Chapter 569: Why Did They Have to Fall in Love with the Same Person?

As the days passed one after another, the day of Xiao Mo and Gui Junmeng's wedding drew steadily nearer.

All the various arrangements throughout Seeking Immortals Temple had long since been fully prepared.

Gui Junmeng's wedding garment, after nine rounds of revisions, had finally been settled upon.

As it happened, throughout these nine revisions, Gui Junmeng herself had never once offered any opinion at all, it had all been her senior and junior sisters endlessly "refining for perfection" yet they gradually found that the more they revised the wedding garment, the more it seemed to be missing something.

In the end, they simply brought out all ten of the wedding garments, including the very first one, and decided to let Gui Junmeng choose for herself. And what Gui Junmeng ended up choosing was, of all things, the very first one.

This left her senior and junior sisters somewhat surprised.

It was not that the first garment had been unattractive in any way, all ten garments in truth each had their own distinct charm.

The first garment, too, had been quite lovely.

What surprised them was that this time, Junmeng had, for once, shown a will of her own, rather than saying, as she usually did, "Actually, I think any of them would do."

They asked Gui Junmeng why she had chosen the first one of all things.

Gui Junmeng lowered her head, her cheeks flushing faintly, and answered softly, "Xiao Mo said the first one was beautiful."

Hearing Gui Junmeng's answer, her senior and junior sisters could not help but feel their hearts soften, and they all sighed over how fortunate Xiao Mo truly was, to be loved so deeply by such a wonderful junior sister of theirs.

Another month passed.

At last, as the final night quietly slipped away, and the light of dawn broke through the darkness, the day of the wedding arrived.

The sky had only just begun to lighten when Senior Sister Lin and the others hurried over to Gui Junmeng's courtyard to help her dress and prepare.

Because Xiao Mo's courtyard was situated so close to Gui Junmeng's, separated only by a single wall, it would not be convenient for the groom's procession to depart from there and so, the night before the wedding, Xiao Mo had moved to another peak within Seeking Immortals Temple.

Xiao Mo, too, had risen before dawn that day.

Liu Shui came into Xiao Mo's room, helped him dress in his groom's attire, and carefully arranged his hair for him.

"You look so handsome, sir."

Liu Shui said, gazing at Xiao Mo's reflection in the bronze mirror, speaking from the heart.

"Sister Liu Shui, no need to flatter me." Xiao Mo said with a smile, shaking his head.

"I'm not flattering you at all." Liu Shui reached out and gently smoothed the front of Xiao Mo's robe, saying softly, "Everything I say is the plain truth. There's probably no man in this world more handsome than you, sir."

Hearing Liu Shui praise him like this once again, Xiao Mo merely smiled faintly.

To Xiao Mo's mind, this was simply Sister Liu Shui looking at him through rose-colored lenses.

"Sir..."

As the room fell quiet, Liu Shui slowly raised her head, looking at Xiao Mo, her eyes blinking with a soft glimmer.

"I've heard that in the great households of the mortal world, when a young master is to be married, there are always maidservants specially assigned to instruct him in matters of the marriage bed. I've recently looked through quite a few relevant picture-books. Would you like me to teach you a little, sir?"

"..." Xiao Mo's expression froze slightly, and for a moment he did not know how to respond.

"Heh heh..." Seeing that Xiao Mo was about to open his mouth to refuse, Liu Shui could not help laughing softly. "Please don't worry, sir, I was only joking just now."

Xiao Mo shook his head and went along with her words, saying, "Sister Liu Shui, it would be best to make fewer jokes of that sort."

"All right, all right, understood. You really are as proper as ever, sir."

Liu Shui reached out her small hand and patted Xiao Mo gently on both shoulders, then stepped back to look him over carefully, checking whether anything else needed adjusting.

"That should be about everything. You may go on ahead to the main hall, sir. I'll tidy up the room a little and follow shortly after."

"Very well. My thanks to you, Sister Liu Shui." Xiao Mo gave a respectful bow, then turned and walked out of the courtyard.

Liu Shui watched Xiao Mo's figure grow smaller step by step, gradually fading from her sight, and could not help pressing her thin lips together.

Her small hand gripped the doorframe tightly, her gaze fixed on the direction he had gone, and she murmured under her breath,

"In truth, sir... I really wasn't joking..."

"Congratulations, congratulations, young master Xiao."

"Sect Master Chen has traveled a long way to be here. The journey must have been exhausting. Please, come inside for some tea and rest."

"May young master Xiao and Miss Gui enjoy a hundred years of happy union!"

"Many thanks, City Lord Wang. Please, this way."

"May young master Xiao and Miss Gui have many children soon, and grow old together side by side!"

"Many thanks, Madam Yan. Please, come inside and take a seat."

At the entrance to the main hall of Seeking Immortals Temple, guests arrived one after another.

As the groom, Xiao Mo naturally had to receive them personally.

