Calamity Messenger-Chapter 60 - 47: The Second Night’s Banquet

"Well said!"

A voice of admiration sounded from the distance, making Qian Gongyu and Shang Xinlei turn their heads to see Jie Zilong and Jie Yuan Shao, the uncle and nephew.

Jie Zilong applauded as he walked over to them, speaking loudly, "The art of war says, ’Make others enter your battlefield, not enter theirs.’ Why should we step into the battlegrounds meticulously laid by others? The Quan Family and the Chen Family are not to be trifled with, but do you think our Jie Family and your Shang Family are easy to offend?"

"Uncle Zilong, Qunyu Book relies not just on the Quan Family and the Wu Family, but also the twenty-three noble families gathered here," Shang Xinlei countered lightly. "Certainly, I’m not afraid of offending them, but Xiaoyu and Jiang Shi..."

Jie Zilong shook his head: "As long as our two families keep them out, no matter how much resentment they hold, they will only think we have formed an alliance to monopolize intelligence on Mansu Forest Land, not implicate the two from the Qian Family."

Qian Gongyu nodded repeatedly, thinking, it’s true; she really didn’t want to face people like Qunyu Book or Chen Linchuan—though she’d love to make a good impression on such figures if there were no conflicts of interest, she knew they were here for Jiang Shi.

If they proposed demands she couldn’t accept, she’d offend them by refusing, and accepting them would be beyond her reach, wouldn’t it be a lose-lose situation?

"Though I wanted to say this to show goodwill to the two of you, I think Jiang Shi’s guard likely won’t appreciate the gesture," Jie Zilong looked at Jiang Shi and laughed: "You’re not afraid to offend those people."

"She simply doesn’t know how tall the mountains are or how deep the waters," Jie Yuan Shao suddenly said: "Ignorance fosters bravery, and bravery fosters ignorance."

"I’m not talking about how powerful or fearsome the Quan and Chen Families are, but Jiang Shi, you simply have no idea about the landscape beyond, what it’s like to be at the second turn, the majesty of the third, the supernatural aura of the fourth... If you had seen the vastness of the world, you’d naturally know to feel reverence."

"Reverence isn’t weakness; it’s about not wasting life on things without meaning. When you achieve great feats and overcome momentary hardships, the past will be nothing more than wind and frost."

Though Jie Yuan Shao spoke harshly, it was clear to everyone she meant well, and Qian Gongyu nodded internally in agreement. Yes, yes, a clever person knows not to suffer losses, only a wise one adapts to the circumstances—is there anything you can’t tolerate until you have the strength to wipe out the opponent’s entire family?

"Yuanshao, differing paths make different companions. Your worldview works for most people, but it doesn’t suit everyone," surprisingly, Jie Zilong countered his niece’s words: "There are people in this world, who, when defeated, become nothing but dust, yet if they succeed, they’re unstoppable—they live their lives on a razor’s edge, unbeaten before the cold iron blade."

"You may not agree with this way of life, but... not all fish need to live in the same ocean."

"Our family will host a banquet here, and the two from the Qian Family may attend or not. I won’t stop other families from approaching you, but you’re welcome to come to the Jie Family if you encounter trouble."

"Rest assured, I’ll be watching closely," Shang Xinlei immediately said: "I’m indeed curious about the rewards for high personal scores; anyone who dares go against you becomes my enemy."

Qian Gongyu glanced left and right, suddenly feeling at ease.

Jie Yuan Shao and Shang Xinlei were both her teammates in Mansu Forest Land, and even for their own interests, both families must protect Jiang Shi. Failing to protect Jiang Shi wouldn’t just mean lost profits but family honor—which might be more important to them.

An idea suddenly struck her: Could it be that Jiang Shi realized this early on and deliberately acted this way? That way, they wouldn’t owe a favor to the Shang or Jie Families, yet gain their protection...

But seeing Jiang Shi practicing blade with an expressionless face, Qian Gongyu felt she might be overthinking.

Despite being watched by so many families and envied by many, why can she calmly practice blade without any fear, worry, hesitation, or even the slightest emotional fluctuation appearing on Jiang Shi’s face, as if all worldly matters had nothing to do with her, and her life revolved only around training, resting, and fighting.

A person living on the edge of the blade... Qian Gongyu’s eyes were a mix of confusion and envy.

"Eldest Miss, if you’re rested, come to the sixth duel."

"Ah?"

...

...

With servants lighting the bonfire and presenting delicacies, the guests arrived gradually. The noble offspring attending were all dressed splendidly, exuding high nobility, yet like the servants around them, they seemed unremarkable at the banquet—all eyes on those few in the center.

Flowers, under the stars and moonlight, are nothing but trivial decorations.

Due to Shang Xinlei, Qian Gongyu imagined Qunyu Book as an ambitious, treacherous man with a predatory gaze, so she was taken by surprise upon seeing a young man at the banquet, dressed casually in an open robe, dancing and spinning with the rhythm—assuming he was a dancer invited by the Jie Family to liven up the atmosphere—until he approached her.

"Miss of the Qian Family, would you like to dance?" He bent over, extending his right hand, revealing statue-like chest and abs beneath his open robe, his long hair tied in a roguish manner, each ear adorned with nine earrings—his style completely unlike the Nanliang people, more like a northern barbarian—especially one living at the border.

However, his wrist adorned with a purple ribbon band immediately exposed his identity.

"Qunyu Book." Shang Xinlei stood in front of Qian Gongyu, mocking, "Why not keep being your brother’s shadow and come to Mansu Forest Land to stir trouble?"

"Seems I need to shut my windows tight tonight, lest the lady thieves set their sights on me again," Qunyu Book replied lazily.

