Chapter 246 : Awkward (2)
Jun Wu Xie hurried back to the Lin Palace, where Jun Xian and Jun Qing had been waiting anxiously. They sighed in relief when Jun Wu Xie stepped in and Jun Qing had wanted to go up to her and ask about the situation at the Imperial Palace when Jun Xian held him back by the wrist, and said to Jun Wu Xie instead: "It's getting late, go wash up and get some rest. Everything else can wait till tomorrow."
Jun Wu Xie hesitated before she nodded silently. She hated looking like such a mess and all she wanted now was to go soak herself in a comforting warm bath and rid herself thoroughly of the blood and it's awful stench.
"Father....." Jun Qing looked at Jun Xian in puzzlement.
Jun Xian shook his head slightly and said: "Didn't you see how exhausted she looked?"
Jun Qing thought back and realised that Jun Wu Xie had looked to be fine, but her face had been rather pale.
"Poor child, she must have strained herself. Since she returned safely, things at the Imperial Palace should be fine now. Let her rest up first. We can ask her tomorrow." Jun Xian sighed heavily. A young girl of fourteen, should be the age when she could enjoy her youth without a care in the world, but Jun Wu Xie did not have the chance to do that.
He had been comforted by his granddaughter's maturity and strength, but Jun Xian's heart ached when he saw how Jun Wu Xie laboured.
"I have been too anxious, I get the servants to prepare some warm food and send them to Wu Xie." Jun Qing realised he had been insensitive and left to get the servants.
When Jun Wu Xie got back to her room, the bath was already drawn and ready. She slipped out of her clothes and soaked blissfully into the comforting warm water, and her tensed muscles all over her body finally relaxed.
She had just broken through her ring spirit to the orange level, before she waded through two consecutive battles, and worked tirelessly on a severely injured..... The day's events had really tired her out good.....
The black beast morphed back into it's little black cat form and deftly pulled out a robe from the wardrobe with its tiny mouth and slung it over the screen. Drunk Lotus had wanted to go in but was thwarted by the little cat. He had finished the Jade Moon and the intoxicating effects of the alcohol was fading and he turned back into Little Lotus. At the sight of little black cat's drawn sharp claws, he tottered sobbing over to the lotus pond to soak himself in misery by his own lonesome self.
The little black cat then turned around to talk to Jun Wu Xie, but to its dismay, it eyes were confronted by the towering form of Jun Wu Yao standing at the doorway to the bath and it froze in midstep.
Jun Wu Yao walked soundlessly over to the wooden tub and looked at Jun Wu Xie who laid within, her eyes closed. The corners of his mouth raised as he stood behind the tub and his long slender fingers closed over the soft shoulders of Jun Wu Xie, and kneaded gently on the knots within the tense muscles on her shoulders.
It could have been because of the trials throughout the day, or the release of tension from Jun Wu Yao's comforting massage, but Jun Wu Xie slipped defenceless into a deep slumber within the warm water that covered her in the tub, her head slumped on one side, resting on the hand of Jun Wu Yao.
The fragrance of the bath water and the misty air formed from the warmth in the room wafted around the nose of Jun Wu Yao as he breathed deeply and his hands kneaded the soft skin of Jun Wu Xie's shoulders, and it spread a warmth that enveloped his heart that made it beat a little faster.
The little black cat stared in trepidation upon the back of Jun Wu Yao, unable to decide whether to move or remain still.
Helplessly, it made up its mind, determined and with unwavering conviction. If Jun Wu Yao was to make any of his obnoxious moves, to defend the innocence of its mistress, it will..... will..... definitely wake its mistress up!!
But to its relief, the little cat's obnoxious scenes that went through its mind did not come into being. Jun Wu Yao had noticed that the temperature of the bath water had dropped and tugged at the robe slung upon the screen. He had lifted Jun Wu Xie with a single hand out of the tub and carefully wrapped the robe around her, before carrying her over and setting her down gently onto her soft bed.
And there had been no further advances made after that.
The little black cat's tensed nerves relaxed and hid under the table in shame when it realised its own imagined thoughts had been only its own.
The little black cat brushed them all away and thought seriously. Had the devil himself changed? A devil that became such a gentleman?
