Chapter 183
As dusk fell, the sun dipped below the western hills, and the evening glow painted the sky crimson, spreading out a beautiful tapestry of clouds. The sunset was so beautiful, like mist and smoke, that it outshone all the flowers in the garden.
Wen Chaoyu had set up a deck chair by the artificial lake and was about to take a nap under a light blanket when Xue Tan rushed in from outside, shouting, "Guardian! Don't be in such a hurry to doze off, the guests have arrived at the door!"
Wen Chaoyu had just lain down, her head not even touching the pillow yet, when she heard this, she sat up again. She had stayed up all night, watching a play at the city theater, and had taken Xue Tan boating on the lake during the day. She hadn't slept for more than two hours, and was now feeling very sleepy.
"How's it going in the kitchen?" Wen Chaoyu threw down the thin blanket, intending to go out to greet them, but as soon as she reached the pier, she saw two figures coming from behind the flower bushes, so she simply turned around and went straight into the waterside pavilion.
"I'll go urge them!" Xue Tan nodded to the two white figures through the flower bushes, then quickly ran off to the kitchen.
The weather had been nice these past few days since the beginning of spring. The curtains blocking the wind in the waterside pavilion had all been drawn, and it wasn't cold even in the evenings. Wen Chaoyu sat cross-legged in her favorite armchair and smiled at the two people walking hand in hand across the covered bridge, saying, "Oh, honored guests have arrived, it's an honor to have you here."
"Uncle Wen," Yin Qiu jogged a few steps and entered the pavilion before Man Jiangxue, exchanging pleasantries with Wen Chaoyu, "Your house is really beautiful, even more comfortable than living in the palace."
Upon hearing this, Wen Chaoyu smiled smugly and said, "That's why I say you're so likable. You've always had a sweet tongue since you were little." She nodded to Man Jiangxue, "Please sit wherever you like, don't be shy."
Today, Man Jiangxue was dressed in a loose-fitting casual outfit, with wide sleeves woven with cloud patterns, and her skirt fluttering like a cold mist. Just sitting there, she was a pleasing picture. Wen Chaoyu glanced at her and thought that this person was simply abnormal. She was exactly the same as when they first met, and that was no exaggeration.
Wen Chaoyu said, "Well, everyone who's been here says I picked a great house. You have excellent taste, tell me?"
Man Jiangxue said, "Including me and Xiao Qiu, there are only three people here in total." She glanced around and commented, "Compared to mine, it's not good."
Wen Chaoyu pouted: "Your place?"
“It’s on Xifeng Mountain outside the city,” Yin Qiu said happily. “Uncle Wen can come and visit us when he has time. It’s definitely no worse than your place; it’s a good place too.”
Wen Chaoyu thought for a moment: "Xifeng Mountain?" She glanced at Man Jiangxue, "I didn't know you also had a house. How about inviting me over sometime so I can broaden my horizons?"
Man Jiangxue said, "Go if you want to."
“I know it’ll be deserted and lifeless even if I don’t go,” Wen Chaoyu retorted, determined to prove herself. “You all love living up in the mountains, far from the world, but what’s the point? I prefer to stay in the human world; the warmth of everyday life is what makes me happy. Yin Qiu, Man Jiangxue is so rich, let her buy the house next door to me, and we can be neighbors. I’ll take you out to play every day; that would be so convenient.”
Yin Qiu smiled and said, "The human world is too noisy. Martial Aunt loves to sleep in. It's better for her to live in a quiet place." After saying this, she added meaningfully, "No matter how rich you are, you can't compare to Senior Sister Ji's vast wealth. Why don't you ask Senior Sister Ji to buy it?"
Wen Chaoyu said, "Even if you have money, you can't just spend it recklessly. She can just come here with me. By the way, why didn't Wan Shu come with you?"
Yin Qiu said, "Tomorrow is the ceremony for the young sect leader's investiture. Senior Sister Ji still needs to memorize the procedures and prepare many things in advance. Even if she wanted to come, the sect leader wouldn't allow it."
“Yijun is a stingy person, an old-fashioned person her whole life,” Wen Chaoyu said seriously. “Once Wanshu officially becomes the young sect leader, I will go to Yunhua Palace every day to lure her out and make Yijun angry to death.”
Yin Qiu was amused by her and laughed heartily. While the three of them were chatting, Xue Tan led several servants to bring over the food. Yin Qiu helped out and saw that Xue Tan was about to leave after setting out the dishes, so she stopped him and said, "Brother Xue, don't go. Why don't you sit with us for a while?"
