Chapter 51 Falling Out of Favor
"No, let's eat it when I get up in the evening." Ruan Xing yawned.
Seeing this, Cui Yurong stopped disturbing her. She combed her hair again, put on a hairpin, then carefully closed the door and left.
When Ruan Xing woke up from a good sleep, it was already dark, the heat of the day had faded away, and a cool night breeze blew in from the window.
I forgot to mention that the room Cui Yurong booked was a double room, with a bamboo bed on each side and a plain pine screen in the middle as a cover, so the two of them lived together. The caravan guards lived in the big bunk bed in the lower room, with five or six people in a room.
Ruan Xing originally thought that the capital city, unlike a small city like Jiangning City, would be larger and more prosperous. However, after entering, he did not feel that way. It only took more than an hour to cross the entire Huaining City from the South Gate to the North Gate, which was not much different from Jiangning City.
It doesn’t look prosperous at all, probably because Jiangning City is closer to Huaining City and the style hasn’t changed much.
It was the price that made Ruan Xing speechless. A medium-sized double room in an ordinary inn cost 280 wen per night. No wonder no common people could travel casually in that era. How could people who only earned 500 or 600 wen a month afford a room that cost 280 wen per night?
Cui Yurong had already returned. Seeing Ruan Xing come out and ask the waiter to bring water for washing her face, she smiled and said, "How was your rest, benefactor? Shall we go out to eat something?"
"Okay." Ruan Xing felt more energetic after washing his face. Seeing that Cui Yurong seemed to be in a good mood, he asked, "How are things at home now?"
When this matter was mentioned, Cui Yurong's smile faded a little. "After delivering the goods, I went to the patrol security department, made several arrangements and sent gifts, and met my father. He was just implicated, so he was not punished. He just couldn't eat or sleep well in prison, and he looked much more haggard. There are other people in the same situation as my father. I have already inquired about it. After the verdict of this case, my father and his family only need to pay 3,000 silver coins each to get out. Now we can only wait for the time being."
"It should be soon. They arrested so many people this time, so they must be punished according to the law. It won't be delayed for long." Ruan Xing comforted her. "Aren't you going to sleep? It's been a whole day and a night."
Cui Yurong shook her head. "No, it's already this late. I woke up in the middle of the night. I'd better go to bed later. Tomorrow I have to meet with some officials from the Patrol Security Bureau and find a way to send some clean bedding and food to my father."
"By the way, you may not know that there is no curfew in Huaining City. There is also a night market in the evening. It is very lively. My benefactor, shall I take you for a walk?" The problem of the goods was solved, the title of imperial merchant was saved, and the matter of saving her father also took a turn for the better. Cui Yurong was no longer as worried as before, and instead extended an invitation to Ruan Xing.
"Then go and take a look. You don't have to call me benefactor. My name is Ruan Xing."
"Then, Miss Ruan?" Cui Yurong smiled faintly, opened the door and walked out, "Please come in."
In the city of Huaining shrouded in the night sky, the lanterns of various merchants on the main streets illuminate the surroundings. Carriages and horses pass by, and people flow by continuously, creating a prosperous atmosphere.
The two of them walked along the street, and Ruan Xing asked casually, "Those horse bandits before... do you know who was behind them?"
“I don’t know.” Cui Yurong said softly, “It could be someone I offended in business, or it could be other competing imperial merchants. There are eighteen imperial merchants in the capital, big and small, and my family is at the bottom of the list. Naturally, some people want to squeeze us out, but it doesn’t matter. I’ve already entered the city, and they won’t attack me in the city.”
"You don't want revenge?" Ruan Xing was a little surprised.
Cui Yurong smiled and said, "You have to have the ability to take revenge. Now our family is walking on thin ice in the capital, so how dare we care about anything. But if there is a chance, I will naturally give them a hard time."
"You are really open-minded." Ruan Xing praised. In this respect, she was not as good as Cui Yurong in mentality. If someone wanted to kill her, she would rather fight to the death with the other party. She would be willing to kill one thousand enemies and lose eight hundred of her own. Anyway, if she suffered a loss, the other party must not have an easy time.
"It's not open-mindedness, it's helplessness. If I had power and status now, wouldn't I be able to walk around freely in Huaining? But I don't have that. After all, I'm just an imperial merchant... It would be great if my family could have an official." She looked yearning and lonely. "Forget it, let's not talk about this. Miss Ruan, this restaurant is good. I hope it suits your taste."
She took Ruan Xing into an elegantly decorated restaurant, went up to the private room on the second floor as if they were familiar with the place, ordered a few signature dishes, and asked Ruan Xing to sit down.
