When Wen Hongshan saw Mu Qingge, who emerged from the spiritual fruit and proceeded to apologize to her, she became suspicious.
As for the matter of the two spiritual fruits, that intel was obtained by interrogating a member of the Crimson Gate sect captured by their sect that day.
Because Wei Jiu had previously searched the villages below the mountain, looking for a girl born in the Qinggeng year, Wen Hongshan, after inquiring around, deduced the truth behind the matter.
Her visit this time was to probe the fake, and to see if she could uncover the whereabouts of the real Mu Qingge. Unexpectedly, this fake also seemed unaware, which was quite intriguing.
Mu Qingge, did not need a Grudge water attack at this moment to feel her blood run cold all over — what she feared most still happened, someone had discovered that two fruits had formed on the Rebirth tree.
In other words, the fruit that should have perished long ago might still be alive?
Mu Qingge's hands trembled, her mind in chaos.
When she had thought "she" was gone, she had felt a moment of sadness. She then thought that she would live out her life well for "her" too, this way, she could feel much more at ease.
But now, hearing the shocking news that "she" might still be alive, her heart was more fearful than joyful right now.
Su Yishui had been abnormally cold to her… Could it be that he also knew the secret of the Rebirth tree bearing two fruits?
Thinking about how he actually knew but coldly watched her put on an act, a sense of humiliation surged through her.
Mu Qingge took a deep breath and regained her composure, saying, "Did you come here just to say these incomprehensible words to me? You mentioned another fruit on the Rebirth tree, where is it now?"
Wen Hongshan, seeing that the imposter was still putting up a front, didn't get angry but chuckled twice before saying, "Let me guess, who you are? Mu Qingge fell into the ambush set up by the three major sects because she was anxious to rescue her sister Mu Ranwu, who had fallen into a 'difficult situation'. Little did she know, this was a death trap set up by her own sister with outsiders. Tut tut, Mu Ranwu, though she's Mu Qingge's sister, her aptitude is mediocre, with no accomplishments in cultivation, easily forgottable, leaving no impression. But this harmless-looking existence has a cunning and insidious mind, ready to harm her own sister without hesitation."
"Shut up! If you dare to speak nonsense again, you won't walk out of this palace in Great Qi!" Bloodshot veins appeared in Mu Qingge's eyes, her voice suddenly hoarse, clearly using real qi and no longer able to maintain her calm facade.
Hearing her threat, Wen Hongshan coldly laughed again, "It seems you really are Mu Ranwu… You are quite something. Who would have thought that such an inconspicuous girl would have such extraordinary abilities. If that is how things are, we can cooperate."
Mu Qingge, or rather Mu Ranwu, narrowed her eyes, "What do you mean by cooperation?"
Wen Hongshan said coldly, "Mu Qingge and our three major sects are sworn enemies. We must not let her escape and become stronger!"
Mu Ranwu also looked back at her coldly, after thinking for a moment, finally smiled slowly, "How do you want to cooperate with me, let's hear it."
Wen Hongshan clenched her fist and said word by word, "Of course, we must locate her first!"
Mu Ranwu smiled, her mind quickly thinking, and finally said, "Okay, I hope we can cooperate happily this time. But before that, I'll have to trouble Miss Wen to help me with something."
After speaking, she whispered softly in Wen Hongshan's ear. Wen Hongshan's eyes widened as she listened, "How dare you…"
Mu Ranwu lightly placed a finger on her lips and made a gesture, "Miss Wen, to achieve great things, you must dare to take risks no one else dares to take, don't you think it's time to change the leader of Kongshan Sect?"
...
Away from the chaos in the palace, let's talk about Xue Ranran who followed her master to travel around. After returning to Western Mountain, the first thing she did was to take the gifts she bought for her parents and prepare to go down the mountain to see them.
However, the new sect rule stated: "Not allowed to leave Shifu's side for even half a step." If she wanted to go down the mountain, she naturally had to consult her master to see if he could make an exception for her to visit her family.
Although cultivators were supposed to cut off ties with the mortal world, Su Yishui was very understanding of his half-hearted disciple. After listening to her, he nodded and said, "I'll accompany you."
