Tome of Troubled Times

Chapter 43: Children of the Jianghu

Yue Hongling really wanted to say to him, “You want to spar after I recover? Do you know how many days you’ll need to rest?”

Actually, Zhao Changhe was not really injured by Yue Hongling’s counterattack. Rather, the overexertion from forcing himself to use that ultimate technique was ridiculous. Yue Hongling could see that his entire body, his qi and blood, every bit of energy, all was spent, and his muscles were limp. His qi, which Yue Hongling had said was of a very high quality, was completely used up and not a sliver of it remained. Even a random duck would be able to kill him right now.

However, he was still smiling, filled with jubilance; he was truly looking forward to when next they would spar.

How truly valiant.

This type of person shouldn’t be so bothered about affairs between men and women. He’s naturally suited to carve his way through the mountains and rivers of the jianghu.

Yue Hongling’s mouth twitched and she did not mock him but said, “I have a rough guess as to what the nature of your qi might be.”

“Hmm?” Zhao Changhe raised his head and looked at her.

“You didn’t just use your qi to drive Scattering the Gods and Buddhas. You used the power of your vicious blood qi together with your qi, and you were actually able to fuse them together, almost like they were part of the same martial art. This is to say that the compatibility of your qi is second to none. At any time, it can transform into whatever type of power you need, regardless of whether it’s for an internal or external art. This means that at present, you basically have an additional store of the blood qi and vicious qi used in the Vicious Blood Art.”

Zhao Changhe was delighted. “That’s great!”

Yue Hongling said, “Currently, it’s like this because you’re only cultivating the Vicious Blood Art. I suspect that once you cultivate your internal art to a high level, no matter what other martial arts you pick up, this qi will be able to change itself to suit them. This plasticity and the ability it gives you to achieve the same ends with different means is magnificent. Just who created this internal art? It’s incredibly impressive.”

Zhao Changhe nodded. This should be the case... This type of internal art would be extremely suited for Xia Longyuan’s bastard and whatever martial arts he decides to train in. It wouldn’t matter if his child chose to follow in the mother’s footsteps or sought out others to teach him, this internal art would be compatible with all martial arts he learned and could grow with them.

Moreover, in the future, it would even be able to turn into the qi used by whatever martial art he primarily trained. This way of using different means to achieve the same ends is indeed befitting of an emperor. Or to put it another way, it’s like how the lands under heaven all belong to the emperor—all martial arts belong to Xia Longyuan’s internal art.

For the first time, Zhao Changhe felt some reverence for this emperor he had never met. He was remarkable—truly remarkable. Suddenly, another thought came to him. If he’s so great, did he really lose his mind and send everything into disarray in his twilight years? He shouldn’t be that old. People like him are virtually gods, so does aging a few decades even count as growing old? Could it be that there was another problem... Maybe he’s already dead? Did he meet with some accident while cultivating?

While he was pondering, Yue Hongling lazily entered the building. “Whatever thoughts you may have, you must rest well tonight. Now I’m no longer seeking protection from you to recover from my injuries. It’s more like I’m protecting you now.”

Zhao Changhe bitterly walked into the building. Inside, the first thing he saw was Yue Hongling wrapping the wound on her abdomen with a medicated bandage.

It was strange. Previously, Zhao Changhe felt that he should avoid walking into these types of situations. Even when he stood outside, Yue Hongling blushed. But now, he felt that there was nothing about this that warranted him to avoid such situations. There was a wound on her stomach, and a gruesome one at that. Just how could it give off any charming feeling? There was absolutely nothing worth making such a big fuss.

Or maybe it’s because we were strangers that had only met once then while we are friends now?

He did not know. Anyway, Zhao Changhe felt nothing as he threw her a glance then sat down beside his bed and closed his eyes as he recovered. Yue Hongling also minded her own business. After she finished applying the medicated bandage, she also sat in a lotus position on a chair by the side and closed her eyes. Everything was completely natural.

Soon, both of them entered a meditative state and the night returned to silence.

This was what Yue Hongling had hoped things would be like when she had sought shelter with Zhao Changhe. It was only that she had come a little too late... It would have been better if none of those embarrassing situations had occurred. Before they entered their meditative states, this thought flashed through both of their heads.

