Chapter 156: The Baili Family, Return to the Imperial Capital

Gu Xiqiao went back home to take a shower at night, while Jiang Shuxuan sat outside reading a book. She glanced at it sneakily and stuck her tongue out cheekily when she saw a bunch of symbols and ancient writing that she didn’t understand, before stepping in to take a shower.

Because Gu Xiqiao told Xixi to shut up earlier, it didn’t fight with Haha at all while she was in the shower, no matter how much Haha tried to rile it up.

The phone on the table rang and vibrated, and Jiang Shuxuan walked over and picked it up.

“Bro Jiang!” Yin Shaoyuan’s exclaimed from the other side of the phone. “Where’s Qiao Qiao? I couldn’t connect to her phone.”

Gu Xiqiao’s phone was placed right next to his, and Jiang Shuxuan reached over to try and switch it on, and upon seeing that it wouldn’t switch on, he said, “The batteries of her phone ran out.”

“Ah, I thought something happened.” Yin Shaoyuan breathed a sigh of relief, before thanking him profusely for helping their family out from before and preventing Tang Yanling from being bullied while he was unconscious.

“I’m not the one you should be thanking.” Jiang Shuxuan glanced over at the bathroom, before continuing, “Your grandfather hasn’t been at the Tang family lately, have any of them been picking on you?”

Since he had a box of pills that the entire ancient martial arts world would go crazy over, Yin Shaoyuan was probably given a lot of trouble by the Tang family.

“I have a special anti-pirating technique!” Yin Shaoyuan boasted with some pride in his voice. Those people would have to win against him before they could get any of the pills!

No one could try and kill another family member so they couldn’t use more radical methods, and they all used restrictions and seals the most. Yin Shaoyuan was immune to even Murong Feixue’s restrictions because of the jade bracelet that Gu Xiqiao gave him, so those of the youngsters in the Tang family were even less of a problem.

1

The door to the bathroom opened slowly, and Jiang Shuxuan told Yin Shaoyuan, “She just finished taking her shower, I’ll let you speak with her…”

Jiang Shuxuan turned around and looked over at the bathroom, and he was stunned for a moment at the sight.

Her hair was still damp after getting out of the shower, and she was drying her hair with her towel as she closed the door, a droplet of water sliding down her neck.

She didn’t wear the clothes provided by the hotel because she was slightly germaphobic, and she only wore a long t-shirt and short pants that only covered slightly above her knees.

Her plump lips were slightly pursed, and for a second Jiang Shuxuan was mesmerized by her before he came back to his senses, Yin Shaoyuan going “Hey” many times over the line as he did. “You got a call from Shaoyuan.”

Gu Xiqiao threw away the towel and accepted the phone. “You go take a shower too, Brother Jiang.”

Jiang Shuxuan nodded and walked into the room to get his clothes, before going into the bathroom to take a shower himself.

“Brother Yin, you’re awake.” Gu Xiqiao walked over to the sofa and plopped down comfortably, reaching for the book that Jiang Shuxuan was reading and flipping through it.

Yin Shaoyuan just woke up the afternoon before, so he seemed to have wanted to have his fill of talking, and he basically gave Gu Xiqiao a Wikipedia report of all the families and authorities of note in the ancient martial arts world.

Gu Xiqiao just sat there and listened, and before he could speak any further, Tang Yanling seemed to have snatched the phone and said, “Qiao Qiao, have you been drinking the medicinal soup while I’ve been gone?”

Of course, the answer to that question was negative, but Gu Xiqiao replied without skipping a beat. “Yes, of course.”

Her tone was quite sweet, and Tang Yanling thought that she wasn’t one to lie so she immediately believed in her and even praised her.

Gu Xiqiao sat there, accepting the praises from Madam Tang with a guilty conscience.

As she was about to hang up, Yin Shaoyuan snatched the phone back and asked, “Where are you, Qiao Qiao? I’ll go to see you tomorrow! When are you gonna come play at the ancient martial arts world?”

“I’m at N City, don’t worry, I’ll go see you when I go back to the capital.” Gu Xiqiao looked down at the desk. “As for the ancient martial arts world, now isn’t the right time.”

Yin Shaoyuan didn’t understand what she meant by that, but Gu Xiqiao always had her own plans, so he didn’t press her for an explanation. In any case, he could use this chance to build a strong support system for her…

They were about to leave after seeing Mrs. Zhang, but Jiang Shuxuan said that he had to go see another person.

