Published at 2nd of April 2019 3:31 am

Chapter 5

This chapter is updated by NovelFree.ml

Half a year later.

A young lady walked into a restaurant. She was dressed in a short-sleeve yellow top with a matching long skirt, tied at the waist with a long belt. Although the design was plain, her robes were made of top-quality fabric giving her a simple but elegant look. Her black hair was braided at the top with a jade hairpin while the rest of her hair flowed softly to her tiny waist. Her features veered towards handsome rather than pretty, but she was nonetheless very easy on the eyes.

She asked the waiter for a table on the second floor. There were plenty of empty seats and she chose a seat next to the window. After studying the menu, she said: “Please bring me some deep fried dishes. The oilier the better.”

“Would miss like to try our herbal menu? We have the honor to get Fifth Gentleman of Cloud Manor to share some of his recipes, and we are probably the only restaurant to offer such herbal cuisine in the whole of Central Plains.”

She blinked and gave the waiter a pleasant smile “Perhaps next time. Please give me what I have ordered for now.”

As the waiter poured tea for her, he noticed that the lady has very nice features although her eyebrows were rather manly. If she has worn a man’s robes, he would probably not be able to tell that she was a woman.

She returned his look. “Is anything amiss?”

“None at all. I am just thinking that this is the first time I have seen a person with such unisex features. Miss is really…” after running through his mental vocabulary list he finally hit on “…really handsome.”

“Ay, if I must be quite a failure if you think that I look like a man when I am dressed like this.” She sighed. “It is indeed not easy for a man to cross-dress as a woman…”

The waiter was flustered by her reply. “What I mean is, Miss has features that will look good on either man or woman. If you choose to wear man’s clothing, you would have look like a handsome gentleman. But if you wear a dress, you will naturally look like a pretty lady… besides you are obviously a woman with your current dressing.”

She gave him a wan smile and asked him to serve her lunch quickly as she was getting hungry.

She played with her chopsticks out of habit while observing the street below. Because it was noontime, the restaurant got progressively crowded. By the time her dishes arrived, another three to four tables on the second floor were already occupied.

The waiter noticed that her chopsticks dropped several times from her left hand. Perhaps her left hand has a problem? As he laid the dishes on the table, he caught a sniff of herbs from her. He discreetly looked down and saw a waist satchel that he did not spot earlier.

“Is anything the matter?” she asked again.

The waiter took a while to sort through his thoughts. “Oh I see. Miss’s belt is overly long and has concealed your fragrant satchel when you walk. But once you sit down, the satchel would be revealed.” The lady has a tiny waist and surely need not wear such a long belt?

“A belt can do many things, like saving a life for example.”

“Oh I see.” Although he was still curious, the waiter knew that he must do his utmost to serve his customers and if this customer only wished to comment so much, he would not ask further and so he left her.

A while later, all the tables on second floor were taken up. Two young men walked up to her and requested politely: “Miss, can we share the table?”

The new comers were in their twenties, with refined manners and fairly good looks. When she agreed graciously, they thanked her and proceeded to place their food orders with the waiter.

One of the young pugilists asked her: “Is Miss from the jianghu [pugilist world]?”

“I should be considered one.” She concentrated on eating, being careful not to stuff herself, as a way to stay healthy.

“Do you have a title?”

“No, I think.”

The young men thought that she could be someone new to jianghu and let down their guards. Still, they could not help but sneak a second look at her. She looks young but lacks the flighty or delicate airs of an inexperienced heroine.

Usually, young female pugilists tend to be rash and will follow their fellow brothers from the same sect when they travelling around the jianghu. But this young lady is very steady and does not seem to be the rash sort. Besides, her eyebrows are extraordinary handsome, with healthy, delicate skin…. as their thoughts took on another direction, both men turned a dull red and coughed in an attempt to cover up their nervousness.

She noted their cough, and the distance from their mouth to her food. She can tolerate this. It was nothing really, to eat another person’s saliva, she can definitely endure.

One of the young men tried to change the topic and asked his companion. “Brother Gu, are you going to Cloud Manor?”

Young Master Gu replied: “Yes. The Imperial Court holds a martial arts https://www.blogger.com/examination once every six years, and this year’s winner is Silver-Hand Third Master Tu San Long. He does not have a fixed residence but he is a good friend of Gentleman Xian Yun and I heard he is currently putting up at Cloud Manor. My master has sent me to congratulate Master Tu on his behalf, and to bring back some scrolls from Cloud Manor pertaining to Silver-Hand Third Master, so that our other disciples learn from him. Is Brother Huang going to Cloud Manor for the same reason?”

