When love draws near, it's like snow

Chapter 71

"Go quickly! Don't worry about me, go and meet up with the sect leader!" The hall master shouted through gritted teeth, her voice crisp and clear. Although her tone was stern, it still made people feel comfortable all over, like drinking fine wine—I couldn't help but marvel at it in secret.

"Hmph! Arrest them all, none of them will escape!" A chilling voice came from a tall, imposing man. His body was enormous, and he charged straight at the hall master, sword in hand. His entire body was clad in a tight-fitting black outfit, revealing only two eyes that gleamed like those of a hungry wolf, shooting out a cold light. In an instant, the clang of metal rang out, and the group was locked in combat.

"None of you are leaving?!" Goosebumps immediately rose all over my body—the dialogue was so familiar, the voice so familiar! Where had I heard it before? Suppressing my fear, I stared at him in the dim light, scrutinizing him—masked, speaking in a sinister tone, his eyes as fierce as a wolf… I suddenly realized: "That's it, it's him!"

I felt as if my blood had frozen instantly, and I began to tremble uncontrollably. My right arm throbbed with pain, and I instinctively snuggled closer to Huaiyuan—but the coldness in my fingertips was impossible to hide.

My soft cry went unheard by the mob caught up in the killing, but it naturally drew Huaiyuan's attention. He turned his head and gave me a strange look, noticing the fear in my eyes. He frowned, squeezed my hand reassuringly, and whispered in my ear, "You know him?"

I didn't say anything, I just nodded stiffly, my eyes filled with tears, and stared fiercely at that blood-stained demon—one of the culprits who killed fifty-four people in Sunjiawan!

Seeing the tears in my eyes, Huaiyuan's dark eyes darkened. He took my arm and suddenly leaped into the midst of the fierce battle. Because of Huaiyuan's intervention, the situation on the field suddenly reversed—the four women, who had been forced into a state of disarray, were struggling to hold on. The one called the Hall Master had even fallen from his horse, wounded, and sat on the ground. Huaiyuan flicked his left finger, deflecting a burly man who was about to strike the Hall Master, lightly tapped his left foot to knock away a longsword aimed at the woman in yellow, and swept his right leg across, knocking down two black-clad men wielding knives who lunged at Huaiyuan.

"Who are you from?" Seeing the situation was turning against him, the ringleader jumped out of the fray, made a stop gesture, and shouted sternly, "We are imperial guards, ordered to capture rebels. If you know what's good for you, get out of the way!"

"Ten thousand mountains!" The woman in yellow said in a sweet, melodious voice, like a nightingale singing in a valley: "Stop spouting nonsense! You were the one with malicious intentions, yet you're turning around and accusing me!"

"Who do we have here? So you're Wan Shanzhong, the one known as the number one master of the Imperial Palace, the Stone Tablet Smashing Hand?!" Huaiyuan sneered, took my hand, and stood arrogantly by the roadside: "I am Jiang Mohui."

"The Heartless Sword?" Wan Shanzhong was startled, then stared at Huaiyuan with a sinister expression: "I, Wan, believe I have no past grievances or recent feuds with Hero Jiang. Does Hero Jiang intend to make an enemy of me over a few courtesans?!"

"Hmph! I, Jiang, have no interest in other people's business." Huaiyuan remained calm and composed. "However, those who have offended me will not be let off!"

"Sister Qingyang!" Before I could even speak, one of the women suddenly rushed to my side with a look of joy on her face: "You must save us!"

"Xiao Feng?!" I exclaimed in surprise. "What are you doing here?" — Wasn't she supposed to be a martial arts expert?

"Sister Qingyang, this is a long story!" Xiaofeng's expression stiffened, then she looked at me eagerly: "Let's ask Hero Jiang to help us repel the powerful enemy first!"

"Strange! Why would Huaiyuan help you?" I glanced at her sideways and said coldly—does she think I'm stupid? Does she want Huaiyuan to stand up for her and take the knife for her?! She concealed her identity first, then betrayed me, and now she suddenly knows martial arts. Why should I let Huaiyuan risk his life for her?!

