Chapter 7: Jianghu
We set off a month later, just after the Chinese New Year.
After this New Year, Jiaoran was exactly sixteen years old. In the past, her mother often told people that she was sixteen, but in fact she was only sixteen at the end of the year.
Bu Yue and Jiao Ran don't get along. Before leaving, Zhu Xing repeatedly tells Bu Yue to take good care of her.
The strange thing is that neither mother nor father said much to Jiaoran. Jiaoran felt a little uncomfortable. This was her first time traveling far away, but she could also understand mother. She was really worried, but she couldn't ask Jiaoran to stay. If she made up her mind, how could mother make her change her mind?
Thinking about how her mother slept next to her last night and didn't say much the whole night, Jiaoran still felt a kind of indescribable sadness.
Dad put all the thin and thick clothes for her in a box. Before leaving, Jiaoran wore a festive red cotton-padded jacket. The rabbit fur on the collar was sewn on by her mother. It kept her ears warm when she covered them. Jiaoran tucked her nose and mouth into the clothes, leaving her eyebrows and eyes exposed, just like when she was a child.
He then took out a set of ear grips for her and told her to put them on if she felt cold on the road. Before leaving, Dad started nagging.
Jiaoran got on the carriage, and the driver was Zheng Bo, the old coachman left behind by Fenghuangchu.
The cold wind outside was biting, and spring had not yet arrived. Jiaoran leaned against the peony-carved window and looked out. The shadows of his mother, father, and Huiying Inn gradually became blurred.
She suddenly regretted her departure. She didn't know when she would be able to return. What if something happened and she could never come back? Her mind was filled with a thousand thoughts.
On second thought, since I promised my mother to take back the things that belonged to the sect, I must do it. It has always been the Huiying Sect that robbed other families' things, and no one has ever been able to steal the Huiying Sect's secret books.
Bu Yue tutted, "You're not sitting still in the carriage, why don't you come out and drive the horses?"
Jiaoran unhappily lowered the window and said, "Why don't you mind my business!"
As a girl who had never left the small town of Mianyuan, Jiaoran's greatest experience with mountains was probably the small hill leading to Huiying Gate. Even though the disciples in the sect said it was not very high compared to the mountains outside, Jiaoran was still exhausted and out of breath after climbing it.
I heard that the Xiutu Governor's Mansion she was going to was built on the mountain. The entire governor's mansion started from the mountainside, and at the top of the mountain, there was a Zhenci Pagoda standing tall.
The Governor's Office had dozens of gardens, each flanked by two pavilions and two terraces, with side houses nestled near the pavilions. Of the twenty-four governors, excluding the eighteen prefectures within Chang'an's reach, such as Tongzhou, Qizhou, and Wanping, the remaining governors were actually princes and other royal descendants, each with their own private army, stationed far from the Central Plains to garrison their respective regions.
Jiaoran didn't feel anything when she heard Fenghuangchu say this, but now as she slowly moved away from Huiying Inn, anxiety covered her whole body, like an invisible spider web entangled around her. She sat in the back of the carriage, a cool breeze seeping in from the window, making her palms cold.
Hearing that she had calmed down, Bu Yue asked through the curtain at the front of the car, "Falling asleep?"
She said no, “I didn’t sleep.”
"When can we arrive?"
Zheng Bo, the driver, said, "Don't worry, young lady. We have a long way to go. At this rate, we should arrive by the evening of the next day, before dark."
The carriage was shaking, and Jiaoran felt sleepy sitting on the mat covered with horsehide and cotton mattress. She yawned.
Only after hearing that there was no movement inside did Bu Yue start to speak.
Duke Zheng pulled his neckband up to his chest, hiding his mouth and nose inside to avoid catching a gust of wind, and continued to ask and answer questions with him.
It was very dark, and when Jiaoran woke up he found that the carriage had stopped.
"Brother, give me a lamp, or a tinderbox, so I can go downstairs and relieve myself."
No one was talking outside, just the sound of the wind.
Jiaoran's heart suddenly turned cold.
Could it be that Senior Brother Bu Yue had abandoned her alone in this wilderness?
She wanted to lift the thick curtain that blocked the wind, but as soon as she stretched out her hand, she was hit hard by Senior Brother Bu Yue. With a loud slap, she immediately drew back the hand in pain, "What are you doing!"
"Zheng Bo, he hit me!"
Jiaoran complained, but Duke Zheng did not respond to her.
Jiaoran opened the door a little and suddenly saw Zheng Bo bleeding from the corner of his mouth, his eyes wide open, dead in front of his horse. She was so shocked that she covered her mouth.
