Deserved
Moreover, A Qiu had just clearly seen that the momentum of Qilin's Hundred Slashes was being suppressed by the Ancestral Dragon.
Chu Yuanyi herself did not know swordsmanship, nor had she ever specifically learned this double-handed heavy sword. However, she swung the Ancestral Dragon sword as if it were a cane, and it was already very powerful. In addition, her skill level was nearly twenty years higher than Sima Yao's, which made it impossible for Sima Yao to get close to her.
Chu Yuanyi certainly hadn't expected to encounter such a formidable enemy as soon as he entered the forbidden area. After several exchanges of blows, he was also exhausted and was now leaning against his sword, panting heavily.
Upon seeing the two confronting each other, A Qiu immediately rushed into the scene and shouted, "Aunt Yao, Aunt Yuan Yi, you're all on our side, please stop fighting!"
Sima Yao angrily retorted, "What do you mean 'one of us'? Where did this old thief come from, stealing the palace sword and daring to trespass into Shangguan's forbidden area!"
Upon seeing A Qiu, Chu Yuanyi was both surprised and delighted. He stood up and said tremblingly, "Good child, are you alright? As soon as I heard you were in trouble, I couldn't care about anything else and came out to find you immediately!"
A Qiu was deeply moved. Ignoring her dirty clothes, he rushed over and hugged her tightly, burying his head in her arms, remaining silent for a long time.
Her reaction was not only because Chu Yuanyi, an old man who had lived deep within the palace for many years and never left the ruined Qiwu Palace, had actually left the palace for her, but also because after remembering her childhood, she truly understood the connection between Chu Yuanyi and her.
It turns out that when she was still an infant, Chu Yuanyi would often visit her. Later, when she was a little older, in order to enable her to protect herself, Chu Yuanyi taught her his own unique skill, the Wind and Thunder Cleave.
In those years, she only had Gu Yi and Chu Yuanyi as her relatives.
Sima Yao saw that A Qiu rushed straight to Chu Yuanyi as soon as she saw her, and only then did she realize that this old woman was indeed an old acquaintance of A Qiu and had come to find A Qiu. She remained silent and sat to the side angrily without saying a word.
A Qiu held Chu Yuanyi silently, but Chu Yuanyi kept rambling on and on: "You used to disappear for long periods of time all the time, and I never thought much of it. But I heard them say that this time is different, that you won't be going back to the palace. I got anxious and had to come out to look for you in the middle of the night. What did you do that made them not let you go back to the palace?"
She added angrily, "This is outrageous! They won't even let you go home! These people in the palace are so disgraceful! I should have my senior sister take charge and kick them all out!"
As her words became increasingly absurd, A Qiu had no choice but to interrupt, "Auntie, who told you that I'm here?" She then looked at the Ancestral Dragon Sword that A Qiu had brought with her, and said with a mixture of amusement and exasperation, "It's one thing for you to come looking for me, but why did you steal someone else's sword as well?"
He thought to himself, "With the Ancestral Dragon Sword gone, the palace must be in complete chaos right now."
But what's surprising is that while Chu Yuanyi's actions are erratic, Rong Yuexian, An Daoling, and Zhongli Wuyan must be aware of the situation. Her daring act of stealing the sword from the palace might be unknown to others, but it certainly couldn't have escaped the notice of the Grand Eunuch Rong Yu. Why did Rong Yu turn a blind eye and allow her to carry out the national treasure like this?
Moreover, the Qilin Hundred Slashes is already a heavy sword. Chu Yuanyi was able to carry the Ancestral Dragon over the wall and trees and successfully leave the palace. This is probably not just because of her high martial arts skills.
Her question had a significant impact, and Sima Yao immediately retorted, "Exactly! You old servant, I don't care what your relationship with A Qiu is, how dare you steal my imperial brother's Ancestral Dragon Sword? And you even carried it so openly all the way here, daring to make a fool of yourself in the Shangguan Forbidden Area?"