“You have relatives here? Did you get that pill this morning for him?” Gu Xiqiao glanced over at him and asked.

Jiang Shuxuan stopped the car by the road and explained: “Not a relative, but a senior that has stepped out from the scene many years ago. I only knew he was staying here in seclusion quite recently.”

So it seemed to be an elder from the ancient martial arts world.

If that was the case, “Brother Jiang, I won’t be going with you.”

“Where are you going, then?” Jiang Shuxuan turned over and stared at her with his dark orbs.

Why did she feel like she had a guilty conscience all of a sudden? Gu Xiqiao coughed, before saying, “I’ll go buy a cup of milk tea.”

“Stay here, I’ll go.” Jiang Shuxuan reached for his wallet and stepped off the car.

The car was stopped by the plaza, and there were milk tea shops on either side of the car. Upon seeing Jiang Shuxuan disappear into the crowd, Gu Xiqiao stepped out of the car.

In the distance, she saw the tall figure standing in line in front of a milk tea shop, and the silhouette was particularly out of place considering that the others in line were all young girls.

Her phone rang, and it was Wang Jun.

“My grandfather wants to thank you personally, do you have any time?” Gu Xiqiao left the operating room right after she finished, and neither Wang Jun nor his family had reacted before she disappeared. It was only when his uncle woke up this morning that his grandfather remembered that he hadn’t thanked her directly.

Gu Xiqiao replied, “I’m about to return to the Imperial Capital… Hey, the plane is about to depart so I have to hang up, goodbye!”

She hung up and switched off the phone with a single fluid motion as another car drove up, and as she was about to give way for it, the car stopped right next to her, the car window rolling down and revealing a familiar face.

Wang Jun: “…” Where was the basic trust between humans?

Gu Xiqiao wasn’t awkward in the slightest, and she waved at Wang Jun. “I don’t know why, but the plane said it would be late.”

“…”

Did he look like he was an idiot to her?

Having never dealt with someone like this, he sat there dumbfounded for a few moments before he could speak, “My grandfather really wants to show you his gratitude.”

Why did she leave like that, did she think of herself as a modern superhero that didn’t ask for any gratitude and method to contact her? He had only gotten her phone number after practically interrogating Yin Shaoyuan for it.

“Don’t be like that, I already told you that I was going back to the Imperial Capital, didn’t I?” Gu Xiqiao smiled and continued. “Now be a good boy and put your hands on that steering wheel, step on the accelerator, and turn left at the next junction.”

Her smile was too bright under the sunlight, and Wang Jun unconsciously followed her orders and drove up to the junction before he came back to his senses, but the black car had already driven away.

“F*ck!” How could he have been swayed by her beauty so easily?!

***

Jiang Shuxuan drove out of the downtown area and stopped outside a siheyuan styled mansion, and the entire mansion had the aura of history and seemed quite imposing, and upon walking in, Gu Xiqiao felt a strong life force from the entire mansion.

There were multitudes of herbs and flowers that were planted in the yard, and they seemed to all be cultivated with great care.

A middle-aged man walked in a coarse sweatshirt walked out from inside, and coupled with the pouch that was tied to his hip, he seemed like a farmer that had traveled through time into the present.

“Young Master Jiang, Master invites you to enter.” The man bowed slightly towards Jiang Shuxuan, his expression respectful.

Jiang Shuxuan nodded, before looking at Gu Xiqiao. “Do you want to come in with me?”

Gu Xiqiao shook her head. “No, I think I’m going to take a stroll. Look at all these herbs!”

Upon hearing her say so, Jiang Shuxuan nodded and walked into the mansion.

The middle-aged man led Gu Xiqiao in, glancing at Gu Xiqiao discreetly as he did. He wasn’t usually a curious person, but this was someone that Jiang Shuxuan had brought with him, after all.

Upon feeling a gaze on her, Gu Xiqiao looked up and smiled politely at the middle-aged man.

The man blushed in embarrassment upon being caught glancing at her, but he was even more curious about this girl. She could sense his gaze? But he didn’t seem to feel any chi from her?

Gu Xiqiao looked back at the plants in the garden, rubbing her chin thoughtfully as she paced around, as if she were in deep thought about something, occasionally crouching down and replanting some of the herbs in another position using the hand shovel placed nearby.

1

Inside the mansion.

