Beggar Travels the World

Chapter 50

"Xiao'er, I have to confess to you." Upon hearing this, Baili Qingyi relaxed her embrace and said to her very seriously, "I really don't know how to get along with girls, especially with you..."

"So what...so what?" Yin Wuxiao stammered.

“You see, I used to be afraid that I wasn’t good enough in your eyes, afraid that you would find out that I was actually a completely different person from the rumored gentleman in blue. But that won’t do. I have to tell you what’s on my mind, I have to let you know what kind of person I am, so that you can make a decision…”

"So what?" Yin Wuxiao asked, still confused.

"So...you see, I specifically went to consult Hanyi; he's quite experienced in this area. I used to dismiss some of the things he said, but perhaps he was right..."

Yin Wuxiao slowly pulled away from his embrace. She looked at him intently for a long while, then burst into laughter.

"You...you mean you specifically went to ask Baili Hanyi for advice on how to get along with girls..."

"To be precise, it's about how to get along with you..."

"What...what did he say to you?" Yin Wuxiao was still laughing.

"..." Baili Qingyi smiled bitterly to herself: "He said that I should be honest with you, that I should completely forget what face is, and that I should make myself look as stupid as possible. Xiao'er, do you like fools?"

Yin Wuxiao burst into laughter again at his words. She slowly raised her head and wiped the tears from the corners of her eyes. She should thank Baili Hanyi.

She hugged Baili Qingyi: "I don't like fools, but when you're a little foolish sometimes, I feel more at ease knowing you're real." She buried her face in his chest and murmured, "It can't be just me being foolish..."

Baili Qingyi stroked her hair: "Xiao'er, I love you, that's true. I have responsibilities and burdens, but I will never drag you down with me. Those are just responsibilities and burdens; in my heart, they are not worth a single hair on your head." He lifted her chin: "You understand, don't you?"

Yin Wuxiao smiled: "I understand." She touched the bridge of his nose, "But you have to tell me, besides these, what else did Baili Hanyi teach you?" She had a mischievous look on her face.

Baili Qingyi pursed his lips and remained silent. He watched as Yin Wuxiao bloomed in his arms like a transparent peony, her smile as radiant as spring blossoms, her hair like a black waterfall, a delicate brow that captivated his soul, his spirit, his very being…

He brought his lips closer to hers: "He also said that I should seize the opportunity and make it a fait accompli."

Yin Wuxiao was taken aback.

Baili Qingyi gently picked her up and placed her on the bed. Then, he lifted one of her calves, gently removed her embroidered shoes and light socks, his palm cupping her heel, his other hand stroking her arch, and she trembled slightly.

Baili Qingyi ignored him and picked up the other foot: "Xiao'er, I will no longer ask you what will happen to you. From now on, let me make the decisions for you. No matter how long the road ahead may be, you must walk with me. Hand in hand..." He smiled, "until we grow old."

He didn't even use a question; he said it firmly, as if he had made a lifelong decision for the two of them. Yin Wuxiao hurriedly pulled her foot back, only to have him press down on her instead.

This... Yun'er's room isn't far. If she shouts for help now, Yun'er will definitely arrive. But... but sending a little maid to stop the supposedly number one martial arts master in green robes? Isn't that a joke?

She pressed her hands against his chest, their noses touching.

Baili Qingyi looked at her hands, then at her eyes.

"Xiao'er, you...don't want to?"

You don't want to? What kind of question is that? You don't want to? You don't want to? You don't want to?

Yin Wuxiao's heart was in complete turmoil. Did she want to? Did she want to?

She stared at the man before her, so close they breathed the same air, their hearts pressed together. Who else could it be but him?

If it wasn't him, who else could it be?

She awkwardly lowered her eyes, and gently, very gently, pulled open his scholar's robe with her small hand placed on his chest.

Hmph, who's afraid of who? This isn't the first time she's seen this naked man.

Eventually, a beautiful woman will know.

On the same day, all the unmarried young women in the martial arts world received the exact same invitation:

I think of it, I yearn for it, I thirst for it, I long for it.

