“Speak! Where does the painting point to?” “How would I, a mere servant, know where the young master is heading?” Chuxia whimpered softly, “What painting? I don’t know anything about it…” “Cut the crap!” The leader in black snorted coldly, “Jun Yean searched through numerous albums, and you’re the only one who has seen them all! If you don’t know, who does?” Chuxia’s heart stirred; this man… why does he know all these details? Another whip cracked down, this time hitting her cheek, tears immediately streaming down her face. “I’ll ask you one more time, will you speak or not!” The leader twisted the whip in his hand and repeated the question. “I recognize your voice!” Chuxia blurted out, “You… you’re from the Jun Mansion!”
Chapter Fifteen: Chuxia blurted out, “You… you’re from the Jun Mansion. You… are an insider of the Tian Gang within the Jun Mansion.” The leader in black gave a low chuckle, his voice very hoarse: “The little girl has some insight, knowing even about the Tian Gang. You better tell me everything I ask. Otherwise…” He played with a lock of Chuxia’s hair in his palm, “Strip off your clothes, slit your throat, and cut off this hair, it would be quite fun, wouldn’t it?” Chuxia trembled all over, her teeth chattering: “You… you are the one who killed Lady Wang Yun?” The man didn’t answer, instead, he twirled a strand of Chuxia’s long hair with his finger, pulling it out with a slight force. Already terrified, Chuxia couldn’t help but cry out loud in pain, “I’ll speak… I’ll speak! Don’t kill me!” The man slightly released her: “Where are you heading?” “Qing… Qingchuan River.” “Why are you going to Qingchuan River?” “Because the place depicted in ‘Shan Shui Yao’ resembles a certain spot at Qingchuan River. The young master is leading us there to find it.” “Jun Yean trusts you quite a bit.” The leader in black seemed to ponder for a moment, then asked, “What secret does ‘Shan Shui Yao’ hide?” “I really don’t know that.” Chuxia trembled, “Even the young master doesn’t know.” The leader in black seemed to believe her and continued, “Qingchuan River is a branch of the Mang Mountain, stretching for miles, where exactly are you going?” Chuxia steadied herself, “The painting depicts mountains and rivers, we are going to Qingchuan River to find that place. But I don’t know the exact location within Qingchuan River.” A man in black stepped forward, whispered something into the leader’s ear, and the leader nodded, then turned to Chuxia, “So, you’ve seen the landscape?” Chuxia gritted her teeth: “Yes. In this world, only the young master and I have seen it.” The leader’s eyes flashed sharply: “So, only you can lead us to find the ‘Shan Shui Yao’?” “Yes. So… you, you’d better not kill me.” Chuxia mustered her courage, “As long as you don’t kill me… I’ll take you to that place.” The leader in black was silent for a long time, then coldly said, “You better not play any tricks.” “I wouldn’t dare… dare.” Chuxia felt the burning pain on her face and timidly asked, “May I ask, leader, what day is it today?” “Why do you ask?” Chuxia tearfully said, “I… I’m thinking about my life. If the young master, with his unparalleled schemes, finds the treasure first… I’m afraid you’ll be the first to kill me in anger.” The little girl knows how to adapt to circumstances; she’s quite clever. No wonder Jun Ye’an wants to keep you by his side.” The leader in black turned back coldly and said, “Today is the twenty-fourth of March. Tell our men to pick up the pace and make sure we reach Qingchuan River before Jun Ye’an.” A man in black beside him replied, “Don’t worry, leader. Jun Ye’an and the Azure Dragon are still in Daliuzhuang and haven’t caught up. They must still be looking for this girl.” Hearing the names of the young master and the Azure Dragon from someone else’s mouth, Chuxia felt a pang of sadness and couldn’t help but wonder… Are the young master and his people really searching for me everywhere?
Someone threw Chuxia into a carriage, and they whipped the horses, heading west towards Qingchuan River. Inside the dark carriage, Chuxia lay on her back, trying hard not to let her tears fall, silently vowing… Young Master, I will definitely live to see you again.
Daliuzhuang. This was the third time today that the Azure Dragon had come to eavesdrop outside the young master’s door. Standing outside the window, he could faintly smell the scent of incense burning in a Boshan censer through the cracks, while inside, the elegant sound of the zither played a tune called “Guanshan Yue”. The young master’s zither playing was always light, and even when playing themes of war and horses, he could evoke a sense of tranquility and profound meaning. It was hard to believe that Jun Ye’an, known for his decisive actions in the martial world, was such a refined gentleman. Normally, listening to the young master’s zither music would cleanse away all of Qinglong’s worldly concerns. But today, he grew increasingly restless, and hearing Bai Xue’s laughter from within only fueled his frustration. He kicked the door open in one swift motion.
The young master’s slender fingers paused on the zither strings upon seeing it was Qinglong, showing no surprise, only saying, “You’ve come at the right time, Qinglong, listen to my new composition.”
“Young Master—”
The young master continued his sentence leisurely, “However, this zither was just bought locally, so it’s just passable.”
Bai Xue, dressed in a pale green gown, was adding incense to the burner, and upon hearing this, she smiled lightly and said, “The young master is too modest. Your zither skills… when I played in front of you that day, thinking back now, it truly was embarrassing.”
Qinglong gritted his teeth and said, “Young Master, Chuxia was abducted three days ago, and we’re just sitting here doing nothing?”
The young master casually plucked a string and said nonchalantly, “Didn’t I tell you to search everywhere? Have you found her?”
“I! I can’t leave Daliuzhuang, how can I search everywhere?” Qinglong said anxiously, “Young Master, I think it might be better to send Xuan—”
The young master slightly raised his phoenix eyes, subtly increasing the volume of the zither. Qinglong immediately understood and changed his words, “I think it might be better… if you sent me out to search along the way?”
Jun Ye’an gave a non-committal “hm,” and then said, “If I send you out, would you find her? Wasn’t she lost under your watch?”
Someone chuckled softly, and Qinglong glanced at Bai Xue, who seemed confident and fearless. He suppressed his anger, bowed, and left. As he was leaving, he could still hear the young master’s voice, tinged with amusement, “Bai Xue, this piece ‘Autumn Wind Night Mooring’ should start like this…”
He turned back to see the young master standing behind Bai Xue, embracing her from behind, his hands covering hers, whispering something, as if no one else existed.
“Damn it.” Qinglong cursed under his breath, then realized he should be cursing himself. Frustrated, he went to the back of the inn, mounted his horse, and rode off without looking back.
Inside, the young master stood by the window, watching Qinglong’s figure disappear into the distance, a mysterious smile playing on his lips. Bai Xue’s zither playing suddenly faltered, but he didn’t turn around, yet seemed to sense her inner turmoil, and lazily said, “Don’t stop, continue.”
“Leader, is this girl playing tricks on us?” asked a man in black by the campfire to the leader. “We’ve been wandering in these mountains for days. Every time we find a waterfall, she says it’s not the right one. How long do we have to keep searching like this?”
The leader was folding a long whip, his face obscured by shadows, looking extremely somber. “Only she has seen the painting. If she’s just making things up, we wouldn’t know.”
