Mountain and River Festival

Chapter 138 Fate Predestined

Lu Xingzhou ate at the Sheng family's house, and this time he was treated much better than last time.

Last time, the Sheng couple had dark faces and looked at the ghostly blond-haired man from beginning to end.

This time, the blond guy was still blond, but with a touch of gold in his blond hair.

In reality, the favor of killing Ye Wufeng couldn't compare to the previous life-saving act, but any parent would want to see their daughter find a capable man. The weighty achievement of killing the top rookie clearly added a dazzling aura to Lu Xingzhou.

Not to mention that Sheng Qingfeng knew from the autopsy that Lu Xingzhou's disability was mostly an act.

Not disabled! That makes all the difference!

Then look at my daughter, who, despite her injuries not being fully healed, is holding onto that little girl tightly, how affectionate they are!

"Um... Xingzhou..." Sheng Qingfeng said with a smile, "I heard that the Dan Academy's assessment time has been moved up this year. Are you confident?"

If he could also obtain a Golden Body from the Dan Academy, this blond-haired guy would be a perfect catch. The only problem is his ambiguous relationship with the princess; otherwise, he'd be an excellent son-in-law candidate. Old Sheng was practically begging Lu Xingzhou to explain that he and Shen Tang were just colleagues.

"It should be alright." Lu Xingzhou was a little embarrassed: "I have indeed been distracted too much these days, and I will need to focus more on my studies in the coming period."

"Don't hesitate to ask if you have any difficulties." Sheng Qingfeng kindly placed a piece of pork on his chopsticks. "Huo Lu was escorted to Beijing early this morning. Does the Huo family really want you to clear Huo Lu's name as a party involved? In fact, the trial has nothing to do with you, the victim. You can use the excuse of studying to hide and not show your face at all. The Huo family can't expect anything from you, and the Pei family can't use you as a pawn."

"What a coincidence, that's what I was thinking too." Lu Xingzhou said with a smile, "I'll have to trouble you to cover this up, Uncle."

“No problem. Why don’t you just cancel your stay at that inn? The Huo family will be dumbfounded when they suddenly find they can’t find you.” Sheng Qingfeng laughed. “You can stay here with me for the next few days. Nobody will be able to bother you.”

Madam Sheng glanced at her husband.

This doesn't mean creating opportunities for her daughter... This "no one can disturb" seems to include Sheng Yuanyao herself.

Right under our noses, that little brat won't be able to do anything.

Look at how red her face has become; she probably never imagined that her father's seemingly helpful actions would actually have the opposite effect.

“Uh…” Lu Xingzhou said, “Wouldn’t it damage Miss Sheng’s reputation if I stayed at my uncle’s house?”

“Tsk…” Sheng Qingfeng glanced at him sideways: “You keep saying you’re good friends, but you keep calling me Miss Sheng. You’re acting so distant, not like friends at all.”

Lu Xingzhou could only say, "Well... I'm concerned about Yuan Yao's reputation."

Sheng Yuanyao pinched Anuo's cheek, her heart pounding.

"What reputation? I'm not dead. Who can speculate about what you're doing here?" Sheng Qingfeng waved his hand imposingly: "Just consider your own opinion. Don't worry about anything else."

Lu Xingzhou thought for a moment, then shook his head: "Not really. It would be better if Uncle could provide a secret place for seclusion."

Sheng Qingfeng squinted at Lu Xingzhou for a long time. His proposal was certainly not very good. In fact, he wanted to test what Lu Xingzhou thought about his daughter. As it turned out, he was indeed upright and had no such thoughts.

Old Sheng didn't know whether to breathe a sigh of relief or feel a little regretful. He stroked his beard and thought for a long time before saying, "Okay, I'll find you a place."

"Then thank you very much, Uncle." Lu Xingzhou then said, "Um... do I need to give an explanation regarding Ye Wufeng's matter?"

Officially speaking, this constitutes murder in Beijing, even if he killed an individual. However, he is not an official, so procedurally, at least a "statement" should be taken. Sheng Qingfeng nodded and said, "It's easy to handle now that you put it that way. I was hesitant to tell you this because I was worried you might be unhappy, thinking we were repaying kindness with enmity."

