Immortality begins with the Swordsman.

Chapter 2 You really think she's your wife?

"You unfilial disciple, how many times have I told you?"

In her daze, Ning Zhongze faintly heard her master's angry rebuke, which was tinged with a crack in his voice, a stark contrast to his usual gentle and refined demeanor.

"Our Huashan Sect is a prestigious and righteous sect. Throw away all your low-class stuff like sleeping pills and lime."

"If outsiders find out that Huashan disciples use these tricks, you will completely disgrace our Huashan sect."

The words had barely left his lips.

A voice, as gentle as a spring breeze and as soft as a babbling brook, slowly rang out.

"Master, you're wrong about that."

"Whether it's lime, sleeping pills, or swords and spears, they themselves are not inherently superior or inferior; what creates this distinction is human prejudice."

The voice was like a clear mountain spring, flowing gently through the heart, both soft and serene.

This was the first time Ning Zhongze had heard her second senior brother's voice, so she held her breath and listened carefully.

"Besides, it's your own life. Let others say what they want. Surviving is the most important thing."

"Master, think about it. If Sima Zhongda hadn't lived so long, how could he have had the last laugh and achieved such great things?"

Ning Zhongze could even imagine the expression on her second senior brother's face when he said those words. His tone must have been relaxed and his demeanor composed, with a faint smile playing on his lips.

"Don't try to fool me with your twisted logic and fallacies!"

"A true man should act with integrity and uprightness, shining like the sun, moon and stars in the world. Although Sima Zhongda may have won for a time, he has been infamous for ten thousand years. When people talk about the Sima family, they all criticize him behind his back."

"In this life, there are things you should do and things you shouldn't do. Do you understand?"

Hearing her master's reprimand, Ning Zhongze felt a chill run down her spine and a secret sense of shame: "No wonder Master told me not to listen to my second senior brother's fallacies; I almost fell for his tricks just now... Hmm, from now on, I'll only believe about 70% of what my second senior brother says!"

The second senior brother's voice rang in my ears again: "Master, please don't be angry. Have some tea to calm yourself down. There's a reason for this, please let me explain slowly..."

"Hmph, I'd like to see how you try to justify yourself. If you can't come up with a plausible explanation, hehe..."

Master Zixiao sneered, his tone full of threat.

At this moment, Ning Zhongze's consciousness gradually returned, but her whole body was still sore and weak, as if all her strength had been drained. She could only lie quietly on the bed, listening with great interest to her second senior brother's sophistry.

"A few days ago, I observed the stars at night and discovered that Sirius and Ziwei were vying for brilliance, with a bloody light appearing. This is an ominous sign, indicating that the conflict between the sword and qi factions of my Huashan Sect will result in bloodshed and disaster."

"I was filled with worry and anxiety. Just then, Senior Sister Cai Ling Shuang passed by. I thought to myself, Senior Sister Cai is the daughter of the Sword Sect Master. She is in the prime of her life and she and Senior Brother are a match made in heaven."

"In ancient times, Sun Quan and Liu Bei formed a marriage alliance to jointly resist Cao Cao, which led to the tripartite division of the world. If we can now facilitate a marriage alliance between swordsmen and warriors, perhaps we can resolve the conflict and create a beautiful story for future generations."

Upon hearing this, Daoist Zixiao snorted coldly: "Heh, you've really gone to great lengths for your senior brother's marriage, you've even learned the 'Star Gazing Technique'?"

Gu Changfeng remained unfazed: "This is my duty as a junior brother. I believe that senior brother will weigh the pros and cons and make a wise decision."

Upon hearing this, Ning Zhongze understood. It turned out that her second senior brother had gone through all this trouble just to arrange a marriage for her eldest senior brother.

She had genuinely believed that her second senior brother was truly trying to resolve the conflict between the two sects, and thought to herself, "I was thinking I could trust 70% of what he said, but now it seems I was too hasty—50%, no more than that!"

Master Zixiao continued, "Enough with the nonsense! Get to the point, what kind of trouble happened afterward?"

Gu Changfeng said indignantly, "It's all because of that scoundrel Cheng Buyou. I was having a great chat with Senior Sister Cai when he suddenly jumped out and called me a fool for being delusional, a toad trying to eat swan meat. I couldn't stand it, so I gave him a good beating."

Master Zixiao asked in surprise, "In the past two years, haven't you beaten up quite a few people on Mount Hua? I've never seen you show any fear, but this time you're so scared that you even resorted to using sleeping pills?"

Gu Changfeng lowered his head, somewhat guilty, and said, "Um... I also beat up Senior Sister Cai while I was at it."

"you--!"

Master Zixiao's eyes were filled with surprise and doubt: "Why did you beat that girl up for no reason?"

