Chapter 080: Blue Moonlight (Part 9)
After much persuasion, Chen Wenjian finally managed to force the medicine into Su Lanshan's throat... Oh no, he fed her the medicine.
After this fierce battle between the master and the disciple, the victorious party was exhausted both physically and mentally, and the defeated party had no desire to live. Only the onlooker Chen Yunli gained the greatest happiness of the day and won the game.
The medicine prescribed by Qing Ke had analgesic effect. Although it was extremely bitter, after taking it, Su Lanshan suddenly felt a warm current flowing through the wound on the back of his head, covering up the original slow and dull pain, making him feel much more comfortable.
He was drowsy lying on the pillow, and accidentally met Chen Wenjian's hesitant gaze, and slowly raised his eyebrows.
At that time, Chen Wenjian was listening to Chen Yunli talking while pouring him honey water.
"That jade knife belongs to him, and he's the only one who knows the origins of the statue in the hilt. He might even know something else about your White Moonlight. Wait until his injuries heal before asking him."
As Chen Yunli spoke, he squatted down to the edge of the bowl and sipped the water.
Chen Wenjian put down the kettle and subconsciously looked at Su Lanshan. Suddenly their eyes met, and he was slightly stunned.
"You have something to ask me?" he said calmly. "Go ahead. I don't want to sleep yet."
Chen Wenjian and Chen Yunli looked at each other, then walked over holding the bowl and the butterfly on it.
"I do have something I'd like to ask you, sir. It's about the jade knife you're wearing." He took it from the bedside table and handed it to Su Lanshan. "When I was changing your wet clothes earlier, I accidentally dropped the handle, and a small portrait fell out. It seems to be of an ancient figure I've been studying."
Hearing this, Su Lanshan's eyes became subtle: "Take off the handle again."
Chen Wenjian remained calm and said, "There is a mechanism on the jade knife. I tried to open it later, but it was unworkable."
Su Lanshan glanced at him meaningfully, and without asking any more questions, she took the jade knife and twisted it roughly. The handle then broke off from the blade again, and the statue fell to the edge of the bed.
He pushed it away with his fingers, and Chen Yunli opened his eyes, embarrassed to look at the familiar face.
"Do you know who he is?" Su Lanshan asked.
"He lived in a certain year during the ancient era. Much of that history has been lost, and most of the stories that have been passed down have been distorted into strange anecdotes. There are very few stories related to him, and I haven't been able to find much. The one thing I'm relatively certain of is his name—Yun Li."
Su Lanshan's lips curved slightly. "Where the clouds stop, the sorrow of separation is short, and there are few sorrows or joys. This comes from the daily records of the king of Qi during the late ancient times. It seems you are quite obsessed with him, even digging up this almost unrecorded and unstudied historical material."
"Sir, you are very knowledgeable." Chen Wenjian lowered his head. "So, this small portrait is really..."
"It's him." Su Lanshan answered decisively, leaving no room for error.
Chen Wenjian clenched his hand holding the bowl tightly. "How can you be sure, sir?"
Su Lanshan thought about it and did not answer the question directly. Instead, she changed the subject: "Have you learned about the history of Songfeng Academy?"
Chen Wenjian frowned. "It's said that the academy has a history of over 1,800 years and is the only organization that has survived from the ancient times to this day. However, most people don't believe this and say..."
"Everyone says this is an exaggeration by the academy to consolidate its position in the academic world," Su Lanshan continued calmly. "I can tell you that this seemingly untrue statement is actually true, because the twelfth floor of the library houses many books from ancient times, including... methods of cultivation."
Chen Wenjian's pupils trembled.
"Originally, I shouldn't have told you this so early. As a student, this kind of thing is not something you should know. But who asked you to save me and 'accidentally' discover this small portrait? Anyway, with your qualifications, as long as you are willing to stay in the academy, you will be able to reach the twelfth floor of the library sooner or later. It is not against the rules for me to tell you now." Su Lanshan said seriously.
"The legendary cultivation method that can enable humans to ascend to immortality... does it really exist?"
"They exist, but they're no different from waste paper." Su Lanshan shook her head gently. "The world today is no longer what it was in ancient times. Humanity lacks an environment suitable for cultivation, so any efforts in this area are a waste of effort. That's why the academy has shelved them and issued a gag order to anyone who knows about them, lest anyone with ill intentions use them for evil."
