My Senior Sister Says She Will Marry No One But Me - Chapter 50

As soon as Xue Shuyan finished speaking, Qin Shanshan immediately fell silent. It took a long moment before she reluctantly admitted, “Back then, I took your qin simply because it looked rare. Who knew it actually had such a background? And to be honest, that qin of yours isn’t with me right now, it’s with my uncle, Azamat.”

“He’s ambitious, a core member of the war faction, and though he’s always outwardly polite to me, he’s deeply patriarchal. As long as I can’t find a way to pin him down, I won’t be able to suppress the war faction. So, Little Sect Leader, think about it this trip with me is truly worthwhile. Not only will you help secure long-term stability along the border, but you’ll also have the chance to retrieve that qin amidst the chaos. Isn’t that perfect?”

Her response was a masterful evasion, skillfully sidestepping the most critical part of Xue Shuyan’s question. But Xue Shuyan was not one to be easily fooled. With a cold laugh, she reminded Qin Shanshan, “Mayila, think carefully before you answer. Don’t spout nonsense.”

“Fine, fine! I’ll tell the truth, alright?!” Qin Shanshan, cornered by Xue Shuyan’s relentless pressure, finally gave up and blurted out the truth: “Little Sect Leader, please don’t get angry when I tell you this, but the qin I mentioned earlier, the one that could harmonize with heavenly thunder wasn’t mine. I snatched it from your senior sister when I was a child.”

This truth struck Du Yunge like a thunderbolt from the heavens, leaving her utterly dumbfounded. All she could manage was the most instinctive reaction of someone completely shocked a single, bewildered syllable: “Huh?!”

Qin Shanshan seemed a bit embarrassed, as if her conscience had finally stirred, making her realize how unseemly her actions had been. Rubbing her nose outside, she lowered her voice and spoke more cautiously: “Well, you know. I was young and didn’t know any better. Whenever I saw someone with something I wanted, I just had to have it too.”

Xue Shuyan seized the opportunity to criticize her without hesitation: “Hah, you’re not much better now.”

Qin Shanshan retorted defiantly, “I’m talking to the Little Sect Leader, why are you butting in? Little Sect Leader, to be honest, I was really unruly back then. Whenever I saw your senior sister with something nice, I’d either use my status to snatch it outright or pretend to cry until the adults gave it to me. I know it wasn’t right, but some people are just born with a tendency to take things. Even after all these years, I still haven’t managed to change that habit.”

She paused for a breath before hastily adding, “But my affection for you, Little Sect Leader, is genuine and without any falsehood!”

Suddenly, Xue Shuyan’s voice cut in eerily: “Watch the road.”

Qin Shanshan looked ahead and saw a narrow ditch not far away. She and Xue Shuyan quickly spurred their horses fine steeds bred by the Hu people beyond the frontier and the animals, spurred on, leaped effortlessly over the ditch. Inside the carriage, Du Yunge barely felt any jolt, only a slight sway.

However, this caused Qin Shanshan to completely forget the flattery she had intended to express earlier, and she had no choice but to continue along the topic Xue Shuyan had brought up:

“At first, I truly had no idea that the zither was so valuable that it could even compel you, Young Sect Leader, to personally come and see it. As you know, our Hu people’s tents are filled with animal hides, gold, silver, jewels, and spices, but when it comes to refined items like zithers, chess, calligraphy, and paintings not even the wealthiest tribe on the grasslands, the Wuzhaka, nor even dozens of tribes combined could produce many such things.”

“So when I first saw that zither in your senior sister’s hands, it was truly like stumbling upon a rare treasure. I couldn’t control myself. and I snatched it.”

“But after I took it, I took good care of it!” Fearing that Du Yunge might think the zither had been ruined and change her mind about going, Qin Shanshan quickly added:

“Moreover, after my uncle took a liking to the zither, I gave it to him to appease him. He adores Central Plains artifacts and even had a special locked cabinet made for it, with guards patrolling day and night to ensure its safety. It definitely hasn’t been damaged!”

Du Yunge first breathed a sigh of relief, thinking that if Qin Shanshan’s uncle, Azamat, was truly a zither enthusiast as described, then the instrument might indeed have been well-preserved. But the thought of retrieving it from such a heavily guarded place gave her a headache, it was a real dilemma.

Still, whether they had to steal it, seize it by force, or buy it at a high price, it was far better than easily obtaining a zither that had already been ruined.

To hurry back beyond the frontier, the three of them traveled day and night without rest. As they approached the border checkpoint, Qin Shanshan reluctantly took out her disguise kit and crafted a simple mask for Xue Shuyan, modeled after the face of an unremarkable but distinctly Hu woman.

