Cherry Blossoms Upon a Wintry Sword

Chapter 48: Great Formation

After knowing this, Lin Rufei did not intend to let Mo Mo out. One was that Mo Mo was too skinny and silly. This little guy was thrown out just like that so who knew exactly how long he could live? Two, if Mo Mo really had a grudge with the Fu family and he let Mo Mo near the Fu family mansion, wouldn’t it be equal to harming him? 

Thinking about it, the most suitable method now was to take Mo Mo with them. As long as the Fu family doesn’t see him before they leave, then it would be fine.  

But this matter, he should still tell Fu Hua and Yu Rui in advance. After all, most of the time, Mo Mo was together with them. 

After Fu Hua heard that Mo Mo might not have a good relationship with the Fu family, she immediately pulled the little guy into her arms and into a heart-wrenching embrace. She said that Mo Mo was so small, what could he possibly do against the Fu family, ah. The Fu family’s whole village was so strange, if possible, they really wanted to leave early.

Lin Rufei and her thoughts were similar. He intended to immediately leave after he delivered the invitation. 

Unfortunately, there were still ten days before Fu Yu could come back, so they just had to wait a little longer.

Because the first meeting with the Fu family wasn’t very pleasant, the next few days, Lin Rufei also did not take the initiative to make contact with the Fu family. However, they frequently came over to invite Lin Rufei to dinner. Especially the Fu family gongzi dressed in purple that Lin Rufei saw on his first day. He seemed to be very interested in Lin Rufei, but although he was rejected many times, he still persistently came back. Either it was to invite Lin Rufei to drink or to invite Lin Rufei for tea. Lin Rufei refused almost every time without being polite and also without giving him a bit of face.

Lin Rufei had nothing to do and didn’t like to stay in the Fu family courtyard. He was more than happy to go for a walk outside. Although it was full of ragged farmers outside the village, at least the trees were shady. The large crops that were full of the smell of harvest, at least made it feel like it was full of life everywhere.

However, this was only Lin Rufei’s initial impression. When he got to know more about the crops planted outside the village, he suddenly made a terrible discovery.

The soil in the crop field outside was actually the same as the one in the village. It had an obvious layer of white crystalline particles attached to it. Lin Rufei twisted some of it with his hand, looked at it carefully, and determined that it was exactly salt.

“Salt and alkaline land?” Lin Rufei said incredulously, “How can it be salt and alkaline land outside as well.”

Gu Xuandu was also slightly surprised and let out a “huh.”

They were both saline land, but the soil inside the village had no grass growing on it, but the crops outside the village actually grew so well that there was no sign that the solid was affecting the plants.  

Gu Xuandu pondered, “It seems that this Fu Family Village is not as simple as I imagined, ah.”

Lin Rufei wondered, “How so?”

Gu Xuandu said, “When I first came here, I did feel the presence of a spirit gathering formation, but such a thing was very common, so I didn’t take it to heart. However, now it seems that this is not an ordinary spirit gathering formation.”

Spirit gathering formation was a relatively common formation. It was usually used in farmers’ crop fields. It could gather the surrounding spiritual energy so that the crops would grow better. However, in general, the effect of such formations like the spirit gathering formation was very mild and only slightly influential and the crops still mostly relied on the farmers’ maintenance.

A spirit gathering formation that could produce crops in saline soil was naturally unusual.

Lin Rufei frowned and said, “Could it be that the Fu family is using this spirit gathering formation to accumulate money?”

Gu Xuandu said, “Naturally, there is this possibility.”

As he said this, he directed Lin Rufei to look around. Indeed, they found several smaller formation eyes not too far away. Gu Xuandu said that these formation eyes were part of the spirit gathering formation. It seemed that the person who set up the formation was indeed a big shot, using countless small formations to finally form a big formation. But the eye of the bigger formation was more difficult to find, it could exist anywhere in the dozen miles surrounding them. 

Lin Rufei stayed at the Fu family mansion for a few days. It was obvious that the people around had not practiced immortality and most of them were mortals. Such a large formation, most likely it had something to do with Fu Yu who was currently not here. 

Lin Rufei strolled around the cornfield. The weather was very hot and even his forehead surfaced a thin layer of sweat. Lin Rufei coughed lowly a few times: “It seems that this Fu Yu is a powerful character, ah.” To be able to make such a large spirit gathering formation, they must have extraordinary strength.

