I Have A Martial Dao World

Chapter 481 481. Rescue

481  481. Rescue

The Fairy Boat, often depicted in paintings, ancient texts, and murals, was the exclusive ride of the Sun God Emperor during the ancient times; people recognized it at first sight.

But to witness in reality a gigantic ship, even larger than an aircraft carrier, hovering above their heads was truly too shocking!

Even Zhang Wenda, who had seen much of the world, was slightly spellbound.

As for others, there's no need to mention their reactions; some had their mouths agape, unable to close them for a long while, their faces eternally etched with astonishment.

Zhang Wenda had originally defected only to save his own life, reluctantly at that. Should anything arise in the future, he would certainly waver.

Like many others of his stature, but now, standing in the shadow of the Creation Immortal Boat, all his little schemes vanished without a trace.

The 20,000 Military Soldiers selected by Li Pei were overjoyed beyond measure!

"Lord Lu is going to let us board the Fairy Boat!?"

"It seems so! No wonder we were only asked to bring three days' worth of supplies."

"The Fairy Boat must fly really fast, right? I have low cultivation, can I get aboard..."

Amidst the buzz of conversations, Lu Yao maneuvered the Creation Immortal Boat to descend slowly.

This enormous object descending from the sky was immensely oppressive. Even though they knew it wouldn't actually crush them, everyone still instinctively backed away.

As the Fairy Boat landed and stabilized, its immensity became even more apparent at a closer range. Not counting the bridge, it stood as high as a 10-story building, fortunately, gangplanks were lowered.

Li Pei stuck his head out and shouted, "All soldiers, board immediately!"

"Yes, sir!"

These were elite forces who immediately suppressed their shock and orderly boarded the gangplanks.

The commander of the Imperial Guards—Dong Fuxiang—insisted on joining them.

With his rank, he would definitely be expected to stay in Imperial City, but the allure of the Fairy Boat was too hard to resist.

At the same time, the son of Zuo Gong, Zuo Xiaowei, also wanted to experience the sensation of the Fairy Boat, to play immortal for once.

Being old acquaintances, Lu Yao nodded in agreement to them all.

Consequently, a group of others made the same request, loudly declaring, "We wish to follow the empress into battle, to demonstrate our loyalty."

But they were all turned away by Li Pei. The empire was in need of rebuilding; how could everyone just run off?

Thus, amid a complex mix of envy, jealousy, and awe, the Fairy Boat set sail and headed south!

Yuan City was located to the south of Jinling, known for its beautiful scenery and convenient transportation.

This place was originally named Xuancheng, but after the entire city became the property of Grandmaster Yuan, the name was simply changed.

The residence of Yuan Kaisheng was here, spanning over a million acres; even by car, it took half an hour to travel from one end to the other.

Today, the estate was festooned with lanterns and streamers, and even the servants were clad in brand-new, joyous garments.

The head steward personally stood at the entrance. As each car arrived, he would promptly step forward to open the doors and welcome the guests dressed in splendid attire.

"Mr. Xu, good health to you!"

"Lord Zhou has arrived; my master has been awaiting you for a long time!"

Those alighting from the cars were representatives of wealthy families and significant figures whose every stomp could shake the ground thrice over.

Also present were many blonde-haired, blue-eyed foreigners, the consuls from the powerful leased territories.

Such a vista truly boasted a cloud of esteemed guests and a myriad of distinguished company.

Yet, someone was fretting to the point of panic.

A disciple of the Joyful Sect, Yun Qingluan, had been in the Yuan Residence for 5 years now.

You just can't compare people; her fellow Sect member, Yun Qinglan, had from the very start been a direct disciple of the Sect Master and the Holy Maiden.

And she could only serve as a concubine.

Outsiders might think that serving a Great Grandmaster wasn't too bad; many women would even beg for such a chance.

But Qingluan knew all too well that her future was bleak.

This year she was 17, and with the turn of the New Year, she would be 18.

After growing old, Grandmaster Yuan only took a liking to young girls of tender age, and once a woman in his harem turned 17, she was no longer arranged to share his bed.

No matter how beautiful you were or how many skills you possessed, you would still end up living a widow's life.

Many such women resided in the back of the estate, all confined to live in Chunhui Garden.

