As she spoke, tears soaked through his thin shirt.
"That old book was buried next to my mother. She could let go of anything, but not that book, simply because it contained a few lines of poetry written by Yan Zhao."
In the north there is a beautiful woman, aloof from the world, whose beauty could topple a city with a single glance, and a nation with a second.
How could one not know the power of beauty to topple cities and kingdoms? Such a beauty is hard to come by again.
What a clichéd and overused phrase! Yan Zhao actually used such a vulgar and trite poem to trick his eighteen-year-old mother away.
As Hua Chongyang thought about it, he sobbed and cried. As he cried, he thought about what Yan Zhao had done to Lan Wuxie back then, and his heart ached again.
Lan Wuxie remained silent for a long time, stroking her hair with his fingers before finally speaking, his voice trembling slightly, as soft as water:
"Say what you just said... Chongyang, repeat it again."
My mother can let go of everything.
"Not that sentence."
"...just a terrible book--"
"No." Lan Wuxie's hand pressed against her back, almost trembling slightly. "The sentence before that."
Hua Chongyang was slightly taken aback, and thought for a long time:
"The Hua family is in misfortune--"
Lan Wuxie immediately looked slightly annoyed, and pushed her away by holding her shoulders:
"You did it on purpose."
"You're the one doing this on purpose," Hua Chongyang couldn't help but smile slightly, "How am I supposed to know which of your sentences you meant if you don't tell me?"
"……"
"Tell me, which sentence is it?"
"……"
Seeing that Lan Wuxie was about to panic, she smiled mischievously:
"Is it that line, 'Why don't you marry me?'"
Lan Wuxie's fingers pinched her shoulder until it ached, then he held her tightly in his arms and whispered after a long while:
"Tomorrow, we will get married tomorrow."
85. Night Talk
Exhausted from a long day, Hua Chongyang handed the manual to Lan Wuxie, putting her mind at ease, and went straight to sleep. In the middle of the night, half-asleep, she heard a faint rustling sound beside her. Not wanting to open her eyes, but remembering Lan Wuxie's unhealed injuries, she groggily reached out to touch him. Finding nothing, she forced her eyes open and saw only emptiness beside her; looking up again, she saw a tall, thin figure in white robes standing in the doorway.
She sat up slightly and called out softly:
"Lan Wuxie?"
Lan Wuxie, standing at the door, turned around, walked back to the bed, and pulled the quilt over her.
"Did I disturb you?"
"What's wrong?"
"It's nothing." Lan Wuxie sat casually on the edge of the couch, gently touching her brow with one hand. "I have some instructions for Lancao."
"oh."
"Why are you frowning?" Lan Wuxie said, getting up and pouring half a bowl of tea from the table, handing it to Hua Chongyang's lips. "It's cold, just have a sip."
She always got up in the middle of the night to drink tea; this was Hua Chongyang's habit. She took a sip of tea, then lay back down, humming and muttering.
"...You should go to sleep too."
A moment later, even breathing could be heard.
Lancao stood by the doorway, waiting until she was about to doze off, then couldn't help but call out softly:
"Sect Master?"
Lan Wuxie got up and walked to the door:
"Do as instructed for now. Go back first, and I'll let you know if you remember anything else."
After dismissing Lan Cao, he closed the door, returned to the couch, and lay down.
The moonlight was soft and the night was tranquil. After a long while, a hand groped and slid to his face, its fingers touching the corner of his lips. Lan Wuxie dared not speak, only asking softly:
"Double Ninth Festival?"
Hua Chongyang withdrew his hand, his voice clear but slightly hoarse:
Why aren't you asleep yet?
"You go to sleep, don't worry about me."
"Is it because of Anping?"
"no."
Hua Chongyang asked no more questions, got up and leaned against Lan Wuxie:
"When Lan Yu changed your clothes tonight, you frowned four times."
"...Is that so?"
"You're not used to Anping being away, are you, Master Lan?"