Chen Wenjian was momentarily lost in thought. Although he felt it was a pity, he didn't dwell on it. He immediately returned to the point: "Then is the small statue in your hand also a collection on the twelfth floor of the library?"
"No." Su Lanshan looked at him helplessly, "Why would I take out such an important collection casually?"
"Then it is..."
Su Lanshan shook the jade knife and said, "This knife is an old item handed down from my ancestors. My Su family tree can be traced back to 1,200 years ago. This jade knife also has a history of over a thousand years - the same goes for the small statue."
Chen Yunli's breath was caught and his wings trembled reflexively.
"One thousand two hundred years?" Chen Wenjian pursed his lips. "What is the relationship between your ancestors and... Yun Li?"
Chen Yunli shuddered again when he heard this.
Don't give him any ridiculous past! Otherwise, after completing the first phase of the mission and returning to reality, he will definitely curse the system to death!
Facing two equally nervous gazes, Su Lanshan said leisurely, "Mr. Yunli has nothing to do with my ancestor, but..."
Before Chen Yunli could breathe a sigh of relief, he raised the word "but" again because of the last word he said.
Chen Wenjian: "But?"
"But he has a close relationship with the person who gave him the jade knife."
Su Lanshan curled her eyes, and it was obvious that she did it on purpose.
Without waiting for Chen Wenjian to ask again, he continued naturally, "There's a storybook in the library called 'On the Jade Man River, the Legend of the Exiled Immortal'... Have you read it? That's perfect, I don't need to repeat the contents to you. The author of this storybook was a disciple of the academy a hundred years ago, my uncle."
“…What a coincidence.” Chen Yunli squeezed out two words.
Chen Wenjian pressed the issue, "Is this storybook truly unfinished, or was it edited and revised after it was completed?"
"You're very clever. It's the latter," Su Lanshan said. "My great-uncle, like you, was quite interested in Mr. Yun Li's life. Since our ancestors had many interactions with Mr. Yun Li, and there are numerous records in our family history, he researched them very smoothly. A few years later, he compiled his knowledge into a biography, which is the storybook you saw."
"Later, after reading it, my maternal grandfather ordered him to delete some content because it involved the ancestors of the Su family and seemed disrespectful to them. The book was never published. The revised version was placed in the library by my maternal grandmother as a memorial to my great-uncle."
He summarized the tortuous origin of the story in just a few words, which left Chen Yunli stunned and a little uneasy.
His intuition told him that the omissions from the book would be embarrassing for him.
"Well, how about..."
Chen Yunli tried to dispel Chen Wenjian's enthusiasm for exploration, but he was grabbed and the microphone was manually muted.
Chen Wenjian asked, "Sir, what exactly did your uncle delete?"
Su Lanshan rubbed his forehead. "Let me think... Oh, he deleted all of Mr. Yunli's past, which mainly involved two people. One was the ancestor of the Su family, and the other was the person who gave this jade knife to my ancestor, and also Mr. Yunli's ex-lover, Luo Qifang."
Chen Yunli: “???”
Chen Wenjian: “…”
…
"The Legend of the Exiled Immortal on the Yuman River", originally named "Snow on the Yuman River", was a biography written by Su Lanshan's great-uncle for Yun Li. After deleting the part about past experiences, it became a storybook. There is only one handwritten copy collected in the library of Songfeng Academy.
However, the Su family had a complete biography. Su Lanshan had read it when she was young and remembered most of the plot. After explaining it to Chen Wenjian in a concise manner...
He has been sitting under the eaves and isolating himself until now.
Chen Yunli squatted beside him, glancing at him from time to time, tucked in his wings and said nothing - mainly because he didn't know what to say, after all, the embarrassment in his heart had not yet dissipated.
Luo Qifang, this name is very unfamiliar to Chen Yunli, but it is well-known to disciples of a decent academy like Chen Wenjian. Even in the entire historical community, she is a well-known figure.
Luo Qifang, who was born 1,212 years ago, was the twelfth president of Songfeng Academy and the designer and builder of the library. Almost all of the precious books above the tenth floor were searched and copied by him personally.
Apart from his contributions to the academy, he himself was also an outstanding talent.