“If he can set up such a formation, then he is naturally very powerful. But it is still very strange ……” Gu Xuandu analyzed, “Even with the spirit gathering formation, there are not so many spiritual energy sources, ah. If they want to make the salt land grow crops using spiritual energy, I’m afraid it won’t be easy.” Everything has a balance and spiritual energy is not endless. The small spirit gathering formation was gathering the surrounding thin spiritual power, but exactly what this huge spirit gathering formation was collecting was hard to say. 

“Could it be spirit stones?” Lin Rufei asked.

Gu Xuandu shook his head: “Spirit stones are so expensive, it is not something mortals can afford to use. Even a big family like the Liu family doesn’t necessarily have so many spirit stones to support this place.”

Then this matter became more and more strange. Lin Rufei frowned and did not speak.

But Gu Xuandu became even more interested, “Anyway, we have nothing to do in these few days, why don’t we spend more time to find the eye of the formation and see what’s special about this large formation.”

Lin Rufei said, “Alright.”

So the two of them, who were bored every day, started to run outside every day. Fu Hua and Yu Rui, on the other hand, were at home taking care of Mo Mo. Mo Mo could eat a full meal every day. By definition, he should be very happy. However, he was a little sullen. It seemed like he remembered something. But when Fu Hua and Yu Rui asked, he could not say exactly what he was unhappy about and his mouth was full of words that they could not understand.

If you aren’t reading this on acupofhalfmoon.wordpress.com, then it has been reposted without permission. Please don’t give ad revenue to them and come join us for tea. I promise we don’t bite.

In the end, it was Lin Rufei’s first time interacting with an formation. Although he had Gu Xuandu’s guidance, he was still a bit rusty. Gu Xuandu’s temper was very patient. Little by little, he guided Lin Rufei on how to find the spiritual energy source and then followed the vine to get the melon[1] towards the eye of the formation.

“That’s awesome.” Lin Rufei followed Gu Xuandu’s guidance while exclaiming, “Senior seems to know everything.”

Gu Xuandu said, “He just taught me well.”

Lin Rufei said, “He?”

Gu Xuandu raised his eyes and looked at him, “My …… old friend.” After he said the word “old friend,” he chuckled first and continued, “A teacher and a friend.”

Lin Rufei could obviously feel that Gu Xuandu’s expression was a bit different when he mentioned this person. He hesitated for a moment and asked tentatively, “Senior and that person are very close, right?”

“Naturally.” Luckily, Gu Xuandu didn’t mind saying more as he smiled, “No one has a better relationship with him than me.”

Then, Gu Xuandu talked carelessly about his past. He said that he lost his parents early and was picked up by that old friend, who was a powerful character. He was taught by his old friend himself how to read and write to sword practice, stroke by stroke, move by move.

“He is good-tempered and rarely gets angry, no matter how naughty I ……” Just a few words and a great immortal figure leaped out in sight. Gu Xuandu himself may not even realize that when he talked about these things, his eyes and lips were unable to hide the light smile, “Although I had good talent at that time, I also had a willful nature. Once, just for sword practice I also injured him. He had a lot of disciples under him so when such an incident occurred, I should have been expelled but he insisted on protecting me.”

“Then he must be a good master.” Lin Rufei responded.

“Yes, a good master.” Gu Xuandu’s emotions fluctuate slightly. He closed his eyes and when he opened them again, only a calmness remained in his eyes. He repeated again in a strained voice, “Good master…..” After he finished, he cast his eyes on Lin Rufei. 

For some reason, Lin Rufei inexplicably perceived a dangerous implication from this gaze of Gu Xuandu’s. He pretended to calmly avert his gaze and changed the topic rigidly: “Senior, how far away are we from the formation eye?”

Gu Xuandu gave a faint smile, “You don’t want to ask what happened to us after that?”

Lin Rufei said, “This is all senior’s private matters …… If senior is not willing to talk about it, then it would be inappropriate for me to ask more.” He was flustered by Gu Xuandu’s stare and even took a step back involuntarily. He coughed twice lowly, “No need to force.”

Gu Xuandu abruptly laughed. While laughing, he came up to Lin Rufei and almost touched the tip of Lin Rufei’s nose, “You are a smart one.”

Lin Rufei: “……” He did not know why Gu Xuandu praised him for being smart, but in his heart, the thought that he managed to avoid something bad. 

Gu Xuandu turned his back and waved his hand. The dangerous aura on him also disappeared and in a moment he was back to being the usual temperamental senior, “Forget it, forget it, look at how scared you are.”