Young Master Huang smiled. “That is right. I have another agenda as I would like to find out from the other Gentlemen if Silver-Hand Third Master would be receptive to our Master Deng’s idea for him to marry his daughter. I would also like to…”

Young Master Gu continued for him “…sneak a peek at Fairy No Waves (无波仙子)?”

She nearly choked on her rice upon hearing “Fairy No Waves”. Tolerate. Tolerate! She took a deep breath and tried to pour some tea for herself with her left hand. Unfortunately, the teapot was too heavy and the action caused a shot of pain up her left arm.

Both men offered to pour for her. Embarrassed when they spoke out at the same time, they diverted their eyes. In the end. Young Master Gu poured the tea for her and enquired: “Did Miss injured your left hand?”

“It is just a small injury. Thank you young master”

“My name is Gu Shao De.” He was quick to introduce himself

“My name is Huang Zai Ran.” His companion did not want to lose out either.

“I see.” She looked out of the window. “Pray, do continue with your chat.”

“Is Miss waiting for someone?”

She did not wish to talk while eating so she looked out of the window again. “Yes I am.”

Seeing her disinterest, the two young men continued to eat. The people at the next table were talking rather loudly and Gu Shao De commented in low tones when he heard what they were talking about. “Ay, they were still talking about that incident which happened half a year ago.”

Huang Zai Ran appeared a little embarrassed and mumbled: ”For a small matter that happened so long ago, I don’t see what else is there to talk about.”

“How could Brother Huang say so? Several Cloud Manor disciples were either dead or injured, while Protector Huang Fu of the Evil Sect has fallen to her death. Rumor has it that it was a setup because they found dynamite buried under at the cliff. Who could have done it? When Che Yan Yan and Gentleman Xian Yun attempted to look for Huang Fu Yun at the base of the cliff, all they could find was her body. It was such a mystery”

Mystery? Of course it was a mystery. Besides the Cloud Manor disciples who perished in the incident, the Evil Sect has also lost Huang Fu Yun and Sky Slaves belonging to Che Yan Yan. Even more surprising was the fact that the Leader of Bai Ming Sect has decided not to pursue the matter of Huang Fu Yun’s death and only summoned her Sky Slave, He Zai, back to the Sect.

According to rumors, He Zai has chosen to return to Tian He Manor but no one has seen him ever since. Whenever Cloud Manor dispatched someone to Tian He Manor, He Zai would refuse to meet the messenger. He Rong Hua was still the master of the manor and things were sort of left that way. Whatever the historians of Cloud Manor have chosen to write about the incident were kept behind the three locked gates of their library without anyone being wiser. No one wanted to probe further which also made sense, for who would dare shoulder the upheaval if they stirred a hornet’s nest?

Gu Shao De sighed and continued. “Rumor has it that there were ten young men who have trailed the group ever since they left Tian He Manor. Their aim was to kill the Protectors of the Evil Sect and make a name for themselves. But when the landslide happened, it was Gentleman Xian Yun who saved their lives. Out of shame, all of them have refused to speak of the incident ever since. I wonder who these dumb asses are? For all we know, they could be the ones who planted the dynamite.”

Huang Zai Ran did not meet his eyes and concentrated on eating. She too kept silent and concentrated on savoring her oily fried chicken wing. When she heard a disturbance at the streets below, she looked out of the window and saw that someone has entered the city and were leading their horses down the street.

According to the rules of Cloud Manor, riders have to dismount once they have entered the city unless in situations of emergency. She saw two white figures leading their horses. The one walking behind was Gong Sun Zhi and the one in front was naturally the legendary deity-from-nine heavens, Gong Sun Yun.

Gu Shao De was overjoyed. “They are back! How wonderful. Now we can follow Gentleman Xian Yun to the manor.”

He was about to go down when he saw that Gong Sun Yun has lifted his head to their second-storey window. Gu Shao De was about to smile and wave his greetings when he saw Gong Sun Yun curved his lips into a generous smile.

For a moment, Gu Shao De was mesmerized.

Gong Sun Yun’s voice was cheerful. “Wu Bo, let us return together.”

She sighed: ”Endure, endure... I have already memorized the entire poetic essay of Luo Shen to heart, so this is but a small matter.” She went down the steps with her hands folded customary behind her, her long belt nearly dragging the floor.

When she reached their side, Gong Sun Zhi was the first to ask: “Have you taken your medicine today?”

“Yes, I have.” Hi Mom, you are back.

