ATPnovel Chapter 598: Your Majesty's Hair Has Turned White, Just Like an Old Man's
Chapter 598: Your Majesty's Hair Has Turned White, Just Like an Old Man's
Within the pavilion at Ten Thousand Carp Lake.Attendants Sili, Xiao Chun, and the others had already brewed the tea, bringing out pastries and fish food.
Beyond the pavilion, white snow drifted down onto the lake's surface, then melted away into the water.
Because of the formation array protecting the Zhou Kingdom's imperial palace, Ten Thousand Carp Lake never froze over, and the fish within seemed entirely unbothered by any cold, swimming about briskly through the water.
Whenever fish food was dropped from an attendant's fair, delicate palm, the fish would gather in a cluster, jostling for it, sending up splashes and ripples across the water.
"Now that Your Majesty has entered the Cave Mansion realm, your caves will need certain stabilizing treasures. This concubine happens to have a few things here, nothing too extravagant, but I hope Your Majesty won't think them unworthy."
Within the pavilion, Yan Ruxue, kneeling upon a cushion, spoke slowly, then drew from her storage pouch five objects representing the five elements.
Jiang Rou and Qin Siyao, seeing what Yan Ruxue had brought out, could not help but tense slightly.
Never mind anything else, the mere fact that she had produced that pearl and that piece of wood alone spoke to their extraordinary value.
That blue-green pearl was known as a Water Spirit Pearl, and moreover, one of the finest of its kind, condensing the purest essence of water, without the slightest impurity. Even across the entire Four Seas, one could not find five such pearls.
As for that piece of wood.
Though it appeared plain and unremarkable, even somewhat worn, they recognized it at once as the legendary Jianmu tree.
This was something even Ascension realm cultivators sought without success, by rights it should have vanished from this world long ago. No one knew from what ruin she had recovered it.
"Since Sister Ruxue has been so generous, though this concubine isn't quite as wealthy as Sister Ruxue, I do have a few things as well. Perhaps Imperial Brother will find something he likes."
Qin Siyao's eyes curved into a sweet smile, and she, too, drew five objects from her hand.
The treasures she brought forth were no less remarkable. Take, for instance, that golden ox-horn, which came from the now-extinct divine beast Jiaoyin, one of the ten great fierce beasts of the ancient era.
Beyond this, the flame burning within that lamp Qin Siyao produced was, moreover, a rare Primordial Chaos Flame, seldom found anywhere in this world.
"Pick whatever you like. If nothing catches your eye, never mind it."
Jiang Rou, beside them, likewise "casually" tossed out five stabilizing treasures of her own, their preciousness matching that of what Yan Ruxue and Qin Siyao had offered.
"My thanks to the three of you. Since that's the case, I won't stand on ceremony with any of you."
Xiao Mo did not know just how precious these fifteen objects truly were.
He simply felt they represented each woman's genuine goodwill, and to refuse outright would hardly be proper.
After some thought, Xiao Mo selected one item from each of the three women's offerings, “These three will do. As it happens, I have already prepared other stabilizing treasures of my own."
"Your Majesty may take more. There's no need to be so modest with us." Yan Ruxue said.
"What good things could your Great Zhou possibly have?" Jiang Rou, too, furrowed her brow.
"Truly, this is more than enough." Xiao Mo said with a smile.
To Xiao Mo's mind, it was enough to accept their goodwill, taking more than necessary would only make it harder to properly reciprocate later.
Seeing Xiao Mo's insistence, the three women said no more. These three items alone would be more than sufficient to stabilize his three caves, even any two of them paired together would do and once he reached the Dragon Gate realm, such stabilizing treasures for the caves would serve little purpose anyway.
The group continued drinking tea, feeding the fish, playing chess, and discussing various cultivation methods related to the Cave Mansion realm within the pavilion.
For a moment, Xiao Mo found himself thinking that this kind of life was, in fact, rather pleasant.
As evening approached, Xiao Mo and the others left Ten Thousand Carp Lake, escorting each of the women back to their respective sleeping quarters.
