His peach blossom eyes drifted and swirled, as if a pool of water brimmed within them, their allure sending chills down Leng Wuqing's spine.
"Get lost, you fake woman."
Pfft, Ichiro almost fell over while holding the orange. This cold-hearted guy was so straightforward; he never minced words and always spoke the truth. Although he himself thought Duan Shuixian was too beautiful, who would point it out to his face?
Sure enough, Duan Shuixian's lips twitched, and she was about to explode.
[Produced by the Orange Garden Hand-Typed Team. Welcome to visit ]
"Ruthless, have your spies reported anything? I've been waiting all this time, why haven't I seen Wushuang yet?" Wushilang changed the subject, looking around.
Leng Wuqing's face immediately showed an unnatural expression, and she pretended to be angry, saying, "How should I know?" Wushilang's eyes were clear and pure, making it impossible for him to meet her gaze. Leng Wuqing pretended to be annoyed, flicked her sleeves, and ran away alone, leaving Wushilang and Duan Shuixian staring at each other.
"Ha, I was getting impatient waiting, and I kept asking him repeatedly. It's understandable that he got angry," Ishiro chuckled.
Duan Shuixian frowned, pressed her finger against the piece of black cloth she was carrying in front of her chest, her mind racing. Seeing Wushilang staring at her with his big, round eyes, she finally couldn't bear it and forced a smile, comforting her, "Sister Wushi, you've waited so many days. In just a few days, you'll probably be able to meet."
He simply couldn't bring himself to say that fact, even though he understood that a short pain was better than a long one, and even though the woman in front of him was the first woman he had ever been somewhat interested in, he just couldn't bring himself to reveal the devastating news that Leng Wushuang was gone.
Wu Shilang nodded dejectedly, then suddenly looked up and grinned, revealing a sly smile. "Young Master Duan," he said, "how about we make a deal?"
"Oh?" Duan Shuixian's expression had straightened, and she looked at her seriously, saying, "What good suggestions do you have, Sister Fifty?"
Wu Shilang walked a few steps with his hands behind his back, then suddenly turned around and said with a smile, "If you break off the engagement with me, I will have my father give you all the luck in the world."
Duan Shuixian was greatly surprised. The Xiao family's advantage lay in those exclusive transportation routes. Anyone involved in north-south transport had to cultivate a good relationship with the Xiao family; otherwise, their journey would be fraught with difficulties and setbacks. His marriage alliance with the Xiao family was solely for this reason.
"Father has always doted on me. I can guarantee that all the goods in your Duan family shop will be transported without any worries from now on." Wu Shilang chuckled, his eyes narrowing into little crescents, looking quite adorable.
Duan Shuixian pondered for a long time, then looked up with a smile and said, "I refuse!"
Wu Shilang was stunned on the spot, very puzzled, and asked, "Why?" She had thought of countless possible outcomes, which were nothing more than bargaining. Duan Shuixian was a pure businesswoman, and she would not refuse such an attractive offer. Besides, marrying an unhappy wife was indeed not a decision that the shrewd Duan Shuixian could make.
“If I marry you, I will gain both wealth and love. Why would I break off the engagement?” He propped his chin up with a fan, smiled slyly, and said, “I like you, Sister Xiao.”
Isoro was speechless for a long time before he came to his senses and angrily said, "I don't like you!"
Duan Shuixian smiled, opened her folding fan with a "whoosh," and gracefully fanned herself, saying, "There are times when a marriage doesn't need love. Sister Xiao, you're still too naive. That's the principle between you and me. Just obediently wait to be married into the family."
Seeing his rather roguish smile, Ishiro immediately lost the desire to continue the conversation. He glared at him fiercely and, as he brushed past him, wiped the orange juice that was all over his hands onto Ishiro's clothes.
Duan Shuixian chuckled, looked down at her disheveled farm clothes, and sighed deeply in resignation.
He would never admit that he actually longed for this marriage from the bottom of his heart.
One more day will pass before the martial arts tournament begins.
A high platform was erected atop Zijin Mountain. Looking out, one could see martial arts practitioners everywhere, dressed in brightly colored clothes, like butterflies seeking mates, a vibrant and colorful sight.
The leader of Mount Hua changed into a landlord's robe with a copper coin pattern. His face was covered in bruises, and he sat in the first seat. Next to him sat the leader of Mount Wudang, whose face was covered in scratches and looked constipated, pretending to be deep and serious.
The previous abbot was Abbess Wu Niao of Emei, who had a naturally weary face and looked at everyone as if they were her enemies. As soon as she took the stage, she glared angrily at Abbot Wu Niao of Shaolin, whose eyebrows were full of affection and whose eyes were full of smiles.
Sparks flew everywhere, and the various factions below the stage all seemed to understand.
