Chapter 65: 63 For the Sake of the Faint Fragrance (Bonus Chapter for Collections)

63 For the Sake of the Faint Fragrance (Bonus Chapter for Collections)

That Daoist Child, who was none other than Tang Zhao brought out to pose as one, was slightly startled—this girl was quite uninhibited; would she really tell a stranger the given name of a young lady from a noble house so casually?

This young girl was also fifteen or sixteen, older than Tang Zhao, and already at the age for marriage discussions.

Tang Zhao said, "Pardon my presumption..."

This young girl, Pei Shoujing, said, "It doesn't matter. Names can be spoken. The Old Ancestor said it is best to wait until I kill the enemy, then point at his head and tell the others, 'I am Pei Shoujing of the Pei Clan.'"

"Kill..."

Pei Shoujing's hand naturally touched her waist, and she said, "Mm, with this."

Hanging at her waist was a brocade bag, brilliant with gold, looking like a brush case, but longer than a brush.

"A sword?"

Tang Zhao reacted immediately.

He had not expected this dignified, somewhat wooden young girl to also be a Sword Guest? Or perhaps, like him, she was a trainee Sword Guest, a Heavy Swordsman, a Sword Envoy, or something of the sort?

Tang Zhao was currently playing the role of a little Daoist Child and had nothing to do with swords, so naturally, it was inconvenient to ask more.

At this moment, the water bowl was filled, and the tea fragrance was fresh. Pei Shoujing took it and drank a mouthful, saying, "There is the scent of plum blossoms. Is this plum blossom snow water?"

Tang Zhao said, "Yes, the temple originally kept one jar buried in the earth. Today, with distinguished guests arriving, the Temple Master ordered it to be taken out to treat the guests."

Although this was a stage set up by Black Widow, the costumes and props were meticulously prepared, and Tang Zhao only needed to follow the steps to act his part.

However, Tang Zhao was very surprised that this young girl could taste the plum blossom fragrance. One had to know that the water had been heated through a porcelain cup; even if it were fragrant, the scent could not seep into the tea, yet she could actually perceive it.

Tang Zhao had secretly tasted it himself, wanting to see what the plum blossom snow water mentioned in books tasted like. He had drunk two large cups without tasting any difference, and as for the plum blossom fragrance, there wasn't even a shadow of it. It seemed his sense of taste was still crude.

Pei Shoujing said, "It is a scent I like."

Tang Zhao said, "I know, you like plum blossoms." He had also seen the dark silver plum blossom pattern on the girl's sword bag; it seemed she truly liked them.

Pei Shoujing said, "What I planted outside my room are white plums. My sword is also related to plum blossoms. This is my affinity with Meijun."

Tang Zhao said, "Plum blossoms have jade faces and icy souls; they are noble, elegant, and perfectly match your temperament." He thought: A sword related to plum blossoms? What kind is it? Plum Snow? Faint Fragrance? Lingering Frost?

The young girl's brows relaxed slightly, clearly enjoying his praise, and she said, "Actually, I have always wanted to take a title related to plum blossoms. The name Shoujing is meaningless. When I become a Sword Guest, I will report my title when I mention it to others. What do you think would be good to take?"

This scratched Tang Zhao's itch. He was at that age of being a "teenager with delusions of grandeur" and had read a few books, so he quite liked giving himself and others nicknames that were either cool or elegant. He said, "If you want something straightforward, how about the elegant title 'Yuxiao God' from the plum blossom? If you want a source, in terms of describing the scenery, there is nothing better than the two lines: 'Sparse shadows cast aslant on clear, shallow water; a faint fragrance floats in the dusk of the moon.' You could also take the two characters 'Sparse Shadow'."

Pei Shoujing's eyes lit up, and she said, "Which poem is this? I haven't read it."

Tang Zhao remembered this was a poem from Chen Zong's hometown and said, "I read it in an ancient book. I can transcribe it for you."

Chen Zong certainly wouldn't mind; he was willing to introduce his hometown to everyone.

Pei Shoujing said, "So you have read quite a lot of books. Regarding poems about plum blossoms, which one do you like the most?"

Tang Zhao recalled that he actually read too broadly and didn't remember many poems. If he did remember one, it had to be a classic that Chen Zong had mentioned, known to every child, and it had to be catchy to be easy to remember. He said, "I haven't read many; the one just now counts as one. As for lyrics, the two 'Bu Suan Zi' pieces. And that one: 'At the corner of the wall, several branches of plum blossoms, blooming alone in the cold. From afar, I know they are not snow, for there is a faint fragrance coming.'"

Just as he was speaking, a bell sound came from under the corridor.

That was the agreed-upon signal. Tang Zhao hurriedly said, "I am going to add water. You drink your tea." He carried the kettle into the room.

Pei Shoujing slowly savored the line "for there is a faint fragrance coming," and unknowingly followed Tang Zhao.

There were several doors to the meditation room that everyone had discussed. Tang Zhao entered through a small door that opened in the corner, and he did not attract attention when he entered.

At this time, "Yun Xiangu" was grinding tea. Tang Zhao put down the kettle and heard the people in the hall still arguing, the atmosphere already white-hot with everyone talking at once.

"Compared to Sword Guests, we don't know enough about Spirit Officials; actually, we should be more wary of..."

