"What?"
"I exchanged a few words with Lan Wuxie, and I felt like he was a bit of a fool?"
"……"
"He doesn't talk much, and his face is always deadpan, as sullen as can be. If I didn't know him, I would definitely mistake him for some pampered, ignorant young master from a wealthy family, the kind with a particularly stubborn temper."
Liu Da sighed, holding his teacup:
"It's best to get rid of him as soon as possible, lest Chongyang get angry again when she wakes up. We still don't know who killed Ye Laosi. Judging from his expression, he probably wants to see Chongyang when she wakes up."
Huang San snorted:
"I bet a hundred taels of silver that if Chongyang wakes up, I'll either avoid him completely or go down to fight him to the death."
Two days later, on the evening of the seventh day, Huang San went downstairs to look at the street scene and, incidentally, to gather information. Lan Wuxie, who hadn't spoken for two days, glanced at her and, for the first time, took the initiative to speak:
"Has Chongyang woken up yet?"
Huang San shook his head:
"No, no, my fever has subsided. You should go home now."
No sooner had he finished speaking than Ye Laoqi shouted from three floors upstairs:
"Huang San! Come quick! Chongyang has woken up!"
Before Huang San could react, Lan Wuxie had already stood up. She subtly blocked his path, then turned and headed upstairs.
"I'll go ask her if she'll see you."
Surprisingly, after Hua Chongyang finished eating and listened to Huang San's story, he lay silently by the bedside for a long time before finally nodding.
"Guests are always welcome, how can we not see them? Seventh Brother, help me put on my clothes."
Liu Dachu and Huang San's eyes nearly popped out of their sockets. Taking advantage of Hua Chongyang's dressing, the three of them gathered together, and Huang San started by biting his handkerchief:
"I feel there's something wrong with the Double Ninth Festival."
Liu Da frowned:
"I felt something was off the day my fourth brother died. From the day he died until today, I haven't shed a single tear."
Half an hour later, Hua Chongyang, wearing a dark blue cloak, was helped downstairs by Ye Laoqi; even from half a floor away, Lan Cao couldn't help but gasp as she watched her from afar:
"...How did this happen?"
In just a few days, she became so thin that she was skin and bones. Her once rosy lips, which made people want to bite them, had faded and turned from snow-white with a light blue tinge. Her eyes were sunken deep into their sockets, and she looked like a completely different person.
Lan Wuxie stood silently at the table until Hua Chongyang approached and greeted him with a smile, "Pavilion Master Lan." Only then did he turn around, glance at her, and his expression suddenly changed. He raised his hand to touch her. Hua Chongyang neither dodged nor avoided him, but Lan Wuxie stopped halfway through his outstretched hand and then withdrew it.
Hua Chongyang looked and spoke like a completely different person. He calmly sat down at the table with a slight smile.
"I just wanted to ask. Old Master Ye said that before that day, my mother's Gu poison would flare up once every ten days, but it only flared up once two days before she died. Is it possible that the poison flared up on the day she died?"
Lan Wuxie lowered her eyes for a moment:
"She had taken the antidote forty-nine days before her first episode of poisoning. The time intervals after the first episode will get shorter and shorter, but the second episode will be at least four days later."
"Is it possible that she was poisoned?"
Lan Wuxie shook his head:
"Gu poison can cure all poisons; if there is Gu poison in the blood, one is immune to all poisons."
Hua Chongyang still smiled:
"Then it probably isn't Bo Jiang. With my mother's skills, even with her lackeys, ten Bo Jiangs wouldn't be a match for her."
Lan Wuxie paused, then said in a low voice, "Bo Jiang's skills are indeed mediocre."
Lancao's expression changed.
If Lan Wuxie said that, wouldn't he be admitting that he was the murderer of Ye Qinghua?
But Hua Chongyang lowered his eyes wearily, then looked up and smiled again:
"Of course, it might not be Master Lan. The innkeeper, Anzhitinglan, said that Bo Jiang returned to the inn at noon, and I was still lying on Master Lan's bed at that time."
She paused, then looked up and smiled:
"But I always feel that whether it's Bo Jiang or Pavilion Master Lan, this matter can't be separated from Pavilion Master Lan's involvement, can it? It's not like your shared bed with her was for nothing."
Upon hearing this, everyone present, including Lan Cao and Lan Shu, changed their expressions. Hua Chongyang, however, seemed oblivious, still smiling.
