Chapter 160: Shizun, do you still remember that voice-changing technique we encountered at the inn some time ago?

Update 26/07/2022

Hello, I'm writing this update because I would like to get your opinion on how I should proceed further..

I started translating from the 156 chapter because at that time, the translation of the earlier chapters was already completed, but since the original translators decided to take down their work, I'm still hasitating on how to proceed. Should I start anew, from the first chapter, or continue translating from chapter 161+...

I think I will be doing edited MTL in the end, it's not because I can't read chinese, but translating is much more time consuming, and you know how long are the 2ha chapters. Well, I can consider translating these chapters and providing a much better quality if I could gain some support, and sponsor the newcoming chapters.

https://patreon.com/2ha?utm_medium=social&utm_source=tumblr&utm_campaign=creatorshare_creator

Well, hopefully, with all that said, see you soon, and take good care of yourselves.

Unedited

All the guests heard this accusation very well. Many of them stared contemptuously at Ye Wanxi, although there were those who looked at Nangong Si and Song Qiutong with disdainful sympathy.

There was a whisper from the crowd:

- What an abomination...

“I wonder why Young Master Nangong hasn’t lost his temper yet?”

“It turns out that from the very beginning Miss Sun was in a hopeless situation. Oh, how can you blame her... she's just a beautiful girl with no family or connections, who has become a bargaining chip in a dispute between two young masters... what was she to do?

The man in black was so engrossed in his performance that at some point he forgot about Tianwen and immediately received a tangible blow. Fortunately for him, he managed to dodge, and the whip could not wrap around him or cause serious damage to his body, but the cloak was torn, blood from the cut splashed onto the floor. A quiet groan escaped from the accuser's throat, after which he became much more circumspect, and did not lose sight of Chu Wanning's vine for a second, deftly dodging the blows raining down on him. However, the injury did not affect his agility in any way, and he began to pour accusations against Ye Wanxi with a vengeance:

“Young master Ye, Miss Song didn’t dare to confess to her fiancé what happened between you a couple of days ago. I think she was afraid to break the fragile peace between you and Nangong Si. But heaven sees everything, and there is the highest justice in the world *! Have you no shame or conscience left? Now that your sins are known to everyone, are you not going to bow your head and repent before people?!

*青天有眼，明镜高悬qīngtiān yǒuyǎn míngjìng gāoxuán "the blue sky has eyes, the bright mirror is suspended high" - about what is the highest [divine] justice.

On the one hand, Ye Wanxi was furious, on the other hand, the situation itself seemed absurd and ridiculous to him:

- There is no sin on me.

“It turns out that there is no sin on you, so Miss Sun alone is to blame for everything?” Even if she did not resist your will, but, in my opinion, it was very dishonorable of you to force her. Or maybe you want to convince all of us that it was she who seduced you, and not you forced her to give in?

At this time, Nangong Si, who did not say a word, suddenly turned around and, looking down at Song Qiutong, extended his hand to help her up.

However, the girl decided that he wanted to take her hand in order to personally verify that the showgun had disappeared from her wrist. When she woke up yesterday, she immediately found that the vermilion had completely worn off from her hand, and she was very frightened. She could not explain what had happened, and publicizing this fact could create misunderstandings and worsen the situation. After all, there were only a few days left before she would share her marriage bed with Nangong Si, after which her virgin castle would be only a memory anyway. Therefore, Song Qiutong kept silent about the disappearance of the shougunshi, hoping that the situation would resolve itself.

Who would have thought that a person would appear who would pour a bucket of slop on her ...

No matter how you look at it, Ye Wanxi actually rescued her and kept her by his side as a personal maid. If you develop this thought, the seal drawn in cinnabar from her wrist disappeared, and this man in black described the mole on her thigh very accurately, and she can’t dispute it in any way *. Her head was buzzing with thoughts swarming in her head, and she had absolutely no idea what to do in her position.

*百口莫辩bǎi kǒu mò biàn bai kou mo bian "a hundred mouths will not prove" - not being able to justify/prove one's innocence.

