Chapter 141 Choice
Qi Xianqing laughed at what Su Li said. He shook his finger and touched Su Li’s cute nose. He said, “Li, you can’t get me on this. Anyhow I have been an official for several years in the Dayan Dynasty. I clearly know the rules. Let me think about it. A place you can study and practice…”
He didn’t think too long. Qi Xianqing gave her two ways. He said, “The first one is that you enter the National Academy and become a student of its Girls’ College of Martial Arts. Therefore, you can study and practice the martial arts. Besides, there are many seniors in the National Academy. If you have difficulties when you are practicing, they can give you some help.”
Su Li immediately shook her head. She had so many secrets. How could she be exposed in the National Academy? If her secrets were found out by others, she would be killed without knowing anything.
“That’s too swaggering. I don’t like it. Additionally, you have told me that if it’s not necessary, don’t enter the court. If I enter the National Academy, someone will force me to enter a party when I graduate.”
Seeing Su Li pouted her mouth, Qi Xianqing laughed happily. Su Li could see the situation so clearly. If she entered the officialdom, she would be a rare talent. If she had promised or hesitated, he would have been anxious for her going to the Yunjing with Su Qingtan. After sounding out, he was relieved.
“Since you do not like it, I also have the second way.”
Qi Xianqing smiled like an old liar. He took out an exquisite jade token. It was engraved a row characters in small seal style. The reverse side was blank. Then he took out a dagger and engraved some characters quickly on the back of the jade token. Debris of jade flied for a moment.
Su Li looked at him confusedly. She did not recognize the origin of the jade token. Although she had been in Yunjing in her previous life, she couldn’t access to the things of the National Academy because of her ident.i.ty. Therefore, she didn’t know the ident.i.ty that the jade token represented.
At this time, Qi Xianqing stopped engraving. He blew the remaining debris of jade on the back. Then he placed it in Su Li’s palm.
Su Li stared at the token and turned it over. She saw her name and an unknown symbol on the back.
“Master, this…”
Before Su Li opened her mouth, Qi Xianqing raised his hand and interrupted, “Take it with you. It can guarantee that no one can stop you in the National Academy. It will not be too swaggering. The only thing you need to do is to go to the courtyards next to the National Academy every day. You can take books there and read them. It’s not a waste of time…”
Qi Xianqing also murmured something, but his voice was low, Su Li did not hear it clearly. She packed the jade token up and felt weird in heart. She felt that there was something that Qi Xianqing didn’t tell her, but it didn’t matter. As long as the first two sentences of Qi Xianqing were true, others things didn’t matter.
After Qi Xianqing gave the jade token, he did not stay here for a long time. He left and said that he was going to visit an old friend. Su Li could imagine the old but kindly figure. She couldn’t help but shake her head. It was fortunate for Qi Xianqing could visit his old friend at his age.
After Qi Xianqing left, Su Qingtan who waited for a long time came in immediately. He asked with concern, “What did Mr. Qi say?”
Su Li did not conceal. She took out the jade token to Su Qingtan and let him scrutinize. She hoped that he could speculate on the ident.i.ty of Qi Xianqing.
Su Qingtan saw the jade token, and his expression changed slightly. He couldn’t help but look at it carefully. After a long time, he looked up and gave it back to Su Li. He said, “It’s weird. It doesn’t look like the jade token of the National Academy. I used to have one and I also saw the teachers’ jade tokens of the National Academy. They are different from yours.”
A light flashed through Su Li’s eyes. She smiled and put away the jade token. She said, “It doesn’t matter. I will know when I go to Yunjing. My Master won’t hurt me.”
“Uh-huh.”
Seeing Su Li smiled brilliantly, Su Qingtan looked serious. He sighed with emotions in his heart, “He of course won’t hurt you. He also is a helpful person for you…”
He could give a jade token casually and inscribe characters on it, which exceeded the imagination of Su Qingtan. He only knew that even the best teacher of the National Academy could not have that qualification.
