Chapter 105: Qishan Fengchan 12: Lost in Advance or Retreat
After Yuchang's warning sounded, Li Xuanhe quickly pulled Xun Shu deeper into the rockery cave.
The rockery, seemingly unremarkable on the outside, held a hidden world within. Upon first entering, it seemed spacious enough to accommodate Xun Shu and his companions. After a few more steps, it narrowed, barely enough for two people to walk side by side. A few more steps, and after turning a corner, only a narrow passage remained, requiring two people walking sideways to pass.
"Let's just walk here," Xun Shu said hesitantly. "It should be invisible outside."
Li Xuanhe said "hmm" lightly, without reminding her that they could also pass through one after the other.
From outside the rockery, a conversation emanated. It seemed to be Wuweizi and another person, but it was faint and indistinct through the rock. Xun Shu held her breath, pressing her back against the cool rock, trying to widen the distance between them. But no matter how hard she struggled, there was only a finger's width of space between them. If she wasn't careful, their bodies would be pressed tightly together.
The air grew increasingly hot, and their breaths mingled uncontrollably. Xun Shu's earlobes burned as if on fire. He turned his head away, staring into the darkness ahead, his lips tightly pursed, afraid that the sound of his heartbeat would escape his throat and be heard by the person across from him.
Time seemed to stand still in the cave. Xun Shu had never felt more tormented than she did now. She felt a touch of impatience, a touch of nervousness, and a mixture of inexplicable emotions. She wanted time to speed up, yet she also wanted it to stop a little longer... She didn't know what she wanted.
"Ah Shu." The man's voice suddenly exploded in her ear, and his breath sprayed on her earlobe, hot and scorching, bringing a new tremor. She wanted to shake off this feeling, and turned her head suddenly, and her lips seemed to brush against another soft spot.
Xun Shu was stunned for a moment before he came to his senses. He hurriedly took a few steps to the side, as if avoiding a flood or a beast. "What, what happened?"
The cave was completely dark, and Li Xuanhe couldn't see Xun Shu's face. Only the touch of their lips and her sudden withdrawal were the only realities left in this void. He clenched his fists and forced a concealed smile, forgetting that no one could see.
"Nothing, they're gone, you can go out now."
Xun Shu listened attentively for a moment before believing his words and turned to walk out of the rockery.
The way out seemed much longer than the way in. The two walked forward in silence, one in front and one behind. As they exited the cave, they ran into Yuchang, who was standing outside, hesitating whether to go in and look for them. Seeing them emerge from the darkness, Yuchang breathed a sigh of relief and recounted what had just happened. "They were from the Hall of Eternal Life, seemingly passing by by chance. Wuweizi has already explained the matter away, so they shouldn't be discovered."
Xun Shu's eyelids twitched, and she frowned slightly, feeling a sense of unease rising in her heart. Yu Chang saw her expression and asked hurriedly, "Is there something wrong?"
Xun Shu couldn't grasp the fleeting feeling and could only shake his head: "It's okay. Maybe I'm overthinking it."
-
While Xun Shu and Li Xuanhe were busy heading deeper into the cave, Wu Wei Zi was also busy. He hurriedly left the cave and walked outside the rockery, just in time to meet the young Taoist priest who suddenly appeared nearby.
This man was a regular attendant of the Palace Master, named Qingyun. He was usually serious and reserved. Wuweizi felt that he didn't resemble the free-spirited people of the Changsheng Palace, but more like a well-behaved and regimented official in the government office.
Qingyun spotted Wuweizi emerging from the rockery, his expression as blank as ever. He asked him why he was there. Wuweizi's heart was pounding, but he remained impassive, smiling and dismissing him as just strolling around. Fearing he might discover the person hiding within the rockery, Wuweizi didn't dare delay any further and half-pulled Qingyun towards the Star-Moon Palace.
As the walls of the Xingyue Palace came into view, far from the rockery, Wuweizi relaxed, gradually believing that this was all an accident, that Qingyun had simply happened to be passing by. He walked briskly into the Xingyue Palace through the side door, but he didn't expect Qingyun to close the gate the moment he stepped through, blocking his escape.
Wuweizi stopped and became nervous for a moment: "Master Qingyun, what are you doing?"
Qingyun didn't say anything, pushed him forward and walked into the yard.
There were many people from the Hall of Eternal Life standing in the courtyard, gathered in groups of two or three, whispering to each other. When they saw him approaching, they continued pointing and talking.
Wuweizi's eyes swept across everyone's faces, and finally stopped on the faces of a few people he was familiar with, but he saw that they were avoiding his gaze, and no one dared to look him in the eye.
Wuweizi thought of Xun Shu's instructions over the past two days, and his heart suddenly turned cold.
He stopped in the middle of the yard, unwilling to take another step forward. He swallowed and smiled palely: "Well, it's getting late. I'll go back and rest first. I won't bother Taoist Qingyun to see me off."
He turned to leave, but Qingyun blocked his path. He still looked half-dead, his eyes wide open as he calmly said, "The Lord wants to see you."
Wuweizi didn't know how he walked into the main hall. He only felt his legs and feet shaking so badly that they almost didn't belong to him. He kept telling himself that this was the Sai Palace and the master of the palace was very kind, but he was still very scared.
It suddenly occurred to him that the Palace Master, with his omniscience, had no idea what he was doing. Perhaps, ever since that awful fish was killed, the Palace Master knew everything. A thousand thoughts raced through his mind, but he had no idea how to solve this chess game.
