Refining the Mountains and Rivers

Chapter 1651 – Songtao Pavilion

After the incident in the Li Family, there was peace in East Pole County. Aside from the absent Li Family members, it felt like nothing had happened.

There was true peace at the Xu Family residence. No one came to seek their own death, and this made White Iris slightly disappointed.

When Xu Zhiruo woke up, she talked to Rourou again without Qin Yu. However, through her behavior after the talk, it was evident that she had completely accepted her fate.

Four days later.

The three passes in Qin Yu’s hand lit up at the same time. It was an alert that the gates would open today.

One thing to be thankful for was that the elite at Seeking Clouds Peak of the Central Desolate was either healing an injury or he was being delayed by something else. He did not descend to East Pole County.

There was another thing that made Qin Yu confused – Rourou did not take away Xu Zhiruo’s Sun Moon Eyes. He was puzzled but he did not say anything.

He did not dare to forget his debt to Rourou, not to mention other people. In a way, Qin Yu had deep confidence in Rourou’s professional ethics.

Perhaps the time was not right, or she had struck another deal on this. Either way, Rourou had probably made the necessary arrangements for whether or not Xu Zhiruo would be controlled after they left.

Otherwise, they would have put in so much effort only to dress someone else in a wedding dress. Rourou definitely would not accept such an outcome.

When dusk started to fall, Qin Yu was about to leave the house. He was surprised to find Xu Zhiruo in the yard. It seemed like she knew that they were leaving tonight.

After the ‘Sun Moon incident’ of that night, the two had not interacted privately. Their eyes met and Xu Zhiruo grunted as she bowed, “My eyes have been powerful since I was young and I can see many things. The Jade Gate opens on this day every month. It is a rule that has always been upheld.”

She hesitated and then continued, “That day, you helped me and I repaid your kindness with evil. I hope you will not hold a grudge against me for that.”

Qin Yu smiled, “Don’t worry, since you have already made a deal with her, I will not pursue whatever happened in the past.” He looked at her and smiled, “You can definitely trust my words.”

Not only could the Sun Moon Eyes of Xu Zhiruo see many things, they were also highly mysterious. If she concentrated hard enough, she would be able to see through the souls of people. Hence, she heaved a sigh of relief and her tone grew even more respectful, “I will wish you a smooth journey and for everything to go according to your wishes.”

Qin Yu cupped his hands together, “Thank you for your well wishes.”

White Iris pushed the door open and backed off to a side. Rourou walked over and asked, “Are you done with your small talk? Miss Xu seems a bit reluctant. We can wait a while more; there should not be an issue.”

Xu Zhiruo’s face instantly turned red but she remained silent. She bowed and then turned around to head back to the room.

Qin Yu said, “Let’s go. We should not let others wait for us.”

Rourou scoffed coldly, “I was afraid that someone fell in love with a beauty and changed his mind instantly to spoil our plans.”

Qin Yu ignored her and turned to leave. When he was just about to head out, a thought jumped into his mind. The past few days had been calm and peaceful; he had not offended her. Once they were out of the yard, White Iris walked behind Qin Yu and coughed lightly, “Ask Immortal Building…”

A frown etched across Qin Yu’s head and he immediately came to a realization. When he turned around, he saw Rourou with an unhappy expression. He sighed helplessly, “I will definitely abide by my promises earlier. But we should go through the Jade Gate smoothly before we talk about the Immortal Brew right?”

Rourou glanced at White Iris and snapped, “If your tongue is so long, should I help you to cut it off?”

White Iris’ face immediately paled and she lowered her head.

“Hmmph!”

Rourou strode forward and Qin Yu hurried to catch up to her. He did not feel that Rourou was purposely causing trouble and he simply assumed that she had a far too boring life when she was living in the Dark World.

In the evening, East Pole County was still as lively as ever. Although there weren’t lanterns tonight, there were still a lot of lights swaying around gently.

Qin Yu’s chest had been tight due to his nervousness, but he somehow relaxed because of the lights. He looked at the lights and suddenly, the figure of that long-eyebrowed lady during the lantern festival appeared in his mind. She was definitely beautiful and Qin Yu had been mesmerized by her.

This was probably a talent of men. No matter how calm they looked on the surface, they were actually excited internally.

Of course, this was the limit to his reaction and he would not take any other action.

There were many beautiful things in this world and he could not take every woman into his arms every time he fancied them. That would be too tiring and too disrespectful to those beauties of the world.

Rourou threw a side glance at Qin Yu. This time, she was truly a little annoyed but her tone was calm, “Who did you think of that you are smiling so brightly?”

Qin Yu coughed lightly and he immediately straightened himself and dropped his smile. “I am thinking about whether we should use our remaining time to buy some lanterns in East Pole County. When you are bored, you can play with them.”

Rourou scoffed, “I am not that bored!”

However, Qin Yu walked briskly towards one of the stores and bargained with the owner. When he started trying to choose lanterns, Rourou shuffled over and snapped impatiently, “Hurry up. You are a man but you are dilly-dallying. I don’t want to wait anymore!”

