People of the same level have closer mindsets, making them easier to approach and naturally easier to become familiar with.
To some extent, Qin Fujun and Chan Shaoyun are people of the same level. They met on some occasion, and while they may not be extremely close, they naturally got to know each other.
Neither of them knew they would meet here, so their sudden encounter was quite unexpected for both.
Approaching the group and seeing Wan Liqiu and others there, Chan Shaoyun stuck her tongue out at her own rudeness, then quickly bowed in greeting.
Wan Liqiu only felt that Chan Shaoyun looked somewhat familiar, but could not remember where he had seen her.
Seeing her master’s reaction, Qin Fujun knew what was happening and quickly introduced her on the side.
Upon learning that she was the biological granddaughter of the Master of the Guijian Villa, Wan Liqiu felt relieved. His face showed a hint of amiability, and he nodded politely. He also approved of his disciple’s hospitality, telling her to go and attend to the guests first, while he led the others to join Sun Lianxing and his group.
Free from the elder’s imposing pressure, Chan Shaoyun patted her chest and stuck her tongue out again, looking as if she had been terribly scared.
Seeing this, Qin Fujun chuckled, “Look at you, is my master really that scary?”
Chan Shaoyun immediately lowered her voice, “Sister Fujun, have you not noticed? Your master always keeps a stern face with everyone, the kind of person who looks hard to talk to. I have heard disciples from Kunling Mountain say that your master loves to find fault with people the most, which is very scary.”
Qin Fujun smiled and shook her head, “That is not called finding fault. He is the Law Enforcement Elder, so punishing people is normal. If no one has made a mistake, he would not find fault with them for no reason. Therefore, what you hear may not be credible. Actually, my master is a very good person, not as scary as you imagine.”
“Let us not talk about Senior Wan anymore, it is too disrespectful.” Chan Shaoyun waved her hand, really not wanting to mention that old man who liked to keep a stern face and scare people. She looked Qin Fujun up and down and clicked her tongue, “Sister Fujun, why are you still dressed in men’s clothing? It is a pity for your good figure.”
The two women standing together indeed presented completely different images.
Chan Shaoyun’s brocade clothes and fine garments clearly showed she was a daughter of a wealthy family, adorned with tinkling jade pendants.
Qin Fujun, on the other hand, had no such cumbersome decorations. She did not compare herself to colourful flowers and willows, but rather to the clear breeze and bright moon. Showing her bare face, her simple men’s clothing could hardly hide her grace. Coupled with her porcelain white and delicate skin, and her dignified and beautiful appearance, she naturally possessed an elegant charm.
Facing Chan Shaoyun’s question, Qin Fujun smiled faintly, “Practising in the mountains, there is no need to dress up. The Meteor Hall is responsible for law enforcement and has always been solemn. Applying makeup and showing a glamorous appearance is indeed inappropriate.”
Chan Shaoyun pouted, “One thing is one thing. We women always need to find a beloved man to belong to. If you always show yourself in a man’s appearance, be careful not to scare your beloved man away.”
As the old saying goes, which young girl does not yearn for love?
Although Qin Fujun had been practising in the mountains and her years of cultivation had passed the young girl stage, the principle remained the same. She was actually slightly distracted by the few words Chan Shaoyun had just said upon meeting. A rare look of loneliness appeared in her eyes. She looked slowly into the distance and murmured, “A woman dresses for the one who pleases her. I hope I can meet such a person.”
There seemed to be a hint of melancholy in her tone.
Chan Shaoyun clicked her tongue repeatedly, “Sister Fujun is so beautiful, there are probably countless people who like you. As long as you are willing, I am afraid countless men in our Guijian Villa would line up to seek your hand. Then again, you are the closed door disciple of the Law Enforcement Elder of the world’s number one spiritual plant sect. With this status, ordinary people are not worthy of you, and you would not look at them either. First of all, you would not even pass Elder Wan’s test.”
There was another sentence she did not say out loud. Just relying on Elder Wan’s status and his scary demeanour, even if an ordinary person had feelings of admiration, they would probably have to weigh themselves up carefully. Whether they would dare to express it was a problem in itself.
With such beauty, the fact that no disciple in the vast Kunling Mountain dared to pursue her was a problem in itself.
Thinking of this, she suddenly shook her head and said, “Sister Fujun, you really have to admit, look, although you are young, your seniority in Kunling Mountain is too high.”
