Chapter 782

129. Meddling Again

The night gradually masked the sunset glow.

In a refined pavilion in Qingliang Valley.

A tall young lady with a headband and sword attire walked into the pavilion and asked coldly:

"I told you to find the Crane-Cape Old Daoist; you've been in the water prison for many days, what's the situation? Why is there no news, and I have to send someone to find you myself? What is it, Liu Aliang, now that you're a glorious servant delivering food to the Female Sovereign, have you become so arrogant?"

Ouyang Rong was placing the dishes he had brought at the table.

This time, he had waited in the pavilion for nearly half an hour before Chen Jiaxin arrived, yet the moment she entered, her tone was one of questioning and blaming.

Ouyang Rong's movements in placing the dishes remained unchanged, as if he had expected it.

Just as Chen Jiaxin said, this meeting was because she couldn't wait and had sent Xiao Niangzi Chen to notify Ouyang Rong.

And after Ouyang Rong arrived and waited until now, it counted as the longest time Chen Jiaxin had been late; in previous meetings, although she had been late, it was only by a quarter of an hour or a cup of tea's time, and it was clearly not intentional.

However, this time, being half an hour late—which was a full hour—good heavens, the food was about to get cold. If she really had something to do, she could have let Xiao Niangzi Chen bring Ouyang Rong over later; there was no need to come so early, it clearly wasn't an accident.

"My Xiao Niangzi, please calm your anger; the food is getting cold. My Xiao Niangzi, please sit and eat first."

"Hmph."

Chen Jiaxin looked at the calm face of the dull young man, snorted coldly, and did not sit down.

Until Ouyang Rong took the initiative to speak, explaining first:

"Although I entered the water prison and delivered food every day, there has been no progress, and feeling guilty in my heart, I didn't come to bother you, My Xiao Niangzi."

"Is it true guilt, or did you not take it seriously?"

"I would never dare to delay what you entrusted to me, My Xiao Niangzi; I keep it in my heart at every moment."

"Is that so? Heh, hard to say."

Chen Jiaxin turned her head, her ponytail flicking slightly, and snorted lightly before walking forward to sit at the table.

Ouyang Rong silently served rice and handed it over.

Chen Jiaxin didn't pick up her chopsticks, as if she had no appetite; she stared at the steaming dishes, not looking at Ouyang Rong, and said:

"Tell me, how are you guilty?"

Ouyang Rong also served himself a bowl of rice and sat down opposite Chen Jiaxin without any hesitation.

As her eyelids twitched slightly, he spoke in a muffled voice:

"Reporting to you, My Xiao Niangzi, these past few days, every time I went to deliver the temple meals, I stopped at the room where the Five Divine Maidens are... there is another door inside the room leading to the depths of the water prison; I have never had a chance to go in, and the Five Divine Maidens personally bring down eight portions of temple meals every time... The Five Divine Maidens speak very little, and so far I have never had a chance to ask more about the things behind the door, nor do I dare to ask more..."

Ouyang Rong described in detail the situation of delivering temple meals to the water prison in the last few nights, and also explained to Chen Jiaxin the layout and structure inside the water prison, along with some of his personal guesses, very thoroughly.

As Chen Jiaxin listened, her brows gradually relaxed, and the sternness and harshness on her face from just a moment ago diminished.

"So there is another world in the depths of the water prison, and you can't get in even when delivering temple meals, and it actually requires the Master to labor personally..."

After listening to Ouyang Rong's report, her expression softened slightly; after a while, she pondered for a moment and asked:

"Wait, you mean, every other day, when you go down to deliver temple meals, the Master asks you to bring down a bucket of clear water?"

Ouyang Rong nodded dully:

"Yes."

He slowly revealed the pattern he had summarized over these past few days:

"And... later on, the Fifth Divine Maiden had another strange request; she wanted ice water from the deep pool outside the waterfall, the colder and more shaded the better... then every time before I left, I saw the Fifth Divine Maiden enter that door inside with the food box and water bucket..."

For some reason, Ouyang Rong omitted the details of the bloody smell inside the door and the suspected dead bodies, not saying much and glossing over it.

After listening, Chen Jiaxin's brows gradually furrowed:

"Shaded cold water... what does the Master want to use it for..."

Ouyang Rong shook his head in cooperation.

At one moment, as if remembering something, he added:

"By the way, there is one more thing, a bit strange."

"Speak."

"Every night, the empty food boxes sent up have many water stains on the box body, as if they have been rained on."

"Rained on?"

Chen Jiaxin frowned slightly and asked strangely:

"I remember these food boxes should all be waterproof; sometimes it rains heavily at night, and we need to ensure the food remains warm when delivered."

"Yes, speaking of being waterproof, being rained on is fine, it's just that I remember, every night when I send the food boxes down, they are dry and clean, but when they are returned, the box bodies are wet; every food box is like this, which is a bit strange, but it's not convenient for me to ask more."

Chen Jiaxin asked again:

"How is the food inside?"

