Chapter 53 Chaoyun Kingdom - Chaos Pearl (Seventeen) I'll go kill it for you...
Grand Master Chaoyun died in the turmoil caused by the merfolk, and the once glorious Zhaixing Pavilion was reduced to ruins.
At the same time, the evidence of the Grand Preceptor Zhang Qing's corruption, abuse of power for personal gain, and attempt to use the Mermaid Pearl Array to absorb the national fortune of Chaoyun and cultivate the art of immortality was exposed. The people who were implicated wished they could devour his flesh and drink his blood.
The people were full of complaints and began to question the authority of the imperial family.
Emperor Chaoyun fell ill, causing unrest among the people, and Li Fuchao was extremely busy and overwhelmed.
The Mermaid Pearl Array has been destroyed, and the enmity between Chaoyun and the Mermaid Clan has been established. Although the Mermaids cannot live on land far from the sea for too long, Chaoyun's capital is located by the sea, and the Mermaids are extremely vengeful, so it is inevitable that they will make a comeback.
Although it was all Zhang Qing's fault, Shi Xianxue felt that they probably hated the entire human race.
Therefore, Li Fuchao not only had to appease the people, but also had to find a way to set up another protective formation of equal power. After the trial tournament ended, he would ask his master to reinforce and improve it. Therefore, the matter of the Demon-Subduing Sword could only be handled by the three of them first.
Shi Xianxue still felt a chill run down her spine when she thought about what happened that day. Fortunately, Li Fuchao fainted after being rescued by the crane clone and did not see the demonic bone rising behind Sister Qing Shu.
Otherwise, she really wouldn't know how to explain it.
Just as she was excitedly preparing to set off for Beiyong, she suddenly discovered a problem that she had been ignoring all along.
Cherry knelt down, hugged her legs, and wailed, "Princess, where are you going again? We finally made it to Chaoyun. The most important thing right now is for you to marry the Crown Prince and give birth to a little prince as soon as possible!"
Shi Xianxue: "...I..."
The envoy grabbed her other leg and cried out, "Princess, don't disappoint the king's expectations of you!"
After being reminded by the two, Shi Xianxue suddenly realized that she hadn't had a proper conversation with the male and female protagonists for several days.
She had to lie to conceal her identity and that she didn't like Li Fuchao. She had to choose her words carefully so that Sister Qing Shu wouldn't hold a grudge against her.
When Shi Xianxue laid out her grievances and offered her sincere apology, Song Qingshu remained calm, as if she didn't take the matter to heart, and said unhurriedly, "Okay, I understand. How could I possibly blame you?"
She sighed softly, her eyes and brows bathed in the gentle sunlight: "In this life, one cannot always do as one pleases and indulge in pleasure. One must always shoulder responsibilities and missions. Xiaoxue, just do what you think is right."
The system exclaimed, "As expected of the original female lead, she is indeed understanding and magnanimous."
Shi Xianxue's prepared explanation was completely useless. She opened her mouth, then pursed it again, and after a moment said, "After that day, did you feel unwell, sister?"
"Thank you for your concern, I'm fine. By the way," Song Qingshu's brow twitched, a probing emotion hidden deep in her eyes, "that day, did you see…"
"No, no, I was taken away by the crane after I came out of the barrier. I didn't see anything."
Song Qingshu slowly lowered her eyelashes, effectively concealing the dark red demonic energy. The muscles at the corners of her mouth twitched, as if she was desperately trying to control something. After a long while, she whispered, "Okay."
After leaving Song Qingshu's room, Shi Xianxue bumped into Li Fuchao, who looked travel-worn.
He looked as if he had just returned from outside the palace, his clothes still damp with frost.
Their eyes met in mid-air, and Li Fuchao called out to her.
The bright moon hung in the sky, and the lake was shrouded in mist. The two stood one in front of the other, speechless for a moment, and the atmosphere was somewhat awkward.
A startled lone bird streaked across the sky behind me, leaving a straight line on the lake's surface, while silvery-white butterflies fluttered and landed on the lush green leaves.
After a long while, Shi Xianxue's nose turned red from the cold wind before Li Fuchao turned around. He looked exhausted, but when he met her gaze, he was unusually serious: "Shishi, I only have one question for you: do you want to be Shi Huaiyu or Shi Xianxue?"
"Huh?" Shi Xianxue was about to answer when she looked up and saw a butterfly fluttering its wings on a green leaf. She immediately pretended not to see it and deliberately said, "If I were to choose Shi Huaiyu..."
"If you want to be Shi Huaiyu, then I swear in the name of the Crown Prince of Chaoyun that you will live a life of luxury and comfort in Chaoyun..."
Before he could finish speaking, a gust of wind suddenly blew in from nowhere. Shi Xianxue almost thought it was a small storm that was about to throw her into the lake. Knowing that things were going well, she shouted at the top of her lungs, "I choose Shi Xianxue, Shi Xianxue, is that it?"