*

The following morning, Yue Hongling was the first to stop resting and opened her eyes.

Zhao Changhe still sat in a meditative state. His brow was slightly furrowed and it looked like he was in a bit of pain.

Yue Hongling watched him. Cultivating is much more painful for this guy than for ordinary people. The simmering pain of Vicious Blood Art is always present, and the harder he trains, the intensity of this pain will only increase. A lot of disciples from the Blood God Cult slack off when it comes to cultivating the Vicious Blood Art, while Zhao Changhe just puts in more and more hard work, as if challenging the pain, telling it to come at him.

Other people could not see his hard work. They only saw his valiance and his strength, which was like a raging river.

He asked about all kinds of martial arts from all sorts of perspectives and about the problem with his age because he wanted to know if he could replace the Vicious Blood Art with his internal art. In the end, the answer was that that was not possible yet. He should have been disappointed, but from the looks of it, he seemed completely unbothered and at ease.

Yue Hongling knew that she indeed liked this sort of person. He told her that he saw in her the jianghu he had always imagined. In reality, from her perspective, how could she not see her ideal jianghu in him?

The temperament of a bandit? In reality, Yue Hongling also had it. Banditry and chivalry were two sides of the same coin. All could be considered children of the jianghu and they differed greatly from people like Cui Yuanyong. In Cui Yuanyong’s eyes, Yue Hongling was simply a crude woman with the temperament of a bandit.

Yue Hongling and Zhao Changhe were the same type of people, and thus could become close with each other. On the other hand, Cui Yuanyong was the typical young master; he was like a piece of polished jade. He was indeed a good person and had even come to save Yue Hongling because he suspected that she fell into the hands of bandits. However, it was difficult for them to get along.

Footsteps could be heard outside. There was someone nearby.

Yue Hongling grabbed the hilt of her sword, and her expression suddenly turned fierce.

Knock knock.

“Boss.”

Yue Hongling heaved a sigh and cast Zhao Changhe a glance. He was still frowning in pain. She shook her head and approached the door.

The person outside looked like a cook and had a tray with some cornbread and two bowls of gruel along with a few other dishes. Seeing that it was his “sister-in-law” that opened the door, he was stunned for a moment and did not dare stare too much. He lowered his head and smiled apologetically. “Good morning, sister-in-law. This is the breakfast the boss ordered. I added an extra portion for you.”

Yue Hongling rubbed her forehead. It’d be great if you stopped calling me sister-in-law...actually, can you just not talk to me? I’d be more at ease if there were none of these annoying matters.

However, since things had gotten to this point, she could only play along and act her role. She could do nothing but stretch out her hand to accept the tray of food. “Thank you.”

The cook rubbed his hands together. “Sister-in-law is as beautiful as a goddess. The boss is really lucky.”

What kind of fucking luck does he have? The luck of having to sit down and recuperate? Yue Hongling turned around and returned to the building displeased, forcefully placing the tray onto the table.

At the same time, Zhao Changhe opened his eyes. The pained expression he had slowly faded away and was replaced by that familiar bright smile he put on everyday. “Morning. Eh, breakfast is already here? I don’t know what you’re used to eating in the morning. Just put up with this for the time being.”

“How can the children of the jianghu be so picky? Yue Hongling sat by the table with one foot resting on a stool by the side and gulped down her gruel.

Her appearance now was a world apart from what she looked like yesterday when she sat leaning against the window. Zhao Changhe was more used to seeing her as she was now. This is what children of the jianghu are supposed to be like. We’re not pretty daughters from humble families.

He rubbed his face and gave it a quick wash before sitting across from Yue Hongling with a smile. “You look pretty peppy. Are your wounds healed?”[1]

“My injuries weren’t very serious in the first place. As far as external injuries go, I only received that one cut, and my internal injuries were only caused by a bit of sword qi. A single night of rest was enough to sort out most of it. In two to three more days, I should fully recover.” Yue Hongling furrowed her brow. “The words you use are so strange. What do you mean by ‘peppy’...”

