Chapter 126 What is your dream?

——The red circles under the eyes look very realistic, don’t they? When did Gui Taoran’s performances become so good?

Zheng Yinshang originally thought he would think so.

But in fact, his first reaction was.

——Why are you crying?

Zheng Yinshang couldn't tell whether the sound that was pounding was the light reflected on the ground by the shaking sword or the cynical heart hidden in his chest.

As loud as the sound of the dancing was the voice from the audience.

Because Gui Taoran climbed up from the ground holding the sword - in an ugly, crawling posture.

The white dress with yellow edges that Gui Taoran was wearing once slowly fell in front of everyone's eyes. The wind blew all around at that time, and the sleeves of the dress fluttered along with the flower petals, so when it fell to the ground, its front shadow looked like a piece of snow.

But now everyone saw that behind the white clothes that made the splendid exit like snow... was a dirty dust.

Obviously, if I don't stand up again, no one will see me... right?

The ringing of the bell had ended, but Gui Taoran stood up, leaning on his sword, and walked towards Zheng Yinshang step by step in the silence of the curtain call. The disciples of Piaomiao Peak looked at Ning Mingmei in panic - they tried to see anger or intention to stop from their master's face.

But Ning Mingmei sat in the audience with a blank expression on his face.

Only those always cold eyes were quietly watching Gui Taoran at this moment.

Zheng Yinshang had a lot to say. He wanted to say that he had assisted Gui Taoran in his performance out of kindness, that he wanted to take Gui Taoran out of the mountain gate to eat after the competition out of friendship rather than pity, and that he did not think that the other person was terrible...

But in the end, just as spring, summer, autumn and winter converge into a snowstorm that blocks out the sun during the Great Cold, Zheng Yinshang also put thousands of words into one word.

"please."

He raised the bell, his eyes focused, and opened the formation with both hands.

Gui Taoran gripped the sword tightly, shouted loudly, and took a single step forward. At first glance, the movements he made were 80% similar to the modified version of Ning Mingmei's first launch that the other disciples of Piao Miao Peak practiced every day.

Even though it’s only eight points, it’s still eight points.

Gui Ruoxue, who was sitting next to him, clenched her fists and stared at the young man on the stage without blinking.

At that moment, it seemed that what he saw was not the funny Gui Taoran, but a young man carrying a backpack and walking on the path back to the house.

This time the boy did not carry the backpack. He hid in the melting sunset when no one noticed him. He stood upright on the stone platform, and opposite him was Gui Ruoxu, who looked calm and serious.

What did he want to say at that time?

Hundreds of years have passed, and the young man has traveled thousands of mountains and rivers in the past hundred years. The young man escaped for such a long distance, but he could not say a word at that moment hundreds of years ago.

Now that he has been up and down in the world for a long time, can he still hear the unfinished words of the young boy back then?

Only Qi Miancheng looked towards Ning Mingmei.

Everyone was surprised at the accident, but Ning Mingmei didn't seem nervous at all. The young man in a black jacket sprinkled with gold supported his chin with one hand, looking nonchalant and quite interesting.

"Brother." Ning Mingmei suddenly said, "You are looking at me to ask me if he has a chance of winning?"

Qi Miancheng said: "Yes, Junior Brother."

"There are many conditions for winning, but unfortunately, Gui Taoran does not have the conditions for winning. He does not practice well on weekdays, and this is the outcome he deserves." Ning Mingmei said.

Qi Miancheng said: "Really? Junior brother, I thought you would be looking forward to a miracle."

Ning Mingmei sneered and smiled without saying anything.

Qi Miancheng turned his head back, but heard a cold voice beside his ear: "Don't you think so too, Qi Miancheng? Why bother to pretend to ask a question?"

He didn't call him "senior brother".

After stripping off the mask of "senior and junior", the two chess players were pulled to the same chessboard. Qi Miancheng listened to the voice and thought that Ning Mingmei's voice was really nice when he called him by his full name.

He liked the feeling of having someone look directly at him and pinch his neck.

The system was also secretly watching Ning Mingmei. It observed Gui Taoran who was rushing forward with a sword in hand on the stage, and then observed Ning Mingmei, trying to find clues to Ning Mingmei's emotional fluctuations.

Suddenly, a sound rang in its ears.

"Who made Gui Taoran never accept my orders? If I didn't let him be severely beaten, how could he be willing to sacrifice his soul after sacrificing his assistant?"

"There is a huge difference between the resources that a mentor wants and the resources that a person with connections sincerely contributes."

“Every emotion the audience experiences is meant to make them give more of their souls to me… This is a joke.”

This sentence was again emotionless, and the system was shocked.

What frightened the system even more was that when it came to its senses and guessed that this might be Ning Mingmei's hidden psychological activities that it had accidentally overheard, it suddenly felt that Ning Mingmei had just glanced at it with his spiritual sense among the thousands of people.

——It was as if Ning Mingmei had already discovered that the system was observing him.

…

This doesn't look like a competition.

