Great! I'm surrounded by villains!
Chapter 134 - 54: The Sword Drawer, Mingyuan

Chapter 134: Chapter 54: The Sword Drawer, Mingyuan

Moonlight streamed into the room.

Ning Ruyue folded her clothes neatly into a trunk, yawned, and her gaze inadvertently fell upon the guqin in the dormitory corner, a gift from the Dean in her childhood, warning her not to be preoccupied with waving swords all day and to focus more on playing the guqin.

The eldest martial sister of the guqin academy was also raised strictly by the Dean’s hand.

In fact, she had no interest in playing the guqin, always looking for chances to sneak to the mountains behind the academy to practice swordsmanship, which is why she was often discovered by the Dean, who would then order her to face the wall and reflect on her actions.

But now that she was about to leave, she found that she was somewhat reluctant to part with the guqin.

After some thought, Ning Ruyue found a cloth to carefully wrap the guqin and slung it over her shoulder to test its weight.

It was all right, she could manage it.

After all, this was not a flight from disaster, but a dignified return to the Imperial Court. There was no need to hide her identity as she had done when she fled the Imperial Court, living in constant fear.

"Knock, knock—"

The sound of knocking came.

Without needing to hear the voice, Ning Ruyue guessed the identity of the visitor, "Teacher, please come in."

Su Yunru entered through the door, saw the packed luggage on the bed, and paused, several times opening her mouth to speak but uncertain of where to begin.

So much had happened at the academy in these few days, and as the Dean of the guqin academy, she should be focusing her efforts on the aftermath of the invasion.

Su Yunru knew in her heart that the Elder Princess had to return to the Imperial Court, and only by doing so could the Yunhai Academy be temporarily stabilized.

But she also knew well the dangers of this journey, having raised Ning Ruyue herself, she had come to see her no differently than her own daughter. How could she willingly let her fall into peril?

"Let’s go, leave Qing Chi Peak with me, I know a place where we can likely avoid the Imperial Court’s surveillance for a while," Su Yunru said through gritted teeth.

As the Dean of the guqin academy, leaving in a crisis would surely bring her eternal infamy, but this was the only possibility she could think of to save Ning Ruyue.

"One may evade temporarily, but not for a lifetime," Ning Ruyue said, smiling gently. She hadn’t expected her teacher to propose such a rash plan, "If they can find the academy, they can find any place in the world."

"Then we’ll move again. With such vast lands, surely there is a place where we can dwell?"

"What about our junior brothers and sisters? If the Second Prince succeeds the Prime Monarch, he will surely return with greater forces."

"I am the one who has failed them, not you."

"That’s all the more reason I won’t let you commit to such an act," Ning Ruyue replied. "As the Elder Princess of the Imperial Court and the eldest martial sister of the guqin academy, it’s my duty to save the academy."

"Why are you still so stubborn?" Su Yunru clenched her fist, a little angry.

These truths, which even Ning Ruyue understood, how could she not understand them? Yet, since she had come here in the night and spoken those words, she obviously wasn’t here to speak about grand principles.

Principles and righteousness are well known to all, yet they often require one’s life as the price.

"In the past, whenever I made a mistake, teacher would always find out, telling me to go to the mountainside and reflect, and while I felt resentful, I understood her intentions. Now it’s my turn to stop you," Ning Ruyue said.

"Ah!"

With a long sigh, Su Yunru had nothing more to say, only clinging to a sliver of hope, she asked, "When will you return to the academy?"

"If I go back to the Imperial Court this time, I won’t be coming back."

Ning Ruyue spoke with feigned resilience.

Unrealistic hopes were often the cruelest. The path before her led to only two destinations—ascending to the Prime Monarch’s throne or dying in internal strife. Either outcome meant she could never return to the academy.

"Ru Yue—"

The sudden arrival of an uninvited guest shattered the mournful atmosphere in the room. Su Yunru’s arms, which she had awkwardly extended, froze midway, and she turned around stumbling, her movements as rigid as a malfunctioning robot. "Teacher Mingyuan, what brings you here?"

"I’ve come to consult with student Ning Ruyue on some matters,"

Duan Mingyuan replied.

As a Sword Warrior, his blade radar had not stopped for a moment before.

Such a familiar scene!

Though Su Yunru had always regarded Ning Ruyue as her own, being the Elder Princess of the Imperial Court meant she could only watch helplessly as Ning Ruyue returned to the Imperial Court, plunging back into those bloody coups.

This was to be their last meeting.

The next time Su Yunru heard about Ning Ruyue, she had already perished, leaving only her keepsake to be delivered back to the Cloud Sea Academy.

Duan Mingyuan caught a glimpse of Ning Ruyue’s bandage-wrapped qin. It looked exactly like something that would be sent back to the academy as a keepsake, prompting thoughts of the person connected to it.

Upon hearing of Ning Ruyue’s death, Su Yunru’s hair turned white in a single night, and she lived in sorrow until she soon passed away from this world.

Disciples at the academy wrote this tale into the library’s collection so that future generations might know that a brave senior sister once existed within its walls.

And the teacher of the "Defense Against Evil Spirits" class at the academy might, on some ordinary afternoon, unintentionally walk past the ginkgo trees on the back mountain and reminisce about the little girl who once asked him to teach her swordsmanship.

All this was the scene Duan Mingyuan’s blade radar scanned.

This could all be more than fantasy; had he not accepted the invitation of President Mo Song to come to Cloud Sea Academy, perhaps these would have been everyone’s fate.

In another parallel world where he remained a common laborer, he might have stumbled upon a nauseating story produced against the backdrop of the academy’s transformation on his way home late at night.

But would any of this still happen after the arrival of the Sword Warrior God?

Of course not!

It was out of the question!

The swift blade of the Sword Warrior God cut not enemies but every thread leading to a tragic timeline.

"Teacher Mingyuan...?"

Ning Ruyue called out Duan Mingyuan’s name tentatively; Duan Mingyuan had fallen into a deep contemplation as soon as he entered, filtering out the sounds from the outside world.

But thanks to Duan Mingyuan, the atmosphere of her parting with her teacher had eased somewhat, ensuring that future memories would not be composed solely of sigh-inducing fragments.

"Oh, I came to consult about attire and dressing,"

Duan Mingyuan said, having regained his focus.

"Attire style?"

"I haven’t visited the Imperial Court before; are there any specific requirements for the dress code for visitors? Would it violate protocol if I went like this? Plus, I have another eleven detailed questions about daily life that I need your counsel on."

"You’re going to the Imperial Court?"

It was Su Yunru who asked the question, having caught on.

"Yes, I’ve already reported it to President Mo Song. During my absence from the ’Defense Against Evil Spirits’ class, Elder Chen Chou has agreed to temporarily take over as the instructor. This senior is a distinguished figure in the academic world, known for his wit and humor. You can rest assured of the quality of his teaching."

Pausing for a moment, Duan Mingyuan continued, "So, Dean Su, you can be at ease about student Ning Ruyue’s safety. Protecting students is every teacher’s duty."