"You have to understand the work procedures," Lu Xingzhou said with a smile. "Besides, I was doing this under the arrangement of Deputy Chief Constable Sheng, so I need to give a more detailed report."

"?" Sheng Qingfeng blinked several times before realizing that Xiao Deng was giving him credit!
The old abbot is over three hundred years old this year and has served as abbot for nearly a hundred years. Now that his lifespan is coming to an end, he wants to retire and return to seclusion to seek a breakthrough and extend his lifespan.

Because the old chieftain was a bit arrogant and didn't respect the emperor too much—the upper three ranks of powerhouses had long lifespans, easily exceeding one or two hundred years, and the first rank powerhouses could easily hold their positions for a hundred years, which was detrimental to the emperor's authority. Therefore, the emperor had been "rejuvenating officials" in recent years. Whether it was Huo Xingyuan or Pei Qingyan, they looked decades older, but in this world they were actually considered "young backbones."

The Rising Star Ranking came into being in this context. Before Gu Zhanting ascended the throne, there was only the Ranking of Heroes; the Rising Star Ranking and various secondary rankings were created separately by Gu Zhanting. In this respect alone, Gu Zhanting made a great contribution to promoting and encouraging the young and powerful in this era.

It was under this background that Sheng Qingfeng was promoted and appointed by the emperor, surpassing several veterans to become the first deputy of the Demon Suppression Division.

But youth has its disadvantages; the time spent cultivating is limited, and there's always a gap. Sheng Qingfeng, stuck at the second rank, isn't certain of securing the top position. The Demon Suppression Division is a crucial combat department; a leader without a first-rank rank can't suppress demons and monsters, or even their own arrogant and fierce soldiers.

On the other hand, all those at the first rank possess formidable backgrounds, belonging to prestigious sects or pillars of powerful families, making them unsuitable for the relatively independent work required by the Demon Suppression Division. It would be extremely difficult to find a first-rank direct descendant personally trained by Gu Zhanting…

Therefore, Sheng Qingfeng still has a chance to take over, at least he might get the title of "acting head". If he can break through to the first rank during the acting period, then he will be guaranteed to succeed.

In this context, Lu Xingzhou's achievement of offering himself up so readily becomes all the more precious.

Furthermore, it would earn him a great favor from the Huanhua Sword Sect—Chu Qingchen died at Ye Wufeng's hands, and Sheng Qingfeng, through his strategic planning, took revenge that very night, for which the Huanhua Sword Sect would be grateful.

"You..." Sheng Qingfeng suppressed his joy and said in a low voice, "Originally, the Huanhua Sword Sect would have been grateful for your favor, but by doing this, the favor has become mine."

“But what I gained was my uncle’s favor.” Lu Xingzhou raised his glass. “That’s worth a thousand times more than the Huanhua Sword Sect.” Sheng Qingfeng looked at Lu Xingzhou as if he were looking at his son.

Damn it, are you and the princess really in that kind of relationship? If not, I suggest you marry Yuan Yao right now, that would be the best course of action.

"Old Sheng likes you more and more." After dinner, Sheng Yuanyao smiled and led Lu Xingzhou for a stroll in her backyard. "I've never seen him treat any young man like this before. The way he looks at him, tsk..."

Lu Xingzhou dropped the pretense here and, leaving his wheelchair behind, strolled with Sheng Yuanyao, saying, "True feelings for true feelings."

Sheng Yuanyao said, "What kind of sincerity did you exchange? He's not into men!"

Lu Xingzhou turned to look at her, but Sheng Yuanyao blushed slightly and turned her head away.

Gua Mei has been recuperating at home these past two days, and even during her previous outing to the park, she wasn't wearing the Demon Suppression Division's official uniform; she dressed quite casually. But today, she seemed to have dressed up specially, wearing a beautiful long dress, elegant in a simple blue, and the fabric looked much more expensive than her usual casual wear. The high-waisted design accentuated her slender waist and long legs, reminding one of her dashing and wild side when she wore her official uniform.

