Chapter 243: I Read the Spring and Autumn Annals
Chapter 243: Chapter 126: I Read the Spring and Autumn Annals
A cascade of jet-black hair was casually held in place by a single wooden hairpin. A few strands fell across her chest, adding to her languid charm.
Her skin was fairer than snow, her features as picturesque as a painting.
Her eyes, especially, were misty and mysterious—neither joyful nor sorrowful, yet seeming to hold endless secrets and grief.
A single glance was enough to make a man go weak in the knees.
The young woman was soaked through. Her light gauze robe clung to her skin, faintly revealing a madder-red bodice embroidered with mandarin ducks, along with curves that would leave a man parched.
She was also barefoot, a string of silver bells tied around one ankle, gleaming enticingly in the firelight.
“A spirit?” Jiang Mu murmured.
“You jest, Young Master.”
The woman gave a graceful curtsy, her voice bewitchingly soft.
“My surname is Nie, and I am called Xiaoqian.
I live at the foot of this mountain. Today, I came up to pay respects to my ancestors, but I was caught in a downpour and lost my way.
I saw the light of your fire and came to seek shelter. I wonder, Young Master… might you be able to help?”
Nie Xiaoqian?
Jiang Mu chuckled to himself. ‘What a classic name.’
He put down his book and studied her carefully, a troubled expression on his face.
“Miss, for an unmarried man and woman to share a room alone in these desolate wilds… I’m afraid that would be improper, no?”
Upon hearing this, the rims of Nie Xiaoqian’s eyes reddened, and she took on a heart-wrenchingly pitiful look.
“Young Master, the wind and rain are fierce outside, and there are wild beasts about. I am just a weak woman. If you don’t take me in, I… I fear I will simply die out there.”
As she spoke, she swayed, looking as if a single gust of wind could topple her. Her legs seemed to give way, and she conveniently fell right toward Jiang Mu’s embrace.
‘A flawless performance.’
With quick eyes and even quicker hands, Jiang Mu nimbly sidestepped.
“Careful, Miss!”
he exclaimed with righteous concern.
Nie Xiaoqian embraced empty air and nearly tumbled into the fire.
She barely managed to steady herself, a flash of shock and vexation flickering across her stunningly beautiful face.
‘This scholar… Is he made of wood?’
“Thank you for the warning, Young Master.”
She bit her lip, suppressing her frustration. Feigning alarm, she patted her chest. “I’m just so cold, I’ve gone a bit numb.”
She glided gracefully to the fire and sat down opposite Jiang Mu.
As she drew closer, the subtle fragrance about her grew stronger.
It had the scent of bewitchment.
Jiang Mu secretly circulated his [Cold Moon Ice Heart Skill] to keep his mind clear.
Meanwhile, Xu Fu seemed to have fallen into an even deeper sleep.
His snoring also grew a little louder.
She held her hands out to the fire, and her wide sleeves slid down, revealing wrists as white as porcelain.
In the firelight, her skin seemed almost translucent, glowing softly.
“Young Master, what are you reading?”
Nie Xiaoqian’s beautiful eyes darted toward Jiang Mu, her voice soft and coy.
Jiang Mu sat bolt upright, his gaze fixed forward.
“The Spring and Autumn Annals.”
“The Spring and Autumn Annals?”
Nie Xiaoqian paused. She had never heard of it.
Jiang Mu said, “It is a book of sages.”
Nie Xiaoqian covered her mouth and chuckled. “You truly are a scholar, Young Master. The night is long; doesn’t reading such sagely books get dull? Why don’t I… sing a song for you to liven things up?”
Jiang Mu shook his head. “The sages say, ‘Listen to no evil.’ If you wish to sing, Miss, you had best wait for daylight and join an opera troupe.”
Nie Xiaoqian was speechless.
She refused to accept this.
This may have been her first time trying to seduce someone…
…but her elder sisters had told her that as long as she followed their instructions, any passing scholar or Swordsman would be so captivated they’d lose their Divine Soul to her.
They might even offer her their very hearts.
‘This scholar is young and handsome.’
‘So why is he acting like such a stuffy old man?’
The girl grew frustrated. ‘If I’d known it would be like this, I would have let my sisters have him. I thought I’d gotten lucky, finding such a prime specimen on my first try.’
Her eyes darted. Then, her brow furrowed slightly and she let out a delicate moan.
“Oww…”
“What’s wrong?” Jiang Mu asked.
“Young Master, my foot… I think I twisted it. It hurts so much.”
Nie Xiaoqian lifted a delicate foot and began to gently rub her ankle.
Her foot was exquisite—small and delicate, with toes like round pearls and a taut arch. In the firelight, it looked almost appetizing.
She raised her tear-filled eyes and looked at Jiang Mu pitifully.
“Young Master, do you know anything about medicine? Could you… could you take a look for me?”
As she spoke, she extended that delicate foot a little closer to Jiang Mu.
That posture, that look in her eyes…
Any other man would have pounced like a wolf long ago.
Jiang Mu stared at the foot for a moment.
‘It is indeed very beautiful.’
‘Unlike the otherworldly quality of Qiu Yuexin’s feet, or the elegance of Bai Xiang’s, this foot possessed a pure, unadulterated lust.’
He nodded. “I know a thing or two.”
Nie Xiaoqian’s heart leaped with joy.
‘He’s taken the bait!’
‘Once our skin touches, with my unique Bewitching Skill, won’t this scholar be putty in my hands?’
“Then I shall have to trouble you, Young Master.”
She lowered her head shyly, but secretly hiked her skirt up a bit higher, revealing a smooth, delicate calf.
Jiang Mu put down his book and leaned forward.
But just as his hand was about to touch her delicate foot, he stopped.
He lifted his robes and pulled out a very thick, very rough…
…stick.
It was the stick he used to poke the fire.
“Alright, Miss, just bear with me for a second.”
Jiang Mu took the stick and rapped it hard against the girl’s delicate ankle. “Does it hurt here?”
“AH!”
Nie Xiaoqian let out a piercing shriek.
She snatched her foot back and glared at Jiang Mu. “What are you doing?!”
Jiang Mu looked utterly innocent.
“Setting the bone. My uncle back in the village sets donkey bones just like this. He says as long as you find the sore spot, one good whack will fix it right up.”
“So, Miss, does it not hurt anymore?”
Nie Xiaoqian was trembling with rage, her chest heaving.
‘A donkey?!’
‘He actually used a bone-setting method for donkeys on me?!’