wife vs. concubine
Chapter Twenty-Two
While Yu Tao'er was observing Jiang Zanghua, the old woman had already started working on him. "Look at him, his skin is so tender! I love young, fresh-faced men like him the most!"
Yu Tao'er glanced at the old woman, then at the handsome man who had fainted with his eyes closed, and asked from the bottom of her heart, "Grandma, are you going to drain his vital energy dry in one go?"
Yu Tao'er was hit on the head as usual, "Idiot!"
"Of course I'll take it back and enjoy it."
Yu Tao'er nodded, looking at the Yin-Yang Spirit Platform and praying in her heart, "If Heaven truly exists, please grant me a suitable husband." She clasped her hands together, closed her eyes, and made a devout wish:
My ideal man is good-looking, but most importantly, he has a kind heart. His eyesight shouldn't be too sharp; it would be even better if he could turn a blind eye to some things. And most importantly, he must be broad-minded.
As she was making a wish, someone suddenly crashed into her. "Ouch!" Yu Tao'er rubbed her head, looked at the boy lying to the side, and was stunned.
He's handsome, that fits the bill.
He has poor eyesight and is blind, which fits the description.
There really are such strange things in the world.
Yu Tao'er didn't believe in such things, but seeing the two men who had suddenly appeared there, she put her hands on her hips, looked at the old woman who was completely captivated by the man, stared at the little blind boy in front of her, and kicked him twice without any mercy, "Hey, wake up!"
Before she could say more, Yu Tao'er noticed something, looked up at the sky, and raised an eyebrow. "Wow, it's really lively today."
Fortunately, Zhou Yulin reacted quickly and grabbed Chen Muyao's sleeve tightly. Otherwise, she would have encountered turbulence in the teleportation array like Gu Ling and Jiang Zanghua. So even though Chen Muyao was staring at her, she wouldn't let go of him even a little bit.
"release."
The boy's voice, as clear as a stream, rang in my ears.
Zhou Yulin's attitude was firm: "I will fall."
"So what if they fall? What does it have to do with me?"
Upon hearing this, Zhou Yulin, who had been holding onto his sleeve, seized Chen Muyao's hand when he wasn't looking. The boy's knuckles were distinct, and his fingertips exuded coldness. He glanced at Zhou Yulin, and if looks could kill, Zhou Yulin would have died a thousand times over.
Zhou Yulin didn't care and glared back. Sure enough, Chen Muyao's hand was as cold as jade. She subconsciously stroked it, and Chen Muyao trembled all over, more like a cat with its fur standing on end. She glared fiercely at Zhou Yulin, who just blinked and looked at her innocently. The capricious young man pursed his lips and placed the sword on the Yin-Yang Spirit Platform.
Having found a safe area, Zhou Yulin released Chen Muyao without hesitation and lightly leaped down from the sword.
"You must be the master of these two men."
"Master?" Zhou Yulin looked at the old woman beside her. "Name your price, I'll buy it."
"The other little blind boy, to be honest, you can either buy one get one free and give them both to me." While Zhou Yulin, now the new owner, was struggling with her conscience, she said, "Okay, how much?"
The old woman looked at Chen Muyao with satisfaction and said admiringly, "As expected of the first wife, such looks and such demeanor. Young lady, let me name a number, don't hesitate. You say your first wife is so handsome and dashing, what's wrong with giving me a second wife?"
Zhou Yulin glanced at Chen Muyao, who was watching the drama unfold. Chen Muyao's eyes were crescent-shaped, and she wondered how much malice was brewing in his heart. "No way."
She blatantly lied, saying, "The one next to me looks normal, but he's actually impotent. If you take the other two away, then there will be no one to serve me."
The smile doesn't disappear, it just moves on.
The smile that had been on Chen Muyao's face shifted to Zhou Yulin's face, especially when Chen Muyao noticed that the grandfather and granddaughter were scrutinizing a certain part of her body. Chen Muyao's face turned completely dark.
"Wow, so that's why you still need to take a concubine after finding such a husband. Turns out it's because your brother isn't good enough!" Yu Tao'er, the entertainer, raised her voice. "Sigh—that's why some men are all looks and no substance."
"A man who can't get erectile dysfunction is no good," the old woman said disdainfully. "You'd better divorce him as soon as possible."
Seeing Chen Muyao draw a bow from behind her back, Zhou Yulin immediately took three steps back, realizing something was wrong. At this moment, the other two had not yet realized the seriousness of the situation, until two jade arrows with silver light were fired at the same time and steadily stuck at the feet of the old woman and Yu Tao'er.