The disciples of the academy emphasize the cultivation of both civil and martial arts. If the theory of cultivation in the ancient times is not a fantasy, then Luo Qifang's cultivation must be one of the best in the world, because all the fragments related to him in the history books will mention who he defeated and what kind of master or martial arts genius that person was.
Remember, this is all, there is no exception in the historical records.
In contrast to his formidable military prowess, Luo Qifang possessed an equally formidable literary talent. He wrote poetry, essays, lyrics, and music, mastered twelve musical instruments, and possessed unparalleled chess skills, calligraphy, and painting.
Most remarkable of all was his gentle, tolerant personality and broad-mindedness, which captivated countless people. He seemed like a perfect model created by Heaven for humanity; even his enemies could find no flaws in him.
If we set aside these inner qualities and focus solely on appearance, Luo Qifang is unparalleled in his beauty. This isn't just a written record; there's a portrait supporting it, hanging on a shelf against the wall directly opposite the main entrance of the Songfeng Academy's library on the first floor.
Chen Yunli actually hadn't read it carefully, but Chen Wenjian spent every day in the library, so he must have remembered that face deeply.
The current situation is that a toxic fan learned from his master that his idol had a failed relationship with his respected master, and his idol was the one who was let down.
This matter was so outrageous that it was absurd, weird and insane. Not only did Chen Wenjian not know how to react, even Chen Yunli felt as if he was being chased and struck by lightning while walking on the road.
"Uh…are you okay?"
After a long time, Chen Yunli finally couldn't help but asked cautiously.
"Not very good." Chen Wenjian said, "I feel like I swallowed a weight alive, and now it's stuck in my chest. It's so blocked that I don't know how my heart should beat or how I should breathe. It's very uncomfortable."
Chen Yunli couldn't quite understand his feelings at first, but after recalling the "love story from the ancient times" that Su Lanshan had told him, he could empathize with him.
Simply put, more than a thousand years ago, Yun Li and Luo Qifang knew each other as teenagers, fell in love with each other, and traveled around the world hand in hand. They should have been a pair of fairy lovers that everyone envied, but because of a hexagram, they ended up separating.
The hexagram indicates that Luo Qifang has a predestined marriage, but the person on the other end of the marriage line is not Yun Li.
The two of them didn't take it seriously at first. They were both practitioners of Taoism, and they believed in their own experiences and feelings more than the illusory destiny.
However, after Luo Qifang's matchmaking partner appeared, the situation suddenly changed dramatically. He was like a bewitched person, unable to help but follow that person's footsteps, becoming uncontrollably interested in him, and becoming obsessed with his moods.
For half a year, Luo Qifang chased after his marriage partner, and Yun Li chased after him. The emotional entanglement between the three of them once shocked the world, until Yun Li gave up. Luo Qifang and that man finally got married. A hundred years later, people still talk about it.
The ancestor of the Su family was a good friend of Luo Qifang, but he always stood on Yun Li's side.
However, outsiders are not allowed to interfere in matters of the heart, and in the end he could only watch the former lovers go their separate ways and never see each other again.
The original ending of "Snow on the Jade River" is different from the vernacular version, and it takes place many years later.
Yun Li had been dead for many years. One snowy night, Luo Qifang visited the Su family's ancestor and gave him the jade knife, saying that if she was still alive after three days, she would return to retrieve the jade knife. If he died, the jade knife would be considered a gift to him, and he was asked to take good care of it.
Although the ancestor of the Su family did not understand why, he still agreed to his request because of their long-time friendship.
Three days later, Luo Qifang did not return. It was rumored that his lover was about to die, so he used the method of exchanging his own life to save his lover. However, he did not want his lover to be sad about his death, so he found a secluded place and passed away peacefully.
The Su family's ancestors were unable to verify the authenticity of the rumor, but Luo Qifang had indeed never appeared in front of the world again, and his marriage partner did seem to have regained his youth. The Su family's ancestors could only assume that this was true, record it in the family history, and leave a sigh.
"You said that the love you choose is really not as good as the marriage destined by heaven?" Chen Wenjian spoke suddenly, but he didn't know who he was asking.
"Love is destiny. Their separation may simply be due to a lack of love, or a shift in feelings."
Chen Yunli flew up and landed on Chen Wenjian's instinctively open palm.
"Why are you upset? Didn't Yun Li separate from your master in the end?"
Chen Wenjian looked at him and suddenly snorted.
"Predestined marriage... huh, such a tasteless thing."
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