It seems... she even drew her eyebrows?

Lu Xingzhou couldn't help but say, "You didn't dress as nicely as you did on that blind date the other day."

"What kind of blind date is that?" Sheng Yuanyao rolled her eyes at him. "You know it's just a formality."

"How would I know?" Lu Xingzhou snorted. "That Chu Qingchen is not bad-looking either, and he is a well-known young rising star."

Sheng Yuanyao recalled what Anuo had said: "What makes Master even angrier is that you went on a blind date with someone." She couldn't help but blurt out, "Hey, are you jealous?"

Lu Xingzhou said, "Anyway, some people say they don't know what it is about me that makes her interested in me, so what's the point of me being jealous?"

Sheng Yuanyao wanted to laugh, but she didn't press him about whether he was jealous or not, as it seemed like this topic couldn't be explored too deeply.

The two walked quietly in the garden in the afternoon, and Sheng Yuanyao suddenly felt something was strange.

Yes, he walked.

Sheng Yuanyao glanced at him furtively, surprised at how tall he was when he stood up. She was already quite tall, and he was half a head taller, making him appear even more elegant and handsome. Just that stolen glance was enough to make one's heart flutter.

"Um..." Sheng Yuanyao swallowed and said with some difficulty, "When did your leg get better? You won't even let me eat this melon. Where's your loyalty?"

"We clearly met in Dongjiang, is Gua Mei's brain made of mush now?" Lu Xingzhou said helplessly, "If I weren't loyal, would I have gone to fight Ye Wufeng to the death?"

"Then..." Sheng Yuanyao hesitated for a moment, then finally couldn't help but ask, "Others might think you're Huo Shang, but I know you're probably not. So can you tell me now who you really are, what your real name is? Are we allowed to share this gossip now?"

I knew before, but I didn't ask. Given Sheng Yuanyao's love for gossip, it's really hard for her to hold back from asking.

But back then, we weren't close enough, and "friendship" wasn't enough to get to the bottom of such a core secret.

Theoretically speaking, the relationship hasn't changed, but for some reason, I feel like I can ask now...

He even killed someone for his own sake...

He even came to my house for dinner a second time. You really don't know why I dressed up? Because in my mind, this is what a blind date should be like! If it's a blind date, how can you not even know the other person's real name?

As expected, Lu Xingzhou didn't hide anything from her and answered naturally, "It's true that my surname is Huo. Huo is a common surname in Xiazhou, and even more so around Danxia Mountain. My given name is Qing, the Qing from 'inspired to surpass one's indigo plant.' You just need to know this; you can't tell anyone, including your father... Well, actually, I'm called Lu Xingzhou now, and I use this name everywhere I go, so it's not a pseudonym. Huo Qing is at most a former name..."

Sheng Yuanyao stopped in her tracks.

Lu Xingzhou asked curiously, "What's wrong?"

Sheng Yuanyao pursed her lips, her mind drifting to Chu Qingchen's words trying to establish a connection. She had the character "Yao" in her name, and he had "Qing," which seemed to correspond to Qingyao Garden, suggesting a possible fate. However, this "Qing" was not the same as the "Qing," and it was merely a pretense.

It turns out the real Qing was here.

Qingyao Garden, the place where he saved his life and helped him kill his enemy, is where he began and where he ended.

So this is what fate truly ordained.

The woman's innate romantic instincts surged, and gazing at the handsome face of the man before her, she was so lost in thought that she couldn't utter a word.

Meeting Lu Xingzhou's increasingly strange gaze, Sheng Yuanyao abruptly turned her head, hastily making up an excuse: "It's nothing... I was worried about you because I was thinking about your revenge against the Huo family."

"You should know that my revenge isn't as intense as you originally imagined; it's a slow and steady process, so don't worry."

“But…” Sheng Yuanyao thought for a moment: “The Imperial Advisor divined your fate, saying that you will be able to catch a deer without being caught.”

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.: Please vote for me! Please vote for me!
(End of this chapter)