Mountain and River Festival

Chapter 118 The closer I get to home, the more timid I become; I dare not flirt with the literary youth.

Hearing him say that, Sheng Yuanyao was stunned for a moment, then her eyes lit up: "According to you, you and he are enemies?"

"I suppose so. What's wrong?" Lu Xingzhou laughed, "Can't sit still, looking to make a name for yourself?"

“Of course!” Sheng Yuanyao tapped the table with her chopsticks: “Do you know that he committed murder in the outskirts of Beijing last month? It was the first case I encountered while I was in office in the capital. In the end, even though we knew who did it, we couldn’t catch him…”

"Even when someone commits a murder in the Underworld, there are very few cases where the Demon Suppression Division catches them. No one should blame you, right?"

"Other people's business is their own business. Don't I have any pride?" Sheng Yuanyao leaned closer and nudged him with her elbows. "Hey, since he's your enemy and comes from the Underworld, you're very familiar with his methods. How about you help me out? You'll benefit if you catch him!"

Even up close, you can already smell the fragrance of the girl's hair.

Lu Xingzhou glanced at the girl's expectant look, remained silent for a moment, and then sighed: "Originally, I should help you with your matter. If it were any other opponent, I would have helped without hesitation. But for the Yama Palace, doing so would be betraying my former employer, which is unjust."

Sheng Yuanyao slammed her fist on the table: "Don't make me look down on you! This guy is your enemy! He's not your former subordinate! If I'm not mistaken, his men even tried to assassinate you before, and you're just going to chicken out like this?"

Lu Xingzhou remained silent.

Sheng Yuanyao added, "I think you're afraid of Yama's revenge, right? I understand! Who wouldn't be afraid of someone as strong as her? But don't worry, we won't reveal that you helped us, and Yama won't come after you."

Lu Xingzhou blurted out, "Who said I'm afraid of her!"

Ah Nu blinked her eyes and lowered her head to eat the fish.

Sheng Yuanyao smiled enigmatically: "Aren't you afraid?"

Lu Xingzhou pursed his lips and casually picked up some food: "Forget it, you're right. That guy tried to kill me first. If I don't retaliate, wouldn't I look like a pushover? I'll take this job."

Sheng Yuanyao leaned even closer, delighted: "We don't even know where he is right now, but you sound like you know him?"

“As long as he’s still nearby,” Lu Xingzhou said calmly, “so many people in the capital know I’ve come, he probably knows too. And I have so many enemies, if he kills me, he can frame the Huo family… so there’s a high chance he’ll come looking for me. Just keep an eye on me, and maybe we’ll find out. By the way…”

"how?"

"You...you haven't been chasing him all this time, have you?"

"Everyone is searching for him, but we haven't received any news. But I haven't personally gone to search for him; I even went hunting a few days ago."

Lu Xingzhou put down his chopsticks and frowned as he stared at her.

Sheng Yuanyao looked down at herself, puzzled, and saw that no food had fallen on her: "What's wrong?"

“This man is extremely narrow-minded. If you keep searching for and chasing him, he will definitely hold a grudge against you. And you yourself are not on guard and dare to go hunting... At first, he may not know that you are really hunting. He may think that you are trying to lure him and will not dare to make a move. But once he observes you a few times and finds out that you are really that careless, I feel that he is more likely to kill you than kill me.”

Sheng Yuanyao's eyes widened: "He dares?"

“He’s really daring.” Lu Xingzhou sighed. “This guy is pretty crazy… Take his rise to the top of the rookie rankings, for example. Who would have thought he would camp out at Cheng Yuan’s place for a whole month, waiting for an opportunity to deliver a fatal blow, just to prove his excellence to the King of Hell. And Cheng Yuan is also an official!”

Sheng Yuanyao: “…”

“If he were to kill me, I would have to worry about the unpredictable reaction of the King of Hell. But I have no such worries about killing you. You can even use this as a way to show off to me and make me sad because you are my friend.” Lu Xingzhou looked into her eyes very seriously: “From today onwards, you must strengthen the guards around you. If the Sheng family also has protectors or something, have them stay by your side at all times, even when you go to the toilet.”

Sheng Yuanyao blushed slightly: "What do you mean by 'going to the toilet'? That's vulgar."

"Ha..." Lu Xingzhou was amused by her: "It's rare to see our Commander Sheng blushing like this, just because of such a sentence... Please, the key point of that sentence is that you are dangerous, please get to the point."

Sheng Yuanyao rolled her eyes: "Alright, alright, I know."

But the rosy complexion on her face never faded.

Heaven knows that what she really meant by those words was "make me sad." She knew Lu Xingzhou didn't mean anything by it—anyone would be sad if their friend was killed—but that bastard's damned, affectionate eyes looking at her like that were so tenderly gazing at her were unbearable. Her heart skipped a beat, as if out of control, and hasn't calmed down since.

This is too much of a cheat! Sheng Yuanyao couldn't help but wonder if she could handle it if this guy really confessed his love with such deep affection. She really wanted to gouge out his lousy eyes; she wasn't a dog, why was he looking at her like that!
To be honest, if this guy hadn't been so good-looking, they wouldn't have become friends so easily. Sheng Yuanyao admitted that she was very attracted to good looks, including A Nuo's cute face, and even though she knew she had been tricked out of two taels of silver by her, she still couldn't help but like her.