Yun Qingluan had caught sight of them unintentionally.

Although these women who entered the Yuan Residence were all stunning beauties, within a few years in Chunhui Garden, they would become numb, appear exceptionally aged and lifeless, and no one would wish to give them a second glance.

Chunhui Garden was essentially a "Cold Palace," or rather, a prison—what woman could endure it?

Therefore, for Yun Qingluan, if she didn't want to decay in the back of the Yuan Residence, this mission was of utmost importance—it was her only chance to return to the Sect!

During her previous conversation with the Sect Master, she had used some tact.

Although she didn't recognize the target—Madam Xiao, the woman's obscurity and her nearing the age of forty meant she was most certainly in Chunhui Garden.

So the task was not as difficult as she had made it sound; what she needed to do next was to enter Chunhui Garden and locate the target.

She glanced up at the sky, noting that it was almost time for lunch—the perfect moment!

~~~~~~~~~

Luck was on Yun Qingluan's side today; there was a grand banquet in the residence, and all the servants had been called to the main hall, leaving the back of the estate nearly deserted.

Furthermore, her movements went unnoticed in the back of the estate as a woman could move about without drawing attention, even when entering Chunhui Garden, where only a few idlers glanced her way.

Upon entering, she found the place starkly different from the outside world's splendor.

She saw dilapidated buildings neglected over the years, dripping eaves from residual rainwater, and the air filled with a faint but persistent stench of decay and damp moldiness.

She had hardly walked a few steps before a middle-aged woman with a face full of flesh blocked her path.

This aunt looked her up and down with slanting eyes and with a sly smile said,

"Oh, Yun Qingluan, you'll have to move in after the New Year. What's this~? Coming to familiarize yourself in advance?"

This person was the manager of Chunhui Garden—Sister E.

Yun Qingluan, on a mission, was not irritated and approached with a smile,

"Sister E, I've been feeling uneasy today, so I came to have a look. Please don't look down on this small token of appreciation~"

As she finished speaking, she handed over a five-tael silver ingot!

It sounded little, but in the Otherworld, it was a considerable amount, an impressive bribe! It was also half of Yun Qingluan's entire fortune.

Quickly pocketing the silver ingot, Sister E's expression softened,

"Madam Yun Qingluan is truly generous. I'll pick a clean room facing the sunrise for you in advance."

"Thank you, Sister E~" Yun Qingluan replied with a tranquil smile,

"As the saying goes, 'It's good to have nice neighbors.' I'm not particularly concerned about anything else, but I'd like to have an elder sister next to me, someone to talk to and relieve boredom with. That would be perfect."

Upon hearing this, Sister E frowned slightly, "Just so you know, we strictly forbid visiting and chatting on ordinary days. You're expected to stay inside your room if there's nothing to do."

Yun Qingluan was momentarily speechless. Without even this bit of freedom, this hellish place really was like a jail...

09:30

Fortunately, Sister E hinted, "But as long as you know how to get along, life won't be bad anywhere."

This was a blatant request for money, and without hesitation, Yun Qingluan handed over another five taels of silver.

Sister E's smile bloomed like that of a man-eating flower, "Sister Yun Qingluan, you're truly open-handed!"

She then provided some guidance on which rooms were the best and which neighbors were good to get along with.

"I'm feeling a little dizzy from all the information. May I look around first?"

"Suit yourself, sister. I have to arrange for the midday meal, so I can't accompany you."

~~~~~~~~~~

At that moment, several elderly women were distributing midday meals in wooden buckets, with women from Chunhui Garden each coming out with bowls to get their food.

The meal was nothing more than gruel with some vegetable broth, not even as good as what the lowest servants ate.

The women, as always, seemed numb and aged.

This scene only reinforced Yun Qingluan's determination to escape! To enter the Cold Palace at 18 really was worse than death!

Yun Qingluan strolled leisurely, appearing unhurried, yet her eyes were carefully searching.

But after a long while, she still had not found the target person. A woman approaching forty should stand out here.

Feeling that staying any longer would arouse suspicion, she grew increasingly anxious.

Just then, another group of people arrived—it was the head steward of the Yuan Residence.

"Sister E! Pick out a few charming ones quickly. The master needs to entertain some honored guests! Hurry!"