ing else. The soldiers, covered in dust and sweat, all felt their hearts skip a beat when they saw the ever-smiling Mr Chu reappear again. They didn’t know exactly who this Mr Chu was, but they were a...2. Cloud Song (Part One)

Cloud Song grew up in the mountains with her father, and since her mother passed away when she was very young, all she remembered of her was a grave filled with green grass and flowers. Her father often took her to the grave to talk about her mother.

Cloud Song thought that life would continue as it always had until one day her father passed away. Before he died, her father had taken care of everything himself. All Cloud Song did was cry loudly and bury him next to her mother's grave. She learned then that no one could stay with you forever; not even someone who planned for their own future and arranged for the person coming to pick them up after they were gone. So, she calmly waited for the arrival of the person her father had mentioned. However, she didn't know how long it would take—she ended up waiting three years.

Although no one came to fetch her during those three years, Cloud Song wasn't in a hurry. This was how she had lived for over ten years and there was nothing wrong with continuing this way. She could hunt, gather herbs, grow medicinal plants, and make various pills to trade for what she needed. Sometimes, though, she would climb up high cliffs to look at the smoke rising from the village below, sometimes feeling a strange sensation in her heart. Cloud Song didn't know that it was loneliness.

One day, as usual, Cloud Song went up the mountain to gather herbs and then faintly heard melodious music coming from somewhere within the mountains. She knew it was the sound of a zither. She herself owned a yaoyin (jade zither) which her father often played; after his death, however, no one touched it anymore. This person was playing the zither so beautifully that even her late father could not play as well. Cloud Song felt happy and ran towards where she heard the music to see who the player was.

After searching for a while, she finally found out that the sound of the zither came from behind the cliff. She then used her agility to climb up the cliff and looked down into the valley only to find an unexpectedly large building there by a pond where a man wearing white clothes sat playing his zither. When she was little, she had played here but there were never any buildings or people.

She saw that this man wore pure white clothing like snow, with raven black hair loosely tied behind him. Though only half of his face could be seen, Cloud Song swore he was the most handsome person she had ever seen; it seemed as if…he was a celestial being from heaven! After pondering for quite some time, she slowly made her judgment about this man in the valley—someone who looked just like a heavenly deity.

However, there wasn't only one such 'god' in the valley but also several other ugly people around him.

"Those bad guys don’t look at all like family of gods!" Cloud Song sat on the cliff and thought gloomily with her ears filled with melodious zither music. Why did that celestial-like person have to be with those ugly, nasty-looking fellows If only she could play with him! Those bad guys never allowed him to do this or that, but if it were her she certainly wouldn’t.

Yun Ge sat on the cliff for two whole days, watching a god-like white-robed man sometimes playing the zither and at other times reading by the water. Sometimes he just sat there silently. Finally, she found an opportunity when those ugly bad guys were not around; Yun Ge jumped down from the cliff straight to his side.

The white-robed man was not surprised to see a girl falling from the sky but simply smiled lightly.

"You really are very good-looking." It was her first time seeing the face of the white-robed man, and indeed... he looked even better than she had imagined. The white-robed man smiled faintly and said softly, "And you look beautiful too. How did you end up here"

Yun Ge felt her cheeks turn slightly warm for some reason. Even though she knew very little about etiquette, complimenting someone's looks in front of them might be considered impolite. Yun Ge twisted her fingers and blinked at the white-robed man before her, unsure how to react.

Sensing the young girl's nervousness, the white-robed man smiled lightly and said softly, "This place is dangerous; why did a lady like you come here alone"

Danger Yun Ge looked around in confusion. She had grown up among these mountains since childhood, and her father had never told her about any dangers here. Seeing her confused expression, the white-robed man smiled gently and said, "Ah yes, if a lady can jump down from such a high cliff, your martial skills must be quite impressive indeed. However, this world is full of many kinds of danger that cannot simply be resolved with martial arts; ladies should not wander around recklessly."

"Oh... I understand now, my father has also told me the same thing. You are really a good person." Yun Ge said happily.

The white-robed man looked at the girl smiling innocently in front of him with some surprise and a hint of bewilderment flashed across his eyes.

Yun Ge squatted beside him, somewhat gloomy. "I heard you playing the zither and came over to take a look. No one has talked to me for a long time; can I stay here for a while"

The man in white smiled and shook his head, saying, "It's very dangerous here."

