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墨書 Inktalez
Chapter One Hundred Ninety-Three: The White Cat Floats on Green Water, the Black Dog Leaps
A thousand taels of silver notes, in the Southern Xiongnu Empire, could easily be given as a tip to someone of high status. This was not the act of a second-generation heir from some prominent family, but rather that of a general or professional who had recently struck it rich on the battlefields of Huaxia. However, that was not the main point; the real issue was that the person who had given Qing He a thousand taels had completely ignited Ye Huan's fury.
Turning his head abruptly, Ye Huan spotted a man still clad in armor standing behind him. He wasn't particularly handsome and appeared slightly overweight, but anyone who caught a glimpse of him would remember him well—he was wealthy!
The reason for this impression lay in the thick stack of silver notes stuffed into the protective armor on his chest, each note worth a thousand taels—a true nouveau riche…
"What are you looking at? Never seen a rich man before?!"
Noticing Ye Huan's gaze, the man seemed eager to show off and puffed out his chest, trying to project an air of authority. However, this bravado had little effect on Ye Huan.
What a joke! With a Golden Core Stage Cultivator and two Ninth-Level Practitioners at their peak, Ye Huan and his companions could probably walk across the entire Nine Provinces Continent without fear. Why would they be intimidated by a soldier from the Southern Xiongnu Empire? If it weren't for the concern of alarming the City Guard, Ye Huan would have slapped him twice to teach him just how high the heavens were and how thick the earth could be!
His eyes remained fixed on the man's chest. Suddenly, Ye Huan absentmindedly touched his own chest only to realize he had nothing there. It dawned on him that he was currently broke; even his Spatial Ring was likely empty, containing nothing but various Arms.
With this thought in mind, Ye Huan couldn't help but break into a sinister smile, causing Qing He beside him to shiver. Yang Guangyao and Lo Shaobin understood Ye Huan's intentions perfectly; upon seeing his smile, they both wore equally sinister expressions and approached the nouveau riche from either side, effectively cornering him.
"What do you want?! Wuwuwu..."
Sensing something was off, the nouveau riche questioned them nervously. However, before he could finish speaking, Lo Shaobin covered his mouth with his hand and whispered coldly in his ear, "Kid, if you want to live, you'd better behave..."
Satisfied with their approach, Ye Huan glanced around and noticed a quiet alley next to Purple Spring Pavilion. His smile widened as he signaled Yang Guangyao and Lo Shaobin to take this fellow away. Before they left, he turned to Qing He and said, "Miss Qing He, as you can see, we seem to have run into a bit of trouble. I wonder if you could wait for us a moment? We'll be back shortly..."
"This..."
Feeling somewhat awkward about the situation, Qing He almost called for the City Guard right then and there. Yet when she saw Ye Huan's ever-present smile, her instincts warned her against taking such action; otherwise, it would surely lead to big trouble.
Hesitating for a moment, she nodded and turned away as if she hadn’t seen the nouveau riche who had just given her a thousand taels. Carefully tucking away her silver notes along with the legs of that golden chair into her clothes.
Just as Qing He pretended not to notice what was happening, a gentle breeze swept by and Ye Huan's group vanished without a trace. Meanwhile, from within that quiet alley came sounds of desperate cries: "No! Please! Don’t! At least leave me my clothes!"
Three minutes later…
Looking at the three people in front of him, Qing He rubbed his eyes in disbelief. To his astonishment, it had only been a short while, yet Ye Huan and the others had all changed into brand new scholar robes, pure white as snow, trailing to the ground. They wore various jade pendants at their waists, looking exceptionally elegant. Especially Ye Huan, with his long hair that hadn't been cut in ages and his handsome face, he truly resembled a pear blossom pressing down on a begonia.
Noticing the shock on Qing He's face, Ye Huan thoroughly enjoyed being looked at by a beautiful woman in such a way. With a flick of his hand, several silver notes appeared in his palm. He waved them in front of Qing He, revealing a set of snow-white teeth as he said, "Miss Qing He, can you take us inside now?"
"Dear father, no, young master, please come in quickly."
Without any of the previous disdain for Ye Huan and the others' attire, Qing He hurriedly took the silver notes from Ye Huan's hand and swiftly turned to lead them into the Purple Spring Pavilion. Ye Huan couldn't help but shake his head, sighing that this woman of the world was indeed a woman of the world; seeing money made her forget even her own father. It was far too realistic—playing around was one thing, but bringing her home as a concubine was out of the question.
Just as he turned his head and caught sight of Ye Huan shaking his head, Qing He looked puzzled and inevitably asked Ye Huan, "Young master, are you not satisfied with our place?"
"Satisfied? Of course I'm satisfied..."