"Sister Qingyang..." Xiaofeng was caught off guard by my sudden change of attitude and was at a loss. She gritted her teeth and suddenly shouted, "Hero Jiang, Xiaofeng deceived Sister Qingyang, and she certainly doesn't deserve your help. However, this person is the real culprit in the Sunjiawan massacre! It's one thing for him to kill and steal the map, but to frame you, Hero Jiang, this can't be unrelated to you, can it?"

"Really?!" Huaiyuan's dark pupils narrowed slightly as he turned to look at me, his voice as cold as ice: "Qing'er, was the knife on your right arm inflicted by this person?" — I nodded gently, tears welling in my eyes, and said, "He killed Brother Li Hu and the others too! I recognize his voice!"

"Guys, grab your weapons and charge!" Wan Chongshan, sensing the danger, rushed forward. He drew his sword and slashed at me—this man was truly despicable, knowing that dealing with me was easier than dealing with Huaiyuan, and could also restrain Huaiyuan's actions.

"So the renowned Wan Chongshan is nothing special after all!" Huaiyuan sneered, spinning around and kicking away Wan Chongshan's onslaught of steel blades. He then leaped up, dodging another attack. With a clang, a flash of cold light appeared, and the Heartless Sword was already in his hand: "To die by my Heartless Sword is your good fortune!"

In the blink of an eye, more than a dozen people were entangled in combat again. Huaiyuan held my slender waist with his left hand, calmly weaving through the flashing blades, the sounds of metal cutting through jade ringing out. In just a short while, the ground was littered with broken swords and shattered blades. The five imperial guards brought by Wan Chongshan lay sprawled on the ground, groaning in pain.

Wan Chongshan raised his hand in a feint of a palm strike towards me, and as Huaiyuan twisted to dodge, he leaped onto his horse and galloped away. In an instant, Huaiyuan let out a long howl, his feet lightly touching the ground, his body soaring into the air like a soaring eagle, swooping down. Surprisingly, he arrived first, blocking Wan Chongshan's path, his cold glint aimed directly at Wan Chongshan's throat.

In an instant, everyone stopped, the surroundings so quiet you could hear each other breathing. An incredulous glint flashed in Wan Chongshan's eyes: "I never imagined Jiang Mohui, missing for six years, would have mastered the Heartless Sword Technique to the tenth level! For me, Wan, to die by your sword would be a life well-lived!" As his words fell, a cold light flashed in the distance, and Wan Chongshan collapsed heavily from his horse…

"Who is it?" Huaiyuan asked coldly—he did not make a move.

"Me." Lu Jianfeng emerged from the shadows like a ghost. A bolt of lightning flashed across the sky, distorting his handsome face and making him appear unusually cold.

"Sect Master!" Xiao Feng and the others knelt down in unison, calling out in a sweet voice—Huaiyuan had indeed been right; Lu Jianfeng was indeed the Sect Master of the Wuji Sect! Clearly, Xiao Feng was his subordinate, so it wasn't surprising that he knew my weaknesses and my appointment with Huaiyuan, thus orchestrating that deception! But why would he do such a thing?!

"Master, Master!" The woman in yellow's panicked voice broke my thoughts: "Wake up!"

Huaiyuan floated forward, gently took her slender hand, frowned, and shook his head slightly: "The hidden weapon was poisoned, she..."

I stepped forward and exclaimed, "Li Yanluo?"—Isn't this the most famous courtesan of Qinhuai? I think her other name was Yu Yanzi?!—I never imagined she was also a member of the Wuji Sect, and not just any ordinary one, but a hall master! Needless to say, the one who made her fall head over heels for him, willing to ruin her reputation, was none other than the handsome and dashing Lu Jianfeng, the Flowing Cloud Sword!

"Xiao Feng, what's going on?" Huai Yuan asked Xiao Feng in a cold voice.

