White Calculation Chapter 19

Chapter 19 - A deal

The crisp voice of the young boy interrupted the strange feeling in Chen Yubai and he was shocked when he realized he had been quietly staring at Ji Xiaoli spellbound for a long while.

The little girl squatted at his feet with her smiling face raised to look at him.  It seemed as if she had shared the burden of his worries and it was worthy to feel happy about it.

Chen Yubai wrinkled his eyebrows and stared at her.

Her eyes……are really good, like a shallow clear stream in the mountains, clear and lively.  With a glance, everything could be seen clearly.

He had a thought ~~ She is so stupid…… in fact, it is actually quite good.  At least, he had never seen anyone with such a clean gaze.

"s.h.i.+fu has a visitor, go and practice in the rear courtyard.  Without my permission, you are not allowed to run around."  He put up an imposing front and instructed his little disciple.

Cheerfully, the little disciple responded with a 'yes' and bounced to the rear courtyard to practice.

He sat quietly for a moment to adjust his mood and then opening his eyes he instructed Xiao Tian to invite the guest to enter.

The visitor dressed in purple clothes entered gracefully.

Just now Lord Guos.h.i.+ had told his little disciple that he has a visitor but when the guest finally came to stand in front of him, he asked coldly.  "Why are you here?"

"Isn't Lord Guos.h.i.+ who wanted to see me?"  The beautiful girl smiled with her eyebrows curved prettily.  However, Chen Yubai only gave her a look and his eyes revealed coldness.

Although Qin Sang knew he was not happy, she still smiled.  "I said I would return the Unicorn Medallion to its original owner one year later in exchange for Lord Guos.h.i.+'s one-year protective shelter for her.  But Lord Guos.h.i.+ still had not agreed so can it be that your Lords.h.i.+p feels dissatisfied about this?   I heard Lord Guos.h.i.+ had changed her rest day to once every 40 days and since your Lords.h.i.+p knows I visit her every month, isn't this purposely forcing me to visit your Lords.h.i.+p?"

Chen Yubai stared at her icily.  "Do you think Guos.h.i.+ Residence is the same as Zhennan w.a.n.g Residence…… that you can come and go as you please?  Let me advise you that you should not waste effort on spouting lotus*.   The Unicorn Medallion will be guarded by the medallion's owner.  Don't imagine you can threaten me with it.  It is ridiculous!"

(Spouting lotus means to speak highly or righteously.)

"Then why didn't Lord Guos.h.i.+ hand her over to Chief Li?"  When Qin Sang smiled, her expression was so brilliant that the wide and deep Wan Qian Hall brightened up instantly.

As regards to her precise knowledge about Li Weiran's visit to the Guos.h.i.+'s Residence, Chen Yubai did not express any surprise and only said coldly to her.  "The reason will never be you."

The heavy burden in her heart became lighter…… and the devastating beauty, Emissary Qian Mi pursed her lips to hide a smile.

The more he looked at her, the more he felt she was exceedingly hateful.  Without any expression, he urged coldly.  "What exactly do you want?  If you are done speaking, immediately disappear from my sight."

When Emissary Qian Mi heard, she smiled and waved the imperial decree she was holding in her raised hand.

"I came with a decree from the Empress Dowager, so why should Lord Guos.h.i.+ display such disrespectful att.i.tude towards me?  What is my sin?"

Lord Guos.h.i.+ did not have any interest to bicker with her and placed the teacup in his hand on the table with a light clatter.  He raised his eyes and looked icily at Qin Sang.

"The Qian Mi Tribe had wors.h.i.+pped ancient G.o.ds and the G.o.ds had bestowed your people a holy land to live in.  It is because your people were not satisfied, harbored one-sided thoughts, and went around on punitive expeditions. In the past hundred years, your race had killed countless people, so losing your holy land was the result of your own actions.  Return and tell the Empress Dowager……what you get in life, is what life had predestined for you.  It is not beneficial to forcefully request for something."

Qin Sang burst into laughter and put the decree she was holding back into her sleeve.

"I have yet to announce the decree and Lord Guos.h.i.+ already knew without calculating?"

"There are seven-seven, forty-nine pieces of Dark Night Medallions and you have already gathered quite a large number of medallions from the smaller and weaker sects.  Out of the five major orders, you don't dare to touch the Azure Dragon and the White Tiger.  The Black Tortoise Medallion is with me and the Unicorn Medallion is with you.  The Empress Dowager summoned me into the palace is just to ask me for the whereabouts of the Vermillion Bird Medallion."

"Lord Guos.h.i.+ is truly a divine predictor.   Qin Sang is full of admiration."

