Song of Everlasting Regret - Chapter 14

Yu Jingqiu returned to Chengxin Waterside Pavilion and placed Deliverance from Calamity on the long table.

She sat there in a daze.

Although she had long grown accustomed to living without parents, learning the truth of her origins and that both of them had died still filled her with sorrow.

Yet the pain was not so profound that she lost control of herself.

Under Lou Xuanzhi’s protection and guidance, she had grown up peacefully and in complete ignorance for seventeen years. Her temperament had always been mild and tranquil. Moreover, she possessed no memories of living with her parents, so hatred had not penetrated deeply into her bones.

She had, however, looked forward to meeting them and imagined what they might be like.

Now, she was left with profound regret and an inescapable melancholy. Her heart felt as dark as the overcast sky outside.

The one consolation she possessed was that her elder sister remained alive.

As her only surviving relative, her sister seemed especially precious. Yu Jingqiu even transferred all her former hopes for her parents onto this unknown sister and began yearning for her for no apparent reason.

Yet her master had gone so far as to make her swear an oath forbidding her from searching for her sister.

The impossibility of meeting her only made Yu Jingqiu’s longing grow uncontrollably.

She walked outside and stood at the edge of the waterside pavilion, looking down at the lake.

Her figure was reflected upon its surface.

She studied her own face and thought, If we are sisters, we should resemble one another somewhat.

Looking at her reflection, she began imagining her elder sister’s appearance and wondering what sort of personality she possessed.

She sat listlessly inside the pavilion for the entire day.

Early the next morning, hurried, disorderly footsteps sounded in the distance.

Before the person arrived, her voice came first, as was always Yun Yao’s habit.

“Senior Sister!”

Yu Jingqiu had not yet managed to free herself from her melancholy and appeared somewhat weary.

Thin mist hovered over the lake behind her, making heaven and earth indistinct. Standing amid it, she looked utterly alone.

Yun Yao had been about to speak, but when she saw this scene, she swallowed her words.

Yu Jingqiu asked softly, “What happened?”

Yun Yao hesitated.

“Ah-Jing… Ah-Jing went down the mountain.”

Yu Jingqiu remembered what Lou Xuanzhi had said.

Her heart was compassionate, and she readily understood the difficulties of others. Now that she also felt a measure of guilt toward Lou Jing, she became even more tolerant and distressed for her.

Lowering her eyes, she slowly said, “Master reprimanded her, so she must be upset. She probably descended the mountain to clear her mind.”

“No. Ah-Jing said that since she caused this trouble herself, she would clean up the mess herself. Until she resolves it, she will not return to the Qianyuan Sect.”

“Absurd!”

Although it was clearly a reprimand, Yu Jingqiu spoke without much force and could hardly frighten anyone.

“Why did you not stop her?”

“How could I possibly stop her? Senior Sister, should we tell Master?”

The sliding doors facing the lake stood wide open.

A cold breeze blew in from the water, its refreshing chill clearing the mind.

Yu Jingqiu shook her head.

“Master coughed up blood yesterday after anger attacked his heart. He is still recuperating. If we tell him, I fear it will upset him and worsen his injuries. Jing’er will also inevitably receive another scolding.”

“Are we supposed to conceal it for her?”

Yu Jingqiu thought for a moment.

“An elder should still make the decision. Martial Uncle Lou is tolerant and has always been the most capable of persuading Jing’er. If something truly happens, he can also step forward and take charge. Go ask him what we should do.”

“All right.”

Yun Yao left Chengxin Waterside Pavilion to find Lou Yan.

She walked briskly, muttering, “She is already so old. Why is she still running away from home?”

Yu Jingqiu looked at Deliverance from Calamity lying upon the table.

Her hand shifted toward it, but in the end, she picked up her own sword instead and went to the neighboring residence to summon Lang Ye.

Lang Ye had been present the previous day when Lou Xuanzhi summoned them for questioning and argued with Lou Jing over Cao Ruxu’s death.

When he repeated the angry words they had exchanged, Yu Jingqiu finally understood that Lou Jing had left in a fit of anger.

Because of Lou Xuanzhi’s words, she truly intended to clean up the entire mess herself.

Yu Jingqiu and Lang Ye hurried down a shortcut, hoping to catch up with her.

They assumed Lou Jing would return to Xuzhou City to investigate the clues.

Unexpectedly, Lou Jing was heading toward Xinyang.

Caoliu Manor was located in Xinyang.

The quarrel between father and daughter had left both sides wounded.

Lou Jing had tossed and turned throughout the night, Lou Xuanzhi’s rebukes still ringing in her ears.

She thought that since Lou Xuanzhi had possessed enough strength to speak at length with Yu Jingqiu, he must have recovered well.

He refused to see her because he remained angry with her.