Strangely, after she finished speaking, the gust of wind actually stopped.
The two women, their hair disheveled and looking quite disheveled, tidied their clothes.
The two were fully aware of this, but tacitly kept quiet about it.
Shi Xianxue straightened her hair and said, "Brother Li, I was young and ignorant before, and I said many reckless and arrogant things without considering the consequences. I apologize for those unavoidable lies, but what I am about to say is absolutely true."
She deliberately raised her voice: "I don't want to be the Crown Princess of Chaoyun because I am Shi Xianxue. But I will always have the blood of Xiliang flowing in my veins, so I have to work for the well-being of the people of Xiliang. I also believe that the friendship between the two countries is not based on marriage, but on common interests. Whether it is Brother Li who succeeds to the throne or any of the other princes, they will not refuse to befriend Xiliang and trade with them. And we in Xiliang will always follow Chaoyun's lead."
Li Fuchao seemed quite surprised that Shi Xianxue could say such a thing.
After a moment, he looked at her with a fatherly gaze and said, "Okay."
He flipped his palm over, and Shi Huaiyu's portrait and the case files of the marriage alliance were mixed together in a small space. The lake water receded to both sides, revealing the lake bottom full of silt. All the information about Shi Huaiyu's identity was buried under the cold lake water.
"Then Xiaoxue, I will also regard you as my own sister, and that will never change."
Silver Butterfly had disappeared without a trace. Shi Xianxue sincerely clasped his hands in a fist and said, "Brother, please take care of me in the future."
The word "elder brother" touched Li Fuchao's heart. The troubles of the past few days were like the clouds parting to reveal the moon. He finally breathed a sigh of relief. After thinking it over, he sincerely advised, "Shishi, Young Master Wu really likes you, but he can be a bit extreme in his actions sometimes. If you choose him, you must not let him down."
He still felt a chill run down his spine when he thought about what happened that day. Although it was Young Master Wu who destroyed the Pearl Array of the Star-Picking Pavilion, which accelerated the development of the whole event, he always felt that Young Master Wu wanted to destroy him, not the Pearl Array.
What does this have to do with Wu Xiutang?
Oh, right, she did make some outrageous statements back then in order to stay by the male and female leads' side.
To reassure the male lead, Shi Xianxue immediately raised her hand to the sky: "Don't worry, Brother Li, you can entrust Xiao Wu to me with peace of mind. I will treat him well."
Li Fuchao: "..."
The problem was resolved satisfactorily. Shi Xianxue, feeling a chill in the wind, returned to the Lotus Palace in a daze.
The palace was not as brightly lit and filled with laughter as usual; instead, it was somewhat dim. However, Shi Xianxue still spotted Cui Cui and Ying Tao, who were tied up like rice dumplings, at a glance.
The two men, their hands and feet bound and mouths gagged, huddled in a corner, trembling as they watched the boy drinking tea alone. When they saw Shi Xianxue return, they were so excited, as if they had seen a savior, and began to whimper for help.
"Wu Xiutang!" Shi Xianxue rushed over to untie them, then turned around and asked in confusion, "Why are you bullying them? What did Yingtao and Cuicui do to you?"
With someone backing them up, the two maids whined even louder.
Wu Xiutang sipped his tea, glancing at the two of them with a nonchalant air, and the bedchamber immediately fell silent.
Once the knot was in place, the two of them didn't even bother to bow and ran off in a flash, quickly disappearing from sight, afraid that if they were a step too slow, the handsome young man would pluck their heads off and use them as a football.
Shi Xianxue withdrew her gaze, then feigned surprise and asked, "In the dead of night, instead of going back to your own room to sleep, you came here just to torment my maid? You're so boring, Wu Xiutang."
Wu Xiutang glared at her: "What are you pretending for?"
Compared to his hysteria that day, he was much calmer now, at least he only threw a silver butterfly over and didn't tear down the house at the drop of a hat anymore.
His body had not yet recovered, and new injuries aggravated old ones. Originally, he wanted the crane to take her directly to Beiyong City, leaving this huge mess for the male and female protagonists. However, the seasons in Beiyong City are different from those in other countries. It is currently the dead of winter, which is not advantageous for his recovery.
The crane inherited his abilities, and the journey from Chaoyun to Beiyong was long. Shi Xianxue was afraid that he would lose his magic halfway through the flight and fall to his death. The crane had also recognized its master, so he had no way to control it.
So, she took both the person and the crane into Chaoyun.
A wisp of hair brushed against the tip of her fair nose. Shi Xianxue scratched her itch and gave an awkward laugh: "Hehe, but speaking of which, why are you secretly spying on me? Are you afraid I'll talk bad about you to Brother Li?"
Wu Xiutang didn't want to pay attention to her, but her words tonight clearly pleased him, so he said, "Do you think you would have a chance to discover me if I wanted to spy on you?"
