Chapter 167 A Long Talk in Xunyin Valley
Lang Zhi had no interest in Qingjin, as all his energy was focused on Su Yuyao, who was digesting the shocking news that Hongzhu was pregnant.
Pregnancy? Really? Ze Yuan's? Impossible! If it's not Ze Yuan's... could it be Chao Xi?
She looked at Zeyuan, and the memory of that terrible moment returned. She struggled to control her emotions and said softly, "Hongzhu is pregnant, this is wonderful news! But I wonder, to whom should I share this joy..."
The mother paused for a moment, then looked at the delicate figure in her arms and said, "Today, although Qingju won first place in the gladiatorial competition, her intentions were impure, causing many troubles and injuring many people. She should be severely punished! But considering that Qingju is already injured, I will decide to waive the punishment!"
"Thank you, Aunt! Thank you, Aunt!" Qinggan kowtowed in gratitude.
Yi Mu raised her eyelids to look at Qing Jin, who was completely captivated by Lang Zhi, and said with a sneer, "Qing Jin! I'm thinking that with Qing Ju injured and Qi Xiang about to give birth, you might not be able to handle it all by yourself! Why don't you take Qing Gan and Qing Ju back to Yin Guoyuan? That way, it will be easier to take care of them! As for those ten mountains, Xuan Feng will take care of them! As for you, don't even think about them!"
"Sister..." Qingjin finally came to her senses and called out softly, but was met with a cold indifference from her mother.
Qinggan knew she was in the wrong, but dared not say anything more and could only swallow the bitter fruit of her actions.
Mother Yi continued, "Zeyuan is very busy with official duties, so it is truly remarkable that Hongzhu was able to conceive! Hongzhu, please come back to the palace with me, and I will take care of you personally!"
Hongzhu pursed her lips, feeling uneasy but daring not to disobey, and could only reply in a low voice, "This servant... obeys."
"Ah!" Xuanmiao made a babbling sound again. She stretched out her little hand and twisted her body, trying to exert force on Su Yuyao.
Su Yuyao quickly stepped forward and took Xuanmiao in her arms, gently rocking her and coaxing her softly.
As soon as Xuanmiao entered Su Yuyao's arms, her eyes became hazy. She smelled the milky fragrance of Su Yuyao's chest, pursed her lips, and soon fell into a deep sleep.
Xuanfeng watched Su Yuyao's practiced movements and was immediately filled with guilt and self-reproach. He tentatively walked towards his maid...
Langzhi was extremely reluctant when she saw Xuanfeng trying to get close to her precious daughter, but she couldn't bear to see Xuanfeng's red eyes. In addition, with her mother watching from the side, she had no choice but to step aside.
Su Yuyao held the sleeping Xuanmiao in her arms, feeling the familiar yet unfamiliar Qi field slowly approaching. Even though she missed him terribly, she couldn't get over the hurdle in her heart.
She could smell the sweet and sour scent of grapes on Xuanfeng's body, and she could feel his breath on her neck.
Her heart was racing, faster and faster, until she began to tremble uncontrollably.
"Little girl..." Xuanfeng's aura gradually enveloped Su Yuyao, "I'm sorry! It's my fault!"
Su Yuyao's body went limp, as if she were about to melt into the warm and gentle Qi field of Xuanfeng!
As she watched the familiar hands slowly envelop her arm, and then as the broad, warm hands caressed the sleeping Xuanmiao, tears streamed down her face. The defenses she had built up suddenly crumbled!
In the end, she still couldn't escape Xuanfeng's love!
She burst into tears, crying for her soft heart, her immature dependence, and her deep love for Xuanfeng...
Xuanfeng simply held Su Yuyao and Xuanmiao in his arms, repeatedly repenting, "It was my fault! It was all my fault! Girl, give me a chance to make amends!"
Su Yuyao struggled to control her body, which was about to collapse, and said through tears, "Do you still remember the promise I made when I knelt at your feet and begged you to take me in?"
Xuanfeng stroked Su Yuyao's back, inhaling the rich, milky scent of peaches, and whispered, "I don't want your promises!"
Su Yuyao steadied her breathing and said as calmly as possible, "I said back then, I'll help you! But you have to avenge me!"
Xuanfeng was stunned.
“Now, I stand by my promise…” Su Yuyao paused, then choked up as she continued, “But you…”
"Okay!" Xuanfeng hugged Su Yuyao tightly with tears in his eyes, and whispered in her ear, "Girl, as long as you have evidence to prove that I did it, I am willing to die by your hand! If you can't find any evidence, I beg you, don't make things difficult for yourself!"
