novelFascinating Beauty like a Morning Flower
| ← Ch.024 | Ch.026 → |
All good things came to an end. After bidding farewell to grandfather, Xu Linghe wanted to see with his own eyes how powerful Jiang Wuyou was as described by his cousin.
Xu Linghe darted out of snow marsh and flew into Fairy City. The Fairy Kingdom under the spell was gloomy and damp. He stood on the street covered with snow. The pedestrian showed great curiosity to Xu Linghe, since in a world of ice and snow, anyone dressed in thin clothes would draw others' attention easily, especially the one was a brilliant man.
Su Chenyang on the upstair gazed at Xu Linghe. In such a cold day, a man strolled idly on the street. Su Chenyang guessed that he was a spirit cultivator, so Su Chenyang moved his spiritual fingers. Next second, ice sabers fell from the sky. Xu Linghe looked around and spotted that it was done by the Young Master upstairs. Xu Linghe's spiritual fingers brushed over his head, and the icy sabers were transformed into red plums, which arouse the pedestrians to crowd around him because it was a long time that they had seen bright red flowers. Observing the man downstairs behave with such grace and easy, Su Chenyang was more willing to make acquaintance with him.
There was the inauguration banquet for Commander in Chief of the armed forces today. Su Chenyang took no interest in the bustling excitement, so he left the banquet early. Although he knew that the female Commander in Chief disliked it, to provide good lip service was still necessary for survival anyway. His father had stayed in the high position for a long time and thrown up the fighting will of a warrior. Therefore, Su Chenyang did not wish that the female Commander in Chief would become a second Su Gong. Decent man was eager to serve anywhere. At present, the situation on the border was tense. Su Chenyang hoped that female Commander in Chief would have good initiative, otherwise she would be unconvincing. His father could maneuver his way craftily like a fish in water, but got the common people on the border into a fix.
"Waiter, a flagon of wine and your specialty."
Xu Linghe sat in the corner and looked around. Restaurants in the Fairy Kingdom were special in charging guests Spirit Power instead of money for meals. When leaving, every guest was supposed to give the host some Spirit Power that would be sealed up in red beads. Xu Linghe did not mind about it, since a little charge of Spirit Power did nothing to his primordial spirit, but he just wondered what they did with those Spirit Powers.
Watching the guests coming and going, Xu Linghe thought how he could inquire about his pretty girl's whereabouts. Seeing there was a vacant seat opposite to Xu Linghe, Su Chenyang hurried to have the waiter fill up the flagon and paced to the corner. Xu Linghe was thinking over his worry when he heard some noise, only to find a man sitting across the table in a refined manner.
"I am Su Chenyang."
"Xu Linghe."
Xu Linghe took a glance at Su Chenyang and filled his own cup too. Sweet rice wine excited and refreshed taste buds. But drinking too much would also upset the stomach. So it was wise to savor every drop slowly. Su Chenyang across the table said to himself as he looked at the cup, hoping to draw Xu Linghe's attention. However, Xu Linghe was not in the mood.
"Young Master, you don't look like a local here."
"Why?"
"Seldom people in the Fairy Kingdom have the manner as you."
"Brother Su, I heard that there is a female Commander in Chief in the Fairy Kingdom. Is it true?"
"Brother Xu, you've asked the right person. The female Commander in Chief is my superior."
Xu Linghe felt delighted inwardly and took a look at Su Chenyang, thinking that Su Chenyang was not speaking drunk gibberish. Out of expectation, it was so easy to know Jiang Wuyou's whereabouts.
"Brother Su, is the female Commander in Chief a native here? Why does your Emperor think so highly of a woman?"
"Speaking of the female Commander in Chief, I once fought with her. As for the Soul Battle, she was really impressive. And I deserved to lose. Commander in Chief is a great heroine in the Fairy Kingdom. If it had not been for our female Commander in Chief, the Fairy Kingdom would have fallen into purgatory. Brother Xu, I was on the scene at that time. His Majesty was rolled up by the evil wind. It was the female Commander in Chief who did her utmost to stem a raging tide by sealing the gate of hell and saved His Majesty, protecting the Fairy Kingdom from a catastrophe."
