WJ Chapter 47

Zijin (5)

For that brief instant, Guan Wujue was so frightened by Yun Changliu’s words that it felt as if the sky itself was about to collapse.

His heart pounded like thunder, and in the blink of an eye, thousands of thoughts raced through his mind, including “how many pieces should Wen Feng be chopped into,” “where would be the best place to be buried together when dying for love with the Sect Leader,” and “wait, maybe I should go beg the Old Sect Leader to help knock the Sect Leader unconscious and imprison him until everything is over”…

But it was only for an instant—the Protector immediately calmed down.

Everything else aside, Wen Feng would be torn to pieces before revealing what they were currently hiding from the Sect Leader. Besides… if it had really been exposed, the Sect Leader wouldn’t be reacting this way, still able to smile.

—Ha, the Sect Leader was trying to trick him!

Once Guan Wujue understood, he immediately became displeased. Usually, he was the only one who deceived the Sect Leader, yet he had nearly fallen into the predicament of “playing with eagles all his life, only to have his eyes pecked out by an eagle in the end”—though such a comparison was truly disrespectful, it was absolutely apt.

Yun Changliu looked down from his superior position, taking in every change in the Protector’s expression. Seeing Guan Wujue stare at him coldly without speaking, he knew this tactic had failed.

Sure enough, he heard the Protector curl his lips into a smile. “This subordinate has no comment on that matter, but I wonder what nonsense you heard from Wen Feng—why don’t you tell Wujue about it?”

Yun Changliu secretly sighed, feeling somewhat regretful. However, he actually hadn’t held much hope—this was more about getting revenge by frightening him.

The Sect Leader released his hold on the Protector and sat up himself, saying with displeasure. “Who’s spouting nonsense? The Protector knows very well himself.”

Guan Wujue felt guilty. Now that the Sect Leader had guessed he was hiding something, the looks he received from time to time made the Protector feel like he was sitting on pins and needles. He hurriedly took the opportunity to change the subject. “Sect Leader, what exactly happened with Wen Feng…?”

Yun Changliu said, “Solitary confinement. I wasn’t lying to you.”

He was actually put in solitary confinement?

The Protector hurriedly pressed. “Why is that?”

Yun Changliu’s tone was indifferent. “For conspiring with the outrageous and rebellious Four Directions Protector to deceive this lord. This lord cannot punish the latter, so I had to confine Attendant Wen instead.”

Guan Wujue: “…”

The Protector immediately felt so guilty that he lowered his head, not daring to respond. Having slept unconscious for these past few days, he couldn’t figure out what the situation actually was, nor did he know whether the Sect Leader actually knew something or not.

Seeing that Guan Wujue had finally settled down, Yun Changliu got up to dress and wash himself.

He was accustomed to rising early, but today he had spent half the morning frolicking with this person in bed, well past his usual hour… Not that it mattered much, but he was concerned about summoning Guan Muyan as soon as possible to examine the Protector and determine what medicine should be used without delay.

Guan Wujue wanted to step forward to serve him, but knowing that in his current condition he would likely only get in the way, he could only nestle in the bedding and watch the Sect Leader, asking, “How long will you confine Wen Feng?”

At that moment, Yun Changliu was draping his outer robe over his shoulders. Hearing this, he turned his face slightly with a helpless expression and said, “This lord would love nothing more than to truly confine him for a year or two… but alas.”

With how quickly the Fengchun Sheng poison spread, if Wen Feng were truly confined for over a year, by the time he came out, he would only be fit to sweep the Sect Leader’s grave and burn paper money—he wouldn’t even get to see him one last time.

Guan Wujue shook his head with a smile. “If you really did that, Attendant Wen absolutely couldn’t bear it. Hunger strikes and wrist-cutting would be the least of it—I’m afraid he wouldn’t last more than a few days before bashing his head against the wall of the quiet chamber.”

Yun Changliu shook his head and sighed. Of course he knew that. So he could only release him after five days.