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Chapter 247 : Unspoken Intentions (1)
Early the next morning, Jun Wu Xie woke up to find herself wrapped up snugly in a robe that had kept her warm throughout the night, while searching her mind in futility for any memory of having climbed into bed.
During breakfast, the Jun Family of three generations had sat together at the table, but Jun Wu Yao had as usual made a short appearance and disappeared again.
Over breakfast, Jun Wu Xie had related yesterday's events at the Imperial Palace simply to the Jun father and son, and when she finished, she had not reacted to their astounded faces and had proceeded to lower her head and sip at her cup of tea.
"Did you say that His Majesty is currently still bedridden and immobile in the Imperial Palace? And you had just left Qin Yu Yan in the Imperial main hall?" Jun Qing almost had a seizure at the methods his beloved niece had employed and at the callous way she had treated the Emperor of Qi! He knew deep down that Mo Qian Yuan, who was the ruler of the kingdom, did not put up any pretentious fronts with Jun Wu Xie, but at such a time when his life was at risk, Jun Wu Xie had abandoned the Emperor as he laid barely alive in his chambers without even summoning for a single Imperial Doctor and just carelessly thrown the responsibility of caring for the Emperor to two palace guards. That was done a little too..... haphazardly, isn't it?
And as for the Eldest Miss of the Qing Yun Clan, Jun Wu Xie had brazenly just left her locked in the Imperial main hall. Mo Qian Yuan might not be able to attend court, but that was just too reckless.
Jun Wu Xie did not see that she had done anything inappropriate.
"Mo Qian Yuan will live, and Qin Yu Yan will not die in the next few days." Jun Wu Xie assured her uncle.
"........." Jun Qing threw up his hands in surrender.
"Till when do you intend to keep Qin Yu Yan there? You can't seal the Imperial Court forever right?"
"I will make Bai Yun Xian thrown her into the dungeons later today." There was an Emperor in there anyway, an additional Miss would not make much of a difference. As she sipped the last of her tea, Jun Wu Xie finally felt ready to discuss in detail with her grandfather and uncle.
"Qin Yu Yan will die soon, so do not worry for the dead. There is another matter, that I need to talk to both of you about."
Jun Xian and Jun Qing exchanged a tired knowing glance and waited for Jun Wu Xie to go on.
"I intend to go to the Qing Yun Clan." Jun Wu Xie said those shockingly disturbing words calmly.
"WHAT?"
"PREPOSTEROUS!"
Watching the looks of disapproval on the two people closest to her, Jun Wu Xie bit on her lip, thinking how she can explain the rationale behind the trip.
For what the Qing Yun Clan had put the Jun Family through, Jun Wu Xie was not prepared to forgive, and had killed the delegation sent to Qi. But the mastermind was still sitting atop the Qing Yun Clan, oblivious to the fact that his daughter, an Elder, and various disciples had been killed. When the news reaches him, the Qing Yun Clan will declare war on Qi and their tiny kingdom will not be able to stand up to them.
To catch the enemy unprepared, taking advantage of the first strike, or be prepared to receive the full brunt of their retaliation. She did not need Mo Qian Yuan to learn the same lesson again.
Besides that, Jun Wu Xie had another reason to go to the Qing Yun Clan.
It was the Soul Calming Jade!
The Qing Yun Clan having mobilised so much of their resources to get their hands on the Soul Calming Jade must have had a good reason to do so. Little Lotus had recognized the Soul Jade to be the Soul Calming Jade from the spiritual world, but had not been able to provide any further information about it. Jun Wu Xie had the nagging feeling that the Soul Calming Jade could bring her father back to life and that was what gave her the other reason to go to the Qing Yun Clan. To gather more information on the Soul Calming Jade.
She did not intend to reveal the second reason to the Jun Family's father and son. It was just her intuition and she did not want to give them false hope, and subject them to uncalled for despair in the end.
Jun Wu Xie had only told them that they needed to catch their enemies unawares and they had already reacted so strongly. She did not want to imagine their reaction if she had shared her guess on the capabilities of the Soul Calming Jade.
The Jun Family's father and son were aware of what Jun Wu Xie was capable of achieving when she puts her mind to it. But her intention was to the on the Qing Yun Clan! The top and the mightiest clan throughout the lands!
Would she really take down and obliterate Qing Yun Clan from the face of these lands?