He then did not mention anything about that senior again, instead, he talked about his own experience in his early childhood. It turned out that his experience was somewhat similar to that of Mo Mo. He also lost his parents at a very young age and grew up alone eating food from a hundred families[2]. Such a child, the hardships endured were unimaginable. Summertime was fine, but once it was Winter, it was basically beckoning for death. 

(t/n: that senior refers to GXD’s friend/master)

Not enough to eat, not enough to keep warm, and he had to hide from the snow under the bridge. There wasn’t even charcoal to keep warm and he could only go out to cut firewood every day. However, he also didn’t dare cut too much firewood or it would be robbed by other adults. When Gu Xuandu talked about these experiences, his expression was calm, as if he was talking about someone else’s story. However, Lin Rufei’s heart ached when he listened to it and even thought of the poor Mo Mo in the Fu Family Village at this time.

Gu Xuandu seemed to know what he was thinking and lazily said: “But I’m not a little stupid like Mo Mo, I’m very clear-headed. I know what kind of people can’t be provoked and also know what kind of people would save my life……”

Lin Rufei found it hard to interject so he only sat on the side and hummed in agreement.

“Fortunately, God didn’t do things to the end. Although I was born with a miserable life, I was born with a good set of bones and it was because of a coincidence that I became his disciple.” Gu Xuandu said nodding to himself, “It is much better than that stupid Mo Mo, don’t you think so?”

When Lin Rufei heard this, he silently cursed in his heart. Why was his senior so childish? He was already hundreds of years old, yet he still competed vigorously with a little doll who still didn’t know anything.  Of course, he certainly didn’t dare to say these words out loud. So he churned out a few words without a basis. He said that how could Mo Mo compare to his intelligent senior?

Gu Xuandu said, “After that, it became much better. I was at least able to eat and wear warm clothes and I no longer had to worry about freezing to death under the bridge.”

Lin Rufei wanted to ask a few more questions, but he felt that his questions might offend so he didn’t ask. Gu Xuandu practically said everything, so he then talked about the formation and sword practice. He said that Lin Rufei should quickly throw away his black wooden shield. If people saw that the Lin family’s fourth son attacked people with a wooden shield, did the Lin Family still want their reputation as sword immortals?  

Lin Rufei refused desperately. Although he could now barely manipulate Gu Yu, when he rode the sword it was still crooked and it was far less stable than the wooden shield. Even though the wooden shield was very ordinary, the sword Qi attached to it was also a powerful weapon. It was just that the outward appearance was a little bad but that wasn’t a big deal.  

Gu Xuandu was angry at Lin Rufei’s stubbornness, “Lin gongzi, young master Lin—you do sword practice seriously so why are you running around every day with a shield?” This wooden shield was really ugly. It was black, round, and not squared. Lin Rufei was born handsome.  Looking at such a delicate sick beauty carrying a huge wooden shield running around really irritated the eyes. Speaking of wooden shields, he had to blame that guy Mo Zhaocai, if he had not cheated Lin Rufei, Lin Rufei wouldn’t have opened the door to this new world. 

But Gu Xuandu’s persuasion, for now, seemed to be of little use. Lin Rufei resolutely decided not to use Gu Yu roughly before fully mastering it. After all, the sword was like a beauty, he didn’t want to learn Gu Xuandu’s insensitivity, using a great beauty as a burning stick.

The Fu family’s big formation was indeed really large. After looking for some days, they were only slightly closer to the eye of the formation and haven’t really pinpointed it yet. Fortunately, Gu Xuandu said that they should be able to find it in the next few days. But just when Lin Rufei thought he was about to find it, there was a small accident—Fu Yu came back early.

The day Fu Yu came back, it just so happened to be raining heavily.

The Summer rain was not like the mild Winter and Spring. It was accompanied by lightning and thunder as it poured. The large amount of rain washed away the hot Summer heat and brought a touch of fresh air to the Fu family’s dry courtyard. Lin Rufei sat in front of the window looking at the rain. His nose took in the fragrance of rain mixed with soil. Mo Mo was behind him playing with Fu Hua and Yu Rui. This child was able to eat well and rest well these days, he was much energetic compared to when they first met him. His thin face also seemed to have gained more meat. Lin Rufei quietly pinched it a few times behind Fu Hua’s back and nodded in satisfaction at the touch. He didn’t know why, but this child’s face felt particularly good to touch. It was smooth and tender and very pleasing to the eye. The most important thing was that when Mo Mo was pinched, he also did not cry. He just blankly looked at Lin Rufei, most likely he didn’t understand why Lin Rufei had done it. 

