Chapter Fifty-Seven: Green Water Laments the Flowing Moon

  After leaving Jin City, we traveled for a hundred miles and arrived at a scenic spot in the mountains. Duan Yu Rong carelessly plucked two lotus flowers with dew on them and inserted one into her own hair, admiring herself excessively. I was secretly feeling nauseous when she inserted the other lotus flower into my hair, lifted my chin with one hand, and asked Du Guo Shi Chang beside us with a self-satisfied smile: "How does my new son compare to this lotus flower?"

  Nasi's eyes flashed with great disapproval, yet his mouth uttered a flattering sigh: "The lady's beauty is beyond the reach of heaven and earth, let alone a humble branch like you."

  He burst out laughing, forcing me not to take it off. After a while, he handed me a long scroll, I opened it and found it was the painting of Sheng Lian's Duck Play that he had taken away from me without giving it to me as a gift. However, he quickly took it back, put it back in the scroll, and called over an attendant: "Take this thing back to General Duan and say it's my gift to him."

  The guard took it and immediately galloped back, I coldly said: "You should know that taking something without asking is thievery. Now you're sending my painting to someone else, does Young Master Wang know that there are four words 'shameless' in this world?"

  He let out a hearty laugh, with an air of majesty, and under the sunlight, his purple pupils sparkled with joy. I only then realized that his purple pupils were even deeper than the brocade, and more crystal clear, leaving me slightly dazed. He slowly said: "Ai, tell me, what kind of expression do you think Duan Yinghua will have when she sees the real thing and realizes she's been deceived?"

  I was taken aback: "Why did you have to do that?"

  "He smiled and said: 'Everyone says I'm a reincarnation of a demon, so naturally I have to do some things that make people unhappy.'"

  "Aren't you afraid of your Green Water being bullied by Duan Yu Hua?" I said with a stern face.

  Unexpectedly, he was overjoyed: "So soon you've tamed him," then with a look of intoxication, he circled me with his horse: "Now I can rest assured, the two of you will get along peacefully and serve me well."

  I cursed him seventeen or eighteen times in my heart and pushed him away, urging the horse forward.

  Before I knew it, we arrived at the waist of the mountain. There was a dilapidated temple, and Duan Yuexiu yelled that she wanted to stop and rest. I dismounted my horse and walked closer, among the broken tiles, I found a worn-out wooden sign: Kuhai Temple.

  The soldiers of the Diao family were cooking outside, whispering to each other: "No wonder this broken temple is going to be destroyed, who called it Ku Hai Temple?"

  I walked into the Temple of Suffering, and the Bodhisattva on the altar was naturally shrouded in cobwebs, tattered and worn out. Only a pair of eyes remained, still gazing down at me with infinite kindness and compassion, silently observing the worldly affairs.

  I involuntarily knelt down, deeply praying and begging the Bodhisattva for blessings, hoping for a miracle to let Song Erge be safe and sound, so that I can escape from Duan Yue Rong and reunite with Xiao Wuyi and everyone.

  "You'd better ask me instead of this fragile Bodhisattva who can't even protect himself, it will definitely come true faster." Duan Yuexiu whispered in my ear.

  I ignored him, and he smiled, following the momentum to squat down beside me on a broken cushion, his slender white fingers playing with my hair, saying outrageous things in my ear, flaunting his demonic nature.

  The eunuchs outside suddenly shouted, "The dry rations are poisonous!" I went out and saw that most of the soldiers were rolling around on the ground, bleeding from their seven orifices. When I turned my head back, I saw Duan Yu Jing leaning against the wall beside the temple, a cold smile playing on her lips.

  "What's going on here?"

  "What's going on is that the Bodhisattva of Sihai Temple has heard your prayers and fulfilled your wishes."

  I glared at him: "Then why haven't you fallen down yet?"

  He chuckled and opened his arms wide towards me: "Because we haven't consummated our marriage yet, how can I fall down?"

  I dodged to one side with a cat-like waist movement.

  At this time, two soldiers from the Su family came over, and immediately tore off their military uniforms, revealing clothes that were exactly the same as those worn by Tong Yue and me. The person wearing a lotus skirt was extremely slender and very similar in build to me. These two people knelt down: "Lady Lü is waiting for you at Ye Du, please take care of yourself, young prince."

  Duan Yue's face faintly smiled: "Well done, go." The two had already mounted their horses and turned towards the dense forest on the left.

  Duan Yue's face turned pale as she slowly turned her head, and Shi Chang was shocked and furious: "My family's master had good intentions to help you regain your country, sending you back to your hometown in Bozhou. Why do you want to cruelly harm us?"

  "He smiled and said: 'Your family's adults are notorious for being inconsistent, they agreed to rebel against Xi'an, but in the end, he was restrained by his own family in Luoyang.'"

  He snorted: "Do you think I don't know he also signed an identical treaty with Guangyi Wang and borrowed 10,000 troops for him? If I don't kill you, are we waiting for your family's elder to change his mind, ambush me on the road, behead me, and send my head to Guangyi Wang?" The officer's eyes showed a hint of weakness, but he slowly backed away. Duan Yue Rong smiled as he walked towards him: "Besides," he lightly inserted his knife into the officer's chest, watching his dying gaze with a smile, "Who said I need the Du family's help to restore my country?"

