The empty city was destroyed (14)
Ye Yingying could already imagine the forlorn look on Yun Yanqiu's face when he heard these words.
“I can’t even remember what he looked like…” the shopkeeper continued, “but I haven’t forgotten one thing: that guy was quite handsome.”
"..." Yun Yanqiu didn't reply, but looked at the shopkeeper with a rather complicated expression.
The shopkeeper, oblivious, continued, "Back then, when I went out with him, the girls loved to stare at him. Some even asked me to deliver embroidery to him. You know what? For a while, I was really puzzled as to why no one ever gave me any."
Ye Yingying was hearing about this for the first time. She wasn't surprised that Yun Yanqiu was handsome, but she never thought that he would be so popular.
With his aura that keeps strangers at bay, wouldn't all the girls stay far away from him? At least she had never seen any girl flirt with him; only she would shamelessly stick to him.
"But that guy is very dull, single-mindedly pursuing the Dao, and he is unmoved no matter how others express their feelings."
Yes, that's right... Ye Yingying nodded in satisfaction.
"I wonder what happened to him afterward, whether he attained immortality or ascended to heaven." As the shopkeeper spoke, his gaze became somewhat nostalgic. He turned his head and examined Yun Yanqiu's face, then suddenly exclaimed with delight, "Hey, you know what, if that guy were still alive, he might feel the same way you do."
"Oh my, no wonder I felt a sense of familiarity when you came in yesterday, it's fate!" The shopkeeper smiled broadly, as if greeting a long-lost friend. "By the way, I still don't know your name."
"Yunyan Hill".
"Yunyanqiu?" The shopkeeper was stunned, repeatedly chewing on the name as if he were recalling something.
But no matter how hard I tried, I couldn't figure out why the name sounded familiar.
"It's getting late," Yun Yanqiu suddenly said. He stood up and moved his chair away. "You should get some rest too."
Then, footsteps came from upstairs, and Ye Yingying quickly hunched over and crawled back into the room to lie down.
A short while later, someone opened the door and entered the room. As they approached the bed, a cool fragrance wafted into Ye Yingying's nose.
Ye Yingying pretended to close her eyes, her heart pounding with nervousness at the thought of being caught eavesdropping.
But Yun Yanqiu didn't say anything. He simply brushed the stray hairs off her face with his hand and then quietly watched her, lost in thought.
Ye Yingying felt a little uncomfortable under his gaze, so she pretended to be restless and turned over in bed to hide her impending loss of control.
Whether Yun Yanqiu could tell she was pretending to be asleep or not, he stood there silently for a long time before sighing and turning to leave the room.
The fog dissipated faster than yesterday, and Ye Yingying felt the sky brighten again before she even fell asleep.
Thinking of the uncertain fate of Wu Yue and Zhao Yuxiao, Ye Yingying was wide awake and hurriedly left the room. She knocked on Yun Yanqiu's door, but found no one inside. She went downstairs and happened to see him standing in front of the door chatting with the innkeeper.
Ye Yingying paused, unsure whether she should step forward and interrupt their conversation.
Just as she was hesitating, Yun suddenly popped out and asked her, "Aren't you going to talk to them?"
"Hmm?" Ye Yingying was slightly taken aback. "What are you talking about?"
"Don't you have anything to say to the shopkeeper?"
"I'm not familiar with him."
Ye Yingying looked completely bewildered, but then noticed Yun Yatou staring at her thoughtfully, and couldn't help but wonder, "Why are you suddenly asking me this?"
"It's nothing." Yun shook her head. "I was just curious because it was the first time I'd seen him chat with a guest for so long."
As she spoke, she looked toward Yun Yanqiu and the shopkeeper, her gaze serious.
Are you and the shopkeeper father and daughter?
"No," Yun Yatou answered decisively.
"Then why are you two running a shop together?" Ye Yingying asked, puzzled. "I remember you said before that this was your family's inn."
“He is the helper I found. As you can see, it’s not easy for a young girl like me to manage such a big inn.”
"So how did you find him?"
"He lost the bet, so naturally he has to stay and pay off his debt," Yun Yatou shrugged, speaking matter-of-factly.
"A bet? What did you bet on?"
Yun didn't answer, but instead tilted her head and asked, "Do you want to see the Imperial Advisor?"
"Hmm? Yes, what's wrong?"
"This morning the palace gates were wide open, and everyone was allowed to go to the square in front of the gate to watch the Imperial Preceptor's sacrificial ceremony."
Ye Yingying blinked. The time sequence in the illusion array was chaotic, and she had almost forgotten that such a thing had happened.
"The time is almost up, or we'll miss it," Yun reminded her. "The Imperial Preceptor will ascend to immortality soon; this is probably our last chance..."
Ye Yingying realized what was happening, quickly thanked Yun Yatou, and hurriedly ran to find Yun Yanqiu.
When Yun Yanqiu saw her rushing towards him, he stopped talking to the shopkeeper and looked at her with a questioning gaze.
"We have to go find someone right away!" Ye Yingying grabbed Yun Yanqiu's hand and started to walk out.
Yun Yanqiu stared blankly at the shopkeeper, who didn't speak, but just smiled and waved goodbye to them: "Don't forget the curfew again."
