After this outburst, the atmosphere that had been cheerful and serene suddenly turned sour. No one really knew how to get back to the festivities. Even the elders of the Huang family were a bit embarrassed. After all, their name had just been slandered in front of everyone. Even Elder Huang Jian had gotten worked up and intervened. Until now, he had never interfered when it came to the younger generation. But he just couldn't take an insult against the Huang name in public. However, he felt bad now because he had given the impression to support Huang Cixi while Huang Lü was also there. In fact, he even knew that Huang Lü could be hurt by this as she had tried to mend things between Gui Bei and her rival.
Governor Leng was about to say something to clear the air but Huang Cixi spoke first. She bowed before him and Hall Master Fang.
"This impudent one is sorry about this lack of composure on my part. I hope you can forgive me, but hearing my own family being degraded in such a way. Accusing me of... I'm sorry, Sirs."
She then turned toward the three master poets.
"This humble one also asks for your forgiveness, Masters. I have still much to learn about the Five Imperial Arts, and poetry in particular. If I were more advanced, I would have been able to better control my anger."
Hearing her sincere apology, the three master poets didn't blame her. Having an open conflict in their presence was indeed rude. But, they would never have accepted such slander against them if they had been her. How could they expect someone else to accept it without retorting? It was said that poetry could allow someone to better understand, express but also control their emotions. However, this wouldn't make them saints overnight. Even they would have gotten angry if someone accused them of killing their own relatives.
Only two people in the audience realized that Huang Cixi was not being entirely sincere, Hall Master Fang and Governor Leng. Both of them were hardened politicians. As such, even Fang Shaolong that was only a 2nd-grade Mortal Warrior, had been able to see through her. They had to commend her because her mind cultivation was so advanced that they almost got duped by her performance. But she had clearly not been really angry. Gui Bei was just a clown performing in front of her. Both men were sure that she had played him all along. The reasons why she would do so were numerous and they couldn't be sure of them all. The most obvious one was to lower her rival's reputation by showing that she was a poor judge of character and had sided with an enemy of their own family.
Moreover, she had also forced the elders to side with her in public. Also, banning Gui Bei from the Huang family residence was not necessary right now, but she had maybe decided to do so to avoid future problems. Given the speed of his cultivation, if he were to ally himself with Huang Lü, it could be a problem. Although that bridge had now been burned, maybe Huang Cixi wanted to make sure of it.
The only thing that wasn't too clear for them was why she had given him one month to train himself. Surely, she knew how fast his cultivation had been recently. But then, they also remembered that she had a Pure Golden Dantian. Unlike most people around them, both men knew this information. None of them knew the effects of such a legendary Dantian though. Perhaps, this had made her confident in her cultivation. And both men also thought there was something more to this one month period.
As they were both trying to figure out all the subtleties of her actions, they were brought back to reality when she addressed them again.
"Governor Leng, I am deeply sorry. But I will be impolite and leave early. Sadly, I am not in the mood for poetry anymore..."
"Of course, Junior. No one here will find your departure disrespectful, I assure you. This is I who failed in my task as a host. None of my guest should have to tolerate any insult in my own courtyard." He turned tower Elder Huang Jian. "The Huang family is a great benefactor of mankind and your virtue has always been tested and proven throughout all the hardships our kingdom faced. With a single word from Matriarch Huang Yufeng, I am ready to punish this Gui Bei if that is what you wish for."
"Thank you, Governor Leng. But this matter will be settled by our younger generation. Let's just take those words for what they were, heated comments from a young boy. I am sure that our younger generation will prove to him and to all that our name is not just inherited, it's been earned."
After this exchange between Elder Huang Jian and Governor Leng, everyone noted that he was careful not to mention Huang Cixi by name. He only referred to the younger generation of which Huang Lü was also a part of. For an instant, Huang Cixi who was actively looking for it, saw some clues in both Elder Huang Jian and Huang Lü's eyes. However, no trace of her thoughts could be seen on her face and she turned toward Hall Master Fang.
"To try and restore the poetic spirit of the day, I wanted to address my last poem to you, Hall Master. I feel ashamed to show my meager talent in front of everybody, especially the three august master poets."
All the audience was indeed silent and ready to hear her. In a way, this was also a great moment to show her competence.
"In the deep plains of a dark tomb,
A majestic bird soars with gold,
Her blue light brings calm and peace,
And her colors fly to the peak.
"When she stops, on a gigantic tree,
Her feathers blend with the radiant pink,
Living together, none outshines the other,
But their colors bring life to the tomb.
"Carefully chosen, branches make a nest,
Featherless chicks screech with silver fur,
Watching their mother soar higher and higher,
And the tree grow taller and taller.
"Golden light unearths gems and riches,
Roots dig and nourish the ground,
A perfect symbiosis, a universal rainbow,
Inside a dark world, life is restored.
"Courageous chick screeches to no avail,
Hurt, she falls and in the dirt finds truth,
This land so beautiful, is still so fragile,
Buried secrets can darken all the colors."
The master poets were very interested in her composition. Each one of her stanzas seemed to follow both the precepts of Four-Four Aphorisms in their construction but also the rhythm variation of Songs of Zhang Te. This was rather difficult to do as both styles had different length in their verses. But she had been able to combine them together. Moreover, her imagery was also leaning toward the style of Four-Four Aphorisms. Master Poet Li Muyang who had been interested in her analysis earlier was now intrigued by her poetry as well. It was possible for someone to be great at analyzing without being able to produce anything original. But, even though it wasn't at a Heaven rank yet, her poetry had a lot of potential.