  He wiped his blade clean on the corpse, changed into ordinary citizen's clothes, turned back to me and smiled: "Were you waiting for me to change for you?"

  I was stunned, quickly changed into a gray men's shirt, thinking that this Moon Container was sinister and cunning, even Du Yinghua couldn't control him, now what can I do, obviously getting farther and farther away from Xi'an.

  The two men drove their horses forward for several miles, and as they descended a slope, they found themselves surrounded by lush greenery, with distant mountains resembling dark eyeliner and a long, winding river.

  But then a small black awning boat appeared in the distance on the lake's surface, approaching from afar.

  A person at the bow of the boat took off his bamboo hat, revealing a charming face with a captivating air, full of emotions, and said in a soft voice: "Rong'er."

  My goosebumps are all over the floor, it's Yang Qingquan.

  Duan Yue's spirit was high, her eyebrows and eyes were smiling, she carried me with a light movement to jump onto the boat, then immediately locked me at the bow of the ship. She pulled Green Water into the cabin for some intimate time, I sat at the bow, propping up my chin, staring blankly at the lake's glow and mountains, but my heart was burning with anxiety. This Yang Green Water could escape from Duan Yue's city, it would be even more unbearable to be with her, she was also prone to jealousy, I might not have been ruined by Duan Yue yet, but I could be killed by her instead, what should I do?

  In the afternoon, we abandoned our boat and landed on the shore. The lush greenery was densely woven, with emerald screens and blue mountains overlapping in depth. As I gradually became short of breath, I fell behind the two people, and as stars twinkled before my eyes, someone stuffed a yellow pill into my mouth. Instantly, my mind cleared up a bit, and in front of me were Duan Yuerong's smiling face and Yang Lushui's gloomy expression.

  "I just gave you a Qingxin pill, are you feeling better?" Duan Yuerong reached out to touch my face, but Yang Lüshui rushed over and hugged me, causing Duan Yuerong's hand to flail in the air: "I'm fine!"

  I cursed in my heart for seventeen or eighteen times, who are you?

  "My strength is failing me, so why not just leave me here to fend for myself? You two can also go ahead and assist your father in Baizhou." I said weakly, half as an excuse, half the truth.

  Yang Lüshui spoke up first, "Rong'er, what you said makes sense. If there's a reliable farmer, why not put it in his house for now and come back for it after everything is settled?"

  Duan Yue furrowed her brow: "This plan is not good, it's too cunning. If we let her go, she will definitely escape back to Xi'an. And if the Duan family catches her, she will also reveal our whereabouts."

  "Then let's just drop it and not pursue the matter. Let her be, everyone in the world is like that. Your Highness should prioritize the bigger picture."

  "Green water!" Duan Yue Rong said displeased: "You clearly know I kept her to deal with Tà Xuě, how can you also start not distinguishing between light and heavy?"

  "I don't understand, Your Highness. You heartlessly left me at the Duan's residence, where I almost suffered humiliation at the hands of the treacherous Duan. Now that we're escaping, you can't bear to part with her." Yang Lüshu? became agitated and stepped forward, saying loudly: "In Your Highness' heart, is it truly about dealing with Tà Xuě Gōngzǐ or have you been bewitched by this wooden puppet? Who is the one who doesn't distinguish between right and wrong?"

  Duan Yue's face turned gloomy, and she suddenly stretched out her hand to slap Yang Lüshui. I was shocked, and Yang Lüshui was stunned too. Her lovely face was filled with disbelief as she covered her cheek: "Having followed Master Wang for two years, the love and affection between us has been like a raging fire, beyond words. Although I occasionally offended Young Master Wang, he never hit me."

  "Now the young master Wang has indeed stopped loving." Yang Lüshui sadly covered her mouth and rushed forward.

  Duan Yue didn't go after her, but sat under a giant wild peach tree with a gloomy face, closed his eyes to meditate, and occasionally let the petals fall on his face without brushing them off. He only pursed his lips tightly, and his young eyebrows were slightly furrowed. My heart skipped a beat as I peeked over Duan Yue's shoulder, seeing a sparkling mountain stream behind him that seemed to be flowing rapidly. I quietly shifted my position, and he didn't react. I continued to move back, thinking I could jump down and swim away, but someone grabbed me from behind.

  "Where are you going?" His purple pupils gazed at me coldly. I forced myself to remain calm: "Excuse me."

  He snorted coldly and locked the Thousandfold Longing Lock on my hand again, "Go."

  We didn't move forward, Duan Yuemei said it was to let me recover my strength before walking again, I think he's making an excuse to wait for Yang Lüshui, two hours later Yang Lüshui hasn't returned, and Duan Yuemei started stretching his neck.

  The sky was going to be dark, if we didn't leave, we would have to spend the night in the dense forest. Duan Yue Rong slowly pulled me up, and with every step, she looked in the direction where Yang Lü Shui Qi had run for half a day.

