The setting sun is like blood, sprinkling on the carved wooden windows of Tinglian Pavilion like crying, as if the earth is telling the fatigue and sorrow of the day. The sunlight shines through the window frames and shines diagonally on the green brick floor, forming patches of light and shadow, like traces of time, deep and shallow, intertwined.
The air was filled with a faint fragrance of lotus, which was the breath coming from the lotus pond outside the pavilion, fresh and elegant. However, this fragrance could not dispel the stagnant atmosphere in the pavilion, as if it was shrouded in an invisible layer of pressure, making people feel a little suffocated.
Ji Hanfo sat quietly by the window, his fingers unconsciously rubbing the edge of the tea cup, his brows furrowed tightly, as if he could pinch a fly to death. His eyes stared out the window, as if he was contemplating something, and seemed to see nothing. Listening to the lotus pavilion, it was unusually quiet, and even the rustling of bamboo leaves being blown by the wind outside the window could be clearly heard.
Finally, Ji Hanfo broke the silence, his voice was low and slow, as if it came out of the ground, "Miss Caizhu is back?" Although this sentence was short, each word was like a stone falling on a calm lake, causing ripples and breaking the silence in Tinglian Pavilion.
Shi Shui's hand pressed tightly on the green bird whip, as if he could feel some kind of power transmission through the whip body. Her fingers moved slightly, and then she nodded thoughtfully, as if she had a clearer judgment of what she was thinking.
Shi Shui raised his hand and gently stroked the strands of hair at his temples that were messed up by the wind behind his ears. Her movements were quick and decisive, without the slightest sluggishness, which is unique to people who have been practicing martial arts for a long time.
"Brother Huiji, before coming to the Lotus Realm, I have sent two powerful disciples to escort her back to the fishing village with a divine doctor from Kyoto." Shi Shui's voice was crisp and firm, revealing a reassuring power, "Miss Caizhu has a pure heart, but she has been running around for days and is concerned about her grandfather's condition, so I will take care of them a lot."
Her words flowed through the room like a clear spring, giving people a sense of tranquility and soothing. However, after the words fell, the room fell silent again.
Ji Hanfo's eyes slowly moved away from Shi Shui and fell outside the window. The scenery outside the window is like an elegant ink painting, quiet and distant. However, his thoughts had already flown away, and he couldn't help but return to half a month ago.
It was in the council hall of Sigu Gate, and a little girl holding a token and crying with pear blossoms and rain broke into his sight. Her tears rolled down like pearls with broken threads, making people feel pity. The figure of that little girl is still clearly imprinted in his mind at this moment, lingering.
The atmosphere in the council hall that day was extremely solemn, as if even the air had frozen, which was much more depressing than today's Tinglian Xuan.
Caizhu was dressed in a coarse cloth dress, and the hem of her skirt was covered with dust from the journey, looking a little embarrassed. She was holding an oiled paper bag tightly in her arms, as if it contained all her hopes, like a life-saving straw.
When she saw Ji Hanfo, Bai Jiangquail and Shi Shui, she could no longer suppress the fear and helplessness in her heart, and fell to her knees with a thud, crying in her voice: "Three heroes, please save my grandfather! His cough became worse and worse, and he coughed up a lot of blood...... Woowoo ......"
Seeing this, Shi Shui was anxious, he stepped forward, hurriedly helped the colorful beads up, and asked with concern: "Girl, get up and speak first. Your grandfather is seriously ill and should have gone to find a doctor for treatment quickly, but why did he come to our door?"
Caizhu wiped her tears and opened the oilpaper bag with trembling hands. As the oil paper was unveiled, a touch of lustrous green instantly illuminated the entire council hall like a bolt of lightning.
Everyone took a closer look and saw that it was a palm-sized token, carved from the jade of the Southern Wilderness, the jade was transparent, like mutton fat, faintly glowing with a cold green cold light, which made people dare not look at it directly.
"This is ......" Shi Shui's pupils contracted suddenly, as if she had seen something extremely shocking, she took a step forward without hesitation, leaned forward, her eyes fixed on what was in front of her, and her face was full of expressions of disbelief.
This token was all too familiar to her, when Li Lianhua sent back the Sigu Sect Master's Order, she personally received it and carefully kept it safe. Over the years, the sect master order had been enshrined in the ancestral hall of the Sigu Gate, and it had never left that sacred place, let alone been held by others.
Caizhu sniffed gently, seemingly a little nervous, but continued to say: "This is what Brother Ah Chao gave me before leaving. He said that if I encounter any difficulties, I will take this token to look around, and you will definitely help me. Now that my grandfather is very sick, I really have no other choice but to beg you......"
Hearing the name "Ah Chao", Ji Hanfo's brows furrowed tightly, and he asked: "What does this Ah Chao you are talking about, what does he look like?"
Caizhu hesitated for a moment, then began to recall Ah Chao's appearance, and said slowly: "His temperament is very gentle, his skin is fair, but he always holds a sword in his hand."
Bai Jiangquai's eyes became extremely sharp, he stared at the colorful beads tightly, and said sternly: "You said this token was given to you by that teenager? Do you know that this is the order of the sect master of the Sigu Sect? Only Li Xiangyi, the former master of the Four Visiting Gates, has it, and that piece of the Sect Master's order has already been taken back, how could it fall into the hands of an unknown young man?"
His words were like a basin of biting ice water, mercilessly pouring on the beads, causing her to tremble violently, as if a chill penetrated her head to toe.
"I...... I didn't know this was the order of the head of the sect!" Caizhu's voice trembled slightly, as if he hadn't recovered from the shock, "Ah Chao only said that this token can help me, he won't lie to me?"
Faced with Caizhu's defense, Shi Shui did not respond immediately, her eyes fell tightly on the token wrapped in oil paper, as if it was an extremely precious and dangerous item.
After a while, Shi Shui slowly stretched out his hand and carefully picked up the token. The moment her fingertips touched the jade, a cold feeling came along her fingertips, making her heart skip a beat.
The texture and touch of this jade did not seem to be fake, Shi Shui's brows furrowed slightly, and the doubts in his heart became even heavier. Without the slightest hesitation, she quickly stood up, walked quickly to the ancestral hall, and took the token that was originally placed in the ancestral hall.