chapter 29

Gu Nan got to her feet and did her morning stretch . Her thin nightgown lazily sprawled over her, revealing some white skin on her shoulders .

The sky still remained dark, although the edges of light signaled that dawn was imminent .

Her injury was just about fully healed . But after the last couple days of hobbling and limping about, her prolonged boredom almost drove her insane .

Gu Nan turned to face Xiao Lu, who was busy cleaning some garments .

“Xiao Lu, quick, grab the spear and bring it over . I should probably play with it, else it’ll start to rust soon . ”

Xiao Lu looked up and started to chuckle because Gu Nan began to mutter obscenities under her breath, which did not befit her image . But looking at the lazily-dressed figure, she somewhat reprimanded, “Miss, get some more clothes on first, it’s cold outside . ”

“Ugh, I know, I know . It’s really so troublesome . ”

Gu Nan looked down at her own appearance and simultaneously scratched her hair . Truthfully, her appearance was never a concern, for her at least . If she could stay at home for the rest of her life, she might as well only wear shorts all day . Where’s the need for such hassle .

But in the last life, it certainly lacked all these tiresome things . But then again, being a man should be different right?

Xiao Lu put up the silk cloth that she was washing and went to grab the set of black robes from the wall .

I still don’t know why Miss still likes male clothes .

Miss is always like this, but if she dresses up…

She pictured Gu Nan with a shiny, silk dress . Unconsciously, she blushed again and quickly nodded .

It must be beautiful .

“Miss, wear the clothes . ” Xiao Lu muttered as she began to drape the dark robes over her shoulders .

Feeling Xiao Lu’s wrap around her waist as she worked to tighten the clothes, Gu Nan instinctively pulled away . Forcing a smile, she waved her hand, “I can do this . ”

Seeing that she was already embarrassed, Xiao Lu didn’t say anything . She went onto rearranging Gu Nan’s hair . Gu Nan was neither very experienced nor keen on tieing her long hair, requiring Xiao Lu to come help most of the time .

By the time everything was done, the slightly disheveled girl turned into a sharp young master .

Gu Nan grabbed the spear, about as tall as a man, that was propped up against the corner of the wall .

Pushing open the door, she found another woman standing in the small courtyard . She wore similar clothes to Xiao Lu and was standing quietly at the base of the old tree .

Gu Nan felt a bit jubilant today and chuckled .

“Miss Painting Fairy, good morning . ”

Painting Fairy heard someone call out from behind her, but was surprised to see that ‘person of jade’ laughing and walking up to greeting her .

She unconsciously rolled her eyes . If Miss Gu continues to dress up like this and decides to wander around the city, who knows how many girls would be fooled for a lifetime?

Thinking of herself, the Painting Fairy could only feel some slight injustice .

“Miss Gu, this Painting Fairy is now a part of Wu’an Manor . There is no need to use ‘Miss’ when referring to me, Painting Fairy is adequate . ”

Xiao Lu laughed happily slightly . “That’s great . Finally, I don’t have to deal with Miss’s troublesome attitude alone . ”

“Oi!” Gu Nan’s face turned sour and her hands started to tug at Xiao Lu’s cheeks . “Who did you say has a troublesome attitude? Hm?”

“Umu‧‧‧” Her cheeks started to redden from the onslaught .

As Xiao Lu and Gu Nan lightly bickered, Painting Fairy stood there watching with a graceful smile .

There was a vague reminiscence in her eyes . She had never thought that she could experience such ordinary days .

…

The weather was a little cold, but the morning sun already brightened the vast sky .

Gu Nan held the spear diagonally and stood unmoving in the courtyard . Some of her long hair dangled from her temples, which sways along with the cool wind .

For students of culture and warfare, learning is like paddling a boat against the current . If they don’t advance, they quickly regress . Four days of rest caused her spear to feel a bit unnatural in her hands .

Painting Fairy and Xiao Lu sat on the side, spectating . The light snow in Xianyang made Gu Nan’s black clothes particularly conspicuous .

“zing!”

When the spear moved, it traveled like a shadow . With the force of nearly a thousand jin (600kg), it touched upon the limits of a human’s physical strength .

slash, thust, cut!

The blows of the spear disturbed the snow and sent brief breezes into the air . The courtyard’s snow was blown into a mess by the winds . The spear seemed to have cut through some snowflakes as a layer of white frost began to grow at the tip .

Painting Fairy sat there, carefully examining Gu Nan, the loose sleeves and edges twirled about, the long hair which fluttered in the light . That spear, which could bring about death, in her hands, felt tragic but beautiful .

“Don’t you think Miss is very awesome?” Xiao Lu asked after she glanced at Painting Fairy’s intense stare .

“Art of war, swordsmanship, horse riding, and poetry . ”

“Even most men are not as awesome as Miss . ” Xiao Lu said as she tilted her chin up smugly . Although Painting Fairy had only been here several days, it’s been enough for a level of closeness to form between the two .

“Sometimes I think it would be good if Miss was a man . ” Xiao Lu muttered with a dazed expression but quickly shook her head in a slight panic . “Haha, what am I saying?”

Painting Fairy smiled and looked back at the figure in the courtyard .

Yeah, if it was a man, how good would that be?…

————————————————————

A dull day passed quickly . Just like how a day of idleness makes you forget that it even existed at all .

Since that incident with the Dongzhan Pavillion, Gu Nan never made any more troubles for Bai Qi, which was a relief . Perhaps it instilled a sense of responsibility into that disciple .

The poem of ‘Butterflies in Love with Flowers,’ Bai Qi read it . Although he wasn’t too familiar with poetry, he could still acknowledge why his disciple’s talents were so heralded throughout the city . There was a commotion that particular day as the royal court convened . When the poem came out, that poetry-fanatic Fan Jun almost lost his mind and started getting emotional as he praised it; it was like listening to a woman .

Of course, Gu Nan’s poetry wasn’t anything useful in the eyes of Bai Qi . Rather, it meant that she needed to study more military literature in the future .

It already reached the end of December . The city took a dull atmosphere as few things occurred . Wu’an Manor was as usual . The entrance remained deserted and quiet, unlike the manors of high officials .

Bai Qi sat on the woven recline, his black robes, embroidered with gold, hung softly, a long sword also dangled from his waist .

In his hand was a military insignia . Paired with it was a simple decree that laid on the table .

-At the end of the year, command a hundred thousand troops, march to Changping .