Chapter 520 - 291: Fire in the Rear Courtyard (Part 2)
Chapter 520: Chapter 291: Fire in the Rear Courtyard (Part 2)
"Impossible!!"
Gongyang Chou suddenly stood up:
"What did you do to the eldest senior brother?"
"Third junior brother!!"
Bai Yushu’s tone was no longer as unhurried, carrying a hint of anger:
"Where did you come up with this?
"The eldest senior brother’s martial arts skills are far superior to ours, how could I do anything to him?
"He comes and goes as he pleases, beyond my influence.
"The master left first, the eldest brother followed closely behind, and now there’s no one to preside over the vast Ghost Emperor Palace. If I harbored selfish intentions, I wouldn’t have come here to invite you back to preside over the situation!
"Why can’t you understand?"
Chu Qing slightly nodded as he listened; he hadn’t heard the beginning of this brotherly argument, but these few sentences were beyond reproach.
Yet, Gongyang Chou gritted his teeth and said:
"The eldest senior brother cannot have left the Ghost Emperor Palace!
"He promised the young lady! He couldn’t possibly go back on his word!!"
"The young lady... is already dead."
Bai Yushu’s voice carried a hint of coldness.
"Nonsense!!!"
Gongyang Chou grew angrier, and even from a bit of a distance, Chu Qing could feel that Gongyang Chou was channeling his mysterious skill, causing the gang wind to wreak havoc.
Just then, a maid suddenly shouted loudly:
"Third Master is here!!!"
Chu Qing raised an eyebrow and glanced at the maid.
After the maid finished, she bowed to Chu Qing...
Chu Qing sighed softly, leading Wu Qianhuan and Gentle towards the main hall.
Before he arrived, his voice did, as Chu Qing laughed:
"Unexpected, truly unexpected, a journey to Heaven-Reaching Ridge allowed me to meet with two heirs of the Ghost Emperor.
"This is indeed a worthwhile trip."
As he spoke, the three had already entered the hall.
There, the previously tense Gongyang Chou, unknowing when, had returned to sitting on his chair.
Gu Ling’Er’s brow was furrowed, sitting at her chair silent and unmoving.
When Chu Qing and the others entered, she lifted her head to glance, then lowered her gaze again.
To the left at the upper seat was a man in white.
Chu Qing glanced at this man and couldn’t help but praise his appearance aloud.
Dressed in white, he was handsome and vibrant, with a gentle jade-like temperament, looking without a hint of arrogance, smile at the corner of his lips, neither ostentatious nor cold as the maid had described.
Seeing Chu Qing and the others enter, Bai Yushu spoke before Gongyang Chou could:
"Third Master? May I ask if you are the famed Mad Saber gentleman?"
"A slight reputation, unexpected to have reached the ears of Ghost Emperor’s disciples, truly it’s a shame for me."
Chu Qing waved bitterly with a smile.
Gongyang Chou glanced at Chu Qing with slight apology:
"Third Master, I truly apologize, second senior brother came over, intending to introduce you, but unexpectedly, we brothers ended up with a bit of a dispute.
"Made Third Master laugh at us..."
"There’s nothing that cannot be shared."
Bai Yushu suddenly spoke:
"In less than a year, Third Master has gone from obscurity to recognized by all under heaven.
"Your martial arts skill and wisdom are certainly extraordinary.
"The argument between us just now, we can indeed ask for Third Master to help clarify."
After speaking, he didn’t wait for Chu Qing to agree or not, he continued directly:
"Third Master, please judge, our mentor is absent from Ghost Emperor Palace due to some matters, and the eldest senior brother has suddenly traveled far, whereabouts unknown.
"The vast Ghost Emperor Palace utterly lacks leadership, shouldn’t we find someone to preside over the situation?
"Though the young lady is slightly inferior to us in martial arts, she is, after all, of master’s bloodline. At a time of crisis, shouldn’t she take on a major role by right?
"Yet my third junior brother mistakenly thinks I have selfish motives... wanting to usurp the Ghost Emperor’s position.
"This... it’s downright absurd."
Bai Yushu’s voice was imbued with a sense of helplessness.
Hearing this, Chu Qing chuckled, looking towards Gongyang Chou:
"Gongyang brother, isn’t that incorrect? I think Brother Bai makes a valid point... why do you object?"
