Chapter 2: 2

Bai Zhi thought back to the expression of Teng Yuyi’s eyes just now, secretly pinching her sweat. With the lady’s vengeful nature, there was no guarantee that she would not find that servant to settle the score. 

“Lady, do you recognize that maid’s master?” 

Teng Yuyi ordered Bai Zhi to light the lantern. How could it just be considered only recognized. After three months, Duke Zhen’s eldest young master suddenly came to her doorstep to break off the marriage. It was precisely for the sake of Dong Erniang (second lady) who was in the carriage. 

Remembering at the time when everyone was surprised to hear the news, father was even more angry and shocked. The face of Duke Zhen could not be saved as he had to help his son plead guilty. Moreover, Duan Ningyuan still acted stubborn like usual. He would rather be whipped than come to break off the marriage. 

“If A’Ye (father) is still not relieved, then add another hundred whips”.  

In the dim fog and rain, the young man in the ink-colored clothes knelt upright in front of the courtyard, posing as if he would rather die than turn back. 

Duke Zhen was so angry that he snatched the whip and whipped him. 

“This old one will beat this bastard to death today!” 

Father watched coldly, not until Duke Zhen had beaten Duan Ningyuan half to death, did he speak: “Withdrawing from the marriage for no reason is not to be blamed on my child. You were unfaith first. Don’t even try to push the fault onto Yu’er (what Teng Yuyi’s father calls her). If this matter spreads out, it is bound to stir up talk among the streets. If I hear half a word accusing my Yu’er, then don’t blame me, Teng Shao, for being ruthless!” 

Saying that he will tear up the marriage agreement contract in public and expel the dying Duan Ningyuan from his mansion. 

When it was first mentioned in public, everyone was surprised that Duan Ningyuan would do something so dishonorable, but as time went on, there were other opinions about the situation. 

Duan Ningyuan was widely recognized as a virtuous gentleman, and was willing to bear all the world’s insults. It had to be that Teng Shao’s daughter is immoral herself. 

It was heard that this young lady is very two-faced (outer and inner appearance don’t match), with a face like a flower, but with a nature of being extremely cunning. 

These rhetoric words became more and more critical. It did not take long for it to spread into the ears of Teng Shao. A woman’s reputation was extremely important. After today, who would dare to propose a marriage to the Teng family again. 

However, before Teng Shao could rush back from Huainan province to take action, Little General Duan was caught having a tryst (private meeting between lovers) with Dong Erniang. 

It was the autumn shooting ceremony and the banquet’s guests were mostly all princes and nobles. The location was at Leyouyuan and close by, there was an old abandoned Buddhist temple. Not knowing who, but one said that there are strange flowers blooming in the temple and this aroused everyone’s interest at once. 

Everyone wanted to go to have fun, but they happened to bump into Little General Duan and the two thousand gold (honorable daughter) of the Dong Ming Mansion having a tryst. 

Dong Erniang wore a male beard for the convenience of going out, but it could not hide her tender appearance. 

Dong Erniang burst into tears. Duan Ningyuan warmly comforted her. The two of them were etiquette, but everyone could see Duan Ningyuan’s admiration and care for Dong Erniang. 

The incident caused an uproar and the two of them were clearly in love and inseparable. It could be seen that they have been in contact with each other for a very long time. Little General Duan’s behavior was always praised. Unexpectedly, the reason why he wanted to break off the marriage agreement was actually because he fell in love with another woman. 

Earlier, there were so many rude speculations about the young lady of the Teng family, but Little General Duan did not even say a word to defend her. Even if there was no affection, they had a marriage contract with each other after all. He only cared for his beloved and allowed the young lady of the Teng family to be slandered, simply having a wooden and stone heart (cold and ruthless). 

For a while, people made excuses while some were disgusted by what Duan Tingyuan did. Others accused Dong Erniang for being frivolous and deceiving with her charm.  

That night, Teng Yuyi was lying on the chair, calmly drinking the shidongchun (name of the wine) from the cup. 

She had no interest in whoever Duan Ningyuan wanted to fly away with. But because of one selfish action, she also had to compensate for it and it really has excessively gone too far.

Duan Ningyuan is a very cautious person. In order to set up this situation, she put in a lot of effort, and finally, the day has arrived where these two people have their reputation swept away. How could she not have a drink.

