Chapter 106: Deja Vu
Spring goes and autumn comes, the four seasons rotate, and another year has passed in the blink of an eye.
The sky and water are connected, and people are coming and going on the dock.
A woman with eyes as sharp as lightning pushed the person in front of her away and said, "Don't block the road."
A handsome man followed closely behind him. He said quickly, "I'm sorry."
The man who was pushed by the woman and staggered was about to get angry, but when he saw the tall and strong man behind her, his anger subsided a little, "Take care of your wife."
Seeing her walking faster and faster, Mu Jin suddenly flipped over in the crowd, jumped up, and grabbed her shoulders, "Jiaoran, don't walk so fast. There are too many people here. Be careful not to get lost."
She wore a glittering gold bracelet on her right hand, which gave her a headache. She raised her hand and smoothed her frown. According to her current martial arts skills, it would be difficult for anyone to touch the corner of her clothes. But he followed her all the way and protected her when she practiced "Gao Shan Shou", and tried his best to take care of her along the way.
She really couldn't think of anything wrong with him, but whenever he smiled at her, she would feel a tightness in her chest, as if there was a needle buried in her heart. Whenever she wanted to get close to him, the needle would pierce her flesh from time to time, making her uncomfortable.
Her movements were very light and effortless, and she freed her shoulders from his grasp. "Why are you walking so slowly?"
Ever since she started practicing Gao Shan Shou, she became weird, and Mu Jin didn't know how to explain it.
Sometimes he told her the secrets they had talked about in the past, and she would immediately get angry and forbid him to mention it again.
He didn't want to have any wild thoughts. The two of them had come to this point, and being able to be completely free and leave the Governor's Mansion and Huiying Inn was a happiness he would never experience again in his life.
Despite seeing her strange gaze, he still suppressed his sadness and stayed by her side.
Perhaps, she was just too anxious to master Takayama Shou.
"We will be in Chang'an soon. What do you want to do then?" Mu Jin asked her as they walked. She was often too lazy to talk to him now. In the past year, she only spoke to him a few words when he was reciting the secret method. As he wrote later, he wrote slower and slower. When she saw it, she became angry again.
Neither of them had ever been to Chang'an. After another month's journey, they arrived in the prosperous Chang'an. Mu Jin had never thought that one day he would be able to go to Chang'an with Jiaoran.
He had only paper and brushes in his bag. What else could he do in Chang'an? Painting, which he had previously disliked, could support his family.
He stared at Jiaoran intently for a moment, and saw sweat on her forehead. He went forward to wipe it for her, but she took a step back and said, "I have an appointment to meet someone in Chang'an."
He thought for a moment, "Is he someone I know?"
Jiao Ran said, "You may have seen him, but you may not know him."
"Are they the two who helped you at Huiying Inn?"
Jiao Ran nodded, "Do you still remember them?"
"When did you contact them? How could I not know?"
Jiao Ran said, "One time, my senior sister and I went out to relax with Lu Xieying. In front of a shop, we saw Yuan Jianlu disguised as a beggar to attract attention. I found them again. I had lost contact with them when I entered the mansion alone and was captured. It was from that time that I started writing to them again."
She took the bag from Mu Jin's shoulder and walked towards Chang'an. She seemed to be walking slowly, but in the blink of an eye, she had walked out of the crowd. Mu Jin hurried to catch up, and he laughed helplessly. She thought that the bag slowed him down, but in fact, her lightness skills were too good and her steps were too fast.
She wanted to go look for Zhou Zhi and Fenghuang Chu, but she couldn't find them for a long time. Later, he told her that according to Fenghuang Chu's character, even if she didn't look for him, he might come looking for her as long as she began to make him feel threatened.
The Phoenix Cub probably doesn't know that Jiaoran has also mastered "Gao Shan Shou". In this way, the person who has mastered it completely is not just him, but also Jiaoran.
Although he really didn't want Jiaoran to get involved with them again, he was destined to lose to Jiaoran, so he might as well help her finish it as soon as possible.
At first, he was reluctant to tell Jiaoran about his secret method because he was worried that she would become possessed like Chai Yu, Chai Lie, Chai Rou and others, and either age instantly or go crazy and lose her mind. He was really worried that she would become like that.
But Jiaoran made him believe her, and her bloodline was the one that could truly break the backlash of "Gao Shan Shou".
All the way to Chang'an, they challenged various sects along the way.
The martial arts masters, such as Chang Xing, the Golden Crane Hand, became famous fifteen years ago. His Crane Fist has been well-known in the Central Plains for more than ten years. He can be regarded as the leader of a school. His school is located at the foot of Wanxian Mountain and is unattainable.
Jiaoran defeated him one evening.
