Chapter 68 The widower must keep His Highness's secret well.
Wen Yizhan quickly replied to Jiang Yuhuo.
He didn't specify his location, only saying he had gone to a very far place and would be gone for some time, and that she shouldn't leave Tianque. Her internal organs were severely burned, and it wasn't something that could be resolved with just one soak; it required slow repair. He also told her not to worry about him, and that he would come to Tianque to bring her back to Kunlun after everything was done, so she could recuperate peacefully there.
Jiang Yuhu stared at the message on the communication talisman for a long time.
She didn't want to stay in Tianque any longer. An old acquaintance was there, and every time she saw him, it reminded her of that past she didn't want to recall anymore.
Wen Yizhan didn't say when he would return, only insisting that she stay in Tianque to use Chenshui more. But Jiang Yuhuo couldn't stay here forever. After thinking for a moment, she wrote a reply on the communication talisman, "One month."
If Wen Yizhan hadn't returned by a month, she would go to find him. Given his abilities, if he couldn't finish it in a month, the matter must be extremely difficult. She was worried about him.
After carefully putting away the communication talisman, Jiang Yuhuo lay down to sleep.
The next day, the merman female cultivator named Qingping came again.
She brought many daily necessities, and was followed by a group of servants, who also carried various gold, silver and bronze utensils. The originally empty guest hall was suddenly filled with people.
Jiang Yuhuo watched Qingping methodically directing everyone to put everything away, without having a chance to interject for quite some time. Only after Qingping finally finished giving her instructions did Jiang Yuhuo manage to find an opportunity to ask her what was going on.
Servants carrying items continued to file in. Jiang Yuhuo frowned. She was only staying here to recuperate for a while; there was no need for such elaborate arrangements. The furnishings here were already far more luxurious than her small courtyard on Zhenyang Peak, and this was too much, making her feel strange.
Qingping smiled gently, "Since His Highness has agreed to let you stay, you are a distinguished guest of Xihua Palace, and we should naturally treat you well."
“There’s no need for that, I won’t be staying for long.” Jiang Yuhu shook her head repeatedly, indicating that she couldn’t afford it.
Besides, Jia Yue only agreed to lend the sinking pool because of Wen Yizhan's request. She was just relying on Wen Yizhan's favor, so she's hardly a distinguished guest.
But she was not a good talker, and under Qingping's enthusiastic offensive, she became even more tongue-tied. Qingping dismissed her with just a few words: "Miss, you don't need to feel burdened. No outsiders have come to Xihua Palace for many years. Just think of these things as putting them to use."
Jiang Yuhuo had no rebuttal. By the time she realized what had happened, the simple guest room had been transformed into an extravagant and erotic women's bedroom.
She glanced back at the newly hung blue gauze around the bed and felt a strong urge to go home.
Jiang Yuhuo silently wanted to go out for some fresh air, but before she could even move, Qingping pressed her down and made her sit on the dressing table.
"Don't rush, young lady. It's not appropriate to go out with your hair all disheveled."
So Jiang Yuhuo was then made to have her hair combed by Qingping. In the past, she always did whatever was convenient for her, as long as a hair ribbon was used to keep her hair from coming undone. But Qingping's hands were very nimble, and in the blink of an eye, she had styled her hair into a magnificent hairstyle, with all her black hair coiled up at the back of her head into a high bun, secured with a white jade hairpin.
Her hair was pulled back, revealing her fair and slender nape, which made her even more elegant.
Qingping was quite satisfied with her work and smiled as she looked at the person in the mirror. She thought the person in the mirror would also be satisfied with the hairstyle, but the person in the mirror's gaze had somehow wandered off and she wasn't looking at the mirror at all.
Qingping's smile vanished instantly.
After a while, Jiang Yuhu realized that there had been no movement on her head for a long time. Seeing the dissatisfied look on her face in the mirror, she realized that she had already combed her hair.
"I'm sorry," Jiang Yuhuo felt inexplicably guilty, as if she had been caught daydreaming by her master during a lesson, so she could only awkwardly praise the other person, "Your hands are really skillful."
Qingping gave a forced smile, clearly unmoved by the clumsy praise. Jiang Yuhuo, remembering the important matter that Qingping had distracted her, realized she hadn't received her grand prize yet, so she asked Qingping when Tianque would give her the Spirit Wood.
“Miss, there’s no need to worry. Tianque will certainly keep his word.” Qingping gently brushed the stray hairs from her forehead and looked into her eyes. “However, the Spirit-Subduing Wood originally belonged to the Sect Master. It was used as a prize for the competition. When it can be given to you, Miss, I’m afraid we’ll have to ask the Sect Master for his opinion.”
