Ink Blade Chapter 37 (Part 1)
Translated by Sylver
City Gate Struggle (part 1)
Outside Changqing City, a black wooden carriage was parked under the shade of a tree.
Sitting in front, holding the bridle and driving the car, was a pretty girl dressed as a maid in a goose-yellow robe. The door and windows of the carriage were covered with a layer of gauze curtains, making the people inside could not be seen.
All one could see was a slender finger like white jade sticking out and opening a small gap in the carriage curtain. A very clear and pleasant young man's voice asked, "Miss Qiu Jin, why don't we go inside the city?"
"Young Master, don't be anxious." The maid in yellow robe, who was called Miss Qiu Jin, respectfully answered back to the one inside the carriage, "It's not that we’re not going inside the city. In fact, in recent days, there has been a lot of civil strife in Changqing City. The Palace Master is afraid that the Young Master will encounter mishaps thus told this slave in advance to wait for the Palace Master to personally come and pick up and go in together."
"Ah, how can this be?"
The young man in the carriage exclaimed softly, then lifted the curtain of the front door and leaned out, revealing a face as delicate as a carved jade.
"Big Brother Chu has such a noble status, how can he be asked to come out of the city to pick up personally! Miss Qiu Jin, let's just go in on our own, okay?"
But Qiu Jin shook her head. "It is well known that the Palace Master loves the Young Master very much. If this slave dares to make her own decisions, she should be severely punished by the Palace Master. Hoping Young Master Bai Hua to not make it difficult for this slave."
"Oh, Miss, please don't say that." Bai Hua smiled embarrassed, his long and curled eyelashes blinking, and his eyes were moist, looking very hurt.
"In that case, then Bai Hua will just wait here. Alas...Big Brother Chu is making too much of a fuss, what can happen?"
"....."
Qiu Jin stared at the profile of the beautiful young man and smiled slowly.
She stretched out her hand to straighten the hair on her temples, and said in a leisurely manner, "The Palace Master’s care leads to chaos……Young Master being favored by the Palace Master like this, it's really a blessing."
Bai Hua didn't notice anything else in Qiu Jin's smile. He just blushed and murmured, "Big Brother Chu is a god-like figure. To be able to have such affection from him is indeed a blessing for Bai Hua..."
Before he could finish speaking, there was a sudden gust of wind behind him, and with the sound of clothes flapping, then Chu Yan's voice came. "Haha, this Master doesn't know, so Hua'er praised this Master like this behind his back?"
When the first laugh came, Qiu Jin and Bai Hua were still seeing the vast suburban scene in front of them, and the small road not far away that was full of strangers dressed in martial arts attire.
When the last word "Master" fell, Chu Yan's long figure had already landed safely in mid-air next to the carriage.
There were ups and down of exclamations all around, partly for this light skill and partly for the graceful and magnificent demeanor of the new comer: Seeing this handsome young man with a jade crown and black hair, a navy blue long robe, a sapphire paper fan spread out on his slender fingers, and a pair of phoenix eyes raised proudly, with an invisible momentum that could repel people thousands of miles away.
To be fair, the appearance and temperament of the Jiuzhong Palace Master was all extraordinary. Fortunately, Chu Yan rarely appeared in the world, and passers-by just talked about whose young master of a Dao family he was from, which sect he was from…..no one recognized his true identity.
Beside the carriage, Qiu Jin bowed respectfully and saluted. "Qiu Jin greets the Palace Master, she is rest assured that the Palace Master is safe."
Chu Yan raised his hand to signal the maid to excuse herself, but his eyes fell on Bai Hua.
Finally, it was time for the enemy to meet. Fortunately, he was much calmer than he expected.
He raised his chin towards Bai Hua and called "Hua'er" in a very natural way.
"Big Brother Chu, you are here!"
Bai Hua screamed in surprise at first. When he realized the words he had heard, he blushed with embarrassment and snorted angrily, "Big Brother Chu is teasing Hua'er again with his good martial arts.....Why is it behind his back, Hua'er has clearly...obviously always admired Big Brother Chu!"
"Oh, really? This Master is very happy."
Chu Yan smiled happily and personally helped Bai Hua out of the carriage.
Very good... After not seeing each other for a few days, he became even more disgusted with the hypocritical behavior of this little spy. Even the faint fragrance of Bai Hua made him want to vomit.
It's strange to say that at the time, he was young and frivolous. Before meeting Bai Hua, he didn't think much about matters concerning love, and he even looked down on those who served people with sex. In this case, how on earth did he fall in love with this flower vase? (TL: no talent, only good-looking)
Chu Yan allowed his thoughts to wander while he responded to Bai Hua's words.
Just at this moment, there was a sudden noise from behind, with the sound of wheels and neighing of horses. Someone waved a whip and shouted loudly, "The envoy of the Alliance Leader Mansion is here with their carriages and horses——loiterers ahead, retreat——"
A line coming in a mighty manner could be seen, raising smoke and dust all the way. Looking around, the carriage was a fragrant wooden carriage, the horses were a tall white horse, and a row of golden bells were ringing all the way. Also accompanied by a group of guards with swords, following with great strides, which was really impressive.
The carriage in the middle was extremely luxurious, draped in red tassels, inlaid with beautiful jades, and covered with a tasseled treasure cover. A golden crow statue stood on the cover, indicating its identity as the envoy of the Alliance Leader Mansion.
Such extravagance was not like that of a person in the Jianghu, but rather like some royal aristocrat. The driver was also arrogant, when seeing that there was someone in front unable to dodge, he swung his horse whip around like he was driving an animal, "Pedestrians, quickly retreat…..haha! You, don't you have eyes? Quick, go, go..."
Chu Yan didn't like this kind of behavior, and his expression became cold. But the voice from behind seemed to add fuel to the fire, shouting at Chu Yan and the others. "Hey, the carriage in front, quickly retreat—— the envoy of the Alliance Leader Mansion is here——!"
Retreat?
Chu Yan laughed sarcastically, squinted his eyes and turned to Qiu Jin and said, "Heard it? This Daren is shouting for this Master to retreat? What a big face." (TL: Daren-Sir)
Qiu Jin smiled slightly. Perhaps because she had followed Chu Yan for a long time, that even this personal maid had become somewhat arrogant and fearless. "Qiu Jin felt that the people in this world who are worthy of the Palace Master to retreat…..she is afraid that they’re not born yet.”
Chu Yan folded the paper fan in his palm, turned around and got into the carriage with Bai Hua. "Qiu Jin, enter the city!"
"Yes!"
The small goose-yellow robe gracefully fell in front, and Qiu Jin shouted "go". The powerful horse raised its hooves, and the black wooden carriage drove straight across, leaving the luxurious carriage behind.
"You!" The driver behind screamed with a livid face. "How impudent! Whose family’s carriage is it, daring to eat a bear's heart and a leopard's gall!" (TL: bold and fearless)
However, such a powerful call did not receive any response. The maid raised her whip, and the black wooden carriage drove into the city gate without slowing down, leaving no trace of its name.