“You are of the same generation as your sect leader. Kunling Mountain cannot mess up the generations, can it? Those of your generation and suitable age are probably not left with many choices, are they?”
“Even if you look for someone of equal social status outside, you will still face this problem. For example, your master and my grandfather call each other brothers. Actually, us calling each other sisters is already a mess. We can only say we each count our own generations. When it comes to actual marriage, the status of the two families must be formally determined. That is another matter entirely. No wealthy family is willing to lower their own generation, so your choices for an equal match are truly not large.”
Saying this, she chuckled secretly, “Actually, there are quite a few choices outside of equal social status. I am just afraid you will not look at them. Ordinary people, Kunling Mountain and your master will definitely not look at them either.” She suddenly sighed, “For people of our status, marriage cannot actually be casual. Even if a choice is made, it may not necessarily pass the test of those who guard the gate.”
Qin Fujun, who had already come to her senses, looked at her with a strange expression. After she finished counting on her fingers, Qin Fujun teased, “Shaoyun, you are a young girl, where did you learn so much shrewd calculation?”
Chan Shaoyun widened her eyes and said, “I am stating the facts. Your seniority has indeed narrowed your choices for your lifelong event!”
“Practitioners are not worldly children. It does not matter whether there is a man or not. Where do you get so much romantic sentiment?”
“How can that be? If we truly go a whole life without one, we will definitely regret it when we grow old.”
Qin Fujun did not know whether to laugh or cry. She really did not want to discuss this with her. Looking around, she felt that standing at this intersection talking was not a good look. She waved her hand to suggest walking and changed the subject, “Since you came to Kunling Mountain, why did you not come to find me?”
Chan Shaoyun spoke as they walked, “My mother is watching. She said that at this time, Kunling Mountain is not just about Kunling Mountain’s rules. If something happens, it will be very troublesome.”
“Spectators must follow the spectators’ rules. She would not let us run around, saying that after the Chaoyang Assembly ends, we can play however we want.”
Qin Fujun remembered something, “Your brother seems to have come to participate in the competition. Could it be that he is right here in the Dingyin District?”
Chan Shaoyun said, “Yes, he has already watched the matches for a few days.”
Qin Fujun knew her temperament to some extent. Hearing her tone and looking at her appearance, she could not help but smile, “Looking at your unenthusiastic appearance, is it not good to have matches to watch every day? It is only held once every twenty years. Many people want to come in to watch but do not have the qualification.”
Chan Shaoyun pouted, “I only want to watch my brother’s matches. As for the rest, what is there to watch in unrelated people fighting each other every day? Besides, in a big forest, there are all kinds of birds. Some people look truly disgusting, yet they happen to have very good luck. In the match draw, he actually drew an empty number plate twice in a row. He actually advanced twice in a row without having to compete. God is truly blind. I suspect whether he cheated during the draw.”
Qin Fujun was stunned for a moment and tried to ask, “Are you talking about that Zhang Zhichen?”
“Eh, Sister Fujun, do you know him too?” Chan Shaoyun felt quite surprised.
Qin Fujun shook her head. She definitely did not know him, but the Meteor Hall had mobilised a large force this time specifically for this matter. Before she came, she had naturally already known this name. She estimated that her master and the others were already strictly investigating the previous draw process.
She came for this matter, and inquiring about various situations was also part of the investigation. Coincidentally, the person in front of her had a clear opinion, so she immediately frowned and asked, “In what aspect do you feel he cheated in the draw? Did you see something, or did you notice any abnormality?”
Chan Shaoyun said dismissively, “I did not see anything, but with such a draw, being able to hit it twice in a row, is it not worth suspecting?”
Qin Fujun was speechless. What did this count as? This statement was not even qualified to be included as an investigation opinion. Knowing that this woman was too impulsive, she changed her way of asking.
“You said that Zhang Zhichen is disgusting. What did he do to make you feel disgusted?”
“You do not know, this person is just a despicable villain…”
Speaking of this, Chan Shaoyun had a lot to say. She chattered endlessly, recounting everything she had heard about how Yu Qing ran to find Xiao Changdao, how he threatened Xiao Changdao to stop at the right point, and later how he went back on his word and intimidated Xiao Changdao. She even added her own feelings with embellishments.