Su Chenyang said with admiration alight in his eyes, showing his yearning for a hero. Xu Linghe felt both delighted and solicitous for Jiang Wuyou."A tender girl became so strong. She must have suffered many hardships." Xu Linghe heard from his cousin what tough time Jiang Wuyou had gone through all the way.
"Brother Xu, there is an inauguration banquet for our female Commander in Chief today. I don't like noise too much, so I came out to get a breath of air."
"Brother Su, could you lead me to get a glimpse of her? I really want to see your female Commander in Chief's graceful bearing."
Xu Linghe was so anxious to see his bright and brave pretty girl in person.
"Brother Xu, I am afraid you cannot get in. If you really want to, I think you'd better hide your light. Brother Xu, I mean, I am afraid trouble will look for you if you become the center of attention."
Xu Linghe turned himself into a palace servant with the swipe of his spiritual fingers and followed Su Chenyang to walk out of the restaurant. Su Chenyang laughed loudly, thinking that Xu Linghe was rather interesting. Both of them rode on the wind and flew to the Imperial City.
Covered by white snow, the Imperial City appeared less magnificent. Xu Linghe and Su Chenyang penetrated through the palace wall and strode to the Imperial Palace. Xu Linghe kept in step with Su Chenyang along the way. Since there was a banquet in the palace, passing palace servants were radiant with joy.
At the gate of the imperial hall, Su Chenyang slowed down his pace. Looked from afar, all the influential and powerful persons in the Fairy Kingdom were there. Xiao Yan sat on a soft couch on the left side, and the female Commander in Chief on the right. Observing the female general in the imperial hall, Xu Linghe was enchanted by his pretty girl's graceful bearing.
Her flowing long hair was tied up tightly into a jade crown. A heroic spirit took on her devastatingly beautiful and refined face. The exquisite silver armor lightened her soft and glossy skin. She radiated with cold and proud Spiritual Qi, revealing a tinge of soul-enchanting attraction, which could bewitch a person in soul and mind. At that moment, Xu Linghe was completely obsessed with her charm.
But no matter how she changed, her clear and cool eyes remained unchanged."She is my pretty girl, and always be there. No matter she is a Little Fox or a Commander in Chief of the armed forces. In my heart, she is my Little Fox."
"Brother Su, would you mind doing me a favor?"
"Brother Xu, go ahead, please."
"The female Commander in Chief is my old friend. If one day something tough happens on the border, please inform me. Here is a bell cast a spell. If you need me, you can ring the bell gently and I will know it. See you, Brother Su."
Xu Linghe watched the pretty girl in the imperial hall, unwilling to leave. But Di Qing was waiting for him. So Xu Linghe stepped out of the hall and flew to the humans' world.
At another corner of the main hall, Xiao Qi was also captured by the Little Fox who had beauty as fascinating as a morning flower.
Not knowing what had happened to Di Qing, Xu Linghe stepped into the room. The palace servant kept watch obediently. Di Qing lying on the bed looked more haggard than he was in the Holy Mother Empress's birthday party. Clearly, he was ill. Xu Linghe felt Di Qing's vein, and it startled Xu Linghe because one of Di Qing's souls was missing.
"Brother Di, how is your sleep at night?"
"Since I lived in the Palace, I have had nightmares every night. Even for several times, the palace servants thought I was plagued by evil ghosts and cried with fright. But I could not remember anything after I woke up. My spirit is worsening day by day."
"Someone cast a spell on you, waiting for you to go to pieces gradually."
"Is he the Emperor?"
"I dare not to make any arbitrary assertion. But it is possible. I just have never heard that the Emperor knows sorcery."
"Who wants to hurt me?"
"In the huge and heavily-guarded Imperial Palace, those who want to hurt you are in the gloom. From now on, we need to proceed with the utmost caution. Spirit cultivators can come and go to the Palace's gate freely. Brother Di, has your Royal Uncle come yet?"
