Apparently, Deity also knows that Wang Yun is immune to his smiles and cheery voice, so he arranged a moonlight date to charm our heroine. Luckily for him, Wang Yun brought her own food to the party, else I can’t imagine how she would be impressed with his version of dinner - which consisted of healthy food that she doesn’t like.

The obsession with white or coloured hankies came up for the last time, and we find out why the writer is forever writing about them. There is actually a reason for using Kleenex over Scott? Read on to find out.
Chapter 6 Part 1 of 2
She has been conned!
From what she can see in the last six months, Cloud Manor is definitely
not what it appears to be.
As she strolled across the bridge, Little Brother Jiang will
blow out the lights behind them until the entire bridge is engulfed in
darkness.
A normal person would not take an unlit path and the people of
Cloud Manor have used this psychology to find their quiet moments among the bevy
of visitors. Just last month, she
was forced to witness this first-hand when Gong Sun Zhi got the kitchen to
prepare a herbal feast and invited all the Gentlemen (including her) to dine at
Double Cloud Pavilion by employing this tactic to keep out uninvited guests.
“Big… Big Sister. I
will make a move first.” Little
Brother Jiang was red-faced and grabbing a lantern from a concealed cupboard at the
end of the bridge, he headed back the now-darken path. As she strolled to Double Cloud Pavilion,
she found her host, who has fallen asleep while waiting for her.
He looked very good in white with his hand supporting his
forehead as if taking a short nap.
His long hair has unbound behind his back and when the wind gently blew
on it, the image is rather surreal.
When still, he did resemble a deity. What a pity...
He opened his eyes and smiled when he saw her. “You are finally
here.”
“You could eat first if you are hungry.”
His smile widened and he looked rather adorable. So adorable in fact, she could see his tiger
tooth. Did she see wrongly?
Deities are not supposed to have dimples or cute canines right?
“Why is Wu Bo so formal with me when we are family? Quick, bring out the stuff.”
She reminded herself that she is now staying under his
roof. Taking a deep breath, she
took out a small bamboo basket.
“Here is the soy-sauce fried chicken. Remember to get rid of the evidence after you eat.” She did not want to ask how he could
guess her every move.
He cut up the chicken with a small knife and gave her half: “Did
you hear anything interesting at the restaurant today?”
“Nothing much of interest.”
“The restaurant is a place rife with idle talk. But with Gu Shao De and the disciple
from Huang family, they would have likely talk about more serious matters?”
She gave the matter some thought. “Well, they mentioned the possibility
of Hai Tang Fairy marrying Tu San Long.”
“I was about to bring this up to you as well. The Dengs are keen to form an alliance
with Tu San Long and the wedding will definitely take place. Cloud Manor will be there at their
wedding and if you are feeling better by then, do attend the wedding as well.”
“Gentleman, although the flowers have fallen for the river, the
river does not feel the same and flows mercilessly on…”
He gave her a meaningful look and did not reply. She took another deep breath.
“Xian Yun, although the flowers have fallen for the river, the
river does not feel the same and flows mercilessly on. For all that is said and done, Hai Tang
Fairy is the No. 1 beauty of the pugilist world, do you really have no feelings
for her?”
At her change of address, he smiled and answered. “According to
your logic, does it mean I would have lost my head every time I see a beautiful
woman?”
“True, what you say is correct as well. Virtue is more important than looks when
deciding which woman to marry.
Whoever Xian Yun marries in future must be a woman peerless in virtue,
even if she is ugly.”
He only looked on with his warm smile. His smile made his
features came alive and it was as if his eyes and brows has been tainted with
the colours of spring. But like
him, she can also be unaffected by beauty, even when he is pretending to be Luo
Shen.
Besides, his spring-like warmth brought back memories of the
time she was injured and bedridden.
She has willed herself to walk within two months and although Gong Sun
Zhi was against her trying to walk originally, he relented when Gong Sun Yun offered
to help.
