Chapter 42

Chapter 42.1 : I’m Very Timid

The reasons behind that was known only to insiders in the palace and it was not known by others.

All in all, the Water Edge Kingdom’s visit this time was definitely not friendly.

Although the Duke of Vast Seas was infamous for his notoriety, but there were still quite a number of hot blooded youths that worshiped him, with Qing Bei no exception from it.

Besides Big Brother Yan Xi Cheng, the person he admired the most was the Duke of Vast Seas. Hence, after he came to know that the delegation had come to the capital, he had specially sneaked a trip outside to go have a look.

Although he did not manage to see him in person, he was already very satisfied. He was just intending to sneak back into his room when he heard a voice filled with mirth. “Gone out so early in the morning? Where did you go?”

Qing Bei’s face froze up, and he then slowly turned around. “Sis, morning.”

Qing Yu arched up an eyebrow as she looked at the sun that had risen high up in the sky. “The sun has risen up almost to the top and you say its still morning? Stop trying to pull wool over my eyes. What did you go out for?”

“I just….. wanted to see the Duke of Vast Seas.” Qing Bei knew the game was up for him, and he just told her the truth.

It was only then that Qing Yu remembered it, and she then asked with a smile: “You managed to see him?”

The young lad shook his head forlornly. “No. He was seated inside a palanquin.”

Qing Yu smiled and ruffled the young lad’s head. “Don’t give up, you’ll meet him someday.”

“Sis, I heard that Father favours you very much recently?”

Asking that so suddenly out of the blue, Qing Yu was taken aback. She then raised up an eyebrow. “What? You’re jealous?”

“Why would I?” Qing Bei could not help but smile and shake his head. “I only meant to say since Father favours you so highly now, he will definitely bring you with him to attend the banquet in the palace this time.”

“I can’t even be bothered to go to such places.” Qing Yu curled her lips up in a disdainful sneer. “The banquet at the palace is merely an attempt to establish good ties between the two kingdoms, and only to cement their position further. Isn’t it said that they had even sent a princess here for matchmaking? When the Water Edge Kingdom has such a powerful Duke of Vast Seas, will they still need to consolidate their territories through matchmaking? I do not think so. Hence, they are here purely only to pick a quarrel, and such banquets are the most boring of all.”

Qing Bei stared speechlessly at the calm demeanor of his own sister, his heart filling up with utmost admiration and respect for her.

This sister of his was anything but ordinary indeed. Those words were not something any normal girl would be able to utter, and she had actually shown absolutely no interest in a man like the Duke of Vast Seas who had so many countless ladies hopelessly smitten and head over heels in love!

Really wonder what kind of a man would then be able to catch her eye.

Qing Bei suddenly started to worry about his currently still non existent future brother in law who would still be hiding in some unknown nook or cranny.

And at that same moment, situated in the north of Cloud Heaven, within a mysterious and surreptitious high black tower, a man suddenly sneezed for no reason at all.

The pair of violet eyes then showed a rare moment of bewilderment.

It was midsummer, the weather was clear and fine, without a cloud for a thousand miles and the air was even slightly scorching. He couldn’t possibly have caught a cold…..

What kind of a joke was this? Having lived for several hundred years and he had not even suffered much in the way of an injury, not mention falling ill.

That would then mean someone was thinking of him.

The handsome thin lips lifted up slightly at the ends, and it was not known what was on his mind, as the man’s mood then became exceptionally bright and radiant in tandem with the depth of the arc on his mouth.

[Why….. have I suddenly come to miss that little fox?]

[Mm, not only those eyes were enticing like a fox’s but everything about her was alluring.]

Although he had not really seen it that time, but the great body under those loose clothes was something he had truly felt, which was so damningly soft.

That a Dark Lord who had always done as he pleased with wild abandon in Cloud Heaven for several hundred years would one day come to miss a little lass from a low leveled land was absolutely shocking to hear.

Chapter 42.2 : I’m Very Timid

It really turned out exactly as Qing Bei had said and Yan Su came to the Tranquil Abode personally himself.