*** 

The female maid saw that Teng Yuyi and the others had successfully entered the forest and went forward to discuss it, but the group of high-ranked servants only cared about guarding the outside of the forest and did not let them go in no matter what. 

The female servant’s voice was not soft. Bai Zhi listened to the words in the beginning and only then did she realize that this maid was the steward of the Dong Ming Mansion in Wannian county. 

Although Bai Zhi has been in Yangzhou all year around, she still knows that Chang’an city is divided into two counties: the eastern city belongs to the Wannian County and the western city belongs to the Chang’an Country. 

The two magistrates are only on the official rank of the fifth rank, but they are located in Jingjizhi, holding onto the real power. No wonder even the steward of the mansion is so domineering. 

All the negotiations were all in vain, the middle-aged maid was so embarrassed that she only heard the voice of the person in the carriage speak. The servant got into the cart and came out lifting the curtains. She angrily ordered the coachman and said: “The second lady is worried about the old madam’s illness. After attending the banquet, quickly rush back to the city. Don’t waste any time here and take the detour.” 

The coachman obeyed and drove the carriage gradually further and further away. 

Bai Zhi looked at Teng Yuyu. As soon as the lady entered the forest, she was extremely cautious. No matter how curious she was, she did not dare to ask any questions, only wondering what the identity of the young master of those high-ranked servants was. Not even respecting the magistrate of the Wannian county. Presumably, he has probably already left the forest as not far away, one could hear the sound of laughter and footsteps, but gradually only the sound of the desolated rustling wind could be heard. 

With the calm depth of water flowing, the more quiet it is, the more strange it feels. 

After walking for a while, one could not tell the difference between the east, west, north, and south. In the end, Bai Zhi could only be frustrated. Fortunately, there was Duan Fu by their side. This old servant had been sent to the lady’s side by the old master since she was three years old. He was very loyal and faithful. Earlier, he was ordered by the lady to go and find Du Tinglan. Now, he has followed them into the forest. With him by their side, he could protect the lady and this finally made one feel at ease. 

The air was cold and thick, slowly infiltrating a trace of a bitter smell. The further one went, the more pungent the smell became. The three of them became suspicious, and suddenly a woman’s scream was heard. The treetops were rustling as if some huge creature flew over their heads. 

Bai Zhi hurridenly tried to protect Teng Yuyi. Teng Yuyi spoke in a low voice: “Duan Fu!” 

“Yes!” Only hearing a clang sound, the cold light of a blade approached, and Duan Fu drew his sword and flew out. 

Teng Yuyi raised her skirt and chased after. Although the woman’s scream was brief, it was clear that it was her biao jie (cousin), but just now she did not know if the huge creature that passed was a human or an animal. 

Thousands of thoughts ran through her mind, the murderer could not be someone who was from the forest. If he wanted to kill someone, why would he make such a commotion out of it. Blocking so many carriages from entering the forest, it was basically telling the entire world that he was the murderer. 

In her opinion, most murderers would hide in the dark places in the forest. For the fear of being plotted against, she took great precautions after entering the forest. Who knew the sudden changes in this life would be more strange than she expected. 

The sharp weapons made clanging sounds and Duan Fu has already fought against that thing, using the weapon made of a thousand-year of black iron that his father obtained when he was guarding the Pamir Mountains. Splitting stones and chopping gold, it was indestructible.

Teng Yuyi calmed down a bit. No matter where the murderer came from, it was rare to see Duan Fu lose. 

Bai Zhi was very frightened. Fortunately, the lantern in her hand was not thrown away. The lady and the maid ran a few steps, and a trembling shadow of light reflected forward. Laying on the ground was vaguely a woman. 

Teng Yuyu pulled out the jadeite sword from her sleeve and was about to go forward, but was stopped by the remaining shred of rationality and told Bai Zhi raised the lantern: “look at who the person is.” 

Bai Zhi shivered and used a lantern to light up the person. 

“Maid Hong?” 

Maid Hong’s face was like gold paper (nervous and fearful), but fortunately she was still breathing. Teng Yuyi squatted down to check, anxiously asked: “Where is my biao jie?” 

