Chapter 621 Yunmengze Breaks Exception, Virginity Breaks Rules [Begging for Monthly Tickets at the End of the Month!]
The rain has stopped and the sky is clear.
The pear trees covering the mountainside, their blossoms fresh and vibrant, seem to have been washed clean of all artifice.
Some exquisite ancient-style buildings with upturned eaves are built along the mountainside, scattered all over the mountain peaks, occupying an unknown area.
The exquisite gardens, rockeries, and ponds built along the mountainside highlight the refined taste of the local residents.
This place has a rather interesting name: Snowwood Manor.
This mountain villa is hidden deep in the mountains and forests. Those who come and go are all people who have a close relationship with the villa's owners. Ordinary people are not allowed to enter, and if they accidentally enter, they will be politely asked to leave.
The owner of the manor was said to be a woman who had been widowed at a young age, and for a time she was the talk of the town in the southern Jianghu.
However, this widowed lady, along with Snowwood Manor, kept a very low profile.
Despite the fact that the Xuemu Manor's secular businesses are scattered throughout Jiangnan Road, the manor's reputation remains considerable, even though the owners are low-key.
Laymen watch the spectacle, experts watch the details.
Those who know their stuff in the underworld of Tiannan understand that such a blatantly lucrative target is bound to attract unwanted attention from both the legitimate and criminal worlds.
But they've managed to stay stable and quiet all these years, living peacefully and undisturbed... They haven't been swallowed up by powerful figures, so they're certainly not to be underestimated.
This widowed lady either has connections in high places or she has connections in high places.
You have to choose one of the two.
The villa was quiet in the morning.
Sunlight fell on the pear blossoms hanging with dewdrops, and the air was filled with the scent of spring soil.
There is a refreshing feeling in the mountains after the rain.
Inside the resort, nestled atop the mountain peak, there are no luxurious mansions, only a perfectly placed, elegant pavilion.
The pavilion's plaque reads "Spring Courtyard," and its design is indeed elegant, reminiscent of the Spring and Autumn Period. The curtains hanging from it are made of blue and black silk, a color scheme reminiscent of the ancient Wu and Yue regions, highlighting the owner's refined taste.
A tall, blonde woman with waist-length hair sat cross-legged on a snow-white futon in the pavilion.
A sword sheath rests across his lap.
The snow-white longsword has been drawn.
In front of her was a large bucket of clear water filled with pear petals.
The courtyard was silent, with the faint sound of swords clanging.
Xuezhongzhu used a folded white cloth dipped in water to wipe the snow-white longsword, leaving white petals stuck to the blade.
She pressed her sword finger against the blade through the white cloth, and with each stroke, the longsword hummed softly.
This water is morning dew and rainwater, taken from the pear trees that cover the mountains and fields in early spring.
It was originally an excellent drink for those who practiced breathing exercises.
Right now, however, this Yunmeng Great Queen is using it to feed her sword and cleanse herself.
Xue Zhongzhu's face was calm, his green eyes slightly lowered, and he was focused.
Outside the pavilion stands the largest pear tree in the entire resort, seemingly keeping her company in silence.
One man, one sword; one pavilion, one tree.
The biting mountain winds avoided this peak, leaving it silent and empty.
Bang--!
Just then, a soft sound came from outside the pavilion, like something falling from a branch.
At the same time, accompanied by the sound, a small pear petal, nourished by the spring rain and turned from snow-white to pale pink, slowly fell from the branch.
It feels like rain.
On a branch, a huge, strange bird with three legs and four eyes stood quietly.
It had just fallen from the clouds.
It gripped the branch with two claws, and the extra claw held a silk book bound with a red rope.
Xue Zhongzhu continued his movements without stopping, bowing his head to wash his sword.
The three-legged bird suddenly turned its head and looked at a pool of water on the mountainside not far from the mountain peak.
From this Spring Pavilion on the mountain peak, one can directly overlook the view of the pond.
There is an artificial hill in the center of the pool, and a rare white sturgeon is being raised in the pool.
The white sturgeon circled the oval-shaped pool endlessly, seemingly tireless.
On the bank of the pool, a little girl in a pink and white dress with her hair in a topknot was running around, chasing a white sturgeon, circling the pool.
The little girl held a rather long, straight pear blossom branch in her hand and poked it into the water.