She was angry as well.

Unable to determine whether she felt aggrieved, heartbroken, or had simply trapped herself within her own thoughts, she only wanted to leave that place temporarily.

Her descent from the mountain was indeed partly an act of defiance.

Lou Xuanzhi’s words had provoked her. To her, they were like swords and halberds piercing her heart, though outsiders could never understand it.

Words, tones of voice, and expressions could all become sharp blades.

Family members always knew precisely where the other person hurt most.

They truly knew themselves and their enemy, guaranteeing victory in every battle.

Lou Jing had tried compromising and swallowing her grievances before.

Yet whenever she retreated one step, the other person advanced another.

She felt that this was wrong.

This is my territory. If I do not invade your boundaries, then you should not invade mine.

If you deliberately provoke me, then you were the one at fault first. Am I wrong for defending myself and striking back?

He attacked first, yet I am expected to yield.

If that was the proper way to deal with others, then Lou Jing could only find the world utterly absurd.

That night, the people of Caoliu Manor had slandered them first.

She had only wanted to capture the thief, confront the servant face-to-face, and force him to apologize to the Qianyuan Sect for what he had said and done.

Later, when she fought Cao Ruxu over the pregnant woman, she had stopped as soon as she knocked his sword away.

It was Cao Ruxu who spoke without restraint and insulted her mother.

As someone’s child, who could hear filthy insults directed at their parents without feeling as though their heart and bones were being pierced?

If one failed to avenge such an insult, one was unworthy of being a child!

Only because Cao Ruxu had died did the person who started everything suddenly appear justified.

A death had created resentment, and the relationships of the martial world had become entangled. Everyone said her actions had implicated the sect.

Did that mean right and wrong no longer mattered, and only gains and losses counted?

Lou Jing believed that perhaps her only mistake had been showing compassion and helping that woman.

The woman belonged to a demon of the Feihua Alliance, and no one knew whether she was good or evil.

Lou Jing had merely pitied her as a mother. Thinking of her own mother had stirred a trace of compassion in her heart.

She had wanted Cao Ruxu to show some restraint.

The woman possessed no strength to resist. Capturing her would have been effortless. Why was it necessary to kill her?

That was why she argued with Cao Ruxu.

Yet not everyone in the martial world shared the same temperament.

When people exchanged a few incompatible words, drawing their swords against one another was common enough. If they fought, then they should fight to their satisfaction.

But Lou Jing was not alone.

The sect stood behind her, so she could not behave with such freedom.

The sect was a home and a source of support.

It was also a shackle.

Lou Jing opened her palm and looked at the fragment bearing the sword’s inscription.

She clenched it fiercely, tightened the bundle on her back, and entered Xinyang City.

Her declaration that she would clean up the mess herself had not been made in a moment of recklessness.

She believed the heart of the entire problem was the uncertainty surrounding Cao Ruxu’s death.

Too much time had passed since their fight, and her memory of certain details had become unclear.

She could not be completely certain that her sword strike had not been fatal.

She had come to confirm it.

If Cao Ruxu had truly died because of her sword, then she would simply repay one life with another and offer herself beneath the blades of Caoliu Manor.

But if he had not—

Then no matter what it took, she would uncover the complete truth and leave Caoliu Manor with nothing to say.

She refused to bear responsibility for something that was not her fault.

Caoliu Manor was located on Youqu Mountain near Xinyang City.

The manor had been established by a married couple. The husband’s surname was Cao and the wife’s was Liu, which was how it received its name.

By now, it had existed for a hundred years.

Its martial heritage was profound, and its commercial dealings were skillfully managed. It possessed vast wealth and nearly a thousand retainers and disciples.

Everyone living upon the mountain belonged to Caoliu Manor. There were no unrelated households.

That night, a silver moon hung high in the sky.

Within the ancient woods surrounding the cemetery on the rear mountain, a figure swept forward like a black gale before landing lightly among the graves like a raven’s feather.

She wore black night clothes and a black-faced theatrical mask.

Her steps were light and made no sound upon landing. In the darkness, she blended with the shadows of the gravestones.

The person secretly entering the cemetery was Lou Jing.

A sword was strapped to her back, but she carried a hoe in her hands.

After searching the cemetery, she found a newly constructed grave.

She lit a fire striker and illuminated the inscription.

It was Cao Ruxu’s tombstone.

Lou Jing extinguished the flame.

By the moonlight, she pressed her palms together before the grave and said, “Cao Ruxu, although we held grievances against each other, death should extinguish everything, and the matter ought to have ended here.

“However, the cause of your death is suspicious and has implicated the living.

“Opening your grave and disturbing your rest is dishonorable of me, but I must learn the truth.

“If my sword truly took your life, I will cut my own throat before your grave and repay you with my life.

