Situ Hong choked on his tea. Situ An’s brows furrowed in disapproval as Situ Min patted his brother’s back. The man brushed aside the young man’s hand and turned to his father.
“What was that?”
“What?”
“Say that again,” Situ Hong demanded.
Situ An scoffed. “No respect at all.”
“You’re going to talk about respect at a time like this?” Situ Hong squeezed out the word. He stood and pointed out the door with his folding fan. “You want me to just believe that Li Ran’s head disciple suddenly went missing? And he somehow connected it with the unorthodox cultivators?”
“Isn’t that what I just said?” Situ An frowned at his son.
Situ Hong glared at his father. “Can you stop being pretentious for one minute? How could this be possible? Father, do you know what this accusation could cause?”
Situ An lowered his gaze.
“A war! It could cause an all out war! And how come I haven’t heard a word about this?” Situ Hong asked, growing more and more enraged. “An issue like this should be passed through to the Hall of Impartiality and then transferred to Frost Cliff Pavilion, how could Li Ran just declare it like this to the world?!”
Situ Min flinched. He reached out and patted Situ Hong’s shoulder. “Da-ge, calm down. Isn’t that why Father told you to come home so that he could tell you?”
Situ Hong glanced at his father and turned away. “I’m not angry at him. I’m just angry at this entire situation.”
The foyer fell silent.
“Does he have any evidence?”
“Just eyewitnesses of someone chasing after Miss Xiu and then Miss Xiu being taken into Jianshi province by someone,” Situ An said.
“That could mean many things!” Situ Hong slammed his fist down on the table. “Who knows? Maybe Li Ran was the one who sent someone after Xiu Lan. Maybe the person who took her into Jianshi was just trying to help her!”
“Situ Hong.”
Situ Hong met his father’s gaze. “Are you going to tell me to mind my words? That I’m wrong?”
Situ Hong stood. “Do you just want me to keep quiet and be neutral again?”
Situ An pursed his lips. “I told you about this so you could prepare.”
“Prepare? For what? You’re not thinking of taking his side, are you?”
“I won’t be.”
Realization dawned on Situ Hong. “…But you won’t take Jianshi’s side either, right?”
Situ An’s silence was the answer.
“…I see,” Situ Hong laughed wryly. He took a step back. “You called me here to tell me this, but you’re also telling me you won’t be taking sides? So, what? Why am I here?”
“If you insist on working with Frost Cliff Pavilion after this, do not say you are part of Purple Bamboo School.”
Situ Min’s eyes widened. He turned on his father. “Father, what are you—”
“I understand.”
Situ Min whipped his head back to look at Situ Hong. “Wait, Da-ge, don’t be rash. Father is just—”
“This is why I’ve always hated you,” Situ Hong said. He took a step back, a bitter smile plastered on his face. “You’re a coward. You were one then and you’re still one now and you will continue to be one in the future.”
Situ An glared at Situ Hong. “You insolent boy, it’s for the se—”
“I get it. It’s for the sect,” Situ Hong said. He chuckled. “How fortunate they are to have you as their leader and the head of the house, Sect Leader Situ. I suppose it was just my mother’s misfortune to have married you.”
The father and son held their gaze for a moment longer. Situ An broke away first. Situ Hong turned and threw his violet sleeves as he exited the foyer. Situ Min glanced back at his father before quickly running after his brother.
“Ge.”
“Don’t call me ‘ge’,” Situ Hong said.
Situ Min’s chest clenched uncomfortably. He caught up with Situ Hong and latched onto the man’s clothes. “Da-ge, where are you going?”
“Back to Frost Cliff Pavilion. I’m not welcome here anyway.”
“You know it’s not that—”
“He told me to choose one,” Situ Hong said. “And I’m not one to abandon my friends.”
We’re sorry for MTLers or people who like using reading mode, but our translations keep getting stolen by aggregators so we’re going to bring back the copy protection. If you need to MTL please retype the gibberish parts.
Situ Min opened and closed his mouth. “…But, Da-ge, Father just wants to protect our sect. He—”
“Lf tjr tlr bkc kjs bo vblcu atlcur. P tjnf wlcf,” Vlae Lbcu qeiifv tlr jgw ogbw Vlae Zlc’r uglq. Lf ibbxfv ja tlr ilaaif ygbatfg. “Lf jigfjvs wjvf tlr mtblmf. Ccv P’nf wjvf wlcf ibcu jub.”