"Would Your Majesty care to take a walk with me?"
When Xiao Mo brought Yan Ruxue to the entrance of Ning Xue Palace, she turned around, smiling at him.
"Of course." Xiao Mo nodded.
"After you, Your Majesty."
"After you."
The two of them walked along beside Ning Xue Palace, step by step, leaving a pair of footprints side by side in the pristine snow.
"Though Your Majesty has only just entered the Cave Mansion realm, in truth, you have already opened five caves, a quality of cultivation beyond what ordinary cultivators could ever hope to achieve. And besides, most records of cultivators slaying enemies above their own realm occur between the Foundation Building and Golden Core realms."
Walking beside Xiao Mo, Yan Ruxue spoke slowly.
Hearing Yan Ruxue's words, Xiao Mo immediately understood her meaning, “What exactly are you suggesting?"
Though the two of them were already husband and wife in name, their marriage remained unconsummated, and to Xiao Mo's mind, theirs had always been, essentially, a relationship of mutual transaction. She, too, had entered the palace with her own hidden purpose, and so, when no one else was present, Xiao Mo would sometimes address Yan Ruxue as simply "miss."
"This concubine knows that Your Majesty is unwilling to remain a mere puppet forever, and wishes to kill Yan Shan'ao, to reclaim your power, and restore proper order to the court."
Yan Ruxue raised her face slightly, glancing at Xiao Mo's profile.
"Your Majesty is now in a position to begin preparing for this."
"Though Yan Shan'ao is a Dragon Gate realm cultivator, he has neglected his cultivation for years now, indulging himself instead in worldly power. His cultivation level has likely grown hollow and unstable. In this concubine's view, Your Majesty, at the middle stage of the Cave Mansion realm, could very well surpass him."
"..." Xiao Mo did not answer, but his mind was already quietly calculating.
"This concubine knows what still concerns Your Majesty, but rest assured, once Your Majesty has killed Yan Shan'ao, this concubine believes the Empress Dowager will say nothing against it, her heart still lies with you. And my own father will take charge of managing the Yan clan's affairs as well."
Yan Ruxue calmly voiced the very concerns weighing on Xiao Mo's mind.
"Moreover, the Great Zhou imperial house has shown favor to the Yan clan for two hundred years now. Within the Yan clan, there remain no small number of members loyal to the Great Zhou imperial house, merely suppressed by the clan's leadership."
"I will consider carefully everything you've said, miss." Xiao Mo said earnestly.
Yan Ruxue nodded gently, saying nothing further, enough had already been said on the matter.
The two of them continued walking forward, Xiao Mo asking Yan Ruxue which reliable members of the Yan clan might be recommended.
Yan Ruxue held nothing back, even revealing to Xiao Mo certain hidden contingencies Yan Shan'ao had planted in key positions.
Before either of them quite realized it, Xiao Mo and Yan Ruxue had become quite absorbed in their conversation, circling the courtyard again and again, both their heads dusted with falling snow.
Gradually, Xiao Mo's thoughts, too, began to drift away from Yan Ruxue's words.
Looking at the woman walking beside him through the snow.
He kept feeling that this very scene... seemed to have happened somewhere before.
"Your Majesty... the snow is falling harder now. Let's go back..." Yan Ruxue stopped, looking at Xiao Mo with tender eyes, teasing him. "Your Majesty's hair has turned white, just like an old man's."
Xiao Mo shook his head with a smile, “Look who's talking. You're not much better yourself, miss."
"Then, Your Majesty..."
Yan Ruxue turned around, looking up at Xiao Mo from below, her thin, delicate lips releasing a warm breath into the cold air and in Xiao Mo's mind, a scene rose unbidden.
The same heavy snow, the same woman in a plain white dress, turning to look at him.
The figure of the woman in Xiao Mo's mind gradually overlapped with the woman standing before him now.
"Your Majesty, do you think... (Xiao Mo, do you think...)"
"Have the two of us grown white-haired together...? (Have the two of us grown old together, our black hair turned to white...?)"