Gong Sun Yun gave her a slight smile: “Fifth Brother is just worried about you. Although you have made a speedy recovery, your tolerance too good and you could have pushed yourself harder than you realized.”

“I understand and will be careful.” Hello Dad, you are home too.

Since losing her parents since young, she has never thought that there could come a day when she would inherit another set of parents. Shouldn’t they have made their appearance earlier? Twenty seems a bit late to get another Mom and Dad right?

“Let us return.”

She nodded and pointed behind. “There are others who wanted to return with us.”

Gong Sun Zhi saw the men behind her and whispered: “Did that Huang fellow recognize you?”

She shrugged.“I think not.” and taking the reins of Gong Sun Yun’s horse, she proceeded to lead the way at a very leisurely pace.

* * * * *

Jiang Wu Bo was from the Capital, and the granddaughter of Reverend Zhou Shang before the latter became a monk. She arrived at Cloud Manor with her brother two months ago. Although Cloud Manor do not accept outsiders usually, Reverend Zhou Shang was a close friend of the Manor so they have made an exception for her while keeping her brother as a disciple.Although her father is a scholar, Reverend Zhou Shang was a well-known pugilist in his younger days, so she could be considered a descendant of reputable family.

Someone said that when the Gentleman of Cloud Manor first saw her, they were so enamored by her that they has penned her as “Fairy No Waves” on the spot. Gentleman Xian Yun has even wanted to acknowledge her as his sworn sister but she has turn down his offer gently.

This has caused many to wonder if this beauty is more outstanding if one were to compare her say, with Hai Tang Fairy? As a result, there were a lot more visitors at Cloud Manor recently on the pretext of borrowing scrolls. Many young men have spotted Fairy No Waves when they visited the manor.When looking at her for the first time, “handsome” is the first word that usually comes to mind and to call her a ‘Fairy’ seems to be stretching the term quite a bit.But on the second look, one would discover her sanguinity and refined airs.Although she is not a conventional beauty, she has her own qualities that could be deserving of the title ‘Fairy’.

Besides, a title will grow on a person as time goes by, regardless if the title is suitable or not. Especially when it is a title endorsed by the Gentlemen of Cloud Manor, who would go against popular consensus and get peg for poor judgment?

She happened to overhear the last bit when one Gentleman boasted about this to another. This was an obvious abuse of position! and she silently vowed to herself never to believe in anything that she sees or hears in the jianghu ever again.

***

Every evening, Jiang Wu Bo will visit a particular courtyard where a Gentleman will be standing guard. When he saw her, he greeted: “Miss Wu Bo, I am wondering where you are when I was told you have gone to the restaurant. I remember you could barely walk two months ago and although it is good you have regained your mobility, do remember not to overexert yourself and break Fifth Brother’s reputation (as a healer).”

“Thank you, Fourth Gentleman for your advice.”

She waited in a corner and after a while, Gong Sun Yun appeared from the inner room. His forehead was beaded in perspiration despite the cool spring weather. Fourth Gentleman took in his appearance and sighed. “Is everything still the same?”

“It is good that it is still the same. Perhaps he would wake up tomorrow.” When Gong Sun Yun spotted her, he gave her a smile and bade her to enter the room where Gong Sun Zhi was waiting for her.

When she entered the room, she noticed that the medicine bowl was empty. Gong Sun Yun must have fed the patient his medicine after transferring his energy to him. She moved a stool to the bedside and looked at the person lying on the bed. “Let us begin.”

Gong Sun Zhi started speaking to the person on the bed: “Ah Yao, I am Fifth Brother and I am here to see you.”

“Ah Yao, I am Wu Bo and I am here to see you.”

“You have lain here for half a year and it is time for you to wake up. If you do not wake soon, the other brothers are going to laugh at my poor doctoring skills.”

She repeated after him “You have lain here for half a year and is time for you to wake up. If you do not wake soon, the other brothers are going to laugh at his poor doctoring skills.”

Gong Sun Zhi went on to talk about his day. “Ah Yao, Xian Yun and I have skipped breakfast in order to rush home. Lunch was only some buns.”

“Ah Yao, I…. ate at the restaurant today.”

Gong Sun Zhi look thoughtfully at her while he continued. “For lunch, Xian Yun and I had wheat buns. When in the jianghu, sometimes there is really no choice, and one cannot take nutritious meals all the time.”

“Ah Yao… I let the waiter ordered for me today. He served me the oiliest fried soy sauce chicken and the crispiest baked biscuits. I was powerless to resist, so I ate them all. When you wake up, you would be able to try it.” End of report.

“Miss Jiang had a sumptuous lunch?”