Embellishing was not enough, she added, “Sister Fujun, do you know? That little moustache guy also has a nickname, called ‘Cannot Do Without’. It is said that as long as the canteen opens for meals, they go every meal to eat their fill of spiritual rice. They look as if they are crazy with poverty, greedy for every little bit, and wanting to take advantage of every little bit. Even others cannot get used to this appearance, so they gave them the nickname ‘Cannot Do Without’.”
Little moustache? Qin Fujun was slightly stunned. A vague something inexplicably flashed through her mind. She then asked suspiciously, “For practitioners, eating their fill of spiritual rice facilitates cultivation. Kunling Mountain happens to have this condition, so it is not excessive. How could someone even stare at their eating and come up with a nickname?”
As someone who frequently enforced the law and investigated cases for the Meteor Hall, she immediately asked the key to the problem.
She was right to feel it was abnormal. However, this nickname was given by Xiao Changdao and Wu Ronggui to frame Yu Qing and his group, and was secretly spread. Even the participants did not know the inside story. How could Chan Shaoyun know? Naturally, she shrugged and shook her head, saying, “How would I know? I estimate their character is too poor, and there are too many people who find them an eyesore.”
She did not care, but Qin Fujun secretly noted this suspicious point.
In the Meteor Hall, before Wan Liqiu led the group to depart, when he spoke to everyone, he had clarified the purpose of the sect sending them to supervise this time, in just four words: scrutinise every detail!
In short, it meant never letting go of any suspicious point.
As one of the main investigators of this trip, and someone who frequently enforced the law and investigated cases, Qin Fujun knew deeply that any suspicious point seemingly unrelated to the case could ultimately be the key to touching the truth of the case. Therefore, when she discovered a suspicious point, she naturally would not easily ignore it. She silently kept it in mind, preparing to immediately launch an investigation later to find out how this nickname emerged.
After the two walked around and caught up for a while, Qin Fujun saw that she did not know much. After fulfilling her duties as a host to a slight extent, she proposed to take her leave, indicating they would gather again later.
Chan Shaoyun knew she still had matters to attend to and could understand.
When Qin Fujun rushed back to Wan Liqiu’s side, Wan Liqiu and the others were still listening to Sun Lianxing and Wu Tian’s report on the relevant situation, and occasionally raised questions.
Then they listened to the explanations, and Qin Fujun also integrated into this atmosphere.
When the matter temporarily came to a pause and the others were dismissed, and the people of the Meteor Hall began to discuss and sort out the relevant situation, Qin Fujun raised the suspicious point she had discovered. Because it was related to the target person, she felt it was necessary to continue the investigation.
Under the current situation where there was no clear direction for investigation, no suspicious point should be let go. Wan Liqiu naturally expressed his approval. Also, because Qin Fujun was the first to grasp the situation and might be clearer on the details, it was only natural to assign Qin Fujun to continue being responsible for this line of inquiry.
After the meeting, Qin Fujun immediately found Wu Tian.
Facing this senior generation person who was even younger than him, Wu Tian was not only unaffected by her beauty but also very nervous. Who dared to guarantee that all their behaviours were strictly by the book? Facing these people, he was truly afraid they would catch a problem and make a mountain out of a molehill, which he would not be able to handle.
Being nervous was normal, being respectful and reverent was certain, and answering every question was the bare minimum.
Qin Fujun did not beat around the bush with him. Looking at the sky, which was already approaching evening, she asked directly, “I heard Zhang Zhichen has a nickname called ‘Cannot Do Without’, referring to the fact that he goes to the canteen in the Dingyin District for every meal. Is this true?”
Wu Tian secretly broke into a slight sweat. He had forgotten this detail, not expecting that these people had already grasped this situation. He hurriedly said, “Yes, I have also heard this nickname, but it does not refer to him alone. It refers to the four of them who live together.”
Qin Fujun asked, “Do you think he will go there for dinner today?”
Wu Tian thought for a moment, “Basically, they will all go. Unless there is an accident, they should go.”
Qin Fujun glanced at the few accompanying fellow disciples from the Meteor Hall beside her, “Good, for dinner, a few of us will go to the canteen in the Dingyin District to taste how the food is.”
“You can also point out the people for us to recognise, is that alright?”
Wu Tian subconsciously felt that this woman’s eyes were hiding sharp blades, and every sentence had a hidden deep meaning. How could he dare to say half a word of “no”? He hurriedly nodded repeatedly like a chicken pecking at rice, “Alright, alright, alright, no problem. If Deacon Qin has any instructions, just give the order. We will definitely cooperate fully here.”