Chapter 55: The Flowered Brocade of Jin'guan City (Part 1)

  The aroma of the pumpkin wafted out, as if it was a taste from heaven, making my mouth water and improving my gloomy mood. My stomach growled even louder, and I picked up the branch to take a bite. Suddenly, an icy sword was placed on my neck from behind, and my heart chilled instantly. The person slowly walked around to face me, revealing their entire body covered in blood-stained clothes, with only a pair of gleaming purple eyes staring at me fiercely. It's said that when enemies meet, they can't help but feel a surge of anger. I analyzed the situation before me - his martial arts skills far surpassed mine, and I had no choice but to be on guard.

  He and I were like two masters engaging in a fierce battle, staring at each other motionlessly. Thirty seconds later, his left hand moved with a speed so fast that it was impossible to see clearly, and he pressed my acupoint. Then, he put a golden handcuff on my left hand and the other end of the cuff was locked onto a tree branch. At the same time, his long sword was thrust straight at my throat. I let out an "ah" sound, thinking that this sword would definitely see blood and seal my fate, and my life would be over...

  Unexpectedly, I was unscathed, but the roasted sweet potato in my hand had vanished. It turned out that his long sword was aimed at my sweet potato...

  He speared the pumpkin on his long sword, gazed at me for thirty seconds, then jumped to one side and began devouring my pumpkin, skin and all.

  I was thinking to myself, in the midst of the coup within Nanzhao, Yu Gang, the Crown Prince, was imprisoned for treason, Duan Yueyong was stripped of his title as Crown Prince and exiled to Hainan, while the great army of Nanzhao was forced to change commanders on the battlefield. He should be wearing shackles, sitting in a prisoner's cart on his way to Hainan, so why has he come here to steal my sweet potatoes?

  Perhaps he had received the news beforehand and brought his followers to break through the siege. Yes, this young master must have been spoiled since childhood. In these few days, he was busy escaping in the deep mountains and old forests, and didn't even know how to get food.

  As I was pondering, he had already gnawed through a whole calabaza, and seeing the few locusts and grasshoppers I was roasting on the rack, he hastily took another locust out, took another bite, seemed to think the flavor wasn't right, furrowed his brow, spat it out: "What is this thing, why is it so hard to eat?"

  Then he looked at the cicadas strung on a branch for half a day: "Isn't this an insect?" He said with some surprise, "You're not wanted by Treading Snow, and you're actually eating insects."

  I coldly stared at him without answering, and he raised his long sword again, looking at me with a sneer: "Muke, don't you want to live anymore?"

  After sizing up the situation, he slowly said: "I naturally want to live." Duan Yu Rong smiled and said: "That's good, from today on, you are my slave, serve me well, first go and replace this... this with the one earlier..."

  This sentence is so familiar that it makes me tongue-tied and once again confirms to me in every way that this Duan Yu must be the Purple Pavilion without a doubt.

  I'm crying in my heart, what's the point of roasting a pumpkin for no reason? Otherwise, I'd rather go to Wan City and get lost.

  I regret it, I regret it so much that my intestines are turning green, but Duan Yu is still holding a knife and roasting me left and right.

  Bazhou is known as a paradise on earth, and Jinping Mountain is its most beautiful place. The scenery is like a painting, and the climate is pleasant for people.

  On this clear morning, in a small shop at the foot of Jinping Mountain, two young men with slightly disheveled clothes and messy hair sat in a secluded corner, eating their rice hastily. The Ba Prefecture was known for its heavenly scenery, but as it had just entered winter, there was a hint of chilliness. The shop assistants were all wrapped up in their sleeves, staring at the pair of young men with some surprise.

  One young man had a clear face and bright eyes, but was frowning, eating the signature dish of the restaurant, fatty intestines fried rice, with a gloomy expression. Another man, with a messy beard, almost buried his face in a large bowl, slurping loudly as he ate the soup noodles. Despite this, the waiters and the owner of the restaurant still clearly saw his pair of shining purple pupils rolling around wildly. The young waiter, Tiger, trembled with fear and said: "What's going on? He has purple eyes!"

  "Isn't it a monster?" Another small second tiger tooth also whispered, it is known that Jinping Mountain is the origin of Chuan Guai legend, the more I think about it, the more I lean towards Boss Fei's body.

  The boss forced himself to calm down and pushed the timid little servant: "Don't meddle in other people's business, just go and get the money back quickly, that's all."

  The timid tiger tooth walked over with a tremble, came to the front of two young men, hands shaking like being struck by wind: "Guests, guests, total is fifty coins."

  That purple-eyed youth didn't even lift his head, and continued eating with gusto. The other refined-looking youth looked embarrassed, with a slightly northern accent, stood up and bowed repeatedly, with a golden chain visible in his sleeve, saying: "I'm really sorry about this, but we've just used up all our money."

  Hu Ya was taken aback and thought to himself that this person must be a freeloader, so he said: "You little fellow, why didn't you two say that the money had been used up when you were ordering just now?"