"What do you mean not enough? What is the difference between a Spirit Official and a Phantom? I have killed several Phantoms; why should I fear a Spirit Official? My younger brother once wanted to be a Spirit Official, and I told him Spirit Officials have no future; even a Dharma Swordsman is better than a Spirit Official."

"Nonsense. Look at those Heavy Swordsmen below; they are still ranked behind the Spirit Officials. Heavy Swordsmen can also use Dharma Artifacts. The Land Inspection Department is wealthy and has so many Sword Guests; they probably have a Dharma Artifact for everyone!"

"Besides these few, I think there is one more person to watch out for. The Inspection Envoy, do you know? The Inspection Envoy's official rank is above the Town Guardian. That 'Pear Blossom Sword' is only heard of by sword title, never seen in person. Perhaps it is the trump card hidden by the Land Inspection Department."

"Pang Ke, if you don't understand, you don't have to speak. The Inspection Envoy has to inspect three counties; how many great Demon Caves and great Yin Calamities are waiting for him to handle? Why would he come to He Yang County? Why don't you guard against the Commander? Why don't you guard against the Gaoyuan Marquis leading a great army to take Heiyang?"

"Brother Wang is right. And although the Inspection Envoy's rank is high, he is not necessarily stronger than the Town Guardian. Instead, he is more likely a confidant of the Gaoyuan Marquis."

"Indeed. The Gaoyuan Marquis is reorganizing the Land Inspection Department in the Northern Territory. Although his methods are drastic and thunderous, it is hard to avoid hidden dangers, so he appointed several Inspection Envoys in one breath. The areas this Inspection Envoy inspects are all places where the Gaoyuan Marquis's influence is weak. He is a die-hard confidant; he certainly has power, but he has never achieved any results and never shows his face, so it is clear his reputation exceeds his reality."

"Whether his reputation exceeds his reality or not, discussing hidden figures is inherently meaningless, otherwise it will never end. Let's just discuss what is before us. Now, everyone else can be traded off, except for that Town Guardian, who can only be left to that Sword Guest. If he can oppose him, the others are not worth mentioning; if he cannot, we will lose everything."

Tang Zhao worked with his hands, thinking: Are they dealing with Magistrate Xing? Is their Sword Guest the one the Land Inspection Department has been chasing? Magistrate Xing seemed to say he wanted to resolve it before the Demon Cave descended. I wonder if they have a plan.

There must be one, otherwise there wouldn't be this setup.

At this moment, he heard Pang Ke, who had been sarcastic all along, say, "Pei Laozu, we haven't seen that Excellency yet. We have only been hearing you coordinate. You have blown that Sword Guest up to be something miraculous—of course, I am not questioning you; I don't have the guts to question a Sword Guest. I am just saying, what if you lead us to pay a visit to the old gentleman? Would it take away your benefits? If you act like this, others will start to doubt your intentions."

"Father-in-law, don't listen to Pang Ke's gibberish. Who would doubt you? If not for you, we wouldn't have had the chance to participate. It's just that we truly do want to pay a visit to the Sword Guest. Blame us for being inexperienced; although we have seen Sword Guests, those were either officials of the Imperial Court or Elders of sects. We have truly never seen a mysterious foreign Sword Guest. If we could see him once, we would have no regrets in this life."

Seeing everyone crowding around, with every word expressing a desire to see the Sword Guest, Pei Laozu frowned. Pei Lifeng said, "It is not that we won't let you all see him; actually, this is out of the Old Ancestor's good intentions. Do you think a Sword Guest is so easy to see? His temperament..."

Pei Laozu coughed violently, and Pei Lifeng stopped. The others all sank their faces.

At this time, they heard Wang Cheng say, "Cousin?"

Everyone looked over and saw Pei Shoujing wearing a heavy coat, walking in gracefully from outside, looking very surprised.

Wang Cheng was immediately all smiles and said, "When did Cousin arrive? Did you come with Uncle? Why didn't you come in?"

With him interrupting like this, the atmosphere improved slightly. Wang Feize even laughed and said, "Ah, the niece is here too? You've grown so tall, and you're growing more outstanding."

Pei Shoujing smiled, bowed, and said, "Greetings, Uncle-in-law." Then she greeted the several middle-aged men one by one.

She was somewhat wooden outside, and her train of thought was even a bit peculiar, but upon seeing her relatives, she immediately became serious, reserved, and without losing any etiquette. At a glance, she was a well-bred young lady of a noble family.

Pei Lifeng was also surprised that she would suddenly enter, but he didn't say anything and signaled for her to sit. Wang Cheng immediately took a Cattail Mat and placed it beside himself, but Pei Shoujing did not go to sit; instead, she took a Cattail Mat herself and sat beside Yun Xiangu.

Brother Wang nodded secretly and glared at his son: This boy is so rash; he doesn't think that there are elders and uncles around him, and several of them are strangers. How could his own cousin sit with them? Fortunately, the child Shoujing has her own sense of propriety and knows to sit beside Yun Xiangu.

He turned his head and saw Pang Ke staring at Pei Shoujing, and he immediately became even more furious, thinking: I have always known this person is base and disgusting, but I didn't expect him to be such a shameless old man. In broad daylight, he is actually this rude.

Suddenly, Pang Ke slapped his thigh and said, "I know! Pei Laozu, you brought this girl out for the first time, and you hid her so we wouldn't see her. Is it because you let her come to this Daoist temple to pay a visit to that Sword Guest?"