The Virgin Mary in the Book: I Decide My Life with Two Swords

Cangyue Country - Nanlai - Shunyang County

Three days later, on March 14, Ye Ling and his four companions arrived at Shunyang County, the first county town in Nanlai.

After three days of getting along, Ye Ling also felt that Xue Jingchuan did not have much ill intentions, but he still could not trust him completely, and must not take him lightly.

Shunyang County is much smaller than Tangzhou. The four of them led their horses and walked slowly into the city, passing by small stalls.

"Miss, should we eat first? It's already four o'clock in the afternoon. You are not in good health and you can't go hungry," Qian Qing said. She has been very unhappy these days. With the addition of Xue Jingchuan, her young lady can't transform anything. She can't find a town to stay in at night and has to sleep in the open air. It's too much suffering.

"Let's find an inn! We can rest for a night and continue our journey tomorrow, how about that?" Xue Jingchuan asked Ye Ling for his opinion.

"Okay, Young Master Xue has traveled all over the country, so he must have been to Shunyang County. You come and find the inn," Ye Ling said. She didn't care these days, so she could take the opportunity to enter the space to eat something and take a shower.

"Okay then, follow me." Xue Jingchuan led the way. Naturally, they lived in King Beichen's secret villa, so that they could sleep peacefully at night without worrying about the two evil spirits from the northwest coming to attack them.

The four of them arrived at the inn's entrance in a few steps. Ye Ling looked at the plaque and said, "It's a good name that will please the guests!"

"This is the largest inn in Shunyang County. The prices are the same as other inns. I know the owner here, and I can get a discount." Xueying said as he walked in: "Manager Zhou?"

"Sir... Mr. Blood, why are you here..."

"Shopkeeper Zhou, long time no see!" Xue Jingchuan quickly interrupted Shopkeeper Zhou and winked at him: "I brought a friend here today and would like to stay with you for one night. You have to be reasonable."

"Okay, okay," Shopkeeper Zhou immediately understood, "Don't worry, Miss. Blood Prince's friends are my friends. Come upstairs quickly. Please come this way."

Manager Zhou led the way personally and opened three upper rooms, one each for Ye Ling, Jiu You, and Xue Jingchuan, and one for Qian Qing and Ye Ling.

Xue Jingchuan immediately stopped laughing after entering his room, and said with a serious expression: "Any letter?"

"Yes, you've arrived just in time. I received a pigeon message this morning." Shopkeeper Zhou took out a small bamboo tube and took out the small note inside to examine it. "His Highness will be coming to Nanlai to appease the people's grievances. He will arrive around the end of March."

"Alas, when the Crown Prince provided disaster relief last year, His Majesty kept some of the money for himself, and then all the officials in Nanlai kept some for themselves, leaving the people with nothing. Now that the spring plowing season is approaching, how can the people not complain? Fortunately, the Book of All People has been escorted by us and has reached the hands of the Emperor," said Manager Zhou.

"Nanlai Governor Guangzong Yuan has been dismissed from his post and investigated, and is being escorted back to the capital. However, according to my estimation, he will not be able to return alive. The prince's men will definitely kill him on the way. What we have to do is to protect His Highness. The prince will definitely take action to deliver the disaster relief money this time," said Xue Jingchuan.

"Blood Prince is right."

"Wait a minute, is there any new news about the Lu family recently? And where are the Northwest Twin Devils?"

"It's hard to track and find the whereabouts of the Northwest Twin Devils, but they should be nearby, so you must be careful, these two people are not easy to deal with," Shopkeeper Zhou reminded.

"It's okay. I've fought with both of them before, and Miss Ye's Jiuyou is also very powerful. If we attack together, we will definitely kill the Northwest Twin Devils this time. Alright, pass the order immediately. All the secret villages along the way will mobilize to clear the way for His Highness. Also, don't let Miss Ye know my identity."

"Yes, I understand. I'll pass the message on right away. Please take a shower and change your clothes first. The clothes you want have been placed in the closet in advance." After saying this, Manager Zhou bowed and left.

A quarter of an hour later, everyone finished washing up and went to the first floor to eat.

Shopkeeper Zhou was very hospitable and set out a large table of dishes. "Miss, Mr. Xue, this meal is on me. Please enjoy."

"Thank you, boss." Ye Ling looked at Xue Jingchuan and said, "You have a lot of face!"

"Of course not. I told you, I've been around for many years and I know a lot of people."

"You've been walking around the world for many years, why wouldn't I believe it?"

"My master passed away when I was fifteen. After he passed away, I started to venture out into the world. Now I'm twenty-seven. How many years have you calculated?"

“Only twelve years.”

"Okay, you have the final say. By the way, you really don't plan to hire me to kill someone for you?" Xue Jingchuan still didn't give up.

"Thank you, I will make the money from these two people myself." Ye Ling didn't want to lose two thousand taels for no reason. What a bullshit pair of evil spirits, she could deal with them in minutes.

"Alas, it seems I have no chance to make this money," Xue Jingchuan pretended to sigh, and then ate with relish.

"By the way, how many days will it take us to reach Nanlai by horse?" Ye Ling asked.

"Without a lunch break, it would take almost four days on horseback," Xue Jingchuan replied. After a moment's thought, he added, "Where are you going to Nanlai? I've always wanted to know why you chose such a faraway place. If you stayed in the capital, at least you would have Grand Tutor Leng to protect you. But in Nanlai, not only would you have no one to look after you, you would also have to be wary of Ye Luxun. It's too dangerous."

