Бессмертие, Бессмертие - Глава 17
"Where are the people from the Blood Sacrifice Society?" Bi Qiuhan asked in a low voice.
“The night before last, our boat sank. Li Lingyan’s elder brother, Li Shiyu, tried to kill Shengxiang with his flying sword—” Wan Yuyuedan said gently, “but my brother-in-law chopped him into the river with a single palm strike. The people of Furong Manor and Bingzhu Temple panicked when they saw my brother-in-law turn against them. In the chaos, Shengxiang rescued me from drowning, and my brother-in-law seriously injured that girl named Xingxing with a flying knife. The Blood Sacrifice Society members all scattered. Later, we were busy going into the water to look for you, and we didn’t notice when they left.”
"He offended Li Lingyan, isn't he afraid of endless troubles?" Bi Qiuhan closed his eyes and recalled the strange appearance of Yu Cuiwei in his bathrobe and fan. He really couldn't imagine that such a person would be so stubborn about the word "respect". Human nature is truly a strange thing.
"I don't know." Wan Yuyue shook her head. "My brother-in-law isn't ungrateful, or perhaps he has his own plans?"
With two knocks, the door opened, and Old Man Weng came in carrying two bowls of medicinal soup. "Qiuhan's awake?"
"Mr. Weng, you've worked hard." Bi Qiuhan nodded. "How are your injuries?"
Old Man Weng chuckled, “Flesh and blood injuries are nothing, Qiu Han, don’t worry.” He handed the medicinal soup to Wan Yuyuedan and Bi Qiu Han, “It’s just that we were badly injured this time, and the better the martial arts, the more serious the injuries. Right now, the Blood Sacrifice Society is searching everywhere for us and the missing heroes of the Junshan Society. After we got ashore, we couldn’t move an inch. I really don’t know how we’re going to get to Dongting Lake to take a look.”
“Old Weng injured his right arm,” Wan Yuyuedan said, taking a sip of her drink. “I’ve used up all my hidden weapons. Qiu Han’s external injuries are severe, so he shouldn’t move around. Anan’s fever hasn’t subsided. Our group is all badly injured. The only one who can fight is Shengxiang.” His eyes were clear as water. “If he hadn’t been careful to protect himself the night before, we might not even have a single person who could fight this time. My brother-in-law would never have sent us to Junshan Dongting.”
"Could it be... that we actually have to rely on the Holy Incense for protection?" Bi Qiuhan raised his arm to cover his head. "Do you trust him?" "When there's no other way, we have no choice but to trust him," Wan Yuyuedan said softly.
The prow of the jade-adorned boat.
The monks of Bingzhu Temple who originally lived on the ship had all fled during the battle the night before. Now, with the morning breeze blowing gently, the bow of the ship was empty, with no one there.
Just moments before, someone stood gracefully on the bow of the ship, gently waving a round fan.
But they have already disappeared without a trace.
A man stood at the stern, holding a rabbit, and stared at him the whole time he came out of the house, boarded the bow, and left.
But he didn't say anything, he just stroked the big, fat rabbit and blinked.
"Holy Incense? Holy Incense—" Old Man Weng brought out the medicinal soup, "Where did Xiaowan's brother-in-law go? He's disappeared by now?"
"He's gone." Shengxiang turned around, smiling brightly, and pointed out of the boat with a grin. "Spring Breeze Ten Miles Alone, Xiao Jingjing is dead. Her kung fu, Da Yu, was quite good." He called Yu Cuiwei "Da Yu" and Bi Qiuhan "Xiao Bi". In fact, the two were about the same age. I don't know how this young master distinguished between them.
"Gone?" Although Old Man Weng felt uneasy seeing Yu Cuiwei's appearance, he was also surprised to hear that he had left. "Why did he leave? Isn't this his boat?"
Shengxiang looked at Weng Laoliu strangely, "If he doesn't leave, is he going to come with us to find the heroes of the martial arts world, and then wait to be torn to pieces by those heroes who act on behalf of Heaven?" He blinked, "Old Weng, you're so stupid."
Old Man Weng was speechless, feeling resentful. He had forgotten that Yu Cuiwei was a masked demon who had ruined the purity of young men and women after saving him once. "We should go ashore too. If we let the boat go down the river, we'll be at sea."
"Hmm..." Shengxiang rested his folding fan on his chin, closed his eyes and thought, "Da Yu turned the tables and injured Li Shiyu and Li Lingyan's little maid Xingxing. If I were Li Lingyan, I'd be furious. It's too dangerous for us to swagger ashore, and there's no guarantee that another Awan relative will come to our rescue. How about this—" He raised his head with a smile, "Let's change into our costumes!"
Old Man Weng nodded. "That's what I meant too. The old man's disguise skills aren't bad..." Before he could finish, Shengxiang interrupted him with a smile, "Why don't we dress up as women?"