  The young man just blushed and bowed, the shop assistant went back to tell his boss, the boss looked at the young man and said: "The hairpin on his head looks quite valuable, ask him to take it off and use it to pay for the meal."

  The young man shook his head like a rattle drum: "No, this jade hairpin is really important to me. How about this? I'll stay and work for your boss for a day, and that will cover the cost of this meal."

  In the midst of war and chaos, I was a ordinary refugee who escaped to this place. So, I'm no longer afraid, and I walked over myself. With a cold hum, "You do a day's work for me, how much is it worth? You think this hairpin is something special? This Ba County is the territory of Duke Tuo, and even Duke Tuo himself has dined at our store before. Don't think that you..."

  He hadn't finished speaking when he realized that he was looking at his own chest, then his thighs, and finally the ground. It wasn't until he saw his bloated body collapse like a broken cotton doll that he knew his head had been chopped off.

  The small shop was filled with the sound of screams, a purple-eyed young man had a cold smile on his face, a short knife in his hand dripping with blood. One of them was already lying in a pool of blood, another handsome young man shouted at Tuzi to run quickly, Tuzi struggled to run out of the shop, but before he could exit, the purple-eyed young man moved his right wrist and Tuzi's body turned black as he fell to the ground.

  The purple-eyed youth smiled slightly at the clear and elegant youth: "This Hu Jin is indeed a treasure, originally not white can create such a dark device, it's not an ordinary person. One day, I will meet Tuo Xue Gongzi, and then kill him in front of you, Mu Di."

  My eyes were filled with blood as I glared at him in anger: "Even if you're trying to cheat, there's no need to kill three people, you bastard."

  He looked up and laughed loudly: "If he didn't kill, like you begging him for mercy, would he let you go? Maybe just like the last shopkeeper, seeing that you're a young girl with no money to pay the bill, he'd want to take advantage of you by force. Last time if it wasn't for me, do you think you could have kept your chastity?"

  I smiled coldly: "Last time, even without you, I was able to pass safely."

  He snorted, turned around and walked out of the bloody scene. He had only taken half a step when he turned back to the counter, rummaged through some loose silver coins, then turned back again, grabbed a piece of dried meat, stuffed it into his chest pocket, ignoring my contemptuous gaze, and swaggered out.

  He was humming a tune, picking his teeth, and I couldn't help but say: "Since ancient times, gentlemen have had aspirations, wealth and honor cannot be moved, poverty and lowliness cannot be changed. Your family may have suffered difficulties, but you are still the son of the illustrious Nan Zhao Yu Gang family, yet you've resorted to murder and robbery, don't you fear being ridiculed when word gets out?"

  He finally stopped and turned around, his purple eyes shining with amusement as he said, "Love also has its reasons."

  "My goosebumps fell to the ground: 'Don't randomly add titles, I am a Dongting person, when did I become your person? Moreover, you have been stripped of your title by Guangyi Wang, and it's even a question whether you can escape the pursuit, yet you still think you are King Wang?' "

  He smiled even more charmingly: "What you said is absolutely right, for the sake of restoring the country's grand plan, I should be more frugal, next time let you do the killing, and we can save this Hu Jin's poisonous arrow."

  I was so angry that I was speechless, and turned my head away in hatred, refusing to pay attention to him.

  For over a month, he dragged me south, took my luggage and the long-cherished bracelet, seized my gold and silver with a flourish, and then started killing and looting. Anyone who showed slight resistance would be cut down by his knife, no different from a bandit.

  I recall the last time at that inn, the shopkeeper found out we didn't have any money to pay the bill. I was just a kid and Duan Yu Rong looked quite good too, so he immediately thought of raping me, then selling us into prostitution. Duan Yu Rong burst out laughing, killing all the staff and guests in the inn, then set everything on fire with one torch.

  At that time, I angrily asked him why, but he coldly smiled and said that if there was a living mouth left, as long as one reported the murderer with purple eyes to the ears of Nan Zhao and Dong Ting's spies, it would be his and my death.

  I let out a faint sigh, now rushing along the road, without silver I can only camp in the wild, but this also saves him from killing people indiscriminately.

  I went to find some firewood as usual, roasted some stolen grains, picked some wild vegetables to fill my hunger. I had a thousand thoughts on my mind, and he was behind me, yawning, complaining that my movements were slow.

  I fell asleep as soon as I lay down, exhausted from the day. In my dream, I was in a cherry blossom forest, and Fei Ge smiled at me, saying, "Mu Jin, look how beautiful the blossoms are." I nodded and smiled, wandering around the forest in circles. When I turned back, Fei Ge's face had changed to Bai Wei. I couldn't tear my gaze away from him as he sat on the lush green grass under a cherry blossom tree, gazing at me with warmth in his eyes, asking, "Where have you been these days? Have you been doing well?"