At that time they found an inn, and Jiaoran washed his hair. His long hair was loose and wet. It was said that someone had seen a man with snow-white hair at the foot of Wanxian Mountain.
She wondered if the Phoenix Cub's true form had been exposed during his training, so she hurried over.
Later, he still couldn't find the phoenix chick, and by chance he heard that there was such a master in Wanxian Mountain. He walked slowly to the stone steps in front of the master's door.
Chang Xing, the Golden Crane Hand, had been famous for a long time and was much older than Jiao Ran. Naturally, he looked down on such a young woman in her twenties.
Jiaoran walked slowly to the house and kicked the door of the old man who looked down on her. The heavy door looked like it was made of paper in front of her.
Jiaoran had no weapon in her hand. Seeing her so arrogant, Golden Crane Hand Changxing couldn't help but be shocked.
Jiao Ran said slowly, "Now, can you compete with me?"
In the setting sun, the woman had not combed her hair, her black hair was loose, and the ends of her hair seemed to be dripping with water.
The masters under the Golden Crane Hand Chang Xing often shed blood in the martial arts world, but in the hands of a woman, they were defeated in one move without even being able to see the moves clearly. It was truly unheard of.
She said, "My name is Jiaoran, and my mother's name is Jiaoyue. You may not remember my name, but you must remember my mother's name. Her dream was to meet all the masters of the martial arts world. She has been gone for many years. Today I defeat you, but you must remember that if it were Jiaoyue, she would also defeat you effortlessly."
Golden Crane Hand Chang Xing had never seen such a presumptuous woman before. He drew his weapon and asked, "Does your mother have a grudge against our sect?"
Jiaoran shook his head and said no.
"If that's the case, why are you making trouble?"
Jiaoran spread her hands. Not a drop of blood was on her body. She hadn't intended to kill anyone. "Understand, you're a famous master in the martial arts world. If I don't defeat a few more, how can I become famous and attract the people I want to see?"
Golden Crane Hand Chang Xing asked in surprise, "So, you want to challenge every famous figure in the martial arts world?"
Jiaoran said that was not the case, "I will fight wherever I go. When I reach Chang'an, I will stop fighting."
Her light tone was even more terrifying than those threatening words.
"You are just a woman. Do you think you can challenge the entire martial arts world with your own strength? I advise you to give up as soon as possible, otherwise you will die without a complete body."
Jiao Ran laughed several times, "Hurry up and get started! I have to go back for dinner. You can't let me come here for nothing."
Chang Xing, the Golden Crane Hand, looked around and sent someone to fetch weapons. He had fought countless people in the martial arts world over the past twenty years, but this was the first time that a woman came to provoke him without even bringing a weapon.
He dropped his weapon and said, "Since you don't use it, I won't use it either."
Jiao Ran waved his hand, "No need, Senior, just use your usual weapon. It's just that I don't want to use my sword, not that I look down on you."
He transformed his palm into a crane claw, with both claws intersecting, one claw below and one claw above.
The Crane Claw technique was varied, and he indeed abandoned his sword and refused to take advantage of the young man.
Jiao Ran raised his hand and said, "Please teach me."
His figure immediately became as agile and flexible as a crane flying in the air.
What a crane that refuses to grow old.
But no matter how many crane claw moves the person in front of him used, Jiaoran just stood still. After ten moves, Golden Crane Hand Changxing's face was covered with sweat.
The disciples around him who were beaten back step by step by Jiaoran were also stunned.
The two men put their palms together and then separated.
Jiaoran still stood still, looking at him indifferently.
Chang Xing, the Golden Crane Hand, stumbled back seven or eight steps and fell heavily, with blood gushing out of his mouth.
Jiaoran looked at his hands and said, "I didn't use that much internal force, how could you..."
It turned out that Chang Xing, the Golden Crane Hand, was defeated by this woman in just a few moves. He felt that he had lost all face and in a fit of rage, a mouthful of blood spurted out of his throat.
When the disciples saw that their leader was severely injured and vomiting blood after being hit by a palm, they all stared at Jiaoran, wanting to fight her to the death.
But the woman's eyes were like a pool of autumn water. She took a few steps closer and said, "Senior, how are you? I have no intention of seriously injuring you."
Golden Crane Hand Chang Xing glanced at his disciple coldly, "Don't embarrass her, let her go. Winning and losing are common. It's my inferior skills, but the younger generation is more respectable."
Jiaoran returned to the inn and saw that the food was still hot, so he knew that he had not come back too late.
"Where did you go after you showered?"
Jiaoran took out a box of paint and said, "Didn't you say that Minghuang was out of stock?"
He just whispered it, and she remembered it and went out to find it for him. Mu Jin looked at her. Perhaps she had never changed. The wind blew the candle, and it was his heart that moved with the wind. Jiaoran had never changed.