“Da-ge—”
“Vajs tfgf,” Vlae Lbcu’r nblmf rboafcfv jr tf ragbxfv Vlae Zlc’r tjlg. Lf rwlifv kgsis. “Snfc lo atja wjc lr j mbkjgv, tf kbc’a ifa jcsbcf tjgw atf bcfr tf ibnfr.”
Situ Min’s eyes widened. The rims of his eyes began to redden. “Don’t do this please? You know there’s going to be a war too. Don’t make this…don’t make this your last conversation with Dad. And—and let me go with you. You know I can fight, I—”
“You’re a member of Purple Bamboo Sect. Just stay here. Sect Leader Situ will be more reassured that way.”
Situ Min pursed his lips, but clung to Situ Hong’s sleeve.
“A-Min, let go.”
“Ge, you’re not thinking straight right now. Later, you’re going to be eating dinner by yourself and you’re going to realize that this was all just a hotheaded decision. You don’t have to apologize to Father, but just—”
“Min’er.”
Situ Min froze. He turned around, tears nearly falling from his cheeks. “Mother.”
“Auntie,” Situ Hong lowered his head out of respect.
“Let go of your brother.”
“B-but Mother!”
Mu Yuhua’s slender hand cupped her son’s. “Let go.”
Situ Min reluctantly released Situ Hong. He sniffled and took a step back.
Mu Yuhua turned to Situ Hong. “Your father is silly. He thought if he scared you like that, you would change your mind.”
“Then, he doesn’t know me at all.”
Mu Yuhua smiled sadly. “I know. But…know that his words meant nothing, okay? He has always been bad with words, but he really has a soft heart.”
Situ Hong turned away. He was unwilling to look at his stepmother. “I understand. But that doesn’t mean I agree with his stance.”
Mu Yuhua fell silent for a moment. Then, she held out her arms. “A-Hong, will you let Auntie hug you?”
Situ Hong glanced at Mu Yuhua. Seeing her reddened eyes, Situ Hong could only give in. He rubbed her back as he buried his head against her shoulder just like he did when he was younger.
“I’m not going out to die. Why are you and A-Min acting like this?” Situ Hong murmured.
“We know,” Mu Yuhua whispered. “It’s not that. You know it’s not that.”
Situ Hong felt guilt clawing at his chest. He released Mu Yuhua and glanced at Situ Min. “I’m sorry for lashing out at you.”
Situ Min grinned. “I wasn’t offended at all.”
Situ Hong chuckled and patted his shoulder. He looked to his stepmother. “Then, I’m leaving.”
Situ Hong turned to retrieve his stead.
“A-Hong.”
The man paused and looked over his shoulder.
“…If you ever need our help, just reach out. Your father may seem stuck to his old ways, but he really will help you,” Mu Yuhua said.
The words were spoken like a desperate plea, more than an offer to help. Situ Hong’s gaze lingered on his stepmother and then his little brother. He eventually smiled and nodded.
“You two don’t have to worry about me. Just worry about protecting Purple Bamboo Sect,” Situ Hong said. “I can handle the rest.”
On his way back to Frost Cliff Pavilion, Situ Hong looked out over the lands that he was flying above. A low, bitter laugh left his throat. He tightly clenched the folding fan in his hands as irritation and anger coursed through him. Mixed in with his anger was sheer disappointment.
Li Ran hadn’t always been like this. In fact, in the past, he had been kind. So kind that he could hardly hurt a fly. He would even show sympathy to the most horrific creatures. But at some point, like Wu Lingtian, he changed. He changed so much that he was unrecognizable. The kind shixiong that would hide Wu Lingtian from Rong Meihua and bandage him up, the kind older brother that would make excuses from them when they accidentally broke some rules, was completely gone.
Situ Hong clenched his jaw.
Rong Meihua. It had to be Rong Meihua. It was her cruelty that changed them into such unrecognizable people, yet no one had ever held her accountable. And no one could hold her accountable now because she had already died.
The ride back to Frost Cliff Pavilion wasn’t long. By the time he arrived, he had just reined in his emotions.
Xiao Xunrui glanced at Situ Hong, who was handing off his stead to a nearby servant. He lowered his gaze until the man walked over and sat down beside him.
“Did you get into a fight with your father again?”
Situ Hong glanced at Xiao Xunrui. “How did you know?”
“It’s written all over your face.”
Situ Hong frowned. “No, it—”
“You’re back,” Wu Lingtian stopped short. He looked Situ Hong up and down before cautiously sitting down beside Xiao Xunrui. “What did your father do this time?”
