Chapter 5
h.e.l.lo guys! Now we’re ready to get rolling. Here’s the first part of chapter 1. After meeting the Qing sisters, this time we meet the three Su brothers. We gather our first impressions of these three men who each has his own distinct, interesting personality. Our main male lead, Su Ling, seems to equally match Gu Yun. They both have cold personalities. Hahaha… Ok, no more talk, read on!
Chapter One: The soul travelled to a different era, Part 1 of 4
As night fell, the inside of the receiving hall of the General Manor was brightly lit with candles. Inside this s.p.a.cious room, apart from a set of rustic, huge mahogany chairs, there were two men, one sitting, the other standing, one relaxed, the other restless. The young man impatiently walked up and down in the room. After several back and forth, he finally could not bear it. He looked towards the lean man sitting motionless as a mountain on the side, and asked: "Second elder brother, dumping that woman inside eldest brother’s room, is it alright?"
Eldest brother returns today from defending the northern borders. To see a woman lying on his bed as soon as he comes back, he will likely either strangle the woman or strangle them out of anger! Blame, the emperor is to blame! It’s fine for him to deliver some woman. General Manor does not have even one single maidservant. Then out of the blue many people came demanding where to put the woman!
Without lifting his head, Su Ren continued to gently wipe a silver spear, laughingly snapped: "Of course. She’s the emperor’s gift as eldest brother’s woman. If not thrown in his room, in your room then?"
After hearing this, Su Yu immediately turned his back and roared: "I don’t want it!" He dislikes the most that kind of frailty and delicateness, resigning himself to a rich scholar’s young daughter, the thought alone makes a person spoil his appet.i.te!
Su Ren shrugged his shoulders, his appearance indifferent. Actually a woman in a household is not quite bad. In time one will also be able to accept the changes.
"Don’t want what?" A deep male voice resounded at the same time a big, tall, straight figure also appeared inside the house. A travel-weary Su Ling just returned home, still wearing the dark black armor and helmet which he had not enough time to remove.
"Oh nothing!" Su Yu forced a smile or two and laughed, "Eldest brother, you came back?" Su Ren stared at him coldly. What nonsense, eldest brother is standing here. Of course, he’s back!
"Hmm." Su Ling nodded coldly, took off the helmet, poured a cup of tea and quickly drank it in one gulp.
Su Yu stared and winked at Su Ren hinting that he should tell Su Ling about the matter of the woman inside his room. Su Ren immediately bowed his head, his eyes blinking foolishly, but also acting as if he did not see anything. Su Yu angrily pushed his shoulder fiercely. Su Ren still had the appearance as if the matter was of no concern to him.
They made eyes at each other, pushed and shoved one another. Su Ling impatiently and coldly said: "You two, why are you behaving cowardly? Do you have something to say?" He hates it most when someone holds something back, dislikes people who say things and handle work slovenly. He was gone only for a few months. How did these two men acquire this bad habit?! Su Ling’s face showed his displeasure. Su Yu who did not dare anymore to s.h.i.+rk from responsibility exclaimed back: "The emperor’s gift of a woman was finally delivered at noon today. She’s right now in your room."
Su Ling’s hands holding the teacup stiffened, across his eagle-like eyes flitted a look of disgust, coldly he replied: "Look for a spare room in the rear courtyard. Get her out of my sight." Darn it! The emperor went so far as to really send off a woman to General Manor. Does he, Su Ling, fancy a woman he has not even seen yet?!
Su Yu looked nonplussed standing there. Su Ren simply shook his head immediately, lightly cleared his throat, suppressing a smile he replied: "That I believe isn’t possible."
"Why?" Su Ren’s face displayed a rather weird smile, Su Ling felt a kind of bad vibes about the matter. Su Ren kept on wiping the silver spear and did not answer. Su Ling turned to Su Yu.
Two persons were behaving peculiarly, is she not just a woman? Don’t tell me she possesses formidable powers. No, that cannot be! Ignoring them, Su Ling walked over in large strides towards Lingyun Pavilion.
Gu Yun once again attempted to move about her already numb hands and feet. Alas, even the tingling feeling is now gone. She reckoned they’ve turned completely numb. She wanted to sit up, but found out the strength in her waist and abdomen she had always been intensely proud of is gone! I’ve had it! What’s actually going on here?! Her face was covered with a big red cloth. Gu Yun carefully closed her eyes and recalled the recent past events. She could only remember that night she went to see Qing. She found a peculiar exhibit and afterwards there was a sudden flash of red light. She felt a sharp pain in the head, saw blackness in front of her, and then she lost consciousness.
She spent the next days in a blur. She underwent SWAT [Special Weapons and Tactics] training in the past, thus she knew someone had been drugging her. She tried to keep awake in various ways. She wanted to escape from the horse-drawn rickety carriage. When they discovered that, they tied her up afterwards. Normally, she could loosen these ropes, but now she felt that her body is not the same. It had no strength at all!
