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墨書 Inktalez
Before descending the mountain, Qin Wang unexpectedly encountered me in the garden, whether intentionally or not.
"Firefly Girl!" he called out to me, pausing for a moment. "I've noticed that you are quite special."
I was taken aback, a sudden wave of intense fear washing over me.
What if the Emperor took a liking to me? What would I do?! There was no escape; I would be trapped! I certainly did not want to become the Emperor's beloved consort and get caught up in palace intrigues!
Qin Wang smiled slightly and said something that made me realize I was overthinking things.
"Qiu Yuan is truly remarkable; you have good taste."
I had hardly shown any feelings for Nie Qiuyuan, yet he could see through it. Truly a dragon among men, his insight was sharp.
However, his words made my heart feel sweet, and my impression of him improved even more.
So, like a fortune teller, I presented him with a gift and mysteriously predicted, "In two months, it will be an auspicious day. Liuying wishes to congratulate Prince Qin!"
He paused for a moment before understanding my meaning, then smiled confidently. "Thank you for your kind words. Would you like..."
Qin Wang looked at me meaningfully. "Would you like me to arrange a marriage for you?"
Such an easy opportunity! I hadn't even thought of that before. After pondering for a moment and sighing, I still declined.
"What Liuying desires is not just a person but also a true heart. Therefore, only..."
Only by striving for it myself!
Qin Wang nodded with a smile. Ancient emperors could be quite approachable. Being in this era turned out to be rather pleasant.
After Qin Wang left, time flowed quietly. The business at Wanzi Mountain's Logistics Center was thriving and showed signs of expanding even further. By the end of the month, when we tallied the accounts, we realized, oh my, we were starting to make money!
Life was getting better. We could operate legally and steadily, working hard to become prosperous. Who would still want to live a life of petty theft and servitude? A person lives on their breath, and since ancient times, it has always been the case that officials oppress the people until they rebel. Now, Wanzi Mountain had unexpectedly embarked on a promising path, thanks in no small part to the stability of society.
Two months passed quickly, and news arrived that the emperor had abdicated to enjoy his old age, while Qin Wang ascended the throne and issued a general amnesty.
It seemed that the timelines recorded in history books were mostly reliable. However, there were still many discrepancies because this world continually surprised and shocked me.
When historians record what happens today, the truth behind events often remains unrecorded. So, to be honest, this world might be far more interesting than one could imagine.
Look, today, a distinguished guest has arrived at Wanzi Mountain.
At that moment, Luo Dachun was trying to help me "recall" my swordsmanship. I had once been quite skilled with the sword, but now it was evident that I had completely lost my touch. Every move I made ended up being awkward and clumsy, resembling close-range punches from Wing Chun rather than elegant swordplay, which puzzled him. Under his guidance, I held the long sword and tried my best to demonstrate my moves when I heard a commotion outside.
"What’s going on?" Luo Dachun asked.
"Master Luo, quick! Go take a look! They’ve come... they’ve come..." The people outside were panting heavily and didn’t seem to want to leave. We had no choice but to put down our swords and go out to see.
Outside the Hall of Gathering stood a magnificent group of people, their expressions serious and their demeanor extraordinary. In the center stood an obvious high-ranking eunuch surrounded by guards arranged in formation.
This was it; royal visitors had arrived—an envoy from the emperor bringing us goodwill!
"Wanzi Mountain's Master Ye Clan (Second Sister Qianrihong), Young Master Nie Qiuyuan is here to receive the decree."
There had to be some formality involved. We prepared an incense altar and performed a bowing ceremony for the scroll inscribed by the true dragon's son. As I bowed my head, I couldn’t help but wonder: "Is this what it feels like to be inexplicably summoned?"
The imperial edict was indeed peculiar.
The Emperor seriously inscribed words for Wanzi Mountain, commissioning a grand plaque to be hung for us. The underlying meaning was clear: Wanzi Mountain is now under my protection, and let anyone dare to disturb it!
Looking at the glaring six characters of "Wanzi Mountain Black Wind Stronghold," I found myself at a loss for words. A ruler of a nation coming to bestow a plaque for a band of mountain bandits. In later years, there would be tales of "Authorized to Fill in the Words, Liu Sanbian," but what were we doing here? Authorized robbery?
However, with this plaque, we had officially cleared our names and could now live our lives with peace of mind. Everyone's spirits were lifted.
There was also a second imperial decree.
"Let the Imperial Brother Nie Qiuyuan go to Luozhou, Yichuan County, to serve as the county magistrate, with the rank of Sixth Grade."
My heart stirred. Was this the beginning of the path I had learned about from historical records?