"It's all eaten, nothing wasted; there are traces of it being consumed by someone, which is normal."

Chen Jiaxin thought for a moment and said:

"Continue to observe; don't ask too much about this point for now, it might be that the situation inside the water prison is special and prone to getting wet... The top priority now is to think of a strategy to let you replace the Master to enter the water prison to deliver food and find that Crane-Cape Old Daoist."

"Okay."

After the Q&A, the atmosphere between the two quieted down.

Chen Jiaxin pondered for a moment and turned her head to look at Ouyang Rong.

The two pairs of eyes met for a while.

She suddenly said:

"The Master is actually very easy to talk to."

Ouyang Rong pretended to be stunned for a moment, then nodded belatedly.

"Liu Aliang, you can try to take the initiative to mention it, asking the Master to hand over the job of delivering temple meals inside the door to you; if you are rejected, we will think of other ways."

Ouyang Rong nodded slowly:

"You are right, My Xiao Niangzi; however, speaking of which, the Fifth Divine Maiden is indeed very easy to talk to... Do you remember, My Xiao Niangzi, the colleague in the dining hall I mentioned last time?"

Chen Jiaxin was stunned for a moment, as if she hadn't expected him to suddenly change the subject to this.

She was curious:

"You mean that young lady named Wu Cui?"

Ouyang Rong nodded:

"Yes."

"What's wrong with her? Does it have anything to do with our business?"

Ouyang Rong nodded, then shook his head:

"There is some connection; I request your help, My Xiao Niangzi."

Chen Jiaxin became even more puzzled:

"What help?"

Ouyang Rong didn't answer immediately, but said methodically:

"Wu Cui is young, yet she stays in the dining hall because she wants to see the Fifth Divine Maiden again to repay her kindness and ask about her doubts regarding the sword manual she came to observe this year. Although Wu Cui's talent is lacking, far inferior to you, My Xiao Niangzi, she has the same thing as you, which is a heart that seeks the Dao."

Chen Jiaxin tilted her head:

"And then?"

Ouyang Rong said with a serious tone, looking into her eyes, and continued:

"Could you help me with a favor, My Xiao Niangzi, and take some time to give Wu Cui a little guidance and help her solve her doubts about the sword manual? You are the personal disciple of the Fifth Divine Maiden; teaching her personally is equivalent to the Fifth Divine Maiden's instruction, and she will definitely be convinced and relieved."

Chen Jiaxin's voice suddenly turned cold:

"Why help her?"

Ouyang Rong said with a focused gaze:

"That night, I slightly altered the Fifth Divine Maiden's oral instruction and obtained the only spot to enter the water prison to deliver temple meals, squeezing her out and cutting off the opportunity she dreamed of; I want to make amends. Besides, I promised her afterwards that I would help her..."

Chen Jiaxin suddenly interrupted:

"I am not asking you, but asking why I should help her? Give me a reason; if it's just your favor, then I simply won't give it. What if I don't give you face? You solve it yourself."

She sneered, the corners of her mouth twitching:

"Furthermore, I don't think you owe her any favor; the opportunity to enter the water prison depends on one's ability. She couldn't compete with you in the first place, and that's the case in all aspects. This position of delivering temple meals should be held by the capable; it's just like many things in this world, no one owes anyone anything. You don't need to feel guilty; whether she appreciates it or not is another matter, don't be overly sentimental."

Ouyang Rong insisted:

"One thing is one thing; Wu Cui treated me sincerely, and even now she still trusts me and doesn't suspect that I altered the Divine Maiden's oral instruction. Just for this point alone, I must treat her without guilt."

Before Chen Jiaxin could refute, Ouyang Rong said again with sonorous force:

"My Xiao Niangzi, I originally promised her that I would mention it to the Fifth Divine Maiden, but now it seems this move is inappropriate... Just now, you also instructed me to take the initiative to propose sharing the burden with the Fifth Divine Maiden and replace her in entering the door to deliver food and water... Since that's the case, mentioning Wu Cui to the Fifth Divine Maiden is not very appropriate; the opportunity to speak should be reserved for our important business. As for Wu Cui, I implore you to help, My Xiao Niangzi, which can be considered my compensation to her..."

Seeing that at this moment, Chen Jiaxin's face tightened, and she stared at the face of the dull young man who dared to set conditions, asking word by word:

"Using important business to talk about things, Liu Aliang, are you threatening me?"

Ouyang Rong looked at the rebellious young lady in front of him who was full of backbone, and after a while, his eyelids drooped slightly:

"I dare not."

Before Chen Jiaxin could explode, he immediately continued:

"My Xiao Niangzi, I just think... we are all our own people, and Wu Cui can also become our own person. With one more person, we can share another burden for you, My Xiao Niangzi. Don't you always value the collective circle, My Xiao Niangzi? Perhaps Wu Cui can help us a lot later. Now is a very good opportunity; you can accept her, My Xiao Niangzi."

Ouyang Rong lowered his head and finished speaking quickly, but for a long time, he didn't see any response from the young lady in front of him.

