Chapter 84
In this difficult winter, the snowfall on Yunhua Mountain was less than in previous years.
Even today, the sun shines.
The gates of Chenxing Palace were tightly shut, and there was no one in sight. The glazed tiles on the pavilions caught the sparse sunlight, which shone brightly amidst the red maple leaves in the courtyard, casting a faint golden hue on the copper bells hanging from the upturned eaves, making them slightly dazzling.
A hand with clearly defined and slender fingers pushed open the window, inviting the light in and illuminating a small patch of shadow.
Standing in the shadows was a person dressed entirely in white, as beautiful as the moon and as lustrous as jade.
At 3:45 AM, snow finally fell across the river.
She took a bath, changed her clothes, and stood in front of the bronze mirror, gathering her hair. There were no brightly colored ornaments on the dressing table, only an old wooden comb and a plain white hair ribbon.
A light figure landed in the courtyard; someone had arrived carrying a letter.
"Uncle-Master is awake?"
Man Jiangxue hummed in agreement and glanced sideways: "Who sent the letter?"
The guard placed the food on the table and replied, "It's Junior Sister. The letter says she's currently in Yaoding City, settling the refugees driven in by the Ziwei Sect with Senior Sister Lu. Her planned return to the palace has been postponed again, so she told Uncle-Master not to worry."
Man Jiangxue tied her hair up and took the letter, reading it carefully.
“Ever since Junior Sister went down the mountain, Master Uncle has never been able to get up,” the guard disciple said as he set out the dishes. “Today we can finally have breakfast.”
Man Jiangxue moved the letter aside, looked at the congee and vegetables, held the chopsticks in her hand for a while, and then put them down.
Seeing this, the guard disciple laughed and said, "Is it not to your liking? Uncle has become picky about food because of Junior Sister's cooking. There's nothing we can do about it. Since Junior Sister isn't here, we disciples can only run to the kitchen. Uncle, please make do with this."
Man Jiangxue had just woken up and looked a little lazy. Hearing this, she laughed for no reason. She picked at the vegetables and ate a few bites, then glanced at the letter again, and finally got up and sat down at the desk.
Where did my copy of the Heart Sutra go?
The guard peeked out, put down his rice bowl, and asked, "Isn't it on the bookshelf?"
Man Jiangxue said, "No."
"It's usually my junior sister who does all the tidying up, I don't know either," the guard disciple hurriedly searched around, "Where did it go..."
Man Jiangxue waited a moment, rubbed her temples, and said, "Forget it, I won't look for it anymore." She touched her waist but didn't find what she wanted, so she looked around again and asked, "Where's my dagger?"
"A dagger?" The guard disciple quickly searched another spot. "A dagger... Last time, my junior sister took it to the sword forging pavilion to have it sharpened, but she doesn't know where she put it after she came back. Please wait a moment, Uncle, I'll look for it for you."
Man Jiangxue stood by the window, watching him bustling around, and after a moment of silence, said, "Never mind... I won't look anymore."
Hearing her say that, the guard disciple chuckled and said, "Oh dear, with Junior Sister gone, Jingyue Peak is in chaos. It's all because Junior Sister has taken such good care of Master Uncle's daily life. Without her, we're completely lost and can't find anything. I think Master Uncle should call her back soon, otherwise how can we live like this?"
Man Jiangxue remained silent after hearing this.
Since the new disciple conference ended that year and Yin Qiu came to Jingyue Peak, Yin Qiu has taken over almost all of Man Jiangxue's daily life these past few years.
Yin Qiu personally prepared all three meals a day, and was also in charge of managing the affairs of Chenxing Palace. She washed Man Jiangxue's clothes, organized her books, and even handled many small matters. Over the years, no one in Yunhua Palace knew Man Jiangxue's living habits better than Yin Qiu. Now that Yin Qiu has left, Man Jiangxue can't get used to the food, forgets to put on new clothes, and can't even find her own sword.
In fact, Yin Qiu has gone down the mountain to gain experience quite a bit over the past few years, but she usually comes back soon and doesn't cause any delays. However, this year, due to the disaster, Yin Qiu has been stranded at the foot of the mountain for more than two months, which is the longest separation the two have ever had since they met.
Man Jiangxue wasn't worried that Yin Qiu would have a bad life outside; she was worried that if things continued like this, she would become a useless person who couldn't take care of herself.
So Man Jiangxue said, "You go out, I'll find it myself."
The guard glanced at her, then said hesitantly, "How about I search a little longer?"
Man Jiangxue said, "Get out."
The guard disciple said "Oh," and dared not say more. He quickly cleaned up the dishes and left.
The palace doors closed, shutting out the cold wind, and the room instantly became quiet.
Man Jiangxue felt inexplicably agitated, unable to pinpoint what was wrong. She pulled over a rattan chair and sat quietly for a while, recalling Yin Qiu's various activities before he went down the mountain. Finally, she went to the bedside, lifted the pillow, and found a silver dagger underneath.
She picked up the dagger, weighed it in her hand, and pondered for a while with a blank expression. Then she pushed open the door and went around to the other room. When she opened the door, she saw her copy of the Heart Sutra of Zhuangzi spread out on the small wooden table by the window.