At the beginning, she would break out in cold sweat even with
the simple act of getting out from bed and walking a few steps with Gong Sun
Yun supporting her. He did not
stop her and let her walk to her heart’s content. It was only when she could not move a muscle the next day that
she found that her mental readiness was way ahead of her body. Try as she might, her body refused to
cooperate and she could only lay prone and stare at the ceiling of her bed.
Looking at her, he morphed into Luo Shen again as gave her a
charming smile. “Wu Bo, if you cannot walk, I can piggy back you. That way, you could tell yourself that
you have walked for today.”
That hypocrite!
Since that incident, she became more conscious and would not
force herself to continue when she became tired. After some time, she could even walk unassisted while he
merely sat in the courtyard, wearing a smile like spring when it was already autumn.
He even has the gall to suggest. “Why not we do this. Woman
likes pretty things so I will sit here and provide you with some eye-candy as
incentive. Once you have reached
my side, you could take a rest.”
The first time she heard this, she thought some alien has
swapped his body. But as she heard
more and more of such banter, she soon got used to it. Everyone would have a
side unknown to others. A person
who looks righteous and just, can also be a psycho rapist. Gong Sun Yun may be like a basin of
cold water in public, but in private, he smiles a lot. Furthermore, his smiles are always
hearty and sincere, which is something she admires.
He seemed to have seen through her thoughts and smiled. “Has Wu
Bo ever considered that if one has to wear a mask even in front of his family, what
kind of sad existance would that be?”
“What Xian Yun said is correct.” It is a pity she has no family
and could not verify his statement.
They ate their meal in silence. Unlike last time, she did not think of anything else and
simply focused on eating. Recently, she found that such simple moments seemed to be occurring
more and more often. Although she
did not know if it was good or bad, she has allowed herself to relax her guard.
Other than the fried chicken, the rest of the food was rather
bland and the wine flask contained nutritional tea instead of wine. In truth, she would rather someone kill
her with a knife then live such a painfully, healthy, lifestyle. Why would one want to live so long? To witness
history?
She sighed when she was forced to take a cup of tea. Unobtrusively, she moved the healthier
dishes to the person seating opposite her, while she devoured her soy sauce
fried chicken. The mouth-watering
scent, the crispy skin - they made her feel much better!
He noted her choice of food and poured her another cup of
nutritional tea. “Regardless of what it is, things are only good when it is
taken in moderation.”
Her reply was smooth. “My body is weak so I need to fatten
myself.”
Resigned, he helped her polish off the herbal dishes, and at the
end of the meal, she presented her plate of chicken bones respectfully to him. He walked to the railing and using his
internal energy, he shattered the bones into dust before he tipped the plate
over and emptied its contents into the lake.
Cool! She found
herself becoming more and more in awe of him. With him around, she could happy sneak around, without fear
of being caught.
He took out a white handkerchief and cleaned his hands
thoroughly. When he saw her took
out the same type of handkerchief, he smiled “I thought you only use
colored handkerchiefs?”
She answered frankly: “Since I am no longer a Wave on the River,
it is only appropriate that I follow the rest of the people in Cloud Manor in
using white handkerchiefs.”
“Based on your habits, there is nothing that can be retained for
long. Is that your way of
survival?” His lips were smiling but his eyes were full of compassion
She turned to admire the lake in the darkness and pretended that
she saw nothing.
“Wu Bo, don’t you find it unusual that a lot of people uses white
handkerchiefs, be it me, Cloud Manor disciples, or even other pugilists?”
He likes to engage in idle chat with her and in truth she has
grown to like their casual talk.
She thought about what he said: “I thought that that is the preference
of the people in Central Plains.”
He was all smiles. “Truth be told, I met my savior when I was
twenty. She gave me a plain white
handkerchief as a token although I could tell she did so unwillingly. When I returned home, I made everyone changed
to using white handkerchiefs. Over time, other pugilist took the cue from us
and also started using white handkerchiefs”
He waved his snowy white handkerchief to emphasize his
story. The gesture was so elegant,
it was little wonder everyone switched to white handkerchiefs in order to
emulate him.