  I muttered his name and walked towards him, with a multitude of questions to ask, but felt a sudden pain on my head, and opened my eyes to find myself staring at a pair of profound purple pupils. He was pinching a strand of my hair: "Hey, you just called Tà Xuě Gōng Zǐ's name with such intimacy, could it be that you eventually turned fake into real?"

  I slightly moved away from him, out of his breath range: "What's this fake play and real doing?"

  He snorted and leaned his head against me, lying down beside me: "Don't think I really forgot the Double Seventh Festival, you held my hand and said those words."

  I turned around and said coldly: "You went to Xi'an City that day to investigate military information, didn't you?"

  "What's more, on the eve of the Lantern Festival, the defenders of Xi'an City were indeed lax. That's why I chose to attack Xi'an City before the Lantern Festival." He was overjoyed and gloating in his heart.

  I turned my head and said with hatred: "You shouldn't have let the soldiers slaughter Xian, plunder and loot. By doing so, you've stirred up the resentment of the Eastern Court. Not only can't you win people's hearts and bring peace to the world, but one day when the Yuan family comes to attack Nanzhao, they will surely retaliate with the same brutality. In the end, it's still the ordinary people of Nanzhao who will suffer. You are a cruel and evil monster."

  Later on, I was already burning with anger, he lazily raised an eyebrow and slowly said: "What does that have to do with me? That army is dispatched in the name of Guangyi Wang. If the people of Dongting want to hate someone, they should hate Guangyi Wang. It's best if they send troops to Nan Zhao now, that way I won't have to rush back."

  "I gritted my teeth: 'Just wait and see, when my big brother comes to rescue me, you'll be dead without a whole corpse.'"

  His purple eyes rolled around and he leaned in close to me, pulling out a strand of my hair to play with: "Mù Jīn, tell me, how long will it take for your big brother to find you?"

  "You're actually waiting for Tàoxuě Gōngzǐ to come and rescue you, aren't you?!" I remained silent there, deciding not to speak with this perverted and abnormal demon again. But he continued to laugh maliciously: "Yuán Jiā Míng had clearly been defeated and sent back to Xī'ān, so why did I see you carrying a bundle and wandering around Huà Shān?"

  "There's a rumor going around that your master is about to marry Princess Xuan Yuan. Do you think he still remembers you? If he does, then among his three thousand guests, will anyone notice that you're now my slave? Will they be able to sneak into the Dugu household in Bashu and bring you back, so you can serve alongside the jealous Princess Xuan Yuan?"

  "Ah, no, wait a minute. Looking at this memory of mine, it seems like he's treating you as a substitute for his heart's desire. Perhaps he's forgotten about you."

  He burst out laughing loudly, I continued to remain silent, but he gradually moved away from his advantageous position. He then put me down and continued to hold me lazily: "Mù jiǎo (your name), tell me, what's that common saying... Ah yes, 'when you're full and warm, you think of...'?"

  My sweat dripped down, struggling to break free from his embrace, but he burst out laughing and pressed me under him: "What's there to be shy about? Just remember, don't have any more wild fantasies that aren't true. From now on, you're the person of Prince Ziyue."

  My hands and feet were all used, desperately struggling, loudly shouting for help. Duan Yu Rong became even more excited: "Shout louder, shout even louder, I just like to hear people shout, do you know why I like Lu Shui so much? It's because she shouts really makes me helpless."

  At this critical moment, a sweet voice came: "Young Master Wang."

  Duan Yu Rong immediately let go of me, and in front of me stood a lively young woman, who was none other than Yang Lu Shui. Duan Yu Rong's purple pupils sparkled with excitement: "Lu Shui."

  Yang Lüshui let out a soft cry and flung herself into his arms, sobbing: "Rong'er, do you know how much I've missed you?"

  Duan Yueyong tightly hugged her, sealing it with a kiss, to express all his thoughts and feelings. I was there, busy sorting out my clothes, my hands and feet were a bit numb, hugging myself tightly, holding back tears, never been so happy to see Yang Lüshui, if it was half a minute later, I might have been humiliated.

  I quietly looked over, but saw Yang Lüshui also passing over Duan Yue's shoulder, looking at me with a gaze that seemed to hold a hint of hatred. My heart felt a chill, and yet Duan Yue had already begun to put his thoughts into action, Yang Lüshui's clothes were roughly torn open by him, her white jade-like body now in front of my eyes, she softly moaned: "No, Moonchild, there are still people here." But her hands were all over Duan Yue's body.

  Duan Yue Yong ruthlessly pinned her down, beginning a savage assault. "Let her watch, it's just the right opportunity to thoroughly discipline her."

  I quickly turned around and Yang Lüshui pushed him: "Yuèr, there are others!"

  Uh! Indeed, there was someone, and I also saw a pair of figures standing there. The man was like an evergreen tree, tall and straight, with a gentle and elegant demeanor, covering his mouth with a smile. It was the first killer in Western Lin that I had seen.