Chapter 461: The Past Part 1 (1/2)

Chapter 461: The Past (Part 1) [V5C168 – A Distance Within Reach]

“Did you say that person’s name is Qianye?” Zhao Ruoxi’s voice was trembling slightly.

“Yes, Young Miss. Why? What’s wrong?” The maid was badly shocked.

Zhao Ruoxi grabbed her and asked with a glare, “The man Yuying brought back is living at her residence?”

The maid felt that something was wrong and replied with a trembling voice, “Y-Yes.”

Zhao Ruoxi slowly let go. A layer of frost emerged on her countenance as she suddenly turned and left.

“Young Miss, Young Miss! Where are you going?” The maid chased after her frantically, but as soon as she exited the room, she saw Zhao Ruoxi floating up toward the third floor instead of going down. The maid was shocked out of her wits at this point and ran up after her.

At the moment, the maid’s speed was as swift as a galloping horse—apparently, she wasn’t ordinary either. However, she simply couldn’t close the gap between her and Zhao Ruoxi no matter how hard she tried. She could only watch as the latter’s figure disappeared past the third-floor corridor.

Zhao Ruoxi suddenly came to a stop on the third floor. The old granny who had been asleep in the house suddenly appeared before her to block the way.

“Granny Shi, why do you block my way?”

The old lady replied slowly, “It’s currently the Young Miss’s afternoon nap time. Why are you not resting?”

“I can’t sleep, so I’m going out for a walk.”

Granna Shi smiled kindly and said, “It’s good to take your mind off things, but you don’t need to bring the Red Spider Lily along for a walk, do you?”

Zhao Ruoxi’s expression remained unchanged. “It’s a part of me. I won’t feel easy without it near me.”

“Is that so?” Granny Shi revealed a knowing smile but decided not to continue pressing this issue. “Young Miss, please take your medicine and take a short nap. Isn’t it better to take a stroll after you’re feeling better? This old woman won’t stop you once you’ve rested well.”

Zhao Ruoxi took a deep breath. Her chest heaved up and down as the frostiness on her face melted somewhat. “Fine, I’ll go take a nap, then I’ll go for a stroll.”

Granny Shi nodded in praise. “Young Miss, your body is the most important. You mustn't be angry!”

Zhao Ruoxi suddenly moved her hand forward from behind her back—it was actually the Red Spider Lily in her grasp! Granny Shi was shocked out of her wits, and even her breathing stagnated for a moment. She suddenly glanced back, but the door behind her was clearly locked tight—how then did the gun reach Zhao Ruoxi’s hands?

The famed magnum spun nimbly in Zhao Ruoxi’s hands before vanishing into thin air. This time, Granny Shi didn’t need to look back to tell that the Red Spider Lily had returned onto the gun rack in the study behind her.

A faint smile appeared on Zhao Ruoxi’s face as she said, “Granny Shi, the Red Spider Lily is a part of me. I can take it at any time and place. No one can stop me.”

Granny Shi’s expression transformed several times before she finally felt relieved and said, “It’s good that the Young Miss can think this way. Otherwise, this old woman will be in a difficult position.”

Zhao Ruoxi went down and returned to her room. Granny Shi sighed in relief only after seeing the girl descend. That short encounter had caused her to break out in cold sweat.

After returning to the room, Zhao Ruoxi found a medicine bowl on the table and within it was a steaming deep-colored decoction. She picked up the bowl and finished it in one gulp in spite of its scalding heat before placing it back on the table with a bang.

“I merely didn’t want to make it difficult for you.” Zhao Ruoxi lay on her bed and gazed quietly at the ceiling.

The night gradually hung lower and lower.

The entire afternoon passed by in peace. Qianye sat quietly in the eastern side-room of Zhao Yuying’s courtyard—only he knew clearly just how much he was being affected. Dinner was also laid out in Zhao Yuying’s small courtyard. She had called for a table full of food and wine, but Qianye only moved his chopsticks a couple of times because he didn’t have the appetite. Duke Chengen, Zhao Weihuang, had sent word that they would guide Qianye over after dinner.

Qianye could hardly swallow the food, but Zhao Yuying’s appetite was especially good. She cleaned up all the dishes alone, which, in total, was enough to stuff several burly men to the point of them passing out. Time passed with great difficulty until, at last, the appointed hour arrived, and the car that had come to pick up Qianye stopped in front of the courtyard doors. Qianye boarded the vehicle in the company of Zhao Weihuang’s aides and, passing through several streets, soon arrived at the Duke Chengen residence.

Qianye was led through many rooms and halls until he reached a magnificent hall. This building somewhat resembled a sacrificial ground, but it was also akin to a martial practice field. It was extremely wide with little to no furniture and lit by millstone-sized lamps hanging down from the tall ceiling. The light sources actually consisted of arm-sized candles which cast eerie shadows across the entire chamber.

A man as straight as a mountain stood at its center with his back facing the door. He was cleaning a three-meter-long sword under the candlelight. The blade’s edge was actually covered by a sheen of garish red, its color almost as dark as blood.

The aides left quietly after sending Qianye in and duly closed the doors.

The man slowly turned around to reveal a surprisingly clear and handsome face that was almost unfitting of his aggressive temperament. Upon careful inspection, however, one would see that his brows were as sharp as swords. A single glance from him made Qianye feel some pain on his face—it felt as though he had been stabbed by a sharp sword intent.

The man started speaking with a slow but clear voice that resembled the echo of a cauldron, “To think that I, Zhao Weihuang, at the present age of forty-nine, have achieved the title of the empire’s Duke Chengen. I rule the Zhao clan with the hundred-thousand-strong Fire Beacon Corps under my command, and I have fought hundreds of battles. How can such success come from Gaoyi alone?

“People say that I’m all brawns and no brain, that I can charge into the enemy lines but have no sense of strategy. But how can those plebeians know the aspirations and great dao in my heart? My great dao is the 3 meter Green Edge in my hand, with which I seek only the power to split a mountain with each strike—since I can block a million soldiers in one slash, why would I need to scheme?”

Zhao Weihuang tossed the sword in his hand toward Qianye who then caught it subconsciously. Only then did he realize just how long this blade was. It was actually even taller than himself by a head. Just holding onto it sent a ghastly chill into his body as though he had experienced nine winters, and its sharpness was a rarity in the present world.