Upon hearing this, Jiang Yuhuo's brows furrowed. She truly did not wish to deal with him any longer, but to avoid any unforeseen complications, she naturally wanted to obtain the information as soon as possible. So she looked up and asked Qingping, "Could you take me to see him?"
Upon hearing that she wanted to see Jia Yue, Qingping immediately smiled and said, "Of course you can."
Before long, Qingping tidied up her face again, managing to give her pale face some color, before taking Jiang Yuhuo to the Linggu Tower. That was where Jia Yue handled her daily affairs and worshipped the gods.
However, the timing was unfortunate. At the foot of the tower, a group of white-robed disciples of the Heavenly Palace were offering prayers to the gods under the guidance of Jia Yue, which was considered the Heavenly Palace's morning prayers.
The eldest son of the Heavenly Palace stood atop the tall white tower, with the four colossal statues of gods carved into the tower behind him. He stood before the statues, coldly gazing at the multitude below, appearing more like a deity than any stone sculpture.
Jiang Yuhuo stood at the foot of the tower, looking up at the deity on the tower just like the other disciples of Tianque.
This was the first time she had seen him from this angle. Jiang Yuhuo felt, for no apparent reason, that he was born to be placed in a high hall, to be worshipped from afar, rather than confined to a cramped bathtub; they should never have crossed paths. His choice to leave was simply to return to his original place.
Does she hate him? She might have hated him when she first saw him, but now Jiang Yuhuo can look at him calmly.
She already has too many people to hate, too many people who are more hateful than him.
Hatred also requires strength.
As soon as Jia Yue returned to the tower after the morning lessons, Qing Ping led Jiang Yu Huo into the hall.
As soon as the palace doors closed, Qingping stood outside waiting.
The other young man standing outside the hall only withdrew his gaze from the person who had entered the hall after the hall doors closed. He looked at Qingping on the other side with a troubled expression. "Senior Sister Qingping, is this the person you wanted to matchmake for the master?"
Qingping glanced at him with a smile. "Don't talk nonsense," she lowered her voice. "It's not exactly matchmaking, it's just that His Highness treats her a little differently."
How are they different?
Qingping beckoned to him, signaling him to come closer. The young man obediently offered his ear. "Last night, it was His Highness who came to me and told me that she had woken up and asked me to get her some clothes."
The young man stared wide-eyed in disbelief. "You mean, the sir went in?"
Qingping nodded, then warned him, "Junior Brother Ling, you mustn't tell anyone. You must keep His Highness's secret."
Ling Changyu nodded seriously. As the Right Protector of Tianque, he was determined to protect the reputation of the Sect Master. "Senior Sister Qingping, please don't tell anyone else. This matter is between you and me." After thinking for a while, he added, "And the two people in the hall also know."
The two reached an agreement.
After a while, Qingping's faint sigh drifted on the wind again, "Your Highness is actually a pitiful person."
Ling Changyu asked, puzzled, "What do you mean?"
Qingping's beautiful eyes held a hint of sadness. "Having been widowed since the beginning of our separation, living as a widower for so many years, isn't it bitter?" She glanced at the palace gate behind her. "I hope that this one can truly catch His Highness's eye and bring him some joy."
"What's the point of all this?" Ling Changyu was even more confused, not understanding why Qingping would have such expectations. He felt that it would be fine for Lord Jiayue to be a widower for the rest of his life. He was the hope of the Heavenly Palace's inner Nascent Soul stage, so naturally he should devote himself to cultivation. And that's exactly what Lord Jiayue had always done.
Qingping looked at Ling Changyu's dazed expression and smiled faintly, "Sometimes when I look at Junior Brother Ling, I think he's a pretty good person."
As a merman, and one who had undergone differentiation, Qingping naturally understood the plight of a merman losing their mate. Even though Jia Yue was aloof and cold, never showing any grief for the deceased mortal, regardless of whether he had truly forgotten him, his body was no longer under his control after differentiation. During those periods, without the comfort of a mate, he could only endure it alone. He had survived seven years, but what about the hundreds of years to come?
“But I think it’s difficult…” Ling Changyu had other matters to attend to during the Immortal Sect Competition and did not witness the scene firsthand. Now, looking at this Kunlun female cultivator, he finds it hard to understand how she defeated Mo Sheng, who was no ordinary person.