If it were just Wen Chaoyu and Yin Qiu, Xue Tan would certainly be happy to join them. However, with Man Jiangxue sitting silently to the side, Xue Tan felt that this was not a place for him to squeeze in. Although he had interacted with Wen Chaoyu and Man Jiangxue quite a bit during this period and knew that Man Jiangxue only appeared unapproachable on the outside but was actually a friendly and gentle person who didn't care about formalities, Xue Tan couldn't help but feel a genuine fear of her for some reason. He saw this fear as the natural respect and distance that the weak have for the strong, so he didn't dare to approach her rashly and thus politely declined Yin Qiu's invitation.
“No, no,” Xue Tan said. “You will definitely be discussing serious matters later, so I won’t listen in. Besides, there are quite a few handymen employed in this house, and I need to keep an eye on them.”
Yin Qiu said, "There's no rush. You haven't eaten yet, have you?"
Xue Tan said, "I'll eat with my men. Please enjoy your meal."
Yin Qiu could tell from his little glance who he was worried about, but the person being worried about wasn't even looking in his direction, and was wholeheartedly pouring himself tea. Yin Qiu chuckled: "Then I won't try to persuade you anymore, but wait a moment, I have a gift for you."
Xue Tan was overjoyed and asked, "A gift? For me?"
"Here you are," Yin Qiu said, taking a slender velvet box from her sleeve pocket with a gentle smile. "See if you like it."
Xue Tan was slightly surprised. He opened the box and found a beautiful ivory fan inside, with a fine jade pendant hanging from the end. It was obviously very valuable.
"How could you give such a valuable gift to a rough man like me?" Xue Tan said, flattered. "I cannot accept this gift. As the saying goes, one should not accept a reward without merit. Miss Yin, you have truly made me feel uneasy."
Yin Qiu said, "There's nothing to be ashamed of. Brother Xue is a handsome and dignified man. If it weren't for..." She looked at Xue Tan's twisted wrist and paused before continuing, "Anyway, this is just a small token of my appreciation. Although it's early spring and we don't need the fan yet, it will come in handy when the weather gets warmer. Brother Xue, please accept it. You've risked your life alongside Uncle Wen and helped us in many ways. Consider this a token of your gratitude. Don't feel burdened. I see you like it very much, don't you?"
Xue Tan didn't just like it; he was absolutely enamored with it. He knew what Yin Qiu hadn't finished saying, and he also knew Yin Qiu's intention in giving him the fan, so he didn't refuse and happily accepted it.
"Then thank you very much, Miss Yin. This is the first time I have received a gift, and I really like it. I will give you a gift in return in the future, and please don't refuse it then."
Yin Qiuxin said with pleasure, "It's only natural to reciprocate."
Xue Tan grinned, scratched his head somewhat sheepishly, thanked him several times, and then bowed and withdrew. Wen Chaoyu said, "You brought him a gift, have you forgotten about me?"
“We definitely can’t forget this.” Yin Qiu was prepared and took out two palm-sized boxes from another sleeve pocket. Wen Chaoyu excitedly opened the lids and found a square white porcelain medicine jar inside.
"You gave Xue Tan such an expensive fan, but you gave me a bottle of medicine?" Wen Chaoyu leaned closer to smell it. "Who gives medicine to someone? I'm perfectly healthy. This is not a good omen at all."
Yin Qiu laughed and explained, "This is a medicine specially made by Meng Jing for me, specifically to treat broken bone pain." Seeing that Xue Tan had already walked away, she felt more at ease and continued, "Both you and Brother Xue have old injuries that ache terribly on rainy days. This medicine can not only relieve the pain, but also improve it with long-term use. There are two boxes in total. I'd like to trouble Uncle Wen to give Brother Xue one box after we leave. I've always felt guilty towards him and was too embarrassed to give it to him in front of him earlier. Please remember to pass it on for me, Uncle Wen."
Seeing how considerate she was, Wen Chaoyu couldn't help but sigh, "Good child, you're so thoughtful. This is much better than any fan. Thank you."
Yin Qiu waved her hand and then picked up her bowl and chopsticks to eat. Wen Chaoyu reached out and tapped Man Jiangxue's hand, saying, "Even a child knows to bring a gift when visiting someone for the first time. I'm your senior sister, it wouldn't be right for you not to bring one, would it?"
Man Jiangxue placed the deboned fish meat into Yin Qiu's bowl, and upon hearing this, said indifferently, "I didn't bring any."
Wen Chaoyu hadn't expected anything anyway, but she still scoffed at these words: "You're so boring. Aside from Yin Qiu, can't you at least give us outsiders a little face?"
"Did I give you a sour look?" Man Jiangxue said. "Xiao Qiu's gift is also my gift, but if you insist on taking it from me, I can allow you to enter the palace tomorrow night when I ascend the throne."
