"For a while?" Xiao Zuo raised an eyebrow.
Xiao Nuo lowered her head: "More than ten years..."
"Finally admitting it?" Xiao Zuo looked at him with a half-smile, and after a long while said, "These days, I thought of a very interesting method, which was originally intended to punish your elder brother, but now it's too good for you... After I settle the bet with Miss Tongfeng, I'll deal with you later."
"Father..." Xiao Nuo was terrified. What good method could there be to punish his elder brother? No, no, this is terrible, we must quickly think of a way to deal with this!
Xiao Zuo acted as if he hadn't heard him shout, and turned to Feng Chenxi and said, "Miss Feng, you have won our bet."
Feng Chenxi looked at him calmly: "I naturally won the bet, but Lord Xiao didn't lose either."
Xiao Zuo smiled faintly: "What do you mean by that?"
"Forgive my bluntness, but Lord Xiao was cunning from a young age. Even today, if we're talking about shrewdness, competence, and deep-seated wisdom, I'm afraid no one in the world can compare..."
“Yes, yes!” Xiao Nuo couldn’t help but chime in, but was glared at by Xiao Zuo and quickly corrected herself, “My father is the most wise and powerful!”
Feng Chenxi smiled and continued, "Therefore, it's extremely difficult for Chenxi to believe that City Lord Xiao didn't know his son had been feigning ignorance for over a decade. However..."
Xiao Zuo asked, "But what?"
"However, it will take some effort to get him to reveal his true form."
Xiao Zuo agreed: "People who are very good at pretending to be stupid are usually very smart. It is certainly not an easy task to force such people to reveal their true colors."
"That depends on who it is," Feng Chenxi said calmly. "For someone like City Lord Xiao, it's naturally not a difficult task. However, truly intelligent people don't want to do things themselves, because... what they are best at is relying on others."
Xiao Zuo smiled and said, "It's good to have someone else do it for you so that you don't have to put in as much effort."
Feng Chenxi straightened her face and said, "So, on the surface, I won this bet, but the real winner is still City Lord Xiao."
Xiao Zuo said leisurely, "Winning and losing, everyone wins and loses. It depends on your criteria. Why are you so fixated on this, Miss Feng?"
Xiao Nuo said with a bitter face, "You all won, and I'm the only one who lost. Father, you're so cunning. You deliberately made a bet with Sister Feng and set a trap for me... Oh well! I've already gained something by getting to know her."
Feng Chenxi spat, "Idiot! You're the only one who lost completely here, and you still say you made a profit!" As she spoke, her face turned red to the roots of her ears.
Xiao Zuo looked at her, then at Xiao Nuo, smiled meaningfully, and said, "In my opinion, Nuo'er didn't lose at all; she probably actually gained something."
Feng Chenxi was both ashamed and angry. After gritting her teeth for a long time, she suddenly sneered and said, "In any case, as far as our agreement is concerned, I still win. Lord Xiao won't go back on his word after losing, will he?"
Xiao Zuo said calmly, "I suppose this debt isn't so easily settled. However, I've defaulted on all sorts of debts in my life, but never on gambling debts. Miss Feng, please feel free to speak your mind."
Feng Chenxi had waited so long, and finally this moment had arrived. She had finally heard Xiao Zuo's words. Overjoyed, she took a deep breath and slowly said, "Very well, then please come with me to Yinshan to see my master, Lord Xiao."
A fleeting smile
A pot of clear wine, and half a game of chess.
The woman sat under the tree, her hair as white as snow, holding a wine cup in her hand, like a figure in a painting.
I nodded to Xiao Zuo behind me and quickly ran forward, saying, "Master!"
Without turning around, she continued to recite in a melodious voice: "Guests come and loneliness is broken, I think of leaving them with trouble. Our hearts and actions are both forgotten, who can verify our deeds?"
"Sweep the fields clean, pick the garden vegetables. Enjoy the quiet pleasures and let poetry flow, live a secluded life in an empty hall." A voice echoed from behind, and Xiao Zuo followed, his voice filled with emotion, "Thirty years have passed since we parted, I never thought we would meet again."
