo Xibei arrived, the door was locked from the inside, so Mo Xibei kicked the door open without hesitation.

The bed curtains hung lightly, revealing the shadow of someone lying inside. Mo Xibei sighed, walked over, and said softly, "Lian Yun, it was a misunderstanding just now. It's not what you saw."

The person on the bed remained silent.

"Stop being childish, come on, get up." Mo Xibei had no choice but to lift the curtain.

Murong Lianyun lay flat on the bed, her face slightly pale, her body tightly wrapped in a pink silk quilt. As soon as the gauze curtain was lifted, Mo Xibei smelled a faint scent of blood. Murong Lianyun had cut her wrists.

The time interval was short, and the wound was not deep enough to sever an artery. The result of the rescue was that there was a little blood loss, and the patient needed to replenish blood and qi and take care of their health.

"Are you crazy? You'd commit suicide over such a trivial matter? Is your life so worthless?" This was the first time Murong Lianyun had heard Mo Xibei roar. He had never said a harsh word to her before.

"I'm asking you, can't you come up with something new with crying, making a scene, and threatening suicide? If a stinky man makes you unhappy, just kick him out. In this world, three-legged toads are hard to find, but two-legged men aren't everywhere. Tell me, who in this world can't live without whom? Does this earth stop turning without whom?" This was the first time Murong Lianyun had heard Mo Xibei speak so rudely and vulgarly.

"Can you please stop crying? Do you think crying will solve problems and make them disappear? No way. Then let me ask you, you're not even afraid of death, so why are you afraid of living? Have you ever thought about what will happen to the people who love you if you die? Have you ever thought about them? Have you ever thought about what will happen to them? They've lost you forever, yet they still have to live, live to face the fact that you're not here. What are they supposed to do?" Mo Xibei knew she was losing control. She had always thought she wouldn't lose control, but she never imagined that the scene of losing Nan Li would be repeated in her life again, separated by hundreds of years of time and space. Murong Lianyun and Nan Li had almost identical appearances, and in a world without Zhang Han, they made almost identical choices. The overwhelming bloodstains before her eyes intensely stimulated Mo Xibei's senses. Murong Lianyun and Nan Li had finally completely overlapped, making her want to scream, want to go mad and destroy everything she saw.

"What do you want to say?" Seeing Murong Lianyun's lips move slightly, Mo Xibei spoke first: "Do you also want to say that I should be happy after you die, and that you should be happy too? Have you ever thought that you are using your death to drag me into hell forever? Have you thought about it? You haven't thought about it. From the past to the present, you only have yourself in your heart. You haven't thought about me, you haven't thought about anyone in the family. That's not love, it's not love."

Murong Lianyun remained silent, just like Mo Xibei, letting two lines of clear tears silently roll down her cheeks.

"Northwest? What are you doing? What happened? What's wrong with you?" Someone rushed into the room where Mo Northwest had locked the door, and then someone forcefully dragged Mo Northwest out of the room. The bright light outside made her dizzy. If it weren't for the person's strong hand supporting Mo Northwest's body, she felt that she would have almost collapsed to the ground. "What's wrong with you? Why were you shouting so loudly? You scared everyone in the manor!" someone asked her.

"I'm fine, just a little tired." Mo Xibei looked at the person supporting her, somewhat dazed. The face was familiar, but it wasn't Zhang Han. Who was it? She thought hard for a long time before finally saying, "Chu Junfeng? What are you doing here?"

"The servants in your manor said you were throwing a tantrum, and that Miss Murong was injured. They didn't dare go in, so they had to come to me. What happened? I've never seen you so angry before." Chu Junfeng pulled Mo Xibei away from there. A servant had already secretly pointed out the direction of Mo Xibei's courtyard with his finger. Mo Xibei let him go, walking with uneven steps.

"It's nothing, I just feel that she doesn't cherish her own life, and maybe she got a little too angry." Halfway down the road, in the sunlight, Mo Xibei quickly regained his composure, gently broke free from his support, stood up, and said to Chu Junfeng, "Thank you for pulling me out. I lost my temper just now."

“You were cuter the way you were before,” Chu Junfeng said. “You’re too calm now, which makes you seem unapproachable. How broad can your shoulders be to carry so much? I know you don’t want me to help you share the burden. So, for this moment, right here where we are, I’ll lend you my shoulder. You can share a little less of the burden with me, and then you can catch your breath and rest.”

Volume Two: Traces Left by the Wind, Chapter Four: Trap (Part 1)

"Thank you," Mo Xibei was deeply moved for a moment, but she still smiled and said, "I'm eating well and having fun. I don't feel any burden. I'm just a little disappointed in Lianyun. Otherwise, while you're staying at my house for the next few days, could you help me persuade Lianyun to stop being so stubborn and to cherish her life?"

Seeing Mo Xibei's eyes return to their usual clear, watery state after a period of confusion, Chu Junfeng felt a mix of emotions. The person before him was back to his usual cheerful and talkative self, which was indeed gratifying. However, he knew that the sense of loss that welled up inside him would linger for a long time. Just moments ago, he felt he had touched upon Mo Xibei's hidden inner world, but that instant was too fleeting, too quick to fathom, and so he said nothing more, simply watching Mo Xibei's figure disappear around the bend in the path. Since becoming involved in the martial world, Mo Xibei felt his life was constantly in turmoil. Murong Lianyun's injuries had just begun to heal when Huang Jin, who hadn't been seen for a long time, suddenly appeared under the cover of night at the Chunfeng Ruyi Tower.