"What?" Old Man Weng was dumbfounded, almost biting his tongue. "Why would you dress up as a woman?"
Shengxiang rested her chin on her hand thoughtfully, "Because I've never dressed up as one before, I heard it's a lot of fun..."
After his initial shock, Weng Laoliu was both amused and exasperated. "We're all grown men. It's one thing for Xiaowan to dress up as a girl since she's still young, but if you want Qiuhan to dress up as a woman, you might as well take a knife and kill Young Master Shengxiang. That's impossible. We don't need to dress up as women either. Dressing up as monks or Taoist priests is fine."
“I don’t care,” Shengxiang declared. “I’m going to dress up as a woman.”
"That old man dressed you up as a woman. As for Qiu Han, just let him off the hook because he's a patient." Old Man Weng smiled bitterly. This young master couldn't be scolded, taught, or even hit. He could do whatever he wanted, and he was truly helpless.
"I don't want to." Shengxiang glared at him. "I want to see Qiuhan dressed as a woman."
“Shengxiang, given Qiuhan’s personality of preferring death to dishonor, if you force him to dress as a woman, he might bite his tongue and commit suicide! You can’t do that to him!” Old Liu Weng was alarmed when he saw that he was really not joking.
Shengxiang made a big face at him, "Then he should just commit suicide."
"Holy Incense..."
“And let me tell you a reason why we have to dress as women.” Shengxiang smiled and pointed to the cabin. “All the clothes Da Yu left behind are women’s clothes, except for the nightgown he’s wearing. We can’t just walk around in these clothes that’ve been soaked in the river and are covered in blood, can we?” He rested his chin on the handle of his folding fan and said pitifully, “I don’t want to walk around naked. It’s too embarrassing.”
Yu Cuiwei! Old Liu was speechless. This was clearly a deliberate prank! He could only imagine what kind of clothes Yu Cuiwei had left behind!
After Weng Laoliu stammered out the fact that they had no clothes to wear except for women's clothes, and that Shengxiang had already thrown all the outer garments of Bi Qiuhan and the other two patients and wounded into the river, Bi Qiuhan's face looked as if he had been slashed ten or eight times. He closed his eyes, not wanting to pay any attention to Shengxiang.
Wan Yuyuedan was not offended and watched with great interest as Shengxiang moved the large box that Yu Cuiwei had left on the ship into the room.
This box really does look a lot like the big box that Shengxiang dropped into the river, Old Man Weng thought to himself. Suddenly, with a "creak," Shengxiang pulled up the lid and exclaimed, "Wow!" "Da Yu is so rich!"
“I’ve heard that only two families in the world can weave this light silk gauze from Haozhou, and they are related by marriage. My brother-in-law, such a wide cloak must be priceless.” As the master of Biluo Palace, which is known as the “treasure trove of the martial arts world,” Wan Yuyuedan naturally knows its value. “Look at it, it really is like a wisp of smoke.”
“The pearl used for this button is a sea pearl, tsk tsk, such a big pearl is easily broken if used as a button instead of a treasure at home.” Shengxiang picked up something. “And this small floral pattern is a treasure from the Lotus Nunnery on Xiangguo Temple Street in the capital. Those young nuns aren’t very good at chanting scriptures and praying to Buddha, but their embroidery skills are truly first-rate. Da Yu’s dress is worth at least seventy or eighty taels of silver.” He suddenly had a bright idea, “Why don’t we set up a stall and sell these clothes? We’ll definitely make a fortune.”
Wan Yuyue smiled and said, "Brother-in-law doesn't give his things away easily. Be careful, or he might kill everyone who buys his clothes one day."
Shengxiang almost forgot about it as soon as she spoke, and unusually picked up a dress, "Is this the legendary Hundred Birds Phoenix Brocade, a dress woven from the feathers of a hundred kinds of birds?"
"Probably, I've never seen it before either." Wan Yuyue also tilted her head and looked at it. "Indeed, it's rich and splendid, quite extraordinary."
“These are peacock feathers,” Old Man Weng interjected. “And this, this is a parrot’s tail.”
"I guess the green one is a kingfisher..."
Bi Qiuhan couldn't help but open her eyes, only to see Sheng Xiang holding up a shimmering dress, raising her eyebrows high, "Wait a minute? I said this green stuff is pheasant feathers."
“A pheasant isn’t a bird,” Old Man Weng said again.
"But pheasant feathers are prettier..."
“Those are mandarin duck feathers,” Bi Qiuhan couldn’t help but say.
"Huh?" Sheng Xiang smiled broadly. "So Xiao Bi knows so much? Good things should be given to those who appreciate them. This dress is for Xiao Bi." He arrogantly looked around. "Does anyone have any objections? Does anyone have any objections?"
Wan Yuyue smiled gently and said, "I have no objection."
Old Liu smiled wryly. Sheng Xiang made the decision: "Two votes in favor and one abstention. This dress belongs to Xiao Bi!"