In her confusion, Song Qiutong looked up at the crowd staring at her, her eyes wet with tears, and saw nothing but contempt and pity in their gazes. Under the pressure of those eyes full of condescension, almost silent whispers and quiet gossip, she involuntarily shifted her gaze to Ye Wanxi, who stood in splendid isolation and with his head held high resisted everyone's condemnation.

The man in black, dodging Revered Master Chu's vine, continued to run around the banquet hall, relentlessly hurling abuse and accusations at his victim:

- Ye Vansi! We have a long-standing enmity, and today I will expose you, hypocrite! What kind of bastard do you have to be to commit adultery with your master's bride?! Corrupted a respectable young lady and are you not ashamed?! What a scoundrel you are!

And then, numb with fear, Song Qiutong realized what she should do. She cannot refute the accusation. Based on the words of the man in black, he and Ye Wanxi have a long-standing enmity, so he wants to trample his reputation as a noble person by hook or by crook.

She cannot bear the sin of adultery, but if she simply goes along with the words of the man in black and admits that Ye Wanxi forced her, then at least…

Suddenly she screamed loudly and hysterically:

Yes, he killed me!

Nangong Si's hand froze as did his entire body. He looked at her, dazed and frightened, as if unable to believe that his bride had been desecrated by the man who had been his father's right-hand man for many years. His entire appearance, like a mirror, reflected his inner shock.

Song Qiutong burst into tears and covered her face with her hands. In a broken voice, she said:

“Yes, Master Ye dishonored me, he… he forced me… I never gave him consent…”

Nangong Si stared at her for a while. The flame of the candles was reflected with bright reflections in his darkened eyes, where, it seemed, the original darkness and light now converged in battle. Finally, he slowly lowered the hand he had previously extended to help Song Qiutong, and his hoarse voice, like a handful of burning coals, scattered around the hall:

"Do you really understand what you're saying?"

Seeing his fury, Song Qiutong became even more frightened and sobbed out loud.

“Young master, forgive me… I was afraid that you wouldn’t accept me, so… I honestly… I didn’t dare to tell you… and I was even more afraid… I was afraid that after the truth came out, you and Master Ye would hate each other.” . The chief appreciates him so much, and if there is animosity between you, it will split the Zhufeng Sect. How could I allow this? She bowed low, her long sleeves trembling along with her shoulders shaking with sobs. Now this sincerely grieving beauty could not but touch even the most callous hearts. “It’s true, Qiutong didn’t know what to do… she didn’t dare to address the head with such a dishonorable question… she could only hide something… Young master, Qiutong dishonored your good name, but… but I really was faithful in heart and soul…”

Pale, Nangong Si stepped back and shook his head from side to side, repeating as if wound up:

“Do you understand… do you understand what you are saying?”

A cloud of shining silk covered Song Qiutong's trembling beautiful shoulders. Like dark waves that radiate their own light better than the most expensive fabric in the world, they further emphasized the fragile beauty of her chiseled figure and the charm of a tearful, tender face:

“That's right, Qiutong acted very badly, she shouldn't have kept anything from the young master. But I'm just an abandoned orphan, without family or tribe, so...

Suddenly, Nangong Si's loud cry interrupted her speech.

"Do you even understand what you're saying?!"

- I AM…

Song Qiutong's whole body trembled at his sharp shout. She lifted her tear-stained face and, looking at him with tear-filled eyes, muttered with quivering lips:

- I AM…

“After all, how could you do that? I didn't think you could... that you could do that!

The people upon hearing Nangong Si's words began to exchange glances and wiggle their eyebrows meaningfully. Someone even could not resist and quietly whispered:

“Of course, I heard that in the Rufeng Order, the dignity of men is placed above the virtue of women, but I could not even imagine that Nangong Si would start blaming the injured and disgraced Song Qiutong instead of Ye Wanxi. Truly a chilling sight.

“He really doesn’t seem to know good from evil.

Hearing Song Qiutong's confession, Chu Wanning immediately withdrew his vine, but now seeing Nangong Si's reaction, he was also a little confused.

