Chapter 54 Ji Pingzhou: In His Dreams, He Was Unaware of Being a Guest
When Yao Guang and Yu Xijun went to the bean curd shop in the market, they saw Ning Hanshuang driving a carriage into the city.
Yu Xijun was looking down at the bean curd she liked, unaware of the approaching carriage.
Yao Guang narrowed his eyes, sensing that Ning Hanshuang's return meant something big was about to happen.
"Waiter, give me this piece, and add plenty of chili sauce."
“You there, Yaoguang, you…”
Yu Xijun had just looked up, wanting to ask Yao Guang if she had made her choice, but before she could see anything clearly, the other party forcefully pressed her head down, forcing her to lower her head again.
Yao Guang's voice came: "Pick one more piece, and help me pick one too."
Yu Xijun was furious and was about to say that Yao Guang was utterly disrespectful and lacked any sense of hierarchy when she heard her add:
"When it comes to picking out tofu pudding, no one can compare to my good sister. Back when you were by Zhiying's side, even she praised your eye for quality. Unlike me, I have absolutely no skill in this area."
This long speech, filled with admiration, longing, grievance, and even a touch of inferiority, immediately stunned Yu Xijun.
She hummed smugly, saying, "Of course, don't you know who I am?" as she began to help Yao Guang choose even more carefully.
"Alright, then I'll reluctantly pick one for you."
"Let me tell you, the most important thing about this tofu pudding is that it doesn't fall apart..."
Yao Guang automatically filtered out her words, responding verbally but keeping her gaze fixed on the city gate.
Although Zhang Ming felt awe towards Xibao's carriage and harbored inexplicable feelings towards Ning Hanshuang, he still dutifully stopped the carriage.
"Madam, why are you driving the carriage yourself?" Zhang Ming asked with a smile, looking at Ning Hanshuang who was driving the horse. "Where is the coachman?"
Ning Hanshuang certainly couldn't answer that she had killed her.
She remained calm, showing no sign of panic: "He has other things to do outside the city, and I was in a real emergency here, so I had to drive back myself."
As she spoke, Ning Hanshuang stepped down from the carriage and deliberately closed the distance between herself and Zhang Ming, as if trying to get closer to him.
"Mr. Xi asked me to find plum trees, and he's urging me to do so urgently. What do you think..."
Every winter, Xi Ling would go outside the city to buy wild plums, and the guards stationed in the city knew this.
But recently, his superiors gave a strict order, and Zhang Ming dared not be careless at this critical juncture.
Before Ning Hanshuang could finish speaking, Zhang Ming quickly interrupted her: "Madam, please don't make things difficult for me. If I don't do my job well, I'll lose my head."
Upon hearing this, Ning Hanshuang stopped insisting. She took a step back, her expression showing distress and confusion.
Zhang Ming frowned, not understanding what was so troubling about.
His expression changed drastically as he suddenly remembered the solemn instructions from above: "Just wait, these two will definitely come to Zhuoxian."
Could it be...?
He reached out and lifted the curtain of the carriage!
Yu Guangzhong and Ning Hanshuang remained standing quietly, without doing anything to stop them.
Am I mistaken?
Just then, the curtain was lifted, and just as Ning Hanshuang had said, there was nothing in the small carriage except for plum saplings.
Just then, all of Ning Hanshuang's emotions turned into grievance, and she silently shed tears: "So even you doubt me..."
Tears welled up but didn't fall; on that cool and aloof face, the trembling tears added to her vulnerability.
Zhang Ming felt the curtain in his hands was burning hot. He flung it away abruptly, apologizing awkwardly, "I'm so sorry, Madam, I didn't mean to offend you... it was just my duty..."
Ning Hanshuang silently wiped away her tears, lowered her eyes and shook her head: "It's okay, I understand."
"Sir, may I enter the city now?"
How could Zhang Ming possibly refuse now?
He quickly ordered the city guards to let him pass. Driven by inexplicable emotions and intense shame, he didn't even order the rear checkpoint to check again.
And so, Ning Hanshuang drove the carriage to Xibao once again on the road to Xibao.
Yao Guang watched the passing carriage and said for the third time that she was not satisfied with the bean curd that Yu Xijun had chosen, and asked her to choose another one.
Yu Xijun was easily fooled; she could only hear the sound of the carriage passing by, but she didn't see anyone.
But Yao Guang saw it clearly—
There were two men hiding at the bottom of the carriage!