The sword-wielding boy was knocked to the ground again and again, his hair was disheveled and his carefully prepared white clothes were covered in dust. Moreover, he was panting heavily, his eyes were red, and sweat was pouring down his back. There was no trace of the elegance he had when he slowly fell down just now.

Gradually, there was a commotion among the audience.

"That's about it."

"You have no chance of winning at all? Are you just trying to hold on by relying on the fact that you can't kill people in a competition?"

Seventeen couldn't bear to talk and turned away. He saw Twelve quietly retreating and asked him, "Where are you going?"

"...I can't bear to watch it anymore." Twelve bit his lip, his eyes confused, "It's too embarrassing."

But the corner of his clothes was caught by Lao Wu.

Lao Wu said calmly: "Stay."

Twelve: "But..."

"Since Third Junior Brother has decided to fight this competition to the end, as fellow disciples, we must accompany him to the end." Lin Heting said, "Just like Master said... This is called team spirit, right?"

Twelve was still a little shy. Until Wen Siheng said, "Listen."

Amidst the embarrassing discussions mocking Gui Taoran, there was a subtle voice.

"Does it have to go on like this? It makes me want to cry."

"It's so annoying. I was expecting him to win, but it's clear he can't win."

"There are still people who are looking forward to his struggle rather than his performance," said another.

The person who said this was Bai Bugui.

He held the back of his head with both hands, holding a piece of grass in his mouth, looking at the competition stage in front of him, his eyes were like a quiet stream.

Although he was staring at the scene in front of him, his eyes seemed as if they had flowed into the distance along with his memories.

People were talking, birds were chirping and doves were gathering. Gui Taoran's struggling performance naturally reminded people of the people from Piaomiao Peak who had been in the limelight some time ago. Piaomiao Peak's high profile has gained a lot of followers, but there have also been people who have been dissatisfied with them overtly or covertly. So everyone looked towards Piaomiao Peak.

curious? Worried? gloat? Or is it a mixture of emotions?

But to everyone's surprise... all the disciples of Piaomiao Peak were standing on the sidelines, their backs straight as poplars, their expressions confident as mountains, just as they always were.

Just like Gui Taoran had never been embarrassed, just like Gui Taoran also gave his best performance.

Just like the inevitable little bit of embarrassment in life, it can also be something normal for them to just laugh it off.

Then gradually different voices began to emerge in the crowd.

"Come on! Gui Taoran."

"Piaomiao Peak!"

"Piao Miao Peak! Piao Miao Peak!"

Amid the waves that were getting louder than the last, Gui Taoran slashed at Zheng Yinshang with his sword.

This was the sword that he had often seen his senior brother practice in the bamboo forest, piercing through clouds and splitting rocks, facing the mountains. Whenever his companions saw this, they would follow their mother's request and ask him not to practice such dangerous sword moves for safety reasons.

'Young Master, you don't need to go through life and death like them. The world of cultivating immortals is dangerous, and the elders only hope that the young master can live a long life. Everyone envies the young master's blessing. '

When they were dealing with Guanghan Yuegui for Master, they also advised him:

'Master, why do you have to work so hard? It is enough for us to just finish our responsibilities. We have never heard of the term 'laurel cuttings'. '

'And if you relax a little, young master, we can also be lazy. '

Even his mother told him so repeatedly.

'It's a good thing that Elder Ning is willing to teach you now. Ask your study partner to do anything, and don't take it too seriously. It's enough to look good on the surface. Want the advanced classics of Minghua Valley? What do you want that for? '

'Do you think I was angry with you because you were not ambitious enough? No, I'm angry because you haven't done a good job of saving face. Now that you have done a good job of saving face, that is enough. Why do you have to work so hard? '

In the past, Gui Taoran also felt that what his mother said made sense. Therefore, when he encountered difficulties in transplanting the moon laurel, he just mentioned to his mother that he needed classics. His mother asked him what he wanted it for, so he gave up asking for it and stopped asking.

But today, he really couldn't accept it.

I'm not willing to accept this!

For example... he had passed by his senior brother practicing sword in the pine forest countless times. Decades of time had passed, so he was familiar with the other's sword-wielding movements. Coupled with the repeated training in the group, he thought he could do it now.

Zheng Yinshang did show a look of shock as he looked at the sword.

The audience also held their breath.

But the sword was still off by a hair's breadth.

The long sword only cut off a strand of Zheng Yinshang's hair. Afterwards, Gui Taoran was exhausted and collapsed to the ground.

All he saw was the blank sky and the gradually rising dark clouds.

Just like that sword move, in the eyes of others, Gui Taoran was only one step short, but in fact, he was more than just one step short.

Everyone in Piaomiao Peak has a dream...why is it that he is the only one who doesn't have a dream?

Gui Taoran really wanted to cover his ears so that he wouldn't have to hear the gossip around him.

But above the dark cloud, Zheng Yinshang's face appeared.

"It was a very exciting competition." Zheng Yinshang extended his hand to him, "Congratulations."

Gui Taoran looked at him blankly.

"I am the winner, but I also tried my best," said Zheng Yinshang.

Something lit up in the eyes of these two young dandies. Even if it was only for a moment, it was enough to make the next few hundred years different.

