Capítulo 20: Please Let This Be A Normal Field Trip
The birds whistled a cheerful tune as Yang Qinghui drank her morning tea and scanned through Wei Qingwei's brief reply to her inquiry.
Fortunately, he said Zongyin was welcome anytime to select her sword. Humming happily, Yang Qinghui gazed out the window and watched the tree branches rustle.
"Madam," A-Rong called from the wardrobe. "What will you wear today?"
"I was thinking of helping the disciples with their training," Yang Qinghui mused. "So maybe something practical?"
"Something practical," A-Rong murmured. Silk swished and chiffon rustled as she sorted through the various outfits.
Before she'd chosen, A-Tian appeared at the doorway. "Madam, there's someone here to see you."
Yang Qinghui turned around curiously. "Oh? Who?"
"Young Luo Binghe, from Qing Jing Peak."
"Oh! Bring him through, bring him through." Hopping to her feet, Yang Qinghui pulled a loose robe over her sleep clothes. I wonder why he's here. Well, whatever the case, this is my chance to keep befriending him. "What's my affection level with Luo Binghe, again?" she asked the System.
"Luo Binghe affection level: 20 points."
"Alright, still a ways to go."
A-Tian returned with Luo Binghe in tow. "Disciple Luo Binghe," she announced, then stood behind and to the side of Yang Qinghui, mirroring A-Tian.
Luo Binghe seemed nervous, glancing at the walls and the ceiling as he curled his shoulders inwards to make himself smaller.
"Binghe! What a pleasant surprise." Yang Qinghui smiled warmly, hoping to put the boy at ease. "What brings you here?"
Luo Binghe bowed. "I'm sorry to disturb you, Peak Lord Yang. I just wanted to return this." He held out the beizi she'd lent him the night of the banquet, neatly folded. "Thank you again."
"Ah, thank you for returning it."
A-Tian stepped forward and took the beizi, then backed up to her original place. As she did so, gears began turning in Yang Qinghui's head.
"Binghe, are you busy today?" she asked, tilting her head.
Luo Binghe blinked. "Um… Not particularly. I just have chores. N-not that chores aren't important, I mean."
"Great! A-Tian, could you summon Zhuang Hao? And A-Rong, could you send a message to Qing Jing Peak excusing Luo Binghe for the day?"
"Yes, madam," the maids agreed in unison, bowing. A-Tian paused to put away the beizi, then left the rooms.
Binghe fidgeted with his sleeves, clearly itching to ask what Yang Qinghui's plan was.
"Tell me, Binghe," she began, "have you ever been to Huan Hua Palace?"
Luo Binghe's eyebrows shot up. "No, never."
Zhuang Hao stepped through the doorway and raised an eyebrow. "Huan Hua Palace?" he repeated. "Are we going there today?"
"I thought we might. We could bring a few other disciples, make it a learning experience. Oh, have you two met?"
"Not properly. I'm Zhuang Hao, head disciple," Zhuang Hao introduced himself, bowing to Luo Binghe.
"Nice to meet you. I'm Luo Binghe, of Qing Jing Peak." Luo Binghe bowed as well.
"Why are we going to Huan Hua Palace?" Zhuang Hao asked, facing Yang Qinghui again.
"I'll explain soon. Go eat some breakfast," Yang Qinghui instructed. "I'll meet you in the dining hall."
The disciples left, and Yang Qinghui changed into a practical but elegant yuanlingpao robe, in dark blue and edged with silver. The Cang Qiong Mountain sect crest was emblazoned in silver on the chest. After perusing her belt collection, she added a thick silver one with a flower-design buckle. She hurried out of her rooms, still pulling on her tall boots, and caught Luo Binghe and Zhuang Hao waiting outside the dining hall.
"Did you eat breakfast?" she asked. She couldn't help fussing over the two. "You'll need your energy."
"Zhuang Hao affection level increased! +2 points. Current affection level: 27 points."
"Luo Binghe affection level increased! +3 points. Current affection level: 23 points."
"We've eaten, shizun," Zhuang Hao told her. "Do you want me to choose the disciples to come with us?"
"I'll ask for volunteers," Yang Qinghui decides. "How many do you think we'll need?"
"Eight should be enough."
"Alright, then." Yang Qinghui pushed open the dining hall doors and stepped inside. "Good morning, my disciples!"
All chatter immediately died down. The twenty-odd disciples eating their breakfasts stared at her.
"Who's ready for a fieldtrip?!" Yang Qinghui announced, grinning, with her hands on her hips.
With a long-suffering sigh, Zhuang Hao stepped forward and explained, "Shizun is visiting Huan Hua Palace today, and needs six more disciples to accompany her. Who is willing?"
The disciples murmured between themselves, studying Yang Qinghui and Zhuang Hao suspiciously.
"I'll go with you, shizun!" Lu Ying shouted, scrambling to her feet and running over. She grabbed onto Yang Qinghui's robes. "Can I go? Please, please, please?"
Yang Qinghui patted Lu Ying's head. "I don't see why not." She looked at Zhuang Hao questioningly.
Zhuang Hao pursed his lips, but told Lu Ying, "Just stay out of trouble."
"I'll go, shizun," Guoliang said, standing and bowing to Yang Qinghui with a composed smile.
"Me too," Zongyin agreed. She nudged Mingli with her foot, and the nervous disciple reluctantly accepted as well.
Another disciple, wearing her hair in double-loops on either side of her head, hopped to her feet. Yang Qinghui was surprised as the girl signed, "I'll go too," in Chinese sign language.