She was almost certain that Lan Wuxie had deep feelings for Anping and would never let Anping fall into Situ Yebai's hands.
Lan Wuxie remained silent, stroking her hair with his fingers, before finally speaking after a long while:
"From the time I was old enough to understand things, he was always by my side, helping me with my clothes, food, and schooling, for over twenty years now."
"Um."
No wonder Master Lan can't do anything, including dressing and putting on slippers.
"Although Anping is a eunuch, he came from a family of guards and is highly skilled in martial arts."
"Oh? I didn't realize that."
An Ping was usually quiet and unassuming, but judging from his footsteps and breathing, he didn't seem like a martial artist.
Lan Wuxie's voice was still low, and after a pause, he continued:
"Anping is blind in his left eye. He injured his meridians protecting me during the chase years ago, rendering him unable to fight again. That's when he lost his left eye."
"……oh."
Lan Wuxie remained silent. After a moment of silence, Hua Chongyang asked again:
"You really want to give Situ Yebai the map to the second treasure vault?"
Lan Wuxie nodded:
"Anping cannot afford the slightest mistake."
"Then it seems we'll have to go to the treasury tomorrow." Hua Chongyang frowned again. "Situ Yebai is so shrewd; he'll definitely verify the authenticity before returning Anping."
Moreover, if he really wanted the underground treasure, that would be one thing, but the real fear is that Situ Yebai would discover he had Lan Wuxie's weakness and then blackmail him for something else—for example, demanding Lan Wuxie's life in exchange for another's…
Hua Chongyang's heart tightened suddenly, and his throat tightened. After a long while, he asked in a hoarse voice:
"...Lan Wuxie."
"Um?"
"What if... Situ Yebai doesn't truly want to release Anping...?"
Her probing was subtle.
Lan Wuxie answered decisively:
"He won't touch me. Unless he doesn't want the money."
How can you be so sure?
In the darkness, Lan Wuxie chuckled softly, took Hua Chongyang's hand, and gently touched the back of his shoulder:
"Because the map of the underground palace of the Second Treasury is tattooed on my body."
Hua Chongyang woke up early the next morning.
It was more accurate to say she woke up than to realize she had become fully awake. She barely slept the rest of the night, tossing and turning, constantly thinking about Anping. In the morning, she only felt dizzy. When she opened her eyes, Lan Wuxie was already gone, having woken up even earlier than her.
She got up, casually threw on a coat, and saw Lan Yu standing at the door. She asked:
"Where is the Pavilion Master?"
Strange, Lan Yu is dressed in red, is she newly married?
"The Pavilion Master instructed that Master Hua should rest well, have breakfast, and try on the clothes first. He was to prepare for the wedding immediately upon his return."
Hua Chongyang was jolted awake, remembering the marriage they had discussed the night before.
I thought he was just going along with her, but it turned out to be true.
That's true. When has he ever said anything to her that wasn't serious? If he wasn't serious, he wouldn't be Lan Wuxie.
Mingming Hua Chongyang had long since come to terms with the matter: they'd already slept together, had a child, and almost everyone in the world knew about her relationship with Lan Wuxie. What did it matter whether they got married or not? But at this moment, a slight smile still crept onto her lips, impossible to suppress; she tried desperately to hold it in, her face beaming as she asked Lan Yu:
"Then where did your sect leader go?"
Lan Yu's smile faded slightly:
"The Pavilion Master only said that the Pavilion Master should wait for him to return."
"...Didn't he say where he went?"
"that……"
"Did they go to see Situ Yebai?!"
Uh, this--
"What do you mean, 'what'!" Hua Chongyang instantly forgot about the wedding, grabbed his robes, and ran outside. "Tell me where it is right now, or if you become the mistress of your sect leader, I won't let you off the hook!"
86. Ancient Courtyard
Even mentioning her title as the future mistress of the pavilion master was useless. When she arrived at the entrance of Banlianzui, a male and a female disciple from Lanying Palace recognized her and stopped her together.