He remembered that Nangong Si sometimes tends to act overly arrogant and sometimes gives free rein to his short temper, but at his core he was a straightforward and decent person, so he would not insult someone without good reason. Whatever one may say, if Nangong Si wants to get to the bottom of this matter, it would be more logical to demand an answer from Ye Wanxi, and not from Song Qiutong.

But now, for some unknown reason, Nangong Si's fury has descended on Song Qiutong... How did it happen?

Among the guests, only Mei Hanxue continued to sit in his place, calmly drinking and enjoying the turmoil that reigned around. If Xue Meng were here at this moment, he would most likely immediately notice that this Mei Hanxue and the one he met recently were strikingly different. This time he was wearing the guise of a windy rake, remembered from the Peach Spring, which was more eloquent than any words evidenced by his relaxed demeanor and oily look full of coquetry.

Song Qiutong, meanwhile, continued to shed bitter tears and shift all the blame for her disgrace to Ye Wanxi, who seemed to be so horrified that, to the surprise of the witnesses of this scene, he did not utter a word in his defense. Opening his eyes wide, he stared at the woman he had once ransomed and rescued from the Xuanyuan Chamber as if struck by thunder.

“Yes, Qiutong is weak in spirit and spineless. I didn't have the courage to lay hands on myself before Mr. Ye dishonored me to keep my body clean. Qiutong has been more powerless than a duckweed on the water all her life and did not dare to dispose of herself, because everything she has was a gift from young master Ye ... But now I realized how wrong I was when ... I ... I obeyed the orders of master in everything ...

After listening to her lamentations, Nangong Si suddenly raised his head high and closed his eyes.

The warm light of the festively decorated banquet hall illuminated his tense face. The trembling black shadows cast by the eyelashes swirled like dark clouds, the harbingers of an approaching storm. It was obvious that Young Master Nangong was holding back with the last of his strength.

He clenched his fists so that his knuckles turned white. Adam's apple rolled convulsively in unison with the huge waves that swept over his mind. It was clear that Nangong Si was putting all his strength into preventing this storm from breaking out. His cheekbones were pointed, the veins were bulging at his temples, and his body was shaking as if all the blood in his veins boiled, and his heart would explode at any second from the rage bursting through it.

He held back as long as he could, but in the end, he could not stand it and, cursing furiously, drew his sword and cut the low table* in front of Song Qiutong into two pieces! Enough, leave!

*案几ànjǐanji - a low narrow table (usually they sit on the floor at it, bending their knees under them), at which in ancient times people ate, read and wrote;

**杯盘狼藉bēipán lángjí "the cups are empty and the plates are scattered at random" - arr. everything is eaten clean, the end of the wild fun / revelry.

“Song Qiutong, you know… you know what I hate and despise most of all, the thing I will never put up with is a lie!” After this loud confession, he suddenly shouted, “Ye Wanxi!”

“…Young master.

“Ye Wanxi, come to me!”

— …

Nangong Si quickly turned around and looked directly at him with reddened wet eyes:

- Go here!

Ye Wanxi obediently approached. The spectators, who enthusiastically watched the drama unfolding in front of them, held their breath in anticipation of Nangong Si's naked sword entering the adulterer Ye Wanxi's chest. Everyone was waiting for the master of the order Zhufeng to release the guts of the traitor, cut out his black heart and throw it on the floor. Full of anticipation and fear at that moment, the eyes of all the guests were riveted only to them.

Gasping with anger, Nangong Si stared at Ye Wanxi in silence, and after a long tense silence ordered:

“You… remove the voice-changing technique.”

“Voice change technique?” The bewildered people began to look at each other in amazement. “What does the voice change technique have to do with this case?”

“Hey, after all, what’s wrong with Ye Wanxi’s voice if he uses magic to change it?” Is his real voice so terrible that it can scare people? Or maybe there is some shameful secret behind it?

Ye Wanxi, however, simply lowered his eyes and said softly:

“Young master, this is impossible.

Nangong Si turned to stone and stared at him in even greater amazement.

- Tell me why?

“From the age of thirteen, day after day for ten years, I used magic to change my voice, so this technique is too deeply rooted in my spiritual core,” Ye Wanxi was silent for a moment, and then calmly finished, “my real voice cannot be restored.