The master turned his gaze, his expression indifferent: "It is indeed something Feng Qiansu would do to cut off all contact, but the reason I have avoided seeing her for thirty years is for another reason."
Xiao Zuo smiled and said, "I suppose it has something to do with my visit?"
My master stared at him for a long time, his gaze calm, yet it made my heart involuntarily jump.
Ever since Xiao Nuo told me about that incident from thirty years ago, I've often wondered what Master's purpose was in sending me down the mountain to lure Xiao Zuo here. Although Master was defeated by him back then, she wasn't the type to hold a grudge, so why would she harbor such resentment now? But if she didn't hold a grudge, why would she go to such lengths to obtain this opportunity to meet him, doing so much scheming?
Compared to my anxiety, Xiao Zuo was not worried at all. When his master looked at him, he let her look at him openly and calmly.
After a long while, the master finally withdrew her gaze and sighed softly, "Xiao Jun hasn't changed at all..." Her voice suddenly tightened, and when she stood up again, her expression had turned as cold as ice.
My heart skipped a beat.
"I've been thinking about it for a long time. Was it because I was outmatched in intelligence, the timing was wrong, or something else when I lost to you back then? After thinking about it for so many years, I've finally figured out the answer."
Xiao Zuo readily agreed with an "Oh".
"It's because you're immune to all poisons."
Xiao Zuo gave a noncommittal smile.
The master continued, "But I have serious doubts about whether there is truly no poison in the world that is effective against you."
"Then?"
The master picked up a wine cup from beside the chessboard, poured three full cups with the pot in his right hand, and said in a deep voice, "The poisoned wine from thirty years ago had no effect on you. I wonder if you will still have such good luck thirty years from now?"
Xiao Zuo finally looked somewhat surprised, and I couldn't help but ask, "Master, could there be something in this wine...?"
The master stared at him and said, "That's right. In one of the cups, I've put a new poison that I've developed using all my knowledge. If you're lucky and don't draw it, that's fine. But if you're unlucky enough to draw it, please be my first poison tester."
I immediately panicked, never expecting that Master had sent Xiao Zuo here for this reason! I exclaimed, "Master, no!"
The master said coldly, "Chenxi, get out."
"Master!"
"Get out." My master's voice was heavy. I bit my lip, glanced at Xiao Zuo one last time, and could only lower my head and walk away helplessly. The moment I stepped through the archway, I couldn't help but look back. I saw Xiao Zuo and my master standing face to face, the sunlight shining from behind them, dazzling and stinging my eyes. I quickly walked out the door, leaned against the wall, and felt so depressed that I could hardly breathe.
Which cup will Xiao Zuo choose? Can he withstand his master's new poison?
It's over, it's over... It's all over... If Xiao Zuo really dies from Master's poisoned wine, what will Xiao Nuo's expression be? He will definitely be very sad and angry. Will he even resent me as well?
Master, Master, why, after all these years, after so many, many years, can you still not let go of that past...?
Suddenly, the world spun around me, and I wished I could just drift away with the wind to avoid standing here and suffering like this.
Just as I was struggling with despair, grief, and sorrow, my mind in complete chaos, the archway suddenly opened from the inside, and a hand patted my shoulder.
Turning my head, I saw a gentle smile in her eyes: "Let's go."
Xiao Zuo... he's still alive!!
I almost jumped up, both delighted and curious: "You didn't drink the poisoned wine? Or did you drink it but are unharmed?"
Xiao Zuo tilted his head and smiled mysteriously, "What do you think?"
I was stunned for a moment, and he had already strode away. I quickly chased after him and said, "You must have missed drinking the poisoned wine, right? I have great faith in Master. She has spent thirty years of her life; it's impossible that it was all in vain..."
However, no matter how much I pressed him, Xiao Zuo refused to answer. Then one day, when I was watching the snow with Xiao Nuo, I couldn't help but ask him for his opinion on the matter.
“It’s not that I lack faith in your father, but I really find it hard to imagine anyone being able to drink the poisoned wine that my master has painstakingly developed over so many years and still be unharmed. Moreover, it’s obvious that my master specifically concocted this poison for your father. Therefore, I think it’s more likely that your father didn’t choose that cup of poisoned wine. What do you think?”