Gu Changfeng snorted coldly: "This woman is ignorant of the bigger picture. As the daughter of the Sword Sect's leader, she should bear the responsibility of mediating the conflict between the two sects. A marriage alliance is the best solution. I tried to persuade her for a long time, but she ignored me and even stopped me from beating Cheng Buyou. With my explosive temper, how could I tolerate her? So..."

Daoist Zixiao sneered, "So, given Cai Ling Shuang's prestige in the Sword Sect, all the juniors in the Sword Sect are now seeking revenge against you?"

Gu Changfeng chuckled and said, "Master is indeed a prophet. The Sword Sect has many people and great power, while I am outnumbered and outmatched, so I have no choice but to use some underhanded means to save my life..."

Master Zixiao said, "If you can't defeat them, just hide in the 'Purple Qi Comes from the East Pavilion.' This is my residence; do they dare to force their way in?"

Gu Changfeng cautiously replied, "One must always be wary of others. What if one or two scoundrels, lacking any sense of honor, sneak in at night and kill me? Wouldn't I suffer a huge loss?"

Master Zixiao was speechless, shaking his head and sighing, "No matter what, Cai's status is what it is. Tomorrow you will come with me to Lotus Peak to personally apologize to your Uncle Cai, and this matter will be over. You can't be a thief for a thousand days without being on guard against him for a thousand days."

"Yes, Master!"

Gu Changfeng readily agreed, appearing completely indifferent.

He then turned to look at Ning Zhongze on the bed and asked, "Master, who is this little girl?"

Master Zixiao snorted coldly: "The wife I found for you."

This statement came out.

Ning Zhongze, who had been pretending to be unconscious, suddenly felt a "buzz" in her head, as if she had been struck by lightning, and almost burst into tears.

--really.

—My master took me as his disciple so that he could find a wife for my second senior brother.

Gu Changfeng frowned and said, "My wife?... Master, please have some self-respect. She is still a young girl. Although I may act rashly, I would never do something so beastly."

Upon hearing this, Ning Zhong felt somewhat relieved.

But then, Gu Changfeng casually added, "However, raising her as a child bride for a few years isn't out of the question..."

A child bride?!

Ning Zhongze felt a chill run through her heart, realizing she had been deceived by her master. If she hadn't been physically weak, she would have jumped up and questioned him long ago.

Fortunately, Master Zixiao's tone turned serious: "Stop being so glib. She's my newly accepted disciple. Don't say those disgraceful things anymore. Your junior sister may be young, but she has a lot of backbone. Be careful, or she might come after you."

Gu Changfeng heard the words "newly accepted disciple" and then couldn't hear what came after that.

His eyes were sharp as he carefully examined the girl on the bed. He saw that she had delicate and youthful features, just like a junior high school student.

—The original text mentions that Ning Zhongze was thirteen years old when she first went up Mount Hua.

—Now that her identity and age match, doesn't that mean she is "Master's Wife" Ning Zhongze?

Gu Changfeng was immediately filled with excitement, and a gleam of excitement unconsciously appeared in his eyes.

Master Zixiao sniffed his sleeve and said with disgust, "Your sleeping potion smells all over me, it's making me dizzy. I'm going to change my clothes. You watch over your junior sister; if she wakes up, take her for a walk around the courtyard to familiarize her with the surroundings..."

Gu Changfeng chuckled: "Alright! Don't worry, Master."

As soon as Master Zixiao left, the room fell silent, with only the mountain wind whistling outside the window, making a "whooshing" sound as it brushed against the window paper.

Ning Zhongze, lying on the bed, suddenly tensed up.

She was already thirteen years old and had a vague understanding of matters between men and women. Being alone with a man in a room, especially since the other person was a lecherous man who had designs on her, made her feel uneasy.

"Second Senior Brother...could he really do something beastly?"

Ning Zhongze became increasingly panicked as she thought about it. Her body tensed up instinctively, her hands gripping the sheets tightly until her knuckles turned white, and beads of sweat appeared on her forehead.

But after waiting for a long time, all around remained silent.

She cautiously opened her eyes a crack and quickly saw a swordsman in blue robes sitting cross-legged with his eyes closed on a cushion in the center of the room, looking serene.

This was the first time she had truly seen Gu Changfeng's appearance. He had delicate features, a calm demeanor, and possessed both the scholarly air of a learned man and the heroic spirit of a knight-errant.

The only thing that puzzled her was—

The Huashan Sect is a branch of Taoism, but Gu Changfeng was holding a long string of black and white Buddhist prayer beads in his left hand.

Just as she was wondering, Gu Changfeng slowly opened his eyes, and the two looked at each other.

"Junior sister, you're awake?"

"Um!"

Ning Zhongze blinked lightly, then sat up calmly, her expression indifferent but her ears slightly red. For a moment, she didn't know what to say.

Gu Changfeng wrapped the black and white Buddhist prayer beads around his left wrist, stood up and introduced himself: "Junior sister, I am your second senior brother, Gu Changfeng."

