Daoqi Huangcheng

Chapter 64, Section 63: The White Attic, The White Woman (3.2K words - Please subscribe)
It was a white four-story attic with white walls on the outside.

The courtyard is deep and secluded, filled with lush evergreen trees.

It's said to be evergreen, but it only means it doesn't wither in any season; in fact, it's white.

The white tree was a type of tree that Song Chen had never seen before his transmigration—the snow locust.

To get to that white building, you have to walk through the white brick path in the woods.

Over time, many cracks have appeared on the white stones. The Imperial Palace Inspectorate was responsible for the maintenance of the palace, but the eunuchs did not replace these white stones because moss had grown in the cracks. The white moss looked like ice flowers and frost.

One day, when the palace eunuchs saw noblemen walking by carefully avoiding the moss, they knew that this white stone would never need to be replaced.

Song Chen walked around the white wall, entered the white courtyard, stepped on the white brick path, and arrived at the white pavilion.

He glanced up at the plaque hanging in the attic.

The plaque is old, but the three characters "Ningxin Pavilion" are still strong and powerful.

In front of the pavilion, an old eunuch sat dozing in the warm morning sunlight, while two other young eunuchs were carefully sweeping the ground with large brooms.

As Song Chen arrived, a cook from the Imperial Kitchen hurried forward carrying a black lacquer box. The box was inlaid with mother-of-pearl, and the mother-of-pearl was carefully arranged to form a picture of an old man fishing in the wind and snow. The box itself was extremely expensive, not to mention the aroma of the food wafting from inside.

The Imperial Kitchen staff delivered the meal, and a young eunuch put down his broom, wiped his hands on the corner of his clothes, and went to take it.

Another eunuch saw the man in black robes approaching from behind, glanced at him for a moment, and then hurriedly looked at the old eunuch behind him, saying, "Eunuch Xiong, Eunuch Xiong, a distinguished guest has arrived!"

The old eunuch opened his squinting eyes, hurriedly got up, and went to greet him.

In the palace, a young man who can come here without wearing any uniform and whom he doesn't recognize must be a noble person who cannot be neglected.

The old eunuch named Xiong Gonggong bowed and said, "This old servant greets Your Excellency. May I ask what brings Your Excellency here?"

Song Chen glanced at the three eunuchs behind Eunuch Xiong.

The three eunuchs immediately turned around, realizing the situation.

Song Chen slightly raised his left hand, lifting the wide sleeve to reveal a string of prayer beads on his wrist.

When Grandpa Xiong looked closer, his cloudy old eyes, which had been "always ready to follow the rules and smooth things over," suddenly brightened. He looked up at the man in front of him with suspicion, as if he wanted some confirmation.

Song Chen nodded slightly and asked softly, "Is the Princess here?"

Eunuch Xiong replied, "Yes."

After saying that, the old eunuch turned to the young eunuch carrying the lunchbox and said, "You don't need to bring the food today, I'll do it."

A moment later, Eunuch Xiong led Song Chen into the white pavilion, Ningxin Pavilion.

There is a mechanical hanging basket in the pavilion that leads directly to the fourth floor; presumably, lunchboxes are usually transported up and down through this basket.

But today, instead of putting the lunchbox into the hanging basket, Grandpa Xiong hunched over and led Song Chen up the steps, gradually ascending the winding and narrow wooden ladder.

"How should I address you, esteemed sir?" Eunuch Xiong suddenly asked.

"Song Chen".

The man in the black robe responded, then added, "A core disciple of the Imperial City Temple, and also a member of a branch of the Que family."

"Oh." Eunuch Xiong's respectful expression turned to one of realization. "So you are a cultivator."

As for the origins of the Que family's branch, he didn't even mention them, because compared to the previous identity, it was nothing, a force that this old eunuch could have easily killed before.

Grandpa Xiong then cautiously asked, "What about your prayer beads?"

Song Chen said in a low voice, "It was given to me by Consort Gong yesterday."

The old eunuch Xiong rolled his eyes and continued, "This old servant is being presumptuous, but since you've come all this way, I'll venture to ask another question. These prayer beads are a personal item of Consort Gong; why did she bestow them upon you?"

Song Chen said, "You just need to know that I am a friend, not an enemy."

Eunuch Xiong slapped himself and said with a smile, "This old servant has been too talkative, this old servant has been too talkative."

Song Chen did not look down on these people's ideas, because before coming here, both Jiu Lingzi and the people on the Turtle Platform had repeatedly told him: there is order in all realms, and no one can break it. Whoever breaks the rules will be punished.

You can use the pretext of plague, military training, or feng shui to send corpses to the Yellow Springs in the north, but you cannot go on a killing spree, slaughtering an entire city and then throwing the corpses into the Yellow Springs.

Although Jiu Lingzi and the people on the Turtle Platform did not say it explicitly, Song Chen had already vaguely understood the subtleties involved by combining the "dragon energy".

The universe has its own way, and the human world will generate all kinds of "resources" because of the rules of the universe. This is a place with many and far-reaching implications, and countless eyes are watching it. It is likely that "this announcement and that agreement" have already set the rules here. If you dare to mess around, you will probably disturb some mysterious force and be killed shortly after you step out.

This is a "public vegetable garden" and a "public breeding farm".

You can't act recklessly inside.

What you do must conform to certain rules.

You cannot touch the root of the problem.

As the two were talking, they had already reached the fourth floor of the attic.

Inside the white building sat a beautiful woman dressed in white.

She was in her early twenties, tall and elegant, dressed in a plain white robe, sitting on a white lacquered wooden chair, facing a white table, her fair and delicate fingers quietly caressing a white chess piece.

The chessboard was old, but well preserved, and the chess pieces had long since become smooth and dull from being played with.