He opened the paint and was about to say something to her when he heard Jiaoran say, "Hey, no need to thank me, I just bought it casually, and don't look at me with that disgusting look."
After that, she began to eat with great relish, seeming to be in a very good mood. Seeing her happy, he also became happy.
Arriving at the edge of Chang'an, Jiaoran pulled out a small booklet, counted, and said, "One, two, three... twenty-nine."
Mu Jin didn't know what this was. After looking at a few names, he felt that some of them looked familiar. "Why are you memorizing the names of these people in the martial arts world? I remember Chai Che mentioned this He Qingshan, the Sword of the Winged Sword, saying that he was a very tough opponent. Are you going to defeat him?"
Jiaoran said no, no, how could she tell him that when she went out to play, she was going to beat someone up. He knew she was going to nag again. Although she was annoyed, she felt a little sad if she really had to separate from him. It would be better to leave it like this for the time being. If one day she was really annoyed with him, she would just ask him to get out.
A gust of wind blew and it started to rain heavily.
"It's raining just as we arrived in Chang'an." Jiaoran sighed, "Let's find a place to shelter first."
Mu Jin held up her oil-paper umbrella and said, "I've never walked on the streets of Chang'an in the rain before."
Jiaoran looked at him, completely baffled. Where was the street? Suddenly, a thought flashed through her mind. "If we ever go to Chang'an, will you accompany me for a walk on the most prosperous street in Chang'an?"
When was it? She couldn't remember for a moment, and who said this? It seemed like she had forgotten something, but it didn't seem that important. Never mind.
"Okay, it's alright anyway, let's go for a walk."
The two of them were walking on the long street, and heavy rain was pouring down. Mu Jin held the oil-paper umbrella in his hand very steadily. He tilted the umbrella slightly towards Jiaoran, and Jiaoran was unaware of it.
People were running around to avoid the rain.
They were the only two people walking slowly. Mu Jin couldn't help but sneak a peek at Jiaoran's face in the rain. She really didn't like him staring at her now, and she said - she felt it was disgusting.
He glanced briefly and then quickly looked away.
"The sound of rain is so beautiful," he said.
Jiao Ran hummed, then said, "It's a pity that your breathing is so loud, it spoils the view. Mixed with the sound of raindrops hitting the umbrella, it makes me feel upset."
The long street was clearly filled with people hiding from the rain and the noise of footsteps, but these were the only two sounds that fell into her ears.
After walking a few steps, she could no longer hear Mu Jin's breathing. "What are you doing?"
"Hold your breath."
"ah?"
"As long as I don't breathe, you won't be able to hear my breathing, and you won't be upset."
As soon as he finished speaking, a voice broke into her mind, "As long as I don't gasp for breath, you won't be able to hear my chaotic breathing, and you won't be upset."
He seemed to have said this before, but when was that? Jiaoran had a headache and felt very frustrated.
"Who told you not to breathe? I was just saying it casually. Hurry up and breathe. Don't suffocate yourself to death."
Then he added, "I'm not upset because of you, I'm upset because of myself."
Oh, it seems like she has said this before.
Could it be that she had been practicing diligently over the past year and not getting enough sleep? She always felt that some scenes and some words were very familiar, as if they had been said and heard by someone a long time ago.
She didn't dare to think any further, as if she was staring into a bottomless abyss. She asked hastily, "By the way, the silver is all with you. How much is left now?"
She asked about it once half a year ago, and it seemed that there were more than two hundred taels left. But today there probably isn't much left.
"Why, what do you want to buy?" Mu Jin asked her.
"No, I just remembered and asked."
"There are still seven hundred and twenty taels."
"What? So many!"
Jiao Ran suspected he had misheard. "You went to work for someone without telling me? What kind of work did you do?"
But there was not enough time. Whenever she looked for him, he was there. Even if he went out for a while, he would come back soon.
Mu Jin had memorized the account in his mind. "Three months ago, we still had five hundred taels. Then one day, someone from the inn where we were staying gave us a two hundred tael note, but I didn't know who it was. He said it was for you, knowing you were going to Chang'an, so he left it for you as travel expenses. When I asked the waiter, he refused to tell me who it was. The other twenty taels were from a painting I casually drew half a month ago, which sold for twenty-five taels. Although our expenses in the past half month were high, they were only five taels of silver."
Jiaoran was surprised. "Your paintings are so expensive? Twenty taels?"
Mu Jin smiled and didn't tell her that half a year ago someone offered 150 taels to buy one of his landscape paintings.
Jiaoran took the umbrella and tried to use it, but he refused. He continued walking with the umbrella. Jiaoran said, "It seems that letting you manage the money was a wise move. If it were me, I would definitely run out of money quickly."
"Don't worry, I know what I'm doing and I won't leave you without money."
Continue read on readnovelmtl.com
