Hearing these words, Gu Chusheng felt a chill in his heart.
In his previous life, it was Wei Yun who had killed him. After Chu Yu was gone, he didn’t know what to seek anymore. Wei Yun had always been dissatisfied with the royal family, while he was a staunch royalist. They had fought over this for nearly twenty years. In the end, when the new emperor grew tired of Wei Yun and tried to set him up, Wei Yun led his men to attack the capital. Gu Chusheng fought back desperately but was ultimately defeated by a letter from Wei Yun.
In that letter, Wei Yun told him that he still had Chu Yu’s marriage contract with the Wei family from years ago, asking if he wanted it or not.
Everyone thought this was Wei Yun’s jest. How could a marriage contract of someone dead for twenty years compare to the safety of the emperor? Surely Gu Chusheng, no matter how confused, wouldn’t be that foolish.
But Gu Chusheng knew that Wei Yun had seen right through him.
He had long since had nothing left to seek in life; what he had been desperately pursuing was nothing but that person’s phantom. Others said she was dead, but in his heart, she had always been alive.
Of course, he had to retrieve his wife’s marriage contract with another man.
So he opened the gates of Huajing City and stood before them. At that time, according to his calculations, if they held out for one more day, Wei Yun would have been unable to continue.
But he still lost, lost to the hand of someone who had died twenty years ago.
Chu Yu’s words had indeed come true.
He didn’t hate Wei Yun; he even felt a bit grateful to him for at least giving his death a reason. He had been nothing but a wandering soul in the world of the living; what was there left to seek?
He said nothing more. Seeing he had no more to say, Chu Yu turned and left.
Gu Chusheng slowly lowered the sword he was holding and sat dejectedly on the bed, his mind in chaos.
After Chu Yu walked out, Chang Yue and Wan Yue hurried to greet her, asking worriedly, “My lady, he didn’t do anything, did he?”
Hearing this, Wei Qiu looked up at Chu Yu. Chu Yu quickly smiled and said, “With his condition, what could he do to me? Alright, go about your business. Once he’s recovered, we’ll set out.”
With Chu Yu’s words, everyone began to busy themselves. Chu Yu returned to her room with Wan Yue and Chang Yue. As soon as they entered, Wan Yue anxiously came forward and asked, “My lady, you didn’t say anything to him, did you?”
Chu Yu understood Wan Yue’s concern. Wan Yue had always been clever; back then, when she was determined to elope, it was Wan Yue who desperately tried to stop her. Wan Yue knew of her deep feelings for Gu Chusheng and feared she might do something foolish now.
Chu Yu smiled, “Don’t worry, I didn’t say much. He just invited me to elope with him.”
Hearing this, both maids’ eyes widened. Chang Yue grabbed her sword and turned, saying, “I’ll go kill him.”
“Come back!” Wan Yue quickly called out, stopping her hot-tempered sister. She turned to look solemnly at Chu Yu, “Did my lady agree?”
Seeing their anxious looks, Chu Yu found it amusing. She opened a teacup, poured tea into a clay cup, and said with a smile, “How could I? I’m not that foolish. I told him I was already married and quite fond of Wei Jun. I plan to remain faithful to him even in widowhood.”
Hearing this, Wan Yue let out a sigh of relief. She looked at Chu Yu, her face showing some gratification, “The young miss has finally grown up.”
She didn’t use “my lady,” but “young miss” from before Chu Yu was married. Chu Yu paused her tea drinking and looked up at Wan Yue, seeing the pure concern in her eyes.
In her previous life, Chang Yue had passed away early, and only Wan Yue had stayed by her side. Later, she had Wan Yue marry, and thanks to Gu Chusheng’s influence and Wan Yue’s tact, she married well, becoming the wife of a wealthy merchant. Even after marriage, she often came to visit and care for Chu Yu, right up until Chu Yu’s death.
Seeing this person who was like an elder sister to her, Chu Yu felt a pang of sadness. Her voice was a bit hoarse as she slowly said, “I’ve been thoughtless all these years, causing you so much trouble.”
“It’s no trouble,” Wan Yue said gently. “As long as my lady is well, I’m at ease. Sooner or later, it doesn’t matter.”
How could it not matter?
In her previous life, she had understood too late.
But Chu Yu couldn’t say these things. She smiled lightly and changed the subject, “But since Gu Chusheng has such thoughts, we should avoid him from now on.”
