clergé

Chapitre 55

I was stunned when I entered the room.

The large main hall was filled with more than a dozen beautiful young women, some with gorgeous makeup and clothes, others with an elegant and ethereal beauty, each possessing an exceptional appearance.

Several adult men sat slumped in their chairs, adopting a judging posture. Gu Xiju sat high in the main seat, his expression grave and brows furrowed. Everyone seemed to be struggling with something when they suddenly heard a noise and all their eyes turned to the door.

"Why are you here?" Gu Xiju was clearly taken aback when he saw Pang Wan.

"This...this is a selection of imperial concubines?"

Pang Wan's face was deathly pale, and her voice trembled slightly: "So many beautiful women..." Could it be that Gu Xiju is going to take a concubine?

Seeing her expression—clearly extremely nervous yet forcing herself to remain calm—Gu Xiju couldn't help but smile.

"No, we are selecting dancers for the martial arts tournament."

His voice was very gentle, instantly calming her downcast mood. "Do you want to watch it together?" he asked her.

Just as Pang Wan was about to grin and agree, a strange voice suddenly rang out from the corner: "Alliance Leader, I think she's good!"

Gu Xiju's brows furrowed quickly.

Pang Wan was still completely bewildered when the man said again, "Alliance Leader, there are many people with superb dancing skills, but at present, I'm afraid only Miss Wanwan can perform this Celestial Dance!"

Pang Wan couldn't stand being praised, so she scurried over to Gu Xiju and stood right next to him, grinning from ear to ear: "What is the Celestial Dance?" She looked up at him expectantly, her eyes brimming with anticipation.

Seeing her beaming with excitement, Gu Xiju sighed helplessly and began to explain to her in detail.

It turns out that every martial arts tournament in recent years has featured a special opening performance: the "Flying Immortal from Heaven" dance. The dance itself is unremarkable; it involves a beautiful young woman descending from the sky on the moon, mimicking the graceful movements of a Dunhuang flying apsara to create an ethereal atmosphere. The dance itself isn't difficult, but the performance venue is set on an extremely steep, desolate mountain cliff, where a slight misstep could result in a fall. The dancer not only has to perform the entire dance on the cliff face, but at the very end, she must leap off the cliff to unfurl a huge banner proclaiming "Grand Opening of the Martial Arts Tournament," intending to create an atmosphere of divine favor and harmony for the tournament leader.

"Who came up with such a bizarre dance?" Pang Wan's eyes widened after hearing Gu Xiju's description.

Someone behind them protested, "The creator of this dance, which is both beautiful and dangerous, was none other than the peerless fairy Sang Chan!"

Pang Wan pouted in annoyance and turned to look at Gu Xiju: "Then why doesn't she come and dance herself?"

Gu Xiju choked for a moment, then answered somewhat awkwardly, "After we parted at the Purple Bamboo Grove last time, my junior sister was angry that I broke my promise, so..." It was clear that he was carefully choosing his words.

Pang Wan then realized the trouble she had caused, and her heart sank.

Sang Chan disappeared in anger, so here's the problem: most girls who can dance don't have amazing light-foot skills, and girls with amazing light-foot skills aren't necessarily beautiful young women.

"Which category does the one who ran away just now fall into?" Pang Wan kept thinking about the maid B who had left in shame and anger.

“...the latter.” Gu Xiju originally wanted to answer with the former, but seeing Pang Wan’s puffed-up cheeks, he changed his mind as if possessed.

Pang Wan immediately smiled, revealing two dimples, looking extremely satisfied.

—Being a mistress has no future, because there will be mistresses four or five to deal with you!

"Will not performing this opening dance have a big impact?" She carefully observed Gu Xiju's expression.

"...The dance itself is not very meaningful, it's just..." Gu Xiju sighed, seemingly unwilling to say more.

"The Celestial Dance was created by Fairy Sangchan to congratulate the Alliance Leader on winning the throne. It is performed once a year, and it has been performed for three consecutive years. If no one performs this year, I'm afraid..." The stranger behind him continued to mutter, sounding very worried.

Pang Wan now understood. It turned out that when Gu Xiju seized the supreme position at a young age, Sang Chan, in order to bolster her senior brother's prestige, devised this "Heaven Blesses the Alliance Leader" gimmick to help him gain the support of the masses. If no one performed this dance this year, Gu Xiju's already precarious position as Alliance Leader would inevitably be the subject of gossip. For example, people might speculate whether the Alliance Leader had broken ties with Fairy Sang Chan, or whether Heaven was abandoning the Alliance Leader. These rumors would then be exploited by certain "opportunistic" individuals.

It seems that what people are worried about is not the dance itself, but the powerful public opinion behind it.

"Alright! I'll dance this dance!" Pang Wan slammed his hand on the table with an imposing air.

Gu Xiju was startled by her sudden aura.

"Don't worry, I will complete the mission perfectly." Pang Wan turned back and smiled brightly at her beloved, secretly clenching her fists and reminding herself that she must dance better than Sang Chan.

Pang Wan, now in full combat mode, has thrown himself into intensive training.

The martial arts tournament opened on her sixteenth birthday. She fantasized about performing a dance for Gu Xiju like a fairy, then nestling beside him like a little bird in front of everyone—in an instant, all the beauties of the martial arts world would pale in comparison, and Pang Wan would be the center of all affections! How incredibly Mary Sue-ish! Absolutely Mary Sue to the extreme!

Pang Wan felt an unprecedented sense of happiness and anticipation.

During dance practice, Gu Xiju was extremely busy, but he still made time to visit her.

Are you tired?

Is it bitter?

Can you persevere?

He doesn't often say sweet words; he just repeats a few words of concern over and over again. Although Pang Wan feels physically exhausted, she adheres to the principle of only reporting good news and not bad news. Each time, she replies with a reassuring sweet smile and occasionally acts coquettishly, asking him to help wipe her sweat and bring her a cup of tea.

While Gu Xiju was wiping her sweat, she would take the opportunity to snuggle into his arms and rub against him, then look up at her beloved with a tender and loving gaze, her face flushed.

"What's a little hardship if you're happy?" she said obediently.

Gu Xiju was taken aback, then a smile curled at the corners of his lips.

"You are so understanding, I wonder how I should repay you in the future?" he teased her on purpose.

Marry me! Swear to love only me for life! Cherish me for eternity!

A flood of ways to repay her surged through her mind, but Pang Wan knew that now was not the time to speak. She would save these requests for her sixteenth birthday, to make it the most beautiful moment of her life.

So she just smiled shyly, stomped her foot, turned around, and ran away.

Disillusionment

The martial arts tournament officially opened on the tenth day of the sixth lunar month.