On the 17th of this month, at Yunge Pavilion in the capital, the young master in blue robes from Baili Prefecture awaits his beloved in his blue robes. Do not break your promise.

Below the main text is a line of smaller print: This event is hosted by the Yin Mansion in the capital. For details, please consult any Huanyi Bookstore branch in your area.

Overnight, this once peaceful martial world was filled with young girls in the throes of first love, their dreams of romance swirling. Heroines, enchantresses, young girls, and women alike were all eager to win the coveted young man in blue.

Time is of the essence; the 17th of this month is only two days away. The contestants have never seen Qingyi Juejue before. How can they cope? It's said that everyone saw Qingyi Juejue at the wedding banquet at Chuxiu Manor, and the young ladies have used all their connections and resources to acquire her with hefty sums. Vendors selling couplets immediately appeared on the streets of the capital, and the price of the sixteen-character couplet "Qingyi Juejue" plummeted from one hundred taels of silver to ten coins in a single day, yet the number of buyers showed no signs of decreasing.

The following day, the contest for a husband by Qingyi intensified, with proxy suitors appearing. As the saying goes, a thousand pieces of gold are easy to obtain, but a perfect match is hard to find. Many scholars and poets, displaying signs proclaiming "sure-win couples," acted as proxy suitors for the martial arts ladies who were not skilled in literature. However, the biggest beneficiary was Yunge Pavilion in the capital, whose room rates skyrocketed to a thousand taels of silver overnight. Yunge Pavilion was also owned by the Yin family, who, while reaping enormous profits, maintained maximum silence, awaiting the grand event the next day.

Miss Yin, leading all the stewards of the Yin household, fully utilized this opportunity to create a huge stir, leaving the stewards, who hadn't witnessed Miss Yin's business acumen in three years, completely dumbfounded. In fact, the vendors selling couplets were all spread by the Yin household, and even most of the literati were contacted, hired, and had the Yin household handle all the publicity. Not only that, Miss Yin also sent people to set up a women's poetry society on the other side of the capital, with the slogan "I compose poems about the moon in my heart, regardless of whether they are dressed in blue or red." A group of refined women gathered to form the society, declaring that they were fighting to revitalize women's poetry and prose, and condemning the infatuated women who composed poems for the sake of the young men in blue. The refined women and the infatuated women engaged in a heated debate, which was on the verge of turning into a street brawl. To determine the winner, the two factions held several poetry competitions of varying sizes at Yun Pavilion before the official poetry competition, eventually selecting ten beauties to participate in the official competition. Undoubtedly, the venue fee, tea fee, and beverage fee all went into Yunge's pocket. At the same time, the "Guide to Couplets," compiled by poets from the capital's literary circles at the Yin family's organization, also became very popular.

Baili Qingyi sat in a private room upstairs in the Cloud Pavilion, lifting the curtain to look at the bustling crowds on the street below. He sighed, "Xiao'er, how much silver did you actually earn from me?" He had thought she had agreed to handle this matter with great difficulty.

In retrospect, we underestimated her; she was simply eager to seize this opportunity to make money.

Yin Wuxiao changed into men's clothing and smiled as he waved his fan: "Don't ask me that. Anyway, I won't give you a single penny."

"Not even one percent?" Baili Qingyi brushed aside her fan, leaned close to her ear in an ambiguous manner, and breathed heavily on her neck.

Yin Wuxiao's face flushed slightly, and she angrily pushed him away: "Even half a percent won't do."

"Xiao'er, this is unfair." Baili Qingyi spread her hands. "You make these women of the martial world hand over huge sums of money to you, only to have them leave empty-handed in the end. How can they be willing to accept that?"

"Hey, who said I was going to let them go empty-handed? One of them can win the heart of a handsome man, can't she?" Yin Wuxiao glanced at him sideways.

"Don't joke around!" Baili Qingyi snatched the fan from her hand and lightly tapped her head.