Yun Ge blinked her eyes and said, "I know. Are those people bad guys Can I help you defeat them"

"No, it's too dangerous," the man in white gently declined.

"My martial arts skills are very good; I can beat them." Yun Ge declared anxiously.

The man in white shook his head again and said, "There are many of them. Even if you defeat them, you still won't be able to take me out." Yun Ge's eyes lit up as she happily said, "What if I can bring you out"

With a smile, the man in white raised an eyebrow and glanced at the steep cliff nearby. Yun Ge quickly waved her hands and said, "No, no. I also know another way. When I was little, I played here before and definitely knew how to get out. Can you trust me"

Seeing the plea in the girl's eyes, the man in white suddenly chuckled softly; his laughter was like a spring breeze on earth, warm and captivating. Yun Ge couldn't help but pause momentarily. Realizing what she was thinking, she felt slightly annoyed at herself for finding this god-like older brother so tempting that she wanted to bite him. She must have been too long without playing with anyone.

"Alright, I trust you then. In that case, may I know your name This is Xu Qingchen," the man in white smiled and asked.

"Xu Qingchen Your name sounds so nice. I am Shen Yun Ge." Yun Ge's eyes lit up as she said with a grin.

Is the name pleasant The elegant young man in white, the renowned Qingchen Scholar with his finely arched eyebrows slightly raised, gave a calm smile.

Yun Ge took out a pill from her bosom and gestured for Xu Qingchen to take it. Although she didn't know how this little girl planned to get him out, the scholar Qingchen had never before entrusted his comfort to a stranger who seemed so innocent. After swallowing the pill, he fell into darkness. When he felt an eerie chill at last, Qingchen Scholar believed that he had no regrets. Perhaps because of those clear and bright eyes of hers. The scholar Qingchen had been so... whimsical as to entrust his life to someone he just met.

When he woke up again, Qingchen Scholar couldn't help but smile bitterly. One really shouldn't be too capricious or take risks in life—at the very least, he should have asked that little girl how she planned to get him out.

Not only was his body dripping wet and uncomfortable, the pain from his chest and shoulder made it hard for almost half of his body to move. This was the first time Xu Qingchen, known as a celestial scholar, had ever been in such a predicament.

"Waaah, Xu Qingchen, are you okay" A somewhat unfamiliar voice came from behind him. Struggling, he turned his head and saw a wet little girl looking at him with guilt-ridden eyes brimming with tears. Coughing lightly, Xu Qingchen shook his head and forced out a smile: "I'm fine. We're out now. You... you brought me up from that water pit"

"Yeah, I'm sorry... It's all because of my carelessness that made you hit your head."

Xu Qingchen smiled faintly and shook his head. This little girl was already small to begin with; it would be difficult for her to drag a grown man out from underwater, even if she managed it despite her size. In comparison, this minor injury didn't seem worth mentioning at all. However... it really hurt. Since Qingchen Scholar wasn't trained in martial arts and rarely got injured, he had never experienced such severe pain before, causing his face to pale.

Seeing him suffering like that, Yun Ge's complexion paled too. She quickly took out a small medicine bottle, poured out a pill, and shoved it into his mouth: "Don't be afraid... I'll heal you up soon." Without waiting for Xu Qingchen's reaction, she picked up the taller Qingchen Scholar and ran towards her home.

Even the composed Qingchen Scholar, who remained calm even when faced with a crisis, was unsettled by such treatment. However, the pain in his body clearly reminded him that if he didn't accept it now, he would have no choice but to lie here indefinitely.

Yun Ge's home was in a secluded valley nestled among the mountains. Xu Qingchen had only briefly glanced at it upon entering the valley and instantly knew that there was an extremely sophisticated array formation set up at its entrance, making it nearly impossible for those who were not well-versed in arrays to locate it. Learning that the young girl had been living alone in this remote mountain valley since her father's death three years ago made him sigh inwardly when he saw how brightly she looked at him with a joyful expression. Sir Qingchen had met countless people throughout his life, but this was the first time he encountered such an innocent and pure little girl. It was hard to understand why Yun Ge’s father would feel comfortable leaving her all alone in these remote mountains despite her youthfulness and innocence. Although Yun Ge herself wasn’t weak when it came to martial arts, one's abilities couldn't determine everything. Compared with the level of martial skills, the wickedness of human nature posed a more dangerous risk.