This way, even if the scarf covering her hair slipped off, the mask with its high nose bridge, deep-set eyes, prominent cheekbones, and slightly protruding lips, typical of Hu people would prevent outsiders from questioning her identity too much. The only downside was the toll it took on her skin; every night, after removing the mask, she had to apply numerous ointments and potions.

They encountered a minor but troublesome issue at the border checkpoint. Both Xue Shuyan and Du Yunge’s travel permits clearly stated their names. If someone who recognized their names accidentally blurted them out, all their careful planning would be for nothing. In the end, Qin Shanshan made the decisive call: she had them change into completely different outfits. When entering the frontier, they would claim to be a purchased Han songstress and a Hu maidservant attending to a young girl, whom they had pitied and brought back to reunite with her roots.

Xue Shuyan: Don’t stop me, I’m going to give my cousin a good beating.

Du Yunge held a pipa she had bought from a roadside instrument shop for a full five taels of silver proof that such goods from the Hu people were indeed precious. Back in the Qinhuai region, a piece of this quality, with its poorly tuned strings and garishly glossy lacquer, could have been bought for five taels of silver at least three or four times over. Her face was veiled, and her hair, neck, and hands were adorned with a jingling array of gold bracelets and pearls. A small crescent moon, painted in gold dust, graced her cheek, its faint outline visible through the veil, lending her an ethereal, exotic beauty unique to the frontier.

Had anyone else worn such attire, especially that Yangfei-pink dress, they would have looked like a garish matchmaker. But Du Yunge was naturally beautiful, with fair skin, and the color suited her perfectly, living up to the elegance of “Yangfei.” As for the jewelry that would have appeared gaudy on others, on her slender, jade-like wrists, it only enhanced her delicate, graceful charm, making one long to measure just how slender her hands truly were.

As their party passed through the checkpoint, they naturally drew everyone’s attention. However, most eyes were fixed on Du Yunge, with Qin Shanshan and Xue Shuyan barely noticed. Even the city guards were no exception. After a cursory check of Qin Shanshan’s travel pass bearing a Han name and accepting a few pieces of silver she slipped them, they easily let the group pass beyond the frontier, completely unaware that they had just allowed three extraordinary individuals to slip through.

They hadn’t traveled far when Du Yunge, still struggling to remove her heavy jewelry, heard the sound of galloping horses in the distance, accompanied by boisterous singing and shouts calling out to companions. Qin Shanshan frowned and said to Xue Shuyan, “Find a place to hide. From the sound of it, there might be people under my uncle’s command among them. They saw you when you were young and know you went to the Miaoyin Sect. If such a beautiful girl is accompanied by someone as silent as you, it’ll raise suspicions why haven’t you changed that temperament of yours since childhood?!”

Before Qin Shanshan could finish her complaint, Xue Shuyan leaped away, her figure vanishing among the rooftops of the roadside inns, leaving behind words that still echoed in their ears: “Habit. Can’t change it.”

Qin Shanshan was so frustrated she felt like stamping her feet. But before she could usher Du Yunge into the carriage, a wild laugh rang out from afar, followed by a rapid stream of Hu language. The speaker’s accent was much thicker than Qin Shanshan’s, and his speech so fast she could only make out the words “beautiful” and “is it.”

Yet, as the group spoke, Qin Shanshan’s expression grew increasingly grave. The moment their words ceased, she immediately stepped in front of Du Yunge, pushing her into the carriage, and shouted back, “Noble guests are present, do not be reckless!”

She spoke these words in the Hu language, but her tone was drawn out, and Qin Shanshan enunciated clearly, so Du Yunge actually understood what she was saying. However, her words had little effect on the approaching young men. Upon seeing the distinctly Han-style dress Du Yunge was wearing, they burst into even more raucous laughter. Then, they drew their bows and shot an arrow straight toward the carriage!

Qin Shanshan instinctively moved to block it, but when she reached for her waist, she realized she was unarmed she had never been skilled in martial arts to begin with. Apart from being somewhat adept at light-footedness and the use of poisons, her martial prowess didn’t even come close to one-tenth of Xue Shuyan’s!

The arrow shot forth with fierce momentum, showing no sign of restraint, clearly intending to startle the Han person inside the carriage. If it resulted in death, so be it, it would simply be an unfortunate mishap during their reckless play.

Qin Shanshan’s eyes reddened with desperation. She resolutely stretched out her hand, determined to block the arrow with her own flesh and blood, even if it meant piercing a hole through her palm! The young men, who had been fooling around, noticed her action and screamed in unison, their earlier arrogance and recklessness instantly forgotten:

That was the Holy Maiden of the Wuzhaka tribe! If they truly harmed the Holy Maiden, their fathers would surely flay them alive!

At that moment, a hand emerged from inside the carriage.

A slender, pale hand, holding a pipa.

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