Xiao Nuo grabbed a handful of snow, clenched it into a ball, and threw it far away, replying casually, "Does it matter which cup you choose? Anyway, my father is back safe and sound, and your master has given up."
"But..." Before I could say anything more, Xiao Nuo suddenly threw a snowball at me. Bang! I didn't expect him to attack so suddenly. I couldn't dodge in time and it hit my neck squarely. Snow water immediately flowed into my collar, and I felt a chill run down my spine.
Xiao Nuo winked at me: "This ending is already very good, don't be too greedy! Instead of thinking so much, you should think about other things."
"Others? What other things?"
“For example—” he said slowly as he walked backward, “my second brother is getting married.”
"So what?" I asked, bewildered.
"My second brother is about to become a father."
"So what?" I still didn't understand. What did his second brother's marriage and children have to do with me?
"A beautiful wife and daughters, drawing eyebrows and playing with children, it's truly enviable..."
"So what?" I stopped walking and looked at him with my arms crossed.
Xiao Nuo sighed, shook her head, and then suddenly pointed to the sky and said, "Sister, look!"
I subconsciously looked up. The sky was bright blue, and there wasn't even a bird in sight... Just as I thought that, my face flushed, and he had already taken liberties with me.
I turned my head in astonishment, only to see Xiao Nuo laughing loudly as she ran far away, saying in a clear voice, "That's all I wanted to say, sister, have you thought it through?"
"You!" I touched the spot on my face where he had kissed me, feeling a mix of embarrassment, anger, and nervousness. My heart was pounding, a bittersweet feeling that was hard to define. Finally, I pursed my lips and said, "Come here."
Xiao Nuo raised his eyebrows at me, looking just like a wary and suspicious fox.
So I smiled and said, "If you don't come over, how can I tell you my answer?"
He immediately ran over with his arms outstretched, laughing and shouting, "I knew you were the cutest, sister!"
Before I could even finish the word "love," I'd already thrown the snowball I'd hidden behind my back, hitting him squarely in his wide-open mouth. Snowmelt dripped down his chin, and I laughed so hard I bent over.
Hmph, you think you're so clever at cheating? You deserve to experience what it's like to be tricked!
After a moment of surprise, Xiao Nuo immediately understood and narrowed her eyes at me. I knew something was wrong and turned to run away.
"Sister, you've become bad!"
"That's what you taught me, the saying goes, 'One who stays near ink gets stained black'!"
"Am I dark? Where am I dark? I'm not afraid of being dark, I can just wash it off with snow, sister, don't run away..."
*Thud!* Several snowballs flew over. Why aren't you running? Only a fool wouldn't.
The sun rose on the horizon, and the snow fell like ribbons. Reflecting on the events of the past two months, it all felt like a dream.
The past is gone, replaced by a new, picturesque scene. I smile at the roadside flowers, feigning anger and gentle resentment always on my mind. Alas, alas, how fortunate I am to have met him in this life.
At this moment, in this situation, I am no longer ashamed to admit: Heaven sent me on this journey so that I could meet him... him, Xiao Nuo.
As for what exactly happened inside the archway that day, I'm afraid that apart from Master and Xiao Zuo, no one else in the world knows.
People weave dreams, people enter dreams, in and out of dreams, let's just laugh it off.
(End of article)
Postscript & Ramblings
It's become a habit of mine to add a bit of rambling at the end of every book I finish writing. Ladies, please bear with this bad habit of mine; please read the rambling first, the epilogue will follow—
I've finally posted the last section, and I feel such a huge sense of relief. Sorry for keeping everyone waiting. This book will definitely be released in March, so please, ladies, support me if you have the money, or if you have connections, support me!
Seeing everyone's comments really touched me, especially the one who almost wore out their paper copy of "Feng Yan Yin" and came online every day waiting for updates. Thank you so much for your support. We also feel extremely ashamed of the slow updates and are very sorry to everyone, but there's nothing we can do about it. This is the 10,000th time I've bowed and apologized to everyone.
Furthermore, some readers seem to feel that this piece cannot compare to "The Tale of Wind and Smoke." Frankly, I personally think so too. (I'm Wu Luo!)