"There are things in this world that can be predicted and can be followed.  However, a person's heart is forever changing and that is the thing that can't be predicted."  Chen Yubai raised his head and looked at her.  "For example……why did you send her into my residence?"

To be able to convince the Emperor to send out that imperial edict, there are not many people with that capability.  He had known very early that it was Emissary Qian Mi who was manipulating behind the scenes and at first, he thought it was because of his Black Tortoise Medallion.  Ever since he knew about Ji Xiaoli's past, he began to suspect that Qin Sang knew something that even he did not know.

Although Qin Sang may have the ferocious heart of a tiger, vicious and ruthless, she did not harbor any malicious intent towards Ji Xiaoli.  Then why did she exhaust all means to send Ji Xiaoli to him?  What exactly is it that made her so determined?

Chen Yubai was unable to do any calculations or come to any conclusion and has been mulling over this matter for a long time.

She only smiled without replying and when she met his eyes, her eyes seemed to say to him……..Are you not Lord Guos.h.i.+?  Do a prediction!

This really makes people furious ! !

However, she is not qualified enough to make Lord Guos.h.i.+ angry.

Chen Yubai's tone was relaxed as if he was having a leisurely chat.  "Since the Empress Dowager is so eager for the Qian Mi Tribe to prosper and if she knows that in this world there exists a Holy Lady whose blood is a hundred times purer than yours then she should be extremely pleased."

The playfulness in Qin Sang's expression immediately vanished completely and even her delicate red lips lost a little color.  She lowered her eyes and was silent for a moment before she broke into a smile.  She took a step back and bowed.

"Lord Guos.h.i.+……."  The upper capital city's powerful figure, Emissary Qian Mi lowered herself until she knelt on the ground and her purple skirt was spread out like a blooming flower on the goldstone tiled floor.  Bending her long and beautiful neck, she said sincerely in a low voice.  "I offer my grat.i.tude to Lord Guos.h.i.+ for taking care of my little sister these days."

To get an honest reply, it is necessary to do this.

The corner of Chen Yubai's lips hooked into a cold smile but he did not give her permission to stand up.

Qin Sang's voice was low and she continued.  "Little sister was born in the Qian Mi holy land therefore in her body flows the pure blood of the Qian Mi Tribe and she is the true once-in-thousand-years Holy Lady.  However, I fed her medicinal pills since she was a child, and as a result, she has a slow mentality, therefore she is unable to serve the Empress Dowager.  If she is found out and falls into the hands of the Empress Dowager, I am afraid her blood will be drained off to refine medicine, and death will be a certainty for her.  In recent years, there is a rise in Zhennan w.a.n.g Residence's popularity and it had captured the attention of the Empress Dowager.  It is extremely dangerous for my Little Sister to remain in Zhennan w.a.n.g Residence.  Therefore, the day before the hairpin ceremony, I placed the former Lord Guos.h.i.+'s sachet into the sleeve of my Little Sister luring the Empress to open the sachet in front of everyone.  The imperial edict that Lord Guos.h.i.+ received from the Emperor was bestowed with my request."

She lowered her body very low to show sisterly love for her younger sister but Chen Yubai was not impressed and coldly asked.  "I just want to know the reason why you sent her here."

Everyone knows that the young Lord Guos.h.i.+ is a cold and unfeeling person……so, what made Qin Sang so confident she will be successful in sending Ji Xiaoli into the Guos.h.i.+ Residence?

"Because I know you will help me……."  On Qin Sang's face, there was an expression of exhaustion and irony.  Although she was still smiling, there was a trace of pain.

"Just like Zhennan w.a.n.g who had taken care of my Little Sister for so many years, the five major orders of the great Dark Night Valley are the destined guardians…….   But Qian Mi……Qian Mi is a concealment in the Great Ye Kingdom that can cause the annihilation of the whole Qian Mi Tribe……..and the Dark Night Valley is duty-bound."

Chen Yubai smiled faintly.  "Are you not afraid that we will kill her?  Once we kill her it would ensure the complete weeding and elimination of roots."

Raising her eyes, she laughed proudly and decisively.  "I lived in this world solely for her.  As long as I am still alive, then only will the Qian Mi Tribe completely disintegrate and collapse in the near future."

She had spoken so clearly that Chen Yubai became silent.  After a long time, he said in a faint voice.  "Qin Sang…….you are truly the Holy Lady of the Qian Mi Tribe."

The Empress Dowager had nurtured a large number of girls to serve as Qian Mi emissaries and all of them were outstanding and talented.  However, in the past hundred years, Qin Sang was the only Holy Lady who appeared and she represented the hopes of all the Qian Mi people.  No one would ever believe that this Holy Lady would speak of completely eliminating the Qian Mi Tribe.

