Bai Xue sneered, “You wretch, you know well that the young master can’t bring himself to do it, yet you still put on this act for whom to see?”
Chuxia glanced at her lightly, her once picturesque eyes now devoid of life: “If you don’t kill me now, I will leave. From now on, mountains high and rivers wide, we might never meet again.” The young master shifted his gaze, murmuring, “I don’t want you to die.”
“But she killed Qinglong… Young Master, you raised Xu Yao with your own hands…” Bai Xue could no longer hold back, collapsing to the ground and bursting into tears. Cang Qianlang stepped forward to support her, and the young master looked at her, softly saying, “Believe me, if Xu Yao were here now, he wouldn’t want her dead either.”
Chuxia’s heart was filled with bitterness… Yes, Qinglong was so kind; he wouldn’t want her dead.
“Su Fenghua, please tell the sect leader that Ah Hui is grateful for her upbringing. But after this incident, I’m afraid I can no longer stay in the sect as before. Please tell her, consider me dead.” She emphasized the word “grateful” heavily, giving a mocking smile that was breathtakingly beautiful under the moonlight. Then she turned straight, boarded a small boat, standing with her back to everyone, her white dress fluttering in the night breeze, looking frail and pitiful.
The young master watched her silhouette for a long time before softly instructing, “Send her away, and no one is to trouble her.” The small boat gradually disappeared into the shimmering waters of Lake Dongting, but the young master kept staring at the dark patch until Cang Qianlang whispered, “Young Master, let’s go too… Qinglong’s body is still in Yueyang…”
A sweet, metallic taste suddenly rose in the young master’s throat; he suppressed it, slowly saying, “Let’s go.” The silence of Lake Dongting was punctuated by the speckled bamboo of the Xiangfei, and the group left in silence, with only Bai Xue’s intermittent sobs breaking the quiet. Standing at the bow of the ship, the young master coughed lightly, and that sweet, metallic taste surged in his throat once more. Su Fenghua’s words echoed in his ears: “…for the rest of your life, you can love, but you can’t have it.”
He suddenly recalled how Chuxia had been reluctant to leave with him before, her eyes full of longing yet tinged with fear. That night by Little Mirror Lake, she had said, “Parting, it’s truly so heart-wrenching…”
Now, truly — the small boat has gone, entrusting the rest of one’s life to the vastness of rivers and seas.
Months later, word spread that the young master, Jun Ye’an, had retired from the martial world. Some said he personally went to Shaolin to explain the death of Master Tufeng, admitting his inability to find the murderer, and thus chose to retire. Others said he left the martial world out of despair because of a woman he couldn’t have. There were also rumors that he had discovered the secrets of the landscape, and thus, he roamed freely in the vast mountains and rivers, leaving no trace in the mortal realm.
Regardless of the legends, Jun Ye’an — the young master whose sight was enough to make anyone’s heart leap with joy — had indeed disappeared from the martial world. This became reality and a fleeting memory in people’s minds.
Chapter Thirty-Five: Two Years Later. Eastern Capital, Luoyang. Yuchun Building.
“The eldest son of the Di family, known as the Flower King of Luoyang, is getting engaged!”
“Which lucky girl has caught his eye?”
“Ah, the Di family’s daughter hasn’t married yet; she’s almost an old maid!”
“I heard that the young lady of the Di family once admired a certain young master.”
“Could it be… the young master from Cangzhou?”
“Indeed… Ah, without the young master, the martial world just isn’t the same…”
The men drinking flower wine held fine liquor in one hand and beautiful women in the other, their conversation lively, piquing the curiosity of the beauties in their laps, “Who is this young master?”
The man with a bushy beard patted the cheek of the heavily made-up girl in his arms, laughing, “When the young master roamed the martial world, you were still a little thing, it’s normal you haven’t heard of him.”
“By the way, where’s Miss Chuxue from your building? Why haven’t we heard her play the zither recently?”
Chuxue was the top courtesan of Yuchun Building, with a zither skill that was peerless. Common patrons couldn’t even get a glance, but she had a habit of playing several tunes in the elegant pavilion on the second floor of Yuchun Building for three to five days each month. Thus, those days always saw the building packed with eager patrons.
“The guest might not know… Miss Chuxue has been inseparable from a young master these days. That young master is quite generous, and the madam naturally approves, even forgetting about the zither playing…”
“What kind of young master could win Miss Chuxue’s favor?”
The girl pouted, whispering, “Look, isn’t that him?” Her tone was slightly acidic, mixed with envy. The patrons followed her gaze.
Indeed, a young man was entering, dressed in light robes and a jade crown, his profile blurred but exuding an elegance that was hard to look away from.
“Looks like some young master from a noble family, not someone from the martial world, right?”
“Look, look, Miss Chuxue has come out personally to greet him…”
Amidst the envious gazes, Miss Chuxue, dressed in a plain long skirt, stood gracefully before the elegant pavilion, looking pure and unmatched despite being the top courtesan. Her beautiful eyes were full of affection, all focused on that young master.
A drunken man stood up, slamming a stack of silver notes on the table, loudly declaring, “I… I’ll offer five hundred taels of silver for a night with… Chuxue!”
His follower quickly rebuked, “Where’s the manager? Didn’t you hear our master offer five hundred taels for a night with her?”
Someone nearby murmured, five hundred taels were indeed a lot… but this man was clearly an outsider, not understanding the market for flower wine in Luoyang. For a courtesan of Chuxue’s caliber, if she fancied a regular, she might not take a single coin; if she didn’t, even a thousand taels wouldn’t be enough. Sure,
Indeed, the young master’s steps did not falter, nor did Chuxue even lift an eyebrow. Only the madam came forward, greeting with a fawning smile, “My lord, we have every kind of girl here at Jade Spring Pavilion. Chuxue is occupied at the moment. How about I select a new one for you? She’s fresh and lively, only fourteen years old.”
“One thousand taels, I want her!” The man pointed at Chuxue and demanded, “Why can she serve others but not me? How much did that pretty boy pay? I’ll double it!”
The young master took half a step forward, paused at the words, and turned his head to look downstairs. With this movement, everyone could see his appearance. His face was as fair as jade, with thin lips and well-defined eyebrows, his eyes bright like stars, indeed, he had the air of a “pretty boy.”
Chuxue took a few steps forward, seemingly wanting to pull him away to avoid the unnecessary confrontation, but saw the young man give her an extremely gentle smile, then casually toss a ring from his little finger downstairs. That small object landed right in front of the man, shattering into pieces.
Anger flashed across the man’s face, he cursed, but upon seeing the shattered ring, he was momentarily speechless. It was a piece of rose-patterned blood jade. Nowadays, blood jade was extremely rare, let alone naturally patterned — roughly estimating its value, it could buy seventeen or eighteen of these Jade Spring Halls. The jade he himself wore around his waist was only tinged with a bit of blood jade essence, and whenever someone inquired about it during business, he felt his face light up with pride.