The young lady in all white was half crouched within the large swathes of magnificent looking herb beds, her eyes exquisite looking like a painting. Her slender fingers picked off a pale pink flower and brought it under her nose to take a whiff. It must not really smell good as that tiny face then creased up in disdain, looking incredibly adorable.

The gently elegant green robed youth sat upon a wheelchair at the side, reading a book as he occasionally lifted his head up to glance at her. The similar looking countenances of those two were both incomparably exquisite and eye catching, and in this not too large little courtyard, it made for a blissful and warm sight, beautiful as a painting.

Yan Su’s heart suddenly softened exceptionally, and he couldn’t bear to disturb the peaceful scene, where he just stood there quietly to gaze at them.

“How? Are you able to digest everything you’re reading?” Qing Yu saw the lad’s serious expression, and she walked over to him from the herb beds. “Medical books are very dry. I learned Medicine because I had no other choice. Why do you want to pick it up?”

Qing Bei raised his head up from the book and gave her a faint smile. “I am thinking, if I am able to learn a little of it to protect myself, at least I do not have to worry about being ambushed with poison.”

“Is that why?” Qing Yu nodded, and she patted him on the shoulder smilingly. “That is great. Although it’s dry and dull, but you cannot deny that there are many advantages about it. Look at how sought after those medical cultivators are, they have endless treasures, no lack of beauties, and unlimited fame and fortune.”

The side of Qing Bei’s temple twitched. “I am not interested in all that…..”

“That will not do. A person has got to have pursuits in his life. I heard that the Water Edge Kingdom’s Ninth Princess is here, and she is about the same age as you. It is said her looks and talents are absolutely top notch, so why don’t I go help you see…..”

“Sis, I really am not interested alright? She is a regal and revered princess. How could she possibly be interested in me who has no power, no authourity, and unfavoured cripple? Don’t go stir up trouble…..” Qing Bei interjected, to stop his sister’s nonsensical prattle.

Qing Yu snorted derisively. “Is there another person who would debase themselves so completely? Who dares to say my little brother is not good?”

“No, I was just….. Father?” Qing Bei suddenly noticed the man standing not too far away from them, his face highly benevolent, and Qing Bei was a little startled.

Qing Yu raised up an eyebrow and turned herself around, where she then saw Yan Su walking towards them with a smile. She curled up the ends of her lips and asked: “Father, you’re here. Is something the matter?”

Towards this father who had neglected them for more than ten years, Qing Yu did not have much feelings towards him, despite the fact that he was trying very hard to make it up to them. Hence, towards Yan Su, she always showed him a gentle but distant demeanor.

Yan Su did not mind what kind of attitude she showed him, even when she addressed him as Father so coldly.

Among so many of his daughters, only Qing Yu called him Father, which just made it even more precious.

This young lady was almost an exact duplicate of Qing Fei, and Yan Su was liking her better the more he looked at her.

“I just came back from the Imperial Palace and popped by to see the two of you along the way.” Yan Su’s voice was incredibly gentle and his gaze then turned to the lad in his wheelchair. “Are you doing fine Little Bei? The last time when I got the palace’s Chief Medical Cultivator Yun Qi to come here to diagnose your condition, he said that there is still hope in restoring the use of your legs. I believe that you will be able to stand up again.”

Yan Su’s heart was filled with guilt towards Qing Bei. The condition of his legs were caused by the actions of Mo Han Yan but he was unable to punish the Duchess. Having been married as husband and wife for more than twenty years, if he did that, it would definitely chill Mo Han Yan’s heart into stone.

Qing Yu had not known about such an incident at all. She had not known that the palace’s medical cultivator had come here before?

She glanced at the lad who had a faint smile on his lips. [This kid isn’t as simple as he looks! He was actually able to fool a medical cultivator’s eyes! Looks like he might indeed possess some gift in Medicine afterall.]

