Mountain and River Festival

Chapter 433 Qingyao
Lu Xingzhou carried Sheng Yuanyao to the backyard, but instead of immediately causing trouble as Anuo had imagined, he did not.

I just ate, so I'm not that hungry.

But Gua Mei's current proactive yet shy demeanor was particularly touching to him, quite different from their previous relationship. It was as if the concept of marriage had unlocked the seal, which was quite interesting.

If you're already tired of the romance, you shouldn't flaunt it in front of the kids. It's better to have a private chat and make up for the little romance that you haven't had a proper chance to have.

So instead of going straight into the house after entering the backyard, the two of them sat together on the veranda, looking up at the snow.

There was light snow during the day, which intensified by evening, transforming from a light drizzle into visible specks of white, though still sparse and scattered, drifting gently in the air.

Before she knew it, Sheng Yuanyao rested her head on his shoulder and comfortably hugged his arm, smiling sweetly.

It's so good to be so self-righteous like this. Nothing beats this kind of comfort, no matter how much you give your brother a good time.

"The snow came a bit early this year; it usually takes about two weeks..." she said with a smile, admiring the scene. "That's quite strange..."

"What's weird?"

"I never thought snow was pretty before. When I was little, I thought the most fun thing was to have a snowball fight on snowy days. But as I grew up, I found it annoying... But it looks so beautiful today."

Lu Xingzhou chuckled to himself.

"What are you laughing laughing?"

"I was thinking that when I first met you, it was around this time, exactly one year ago."

Sheng Yuanyao was stunned for a moment: "Only a year? Why does it feel like so long..."

"Because there are many things to do, and none of them are the same." Lu Xingzhou said leisurely, "You went from being the local commander of the Demon Suppression Division to the Publication Division, then to the Scout Battalion, then to a general, then to an envoy, and then came back and were demoted to a gatekeeper. You see, your experiences in this year are probably more than your experiences in the previous three to five years."

"Is it because I met you, this jinx, that I've been forced to wander from place to place?"

"Hey, actually you also rose from a mere local official to a third-rank general, and your cultivation is the same..."

"That was due to my own efforts!"

"Yes, yes, yes~" Lu Xingzhou lowered his head and pecked her cheek, which felt warm.

Due to her profession, Sheng Yuanyao's skin should theoretically be more weathered and not as delicate as Pei Chuyun's, who was raised in a sheltered environment. However, in the world of cultivation, this was not the case. While her skin wasn't as artificially fair as Pei Chuyun's, it was still rosy and smooth, resembling the delicate skin of someone pecking at a boiled egg.

Sheng Yuanyao felt weak after being kissed, her eyes glazed over: "Lu Xingzhou..."

"Ok?"

“My family is already preparing the dowry list… but I told them not to bother. First, you don’t care, and second, I already have my own dowry.”

Lu Xingzhou, understanding the implied meaning in the song, replied: "Qingyao Garden."

"Yes." Seeing that Lu Xingzhou could resonate with her, Sheng Yuanyao became even happier: "That is our destined fate, our preordained dowry!"

Lu Xingzhou teased her chin: "General Sheng, were you planning to marry me all along...?"

"Hmph." Sheng Yuanyao snorted twice, not knowing how to respond, and after a long while said resentfully, "Greedy, lustful and lewd."

Lu Xingzhou said, "Will General Sheng accompany this lecherous and wicked fellow to stroll through Qingyao Garden on a snowy night?"

Sheng Yuanyao was even happier.

Although she knew what her mother's hint was today, and was prepared to go inside and fight him, she knew that the man's heart wasn't set on those things, but rather on traveling with her to the place where their paths crossed. This made the girl feel incredibly sweet.

He wasn't just lustful.

Sheng Yuanyao felt that she had chosen him like a moth drawn to a flame, and insisted on marrying him along with four other women. Her parents said it was unfair, but she herself was not.

"Of course I'm going." Sheng Yuanyao still clung to his arm and didn't get up, shaking him as she said, "Carry me."

Gua Mei had almost never acted so coquettishly before, which made Lu Xingzhou feel a little numb. He quickly complied, picked her up, and with a stomp of his feet, they rode the wind and flew away leisurely in the snow.

Yuan Muyu listened quietly to the little romance in her room, her mind mostly blank, with no particular thoughts.

In fact, he and Lu Xingzhou had never had such an interaction.

She always teased and provoked Lu Xingzhou, watching him blush. Lu Xingzhou would also secretly take advantage of her. Yuan Muyu knew this, but she didn't expose him.

I've never before been able to lean on his shoulder so openly and honestly, talking about my dowry...

Suddenly I realized that those memories I had weren't really worth reminiscing about... they never seemed quite normal.

