V2C44

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The two of them hid behind the flowering tree, not even daring to breathe.

In fact, there is no reason to act like a thief, but somehow the thought that they know the secret of this beautiful woman makes them afraid to face her, for fear that she will find out.

Perhaps what they are more afraid of is that they will break her and the man in charge for the second time here. But as they watched, she seemed to be the only one here, staring at something, startled and confused.

“Let’s just go.” Xuanji lowered her voice and made a gesture to retreat, for she was afraid of trouble.

Yu Sifeng shook his head, “Wait…see what she’s going to do.” He wanted to collect some evidence in case something happens and the two of them are framed by her, that would be too ugly.

The beauty looked at the falling flowers and sighed, her voice was softer than the timbre of a jade flower, which seemed to contain countless grievances and bitterness, making the listening people tingle, wanting to do something for her, so that the beauty’s happy face would reappear.

“She seems to be singing … ” Xuanji listened intently, and through the sea breeze, her beautiful singing voice was like of a deep-sea, sometimes rising to the clouds, sometimes falling heavily and scattering the sound of jade and pearls.

“Behold beyond the River Qi, the verdant bamboo forest dances. A handsome man intently working, As a great master sculpting a piece of jade, As a great artist sculpting a piece of ivory, Relaxed, confident, dignified and stately. Such an elegant man, how can he be forgotten by me.[1]“

The voice gradually faded away, and the beauty leaned on a tree, plucking at the flowers, and no longer made a sound.

What was she singing? Xuanji looked at Yu Sifeng and instinctively knew that he must have an answer.

Yu Sifeng whispered, “She sang about a gentleman, as beautiful as if he were carved out of jade, and boasted of how mighty and noble he was, so she couldn’t stop thinking about him.”

“A love song!! Xuanji was shocked. So this is the legendary love song! It’s the first time she’s heard it.

“It’s so nice, if only she’d sing a few more lines.” She lamented.

Yu Sifeng said, “It sounds like she’s sincere about that steward, but she married the Dongfang Qingqi by mistake and couldn’t resist playing with fire. I just don’t know if that steward is sincere in treating her…”

Xuanji said, “What? Do you want to help them stay together?”

He shook his head, “How is that possible? Marriage is a lifelong affair, not something to be taken lightly. Since she has paid her respects with Dongfang QIngqi, there is no turning back.”

“The what do you mean by what you just said…?” Xuanji was confused by him.

“I mean…” He narrowed his eyes and showed some pity, “If that steward was sincere, at least she wouldn’t have wasted her love for him. No matter what, its always a pity when someone plays with your feelings.”

That’s reasonable. Xuanji nodded his head, and the balance in her heart was tilted in favor of Lady Dongfang.

Lady Dongfang was silent for a while and sang a few more lines, just praising the gentleman and telling her how much she missed him. Xuanji could only feel the melancholy tone of her song, as if she was extremely happy, but underneath the happiness was a deep sorrow. Is it possible that loving someone will cause so much pain? She remembered a whispered conversation between her mother and Ling Long that she overheard last time, where they were talking about Zhong Minyan. She asked if Linglong really liked him, and Linglong blushed and held her tongue for a long time before saying: When she sees him, she’s so happy that she can’t help herself. However, if she didn’t see him, she felt extremely uncomfortable. Mother nodded her head and said, “Falling in love with a person is such a risky endeavor, and love is half misery and half joy.”

She has never understood what it means to be half miserable and half joyful, wanting to be with someone, happy with him, and how can it be painful? If you feel pain, then don’t see him again, why are you happy to see him?

However, at this moment, listening to Lady Dongfang’s mournful song, she was a bit obsessed, remembering those childhood events, which seemed to have become very distant memories, like a tapestry of soft silk, one by one, incessant and confusing. The so-called “loss and gain”, the sweetness and the bitterness are entangled, and she seems to have some understanding.

“Let’s go. Don’t look any further.”

Yu Sifeng suddenly pulled her sleeve. Xuanji came back to her senses suddenly and nodded her head, and the two of them quietly tip-toed around the back of the flowering tree, far away from that place.

Xuanji walked behind Yu Sifeng with her head hanging down, not knowing what to think. After a while, she whispered, “Si-feng, do you still want to talk to Uncle Dongfang to make things clear?”

Their original plan was to indirectly reveal the truth to Dongfang Qingqi, so that the wrongly accused disciples could come back, but now, who would still have the heart to reveal the truth?

Yu Sifeng breathed a long sigh and said in a low voice, “They are all pitiful people, and none can bear to do harm. Let’s see what kind of person that steward is at dinner tonight, then we’ll make a plan.”

Xuanji nodded her head, and they circled around Fuyu Island, finding their way back to their rooms with great difficulty.

At dinner time, Dongfang Qingqi sent someone to invite them. After walking through the flowers and willows for some time, they came to an elegant octagonal pavilion. Xuanji saw the pavilion was draped with a green veil and the moonlight reflected on it, there was a beauty in the pavilion, as if a fairy out of a painting, so beautiful that she didn’t dare to look at her.

The two people saw her eyebrows and eyes, and knew she was the same person who sang in the flowery forest, but she had changed into a moon white dress with a white jade hairpin diagonally inserted in her bun. No powder or makeup, in the watery moonlight, looked more like a peony, attractive and elegant, above the common people[2].