She was very polite. “You are too humble. After getting used to the food at your manor, the food outside is simply too oily for words.”

“Since it is oily, you should take something bland for dinner. Please join us for dinner at Double Cloud Pavilion tonight.”

She thanked him and stayed another hour talking to the unconscious man on the bed. By the time she left, the skies had turned a dusky grey and night was falling. Because of the recent increase in visitors, there were more lamps being lit at night which will be extinguished the next morn. She gave some thought to the cost of candles, which should have cost the manor a pretty penny, but the people here seemed contented to see money burn. Where did Cloud Manor get its money?

Originally, she has thought that the people of Cloud Manor would be a thrifty lot behind their glamorous front. However, she found it is not the case. She guessed Gong Sun Yun could have discovered a gold mine.

Someone tugged at her sleeve. When she looked down, she saw a little boy who was her supposed younger brother looking at her. “Big..big..big sister..” He was barely eight and still has some baby fat. “Fourth Gentleman invites you to dine at Double Cloud Pavilion. Before you go there, he would appreciate it if you can make an appearance at the ladies quarters.”

Although not exactly willing, she nodded. “Sure.”

When living under another’s roof, it is best to do as one is told. Just take her ‘brother’ for instance; he was a newly-accepted disciple in the manor but he has to take on a new identity to lend credence to her cover story. Never mind, she could tolerate such a small matter. If Cloud Manor wanted to fake something to such an extent, she could comply, no problem.

Although her ‘brother’ gave her all the due respect of a real sister, she did not think she has gain any advantage because she has to give equal respect to the unconscious Seventh Gentleman, Gong Sun Yao. He was the youngest among the Cloud Manor Gentleman and supposedly one of the most ardent admirer of Gong Sun Yun.

Although Gong Sun Yun has managed to bring him home, he has been in coma ever since the inccident. From a moral standpoint, it was partly because of her that he ended up in this state, so it was only right she bear some responsibility towards him. For that reason, she has been quick to agree when she was requested to speak to him every day to aid his recovery.

Small matter. Small matter. She will not lose any meat or bone by talking to an unconscious man; this is definitely within her tolerance level.

Little Brother shook her from her reverie. “Big…big..big sister, please follow me and do not get lost again. The last time you took a wrong turn to the man’s quarters, Sixth Gentleman has scolded you. It is better to be more careful this time round.”

She made a non-committal sound and followed the little boy. She is living under another’s roof and has to follow another’s instructions. Such is the sad truth of her pitiful fate.

She, Wang Yun, former Left Protector of Bai Ming Sect, has changed her name to Jiang Wu Bo and is living incognito in Cloud Manor. Luckily, it does not take much effort to keep her head lowered, so she has tolerated everything till now. Although she was not keen to revisit her memories of that day, she felt she has attained superhuman levels for pain endurance after the incident.

She remembered vaguely of walking in the rain. She stumbled several times, not knowing how long she could last, but she has continued walking. As time goes by, she found she could no longer hear the rain and it was getting harder and harder to decipher her surroundings.

When a shadowy figure appeared about ten steps in front of her, she stopped. The figure appeared to be saying something but she could not comprehend so she did not respond. The figure came closer and reached out a hand towards her. She did not move initially but when she registered the hand was reaching for her forehead, she flinched.

The hand stopped and he noticed her shoulder.

What was he saying? She could not understand.

He reached out and sealed several of her acupuncture points.

“Miss Yun, did I come too late?”

The voice was slightly hoarse but finally, she started to catch what he was saying. She even managed a polite reply: “Not too late, at least I am still alive.”

She did not know if she has spoken out loud as he only continued staring at her. She tried again. “Gentleman Xian Yun, where is He Zai?”

“I did not pay him much notice. Perhaps, he is trying to find a way down here.”

She thought she must have walked for a long time until Gong Sun Yun and He Zai have found a way down. Apparently it did not seem to be the case.

“Miss Yun, shall I bring you back to Cloud Manor?”

The hoarse voice with its careful tone bothered her for some reason. Her thinking was not as clear as before and she has to think for a long time before she understood his meaning. Her pale lips curved up in a smile but there was no warmth in her eyes. “Gentleman Xian Yun need not fear my hatred for I bear you no grudge. It is only natural for one to save the one who is closest to them during crisis.”

The problem lies with her. She, who is a nobody to him or He Zai. The truth is simple; some things are easier said than done. Although she was happy when He Zai said he would follow her for this lifetime, she has not truly believed him in the deepest recess of her heart. What happened today was only a manifestation of her expectations.

Her heart was now as calm as water. “If I encounter a similar event, I would naturally save my own people too.”