Wan Yue nodded in agreement. Chang Yue sat back down angrily, placing her sword at her feet and grumbling, “So we’re just letting him off like this?”
“Then tell me, what wrong has he done that we shouldn’t let him off?” Chu Yu asked with a smile, teasing Chang Yue. Chang Yue opened her mouth but couldn’t find any fault with Gu Chusheng. He and Chu Yu had little interaction, and their only conflict was his rejection of Chu Yu’s elopement letter.
After struggling for a while, Chang Yue finally said, “He must be blind to reject my lady! And he has the nerve to come back? Just looking at that scoundrel makes me want to stab him!”
“Go ahead then,” Chu Yu said nonchalantly. Chang Yue let out a surprised “Eh?” Chu Yu looked up with a smile, “After the war is over and he’s no longer useful if you can kill him, I’ll fully support you. If you lack a weapon, I can even offer you my precious sword to slay the scoundrel!”
Chang Yue was just venting her anger; if Chu Yu let her kill, she wouldn’t dare. The anger stuck in her chest, and after a long while, she finally sighed, “Forget it.”
To avoid Gu Chusheng, Chu Yu didn’t go to see him much in the following days. Two days later, when Wei Qiu came to report that Gu Chusheng’s injuries were mostly healed and they could set out, Chu Yu immediately prepared to depart.
The group used forged travel documents, disguising themselves as merchants taking a sickly young master to the capital for treatment. They traveled smoothly towards Huajing.
As they approached Huajing, everyone was somewhat tired. Seeing that Huajing was just ahead, Chu Yu calculated the time and decided to rest at an inn first, while sending someone into Huajing to inform Wei Yun of their imminent arrival.
When the group entered the inn, there weren’t many people. A waiter came forward to greet them, smiling and asking, “Young master, are you stopping for a meal or staying the night?”
Gu Chusheng, supported by Wei Qiu, coughed lightly a few times and turned to look at Chu Yu. Chu Yu quickly stepped forward and said, “We’ll be staying.”
She then discussed the number of people and rooms with the waiter. After the group sat down to eat, Wei Qiu secretly checked the food for poison before allowing everyone to eat.
There weren’t many guests in the inn. Soon after, another group of burly men carrying swords entered, laughing. They immediately ordered hot wine and made a ruckus in the corner, instantly livening up the entire tavern.
Gu Chusheng glanced at the newcomers but said nothing. After drinking a few sips, one of the burly men came to Chu Yu’s table with his wine, laughing and saying to his companions, “Oh, this little lady is quite pretty.”
“How dare you!” One of the guards suddenly stood up. The men around laughed, and the burly man turned and said, “This little chick is telling me ‘how dare you’?”
He then turned back and said to his companion with a laugh, “So what if I dare? Not only will I say the little lady is pretty, I’m going to snatch her for some fun…”
Before he could finish, Wei Qiu’s sword was drawn.
Chu Yu took a sip of wine, hearing Gu Chusheng start coughing urgently. She quickly put on a worried expression and went over to him, “Brother, what’s wrong?”
Hearing the coughing, Wei Qiu suddenly remembered their current situation and hurriedly sheathed his sword, but the other party wasn’t about to let it go.
Gu Chusheng reached out to Chu Yu, coughing urgently. Chu Yu quickly went to support him, “Brother, what’s wrong? Let’s go upstairs to rest!”
With that, she supported Gu Chusheng upstairs, with Wan Yue and Chang Yue following. The burly men tried to come forward, but the Wei family guards immediately blocked them with their swords.
As soon as Chu Yu and Gu Chusheng reached the upper floor, Gu Chusheng immediately grabbed Chu Yu and said urgently, “It’s Yao Yong’s men, we need to leave quickly!”
Chu Yu had no time to ask how Gu Chusheng recognized them. She whistled and quickly pulled Gu Chusheng through the corridor, jumping directly out of the window.
The night was dark, but as soon as Chu Yu and Gu Chusheng landed, several arrows flew towards them!
Gu Chusheng threw his coat in the direction of the arrows, instantly blocking the attackers’ view. Taking advantage of this moment, Chu Yu grabbed him and leaped into the forest.
Wei Qiu and the others heard the whistle and knew something was wrong. They immediately rushed out, but the enemy had assessed their strength and came with twice their numbers, surrounding them.
Wan Yue and Chang Yue covered the rear. Chu Yu took one look and knew the situation was dire. She frowned and whistled again.
