Speaking of Gu Xijiu"s influence, although she did not admit to being part of the mermaid tribe, the king of the mermaids still recognized her as his sister. He would visit Gu Xijiu"s palace and linger awhile once every couple of months.Of the three kingdoms, two of the emperors were her friends. For this reason, the emperor of the Zhaoyang Kingdom did not want to be isolated. He often sent in messengers to rally for a good relations.h.i.+p. A couple of heaven"s gift disciples, except for Hua Wuyan, would always concede to her, and the rest had a good relations.h.i.+p with her as well.
As for Hua Wuyan, she was only upset by the fact that Gu Xijiu had robbed Di Fuyi of his influence. However, she did not bring trouble to Gu Xijiu either. In short, Gu Xijiu had fared well these days. She looked pretty blissful.
…
It was a new year again. Things were merry.
Having gone through wars in recent times, they found peace extremely precious now. The first peaceful year needed to be celebrated merrily without compromise.
Gu Xijiu"s Celestial Master Palace was rather merry as well. It was heavily decorated, and everyone was happy. Gu Xietian almost had the wrinkle on his face disappear after having smiled for the entire day.
Sorting out matters within the palace had been quite an easy task for him. Although the journey towards getting his wife back was still uneventful, it was good that Luo Xinglan no longer held up a stern face in front of him, and could occasionally talk to him a little. Although they had only been talking about matters of their children, he was pleased enough.
As Gu Xijiu was a professional alchemist, she would always provide him with some rare supplements. As a result, Gu Xietian"s spiritual power improved immensely; even his face had some changes. He now looked younger, and more energetic.
Although his son did not recognize him as his father, they would still meet each other very often. Gu Xietian always tried his best to speak to Luo Zhanyu and would stand up for many things for him; hence, making Luo Zhanyu feel sorry to be indifferent towards such a father. So he would occasionally talk to Gu Xietian a little. To sum up, everything was changing for the better.
At noon on new year"s eve, Rong Jialuo set up a sumptuous dinner to treat all his ministers. He had invited all his influential people over for a glorious gathering. Since they were invitated from the emperor, everyone turned up, except for Celestial Master Zuo. Even Long Siye was there. The presence of so many people was rather uncommon.
Everyone celebrated and cheered as they were holding their gla.s.ses of beer. Gu Xijiu was sitting on a mat, looking at the hall filled with people. She suddenly felt a sense of solitude and isolation. She knew everyone in the hall, but the person who she subconsciously wanted to meet was not there.
Why was everyone there, but not him? Darn! She sat still on her mat, with a smile on her lips while drinking beer that others offered her. She would also laugh at listening to the jokes made by the people by her side.
She drank another gla.s.s of beer again. Looking around the hall filled with flowers, she was suddenly afraid. Was that the life she would be living later on? It was blazing hot in the hall, but instead, she felt an unspeakable cold.
The setting was all fancy, but Gu Xijiu was overwhelmed by a feeling of solitude. There was a feeling of loneliness amidst the luxury. She was cold to her bones.
"Di Fuyi, without you I am still faring well with my life, but I am not sure about yours. Where are you lingering around now? You have attempted in every way to bring Lan Jingke back to life. She has not been revived, are you in great despair?"