Yin Wuxiao scratched his head: "I wasn't joking. I'm in business, so naturally I have to be honest."

Seeing her serious expression, Baili Qingyi suddenly felt uneasy. He grabbed her slender waist tightly with one hand and said, "Xiao'er, we have already consummated our marriage. You must not cause any more trouble."

Yin Wuxiao pursed her lips, looking aggrieved: "I didn't cause any more trouble. I promised to organize this marriage contest for you, and I can't go back on my word."

Baili Qingyi stared at her. It was true that she had agreed to hold this marriage contest, but she hadn't agreed to make it such a grand affair, had she? He seriously doubted how she would handle the situation under the watchful eyes of the entire martial arts world.

"Then tell me, how do you plan to outsmart all the other women and win me back?" He tapped her forehead.

Yin Wuxiao tilted her head and thought for a while, then looked at him with a troubled expression: "I don't know either..."

Baili Qingyi's expression suddenly changed, turning as blue as his clothes.

"What did you say?" he gritted his teeth, looking like a storm was brewing.

Taking advantage of his momentary lapse in attention, Yin Wuxiao snatched back the fan and swiftly positioned himself between the two, innocently explaining, "Look, Yuwen Cuiyu definitely already came up with the perfect match for Qingyi back at Chuxiu Manor. There were quite a few people there who saw it... I'm not confident I could come up with a better match."

"But you must have a way of proving that the pair were originally made by you, right?"

"How...how can I prove this?"

"..." Baili Qingyi stared at her speechlessly for a long time before saying, "Then if another woman were to face Qingyi, she would definitely..."

"Then why don't you go home with her..."

"Yin Wuxiao!"

Yin Wuxiao shrank back: "Or... anyway, since you are the best in the world in martial arts, you can deny it on the spot and fly to the ends of the earth, and no one can do anything to you."

"You..." He was beyond furious. This...this cunning woman, he could neither kill her with a single blow, nor punish her with the code of chivalry, nor could he put on an aloof attitude and use words to keep her in the dark. How could he possibly subdue her? Was he...was he, the dignified young master of Baili Prefecture, really going to be completely defeated by her?

"Was it because I failed to satisfy you last night?" he said sullenly.

"What?" Yin Wuxiao was secretly chuckling to himself when he heard this, and almost burst out laughing.

He pressed himself against her from behind: "If there's anything you're not satisfied with, just tell me, and I'll do it." He took one of her earlobes into his mouth and gently licked it with the tip of his tongue.

"Bai... Baili Qingyi!" It was Yin Wuxiao's turn to panic. He had never done anything so intimate with her outside their private room. Although this was a private room, "Yun'er, and the manager... could come up at any moment!"

"I don't care." Baili Qingyi turned her over, his lips landing on her forehead, then her brow, eyelids, the tip of her nose, all the way to her rosy cherry lips. He was like a flame, thrusting it directly into her mouth, burning her throat and leaving her weak all over. She could feel his hands cupping her breasts through her silk upper garment, his thumb tracing their rounded contours, the pressure gradually deepening… She gripped his clothes tightly, enjoying the electric sensations he was creating on her body. It must be admitted, men have other uses besides being something you can only think about.

“Tell me, what do you need me to do?” he whispered to her lips, a faint smile playing on his lips.

Her thoughts were in turmoil, wondering whether to push him away, strip him naked, or strip herself naked first.

He suddenly stopped everything and pulled her away from him. "Tell me, what exactly are you unhappy about?"

"Huh?" Yin Wuxiao looked back at him dazedly, "I'm not dissatisfied, I'm not..." She hooked her arms around his neck and offered her lips and her whole body to him.

"Then why did you pack me up and give me away to someone else?" Her tone carried a hint of resentment.

"Huh?" Yin Wuxiao gazed at his exquisitely beautiful features with a hazy look, and decided that she might as well strip him naked. Her small hands parted his outer shirt and undershirt, reaching straight to his bare chest.

