Eight Treasures Trousseau

9

Chapter Eight: True Self

No light came into the dark and secret room. The person lying on the ground did not have one piece of unharmed skin. Hair was tucked together and fell beside a face with protruding and wide eyes. He looked like a ghost that came from hell, and gave people a frightening feeling.

In this room covered in dirty water, there was a person that was idly sitting and drinking tea. That hand that was manicured perfectly slowly raised a white jade teacup to the lips. After a light sip, there was a perfect smile on the corner of the lips. "Good tea."

Putting down the teacup, he flicked his snow-white sleeves and slowly walked towards the man that was lying on the ground, as though he did not care at all about the unclean water dirtying his white outer robe.

"I've long heard that Master Zhang is a hard bone to crack. Today, I have seen it is so." The white and clean hand grabbed the hair of the person on the ground, pulling it back until he was forced to raise his head with difficulty. No matter how unwilling he was, he could only groan as the other held him like this, unable to even swear.

Perhaps it was because the hair in his hand was too dirty that the man in the white robe released the hair in his hand and allowed this Master Zhang's face to smash into the dirty water. Two dirty water droplets splashed onto his silvery-white brocade shoes.

In a flash, someone walked out of the dark corner and presented a white cotton handkerchief. The man then bent down to wipe the two dirty drops off his shoes.

He used the cotton cloth to wipe his hand and then threw the cloth next to Master Zhang. He said in a sedate tone, "But I do not like people who are hard bones, especially ones that have been sent to assassinate me." He raised a foot and stepped on Master Zhang's head, causing the other's entire face to be pressed to the ground. His tone became dark. "Since your bones are so hard, then stay hard for me. Do not cry and beg when the time comes."

He took off his foot and turned to walk out of the room with his hands behind his back. When the door to the secret room was opened, the light outside the door penetrated in. He said with mirth in his tone, "You all, continue to serve Master Zhang well; do not let Master Zhang pass."

The door to the secret room closed again and the room became dark. Master Zhang closed his eyes in hopelessness and roared hoarsely. But he, whose tongue had been cut off, was fated to never speak another word in his life.

"You say that Junwang Fei is practicing martial arts in the yard?" Yan Jin Qiu adjusted his robe as he faced the copper mirror. After he finished hearing Mu Tong's report, he raised an eyebrow and said smilingly, "Junwang Fei is really a daughter of a descendant of generals. It is good to practice martial arts to strengthen the body."

Mu Tong used a cloth to carefully wipe Yan Jin Qiu's slightly damp hair. He said, "Junwang Ye is right; these years Junwang Fei was unable to go out to ride or to ascend any mountains to sightsee due to her weak health. Practicing martial arts is a good way to exercise the body."

When Yan Jin Qiu heard this, he curved his lips but did not speak. Seeing this, Mu Tong did not dare to speak more, and dried Yan Jin Qiu's hair with even more care.

In the main room of the main compound in the junwang fu, Hua Xi Wan's hair was loose after her bath. She was half-reclined on the couch as she flipped through a ghost story that was very popular at the moment. Lu Zhu used silver toothpicks to deliver precut fruit to her mouth. Zi Shan was sitting on a little stool and using a small sandalwood mallet to massage her legs. Expensive silk incense was burning in the room. It was a luxurious and indolent scene, but because the person enjoying it was a beauty, it became a scene of beauty.