There was a tea house built in the bamboo forest in another school’s courtyard. It ventilated all sides, and was pleasantly cool.
The plaque was engraved with “Gentlemen are Like Bamboo”. It was all green in the view.
“Summer is coming. My tea house finally comes in handy again. Haha…”
Ning Yunzhi was happy. He tasted the tea infused by Ning Qing and was gently humming an opera, which made Ning Qing, who was reading a book aside, frequently rolled her eyes.
“Su Li is going to Yunjing. Father, everything you have painstakingly arranged wasted. Aren’t you upset?”
Putting down the book, Ning Qing could not help but ask.
Ning Yunzhi laughed and was about to say something. Suddenly there was an unusual wind blowing through the tea house. Then he just felt that something flashed before him, and a person was across the tea table!
“Who are you?!”
Seeing the old man who appeared like a ghost, Ning Qing was shocked. She got up and subconsciously pulled out her dagger from her waist. But she heard Ning Yunzhi shout, “Stop!”
She turned around and looked at her father. Her almond-shaped eyes immediately opened wider than walnuts. Her father unexpectedly knelt down and kowtowed to the old man who looked younger than him!!
Ning Yunzhi was very excited at this moment. He saluted respectfully and said, “Master Qi, I am here to salute you!”
At the moment, Qi Xianqing didn’t have a cheap smile like an old thief as before, instead, he looked serious like a senior outside the world.
“Qing, come here to salute Master Qi!”
Ning Yunzhi sternly berated. Although Ning Qing was unwilling in her heart, she still knelt down reluctantly and called him “Grandmaster Qi”. She said secretly in her heart that she was much younger than him, so it was suitable to kneel an old man in his seventies and eighties.
“Ning, you still remember me. I didn’t expect your daughter has grown up.”
Qi Xianqing sighed and smiled kindly. Therefore, Ning Yunzhi was relaxed. He half-jokingly said, “Sixty years have pa.s.sed. If I didn’t get married and had no child, wouldn’t it waste my life?”
Qi Xianqing heard that and laughed. Ning Qing was still in doubt secretly. Did the old man suddenly appearing live for long time like what her father said? No matter how she observed, she thought that he was younger than her father.
Qi Xianqing took out a brocade box and put it on the table. He sighed, “Ning Yunzhi, you and I have no fate anymore. It is rare that you still care about the former friends.h.i.+p to save my last disciple’s life. This is the honorarium. You must accept it.”
Ning Yunzhi was ashamed in his heart, but he remembered Qi Xianqing’s instruction. So, he took it with his trembling hands, which made Ning Qing roll her eyes. A gentleman could be deceived due to his simplicity and loyalty. Her father should be the gentleman.
“This thing can extend your life for ten years. It is disease-free and painless. I refined it after I walked through one circle.” Qi Xianqing squinted his eyes and said, “Remember, do not expose it to others, or else you will have a fatal disaster. Take it now.”
It can extend life for ten years?
“Is there such a magical elixir in the world?”
Ning Yunzhi heard that and opened his eyes widely. He immediately obeyed the instructions of Qi Xianqing and opened the brocade box to eat it. However, before he opened the brocade box, it was taken away by Ning Qing.
“Father, how could it be possible for an elixir to extend life in the world? It’s nonsense. Can he bargain with the King of h.e.l.l? He is an old liar definitely. You are confused!”
Ning Qing offended Qi Xianqing angrily. Ning Yunzhi trembled with anger, and his face was pale. He raised his hand and was about to give her two slaps.
Seeing her father was going to slap her because of Qi Xianqing, Ning Qing was scared and her body trembled. She closed her eyes and was ready to be beaten. However, she didn’t feel the imaginary pain on her face. She opened her eyes with grievance and saw Qi Xianqing catching Ning Yunzhi’s hand.
“Hohoho, don’t do this.”