When Lin Rufei pinched Mo Mo’s face, Gu Xuandu was looking from the side, his expression was ambiguous and in order to avoid Gu Xuandu if he also reached out, Lin Rufei did not dare to pinch more. He barely pressed down his addiction as he let go. 

The eldest son of the Fu family, Fu Yu, came back in the rain. Although Lin Rufei could not see his face clearly because of the heavy rain, he could vaguely see a group of people with umbrellas respectfully welcoming him back to the courtyard of the Fu family. He was surrounded by about a dozen concubines and servants holding umbrellas, and the sounds of flirting and laughter even penetrated the ear-splitting rain as it reached Lin Rufei’s ears.

This was Fu Yu, the main backbone of the Fu family. Lin Rufei looked at him but felt that he was very different from the person he imagined.

He didn’t have the strength of character nor did he have grandeur. At a glance, it was clear that he was not a qualified swordsman.

Most of the invitations were sent to powerful characters. After being used to seeing people like Liu Rugong and then seeing the ordinary Fu Yu in front of him, it was a bit disappointing.

Lin Rufei raised his hand and closed the window, isolating the laughter outside.

However, Mo Mo raised his head and stared out the window, as if he felt something. His mouth kept muttering and he even wanted to jump out of Fu Hua’s arms to run outside.

Fu Hua doesn’t know why, but she was afraid of Mo Mo being seen, so she had to hold him tightly. She even took out a candy to try and calm Mo Mo’s emotions. However, the usual effective use of candy, at this moment, was of no use. Mo Mo was aggrieved and he started to whimper. Big tears rolled down his eyes as he sobbed while struggling. It was as if the person outside the window was his actual salvation. 

In the end, Fu Hua did not dare to let go until Fu Yu left. Only then did Mo Mo calm down. He turned back into the good-natured and dense child as he took small bites of the candy. He was no longer speaking.

“Fu Yu is back.” Lin Rufei said.

Fu Hua said: “Fu Yu is back? Why is Mo Mo reacting so much to this Fu Yu?”

Lin Rufei shook his head to show that he didn’t know.

“Could it be that the death of Mo Mo’s parents had something to do with Fu Yu?” Yu Rui guessed, “That’s why Mo Mo is so desperate to get out ……”

They turned their eyes to Mo Mo, who remained ignorant. Obviously, they couldn’t get an answer from him.

“Tomorrow Fu Yu will probably invite me to a feast.” Lin Rufei said, “I’ll try to ask around carefully.”

That was all that could be done.

Lin Rufei would rather hope that Mo Mo was a lost child of the Fu family and not an enemy of the Fu family so that he could rest assured when he left Mo Mo with the Fu family. Although the Fu family looked like a nouveau riche, at least they seemed to treat children well. And if Mo Mo was a descendant of the Fu family’s enemies, he could only quietly take Mo Mo away from the Fu family. As for how to settle him down, that was matters for afterward. There would always be a way.

If you aren’t reading this on acupofhalfmoon.wordpress.com, then it has been reposted without permission. Please don’t give ad revenue to them and come join us for tea. I promise we don’t bite.

Although there was a rainstorm this night, the Fu family was still lively and the lights were almost on for the whole night. The Fu family also invited Lin Rufei to go over, but Lin Rufei declined on the grounds that he was not feeling well. The Fu family knew that Lin Rufei’s attitude was cold from the beginning to the end, so they didn’t force him.

The sound of the rain could not cover the noise of the dogs and horses[3]. Lin Rufei was so disturbed by the noise that he could hardly sleep.

Gu Xuandu showed his displeasure when he saw him tossing and turning and couldn’t sleep. He said that he might as well just go out and kill the entire Fu family, then it would be more peaceful.

Lin Rufei hastily refused.

When Gu Xuandu saw how serious he looked, he laughed and said, “I was just kidding.”

Lin Rufei said, “Well …… it better be a joke.” He didn’t know exactly what to do with Gu Xuandu’s attitude. Although he said it was a joke, if he(LRF) casually agreed and saw the Fu family’s hundreds of bodies on the ground the next day, he probably wouldn’t even be able to cry out. 

Gu Xuandu said: “Then what to do if you can’t sleep?” 

Lin Rufei shook his head and said, “It’s okay, I’ve gotten used to it.” When he was sick on Kunlun, he either slept for three or four days or had trouble sleeping, so this little trouble didn’t matter.