“If it did not, then if your spirit remains beneath the springs, you surely would not wish to die without knowing why. You would also want the true killer found.

“If you do not want me to open your grave and bear resentment toward me, then return at midnight and seek out Lou Jing yourself.”

Caoliu Manor’s swordsmanship emphasized the unity of man and nature.

In the past, they had observed few rituals after death. Bodies were simply cremated and the ashes scattered into great rivers.

Although their customs had become somewhat more elaborate, they now merely sealed the corpse inside a coffin, buried it, and erected a tombstone. There were no complicated stone constructions.

The grave would therefore be easy to restore afterward.

Only the soil would appear freshly disturbed. As long as no one approached closely within the next few days, it would not attract attention.

Lou Jing had already hidden on Youqu Mountain for more than half a month in preparation for this visit.

She had scouted the area and learned the mountain paths, Caoliu Manor’s lookout posts, patrol routes, and guard-changing schedules.

Naturally, all this information concerned only the outer regions.

She was not arrogant enough to believe she could enter Caoliu Manor alone and come and go without being noticed.

Thus, she had acted with exceptional caution and never entered the manor itself.

She had no intention of doing so now either.

She had come in search of Cao Ruxu’s body.

Under ordinary circumstances, burial grounds were located upon the rear mountain, far from the manor’s main entrance.

After searching, Lou Jing found that this was indeed the case.

Caoliu Manor’s cemetery was located on the rear mountain and was not heavily guarded.

Only a few servants maintained and watched over the graves, while the old man assigned to guard the place at night frequently shirked his duties.

This gave her the opportunity to enter, open the coffin, and investigate.

She had chosen to act secretly so that no one could use the matter against her.

After removing the earth, she exposed the coffin.

Lou Jing gathered inner force in her palm and pushed the lid aside.

Cao Ruxu lay within.

His clothing was neat, his face clean, and his hands folded over his abdomen.

A Water-Repelling Pearl had been placed in his mouth.

This was a medicinal pearl commonly used in the martial world that could preserve a body from decay for several months.

When the Cao family prepared to transport the corpse from Xuzhou City, they had feared it would rot along the journey and placed the pearl in his mouth.

Thus, his body had not yet decomposed or begun to smell.

It was merely stiff and cold, his skin ghastly pale beneath the moonlight.

His corpse did not resemble the attendants in the abandoned garden, whose entire bodies had been red and appeared burned.

Cao Ruxu therefore had probably not been killed by the mysterious man from the Feihua Alliance.

That man had no reason to kill the attendants with palm strikes but then pick up a sword and stab Cao Ruxu.

Light flickered in Lou Jing’s eyes.

Could someone have done this to frame me?

But if so, why had they not stabbed all the attendants with swords as well and eliminated every trace of inconsistency?

Lou Jing opened Cao Ruxu’s clothing.

She found no obvious internal injuries. Judging from his lips and tongue, he did not appear to have been poisoned.

Apart from the wound Lou Jing had inflicted upon his shoulder, there was another injury directly in the center of his chest.

The wound in his chest was the fatal one.

This proved that Lou Jing had not taken Cao Ruxu’s life.

Narrowing her eyes, Lou Jing suddenly turned the corpse over.

The wound was small in front but large in the back.

The murder weapon had been narrow at the tip and broad behind it. Only an attack delivered from the rear could have created such a wound.

Lou Jing did not know what sort of person would ambush Cao Ruxu from behind.

But she could be certain that it had not been the mysterious man.

If that man wanted to kill Cao Ruxu, then even if he used a sword, he would never need to attack from behind.

Aside from the mysterious man, the only other person in the abandoned garden that day had been Long Chou’s trusted subordinate.

If that man had attacked Cao Ruxu before dying, Cao Ruxu’s attendants would certainly have shouted in alarm.

But they had not.

They had even possessed the leisure to approach the ruined house and seize the pregnant woman.

That meant Cao Ruxu had still been alive at the time.

But if neither of those men killed him, who else could it have been?

The night wind abruptly rose, adding several degrees of sinister chill to the cemetery.

A cold draft swept upward from below, tossing the ends of Lou Jing’s hair wildly.

Lou Jing suddenly remembered the unusual sound of wind behind her when she left the abandoned garden that day.

Someone else had entered the garden.

Now, there appeared to be only one possible explanation.

Lou Jing’s palm strike had rendered Cao Ruxu unconscious, allowing him to escape the mysterious man’s killing blow.

After everyone else departed, he regained consciousness—only to encounter another enemy.

But who was the murderer?

If it was someone from the Feihua Alliance, why had they acted separately from the mysterious man?

If it was a righteous martial artist who had come from Zhongwu Hall, who among them possessed a private grudge against Cao Ruxu and would ambush him from behind?