Su Mu didn’t know that Chen Qing had already seen through her little scheme. Right now, she was racking her brains over how to learn Gu Technique one step ahead of Chen Qing.
If she wanted to learn Gu Technique, she definitely had to find someone from Miao Village.
Among the people in this village, the only one she knew was Xiao Meng.
However, Xiao Meng had run home crying just yesterday. If she went to find her now, she definitely wouldn’t give her the time of day.
Moreover, if Chen Qing caught her sneaking off to see Xiao Meng, she would be in deep trouble again.
After pondering for a long time without coming up with any ideas, Su Mu could only sit depressed on the stone bench and eat her meal.
Meal time passed quickly, and Su Mu’s stomach was soon filled.
The warm sunlight shone into the courtyard, instantly turning the still-depressed Su Mu lazy. She leaned against the big tree in the courtyard, comfortably basking in the sun.
Seeing her leisurely Traitorous Shizun, Chen Qing walked over and gave her a tap.
“You’re full. Don’t just lie there—get some exercise to help digestion.”
“No way. Sleeping after a meal is the proper way.”
Although Su Mu wanted to argue reason with Chen Qing, the sight of her smiling eyes made her obediently stand up from the ground in the end.
Chen Qing led her dissatisfied Traitorous Shizun on a stroll through Miao Village.
Miao Village was isolated from the world, and few people knew the specifics of what went on inside.
Since she wanted to learn Gu Technique, Chen Qing felt she needed to seriously understand Miao Village first.
The pair of stunning beauties, Chen Qing and Su Mu, naturally drew plenty of gazes along the way.
Chen Qing noticed that the people of Miao Village, aside from growing some common grains, spent most of their time fiddling with medicinal herbs.
Nearly every household had some Chinese herbs drying in front of their houses.
Moreover, judging by their size, these herbs were of considerable age; they could fetch a hefty price if taken outside.
The people of Miao Village were also extremely curious about these two strangers from beyond the mountains.
For the reclusive Ancient Miao People, many went their entire lives without ever seeing an outsider.
Although they had heard about the conflict with the villagers, their curiosity about the outside world quietly overcame their inner wariness.
In particular, some of the bolder kids had already gathered around Su Mu.
“Big Sis, are there wooden houses outside that float on the water?”
The little girl’s question stunned Su Mu for a moment, but she quickly realized she meant boats.
Kids from the Ancient Miao Tribe, who spent their whole lives in the mountains, basically never got to see the massive ships sailing the great rivers.
“Yeah, those waterborne wooden houses are huge and spacious, and they can carry you along on adventures.”
“That’s so cool!”
Su Mu’s words further ignited the kids’ curiosity.
Even the shyer children, seeing how approachable Su Mu was, crowded around, peppering her with questions left and right.
They asked everything from what people outside ate to what they did for a living.
Every difference from village life sparked excitement among the group of kids.
Seeing her Traitorous Shizun so quickly become the kids’ ringleader, Chen Qing felt a bit helpless.
She was from outside too—why weren’t these kids asking her questions? She could have probed some village details from their mouths.
But watching her Traitorous Shizun happily surrounded by the group of kids, the corners of Chen Qing’s mouth curved into an unconscious smile.
“Big Sis, I heard you made Sister Xiao Meng cry—is that true?”
Su Mu jumped at the question.
She quickly sneaked a glance at Chen Qing, who was chatting with the village adults to gather information. Seeing that she wasn’t paying attention to this side, Su Mu finally relaxed.
“Sister Xiao Meng must have cried because she saw something heartbreaking. It’s related to me, but I’m not the main culprit.”
“Hmph! Big Sis is a bad guy—go apologize to Sister Xiao Meng right now!”
Kids didn’t care about main culprits or accomplices. Hearing it involved Su Mu, they immediately clamored for her to apologize.
Looking at the kids who had her surrounded, Su Mu felt a headache coming on.
These bratty kids flipped faces too fast—one second they were happily asking her questions, and the next they were forcing her to apologize.
“Indeed, this big sis should apologize to Sister Xiao Meng.”
While Su Mu was still figuring out how to handle the kids, someone else came along to stir up trouble.
Upon seeing who it was, Su Mu’s expression turned awkward.
Miao Qing looked at the embarrassed Su Mu before her, her heart filled with complex emotions.
After all, her daughter was still holed up in her room refusing to eat. As her mother, she didn’t know how to face the girl her daughter liked.
“A-Aunt… Aunt Miao, hello.”
Su Mu hemmed and hawed for a long time before finally managing to greet her as Aunt Miao.
Before Miao Qing could say anything to Su Mu, Chen Qing had already walked over to her side.
“No need for any apologies. A good cry when you’re sad is all it takes.”
Chen Qing’s overwhelming aura made the previously lively kids shrink back in fear, hiding behind Miao Qing.
Miao Qing looked at Chen Qing with an unchanged expression.
“I’ve heard you’re here for Gu Technique. I advise you to give it up. Your strength may be formidable, but you have no affinity with the path of Gu Technique.”
Miao Qing’s words made Chen Qing’s expression turn serious as well.
It was obvious without thinking—the Clan Leader must have spread the word about her desire to learn Gu Technique.
But the fact that this person had obtained that information from the Clan Leader so quickly was rather intriguing.
The moment she recalled the slightly unusual energy within this person, Chen Qing immediately realized what was going on.
This person was likely the Gu Master she had been looking for.
From her earlier conversation with the villagers, Chen Qing had realized that even within Miao Village, Gu Technique held an air of mystery.
Practicing Gu Technique required talent, and only a small portion of the Ancient Miao People could cultivate it.
These individuals’ identities were generally not publicized; they lived like ordinary villagers and were only summoned by the Clan Leader when needed.
She had been wondering how to identify and contact a Gu Master in Miao Village, and one had suddenly appeared right in front of her.
But this Gu Master’s identity was a bit awkward.
“You’ll only know if there’s affinity by giving it a try.”
Seeing that Chen Qing had no intention of giving up, Miao Qing abandoned her attempts at persuasion and turned toward Su Mu.
But Chen Qing was even more overbearing than she had imagined. She directly took Su Mu’s hand and pulled her behind herself, not even allowing Miao Qing another glance.
“Since you’re so insistent, I won’t try to dissuade you any further. But the village isn’t as simple as it seems. I hope we don’t end up as mortal enemies.”
With that, Miao Qing turned and left.
Chen Qing watched Miao Qing depart, then turned back and took hold of Su Mu’s hand.
Miao Qing’s final two sentences were clearly a warning to Chen Qing.
They might tolerate Chen Qing sticking around the village, but they were surely worried she would go overboard in her pursuit of Gu Technique.
That was why they had deliberately sent a Gu Master to intimidate her.
Chen Qing didn’t take their intimidation to heart.
If she resorted to force, no one in this village could stop her—not even their mysterious Gu Techniques.
The Grandmaster’s reputation as peerless under heaven was, of course, well-earned.