Servant Hong coughed and coughed until she opened her eyes wide. Her expression was blank for a moment, and she got up in a panic: “Lady! Lady!” 

This Maid had already been scared to death. Teng Yuyi was anxious and in a hurry, passed the lantern that Bai Zhi was holding and was about to get up when a “bang” was heard behind her back. A heavy object struck the ground, only to hear Duan Fu groan: “Lady, look out!” 

Teng Yuyi’s mind went blank, how could Duan Fu lose? 

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Before there was time to turn her head back, a strange wind rushed from behind and the wind was wrapped in a thick fragrance of grass and wood. 

The pupils of Maid Hong and Bai Zhi dilated. That thing was too quick and before the two of them could push Teng Yuyi out of the way, the hand of the black shadow had already reached Teng Yuyi’s shoulders. With just a single strike, it was enough to tear Teng Yuyi into two halves. 

When the spirit saw that it succeeded, to one’s surprise, it laughed strangely. The tone of the voice was soft and light, like a woman full of tenderness. When Maid Hong and Bai Zhi finally had the courage to step forward and help, but hearing this frightening laugh, they both fainted on the spot in fear. 

Duan Fu slowly started to stand up and yell, but as long as this thing had its giant claws, the lady’s life was hard to save. 

At that moment, he still had a lot of strength, his arm was already broken. He forcibly grasped the handle of the sword and rose from the ground, dove straightforward like an eagle. 

This move had the power of opening the mountains and splitting a stone, it will make the skin and flesh of that thing bloom. The peak of the sword was brought down as if it was striking a rock, “clank, clank, clank”, splashing orange sparks, but the skin and flesh was not cut or split. 

That thing was extremely proud and its laughter became even sweeter. At first glance, it sounds like a delicate fifteen or sixteen year old girl. It seemed like vines had grown out under the giant claws, and slowly caressed Teng Yuyi’s neck. 

Duan Fu was scared out of his wits, and just as he was about to collide with its shoulders. A silver bell-like laughter rang in his ears and suddenly turned into a scream of misery. 

Only to see Teng Yuyi holding a jadeite sword and viciously stabbing at the giant claw on her shoulder.  

With each stab, the monster let out an eerie cry. As it was suffering from pain of having one’s heart pierced. Its scream was incomparably mournful. 

Duan Fu was so shocked that he forgot to take back his hand. Teng Yuyi had already long forgotten about being afraid. 

Before coming, she had imagined everything thousands and thousands of times already. If the murderer of her biao jie could be catch on the spot, she would definitely have that person suffer pain like having one’s flesh cut off one by one. Thinking that her biao jie still might be in the hands of this thing, she striked very fiercely and fast. 

After the tragic death of her biao jie, her yi mu (aunt) also became ill because of the heavy blows of the situation. In just half a year, she had lost two of the most important people to her. It turns out that the disaster all started because of this monster and she hated not being able to eat its flesh and sleep on its skin. 

Just stabbing into the flesh was not enough. Teng Yuyi smirked, like pounding chopped meat into sauce, the tip of the sword was stirred back and forth of the monster’s claws. 

The monster’s scream was raised a bit, becoming louder, but he helplessly could not move. With a “plop”, a heavy object fell to the ground again and in the darkness, one could hear the painful groan of a woman. 

It was as if a string in Teng Yuyi’s mind had been plucked. 

“biao jie!” 

“It is biao jie! Quick, Duan Fu!” 

Duan Fu did not wait for the order. When he saw an opportunity, he rolled on the spot and took Du Tinglan into his arms. Between the leaps and falls, he took her away from the monster’s feet. 

Teng Yuyi was about to stab again, but with this sudden distraction, her shoulders became light. In the midst of a scream, the monster unexpectedly tore off his giant claws. 

In an instant, blood flowed out like a pillar and the filthy smell shot up into the sky. 

The monster cried out miserably, like a woman with a broken heart that sounded high up into the treetops and instantly disappeared into the night.

Outside the forest, a light like fire shone brightly and the sound of footsteps came in a chaotic manner. Madam Du rushed over with her servants, “Lan’er, Yue’er!” 

Randomly deciding to follow, there were also the high-ranked servants who set up the tent outside the forest. 

When everyone saw the situation, they all showed a look of surprise. Don’t know what illusion that spirit had made, but with the earth-rumbling fight, there was not even a slight sound heard from outside the forest.  