"So what if you can play with arrows!" Yu Tao'er was about to get angry when the experienced old woman reacted and covered her granddaughter's mouth.
"Jade-carved arrows, Xuanming Lingyue bow, who are you?"
"Chen Muyao, the chief disciple of Xiaobie Mountain."
They exchanged a glance, and Zhou Yulin pursed her lips. The two seemed to be transported back to their first meeting, except that now she was no longer an ordinary disciple, but the chief disciple of Xiaobie Mountain.
Zhou Yulin: Ha, what a pretentious act.
"Chen Muyao?" Yu Tao'er felt that the name sounded familiar.
"I still remember the Xuanling Sect's miscalculation about the immortal bones and Dao heart back then. I just never expected that this towering thundercloud would eventually strike Xiaobie Mountain." As the old woman approached, babbling on and on, Yu Tao'er was about to tell her to be careful, but the old woman unexpectedly flung her hand, and pink pollen covered Chen Muyao and Zhou Yulin.
Caught off guard, the pollen filled their nostrils, causing them to instantly go limp and kneel on the ground. The old woman, while carrying Jiang Zanghua on her back, kept babbling, "Even if you are a person with immortal bones and a Dao heart, you can't stop me from finding a man!"
Yu Tao'er, who never expected that her grandmother was just pretending to be shocked, thought: "As expected of my grandmother, her courage and technique are something I have learned from."
So she followed the old woman's example and fished out Gu Ling, but she didn't know if it was just her imagination, but she felt like she had seen the person in front of her somewhere before.
Just as she was about to leave, a burst of spiritual energy struck. To dodge it, Yu Tao'er threw Gu Ling aside without thinking.
Gu Ling fell to the ground and finally woke up. Seeing that Jiang Zanghua was about to be taken away, he shouted, "Jiang Zanghua, the CP you ship is fake!"
Jiang Zanghua, who had been fast asleep, suddenly opened his eyes and turned his head to reply, "Bullshit! What you're doing is fake!" Unfortunately, when he turned again, he met a shy face, and Jiang Zanghua was dumbfounded, "Auntie, who are you?"
"Don't call me 'Auntie,' call me 'Darling.'"
Jiang Zanghua retreated again and again, his face looking extremely grim.
Suddenly, a figure came running from a distance.
"Senior Brother Jiang, I'm here to save you!"
Upon hearing this voice, Jiang Zanghua looked up and was somewhat surprised. It was unexpected that this person, who wasn't staying at the Xuanling Sect, would appear in this desolate wilderness.
The newcomer chased away the grandmother and granddaughter. She happened to be passing by and introduced herself, "I am Xu Zuiyue, the junior disciple of the Xuanling Sect Master." Zhou Yulin suddenly looked up, but no one around noticed her unusual behavior.
Only the young man in the corner had his gaze fall on the girl who looked like a frightened rabbit. After circling around her several times, he finally settled his gaze on Xu Zuiyue. Chen Muyao narrowed his eyes slightly, with a hint of curiosity and inquiry. Was this the genius that everyone was talking about who could be compared to him?
As a disciple of the Xuanling Sect, Xu Zuiyue was on her sect's orders when she came down the mountain. Unfortunately, she ran into Senior Brother Jiang. She was overjoyed, but then she noticed that this usually aloof Senior Brother Jiang was staring at the sword at her waist for a long time. She asked in confusion, "What is this?"
"This is the sword my master gave me, and it is free of jade."
When Xu Zuiyue heard someone asking about it, she couldn't help but feel smug.
"Oh? I didn't see Junior Sister draw her sword just now, I thought she wasn't wearing one." Jiang Zanghua's words were extremely clever, while he still maintained his polite demeanor. "I have long heard of the reputation of the Unfading Jade Sword. I wonder if Senior Brother would have the honor of seeing this sword drawn today?"
It's unclear what remark displeased Xu Zuiyue, but the woman's face darkened, and she retorted in a low voice, "Since it's your natal sword, how can you draw it so casually? Does Senior Brother Jiang think he'd just display his sword like a mule on the street?"
The silver-haired, clear-eyed youth drew his sword from his waist and tossed it to Xu Zuiyue, smiling as he said, "Since it's a fine sword, what is there to fear?"
What a joke! Jiang Zanghua would love for everyone in the world to recognize his sword. After all, there's a saying that goes, "The highest level of swordsmanship is to see the sword as if seeing the person." Upon seeing this sword, one can immediately know who has come.