The people surrounding Wan Yue and Chang Yue instantly knew Chu Yu’s location and charged towards her. Chu Yu threw Gu Chusheng in one direction of the dense forest and said urgently, “Hide and don’t come out.”
Then she rushed into the forest.
Many assassins chased after Chu Yu. She hid motionless in a tree, while those people began to circle searching.
Gu Chusheng glanced at Chu Yu’s position. He picked up a stone and threw it in the opposite direction of Chu Yu.
“Over there!”
Everyone rushed towards where Gu Chusheng had thrown the stone. Chu Yu instantly understood Gu Chusheng’s intention. After those people passed under her feet, she swung down with a flash of her sword, instantly taking out a batch of heads from behind, then quickly moved to another tree and remained still.
Blood flowed on the ground. In the distance was the sound of Wei family guards fighting fiercely with the enemy, but the forest was terrifyingly quiet.
A stern-faced young man walked in carrying a sword on his back, coldly saying, “What are you waiting for?”
“Sir… sir…” a guard trembled, “They’re hiding in the trees, we can’t find them!”
The young man said nothing. He threw the large sword from his back, which spun through the air, cutting through the big trees. In an instant, more than a dozen large trees were swaying, about to fall, and the one Chu Yu was in was among them!
Chu Yu had no choice but to leap out. At that moment, the young man grabbed his large sword and pounced towards her!
His swordsmanship was fierce and fast. Although Chu Yu dodged nimbly, she still felt somewhat overwhelmed. Gu Chusheng, hiding in the shadows, calculated the movements of the two, deliberately concealing his breathing and remaining silent.
More than a dozen assassins surrounded Chu Yu. She dodged with difficulty, the cold glint of blades flashing in the night. Chu Yu’s long sword couldn’t withstand confrontation. Gu Chusheng, hiding in the shadows, saw a guard about to stab Chu Yu. He could no longer restrain himself and flicked a stone at that person!
At that moment, the sword-wielding young man charged in Gu Chusheng’s direction. Chu Yu’s long sword chased after him. Gu Chusheng gripped the short dagger in his sleeve, waiting for the moment of the man’s urgent attack.
Unexpectedly, halfway there, the man suddenly swept a gust of wind through the dense forest where Gu Chusheng was hiding. Gu Chusheng, already injured, was pushed hard by this wind and fell heavily, hitting a tree and spitting blood.
After confirming Gu Chusheng’s condition, the young man swung his sword towards him. Chu Yu hurriedly followed, pulling Gu Chusheng aside just as the sword was about to strike. As the blade was about to cut Chu Yu, Gu Chusheng’s mind went blank, and he threw himself at Chu Yu. The sword slashed across Gu Chusheng’s body, splattering blood on Chu Yu’s face. Just as the second strike was about to fall, the sound of arrows whistling through the air was heard, cutting through the night with a silver light. The young man spun to dodge, and immediately three more arrows came from three different directions.
These arrows didn’t fly straight but first hit trees and then rebounded, each at an extremely tricky angle. Despite the young man’s agility, he was pinned to a tree by the third arrow.
Enraged, the young man pulled out the arrow, his eyes red, and swung towards Chu Yu. At that moment, a white-robed youth with a long spear leaped down from his horse, landing right in front of Chu Yu without hesitation, his spear pointing directly at the young man.
His spear technique was grand and imposing, each strike seeming to carry the force of a collapsing mountain. The young man, wounded by the arrow, was much slower. As many helpers rushed in, Chu Yu threw Gu Chusheng aside and charged into the battle, holding off the surrounding assassins.
The spear moved like a flying dragon in the night sky. The young man was forced back step by step by the newcomer, who, though just a youth, seemed completely at ease, showing no signs of fatigue.
The final spear thrust like a thunderbolt into the young man’s chest, pinning him to a tree. As blood flowed out, he rasped, “Who are you?”
The youth looked up, his beautiful eyes calm.
“The one who kills, Wei Yun of the Wei family.”
Small Theater
(Today’s Summary)
Wei Qi: From now on, I’m a man with my own BGM. I must walk with background music.
Gu Chusheng: As a mage, hiding in the bushes is an essential skill.
Chu Yu: I haven’t even started fighting, can’t you give me a chance? How else am I supposed to gain fans?
Wei Qi: No.
Chu Yu: Why???
Wei Qi: First, I can’t show off. Second, you can’t get hurt.
Chu Yu: …