“...” Anyone else would likely have worn the same speechless expression. The girl named Shanshan found it hilarious. “I’ve never seen someone so self-absorbed. You’re as dazed as you are dim-witted.”
“Shanshan,” the ethereal beauty beside her chided, casting a reproachful look at her younger sister. “Do not be rude.” She turned back to Chu Ruo. “Young Master Chu, you have only just awakened and your body has not yet recovered. You should lie down and rest. You injured your waist during the fall; it isn't fit for long periods of standing.”
As if on cue, a sharp pang of pain flared up. Chu Ruo hurriedly supported her lower back with her hand. “I’ll sit for a bit, then.” She had spent three months lying down—she’d had quite enough of it. Her body was stiff and aching, and she wanted to take this chance to coax some information out of these two.
In moments like this, Chu Ruo’s mind raced. Based on the conversation she’d overheard, her martial arts were currently useless. This Shanshan girl clearly wanted to squeeze information about the Hundred Flowers Palace out of her. *In your dreams,* Chu Ruo thought. After a second of deliberation, she decided that in a situation like this, the universal amnesia trope was her best bet.
These two were "Saints" of the Heavenly Demon Palace, and they were secretly collaborating with that "Great Eagle" Liu Shaopeng and a mole within the Hundred Flowers Palace. They clearly wouldn't let her go easily. If they knew she was the Little She-Snake’s disciple, they would have sent her back already if they had any good intentions. To avoid being interrogated under torture, she would play dumb and find a way to contact the Little She-Snake later. On the bright side, if the Little She-Snake was looking for her, it meant she was safe. *Phew, thank goodness.*
“Young Master Chu?”
A few fingers waved in front of her eyes. Chu Ruo snapped back to reality. The woman smiled. “Are you feeling unwell?” Before she could answer, a heavy cloak was draped over her shoulders. The tent wasn't actually cold, especially with the charcoal fire burning in the center, but the woman insisted. “You are just recovering from a grave illness, and the weather has turned cold. You should dress warmly.”
Shanshan let out a dramatic gasp. “Wow. Idiot, that cloak is my sister’s prized possession. She won't even let me borrow it for a moment. What kind of luck do you have…”
“Hush!”
Chu Ruo looked at the fine, snow-white cloak. Though she wasn't an expert, the texture suggested it was incredibly precious. She felt a bit embarrassed. “It’s fine, really. You should take it back—”
“Don’t,” the woman interrupted, her face flushing a deep crimson. “Just wear it. We… we shall leave you for now and check on you again later.”
Seeing them about to leave, Chu Ruo panicked. *Wait, I haven't asked anything yet!* “Don’t go!” In her haste, she reflexively grabbed the woman’s hand. “I… I just woke up. Can’t you two sit and talk with me for a while?”
A teasing voice rang out. “Are you asking both of us, or just my sister? You’re holding her hand awfully tight.”
Chu Ruo noticed the woman beside her looking increasingly bashful. She quickly let go and stood up, bowing with her hands clasped. “My apologies. I was impetuous.”
Before the older sister could speak, Shanshan chimed in again. “You’re quite interesting. You touch her and then apologize—what’s the point? Besides, it’s not like you’re a man. Though…” She scrutinized Chu Ruo as if seeing her for the first time. “This shell of yours is quite nice. I didn't realize it back then, but you’re actually a woman.”
*Hey, I don't like the sound of that. Is that gender discrimination? I’m a straight-as-an-arrow girl—well, maybe a bit bent—but that’s not the point. I’m a woman through and through.*
“Back then?” Chu Ruo realized why they looked so familiar. These two were the ones from the Drunken Dream Pavilion who had dropped their silver and been fleeced for five hundred taels by Sister Yao. She had been so preoccupied with their conversation earlier that she hadn't made the connection. She’d suspected they were girls back then. Now was the perfect time to start a conversation. “You two look very familiar. May I ask your names?”