Oh right... Sheng Yuanyao grabbed A'nuo's face fiercely: "You brat, you tricked me with the marriage divination, I forgot to settle this score with you!"

Ah Nuo dropped the meat from her mouth, and cried out in bewilderment, "I didn't lie to you..."

"That means your fortune telling was inaccurate. Don't do it again." Sheng Yuanyao said smugly, "I had the Imperial Advisor look at it!"

"Oh..." A'nuo shrank her neck, feeling a little unconvinced. Although she had only learned the basics of divination, Sheng Yuanyao's divination was so fundamental; A'nuo didn't believe she could have made a mistake. Is there any difference between a primary school student and a professor at the Imperial Academy solving a problem like one plus one equals two?

What kind of imperial advisor is she? She's a fraud and a charlatan. Let Ah Nuo have her fortune told someday!
Dinner was finally over, and outside, the lights of countless homes were already on.

Sheng Yuanyao got up to pay the bill, and Pei Yu smiled and gestured to the shopkeeper to accept it: "If you don't accept it, Miss Sheng will say that I, Pei Yu, look down on her."

Sheng Yuanyao nodded with satisfaction: "You understand me quite well."

Pei Yu chuckled and said to Lu Xingzhou, "Don't forget to come to the Pei family tomorrow."

Lu Xingzhou cupped his hands in a respectful gesture: "I won't forget."

Pei Yu then asked Sheng Yuanyao, "Miss Sheng, would you like to come along?"

"I'm not going." Sheng Yuanyao sighed. "That's why I don't like people like you. You know I'm not going, but you still have to ask to make sure you're not being rude?"

“Ha…” Pei Yu didn’t argue with her: “My manners are good enough. As for what Miss Sheng thinks, that’s not important.”

After the group left the Misty Rain Pavilion, Sheng Yuanyao quietly asked Lu Xingzhou, "Chu Qingchen is also going to cause trouble for Ye Wufeng. Aren't you going to contact him to join in?"

"The main problem is that these young swordsmen are arrogant and won't easily follow my orders. It would be more suitable for you government officials to make connections and cooperate with them."

"I thought you had something else in mind. Okay, I'll talk to him about it. I won't see you off." Sheng Yuanyao waved goodbye: "Take it easy at night, don't get lost on the belly of a maid."

A'nuo pushed Lu Xingzhou back to the inn, Pei Chuyun following beside her, saying leisurely, "This Commander Sheng has a really good personality." "Of course, he knows it's pointless to offend people for no reason, right?"

"Without any reason? That's not necessarily true." Pei Chuyun thought to herself, but said nothing.

Lu Xingzhou said, "Pei Yu looks alright too. At least his manners are much better than those of the Huo family. He truly deserves to be called a prestigious family."

Pei Chuyun hummed in response, clearly somewhat distracted.

Lu Xingzhou said, "You didn't say a word throughout the meal, you just listened intently to what they were saying over there. So, what did you learn?"

Pei Chuyun shook her head: "No. They were all talking about interesting stories from the martial arts world, as well as the current situation of some mutual friends. It seems that Pei Yu went out to experience the martial arts world two years ago and made friends with them... Anyway, it has nothing to do with what we want to know."

“Although you’ve disguised yourself, the overall appearance hasn’t changed much. Theoretically, if there were any issues, Pei Yu should have reacted when he saw your face, but he hasn’t reacted at all…” Lu Xingzhou pondered, “It seems that the chances of you having a connection with the Pei family have decreased considerably.”

Pei Chuyun thought the same thing, and her mood soured.

Whether she was a member of the Pei family or not was not particularly important, and Pei Chuyun had no interest in basking in the glory of a prestigious family. But if she wasn't, it meant that her clues about her background had completely disappeared, and she didn't know where to start looking; moreover, her situation within the Joyful Union Sect was even more confusing, with no way to break through the impasse.

Back at the inn, everyone fetched water to take a bath.

Pei Chuyun soaked in the bathtub, casually scrubbing her body, still absent-minded.

Reflecting on her feelings upon meeting Pei Yu today, Pei Chuyun still felt an inexplicable closeness, and subconsciously wanted to hear more of what he had to say and look at him a few more times. However, Pei Chuyun found it difficult to discern whether this feeling truly stemmed from some blood relation or was simply born from her curiosity to uncover the truth.

She didn't even dare to tell Lu Xingzhou about this situation, for fear of interfering with his judgment.

Pei Chuyun was lost in thought when she heard a knock on the door. She was startled and realized that the water had gone cold.

Pei Chuyun hurriedly got up and tidied herself up. When she opened the door, she saw that it was Lu Xingzhou.

"Is something wrong?"

"No, I just knew you must be in a bad mood, so I came to have a few drinks with you." Lu Xingzhou looked at her after she had just come out of the bath, her beautiful hair still wet and loose, exuding a wonderful fragrance, making her look even more alluring than usual.

