Chapter 23
"Did you get the item?"
In an abandoned house in the eastern part of Taiyuan, the house was smashed to pieces by stones thrown into the city. Bricks, tiles and planks were scattered all over the ground, and there were clearly visible bloodstains and burned corpses. Some of the ruins were ignored, but the broken house continued to collapse and be destroyed.
"No."
Two people stood in front of the abandoned house. One had his arms crossed and was looking into the distance, while the other was squatting in front of the house, wearing a straw hat so his face could not be seen.
"There are things in this world that you can't have."
The speaker was dressed in tattered clothes made of coarse hemp thread. His hair was black, but his temples were gray. When he looked up, his sparse stubble revealed a pair of sharp eyes staring straight ahead, like an eagle snatching meat from its prey, glancing around, and then swallowing it whole.
"It seems you've been living too comfortably at the villa."
"The items have already been switched, so it's no use going there earlier."
A swordsman dressed in purple leaped down from the roof beam and walked up to him. Soft white fur adorned his shoulders, and a forehead ornament with Warring States period patterns hung on his forehead. His long hair was tied back, revealing a handsome and resolute face. On his back was a bronze sword rack, upon which rested two swords, one long and one short, their blades sharp, the hilts bearing the inscription of a certain mountain village.
"Hmph... I can probably guess who did this. These brats, trying to mess with me, really think they're so tough!"
The purple-clad swordsman remained silent, arms crossed, watching the flock of geese flying overhead.
"Speaking of which, you've been to the Grand Minister's residence twice already. Did you know that our sworn enemies are among those people?"
The swordsman shook his head. "Never seen it before."
"What? Haven't you two met before?"
The swordsman lowered his head and looked at him: "It was only when I took the jade pendant that one of them noticed me. When the other rushed in, I had already left from the backyard and was not discovered."
"...It seems we can't underestimate the Hidden Origin Martial Arts Tournament, otherwise if we anger that old guy surnamed Zhou, we're afraid we'll be in deep trouble."
The old man turned around, took something out of his pocket, and tossed it to the swordsman.
"Take this assorted purse and go investigate those people again. I don't believe that no matter how skilled Ye Mo is, she can stand against the entire Central Plains martial arts world!"
The swordsman paused for a moment, then whispered, "How is she now?"
"Hmph, everyone shouts to kill a rat crossing the street. I reckon she's hiding in some desolate place like Kunlun, just trying to survive!"
Kunlun.
Chang Le Fang remained as deserted as ever, with the heavy snow making every step difficult. The villagers had their own way of surviving here; their houses were built against the wind and snow, constructed of hard stone. The ice and snow solidified on the houses, like a thick scab forming on a wound, which in turn protected the precarious buildings.
Inside a house on the edge of the village, a faint fire shone. This low house was some distance from the village and was fairly well-built, except that the wood used for starting a fire at the door had not yet completely frozen, and the dilapidated wooden door was about to crack from the frost.
"Eek—" The door was slowly pushed open, and a girl wearing a black short shirt with gold trim came out. The sleeves of the shirt also had the same pattern. She wrapped a thin rabbit fur robe around her body, as if she was afraid of the cold. She also had an extra layer of fur sewn on the collar of the shirt to protect her neck and prevent the wind from getting in.
Chang Le Fang has always been suppressed by the Evil Valley, who extort money from it. Although the girl's clothes are inconspicuous, the gold-trimmed clothes are a rare sight in this poor and remote place.
The girl had tied her long hair back with a bright yellow ribbon. Her face was lifeless, and her eyes were sunken deep in their sockets, devoid of any light. She stood at the doorway, instinctively reaching out to catch the drifting snowflakes, but was startled by the icy touch. She quickly pulled her hand back, exhaling hot breath to warm her palms.
The purple-clad swordsman stood on a distant hill, arms crossed, gazing in this direction.
His eyes were filled with sorrow, but the wind and snow blurred his vision.
"Master! Why are you out here!"
Suddenly a shout came from afar. The purple-clad swordsman looked in the direction of the sound and saw a white-haired man riding a horse, carrying a bag in his hand. When he saw the girl alone at the door, he dismounted in a panic and rushed over to cover her with the snow using his cloak.
"Master, please go back quickly. The snow in Kunlun is heavy, and you'll catch a cold if you stay outside for even a moment longer." The man glanced around, afraid that someone might see them and linger for even a second longer.
"Ah Chang, do you think that people's hearts are like the ice and snow of Kunlun, seemingly hard but actually melting into a puddle of water?"
Upon hearing the sound, the purple-clad swordsman gripped the object in his hand tightly in alarm.
“Master…” The white-haired man shielded her from the wind, his beautiful face framed by a pair of clear eyes looking at her, his eyes filled with a desolate sense of loss.
"Ah Chang, I'd like to stay here for a while. You go in first."
"But……"
"I'm hungry, let's go make something to eat."
The girl interrupted him, raising her hand to brush him and his cloak aside.
The man stood still for a moment, then put away his cloak and went inside.
The purple-clad swordsman stood there for a long time, a chill spreading from his feet to his lungs, before he composed himself and rode away.
After bidding farewell to Ai Yi, Yang Yuan and A Lu also set off from Yangzhou for Taiyuan. Ye Min did not leave with them, but parted ways with them to go to Luoyang to find Jiang Chengfeng and Luo Qingyan.