She took a deep breath: “So you have already seen through your
savior’s intentions. When even Che
Yan Yan starts using white handkerchiefs, a person who uses a brightly-colored
handkerchief would become highly suspect, will it not?
She has obviously fallen into her own trap! Seeing that he only smiled, she rubbed
her nose and decided not to press further. Turning around, she admired the moon with him.
Today was not yet the fifteenth and the moonlight fell evenly on
the ground. In the distant, the
manor was ablaze with lights. She
could almost envision the other Cloud Manor disciples busy entertaining at the
front halls, while she soak in the peace at this darken corner.
He said tenderly. “Night has fallen and you could catch a cold. Let me accompany
you back to your room.”
Actually, she was contented to admire the moon till morning but
she only replied: “I can go back by myself.”
“That will not do. You have not fully recovered. If you meet a young pugilist who wants
to profess his love for you, you will not be able to turn him down even if you
want to. It is better that I send
you back.”
She nearly fell over the railing and into the lake. Excuse me, she has never encountered a
young pugilist who wanted to profess his love to her, ok?
He continued. “He Zai’s skills are good; top notch even. Although his martial arts are taught by
you and although achievements vary from person to person, your kungfu should still
have been better then when you were fourteen. How come your kungfu... is really too weak for words?”
In her heart, she was laughing. You thought I am a kungfu master, don’t you Gong Sun Yun? But
who knows I would end up in such sorry state when I fell off a cliff? But since he has seen through her, she
decided to be frank. “During the
winter of my fourteenth birthday, I fell into Sect Leader’s trap which limited
my progress in martial arts.
As a result, I did not spend too much effort developing my skills after
that but luckily there was He Zai by then. My surname is originally Wang but I followed my father when
he changed his surname to Huang Fu.
Although He Zai’s surname is not Wang, he is the better student
compared to me, and he mastered all the Wang family skills I imparted him.”
Her tone was very calm when she mentioned He Zai. From the corner of her eye, she saw his
sleeve moved, but she cannot be sure it the wind caused it to move, or if he
was intending to give her a hug.
After a while, she heard him sigh. “Since you have nothing to do
at Cloud Manor, you could use this time to brush up your skills.” His gazed across the dark waters. “In
fact, we can start now.”
She got an ominous feeling. “May I ask, how do you intend to start?”
His smile was charming beneath the moonlight. “I am not a strict teacher so there is
no need for you to be wary. Double
Cloud Pavilion is not far from the shore, but there are no stepping points in
between. Is your qinggong good enough to leap to the
shore?”
She hesitated before giving a slow nod. “Should be possible.”
He smiled. “If you
need help, I will be right at your side.”
Did he expect her to object when she was living under his
roof? She took a moment to gathere
her qi (internal energy) and leaped
from the pavilion after him.
His white robes were flying and he looked like a beautiful
illusion under the silver moonlight.
She concluded that his fashion sense must be very good for this clothes
to accentuate his calm air and seductive, no, warm smile. If his clothes made him look like a
deity, would he still look like one if he was not wearing anything?
Distracted, she nearly fell into the lake if not for a helping hand
that suddenly appeared from her left and propelled her safely to shore. Wasn’t he in front of her? How did he
manage to appear beside her so fast?
No wonder he has dared to venture down the cliff amidst all the falling
rocks that day...
“Wu Bo?”
“It is nothing. I suddenly have a weak spell.” She lowered her
head and noticed that his hand was still around her waist.
He withdrew his hand.
“I beg your pardon. I had
wanted to hold on to your shoulder, but your left hand is injured so I could
only hold on to your...”
She lifted her face and found that he has averted his eyes. He looked really apologetic - if she
could disregard his happy smile.
Did he really take her for a fool, or as his family member, that he
would make no attempt to hide his feelings in front of her?
Inwardly, she sigh and reminds herself that she is living under
another’s roof. Besides, the sons
and daughters of the pugilist world are not be encumbered by such small
matters. Why, he has even carried
her in his arms when she fainted at the foot of the cliff. This is but a small
matter, small matter.