Ning Zhongze nodded obediently: "Yes, I've met you, Second Senior Brother. My name is Ning Zhongze."

Gu Changfeng's eyes flickered slightly, and his smile deepened: "A good name! Your name comes from Xunzi, 'I have heard that a vessel for sitting upright, when empty, tilts; when half-full, stands upright; when full, overturns.' Is that correct?"

Ning Zhongze exclaimed in surprise, "Wow, Second Senior Brother is amazing!"

Gu Changfeng smiled slightly; as a transmigrator, he naturally knew these things.

five years ago.

After graduating from university, he went to Mount Hua for sightseeing and unfortunately fell off a cliff.

I thought I would be smashed to pieces, but unexpectedly everything went black and I fell into a cold ancient well. My body was also rejuvenated and I became eleven or twelve years old.

When he finally managed to climb out of the well, he found a band of robbers slaughtering the family.

Night fires, flashing swords, screams of agony, blood everywhere, corpses strewn across the field...

What lay before me was nothing short of a living hell.

Just as he was terrified and nearly fell into the ancient well again, a sword light suddenly pierced through the air and arrived.

The Taoist Master Zixiao, alone with his sword, killed all the bandits and rescued him from the ancient well. Mistaking him for the orphan of his master, he took pity on him, accepted him as his disciple, and brought him back to Mount Hua.

It wasn't until he reached Mount Hua that he met Yue Buqun, who was twenty years old at the time.

Gu Changfeng suddenly realized that he had transmigrated into the world of the novel "The Smiling, Proud Wanderer".

Moreover, the timeline is several decades away from the start of the original story, and even the "Sword Qi Conflict" that nearly wiped out the Huashan Sect has not yet occurred.

Everything is still unsettled.

Looking at the entire novel "The Smiling, Proud Wanderer", there are not many people who can catch Gu Changfeng's eye. Ning Zhongze, the "master's wife", is one of them. Unfortunately, she has a tragic fate and eventually commits suicide in despair.

Therefore, the goal was to save Ning Zhongze's fate—definitely not to satisfy his own "Cao Cao's legacy."

Gu Changfeng set a great goal:

Before Ning Zhongze arrives at the mountain, spread rumors and wait for her to walk into the trap. At the same time, just in case, find a way to "marry" Yue Buqun off.

……

……

"Senior brother, senior brother?"

Seeing that he seemed dazed, Ning Zhongze called out to him softly.

Gu Changfeng was slightly taken aback, but when he came to his senses, his lazy smile returned to his face.

"How old is my junior sister this year?"

"Thirteen," Ning Zhongze answered crisply.

"He really is thirteen years old," Gu Changfeng muttered, as if confirming something, before asking, "Is your father named Ning Qingyu?"

No, that's not it!

Ning Zhongze tilted her head, a hint of doubt in her eyes, "Why does Second Senior Brother ask such a question?"

Gu Changfeng smiled and said dismissively, "It's nothing, just asking casually."

But inwardly he thought to himself, "Those fan fictions are really harmful! The original story clearly states that Ning Zhongze didn't go to Mount Hua until she was thirteen. How could her father possibly be a member of Mount Hua? Besides, there hasn't been a person named Ning Qingyu on Mount Hua all these years..."

He then asked, "What do your junior sister's parents do?"

"My father was a schoolteacher at the foot of the mountain, and my mother..." Ning Zhongze said, a hint of pride appearing on her face, "was a chivalrous heroine."

Gu Changfeng smiled with some surprise and said, "A scholar and a female knight-errant, what a perfect match! No wonder my junior sister, despite her young age, already has a bit of a heroic spirit. Aunt Ning must be a heroine among women."

When her mother was praised, Ning Zhongze smiled shyly and said, "I'm not that amazing!"

Gu Changfeng then asked, "Does Junior Sister have any brothers or sisters?"

Ning Zhongze shook her head and said, "No, it's just me. What's wrong?"

Gu Changfeng suddenly narrowed his eyes, leaned forward slightly, but his tone remained relaxed: "Junior sister, you are so charming, were you married before coming up the mountain?"

Upon hearing this, Ning Zhongze blushed instantly, reflecting on what she had just witnessed. Looking at Gu Changfeng again, she realized his face practically screamed "wolfish ambition."

Just then, a furious shout came from outside the door from Master Zixiao:

"You unfilial disciple, I told you to take Ze'er around, what are you doing asking so many questions?"

Gu Changfeng said in a serious tone, "Master! As your senior brother, I just want to know about your junior sister's family background so that it will be easier to take care of her in the future."

Master Zixiao retorted angrily, "What do you know? Asking such detailed questions, do you really think she's your wife?"

Ning Zhongze: Σ（°△°|||）︴

Gu Changfeng: (￢_￢)