"If grandpa could protect me, he wouldn't have let me stay in Nanlai Manor for five years, and he wouldn't have let me be almost beaten to death by the Ye family. I know he has his difficulties, so I won't disturb his life. Life and death are predestined, and wealth and honor are in the hands of God. There's too much garbage in the capital, it's disgusting, so it's better to stay away from it," Ye Ling replied while eating.

Xue Jingchuan was stunned for a long time before he spoke: "Actually... you are right. Master Leng is old and can't handle many things. But you are a woman after all, and you still need someone to take care of you in order to survive!"

"I don't think so. In this chess game called life, don't let yourself become a passive pawn. It's time to awaken the edge within and play a good game for yourself."

"You are different from others, far away from the capital and the Leng family. Don't you feel lonely?"

"In this world, misunderstandings are the norm, and understanding is uncommon. Compared to being hot and cold, this loneliness makes me feel more at ease," said Ye Ling.

Xue Jingchuan felt it again: "Loneliness makes people more down-to-earth. This is the first time I've heard this. Every woman wants to find a good man and live a stable life, but you only want to become strong."

"Low-class women think being a pet is enough, but they don't know it's not easy to be a pet. And those who keep pets are not capable men. A real man doesn't want a pet, but a warrior wolf. And I don't like being either a pet or a warrior wolf."

"Really? Then what do you want to be?" Xue Jingchuan became interested.

"I want to be the one who raises war wolves," Ye Ling said word by word.

Xue Jingchuan hesitated for a moment: "You... want to be a man?"

"Who says only men can keep pets and wolf warriors? I can also keep men as pets and wolf warriors. This is what I said, my own chess game, because I hate being a chess piece." Ye Ling said seriously.

Xue Jingchuan didn't quite understand what he was saying: "Miss Ye, since ancient times, women have been supporting their husbands and raising children, carrying on the family line. How could you... have such unrealistic ideas?"

"It's unrealistic, but I just like being unrealistic. I don't like what you said about taking care of a husband and children, and I don't like continuing the family line. I have my own life. I want to create a family of my own, a family that belongs to me, Ye Ling."

"Why are you so concerned about home? Once you find your true love, you will naturally have a home." Xue Jingchuan still didn't understand.

"You are wrong. Women are proletarians. No matter how bad a man is, he will inherit everything in the family. But what about women? They are like dandelions. Once blown away by the wind, anywhere can be their home, at the foot of a mountain or on the edge of a cliff. If they fall on a fat place, they will grow in the wind. If they fall on a thin place, they will suffer for the rest of their lives. A woman comes to the world like a guest. She stays temporarily at her parents' home for a few years, then stays at her husband's home for a few years, and finally settles down at her son's home. She doesn't know that she is a guest in her dreams, and she has become like flying catkins in the wind and duckweed on the water." After Ye Ling finished speaking, she lowered her head to eat.

The other three people at the dinner table were silent, because what Ye Ling said was absolutely right, this is a woman's life.

Qian Qing's tears flowed unconsciously, and she wiped them quietly. Any normal-minded woman would do the same after hearing Ye Ling's words.

After an unknown amount of time, Xue Jingchuan finally spoke: "Miss Ye, actually... you are quite right. I cannot refute you, but there is one thing. Maybe you can meet a man who treats you wholeheartedly. That would be very happy, right?"

Ye Ling glanced at Xue Jingchuan with a smile, then put down her bowl and chopsticks. "As adults, we shouldn't test love and humanity too much, because they are too fragile and can't stand the test. I'm full, I'm going upstairs to rest first."

"Miss, I'm full too." Qian Qing trotted upstairs, and Jiuyou also got up and left.

Xue Jingchuan looked at the people going upstairs and said, "You heard it too, right?"

"I heard it," said Manager Zhou.

"What kind of experience has allowed a woman to see human nature so clearly?" Xue Jingchuan said.

"What she just said is really touching. No one has ever said that being a woman has a hard time before. Most people think that they are born to inherit the human race. No one would think about whether they are happy or suffering," said Shopkeeper Zhou.

Xue Jingchuan nodded: "No wonder Ying Ren said that Miss Ye despised the Crown Prince for being dirty. A woman with such thoughts would really look down on a man with many wives and concubines."

"Yes! But she is a woman after all. Now she is out in public and rides a horse every day. I guess... no man would dare to want her."

"What's wrong with riding a horse?" Xue Jingchuan asked back, "She doesn't steal or rob, and she lives on her own. I think she's much better than those women who only rely on men. During these few days of getting along with her, I found that she's not pretentious at all, and she's certainly not hypocritical."

"Ah?" Shopkeeper Zhou still couldn't accept it: "If Blood Prince says it's strong, then it's strong."

"Okay, I'm going to rest now. Tell everyone in the store to stay alert and be careful of the Northwest Twin Devils."

"Don't worry, Master Xue. I have already made all the arrangements. You can go and rest now!"

Xue Jingchuan got up and went upstairs, still thinking about what Ye Ling had just said. The more he thought about it, the more he felt that it was right, but he was also worried about her. After all, this idea was indeed unrealistic and unheard of. This road had never been walked by anyone in history, so it was very difficult.