Wen Chaoyu laughed upon hearing this: "Do I need your permission to enter the palace? What kind of etiquette is that?"
“Then you can try,” Man Jiangxue said, “and see if the gatekeepers will let you in.”
Wen Chaoyu choked, then looked at Yin Qiu and said, "I know my reputation is a bit bad, but it shouldn't be to the point where they won't even let me in the door, right?"
“Last time you entered the palace as a hostage and witness,” Yin Qiu said. “Now… without the permission of the sect leader and your senior uncle, or without Senior Sister Ji personally welcoming you, I doubt you will be allowed to enter. Besides, Senior Sister Ji will be very busy tomorrow, and she probably won’t be able to find the time to pick you up.”
Wen Chaoyu paused for a moment, then hissed, "Who cares? This wretched place was inhabited eight hundred years ago. Besides, I was able to abduct you from the palace to the Ziwei Sect, so a simple investiture ceremony can't possibly stump me? Who are you underestimating?"
Yin Qiu chuckled: "So you're still going? I asked Senior Sister Ji when I came down the mountain, and she didn't seem sure whether you were going or not."
Wen Chaoyu said, "Aren't her parents supposed to be there? I really don't want to go, but I don't want to disappoint Wan Shu, so I'm torn."
Yin Qiu said, "At worst, we can just not meet. This is such an important day, it only comes once in a lifetime. Uncle Wen, you should still go."
Wen Chaoyu pondered for a moment but still did not give a clear answer. She drank two glasses of wine to perk herself up and suddenly turned to Man Jiangxue and said, "Since you're here now, there's something I want to discuss with you."
Man Jiangxue loved eating fish and had been patiently picking out the bones throughout the meal. Upon hearing this, she asked, "What is it?"
Wen Chaoyu paused again, seemingly unsure of what to say, before finally asking, "After Ye Zhilan's death, you've had a period of peace, but the mastermind behind that secret guard disciple hasn't been caught yet. What are your plans for the future?"
Man Jiangxue said, "He's busy dealing with Meng Wugui right now, so he hasn't bothered us. But this guy is well hidden and hard to catch, so we're just watching and waiting."
“Meng Wugui…” Wen Chaoyu leaned back in her chair and looked at Yin Qiu, “You must also know that she is Manzhen?”
Yin Qiu nodded: "You know too? Does that mean Nangong Min knows as well?"
Wen Chaoyu nodded in agreement: "It seems Meng Wugui is having a hard time right now. Both sides are suppressing her. She is Mandong's sister, after all. Aren't you going to help her?"
Man Jiangxue said, "How can I help? She said back in Weicheng that she wanted to deal with Yunhua Palace. I can't help her, not to mention that we need to avoid suspicion and have no contact with her, otherwise Xiao Qiu will be in danger."
Wen Chaoyu wanted to say that even secret contact was not allowed, but when she thought that the person might be closely monitoring them from all sides, and might even have hidden guards around her house watching the three of them talk, she said listlessly, "That is really troublesome. Mingyue Tower has already run into trouble. Before I left, Nangong Min also said that she would deal with Meng Wugui. Now that no one is helping her, it will be difficult."
“I’m really worried about this,” Yin Qiu said. “I don’t know how she will get through this. If she can’t even take care of herself, what will happen to Fu Xiang?”
Wen Chaoyu tapped Yin Qiu's forehead with her chopsticks and said seriously, "Don't you know what she'll do? You've always been quite clever, how come you can't think of that now?"
"You know?" Yin Qiu looked at Wen Chaoyu, then turned to look at Man Jiangxue. "If Martial Uncle Wen knows, then Martial Uncle must know too."
“There’s something off about what you’re saying,” Wen Chaoyu said. “It’s simple. Someone wants to kill Fu Xiang so that Meng Wugui will lose the chance to get Mingyue Tower. Why doesn’t she just go all out and get Mingyue Tower ahead of time? Wouldn’t that solve everything?”
Yin Qiu said, "But with Master Fu here, how could Mingyue Tower be so easily acquired?" After saying this, she suddenly had a change of heart, and her expression immediately changed. "You mean..."
“Yes,” Wen Chaoyu clinked glasses with her, “It’s just as you think.”
Yin Qiu exclaimed in shock, "But if that's the case, wouldn't Fu Xiang be..."
“You’re still too kind-hearted. You never think about things that involve murder,” Wen Chaoyu said. “Man Jiangxue must have thought of it long ago, but she didn’t tell you because she was afraid you would worry, right?”
The snow-covered river remained undecided.
Yin Qiu immediately became worried: "That would be terrible. Although Fu Xiang and Master Fu don't have a good relationship, they are still father and daughter. If Meng Wugui really harms Master Fu, how can Fu Xiang accept it?"