Saying this insincerely, it was only after hearing Qing He's question that Ye Huan had time to glance at the interior of the Purple Spring Pavilion. Instantly, he was filled with shock; it turned out that the reason why it was called Purple Spring Pavilion was because the only color visible inside was purple—purple curtains, purple tablecloths, and even the carpet was purple. The place was filled with temptation. Occasionally complemented by the other colors of clothing worn by the hundreds of young women inside, entering this three to five hundred square foot Purple Spring Pavilion felt like stepping into a spring breeze.
Moreover, this was just the first floor; if they went upstairs to the Purple Spring Pavilion, it would likely be even more astonishing.
As expected by Ye Huan, they arrived at the staircase leading to the second floor without stopping. As soon as Ye Huan raised his head, he saw that the second floor was already packed with people, forming a stark contrast to the empty first floor filled only with young women. Just as Ye Huan was about to step forward, Qing He spoke again: "Young master, you are a scholar. According to the rules of Purple Spring Pavilion, you may go up to the second floor, but these two..."
"What’s wrong with us? Can't you see we are scholars too?"
Before Ye Huan could speak up, Yang Guangyao became anxious upon hearing that only scholars could go up to the second floor of Purple Spring Pavilion. He quickly exclaimed at Qing He without noticing that even Ye Huan's eyes were wide open in surprise as if he were meeting him for the first time.
It was no wonder; in Ye Huan's memory, there were very few who had studied in Dragon Hall. The higher one's professional level was, the less they studied. Moreover, he had never heard Yang Guangyao mention studying before; it was entirely normal for him to be curious.
Of course, as their guide, Qing He couldn't simply take Yang Guangyao's word for it. She looked him up and down with a curious expression before saying, "You say you're a scholar? Fine then; let me test you."
"You? Can you do that?" Yang Guangyao looked surprised as he glanced at Qing He's prominent chest. Having always believed that women with large chests lacked brains since childhood, he was even more astonished than when he heard Ye Huan claim to be a scholar. He provocatively said to Qing He.
"Why can't I? Here’s how it works: I’ll recite the first line of a poem; you come up with its second line. If you answer correctly, I’ll let you go up; if not, you'll have to stay down here quietly. Is that okay?"
Completely oblivious to where Yang Guangyao's gaze lingered, Qing He even puffed out her chest slightly. This made Ye Huan break into a cold sweat beside her; after all, Yang Guangyao came along with him. If he couldn’t answer correctly, it wouldn’t just be Yang Guangyao who would be embarrassed—it would be all three of them!
Perhaps sensing Ye Huan's tension or perhaps wanting to avoid losing face in front of a woman—even dressed in scholar's white robes—Yang Guangyao still lacked any scholarly demeanor and resembled a rough man from the streets instead. He nodded solemnly and seriously while beside him Lo Shaobin also appeared tense and clearly prepared for what lay ahead.
Seeing this scene, Qing He smiled, her delicate face filled with a strange expression as she softly said, "Alright, since you are ready, I will start with the first half of the line. Get ready!"
It felt like a duel in an arena, as if life and death were at stake. Before the exchange between Qing He and Yang Guangyao could begin, Ye Huan felt as if he had stepped onto a battlefield, the killing intent so heavy that he couldn't help but wipe the large beads of sweat from his forehead. Unexpectedly, the moment Qing He spoke, Ye Huan froze in place, hearing her first half of the line: "White cat floating on green water!"
'White fur floating on green water, red paws stirring up blue waves? Isn't this from my first-grade textbook?!'
Wondering if he had misheard, Ye Huan felt a bit relieved; after all, such a simple line of poetry would be easy for Yang Guangyao to answer. If he couldn't respond to it, then it would be better for Ye Huan not to go up to the second floor of the Purple Spring Pavilion.
Just as Ye Huan was continuously thankful that the question was so simple, almost simultaneously, both Yang Guangyao and Lo Shaobin spoke up: "Black dog leaps into Yellow Springs!"
'Damn it, these two fools!'
Internally lamenting, Ye Huan truly thought that Yang Guangyao and Lo Shaobin were hopelessly stupid for not being able to answer such a simple line of poetry. He couldn't help but stiffly turn his head to look at Qing He, curious about what kind of mockery would be on her face.
To Ye Huan's surprise, there was not a hint of ridicule on Qing He's face; instead, it was filled with admiration. Her red lips parted slightly as she said, "Impressive! I didn't expect you to know even such obscure magical beasts. It seems you really are well-read."
"Of course! The White Dragon Cat is one of the Fifth-Level Magical Beasts, about the size of a domestic cat. Since ancient times, it has lived above the Green Water River in Eastern Huaxia. The Black Dog is a Sixth-Level Magical Beast and is known as its natural enemy; it resides in the Yellow Springs of Western Huaxia. So when you mentioned the white cat, I immediately thought of answering with the black dog. How about it? Can I go up to the second floor now?"
With a bright smile that radiated sunshine, Yang Guangyao and his companion looked like victorious generals returning from battle, almost ready to ride off triumphantly on a fine steed. Yet neither of them noticed that beside them, Ye Huan had subtly taken two steps back…
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