“Is your eyesight that poor? Have you forgotten? I told you at the Drunken Dream Pavilion—that debt of five hundred taels for the wine has been repaid by saving your life, hasn't it?”
*Time to show off my acting skills.* Chu Ruo put on a look of total confusion. “The Drunken Dream Pavilion?”
As expected, they didn't suspect a thing. “You don’t remember us?”
She shook her head. “Not exactly. My… my head is a mess. It’s like flashes of memories are flickering by, but I can’t grasp anything. My memory is in pieces—bits of fragments here, sudden scenes there. All I know for sure is that my name is Chu Ruo. Everything else…” She shrugged. “I can’t remember.”
“Sister, do you think she hit her head when she fell off the cliff?”
“Perhaps. Or it could be a side effect of the medicine I formulated.”
*Wait, what?!* Chu Ruo swallowed hard. “What… what kind of medicine did you give me?”
Shanshan gave her a playful, mischievous grin. “Poison. Very deadly poison.”
“Shanshan!” The older sister glared at her sibling before turning back to Chu Ruo. “Do not listen to her nonsense. The truth is, your injuries were too severe. Furthermore, you have the Hundred Flowers Gu in your system. I…” Her eyes filled with apology. “Young Master Chu, I should actually apologize to you. I am sorry.”
“Sister, why are you apologizing to her? She’d be dead without you. She should be thanking you! Idiot, since you can’t remember, let me tell you. Listen well: you have a poison called the Hundred Flowers Gu in your body. Without the antidote, the pain is unbearable, and you’d die on the third day. My sister stayed awake for three days and nights to develop a new medicine to suppress it. But this medicine also seals your meridians, which is why you can’t use your internal energy. Also, the medicine itself is toxic—”
“Wait, wait, wait!” Chu Ruo waved her hands frantically. “Fighting poison with poison? Does that mean I’ll just drop dead one day from an overdose? And does this medicine have side effects?”
“I have kept the toxicity to a minimum. Please… rest assured,” the woman said, biting her lip. “I will not let anything happen to you.”
*Rest assured? No, lady, you’re exactly why I’m NOT assured! Just send me back to the Little She-Snake! Who asked for this kind of rescue? Now I have the Hundred Flowers Gu AND a new poison in me? I really want to… forget it, don't curse.* She took a deep breath and asked tentatively, “Then… who gave me this Hundred Flowers Gu?”
“The Hundred Flowers Gu is a secret poison of the Hundred Flowers Palace. Who do you think?”
“Then why didn't you send me back there? If she gave it to me, she can give me the antidote!” *Waaaah, I’m done! I want to go home! What kind of bizarre wuxia world is this? First I get poisoned by the Little She-Snake, then I finally get on her good side and am about to marry into wealth and reach the peak of my life, only to fall off a cliff, get poisoned again, and lose my martial arts! It’s like I’m back at square one! Damn you, heavens, you just can’t stand to see me happy!*
Chu Ruo’s internal tantrum must have shown on her face. Shanshan was staring at her with sharp, discerning eyes that seemed to see through everything. Terrified, Chu Ruo instinctively hid behind the older sister. “What are you looking at?” she squeaked.
Shanshan lunged toward her. “Shanshan, stop!” Even though the white-clad beauty tried to shield her, Chu Ruo still received a sharp flick to the forehead. *Ow!* “Why did you hit me?!”
“Shanshan! She just woke up. There’s a limit to your mischief.” The older sister turned to Chu Ruo with a gentle voice. “Are you hurt anywhere?”
*Okay, she’s a nice lady, but I still can’t forgive the whole giving-poison-to-the-Eagle thing. For now, I’ll just play along.*
“I’m okay.”
“She’s not made of tofu. Will one flick kill her? The last person I hit only turned a bit stupid. She wasn't that bright to begin with.”
*What?! One flick and you turned someone stupid?* Chu Ruo scrambled back several steps. “Stay away from me!”
