Chapter Fifteen: Close the Mountain

“Baili Suxue?” Ji Qingqing slowly looked down.

“Of course he is significant enough. Baili Suxue, the sect master of Min Mountain Sword Sect. This is a person who is much more important in Changling than me. Especially after Gu Huai’s death, he is much more important.”

She slowly said, “If even he says that this is true, naturally, I will believe it. But —” She did not look at the man. A tangible killing intent shrouded the man following her thoughts. “I have no contact with Baili Suxue.”

“That is only what you think.” The man shook his head, and ignored her killing intent. He said, “Many things have already happened when you did not know.”

Ji Qingqing looked at him and slowly sneered. “The biggest problem is that even if he knows some things, he and I have no relationship. Why would he speak for me, or explain to me?”

The man gave a slightly mocking smile as though he was laughing at what had happened in the past, and also at Ji Qingqing’s ignorance. But inexplicably, Ji Qingqing was not angered by his expression.

“You may go,” She turned around, and said to the extremely pale Pan Ruoye.

“Go?” Pan Ruoye was stunned. She said in an anxious and confused voice, “Master, I do not understand what you mean.”

“You still do not understand?” A cruel smile appeared at the corner of Ji Qingqing’s lips. “You are one of Zheng Xiu’s. I cannot believe you completely … or rather, I cannot trust anyone right now.”

“Master, I—”

“There are not many alive here. I do not want many to know the secrets. You should first consider where you should go.” Ji Qingqing looked at her and laughed. Her laugh was frighteningly cold. “You can return to the imperial palace. You can go to any place you want, but at least, I do not want you to stay here now.”

Pan Ruoye’s body started to tremble. Ji Qingqing did not look at her, but the killing intent that fell onto her disciple expressed her resolve.

Pan Ruoye was silent for a breath. Then she bowed deeply.

“Take the person in the carriage. Regardless of who you think of her, and what you do to her, it is best to make her disappear from in front of me.”

As Pan Ruoye started to walk, her cold voice sounded again.

Pan Ruoye hesitated slightly, but said nothing.

Yellow leaves flew up from the path. Her thin figure, and the woman in the carriage disappeared from the path.

“In truth, you are not as violent as they say.” The man bowed deeply, and even his tone grew respectful. “You are a kind person.”

“How do you qualify to say such a thing?” Ji Qingqing laughed coldly. “Even if all you say is true, in the past matters, you were an accomplice, a dog who truly worked for her. Do not forget that I have a violent temper. In some stories, I am born ugly, but I like beauty, and I am jealous of those who like beauty. I also think myself extraordinary… if what you say before is true, who created all these rumors about me before?”

She looked at this man and said coldly, “Especially after Wang Jingmeng slashed my face. Everyone felt I was ugly and had a bad temper after seeing me, and that all the rumors about me are true.” She paused, took a deep breath and laughed. “In reality, I seem to have done nothing but I became such a person, thought of as such a person. Then I could only become such a person.”

The man’s expression did not change. He said softly, “I do not hope to be forgiven, even if I pay with my life. People have to pay their debts.” Then he paused and said seriously, “Anyone will pay the price for what they have done.”

Ji Qingqing laughed for a long time. She looked uglier than anyone else, and more mournful than anyone else. She thought of many things about herself.

She thought of herself many years ago, before her face was disfigured. At the time, her face, while not peerless in Changling, had been beautiful. Her talent had not been the best in Changling, but among the few near the top. But those scenes had been sealed for so long they were unfamiliar. Those seemed to be a life that had nothing to do with her. Her smile grew colder until it disappeared.

“Since you say that many things have happened when I did not know, then tell me what Baili Suxue did that has to do with me.”

“After Wang Jingmeng challenged you and slashed your face, many years later, Zheng Xiu and Wang Jingmeng got together. At that time, Han was destroyed, and Zhao was just hanging on.” The man looked at her and spoke with unusual slowness and severity. Because the matter was so unimaginably important to the present. “Baili Suxue and Wang Jingmeng met at the bamboo hut by the Tianzhu stream. They talked about some things, and one of them was your matter. Then Baili Suxue decided to split with him, closing the mountain to never meet him again. He never managed to enter Min Mountain Sword Sect in his life.”

His voice was calm and solemn. But Ji Qingqing’s body trembled unconsciously. “What are you saying?”

“The world knows that Baili Suxue and he had a bad relationship, and he never had a chance to enter Min Mountain Sword Sect. But even Emperor Yuanwu and Zheng Xiu do not know why their relationship turned sour. Only I knew Baili Suxue and Wang Jingmeng were once good friends, and now you are the second in the world to know,” the man looked at her with emotion and said.

“This is absurd!” Ji Qingqing thought of many more past matters, about Min Mountain Sword Sect and Ba Mountain Sword Field, and could not help but say coldly.

“Many absurd things come from people’s emotions.” The man laughed, his laugh ugly. “Only I knew that Baili Suxue liked to aimlessly wander through the streets of Changling. Only I knew that Wang Jingmeng met Baili Suxue not long after he reached Changling. Only I knew that Baili Suxue considered the other his best friend. Only I knew that Baili Suxue coincidentally found some things about Jiaodong Commandery and Zheng Xiu, including your matter … He met Wang Jingmeng for the last time at Tianzhu Stream and told him that Zheng Xiu was not as perfect as he thought. But he did not believe.”

Ji Qingqing was silent. She started to pale.

The man said slowly. “That person was always of the belief that each friend was trustworthy, especially the woman he loved. So he did not believe Baili Suxue’s words, and told him to never say such things in front of him again.”

Ji Qingqing did not question or argue for the first time, just said, “And then Baili Suxue?”

“He did a simple thing. He cut through the bamboo mat that he and Wang Jingmeng were sitting on. Then he said nothing else, returned to Min Mountain Sword Sect, closed the mountain and never left.”

The man took a deep breath and slowly exhaled. He smiled miserably. “I am not Baili Suxue, but I think he was extremely angry and sad at the time.”