The room was elegantly decorated, with traces of a young woman's home and a touch of scholarly refinement. A familiar, faint fragrance lingered in the air—the scent of Yin Qiu.
Man Jiangxue sat in the room for a while, and soon returned to Chenxing Palace. After a while, she went back to Yin Qiu's room, found a few items, and then went out with them.
Several secret guards squatted on a maple tree, playing in the snow, quietly watching Man Jiangxue's tireless coming and going.
As the clouds obscured the sunlight and it approached noon, Man Jiangxue's figure reappeared at the entrance of Chenxing Palace.
She had a dagger hanging at her waist and a brocade robe draped over her shoulders, and it seemed she was heading somewhere.
Several disciples asked in unison, "Where is our martial uncle going?"
Man Jiangxue ignored them and left decisively.
·
At daybreak, Yin Qiu ate a quick meal at the post station, personally prepared a medicinal soup for Lu Huaiwei, and seeing that the snow outside wasn't too heavy, he didn't use an umbrella and led his disciples to the city gate to set up a shed to distribute porridge as usual.
That night, Yin Qiu persuaded Duan Ning to back down, preventing the refugees from being arrested and brought before the authorities. In the past few days, she has been taking care of everyone diligently and patiently, speaking gently and acting with grace. The refugees are all happy to see her, and they all regard Yin Qiu as a living Bodhisattva. Every day when they meet, they can't help but surround her and chat and laugh, just like seeing their own daughter.
Having experienced hardship and hunger, Yin Qiu knew better than anyone how difficult life was for these refugees. Knowing her own limitations and inability to provide substantial help, she could only do her best to do as much as possible, even if it was just talking to them and keeping them company. That was better than being purely businesslike and lacking in human touch.
Since Fu Xiang returned to Mingyue Tower, Yin Qiu hasn't made many friends in the palace. Now, apart from Meng Jing, only Bai Ling is someone she has a relatively close relationship with.
Although Bai Ling did not achieve a good ranking at the conference that year, she was still noticed by the elders of Liuli Peak and taken under their wing. Liuli Peak has always been the most low-key peak in Yunhua Palace, with few disciples, none of whom are outstanding. Therefore, Bai Ling was well-cultivated as soon as she arrived and was deeply loved by her master. She is now the eldest disciple of Liuli Peak and holds a high position in the palace.
Although Yin Qiu did not have a master, she was from Jingyue Peak, the daughter of Shen Mandong, and half a disciple of Xie Yijun. Apart from Xie Yijun, Man Jiangxue was the most senior in the entire Yunhua Palace. Even though the disciples all called her "Little Junior Sister," they actually had to respect Yin Qiu to some extent. Even the senior disciples of other peaks had to bow and pay their respects to her. However, Yin Qiu never relied on seniority to put on airs. She did not want anyone to be polite to her, even if they were her senior brothers or sisters.
The snow had been heavy these past few days, but it finally eased up a bit today. Although the refugees were not infected with any diseases, many had caught a cold. Yin Qiu and Bai Ling helped the medical disciples distribute the medicine they had prepared to everyone. The porridge was also ready, and just as everyone was about to line up to receive it, they suddenly heard the sound of wheels rolling in the city, which was particularly noticeable.
The disciples turned around and saw that the young lady of the Duan family was coming on horseback, followed by a long procession of carts. Each cart was covered with cotton cloth, and it was unclear what kind of goods were loaded underneath, but they looked like they were full of things.
Duan Ning rode her horse to the porridge stall, looked down at the plain porridge cooked by the Yunhua disciples, and a mocking expression appeared on her face. She dismounted, directed the caravan out of the city, and lifted the cotton cloth to take a look. There were many wooden barrels piled on the cart, which were full of steaming white rice and many fragrant and delicious dishes.
—Seasonal vegetables, big fish and big meat, everything you could want, it's like they just moved a restaurant here.
"Your Yunhua Palace is too shabby! You keep saying you want to provide relief to disaster victims, but all you give them is this watery porridge?"
Duan Ning instructed his men to set up a table, and holding a long ladle, he called out, "Come on! These are all good dishes that our Duan family paid out of our own pockets to have the chefs make. Why aren't you coming over? If you're late, they'll be gone!"
Seeing this, the disciples rolled their eyes so hard they almost reached the sky.
"Is this woman crazy? Is she out of her mind?"
"That's right. A couple of days ago they were stopping people from entering the city and trying to send them to see the officials. What are they up to now?"
"Who are you trying to fool with this act? Why do you only bring food now? Where were you before?"
...
The whispers around her were clearly audible to Duan Ning, but surprisingly, she didn't refute them today. Instead, she looked at the refugees with a radiant smile and said, "What are you all staring at? Is the porridge at Yunhua Palace for people to eat? No! Come here! There's plenty of good food and dishes; you can eat your fill!"
In Duan Ning's mind, these refugees hadn't had a decent meal in days, and seeing her carefully prepared feast, they should all be rushing to grab it. However, despite her enthusiastic invitation, the refugees weren't particularly happy. Instead, they all glared at her coldly, as if they had seen some kind of demon or monster.