Xue Ranran was also very happy to hear this, "My mother makes delicious beancurd, and it's even better with deep-fried red bean cakes! I'll have my mother make it for you Shifu!"
But when she was going down the mountain, she had big and small bags, a lot of things to carry. As Senior brother Gao cang had been punished by their master last time for helping her carry things up the mountain, he didn't dare to be overly attentive this time.
So Ranran had to carry her belongings along the rugged mountain road by herself.
But after a few steps, Su Yishui reached out and took the things she was carrying, saying, "Your arm injury has not fully healed yet, you need to rest it."
After saying that, he walked on ahead with long strides.
Men who look like immortals could hold whisks or long swords, they can hold flutes or xiao, but carrying bags of local specialties and colorful fabrics did not seem quite harmonized.
This demeanor of accompanying the newlywed wife to visit her family … it really compromises the graceful and ethereal aura of her Shifu!
Ranran, walking behind, felt both touched and sorry.
Shifu! Your affection for your disciple, the only way to repay it is by *serving you, sir, diligently and loyally…
* from 中国二十四孝故事 the 24 tales of filial piety:
扇枕温衾 Using a fan to keep the parent cool in summer, using body to warm parent in winter
卧冰求鲤 Someone who removed their robe, used their body to melt the frozen ice to capture two carps to feed his ill parents, who actually did not love him
So Ranran clenched her fists, made a silent vow, and quickly followed behind her master, walking briskly and humming a tune along the way.
Although Su Yishui had long legs, he didn't walk fast. He gradually fell behind Ranran and watched as the morning dew sprinkled among the trees, casting an exceptionally vibrant and dazzling light on the girl ahead of him…
Suddenly she turned around, revealing a set of pearly white teeth, and shouted with a smile, "Shifu, hurry up! Look, there are squirrels fighting up ahead!"
Unconsciously, his accustomed icy expression seemed to melt a little under the warm and sunny smile of the girl…
Meanwhile, in the town below the mountain, smoke was rising, and the villagers were starting to move around.
The Xue couple ran a breakfast stall and woke up very early. When Xue Ranran brought her master to the breakfast stall in town, the three small tables smeared with oil stains were already seated full of people.
Business was good, but Qiaolian's face had no smiles, as if there were worries between her brows. It wasn't until she looked up to collect money and saw her daughter hopping to her that she greeted her with a surprised and joyous expression.
"Good girl, when did you come back? Mother didn't know! Oh, Elder Su, why are you here too? Come, come inside and sit down!"
The arrival of this master and disciple pair stunned the people eating at the stall.
My, where did this handsome couple come from? They made people's eyes wander back and forth, not knowing who to stare at.
Qiaolian greeted her daughter and Elder Su, but her eyes were fixed on her daughter: this was her daughter… but how did she look so beautiful after just over a month? Although her features were still vaguely the same as the little girl she raised, Qiaolian felt that her daughter's temperament and grace had become… indescribably beautiful.
For a mother, seeing her daughter *blossom into a woman, was a pride that overflowed from within, so after a slight surprise, she was filled with satisfaction and pride.
*女大十八变 literally a woman changes drastically at 18
Qiaolian smiled and accepted the compliments from the neighbors, then respectfully invited Elder Su to the house behind the stall, took a cloth and wiped the small wooden tables in the courtyard repeatedly, then had her daughter bring the prepared beancurd for Elder Su to try.
The toppings for Qiaolian's beancurd were Ranran's recipe, with sweet and savory options. After confirming that Shifu preferred the sweet flavor, Ranran prepared a bowl of beancurd with peanut and red bean for him.
After Qiaolian was finished the front, she hurried back to attend to Elder Su. As she looked at her daughter who asked if she liked the fabrics she bought, Qiaolian smiled and stroked her daughter's face, saying, "Everything my little girl buys is the best."
In the past few times, they had met hastily at the pavilion below the mountain. But this time, they saw Elder Su, she naturally asked when her daughter would be able to graduate from the Sect.
When she heard that her daughter might have to practice cultivation on the Western Mountain for a long time, Qiaolian looked hesitant, "Then… won't she… be unable to marry and have children?"