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Chapter 248 : Unspoken Intentions (2)
Thinking back on it, Jun Wu Xie's plan was not without its merits. They had killed the delegation from the Qing Yun Clan that had included the daughter of the Qing Yun Clan's Sovereign. If the Qing Yun Clan got wind of it, they would come down hard, raining untold wrath upon the tiny kingdom of Qi.
If they wait till the Qing Yun Clan stirred and commenced their retaliation against Qi, their position would become much more precarious to the dangers that lay ahead.
The Qing Yun Clan's might laid not only in their disciples, but was greatly amplified by the various powers and countries that stood behind them. If the Qing Yun Clan mobilized everything they could, not even tens of Qi Kingdoms could hope to stand against that mightiest of armies.
"Wu Xie, I know you are a very capable girl. But heading off to the Qing Yun Clan is really too big a risk to take." Jun Xian sighed, things keep coming at them one after another, and peace never stayed long enough for them to catch their breaths.
"Rest assured Grandfather, I have thought it through. I will not face them head on, and moreover, my teacher will be with me! He will help me through." Jun Wu Xie had been left with no choice but to bring her made up teacher into the picture which made Jun Xian a little less worried.
"Moreover, there is no way we can avoid them anymore. I'll rather take my chances to strike at them first, without them knowing, than have the Qing Yun Clan find out, and have us persecuted, and we have to run for our lives."
"Wu Xie, this is a grave matter. If anything happens to you, you must not hide it from us." Jun Qing reminded her, his heart full of unease.
Jun Wu Xie nodded in agreement.
The trip to the Qing Yun Clan, would take a few months at least. It would be impossible for her to disappear for months under the watchful eyes of her grandfather and uncle, hence, she had decided to tell them the truth. Making use of her make believe teacher, Jun Wu Xie had convinced them somewhat.
That afternoon, Jun Wu Xie made her way to the Imperial Palace. Qin Yu Yan who had been left in the Imperial main hall had already slipped into semi consciousness and she had looked utterly terrible, the whites of her eyes showing, and convulsions racked her body.
Bai Yun Xian saw Jun Wu Xie approach and stepped to one side of the hall to get out of the way as she watched the guards drag Qin Yu Yan out of the main hall and a whole bunch of palace maids and eunuchs rushing in to clean up the bloody and gory mess splattered all over the place, without missing a spot.
"Come with me." Jun Wu Xie glanced at Bai Yun Xian, and she led the way towards the previous Crown Prince Palace.
The palace had been "loaned" to Mo Xuan Fei for his "temporary stay". With the passing of Mo Xuan Fei, the place had regained its peace and tranquility.
Bai Yun Xian followed behind Jun Wu Xie quietly, not daring to utter a single word, and she just hurried along with her head lowered.
Jun Wu Xie sat down when she reached the palace and looked at the nervous Bai Yun Xian and said: "I want to know everything about the Qing Yun Clan."
Bai Yun Xian raised her head in puzzlement, and she looked at Jun Wu Xie.
Although Jun Wu Xie had not said anything, she could make a rather good guess at Jun Wu Xie's intentions.
The young girl's great mind had been meticulous in her plans and left nothing to chance. When she had decided on killing the entire delegation sent by the Qing Yun Clan, she must have already set her sight on the whole Qing Yun Clan itself.
She knew that the Qing Yun Clan was not known for the benevolence and mercy, and would not spare her or the Qi Kingdom, hence, she had decided to strike at the Qing Yun Clan first?
Having guessed so much of Jun Wu Xie's intentions, Bai Yun Xian was feeling rather uneasy about it. She needs to take her antidote every three days, and if Jun Wu Xie went to the Qing Yun Clan, what was to happen to her?
"What I have here is the antidote, enough to last you through the next six months. I will hand them over to my uncle. And after I leave, he will send someone to deliver the medicine to you every three days. While I'm away, you will have to stay in the Imperial Palace." Jun Wu Xie said, as if reading Bai Yun Xian mind. Jun Wu Xie then produced a porcelain bottle and opened the stopper gently, letting out the familiar fragrance of the antidote contained within.
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Chapter 249 : Unspoken Intentions (3)
With Jun Wu Xie's assurance, Bai Yun Xian sighed in relief. She had already cut her ties completely with the Qing Yun Clan. Anyone with half a brain would be able to think that Bai Yun Xian had been in cahoots with Jun Wu Xie to bring about the deaths of Qin Yu Yan and the other members of her delegation. There was no way for her to return to the Qing Yun Clan anymore.
