Chapter 199: The Secret of the Token
Translator: Antonia
“Since you’re here, why not stay for some days before you go back?” The two were of extraordinary demeanor in speech and movement. On one glance, she knew they were elites of Heimu and Ruoshui. Su Qi had said that soon after father died, the Cang had been aggressive at the borders, so they couldn’t stay long in the capital.
Coming here, they had two purposes. One was to make clear with her of their identities, and the second was to express the clans’ willingness to pledge loyalty to her.
Changmu didn’t reply, pondering for a while, and stood up, cupping his hands, “Lady, the capital is not safe, and the Emperor has vicious intention. Would you please go with us to Heimu and Ruoshui? There is a Founder mansion too. There, you could do whatever you like, without feeling constrained by anyone…”
He wasn’t blind or deaf and heard about multiple versions among the folks of what had happened to Mo Qianxue ever since she returned to the capital. Yesterday, he had also seen with his own eyes that Mo Qianxue came out of the jail… Now, taking her to the west borders was the only way to guarantee her safety.
Mo Qianxue’s countenance changed slightly. Go to the west?
She would go there someday. She wanted to take a look at the places on which her father and mother had spent their whole energies.
But not now.
Now, the Emperor wouldn’t let her leave.
If she wanted to, she could only leave secretly. But then, what about Ning Shaoqing? What about their agreement?
However, at this moment, these seemed not the most important matters.
The most important was she couldn’t leave because her foe was right here!
Wind blew in, gently sweeping over Mo Qianxue’s cheeks, lifting up her hair around temples and also maximized the releasing of her stubbornness, “No thanks. I’ll stay right here without going anywhere. I’ll wait and see what the Emperor will do to me?”
There was something else she didn’t spell out. When her foe was here, where else should she go?
Mo Qianxue’s attitude was firm. Although she didn’t say that, Changmu and Yuxuan understood.
They took a look at each other and stopped trying to persuade her. This daughter of Founder wasn’t a bit daunted when she knew clearly of danger ahead. Changmu’s admiration rose again.
He had shown respect mostly because of Founder, but now he adored her entirely due to her own indomitableness.
Collecting himself, Changmu said with reverence, “We take over a team of men-of-sacrifice respectively. They aren’t in a great number, but every one is elite warrior selected by our clans in order to protect lady. If lady trusts us, please let the two teams station in to ensure the safety of the Founder mansion.” Before Mo Qianxue replied, Yuxuan also cupped her hands, “If possible, I’d like to stay in the capital with lady to better protect you. Please!”
Mo Qianxue made a look, and nanny Mo hurriedly held her up.
Instinctively she wanted to refuse, but the situation wouldn’t allow her. As a lady stuck in her inner courtyard, she didn’t lack servants.
But as a head of a mansion, she was indeed short of aides. She thought it over and looked up, “Yuxuan, you’ve made up your mind?”
Yuxuan didn’t even take a look at Changmu, “I’d like to protect lady with my life.” She feared that once she looked at him, she couldn’t help going back with him to Ruoshui in the west.
However, she couldn’t.
Changmu was the son of the clan leader of Heimu. The safety of the whole clan resided in him. With such a huge responsibility on him, he must return to the west.
She was the daughter of Ruoshui’s head, and the best female martial artist in Ruoshui. Her responsibility was to protect Founder’s child, so she must stay.
The head had ordered, either she took lady back or she stayed with lady.
If lady lived, she lived!
If lady died, she also died!
Outside Ruoshui, her life belonged to Miss. Mo of the Founder mansion.
Mo Qianxue had figured that they were a couple in the first place and didn’t intend to separate them.
However, she could also tell Yuxuan’s determination.
The resolution in Yuxuan’s eyes shot out as something enabling her to face death unflinchingly. She was afraid that if she refused, Yuxuan couldn’t go back without punishment.
On the other hand, Changmu, with no reluctance in his eyes, showed an air of lofty goal and certain relief.
Presumably they had discussed this beforehand.
If so, she didn’t need to pretend.
Mo Qianxue stood up, waving her sleeves, and looked stern, “Alright. Then later you contend with nanny. If you win, you can stay. Otherwise…”
Otherwise, it meant you were useless and didn’t need to stay!
Mo Qianxue didn’t mean it. If Yuxuan lost, she had a reason to go back with to the west.
Finishing it, Mo Qianxue was about to go out, when Changmu took a step back and stopped her in the distance, asking, “What about the warriors?”
Mo Qianxue glance at butler Mo who stood on the side, “Please handle this. Arrange the two team into our own guard squad, under the lead of Mo Yan and Mo Xing.”
“Yes.” The butler was respectful but couldn’t hide the trace of joy. Obviously, he was happy.
At the training field, Mo Qianxue had thought there would be a thrilling fight.
Yet, she was wrong. Nanny Mo lost after a few bouts.