Wow, look at Airplane being inclusive! Who'd have thought?
"That's Shuang," Zhuang Hao murmured to Yang Qinghui. "She said – "
"Oh, don't worry – I know sign language." Smiling, Yang Qinghui signed back to Shuang: "Thank you for volunteering."
Shuang blinked in surprise, but then an exuberant grin spread over her face. "Thank you, shizun!"
One more disciple, a lanky boy named Chuntao, quickly volunteered, and Yang Qinghui had her team.
"Alright!" she exclaimed happily, signing as she spoke. "Let's get going."
---
Zhuang Hao and Lu Ying sat with Yang Qinghui in the carriage while Zongyin drove and the other disciples rode alongside.
"So why exactly are we going to Huan Hua Palace?" Zhuang Hao asked, crossing his arms.
"We're going to see Xiao'er," Yang Qinghui explained, arranging the Go tiles on the board between them, "and my sister."
She had to find out if the Yang Jing in the memory-glitch-vision things was her sister, or another relative. It would be a massive step towards untangling the mess of the original Yang Qinghui's past.
Zhuang Hao raised an eyebrow. "You need eight disciples for a social call?"
Lu Ying looked between Zhuang Hao and Yang Qinghui curiously.
"Not just a social call, my young disciple." Yang Qinghui moved her first piece on the board with a grin. "Huan Hua Palace is one of the most powerful sects in the world, or so I hear. I've been secluded for a long time. I want to see just how much of a… of an opponent they might be."
Moving his first piece, Zhuang Hao narrowed his eyes. "Are you predicting a battle?"
"We'll see, won't we?" Yang Qinghui winked, and set down another piece. "In any case, the next Immortal Alliance Conference is less than three years away. How has our Peak done with that in the past, anyway?"
Zhuang Hao grimaced. "Well… normally there's been two or three unfortunate disciples chosen to participate. I went last time. It… didn't go too well."
"Someone died?" Yang Qinghui asked with a wince.
"Not recently. But we didn't score a single point."
"Ah. Well, we're going to do better from now on, alright?"
Zhuang Hao nodded. After another few moves, he asked, "Why Luo Binghe?"
"Hmm." Yang Qinghui contemplated her next move, and how much she could tell Zhuang Hao. "It's tragic how talent can go unnoticed when one has the wrong teacher. I believe Luo Binghe has a lot of potential, and it's being wasted."
"So you want to mentor him?" Zhuang Hao asked, setting down another piece forcefully.
"Hey. Look at me." Yang Qinghui made sure Zhuang Hao met her eyes before she said, "You are my head disciple. Ying'er, Zongyin, Guoliang – all of them are my disciples. My priority. I want to help Luo Binghe, if I can. But all of you come first. I promise."
"Zhuang Hao affection level increased! +5 points. Current affection level: 32 points."
Zhuang Hao searched her eyes. "… I see," he murmured after a moment. He looked back at the board. "It's your turn."
They continued their game in silence. Yang Qinghui respected Zhuang Hao too much to go easy on him, and hadn't played in years anyway, so she was out of practice. But she noticed Zhuang Hao avoiding a clear path to victory.
"What are you doing?" she asked after several minutes. "You can win."
"Oh. I didn't notice." Zhuang Hao avoided her eyes.
"Are you letting me win?" Yang Qinghui asked bluntly. When he didn't reply, she told him, "You don't have to walk on eggshells around me anymore, alright? Just do your best. Here, let's start again."
And so they played another round, and Zhuang Hao wiped the floor with Yang Qinghui. An absolute victory.
"Wow." Yang Qinghui stared at the board. She looked up with a grin. "That was impressive, Hao'er! Who are the best Go players in the sect? We'll have to have a tournament! I'll bet on you."
Zhuang Hao blushed, embarrassed. Yang Qinghui politely ignored this, and leaned out the window to look outside. Huan Hua Palace, a golden blot, was visible but still in the distance. For now, they were on a quiet stretch of the road, near the edge of a dense forest. A mountain rose up from the trees.
"Ah. Bailu Mountain." Yang Qinghui grimaced. Tianlang-Jun was right there. Clearly they'd met at least once in the past, and Yang Qinghui had a feeling the demon lord played an important role in her backstory. Was there anything she could do right now?
Lu Ying poked her head out the window beside Yang Qinghui. "What's Bailu Mountain?"
"A prison," Yang Qinghui muttered darkly. "Stop the carriage!" she called.
The carriage clattered to a stop, and Yang Qinghui stepped outside. She walked to Luo Binghe's horse.
"Come down, please. I have a job for you."
Luo Binghe obediently hopped to the ground.
"That's Bailu Mountain," she told him, pointing out the towering mound in the forest. "Many years ago, a battle took place there. If you're willing, I'd appreciate if you could search around the mountain for anything that seems out of place or suspicious."
"Right away, shigu!"
"Thank you, shizhi. Try looking for any sort of entrance into the base of the mountain. We'll come pick you up when we're finished in Huan Hua Palace."
Luo Binghe bowed, and walked to the edge of the forest.
"Be careful!" Yang Qinghui called after him.
"I will!"
He disappeared into the trees, and Zhuang Hao took his horse while Yang Qinghui climbed back into the carriage. They soon set off again.
REFLEXIONES DE LOS CREADORES 
purple_pineapples
purple_pineapples Have some idea about my story? Comment it and let me know :)
Estado de energía semanal
-- Ranking de
Poder 
-- Piedra de
Poder