"Qunyu Book, I won’t stop you from interacting with the Qian Family people, but make sure discussions happen in public," Jie Yuan Shao also came over to say: "But as a noble offspring, you should set an example; you must not overpower, nor make unreasonable demands."

"What if Miss Qian Gongyu wishes to spend the night with me and makes unreasonable requests?"

"I won’t!"

"You’re not allowed."

"Keep dreaming."

Qunyu Book seemed disheartened, and said dejectedly, "Your rejections are too synchronized and decisive... is there really no possibility? We can start as friends; I think Miss Qian Gongyu has a lot of my mother’s demeanor..."

"You can be friends with my niece," Jie Zilong walked over with a smile.

"No, no, no, Eldest Miss Jie is too much like my father." Qunyu Book shook his head repeatedly, "I can accept having another mother, but having another father, I’d rather quickly die and be reborn."

"You’re really not afraid of these words getting back to your family, huh..."

"Anyway, I’ve already run away, would my dad even leave his affairs to come and beat me up?" Qunyu Book placed his hand on the shoulder of a middle-aged man with a scar on his face nearby, invitingly said, "By the way, Senior Zilong, I’ve arranged with Uncle Lin Chuan to head into Mansu Forest Land together tomorrow, would you like to join?"

"To be honest, my last experience entering Mansu Forest Land was not great..." Jie Zilong seemed a bit hesitant.

"That’s why we should go together, having both of you seniors with me gives me a lot of peace of mind." Qunyu Book laughed, "I still remember last time teaming up with three young ladies, they were so scared they clung tightly to me, but I was scared too! Yet, I had to soothe and encourage them, otherwise, losing face for the Quan Family would mean going back to get scolded by the uncles... being a man of the Quan Family is really tough."

"Since you’re so earnest, I’ll join in too. Coming all the way here and not entering the Secret Realm really wouldn’t make sense."

"Done chatting?"

Chen Linchuan’s voice, much like his appearance, was weathered, firm, and scarred, bluntly asked, "As per your request, here we are. Where’s Jiang Shi?"

The clinking and chatting suddenly died down, the lively banquet seemed to be paused by someone, so quiet that one could hear a pin drop.

Logically, as long as the team of four didn’t leak any information, outsiders wouldn’t be able to know what happened in Mansu Forest Land; even if they did, they couldn’t determine who was leading, but the personal score leaderboard revealed all their secrets, leaving no room for concealment.

Jie Yuan Shao, 230 points.

Qian Gongyu, 325 points.

Shang Xinlei, 389 points.

Jiang Shi... 660 points!

Clearly, Jiang Shi was the weakest and the lowest in status among the four, yet her score was far ahead, which meant only one thing: the source of the score anomaly was Jiang Shi; she had mastered the secrets of Mansu Forest Land, and everyone else was just hitching a ride, winning without effort!

Although Jiang Shi was just a guard for Qian Gongyu, the afternoon was enough time for them to find out that Jiang Shi was picked up casually by Qian Gongyu from the street, not a native member of the Qian Family.

"Jiang Shi is practicing her swordsmanship," Jie Zilong stated calmly, "She has no interest in the banquet."

"How rude, how arrogant!" someone immediately jumped up and said, "Young Master Qun and Elder Chen are both here, how can a mere Black Belt not come out to meet us! She’s deliberately bringing disgrace to the great family!"

"Hey, watch your words, don’t escalate it to family matters." Qunyu Book immediately interrupted him, "There are plenty of people in this world who don’t respect me, my dad doesn’t respect me, Eldest Miss Jie and Shang Si also don’t respect me, does that mean they hate the Quan Family? They just dislike me, which is normal, I’m not Spiritual Jade, how could everyone possibly like me? Besides, my dad never attends banquets, does that mean all families in Jiangnan City that invited my dad are being disrespected by him?"

The young man who was stirring up trouble opened his mouth but couldn’t say anything—Qunyu Book had brought up his dad, if he dared say anything further, it would be equivalent to attacking the powerful Patriarch of the Quan Family.

"Then let’s ask her to come out and talk." Chen Linchuan said.

"We’ve asked," Jie Zilong was still smiling, "She refused."

Many of the guests’ expressions changed, it was clear they wanted to speak, but Qunyu Book turned to glance at them, and they all swallowed their words back.

"Since we’re the ones wanting to meet her, if she doesn’t want to come over, then we should go to her instead." Qunyu Book said easily, "Can you lead the way?"

Such a reasonable request really had no grounds for refusal. With Qunyu Book and Chen Linchuan moving, the guests at the banquet naturally followed suit, Qian Gongyu walking at the forefront, looking back at the large group trailing behind her, suddenly had a strange thought—who would have thought, the person being actively visited by so many young masters of prominent families was merely a Black Belt Guard with no achievements, no family background, and even low strength?

She had realized she was caught in a massive vortex, where any wrong step could rip both her and the Qian Family apart, all because she picked Jiang Shi up halfway.

However, Qian Gongyu felt no regret, instead, she started looking forward to Jiang Shi’s next performance; some people are like this, even if you know they’re beautiful and dangerous, you’re still captivated by their charm, throwing all consequences aside.

Jiang Shi continued practicing her sword beside the carriage, even as the large group approached her, she remained unfazed. Kesa slash, upward strike, downward slash, without any particular order, just continuously practicing basic moves. But her appearance was so striking, every movement was like a dance full of grace; even though she wore just a black training outfit, it couldn’t conceal her graceful figure, sweat on her forehead trickled down her cheeks to the tip of her nose, sparkling and tempting like a delicacy you’d want to taste.

Qunyu Book froze for a moment, then suddenly stepped forward and knelt on one knee.

"Miss Jiang Shi, will you marry me!?"