Gu Ling’Er hurriedly raised her head upon hearing this, intending to speak.
But she was stopped by Gongyang Chou, who sighed and said:
"Third Master may not know, before our mentor left Ghost Emperor Palace, he probably anticipated troubles ahead.
"Therefore, he instructed beforehand that after he left, management of all matters within Ghost Emperor Palace should be handled by the eldest brother.
"Moreover, my junior sister is still young, how could she oversee any major situation?
"Second senior brother, your previous words were just excuses...
"Knowing well the lack of leadership at Ghost Emperor Palace, how could the eldest brother possibly leave abruptly?
"Since you insist on saying this, let me ask you then, where exactly did the eldest senior brother go? What is he doing?"
Bai Yushu fell silent.
Gongyang Chou sneered:
"Can’t say, can you? Three years ago, the eldest brother made a promise to the young lady that he would never leave Ghost Emperor Palace, how could he go back on his word now?
"Second brother... my advice to you, some things, if they are meant to be yours, nobody can take them from you.
"Conversely, things not meant to be yours, it’s best not to covet them.
"Be honest, what did you ultimately do to the eldest brother? As long as you confess, when our mentor returns, even if you face punishment, I will certainly plead for you."
Chu Qing, hearing this, coughed lightly:
"Pardon me for interrupting, but who exactly is this young lady you speak of?"
He was curious earlier, and now seemed like the right opportunity to inquire.
With this question, the hall suddenly fell silent.
After a while, Gongyang Chou sighed and said:
"The young lady is born from our deceased master’s wife... her talent surpasses even the eldest brother.
"Her martial arts skills far exceed those of us here.
"Therefore, everyone believed she was destined to be the future Ghost Emperor."
The story clearly didn’t end here, Chu Qing continued observing Gongyang Chou, waiting for him to speak further.
Gongyang Chou continued:
"Our mentor and the young lady were initially loving father and filial daughter, deeply bonded.
"Had everything progressed thusly, many matters would have become straightforward naturally.
"Unexpectedly, mistress suddenly passed away, the young lady suspected second mistress’s involvement, but our mentor was resolutely convinced otherwise. The young lady acted alone, barging into second mistress’s chamber..."
The ultimate investigation led nowhere.
Ghost Emperor, however, flew into a rage, imprisoning the young lady in the palace dungeon for reflection.
"During that time, we brothers took turns visiting the young lady.
"It was then, the young lady sought a promise from the eldest brother.
"My eldest brother, generally taciturn, yet his promise was worth gold.
"He always fulfilled or achieved everything he promised.
"However, none of us anticipated it would be our last encounter with young lady.
"After we visited, she took her own life."
"Suicide?"
Chu Qing was shocked:
"Dead?"
"...I don’t believe the young lady is dead."
Gongyang Chou slowly exhaled and said:
"The young lady likely went to the point of extreme to resurrect herself, feigning death to escape, accumulate strength, and avenge mistress."
"The master spoke with certainty, declaring she truly was dead."
Bai Yushu said coldly:
"Yet even now, you refuse to believe this truth."
"Back then, the handling of the corpse was too quick, we didn’t even see the young lady’s last moment, the entire process was concluded.
"And our mentor... to be honest, all his focus was on second mistress at that time, as to young lady... how much did he truly care?"
Gongyang Chou’s last two sentences were voiced softly.
They carried some discontent.
Chu Qing was also somewhat surprised; the household affairs of the Ghost Emperor appeared to have hidden complexities, could it be domestic discord?
And he naturally thought of a person...
Hua Jinnian!
He claimed to have a great enemy, unparalleled in martial arts, beyond his own capability, thus needed to scour the world’s martial arts, mastering divine skills to avenge himself on this person!
Moreover, at the time, this person suddenly brought up the intent to assassinate Ghost Emperor’s wife...
This brought a bold thought to Chu Qing’s mind.
Could Hua Jinnian be the rumored young lady?
But... yet Hua Jinnian is evidently male. Furthermore, while Inconsistent Swordsmanship is intricate, claiming it far surpasses Bai Yushu, Gongyang Chou, and others is somewhat fantasy.