So the boat was lowered so quickly?
Also, Qingyao Garden... is that Sheng Yuanyao's? Yuan Muyu even went there specifically to see the stone tablet with Lu Xingzhou's "Jian Zi Mu Lan Hua" inscription.

So why is Qingyao Garden their place of origin? Is there anything special about this place?

Yuan Muyu followed almost instinctively, trailing far behind the two, watching Sheng Yuanyao nestle her head in the man's arms amidst the wind and snow.

Qingyao Garden was only in the suburbs, and at their speed, they arrived quickly.

There was no one around on this snowy night; not even any guests were staying there. Sheng Yuanyao dismissed the manager and once again turned the vast mountain and lake garden into her own backyard.

Sheng Yuanyao smiled and pulled Lu Xingzhou's hand to the lakeside: "Isn't this place much better to stroll around than your backyard?"

Lu Xingzhou laughed too. It was the middle of the night, and there was no one in the wilderness. It was dark and cold, a veritable ghost town. What a joke... But with everyone's cultivation, these things were not a problem. Good or bad didn't depend on the location, but on one's mood.

For example, Yuan Muyu would only think this place is a ghost town.

Sheng Yuanyao pulled Lu Xingzhou along for a leisurely stroll by the lake, saying, "Your sister and both our families said that the dowry is whatever we ask for, and she'll give us whatever it is. Are they so rich and powerful that they're practically begging from the underworld?"

Lu Xingzhou said, "I don't need the Yama Palace to pay for it... I have plenty of my own wealth. I don't have any special requests; I can always settle things with spirit stones."

"...I always feel that you and your sister are a bit distant and estranged, and you're quite clear about the distinction, huh? She wasn't going to eat just now, and you didn't ask her to stay."

"You should all know that I was driven out of the Underworld by her... Although I had some resentment, I vented it by beating her up back in the Sea Grand Competition. Now I have no hatred or resentment, but a sense of estrangement is still inevitable. It feels like we can't find a topic to talk about. She was injured today, and my first thought was to ask her about it, but I changed my words to something else."

Sheng Yuanyao was stunned for a moment: "Why? She's still willing to help you arrange a marriage. Even if you're estranged, the family ties are still there, right? You didn't even ask about your injury. Isn't that a bit...?"

"Hmm... I had some delusions back then, which has led to this... What would be ordinary concern to a normal person sounds like lingering feelings to me, and it's easy for her to misunderstand. Actually, I didn't want it to be like this, but it seems deliberate... Tsk, I don't really know how to get along with her normally now, and I'm afraid it will be difficult in the future."

"Delusion..."

Lu Xingzhou said frankly, "Yes, I pursued her, but she rejected me."

"Oh ho, that's really not easy." Sheng Yuanyao was not jealous at all, but amused. She turned her head and looked Lu Xingzhou up and down several times: "We've been watching the affectionate young master Lu, and he actually got rejected one day."

“That’s normal. No one can be liked by everyone. Besides, her path is like this, severing all emotional ties… there’s no solution to this kind of thing.” Lu Xingzhou said, “Also, maybe it’s because I was raised by her from childhood, so it feels like looking after a child? You can imagine.”

"So Pei Lucha is worried she'll sabotage your marriage proposal. You don't think so." "Yeah, she has no feelings for me. Why would she sabotage our plans? What would it mean to her? At most, it'd feel like... a toy has been stolen."

Yuan Muyu closed her eyes in the distance.

Is that so? So that's what you think.

It seems to make sense... All your perceptions are things I created myself... The perceptions I had from those years were gradually shattered and reshaped during those one or two years of torment, on that cold, snowy night.

This was the result I wanted to achieve, wasn't it...?

Even though I succeeded, why do I feel so bad?

Lu Xingzhou was obviously just chatting casually with Sheng Yuanyao. It was Sheng Yuanyao who brought up the topic first, so naturally she wouldn't keep talking about "women who rejected their husbands" and soon changed the subject.

But Yuan Muyu felt that she couldn't hear a single word after that, and her ears were ringing.

The two of them circled the lake and naturally returned to the spot where Lu Xingzhou had carried Sheng Yuanyao to avoid Ye Wufeng's assassination attempt.

Sheng Yuanyao said with a grin, "You know what... back then, that guy named Chu Qingchen said that his 'Qing' and my 'Yao' together form the name Qingyao Garden, which is quite a coincidence."

Lu Xingzhou's expression was serious: "We resolutely oppose this kind of staged accident fraud. Does his minor offense even count?"

“So…” Sheng Yuanyao turned around and hugged his neck: “The moment you saved me, I thought, you Huo Qing, and I Sheng Yuanyao, that is the true destiny.”

