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Finest Servant Chapter 506
🕑 Added 2023-09-27 13:19:15 +0000 UTCChapter 506 The Song
"What's wrong with you, Brother Lin?" Gao Qiu was shocked, hurriedly catching Lin Wanrong as he stumbled. Lord Lin's face was pale, his expression weary, and his eyelids seemed almost glued together.
"What a formidable Seven-Step Powder!" Gao Qiu exclaimed in astonishment.
Lin Wanrong struggled to keep his eyes open, annoyed, "It's no Seven-Step Powder. She's bluffing. It's a sleeping drug on the needle! Pinch me, Brother Gao, I'm about to fall asleep."
Gao Qiu quickly pinched Lord Lin on his arm with some force. Yet, Lin Wanrong was so groggy that he hardly reacted to the minor pain. His mind was cloudy, and had Gao Qiu not been supporting him, he would have already fallen over.
Seeing the two men in disarray, Li Xiangjun laughed out loud, "How does it feel to experience the power of my Seven-Step Powder? That's what you get for not listening to me!"
"Miss, you are Brother Lin's sister-in-law. Even if you don't care for him, how can you resort to such malicious methods? I can't stand to watch this," Gao Qiu said, angered by Li Xiangjun's gleeful demeanor.
"What methods have I used?" Li Xiangjun's face turned cold suddenly, "So you two can insult me, but I can't strike back? What kind of logic is that?"
Lin Wanrong could hardly argue with her. Realizing her mood was not good, he hastily said, "Little Sister Xiangjun, actually, Brother Gao was joking. He's always like this, very humorous. Think about it, you're so young, why would I be interested in you—"
"What did you say?!" Li Xiangjun's eyebrows shot up, her eyes seemingly ready to shoot fire.
"Ah, no, no," Lin Wanrong hastily waved his hand, "What I mean is, I'm so much older, and you're so young. Why would you be interested in me? Brother Gao was talking nonsense; it's utterly baseless! Don't you agree, Little Sister?"
As he spoke, the effects of the sleeping drug grew stronger. His mind was clouded, his eyelids nearly sealing shut; he felt extremely uncomfortable.
"At least you have some self-awareness," Li Xiangjun snorted, glancing at him disdainfully, "Men in this world, not a single one is good. I don't know what my senior sister saw in someone treacherous like you! Just keep that needle in you, consider it revenge on behalf of my sister."
Despite her young age, Li Xiangjun possessed a certain cynical demeanor, always quick to defend her sister. Lin Wanrong, having been patient time and again, finally lost his temper.
"Little Sister, it's only out of respect for your sister that I have been so patient with you. Don't think for a moment that I am afraid of you," Lin Wanrong said menacingly, "You should know that I am armed!"
"You have a gun? Oh my, is that so?! I'm so scared!" Li Xiangjun slapped her chest and laughed gleefully.
Gao Qiu blinked, leaning close to Lin Wanrong's ear and whispered cautiously, "Brother Lin, do you really have a gun? Where is it? Hurry up and pull it out, shoot her!"
"Gao Qiu, she's just a child. I have my principles. How can I, as an adult, pull out a gun on a little girl?" Lin Wanrong said, his face stern with moral dilemma.
Li Xiangjun, who had overheard their conversation, couldn't help but let out a delicate laugh, scoffing, "Pull out a gun? Do you think you can fool me so easily? If you're so capable, then shoot—"
Before she could finish her sentence, a deafening bang erupted. The ground itself seemed to quiver, and the reverberating sound echoed among the mountains, unceasing.
"You, you—" Li Xiangjun's face turned pale. She pointed a trembling finger at Lin Wanrong's face, her eyes fixed on the smoking firearm in his hand, unable to utter a word as if she had been struck dumb.
It wasn't just Li Xiangjun; even Gao Qiu was shaken by the sudden explosion, the echoes still humming in his ears. "Brother Lin, you—you really brought a gun?!" Gao Qiu stammered.
The barrel of the gun, still pointing at the sky and emitting wisps of smoke, Lin Wanrong snorted menacingly. An aura of murderous intent radiated from him: "When I kill, I don't joke around! Once my steel gun is drawn, it commands respect, and it won't be sheathed without shedding blood. Heh heh, I warned her seriously!"
Even Fairy Ning almost suffered under Lord Lin's firearm sneak attack, let alone Li Xiangjun, a young maiden. After the gunshot, she seemed to be paralyzed with fear, standing still, tears accumulating in her big eyes, resembling a pear blossom after a rain shower. How pitiful she looked!
Young lady, finally scared into submission, huh? To deal with women, words are not enough, guns are necessary! Seeing the young lady cry in fright, Lin Wanrong blew some air at the muzzle of the gun, unspeakably smug.
"Brother Lin, you are truly brilliant. Your method for dealing with your sister-in-law is unique and ingenious. Admirable, truly admirable!" Gao Qiu praised with a wide smile.
"Really?" Lin Wanrong waved his hand proudly, "Not at all, Gao Qiu, you're too kind. If the sister-in-law doesn't obey, she needs to be disciplined! Wait until you get a sister-in-law of your own, then you'll understand!"