Xue Liangui was afraid that his wife's question would displease the immortal and endanger their daughter's life. He quickly interrupted Qiaolian's words and gave her a wink.
"Is it so important whether she marries or not? We are commoners, if Ranran marries now, she won't find a good match anyway. Wouldn't it be a lifetime of regrets?"
Qiaolian, after hearing Xue Liangui's words, unexpectedly turned her back and covered her mouth, unable to hold back her tears.
Ranran was startled and quickly went over to ask her mother what was wrong.
But Qiaolian looked at Su Yishui and hesitated to speak.
Su Yishui put down the beancurd and said to Ranran, "I'll go take a walk around the street, don't wander around, I'll come back to pick you up later."
After saying that, Su Yishui stood up and went out, giving the Xue family of three some time alone.
Su Yishui was tall, had a cold demeanor, and wasn't very approachable. When he sat in the courtyard, the Xue couple felt somewhat uncomfortable.
Now that Elder Su had left, the couple breathed a sigh of relief. Ranran was observant and had noticed her mother's agitation. She didn't know which of her father's words had triggered her mother to cry.
So she asked her mother what had happened at home.
Qiaolian had been restless these past few days, unable to eat or sleep. Now that she saw Ranran, she knew she couldn't hide it any longer, so she finally made up her mind to tell her daughter the truth about her parentage.
"Ranran, actually… you're not our biological child…" After saying this, Qiaolian held her breath, waiting for her daughter's reaction.
But Ranran only blinked and breathed a sigh of relief, "Is this what's been bothering Mother? I've known for a long time, Mother found me on Jue Mountain."
This time, it was the carpenter and Qiaolian who looked at each other in shock.
"You… knew for a long time? How is that possible? Who told you?"
Ranran smiled, "Mother, when I was six, you were talking to Grandma, and I was lying down resting. But I was actually awake, so I heard everything you two said."
At that time, she was sick very often, and their family spent too much money on her treatment. The grandmother who knew about Ranran's background couldn't bear to see her daughter and son-in-law living in hardship, so she suggested they sell Ranran.
It wasn't uncommon for poor families to sell their children, especially an adopted child like Ranran who was picked up.
But Qiaolian refused outright. She went back into the house, wrapped Ranran in a blanket and hurried back home that night.
Qiulian was stunned after listening to her daughter's soft-spoken narration. She vaguely remembered this incident her daughter mentioned; at that time, Ranran was only six years old then. She actually knew everything in her heart!
Thinking back to Ranran's behavior afterward, she did seem to lose some of her playful nature. Although her health was poor, she always tried her best to help with laundry, fetching water, and cooking… Also, whenever she went to seek medical advice, Ranran would always cry and refuse to take medicine as she did not like it, and forbade her to spend money on medicines. At that time, Qiaolian thought the child disliked the bitterness of medicine… Who would have thought it was for this reason…
Qiaolian's heart felt a pang, and she started crying again.
Was this child so sensible because she was afraid her parents wouldn't want her anymore? She was so young at that time, hearing such words must have caused her a lot of confusion and fear!
Seeing her mother crying again, Ranran quickly wiped her tears and said, "I was small at that time and didn't dare to tell Mother that I knew, but later I felt there was no need to say it. After all, I was too weak, even Grandmother Huang next door said that girls like me wouldn't fetch much money, and would not improve our family's situation."
At that time, Ranran actually even had the idea of selling herself to help the family's finances. She even specifically asked Grandmother Huang next door, who had relatives in the county town who were brokers and knew the slave market well.
But Grandmother Huang, seeing how frail-looking Ranran was, told her that someone like her would end up costing more in medical and funeral expenses and probably nobody would buy her.
That's when Ranran gave up on the idea and started helping her mother with household chores in earnest.
However, neither of them mentioned Ranran's parentage again; why did Qiaolian bring it up again now?
In fact, Qiaolian didn't want to either. But just half a month ago, her family suddenly came looking for her, saying that officials were asking about the person who helped Ranran get registered.
Furthermore, her family said there were wealthy people looking for their lost child. If they found the adoptive family, they would be rewarded with a hundred gold pieces.