"I always thought that Pavilion Master Lan cared for me and was good to me, but the more I think about it, the less I realize that's not the case. If she really cared for me, she wouldn't have kept Bo Jiang alive and let Qinghua die. The world is a tough place, everyone has their own difficulties. I suppose there's some unspeakable reason between Pavilion Master Lan and Bo Jiang. It would be too difficult for you to say this, but if I don't say it, I'll be making things difficult for myself."
She raised her eyelashes as if nothing had happened, looked at Lan Wuxie, coughed, and slowly said:
"Whether it was someone who ordered it or someone who did it themselves, I will find out the truth and avenge her myself."
She stood up, using the table for support, her smile fading, and turned away with an indifferent expression.
"I won't see you off today, Pavilion Master Lan. Farewell."
From beginning to end, Lan Wuxie stood motionless beside the table.
Huang San and Liu Dachu stood to the side, watching Hua Chongyang head upstairs. They wanted to say something but ultimately remained silent. Hua Chongyang, supporting himself on the stairs, reached the halfway point, then suddenly stopped, clutched his chest, coughed again, and turned back to look at Huang San:
"Sister Huang, what did the doctor say when he took my pulse that night?"
Huang Sanliu and Chu San both changed their expressions at the same time.
Huang San grinned and whispered:
"So you were awake that day..."
Hua Chongyang leaned against the stairs, his eyes lowered:
"If I heard correctly, you mean I'm pregnant?"
Lan Cao stared wide-eyed in surprise, looking at Hua Chongyang and then at Lan Wuxie.
Lan Wuxie slowly raised his eyes to look at Hua Chongyang, his dark eyes unfathomable; Huang Sanliu could see his hands trembling even from several feet away, but Hua Chongyang met his gaze without flinching, a faint smile playing on his lips:
"Poor thing, only two months old, already destined to become a ghost... Actually, it's better this way. If he were born and his parents were enemies, how difficult it would be for him."
She turned around, holding onto the stair railing with one hand and lifting her skirt with the other, and walked upstairs step by step.
Lan Wuxie turned around expressionlessly, stood for a moment, and started to walk out. When he reached the door, his steps faltered and he veered towards the door frame. Lan Shu and Lan Cao rushed forward to help him. He pushed Lan Shu aside and used his other hand to hold onto the door frame, swaying unsteadily until he was able to slowly step out of the threshold and stand still.
Thus, taking the funeral of Ye Qinghua, the owner of a brothel in Hangzhou, as the dividing line, several major events occurred in the martial arts world within a year.
First, Bo Feng, the previous leader of the martial arts alliance, officially returned to the position of leader with the support of his prospective son-in-law, Situ Qingliu. He was ruthless and immediately destroyed several small sects that refused to submit to the martial arts alliance and established their own sects as a warning to others.
Secondly, Prince Ningjing's heir, Situ Qingliu, finally married the most beautiful woman in the world. On their wedding day, Bo Feng personally handed the Alluring Sword to Situ Qingliu. With the help of Bo Feng and Bo Jiang, Prince Ningjing's power in the southwest was also consolidated.
Third, not long after Bo Feng returned to power as the leader of the martial arts alliance, Rong Chenfei, the young master of Huyue Manor, disregarded his master Ji Chong's objections and reconciled with Lan Wuxie, the master of Zhaoyang Pavilion. Lan Wuxie then built Lanying Manor not far from Huyue Manor. From then on, Lanying Palace officially entered the Central Plains martial arts world and shared the glory of the martial arts world with the martial arts alliance.
At the same time, several legends also emerged in the martial arts world.
Firstly, regarding Hua Chongyang; legend has it that Ye Qinghua's true identity is actually Hua Chuxue, who is Hua Chongyang's biological mother. Thus, Hua Chongyang naturally became the new owner of the brothel—this rumor had been circulating for a long time before Hua Chongyang went into seclusion and continued until after her seclusion.
Secondly, regarding Hua Chongyang, it is said that after she went into seclusion, she mastered the "Boundless Style," which is the highest level of martial arts that combines the Azure Sky Heart Method and the Yellow Spring Martial Arts. It is said that the real Azure Sky Heart Method is actually in the hands of Ye Qinghua, also known as Hua Chuxue. Previously, Hua Chongyang approached Lan Wuxie only to steal the Yellow Spring Martial Arts. After Ye Qinghua's death, she went into seclusion for more than half a year to practice the Boundless Style. Therefore, now, her martial arts are much higher than those of her former lover, the number one martial artist in the world, Lan Wuxie.
Thirdly, regarding Hua Chongyang, it is said that on the first day after she returned to power after leaving seclusion, she declared that she would turn the brothel into the number one brothel in the world. She also recruited Bai Lu, a handsome young man of only fifteen years old, who was the second male disciple of the brothel in its decades-long history, besides the second owner Yu Beiyan. Bai Lu is also mentioned in the fourth legend as Hua Chongyang's new male favorite.