Gao Qiu sighed and shook his head with a bitter expression, "I'm afraid I won't have your good fortune. To have such a beautiful sister-in-law, I'd rather be pricked by her every day!"
Lin Wanrong shook his head in disappointment, finding Gao Qiu irredeemable.
After envying him for a while, Gao Qiu suddenly realized something, "Huh, Brother Lin, what happened to the sedative you were affected by? Why aren't you dizzy anymore?"
Reminded by Gao Qiu, Lin Wanrong was equally astonished. ‘That's right, why am I not dizzy anymore? Could it be that I've used sedatives on others so often that I've developed an immunity to them?’
As he was pondering, Li Xiangjun suddenly burst into tears, "I—I hate you! You bullied me—"
"Bullying you? So what?" Lin Wanrong waggled his eyebrows and chuckled, brandishing his gun with pride, "Who told us we have a gun?"
"Exactly, who told us to have guns! The young lady was poking her brother-in-law's butt, and now she's in trouble!" Gao Qiu walked beside Lord Lin, both men laughing lewdly, their expressions unspeakably smug and their demeanor indescribably sleazy.
"Ah—" Li Xiangjun had never seen such a scene and was instantly frightened into running away, crying out loud. "Master, Master, Lin San is bullying me!"
"This young lady really can't take a scare," Gao Qiu laughed heartily. "Even if you call your Master, it's useless. Brother Lin has a gun; maybe he'll even bully your Master too! Brother Lin, Brother Lin—"
He hurriedly patted Lin San's shoulder only to find Lin's mouth wide open, eyes bulging, and the musket in his hands trembling, as if he were under a spell.
"Brother Gao, what did she just say?" Lin Wanrong stammered a bit; his voice was calm, but there was an uncontrollable excitement in it.
"She said you're bullying her."
"No, no, the sentence before that!"
"She called for her Master—"
"Master?" Lin Wanrong muttered to himself, his facial muscles twitching intermittently. "Is Fairy Sister here?" He exclaimed excitedly, "Brother Gao, quick, let's go there! Yuxi, I'm coming—"
Upon receiving Lord Lin's order, how could Gao Qiu dare to dawdle? He quickly pushed Lord Lin's wheelchair and rushed into the thatched hut.
The room was simply furnished, but the sight of a white robe by the window caught Lin Wanrong's eye. A delicate woman was deeply contemplating something. This white robe was Fairy Ning's favorite color. Lin Wanrong's eyes moistened and his palms trembled as he reached out, murmuring, "Yuxi, is that you?"
"It's not me!" The woman in the white robe giggled and turned around, swiftly disarming him of his musket.
Upon seeing the woman's face, Lin Wanrong was both embarrassed and angry, "You, you dare to trick me?"
"If I don't trick you, who will I trick?" Li Xiangjun stood up, laughing, and shook off her white robe. She gracefully turned around, "Look, do I resemble my master?"
This robe was indeed Fairy Ning's. Though Li Xiangjun was young and the robe was two sizes too big, she was so stunningly beautiful that she still looked charming in the oversized garment.
"You're far from it," Lin Wanrong disdainfully snorted, "You and Fairy Sister are as different as mud and the sky. Even if you cultivate for ten lifetimes, you won't be half as good as her."
"You, you—" Li Xiangjun was so angry that tears started to form in her eyes. She pointed the musket at his temple, warning sternly, "I warn you, be careful what you say. I have a gun!"
Gao Qiu screamed, "Slow down, slow down. This Western weapon can easily misfire. Young lady and brother-in-law, just playing around is enough, why go so far as to bully people?"
"Get out, you charcoal piece!" Li Xiangjun immediately became furious, pointing her finger and scolding Gao Qiu.
The young lady's face was full of rage, and with Lord Lin on her side, Gao Qiu couldn't do anything to her.
"Brother Gao, you should leave," Lin Wanrong said with a smile, "She's my relative; she won't bully me!"
"Bully me? So what?" As soon as Gao Qiu left the hut, Li Xiangjun giggled and proudly waved the pistol in her small hand. "Who can blame us for having a gun!"
It was indeed karma at its swiftest. Lin Wanrong shook his head and laughed. "Go ahead, bully me. I have never feared anyone. But before you do, there's something I must teach you."
"I have a Master. Why would I need you to teach me anything?" Li Xiangjun snorted.
"I'll teach you how to use that pistol!" Lin Wanrong chuckled, twisting her delicate wrist. "This weapon is from the West. The barrel should point inwards, and the bullet will shoot out from the other end. If you hold it like you are now, you'll end up shooting yourself." He shrugged and smiled casually, "If you pull the trigger now, bullying me would be the least of your worries. You'd end up bullying yourself!"
"I—I was holding it backward on purpose," Li Xiangjun's cheeks flushed red as she hastily corrected the gun's orientation. "What are you laughing at? Don't laugh! Do you believe I'll shoot?"
Lin Wanrong chuckled for a while, gazing at her without saying a word. Irritated by his intense stare, Li Xiangjun exclaimed, "What are you looking at? I'll shoot!"
