Chapter 1879: Chapter 935: Growing Up (Second Update)
After coming out of the Secret Room, it was late, so Marquis Xuanping first returned to his Courtyard to have someone prepare hot water for a bath.
Manager Liu looked at him with a strange expression, "Didn’t you just bathe after morning exercises? I’ve never seen you so fond of cleanliness before."
"What do you understand?"
Marquis Xuanping took off his blood-stained clothes, revealing his robust upper body.
His body was covered in intersecting scars, the physique of a military general with many years of battle.
The muscles were firm, strong and powerful, with distinct lines.
Manager Liu was a man, but he had to admit, he was very envious.
He put the clothes into the basket, sighing, "I know, you’re going to see the princess."
Marquis Xuanping was unfastening his belt, "Going to see Yiyi... forget it, too lazy to explain to you."
After bathing, Marquis Xuanping changed into dry and light clothes and then went to see his beloved daughter.
Today, the whole family was dining at Princess Xinyang’s place.
Lil’ Jingkong, Shangguan Qing, and the newlywed couple.
When Marquis Xuanping entered the room, he was momentarily disoriented seeing the whole family.
Lil’ Jingkong looked so much like the young Xiao Hen, making it feel like a glimpse into the past, yet not only the past, because there were also Gu Jiao, Shangguan Qing, and Yiyi.
All these years, he had lived alone, suddenly it was so lively, he was unaccustomed to it.
"What are you standing there for? The food’s getting cold," Princess Xinyang said calmly.
"I’m coming." He sat down beside Princess Xinyang without batting an eye.
Princess Xinyang adhered to the rule of not speaking while eating or sleeping, but she couldn’t stop Little Yiyi, who was just under six months old, from making noises. Lil’ Jingkong occasionally responded to her, and Shangguan Qing bantered with Xiao Hen.
The meal was lively and warm, somewhat like the atmosphere of an ordinary family’s home.
After eating and drinking to their heart’s content, Marquis Xuanping went to the Study Room with his two sons, while Princess Xinyang and Gu Jiao took the two little ones for a walk.
When they returned from their walk, the conversation between father and sons had also ended.
The brothers’ Courtyard was in the same direction, so the four of them left together.
Shangguan Qing snatched Lil’ Jingkong’s toy, and Lil’ Jingkong chased him all over the Residence, creating a chaotic pursuit.
The newlywed couple strolled hand in hand along a flower-lined path.
Xiao Hen talked about the matter of Young Master Mingyue.
Gu Jiao hadn’t expected Marquis Xuanping to act so quickly, it was truly surprising.
Xiao Hen looked at Shangguan Qing, who was making faces at Lil’ Jingkong up ahead, and said with a grin, "Though my brother and father seem unserious at times, they will throw caution to the wind for those they care about."
Gu Jiao nodded.
Xiao Hen smiled gently and said, "No need to be envious, they are now also your brother and father."
Gu Jiao said, "Then I’ll be envious of myself."
Xiao Hen laughed.
Gu Jiao said, "So, Young Master Mingyue is actually the young master of the Sword Pavilion, then is he a fellow disciple with Long Yi?"
Xiao Hen nodded, "Yes, his father is the master of Long Yi and Dark Soul. Long Yi and Dark Soul were both orphans, and among the first group of surviving children under the Purple Grass Poison."
Gu Jiao asked, "Are people from the Sword Pavilion using Purple Grass Poison to cultivate death warriors?"
Xiao Hen said, "He’s not sure, only said it’s a suspicion."
The situation of Young Master Mingyue and Chang Jing were somewhat similar; both resided on an island and were young masters of secluded sects.
However, Young Master Mingyue’s circumstances weren’t as optimistic as Chang Jing’s; he wasn’t the biological son of the island mistress.
The island mistress couldn’t have children and adopted a nephew from her family to inherit the Sword Pavilion. Little did she know, soon after, a maid on the island bore a son for the island master.
Young Master Mingyue left the island on his own to find new Purple Grass, but shortly after leaving, he was hunted, losing the Black Moon Sword and getting hit by a witch’s poison.
This poison came from the island, and to cure it, he had to return.
But without the Black Moon Sword, he couldn’t break through the mechanism at the island’s entrance.
Gu Jiao suddenly understood, "So that’s how it is."
Xiao Hen said, "Mingyue said, as long as he doesn’t exert energy, this poison acts slowly, but once he does, it triggers a large amount of toxin."
"No wonder he didn’t fight us," Gu Jiao rubbed her chin, "I’m really curious about his actual strength. I have another question, if the island mechanism can only be opened by the sect master’s sword, how do others return to the island?"
"They can’t," Xiao Hen said, "In the past, when island people went out for business and returned, they would only send a signal, and a disciple would bring the Black Moon Sword to open the mechanism. Since the Black Moon Sword went missing, the mechanism hasn’t been opened, and island people can leave but not return."
Thinking of something, Gu Jiao frowned, "In that case, Long Yi can’t return either?"
Xiao Hen said, "That’s according to what he knows, but maybe there are things on the island he’s unaware of."
Gu Jiao realized that made sense.