Over the days, Bai Yun Xian had come to realise from her observation of Jun Wu Xie's manner of handling things. She found that as long as she did not go against Jun Wu Xie's wishes, her life can still be rather peaceful.
Besides the poison within her, Bai Yun Xian did not find her life in the Imperial Palace to be lacking, and could be somewhat fulfilling.
With nowhere else she could go, she had learnt to be content.
"There are twelve peaks within the Qing Yun Clan's control, with the main peak under the command of the Sovereign, the other eleven peaks were overseen by an Elder each. It was said, every peak specialised in a different area of expertise. Among them, the Elder of Cloud Treading Peak was the youngest among all, and he was the son of the previous Sovereign. The current Sovereign was not of the same family tree, but was a direct disciple under the previous Sovereign. Nobody knew how the leadership of the Qing Yun Clan fell into the hands of the disciple, but it was known that the current Sovereign did not get along well with the Elder of Cloud Treading Peak. The residual support for the former Sovereign had remained significant and the Sovereign had had his hands tied. But in recent years, the Sovereign had secretly moved to remove many of those supporters and the Elder of the Cloud Treading Peak was in a bleak situation. If my Miss intention is to go to the Qing Yun Clan, the Cloud Treading Peak would be a good place to start from and the Cloud Treading Peak's Elder's name is Mu Chen. The Qing Yun Clan opens their doors to recruit talents every month, and with my Miss' extraordinary talents in medicine, it would be a breeze for you to slip into the Qing Yun Clan as a new recruit."
Since Bai Yun Xian had decided to switch to Jun Wu Xie's side, she had provided Jun Wu Xie with all the information and every single detail she knew about and hid nothing from her. She had in fact secretly hoped that Jun Wu Xie would be able to totally annihilate the whole of the Qing Yun Clan to prevent any acts of revenge against her in the future.
Jun Wu Xie nodded her head slightly, seemingly satisfied with Bai Yun Xian's detailed and informative narration.
Selfish people are the easiest to manipulate. As long as you hold their lives in your hands, they were extremely cooperative when you need them.
Jun Wu Xie had kept Bai Yun Xian alive, was to use this well of information against the Qing Yun Clan.
Seeing that Jun Wu Xie was satisfied, Bai Yun Xian was feeling encouraged, and she further squeezed every single bit of information she had on the Qing Yun Clan, selling them out thoroughly, saying everything she knew and hiding nothing.
The strongest among them would be the Sovereign of the Qing Yun Clan itself, named Qin Yue, and he had broken through his spirit to the indigo level. Besides the disciples of the Qing Yun Clan, there were some permanent residents who stayed on as guest officers. These people command an indigo level spirit as well. They usually stayed hidden unless someone stirred up trouble within the Qing Yun Clan's premises, where they would appear and rid the Qing Yun Clan of the trouble.
The Qing Yun Clan opened their doors for the recruitment every month only for a day, and people with outstanding talents in Medicine apply to join the Qing Yun Clan then. If they pass the tests set, they are admitted to the Outer House to study Medicine. The elite can progress in their second year to be admitted to the Inner House to study the Qing Yun Clan's own unique practice of medicine. If they were lucky, and got selected by any of the Elders or the Sovereign of the twelve peaks themselves, they would be instantly promoted and be directly admitted into the Inner House to practice and develop themselves.
Jun Wu Xie had no intentions of wasting a year of her time at the Qing Yun Clan. At three months the most, she wanted the Qing Yun Clan to disappear from the face of the world!
"Which day monthly?" Jun Wu Xie asked.
Bai Yun Xian answered without hesitation: "The fifteenth of every month would be the day they open their doors to receive talented disciples."
Jun Wu Xie nodded as she contemplated.
Bai Yun Xian thought of something suddenly and her expression grew grave: "There is one thing, and I would ask my Miss to remember it."
Jun Wu Xie frowned.
"Among the twelve peaks, there is one named Hidden Cloud Peak, and its Elder is named Ke Cang Ju. The Hidden Cloud Peak portrays itself to specialise in the research of herbs, but in actual fact, they research more along the lines of poisons. The Hidden Cloud Peak had always set the lowest threshold for the acceptance of their disciples, and they had always accepted the biggest number of them. But..... those disciples had also always ended up dead for no rhyme or reason." Bai Yun Xian said gravely.