After Hua Chongyang emerged from seclusion, several legends spread in the martial arts world far faster and more powerfully than explosives. In the blink of an eye, rumors that lacked substance and novelty, such as Rong Chenfei's affair with Bo Jiang, Bo Jiang's intricate relationship with Lan Wuxie, and Lan Wuxie's homosexual relationship with Rong Chenfei, were immediately overshadowed by Hua Chongyang.
52. White Dew...
The New Year has passed and February is here again in the blink of an eye. The martial arts tournament, which was postponed for a month, has officially begun. Strange things happen every year. Last year it was Hua Chongyang, but this year the focus of the martial arts tournament is Bai Lu, the new disciple of the brothel.
On the stage were banners and drums, and on one side sat Situ Qingliu and Bo Feng, the leader of the Martial Arts Alliance, while on the other side sat Rong Chenfei and Lan Wuxie. Facing the center of the stage were the Wudang, Kongtong, Emei, Shaolin and other sects led by Ji Chong. However, among this group of people, amidst a sea of gray-robed, black-clad, bald monks and Taoists, stood a strikingly handsome young man in brightly colored clothes. His light blue diamond-patterned robe was adorned with a sable collar, and he held a sable fur hand warmer in his hands, making him particularly eye-catching.
The fight on stage was lively, and the onlookers watched with great interest, but the young man looked bored and leaned back in his chair. He played with the jade pendant on his body for a while, and then reached out to fiddle with the hair ornaments on Ji Feixiang's head in front of him.
Ji Feixiang was so annoyed that she turned around and glared at him fiercely.
The boy wasn't offended; instead, he smiled and leaned forward, thrusting his face close to the ground.
"Oh, Sister Ji, who said Bo Jiang is the most beautiful woman in the world? Those people are blind. I think you're much prettier than her."
Ji Feixiang didn't turn her head, gritting her teeth and groaning:
"Who's your 'Sister Ji'? Don't pretend to be familiar with me!"
"Oh dear, Sister Ji, why are you so temperamental? It's not good for a woman to have a bad temper. Look at our boss, she used to be beautiful and had a great figure, but because of her temper, sigh, she's not so likable anymore—ah, I'm so sleepy."
As she spoke, Bai Lu let out a soft hum and slowly stood up, stretching in an exaggerated manner in front of the dueling platform.
When that slender figure stretched out, it resembled a jade tree.
Now, not only were the people below the stage craning their necks to look at him, but even the two people who were fighting on the stage stopped and stared at him in astonishment. Ji Feixiang didn't turn her head and muttered a curse through gritted teeth:
"shameless!"
Bai Lu, however, looked around as if nothing had happened, and smiled softly.
"Are you all looking at me? Please excuse my presumption. The two heroes on stage continue; I was just stretching."
After saying that, he yawned again and sat down casually.
A burst of laughter and whispers erupted from behind the crowd. Countless girls covered their mouths with handkerchiefs, their eyes darting out to look at Bailu, unable to look away. Some of the bolder ones even sighed out loud.
"Such a handsome man, and he became that old woman Hua Chongyang's male concubine. What a pity that a tender young grass was eaten by an old ox!"
The sound was loud enough that Ji Chong, who was in front, couldn't help but frown and turn around. Ji Feixiang also turned around, glancing at Bai Lu in the process. Bai Lu smiled at her, casually raising her eyes, tossing the jade pendant in her hand one after another.
"She's only twenty and people are already calling her an old woman. If Chongyang heard that, he'd be furious. Heh."
Ji Feixiang couldn't help but be taken aback.
This Bai Lu was probably only sixteen or seventeen years old. Her natural charm and elegance were undeniable, and she possessed a captivating allure. She had a naturally beautiful face, a broad forehead, a pointed chin, long, arched eyebrows, and eyes that seemed to hold the corners of smoke. Her thin lips naturally carried a seductive smile.
If he really was Hua Chongyang's male favorite, then she could only say that Hua Chongyang had pretty good taste.
"Sister Ji, you're not staring at me so intently, are you?"
Bai Lu suddenly leaned forward and got so close to Ji Feixiang's face that it was almost touching hers. Startled, Ji Feixiang took a step back and instinctively raised her hand to slap him.
Snap!
If you're too close, the blow won't hurt much; you can barely even see a red mark, but it will still make a very loud noise.
All eyes turned to them again.
Ji Chong frowned and called out in a low voice, "Fei Xiang!"