As she circled the lake, pear blossoms skimmed the water's surface, making a continuous splashing sound... as if she were truly drawing circles on the water.
A white sturgeon was with her.
The two guys were having a great time.
It's just unclear who's copying whom.
The three-legged bird perched on a pear tree branch on the mountain peak reflected this scene in its eyes and tilted its head slightly.
Four eyes seemed to unconsciously follow the little girl with her hair in topknots as she twirled around the pool, moving up, down, left, and right.
At one point, as if it had been dizzy from her spinning, the three-legged monster blinked rapidly, flapped its wings, and shook its head violently.
The tall Hu woman who was washing her sword inside the pavilion suddenly stood up, her snow-white sword still sheathed, and strode out of the pavilion.
Judging from her icy, pretty face, she had already reached the limit of her patience.
"Senior Sister."
A gentle lady in white suddenly arrived at the mountain peak, holding a scroll in her hand, and walked to the pavilion.
He silently positioned himself between the candle in the snow and the pond below, where people and fish were circling.
"Oh, Fifth Junior Sister sent a message? Insect Girl has arrived."
Yu Nianyuan chuckled softly and pointed to the pear tree branches not far from the pavilion.
The candle in the snow remains unattended.
"What is this girl doing?" Xue Zhongzhu suddenly asked, his tone impatient.
"Hmm, it seems to be guarding that front tooth."
"Guardian? Front...tooth?"
Xuezhongzhu spoke each word carefully, trying hard to suppress his anger.
They probably never imagined that she, the arrogant and domineering Queen of Yunmeng who intimidated all the men of the Tiannan Jianghu, would ever utter these few words strung together.
What a terrible thing to do.
Yu Nianyuan, dressed in flowing white robes, held a scroll to his lips, his tone helpless:
"Xiao Shu caused trouble yesterday afternoon and was thrown out the door by you, Senior Sister. She accidentally knocked out a lower front tooth. She held the tooth in her hand all night, and ran out the door early this morning without even eating breakfast, saying that she was going to... to throw the lower front tooth up high, the higher the better, so that it would grow faster later..."
When Yu Nianyuan was comforting her with the little girl hidden away, he didn't finish saying, "Don't worry, Master Axe's disciple doesn't blame Master Bo anymore, and doesn't hold grudges," and continued to sigh:
"The highest peak here is the one where Senior Sister washed her sword. Xiao Shu originally wanted to throw her front tooth here, but it seems she was afraid of disturbing you, Senior Sister, so she didn't dare to come and threw it in the pond halfway up the mountain where the white sturgeon is kept."
Xuezhongzhu took a deep breath, utterly at a loss for words, and asked through gritted teeth:
"Once you've thrown it all away, why don't you just get lost?"
Yu Nianyuan suppressed his lip, trying to remain serious, and explained softly:
"Xiao Shu regretted losing her tooth. She didn't know who she heard it from, maybe her dad, but someone said that fish have bad memories and forget things quickly... She was afraid that the white sturgeon named Da Bai would also forget their friendship and swallow her tooth that she had left at the bottom of the pond, which would ruin the magic... So she came up with this idea: she led the white sturgeon in circles, trying to stun the fish..."
Under Xue Zhongzhu's expressionless gaze, Yu Nianyuan's voice grew softer and softer as he spoke.
Having taken on such a naive and simple-minded female disciple, I can't help but feel a little guilty.
"Sigh, forget about it, let her be. She'll get dizzy and stop spinning around on her own."
Xuezhongzhu barely managed to turn around and returned to the pavilion with Yu Nianyuan.
Xuezhongzhu casually waved her hand, and a three-legged strange bird named "Chongniang" flew over and handed her a red rope and silk scroll.
Under Yu Nianyuan's watchful eye, Xue Zhongzhu glanced at the secret letter for a while, then calmly slipped it into his sleeve.
"Get to the point," she said coldly, without mentioning the letter.
Yu Nianyuan nodded, took out a sheet of Xuan paper from his bosom, and handed it over.
"This is?"
"Mr. Wei provided the original text of 'The Peach Blossom Spring' voluntarily."
A cold laugh echoed in the snow.
"Weren't you hiding it?"