"Sister Qingyang, I'm so sorry!" Xiaofeng gritted her teeth and knelt down in front of me with a thud: "Please save our leader! I know that Hero Jiang has the Jingyou Manor's unique antidote, 'Ningxiang Pill,' which can cure all poisons."

"Why should I?" Huaiyuan laughed angrily. "You've been helping your sect leader plot to take my life all along, and now you want me to save her? Isn't that ridiculous?!"

"Hmph! No need for Jiang Mo's feigned kindness. I, Lu Jianfeng, would rather let her die than accept your good intentions!" Lu Jianfeng bent down, picked up Li Yanluo, put a pill in her mouth, and asked in a low voice, "Did you get the things?"

"Jianfeng, I..." Li Yanluo shook her head, tears welling in her eyes, and tremblingly reached out her slender hand to caress Lu Jianfeng's handsome face. —A beauty bathed in blood, her voice as alluring as silk, even the hardest heart would be moved. Unfortunately, Lu Jianfeng remained unmoved, merely gently grasping her hand and turning his head towards the woman in yellow, thus avoiding her hand from touching his cheek. How cold-blooded!

The woman in yellow cleverly walked to Wan Chongshan's corpse and began searching his body. Finding nothing, she then searched the man lying on the ground, and soon found several small bottles, which she handed to Lu Jianfeng.

Lu Jianfeng unscrewed the bottle cap, sniffed it lightly, then picked out a bottle, took out a pill, and put it into Li Yanluo's mouth. Afterward, he picked her up, leaped onto his horse, and, leaving behind a single sentence, galloped away: "Hmph! Jiang, don't think that just because you helped me today I'll be grateful! Remember, this is what you owe me!"

The woman in yellow didn't rush to leave. She took out a small bottle from her body, and as soon as she unscrewed the cap, a foul odor filled her nostrils—the five burly men on the ground all looked terrified.

She walked over and flicked a fingernail at each of them, then turned to Huaiyuan and said, "Great Hero Jiang, this is the only way Green Sleeve can repay your kindness in helping me today! If we meet again in the future, we will still be enemies!"

"Huaiyuan, what did she say?" I asked, tugging at his sleeve, puzzled. Huaiyuan looked pained but didn't speak. I could already hear the painful wails of the men. Turning around, I nearly fainted – white smoke was rising from their bodies as they slowly dissolved into a pool of blood!

"Corpse-dissolving powder?" I buried my head in Huaiyuan's chest, unable to look any longer—so, such a thing really exists in this world! But these people are clearly still alive! Doing this is far too cruel!

"Master Jiang, until we meet again!" The woman in yellow leaped onto her horse, bowed in greeting, and then rode off in a cloud of dust, following Lu Jianfeng.

"Xiaofeng!" I grabbed Xiaofeng's hand. "You can't leave! You have to give me an explanation! Isn't that right, Huaiyuan?!"

Huaiyuan seemed not to hear, staring blankly at Lu Jianfeng's retreating figure, a bitter smile on his face, muttering to himself, "He really is..."

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I made a quick revision. Hmm, I realized there might be too many foreshadowing elements left unresolved. To fully explain them all, twenty chapters might not be enough. I was thinking, adding a few more chapters, is that alright?

[Volume 4, Finale: Chapter 16, Cold Sun Shines Through the Lattice Window]

"What is he really?" I asked curiously as I moved closer to him.

"Nothing," Huaiyuan replied casually, snapping out of his reverie—Tch! Here we go again, always leaving things unsaid, keeping everything bottled up inside! I glared at him, my eyes telling him—I'm furious!

"Qing'er, let's go to Baojinlou for dinner next time. Let's go back and talk about it now." Huaiyuan looked preoccupied and took my hand, leading me back—of course, after something like this, who's in the mood to play?!

By the time we got back to the village and had dinner, it was almost midnight. Huaiyuan absolutely refused to let me ask Xiaofeng anything that night, insisting that I rest first. He said I was just recovering and shouldn't overexert myself, and that everything should wait until tomorrow! Sigh! How could talking a few words be tiring? Not letting me talk would be the death of me!