Chapter 43 - Xue Qilin’s Sneaky Musing

43 – Xue Qilin’s Sneaky Musing

“Why don’t you eat?” Xue Qilin looked in amazement at Qi Qiqi sitting across from her, holding her big bowl.

She has observed the other party for a while now.

The meal was served almost a quarter of an hour ago, yet Qi Qiqi only occasionally had a bite, while the rest of the time staring into space.

Qi Qiqi suddenly sighed, yet didn’t answer. She probably didn’t hear Xue Qilin’s question.

Out of frustration, Xue Qilin waved her hand in front of Qi Qiqi, “Hey, Twenty One, Seven Seven-seven, Qi Qiqi!”

Qi Qiqi looked up and showed a look of suspicion in her eyes, “Did you just call me by my name?”

Is she sensitive to this? The corners of Xue Qilin’s eyes and mouth twitched unnaturally.

“I asked why don’t you eat!” Xue Qilin asked again, enunciating each syllable.

“Oh.” Qi Qiqi looked like she woke up from a dream, “I’m troubled.”

“Hey, what’s troubling you?”

“The enrollment assembly!”

“Oh, there’s an enrollment assembly in the Merak Temple?”

“No, it is organized by the Leisure Manor. Once a year, major sects are invited to participate in a joint enrollment!”

“That so? I thought that every sect handles their own enrollment.”

“It was like this in the beginning, when all the sects did their own enrollment. However, ever since the Leisure Manor emerged, things changed. It’s a unique sect that always takes a neutral stance in the Martial World. Rather, it’s not so much a sect as an organization that specializes in coordination between sects, often holding various Martial World events. Additionally, it also takes on different intermediary roles.”

Almost like a professional union! Xue Qilin mused.

“Isn’t this an annual convention? Can’t things be done just like the previous year?!”

“It used to be…” Qi Qiqi looked bleak, not saying anything else.

Xue Qilin understood, her heart pounded, and her moving hand suddenly froze.

With a thud, a piece of vegetable fell from the chopsticks and landed on the table.

Luo Qing. Presumably, Qi Qiqi’s unspoken words were referring to the green figure.

The feeling that spontaneously gripped her heart was grief…

“Ey, why did you drop it…”

Xue Qilin lowered her gaze and took the chopsticks to pick up the piece of vegetable that fell on the table, hiding her sorrow.

“Are you crazy?!” As if a stray cat who had its tail stepped on, Qi Qiqi jumped up menacingly and used a chopstick to knock out the piece of vegetable Xue Qilin has just picked up.

The piece of vegetable drew a beautiful arc in the air and fell on the table again.

“Really, you are so old, don’t you know about hygiene?” At the same time as she reprimanded, Qi Qiqi fished out a new, or at least a different pair of chopsticks from within her sleeve, picked up the piece of vegetable that fell on the table, and moved it to the empty plate aside.

“Your sleeves are treasure bags [1]! What do you have in there?” Xue Qilin couldn’t help but poke fun.

As far as she knows, Qi Qiqi has already pulled out one large bowl, one cup, two pairs of chopsticks, one comb, and one hair band from her sleeves.

“Some daily necessities!”

“Who carries chopsticks on them?!”

Qi Qiqi’s face stiffened, her lips curled down, and she mumbled: “What would you know about that?”

She’s really stubborn.

The expression on Xue Qilin’s face said “I concede”, and she leaned back dispiritedly like a wilted eggplant.

Because there chairs here have no backrest, Xue Qilin who has the habit to lean back has once fallen on the ground.

With this precedent, the chair she is sitting on was specially made for her. There are not only armrests, but more importantly, there is a backrest.

“You and Little Zhen [2] can’t go, but Little Xue [3] and Little Ning [4] are good candidates.” She added, “Oh, there’s still that annoying Little Zong [5].” Xue Qilin got back to the main point. She has calmed down

It has to be mentioned that this is the first time that Xue Qilin has commented on the Merak Temple’s affairs.

Yeah, the first time.

However, Qi Qiqi took it in stride, not surprised at all.

In Little Seven’s mind, the Young Ancestor has the right to get involved with the Merak Temple’s affairs. Xue Qilin thought.

“Indeed.” Qi Qiqi frowned hard, looking pensive, “But no matter which Elder, none is suitable…”

“That so?” Not quite understanding, Xue Qilin blurted out.

“In Martial World events, it’s easy to generate friction between sects for various reasons and get into trouble. Uncle Teacher Liu’s [5] character is too rigid, and he doesn’t know how to be flexible. Senior Disciple Brother Yang [4]… well…” Qi Qiqi crooked her head, “How to say it… he’s someone who tries not to offend anyone. He’s not very good at handling affairs.”

“Oh oh oh, in other words, there’s a problem with his character, a problem with his ability!” Xue Qilin nodded. She felt that her summary was satisfying, and most importantly, she was satisfied.