After waiting for a while, he looked up and saw that Chen Jiaxin had quieted down, looking at him with a calm expression, not knowing what she was thinking in her mind.

"My Xiao Niangzi?"

Ouyang Rong tried calling out.

"Hmph."

Chen Jiaxin snorted coldly, got up, and walked away, leaving the pavilion under Ouyang Rong's gaze.

After walking out of the pavilion and taking a few steps forward, she lightly dropped a sentence into the evening breeze, drifting to Ouyang Rong's ears:

"Next time you come, bring her sword manual first; don't bring the person yet..."

The rebellious young lady paused, her voice becoming increasingly indifferent:

"Also, you know, I hate stupidity."

Ouyang Rong stepped into the night, carrying the food box, and left Qingliang Valley.

He returned to the Qingliang Valley dining hall all the way.

On the way, he looked back from time to time, examining the several waterfalls on the cliffs in Qingliang Valley.

With the small map given by Yutang, Ouyang Rong was roughly familiar with the roads in Qingliang Valley. This time, coming to meet Chen Jiaxin privately, he didn't need Xiao Niangzi Chen to lead the way, saying he came alone in the evening, taking advantage of the fact that the dining hall's night shift hadn't started yet.

On the way, Ouyang Rong looked back twice at a waterfall in the northeast corner.

He didn't know if it was because it had entered the low-water season, but the water volume of this waterfall was decreasing day by day; compared to when Ouyang Rong first entered Qingliang Valley and saw it, the width of the water flow had shrunk by half.

However, this waterfall was not where the water prison was located; the water prison was behind the largest waterfall in Qingliang Valley.

So he didn't pay too much attention to the recent strangeness of the waterfall in the northeast corner.

This trip to see Chen Jiaxin had yielded quite a bit.

The simplest gain was verifying a point of view he had always held... Chen Jiaxin, who seemed very difficult to talk to, was actually very easy to talk to.

She finally agreed to the condition of guiding Wu Cui's sword technique, albeit with a haughty and disdainful attitude.

Returning to the dining hall, the other servant ladies were chatting and slacking off, while Wu Cui sat by the window, resting her chin on her hand and daydreaming.

It could be seen that after missing the opportunity to deliver food to the water prison and see the Fifth Divine Maiden, Wu Cui's illusions were somewhat shattered, and she was listless.

Ouyang Rong walked to the stove naturally and looked at the somewhat messy stove, which hadn't been cleaned up.

He turned his head and looked around; before he could speak, Wu Cui by the window had already stood up, taken a rag, walked forward, and lowered her head to wipe the stove.

Ouyang Rong watched the dull, freckled girl for a while.

Actually, this wasn't her job.

After Wu Cui finished cleaning, Ouyang Rong suddenly said:

"Where is that sword manual of yours? Bring it to me later."

Wu Cui thought she had misheard, looked up blankly, and looked at him with confused eyes.

So Ouyang Rong repeated it again.

A glimmer of light seemed to ignite in the depths of Wu Cui's eyes.

With no news for many days, she had thought Ouyang Rong was just giving her empty promises, or that he had just mentioned it to the Fifth Divine Maiden to complete a task, with no follow-up.

She suppressed her excitement and asked seriously:

"What... what are you going to do?"

Ouyang Rong nodded and said bluntly:

"I promised to mention it for you, but the Fifth Divine Maiden is currently in seclusion and might not be able to come out of the water prison. If she guides you, she will either send someone to bring a message or send a personal disciple to handle it; be mentally prepared."

Wu Cui nodded repeatedly: "Okay, I am already satisfied; thank you very much, Liu Aliang."

Ouyang Rong waved his hand.

Wu Cui took out a sword manual from her bosom and handed it over solemnly.

Ouyang Rong took the sword manual, which was warmed by her bosom, and as if remembering something, he turned his head and asked her again:

"By the way, I heard that the things the fairies cultivate are called Qi Refining Techniques, and the entry level seems to be Grade 9; this sword manual should have it, right? How is your cultivation situation now? Have you entered the ranks?"

After hearing this, Wu Cui's little face turned red, and under Ouyang Rong's burning gaze, she lowered her head to look at her toes, feeling a bit embarrassed:

"The sword manual does have a Qi Refining mental method, but I... I have practiced for a long time and haven't found the way; I'm a bit confused and haven't entered the ranks yet..."

As if afraid that Ouyang Rong would cast a strange look, she hurriedly explained, while reaching out to flip through the sword manual in Ouyang Rong's hand, gesturing to him:

"However, I have memorized all the moves in the sword manual, including the Qi Refining mental method; you can test me on anything. Besides, I have made notes and marks on the parts I don't understand... I am truly studying seriously and don't dare to delay for a moment..."

By the time she finished, her voice was weak and small; before Ouyang Rong could speak, she was already blushing with shame.

Ouyang Rong looked at the restless, studious girl, not wanting to say anything, silently put away the sword manual, and instead, gave a light laugh:

"It's okay, I'm the same."