"I have never seen him since the Holy grandmother's birthday. I thought that since I lived in the palace, I could keep close watch on the Emperor, which would benefit me more. Beyond my expectation, someone took action faster than us."
"Linghe, one more strange thing."
"Strange? Go ahead."
"Several days ago, I woke up at midnight. The palace servant on duty ran to tell me that there was something unusual in the imperial garden. Then, I followed the servant to the garden. Unexpectedly, we found something weird behind the rockery— a gang of masked men leaped from the locus pond and disappeared in a blink. Linghe, I saw Royal Uncle and smelt the exotic scent, the same as the person had who took me away in the inn. But it was too dark at that moment. I could only see a pair of glowing eyes. But for the voice, it was hard to recognize the masked man."
"Except the masked man and the Emperor, anyone else on the spot?"
"I thought that Royal Uncle was about to leave. To my surprise, the lotus pond drained up suddenly. And a black ladder revealed slowly on the bottom of the pond. Royal Uncle seemed to wait for someone else. But for some reason, the person inside was reluctant to see Royal Uncle. For fear of being discovered, the servant and I dared not to come closer. Later, the man on the black ladder was also dressed in the imperial robe. He walked rather slowly. When he got close to Royal Uncle, astonishingly, he swallowed Royal Uncle."
"What happened after that?"
"I followed Royal Uncle out of the imperial garden. Royal Uncle seemed to sense someone following him, so he deliberately diverted me into a deserted courtyard. When I entered it, a wolf was there waiting for me."
"What did it look like?"
Xu Linghe did not expect that it was Wolf King.
"Unlike a common wolf, it looked very sturdy with absolute black furs."
"When you entered the courtyard, did you see the Emperor any more?"
"No one but only a wolf. The wolf had strong Spirit Power. His Spirit Pets were two Red Goshawks. They almost grabbed my eyes blind. My eyes would have been scratched out, except I had escaped in time. But when I returned to the imperial garden, nothing changed. Linghe, there is a devil in the palace. And the exotic scent, I once smelt it on the birthday party of Holy Mother Empress."
"Who had the exotic scent?"
"Your father."
"What? Brother Di, it is impossible. What my father wants is power. He would not get involved with demons. What's more, the Emperor hates evil sorcery most. My father would not make such mistake."
"If the Emperor was possessed by the devil?"
"Brother Di, you mean, the Emperor is not the one of our Qi Kingdom?"
"I'm just guessing. If Imperial Palace is controlled by the devil, Qi Kingdom will be up against a great calamity."
"Brother Di, you'd better not go out at night."
"But I came to the Palace not for pleasure and comfort. If I want to live an easy life, I might as well stay in Jiangnan, where it is more comfortable."
"I know it, but we are weak in force and strength now. Any obtrusive action will lead the situation unable to disposal. From now on, let me probe the things in the Palace. You continue to act the fool. The more foolish, the better. Now that some people hopes you become a fool, you play it to them."
"But until now, I haven't figured out whether Royal Uncle is a human or a devil."
"Put this matter to me."
Watching Xu Linghe's receding figure, Di Qing turned on the foyer and saw a figure looming up in the darkness. With some steps closer, Di Qing could catch clear sight of his face, who made Di Qing tremble a bit. The man stood face to face with an air of purgatory's evil spirit, which hovered around Di Qing to always warn Di Qing of his weak fate. Only the living could bear hope. In the imperial palace, human's life is as low as a nonentity. But Di Qing could not understand why the man in black led Xu Linghe into the Palace.
"Many."
"Wolf King, why did you lead Xu Linghe to the Palace?"
"You should do your own part and never ask the things you should not know, lest you may undergo skin-and-flesh sufferings."
"But... When will you fulfill your promise?"
"After it is done, you will get the throne you want. But now, you should toe the line obediently. And you will be the person to restore Qi Kingdom."
"I know Wolf King's words carry weight."
| ← Ch. 024 | Ch. 026 → |