This seemed to be an excuse for Xuanfeng, but it also gave Su Yuyao a way to deceive herself.
Yes! I have no evidence! No evidence...
Seeing that Su Yuyao was no longer stubborn, Yi's mother felt relieved and said with a smile, "Today's gladiator match was really good! Everyone, don't stay here! Go back to the camp and get some rest. Tomorrow, everyone go home!"
The participants from various branches of the sect withdrew from Xunyin Valley. Qimen also signaled Leiming to retreat for the time being. Feiying also received instructions to send a message of cessation and waiting to Lu Chang outside the valley.
The stands gradually quieted down. Qingjin and Qinggan helped the injured Qingju, and the family of three retreated sadly.
Ze Yuan angrily left the scene carrying the "pregnant" Hong Zhu. Although he didn't care who Hong Zhu had an affair with, compared to Su Yu Yao giving birth to a daughter, Hong Zhu's pregnancy was simply a huge joke!
Xuanfeng calmed Su Yuyao down before looking longingly at Xuanmiao in Su Yuyao's arms.
Xuanmiao was fast asleep, her long eyelashes resting on her round face, her pouting little mouth occasionally pursing in the air, her chubby little hands resting on Su Yuyao's chest, and the red camellia-shaped birthmark on her left index finger clearly displayed in Xuanfeng's eyes!
“Girl…” Xuanfeng looked at Su Yuyao in surprise, “This is…?”
“Yes, that’s right…” Su Yuyao replied softly.
She looked up and met Xuanfeng's gaze. It was as if everything around her suddenly froze, and her heart began to pound wildly again.
Xuanfeng couldn't help but laugh when he saw Su Yuyao's infatuated expression. "What a silly girl of mine!"
He carefully reached out his hand and whispered, "Let me hug you!"
Su Yuyao blushed and nestled into Xuanfeng's arms, head bowed. Xuanfeng paused for a moment, then smiled and hugged Su Yuyao tighter again.
Lang Zhi stared wide-eyed as the disappointing Su Yuyao threw herself into Xuan Feng's arms. Silly girl! She'd been fooled by this brat again!
"Girl! Give me the baby!" Langzhi unceremoniously pulled Xuanfeng's arm away and took Xuanmiao from Su Yuyao's arms.
"Hey?! Dad! What are you doing?!" Su Yuyao looked at Lang Zhi angrily.
"What are you doing?!" Langzhi carefully placed Xuanmiao into the spider web on her chest and said in a low voice, "You silly girl! You've been bewitched by this brat again! He blinded you, and you've been living in the dark for so long, and you forgive him the moment you see him?! You suffered so much to give birth to this child and made him your cheap father, and you don't even care?! You couldn't bear to part with the child, and you've been living in this cave with him for so long, how could you be so willing?! You stupid girl!"
Su Yuyao's eyes reddened as Lang Zhi spoke. Indeed, when she was going through all this, she didn't feel bitter, but looking back... she really felt sorry for her child!
"I'm taking the little one back! Are you coming or not?!" Langzhi carefully protected Xuanmiao, afraid that Xuanfeng would even glance at her.
Su Yuyao looked at Xuanfeng with reluctance.
Xuanfeng put his arm around Su Yuyao's shoulder and said softly, "Lord Langzhi, you asked us to..."
"Useless!" Lang Zhi glanced at Su Yuyao, who offered no resistance, and then glared at Xuan Feng. "Ruixue! You stay here and are responsible for bringing my daughter back!"
"Your Majesty," Langzhi bowed slightly to Yimu, "Xuanmiao is asleep, so I'll take her back with me!"
Looking at the heavy little net pouch on Langzhi's chest, even though she was reluctant, she could only nod slightly and say, "Thank you for your hard work, Lady Langzhi!"
As darkness fell, most of the people on the stands left, and Xunyin Valley gradually returned to calm.
In the darkness, the rustling of insects could be heard, and Ruixue warily stood in front of Su Yuyao.
Mother Yi smiled and said, "Don't be afraid, this is my cleaner! He's here to clean up the mess!"
Xuanfeng's heart skipped a beat. Mother Yi had actually brought the cleaners?! It seemed that Mother Yi had known what he was going to do all along!
Mother Yi looked at Xuanfeng with loving eyes and said calmly, "You are my child. How could I not know what you are thinking and what you want to do? Otherwise, why do you think I would be so bold as to come here alone?"
Xuanfeng stared blankly at Yi's mother. Had she come alone as bait to... capture me all at once?!
