"Um."
Xuezhi was a little undecided and looked at Mu Yuan.
Mu Yuan nodded.
Xuezhi then said, "Since that's the case, I've also brought the silver. Please take a look, Valley Master." After saying that, she clapped her hands and had her men bring in two large boxes.
As soon as the box was opened, the gleaming white gold ingots inside caused many people present to squint. Shi Jue, standing on Shangguan Tou's other side, nearly had his eyes pop out. Shangguan Tou had someone count the ingots, then nodded to Xue Zhi:
"That's right."
"Please issue a receipt, Valley Master."
Shangguan Tou quickly issued a receipt.
Things went incredibly smoothly, so smoothly that Xuezhi could hardly believe it. But the thought that Shangguan Tou's decisiveness was likely due to his guilt towards her made her even more embarrassed and angry. She grabbed the receipt and left.
"Please wait."
Xuezhi turned around impatiently: "May I ask if Valley Master Shangguan has any further instructions?"
"I have something else I'd like to say, but it's rather personal, so please dismiss your attendants, Your Highness."
"I think Valley Master Shangguan probably doesn't have anything too important to do. Farewell."
The people from Chonghuo Palace have left.
Shangguan Tou glanced at Shi Jue, whose eyes were glazed over, and said, "Leave Chong Xuezhi behind; all of this is yours."
Without saying a word, Shi Jue rushed out.
"Wait a minute." As he turned around, Shangguan Tou added, "You know the strength of Chonghuo Palace. Mu Yuan is here today too. A head-on confrontation won't do you any good."
"clear."
75
As soon as the Chonghuo Palace group arrived at the entrance of Yue Shang Valley, Yanhe sighed, "Beautiful women are indeed much faster at getting things done than stinky men."
Xuezhi remained silent.
At that moment, she knew that leaving early was the right thing to do. The longer she stayed there, the greater the chance she would explode.
Haitang said, "Palace Master, I know it's wrong to make such a request... but I see that Shangguan Tou is very accommodating to you, so it's not difficult to get along with him."
"If anyone mentions this name in front of me again, they should never appear in front of me again."
Haitang met with a rebuff once again and finally shut up.
Just as everyone was about to leave, an incredibly tall and strong figure suddenly leaped up behind them. Xue Zhi was preparing to defend herself when Mu Yuan flashed in front of her, his longsword drawn and pointed at the man's throat.
Shi Jue glanced at Mu Yuan's sword and a smile appeared on his lips: "The Grand Protector of Chonghuo Palace is indeed highly skilled."
"You flatter me."
Nevertheless, the sword was still pressed against his throat.
"I am here on the orders of the Valley Master to speak with Palace Master Xue about something."
Mu Yuan then put down his sword.
"The Snow Palace Master has returned to the martial world, but has attracted a bad reputation. It's hard to say whether this is a blessing or a curse. Having the appearance of a fox spirit is a good thing, but doing the things of a fox spirit, especially for a young girl, is probably not a good thing."
"I don't have much time, so please get straight to the point."
"Alright, if Palace Master Xue doesn't want her reputation to be too bad, she'd better stay here and go to our Valley Master's room. Otherwise, with my silver tongue, I'm afraid I'll make Palace Master Xue wish she were dead and regret being born into this world."
"You...!" Xuezhi pointed at him angrily, "Threatening me won't work!"
"I'm not threatening you, I'm leaving now."
Even so, not long after, Xuezhi fulfilled Shangguan Tou's wish and went to Qing Shen Lou.
Shangguan Tou was not in the living room.
Xuezhi looked at the bedroom with its beaded curtains, her anxiety growing. She waited at the door. But soon, Shangguan Tou's voice came from inside:
"Zhi'er, come in."
Xuezhi stormed in, shouting angrily:
"You despicable and shameless scoundrel!"
Shangguan Tou stood by the window, admiring the newly finished ink painting. Upon hearing her voice, he immediately turned around with a smile: "Still no different."
"How disgusting to threaten me with something like this!"
Shangguan Tou's face still wore an unwavering smile:
When did I threaten you?
"You had your men say those things...it's absolutely despicable!"
“I didn’t let him say anything, I only told him to leave you here.” Shangguan Tou thought for a moment, then took two steps forward. “What did he say?”
Xuezhi's face flushed slightly:
"He didn't say anything! Just tell him to shut up, I'm leaving!"
Just as she turned around, Shangguan Tou flashed in front of her with even more abnormal movements: "Don't go yet."
Xuezhi glared at him with hatred and prepared to leave. But every time she took a step to the left, Shangguan Tou would block her to the left; every step to the right, he would block her to the right. Finally, unable to escape, she punched Shangguan Tou in the chest. Shangguan Tou, however, grasped her hands with one hand and laughed:
"You hate me."