After slowly placing the white piece, she picked up a black piece.

Song Chen sized up the woman. Such a woman was truly rare.

Her phoenix eyes were clear and deep, serene and profound, while between her brows was a hint of disdain and arrogance rarely seen in a woman's eyes.

Even while playing chess, her neck remained elegant, long and dignified, exuding a kind of aloofness and wildness, like a snow leopard taut in the icy wilderness, every inch of it possessing wildness and power, every inch of it making men hesitate to approach.

The moment most men see her, they understand that such a woman is impossible to tame, and approaching her rashly will only lead to humiliation.

When Song Chen appeared from around the corner, he placed the black pieces into the chess jar, stood up, bowed, and said, "This sinful woman is facing the wall here and has not been able to greet you from afar. I hope you will forgive me, sir."

After the ceremony, she waved her hand, and Eunuch Xiong respectfully left.

Song Chen said, "This eunuch's skills are quite good among ordinary people."

Feng Qing'er sat down again, gesturing for him to sit down, and said, "The cultivation method practiced by Eunuch Xiong is the 'Essentials of the Mortal World,' which is not comparable to the methods of cultivators, but it can gather the energy of all kinds of people in the mortal world, making his internal strength profound. Although he is not a Dragon Guard, his strength is by no means inferior to those Dragon Guards. If the environment is suitable, the power he can unleash can even temporarily rival some great cultivators. He was implicated by me and imprisoned here with me."

Song Chen said, "I have entered the ninth stage of Qi Gathering."

Feng Qing'er's eyes lit up, and then her gaze fell on the twelve prayer beads on his left wrist.

Song Chen said, "Eleven years ago, I was ten years old. I was dressed in rags and squatted by the Tianyu Bridge with a broken bowl in front of me."

Feng Qing'er was stunned for a moment.

She remembered this incident when she was only ten years old. She was sitting in a carriage with her mother, who was no longer in favor but had not yet been banished to the cold palace.

As the carriage traveled through the streets of the imperial city, she pulled back the curtain, and the warmth from the charcoal stove wafted out. In the freezing snow, a boy was shivering, wrapped in a tattered cotton-padded coat he had picked up from somewhere, looking up at her with eyes full of despair.

She couldn't bear it, so she turned her head slightly and looked at her mother sitting opposite her with pitiful eyes.

So the mother stopped the car, got out, gave the boy a large coin, watched him kneel down and kowtow to thank her, and then watched him run safely to the pancake shop in the distance.

of course
The boy whom Consort Gong helped was not Song Chen, but rather someone whom Consort Gong carefully selected from among her many experiences that matched Song Chen's and that would be remembered by the Princess.

As for the boy who was saved back then, he has long since died somewhere unknown. Perhaps his bones were buried shallowly and he has become a lonely ghost in the underworld. Who cares?

"I come from a humble background, and I was too embarrassed to answer when Eunuch Xiong asked," Song Chen said with a smile, explaining his earlier attempt to conceal the truth.

After he finished speaking, he suddenly noticed that it was very quiet on the other side.

He looked up and found Feng Qing'er looking at him intently.

Those cold eyes held a mixture of shock, approval, enthusiasm, and joy.

Feng Qing'er suddenly laughed self-deprecatingly and said, "It's really hard to imagine that you, sir, have become a core disciple of the Imperial City Temple and a great cultivator at the ninth level of Qi Gathering at such a young age!"

Just now, the woman thought that the gentleman was over sixty years old, but he just looked young.

But now that the woman is imprisoned, what is there left for you, sir, to come and see me?

Song Chen said gently, "There is plenty of time in the future, Princess, you need not be discouraged."

Feng Qing'er shook her head and said, "I have never been discouraged, but I don't know how you will teach me?"

Song Chen looked at the princess with curiosity.

Although she was a woman, she exuded an aura of majesty and power. If one did not look at her or listen to her voice, but only listened to the content, one would think that one was talking to a stoic, profound, and long-suffering king in distress.

Feng Qing'er noticed that the man opposite her was looking at her.

She wasn't shy at all, and didn't even move an inch, like an ice goddess statue, unmoved no matter how many eyes fell on her.

Song Chen said, "There's nothing much to teach you. Wait for the right opportunity, and I will help you."

Feng Qing'er said, "Then what does the gentleman want? The past favors are just a prelude, aren't they? Since the gentleman has become a Qi Gathering Ninth Realm Grand Cultivator at such a young age, he must have been very meticulous in his journey. What can I give you?"

Song Chen didn't speak again, but just quietly looked at the Princess.

He already harbored desires for men and women.

He had never seen a woman like the Princess before.

Feng Qing'er glanced again at the prayer beads on his left wrist and sighed, "Does Qing'er really make you unable to look away from her?"

Song Chen laughed and said, "I was just curious. The little girl who used to be leaning against the carriage window has grown up so much."

Feng Qing'er smiled and said, "Then I must take a good look at you, sir."

The two looked at each other, scrutinizing each other inch by inch, choosing one another without any shyness.

After a long while, Song Chen withdrew his gaze and said, "I have to go."

Feng Qing'er was not surprised. The two had only met once today and were aware of each other's existence.

No one will open up and discuss important matters on the first meeting.

She stood up, her graceful figure swaying. Dressed in pure white, with ample breasts and hips, she exuded an air of cold arrogance. She escorted Song Chen to the stairwell and said, "I look forward to seeing you again, sir."

Song Chen nodded and then left.

After he had gone far away, Eunuch Xiong went up to the fourth floor of the pavilion.

The eldest princess stood with her hands behind her back in front of the bright window and said coldly, "Go and investigate him. I want to know everything about him."

(End of this chapter)