Chapter 697: 699, try to make it look more realistic. (Second update)

The audience immediately responded, "Yes, we can all vouch for that."

Their momentum was exceptionally strong.

Luo Yu’s heart eased slightly, and she continued.

"Master of the Mo family, one final question, are you sure this is the last test? Don’t tell me that after I successfully play the konghou, you’ll suddenly change your mind and say there is one final trial. ’Tomorrow, and tomorrow, and tomorrow’—when will there be an end to it?"

Luo Yu naturally knew that these people didn’t wish for her to become the Mo family’s eldest daughter-in-law. Otherwise, they wouldn’t have chosen such difficult tasks specifically for her.

A chess game unsolved for a thousand years.

Double-sided embroidery.

Master Level Calligraphy.

These tasks were already beyond the scope of what a daughter of a noble house should endure. The Mo family was selecting a daughter-in-law, not an all-capable goddess. Besides, where in this world could one find such a perfect person?

Except for herself.

Thinking of this, Luo Yu’s lips curved into a slight smile. After all, today she had solved the millennium-old chess game that predecessors and successors from ancient times had been unable to solve.

If she could solve the millennium-old chess game, why should she fear a mere konghou?

It was nothing more than an inanimate object.

Thus, the position of the ninth lady was inevitably hers.

"Miss Luo, please rest assured," Mo Feixue said with a soft smile, "This is indeed the final test. I wish Miss Luo an auspicious beginning. Let’s start."

"Good." Luo Yu lifted her head slightly, her tone full of confidence, "Then please watch closely!"

With these words, Luo Yu walked up to the konghou, raised her hands, and gently caressed the strings.

The people below all widened their eyes, watched Luo Yu intently, afraid to miss any detail.

The air was very quiet and also quite oppressive.

Everyone was waiting for a miracle to happen, as none had ever seen someone play the konghou.

"Crystal Bug, are you ready?" Luo Yu communicated with the Crystal Bug in her ear.

[Mhmm, let’s begin.] The Crystal Bug nodded confidently. As it spoke, it composed a melody in the air, and a transparent figure overlaid Luo Yu’s body, merging the two into one.

Aside from Luo Yu, no one could see this transformation.

Seeing this, Luo Yu’s lips curled up in an arc as she began to pluck at the strings.

However, the strings that seemed as fine as a hair were as unyielding as a fortress. No matter how Luo Yu plucked, stroked, hooked, or slapped, the strings would not budge the slightest bit.

As tough as iron.

The strings not only had no response but they also cut Luo Yu’s fingers.

For the first time, Luo Yu’s face betrayed a hint of panic. She quickly turned to the Crystal Bug, "What’s going on? Didn’t you say you could compose for me? Why won’t it make a sound?"

The Crystal Bug was also panicking; it didn’t know what the problem was. The konghou appeared to be no different from other musical instruments, but no matter how much spiritual power it exerted, it couldn’t succeed in composing the melody.

It was supposed to be the leader of all insects, the wisest bug in the world, yet, it had never expected to be defeated by a konghou that seemed so ordinary.

The Crystal Bug hung its head in defeat, "I’m sorry! I might have disappointed you!"

How could this be?

Cold sweat covered Luo Yu’s entire body.

Was she going to give up her position as the ninth lady over this broken konghou?

No! That was impossible!

Since she was now pregnant with Mo Zhixuan’s child, there was no way she would give up the position of the ninth lady!

This position, apart from her, no one else could fill!

One minute, two minutes, three minutes.....

In the blink of an eye, ten minutes had passed, but the konghou still hadn’t made a sound.

The expressions of the audience had shifted from initial excitement to disappointment now.

They thought that Luo Yu, a person of great talent, would bring them a surprise, but never expected... Luo Yu simply couldn’t play the konghou.

Luo Yu’s hands were now bloody and mangled.

"I’m sorry, Miss Luo," Mo Feixue stepped beside Luo Yu, gestured with a ’please’ motion, and spoke softly, "You haven’t been able to produce any sound from the konghou, so you are not a person of the Bloodline of Fire Bathing. Please leave the stage. The Mo family cannot allow a person without talent or virtue to be the chief daughter-in-law."

The corners of Mo Feixue’s mouth carried a perfectly-timed smile. She had anticipated this outcome all along, so her expression was not one of surprise.

The ancient konghou had its pride. Once it acknowledged a master, no one else could play it.

"How dare you claim ’without talent or virtue’!" Luo Yu stood up abruptly, "May I ask everyone present, who can solve the chess game I set up casually just now? If someone like me is considered talentless and virtuous, then tell me, who among you has talent and virtue? Who can secure the position of the ninth lady?"

Luo Yu spoke with utter confidence.

Thinking they could push her aside?