Zheng Bo originally wanted to accompany Fenghuang Chu to send Jiao Ran to the Governor's Mansion, but Fenghuang Chu still had some unfinished business in Mianyuan, so he sent Zheng Bo and Bu Yue to go.
At this time, the Governor's Office had already made all the arrangements and was waiting for the maid Jiaoran to go.
Now Duke Zheng, who was escorting Jiaoran, is dead.
In front of the carriage, there were three big men on horseback, wearing black hoods that covered their mouths, each holding a big knife in his hand, staring intently.
Jiaoran leaned forward and whispered behind Bu Yue, "What's going on?"
Bu Yue sighed, feeling very bored, "Still haven't seen it clearly? I just met an old colleague."
"Robbery?" Jiao Ran sighed, complaining, "Why didn't you protect Duke Zheng?"
"It's good enough that I can protect you. Why do you want me to grow three heads and six arms and protect you and him behind me?"
"Is it not possible?"
"I, your senior brother, am not that capable. If you keep yelling, you will go down like him." Bu Yue pushed her head into the carriage.
He said to those people, "We know the rules of the underworld, but you have robbed the wrong person. Even if you kill us all today, you won't find a single ounce of gold in the carriage. When you are on the road, why bother making things difficult for each other?"
The three men naturally refused to listen. They jumped off their horses and swung their swords, intending to chop Bu Yue's side. Fortunately, he controlled his horse properly and dodged in time. The horse was pulled away and neighed loudly.
The iron rings on the man's sword made a sharp sound.
Jiaoran thought to himself that if he was robbed, it wouldn't be a big deal to retreat halfway. It was because he encountered trouble that he couldn't go to the Governor's Mansion.
She found a way out for herself and had already excitedly packed up her dry food, waiting to return to the inn later. It was not her who took the initiative to back out.
Before the man wielding the big knife could swing it again or even utter a cry of surprise, there was a flash of the knife, and Bu Yue's sharp flying knife was already against his throat.
The remaining two shouted, "Let my brother go! You're looking for death."
Bu Yue said okay, I let him go, went deep inside, cut his throat like cutting tofu, and threw him under the carriage.
Before the two men could react, Bu Yue threw a bloody flying knife, which pierced one of them's eye socket. He covered his eyes and roared, and his horse retreated backwards.
Only one person was left, and he fled in a hurry.
Bu Yue successfully dealt with the thief, and now she was too embarrassed to talk about running back.
"Why don't we bury Uncle Zheng?" He jumped off the carriage and prepared to drag Uncle Zheng's body. Bu Yue had already breathed a sigh of relief, but in an instant, a light sound of footsteps passed by his head.
Not bad for light work.
He smiled as he caught a glimpse of the person coming.
In a moment, Jiaoran's throat was already in the hands of the man who came. "If you dare to take a step forward, I will take her life first!"
When Bu Yue realized something was wrong, it was too late to save Jiaoran, although he spent a long time considering whether to save him or not.
"Who are you?" Bu Yue asked unnecessarily.
"It's just a coincidence, isn't it? Brother Bu Yue didn't recognize me?"
She took off her veil, revealing a pretty girl with peach blossom eyes. Her pupils were the light brown color of the first brew of tea, completely unlike the ordinary women in the Central Plains.
Her eyebrows were long and reached her temples. She had two pigtails with gold, blue and red threads weaved into them. A turquoise pendant hung from the middle of her forehead. Whenever she moved, bells on her body would jingle.
"Let me ask you, who is this woman to you?" She asked Bu Yue with a hint of anger.
Jiaoran cried out in her heart, "Oh no!" It was Bu Yue who had implicated her. Damn it.
Bu Yue was neither anxious nor flustered. "In your opinion, who is she to me?"
"My lover?"
Bu Yue didn't explain, but curled her lips and laughed at what she said.
The woman's hand became heavier, strangling Jiaoran so much that his eyes rolled back and his face turned red.
Jiaoran rushed to stammer, "No, no... no, he is my brother."
"Who is your brother? You're just making up a relationship. I picked up this girl on the road. She looks pretty. I'll marry her. But she's been making a lot of noise these past two days. Just kill her. If she dies, I'll be free and at peace."
Jiaoran got annoyed when he heard that, "Stop talking nonsense!" It seemed that Bu Yue was determined to take revenge and let her die at the hands of this woman.
"Okay, since she's your woman, I'll kill her."
Jiaoran explained with a bitter face, "He is so dark, like a coal ball, not good-looking, and cruel and ruthless. Am I blind to choose him as my husband? Sister, please stop joking."
Unexpectedly, after saying these humiliating words, the woman became even more angry and almost strangled Jiaoran to death.