The store owner smiled brightly, “This lady is right. A man should be confident or he will be made fun of.”

There was a helpless look on Qin Yu’s face and he ended up buying ten lanterns at a high price. He lifted them up and asked, “Are they nice?”

Rourou pouted, “They are average.”

Then, she noticed the stillness in Qin Yu’s eyes.

She looked at him and raised her eyebrow. Then she turned back towards the lanterns; she was in a worse mood.

The group of girls opposite them were also shopping. A long-eyebrowed lady was, like Qin Yu, carrying a number of lanterns with her.

She was staring at Qin Yu while biting her lip. Although the two did not exchange a word, the hidden bitterness in their eyes looked like it was about to flow out.

They were about to leave East Pole County and it was truly a surprise to meet her here again. Furthermore, Qin Yu had sneakily thought of her just now.

He looked at the lady carrying the lanterns and he could not help feeling slightly guilty. He hesitated before flashing a smile and nodding at her.

“Hmph!”

Rourou whipped around angrily while White Iris threw a look at Qin Yu. There was calmness in her eyes and she did not reveal any emotion.

If this was before, her eyes would have been boiling with killing intent.

Qin Yu smiled bitterly and carried his lanterns away.

“Zhi’er, what are you looking at? You are so absorbed.” A girl beside her spoke in a soft manner. There was a soft frown on her face.

Jiang Zhiyue saw how the man turned and left without hesitation and she came to a realization. After some hesitation, she shook her head, “Aunty, I am fine. Just a little tired.”

Aunt Jiang nodded with a smile, “We came out early today and we have not eaten anything yet. It is normal that you feel tired.”

She scanned the crowd, “How about we find a private restaurant and try some dishes first. We will still head to the mountain peak in time.”

Some people around her nodded in agreement, but others were hesitant, “Aunt Jiang. The county will close the city gates when it is dark. If we delay too long, we may not be able to make it.”

Aunt Jiang laughed and took out a token. Although it looked ordinary and was the size of the palm, every female here was an upper class woman in the county. They recognized its significance.

“Aunt Jiang has the County Lord’s token; we will not be stopped if we want to leave the city.”

“Aunt Jiang has prepared well. Then we can take a rest before heading to the mountain peak.”

Some among the group of females were frowning to themselves. However, they still wore bright smiles on their faces, “I heard that Songtai Pavilion on the mountain peak is a place guarded by the military. Those who are able to head up there will be able to see a clear view of the Jade Gate. It is the best observatory…if the token will be able to bring us to Songtao Pavilion, that would be great.”

Aunt Jiang glanced at the noble lady who spoke. They were the same age and they grew up together. From the outside, they looked like best friends. However, they were competitive against each other.

Songtao Pavilion was an important military ground. How could anyone easily ascend it? Thankfully, she had predicted this and made preparations.

The noble lady observed the slight hesitation on Aunt Jiang’s face and she snickered to herself. Aunt Jiang knew this would happen and she beamed, “Although it is a little difficult, since Sister Rong suggested it, we can head up to view the scenery.”

There were cheers, and aside from the noble lady with the surname ‘Rong’ who forced a smile, the group of females were excited. Their eyes were bright and they looked at Aunt Jiang with respect and envy.

As expected of the famous Aunt Jiang of the county. She could guide people to Songtao Pavilion at night. This may seem insignificant, but it represented her power and status in the county. She was not someone who could be underestimated.

Sensing the gazes from the females, Aunt Jiang smiled, “It is actually a fortunate coincidence that I can bring you up there tonight. I heard that a lord from the Yang Family wants to head to the West Desolate. Hence, Songtao Pavilion will be opened to give this lord a place to rest.”

“When we go in, we should occupy a single table. Try not to say too much or do anything that could cause trouble.”

Lord from the Yang Family? The eyes of many females lit up and they were full of anticipation for tonight. Although they were all females who stayed in residences and they did not have to travel like their fathers and brothers, they were well informed and they naturally heard of what happened internally in the Yang Family.

The previous Yang Family Head actually had an official son who traveled the world. Now, he was recognized by the ancestral hall of the family and he became a respected member in the Yang Family with a lot of potential.

Not only that, it was rumored that that lord had a keepsake that was passed on by the previous Yang Family head to the one who would inherit the family head position.

Of course, the girls knew this, but they were not supposed to. They were sternly warned by their fathers not to say a single word regarding this for fear of trouble.

The token of the Yang Family head…who would dare to interfere in such a serious matter?

Logically speaking, a son who ran away would find it difficult to be acknowledged by the family, not to mention influence them.

However, this lord did precisely this. He almost caused a huge commotion in the ancestral hall of the family and a few elders quarreled fiercely against each other because of this.

This piqued the interest of a few other families in the county…if they could invest in this lord, they might be able to reap huge returns from them in the future.

This was why the single ladies here were excited. They definitely would not wait till the situation became urgent before taking action.

If they could meet the lord and leave an impression on him, it would create an opportunity in the future.

With this thought, the hearts of the ladies grew hot and their eyes lit up.