Is it that simple?

After all, her talent was there for all to see, as she had just solved a chess puzzle that had stumped people for a thousand years.

If someone like her couldn’t assume the position of the Ninth Lady, then no one could!

Moreover, she was already carrying Mo Zhixuan’s child.

Upon hearing this, Mo Feixue smiled slightly, her voice dripping with irony, "Miss Luo really knows how to talk big. That chess game you set up wasn’t unsolvable; it was just so childish that we didn’t think it was worth our time to solve..." While speaking, she walked to the table, casually picked up a chess piece, and moved it.

Just one piece, and she had broken the chess arrangement that Luo Yu had just set up.

"Clap clap clap," thunderous applause erupted from the audience.

"Well done, Miss Feixue."

"Ah ah ah!"

"The head of the family is so cool!"

There were even men’s voices, "I want to have your babies, head of the family."

It had to be said, Mo Feixue really had changed a lot.

Steady and dignified.

Her actions were no less decisive than a man’s.

Luo Yu’s face turned pale, the chess game she had just played out was taught to her by the Crystal Bug, with a difficulty rating of five stars and deemed unsolvable, but now it had been solved by Mo Feixue.

What was going on?

Luo Yu felt cold sweat running down her spine.

This Mo Feixue really couldn’t mind her own business! The old lady had already announced that she was Mo Zhixuan’s wife!

"Crystal Bug, what’s going on?" Luo Yu demanded, clearly distraught.

"I’m sorry..." Devastated by two consecutive failures, the Crystal Bug couldn’t bear the blow and shrank smaller and smaller until it curled into a ball.

Mo Feixue, step by step, walked over to Luo Yu, "Miss Luo, winners reign and losers lament, since you joined the game, you must abide by its rules, so please."

"You rigged this!" Luo Yu pointed at Mo Feixue and roared, "You rigged everything! You did all of this because you don’t want me to become the matron of the Mo family, right? You want to monopolize the Mo family, right? Well, I’m telling you, forget about it! The Mo family is mine!"

Nobody else would even think about fighting her for this position!

Luo Yu stared venomously at Mo Feixue, malice twinkling in her eyes.

If it weren’t for the fact that Luo Yu was pregnant, Mo Feixue would have thrown her off the stage long ago, but she had been instructed by the old lady before, so Mo Feixue couldn’t be too rough.

If anything happened to the child in Luo Yu’s womb and the old lady blamed her, she wouldn’t have a good explanation.

Of course, personally, Mo Feixue would never acknowledge the child in Luo Yu’s womb.

No one knew Mo Zhixuan better than she did.

Her brother was a man of intense affection; once he fell for someone, he would never do anything to betray her.

However, she had the old lady to consider, who was anxious for a grandchild. She understood that, and she believed that once Mo Zhixuan returned, he would handle this farce.

"Miss Luo," Mo Feixue raised her voice, "please watch your words. We of the Mo family will definitely not let someone like you enter our doors. Get over it."

Luo Yu sneered, "Someone like me? May I ask what kind of person I am? Clearly, it’s the Mo family who broke their promise first. I clearly solved the last puzzle, but you deliberately brought out a fake konghou just to make things difficult for me. You intentionally kept me from entering the Mo family doors. Inside my belly carries the legitimate heir to the Mo family. I have to ask, what exactly are you planning?"

There are things you know in your heart that are completely different from bringing them out into the open.

Although everyone secretly guessed that the child in Luo Yu’s womb was very likely Mo Zhixuan’s, it was just speculation, and no one dared to say it out loud.

After all, one of the main characters involved was Mo Zhixuan!

Who would dare to gossip about Mo Zhixuan?

Now, Luo Yu had declared it loudly, naturally leading to much speculation and discussion among the crowd.

Mo Feixue smiled faintly, "Miss Luo, please be aware of your place. Even if you got pregnant before marriage, by what right do you claim that the child is ours? What evidence do you have to prove it?"

"Aunt Mo," Luo Yu looked at the old lady with a very obvious threat in her eyes, "Please say something fair. Tell me, whose child is this?"

The old lady didn’t directly respond to her words but said, "Luo Yu, one must accept loss if they’ve agreed to gamble. Since you couldn’t play the konghou, it means you’re not of the Bloodline of Fire Bathing. You have no fate with the Mo family. Come now, stop dwelling on this matter."

Since there were no outsiders present that evening, the old lady wasn’t worried that the matter would spread.

Luo Yu looked at the old lady with vicious eyes and spoke out loud.

"Was it really that I couldn’t play the konghou? Or was it that you presented a mute fake konghou to make things difficult for me! I’d like to ask everyone present, who among you can play the konghou? Since none of you can, how can that prove I’m of inferior lineage? That I’m not of the Bloodline of Fire Bathing? That I’m unfit to be the bride of the Mo family line!"