Among the guests present that day were sect masters and elders from the various sects of the Human Alliance, as well as city lords and wandering cultivators of the Golden Core realm and above. Even the sects of the Ten Thousand Laws Realm had sent people to offer their congratulations.

However, in his heart, Xiao Mo was actually waiting for one particular woman, whose figure had yet to appear.

Just as Xiao Mo was busy receiving one guest after another, suddenly, a vast, overwhelming demonic aura came surging in, startling everyone present, as though facing a formidable enemy. Everyone, including Daoist Master Yun Xi, all the cultivators of the Human Alliance present, raised their heads without meaning to, looking in the same direction.

Everyone saw a lame old man, supported by a beautiful middle-aged woman, descending step by step from the sky.

The moment the cultivators of the Upper Three Realms got a clear look at the old man's face, their hearts gave a sudden jolt!

This was Gui Ning!

Why would he come to Seeking Immortals Temple?!

"Greetings, Senior Gui. Greetings, Lady Tushan."

The moment the lame old man and Tushan Xinhua landed on the ground, Xiao Mo stepped forward and gave a respectful bow.

"Ha ha ha... this old man came uninvited. Surely young master Xiao wouldn't chase this old fellow away, would he?" Gui Ning asked with a laugh, stroking his beard.

"Senior, what are you saying?"

Xiao Mo said with a smile.

"That you, Senior, would come to attend this junior's wedding is this junior's own honor. How could I possibly chase you away, Senior?"

"Besides, Junmeng has always longed to invite you to the wedding feast, Senior. It's only that she never managed to find where you lived, and did not even know where to send the invitation. If Junmeng learns you have truly come, Senior, she will surely be overjoyed beyond words."

"You certainly have a way with words, young man. No wonder my granddaughter is so utterly smitten with you." Gui Ning said, looking at Xiao Mo with satisfaction. "All right, enough talk. This old man is rather thirsty. Let's go in for a few cups of tea."

The moment he finished speaking, Gui Ning, true to form, showed no restraint at all, and walked straight into the temple.

Within Seeking Immortals Temple, everyone turned to look at Gui Ning without meaning to.

"What are you all staring at? Never seen a lame man before?"

Gui Ning waved a hand dismissively, found a table at random, sat himself down, poured himself a cup of tea, and drank it with an air of perfect ease.

"Senior Gui, it has been a long time." Yun Xi walked over to Gui Ning's side and gave a respectful bow.

"Little Yun, indeed, it has been a long time." Gui Ning said, looking at the head of Seeking Immortals Temple. "These years, my granddaughter has troubled you a great deal."

"Junmeng has never once troubled me. From a very young age, she began helping out with the temple's affairs, and she has always been so sensible." Daoist Master Yun Xi said slowly.

"Yes, both she and her younger sister have always been so sensible..." Gui Ning took a sip from his teacup, his manner as though he were drinking fine wine.

Setting down his cup, Gui Ning could not help letting out a sigh. "And yet, of all people, why did these two sensible children have to fall in love with the very same person..."

"Xiao Mo, my congratulations to you."

Outside the gate of Seeking Immortals Temple, Tushan Xinhua looked at Xiao Mo, her expression carrying a complicated mix of feelings, yet she still offered her congratulations with a smile.

"My thanks to you, my lady." Xiao Mo gave a respectful bow, then pointed toward a peak not far off. "Junmeng lives there. My lady may go directly there. I'm certain Junmeng has missed you dearly as well."

Tushan Xinhua's lips parted slightly, as though she wished to say something, but with a thousand words rising to her lips, in the end she only gave a gentle nod. "Thank you."

After offering her thanks, Tushan Xinhua turned and flew off toward the peak where Gui Junmeng lived.

Before long, Tushan Xinhua landed partway up the mountainside.

She could hear bursts of cheerful laughter drifting from the courtyard.

She watched the young women of Seeking Immortals Temple flitting back and forth through the courtyard like darting swallows, busy with their tasks while teasing one another playfully.

Tushan Xinhua's heart could not help but begin to race.

The guilt in the woman's heart made her afraid to face her own daughter, and yet at the same time it made her long, more than anything, to see with her own eyes what her daughter looked like as a bride.

She concealed her demonic aura, walked up to the courtyard gate, and hesitated there, wanting to speak yet holding back, her expression betraying a certain uneasiness.

"Excuse me, honored guest, you've come to the wrong place. This isn't the main hall of Seeking Immortals Temple."

Noticing the woman standing outside the courtyard, Senior Sister Huang and the others stopped their laughing and teasing, and stepped forward to ask.

Senior Sister Huang and the others did not recognize Tushan Xinhua, for over all these years, Tushan Xinhua had never once appeared on the battlefield but they all felt that this beautiful woman before them bore a good six parts resemblance to Junmeng.

"Might I ask if Miss Gui is here?" Tushan Xinhua asked, clasping her small hands together, a note of nervousness in her voice.

"Oh, you're looking for our junior sister, then. Please wait a moment." Senior Sister Huang called out toward the courtyard, "Junmeng, there's a lovely lady here looking for you."

"Coming..."