"I am deeply sorry for not being able to greet you properly, but I hope you will forgive me." Upon hearing the waiter's report, Mo Xibei guessed that the other party had ill intentions. However, there was no use thinking too much at this point. She could only deal with the situation as it came. The best way to handle it was to first dampen the other party's arrogance. Therefore, she delayed for a while before leisurely appearing at the door of Huang Jin's private room.

"Not at all, Mr. Mo, you're too kind. We came in a hurry, so it's really our job not to disturb your business," Huang Jin chuckled, trying to smooth things over.

"The fact that the Superintendent says this makes me even more ashamed. My shop's business is barely doing well these days, and that's all thanks to you, Superintendent." Mo Xibei picked up a tall hat and placed it on Huang Jin's head.

"Mr. Mo, you're too modest. Although my family serves the Emperor in the palace year-round, I've also heard that many large restaurants and eateries in the capital have closed down in the past few months. Rumor has it that you, Mr. Mo, poached their business, forcing them to close down." Huang Jin raised his hand to smooth his temples, saying meaningfully, "Young man, it's good to be enterprising, but you must know that a strong wind can break a strong grass, and if you stand too high, you're likely to fall."

"The factory supervisor is right to teach me a lesson. I will definitely keep that in mind in the future." Mo Xibei ordered someone to bring him fine wine and tea. Then he turned to the side and instructed the servants to put everything on the table.

"I don't understand business matters, I was just saying this casually, don't take it seriously." Huang Jin raised her little finger. She then made a delicate orchid shape with her right hand and lifted the small wine cup. She took a small sip of the wine. The aroma lingered on her lips and teeth, unlike anything she usually bought outside. "Hmm! This wine is good. Is there any special feature to it?"

"There's nothing particularly special about it. It's just that when making wine, you have to be more careful in selecting the ingredients, and you can't take shortcuts in the brewing process. Finally, before sealing the wine after it's brewed, add some seasonal flower buds. They must be buds that are about to bloom, half-open or fully open, otherwise the essence of the flower will be lost, and the wine won't have such a lingering aftertaste." Mo Xibei answered casually.

"It's truly remarkable that Mr. Mo's words are both simple and reasonable." Huang Jin nodded and lightly put down the cup in his hand. "Every year, there are quite a few tribute wines from various places. I have been fortunate enough to taste several kinds while serving the Emperor, but none of them are as mellow as the one I'm drinking today. It's probably because the people who brew the wine are not as dedicated as Mr. Mo."

"You flatter me, Factory Supervisor." Mo Xibei was happy to play along with Huang Jin's roundabout way of speaking, seeing that Huang Jin was unwilling to speak directly.

"Boss Mo is a smart man. I had that feeling the first time I met you." After a while, girls from the music troupe came to perform. They played and sang for a long time. Huang Jin kept his eyes slightly closed. It was unclear whether he was listening or just taking a nap because he had been too busy lately. After two or three songs, he finally spoke.

"I, Mo, actually come from humble beginnings and haven't read many books, so I'm far from being clever." Mo Xibei perked up when Huang Jin started to get to the point.

"It's exhausting to beat around the bush with smart people. Let me be frank. Although Miss Murong has handed over the map regarding the treasure, finding it has become extremely difficult. The people I've sent have returned empty-handed every time. If this continues, the deadline set by the Emperor will arrive, which is putting me in a difficult position," Huang Jin said. "I've thought about it a lot recently, and I think it's best to have Miss Murong stay at the Eastern Depot temporarily so that someone can help her figure out if she's overlooked anything. This will also help us find the treasure as soon as possible. This is the most feasible solution."

“Lian Yun is frail and has recently suffered some minor accidents. Please forgive me for not being able to hand him over to the Eastern Depot as the Director suggested.” Mo Xibei’s smile faded, and his reply was neither humble nor arrogant, yet it left no room for refusal.

"Boss Mo, you're putting us in a difficult position." Huang Jin smiled insincerely, his eyes gleaming as he stared intently at Mo Xibei.

"I wouldn't dare. The saying goes, 'The poor can't fight the rich, and the rich can't fight the officials.' Even though I'm dull, I understand this principle." Mo Xibei shook his head. "The reason I rejected the Director's suggestion is because I also have an idea that is very suitable for the current situation."

"Oh?" Huang Jin raised an eyebrow. "I'd like to hear your opinion."

"The Imperial Censor wants to contact Lianyungang only to verify the authenticity of the map and uncover the truth about the treasure. In fact, the Imperial Censor probably already realized that the person most qualified to determine the map's authenticity is Murong Songtao. Back then, Murong Songtao's fate was unknown, and he might even still be alive and well. His lifelong dream was to obtain this treasure. If we really want to see him, the only possibility is to lure him out," Mo Xibei said. "As long as we lure him here, bring him in, then everything will be fine, won't it?"

"That's true, but luring that old man Murong out isn't so simple. That old man is clever and composed. I'm afraid it won't be easy to lure him into our trap." Huang Jin shook his head, scratching his head since he had no beard to pluck.

"Then the factory supervisor might as well listen to my method. If it doesn't work, it won't be too late to send Lian Yun over." Mo Xibei pressed on while the iron was hot and explained his plan in detail.