This is the first time I’ve seen such a beauty, but it still shocked Xuanji’s heart, and I guess Yu SiFeng is also a little uncontrollable, both of them walk past in silence, not daring to speak.

Dongfang Qingqi smiled and sat opposite the beauty, beckoning to the two of them, “Come here quickly. Always saying that the Amber Fruit Wine is so good, so today I’ll let you try the Hundred Flowers Clear Dew Wine from Fuyu Island.”

The two of them went over to them in a disciplined manner, Xuanji glanced at Lady Dongfang many times and finally said, “Xuanji greets the Madam.”

The beauty raised her eyebrows faintly, and with a smile on her lips, she said softly, “She is the daughter of Sect Leader Chu, isn’t she? Is this the first time you’ve come to Fuyu Island? Why don’t you stay for a few more days and have some fun.”

Xuanji saw that even though she was amiable, she couldn’t hide her indifference, as if she wasn’t interested in anything here. Could it be because the steward she liked was not here?

The poor Dongfang Qingqi had to act like there was nothing going on in front of the younger generation, sometimes persuading them to drink, sometimes serving them food, and only telling them some old anecdotes, while Lady Dongfang doesn’t say a word from the beginning to the end, bowed her head and only sipped her wine slowly. Xuanji and Yu Sifeng could not bear to see him singing a monologue, so they had no choice but to talk and laugh with him, the meal was unbearable.

“You have learned a lot this time from your experience in the mountains, haven’t you?” Dongfang Qingqi, whether intentionally or unintentionally, drank one cup after another, and the two pots of Hundred Flowers Wine were already empty after only half of the meal.

Xuanji and Yu Sifeng looked at each other, but they didn’t know what to do. Yu Sifeng could only laugh and say, “I had thought that all the demons in the world were unintelligent and foolish. Now I know that even after thousands of years of training, demons can be just like humans, with their feelings, desires, love and hatred. The world is so big, there are so many things we don’t know, it’s saddening.”

Dongfang QIngqi has been drinking for a long time, and was nodding his head with hazy laughter.

Dongfang Qingqi smiled and said, “Little Xuanji’s power is now so deep that she can feel the evil aura? Chu, you really are not simple, a tiger father will not have a dog daughter!”

This has something to do with power? Xuanji was shocked and didn’t quite dare to boast about her prowess in this area. She was still very clear about her own abilities, and there was still a gap of a hundred thousand miles between her and Linglong, but she was just lucky enough to be able to avert danger every time.

At this time, Lady Dongfang, who had been sitting beside her for a long time, suddenly said, “Don’t talk to death, not all demons smell demonic to people. Those who have attained great enlightenment are no different from human beings.”

The people were stunned when they saw her suddenly put in such a sentence. The lady continued, “A demon who is free and easy dreams to become an immortal with a human body. But in the end discovered, that cultivation into a human being, the so-called immortal, is just a flower in the mirror and the moon in the water.”

Isn’t it good to be a human being? Xuanji wanted to ask her why she said that, but she didn’t expect that Dongfang Qingqi would put down the wine cup and say, “Qing Rong, you’ve drunk too much.”

The name of Lady Dongfang is Qing Rong. As her name suggests, she is really elegant.

But she frowned slightly and said in a low voice, “You are the one who drank too much, old man.”

The two people looked at each other steadfastly across a single stone table and did not say a word, causing the two juniors to be afraid to breathe and to feel that the meal was the most painful they had ever eaten.

After a long time, Dongfang Qingqi laughed and waved his hand, probably to say something to ease the scene. However, Qing Rong got up and said, “I’m tired, go rest first. You two don’t have to be so formal on the island, just treat it as your own home, and if you need anything, just look for Steward Ouyang.”

They don’t know if this Steward Ouyang is the gentleman she was talking about. But she suddenly remembered something and turned around and ordered the disciple outside the pavilion: “Call Steward Ouyang here to watch over your master, so that he won’t get carried away with his cup.”

The disciple promised to go down, and indeed a man came, a long, slender man with black hair and white clothes, with a handsome face, but a scar on his face that was blood red, adding to the ferociousness.

When Xuanji and Sifeng saw it was this man, they were both very concerned. Lady Dongfang ordered: “Ouyang, have a drink with the master. You should be careful not to drink too much, as it is a rare occasion for the two children to come here today.”

Ouyang agreed, and then stepped forward, drew out the wine pot and skillfully added another glass of wine for everyone.

Xuanji saw Lady Dongfang standing behind him, she looked at the scars on his face with a flash of love and pain. No one else saw it but her.

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[1]: 瞻彼淇奧，綠竹猗猗。(Zhān bǐ qí ào, lǜ zhú yī yī.)

有匪君子，如切如磋，如琢如磨，瑟兮僴兮，赫兮咺兮。(Yǒu fěi jūnzǐ, rú qiè rú cuō, rú zuó rú mó, sè xī xiàn xī, hè xī xuǎn xī.)

有匪君子，終不可諼兮 (Yǒu fěi jūnzǐ, zhōng bùkě xuān xī)

[2]: 不 食人 间烟 火 (bù shí rén jiān yān huǒ) – an idiom that literally translates as ‘not eating the food of common mortals’ and figuratively means, ‘putting oneself above the common populace’, or someone who is better than the average person. (similar to the English idiom ‘a cut above’)

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