Qi Xianqing let Ning Yunzhi sit down and ignored Ning Qing. His tone was still gentle. He said, “You were just like her in the past. If you didn’t see something, you would sniff at me just as your daughter in your whole life.”
Ning Yunzhi remembered some events happened in the past and shamefacedly hung his head. That’s the reason why Master Qi said that they had no fate, and his daughter also had no fate with Master Qi…
“Father!”
Ning Qing was so angry that her eyes were red. A strong sense of powerlessness raised in her heart. She knew that no matter how she queried, her father would believe Qi Xianqing like being bewitched. She decided secretly that she would immediately ruin the brocade box after Qi Xianqing left. So, her father wouldn’t take the elixir and would have no incident happened to him due to the elixir. No one knew what exactly the elixir was made of.
Qi Xianqing smiled and wasn’t angry. He said, “I come here only to show my grat.i.tude to you and your daughter. I have repaid you. Now, it is your daughter’s turn
Then, he looked at Ning Qing. The latter instantly snorted and turned her head back, which made Ning Yunzhi almost slam the table with anger.
“Youngster, come here and sit down. I will divine for you.”
When Ning Yunzhi heard that Qi Xianqing was going to divine for her daughter, he was very happy. He immediately pulled her hands and forced her to sit down. Ning Qing was very angry in heart and stared at Qi Xianqing who took out some tortoisesh.e.l.ls. She wanted to see how this person cheated her father.
Qi Xianqing was in a very good mood today because of Su Li. If it had happened in the past, he would have swung his sleeves and left, instead of sitting here. Suspected by the daughter of a signed disciple, he felt a little uncomfortable. Now he had interest, and he even took out three tortoisesh.e.l.ls.
He gently touched the surface of the tortoisesh.e.l.ls with one hand. A glaring white light flashed through the gaps on the tortoisesh.e.l.ls. Ning Qing opened her eyes wide, and almost thought that she hallucinated.
“Humph, it’s just a cloak! There must be some gears. The luminous scales are hidden in the gap of the tortoisesh.e.l.ls!”
Ning Qing thought. However, he couldn’t find any reason for the next scene. The three tortoisesh.e.l.ls suddenly flew up from the table and spun around her!
“It…”
Ning Yunzhi was also amazed. He had only seen that Qi Xianqing had controlled a stone and dislodged a group of thieves.
Ning Qing’s eyes were s.h.i.+nning. It seemed that she was back to her childhood and had full of curiosity. She completely forgot how she offended Qi Xianqing before. This kind of skill really… could be done by immortals, couldn’t they?
What her father said was true!
Ning Qing could not help but regret in heart. What she had done was excessive…
At this moment, Qi Xianqing sighed softly. Then the three tortoisesh.e.l.ls immediately flew back to his hands and formed a perfect piece. At the same time, a trace of white light appeared on it. There was no text on it.
Qi Xianqing looked at it and slightly frowned. He could not help but raise his head and look at Ning Qing. This woman… she would have relations with the people in the martial arts circle in the future?
“Grandmaster… Qi?”
Seeing Qi Xianqing was frowning and staring blankly, Ning Qing was perturbed in heart. Would there be a disaster in her fate? Did Qi Xianqing feel awkward?
“You live a hard life after you were born. Your mother’s affairs are not all your father’s fault. Her body was congenitally deficient. That was the main reason.”
Qi Xianqing told her firstly. Ning Qing heard it and startled for a moment. Then she was silent. She certainly knew that it was not her father’s fault, but from the heart, she could not forgive the mistakes made by him in the past.
Ning Yunzhi also sighed softly. He did make mistakes that year. During so many years that had pa.s.sed, he had never remarried. On the one hand, it was for Ning Qing. On the other hand, it was because he had not let it go.
“As for this girl…”
Qi Xianqing looked serious. He said, “Ning, do you clearly know the origin of Ning Qing’s husband?”