Gradually, she couldn't utter a word.
Bu Yue had had enough of her and threw a stone at her arm, "That's enough. If you really kill her, I'll be in trouble."
She let go and angrily said, "Bu Yue! How dare you hit me?"
Jiaoran sat down on the ground and took a deep breath, "This is killing me. Cough cough cough cough..."
The woman was furious just now, but Bu Yue said a few words to her and coaxed her into a rage. Then the two of them started talking and laughing, not caring at all about Jiaoran who was almost strangled to death.
Jiaoran cursed Bu Yue dozens of times in his heart and greeted all his ancestors.
Thinking that he was from the same school as himself and his master's master was his master's master, Jiaoran hurriedly apologized in his heart, saying that he was wrong, wrong, and he didn't dare to scold him anymore.
Bu Yue took her on the road.
The unreasonable girl was called Xu Mengchou. She said she came from a small village in Nanzhao Kingdom and was an old friend of Bu Yue.
At first she thought Bu Yue was protecting Jiaoran. She almost stared at Jiaoran to death for the first two hours, and Jiaoran felt creepy under her gaze.
Later, when she saw Bu Yue always arguing with her, Xu Mengchou finally felt relieved, "Are you really his junior sister?"
"Although I really don't want to admit it." Jiaoran muttered.
She laughed heartily, with a bit of the cheerfulness of a young man from the Jianghu. She took off the turquoise necklace from her neck and gave it to Jiaoran. "It's my fault. I almost hurt my sister. I apologize to you."
Jiaoran felt that it would be unfair to Senior Sister Zhuxing if he accepted it, so he declined.
"It's really valuable. Mother said it's not good to ask for things from others."
She put her arm around Jiaoran's shoulders and said affectionately, "I'm not a stranger. I'm going to be your sister-in-law in the future, so I'll keep it for you."
Jiaoran resolutely took it off and refused to accept it. "Sister, the gems on your necklace are shining, and you can tell it's worth a lot of money. I am of humble status and a country girl. I am not worthy of such a fine necklace."
Bu Yue said, "That's not the case. It would be a waste for her."
She refused to accept it, so Xu Mengchou said, "I heard Bu Yue just say that you are going to carry out a mission for the sect. It would be too conspicuous to bring this with you. I will give it to my sister. When you complete the mission and come back, I will give this gift to you. Don't refuse it then."
That was a long time ago. Jiaoran said, "Thank you, sister."
The three of them were companions, and without the sneaky Zheng Bo watching them, they got along better.
Bu Yue asked about Xu Mengchou and whether he knew about Xiu Tu's Governor's Mansion.
Xu Mengchou said, "I came to your place a few years ago and saw the Governor's wife from afar. The Governor's wife was especially beautiful, with a charming figure like a fox spirit."
"Is the young man in the Governor's Mansion who is often seriously ill her child?" Jiaoran asked.
Xu Mengchou shook his head. "That shouldn't be the case. I heard that Commander Xiu Tu's children have been practicing martial arts since they were young, and they are all very strong. When you came here, didn't the sect tell you clearly who the young master you would be serving is?"
Jiaoran said he knew a little, "Fenghuangchu said he seemed a year or two older than me, and was a very kind young man."
"These children were born to nobles. It would be a joke to be kind to them. Haha." Bu Yue sneered twice.
Xu Mengchou reminded Jiaoran, "The Xiutu Governor's Mansion is home to hidden talents and crouching tigers. Its private army is the most numerous among the twenty-four states. I've heard that the Governor is a ferocious beast lurking in the mountains and forests, and even the Emperor of the Central Plains doesn't dare to touch him lightly. In his youth, he was a master of martial arts and possessed profound internal strength. He led his troops to victory in battle and has held the helm of the military and political power of this state for many years. If you go to the Governor's Mansion, remember to be extremely cautious."
Jiaoran said thank you for the reminder.
Fenghuangchu had warned her many times before not to act rashly in the Governor's Mansion without his instructions.
At this point, Xu Mengchou remembered something. "When I was training Gu worms in Nanzhao, my master told me that Commander Xiu Tu had obtained a secret martial arts manual in his early years. After practicing, not only did his martial arts skills become unparalleled, but he was also extremely intelligent. However, his children are too weak to be trusted. No matter how big or small, none of them can support the Commander's Office. I'm afraid that in a hundred years, when the Emperor of the Central Plains settles the accounts, the entire Commander's Office will be doomed."
Bu Yue and Jiao Ran looked at each other and asked in unison, "What secret book?"
She said she didn’t know, “I haven’t heard the master say that.”
Bu Yue and Jiao Ran both breathed a sigh of relief.
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