Xu Zuiyue took the sword with one hand. Unlike the Jade Sword, which had a spirit, this sword was now obediently held in her hand without any struggle, which made her breathe a sigh of relief. After all, it was hard to find a sword in the world that was half as good as the Jade Sword.
However, it wasn't that she was unwilling to draw the sword; rather, this Undying Jade had never recognized her as its master. If she hadn't seen her deceased junior sister draw this sword, Xu Zuiyue would have suspected that there was something wrong with it. In the end, a sword that isn't sheathed is no different from broken copper and scrap iron.
Therefore, for Xu Zuiyue, this trip down the mountain was not only about fulfilling her master's instructions, but also about finding a way to draw the sword and prove to everyone in the Xuanling Sect who looked down on her that she was no less capable than her deceased junior sister.
Jiang Zanghua naturally knew that the Unfallen Jade was Zhou Yulin's sword before his death. This sword was forged by a master of the ninth realm of military strategy and had developed a spiritual consciousness early on. Only those recognized by the Unfallen Jade could draw the sword.
Therefore, in just a few words, Jiang Zanghua knew that this junior sister, who was highly regarded by the sect leader, had not actually inherited the sword's power; she was merely using it to swindle and deceive people.
"It's not convenient today, another day, definitely another day." Xu Zuiyue gave a vague answer, trying to get away with it, but Gu Ling, who had just woken up and was still a little groggy, was very puzzled and said, "Looking at a sword is like meeting the parents, when is another day? Or should I write it down on the calendar and come find you on the day?"
Xu Zuiyue clenched her fists at her side. It was hard to believe that even in this era, there were still fellow Daoists who couldn't understand human speech. Fortunately, a clear and melodious voice came to her rescue, "Thank you for your help, Miss Xu." Xu Zuiyue looked up and met an extremely familiar face. She hadn't looked closely before, but now that she saw it clearly, the girl was completely dumbfounded.
"I know she's pretty, but you don't have to stare like that, do you?" As a disciple of the Xuanling Sect's leader, it's impolite to stare like that. Gu Ling didn't say the rest of his sentence, but instead stepped between the two of them, blocking Xu Zuiyue's gaze.
"May I have your name!"
This person's face looked so much like her deceased junior sister. If she hadn't witnessed it with her own eyes, Xu Zuiyue might have jumped up and shouted "A ghost!" in broad daylight. But right now, she suppressed her tension and anxiety and asked casually.
"The Zhou family of Jiangning, the woman's name is Zhou Yulin."
"Which jade? Which 'lin'?"
Xu Zuiyue's throat went dry. Looking at the weak and powerless woman in front of her, she felt a deep sense of fear for some reason. This fear stemmed from the panic that the fate she had painstakingly stolen might be taken away by the person in front of her who looked like her deceased junior sister.
“What a wonderful name, exactly the same as my deceased senior sister.” Each word seemed to be squeezed out of her throat with great difficulty. Only then did Xu Zuiyue belatedly realize the most important point: “However, it seems that the young lady has no spiritual power.”
"I have a useless spiritual root." Zhou Yulin frankly admitted it. Xu Zuiyue's heart finally settled down upon hearing this news. Being unable to cultivate meant that she would be a waste for the rest of her life, and the Xuanling Sect would definitely not allow such a person to enter.
If she couldn't get into the Xuanling Sect, let alone the Kunlun Academy, which disciples from the two sects and eight mountains were fighting tooth and nail to enter. Xu Zuiyue went from being wary to relaxed, and smiled as she stepped forward to take the other's hand, "I feel a strong connection with Miss Zhou. I don't know why, but as soon as I saw Miss Zhou, I wanted to call her 'elder sister'."
Xu Zuiyue was being polite, but Gu Ling wasn't happy about it. "You look older than her, yet you call her 'sister.' Aren't you taking advantage of her?"
If it weren't for the fact that Gu Ling was somewhat handsome, Xu Zuiyue would probably have thrown him out by now. She maintained her last bit of politeness, saying, "I haven't asked your name yet, young master, but I imagine you must be a descendant of a high-ranking official." When she said the last few words, Xu Zuiyue deliberately emphasized the pronunciation.
Gu Ling felt uncomfortable hearing this and replied casually, "I am a commoner, not born into a noble family. My surname is Gu, and my given name is Ling." If it were someone of high status, Xu Zuiyue would have tolerated it, but this man was not only a rude commoner but also so impolite. After hearing Gu Ling's introduction, the polite smile on Xu Zuiyue's face faded considerably.
"By the way, where are you going on this trip?"
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