"Take off that outfit," Lin Wanrong hummed lightly. "It doesn't belong to you."
"Why should I? This was left to me by my Master. Why should I listen to you?" Li Xiangjun retorted defiantly.
Compared to Ning Yuxi, Li Xiangjun's temperament was the complete opposite. Gazing at her pure white dress, Lin Wanrong sighed, as if seeing the celestial Ning Yuxi before him. "Brother Gao, let's go."
Hearing the acknowledgment from outside, Gao Qiu was about to enter. Annoyed that Lin Wanrong was disregarding her, Li Xiangjun shouted, "Stop! You think you can just leave like that?"
"So, little sister, are you inviting us to stay for dinner?" Lin Wanrong said with a smile.
Li Xiangjun's pretty face turned cold. "What is your relationship with my Master?"
Lin Wanrong waved his hand dismissively. "It's a very important relationship. You're too young to understand now. But when you grow up, you will."
Though young, Li Xiangjun was quick-witted and not easily fooled. "Don't think I don't understand. You called my Master by her name just now, I heard it clearly. How dare you, Lin San? How can you face my Master and my senior sister?"
Lin Wanrong laughed, "Who should I be fair to then, your Master or your senior sister?"
Confronted with such shameless remarks, Li Xiangjun was clearly outmatched. Angry, she said, "Both my Master and senior sister are the most outstanding women in the world. If you dare to betray either of them, I will never forgive you!"
This young girl was indeed fair. Lin Wanrong chuckled and looked at her earnestly. "I feel the same way. Qingxuan and Yuxi—if I ever betray any of them, may I be cursed, never to die a peaceful death."
His voice was not loud, but it carried a unique force, piercing through the air with a resonant authority.
Li Xiangjun froze. Lin Wanrong wasted no time lingering, "Brother Gao, let's go!"
Gao Qiu pushed his wheelchair outside the room, and the young girl quickly snapped back to reality. "You wish," she seethed. "I'll tell my senior sister about today and see how long your smugness lasts!"
"Suit yourself," Lin Wanrong sighed. What had to come, would come; might as well face it all at once.
"You, you—" Seeing his indifference, Li Xiangjun's face flushed red. She brandished her pistol, "Believe it or not, I'll really shoot!"
Lin Wanrong didn't even look back, offering a dismissive wave of his hand as a response. As the two men moved further away, Li Xiangjun clenched her pistol, her face flushing and paling in indecision.
After a significant distance, Gao Qiu whispered, "Brother Lin, your little sister-in-law talks tough, but she's not a bad person. As for the sedative she mentioned, it was clearly minuscule. She was just trying to intimidate you."
Lin Wanrong chuckled, "I'd like to see if the needle would hurt as much if it pricked your buttocks instead. And don't forget, she's got my gun now. We're technically under her aim."
"Speaking of the gun," Gao Qiu frowned, puzzled, "when I walked in earlier, the way she was holding it was strange, unlike how you hold it. It was as if she was holding it the wrong way—"
"Shh—" Lin Wanrong hastily lowered his voice, smiling slyly, "Brother Gao, haven't I taught you? One shouldn't be too honest!"
Gao Qiu nodded in sudden realization.
Standing silently on the peak, a chain stretched to the heavens, heading towards the misty and enigmatic summit. He gently stroked the chain, a cold sensation flowing into his palms. Memories surfaced, but they felt like a warm current encircling his heart.
"Yu Xi—"
"Fairy Sister—"
Lin Wanrong cupped his hands around his mouth and yelled frantically across to the other peak.
"Yu Xi—"
"Fairy Sister—"
The echoes reverberated, unceasing, as if carried by the spring winds, filling the valley. The misty peak across remained serene, like a garden in the sky, its secrets veiled.
From the glaring daylight to the tranquil sunset, Lin Wanrong shouted, unrelentingly, mustering all the strength he had.
As night descended, a light drizzle began to fall, each drop piercing like a steel needle. Lanterns flickered to life below, their glow intermittent in the rain, ethereal as stars on a clear night.
The peak across remained as desolate as ever, devoid of any light. Soaked to the bone, Lin Wanrong refused to step back. He coughed lightly, his voice hoarse, as if some indescribable frustration was stuck in his chest.
"Yu Xi, Fairy Sister, where are you—where are you—" He shouted with all his might. The raw, quivering voice persisted, echoing through the valley, startling flocks of nocturnal birds into flight.
Silence.
Unbearable silence.
The isolated peak, like a reef in the dark night, remained mute and still.
Raindrops struck his face, chilling him to the bone. Lin Wanrong clenched his teeth, his eyes moist. Through the misty rain, a faint melody emerged, drawing nearer and nearer, slowly filling the silence:
"Drunkenly I stroke my spring robe, cherishing its lingering scent,
The heavens seem to torment me with separation and madness.
Every year on the roadside, autumn grass springs anew,
Day by day, the sun sets within these chambers.
The clouds are faint,
The waters endless,
How long can a traveler's tears sustain him?
Love itself lacks words to describe,
So why waste tears on flowered paper?"
The haunting notes carried across the distance, resonating in the depths of his soul, blending with the drizzling rain and his tears.