Yichuan County belonged to the Henan Circuit, in the Luoyang region. Luoyang was the Eastern Capital, a very important area. Although the position of Yichuan County Magistrate was not large and its rank not high, it meant being a local father figure, which also implied managing the local populace—and that meant detective work.
But "Imperial Brother"...
The scene from Journey to the West flashed before my eyes, where the king of the Daughter Kingdom addressed Tang Seng as "Imperial Brother."
Perhaps Emperor Taizong Li Shimin had a habit of casually calling everyone his brother...
In fact, there was a third decree. However, this one was a secret order.
This secret order was for Nie Qiuyuan, Luo Dachun, Melan, and me.
It instructed us three to accompany Nie Qiuyuan to Yichuan, to assist him in taking office and managing Yichuan well. Li Shimin explained in the secret order that he had just ascended the throne and had not yet sorted out all his relationships; thus, giving Nie Qiuyuan a relatively minor official position was safer. The implication was that he held great admiration for Nie Qiuyuan and believed he would be a key pillar of the state.
Through our interactions over time, I sensed that Li Shimin possessed an extraordinary sharpness in his gaze. He could keenly detect something intangible about a person—something akin to an aura. Perhaps this time, he saw some unique connection among the four of us and insisted on bringing us together?
We expressed our gratitude. Nie Qiuyuan furrowed his brow, contemplating something, then took up his pen to write a letter to his Brother, entrusting it to the eunuch who would deliver it.
Soon, I would embark on a new journey. This path was precisely what I had envisioned, as my advantages had increased. Therefore, I was excited—perhaps even more so than any of them.
However, I felt it necessary to bid farewell to that person.
“Night Phantom, are you there? Can we meet?” My invitation veered off course, but I believed he could hear me.
He was quite an interesting individual; he had even accompanied me to see a corpse. We were kindred spirits, our energies aligned. Now that I was heading to Yichuan, it seemed I would have to part ways with him, which left me with a tinge of regret.
As expected, Night Phantom woke me from my slumber in the dead of night.
“Looking for me?” The masked handsome man spoke through ventriloquism.
“Just a moment.” I ruffled my messy hair and rubbed my sleepy eyes. For some reason, in front of him alone, I unconsciously revealed my true self—perhaps it was because he himself was peculiar and not like ordinary people.
I drew up a bucket from the well in the courtyard, containing the copper kettle I had intentionally chilled in the water. I poured its contents into a green porcelain bowl for him to drink.
He sat down and took a sip, smiling, “What is this? It's delicious.”
I had prepared Osmanthus Sour Plum Drink. I had specifically gone down the mountain to the pharmacy to buy dried black plums and hawthorn at a 1:1 ratio, adding an appropriate amount of licorice and dried tangerine peel, simmering them with rock sugar. It was the season when Osmanthus flowers bloomed, so I added fresh Osmanthus to the prepared sour plum soup, making it sweet and sour with an aromatic fragrance. Although there were local plums available in Shang Zhou, the authentic recipe for sour plum soup originated from the Qing Dynasty; I had observed that it was not available here.
“This is a refreshing drink. I wanted to thank you, but I don’t know how else to express my gratitude—just some food and drink.”
The smile at the corner of his lips faltered slightly: “...It’s already getting cooler... but it tastes great; I really like it.”
I focused intently on considering what would be appropriate to show my appreciation, completely overlooking that it was already the eighth month of the lunar calendar and there was no real need for a cooling drink.
"We seem to be leaving," I began to say my farewells, trying to think of the right words, but my farewell message was interrupted by him.
"I know," Night Phantom replied nonchalantly. "You're going to Yichuan, right? I'm going too."
"You are going too!" I was surprised. Yet, somehow, I felt a little happy about it.
"Wherever Autumn is, Night will be there," Night Phantom smiled.
So, there was such a close connection. But what exactly was this connection? Night existed in this form, but what was the truth behind it?
Everything seemed to be shrouded in a layer of mystery. However, I wasn't in a hurry; I believed that one day, just like peeling back the petals and core of a flower, I would uncover this layer of mystery, revealing the true Nie Qiuyuan within.
Yet, the words "Autumn" and "Night" representing them both felt so natural and poetic.
The first volume of the story comes to an end today. Ye Er is about to embark on a new journey with her idol. Where did Brother Qiu come from? Why does Brother Night exist? Who is Ye Er's idol in this world? Is there another charming guy waiting for her ahead? Will Ye Er successfully win her idol's heart? Well, the author still has a week of new book promotion left, so please continue to support! Sending kisses!
Narrator: What kind of advertisement is this? Aren't you supposed to focus on the main story? It seems like all you care about are handsome guys while the plot has flown out the window...
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