"Xuanfeng, you must know that I am your mother, not your enemy! Don't be used by those with ulterior motives!" Mother Yi said as she stood up and walked towards Su Yuyao.
She looked at Su Yuyao, who still had a childlike air about her, and asked, "Su Yuyao, it's very dangerous for you to rush out like this today. Have you thought about a way to get out unscathed?"
Su Yuyao lowered her head and said, "No!"
"No?" Mother Yi asked with a smile. "You dared to take such a risk without thinking about your backup plan?!"
"Your Majesty, I haven't thought of a way out because I don't know what kind of predicament I will face!" Su Yuyao raised her head and said seriously, "However, no matter what kind of predicament it is, I believe that Your Majesty is fair! So... my only bet is on Your Majesty's fair heart!"
Isaac paused for a moment, sighed softly, shook her head, and said, "That was too risky! Do you know how close you came to losing the bet!"
"Stupid girl! How dare you!" Xuanfeng was filled with fear and anger upon hearing this.
Su Yuyao glanced at Xuan Feng, who was angry, distressed, and a little scared, and silently lowered her head.
"I am well aware of what is happening at the Immortal Mountain. I came here personally this time to see just how far Qinggan and the others will go! However... I underestimated their ambition..." Mother Yi said with a wry smile, "I didn't expect Zeyuan to join in the fun... Do you know how many people Zeyuan sent?!"
"I know!" Su Yuyao replied calmly, head down. "Probably tens of thousands, that's all I know..."
Xuanfeng was very surprised to hear this, "Girl, how did you know?!"
“Several months ago, our wolf clan had already scouted the terrain of Xunyin Valley. We know every tree, ditch and canal here like the back of our hand. A month before the gladiatorial tournament began, a large number of ponds appeared here, and each pond was full of fish! I guessed that Lord Zeyuan had planted people here!”
"And you're still so bold?! Bringing a child?!" Xuanfeng stood with his hands on his hips, looking at Su Yuyao in disbelief. "Can't you even think about what's important?!"
"Xuanfeng, don't get agitated!" Mother Yi said gently. "Su Yuyao, since you knew there were so many people lying in ambush here, why did you still dare to risk coming here?"
“Because we wolves ate all the fish in the pond…” Su Yuyao pursed her lips and said calmly.
"What?!" Xuanfeng was stunned. "Eate...ate it?"
"Yeah, we ate them, but we were afraid they'd find out, so we ate them one pond at a time," Su Yuyao said nonchalantly.
Xuanfeng's previous tenderness vanished instantly after Su Yuyao's words, leaving him so angry he stammered, "Aren't you...aren't you afraid they'll attack you?!"
“We were scared! We were on high alert the whole time, but they didn’t come… so we just kept eating…”
"You didn't come... you just kept eating..." Xuanfeng pinched the bridge of his nose in anger and asked furiously, "Is it delicious? Huh?! Is it delicious?! Do you know that those fish... they are... they are all edible for adults! How could you eat them?!"
"Why can't we eat them?" Su Yuyao retorted, "We can't eat them when they're fish, but we can kill them when they take human form?! What kind of logic is that?! Besides, I'm doing this for you!"
"No! No need!" Xuanfeng's anger was already rising to his head. "I'll handle my own affairs. You just go back and take care of the children!"
"No need?! You can handle it?!" Su Yuyao was furious upon hearing Xuan Feng's words. "I'm asking you, if I hadn't rushed out, would you have taken action?! If Mother Yi had accused you of rebellion, do you think you would have survived?!"
Xuanfeng said angrily, "Then why did you rush out?! Did you think about the consequences?! You even had a child with you! What if something happened?! You're getting more and more audacious!"
Su Yuyao retorted angrily, "I knew it! You're just worried about the child! Don't worry, your child is perfectly fine! Even if something happens to me, your mother, the Goddess Yi, will ensure you have an heir!"
"Su Yuyao! What I said has nothing to do with the child! It's because you never think things through..."
"How could I not have thought it through? Our wolf clan spent months investigating before figuring out how to deal with this! Do you think you're the only one who's considered everything?! You only surrounded one valley! But Mother Yi surrounded the entire Immortal Mountain! If I didn't help you, you'd be attacked from both sides! And you still have the nerve to stand here and blame me?!"
Under the moonlight, Xunyin Valley was unusually cold and eerily quiet.
The cleaner had finished his work sometime earlier and quietly left.
Ruixue sat awkwardly to the side, licking her nose and glancing at her mother's face.