He glanced at Guan Wujue again, murmuring with complex emotions. “One after another, all so lawless, just relying on this lord’s affection for you…”

…..

When Yun Changliu sent someone to the Medicine Gate to summon Guan Muyan, unexpectedly, the person who arrived a moment later was someone neither of them had anticipated.

It was actually Ah Ku.

Before leaving the sect, Yun Changliu had instructed Wen Feng to change Ah Ku’s lodgings, moving him from the warm pavilion beside Yangxin Hall to near the Medicine Gate. Firstly, this implicitly conveyed a sense of distancing, wanting to use this method to tactfully reject Ah Ku’s feelings; secondly, it was also convenient for him to recuperate.

After this relocation, Yun Changliu rarely saw him. Since his return to the sect, this was Ah Ku’s first time standing in Yangxin Hall.

“Elder Guan said that now that the person has awakened, there’s nothing to worry about.”

The blue-robed medicine person obediently bowed his head before the Sect Leader. He had just finished administering acupuncture at the Medicine Gate when Guan Muyan entrusted him to come relay the message.

Having not seen him for some time, the effects of the acupuncture treatment were already beginning to show. His gaunt cheeks had filled out somewhat, and he finally didn’t look so pale and pitiful. That blue robe on his body finally gave him something of a gentle, jade-like temperament.

…However, standing before the Sect Leader, he still became so nervous that his hands and feet grew clumsy.

“The Elder instructed that as long as medicine is taken on time and in proper doses, all will be well, but rest is important. In a few days, he’ll come personally to take the Protector’s pulse. Oh, and also…”

Actually, Guan Muyan’s instructions ended there, but Ah Ku couldn’t help but add one more sentence out of selfish concern. “Sect Leader, Sect Leader must also rest more and not overexert yourself.”

Yun Changliu saw through this but didn’t call it out. He thanked him, then ordered the two young maidservants Jin Lin and Yin Liang to go prepare the medicine. He also asked Ah Ku to wait here briefly while he himself turned back inside.

Ah Ku gathered his courage and quietly lifted his lowered head to look.

He saw the Sect Leader bend down beside the curtained bed, reaching in to feel the forehead of the person inside. His voice, normally like ice and frost, was lowered to a slow, gentle tone. “Wait here for me to return. If you’re tired, close your eyes and rest a bit, but don’t fall asleep—you’ll need to take medicine shortly.”

Even though the Sect Leader’s tender care at this moment had absolutely nothing to do with him, Ah Ku’s heart still raced wildly. He felt a wave of lingering intoxication wash over him, making his entire body feel like it was burning up. He hurriedly buried his head even lower.

Coming back to his senses, Yun Changliu had already walked before him. The Sect Leader examined Ah Ku with some puzzlement, his voice already returned to its usual calm. “Follow this lord.”

“Yes…!”

Ah Ku startled, his whole body shuddering. He silently cursed himself for being presumptuous, terrified that the Sect Leader might notice something amiss. His mind in such chaos, he followed behind Yun Changliu out.

The Sect Leader led him directly to the study on the side, dismissing the already sparse attendants, leaving only himself and Ah Ku.

Ah Ku didn’t know what Yun Changliu wanted to say to him. His gaze couldn’t help but flutter about anxiously, when he suddenly noticed that snow had begun falling outside the window at some unknown time.

Counting the days, this winter was nearly at its end. It should be gradually warming up, yet unexpectedly they encountered another substantial snowfall at this time.

Yun Changliu stood with his back to the desk by the window, the profile of his face handsome and refined.

Perhaps due to his lost memories stirring, while Yun Changliu was always cold toward strangers, from the first moment he laid eyes on Ah Ku, he had felt several parts of pity toward him.

However, pity was pity—if one spoke of wanting to mend the broken mirror, to renew their former bond, that was an entirely different matter—

After a moment of silence, the Sect Leader parted his lips and said to Ah Ku, “In a few months, once your body has recovered, this lord wishes to send you away from Xifeng City. How does that sound?”