Wen Chaoyu didn't seem to care: "Since she's going to follow Meng Wugui, she must have known this day would come. Whether she can accept it or not, she has to accept it. How can you avoid getting hurt in the martial world?"
Yin Qiu became sullen. Seeing this, Man Jiangxue put some of her favorite dishes on her plate and changed the subject, saying, "You just said you had something to discuss with me?"
As the sun gradually set and darkness fell in the garden, Wen Chaoyu called for someone to light the lamps and said, "I was thinking, if you manage to catch that person in the future and find the Holy Sword, could you hand it over to me?"
Man Jiangxue glanced at her: "You want to return it to Nangong Min?"
Seeing that Yin Qiu liked sweets, Wen Chaoyu replaced all the sweet dishes in front of her and said, "The Holy Sword is the foundation of the Ziwei Sect's founder. It's a treasure for spreading the sect. For Nangong Min, it's more than just a sword. When I was young, I practiced martial arts with her in the same courtyard. The old sect leader taught us everything he knew without any hesitation. To be honest, the old sect leader was a good person, and Nangong Min wasn't a bad person either. It's just that after the old sect leader passed away, she had no relatives or friends, and everyone in the martial arts world wanted to kill her. She became like this because of the circumstances. I owe her my life, and she made an exception and let me leave the Ziwei Sect. There's not much I can do for her, so I can only take the Holy Sword back to her as a way of repaying her kindness."
“With the Holy Sword, she’s like a tiger with wings,” Man Jiangxue said. “With eight parts of her skill, the Holy Sword will give her twelve parts. If you return the Holy Sword to her, she will become even more unscrupulous and do more evil.”
“But the item is hers after all, so it’s understandable that she got it,” Wen Chaoyu said. “The martial world is never truly peaceful. Even if you can bring down the Ziwei Sect, other sects will take its place. Of course, that’s all in the future. Just tell me if you’re willing to help me with this.”
Man Jiangxue said, "I'm not interested in the Holy Sword. Whether you can get it depends on your own ability."
"It's fine if you don't stop me. I didn't expect you to give me the Holy Sword yourself," Wen Chaoyu said. "But don't worry, since you're willing to agree, just tell me if you need anything in the future. I also want to see that scoundrel caught. I'll stab him a couple of times to vent my anger, even for Mandong's sake. We're in the same boat now, so come on, let's drink!"
The three of them raised their glasses and clinked them together. Wen Chaoyu, not satisfied with his drink, switched from a wine glass to a large bowl. Yin Qiu held the glass and drank it all in one gulp, asking, "What kind of drink is this? I've never had it before. It's sweet."
Upon hearing this, Man Jiangxue looked up at her and noticed that Yin Qiu's face was slightly flushed and her eyes were glistening with tears. Her previous gloom had vanished, and she seemed quite happy.
Wen Chaoyu refilled her glass and said, "Is it good? This is fruit wine with osmanthus honey mixed in. I specially asked Xue Tan to buy it. It won't make you drunk."
Yin Qiu exclaimed in surprise, "This is wine?"
How can there be such delicious wine?
Wen Chaoyu pushed the glass bottle containing the wine towards her, saying generously, "It's all yours, drink as much as you want. If you're still not satisfied, I'll have someone bring you more. How about it? Doesn't this make you feel much better?"
Yin Qiu nodded repeatedly, and said with delight, "The last time I drank alcohol was when Senior Sister Ding made me drink it. Not only was the alcohol terrible, but I also swallowed poison. I never thought there was such a thing as sweet wine in the world. I like it."
Wen Chaoyu burst into laughter, her stomach cramping from laughing so hard she could barely breathe. "Don't mention it anymore! You're really unlucky. Bringing it up again after it's all over is just too funny," she said, laughing so hard she was doubled over. Then she patted Yin Qiu's shoulder and said, "But you have to be able to take things easy in life. It doesn't matter how much suffering you go through. You can just bring it up as a joke later. That's called finding joy in hardship. Come on! Let's have another one!"
Yin Qiu raised her glass to clink with hers, and the two chatted and laughed, creating a lively atmosphere. Man Jiangxue drank her tea alone, wanting to stop her several times, but seeing that Yin Qiu was in good spirits, she didn't want to spoil her fun.
Sure enough, after drinking almost all the wine in the glass bottle, Yin Qiu started to clutch her head and said, "Didn't you say this wine wouldn't make you drunk? Why am I feeling a little dizzy?"
Wen Chaoyu said, "That's because you can't hold your liquor. Manjiangxue, you should have some too—why are you looking at me like that?"
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