"What's going on with them?" Igarashi turned his face away and asked Leng Wuqing behind him.
"Young lovers, driven by love to hate, forgot their feelings and abandoned all ties, falling into the monastic life." The answer was indeed Luo Jinfeng. He squeezed in a seat to the left of Wushilang, while the thirteen members of the Treasure Toad Palace behind him glared at each other.
Everyone breathed a sigh of relief; it was indeed a melodramatic version of the martial arts world.
"Rou-mei, do you have a target this time?" Master Wu-niao's eyes were still full of affection, looking doting. "Look, you've lost weight recently."
Upon hearing this, the bird-exterminating nun on the stage immediately flew into a rage. With a sweep of her dust, a row of bloody marks appeared on the bird-exterminating master's bald head: "I'm thin, and it's all because of you."
The audience members from all sides gaped in disbelief. Sure enough, gossip and scandals surface every year.
The writer of "The Chronicles of the Martial World" gradually moved from the last row to the front of the stage, his eyes shining as he wrote furiously. Goruro leaned over and, upon seeing the title in black ink, was immediately stunned.
It reads: "The collision of spirit and flesh, the ambiguity of light and Buddha—a record of the boundless illicit affair between Master Firebird and Master Birdless."
The writer seemed to enter a state of ethereal bliss, writing with divine inspiration, imagining countless sweet scenes between lovers, complete with dialogue and illustrations. When excited, they would even add a third-party narration.
After reading for a while, Wu Shilang found it boring and completely lost the passion he had when he was reading "The Chronicles of Jianghu" in his boudoir.
The bird-exterminating nun on the stage had already skillfully and swiftly kicked the bird-free master again, and continued angrily: "If it weren't for you, shameless bastard, would I have fallen into the monastic life and be eating vegetarian food every day?"
Master Wu Niao looked dejected and very sad. He habitually raised his prayer beads and chanted, "Amitabha..."
"Back in the day, I couldn't live without meat!" The Bird-Extinguishing Master grew increasingly angry, completely forgetting about the martial arts tournament. "My Wan San pork hock, Dongpo pork..."
She would swallow hard after every word she said.
Master Wu Niao wept bitterly, filled with remorse, and frowned in deep thought. After a long while, his eyes suddenly lit up and he said, "Sister Rou, there is indeed a way."
"What method?"
“We will both return to secular life and fall back into the mundane world,” Master Wu Niao said with bright, joyful eyes. “Naturally, there’s nothing to be ashamed of anymore.”
"Go to hell."
The Bird Exterminator's response was a pair of large footprints that were imprinted on the Bird Exterminator's face, kicking him so hard he spun around a dozen times.
All the heroes present fell silent, their gazes towards the Emei Sect filled with even greater admiration.
"Alright, let's get down to business now." Abbess Mie Niao stood up, patted her clothes, and said, "Regarding this martial arts alliance leader, I discussed it with the leaders of several sects and decided to determine the winner through a martial arts competition."
The martial arts practitioners below immediately began to rub their hands together, eager to try their skills.
"Wuqing, why hasn't Wushuang arrived yet?"
Goruro tugged at Leng Wuqing's sleeve, looked around, and disappointment filled his small face: "What if he doesn't come?"
Leng Wuqing smiled slightly and said, "The martial arts tournament will last for a week, so it's possible that you'll arrive later or slower."
Isoro pouted, utterly bored, and turned to look at Luo Jinfeng, asking curiously, "Are you going up to compete too?"
Luo Jinfeng's eyes flickered slightly, his slender fingers brushing through Wu Shilang's stray hairs. He smiled gently and said, "I don't care about that so-called leader of the martial arts alliance. I came here entirely for you."
Isoro immediately shivered, subtly dodging his hand and shrinking behind Leng Wuqing.
Young Master Luo's eyes immediately turned dark and deep. He pursed his lips and lowered his hand that had been hanging in mid-air. The atmosphere suddenly became less awkward.
"You've arrived early." Duan Shuixian, dressed in red with exquisite features, arrived with a smile, fanning herself. She was quite surprised to see Wushilang hiding behind Leng Wuqing and asked, "Sister Wushi, are you dressed as a chick today?"
Luo Jinfeng snorted coldly, his eyes flashing with a fierce light as he glanced sideways at Wu Shilang, making Wu Shilang's heart skip a beat.
"So it's Brother Luo." Duan Shuixian followed the cold snort and found that it was actually the second-ranked Young Master Luo. She immediately smiled and saw Luo Jinfeng's high-tied jade crown. She was very envious and said, "Brother, this headdress probably costs less than a hundred taels of silver."
Luo Jinfeng was very impatient. He glanced at Duan Shuixian out of the corner of his eye, then simply stared at the dueling platform and stopped talking.