Such compensation could buy the whole village! Who wouldn't be tempted by that? They even wished their own flesh and blood was adopted.
Qiaolian's family members were excited by the news and went to the government office, claiming that their daughter had adopted a child back then. So the officials went to Juefeng Village. Fortunately, Qiaolian had left in a hurry and hadn't had time to inform her family, so they hadn't tracked her down to this place yet.
But Xue Liangui, when he went to the county to take on carpentry work a few days ago, accidentally met some old acquaintances who told him about these matters. He was so fearful and told them not to mention encountering them here. He then returned and told Qiaolian.
But it turns out that person couldn't keep a secret, and Qiaolian's family came looking for her first.
The people who came to find the child this time were officials, different from the intimidating ones in black robes before; this indicated that Ranran might really be from a wealthy family.
Now that they were willing to offer a hundred gold pieces to acknowledge her, if they still didn't come forward to let her get acknowledged, wouldn't it mean that Ranran would continue to stay in their poor family for the rest of her days?
As Xue Liangui had said, even if Ranran became a successful cultivator in the future, when she came down from the mountain, she might only be able to marry a craftsman or farmer.
Qiaolian thought long and hard about it and even though she didn't want to, she felt that now that the child was grown, she should inform Ranran about this matter and let her decide whether to acknowledge her birth parents.
After listening quietly to her parents' story, Ranran shook her head without any hesitation. "Mother, I only have you and Dad as parents. No matter who comes, I won't acknowledge them."
After hearing her daughter's words, Qiaolian felt that her years of love had not been in vain. She hugged her daughter, and mother and daughter both burst into tears again, causing Carpenter Xue's eyes to redden as well.
When Ranran walked out of the courtyard, she raised her head and saw her master standing not far away under the lush tree at the street corner.
It was already Spring, and the tree was full of intoxicating pear blossoms. The snow-white flowers complemented the tall man under the tree, to exude an exceptional otherworldly aura.
The gentle breeze stirred his robes, and causes one's gaze to also linger on him, reluctant to look away…
Su Yishui was feeding a cat sitting on the wall with a biscuit he brought from the Xue family. When he saw Ranran coming, he stood up and walked towards her.
He noticed Ranran's slightly reddened eyes as if she had just cried, but he did not ask about it. Instead, after walking for a while, he spoke, "Tomorrow, I will arrange for Yu Chen to escort your parents out of town. Your fourteenth Uncle Master has properties elsewhere, and they will be well taken care of there."
Ranran did not expect Shifu to want to send her parents away. She couldn't help but ask in a surprised tone, "Why?"
Su Yishui turned to look at her and said mildly, "The people who came looking for you are definitely not your parents; they likely have ulterior motives. You need to hurry and send your parents away before they find their way here, or it could become unpredictably dangerous. You'll end up crying again."
Ranran wasn't surprised that her master overheard her conversation with her parents. The walls, for someone with true cultivation, were not a barrier.
But why was Shifu so sure that the people offering the reward of a hundred gold pieces wasn't her parents?
When she tried to ask Su Yishui again, he quickened his pace and didn't seem eager to answer, which made Ranran feel frustrated. Her master was deliberately keeping her in suspense… how annoying!
Suddenly, a thought flashed through Ranran's mind. She looked at Su Yishui strangely, then asked hesitatingly, "Shifu, Second Uncle Master said that in order to let Elder Mu be reborn, you had gone to Jue Mountain several times. And Jue Mountain is inaccessible to ordinary people, yet I was coincidentally found on Jue Mountain by my mother… You're so handsome and outstanding, you must have many female admirers. Did you perhaps have a… relationship with a female cultivator back then and… had a child…?"
What Ranran really wanted to ask was, "Am I… your daughter?"
Inspired by Third senior sister's fictional stories about the relationships and grudges among cultivator families, Ranran couldn't help but think, maybe her master was so certain about her parentage because he knew early on that she had been abandoned there?
Thinking back on her master's usual tough love for her, wasn't that the very manner of a father? Did he secretly fall in love with a female cultivator back then, gave birth to her, but sadly couldn't publicly acknowledge it, so he left her on Jue Mountain until her parents brought her back home?