One person has a scar on their face, and the other has lost an ear. Aren't these Zhang Yuanqian and Xu Yi, who left Zhuanglan?
She exchanged a glance with the two of them, then quickly shifted her gaze to Ning Hanshuang, who was walking further and further away.
"Yaoguang, take a look, are you satisfied with this one? I'm warning you, this is the last time! If you're still not satisfied, you might as well go starve..."
Yao Guang didn't even glance at it, and decisively said, "Okay, it's definitely the most perfect piece, it must be very sweet."
Yu Xijun could no longer contain herself: "This is the first one I picked out for you!!"
...
When Huo Qin rushed back to Zhou Ziheng's room, he saw Xi Ling carrying someone as they walked out of the darkness.
In a dark and gray scene, only the laurel wreath and the bloodstains are the only bright spots.
Huo Qin was pinned to the spot, his heartbeat seemingly stopping.
He stared intently at the drop of blood sliding from Zhou Ziheng's fingertips, and in a daze, he saw his own mother cutting her own blood to feed his father, his own father being imprisoned and bled dry, and the weakened Zhou Ziheng before him—
The three images overlapped, and Huo Qin's eyes widened in horror!
He almost lost his mind, lunging into the darkness and grabbing Xi Ling by the throat!
"What did you do to Zhou Ziheng?!" Huo Qin's eyes were bloodshot as he gripped Xi Ling's neck tightly, while still carefully keeping an eye on Zhou Ziheng in her arms.
Seeing his timid and hesitant manner, Xi Ling gave him a sarcastic smile.
"You wouldn't dare kill me, so why put on this act?"
Upon hearing this, Huo Qin was even more furious!
He felt his reason was being burned away, driving him to kill the bitch in front of him without hesitation!
Xi Ling, however, seemed oblivious to his madness, continuing to laugh maniacally and taunt, "Come on!! Kill me!! Didn't you want to kill me—?"
"Then come on!!"
Huo Qin tightened his grip, his teeth grinding together.
He stared madly at Xi Ling's face, which was suffocating from lack of oxygen, and a morbid sense of pleasure suddenly arose in his heart.
Just as Huo Qin was about to completely lose control and strangle Xi Ling, a devilishly soft and cold voice rang in his ear:
"Come on, kill Xi Bingyi's biological father."
Huo Qin's hand trembled.
Xi Ling was eerie, just like a male ghost.
“You kill me, then go tell your best friend, tell Xi Bingyi—'I killed your father,' how about that?”
"How are you going to explain this to her?"
"My innocent daughter!!"
Huo Qin's hands trembled violently, his teeth chattering uncontrollably. After a long while, he finally found his voice:
"You think Xi Bingyi is like you? She has a strong sense of justice and wouldn't stoop to letting you live a wretched life!"
"Is that so?" Xi Ling's head spun around in Huo Qin's palm. In the complete darkness, only two ghostly, terrifying eyes gleamed.
"My daughter is the most innocent and sentimental. She may not want me to live, but does she really want you to make me die?"
At this point, Huo Qin was trembling all over.
"Huo Qin, admit it. Ever since you and Zhou Ziheng chose to settle things with me after entering Xibao and getting the solution, you'll never be able to lay a hand on me again!!"
A series of blows, uncertainty about the future, frustration at being powerless, resentment towards fate, and even hallucinations of her parents being tortured by Xi Ling...
Huo Qin swayed unsteadily, his mind reeling so badly that he almost collapsed to his knees.
Kneeling before that hopeless future.
The cool blood from Zhou Ziheng's wrist dripped onto the corner of his mouth, staining it a vivid crimson.
It's so salty...
Is it the eyes that are bleeding, or the soul that is weeping?
Xi Ling sneered, holding the unconscious Zhou Ziheng tightly, and viciously kicked Huo Qin away.
It's like kicking away a roadblock, a spoiled dog.
He gazed into the distance—
The sun rose slowly, casting its warm light through the thin clouds, through the bright courtyard of the castle, and through the vibrant plum trees, illuminating the path ahead.
ah……
Xi Ling looked directly at the sun, bathed in its bright sunlight, feeling as if she were floating on air, tears welling up in her eyes.
Everything is ready, except for the cloud and rainbow cut!
Just as Xi Ling took a step forward, Huo Qin, who was kneeling beside him, grabbed his clothes tightly.
"Don't even think about it..."
"You'll never take him away from me!!"
...
