Chapter 353: Chapter 352: Wei Yueyan Takes Her Position
"Huh?"
After hearing Ye Ruyan’s explanation that sleeping with Gu Zhao wasn’t a prerequisite for Daluo Palace to accept and trust her, even the usually cold and aloof Miaoyun Princess couldn’t help but blush.
"I saw you two... you two, and I just..." Miaoyun Princess trailed off, unable to continue.
The main reason for her confusion was that, according to Ye Ruyan, she hadn’t been in Daluo Palace for long. So when Miaoyun Princess saw her with Gu Zhao, she misunderstood. After all, things seemed to have moved a bit fast between them.
But the key point was, even with the misunderstanding, Miaoyun Princess had still agreed!
"I never would have guessed. With that icy personality of yours, what on earth goes on in that head?" Ye Ruyan teased. "So you’re the ’cold on the outside, warm on the inside’ type, huh?"
Miaoyun Princess gritted her teeth slightly and muttered, "I only did it because I wanted to be with you."
Ye Ruyan flicked her tongue, momentarily at a loss for words.
Gu Zhao had moved to the side, feeling a bit awkward. But his hearing was sharp, and when he overheard Miaoyun Princess, he couldn’t help but glance back at her. Then, he gave Ye Ruyan a strange look.
Thankfully, it didn’t seem like there was any hidden meaning in Miaoyun Princess’s words. It was simply a matter of her own cold personality and Ye Ruyan’s warmth complementing each other, leading to a deep friendship.
But Gu Zhao also felt a strange sense of regret. ’If only...’
...
Like Ye Ruyan, Miaoyun Princess had a residence on Wuya Ridge, but she had no one but herself to worry about. So, she quickly packed her personal belongings, sealed her cave abode, and returned to Daluo Palace with Gu Zhao.
And so, Daluo Palace gained another Guardian Star Official.
"Well, I’ll be!"
Yunyang, who had just returned to the mountain, clicked his tongue in amazement. "You go out for one trip and bring back another top-tier expert?"
"Ruyan went home to pack some things and happened to run into Miaoyun Princess, who was visiting, so she invited her over," Gu Zhao explained, then asked Yunyang, "Why are you back? Aren’t you supposed to be enjoying some private time with Hu Yufei?"
If the older Daoists were more nostalgic and occasionally returned to Cuiluo Mountain for a look around, the younger ones like Yunyang were truly running wild all over the place, rarely ever home.
Hu Yufei was one of the few Guardian Star Officials who wasn’t stationed at Daluo Palace, instead choosing to roam around with Yunyang.
"My cousin is getting married, a traditional Chinese wedding," Yunyang said. "My dad wanted me to perform a blessing ceremony, so he called the Taoist Research Institute, and Martial Uncle Yan Song relayed the message to me."
"So I came back to have you take me," Yunyang said with a shrug.
"Alright." Gu Zhao nodded. "Did you grab a gift from the warehouse?"
"No need," Yunyang shook his head. "I had a master craftsman at the workshop carve a ’Good Things Come in Pairs’ piece for me from Purple Sandalwood. I engraved a Spirit Gathering Array and a Celestial Spirit Array into the Wood Carving; it’s more than enough to ward their home."
"Okay." Gu Zhao nodded and didn’t press the issue. For ordinary people on Blue Star, there wasn’t much difference between the effects of a Magical Treasure from Daluo Palace’s warehouse and the Purple Sandalwood carving Yunyang had made anyway.
"Since you’re making a rare trip back, remember to take your share of alcohol or elixirs," Gu Zhao reminded him.
As Daluo Palace grew in scale, the many old Daoists had established their own set of rules for the Elders, including quotas for various elixirs, Spiritual Treasures, and the like.
Of course, the rules were very lax. And if someone had a special need, they just had to mention it to Gu Zhao, and it would be taken care of.
"Got ’em," Yunyang said, patting the gourd at his waist. "I told Yufei I was going into seclusion. Take me back."
"When’s the wedding?" Gu Zhao asked as he traveled with Yunyang between worlds.
"A week from now," Yunyang said. "Wanna come? I’ll take you to eat some authentic Guanzhong snacks: Roujiamo from Zi Wu Road, the Liu Family’s Paomo, the Zhu Family’s Hulutou..."
Gu Zhao looked back at him. "Didn’t you say the most authentic were the pork knuckle Roujiamo and Old Sun’s Steamed Bun?"