“I could not save you the first time, or even the second time; surely I could save you the third time?”

She has grown accustomed to such polite words. “Thank you. The remaining two pieces of jade are in my sleeves.” Take them back yourself if you want to.

“Let them remain where they were.” He paused and said gently. “Would you let me rescue you?”

It took a while, but she finally understood why he was standing motionless in front of her. She lowered her eyes and laughed without mirth. “I have to trouble Gentleman then.” She finally allowed the pain to overtake her as she fell into a dead faint into his arms.

When she woke up, she was already in Cloud Manor. She could hear Gong Sun Zhi in the background. “I am really amaze she can walk so far given her injuries.”

In that instant, she wanted to groan. Did it have to be like this? Yes, she was seriously injured but her hearing was fine. Why did she have to meet this long-winded person now?

“Don’t you worry, besides the few of us, no one knows that Huang Fu Yun is still alive. It rained for six hours that day. When the rain finally stopped, Xian Yun suggested to Che Yan Yan to search for you at the foot of the cliffs. Before that, we have dressed one of our disciples in your clothes and pretended he was you. The body was badly scarred and Che Yan Yan did not suspect anything. We have buried him in situ and in another two years, Xian Yun will arrange for the disciple to be buried back at Cloud Manor under his own name.”

“Xian Yun was carrying Ah Yao and holding on to me, he was really unable to save you. The rain was very heavy and Che Yan Yan and the rest has retreated further down the mountain. We were right at the back and Xian Yun leaped down the cliff after he passed Ah Yao to me.”

“He was not trying to commit suicide. His qinggong is very good and he would not have a problem scaling that cliff normally. But given the conditions that day, it hasn’t been easy for him to go down either. When Miss Yun is able to talk, you really must thank Xian Yun.”

She tried to talk but there was no sound. So what if Gong Sun Yun went down the cliff? Had she not been lucky, all he found would have been a corpse. But Gong Sun Yun did seem to take his parental role seriously and would try to save whoever he could. Besides, it was also her wish that Huang Fu Yun disappeared since there will then be no more mental games, no more dealings with a Sect Leader who has gone crazy from practicing his martial arts. She should be grateful to him.

She estimated that Sect Leader could only last another year at most. Once he has passed his position to his successor, she would not care if she was exposed for she would then truly be a free-floating cloud amongst the wild geese in the skies.

“Do you know how long you have been unconscious? Only two days. However, I know this is not because of your good martial arts foundation. You sustained a head injury, a broken shoulder, a twisted left leg, and your organs were shaken out of place. How did you managed to walk so far? Even if I have increased the dosage for painkillers, you should still be in a lot of pain. Why did you not show any expression of pain?

Since she couldn’t talk, she decided that she need not answer him.

Gong Sun Zhi gave a small smile and hit one of her accupuncture points. “Now you can talk. Previously, I have sealed your speech point for fear you would be groaning and howling. But you can speak now.”

She stared at him for the longest time. Gong Sun Zhi waited patiently. She is now lying under another’s roof, ANOTHER’S roof. Finally, she blurted “… hurt….”

He looked innocent. “I beg your pardon? I did not hear you clearly.”

She tried again hoarsely. “…It hurts. I’m in great pain!”

Tolerate. He wanted to hear; she can humor him, no problem.

“Did it really hurt? Why are you not crying?”

Toleerrrateeee….

A hoarse voice spoke up “Fifth Brother should stop bullying Miss Yun.”

It was only then that she noticed Gong Sun Yun standing in a corner. He came to the bedside but she could not make out his expression with the light behind him. “You have awaken too soon which is not a good thing. Although I know it is your habit, you need to try to rest more.” Pressing his palm over her eyes, he continued. “Will this make you sleep better?”

“Xian Yun, you stay and accompany her. I like to take a look at Ah Yao now.”

He nodded and moved to sit besides the bed. But his voice still sounded hoarse; had he hurt his throat?

The warmth from his palm seeped through her eyelids. She remembered the same hands had covered her eyes when she has woken up in pain on the way back to Cloud Manor. She was battling the pain and trying desperately to stay awake but he kept repeating beside her ear: “Try to sleep a while more. The pain will be easier to bear once you are asleep.”

Now, it was indeed alright if she slept a little longer. Cloud Manor should be a safe haven for the time being and both Gentleman Xian Yun and Fifth Gentleman seemed to be true gentlemen. Recuperating here would be her best choice. She decided to indulge a little and let the warm hands lulled her to sleep. It wasn’t until much later that she found …

She has been conned!

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