There was a desk in the main hall. Chi Yangzi, the master of the Changsheng Hall, stood behind the desk, slightly bent over, with one hand on the desk and the other holding a pen, writing something.
He wrote a word, paused for a moment to breathe, then wrote again and paused again. Wuweizi thought he had written a long poem, but when the hall master put down his pen and held up the paper to show him, he discovered that there were only four large, vigorous characters on the paper:
"Unable to advance or retreat."
Wuweizi fell to his knees with a thud.
-
The Zhai Palace was sealed off, and Xun Shu could not leave. Li Xuanhe placed her in a wing room in his courtyard, and then hurriedly left the courtyard, leaving only a few words, and it was unknown what he was going to do.
The tightly closed gate, the silent courtyard, the square sky. Xun Shu stood in the dilapidated courtyard shrouded in the night, unable to even sigh.
She looked up at the moon obscured by clouds.
When the clouds begin to disperse, the moon can emit one-third of its light. When the clouds gather, the moon becomes dim and looks a bit pitiful.
She watched quietly for a while, then turned and went back to her room.
Xun Shu was a die-hard sleeper, always finding himself restless after changing his sleeping spot. That night was no different. But perhaps because he was so exhausted the previous night, at least he didn't have any nightmares, and by the time he woke up the next day, his exhaustion had mostly dissipated.
There was a three-layered food box on the ground in front of the door. When Xun Shu opened the door, she saw it at a glance. She was about to pick up the food box, but turned her head and found an envelope under the food box. She didn't know who wrote the letter to her.
Xun Shu took out the letter and unfolded it, and found that the handwriting on the letter was from Liangqiu and the other two people.
The letter was written in a rather sloppy manner. The first half was in Liang Qiu's handwriting, which first described the important parts of what happened yesterday.
Yesterday, Yuanzhou and Chu Miao discovered a Qimen Dunjia formation in a forest a few miles away. It was constructed using the power of mountains and rivers, impenetrable to outsiders. They wondered what lay hidden within. Yuanzhou and Chu Miao were alone, unable to break the formation. They had no choice but to return to town to consult Liangqiu, but Liangqiu was also alone. Just as they were unsure what to do, Li Xuanhe appeared in his courtyard.
Liang Qiu knew Xun Shu had warned him to be wary of this man, but time was of the essence, leaving him with no other options but to seek help from Li Xuanhe. Li Xuanhe agreed, offering to provide manpower to help break the formation. They would return to the mountains at dawn today, and if they had any new information, they would find a way to share it with her.
Following Liangqiu's handwriting, a few lines of scraggly characters, like ants crawling, followed. Yuanzhou's handwriting. These few lines contained little substance, mostly focusing on Li Xuanhe's identity and exploring their relationship. Finally, he added that this young man was handsome and came from a distinguished family. While he might not be her true love, she had grown up in the mountains, absorbing so much spiritual energy from heaven and earth. She shouldn't be so hesitant and pedantic as the rest of the world. Instead, she should enjoy life and cultivate her cultivation through dual cultivation.
The last line, delicate yet vigorous, was written by Chu Miao. She didn't write anything important, merely urging her to be careful and stay safe. Do your best and leave everything to fate.
Several sheets of paper were densely covered with words. Xun Shu read them over and over again, and finally put them reluctantly into his small bag and put them away carefully.
The food box was still on the ground. Xun Shu took it into the house and opened it, revealing several plates of exquisite pastries. She knew at a glance who prepared it for her.
She stared at the pastries for a long time without moving.
-
At the end of the Si hour, a commotion erupted in the Zhai Palace. Unsure what was happening, Xun Shu opened the gate and saw two men guarding it. Knowing her curiosity, they took the initiative to explain, "It seems someone has filed a complaint with His Majesty. The Zhai Palace is in turmoil right now. It's best not to go out, young lady, to avoid being bumped into."
Xun Shu nodded nonchalantly and asked, "Where's Li Xuanhe?"
The person at the door paused and said, "My dear husband has already rushed over."
Xun Shu said no more. After closing the gate, he turned around and climbed up the tree at the corner swiftly, then rode along the branches to the wall.
The wall was higher than she had imagined. Xun Shu looked down, a little hesitant. Just as she was wondering if she would break her legs if she jumped down, she looked up and saw Li Xuanhe not far away.
He was wearing his official uniform and walking hurriedly towards the courtyard. When he saw her climbing the wall, his face was quite interesting.
Xun Shu paused, then pretended not to see him, turned around and went back to the tree.
A moment later, the courtyard gate opened, and Li Xuanhe walked under the tree. He looked at the person hiding in the tree, hidden by the branches and leaves, and said helplessly, "If you want to go with me, come down quickly."
As soon as he finished speaking, a rustling sound came from the treetops. A moment later, Xun Shu nimbly climbed down from the tree to the ground, and stood in front of Li Xuanhe with his head lowered, looking docile and well-behaved.
Li Xuanhe looked at the man before him and realized once again that he didn't seem to understand Xun Shu as well as he thought. She used to bask lazily in the sun in the coffin shop, well-behaved and obedient, never causing trouble. While she could be sharp-tongued at times, she had never been as rebellious as she was now.
He threw a set of clothes to Xun Shu and said, "Change into these clothes, pretend to be my guard, and go with me."
The clothes were dusty, the kind worn by ordinary guards in the Zhai Palace. Xun Shu held them in his hands, suddenly puzzled, and asked bluntly, "Have you already gone to His Majesty's palace? Why did you come back to find me?"
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