vncnus Chapter 35 A Girl's Thoughts
Chapter 35 A Girl's Thoughts
Yue Lingshan glared at Zhao Yu for a long time, but when he didn't say anything, she lost her temper.
Indeed, someone so young yet possessing such superb martial arts skills certainly has the right to say such things.
She angrily took a bite of the candied hawthorn in her hand. The sweet and sour taste melted in her mouth, and the anger in her heart dissipated.
After a pause, Yue Lingshan couldn't suppress her curiosity any longer: "By the way, what exactly is that Evil-Repelling Sword Manual you mentioned before?"
"I secretly watched the people from the Fuwei Escort Agency practice their skills before, and their techniques were utterly ordinary. Forget my father, even a random, low-ranking disciple from our Huashan Sect could easily defeat their so-called young head escort. Is this kind of martial arts manual really worth the Qingcheng Sect and the Demonic Sect fighting tooth and nail for?"
Zhao Yu shook his head and said calmly, "That's because they don't know how to practice."
As he spoke, he suddenly became interested, reached into his robe and took it out, handing it to Yue Lingshan.
Zhao Yu smiled and said, "Come on, take a look. After reading this Evil-Repelling Sword Manual, you'll understand why their martial arts skills are so ordinary."
Yue Lingshan's eyes lit up, and she reached out to take it, but then withdrew her hand halfway through.
She looked at Zhao Yu with some hesitation: "This...this is not a good idea, is it? This is the Lin family's family martial arts. It's against the rules of the martial arts world for an outsider like me to see it."
"Didn't you hear what your father said? I saved the Lin family from annihilation, so this sword manual naturally belongs to me." Zhao Yu waved his hand and directly stuffed the cassock into her hands. "It's mine, you can naturally look at it, what are you afraid of?"
His original intention was simply to let Yue Lingshan see the first eight characters of the sword manual, so that she would know the details of this martial art and have some idea of its purpose.
In the original story, this girl's life was ruined by the Evil-Repelling Sword Manual, and she ultimately met a tragic end at the hands of her own husband.
Now that there's an opportunity to lend a helping hand and let her see the true nature of this sword manual in advance so she can be on guard, it can be considered a good deed.
But Yue Lingshan interpreted these words differently.
What does it mean to say, "You are free to look at my things"?
A blush instantly spread across Yue Lingshan's cheeks, her heart beat faster for no apparent reason, and the cassock in her hand seemed to become scalding hot.
She bit her lower lip, said nothing more, lowered her head, and carefully lifted the cassock.
When Yue Lingshan's gaze fell on the small characters embroidered with needle and thread at the beginning of the cassock, she froze after just one glance.
The eight characters, "To practice this skill, one must first castrate oneself," clearly came into view.
"ah!"
As if burned, Yue Lingshan threw the cassock back to Zhao Yu, her pretty face turning bright red, even her ears turning red.
She spat in shame and anger, "Pah! What filth! This...this can be called a martial arts manual?"
Zhao Yu shrugged, casually caught the cassock, and put it back in his pocket, looking calm: "Who says it isn't? But this martial art must be practiced this way."
Yue Lingshan suddenly raised her head, staring at him with her almond-shaped eyes, her gaze filled with surprise and doubt.
She blurted out, "So you're taking this sword manual because you're... planning to practice it yourself, right?"
Zhao Yu shuddered upon hearing this and quickly waved his hands to explain, "I have no such intention! Don't slander me! Only a madman like Yu Canghai would covet such a skill that would prevent one from having children. I have no interest in it."
For some reason, upon hearing his words, Yue Lingshan's heart, which had been hanging in suspense, suddenly settled down, and she inexplicably breathed a sigh of relief.
But she wouldn't let it go, spitting out, "Who knows if you can actually practice? Maybe one day you really will, and end up as a eunuch in the palace!"
"Hey, you little rascal." Zhao Yu chuckled and flicked her head with his finger. "If you keep talking nonsense like this, I'm going to lose my temper."
Yue Lingshan covered her head, her face flushed, and lowered her head, no longer daring to say another word.
Just then, the sound of rapid hoofbeats came from the street beside them.
Several fast horses galloped past, the riders dressed in tight-fitting clothes with long swords at their waists, looking like bodyguards.
Immediately, someone shouted, "Young Master Escort, the fight is taking place at Qingxu Temple in the west of the city. The Chief Escort specifically instructed us not to get involved, lest we get ourselves into trouble!"
Immediately afterward, a young man's voice rang out, brimming with confidence: "Chief Escort Zheng! Our Fuwei Escort Agency has been established in Fuzhou for decades, protecting the peace and tranquility of this region! Now that someone is disturbing the people, how can we sit idly by? Upholding justice and chivalry is the duty of us martial artists. Let's go see!"
Before the words were even finished, several fast horses had already kicked up dust and disappeared at the end of the street.
Zhao Yu and Yue Lingshan exchanged a glance, and they both instantly guessed the identity of the young man on horseback. He was none other than Lin Pingzhi, the young head镖师 (bodyguard/escort) of the Fuwei Escort Agency.
Come to think of it, given the commotion they caused, with the chase and the shootout, it's impossible for the local Fuwei Escort Agency not to react.
Zhao Yu raised his chin and gestured towards the direction where the horse's hooves disappeared: "Look, the main character is here. Aren't you going to go and see?"
Yue Lingshan hesitated for a moment, glanced at the end of the street, then turned to Zhao Yu and asked softly, "And what about you?"
"Me?" Zhao Yu smiled casually. "I've been in Fuzhou for so long, and I've taken care of everything I needed to do. It's time for me to leave."
Upon hearing this, Yue Lingshan felt a strange emptiness in her heart.
She bit her lower lip, and in a moment of impulsiveness, blurted out, "Then... then, will we ever see each other again?"
As soon as the words left her mouth, she regretted them. Her cheeks burned so badly that she wished she could disappear into the ground.
Seeing her like this, Zhao Yu understood, but he just smiled and waved his hand before turning around and walking towards the alley entrance.
He left behind only a light, fleeting sentence, which drifted on the wind: "Perhaps. The world is vast, take care."
Yue Lingshan stood there, watching his figure gradually disappear around the corner of the street until he was no longer visible. She remained frozen in place, her mind a jumbled mess.
After a long while, she bit her lip, used her lightness skill, and chased after Qingxu Temple.
In a flash of light and shadow, and after a dizzying spin, Zhao Yu was already standing in the study of the Prince of Lin'an's mansion.
Outside the window, the familiar scenery of Jiangnan still lingers, the sandalwood incense wafts in the air, just as it was when he left.
"Your Majesty? You've returned?"
Hearing the commotion, Wang Huai'an, who was guarding outside the door, quickly pushed the door open and came in, bowing respectfully.
"Okay." Zhao Yu nodded, handed him a large bag of Fuzhou pastries, and instructed, "Take these pastries to the kitchen and let the chefs figure out how to make them. I'll need them later."
"Yes, Your Majesty." Wang Huai'an quickly took the snacks, bowed, and withdrew.
Zhao Yu walked to the table and sat down, poured himself a cup of hot tea, took a sip of the warm tea, but couldn't help thinking about the little girl Yue Lingshan.
He couldn't help but chuckle, thinking to himself, "This girl seems quite interesting."