Chapter 42.3 : I’m Very Timid

Yan Su then continued to say: “The Imperial Palace is holding a banquet tonight to entertain the Water Edge Kingdom’s emissaries and a round of open challenges and hidden intrigue will be unavoidable. I’ll bring the two of you into the palace with me and I’ll get your Big Brother to come get you when it’s time.”

Qing Yu raised his head up and blinked his eyes innocently. “Why is Father doing this? You know that the other party harbours unfriendly intentions and you still want to bring us into the palace with you? My younger brother is not exactly able bodied and I am very timid, we might end up causing Father shame and then suffer reprimand for it. I think it’s better we do not go.”

Yan Su was at a loss for words. “…..”

Because the children of their commoner mothers from the families of the other high ranking officials were not qualified to enter the palace due to their lowly birth, every single one of them were doing everything within their powers to win the favour of their father, only thinking of being able to show their faces in the palace, to see if they would be able to find someone their hearts fancied. More importantly, they would be able to meet the one and only Duke of Vast Seas, whom countless men and women worshipped and revered.

[But what was going on here with his own daughter…..]

[Does she really not want to go or was she just fishing for something?]

[Timid is she?]

[Back when she killed those black robed assassins that ambushed them, she had been rather gutsy though!]

How could Yan Su not know that she was pulling a fast one and he snapped at her with a glare. “I do not want to hear anymore. Little Cheng will come pick the two of you up later. Change into a set of clothes suited for a banquet. Wearing such plain clothes will make others think that the Eternal Peace Duke’s Manor is in dire straits, even having to scrimp and save on basic necessities like clothing.”

Upon finishing his words, he did not wait for Qing Yu to response but just turned to leave with a flick of his sleeves.

Qing Yu could not say anything. “…..”

[What had she said wrong?]

[Why doesn’t he even give her a chance to refuse…..]

A spurt of mirthful laughter burst out beside her. Here she was feeling depressed and indignant and the lad was there sniggering. That was just absolutely intolerable. She then rapped an explosive knuckle upon the young lad’s head. “It’s that funny?”

Qing Bei was unable to dodge that knuckle in time and his jaws clenched tightly from the pain. He gingerly rubbed the top of his head, with a smile still hanging upon his face. “Sis, your acting just now was just too fake.”

“Too fake?”

“That’s right. When you said that I am not able bodied and unable to walk, it was still believable. But when you said you were timid, how timid could you possibly be when you dare to kill people so readily?”

A corner of Qing Yu’s mouth twitched. [So, that was the reason?]

She was thinking what was that admonishing gaze her father gave just before he left all about…..

[Forget it. Since she was unable to avoid it, then let it pass. It’s just a change in location in where she’ll be having her meal anyway. Afterall, she still had her father and elder brother to fall back on even if the sky were to fall.]

But at that moment, Qing Yu still did not know that danger was silently sneaking up and slowly closing on her.

—– Bright Moon Divine Temple —–

“You said Grand Priestess Yin Chi has disappeared?” The graceful and enchanting voice of a woman sounded from behind the curtain.

“Reporting to the Temple Lord. Ever since the day you locked Grand Priestess Yin Chi in the confinement chamber, she had not come out again. The maid who brought food daily said she has not eaten anything for quite a number of days, and I was still thinking whether she had died in there, never expecting that I would find nobody in there when I went into the confinement chamber today.” A white robed woman below said, her head hanging low respectfully.

This young Temple Lord, was a woman whose cultivation was the most powerful and she was also the most vicious throughout the past generations of Bright Moon Temple. No one dared to defy her, much less betray. The Bright Moon Temple was famous for their voodoo arts and ability to lay curses. Everyone was controlled by the grub in their bodies, and if anyone was to betray the one who laid the curse, their souls would suffer from lashings, till they die from the torment.

And the voodoo craft of this Temple Lord could be said to have almost reached the realm of perfection.

Which drove terror into the hearts of people.

Hearing the white robed woman’s words, the person high up in the primary seat merely laughed out loud instead. “Yin Chi, oh Yin Chi, even upon death you seek to drag someone to cushion your back…..”