Baili Qingyi laughed, a deep laugh that traveled from his throat to her ear, accompanied by passionate breaths: "Yin Wuxiao, you have to admit it, you love me, you love me so much you can't help yourself. How could you give me to someone else? You are destined to spend your whole life with me."

"Hmm..." It took Yin Wuxiao a long time to process those words. She stopped moving, and the desire on her face quickly faded. She jumped up and pushed Baili Qingyi away.

He actually used his good looks?! He actually used his good looks!

She glared at him intently: "You damned bastard..." She was both ashamed and angry, and disregarded the demeanor and dignity of a well-bred lady. She took off her embroidered shoe and raised it high.

Seeing that things were not going well, Baili Qingyi raised her eyebrows, darted out the door, and slammed her embroidered shoes against the door frame with a thud.

Yin Wuxiao blushed deeply, hopped on one foot to pick up the embroidered shoe, then hopped back on the other foot to sit down. Holding the shoe, she didn't put it on, gritted her teeth, and suddenly chuckled.

She was destined to spend her whole life with him.

Let's spend our lives together then.

Downstairs, three thousand beauties were still bustling about. Yin Wuxiao snorted. Trying to steal her man? No way!

I'll grow old with you

Imagine tens of thousands of people crammed into a tiny space like the Cloud Pavilion. It's unimaginable.

Therefore, the Yin family would never allow such a thing to happen. On the day of the young master in blue's marriage contest, only one hundred people were allowed to attend as spectators, making tickets extremely difficult to obtain. These one hundred people were among the most powerful and influential figures in the martial arts world, and also the most avid spectators. This day was a day of revelry for the martial arts community; who wouldn't want to know who would win? Betting had already opened at the other end of Chang'an Street, with odds of 20 to 1 for the title of the world's number one talented woman, Yin Wuxiao. After all, the title of number one talented woman was well-deserved.

However, some people doubt that Yin Wuxiao will participate in this marriage contest at all, because this marriage contest was actually organized by Miss Yin. If she had feelings for the young man in blue, why would she publicly hold a marriage contest for him?

On the other hand, secrets can't be kept forever. The various ambiguous affairs between Miss Yin and the young man in green have long been circulating in the martial arts world. For example, the young man in green almost lost his life at Seven Deadly Cliffs for Miss Yin, and Miss Yin spared no expense to seek medicine for him. It would be strange if Miss Yin could truly remain uninvolved.

The most fascinating thing about this world is the endless stream of gossip.

The candidate with the second-highest odds after Miss Yin is Yuwen Hongying, the second young lady of the Yuwen family. It is said that the eldest young lady of the Yuwen family once publicly matched the Qingyi gentleman with an absolute duel. Although she later passed away and was unable to have a chance with the Qingyi gentleman, it is possible that her younger sister did not inherit her talent. Moreover, Yuwen Hongying has been infatuated with the Qingyi gentleman for a long time. If she really had a stroke of luck and matched the Qingyi gentleman with an absolute duel, it would be reasonable.

Halfway through the poetry contest, news spread from the Cloud Pavilion that the top five contestants had all completed their matching lines. Their second stanzas were all perfectly crafted, rich in meaning and emotion, and indistinguishable in quality. However… however, neither Miss Yin, who was ranked first in the odds, nor Yuwen Hongying, who was ranked second, had shown up to indicate their intention to participate. Could the result be a major upset?

Miss Yin's odds at the gambling den plummeted, dropping to 3 to 1.

"I'm telling you, are you really going to sit here and do nothing about it? Just leave your man to those ravenous women?"

Across from Yunge, Shi Mansi and Yin Wuxiao had booked a small private room to observe the situation.

Yin Wuxiao spat: "What do you mean by 'your man' and 'my man'? How vulgar."

Shi Mansi laughed and said, "I'll be as uncouth as I am, and you can be as aloof as you are. Just don't cry if someone else snatches the young master in blue away. Seriously, are you really that confident that your poetry is the best in the world?"

Yin Wuxiao shook his head: "Who dares to say that their poetry and prose are the best in the world? There are always people better than you, and there are always mountains beyond mountains."