Gui Junmeng's voice came from within the room.

And when Gui Junmeng, dressed in her red wedding garment, walked out into the courtyard and caught sight of her own mother at a single glance, she could not help freezing in place.

"Junmeng... it has been a long time..." Tushan Xinhua said slowly, gazing tenderly at her child.

"Greetings, Senior..." Gui Junmeng came back to herself, gave a slight bow, and opened the courtyard gate. "Would you like to come in for a cup of tea, Senior?"

"Then I shall trouble you."

Every time Tushan Xinhua heard her daughter address her as "Senior," her heart could not help but wrench with pain yet she also understood, in her heart, what right did she have to ask Junmeng to change how she addressed her?

Gui Junmeng led Tushan Xinhua into the room.

Senior Sister Lin and the others could not help feeling that the atmosphere between their junior sister and this beautiful woman seemed somewhat unusual and the two of them, moreover, bore a good six parts resemblance to one another.

A certain suspicion could not help but rise in their hearts.

Still, they thought it best not to ask too many questions, and tactfully led the other junior sisters off to busy themselves in the courtyard, leaving the room to the two of them alone.

Gui Junmeng stood quietly before her mother.

By now, only her hair remained unstyled, that long black hair cascading down over her shoulders like a waterfall, forming a striking, vivid contrast against the brilliant red of her wedding garment.

Beneath that intense red, the woman's skin appeared all the more fair and delicate, the sash at her waist gently cinching her slender waist, tracing out the graceful, alluring curve of her figure.

"Beautiful... truly beautiful..." Tushan Xinhua said, gazing at her daughter in her red wedding garment, her eyes trembling faintly, a thin mist of tears gradually rising at the corners.

Hearing her mother's praise, Gui Junmeng could not help lowering her head, her small hands gently gripping her red sleeves, her voice thin as a mosquito's hum. "Thank... thank you..."

"Junmeng, that... I... may I comb your hair?" Tushan Xinhua said slowly, her tone carrying a certain careful hesitance, as though afraid of being refused.

Before she had even finished speaking, Tushan Xinhua quickly added, "If it's not all right, never mind, I only..."

"You... you may..."

Gui Junmeng gently cut off Tushan Xinhua's words.

As she spoke, Gui Junmeng walked to the dressing table, smoothed her wedding garment gently, and sat down slowly.

Tushan Xinhua had not expected that Junmeng would truly agree, and her heart trembled slightly as she hurried forward.

She picked up the comb from the dressing table and combed through her daughter's flowing dark hair, stroke after stroke.

Her movements were extremely gentle, as though afraid of causing her even the slightest discomfort.

"One comb stroke, straight to the end, husband and wife in loving bond, forever attend."

"Two comb strokes, white hair to the brow, mutual respect, together grow old somehow."

"Three comb strokes, blessed with a child so dear, the whole household filled with joy and cheer."

"Four comb strokes, gold and silver piled high, wealth and glory for generations, never to die."

"Five comb strokes, good fortune paired in twos, everything smooth, no sorrow to lose."

"Six comb strokes, health as a lifelong friend, long life and laughter, world without end."

With every stroke of the comb through Gui Junmeng's hair, Tushan Xinhua softly recited a line of the auspicious hair-combing verses, her gentle voice echoing quietly through the small room.

By the time the verses had all been recited, Gui Junmeng's cascade of dark hair had been fully arranged, and once adorned with the festive red hair ornaments and hairpin, she appeared all the more radiant and striking.

"There we are." Tushan Xinhua said with a smile, studying her daughter's reflection in the mirror, her tone carrying a note of reluctance to part. "Your husband will be coming to receive you soon. I'll be going now, so as not to disturb you further."

With that, she gave her daughter one long, deep look, set down the comb, and turned to walk toward the door but just as Tushan Xinhua took her first step, Gui Junmeng suddenly reached out, her slender fingers gently catching hold of her wrist.

"Thank... thank you..."

Gui Junmeng raised her head, looking at the woman before her with a touch of nervousness, her lips trembling slightly, as though gathering all her courage.

"Mother... Mother..."

Hearing her daughter call out to her like this, Tushan Xinhua froze for a moment, her eyes trembling, as though something had struck the softest place in her heart.

"Junmeng... you... what did you call me?" Her voice shook, as though she could hardly believe her own ears.

"Mother... Mother..." Gui Junmeng's cheeks flushed a faint red, and she called out softly once more. "May I call you this..."

Before the word "call" could even leave her lips.

Tushan Xinhua spun around abruptly and pulled her daughter tightly into her arms.

Tears slid silently down from the reddened corners of Tushan Xinhua's eyes, one drop at a time, soaking into the shoulder of Gui Junmeng's red wedding garment.

"Mm!"

She answered, her voice carrying a tremor she could not suppress.

"Mm!"

She answered again, louder than before.

"Mm! Mm! Mm!"

She answered again and again, tears falling without end, and yet the corners of her mouth curved upward in joy, like a thin, gentle crescent moon.