Halfway to her quarters, they were stopped by a disciple.
“Gentleman, the Jade-face Scholar would like to see you.”
She was amused by the name “Jade-face Scholar? What an
interesting title.”
“His is called Jade-face
because he looks handsome.” was the off-handed reply. “Wu Bo, I will leave you
to sleep early.”
She nodded and walked into her courtyard. When she turned, she saw that he has
remained at the same spot, deep in thought. She shrugged and went to her room. Soon after, she could hear his footsteps leaving.
She opened her windows and let the night air blew over her
face. She looked at the night and
played with her belt that was so long, it nearly reached the floor. The tip of it was wet from her near
brush in with the lake. She stared
at it for a while before she noticed some new clothes folded on top of the
dresser.
She walked over to examine the new clothes. The style was similar to the clothes
she was wearing now with long belts, except that they were all white. Clever. He knew she was still scared and would insist on wearing
long belts.
Her hands started to sweat just by the thoughts of that day. Had her belt not managed to catch onto
some branches and broke her fall, she would have crashed to death. No matter how many things she can tolerate,
she must wear a long belt with her dress.
Isn’t there a saying that goes like, once bitten by a snake, one would
be frightened by the sight of a rope for the next ten years. Did she use the phrase correctly?
This year’s winter is rather warm so her recuperation is
little hardship, as she climbs happily to her bed. She likes this bed which makes her feel safe, unlike the
past when she can only sleep soundly if He Zai is around. Her days now are so
idyllic, she sometimes feel like that she is in a dream.
And when she wakes up, she will find that that she is actually lying
at the foot of the cliff with her brain splattered all around her.
Those who have read this book may have noticed that my translation is slightly different from the original book. I meant it to be different because I hope my version would flow better, since I spent much more time polishing my text than translating it. The problem with the original book is that the middle wasn't as well written as the front and back so I have removed a lot of excess text and recrafted some of the paras in order to flash out the punch points. The context is still the same but some may find it unfamiliar because is too easy miss the key points when there are a lot of uneccessary text.]
Chapter Links:
Go XY! Swoon WY down, keep it up! *squeals*
ReplyDeleteThanks dear Moonblossom for your hardwork.
- samie
Thank you!!
Delete"Why not we do this. Woman likes pretty things so I will sit here and provide you with some eye-candy as incentive" GSY is so full of himself bahaha.
ReplyDeleteWhat's more even funny is Wang Yun reaction, "Everyone would have a side unknown to others. A person who looks righteous and just, can also be a psycho rapist."
She made me laugh so much in this chapter with all her inner thoughts eg. "If his clothes made him look like a deity, would he still look like one if he was not wearing anything?"
Thank you Moonblossom :)
“That will not do. You have not fully recovered. If you meet a young pugilist who wants to profess his love for you, you will not be able to turn him down even if you want to. It is better that I send you back.”
ReplyDeleteI nearly fell off the chair when I read this part...does it imply that Gong Sun Yun does not allow anyone else to take her away? Is he displaying signs of "boyfriend"?
And I feel that dinner date is actually a date itself :D
I wonder who else in Evil Sect knows the real natural face of Wang Yun
Thank you for translating
Xoxoxox,
MissyMay
Yes, it is cute that he is afraid someone will snatch away his Wang Yun, especially when he knows she has not form any attachment to him. For all that is said about how clever & skilled he is, he is just an ordinary man with ordinary insecurities.
DeleteI think in Prologue 2, it is written that she always had her make-up on, except when she went to her hotspring. I also remember He Zai touching up her make up at night, before they went to sleep, so I doubt anyone other than Sect Leader and He Zai has seen her real face.
Moonblossom, thank you for this.
ReplyDeletethis part is very interesting coz we got to know some of their hidden natures! :D
romantic, possessive and narcissistic xian yun. not to mention his exceptional intelligence.
wang yun, why you have to think about naked xian yun... lol
luckily xian yun can't read her mind :P
anyway, does wang yun realize xian yun love for her?