Actually, what Luo Yu was saying wasn’t entirely without reason.

The ancient konghou didn’t have any special markings, and now, no one could play it. It might well be a mute fake konghou.

"This is indeed the ancient konghou. You have no talent or virtue to play the konghou and now you’re trying to bite back shamelessly!" said Mo Feixue bluntly.

Luo Yu was really repulsive, and Feixue didn’t know how the old lady could stand her.

Luo Yu’s aim for the day was to get the old lady to publicly acknowledge her identity. She would not rest until she did.

The fat is already in the mouth, and Luo Yu will not let it fly away.

"I have no sense of shame?" Luo Yu stood up and walked directly over to Mo Feixue’s side, "Clearly, it’s the Mo family that’s broken their word, using their numbers to bully the few, presenting a fake ancient Konghou to insult me! You say it is the ancient Konghou, then, go prove it to me, ah!"

Luo Yu sneered, aggressive, "You keep saying I have no talent or morals, then why don’t you, so talented and virtuous, play the Konghou and show us, the supposedly talentless and immoral, a thing or two, ah!"

Mo Feixue narrowed her eyes. The ancient Konghou was an extremely spiritual object; since Chu Jin had played it, no one else had managed to play it, so how could she?

This ancient Konghou was originally meant by Mo Feixue to make things difficult for Luo Yu, but now Luo Yu had turned the tables.

Now, with Chu Jin gone, no one could play the ancient Konghou, and if the Konghou could not be played, they couldn’t prove that this was the real ancient Konghou. How were they to explain this to others?

Seeing Mo Feixue like this, Luo Yu laughed out loud, "Head of the Mo family, what’s the matter? Got nothing to say? Since you can’t prove this is the ancient Konghou, you also can’t prove that I’m not of the Bloodline of Fire Bathing!"

"You’re being unreasonable!" Mo Feixue’s voice was slightly cold.

"I’m being unreasonable; I think you’re just feeling guilty, right? It’s also true, bringing a fake Konghou to deliberately trouble me, how could you not feel guilty?" Luo Yu took out a long knife from her space, "Watch as I chop up this ancient Konghou today! So it won’t continue to harm this world!"

With those words, Luo Yu raised the long knife and chopped down toward the Konghou.

Nobody expected Luo Yu to make such a move.

All eyes were wide open.

Just then, a flash of light streaked through the air, a Tarot card imbued with an awe-inspiring power shot directly onto Luo Yu’s hand.

With a "clang," the long knife fell to the ground.

Luo Yu’s arm was both numb and painful, and she stood there stunned.

"Jin!" Mo Qingyi recognized the Tarot card and stood up excitedly, turning her head to look around.

Just at that moment, the door was pushed open.

A clear voice sounded in the air, "Who says the ancient Konghou is fake? I think your whole person is fake!"

The statement was utterly flawless.

Luo Yu was a complete fake through and through, having long forgotten who she was.

Whose voice was this?

Chu Jin!

No one else could possess such a voice.

Upon hearing this voice, the pupils of Mo Feixue’s mother-in-law contracted slightly, and those familiar with Chu Jin stood up excitedly.

She was back.

She had finally returned.

This voice was indeed very intimidating.

The people below instinctively looked up in the direction of the sound’s source.

There she was, walking step by step toward the inside, each stride stirring a fierce wind, her black hair flying wildly, her presence domineering.

She had an aura about her that made people subconsciously shudder, not daring to look directly into her eyes.

Wherever she went, people naturally parted to make way for her.

As if looking up at a high mountain.

As if capable of swallowing rivers and mountains.

The demeanor of an empress, unbeatable by anyone.

No wonder people couldn’t control their own emotions, their legs shaking, even feeling the impulse to kneel before her.

Nearly everyone’s gaze was fixed on her.

Everyone was curious, who was this powerful figure?

Mo Qingyi covered her mouth with excitement, choking with emotion, "Jin..."

Duanmu Zhe, Tong Zhi, Zhou Xunian... and others, all had tears in their eyes, their bodies trembling slightly.

They had never expected to see Chu Jin again in their lifetime.

Chu Jin.

In an instant, it felt as if the world had regained its brightness.

The earth was revived, and all living things flourished.

Looking at Chu Jin, Luo Yu stumbled backwards several steps unsteadily, her face showing nothing but panic. This woman, why did she have to return at this time, of all times?

Chu Jin ignored Luo Yu and walked directly over to the ancient Konghou. She raised her hand to touch the body of the Konghou and spoke softly.

"Old friend, long time no see."

The ancient Konghou let out a resonating "zheng" sound, infinitely pleasing to the ear, like celestial music, a sound as if it came from beyond this world, as if welcoming Chu Jin back.