Ah Ku suddenly looked up in shock!

He saw Yun Changliu turn around, his eyes deep and tranquil, like a profound and bottomless crystalline ice lake.

Behind him, white snow was falling in profusion from the vault of clouds, settling on the newly planted cinnabar plum trees in the courtyard.

Yun Changliu said, “This lord knows your feelings.”

“Breaking the promise of years past—this lord has wronged you.”

One sentence made Ah Ku’s face turn deathly pale, swaying as if about to collapse.

It was as if a hole had been torn open in his heart, and the snow filling the sky was pouring into it.

His world suddenly became silent. In a daze, even the Sect Leader’s clear and pleasant voice seemed so distant.

“This lord has removed your slave registration. You are no longer a member of the Zhuyin Sect, but a free man.”

Ah Ku nodded blankly.

He thought to himself: Is the Sect Leader driving him away?

“If you wish to leave the sect, this lord will change your name and surname for you, fabricate an identity and background, and also acquire houses and fertile land for you, providing you with wealth and servants.”

“South of the Yangzi or north of the frontier passes, with heaven high and seas wide, you may go anywhere. Those in the Zhuyin Sect will absolutely not interfere with you, nor will they reveal your identity as a medicine person. You can thus distance yourself from the conflicts and grudges of the martial world, establish a household and career, take a wife and have children, and live a smooth life.”

“If you don’t wish to leave, the Zhuyin Sect will still treat you with the courtesy due an honored guest. You may choose a good place among the Ten Branch Halls, and henceforth be guaranteed wealth and comfort, never to be bullied again.”

“If you want to learn martial arts, this lord will select some body-nourishing cultivation methods for you to practice; if you enjoy music, we can also summon skilled musicians from the branch halls to teach you. If there are those who bullied you in the past and you truly cannot let it go, you may also seek retribution… Just don’t become consumed by hatred.”

“What would you prefer?”

Word by word, these were the most proper and meticulous arrangements. Whichever path he chose, what the Sect Leader had planned for him was a blessing ordinary people could never imagine… Yet it shook Ah Ku’s spirit and filled him with bitter sorrow.

He suddenly dropped to his knees, struggling to stammer. “Sect Leader, Ah Ku doesn’t want to leave. I beg the Sect Leader to allow me to stay, I beg you…”

Ah Ku suppressed the urge to choke up and kowtowed deeply to Yun Changliu, his forehead pressed against the cold floor, refusing to rise. His trembling voice echoed through the study:

“Before returning to the sect, Protector Daren already told me that you had forgotten what happened in the past. Ah Ku understands everything. Ah Ku never dared to have any expectations. I only beg to remain by the Sect Leader’s side…”

“Please don’t think of me as Ah Ku. I’m not Ah Ku—just an audacious medicine slave who admires the Sect Leader… I beg you to simply use this slave as an object…!”

Yun Changliu flicked his sleeve, sending out a force of internal energy that firmly lifted Ah Ku up.

He said patiently, “This lord does not keep bed attendants. As for personal attendants, Wen Feng is sufficient… This lord’s side no longer needs anyone else.”

However, having just been helped up, Ah Ku stubbornly knelt down again. “I beg you…”

He pleadingly, tremblingly grasped at a corner of Yun Changliu’s long robe. “I beg you… As long as I can stay by the Sect Leader’s side, Ah Ku is willing to do anything. Even if it’s just a few more months, even if I must return to the Medicine Gate to become a medicine person again…”

Yun Changliu slowly shook his head. Under the illumination of the snow light from outside the window, his features remained so detached and indifferent.

He raised his slender hand, his index finger pointing at his own heart, solemnly and gravely, with regret yet also with complete resolve, saying:

“This body will descend to the Yellow Springs; this heart has been given to my beloved.”

“I’m sorry. This lord has nothing left to offer you.”