Qingping knew what he was referring to and immediately found it amusing. "Could it be that you can find someone in this world more beautiful than His Highness? At this point, everyone else's appearance would become more or less the same in his eyes. The important thing is that His Highness likes it."
Ling Changyu wanted to argue, not about appearance, but about Lord Jiayue's cold and aloof personality. However, when he thought that the person in front of him was also a merman, he had no choice but to shut up.
Inside the hall.
When Jia Yue heard the report, the Kunlun female cultivator said she wanted to see him.
He had already seen her when he was on the tower. Unlike the humility of the disciples of Tianque, she stared at him unabashedly for a long time, making it hard for him not to notice her.
The footsteps in the hall stopped. She had arrived.
Jia Yue sat behind her desk without looking up.
"May I ask, Lord Zongzi, when will you hand over the Spirit-Subduing Wood to me?" Her voice was still hoarse and not pleasant to listen to, and her question was very direct, breaking the silence of the room.
So that's what you came for.
Jia Yue looked up, expecting to meet her staring gaze again, but she lowered her eyes and didn't look at him.
“I will hand it over to you, but not now,” Jia Yue said coldly, her words carrying a hint of displeasure that she herself was unaware of.
She suddenly looked up, staring directly into his eyes, her face full of displeasure. "Why is that? How can the mighty Heavenly Palace break its promise?"
Jia Yue looked up, a barely perceptible smile flashing in her eyes. She was indeed faking it; with a gentle flick of his wrist, her docile facade crumbled.
"Does Your Excellency believe that Tianque is unwilling to let go?"
Jiang Yuhuo held her breath and didn't say anything. Was it that he was unwilling to give it to her, or that she couldn't take it?
Jia Yue slowly shook her head; she was indeed filled with distrust towards him. But seeing her sullen and angry expression, she found it somewhat laughable. Just how much malice did she harbor towards him that she would think he was deliberately holding her back?
"You left in a hurry on the day of the competition. If your senior brother had taken it for you that day, that would have been fine. But now that you are suffering from the backlash of the fire element, it is best not to come into contact with such spiritual energy-conducting objects. For others, the spirit-devouring wood is a powerful tool for improving cultivation, but for you now, it will only unblock the fire element that you have managed to suppress, causing you to be engulfed in flames again."
He raised an eyebrow slightly, his gaze falling on the shelf behind the hall, where a black wooden staff was displayed—it was the Spirit-Subduing Wood.
"If you don't believe me, you can try it."
So Jiang Yuhuo actually walked towards the shelf.
Jia Yue's eyes suddenly changed, "Don't touch it!"
Before anyone could stop her, Jiang Yuhuo had already placed her hand on it.
As soon as Jiang Yu's fiery hand touched the piece of black wood, a faint blue light immediately appeared around the wood, and the blood in his body almost instantly became scalding hot. The heat made his lungs and internal organs ache, and his blood surged up from his chest.
He was telling the truth; this time he wasn't lying to her.
She gritted her teeth and prevented the blood from spilling out.
Jia Yue had already stood up. Seeing her face turn deathly pale and covered in cold sweat, she couldn't help but frown.
She truly didn't believe him at all.
Jiang Yuhuo swallowed the blood, her gaze fixed on the piece of wood, ignoring the mixed gazes of the merfolk behind her. She had no eyes for this piece of wood; she would never forget it, even in death. It was this very wood—the same wood that Jia Qianyang had used to make his dove-shaped staff.
When can I take it away?
Jia Yue originally wanted to tell her that as long as she put it in a box, she could take it away without direct contact, but the words that came out were, "Wait until your internal injuries heal."
Although she didn't know why she had such a strong obsession with the spirit-summoning wood, Jia Yue inexplicably felt that if she were allowed to take it now, she would definitely touch it again, so it was best to leave it somewhere else for the time being.
"Okay, I understand. I'll take it after I recover."
She had barely finished speaking when she was already quite a distance away. It seemed she had only come for the Spirit Wood.
The palace doors opened, and Qingping, who was guarding the entrance, turned her head and saw Jiang Yuhuo rushing straight towards her. The person was fast but his steps were messy. She quickly helped him up and heard Jiang Yuhuo's hoarse voice and saw the bloodstains between his teeth.
"Immortal Lord Qingping, please take me to the sinking pool."
Qingping glanced at Jiang Yuhuo in surprise, then looked at the people inside the hall. A dark emotion flashed across Jia Yue's icy blue eyes, but before Qingping could see it clearly, Jia Yue had already returned to her usual calm and still expression.
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