In addition, her declamation had had a terrific impact on everyone. It had probably been helped by her imagery of the fenghuang in her poem and the blood of this legendary beast flowing in her veins, but it had marked everyone nonetheless. Some people had even been able to mistake the shape of the cranes flying in the courtyard for a fenghuang. In the mind of some, the trees themselves had turned into beautiful cherry trees fully bloomed. These images stayed with them for a while as Huang Cixi slowly left the courtyard after showing her deference to her hosts.
Among the audience, only two people were truly shocked by her poem. The first one was her rival, Huang Lü. She now fully realized that Huang Cixi was a tough opponent. At first, she was convinced that this would be just a simple girl from the countryside. Her first days in the Huang residence had indeed been spent cloistered in her chambers. Although she had never bought her act, she now realized how much she had underestimated this girl. Very easily, she had stolen the show and had even forced the elders to take her side. However, this was also dangerous for her. If she were to lose against Gui Bei, she would be done for as she would have humiliated the Huang name.
Moreover, Huang Lü was confident in her achievement in the Five Imperial Arts. But after hearing Huang Cixi's declamation, she had to admit that this little girl was more advanced than her. Right now, no matter what she said, only her rival's words would remain in everyone's memory. And it wasn't just because of its intrinsic qualities, that were undeniable. It was also because of all her theatrics. She had chosen the perfect moment to declaim this poem and illustrate the Huang family's prestige as well as the relationship between her family and the Myriad Cherry Blossom Hall.
Precisely, the other person who was shocked by the poem was the hall master of the local branch of the Myriad Cherry Blossom Hall. Hall Master Fang didn't let it show but this poem had made him very uneasy. Thankfully, he was almost as good as Huang Cixi to hide his thoughts and emotions. And unlike her, he wasn't acting in front of everyone's focused gaze. Not even Governor Leng saw it, but Huang Cixi did. If she hadn't been specifically looking for it, she wouldn't have, but she knew exactly what she was doing. The poem seemed innocent until the last stanza. The audience thought of it as some cryptic way to say that they had to keep their alliance strong to thrive. But Hall Master Fang didn't understand that at all.
Instead, he began to fear that what he actually thought of was known. Then he remembered the words of Huang Cixi. She had doubts about the Xiliang Mines after reading some reports.
No. It couldn't be... No one should have been able to see through it...
-
Leaving many minds confused in her wake, Huang Cixi was now back into her dull cart. Bao Zhong and Zhao Guodong were still waiting for her outside of the governor's residence. And even though she couldn't find any trace of her, Huang Cixi knew that Huang Liyue was looking out for her from afar.
As soon as the cart began to move, she heard her voice in her head.
"Young Mistress, I do not understand. Why did you give one month to Gui Bei? I can guess what you tried to do today, but... If he really found something that can speed up his cultivation, giving him this time could be a problem."
"First of all, I am rather confident in my own ability. But that would indeed be a mistake to give him a month. I don't know how far he could go, but with all the incentive I gave him, he will want to crush me completely. And considering the cultivation level I showed to him, he should try to reach at least 9th-grade Mortal if not more."
"What?! It's impossible! He can't reach the Mortal Warrior realm in a month!"
Even Huang Liyue was doubtful of such a possibility. Usually, it would take at least two to three years to cross over the last two grades of the Mortal realm. Some geniuses could do so in maybe fourteen to sixteen months, but they were the exceptions. Trying to become a Mortal Warrior in a month was absurd.
"That, I don't know. But what's important is that he'll try everything to become insanely strong just so that he can humiliate me and regain his pitiful self-esteem. And by doing so, he will be way more likely to reveal his secrets. I suspect that Governor Leng already gave orders to increase his surveillance of the boy."
Suddenly, it hit Huang Liyue. Her young mistress wanted to discover Gui Bei's secrets.
"By the way, with all his anger, did you detect an ounce of demonic cultivation? I'm pretty sure he was unhinged when he left the gathering."
During this gathering, Huang Liyue had listened to everything that had happened. She couldn't extend her spiritual senses over the Divine Feather pavilion with Governor Leng present. But her natural senses were sharp enough to overhear every conversation. Moreover, Gui Bei's outburst wasn't discreet at all. Apparently, in a single gathering, her young mistress had achieved many objectives related to many people. And Huang Liyue was sure that a lot of things had escaped her vigilance.
Instead of thinking about all of this, she recalled what had happened with Gui Bei's departure.
"I tried to be more discreet than before. I have detected no trace of any demonic cultivation in him. Given his anger and rage, I am rather certain that he couldn't have hidden it from me at that moment. But... I did feel as though he guessed my presence. Earlier, I thought that he had clearly seen through my spiritual senses. So this time I tried to be even more cautious and he was not able to find me. However, given his cultivation, he should never have been able to sense anything at all. There's definitely something peculiar going on with him.
"But, Young Mistress, if you want me to follow him, I have to remind you that I am only your bodyguard. I cannot leave your side for too long and I am not a spy. My spiritual senses are good but I never used them for such a task."
Hearing the complaint, Huang Cixi simply smiled and answered by whispering so that only Huang Liyue could hear her.
"I know, do not worry. Someone should come and visit me shortly. He'll provide a team of experts to follow this Gui Bei. Even if he isn't a demonic cultivator, I fear that his secret is related to them. And with his attitude, it won't be long for him to fall down this path." She paused for a while. "In a way, he's just like my first brother."
Indeed, Gui Bei's attitude reminded Huang Cixi of her first brother whom she had failed to stop. If she had been more decisive back then, both her brothers and father would be alive today. She wasn't going to let someone's low self-esteem destroy her again. Now that she had planted the seeds she wanted, Huang Cixi had nothing more to do but to wait.
She was confident that in a few days at most, someone would come knocking. After that, it would be time for her to visit a couple of people.