In an instant, countless fragments of memory surged into her mind – red clothes, white hair, Heavenly Dao...

A face after face of strangers.

Chu Jin stood where she was, her eyes like black obsidian slowly turning red, bewitchingly and seductively red. Her fingers involuntarily caressed the strings, quickly plucking at them, and at once, ethereal music poured from her fingertips.

Like smoke but not smoke.

Like mist but not mist.

It was as if it was a celestial melody descending from beyond the nine heavens, the pace of the konghou’s music growing more and more urgent, followed suddenly by the sound of a dragon’s roar.

With the celestial melody played, a marvelous sight appeared.

Dancing Dragon and Phoenix.

It turned out that the legends of the ancient konghou were all true.

Luo Yu stood to the side, her blood running backward in her veins, her face turning as white as a sheet. Only she who played the konghou could become the ninth mistress, the matriarch of the Mo family. Indeed, this Chu Jin had come back to compete with her for Mo Zhixuan.

No!

She absolutely could not let such a thing happen.

This Chu Jin, how shameless of her!

To think that someone could actually play the konghou and even summon the marvelous sight of the Dancing Dragon and Phoenix!

The crowd below, upon realizing this, was flabbergasted, their mouths agape and their eyes wide, staring at the dragon and phoenix soaring mid-air, still unable to snap back to reality for a long while.

The ancient konghou was a true konghou, it was just that none among them possessed the Bloodline of Fire Bathing.

Even when the performance was over, the crowd remained enchanted within that unprecedented melody, unable to extricate themselves.

So when Mo Zhixuan arrived, he saw this scene.

Chu Jin stood next to the konghou, still in white, with clear and handsome features, like an exiled immortal residing above the glittering river of stars.

Luo Yu stood by her side, her features twisted in resentment, looking like a bitter clown.

The two formed a stark contrast.

Originally, Mo Zhixuan had planned to deal with Luo Yu first, then let Chu Jin make her appearance; however, he hadn’t expected Chu Jin to beat him to the punch and come here first.

But this was also good; it would save Chu Jin from misunderstanding in the future.

The sudden noise of a door opening brought everyone’s thoughts back to the present, and they all involuntarily turned their gaze toward Mo Zhixuan, Chu Jin, and Luo Yu.

Some who knew the ins and outs of the situation began whispering among themselves.

"Did you see that? That is the genuine eldest miss of the Chu Family, Chu Jin. It’s said that she and the ninth brother have already become husband and wife in the secular world!"

"What about Luo Yu then? She’s already pregnant!"

"I heard that Luo Yu could enter the Chu Family’s door only because she took advantage of the Chu Family’s eldest miss. Look closely, doesn’t Luo Yu resemble her a bit?"

"Seems like there is a slight resemblance."

"I don’t think they resemble at all. No matter from which angle, the Chu Family’s eldest miss is much more beautiful. That Luo Yu really is making a spectacle of herself."

"Goodness! I think this Chu Family’s eldest miss is even more beautiful than Mu Xianxian!"

"Luo Yu is so pitiful... to actually be used as a substitute."

For a moment, the chatter below was a buzz.

Mu Xianxian’s face, too, was etched with shock.

It was her first time seeing someone play the ancient konghou.

No wonder Chu Jin could capture Mo Zhixuan’s heart; if she were a man, she probably would have been drawn to Mo Zhixuan as well.

Mo Zhixuan quickly stepped onto the stage, "Jin."

"How come you’re here too?" Chu Jin slightly raised an eyebrow. She had been arranged by Mo Zhixuan to rest in his bedroom and was just coming out from a bath when it was as if she heard some kind of calling, leading her involuntarily here, even playing the konghou.

All of this felt like a dream.

Somewhat surreal.

"Zhixuan..." Luo Yu looked at the hands they held together, clenched her fists, and spoke with a sense of grievance. Since she was carrying Mo Zhixuan’s child, he couldn’t just ignore her.

Hearing this, Chu Jin first glanced at Luo Yu, then turned her gaze to Mo Zhixuan, her tone indifferent, "You know each other?"

Chu Jin truly disliked Luo Yu.

Intensely disliked.

This person, not only was she mean in her methods, but she was also malicious in heart, completely wasting her beauty.

Before Mo Zhixuan could speak, Luo Yu placed her right hand on her hip, puffed out her belly, and said haughtily, "More than acquaintances, he is the father of the child in my belly!"

With utter confidence, she declared.

No sooner had she spoken this,

the air was filled with a light chuckle. Chu Jin stood there, slowly speaking, "When I regard you as a person, try to act a bit more like one, alright?"

Source: Webnovel.com, updated by Aunomay Read