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Chapter 250 : The Way of an Emperor (1)
"If my Miss was to go to the Qing Yun Clan, you must make sure, not to go to the Hidden Cloud Peak." Bai Yun Xian cautioned carefully. Disciples of the Hidden Cloud Peak had always disappeared mysteriously or were found dead for no reason. It was a fact not known to people outside of the Qing Yun Clan, but many who did not possess the capabilities to be accepted as a disciple were surreptitiously personally accepted by Ke Cang Ju and brought into the Hidden Cloud Peak. Those people had always thought that it was a god given opportunity, but little did they know that they had just put a foot forward into Death's door.
"Tell me more about Ke Cang Ju." Jun Wu Xie had decided that the Qing Yun Clan was a place that was anything but open and aboveboard. Anyone that could produce a disciple like Bai Yun Xian and fathered a daughter like Qin Yu Yan, could not possibly be anything but abominable as the Qing Yun Clan's Sovereign.
"Ke Cang Ju was not originally of the Qing Yun Clan. He was brought into the Qing Yun Clan after Qin Yue was named the Sovereign, and rose up the ranks within a few years to the position of an Elder." Bai Yun Xian replied honestly. "I do not know of Ke Cang Ju's real identity, but only of his gloomy personality, as he's not often seen within the Qing Yun Clan. His Hidden Cloud Peak was closed off to the other disciples and even if Qing Yue were to go there, he had to inform Ke Cang Ju of his intention beforehand."
Jun Wu Xie paid note to the mysterious circumstances surrounding this person and listened on to Bai Yun Xian's narration of her knowledge of the Qing Yun Clan for a little longer before she dismissed Bai Yun Xian and proceeded to Mo Qian Yuan's chambers.
Having been unconscious for a whole night, Mo Qian Yuan had regained consciousness. But the pain that still lingered all over continued to torment him. He was bandaged from head to toe and even sitting up became a wish that cannot be fulfilled.
When Jun Wu Xie stepped into the chambers, she saw the two palace guards that she had summoned yesterday standing on each side of the bed, with one holding a teapot, and the other holding on to a tray filled with medicine bottles, their faces gaunt, obviously from a lack of sleep.
"Miss Jun." The two guards hurriedly fell to their knees when they saw Jun Wu Xie approach.
"Leave." Jun Wu Xie said coldly.
The two guards scrambled out without hesitation, not forgetting to leave the things in their hands behind.
"You're here....." Mo Qian Yuan could not move, and could only move his eyes to try to see Jun Wu Xie.
"Has your mind been cleared?" Jun Wu Xie did not check on Mo Qian Yuan's wounds but sat down on a chair by the side.
Mo Qian Yuan laughed bitterly, but it tore at the wounds on his face and his expression contorted in agony.
"It couldn't be any clearer now. Don't you think I asked for it myself?" If he had not tried to dissuade Jun Wu Xie, he would not have been put through the agony. Had he not been blind to the true nature of the mightiest clan across the lands, thinking they were reasonable and understanding, he would not have realised that they were in fact just a bunch of merciless and unfeeling beasts.
Without any signs of a reply from Jun Wu Xie, Mo Qian Yuan, despite himself, carried on with his monologue.
"I have been really dumb, or I would not be in this state, and had needed you to save me umpteen times. When I was small, my mother, the Empress, had always told me, it is man's nature to be kind. However fiendish a man was, he possessed a kind side. Treating people with a genuine heart will gain you an equal reciprocation in return. I had believed her to be right all this time, but the recent events had shown me that my mother could have been wrong right from the start. She had treated that man so well, and suppressed the jealousy in her heart, and overseen the six palaces, only wishing for peace and stability within the Imperial harem. No matter whichever concubine that man had favoured at anytime, she had met them only with smiles, never harming a single one of them, to support and assist that man to become a brilliant ruler of the generation. She swallowed the whispered sweet nothings of promises, and would never have thought till the day she was murdered, that her whole life's efforts for him and her whole family would finally be destroyed by the hand of that very man." Mo Qian Yuan's voice sounded choked up, hiding the bitterness that welled up within.