An old man with white hair sat cross-legged next to the low desk on the floor, and in his hand, he held a bunch of Buddhist beads with a chessboard in front of him.

Jiang Shuxuan walked in and greeted respectfully: “Clan Leader Baili.”

“I’m not a clan leader anymore.” The old man looked up, his face wrinkled from age. “Come and sit, these old bones want to finish this game of chess.”

Jiang Shuxuan sat down and reached for a white piece, and while there seemed to be no way out of the checkmate on the board, he placed the piece down on the board without any hesitation, turning the entire game from one that emanated death into one of life in a single moment.

Baili Qu’s eyes brightened before he picked up a black piece and placed it on the board.

Jiang Shuxuan wasn’t flustered in the least as he played against Baili Qu, not even a change in his expression as Baili Qu drove him into a corner.

It was said that one could see a person’s character through the chess that they play, and Baili Qu sighed. “As expected of the strongest in the ancient martial arts world.”

“It’s just a false reputation…” Jiang Shuxuan’s eyebrows moved slightly at the exaggerated nickname. “The people that gave me that name have never seen the true strength of the ancient martial arts world.”

“What are you being so humble for? If I was as strong as you were at your age, I would have already turned the entire ancient martial arts world upside down.” Upon seeing Jiang Shuxuan’s reaction, Baili Qu shook his head. “It’s alright for you youngsters to be a little reckless, don’t learn from the example of that wooden block of a father of yours.”

The next moment, Jiang Shuxuan set down another piece, blocking every step of Baili Qu with a single move.

Baili Qu: “…”

Baili Qu sighed and looked at this chess game that had a great turnabout, before standing up and leading Jiang Shuxuan to the living room. “Are you here because of the ranking battles?”

“As expected of Grandpa Baili.” Jiang Shuxuan stood up too.

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“Bah, enough trying to butter me up.” Baili Qu sat down on the chair and poured out two cups of tea, before sighing again. “I’ve used too much time and energy because of Bin’er, do I seem like I have the time to care about the ancient martial arts world?”

Jiang Shuxuan sat on the chair opposite of him. “I understand. If I see that person again on this year’s battles, I’ll catch him and bring him to the Baili family immediately.”

Upon hearing this, Baili Qu’s expression darkened slightly. “Is there any use? What’s done is done.”

The damage dealt onto Baili Bin was too vicious, to the point where even Rong Feishuang couldn’t heal it.

“By the way, did you bring that girl that’s outside?” Baili Qu suddenly changed the topic.

“Yes.” Jiang Shuxuan’s expression softened slightly. “I’ll introduce you when I have the chance.”

“No thank you, I don’t want to get beaten up by that person from your family if I get introduced to her first!” Baili Qu didn’t mind, and he asked, “She has strong mental power, which family is she from?”

“She isn’t from the ancient martial arts world.” Jiang Shuxuan replied without a change in his expression.

Baili Qu hadn’t expected this answer, but if she wasn’t from the ancient martial arts world, it meant that she didn’t know ancient martial arts. “What a shame.”

“Grandfather Baili, I’m here today for this, too.” A small glass bottle appeared in Jiang Shuxuan’s hand, and he handed it to Baili Qu. “This… Might help with those injuries of yours.”

This was a pill that he had asked Gu Xiqiao for that morning, and he was sheepish when he remembered Gu Xiqiao’s expression that practically said, “Didn’t you look down on my medicine? Didn’t you say that you didn’t want it, hm?”

Ever since Baili Bin was impaired from the incident, Baili Qu had used a lot of his energy and even sustained internal injuries when he worked together with Rong Feishuang to save Baili Bin from the brink of death to the point where even his chi was depleted by half. In the process, his face had become wrinkled, a great contrast from before.

Jiang Shuxuan didn’t know how much use Gu Xiqiao’s pill would be, but he still gave it to Baili Qu in remembrance of the Baili Family’s sacrifice for the ancient martial arts world.

Baili Qu didn’t think that his internal injuries could be cured, but he was still quite happy that Jiang Shuxuan had thought to give him such a gift. In any case, would Jiang Shuxuan give him just a regular item?

“If this pill is of use to you, then please give have someone send me a message.” Jiang Shuxuan stood up and prepared to leave, thinking that Gu Xiqiao might have already gotten bored by herself. “I have to rush back to the Imperial Capital, so I won’t be bothering you any further.”

Baili Qu hummed. “Remember to bring that girl and show me the next time you come to visit.”

