Allure of a Country Maiden-Chapter 447 - 445

Upon settling in the magistrate’s residence, Shangguan Xuanyi left Yang Liu to take care of Xiao’er the next morning, while he headed alone to Kunlun Snow Mountain to harvest the soul-reviving grass.

Asking Magistrate Zhu, Mrs Wen, the wife of the Hemu County magistrate, inquired, "My lord, who exactly are the guests staying in our garden? Why are you treating them with such caution?"

Naturally, Zhu couldn’t reveal the Sixth Prince’s identity. He put on a stern face and said, "This isn’t something you should inquire about, my dear. They are guests of high status. I wish you to supervise our servants and not let any mishap occur! Fulfill whatever their needs may be. They will depart in a few days, so for the time being, keep the servants at their posts to avoid any offense to these nobles. Understand?"

Listening to this, Mrs. Wen speculated, "Leaving in a few days? Where are they from? High-status people? Could they be coming from the Imperial Capital?"

Magistrate Zhu didn’t deny it this time. "Just attend to them diligently and avoid any mishaps. Even our positions or lives could be at stake. Now, it’s late. Time for bed!"

After saying this, Magistrate Zhu immediately went to sleep. The day’s events had been quite overwhelming, running hither and thither. He was exhausted.

After hearing her husband’s words, Mrs. Wen had a revelation. They indeed were nobles from the Imperial Capital. Observing her husband’s deference, she wondered if they could be heirs of an influential aristocratic family. She dared not consider the possibility of them being royalty; that was far beyond her reach.

Their eldest daughter was of marrying age. Acclaimed in all of the Four Arts, most importantly, she possessed a beauty that could overshadow even the most enchanting sight.

She had been pondering what household to marry her off to! This was an unexpected yet welcome situation. If Yan’er were to marry into a household of such prestige, wouldn’t they rise exponentially in status? Upon this thought, she excitedly blurted, "My lord, Yan’er and Yan’er have come of age. Both gentlemen seem quite suitable. Do you think there could be a chance?"

Just about to doze off, Magistrate Zhu shivered reflexively on hearing this, instantly wide awake. "Don’t you dare meddle in matters beyond our reach. Their pedigree is far out of our league."

Shifting his thoughts to the older son of the Lu family who was now conscious, that young man was quite the talent back in his day, the magistrate thought to himself.

Mrs. Wen pouted, hearing her husband. He had always been overly cautious. Dreaming of him bringing prosperity and wealth, God knows how long she would have to wait.

She must plan this herself, she concluded.

Shangguan Xuanyi had no time to spare. He pushed on towards Kunlun Snow Mountain, stopping only for meals and nature’s call. He arrived at the foot of the mountain after traveling for a day and a night.

It was dawn already. The morning sun cast its warm rays upon the snow-capped mountain, haloing it in a divine yet picturesque ambiance.

Shangguan Xuanyi was in no mood to appreciate the view. Having traveled so far without rest, he didn’t feel weary. He tethered his horse to a tree and took out some grass from his personal space ring to lay on the ground. He then climbed up the mountain using Qinggong.

The Kunlun Snow Mountain earned its name due to the snow that would accumulate and never melt throughout the winter.

The soul-reviving grass, contrastingly, was a pure white five-leafed plant resembling orchid grass. The flowers it bore were similar in appearance to the Narcissus, but possessed a translucent crystalline color, untouched by any impurity.

Reaching the peak of the snow mountain was not the challenge. However, finding soul-reviving grass, which blended seamlessly with the icy surroundings, was extremely difficult.

In the endless expanse of the frosty surroundings, prolonged exposure could lead to snow blindness.

Shangguan Xuanyi searched for an entire morning without any luck. He realized this wouldn’t suffice. Snow blindness would present more trouble! He climbed to the top and, sitting directly on the snowy peak, closed his eyes to rest.

After a short break, he resumed his search, continuing well into the evening. He had yet to find the soul-reviving grass he had envisioned, but his hands were already numb from the cold.

Shangguan Xuanyi was a bit disheartened. He used the moonlight to continue his search. As the night grew darker, Polaris seemed lonelier glimmers in the dark blue sky.

Suddenly, a white furry animal darted past him. Shangguan Xuanyi instantly threw one of his darts, but only managed to wound its leg, staining the white snow with dots of blood—an eye-catching sight.

Such a fine fur could be made into a hand warmer for her. She would definitely like it. But now, finding the soul-reviving grass was the priority, thought Shangguan Xuanyi.

As he shifted his gaze away from where the animal disappeared, he abruptly noticed a flash of cold light.

A hint of hope surged in his heart as he carefully approached the source.

A crystal clear plant bearing five leaves and a small flower was quietly shimmering in the moonlight.

Finally found it! Shangguan Xuanyi took out a small shovel and carefully began to dig up the soul-reviving grass.

The moment the shovel touched the roots of the herb, it started to freeze, with the ice spreading to every part of Shangguan Xuanyi until he was completely frozen.

Shangguan Xuanyi rapidly activated his inner strength in an attempt to melt the ice. Although he couldn’t thaw the ice, at the very least, with his inner strength, he was able to move.

Although Mr. Lu had mentioned this occurrence, he didn’t imagine it to be so dangerous. He was almost totally frozen, unable to move at all!

The Lu family members, who went to harvest the grass normally, consumed the Fire Heart Pill given by the divine-doctor. Without the pill, he had no choice but to harvest the grass.

With great difficulty and sluggish movements, Shangguan Xuanyi managed to dig up the soul-reviving grass. Taking out a jade box, he gingerly placed the herb in it.

These simple actions ended up taking him half an hour to complete.

Once the jade box was safely nestled in his personal space ring, Shangguan Xuanyi didn’t feel so frozen. Nonetheless, his body was stiff and his limbs were barely responsive.

Having harvested the soul-reviving grass, he knew he had to return immediately. Shangguan Xuanyi could not afford to waste any more time, thus he carefully started the descent.

With his unresponsive limbs, not much progress was made even after fifteen minutes of climbing down.

He gingerly looked down and felt a bit dizzy. He figured that with his slowed reactions, a mistake could render him unconscious, if not kill him, delaying his return—a risk he could not take. He had no option but to continue his descent cautiously.

As Shangguan Xuanyi warmed his body with his inner strength while carefully climbing down, a white shadow suddenly lunged towards him. Instinctively, he tried to block it; however, he found himself incapacitated. Then, he felt a sharp pain on the back of his hand. Having lost his grip, he began to fall.

The small snowball bit Shangguan Xuanyi, and itself turned completely rigid before also plummeting downwards.

Shangguan Xuanyi, falling down, was caught midway by a protruding pointed stone. Although it was quite an embarrassing predicament, at least he escaped a fatal fall. He tried to console himself.

With intentions of clinging onto that stone to shift from his hanging position,

Before he could even touch the stone, he was hit with a white mass, sending him into another free fall!

Damn it! Shangguan Xuanyi couldn’t help but let out his exasperation. Is this the end of him?

Having taken a heavy tumble onto the ground, his last conscious thought was that he must regain consciousness soon.