Gu Xuandu sighed softly and no longer said anything. Instead, when he looked out the window, there was a little more icy coldness in his eyes.

This night Lin Rufei almost did not sleep much. It wasn’t until the early hours of the morning did he take a nap in a daze for a moment. After dawn, the rain also stopped. Lin Rufei got up from the bed feeling unwell and he intermittently let out a few coughs. Fu Hua worriedly took a look and realized that Lin Rufei was having a fever again.

These illnesses had been the norm for Lin Rufei so he wasn’t too bothered about it. After drinking a dose of medicine, he asked Fu Hua to tell Fu Yu that he would come to see him later.

But Fu Hua was a bit worried, “Young master, let’s ask the doctor to take a look first. You are weak so you can’t drag it out. You can visit that Fu something Yu a few days later.”

Lin Rufei shook his head, “We are guests, after all, it’s not quite right to leave the hosts hanging.” Although he did not like either the Fu family or the Fu Yu, he still had to observe the basic etiquette.

Seeing Lin Rufei’s resolute attitude, Fu Hua could not persuade him any further. She could only agree and leave. 

Yu Rui took Mo Mo to the kitchen and planned to make some light food for Lin Rufei to eat.

Lin Rufei was dizzy and drowsy. He leaned on the bed with his eyes closed, when he faintly heard the sound of footsteps coming from outside. He opened his eyes and saw Fu Hua standing at the door with a panting face full of distress. She called out, “Young master.”

Lin Rufei hummed in response. 

Fu Hua lowered her voice: “Fu Yu, Fu gongzi heard that you are sick so he didn’t want to trouble you to go over again …… so…… he wanted to come over personally.” As she finished, she pointed to the door, indicating that Fu Yu was outside.

Lin Rufei frowned. He was still lying in bed and had not freshened up so it was too rude to meet the guests like this.

But the man was already at the door, so he couldn’t drive him away. Lin Rufei thought for a moment, then asked Fu Hua to go out and tell Fu Yu to wait a moment. He got up from the bed, changed his clothes, and simply tidied up his appearance.

After that, did he ask Fu Hua to invite the man in.

Fu Yu followed Fu Hua into the room. He smiled and bowed to Lin Rufei, calling him “Lin gongzi” in a polite manner.

Lin Rufei leaned back in his chair, coughed lowly twice, and said, “Fu gongzi.” He finally saw Fu Yu’s appearance. Yesterday, he only heard his voice but did not see his appearance. It wasn’t as deep of an impression as today’s sight. 

This Fu Yu didn’t look too old. He had a heroic appearance and his looks weren’t bad. Just that there was a frivolous feeling flowing between his eyebrows. He was currently standing at Lin Rufei and sizing him up, making it such a pity for those proper eyebrows. 

“I’ve heard a lot about you, Lin gongzi. After seeing you today, you are really something else.” Fu Yu smiled, “I was out on an errand a few days ago, sorry for making Lin gongzi wait for a long time.” He said, “Why is Lin gongzi coughing so hard, are you not feeling well?”

Lin Rufei said, “I just accidentally caught a cold, it’s nothing serious.”

Fu Yu said, “Oh, this weather is hot so it is easy to catch a cold if you are seeking for coolness. Lin gongzi, you should be more careful.”

Lin Rufei saw that the courtesy was almost finished, so he took out the invitation in his arms and wanted to hand it to Fu Yu. However, at that time, Yu Rui, who was making porridge outside, happened to come in. When she just entered the door and saw Fu Yu, her smile froze on her face. Fu Yu also looked towards her, but this gaze fell on Mo Mo who was being held in Yu Rui’s arms.

Fu Yu instantly changed his expression and he angrily shouted: “Why are you here?!”

Mo Mo, who was yelled at by Fu Yu, opened his mouth and cried out.

********

The author has something to say:

Gu Xuandu: Stop pinching him. My, Gu Xuandu’s, face feels a million times better than his!

Lin Rufei: You’re already an old man of a few hundred years old, don’t you feel embarrassed? 

Gu Xuandu: Hmph. Even if I am a few hundred years old, I still have a soft face.

Lin Rufei: ……………….

─────────────────────────────────────────────────

[1] track something by following clues. 

[2] 吃百家饭 – eating food from a hundred families: Another way of saying that he went around begging for leftovers. 

[3] 声色狗马 –  drown oneself in sex and pleasures.