SWDnovel Chapter 75 Recognition
Chapter 75 Recognition
Chapter 75: Chapter 75 RecognitionMeng Qianqian had been hiding in the mountains for an entire day and night.
The Shadow Guards of Beiliang were relentless. If it weren’t for the fact that winter had blanketed the mountain with snow, Meng Qianqian strongly suspected they would have set the forest on fire to smoke her out.
Life in the mountains wasn’t too difficult—at least, not for her. When hungry, she would snack on wild fruits like firethorn berries and hawthorn, which were everywhere.
As for whether those Beiliang fellows could find some wild fruits to stave off hunger, she had no idea.
Meng Qianqian even caught a few wild chickens and rabbits, but since she couldn’t risk lighting a fire, she played with them for a while before ultimately setting them free.
At night, she slept in a snow pit she had dug out with her Brocade Spring Saber, using a leopard as her pillow to keep warm.
Meanwhile, the Beiliang Shadow Guards
Meng Qianqian obediently agreed. "Mm."
Yin Hu said, "I’ve saved the person for you. Now I’m going to ask you something. Think carefully before you answer. If you don’t want to respond, that’s fine, but don’t lie to me. I’ll know if you do."
Meng Qianqian nodded once more.
Yin Hu: "First question, who gave you the silver needles?"
Meng Qianqian replied, "I had them made based on my memories."
Yin Hu: "And who taught you the Needle Technique and Martial Arts?"
Meng Qianqian shook her head. "I don’t remember."
Yin Hu considered her words, then said, "Write a word for me."
Picking up a dry twig, Meng Qianqian wrote on the ground: Yin Hu.
The handwriting was entirely different from what she had used in Haitang Courtyard. She even added a haphazardly drawn tiger’s head.
A flicker of shock and excitement appeared momentarily on Yin Hu’s pallid face.
With his remaining strength, he picked up a twig and drew an Eight-sided Exquisite Lantern on the ground, inscribing words onto the lantern:
Meng Qianqian read each word aloud, "The solitary night lingers long; amidst the maple forest at dusk, frost and snow lie still..."
Yin Hu stopped writing there. He could go no further.
Meng Qianqian, almost instinctively, completed the words: "Flowers bloom, flowers wither, as jade remains."
Yin Hu straightened up, staring at her in a daze. "You... who are you?"
After a moment of silence, Meng Qianqian replied, "All I know is that my surname is now Meng."
Yin Hu gazed at her for a long while.
At last, he sighed softly, "So be it."
Yin Hu passed away.
His eyes remained open.
In his eyes, Meng Qianqian saw herself—or perhaps, what she glimpsed was a hazy shadow of another person.
She reached out to gently close his eyes.
Bowing her head, a single, scalding tear fell onto the earth. "Honor, the Yin Hu Guard."
...
Meng Qianqian and Lu Yuan buried Yin Hu in the mountains, in a spot overlooking the Chu Family’s land.
Lu Yuan handed her a bundle. "Yin Hu asked me to give this to you."
Meng Qianqian opened the bundle to find the Yin Hu Token and a handwritten journal, which contained records Yin Hu had meticulously gathered from all corners of the land on various poison formulas.
Meng Qianqian asked, "What else did Yin Hu tell you?"
Lu Yuan’s tone was calm. "No comment."
Meng Qianqian frowned and turned her face away, pouting.
Lu Yuan gazed down at Yumen Pass in the valley below. "It’s time to end this."
Meng Qianqian was taken aback. "The fight’s over?"
The Beiliang army wasn’t like those haphazardly assembled Rebel Armies. If they truly fought, it would be an all-out war. How could it possibly be over in three days? Three months would have been more believable.
Lu Yuan swished his wide sleeves with brazen flair. "Who said there must be a battle? The highest form of warfare is to outmaneuver the enemy. This Lord has his own ways of making Beiliang obediently retreat."
Meng Qianqian thought of something and asked, "Did you find the missing Beiliang diplomatic envoy? So quickly?"
Lu Yuan replied coolly, "Did you really think I stayed in Feng County just to wait for you to bring Yin Hu to cure me?"
If he had been desperate to detoxify, he would have accompanied her to Yumen Pass himself.
He had stayed to investigate the case.
And now, it was time to slap Beiliang in the face.