The person in front of me was still Shangguan Tou, with the same confident smile on his face, but he was completely different.
It turns out that time and experience can really change a person.
Shangguan Tou no longer treats her like a precious treasure, pampering and loving her as he used to.
"I just hate you." She struggled with her wrists and gritted her teeth. "Hate, I wouldn't say so."
“If I hadn’t been so emotional back then, we would have been together long ago.” Shangguan Tou’s voice was very soft. “Look, this is where we spent that night together, and where you gave yourself to me.”
Xuezhi's face gradually turned pale.
"Stop talking, I don't want to hear it."
"My Zhi'er welcomed me with open arms back then, how come you're so heartless today?" Shangguan Tou turned his head and pointed to his back with his chin. "The next day, my back was covered in scratches from your claws, yet you could still run so fast. Didn't it hurt?"
Xuezhi's lips trembled uncontrollably:
"Shut up!"
"It always hurts the first time, but you haven't experienced any of the pleasure that follows." Shangguan Tou slowly lowered his head, the two getting closer and closer. "Want to try again now?"
"nausea!!"
"You feel disgusted? If you feel disgusted, why did you do it?" Shangguan Tou said coldly. "Don't tell me you were deceived by me, and don't tell me you have brotherly feelings for me. I was confused by you at the time, and I believed whatever you said. Later, I asked around, and no one said your behavior was like that of an older brother."
Every word he uttered was incisive and hit the nail on the head. At this moment, Xuezhi genuinely hated the way he spoke to her.
Feeling as embarrassed as if she had been stripped naked, large tears fell onto the back of Shangguan Tou's hand.
He used to be very gentle.
"Didn't you say you didn't like me? Then why are you crying now?"
"Whether you like him or not is not important to you," Xuezhi said, choking back tears. "I know that Young Master Shangguan is exceptionally charming, and many, many women like you... Letting go of Chong Xuezhi is not that difficult."
"Why?"
"I want to forget that unpleasant past as soon as possible and marry someone who truly loves me. Please don't contact me again, considering how good I was to you."
Shangguan Tou frowned slightly and said with a wry smile:
"...Won't you even give me one chance?"
"I'm sorry." Xuezhi broke free, bent her knees, and turned to leave.
76 77 78
76
Xuezhi had finally managed to escape from Moon Valley, but seeing the expressions of many people in Chonghuo Palace who wanted to ask but dared not, she became even more unhappy.
After settling into an inn dozens of miles southwest of Shaolin Temple, Xuezhi remained silent.
One person's disappointment caused unhappiness throughout the room. Everyone ate their meal with somber faces, and after Xuezhi went to her room, no one dared to disturb her. After lying down, she woke up ten times throughout the night. Disturbed and agitated, Xuezhi had no choice but to go for a walk outside the inn alone.
A gentle breeze and a bright moon; the fragrance of flowers lingers quietly.
Shaoshi Mountain is not far away, with sparse lights shining through the mountains.
Xuezhi knew in her heart that she was not an idle person. The affairs between small sects were never-ending. To reclaim her ranking on the Weapon Ranking, someone had to step up at the Heroes' Gathering. Once these goals were achieved, even more troubles would likely arise.
She knew she needed to adjust her mindset.
"Forget about Shangguan Tou." She covered her face and whispered, "Don't think about anything, just focus on practicing martial arts, forget about Shangguan Tou... don't think about anything."
Just then, from around the corner of the inn, a woman uttered a sinister sentence:
"Love is the Achilles' heel of those in the martial arts world. With such a deep affection, Palace Master Xue is unlikely to achieve great things."
Xuezhi looked up in surprise.
I was so careless that I didn't even notice someone was following me.
The woman slowly walked out: "Women are always so contradictory. They all want to be with powerful figures in the martial arts world, they all want vanity and security, but they can never truly settle down or find peace of mind."
"You talk as if you're not a woman." Xuezhi stood up and gradually saw the person's figure clearly.
It turns out it's Full Moon again.
As soon as she stopped, a group of strange-looking men sprang out from behind her, neither male nor female, and looked quite terrifying in the dark.
“Of course I’m not a woman. Just a little girl.” Man Feiyue gently stroked her cheek. “However, I have the most loyal men in the world.”
The effeminate men surrounded her again, massaging her back and wiping her sweat, nodding and being extremely attentive. One of the handsome young men, who was massaging her back, said, "Holy Mother must be tired today. Let's get rid of this guy soon so she can rest."
Then someone else chimed in, "No, let the Holy Mother do her job properly. Other heads cost at least five hundred taels each, this one is worth more than that."