I was also like... what, you actually fantacize about naked Xian Yun?! It was the same shock when he refused to let her go back by herself. tsk*tsk* to think these 2 look so proper from the outside.
DeleteKnow he likes her? definitely. Know he loves her? I doubt she is ready to believe the word. He can say or do whatever he likes, but she is not one who would believe what she is told.
I get a feeling...XY is kinda jealous of HZ. And, WY kinda likes ( ? ) HZ. . .where is he anyway? Hope, liking HZ is not the reason WY is oblivious of XY's dimples and tiger tooth. Or, she can't believe a diety ( whom she imagines naked....hi hi ) will like her evil sect background. . .poor girl. Hope she'll be happy and have her own family.
ReplyDeleteWe will see He Zai again in chapter 8.
DeleteAww, Wang Yun just makes me cry and want to hug her in this chapter! I think she wanted to force herself to get up and walk sooner after her injury because she wanted to leave Cloud Manor quickly. She didn't want to have to depend on anyone, since everyone was unreliable. In addition, she didn't want to be lulled into a false sense of security by pretty words of caring. Look what happened the last time she dared to trust someone when he said he would follow her for the rest of his life and when another man professed that he would care for her to repay her back? She ended up at the bottom of a very, very steep cliff, that was what happened.
ReplyDeleteAt the end of the chapter, when I read how Wang Yun climbed happily into her bed at Cloud Manor, I broke down and cried. The poor thing deserves happiness and security, and unfortunately, I still stand by my opinion that GSY is not the kind of man who can give her the happiness, protection, and security she deserves. His actions in this chapter are very sweet, very patient, and normally, I would be swooning at such romantic actions, but some things cannot be wiped clean and forgotten nor forgiven. Warm, dimpled smiles cannot erase that horrible memory of being dropped from a cliff. So far, he has not done anything worthy of redeeming himself. Anyone can smile. What is so impressive about a smile? Maybe if he dies for her, I might be able to forgive him on his death bed.
On a lighter note, I find Wang Yun's fondness of junk food hilarious. She is like a child sneaking candy into the house because Momma Gong Sun Zhi says no junk food at the dinner table. I actually think Gong Sun Zhi and Wang Yun would make an adorable couple. He would forbid her to eat junk, and she would docilely nod her head in agreement, but then sneak around cramming junk food into her mouth behind his back. When he finds out, she would act contrite again, only to sneak around again!
You are spot on. She has been forced by circumstances to be wary of everything, else she would have died long ago. Originally, I wanted to say this at my next post especially for you, but I think I will say it here - Gong Sun Yun 赚到了(aka he hit the jackpot) when he met a forgiving girl like her, what else can I say?
DeleteEww! Gong Sun Zhi is 'Nanny' or 'Dear Mom' in my mind now so I can't imagine the 2 of them in any other relationship. If they were together, I think she will poison him to death... but he will not drink the poison-laced tea and will lecture her that she should have prepared it with some other herbs that can cure xxx and heal yyy. ha!ha!
Ha ha ha! Hilarous ;)
DeleteI loved this chapter. IT was like the characters are back in their elements. Gong Sun Zhi keeps nagging for healthy food playing the mommy role so effectively, it's hilarious.
ReplyDeleteXian Yun here has finally dailled up this sedection/charm and finally has started to come out with his feelings. The way he keeps dropping hints left and right for Wang Yun is funny. Like how he keeps his hand on her waist and says sorry while shamelessly smiling while doing so cracked me up. He keeps hinting at the white handkerchiefs and how he is afraid that someone would take her. Wang Yun is obviously aware that he has some manner of feelings for her but she will keep ignoring it for as long as she can. However I loved how Xian Yun has managed to be looked upon as the Father to being imagined naked with his tiger tooth. ;)
I do feel sad for Wang Yun though, especially how she want to rely on herself and not He Zai to save her life and keeps asking for long belts in her clothes.