“It’s the truth! Think about it—would someone who poisoned you with the Hundred Flowers Gu give you the antidote? You’re a fool. Little Ruoruu, remember this: Nan Muxue, the Young Palace Mistress of the Hundred Flowers Palace, is your enemy. You must seek revenge on her in the future.”
“Shanshan, you…”
“Oh, Sister,” Shanshan cut her off. It looked like Bai Zhier wanted to tell the truth, but Shanshan stopped her. “I’m just telling her so she knows who to hate.”
*I spit on your ancestors! This girl is a better liar than I am. And "Little Ruoruu"? Are we that close?* “Then how did I get injured? How did you find me?”
“We found you at the foot of the Cloud Mist Mountain. You were at death’s door.”
Shanshan hijacked the story again. “You were practically dead. Cloud Mist Mountain is where a branch of the Hundred Flowers Palace is located. You fell from the top. You can figure out how you got hurt, right?”
*Lie. Keep lying. You’re talking to the master of nonsense.* Chu Ruo suddenly stood up. “Then I’m going to the Hundred Flowers Palace right now to get revenge on that… that Xue person!”
“Do you even know the way?”
“I…”
“You’re no different from a cripple right now. You’d better stay put.”
“You!”
“Alright, time’s up. Sister, let’s go.”
“Yes.” Bai Zhier glanced back at Chu Ruo. “Chu… Ruo, please rest. I… we will come to see you tonight.”
*That’s it? You’re leaving me with all these questions?* “Where exactly is this place?” she asked, full of suspicion.
Shanshan’s smile was beautiful but, in Chu Ruo’s eyes, utterly villainous. “It’s a secret. And let me tell you, don’t even think about running away. Without my sister and me, you won’t survive three days with that poison in you. Also, we aren't in the Central Plains anymore.”
*Three days. It’s always three days. I’m not "Chu Three-Days"! Everyone thinks they can bully me.* It seemed she really couldn't go back for now. She had to stay put and wait for an opportunity. *I want to go home… or back to the Hundred Flowers Palace.* Chu Ruo pulled back the tent flap. The vast, magnificent scenery of the grasslands made her want to sob even more. It was mid-winter now, and the world was covered in a blanket of white. *Little She-Snake, where are you? I miss the palace. I miss you.*
***
“Young Palace Mistress, it is snowing again. Look.”
Nan Muxue stopped her brush and looked out the window. Despite the biting wind, she hadn't closed the casement. Outside, disciples were walking in small groups, and a few bold ones had started playing in the snow. She let out a soft, rare chuckle. “Go play with the others for a while,” she told Xiao Guo’er.
“Yes! Thank you, Young Palace Mistress!” Xiao Guo’er had been itching to join them and bolted out immediately.
The woman at the desk didn't return to her work. She stood and walked to the window. It was strange; the scenery of the Hundred Flowers Palace was the same every year, yet this year, it felt empty. Her hand no longer toyed with her jade thumb ring; instead, she stroked the white jade bracelet the other person had given her. That bracelet, that hairpin—she had never taken them off. The first snow had already passed, and the New Year was approaching. *How much longer do you plan to hide?*
There was a little over a month until the New Year. The situation at the branch sect had been settled, and several smaller branches had been established. Rumors in the martial arts world claimed the previous massacre was the work of the Heavenly Demon Palace, but the Hundred Flowers Palace had been relentlessly attacking the branches of the Flying Eagle Fort. No one intervened. That was the way of the world. They only knew that Nan Muxue had lost a beloved disciple and had perhaps gone mad with grief, attacking her own allies. Most were content to sit back and watch the tigers fight.
Duan Ning, Yin Liuli, and Nangong Yan stood in the distance, sighing at the lonely figure. With the New Year approaching and the branch sects stabilized, they had finally managed to gather back at the main palace. They had all been incredibly busy, but Nan Muxue was busier than any of them. Between managing palace affairs and leading the raids on the Flying Eagle Fort, she spent every spare moment searching for Chu Ruo. She was visibly thinner and more haggard than before.
Yin Liuli spoke first. “If Xue’er keeps this up, I fear she won’t be able to hold on.”