Jiang Shuxuan nodded in response.

Outside, Gu Xiqiao was standing amidst a bunch of precious herbs and flowers in a floral skirt and a white jacket, and just by looking at the scene, it seemed like she was a fairy of the flowers that was even more eye-catching than the flowers themselves.

Upon feeling a gaze on her, Gu Xiqiao turned around and looked over to the part of the mansion on the left, where the doors and shutters were closed tight.

After a while, she looked back down and threw away the hand shovel in her hand.

Jiang Shuxuan walked out of the middle part of the mansion with the middle-aged man trailing behind him.

Gu Xiqiao looked over at the middle-aged man, before asking. “Uncle, did you plant these flowers and herbs?”

The middle-aged man paused for a moment, before nodding, the corner of his mouth twitching slightly. “Yes, Miss.”

“Good, I moved some of the plants because they seemed too crowded.” Gu Xiqiao smiled.

“It’s alright, it’s alright.”

Jiang Shuxuan didn’t know what Gu Xiqiao was thinking about, exactly. She wasn’t a talkative person in general and didn’t want to get involved in the affairs of others, so the first thing she would do was get as far away as she could. It was strange, then, that she was so interested in these plants.

Upon thinking of this, he glanced over at the garden, and as soon as he set his eyes on the flowers, a passing glance became an outright stare.

Gu Xiqiao spoke again, “Mister, can I have a pen and some paper?”

The man didn’t dare to slack off on a request by Jiang Shuxuan’s companion, so he immediately took out the items that they used usually in their house—A brush, high-quality xuan paper, and also an inkstone, but he wasn’t sure whether Gu Xiqiao knew how to use the tool.

Gu Xiqiao didn’t care about it, and she had Jiang Shuxuan set down the paper while she took the brush and started drawing and writing on the paper.

After a few minutes, she finished drawing the symbols and wrote some words at the bottom of the paper, before handing it to the middle-aged man and leaving with Jiang Shuxuan.

The man didn’t know what was drawn on the paper, but he knew how to read the words that she had written—Five Elements and Eight Trigrams. These words were written fluidly and with spirit and was both bold and natural.

Such great writing! The middle-aged man’s eyes brightened slightly.

Before he could look at it any further, however, the paper was snatched away.

The door on the left opened with a creak, and a pale-skinned, handsome man in his late twenties came out from the mansion. The only regretful part of this scene was that he was sitting in a wheelchair, and he looked at the paper that he had taken from the middle-aged man.

After a while, he wheeled himself around the garden and smiled excitedly. “I see, so that’s it!”

“Young master?” Ever since he was injured, Baili Bin because reclused and closed off, and this was the first time he had seen him smile since the incident.

“Uncle Tai, I’ll go see Grandfather.” Baili Bin placed the piece of paper on his lap carefully before wheeling himself into the door in the middle.

Baili Qu knew that his grandson had entered the room without even raising his head, and said, “Come look at this game of chess, see how the stalemate was broken.”

Baili Bin made his way over, and while he didn’t see the process of the game, he could feel a frosty killing aura from the chess battle between the two, and it must have been an exceptional match.

“As expected of Shuxuan, his style is hard to replicate.” Baili Bin stared at the chessboard before shaking his head slightly.

“That’s true,” Baili Qu looked at him and was surprised. “You seem to be in a good mood?”

“Yes.” Baili Bin took the piece of paper that Gu Xiqiao had left behind and handed it to Baili Qu. “That girl just resolved a question I had for five years.”

Baili Qu accepted the piece of paper nonchalantly, but as he looked at it, he was astonished and stood up immediately the chessboard that he had been preserving so meticulously scattering as he did, but he didn’t feel regretful in the least as he looked at the paper with trembling hands.

The Baili family were practitioners of seals and arrays, and the flowers and herbs in the garden were planted by Baili Bin in an array that bred life energy with life energy, which was the reason why there were so many flowers that weren’t in season blooming there. In a way, the flowers and plants had created their own little world.

That being said, since every plant had its own element and they counteracted and gave each other energy correspondingly, it was hard to achieve a balance of the energy of the five elements to the point where the rampaging elemental energy affected the garden. Baili Bin was stumped by this problem and had been researching to no avail, and in the meantime, he could only set down a protective and stabilizing array.

That drawing was the perfected array that they had been looking for, and the both of them immediately understood what was drawn.