"Shi Xianxue, I'm warning you."
If she hadn't saved him with her healing power that day, he would have risked his life to take her away and would never have agreed to let her return to Chaoyun and contact Li Fuchao again.
Shi Xianxue ignored her and waved her hand, saying, "Anyway, don't worry. I've explained everything to them and I haven't said a single bad word about you."
She sat down opposite him, rested her chin on her hand, yawned, and looked tired. The conversation started to veer off course: "Wu Xiutang, let me tell you, a lot of people say I'm a goddess. Zhang Qing, Little Fairy Boy, and Cloud Grass Immortal, they all say so."
She looked puzzled: "Tell me, how could I be a goddess? If all goddesses were like me, wouldn't the world be doomed?"
She is selfish, cowardly, and greedy. When faced with danger, she always tries to hide behind others. She lacks a sense of responsibility and is lazy. Her shortcomings are countless. If it is because of the original owner, the book never mentions her goddess identity until the end. It only says that she is strong because she is from a royal family with pure bloodline for repairing power.
"Shi Xianxue." The boy's voice was cold and deep, with a hint of displeasure. Shi Xianxue thought he was going to complain about her being noisy again, so she quickly covered her mouth, leaving only her bright and clear eyes visible.
Why can't you be?
Shi Xianxue was taken aback.
"And what kind of person do you think you are?" He asked coldly, his expression belying his words. "Shi Xianxue, you are more beautiful than a flower, your heart as bright as the moon. Whether you want to be a goddess, a princess..."
He paused, a hint of reluctance flashing in his eyes, but he still gritted his teeth and said, "Whether it's the Crown Princess or any other status, it's a perfect match for you."
Shi Xianxue slowly lowered her hand from her mouth, and surprise spread across her face.
"Or did someone say something?" Wu Xiutang immediately drew his knife, his expression turning sinister in an instant. "I'll go and kill him for you."
"No, no." Shi Xianxue pressed his arm, feeling great after being praised, and shook her head, saying, "You're more beautiful than a flower. So you still think I'm pretty."
Wu Xiutang's sinister expression froze for a moment, and the back of his ears slowly turned red.
"Isn't that right, Wu Xiutang?" Shi Xianxue gently shook his arm. "Say something, isn't that right?"
Wu Xiutang avoided eye contact, looking away, but made a muffled sound in his throat.
Shi Xianxue heard it clearly, and she wanted to laugh out loud: "Haha, I knew it, the love potion is really useful, hahaha."
To hear the villain admit he's beautiful in my lifetime, hahaha, thank you, Immortal Elder, and thank you, Love Potion.
Amid her arrogant laughter, Wu Xiutang frowned deeply. He glanced at her with a complicated expression, thinking she was an idiot.
"Shut up."
Shi Xianxue started laughing again, then changed her tone to "hehehe".
Unable to bear the disturbance any longer, Wu Xiutang got up and started to leave, but stopped and turned around when he reached the palace gate.
Shi Xianxue was resting her chin on her hand, preparing to watch him leave. When she saw him looking over, sweet dimples appeared on her soft, white cheeks.
Her fingers were slender, white, and beautiful; her shimmering eyes, when narrowed, resembled those of some kind of fluffy little animal.
Wu Xiutang's breath hitched as he watched that gentle, healing power slowly flow through his flesh and blood.
She always makes people feel soft-hearted.
"What's wrong, Wu Xiutang?"
His Adam's apple bobbed twice as he tried his best to suppress the strange emotions in his heart, and he said in a low voice, "Shi Xianxue, there is something I need to remind you. No matter whether you are a goddess or not, do not use your abilities casually again."
Of course she wouldn't.
After each use, my body feels completely drained. I feel dizzy, lightheaded, and unable to eat. I also sleep more and sleep very soundly at night. During the day, I feel weak and listless, and I can't muster the energy to do anything.
The scariest thing is that it can even cause hair loss!
She absolutely could not tolerate this.
Shi Xianxue suppressed a yawn and said, "I know, I'm not stupid. If someone asked me to use it, I would definitely run faster than a rabbit. But what if you are in danger, or what if you are in danger?"
Of course she wants to...
"unnecessary."
Shi Xianxue looked at him.
Even from a distance of a few meters, that deep, burning gaze was impossible to ignore.
He wouldn't die; he would just be injured and in pain. But more than the pain, he didn't want to see her sickly and listless.
The window was half-open, and a breeze carrying the scent of chinaberry blossoms blew in, causing two colored ribbons to intertwine in the air.
The boy, as upright as a pine tree, obscured the moonlight. His half-closed peach blossom eyes were veiled with a clear mist, making it impossible to see his true thoughts.
Shi Xianxue's heart inexplicably quickened a little.
Because she heard the boy speak, word by word.
"It can be used by no one but for self-defense."
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Author's Note: Thank you for your silent love~ (heart emoji)
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