Yuxuan’s moves were neat and quick as herself. There weren’t many changes in her moves, which came straightforward and powerful, but also surprising at a high speed.
Quick, accurate and cutting, there moves were very suitable for soldiers.
A good martial artist, nanny Mo was originally a servant girl after all. She had stayed inside a mansion peacefully for many years. How could she defeat someone like Yuxuan whose sharpness and instinct were honed through real battles?
Nanny Mo’s mvoes were those of regular martial artists, defending, withdrawing, protecting, blocking and attacking. Yet, Yuxuan’s were all killing moves, aimed at end the battle as soon as possible and attacking the enemy by surprise.
Mo Qianxue nodded. Although she had Ghost, he belonged to Ning Shaoqing. Besides, in some occasions, it was inconvenient for a man to follow her.
With Yuxuan, her safety was better guaranteed.
But anyway she wouldn’t give up practicing internal kungfu or the sword moves she had learnt from Su Qi or the needle skills Mr. Wang had taught her. She only wished to be able to protect herself.
The Emperor wished her death, so she must live well, to witness how Prince Zhennan would die, how the Emperor would die, and how the Dugu family ended miserably.
Of course, she never thought about rebellion. She just wanted to get even for her father.
Mo Qianxue agreed to let Yuxuan stay. Changmu didn’t say more and bid farewell since he had things to tackle with.
Now it was an eventful period for the two clans. His identity forbade him from staying longer in the capital. The two mayors of Heimu and Ruoshui were merely puppets, a fact the Emperor also knew.
Hence, the Emperor would definitely work out other plans to infiltrate his power in.
Changmu said goodbye to Mo Qianxue, but his eyes were on Yuxuan.
Mo Qianxue wasn’t an unreasonable person, so she smiled and asked Yuxuan to walk him to the door. As for the two teams of warriors, after Changmu left, they would follow Yuxuan back here.
Afterwards, Mo Qianxue let the butler to see them to the door and then left the training field.
When nanny Mo and Yuxuan competed, Ghost standing a hundred steps away, the butler on the edge of the forest, Mo Qianxue secretly asked Changmu why the Emperor cared about the black wooden token so much.
It was just a token, belonging to whoever the clans recognized. What was so important about it?
Yet, Changmu looked calm and solemn when it was mentioned.
It turned out that the ancestors of Heimu and Ruoshui had made a vow that they would listen to the command of whoever held the token.
This was also the reason why the two clans had given this token, which represented the faith of the clans, to the Founder.
This black wooden token was an ordinary thing. It resonated with the two tokens of them.
Speaking of it, Mo Qianxue agreed. At that moment, she did had a sense of familiarity, surging up from her palms to between her eyebrows.
However, she wasn’t sure of the latter part of what Changmu told her.
Changmu’s tone changed. He said that wasn’t the important thing. There was something even more significant.
Only the corners of his lips moved subtly, and his voice was extremely low to nothing. It was right next to Mo Qianxue’s ear, but she still tried very hard to hear clearly.
He said: This black wooden token had been worshipped since the founding of Heimu and Ruoshui. It was said that when it broke, people of Heimu and Ruoshui would extinct from the world forever.
The broken of a token led to the extinct of all those people?!
Mo Qianxue found it hard to believe, but she had to.
Although she received years of modern education, she had time-travelled here.
The token wasn’t actually made of wood or jade, but it could be hidden somehow within her body. As long as she doesn’t intend, others could find it.
Even Ning Shaoqing hadn’t discovered its existence when he got so close to her.
It seemed that in this world, there did exist many strange things. Besides, there were many estranged peoples and weird techniques. There was even bewitchment, let alone the token.
Little wonder the Emperor had wanted this token for so long…
Little wonder father and mother had stayed in the west to help them as a pay-back of their trust.
Now, Heimu and Ruoshui entrusted their lives to her, so she must take care of them… The Cang was aggressive and the imperial family cast watchful eyes on them. The future for Heimu and Ruoshui was worrying…
Mo Qianxue walked back, in heavy footsteps.
**
Changmu and Yuxuan got out of the Founder mansion. As they were about to part, neither of them talked.
After a long silence, Yuxuan broke it, “I used to hear that lady was feeble and timid. But now, after having met her, I don’t think she’s a timid coward. She is feeble, but there is resilience in her.”
Changmu was a little absent-minded and glanced from right to left at the crowd around them, “The rumor is unreal! Besides, a hero like Founder can’t have a timid daughter.”
“Do safeguard our homeland when you go back.”
“I will. You protect lady well. If one day, she changes her mind, then take her out of the capital. The Founder mansion in the west awaits lady forever…”
“…”
“I’ll also wait for you and lady in the west too…”
They stopped saying more. Changmu pulled over Yuxuan, and they hugged in the depth of a valley. There weren’t people around. The two hugged hard, as if to melt into each other’s bodies…