“It’s the dialect of the Zhao House. As long as you can roughly understand, it’s fine.” Zhao Changhe paused, lost in thought. “There’s a good chance that after a while, you’ll no longer be able to hear me utter such words. After all... I’m part of the jianghu now.”

Yue Hongling thought that he was referring to the deaths of the people of the Zhao House and refrained from speaking more about his village’s way of speaking. She could not help but sigh. “If only I had arrived a bit earlier...”

“What’s done is done. There’s no point saying all this. Don’t tell me you’re hoping for me to constantly tell others about you saving me?”

Yue Hongling replied, irritated, “I’ve never once seen you be thankful for it.”

“Then what do you believe is my reason for wanting to kill Cui Yuanyong after seeing you injured? I have no grudges with him. I’ve never even seen him before. Do you really think it’s because I secretly love Yue Hongling? Don’t get sucked into the blind rumors of others.”

Yue Hongling: “...”

“Oh, speaking of Cui Yuanyong, I’m not very knowledgeable about those powerful families. Can you give me a simple introduction to them?”

“I already told you yesterday. Not everyone possesses a miraculous internal art. Over time, those with powerful martial arts are the ones who form all sorts of large sects and powerful families, and they are able to pass down their inheritance. This is very normal. I don’t know what kind of introduction you want.”

“Why is the Cui Clan of Qinghe also a powerful clan here?”

“Also?” Yue Hongling was confused. “Why can’t it be the Cui Clan of Qinghe?”

“...Eh, don’t tell me they survived up till now from the previous era? Or did they obtain some inheritance from the previous era? To be honest, I actually flipped through a few history books but basically none of them brought up anything related to these families.”

“I’m not sure either. These powerful families have indeed been around considerably longer than the great Xia Dynasty. No matter how many dynasties rise and fall, they still remain... As for the illustrious history of his family, you can go ask Cui Yuanyong himself. I’m sure he’ll be very happy to get the chance to brag. What I’m uncertain of is how much of what he’ll say is true.”

“Will he talk to me?”

Yue Hongling thought for a moment. “I’m not sure. These types from powerful families appear cultured, refined, and polite on the surface, but I always feel like beneath this, they maintain a sense of distance and judge us. It’s uncomfortable. I’m the Second Hidden Dragon, so they regard me as someone important and will even befriend me. As for you... I’m not sure how they see those at the bottom of the Ranking of Hidden Dragons. It shouldn’t be too bad, I guess? In any case, you’re in the Tome of Troubled Times like him.”

Zhao Changhe nodded. “If the chance arises, could you refer him to me?”

Yue Hongling asked curiously, “Why are you interested in these things? You even want to get close to them when they’ll likely give you the cold shoulder. You shouldn’t be doing this...”

Zhao Changhe had a perplexed expression as he looked at her. What do you even know about me?

However, her understanding of him was correct. With Zhao Changhe’s nature, he was indeed uninterested in such things and could not be bothered contacting someone from a powerful family... It was unfortunate that probing the mysteries of this world had nothing to do with one’s nature. All this information was of great importance to clearing the fog that shrouded him. He had to contact them even if he did not enjoy it.

Yue Hongling felt uncomfortable looking at Zhao Changhe’s strange expression. Finally she was unable to restrain herself and slammed the table. “What’re you looking at? I’m not very familiar with you so what’s so strange about not having a good understanding of you? How is your recovery? Come, it’s time to spar!”

Zhao Changhe did not know if he should cry or laugh. He had no way of telling her: “You do understand me.” He felt that if he did so, this whole scene would turn into a comedy and ruin the friendly atmosphere between them.

In reality, he really wanted to spar now, but it was a pity he still had not recovered enough. He was also afraid of Yue Hongling’s wounds reopening again and thought for a while before asking, “You said you can teach me three things. What’s the third?”

“How to tell where something is with your hearing to perceive unseen enemies, and...” Yue Hongling suddenly picked up one of the chopsticks on the table and threw it. It swooshed through the air and lodged itself deep into the door. “...how to kill enemies from afar and take someone’s life while chasing them. Do you want to learn?”

1. In the raws, he says 元气满满, literally “full of vitality,” but 元气 is also what we often translate as “primordial qi” or “original qi,” so it definitely carries a different meaning to her. ☜

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