Gui Taoran held his hand and was dragged up by Zheng Yinshang. It was an ugly ending and an ugly exit, and the audience was completely silent.

But now they began to shout.

And then there was the gradual sound of...applause.

The disciples of Piaomiao Peak also ran to the stage, and at this moment, Gui Taoran, who was the focus of everyone's attention, spoke.

Gui Taoran: "I can't move now."

Zheng Yinshang: “Yeah, me too.”

Gui Taoran took out a bottle of Rainbow Bull from his bag and said: "Share Rainbow Bull, unlimited vitality!"

Audience: ...

Why did it start again! Advertisement for Piaomiao Peak!

After the advertisement, Gui Taoran still felt a little guilty - he felt that he had been willful for a moment and messed up the homework assigned by his master, so he could only hold the Hongniu and recite dozens of advertising slogans.

Until Ning Mingmei's voice suddenly came into his mind.

Gui Taoran: "...Master."

His voice was trembling, and he was very scared.

There was no blame in Ning Mingmei's voice, but he said lightly: "Now you know where you went wrong?"

Gui Taoran sniffed: "Master, I shouldn't..."

I shouldn't be lazy, I shouldn't leave all the work to my tutor, I shouldn't neglect my sword practice, I shouldn't fish for three days and sift the nets for two days.

Also, we should not disobey Master’s orders.

Ning Mingmei: "This is one point, but there is a more important point. You should make good use of the resources around you. You should think carefully about what your strengths are compared to other disciples? You should think carefully about what differentiated competition means."

Gui Taoran was at a loss.

In addition to feeling confused, Gui Taoran also felt a little strangely touched.

There was no blame or criticism in Ning Mingmei's voice.

Gui Taoran was used to being criticized by his mother and father in Minghua Valley - especially when he did things beyond his "status". He originally thought that when Ning Mingmei came to find him, it would be a storm.

But Ning Mingmei not only did not blame or insult him, he also reasoned with him so patiently and gently.

Like a crescent of white moonlight.

Ning Mingmei said: "There is a sequence in learning, and there are specializations in skills. For example, just now, you couldn't defeat Zheng Yinshang with your swordsmanship, but compared to other Qingji Sect disciples, what is your special feature?"

"Your characteristic is that you are a double-degree disciple. In addition to your first-degree swordsmanship, you also have a second-degree pharmacy background. You could have relied on your pharmacy background to catch him off guard. What can other disciples not get, what can only you get, and could have been fully utilized? What can only you bring to Piaomiao Peak? That is your Minghua Valley background. You have the privilege of unimpeded access to the Minghua Valley Sutra Library." Ning Mingmei persuaded, "Yesterday's events cannot be left behind. Since everyone has seen your failure, you should think carefully about the aftermath. For example, if you cannot defeat Yanyun Tower in a sword duel, then save face in the matter of inserting Guanghan Yuegui!"

"Don't say anything is possible or impossible, don't say anything can't be done. If Qingji Sect doesn't have pharmacy, you are the pharmacy. Besides you, who else can do it?"

This is to annex the key departments of other sects and build Piaomiao Peak into a comprehensive peak!

Gui Taoran: "Master, I understand. My fault is that I didn't work hard and didn't make a good contribution to the peak sect."

No, Gui Taoran didn’t understand.

If the guidance to Gui Taoran ended here, Gui Taoran would have said these words when he was looking for his mother and seeking confidential documents of Minghua Valley for Ning Mingmei's Guanghan Yuegui.

Gui Taoran's mother is different from Gui Taoran. Gui Taoran is a foolish but passionate young man, but Tao Xinzhi is the elder of Minghua Valley and what a shrewd person he is. Of course, she could tell at once that Gui Taoran was seeking confidential documents because he was instigated by Ning Mingmei.

Therefore, in order to inspire Gui Taoran's dream, Tao Xinzhi must believe that Gui Taoran's search for the hidden secret book comes only from his true heart.

Let the young man's lonely but paranoid dream inspire his mother's soft maternal love, use maternal love to blind Tao Xinzhi's eyes, so that she is willing to hand over the secret book.

A person with connections who is blinded by dreams and has aspirations is the best person with connections!

Ning Mingmei and Gui Taoran were communicating with each other through the air. Gui Ruoxue was sitting beside them, her heart agitated, and she was secretly closing her moist eyes.

On the other side of the competition stage, Minghua Valley's Anhua disciples were booing, but Xu Changze's expression was uglier than anyone else's.

In this chaos, only Qi Miancheng looked up at the sky.

Today was supposed to be a cloudy day with rain in the evening, and the clouds were getting thicker, which was normal.

only……

Qi Miancheng frowned.

Faintly, he seemed to hear the sound of something rushing towards this side.

On the other side, Ning Mingmei was still talking to Gui Taoran.

"No, you don't understand clearly what you really lack." Ning Mingmei said, "For example, what is your dream?"

The author has something to say:

The tabby cat is very complicated! The fur looks gray and black, but when you touch it you will find white roots. When you think that the innermost layer of the fur of a tabby cat is white fluff, you will find that the tabby cat's paws are pure black.