He swallowed subconsciously and tilted his head slightly: "I didn't know you were taking so long to shower... Never mind, I'll come later."

Pei Chuyun smiled and said, "You're afraid of that? You've seen all of me, why are you pretending to be a gentleman now?"

Lu Xingzhou: “…”

"Come in." Pei Chuyun lazily stepped aside: "I'm always the one who wants to seduce you into bed. If you get aroused by this look, I'd be more than happy to oblige."

Despite saying that, she showed no intention of flirting at all, and absentmindedly sat down at the table, propping her chin up and looking at the candlelight.

Lu Xingzhou sat down beside him, opened the jar and poured wine: "Don't be so worried. We've made it through so many years, what's a couple more days? Tomorrow when we go to the Pei family, I'll try to ask them indirectly."

“Hmm…” Pei Chuyun hesitated for a moment, then said, “Lu Xingzhou, what if it really isn’t true…”

Lu Xingzhou said earnestly, "Don't worry, I promised to help you with this, and I will see it through to the end. Even if it's confirmed that it's not the Pei family, I will continue to help you look for them in the future."

Pei Chuyun smiled slightly: "Mm."

In truth, I didn't hold out much hope. After all, there was no clue about this matter, and even if you, Lu Xingzhou, were smart, it wouldn't be of much use.

Lu Xingzhou said, "But whether it is or not, there's no point in you worrying. If this kind of thing becomes a knot in your heart, it will be very detrimental to your cultivation to break through to the upper three ranks—you are also seeking a breakthrough at this threshold, otherwise the sect would not have sent you out to train at this time."

“Yes.” Pei Chuyun thought for a moment, then sighed, “I don’t know why, even though I know it’s pointless to dwell on this, I still feel strangely attached to it. What’s even stranger is that, despite being so concerned, I’m afraid you’ll ask tomorrow. What if it turns out to be no? I’d rather have no answer than if it turns out to be no.”

Lu Xingzhou laughed: "Here, let me give you another line of poetry."

Pei Chuyun blinked.
Lu Xingzhou took out paper and pen and wrote a line: "The closer I get to my hometown, the more timid I become; I dare not ask the passersby."

Pei Chuyun stared at it, completely mesmerized.

Lu Xingzhou laughed and said, "Hehuan demoness, you really shouldn't be so sentimental. You're quite an anomaly. Hey, do you think it's possible that your master is hesitant to give you too much responsibility because of your sentimental and artistic nature?"

Pei Chuyun snapped out of her daze and scolded, "You talk as if you know so much about the Joyful Union Sect... There are plenty of people in the sect who are more sensitive than me. The Joyful Union Sect is skilled in all kinds of music, dance, and music, and is the most romantic and artistic sect in the world. Artistic people are mostly sensitive."

This was somewhat beyond Lu Xingzhou's comprehension: "Isn't it said that the way of union is to have desire but no feelings? If you are heartless, how can you be sentimental? Don't you yourselves find this contradictory?"

"The way of assassination is cold and ruthless, yet I see that you are quite sentimental. Don't you find that contradictory?"

Lu Xingzhou opened his mouth, but had no words to reply.

What he cultivated didn't qualify as the art of assassination; perhaps Yuan Muyu's, on the other hand, did. Therefore, his pursuit of her was essentially chasing a shadow that could never be found, a futile endeavor.

Whether the Way of Harmony is as the world understands it, or as the old impressions brought by the novels I've read before, is really hard to say. Each book is a world in itself; who can know what kind of Way this "Harmony of the Maidens" truly is? It's just a pity that Pei Chuyun obviously wouldn't dissect the core of her cultivation method for you to see, so there's no way to understand it.

Seeing him lost in thought, Pei Chuyun smiled sweetly, turned and sat in his lap, her breath warm against his ear: "No matter what, a poem in exchange for a kiss is our promise. Since you have a poem, then naturally I must keep my promise..."

She gently kissed his cheek, then raised the wine glass to his lips: "Young master, would you like a drink? Shall I feed you?"

Lu Xingzhou lowered his head and drank, and Pei Chuyun said in a seductive voice, "Young Master, won't you feed Ayi...?"

Lu Xingzhou felt that her behavior resembled being moved by a poem, or perhaps she was trying to dispel her complicated emotions. He didn't dwell on it, lowered his head and kissed her red lips, then without saying a word, gently passed the wine to her.

Pei Chuyun's chest heaved as she slowly drank the wine he offered, then wrapped her arms tightly around his neck. Their lips and tongues remained locked in a passionate kiss.

The seductive arts that Lu Xingzhou had been subtly guarding against never materialized. Instead, some of the seductive arts that naturally emanated from him seemed to enhance the experience.

Sigrún has taught at the Iceland University of the Arts as a part-time lecturer since and was Dean of the Department of Fine Art from -. In – she held a research position at Reykjavík Art Museum focusing on the role of women in Icelandic art. She studied fine art at the Icelandic College of Arts and Crafts and at Pratt Institute, New York, and holds BA and MA degrees in art history and philosophy from the University of Iceland. Sigrún lives and works in Iceland.

P.S.: 4K resolution, 10,000 words achieved!
(End of this chapter)