“It’s been nearly half a year. Chu Ruo is surely dead. That body at the foot of the cliff was her; Xue’er just refuses to believe it,” Duan Ning said, biting her lip. “Once the New Year passes, I’m going to tell her that the half-year mark is up and that girl is definitely dead.”
They had discussed everything with Nangong Yan, who looked equally grim. “I thought Xue’er’s feelings would fade with time, but seeing her like this… I fear Chu Ruo has taken root in her heart. Perhaps we should have cut off her hope from the very beginning.” She didn't understand. Chu Ruo was an ordinary disciple. Even if she had a talent for martial arts, the palace was full of such people. Chu Ruo was impetuous and loud. How could such a person, in less than a year, leave such a deep mark on the heart of the cold Young Palace Mistress—that unreachable flower on a high peak? How did she walk into that heart and never leave?
Duan Ning nodded and pulled out the silk pouch. “I agree. Let’s just go and tell her now.”
“Yan’er, Ning’er,” Yin Liuli stopped them. “Look at the state she’s in. If we tell her now, I’m afraid she won’t survive the blow.”
“Better a sharp pain now than a long ache later. We’re doing this for her—”
“I know, but there’s still a little time before the six-month mark. Let’s wait until then. At least she’ll be somewhat prepared.”
Duan Ning gripped the pouch tightly. “She knows in her heart; she just won't give up. You saw how the leaders of the Flying Eagle Fort branches died—the methods were bloodier than anything I’ve seen. Xue’er is venting all her rage on them. If this continues, I fear she will fall into a cultivation deviation.”
Nangong Yan hesitated. “Maybe we should wait. We’re going down the mountain in a few days to recruit new disciples. Why don’t we go together and look around?”
Yin Liuli looked thoughtful. “You mean… find someone who looks like Chu Ruo to comfort her? I doubt it will work.”
“It’s the only thing we can try for now,” Nangong Yan said helplessly. “I don’t know what she’s thinking. She’s been back so long but refuses to see Yun Shuang. Is she still angry that Yun Shuang tried to kill Chu Ruo? Xue’er has truly changed for that disciple.”
Duan Ning gave her a suggestive smile. “What’s this? You’re not the Great Protector anymore, so you’ve made up with your Yun Shuang?”
“You! Do you want me to—”
“Enough,” Yin Liuli interrupted. She was a year or two older and more level-headed. “This is no time for bickering. Yan’er, we were all close with Yun Shuang once, and we’re happy for the two of you. But Yun Shuang still belongs to the Old Palace Mistress’s faction. You must be careful.”
“Liuli, what are you thinking? I’ve only started speaking to her again, that’s all,” Nangong Yan said, blushing slightly. “Fine, fine. I’ll be careful.”
Inside the room, Nan Muxue was staring at the portrait she had painted. “Once the New Year is over, I will go down the mountain and destroy the Flying Eagle Fort to avenge you, alright? You hated Liu Shaopeng so much; I won’t let him die easily. Then I will come find you. If Mother doesn't agree, then I will simply stop being the Young Palace Mistress. I will find you myself. Ruo’er, wait for me.”
***
Chinese | English | Notes/Explanation
--- | --- | ---
白芷儿 | Bai Zhier | The elder of the two sisters who rescued Chu Ruo; gentle and skilled in medicine.
白姗 (白姗姗) | Bai Shan (Bai Shanshan) | The younger of the two sisters; mischievous and blunt.
圣女 | Saint / Holy Maiden | A high-ranking title within the Heavenly Demon Palace.
白玉镯 | White Jade Bracelet | A gift from Chu Ruo to Nan Muxue.
高岭之花 | Flower on a high peak | A metaphor for someone unreachable, cold, and aloof.
走火入魔 | Cultivation Deviation | A state where a martial artist's internal energy goes out of control, often leading to madness or death.
云霜 | Yun Shuang | A character mentioned as being close to Nangong Yan and part of the Old Palace Mistress's faction.
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