"Pah! Who wants to eat your stuff!"
"Exactly! Just feed it to the dogs! We don't want it!"
"We may be poor, but we're not poor in spirit! We're happy to have some porridge! Now get out of here!"
Duan Ning was furious that these people were so ungrateful, refusing to eat the plain rice and instead choosing to eat the porridge from Yunhua Palace. He exclaimed, "You...you!"
Seeing her receive such disdain from the refugees, the disciples were overjoyed and laughed, "Come on, everyone, uncles and aunties, dinner's ready!"
The refugees booed in unison, spat at Duan Ning a few times, and then happily lined up in front of the soup kitchen with their bowls. They received the soup and ate it with great relish, not even bothering to glance at the food that Duan Ning had brought.
Duan Ning was so angry with them that he almost cried.
In fact, she didn't want to come at all. If it weren't for what happened a few days ago that Master Duan found out about and gave her a good scolding, demanding that she salvage the Duan family's reputation, she wouldn't have lowered herself to deal with these refugees.
How shameful! So shameful!
These people really don't respect her at all!
"Eat, eat, eat! Go eat your porridge!" Duan Ning roared from the platform. "I'll put laxatives in your porridge another day so you'll get diarrhea. Poor and desolate places breed wicked people who don't appreciate kindness!"
After she finished speaking, she lifted up and kicked the wooden bucket beside her, scattering the food inside all over the ground.
·
Bai Ling's heart was bleeding. She whispered to Yin Qiu, "This is such a waste!"
Yin Qiu smiled, not looking at Duan Ning, but just spooning porridge for people, saying, "The Duan family is rich, let her squander it, we just need to do our own thing."
She didn't speak loudly, but Duan Ning heard her perfectly and seized on Yin Qiu's words to start a fight: "You think you're so reasonable! You think you're so understanding! What did I waste? I was just trying to be kind!"
Yin Qiu raised her spoon and pointed to the dirty food at her feet, saying, "Isn't this considered wasteful?"
Duan Ning choked for a moment, then retorted, "That's because you guys made me angry!"
“Even if you’re angry, you can’t waste food,” Yin Qiu said. “Miss Duan, you mean well, but you’re using the wrong method.”
Out of consideration for the fact that she had saved her life that day, Duan Ning was somewhat more polite to Yin Qiu. She said aggrievedly, "They had no food, so I brought them some. How is that wrong?"
Yin Qiu said, "If you really want to help them, you don't need to prepare such good food. Give them more clothes and quilts, or ask Master Duan to help with their household registration so that they can have a place to go as soon as possible. That's what they really need."
If the Duan family wanted to manage it, they would have done so long ago. Why did they have to ask her to do this now, only to have her come here and get nothing in return? Duan Ning said, "But my father isn't an official. How can he manage their household registration? You should go to the government office."
Yin Qiu said, "As far as I know, Master Duan and the Prefect are old friends. If he were to give a word of advice, the Prefect could send someone to Cang County to investigate the household registration. Although it would be a bit troublesome, it is not impossible."
The current situation is that the prefect is unwilling to do anything practical, fearing trouble. These days, Lu Huaiwei has repeatedly written letters to the government to plead for help, but the government has always turned a blind eye and is too lazy to care about these refugees without household registration. If the Duan family were willing to lend a hand, this matter could actually be resolved in no time and without much trouble.
Now that Duan Ning has ruined the Duan family's reputation that night, these refugees despise her and are extremely disgusted with her. Master Duan wants her to make amends, but he only wants her to do some superficial work. As a young lady from a noble family, Duan Ning has been used to a life of comfort since childhood. How could she know the real needs of the disaster victims? It was no surprise to the disciples that she was met with a cold shoulder today.
"I see..." Duan Ning pondered for a moment after hearing Yin Qiu's words, "That's easy! I'll just go and tell my father, won't I?"
Finding that although she had a bad temper and behaved strangely, she was still somewhat obedient, Yin Qiu smiled at Duan Ning and said, "Then I'll have to trouble you, Miss Duan. Thank you very much."
Seeing that her every move exuded elegance and poise, making her seem even more like a young lady from a wealthy family than herself, Duan Ning felt a pang of discomfort. She sighed and asked with a sullen expression, "So, are you going to eat any of this food or not?"
Yin Qiu put down her rice spoon and turned to look at the refugees: "Uncles and aunties, we have good food, would you like some?"
The refugees immediately replied, "We'll do whatever our little sister says! If she tells us to eat, we'll eat!"
Yin Qiu said, "Then let's eat."
After she spoke, the refugees all carried their bowls and walked toward Duan Ning. Although Duan Ning was still a little resentful after being humiliated, he still personally held a spoon and added food to the refugees' bowls when they arrived. The Yunhua disciples on the side also came over to help, and the scene immediately became harmonious again.
Since the snow disaster, where have the refugees gotten such good food? They were all overjoyed and thanked Yin Qiu and his disciples profusely.
Duan Ning was in a real bind.
What's going on?
She brought the food, so why aren't these people thanking her?
Bah!
Continue read on readnovelmtl.com