“She drew this after looking at it for such a short while?” Baili Qu asked his grandson in disbelief.

Baili Bin nodded. If it weren’t for the fact that he saw the entire process with his own eyes, he wouldn’t have believed it himself. He had always thought that he was gifted, but he had never expected to meet someone that was even more gifted than he was.

“Such talent is reminiscent of a descendant of our family…” Baili Qu sighed. How had he not expected this of someone who was following Jiang Shuxuan? “She might be the descendant of a hidden master.”

“I feel…” Baili Bin pursed his lips. “That she looks like my aunt…”

“Your cousin is at the Imperial Capital!” Baili Qu retorted. “It’s one thing for her to look alike, but this talent…. If it were ten years ago, I would have taken her as my disciple.”

Baili Qu’s expression was dejected as he said this. Baili Bin was considered a peerless talent back in the day that was only slightly below Jiang Shuxuan and was the irrefutable heir to the Baili family, but after he was injured and impaired, the entire Baili family was thrown into disarray.

That girl was quite young, and with the ability to fix the Five Element and Eight Trigrams Array, she was much more talented than even Baili Bin. Now, he completely believed it when Jiang Shuxuan said that she wasn’t from the ancient martial arts world, or else she wouldn’t be so nameless.

Real gold never loses its luster, no matter where it’s placed.

***

Meanwhile, a certain someone didn’t know that she had caused such an uproar with her drawing, and had already returned to the Imperial Capital together with Jiang Shuxuan.

That night, she received two messages—One was the picture of the studio after all the shots of the scenes had been recorded sent by Xiao Yun. Come to think of it, from auditioning to shooting to everything in between, ‘Empire Under Siege’ had been in the woodworks for almost a month.

The other message was sent by Cheng Zhou, saying that the scenes had all been edited, and asked her when she wanted to go get them.

Since she promised to do the special effects for ‘Empire Under Siege’, Gu Xiqiao’s movements were quick.

Not a while after Cheng Zhou sent her the message, his phone rang, and it was a young man on the other side. “Director Cheng, Miss Gu told me to get the film from you. I’m outside your home right now.”

He opened the door and handed the film to the young man, sighing in slight dejection. “I thought that girl would have come and gotten it herself, honestly.”

He had even gotten the movie editors to work faster and give him the results as soon as they could, and he had told her as soon as he got his hands on the film!

“Director Cheng, according to Miss Gu’s degree of laziness…” Yu Ning said upon finding someone with the same sentiments as him. “You really thought too much about it.”

Cheng Zhou remembered his own plights in dealing with Gu Xiqiao and pat Yu Ning’s shoulder like a comrade. “Young man, you really understand.”

Yu Ning smiled before taking out a bunch of papers and handing it to him. “Right, this is the script that she wanted me to give you.”

Cheng Zhou accepted the script before chatting with the other for a while and settling down to read through the script after sending Yu Ning on his way.

In honesty, he only accepted to direct this film because he owed Gu Xiqiao a favor, and also because he wanted her to act in another movie as the female lead. He didn’t have many expectations for the film that she wanted to invest in.

He had never expected the script to be on par with the top scripts in the industry, and so he flipped through the script again and again.

The next morning, he announced that he would be opening auditions for his new film.

As soon as this news came out, the entire entertainment industry was shocked. Didn’t this eccentric director always rest for a year or two after one work? Why was he so productive this year?

That being said, a lot of them were also intrigued by the opportunity.

Gu Xiqiao got a call from Xiao Yun. “Er Qiao, I just found something out.”

“What is it?” Gu Xiqiao asked on her way to A University, having finally regained her conscience.

Xiao Yun thought for a bit, before speaking, “I saw that Peng Zixian was going to join the auditions too.”

Upon hearing this name, Gu Xiqiao paused in her steps. “Well, it all comes down to personal ability.”

“That’s not the point.” Xiao Yun lowered her voice slightly and continued: “Brother Kun said that Peng Zixian isn’t a regular person that only stepped into the entertainment industry because she was interested in it, without telling anyone her true identity. Apparently she wanted to see where she could get with just raw talent.”

With just raw talent? If that was the case, then she shouldn’t have spread this news in the first place.

Gu Xiqiao smiled. “No worries, let her impress Director Cheng with that raw talent of hers if she can.”

She had already arrived at the lab, and after greeting some familiar faces, she hung up and walked in to see Zhu Yuan’s accusing expression.