“What about the Little Xue? I think she is rather suitable.” When facing Xia Xue, Xue Qilin got the short end of the stick, and on more than one occasion.

People with a sharp tongue like Xia Xue are usually quick-witted.

“Junior Disciple Sister Xia… is a loose cannon.” A bitter expression crept onto Qi Qiqi’s face. Apparently, this junior disciple sister was a headache.

Xue Qilin also has some experience in this regard. After all, in the entire Merak Temple, Xia Xue’s hair is the shortest. She must trim it often. And this can be considered quite eccentric.

At least it was so in ancient times.

Thinking this way, Xue Qilin suddenly wondered if she already got used to ancient times thinking.

“However, isn’t Xia Xue the best choice? Ye Zhen was looking for her this morning.”

“There’s no way around it. Following the process of elimination…” Qi Qiqi sighed, “Junior Sister Xia is the most suitable candidate, and she has also agreed.”

“Than isn’t it a done deal?” Xue Qilin wrinkled her nose. “What’s troubling you then?”

“I feel like something will happen…”

“Hey hey hey, why are you spending time on groundless worries?”

This is a typical case of – it’s a sunny day, so should I bring an umbrella?!

“What can I do, I’m the Temple Master!” Qi Qiqi sudden outburst made Xue Qilin a bit confused.

Xue Qilin cast a glance at Qi Qiqi, “Where the hell is this joint recruitment assembly held?”

For Qi Qiqi to have such an outburst, the matter cannot be ignored. She must pay attention to it. This is the experience that Xue Qilin gathered in these two months.

“The imperial city Chang’an [6].” Qi Qiqi’s casual answer made Xue Qilin a bit interested.

“It’s actually held in the imperial city?”

In other words, the capital.

Anyway, aren’t the Imperial Court and the Martial World forces like fire and water? Xue Qilin suddenly wondered.

“Isn’t it said that we have a bad relationship with the Emperor? So why was the imperial city chosen?”

“The Leisure Manor is located in the imperial city, so it’s normal to hold the sect assembly there. Anyway, no one is particularly advantaged nor disadvantaged.” Qi Qiqi answered absentmindedly.

Why is she despondent? Xue Qilin asked involuntarily: “You don’t know why?”

“YES, I DON’T KNOW!” Qi Qiqi suddenly yelled angrily, and then became dispirited and spoke, dejected: “According to Uncle Teacher Ye, this is a subtle tacit understanding. The two sides stand at a delicate balance. Anyway, I don’t understand!”

It seems that this dealt her a blow! Xue Qilin touched her nose, revealing a look of embarrassment.

After a while, Xue Qilin coughed lightly, “If you can’t feel at ease, then I might as well make a trip!”

In addition to sharing Qi Qiqi’s burden, Xue Qilin is also very interested in Chang’an.

No, she would be interested even if it was another place.

She has been “cooped up” here for more than a month. It’s about time to go out. In her view, Chang’an should be a good place to go to.

After all, it’s the imperial city! If you don’t go there, then how can you count as a person of the Hua Dynasty? As Xue Qilin mused, she showed a crafty smile unconsciously.

“Hey, you’re going?” Qi Qiqi was shocked.

“No no no, Little Xia still has to go. I’ll accompany her.” Xue Qilin added, “I don’t know what this admission assembly is about, after all.”

“No! You can’t go!” Qi Qiqi suddenly stood up, and Xue Qilin looked up at her, stunned.

“If you and Junior Disciple Sister Xia get on each other’s nerves, won’t you cause a scene?” Qi Qiqi patted the table and asserted impulsively, “No, absolutely no!”

“… is that what you think of me?” Xue Qilin pretended to be disheartened and squeezed out half of a sparkling drop from the corner of her eye.

With Qi Qiqi, you can’t meet force with force! That’s what Xue Qilin who knew Qi Qiqi well by now thought.

“That’s…not what I meant!” It was obviously an apology, yet she used an irritated tone.

What a clumsy person! Xue Qilin mused with a bitter smile.

“That so? Then what did you mean by that?”

“In short, you’re not allowed!” Without explaining, Qi Qiqi crooked her head, and looked at Xue Qilin from the corner of her eyes.

Her eyes revealed some queer emotions.

Xue Qilin didn’t know what emotions they were. She just felt a little uncomfortable.

“Fine, then I won’t go.” This was what she said, but, not what she thought.

Chang’an, I haven’t been there yet! Xue Qilin mused sneakily.

[1] – Treasure bag and 4D Pocket are the same

[2] – Ye Zhen, vice-Temple Master

[3] – Xia Xue, Elder

[4] – Yang Yuening, Law Enforcement Elder

[5] – Liu Chengzong, Attendant Elder

[6] – Chang’an