There is a very spacious observation deck on the second floor. Sitting here while having a meal, you can not only enjoy the cool breeze and moonlight, but also appreciate the singing and dancing in the distance.
"What is that place?" Ruan Xing pointed to the place where many young girls were dancing. The red lights and green clothes made it particularly eye-catching.
Cui Yurong took a look and said, "That is the Jiaofangsi. The geishas there are exclusively for the inner court of the palace and the banquets of dignitaries. What we saw today should be the dancers from the Nuanxiang Pavilion. They often rehearse there, which is a feast for the eyes."
Nuanxiang Pavilion… Ruan Xing’s heart moved. This was the place where she first simulated the plot line that her original body should follow. “Really? To be able to perform a dance in such an occasion, the dancers inside should dance beautifully, right?”
"All of them are girls from poor families. Except for the families of criminals, which good person would be willing to let their daughters become slaves? In order to practice dancing, I don't know how much hardship they have to endure every day, just to show up in front of those high-ranking officials and nobles, and have a chance to escape from the sea of suffering..."
Cui Yurong spoke with pity on her face, but Ruan Xing's thoughts had already drifted away. In order to escape the plot at that time, she no longer considered following the path of the male and female protagonists, but chose another more difficult route. Over the past month, she has experienced life-and-death crises many times, but still has not found a suitable way to cultivate immortality.
Otherwise, you can go through this route again and maybe you can make new breakthroughs after choosing to memorize it.
Ruan Xing lowered her head and was deep in thought. Cui Yurong did not speak to disturb her. Instead, she quietly washed the teacup with fresh tea and poured tea for Ruan Xing.
[Simulating]
When you were six years old, you sneaked into the hands of a human trafficker who was sending newlyweds to Nuanxiang Pavilion. Because of your beautiful looks, you were noticed by the mother of Nuanxiang Pavilion, who taught you dancing.
You have an excellent talent for dancing and your body is very flexible. In just half a month, you have already received praise from your mother, and she allowed you to practice dancing with other dancers.
At the age of seven, you practiced your dancing skills.
At the age of eight, you practiced your dancing skills.
...At the age of fifteen, your dancing skills were recognized by your mother, and you began to perform with other dancers at various banquets for dignitaries.
At the age of sixteen, you were noticed by an official during a performance. He redeemed you and gave you to a colleague he wanted to win over.
At the age of seventeen, you became the concubine of an official. You were quite favored, but you did not take advantage of the favor. Instead, you kept a low profile and respected your mistress.
When you were eighteen, the official's attitude towards you became increasingly cold, and he took in a new concubine. The two of them were in love and happy every day.
At the age of nineteen, you completely fell out of favor and were like a transparent person in the official's mansion. The official's new favorite concubine bullied the mistress every day, acted arrogantly, and treated her like a servant.
At the age of twenty, the official was noticed by an immortal, so he killed his wife to prove his truth and followed the immortal to practice Taoism. You begged him to take you with him, but the official no longer remembered who you were. He refused you and you were sent back to Nuanxiang Pavilion. However, you escaped from Nuanxiang Pavilion with your acquired martial arts skills. You tried to follow the official and the immortal to find a way to enter the world of immortals, but were discovered by the immortal. The immortal waved his hand and you died.
[End of simulation]
Please select the reward for this simulation:
1. Memories of when I was twenty years old.
2. A random item that was on you when you were twenty years old.
3. A random skill you mastered at the age of .
4. The level of cultivation reached at the age of twenty.
No... Ruan Xing was dumbfounded. Why did she fall out of favor this time? Would the officials refuse to take her away?
She strictly followed the route of the first simulation! Her appearance, dancing skills, and personality have hardly changed. The only difference is that her martial arts level has now reached the acquired level, but she did not show this around officials, and she also intuitively felt that her martial arts had nothing to do with falling out of favor.
And the new concubine who had never appeared before...
Ruan Xing thought about it and found that there was only one difference, that is, after she gained the official's favor, she did not bully the mistress.
Because she knew that the mistress was the heroine, and would become a ghost cultivator in the future to come back for revenge, she didn't want to die too early and hoped to gain more memories about the world of immortal cultivation, so she didn't think of offending her.
Now it seems that the official in the simulation did not favor her because of her beauty and dancing skills, but because he wanted to humiliate the heroine by favoring a concubine...
Ruan Xing had a headache. Wasn't the book about abusing the heroine in the early stages and chasing his wife to death? Why would the hero do such an unreasonable thing? It was inexplicably abusive.