Taiyuan.
On the way to the city, A-Lu and Yang Yuan rode side by side without saying a word.
Taiyuan City had long been sealed off, with the Wolf Fang Army completely surrounding the eastern part of the city. Only the western part, heavily guarded by various sects, remained safe. Passing by a post station, she asked the innkeeper for some water. In the distance, she encountered several Wolf Fang scions; Yang Yuan glanced at them indifferently, tightened her grip on the reins, mounted her horse, and prepared to leave.
The Wolf Fang soldiers spotted the two men and sized them up. Both were dressed in black and riding red horses. The girl's face was covered by a dark veil, so her features were obscured. The man was adjusting his saddle, with two gleaming curved swords on his back. His black hair was tied in a ponytail. When he saw the girl looking in their direction, he turned around, his exposed eye sweeping over the crowd. He said something to the girl, and the two men continued packing their things.
The leader exchanged glances with his brothers around him, spat, and blocked their path with his curved sword.
Hey! You two, where did you come from?!
Yang Yuan stopped and stroked the horse's mane. The man in black walked in front of her and looked at the group of people.
"Is the official asking us?" Ah Lu replied.
"Nonsense! Just answer my questions, why make such a fuss!"
A-Lu smiled and stood in front of Yang Yuan.
"We came from the Western Regions and were on our way to Luoyang to do business. We were just passing through here and asked for a drink of water."
The Wolf Fang soldiers glanced warily at A Lu, then turned their heads to look at the people behind him. Suddenly, A Lu yawned, startling everyone into gripping their knives and swinging them in front of them.
"Doing business? Look at you, no badges, no bodyguards, and not even a single item on your horses! You wouldn't happen to be the Emperor of the Tang Dynasty..."
Before the words were finished, the clear sound of a zither filled my ears, and I vaguely saw a sharp sword being drawn from its sheath, piercing my stomach and stirring inside, passing through my lungs and body.
Ah Lu smiled as she watched the group of people with wide eyes, her body still in the position of holding the knife, her mouth agape as if there was a sentence stuck in her throat.
With a thud, a group of people fell straight to the ground, their bodies covered in blood.
"No need for words, we can resolve this if we encounter it again in the future."
Yang Yuan put away the Dongxian Guide and put it back on her back, then leaped onto her horse.
Alu walked to the horse, stroked its fur, mounted the horse, and followed Yang Yuan away.
"I wanted to find out about the situation in Taiyuan, but it seems that these people are all only interested in profit and only care about gold, silver and jade."
Yang Yuan glanced at him and continued looking ahead.
"You seem to know the answer."
Ah Lu chuckled, "There's hardly anyone around along the way, not even a bandit. It seems Taiyuan is going to be abandoned."
“No,” Yang Yuan retorted. “If that were the case, Xicheng would have been breached long ago. Why have we held on until now?”
A-Lu lowered her head and thought about it, and also felt that there was some truth to it.
"But the eastern part of the city has been destroyed. How are we supposed to get into the city now?"
Yang Yuan pondered this carefully. A gentle breeze blew, and a cluster of peach blossoms drifted in from somewhere, scattering in all directions with the wind. A Lu looked up at the sky and saw a peach petal flutter down and land on Yang Yuan's head.
He wanted to pick it, but Yang Yuan only glanced at him, so he stopped and listened to her continue.
"It would be better to approach from the west side of the city. Although there are reinforcements stationed there, explaining the reason would at least be a solution."
After Yang Yuan finished speaking, she didn't hear A Lu's response. Just as she turned her head, A Lu suddenly leaned over, reached out, and took another whole peach blossom from her head.
Yang Yuan glanced at the peach blossom and then at him. A-Lu played with the flower in her hand when a sudden gust of wind swept up the petals, carrying them away gracefully.
Yang Yuan smiled, tightened her grip on the horse's belly, and quickened her pace.
"Jiang Chengfeng! You come out here!"
"Hey! Stop yelling like that!"
A group of people gathered outside the Tian Ce Mansion.
A person dressed in bright yellow robes, carrying a heavy sword and a light sword on their back, and holding a paper bag containing an unknown amount of stuff, was loudly calling out someone's name towards the Tian Ce Mansion.
The Tian Ce Mansion wasn't familiar with the people here, but they knew his attire very well. This was the West Lake, nestled beside the beautiful mountains and waters, and he was a disciple of the Hidden Sword Manor.
The two newly arrived guards had only been in the manor for a short time. When they encountered such a shrewish man, they only dared to raise their spears to block his way, refusing to take a single step back.
"Jiang Chengfeng! Jiang Chengfeng! Don't hide inside and stay silent! I know you're home!"
Ye Min put her hands to her mouth and called out into the air.
The young guard couldn't stop him anymore. A group of senior brothers and sisters had gathered around to watch the commotion. Seeing that this young master of the Hidden Sword Sect had quite a temper and wouldn't leave anyone else alone, they couldn't hold back any longer and reluctantly asked:
"Second Young Master, please have some compassion and stop shouting. If there's anything wrong, can't we go and inform them for you?"
"No way! I'm going to shout here! If he doesn't come out, I'll keep shouting! Let everyone in the Tian Ce Manor see how such a treacherous person disgraces your manor!"
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