A servant squatted down and picked up the fallen limbs of the spirit. Without being able to see that thing turn into a pile of black dust, the person changed his expression: “go and inform the prince.” 

“The prince had just left for the changjijiu (a field where the nobles come to compete with a bow). The key was lost outside of the Moon Lantern Pavilion. How can this one deliver the news to him?”

“The King of Chun’an is also going to be at the riverbank tonight. What if I go to his Majesty, the King and ask him to go find the prince. The origin of this spirit is unknown. If it is not taken care of, there will certainly be someone who will suffer.” 

Teng Yuyi had just recovered from the shock and hurriedly picked up her biao jie to take a look at her, who was still unconscious, but fortunately, she was breathing normally. 

Teng Yuyu’s nose became sour and hot (tingling sensation due to a pungent odor). In front of her was a beautiful face with fresh vitality, not the face that was lifeless, swollen, and pale when she came back from YangZhou in her previous life.

For several days, she was stuck on the boat from Yangzhou to Chang’an, planning day and night on how to avoid the same tragedy. Now that her biao jie was alive in front of her, she had the feeling of what an aftermath of a disaster felt like. 

Madam Du’s face was pale. She hurriedly pushed past the servants and rushed to the front: “what happened?”

Teng Yuyi smelled the familiar scent on her Yi Mu’s coat, as if her throat seemed to be stuffed with cotton balls. Looking up, she calmly said: “I made an appointment with biao jie to come here to have fun, but who knew that we would bump into an evil creature.” 

As for why her biao jie went out of the nunnery was still a mystery to her. There were too many people around, so it is necessary to be cautious. 

Madam Du’s thoughts turned very fast, seeing one of her daughters pass out in sight and the other seemingly terrified. In a moment of fear, she hurriedly brought the two of them into her embrace: “good children, don’t be afraid.” 

She looked around with lingering fear. In a layer of voices, she ordered the servants: “quickly take Yi Niang (first lady) to the carriage and return to the city to find a doctor.” 

Teng Yuyi was reluctant to leave Yi Mu’s embrace, but there were still many things to be taken care of at the moment. She stood and went to check Duan Fu’s injuries, only seeing that from his right shoulder and down, his whole arm was covered in blood. 

Duan Fu remained silent, Teng Yuyi was so anxious and asked the old coachman to help Duan Fu: “There is jin chuang medicine (for injuries caused by weapons) in the carriage, but stop the bleeding first.” 

Outside of the forest, they had settled down with Du Tinglan, now waiting to help Maid Hong and Bai Zhi up the carriage. Only seeing the horse’s hooves hook up which raised a lot of dust. Just now, that group of servants that had left, now returned and was followed by people from the palace, wearing yellow clothes. 

That group of people rushed to the front: “Dare to ask if this is the carriage of the General Teng’s mansion. This little one is the close attendant of the King of Chun’an County. His Majesty has heard of this matter and in case anyone else would suffer, ordered us to hurry here to seal off the bamboo forest.” 

“The King of Chun’an?” Madame Du lifted the curtain. She had already noticed that her daughter’s lips were purple long ago and her heart was boiling. 

“It is not only the people here who suffered. The carriage from Dongming Mansion in Wannian County also passed by and suffered from this.”

“Since the injuries were caused by an evil spirit, an ordinary doctor can not help much. It happened to be that a Taoist priest is also here to have fun at the Qujiang. The King has already called for the Taoist priest. On the other hand, ordered us to bring the people with injuries to the Ziyun Building.”  

Teng Yuyi was shocked for a moment, and hurriedly grabbed Madam Du’s hand: “Yi Mu, follow the words of the servants from the palace and quickly carry Maid Hong and Bai Zhi to the carriage.” 

Biao jie looked very weak and almost lifeless. Duan Fu’s face looked like it was covered in a cloud of black mist. Without thinking much, one would know that it was related to that evil spirit. If one was not treated for soon, death will only be the aftermath. 

If she was not mistaken, this Taoist leader who could freely enter and leave the Ziyun building had a very lonely temperament, but is now regarded as an honest and humble mentor by the current Emperor.

This person’s skills are very good. It is incomparable within the entire world. 

 

 

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