From noontime, she had a big red cloth covering her head. A full eight hours have pa.s.sed since she was moved here. She did not hear any sound. Her repeated attempts to move failed because of her physical weakness. She once suspected that she and Qing were kidnapped. But, what kind of people would go to so much trouble to kidnap them? She could discern the environment around. The body costumes have changed, and even hairstyle has changed. Everything revealed a strange atmosphere.
While it’s true her head is probably muddled, but her sense of hearing is still sharp. There seemed to be someone at the door. Before she could ascertain it, the door has already been pushed open. Gu Yun held her breath, waited and observed.
As soon as Su Ling entered the room, he sensed a person was lying on the bed. Inside the room was pitch-black. Su Ling lit a candlestick lamp. In the dim candlelight, on top of the bed was a woman in a particularly eye-catching red outfit.
Su Ling’s expression changed. What’s this? Granted that the woman was thrown in his bed, but also binding her in this manner. He went to put the helmet on the table. Su Ling grew edgy, he conveniently raised and overturned the red scarf covering the woman’s face. Originally he thought he would see a terrified, weeping face. Contrary to his expectation, a pair of furious, raging flame-filled eyes greeted him instead.
It was a pair of eyes, both distinctly cold as the bright moon and burning hot like the scorching sun. Su Ling’s cold eyes narrowed slightly. What kind of woman would have such a pair of eyes?
Because of these eyes, Su Ling is now a little interested to examine her face.
It was a delicate and young face, long eyelashes by candlelight leave a faint silhouette, full cherry lips, very proud and pretty nose. The whole person looks too pet.i.te as if a pinch will shatter her entirely. Su Ling frowned, he dislikes this kind of delicately pretty young lady. If not for her unusual pair of eyes, he would not even take notice of her.
While Su Ling was looking at Gu Yun, Gu Yun also looked at this silent unruly man in front of her. A big, strong body stood before the bed, nearly blocking the already not so bright candlelight. With the light on his back she could not see clearly his face. He was dressed in dark black armor with a bronze girdle. His exposed skin showed a healthy tan, the person looked das.h.i.+ng and uninhibited, a kind of aggressive, domineering man whose temperament in general is difficult to find among ordinary men. But, why did he want to wear an armor? How he looked a little bit bizarre with this outfit.
What fascinated Gu Yun the most was his eyes. Under the dim light of the night both eyes were sharp, cold and cynical like those of an eagle. She had worked in the criminal investigation team, anti-narcotics task force, and anti-riot squad. Naturally she had seen eyes more ruthless, sinister, and vicious than this pair of eyes. However, before her this person compared to those people appeared firm and resolute, his strength a little bit awe-inspiring.
Since her body was tied up Gu Yun could not move. She has yet to figure out what had happened. But she was always cool-headed and not p.r.o.ne to panic, she asked in a low voice: "Could you please help and untie me?" She hasn’t spoken for a long time. Her voice sounded hoa.r.s.e, but she was still able to hear that it was not her own voice!
Gu Yun’s mind went straight into panic, what on earth is going on here? Ever since that night she saw the golden trigram disk, everything seemed so strange.
Gu Yun slightly turned her face away. Although her back was to the light Su Ling saw the two knife wound scars on her other cheek. They seemed to be from a recent injury. He reached out his hands, grabbed Gu Yun’s chin and turned it to one side. Su Ling’s big hands gently touched her cheek. He wanted to examine the injury. Even though he found the woman inconvenient, but if someone left two hideous scars on the face of such a weak woman, it made him feel disgusted.
Suddenly a warm hand was caressing her cheek. Gu Yun’s heart quickly jolted. She breathed and s.h.i.+vered in cold! She wanted to twist, but this man’s hands were surprisingly strong. She could not move. Gu Yun steeled her heart and bit Su Ling’s wrist.
She bit hard. Soon she tasted blood in her mouth, but the cold, arrogant man merely knitted his brows. He did not even grunt a protest. As if she was just having a small fit of losing her temper. Gu Yun frowned. Since biting him was useless and she didn’t want to waste her strength anyway, she shut her mouth and thought of other ways to get rid of his big hands.
Not troubling her further, Su Ling already coldly withdrew his hand. Is she is a dog? Looking down at the two rows of deep teeth marks, he looked and stared at Gu Yun for a long time. Su Ling’s knitted brows tightened more, in a cold voice he asked: "You are Qing Mo?" He remembered the emperor wanted to send a woman with this name. The third daughter of the Qing family, Qing Mo, is widely rumoured to be a gentle, sweet, warm and charming beauty. But, where’s the gentleness in the woman in front of him? Is the emperor playing a trick on him, or one cannot simply believe everything about hearsay?
What Qing Mo? Gu Yun was befuddled, but she did not rush to deny anything. Once again she calmly asked: "Untie me." She put off first the discussion of the whole thing. She could not wait to have her hands and feet freed, before she can begin to clarify the situation. This time, Su Ling went straight to a nearby wooden stand, removed his armor pieces and hanged them up on it. He did not glance again at Gu Yun in the bed. "This is the General Manor, not your arbitrary boudoir backyard. If you want to stay here, then give me peace. Observe the rules. Stay within your confines." Coldly leaving behind these words, Su Ling nonchalantly breezed out of the room.