“But when it comes to exquisite craftsmanship,” Young Master Narcissus said, shaking the jade crown on his head with great pride, “mine is still the finest.”
As he spoke, he exclaimed "Eh!" and turned to the guard in blue behind him, asking, "Why haven't the surrounding stalls followed suit?"
The young guard in green was very ashamed and stammered, "The servants who are transporting the goods are all down the mountain. There are too many fruits and vegetables, so it will probably take another hour or two before they can come up."
Duan Shuixian opened her fan and said to BB S·JO OYoo. N E T: "This time we will not provide food for the main venue, only retail. Check carefully and don't let anything go wrong."
He completely viewed the martial arts tournament as a way to make money, and Wu Shilang watched from the sidelines with wide eyes, full of admiration.
"Fifty Sister, if you want to eat anything, just tell your Brother Duan."
"I'll take care of all her food." Young Master Luo turned his head, his white teeth gleaming, a twisted smile playing on his lips, and said with barely suppressed emotion, "Aren't you going to take care of your business?"
Duan Shuixian returned his smile with a charming smile and said, "It's rare to see Young Master Luo, so Shuixian must keep him company first."
The thought that the other party was ranked second on the list of young heroes in the martial arts world immediately made him feel threatened.
He straightened up, straightened his body, and smoothed his red clothes from top to bottom with both hands. He kept glancing at the writer of "Jianghu Chronicles" out of the corner of his eye. When he saw that the other party was indeed looking over, he became more vigilant, raised his hand, tilted his face at a forty-five-degree angle to the sun, and slightly parted his lips, looking bewildered.
Young Master Luo felt his hair stand on end from the sight of him. Seeing him posing and glancing at him from the corner of his eye from time to time, he suddenly remembered the matter of homosexuality and immediately felt very uncomfortable.
"Duan Shuixian. So what if you're better than me? There's still Leng Wushuang above me." He couldn't take it anymore and pulled Leng Wushuang out to block him.
"He's gone, so now you're the only one left to compete with him."
Without thinking, Duan Shuixian blurted out the answer. Wu Shilang's face immediately turned pale.
Chapter Sixteen: Great Grief
The expressions of those present all changed.
Leng Wuqing was the first to calm down. She pulled on Wushilang's sleeve and forced a smile, saying, "Sister-in-law Wushi, the first day of the competition wasn't very interesting. Why don't we go for a visit to Zijin Mountain?"
Wu Shilang's lips trembled, his hands and feet were ice-cold, and his whole body felt as if it had been plunged into ice water. He was unable to speak for a long time and could only stare at Duan Shuixian with his eyes fixed on her.
Duan Shuixian's expression changed as well; she bit her lip, looking quite annoyed.
"Is this news a rumor?"
[Produced by the Orange Garden Hand-Typed Team. Welcome to visit ]
Luo Jinfeng frowned, leaned closer, and saw that Wu Shilang was trembling all over, looking like he was about to faint. His heart suddenly ached.
Her face was so pale it was almost transparent, her eyes were filled with fear, her small mouth was trembling, and she looked like the sky had fallen.
"Of course it's fake," Leng Wuqing said angrily, his rage mixed with the panic of the truth being exposed. "How could he fall off a cliff so easily?"
Isoro's eyes immediately turned to him, he opened his mouth, and tears finally streamed down his face: "So you knew too?"
[Produced by the Orange Garden Hand-Typed Team. Welcome to visit ]
[Produced by the Orange Garden Hand-Typed Team. Welcome to visit ]
“It’s not hearsay,” Leng Wuqing pondered for a long time before finally making a painful decision, and said with difficulty, “He was driven into the bottom of the cliff by my men with a huge rock.”
His face was pale, and he was in excruciating pain, feeling that even the last bit of family affection he had was about to leave him.
"Why?"
Isoro's large eyes welled up with tears, glistening and filled with pain as he questioned, "Why did you hurt him? He and you were brothers, why?"
Leng Wuqing lowered his head and remained silent. The entire room was silent; the few standing people could even hear each other breathing.
Wu Shilang's eyes gradually lost focus, her face pale and silent, like a wooden statue. Her mind was filled with Wushuang's features, and her ears kept replaying Leng Wushuang's last words, "Wu Shilang, can you trust me?"
She remained silent for a long time, but her breathing became more and more rapid.
"Wu Shilang?" Luo Jinfeng called her softly, and seeing tears welling up in her eyes, he felt a pang of pity.
Isoro blinked, trying his best to keep his eyes wide open to prevent the tears from falling. He forced a smile, looking pitiful and bewildered like a wronged child, and said, "I... lost Musou."
Her heart felt as if it were being tightly bound by a thin wisp of cloud, constantly oozing blood, and her whole body was ice-cold, as if she had suddenly fallen into an ice cellar.