Chapter 63: The Past. The Plan

The fact that Yun Yang was the one that had initiated the meeting this time had Yun Zuiyue over the moon. She was afraid of letting the cat out of the bag so she had never dared contact Yun Yang, yet the longing was always in her heart - would there be news?

As long as Yun Yang was still there, she felt that the connection she had with her love was still there as well.

"It's fine if there is no news." Yun Zuiyue said chuckling, "Just look at me, saying all the wrong things. Don't keep this in your heart, brother. Do visit your sister-in-law regardless. Then your sister-in-law would be contented." When she spoke to Yun Yang, there was even a tinge of caution in her carefully worded pandering. It was as if Yun Yang would not turn up anymore if she offended him.

"Sister Yue, you... don't have to be this way." Yun Yang said, feeling more that little upset, "The more you're like this, the... worse I feel."

Yun Zuiyue smiled gently. "It's alright. Sister Yue is overjoyed that you're able to come."

Her gaze dimmed when she heard that Yun Yang ultimately did not call her "sister-in-law" and followed suit to address herself as "Sister Yue".

"But this young brother is hesitant to come." Yun Yang said, "Because once I come, it is for sure that I will cause Sister Yue a great deal of trouble."

Yun Zuiyue grinned. "You must know that I am willing to be troubled by you. Whatever trouble you've brought, the more the better. Then, I can actually feel that I'm doing something for him."

Yun Yang asked carefully, "Can I ask Sister Yue... and Fifth Sir's... past?"

Yun Zuiyue smiled sorrowfully. "The past... is fairly simple. Both of us came from the same place. It was a vicious training camp, there were too many orphans. I was only five years old when I was caught and put inside. He was six at the time."

"There, boys were trained to become thieves, pickpockets, killers, or beggars. Those without talent would have their arms and legs broken or tortured to deformity with various ways and brought out to beg for money."

"Girls who were prettier were trained to become escorts, or other...entertainment... that could please men and be sold. There were a rare few who were very talented. They would be trained to become killers or sacrificial spies. Those with ordinary looks and were talentless were all sent out to beg. When they grew up, they would be the men's playthings if they were well endowed; otherwise, they would be killed."

"Such an inhumane place!" Yun Yang was enraged just listening to her. "Where is it?"

Yun Zuiyue wore another sorrowful smile. "That time, he was a strong one among the other children, always taking care of the few of us girls. He also had potential and was listed to be trained as a killer. When I was nine, I looked rather delicate; a guard had ill intentions but he killed him, and escaped from the place, bringing the three of us girls..."

"From then on, we roamed everywhere precariously. He worked hard every day, whether it was killing, robbing, stealing things, just to feed us."

Yun Yang sighed.

Yun Zuiyue did not elaborate this part of their past in great detail but Yun Yang could imagine how hard it must have been for a boy of only ten years of age to kill, run, and survive bringing three eight or nine-year-old girls. Fifth brother must have suffered a lot then

"When I was eleven years old, we met Madam Red Sleeves."

"Madam Red Sleeves took in the three of us girls in but he rejected Madam Red Sleeves' care and went out to make a living on his own. He was only twelve at that time."

"Every year, he would come and visit us, bringing lots of gifts. Later, Madam Red Sleeves passed away from sickness and we were once again left to fend for ourselves when we were sixteen. He came back then."

"Then three years later, when I was nineteen, we had the Cirrus House. It was also that year when he brought a few brothers and eradicated that evil training base, killing everyone there."

"As for those in the Cirrus House, a lot of them were all brothers and sisters who came from the training base. He had been taking care of us all."

"After that, the... the... began its selection but we didn't know what a strange path it would have taken! We had no idea and a lot of people followed... When we came out, he had been taken away."

"Then when he came back, he was excited." Yun Zuiyue's gaze was woeful. "I knew then that he was selected."

"Another period of time had passed before we knew that it was ... That place was selecting people to ..." Yun Zuiyue said, unable to fully complete her words. "The person I loved the most bore such a presence of a hero... You have no idea how excited I was."

Yun Yang was hit with grief.

Excited...

Perhaps you didn't know then that fifth brother began the path that would make him an unparalleled hero but would also have been the end of your future together.

"It was that same night..." Yun Zuiyue smiled bitterly. "I wanted to give my all to him. I told him that I wanted to become his woman, I wanted to become his concubine!"