"Stop pretending, huh? You had your eye on me back then, and you called yourself a brother."

"Pah, I don't believe you can't tell. I think you know the name Qingyao Garden by heart. You're just deliberately not revealing it because you want to take advantage of me and not take responsibility."

"What did I do to you?"

"You even took my hairband, and you have the nerve to say that..." Sheng Yuanyao bit her lower lip, pulling out a withered, yellowed blade of grass: "Lu Xingzhou... this was the first gift you ever gave me, how can you be so shameless..."

Lu Xingzhou was truly surprised that she actually kept this item on her person. He felt as if he had been shot by an arrow, a feeling that was hard to describe.

Seeing Sheng Yuanyao's smiling face, he could no longer restrain himself, and he hugged her tightly and kissed her.

Sheng Yuanyao responded enthusiastically.

While the young couple were deeply in love, Yuan Muyu was struck dumb.

Huo Qing... that's Lu Xingzhou's real name...

Only now do I realize this.

Qingyao, Qingyao, is this your destiny? But... it turns out that even our real names can form a connection here. I also have a name...

But they said that Chu Qingchen's "lightness" was a form of staged accident.

So the "yao" in "Ye Fuyao" is also...

Like an imposter, spying on the happiness that belongs to the real young couple.

Yuan Muyu clutched her chest, feeling her blood and qi stagnate again.

The young couple kissed passionately, and Lu Xingzhou asked in a low voice, "It's windy by the lake... Shall we... go inside?"

Sheng Yuanyao knew perfectly well what would happen if she went into the house with a man like this. She felt a little shy, but more than that, she was looking forward to it. She softly hummed in agreement.

Lu Xingzhou picked her up in his arms and swiftly climbed the hill to the side, stepping into the house where he used to cook and stroll in the garden.

The room was sheltered from the lake breeze, warm and cozy, with brand-new bedding that smelled of sunshine.

Qingyao Garden was merely a summer retreat and leisure place, and its conditions were not luxurious, far inferior to the current Lu Mansion.

But as they looked at each other, they both felt that this was the only place that could be their bridal chamber.

Lu Xingzhou kissed her again, and Sheng Yuanyao sat on the edge of the bed with his help, then slowly lay down, letting him cover her and kiss her.

The kisses were no longer confined to the lips and tongue, but rained down on the ears and neck.

Those hands were no longer confined to an embrace; they undid the samurai attire the girl was accustomed to wearing.

Sheng Yuanyao obediently let him comfort her and let him continue down the path until she was numb.

We had been intimate before, but that was because I was under a spell and my mind wasn't working properly... This was truly voluntary and anticipated, and it was so pleasurable, from body to mind... It could make even the most alert mind become like it was under a spell, with no normal thoughts left.

“Yuan Yao…” Lu Xingzhou leaned closer again and whispered in her ear.

Sheng Yuanyao was already dazed from being under the spell, and subconsciously uttered "Hmm?"

"Do we need to wait until our wedding night? It won't be long."

Sheng Yuanyao held his head in her hands, her eyes glazed over, her voice soft yet resolute: "Isn't this our wedding day?"

Her long, straight limbs wrapped around the man's waist, like a trumpet creeper climbing the eaves.

The man finally stopped talking nonsense and silently did what he was supposed to do.

After an unknown amount of time, a warbling of a nightingale rang out, and the trumpet creeper flowers fell.

Sheng Yuanyao groaned in pain, and Lu Xingzhou immediately stopped what he was doing. But then he saw Sheng Yuanyao grit her teeth and suddenly ask, "Tell me honestly, when did you start thinking about doing this to me? I suddenly suspect that you had the idea before I did."

"You've finally stopped being silly..." Lu Xingzhou said honestly, "From the first glance, you begin your interrogation."

Sheng Yuanyao: "???"

"A female constable in uniform, how wonderful... and you're so beautiful."

Sheng Yuanyao was so angry she wanted to kick him off the bed: "You were a cripple back then, and you already had designs on me!"

"We should judge by actions, not intentions. Besides, being lame doesn't affect that aspect of life... Commander Sheng, would you like to give it a try..."

"...It doesn't hurt as much anymore, give it a try. If you dare to do fewer times than Long Qinghuang, I'll never forgive you."

The sounds gradually became intermittent, then turned into pleasant gasps, and finally became disordered and incoherent.

The girl who was having a great time could never have imagined that someone would actually take the self-torture of the tragedy that happened to her on the Dragon Cliff in the Demon Capital that night.

In the darkness, Yuan Muyu trembled in the distance, covering her ears and leaning against a pillar, slowly curling up on the ground.

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.: Not sure if this will get censored, but I'll update soon. 4K, please vote with monthly tickets!
(End of this chapter)