The streets were teeming with people, and the two soon disappeared into the crowd. Eager to catch a glimpse of the Imperial Preceptor, people flocked towards the palace gates. Ye Yingying and Yun Yanqiu held each other's hands tightly, afraid of being separated by the surging tide of people.
The closer they got to the palace, the more crowded it became. Ye Yingying initially walked in front, but eventually, her size was no match for the wall of people around her, so she had to let Yun Yanqiu stand in front to clear the way. It took the two of them quite a bit of effort to squeeze through the bustling crowd into the front gate, only to find that the square was even more packed with people.
This is a bit troublesome, Ye Yingying is somewhat at a loss. She had thought that if Wu Yue and Zhao Yuxiao were safe, they would definitely come looking for Zhan Yan, and she could find them by going to the places where Zhan Yan would usually be.
But the crowds in front of her far exceeded her expectations, and finding them in this place was like looking for a needle in a haystack.
They could only take it one step at a time. The two of them struggled to find a spot to stand, and once they were settled, they heard people around them talking amongst themselves.
"I heard that this is the last time the Imperial Advisor will divine the fate of our Yue Li nation."
"Really?"
"Look for yourself, don't you notice there are significantly more guards today than in previous years? Something big must have happened."
"Is the news of the Imperial Preceptor's ascension true?"
"I don't think it's fake."
"Sigh, what do you think Yue Li will do without the Imperial Advisor?"
"I heard that the barbarians in the south have been invading us many times recently. I have a relative from that area who came to seek refuge with us a while ago."
"What's there to be afraid of? After the Imperial Preceptor ascends to heaven, we'll have people from the upper realm protecting us. Where will they dare to be so arrogant then?"
"That's true. After the Imperial Preceptor ascends to godhood, won't he be able to annihilate them with a mere flick of his finger?"
"That's right!"
Everyone imagined the scene and couldn't help but burst into laughter.
The more Ye Yingying listened, the more absurd it seemed. The people here seemed to place all their hopes on Zhan Yan, whose prestige seemed to be much higher than that of the King of Yue Li.
Or is it because he set up the formation himself, and thus erased the king's prestige within it?
Just as Ye Yingying was pondering, a man in a black robe walked out of the gate leading to the depths of the palace. As soon as he appeared, the square erupted in cheers. The crowd first cheered and then bowed and knelt before him.
"It's the Imperial Advisor! The Imperial Advisor has arrived!"
Ye Yingying looked in the direction of the man and saw him stride confidently up to the altar in the center of the square.
On the altar was a stove. The man picked up a tortoise shell from the table next to him, put two fingers together, and gestured on the shell before placing it on the stove to roast.
The flickering flames licked at the tortoise shell, crackling and popping as they burned. After a while, the imperial advisor removed the shell from the flames, looking down at the cracks created by the burning, as if trying to decipher their meaning. At that moment, the once bustling square fell silent; everyone held their breath, silently awaiting the imperial advisor's divination results.
Ye Yingying snapped out of her daze and suddenly realized that this was a perfect opportunity to find them. She quickly searched her surroundings, trying to spot Wu Yue and Zhao Yuxiao. But after looking around several times, she couldn't find them anywhere.
She gradually became impatient. Just then, Zhan Yan put away the tortoise shell on the altar and walked down the altar without saying a word.
"What's going on? Why hasn't the Imperial Advisor said anything?"
"Is the outcome unfavorable to Vietnam and Lebanon?"
"How could that be? With the protection of the Imperial Preceptor, when has Yue Li ever suffered any major disasters?"
"Yes, why is that?"
The crowd began to stir, and everyone stood up. Ye Yingying seized the opportunity and grabbed Yun Yanqiu's hand: "Let's go."
The two weaved through the crowded people, moving closer to Zhan Yan. People were still puzzled by Zhan Yan's silence, and the surroundings were filled with all sorts of voices, some doubtful, some worried, and some comforting.
Someone, unable to contain themselves any longer, shouted, "Your Excellency, please tell us the result!"
The call was met with overwhelming response, and the crowd successively requested the Imperial Advisor to announce the results. Seeing that Zhan Yan remained silent and was preparing to walk into the palace, the anxious people lost their composure and swarmed towards him, trying to block his way.
The scene instantly became chaotic, and Ye Yingying and Yun Yanqiu were pushed to the front.
The guards, holding long spears, stood with their backs to Zhan Yan, surrounding him to prevent outsiders from approaching. Zhan Yan stood calmly among the guards, walking straight towards the inner gate.
Although the people were eager, they dared not charge at the guards' weapons. They could only shout loudly, hoping that the Grand Preceptor would stop and give them an answer.
Zhan Yan remained silent. He looked ahead with a calm expression, and walked into the inner gate under the protection of the guards. Then, as the gate slowly closed, he disappeared from everyone's sight.
In an instant, the bell rang, the mist rose, and the surrounding crowd fell silent. One by one, they turned around with lifeless eyes and walked out of the palace.
The curfew is in effect again. Should I go back or continue searching for Zhan Yan?
Ye Yingying gritted her teeth, gripped Yun Yanqiu's hand tightly, and said to him, "We can't wait any longer! We must find Zhan Yan and get to the bottom of this!"
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