“What do you mean?”
“You got into a fight with him, didn’t you?”
Situ Hong laughed incredulously. “How do you know?”
“It’s written all over your face,” Wu Lingtian said as he accepted the lychee that Xiao Xunrui had just peeled. He popped it into his mouth and leaned back. “What was it about this time? Did he tell you to go back to Purple Bamboo School again?”
“…Something like that,” Situ Hong mumbled. He thought of it for a moment before shaking his head. “He called me back to tell me that Xiu Lan was missing and that Li Ran thinks a Jianshi cultivator kidnapped her.”
“What?!” Xiao Xunrui sat up in attention. “She’s missing?”
Situ Hong nodded. “She was last spotted being chased after someone. Afterwards, she was taken into Jianshi by an unknown person.”
Wu Lingtian frowned. “Unknown? There were no other descriptors?”
Situ Hong shook his head. “It remained vague.”
“So, what now?” Xiao Xunrui scoffed. “Is he using this as an excuse to invade Jianshi?”
“Something like that,” Situ Hong rubbed the space between his brows.
“But how did you get into a fight with your father over this?” Wu Lingtian asked.
“He insisted on acting neutral and tried to convince me to return to Purple Bamboo School. I got angry and I argued with him,” Situ Hong said.
Xiao Xunrui handed Situ Hong a peeled lychee. “It’s okay, it’s okay. Don’t look so down.”
Wu Lingtian, on the other hand, began to frown. “If Li Ran thought that this was the doing of Jianshi, he should be going through the Hall of Impartiality to mediate the situation—that’s the agreement. But not only did he not do that, he sent out a call to action instead.”
“He doesn’t only want to go to war with Jianshi then,” Xiao Xunrui said. “He also wants to usurp the Hall of Impartiality—that’s what you’re implying, isn’t it?”
Wu Lingtian nodded.
“But what’s his purpose of doing all of this?” Xiao Xunrui murmured. He glanced at Wu Lingtian. “It can’t just be because of you, right?”
“Am I not important?” Wu Lingtian raised a brow jokingly.
Situ Hong shifted so that he could face Wu Lingtian. “Do you remember Li Ran telling you about some nefarious schemes that he had?”
Wu Lingtian gaped at Situ Hong. “How am I supposed to know what my da-shixiong was doing?”
Without even mentioning that Wu Lingtian’s mind was still muddled, he had been helping Rong Meihua. When he was awake, he would deal with Rong Meihua’s assignments. Even asleep, he would dream about them. The only reason Wu Lingtian might know something is if their motivations intersected. But what were Rong Meihua’s motivations? What had she even asked him to do?
Wu Lingtian paused. He felt vomiting again.
“Maybe it’s the stereotypical thing of wanting to take over the world,” Xiao Xunrui said.
“He’s not that ambitious,” Situ Hong said.
Xiao Xunrui looked at him. “You’re talking about the Li Ran we knew as kids—the Li Ran who is currently sect leader is like an entirely different person.”
“An entirely different person?” Wu Lingtian raised a brow.
“If not, then how could he bear to lock you up in prison? And with how he accuses you at every turn? If you ask me, he’s acting more like Rong Meihua than anything,” Xiao Xunrui angrily obliterated the skin of a lychee. He shoved it into his mouth. “I guess he was her head disciple for a reason. Who knows? Maybe he was deceiving us all along!”
Wu Lingtian frowned. “That’s not right. Back then, he also—”
“What’s this? How come you three are together?”
Zhou Ying’an’s skeptical voice reached the men’s ears. Immediately, Situ Hong stood up. Xiao Xunrui brushed his hands together and stood as well. Only Wu Lingtian remained seated as Zhou Ying’an walked over.
“What trouble did you cause this time?” Zhou Ying’an asked with a small frown.
“Shijie, you just got back?” Wu Lingtian greeted her with a light smile.
Zhou Ying’an’s frown increased. “What did you three do?”
“Zhou-shijie, what makes you think we did anything?” Situ Hong sighed. “We’re all grown now. There’s no reason we would go around making trouble!”
Zhou Ying’an crossed her arms. “Really?”
“Really,” Wu Lingtian nodded.
Zhou Ying’an looked to Xiao Xunrui.
Xiao Xunrui smiled. “Really.”