Please forgive her for always reading novels in a hurry. She forgets the plots she has read in a blink of an eye and can only remember the general outline now. Moreover, she has not finished reading the book, so she doesn't know how this official who killed his wife to prove his faith will be whitewashed and become the male protagonist.
But Ruan Xing was not here to save the heroine. She was not interested in any of this. She just wanted to avoid the plot and concentrate on cultivating immortality. So after choosing the memory, she rubbed her eyebrows and started the simulation again.
This time, she carried out the simulation strictly according to the original plot. She bullied the mistress as she was told, and was as vicious as she could be. She poisoned and framed the mistress, causing her to have a miscarriage and becoming disabled. The officials, as always, indulged and doted on her unconditionally, and always stood on Ruan Xing's side when facing the mistress.
This time, as an official's servant, she was taken away by the immortal. The immortal had many disciples, and together with the servants brought by the disciples, there were about fifty or sixty people. They rode on the back of a black eagle with a wingspan of dozens of meters. The entire eagle's body was surrounded by colorful halos, which blocked the strong cold wind at high altitudes, allowing them to stand firm even in the turbulence and not be blown away.
When looking down, there were layers of clouds and continuous mountains under their feet. In an instant, they all became extremely small. Ruan Xing couldn't even tell which direction they were flying, and the Black Hawk had already dived and was ready to land.
The place they arrived at was not some sparsely populated holy mountain, but a trapezoidal semi-cylindrical mountain. On the highest plane, there were various pavilions and towers. A golden banner was hung in the air, with four large characters "Liuyang Study" written in seal script on it, shining brightly.
Below the platform, there are small buildings scattered around. If you look closely, you can find that each building has a functional sign, and the people coming in and out of them are covered in dust and tattered clothes. They might be the servants of the sect.
From the highest platform on the mountain to the lush green fields at the foot of the mountain, in Ruan Xing's view, it was like a complete city with no omissions.
The black eagle landed on an open space on the platform. The immortal brushed his sleeves, and everyone landed lightly from the eagle's back. It seemed as if the ground under their feet was not solid, and there was an unreal and dreamy feeling.
The immortal left leisurely, and two old men dressed as Confucian scholars came to guide him. The disciples who were valued by the immortal were assigned accommodation one by one. Some servants were taken to live with them, while others went directly to the servants' residences halfway up the mountain.
Ruan Xing lived with the official at first, but the official himself did not really dote on her. After arriving at the Immortal Sect, he was obsessed with practicing every day and ignored her. After giving her a book on the basic Qi Refining Technique, he ignored her. Ruan Xing naturally would not stick to him, so she started to practice on her own with the basic Qi Refining Technique.
A year later, the official had established his foundation and could take fasting pills without eating. He no longer needed Ruan Xing's service and care. However, after a year of practice, she still didn't feel any Qi. She begged the official to help her draw Qi into her body. After examining her, the official said that she had no spiritual bones and would never be able to draw Qi into her body in this lifetime.
So, Ruan Xing went down the mountain and was assigned to the servants' residence.
Apart from daily labor, Ruan Xing had very little time to think about cultivation. However, her beauty, which was rare among the lower-level servants, was coveted by some people. After she relied on her acquired martial arts to beat off several presumptuous male servants, those mortal servants who also had no cultivation were afraid of Ruan Xing's martial arts and no longer provoked her, but her reputation spread because of this.
A beautiful mortal woman who was originally a concubine of an immortal cultivator has made many confident people eager to make a move. A small steward in charge of procurement tried to make Ruan Xing dependent on him, but Ruan Xing refused. Although the small steward was angry, the strength of the first level of Qi training was indeed not as good as the acquired martial arts realm in terms of combat effectiveness. The small steward had no way to force Ruan Xing by force, so he had to use the power in his hands to suppress her and assigned her to fetch water from the fields at the foot of the mountain.
Ruan Xing went. With her physique, carrying water was not a difficult task at all. She planted and cared for the spiritual rice eaten by the immortal cultivators. Ruan Xing quietly left a small bowl for herself during the harvest season. After drinking the porridge cooked with spring water, Ruan Xing began to practice the basic Qi refining techniques. A year of research had already made her familiar with it. This time, she could clearly feel a faint spiritual energy in the spiritual rice precipitating from her stomach, circling along her body's veins, and then escaping from her skin.
Thanks for the monthly ticket from Ji E Ru Qiu ~
Thanks to An An_ for the monthly ticket~
Thanks to book friend 160520210100422 for the monthly ticket~
Thanks to book friend 20200325153250815 for the monthly ticket~
Thanks to book friend 20220328172747561 for the monthly ticket~
(End of this chapter)