She probably felt that her words sounded too ironic and shook her head as she smiled.

She had already sat up and was hugging her knees with a faraway look on her face as she stared blankly into the distance.

"In the legend of Qian Mi, the holy land has the power that enables its people to unify the world but n.o.body knows what that is and I don't know either.  I only remember that the holy land is very, very beautiful.  The flowers of Qian Mi are purple and they are very beautiful…….  Every evening when dusk falls, the Qian Mi flowers would combine with the sky as one and it is more captivating than the light from the setting sun.  That time……I did not allow anyone to disturb the peace of that place.  These hundreds of years, the tremendous price paid by the Qian Mi Tribe for harboring unrealistic fantasies is enough…….it should stop with me."

She slowly stood up from the floor and took out a heavy black iron medallion from her sleeve.  With a flick of her hand, she flipped the medallion onto the table beside Chen Yubai's hand and smiled as she said.  "To make a deal with Lord Guos.h.i.+, one must never think of making the slightest gain.  The Unicorn Medallion is here and in addition to the promise I made just now……is it enough to request Lord Guos.h.i.+ to shelter my Little Sister for a year?"

She displayed a carefree smile while Chen Yubai had a gloomy expression but he did not make it difficult for her anymore.  He replied with a cold and simple word.  "Alright."

Qin Sang heaved a long, deep sigh of relief as if a heavy burden had been lifted from her heart.

Before she left, she gave him a deep bow of reverence once again and said.  "My grat.i.tude to your Lords.h.i.+p."

After he had received her bow, he asked.  "Would you like to see her?  She is in the rear courtyard right now."

Qin Sang was startled and in the blink of an eye, a brilliant smile emerged.  "No, it's not necessary.  I always visit her at night and she has never seen me like this."  As she spoke, her fingers brushed over the cool material of her luxurious gorgeous clothes and showed a self-deprecatingly smile.  Through the opened window, she threw a glance into the rear courtyard a far distance away, then turned around and walked out.

A long time later after she had left, Chen Yubai picked up the piece of cold black iron medallion and put it into his sleeve.  Then he walked over to the opened window and looked out while he lamented in his heart.

Sometimes, he would rather be that person in that life.  It is better than watching helplessly as every one of those people walks towards destinies that could not be stopped.

Everyone in the world said he is cold-blooded and ruthless but has anyone ever thought for him?……If he is an emotional person, how sad would he be?

While he was deeply engrossed with inexplicable thoughts, the familiar rustling sounds of the tree branches and a heavy object falling in the courtyard drifted over.  The heart of the person looking out of the opened window jumped slightly and his body moved faster than his thoughts.  Mustering eighty percent of his internal energy, he flew out of the window.  His figure moved extremely fast and was just in time to catch the young girl who had jumped off from the tree.

"Ji Xiaoli ! ! !"   He shouted at her in anger.  "What are you doing?!"

"Practising my qinggong, ah.….!   s.h.i.+fu taught me this before!"  The young girl replied naturally.  "s.h.i.+fu!  s.h.i.+fu!   Later after I have mastered the skill of qinggong and if someone is to come to pursue and kill s.h.i.+fu, then I can escape."

"……when I am being pursued and killed……you will escape?!"

"Um……  Before I run away I will throw out a thunderbolt pellet.  After I have escaped then s.h.i.+fu will be free from worry or fear and s.h.i.+fu can bravely go on a killing rampage!"

Lord Guos.h.i.+ thought about the logic of her words and felt……it seems……there is nothing wrong with it.

His anxious expression cleared up a little and Ji Xiaoli who was observing the changes on his face finally dared to ask.  "But s.h.i.+fu, why is it that whenever I jump down from the tree, you will always appear?   Is it…… what you taught me is actually a divine skill?  So whenever I want to see you, I will have to jump down from a tree, is that right?"

Chen Yubai's lips tightened and raising his arms, he threw her off.  He was so furious that the s.p.a.ce between his eyebrows was twitching.

But the young girl was already very familiar with this move of his.  She flipped several turns in mid-air and then landed gracefully on the ground like a b.u.t.terfly without even the slightest shaking.  She smiled and looked at him.

"Can I jump down from the tree only?  What about jumping down from the upper floors to the ground?   How about jumping from the top of the wall?"

Lord Guos.h.i.+ burst out violently like thunder and his roar startled the pigeon that was sleeping in the cage under the verandah of the small Zhu Xing Courtyard.   "Idiot!"

The military pigeon that was as fat as a chicken grievously let out several sounds of 'ji-ji ku-ku' and buried its head under its wings.