Chu Yuanyi answered A Qiu first: "Who else! The only person in the palace who will talk to me right now is that little slut from the Shangguan family. Although the others in that little slut's family are bad, she is very good to you, so she is a friend. When I couldn't find you and heard the people in the Music Bureau talking about how you were dismissed and would never have to return to the palace, I had no choice but to ask that little slut from the Shangguan family. That's how she told me you were here."
Ah Qiu thought to herself, "No wonder!" Since their reunion, the only person Chu Yuanyi recognized among her was Shangguan Yuqi. No wonder she had no choice but to ask her about it, and coincidentally, Shangguan Yuqi knew Ah Qiu's whereabouts—since it was Shangguan Yuqi who had arranged it—so she told Chu Yuanyi.
However, Ah Qiu was sweating profusely from listening to Chu Yuanyi's constant use of the derogatory term "little slut." This was the forbidden area of the Shangguan family, where the tombs of the Shangguan ancestors were located. Sima Yao was sitting nearby, and Chu Yuanyi was even going so far as to curse everyone in the Shangguan family. As Ah Qiu listened, she secretly glanced at Sima Yao's expression.
As expected, upon hearing Chu Yuanyi's words, Sima Yao's previously softened expression changed again. She almost jumped up again, brandishing her sword, and shouted, "Old beggar woman, who are you calling a little slut from the Shangguan family, and whose family members are all bad? Come, come, explain yourself clearly!"
Chu Yuanyi's temper improved considerably when A Qiu was by his side. He muttered, "Are the Shangguan family really that good? Shangguan Yanxiu is neither virtuous nor kind, nor respectful, and he's made a mess of the palace. That unreasonable scoundrel Shangguan Jin blinded one of my eyes because of Shangguan Yanxiu, and I haven't even settled the score with him yet!"
Upon hearing the first half of Chu Yuanyi's sentence, Sima Yao's expression had already relaxed considerably. As a member of the Sima family, she felt that Shangguan Yanxiu was the same way, and she could no longer bear the praise of the court officials for her talent and reputation, who lauded her to the skies. However, when she heard the second half of the sentence, which was a curse against Shangguan Jin, her face immediately turned pale and then red, and she was unsure of what to do.
She asked in a deep voice, "Ah Qiu, who exactly is she to you?"
A Qiu immediately let go and said respectfully, "This is an aunt who took care of me in the palace." She then glanced at Sima Yao and immediately added, "Emperor Huanwu, Sima Yan, was also cared for by her since childhood!"
Although Sima Yao later entered the palace to accompany the emperor many times, Sima Yan had long been tired of Chu Yuanyi, who was like his mother, patiently and earnestly instructing him every day. He had arranged for her to stay in Qiwu Palace to take care of the future empress, and did not keep her by his side to avoid being restricted.
Whenever Sima Yao saw Sima Yan, he was always accompanied by beautiful young women; she had never seen an old palace maid. Therefore, she did not recognize Chu Yuanyi, especially since Chu Yuanyi now looked so destitute. If it weren't for the Ancestral Dragon Sword in her hand, Sima Yao would never have thought she was from the palace.
Ah Qiu's words had an immediate effect. Sima Yao's expression softened slightly, and she said, "So you were a palace maid from the previous dynasty?" She thought to herself, "No wonder she cursed the Shangguan family; it's naturally because she disliked Shangguan Yanxiu, the Empress." In that case, it seemed forgivable.
Upon seeing that A Qiu was quite respectful to Sima Yao, Chu Yuan asked, "A Qiu, who is this?" He added, "She doesn't seem like someone from the Shangguan family who is so unpleasant."
The reason was that the Shangguan family members were mostly of a refined and aloof temperament, while Sima Yao, although middle-aged, was still the bright and unrestrained type. Moreover, the Langya Hundred Slashes sword she wielded had a unique design, making it clear at a glance that it was not a sword from the Shangguan family. Chu Yuanyi felt that it looked vaguely familiar, but he didn't realize that it was because it resembled the Ancestral Dragon Sword in his own hand.