Although her mother remained seated calmly, her face was terribly dark.
"Are you done arguing?" Yi's mother asked coldly.
Xuanfeng quickly stepped forward, shielding Su Yuyao behind him, and bowed to Mother Yi, saying, "Your Majesty, please calm down! The girl... uh... didn't mean it..."
Xuanfeng himself felt a little guilty. This brat was really outspoken in front of Mother Yi!
Su Yuyao realized she had been rash. Oh no, she had accidentally told the truth! How could she have told such a thing?!
"Su Yuyao!" Mother Yi said coldly, "Xuanmiao is too small, it's inconvenient for her to live in the cave with you..."
Su Yuyao's heart skipped a beat. Were they going to snatch the child away?!
She knelt down with a thud and said loudly, “Your Majesty! Miao’er is too young and cannot be separated from me! Besides, since I finished my confinement, I have taken her hunting and fishing, and we have even crossed canyons! Don’t underestimate her just because she is only a few months old, she is very tough! Living in a cave is also a custom of our wolf clan, there is no inconvenience to it! I misspoke just now, if Your Majesty is to blame me, please blame me alone, and do not harm the child!”
Yi's mother looked at Su Yuyao in surprise, "You took Xuanmiao hunting?!"
"We fought!"
"They even leaped across the canyon?!"
"He jumped!"
Yi Mu patted her chest and said, "Those who were supposed to leave Xunyin Valley have all left, and those who remained have been almost all killed by you! You wolf people don't need to hide in the caves anymore. Come out and rest well, and go back tomorrow!"
"Ah...yes...thank you, Your Majesty!" Su Yuyao replied with her head bowed.
Mother Yi then looked at Xuanfeng, whose face was full of anger, "Xuanfeng, Xuanmiao is your daughter, you have to take her seriously! Why don't you let Qingyue help teach her? It's better than..."
Yi's mother glanced at Su Yuyao, cleared her throat, and said, "It's better than being born into a world of fighting and killing!"
Su Yuyao was startled. Her mother was coming to take care of Xuanmiao?! What good would that do her?
Xuanfeng, clutching his eye sockets, looked at Su Yuyao beside him. "You brat! You're incredibly audacious! You've caused me so much trouble the moment you showed up!"
Su Yuyao frowned, glanced at Xuan Feng, and rolled her eyes in dissatisfaction.
Watching Xuanfeng and Su Yuyao exchanging glances, Mother Yi wasn't particularly pleased or displeased. After all, seeing her son completely controlled by Su Yuyao was quite displeasing to her. However, the fact that Su Yuyao could see through the Immortal Mountain's predicament was enough to show that she had some ability, though she was still somewhat lacking in maturity!
“Su Yuyao, although I am the mother of Wuji and have seen countless deaths, I have never harmed my own child, and naturally I will not harm my own grandson!” Mother Yi reached out and helped Su Yuyao up. “Now that you are a mother, think carefully. Even if your child is naughty and disobedient, would you kill your own child?”
Su Yuyao shook her head firmly.
Yi's mother smiled and looked at Xuanfeng, "Xuanfeng, if you had to kill your whole family to save yourself, would you do it?"
Xuanfeng was stunned. He couldn't answer because he had done too many things like this, and being manipulated by Su Yuyao was perhaps his punishment.
Su Yuyao understood that the tragic deaths of her parents were merely a stopgap measure by Xuanfeng! Her survival was only due to Xuanfeng's miscalculation, and Xuanmiao's birth was even more of a mistake by Xuanfeng!
“Xuanfeng, Su Yuyao! Sometimes, we are forced to do certain things, but everyone has different goals and bottom lines! I have no intention of exploring other people's thoughts, but my goal is simply to ensure the long-term operation of the Wuji Dao to respond to the source of all things! And my bottom line is also very simple, which is... to protect my family!”
At this point, Mother Yi lowered her head, swallowed her tears, and said, "Only by losing them do we realize how important they are! Therefore, I will never make the same mistake again!"
Su Yuyao was completely confused, only vaguely understanding!
Xuanfeng was utterly shocked!
"Alright! I should go!" Mother Yi looked up at the dark night sky.
Suddenly, a flash of fire streaked across the night sky, and two fire phoenixes, their bodies glowing with flame-like light, flew from afar carrying a golden sedan chair, landing in front of Yi Mu.
Guiyue leaned out of the sedan chair and lifted the curtain. Yi's mother lifted her skirt and gently stepped into the sedan chair.
The phoenix flapped its wings and slowly flew into the sky, farther and farther away...
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