Yun Ge was an incredibly simple girl, like a newly hatched chick instinctively trusting the first person she saw. After her father passed away, Sir Qingchen became the first person to interact closely with Yun Ge, and thus naturally became the person she trusted most. Therefore, after learning about Yun Ge's father’s arrangements, it didn’t take much effort for Sir Qingchen to convince the young girl to leave the valley with him. Upon confirming that the Mu Family no longer wanted to care for Yun Ge, he also naturally brought her back to Li City.

"Xu Qingchen..." The bustling Li City made Yun Ge feel somewhat uncomfortable; worry and anxiety were written all over her beautiful little face as she stopped in front of Xu Manor which was already visible from afar. Even though Xu Qingchen said that the Xu Family would be her new home, despite Yun Ge’s lack of understanding about such matters, she still knew that the Xu Family was his home, not hers. She... had no home anymore.

"Don't be afraid; our family is very nice and will all like you. Just like Li Er, don’t you also like her" Sir Qingchen gently comforted her.

"Sis Li Er" When Yun Ge mentioned Sis Li Er, her eyes lit up involuntarily. Sis Li Er was the first good friend after Xu Qingchen and she was very beautiful and gentle. Along this northern journey, many people had told her that Sis Li Er was the most remarkable woman in the world; not only was she pretty and skilled at martial arts but also an excellent military commander. Unfortunately, Sis Li Er had gone off to war so Yun Ge couldn’t go with her and cause trouble.

Xu Qingchen nodded and smiled: "Yes, Li Er is my cousin, we are all one family now. Do you not like Xu Manor Then you can stay at Ding Wang's mansion instead; however, there’s no one in the mansion right now... if Yun Ge were to live there alone..."

"N-no, I’d rather stay at Xu Manor," Yun Ge hurriedly shook her head.

A faint smile tugged at Sir Qingchen's lips: "Very well then. Let’s go; the family has already come out to greet us."

Upon returning from his tribulations and bringing back a beautiful girl, Xu Family members had all gathered outside their doors in anticipation of their arrival. As soon as they saw Yun Ge and Sir Qingchen approach, nearly everyone's eyes were drawn to the beautiful yellow-robed young maiden by Sir Qingchen’s side. Lady Xu was especially pleased and rushed forward to pull Yun Ge close for a closer look while smilingly asking: "This must be Miss Cloud Song Was your journey tiring

Held by the gentle and elegant lady's friendly handshake, Yun Ge felt a bit awkward but still nodded and said, "Yes, I am Shen Yungē. I…"

"These are my mother and aunt, Yun Ge can call them Aunt."

From beside, Xu Qingchen said indifferently.

"Aunt... Nice to meet you." Yun Ge said softly.

"Good, good child," Lady Xu nodded repeatedly with a satisfied look on her face. This was the first time that her son personally brought a girl home, and it was clear that this was a well-behaved, obedient girl. Even in her niece's letter, there were repeated praises for Ye Li's choice of wife. Lady Xu had great trust in Ye Li’s judgment.

Seeing Yun Ge blushing helplessly, Qin Zeng from the side covered her mouth and smiled, "Mother, Mother, shall we go inside Sister Yun Ge must be tired after her journey. I am Qin Zeng, you may call me Senior Sister Zeng. Has Ye Li mentioned me"

Yun Ge nodded hurriedly, "Senior Sister Li said that Senior Sister Zeng is a good person. Thank you, Senior Sister Zeng. I’m not tired at all, my martial arts skills are pretty decent." Seeing the candid look on the girl's face, everyone couldn’t help but laugh together. Lady Xu smiled slightly and said, "Alright, what Sister Zeng said makes sense. Let’s go inside then. Yun Ge, from now on, treat this place like your own home."

Lady Xu nodded again, "What Aunt said is right, consider this your home from now on, let's go rest."

"My home" Yun Ge felt a soft spot in her heart. Looking at the smiling faces before her, she blinked involuntarily, feeling slightly emotional.

“Yun Ge, shall we go inside” Qin Zeng held Yun Ge’s hand and said softly with a smile. Aunt Qin and Mother be upset with me There are plenty of guards in Ding Wangfu, so you can rest assured."Xu Qingze frowned and said, "Going together would ease the mind of Father, Grandfather, and Un...