Amidst the rich fragrance of osmanthus blossoms, Zhou Ziheng fell peacefully asleep and even had a dream.
In my dream, it was autumn, the sky was high and the clouds were light.
The autumn river has thinned, its waters reflecting the sky with a warm golden light.
Ji Pingzhou lay on the boat, the oars propelling him slowly, and so did his mood.
The red and yellow osmanthus trees on both banks are reflected in the water, their colors shimmering and broken into a shimmering tapestry by the ripples.
The bow of the boat cuts through the water, and a sweet, refreshing fragrance wafts on the wind.
As the boat passed a bay, a pavilion stood prominently in the middle of the water ahead.
Ji Pingzhou seemed to sense something; even with his eyes closed, he felt as if the pavilion was calling to him.
He stood up and looked into the distance, where he saw the three characters "Zhaixinglou" (Star-Picking Tower).
The Star-Picking Tower is built over the water, and a long boardwalk connects it to the distant shore.
Osmanthus trees also seem to be planted beside the building, and the fallen petals, like stars, drift and swirl gently on the water in front of the corridor.
The boat slowly rowed to the front of the Star-Picking Tower. It was assumed that the boatman was just going to take a look, but to everyone's surprise, he stopped the boat and moored it.
Ji Pingzhou asked in confusion, "Boatman, I'm on my way to the Holy Mountain, why are we stopping here?"
In his dream, the boatman's face and voice were so blurry that he couldn't understand what he was saying.
Seeing that the boatman was not leaving, Ji Pingzhou simply jumped off the wooden boat and walked along the winding boardwalk into the Zhaixing Tower.
Before they even reached the door and spoke, a voice echoed from the empty building:
"Ninth floor, please come in."
The sound seemed to come from above, and Ji Pingzhou, who was in the center of the pavilion, couldn't help but look up.
This gaze seemed to stretch on endlessly.
The pavilion is hollow, leading directly to the dome, and has nine stories inside.
Each floor has vermilion railings that encircle the corridor, gradually narrowing until the top becomes a small coffered ceiling, casting a deep, ethereal light.
Only under the sunlight do I realize how insignificant I am.
Ji Pingzhou glanced at it only once before turning to leave.
—Just kidding, he's still waiting to go back to the Holy Mountain to see his master, mistress, and junior sister. How could he have time to play these silly tricks at the Star-Picking Tower?
Seeing that he showed no reluctance, the voice became somewhat urgent:
"Ji Pingzhou, are you perhaps unaware of the reputation of my Zhaixing Tower?"
Ji Pingzhou sneered silently, thinking to himself, "No matter how great your reputation is, can it be as great as my reputation as the 'Sword Master of the Mortal World'?"
He had just made a name for himself in the martial arts world, and was in his youthful arrogance and lawlessness. How dare the Star-Picking Tower mention "reputation"!
Despite his arrogance, Ji Pingzhou was too lazy to waste words and had already stepped outside the building.
Seeing that it couldn't intimidate Ji Pingzhou, the voice said again, "Don't go! I know you're cursed with the 'Champion's Curse'!"
After saying this, Ji Pingzhou indeed withdrew his foot and stood still in place.
The voice let out a sigh of relief before continuing with its air of superiority: "You won't live past twenty..."
Before he could finish speaking, Ji Pingzhou stepped out again!
The sound seemed to be abruptly cut off, split in two, and then swirling around in the air:
"But I have a way to make you live past twenty! I have a way!"
Ji Pingzhou indeed withdrew his foot again.
After repeating that voice nearly ten times, Ji Pingzhou finally understood that if he did nothing, no matter how many rare and precious treasures he had, he would indeed not live past twenty.
He laughed arrogantly.
Standing in the very center of the building, bathed in sunlight, he drew his Red Dust Sword, his red robes fluttering in the wind like a wildfire burning fiercely.
The sword flashed, its heat as intense as the blazing sun, so intense that even the heavens would give way to it!
He asked, "If I changed my name to 'Zhou Ziheng,' would I still not live past twenty?"
"nature."
"good!"
He brought two fingers together and brushed them across the mortal world, making it shine like a mirror, reflecting his youthful face.
"If Zhou Ziheng dies, then I, Ji Pingzhou, will naturally live!"
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Author's Note: So cool! When I wrote the pseudonym Zhou Ziheng, I imagined his arrogant youthful appearance, saying that if Zhou Ziheng died, then Ji Pingzhou would live! I wrote this story for this moment!
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