Su Yishui seemed completely unprepared for a question like this. The expression on Shifu's face, usually of a kindly father, turned less kindly.
He stared at her coldly for a moment, unable to speak for a long while, before finally squeezing out from between his teeth, "Listen carefully, I'm not your father!"
Ranran, seeing Su Yishui's manner, felt that he was not lying, and she couldn't help but exhale slowly. Although it would have been nice if Su Yishui were her biological father, somehow that would have felt quite odd.
Without the bonds of familial ties, the master and disciple can get along as usual.
However, it was clear that her master knew something about her parentage. He never once said anything pointless to trouble others. Although Ranran had told the Xue couple she wouldn't acknowledge her real family, knowing the truth would help her handle the situation better.
Su Yishui, after being bombarded by her many indirect questions for a good while, unhurriedly stated that since he was certain that the people looking for the abandoned infant had malicious intentions, they needed to make arrangements as soon as possible.
The way to get the Xue couple to leave was quite simple. Ranran would just tell them that her Uncle Master had a well-paying job taking care of a place, earning fifty taels of silver annually. They would oversee things there, just supervising some workers, not as demanding compared to running a breakfast stall.
The Xue couple naturally liked such a monthly income. Ranran also tactfully reminded her parents not to contact their maternal grandmother for the time being.
The gold reward offered was too substantial. If one of the uncles on the maternal side accidentally said too much, it could lead to trouble. A family capable of offering a hundred taels of gold wouldn't have had to abandon a newborn on a mountain.
There had to be more to this than meets the eye. There were plenty of stories in plays about treacherous officials hunting down orphaned heirs. If someone wanted to harm her, wouldn't it endanger the whole family.
Before Ranran mentioned it, Qiaolian hadn't thought about this possibility. Her daughter's analysis made her break out in a cold sweat.
After carefully instructing her daughter to take care of herself on the mountain, the Xue couple quickly packed their things in the night and left with Yu Chen for Zeng Yi's Linyang property.
However, they didn't cancel the lease on the rented courtyard. Su Yishui said they needed it to draw out the enemy and see who was looking for Ranran.
So Yuchen and Yutong applied yellowish ointment to their faces, added some wrinkles, wore fake beards and wigs with streaks of white. They disguised themselves as the Xue couple and temporarily stayed in the courtyard.
However, Su Yishui seemed to have been upset by Ranran's impulsive acknowledgment of kinship. After returning to Xishan, he didn't speak to her for an entire day.
Later, it was only after Ranran specially made his favorite dish, Longjing Sweet Shrimp, did Su Yishui finally ease that icy expression on his face.
Ranran felt that, it was a misconception on her part, to misunderstand that her master could have had a child before.
If they set aside Shifu's extraordinary abilities and otherworldly appearance, his volatile temperament would not have been attractive to girls.
After spending a long time with Su Yishui, Ranran slowly understood the true essence behind Elder Mu's compilation of the chapter on Fierce Beasts – sometimes Shifu got angry for inexplicable reasons, making it difficult to figure out his likes and dislikes.
When he talked to her, he also would not reveal everything at once, like a beef tendon that one just can't chew on…
YuChen and Yutong couldn't handle the breakfast business like the Xue couple did, so they simply hung a notice in front of the stall, claiming they were unwell and would be closed for a few days.
The siblings spent their time in the courtyard, eating and drinking, waiting patiently for someone to knock on their door.
It didn't take long before someone actually showed up. After two days, some people claiming to be officials from the state office, with stern faces accusing the Xue couple of kidnapping a child and demanding that they hand over their daughter.
Sharp-eyed Yutong, immediately noticed that the people with the officials were cultivators. After exchanging a few pleasantries, Su Yishui suddenly appeared, striking acupoints on these people and casting a Truth-telling spell. He quickly found out that they were sent by the War Goddess from the palace to search for someone.
扇枕温衾 Using a fan to keep the parent cool in summer, using body like a blanket to warm parent in winter
Out of the 24 stories, Ranran had to choose those two lol