A Qiu was about to laugh again, but she held it back. Sima Yao, however, did not need her to answer for her, and frowned, saying, "I was originally a member of the Sima family, but now I am a member of the Shangguan family. Since you are the aunt who took care of my imperial brother, and now you are confused, all your nonsense is forgiven."
Chu Yuanyi was even more confused by her words. After a long silence, he said, "I only know that Shangguan Yanxiu was originally from the Shangguan family, and later became a member of the Sima family. But I've never heard of anyone who was originally from the Sima family and later became a member of the Shangguan family. I can't figure it out. Most people from the Shangguan family look down on others, so why would people from the Sima family come to their door looking for trouble?"
Sima Yao listened to her rambling nonsense, but in his heart he also felt that there was some truth to it. He was stuck in a rut, unsure whether to lash out or not.
A Qiu broke the silence, saying, "Aunt Yuan Yi, this is the Princess of Langya from the previous dynasty, Emperor Wu's cousin."
Upon hearing this, Chu Yuan seemed to suddenly remember something, clapped his hands, and pointed at Sima Yao, saying, "You are Yao Yao?" He then said as if waking from a dream, "When you were little, you went to Qiwu Palace. Empress Dezong even held you. I was there at the time, and I even used the Empress's hairpin to coax you. Do you remember?"
Sima Yao couldn't clearly remember the scene of her accompanying her mother to pay respects to the Empress when she was a child. But hearing Chu Yuanyi's words, she knew it was indeed an old acquaintance. Although she was proud by nature, in the past, she wouldn't have given this old palace maid a second glance. But the "Yao Yao" that Chu Yuanyi blurted out was a name that no one had called her in many years.
Overwhelmed with emotion, she was speechless.
Chu Yuan glanced at Sima Yao, then at A Qiu, and suddenly seemed to realize something, exclaiming, "You're Yao Yao, and A Qiu, isn't A Qiu you...?"
Before she could finish her sentence, A-Qiu interrupted her, fearing she might ramble on, saying, "Aunt Yuan Yi, it's one thing for you to come looking for me, but why did you bring out the national treasure, the Ancestral Dragon Heavy Sword?"
Distracted by this, Chu Yuanyi immediately forgot what he was going to say and said, "I heard that you were expelled from the palace, and I felt that I should bring you something. I received the mutton soup and fish sashimi you brought me. After thinking about it, I felt that this was the most valuable and important treasure in the palace, so I brought it out for you."
Upon hearing this, A Qiu felt both amused and exasperated. While it was undoubtedly the most precious treasure in Jianzhang Palace, she hadn't expected Chu Yuanyi to so readily offer it as a favor.
As for the mutton soup and fish sashimi, she immediately realized that Zhongli Wuyan must have used her name to send them to Chu Yuanyi.
In Chu Yuanyi's eyes, she was like family. If it were said that it was a gift from her, it would save face for Chu Yuanyi. Zhongli Wuyan must have thought so.
Sima Yao knew the gravity of the situation and shook her head, saying, "Nonsense. Quickly return this sword. If the Ancestral Dragon Sword is missing from the palace, chaos is inevitable."
Chu Yuanyi said confidently, "They are busy heading north to seek peace right now, so they certainly don't have time to care about me. Also, Yaoyao, you just kept saying that I was a sword thief. Others can say that, but you can't. This sword didn't originally belong to the Xie family. Now I'm giving it to Aqiu. What's wrong with that? Besides, if we surrender, the country will be destroyed and the family will be destroyed. We might not be able to keep anything in the palace. Rather than let the Northern Qiang people benefit from it, I might as well take it with me."
A Qiu and Sima Yao were stunned, yet they found it quite reasonable.
Sima Yao came back to her senses and said thoughtfully, "A Qiu, the fact that the Ancestral Dragon Sword appeared here has just solved a problem."
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