Xiao Hen continued, "No matter what, with the young master of the Sword Pavilion in our hands, the next actions will become much easier."
Gu Jiao nodded, "Yes."
Honestly, although this incident happened suddenly, she didn’t find it particularly difficult. Perhaps the hardest days were already behind, and now there’s no need to walk on thin ice in whatever she does.
"Do you have a plan?" she asked.
Xiao Hen conveyed the results of the discussion between the father and the two sons: "There are two plans. One, release the news of the Black Moon Sword to lure the people from Sword Hut. Two, personally visit Sword Hut. It’s not far from Dark Night Island, and if the first plan doesn’t work, my father said he’d go, and he could also visit Chang Jing on the way."
...
Little Jingkong exhausted all his energy playing around with Shangguan Qing. After taking a bath, he was completely listless.
He carried his little pillow into the bridal chamber.
Gu Jiao thought he wanted to sleep with her, but instead, he rubbed his eyes, yawned, and said, "Jiaojiao, I’m going to bed. See you tomorrow."
Gu Jiao said in surprise, "Uh, okay, see you tomorrow."
Little Jingkong, holding his small pillow, went out with a sleepy face.
Xiao Hen had slowly been getting Little Jingkong used to sleeping alone for the past three months, and now it was showing great results.
Children must grow up, become independent of their parents, and learn to spread their own wings.
...
The next day, after sending Little Jingkong to the Guozijian, Gu Jiao and Xiao Hen went to Bishui Alley.
Qinghe Academy was on break, so Gu Yan and Gu Xiaoshun were both at home.
Seeing Gu Jiao and their brother-in-law, both were very happy.
Gu Xiaoshun put down the half-carried water and walked over to say, "Sis, didn’t you just come back? Why are you here again?"
Gu Jiao raised an eyebrow and said, "You don’t want to see me, huh?"
"No! I... I just..." Gu Xiaoshun scratched his head and stuttered, not knowing what to say.
He really liked his sister, and wished he could see her every day. He was afraid that if his sister stayed away from home too often, it would upset their father-in-law and mother-in-law.
Princess Xinyang was a very open-minded mother-in-law. If Gu Jiao were to stay cooped up in the residence without going out, it would actually make her worried.
Moreover, today was a special day.
Gu Yan saw through it but didn’t say anything. He greeted his sister and brother-in-law and eagerly looked outside.
"What are you looking at?" Gu Xiaoshun asked him.
"Look over there." Gu Yan signaled Gu Xiaoshun to look outside with his eyes.
Gu Xiaoshun looked closely and saw another carriage stopping at their door. Disguised Qin Gonggong helped their aunt, who was dressed like an old lady, down from the carriage.
"Aunt!" Gu Xiaoshun’s eyes lit up. "Is your foot okay now?"
Qin Gonggong corrected, "It’s my foot that’s in trouble."
The Empress Dowager had a fall, and he became the human cushion!
Gu Xiaoshun: "..."
Gu Xiaoshun coughed lightly and asked, "Is Qin Gonggong’s foot better now?"
Qin Gonggong limped into the house, giving Gu Xiaoshun an exaggerated eye roll.
"Does Qin Gonggong have such a bad temper now?" Gu Xiaoshun scratched his head and said to the sweat-drenched, nearly sun-stroked aunt, "Isn’t it too hot for you to go out in this heat? Why are you here to play leaf cards?"
"Leaf cards, haha." Empress Dowager Zhuang gave him a blank look, pulled a face, and went inside.
Gu Yan said to him, "Fool." Then he too went inside.
Gu Xiaoshun was puzzled, "What’s going on here?"
Gu Jiao smiled gently, "Have you even forgotten your own birthday?"
His... birthday?
Gu Xiaoshun was stunned.
Among the five younger members of the family, Gu Jiao and Gu Yan were twins, and Xiao Hen and Little Jingkong’s birthday was on New Year’s Eve, both very memorable.
Only his birthday was isolated, not on any special day, just like him.
"What’s there to celebrate about a little birthday..."
He muttered, with a sour nose, and his eyes became a bit hot.
Recently, the family had been busy with his sister and brother-in-law’s wedding, and he had forgotten about his own birthday.
"No way, Gu Xiaoshun, are you crying?"
Gu Yan suddenly popped up behind him.
Gu Xiaoshun quickly wiped his tears and said seriously, "I’m not, I’m a grown man, how could I cry?"
Gu Yan sniffed, "You haven’t even grown all your hair yet! And a grown man!"
Gu Xiaoshun retorted, "Have you grown all your hair?"
Gu Yan said with a sense of superiority, "I’m older than you!"
Gu Xiaoshun held up a finger, "Just by one year!"
Gu Yan looked up at the sky, "But still older!"
The two of them were bickering when Yu Yaya suddenly burst in, panic-stricken: "Oh no! Something happened!"
Hearing the commotion, Gu Jiao came out of the house and asked Yu Yaya, "What happened?"
Yu Yaya ran over to Gu Jiao, grabbing her arms, crying and sniffing, "Madam took Xiaobao... to the tea house to buy snacks... but the tea house suddenly caught fire... Xiaobao and Madam are trapped inside... and haven’t come out!"