  As we arrived at a slope top, deep in the dense forest, birds and beasts were gone, and there was only one natural waterfall, flying down straight, under the last ray of sunset, like a silver dragon flying. Only one person was seen bathing in the shallow ditch where the flying waterfall fell, with snow-like skin, smooth and moving, her eyes were full of charm, looking at Duan Yuerong, calling out with a full heart: "Rong'er."

  This tender cry made even me, a rough and tumble guy, feel my heart skip a beat. That snowy white skin made even me want to take a second look. If it wasn't Duan Yu's beloved Yang Guo, then who could it be?

  Duan Yue's face was filled with joy, and she locked me on one side, while taking off her clothes on the other, rushing towards Yang Lüshi.

  Comrades, what's called being impatient! This is it, I was there raising an eyebrow woodenly, while on the other side a passionate mandarin duck drama had already begun.

  After a while, a strange smell came from the pool, and I couldn't help but let out two loud sneezes. After a while, the loving voices of the two people gradually changed, and only Duan Yue's cold voice was heard: "What are you doing?"

  I turned my face, but saw Yang Lüshui lying on his body, with both hands placed on his dantian. Duàn Yuè Róng's face was twisted in pain, he suddenly pushed Yang Lüshui away, and a thread of fresh blood overflowed from the corner of his mouth.

  Yang Lüshui slowly stood up, her silver hairpin gleaming in the moonlight. Her flawless face wore a hint of a seductive smile, like a mischievous spirit from the darkness: "Rong'er, why are you so down on your luck today?"

  "You're absorbing my powers!" Duan Yue Rong's purple eyes were filled with incredulity: "You actually practiced the Wu Xiao Jing in secret, are you crazy?"

  "Girl, don't be afraid, and don't resist. You've been poisoned by my aphrodisiac, you must indulge in time, otherwise you'll die from excessive yang energy. Don't worry, the green water will make you go in the most pleasurable way."

  "Why did you do this?" Duan Yue Rong's purple pupils turned cold, he wiped the blood from the corner of his mouth with one hand and stood up with the other, his pale face frightening.

  Yang Lüshui gazed at him, gradually collecting her smile. "Rong'er," she called out softly: "Because Lüshui is already tired of following your shadow and entwining with others, Lüshui can no longer follow your gaze to chase after other people."

  A drop of Yang Lüshi's sorrowful tears slowly fell onto her pale skin, and she lamented: "Do you know how painful that is?"

  "Is that all there is to it? Green Water," Duan Yue Rong looked at her, with a hint of pain in his eyes: "Really, is it just for this reason, and not because of your master's, the You Ming Sect's orders?"

  "You, you, when did you find out?"

  "From the moment I first saw you, I knew you weren't ordinary," Duan Yue said quietly as she gazed at her. Yang Lüshui's face changed: "Why didn't you fall under my spell?"

  Duan Yue's face suddenly had a hint of sadness: "Lu Shui, have you forgotten? The first time we were intimate, you used this aphrodisiac. I remembered the taste back then and found an antidote."

  "I deliberately let my father see us together, fearing that he would fall under your charm, so I came up with this plan to make him stop favoring you." Duan Yue Rong slowly walked towards the green water, supporting her beautiful face: "I didn't expect Father to give you to me. I wanted to gradually distance myself from you, but unknowingly, three years have passed and I still keep you by my side."

  "Finally, you've got me today, no need to use this aphrodisiac, Green Water," he softly called out her name, stroking her full and luscious lips: "It seems I've long been under your spell, unable to extricate myself."

  Yang's eyes were filled with tears, and her slender body trembled: "Rong'er, you...do you really have me in your heart?"

  Duan Yue Rong hugged her slender waist tightly and slowly kissed her lips.

  Duan Yue Rong and Yang Lü Shui locked eyes, Yang Lü Shui tearfully spoke: "Rong'er."

  "Green water, do you still remember the first night I held you, the moon was like this too," his hand rested on her back, from my angle, I saw Duan Yue Rong's wrist with a protective sleeve slightly bent.

  In the flash of lightning, her jade-like back was suddenly splattered with blood. Duan Yue's face was as cold as frost, still tightly embracing Yang Lüshi. Zi Tong's eyes were only tightly fixed on Yang Lüshi's face, as if she wanted to deeply imprint it in her own mind.

  Yang Lüshui's mouth cornered with blood, her face flashed a hint of pain, then she smiled lightly, smiling so happily and beautifully, as if the suffering of a lifetime had finally been relieved. She struggled to lift one jade hand, supporting Duan Yueming's face, softly chanting: "Green water flows in the moonlight, morning dew falls on the remaining jade beauty. The soul returns to the Cangshan Mountains, tears fly like snow, how long can the king's love last?"

  Yang Lüshui's voice grew softer and softer, her face still wore the brightest smile, but a line of clear tears slid down from her eyes. Duan Yuèróng didn't let go of her, she just held her tightly and sat on the ground with her.

  A crystal clear rabbit, a pair of men sitting tightly in the spring water, their shadows in the stream, broken and scattered with the gentle breeze.