“…” Nangong Si, startled, took a step back. It took him a moment to collect his thoughts, after which he raised his head and fixed his gaze on the man who had been sitting in the place of honor of the head all this time with an unreadable expression on his face.

- Father? he muttered.

Finally, Nangong Liu spoke.

“Su-er, this is truly regrettable, but… the decision to change Ye Wanxi’s voice was made a long time ago. He himself went to this extent in order to achieve his current position in the order. Then no one expected that everything would turn out like this. You shouldn't take everything so personally.

- But…

Nangong Liu stepped down from the platform and stood behind the screen of guards. Putting his hands behind his back, he continued:

“As a father, I know that you and Ye Wanxi have been very friendly since childhood. And I myself am grateful to him for his devotion and hard work for the good of the order throughout all these years. But his past merits are irrelevant to today's incident... Adultery with Song Qiutong, violating the norms of morality and laws accepted in our society, and insulting one's master are serious crimes that require the most severe punishment*.

*死罪sǐzuì sizui is the heaviest crime punishable by death.

Surprisingly, judging by Nangong Si's reaction, he didn't expect Nangong Liu to say something like this:

- Father! he exclaimed indignantly.

Nangong Liu waved his hand, and immediately Nangong Si was covered with a blue glow of a binding spell. Throwing off the numbness that gripped him, he immediately roared furiously inside, but it was too late. This barrier spell, known as "Guiding Magic Circle", was passed down in the Zhufeng Sect from generation to generation. Due to the fact that once in this order there were known cases of parricide in order to seize power, in order to avoid confusion, it was decided that the son of the head in childhood signed a contract with his father with blood, allowing him to use this spell at any time to limit his strength . The action of the bonding spell cast by the father on his son lasted a little less than an hour, and no matter how strong Nangong Si was, during this time he could not break free.

*规诫结界guījiè jiéjiè guijie jiejie "correcting and instructing magic circle":规诫guījiè "correcting and instructing";结界jiéjiè - magic circle/barrier.

Nangong Si was shouting something inside the magic circle, but after sealing the barrier, not a single sound could leak out…

In the current situation, it was more acceptable for Nangong Liu to admit that Ye Wanxi and Song Qiutong had a secret love affair than to expose other secrets of the Rufeng Sect to the public. The head approached the man in black and, bowing politely, profusely expressed his gratitude:

“I don’t know what is the reason for your enmity with Ye Wanxi, but today, thanks to you, dear guest, my family was able to avoid a big trouble.

The man in black replied coldly:

“Head Nangong is overly kind.

“Guards, arrest Ye Wanxi now!” Take him into custody until...

— Wait! the man in black interrupted suddenly. Despite the awkwardness of the situation, Nangong Liu immediately hurried to hide his worry behind a smiling mask.

“Does the lord wish to give us one more instruction?”

“I was thinking, before your son could say a few words about the technique of changing the voice, the respected head immediately hurried to restrict him and imprison Mr. Ye in a dungeon. Why would it?

“Oh, this is an internal affair of the Zhufeng Sect, it’s inappropriate to discuss its details here…”

The man in black laughed.

“As far as I can see, in order to preserve the reputation of the Zhufeng Sect, the Respected Head is ready to “give up a pawn in order to save a rook.” Poor young lady Ye sacrificed herself, worked hard for the benefit of this spiritual school for more than ten years of her life, and you, in order to preserve the reputation of your family, are ready to punish her innocent.

The meaning of this statement had not yet reached the others, and the benevolent expression instantly flew off Nangong Liu's face.

Mei Hanxue, who was sitting nearby, smiled and, pouring more strong wine into his glass, emptied it in one gulp and put it back on the table.

In the candlelight, Nangong Liu's face turned the color of wax. After a pause, he asked with a forced smile:

- What kind of young lady E? .. Sir, you ...

The eyes of the man in black gleamed mockingly, and his resonant voice echoed off the walls and carried his words to every corner of the great hall, striking the hearts and minds of people in an instant:

“Ye Wanxi is not a man.

Previous | TOC | Next