Despite not having actually done anything wrong, the three men could feel cold sweat beginning to gather against their palms. Zhou Ying’an sighed. Just as she was about to let the subject go, a light voice entered their conversation.
“Lord Xiao, so you were here,” Fan Yi walked closer. “I ran into Lord Wuma just outside, so I brought him…”
Zhou Ying’an turned around and looked at the two men. Her gaze sharpened when she saw Wuma Qiongling. “You’re looking for Xunrui?”
“I…” Wuma Qiongling’s gaze drifted behind her to Xiao Xunrui.
Xiao Xunrui’s eyes widened and he shook his head.
“I was…I was looking for him. For his medical expertise,” Wuma Qiongling said.
“His medical expertise?”
“Yes. Yes. Sect Leader Fan invited me here to help with a case,” Wuma Qiongling said. “And we were working together with Lord Xiao.”
Zhou Ying’an turned to Fan Yi. “And how did you come to work on this ‘case’?”
Fan Yi chuckled. “Miss Zhou, you must have forgotten—A-Tian is part of my sect. He was the one who invited me here.”
Zhou Ying’an finally realized what was odd. She looked at Wu Lingtian. “That’s right. What are you doing here?”
“I agreed to join Frost Cliff Pavilion,” Wu Lingtian said.
Zhou Ying’an’s eyes narrowed. She looked between the five men. “What are you lot hiding from me?”
“A lot of things,” Wu Lingtian said. He stood and placed his hands on Zhou Ying’an’s shoulders. “But it’s nothing you need to worry about, Shijie.”
“…You stinky brat, do you think that’ll make me feel better?” Zhou Ying’an brushed Wu Lingtian’s hands away.
“It’s just that circumstances are uncertain, so we don’t want to alarm you,” Wu Lingtian said simply. He glanced back at Situ Hong, “But the two of us have the case under control. Isn’t that right?”
Situ Hong nodded with a smile. “All under control.”
Zhou Ying’an looked at Wu Lingtian with slight disapproval. “What else is this about?”
“I personally would advise Shijie against returning to Drifting Clouds Mountain Sect for the time being,” Wu Lingtian said forwardly.
He reexplained everything Situ Hong had said. With all the facts laid out, the three newcomers quickly came to their own conclusions.
“We have to finish up our business quickly then,” Fan Yi murmured.
Zhou Ying’an frowned. “There must be some misunderstanding. I’ll head back now and—”
“Shijie,” Wu Lingtian interrupted her. “What do you think of Da-shixiong right now?”
Zhou Ying’an stared blankly at Wu Lingtian. Although his expression barely changed, from the depths of his eyes, Zhou Ying’an could sense his hatred. It was a matter of course. Li Ran was the person who locked him up and tortured him for several months. Of course, Wu Lingtian hated him. Even Zhou Ying’an was appalled by him.
“Don’t go back. We don’t know what he’s planning. I don’t want you to get hurt,” Wu Lingtian said.
Zhou Ying’an nodded. “I understand. I won’t go back. But Xiu Lan—”
“If it’s true that she’s in Jianshi, she’ll be fine,” Fan Yi interjected. “We’ll be able to find her easily.”
Zhou Ying’an nodded. “Then, we’ll have to trouble you, Sect Leader Fan.”
“No trouble at all. After all, she is still A-Tian’s martial niece,” Fan Yi glanced at Wu Lingtian. “However, we still have our own business to take care of, so I will have to leave it in one of my Pillars’ hands.”
Zhou Ying’an was not any less reassured. After all, for all the horrendous rumors that surrounded Fan Yi, no one could forget the fact that this man was capable enough to single-handedly establish Jianshi.
Wu Lingtian turned to Situ Hong and Xiao Xunrui. “I wanted to say, the case at Zhao Village is a bit peculiar. Be sure to question the villagers thoroughly.”
“Alright, we get it,” Situ Hong sighed. He turned to Xiao Xunrui with a smile. “You’re going to be stuck with me for a week at most.”
Xiao Xunrui looked back at him woodenly. “I am looking forward to it.”
Things are heating up, huh! Thanks for chapter ❤️
thanks for reading!!!
It’s hard to imagine Li Ran was ever anything besides a bully. I hope Xiu Lan never has to go back – unless it’s to take over as Sect Leader in a few hundred years! Poor Zhou Ying’an is being treated like the sibling who always tattles and can’t be told what the others are up to 😄
LMAO OH NOOO i didn’t even think about that, but it fits LMAO poor Ying’an 😂😂 thanks for reading!!