"Huh? Did I?" Yunyang looked back, suddenly remembering the time he’d casually lied to Gu Zhao.
Gu Zhao said grimly, "You were lying to me before, weren’t you?"
Yunyang’s eyes were full of sincerity. "How could I! We’re practically brothers; why would I ever lie to you?"
"Good." Gu Zhao nodded. "I’ll come find you then, and we’ll go eat pork knuckle Roujiamo and Old Sun’s Steamed Bun."
Yunyang’s expression shifted to one of pure, suicidal anguish.
"Why, you...!" Gu Zhao clenched his fist.
Seeing Gu Zhao raise a clenched fist, Yunyang shot into the sky with a WHOOSH. He then cast his Invisibility Skill and flew straight north toward Qin Province, sending a message with his Thunder Seed at the same time.
"Trust me, I’m not lying this time! The Roujiamo from Zi Wu Road and the food from the Liu Family are seriously delicious!"
"Like hell I believe you!"
Watching Yunyang fly away, Gu Zhao pulled out his phone and opened TikTok. "I’d rather trust a recommendation from a short-form video than believe you!"
Then he scrolled to a video for what claimed to be the number one barbecue in West Capital, Qin Province: one-yuan-per-skewer barbecue from the Ma Family!
Gu Zhao nodded. ’That’s the one for next time. A late-night snack.’
Speaking of which, Gu Zhao looked over at Taoist Yan Song, who was drinking tea in the pavilion. "Martial Uncle, has anything been happening lately?"
"Nothing major." Taoist Yan Song tapped a stack of documents on the table. "This just came in from the Taoist Office. Basically, a lot of people are trying to track down Senior Brother Yi Hong, the major mountain Taoist Temples have received a lot of donations, Boeing paid a hefty sum to haul away that damaged plane, and Northern Mongolia sent people to discuss a partnership—they want to trade mineral resources for our help in cleaning up their environment."
Gu Zhao raised an eyebrow. "Looks like they aren’t so stupid after all."
"Because they don’t want to be buried alive," Taoist Yan Song said with a calm smile. "Their negotiation team arrived in Yandu, made a special trip to White Cloud Temple to offer three sticks of incense, and donated one hundred thousand in incense oil money."
"Only a hundred thousand?" Gu Zhao asked.
"That came from their public accounts," Taoist Yan Song said with a shake of his head and a smile. "How much money do you think Northern Mongolia has in its public coffers?"
"Public funds can be donated to a Taoist Temple?" Gu Zhao had another question.
"They can, in the name of the friendship between Genghis Khan and Chang Chun Master back in the day," Taoist Yan Song nodded.
Gu Zhao...
’He had to admit, the meeting between those two was cross-referenced in various historical works, so it was a legitimate argument. For them to use that piece of history and even come respectfully to offer incense...’
What could Gu Zhao say? All he could do was admit it was well played.
...
After sending Yunyang off, Gu Zhao crossed back to the Otherworld. It was almost evening, and the welcome banquet for Miaoyun Princess was about to begin.
Gu Zhao arrived just in time to attend the banquet, which kept him busy for an hour.
SIGH...
Holding Zhuo Qingyan’s cool, soft, and supple body, Gu Zhao felt completely relaxed.
Zhuo Qingyan chuckled softly and said to Gu Zhao, "Yingying and Xiaozhi are a little upset."
"Oh?"
"Because Ruyan beat them to it."
"She told you?"
"Mhm."
Although Zhuo Qingyan’s Dao Practice wasn’t considered high in Daluo Palace at the moment, she was Gu Zhao’s first woman. He cared deeply about her opinion, and she usually sat by his side at banquets.
Thus, Zhuo Qingyan held the unofficial status of Daluo Palace’s Sect Leader’s Wife. Since Ye Ruyan had slept with Gu Zhao, she had naturally informed Zhuo Qingyan beforehand.
"When are you going to make Yingying and Xiaozhi yours?" Zhuo Qingyan asked.
"Let them wait," Gu Zhao huffed lightly. "I’m the Sect Leader of Daluo Palace, favored by the Nightlight Jade Maiden herself. I’m not someone just anyone can sleep with so easily."
Zhuo Qingyan couldn’t help but laugh. How could she not know this was Gu Zhao’s way of showing his feelings for her? She was moved once again, her eyes glistening as she melted into his embrace, tilting her head up to offer him a sweet kiss.
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