"Perhaps they saw the sincerity of my distributing the Yunmeng Tokens this time, and they relented and tacitly allowed us to find this Peach Blossom Spring. However, they are still hesitant about showing us that painting."
Xuezhongzhu's lips curled into a smile as he took the Xuan paper. He lowered his eyes, seemingly intently browsing through "The Peach Blossom Spring," but quickly put it away. It was unclear whether he had understood the ancient text, but he responded with a muttered reply:
"Hmm, that's interesting. Send it back to Yunmeng for Xiao Wu." She handed it back to Yu Nianyuan with a calm expression.
“Alright.” Yu Nianyuan took out paper and brush, made a few elegant strokes on the Xuan paper, folded it again, and walked outside the pavilion, her white sleeves fluttering.
The insect girl landed on her arm, and the red rope was retied on her feet. It then soared into the sky.
"Let's look for it. We're more familiar with Yunmengze. Tao Yuanming's writings might point us in the right direction. Let Xiao Wu and the others give it a try."
"Um."
"Is there anything else?"
Yu Nianyuan said softly:
Regarding the matter of the Kuangfu Army, in the southwest, Lord Li recently sent a letter requesting a favor from the Great Lady.
"speak."
"Lord Li hopes that this court can help the Kuangfu Army. The Kuangfu Army will surely repay him handsomely. In his letter, he also promised Mr. Wei that he could show us the Peach Blossom Spring painting if necessary."
The candle in the snow said softly:
"By obstructing the Buddha statue, aren't we helping them? We're disrupting Jiangzhou's rear and diverting some of the court's attention from them. And they don't even know how to be grateful? How else can we help them?"
Yu Nianyuan sighed softly and said:
"That Lord Li said he hopes that Jianze can help even further, just like... just like when the Queen Mother Palace helped the royal families of the Southern Kingdom for several dynasties during the Northern and Southern Dynasties. He wants help of that level."
The atmosphere inside the pavilion suddenly became quiet, and the air slowly grew colder.
Yu Nianyuan saw a snow-white longsword floating in the pavilion.
Outside the pavilion, there was a large pear tree, its blossoms all fallen.
"Heh." The blonde oriental woman chuckled and walked away, sheathing her snow-white longsword. Her figure was tall and imposing.
"Li Zhengyan seems to know quite a lot, even about the old stories of the Southern Dynasty. Who told him that? His so-called Duke grandfather? Or the person who gave them the Peach Blossom Spring Map?"
"I don't know. I was also surprised when they suddenly brought this up this morning. First, how dare they bring it up? Second, how did they know about it? There probably aren't many people in this world who know about this. During the struggle between the Northern and Southern Dynasties, there were many things that couldn't be recorded in official history, especially after the Sui and Gan dynasties established their state. Even if there were unofficial historical records, they would mostly be destroyed by people with ulterior motives. The history of the Northern and Southern Dynasties compiled by the Zhou people now will certainly not mention it..."
A cold laugh echoed in the snow.
"How dare they bring up the old stories of the Southern Dynasty? Our Lady Queen Palace must have been deluded back then. Seeing those fleeing people from the south to the north as pitiful, they ended up supporting a bunch of hopeless wretches and wasting a lot of our sect's special Qi cultivation techniques. I don't know if the impact on the secular world down the mountain was good or bad."
"Looking at the entire Southern Dynasties, they were almost all useless. Apart from a commoner surnamed Huan, a scholar surnamed Xie, and a military man surnamed Liu who had some ability, the rest were all unreliable. Jiankang City, that place of elegance and romance of the Six Dynasties, was full of private schemes. First, it was demolished by the Sui Dynasty, then it was renamed by the Da Gan Dynasty. Now it's called Jinling. How laughable and lamentable... In the end, it even backfired on Yunmeng..."
"The reason why Jiangnan Road and Lingnan Road are so neglected now is because they are useless. Why should Yunmeng care about them? However, the Jianghu of Tiannan is not as cowardly as they are."
"That's true, but..."
Xuezhongzhu interrupted: "Second Junior Sister, go and reply. If you want the exceptional help from the Queen's Palace, ask them if they are worthy. Don't raise them. Just ask Li Zhengyan. Can he compare to those surnamed Huan, Xie, or Liu?"
"Also, tell them that I want to see the Peach Blossom Spring painting. This is a prerequisite for everything. Only after they agree can we begin to discuss other matters!"