"Instead, he was enraged. He said that if he were to marry me, it had to be as his righteous wife! However, I'd already known then that for us women who had undertaken the Cirrus House as our way of living, while we knew that we were pure and untainted, we were still courtesans in the eyes of the public! I'd lost the right to become his righteous spouse. Of course, I could still be one if he were still a vagrant in the martial arts world but he was already not..."

"Yet he insisted. We had a big fight and... it didn't end well."

Yun Yang closed his eyes.

To officially marry a woman while bearing the identity as one of the Nine Supremes.

Oh, how difficult it would be!

He recalled his fifth brother's look when he had first joined the Nine Supremes and become one of them. At that time, fifth brother seemed to always have something heavy weighing down his heart and was always gloomy. Although he always performed as he was supposed to do, anyone could see that he had troubles of the heart.

He would be happy whenever he brought Yun Yang himself or the other brothers to Cirrus House but became morose again when they came back.

The Cirrus House.

He had actually come many times with his appearance altered.

"So we began quarreling endlessly."

"But he didn't want to change his mind at all. Finally, he told me he had it all figured out last year. It was impossible for us to be officially husband and wife..." Yun Zuiyue continued, "So, we'd invite his brothers to drink and hold a simple ceremony when he came back from his mission. That way, we would be considered a married couple... "

"We were both so very happy that day... because I was finally going to become his woman, I was finally going to be together with my dream ever since I was young. He was very happy too, he thought that he had it all figured out... It was the third day of the third month."

Yun Yang lowered his head in sorrow.

The third day of the third month.

On the fourth day of the third month, the nine of them had departed to the Skyscraping Cloud Fort early the next morning to lead the other eight hundred brothers towards the east.

On the ninth day of the third month, they had arrived at Tianxuan Cliff.

"On his mission this time..." Yun Zuiyue smiled sadly and looked at Yun Yang, speaking slowly, "He hasn't come back until now..."

Yun Yang's heart felt like it was being sliced in half. After some time, he finally said lightly, "Sister Yue, come to me if there is any need for help from the sisters. Although Fifth Sir is not here... I am."

Yun Zuiyue smiled faintly. "Of course."

Despite her words, Yun Yang could hear her clearly... even if she really faced any difficulty in the future, she would never go to him for help.

Just like when Cirrus House had problems, she had never gone to fifth brother for help.

She knew that their identities could not be exposed.

Yun Zuiyue took in a shaky breath and wiped away the tears that had unknowingly fallen on her face discreetly. She put on a forced smile and said, "I'm sorry, I just can't stop when these things are mentioned. I haven't asked, what is it that young brother needed from Sister Yue this time?"

"Just so." Yun Yang gave it some thought and said, "There is a high-ranking military officer who has called himself General Zhenbei. He is described as being well-built and hefty. Although he wore a mask when he interacts with people, the lower part of his cheeks had once exposed a corner of his curly, grayed, beard."

"He was rather brawny, about eight feet tall and weighs around two hundred catties. He should be of a position higher than an assistant general, a rank that could give orders or even higher. At least, it could be seen from his demeanor that he had the aura of a powerful man."

Yun Yang continued, "However, there were more than a dozen of high-ranking officers who fulfill these criteria in the military."

"I wish to hunt for this person from the dozens of people here." Yun Yang said softly, "Among these people, seven to eight of them visited the Cirrus House regularly. I need Sister Yue's help with this."

Yun Zuiyue listened attentively and said, "This person...?"

Yun Yang said in a low voice, "The incident of the nine lords involves both the civil and military sides, the royalties, the nobles, even the forces in the martial arts world. It was a combined effort that included almost a third of this world's most powerful forces."

"Now we want to find out who these people are."

"We hope not for wealth and glamor, we hope not for the hereditary title of marquis, not even for our names to spread wide and great after our death but we must demand justice!"

"We can let go of the generals and what-not from the enemy states because they have always been enemies; whatever they have done can't really be considered despicable - they are just in keeping with character. But the traitors in this empire, these accomplices in the martial arts world, we plan not to let even a single one get away!"

"We will put an end to each one of them we find!"

Yun Yang's gaze was cold and determined.

"How do you plan to put an end them?" Yun Zuiyue asked.

"Nine familial exterminations!" Yun Yang spoke the sentence word by word, "All accomplices are to be wiped out. All the members are to be exterminated. This time, to demand for justice, to seek vengeance, we are willing to perform such cruel deeds. Even if we were to be exiled to hell... we would still have to do this!"

"Amazing! It is most gratifying for me to see such resolution!" Yun Zuiyue's eyes shone with fervor as she complimented him. She then said, "I shall give my all to help, no matter what!"