She paused for a moment, then waved her sleeve and said, "It's only the beginning of the discussion."
“Alright.” Yu Nianyuan nodded, smiling and whispering, “Even if they agree to talk, they should understand that this is an immense honor.”
The candle in the snow stands silent, head held high and proud, lips tightly pressed together.
By the time Yunmeng Jianze reached their generation, their strength had actually been greatly diminished. There were almost no predecessors from the previous generation in the hall, which was also a karmic backlash left behind by the Southern Dynasty.
Therefore, their generation was very special. None of the female rulers, including Yue Chuzi, had come of age, and the position of the Yuanjun was vacant. Fortunately, Yue Chuzi returned to power early on. It was similar to a secular dynasty where the crown prince was the foundation of the country, which could stabilize people's hearts.
In the past, would the Great Zhou Dynasty have dared to build a giant Buddha in Jiangzhou? Ha, they probably didn't know how powerful the Celestial Beings of Shenzhou were.
Yu Nianyuan suddenly said, "Wei Shaoqi seems to be ill."
"Oh." Xue Zhongzhu's reaction was indifferent.
Yu Nianyuan asked softly, "Should we bring that guy surnamed Sun from the prison and give him a medical checkup?"
"You still bring up that old bastard surnamed Sun? I've already shown him the utmost tolerance by not killing him. He caused blindness by 'eye removal' and encouraged Yue, a virgin, to break the vows... and you still let him roam around? Is he on a regular trip?"
"Furthermore, this Wei Shaoqi is not worthy. Without handing over that map, they can forget about getting anything from Yunmeng."
“That works too.” Yu Nianyuan said calmly, “I just happen to admire this person a little.”
Suddenly, the candle in the snow asked:
"Why don't you let me just send a letter to Xiao Qi and ask her to come back? Does she think she won't listen to me? Why is Second Junior Sister beating around the bush so much after receiving that bald monk from Xunyang's letter?"
"Senior Sister, this time we made an exception and opened Dream Abyss, issuing so many Cloud Dream Tokens. Once Seventh Sister sees the Cloud Dream Tokens, she'll know our current situation and what she should do once she knows Dream Abyss is open... For so many years, you've stood in front for her, going to Dream Abyss and asking questions in Peach Valley... Seventh Sister knows best how hard you've worked, so don't rush her. Senior Sister is just too impatient, just like last time in Dragon City."
Yu Nianyuan said softly:
"Among all these junior sisters, the seventh junior sister is actually the most sensible one. It's just that because she's always been so sensible, her occasional lapses in judgment are so noticeable. The letter that the master sent through the Fang sisters conveyed roughly the same idea. She said that matters of the mortal world need to be understood by Your Excellency Yue yourself; it cannot be forced..."
Xuezhongzhu, his face cold, remained silent for a moment before asking, "Are you sure she's been safe and sound in the city?"
“Well, the letter said that after the Buddha statue collapsed, Seventh Junior Sister initially hid in the Beitian Relief Home of Chengtian Temple, and only moved out later…” Yu Nianyuan hesitated.
Xuezhongzhu took a deep breath:
"You know about Junior Sister's eyes. Although... there's no need to worry for now, her cultivation has already been damaged by the consequences of losing her virginity... It was only with great difficulty that she consumed half a tortoise shell longhorn beetle to offset some of the damage. If she suffers further injuries in Xunyang City this time... Second Junior Sister, you should decide for yourself how to explain this to Master and the Yunmeng ancestors when we go down."
"I understand." Yu Nianyuan's eyes dimmed slightly, then after a moment, she smiled gently.
"However, I have experienced it firsthand. That master's Zen teachings are quite powerful. If even the most persuasive Buddhist Zen practitioners couldn't enlighten you, let alone the nagging of us senior sisters."
The candle in the snow remained noncommittal.
The mention of the junior sister caused a temporary silence in the pavilion, broken only by the distant sound of a little girl diligently twirling a branch in the water...
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(PS: I still owe 14 chapters, I haven't forgotten! The last few chapters have been setting up a plot twist, as you can see. I'm a little hesitant to write too much or too fast, so I'm prioritizing stability.)
It's almost the end of the month, I'm begging for some monthly votes, or 2)
(End of this chapter)
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