The Seventh Year of Shenchu
The Classic of the Mysterious Woman
Unknown if the surname Yue and the names Ah Jiao and Jiang Daochang are pseudonyms, but the name “Zhen Wenjun” is firmly tied to Alai.
Mother was taken somewhere unknown by them, presumably not in Suichuan.
Although Suichuan is within the sphere of influence of the Xie family, Suichuan only encompasses six counties, so finding someone within those six counties isn’t impossible. To prevent Zhen Wenjun from finding her, they might hide Mother in another commandery. Moreover, this matter involves the Grand Princess attempting to seize power. Whose power is she trying to seize? Naturally, it’s the current Emperor’s. The Wei family wields immense power and is embroiled in the court’s power struggles, making Xie Taihang, a frontier governor, merely a small pawn. The true mastermind behind everything is likely their so-called “Qingliu” leader. Their influence extends from the capital to various commanderies, making it quite easy to hide someone.
Zhen Wenjun analyzed the current situation and decisively abandoned the idea of escaping and searching for her mother. She couldn’t find her mother. The Xie family also knew she wouldn’t waste her efforts, so they didn’t strictly monitor her. Ah Jiao and Jiang Daochang were almost completely unguarded against Zhen Wenjun, not caring whether she would escape. With her mother as a trump card in hand, they had her vital point.
To save her mother, she could only obey their orders. Instead of resenting the Xie family’s shamelessness or lamenting the unfairness of fate, it’s better to plan her future carefully.
Zhen Wenjun knew that with her current abilities, even if she could get close to Wei Zizhuo, killing him would be a fantasy. She needed to learn and grow, whether she was going to deal with Wei Zizhuo or the Xie family in the future.
Every day, she learned from Jiang Daochang how to strike without warning and move without a sound. She practiced throwing knives, chopping with an axe, pressure point attacks, and sniping, all with great effort. Zhen Wenjun had a solid foundation in martial arts and high comprehension ability; often, she could grasp what Jiang Daochang taught her the next day.
After two months, Jiang Daochang began teaching her about using poison.
The art of using poison was much more difficult than physical skills. She had to carefully distinguish between hundreds of poisonous plants, many of which looked very similar to medicinal herbs, and even their smells were almost identical, making them hard to tell apart.
Jiang Daochang had a strange temperament. Every time Zhen Wenjun selected a non-toxic herb, he forced her to eat it to verify if she was correct. During the year she spent with him, Zhen Wenjun nearly lost her life a dozen times, was paralyzed in bed for several days seven or eight times, and twice experienced hallucinations from ingesting the wrong herb.
She saw Ah Xun appear in the corridor garden, holding a delicate whip and smiling at her amidst the spring flowers.
When she woke up, there was only the hard, stone-like bed board and Ah Jiao’s enchanting face close by.
“Very good. Only with love in your heart can you fully master the art of charm. The prerequisite is that this love cannot be selfish; it must be shared with all those you need to love. Do you remember how I taught you before?”
Ah Jiao, like a soft, nimble snake, slithered over Zhen Wenjun’s body, her hand slipping into Zhen Wenjun’s collar to caress her. Zhen Wenjun was scorched by her touch, shuddered violently to avoid her, and tried to get out of bed, but her body, still paralyzed by the poison, fell back down.
Ah Jiao tore down the newly added curtains and tied her hands, easily unbuttoning her clothes. Zhen Wenjun tried with all her remaining strength to push her away, but failed. The poison was concentrated in her chest, and in a fit of rage and desperation, Zhen Wenjun couldn’t help but vomit a mouthful of blood.
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After vomiting blood, she had no strength left. Ah Jiao noticed her gradually developing chest rising and falling, along with the new moon “birthmark” branded on her collarbone two months ago, bobbing up and down. She then realized that making her take pearl powder daily was indeed effective, as it had made her skin glow brighter, looking as delicate as jade.
A faint trace of blood remained on her lips. Unable to resist, Zhen Wenjun turned her gaze away, refusing to look at this lewd and vulgar Yue woman. Seeing her chest heaving in anger but feeling helpless, Ah Jiao moved closer, almost kissing her lips. Understanding her intention, Zhen Wenjun bit her lips hard, determined not to let go even if it meant breaking the skin.
Ah Jiao straightened up, looking down at Zhen Wenjun’s current posture from above, creating an alluring spring scene.
“Of all the men in the world, they love women for only two reasons: the first is for their beauty that can captivate a nation, and the second is for their talent in poetry and elegant demeanor. But what can truly open their hearts the most is the coy and yielding attitude displayed between the sheets, when the passions are unleashed like clouds and rain.”
Zhen Wenjun glanced at her from the corner of her eye, a contemptuous yet seductive smile appearing at the corner of her mouth.
“Young one, you can be taught.” Ah Jiao got off her body with satisfaction, praised her briefly, and then left. Zhen Wenjun got up and closed her clothes, her turbulent thoughts gradually calming down.
Neither Jiang Daochang nor Yue’s Ah Jiao were ordinary characters; both were masters of hidden schemes, though in different fields. They were definitely not people from the Xie family of Suichuan, which further confirmed Zhen Wenjun’s suspicions. This matter involved the vast and complex struggles of the court, and she was merely a pawn sent to probe the way, with the Xie family being mere puppets.
Realizing this, she became even more worried. The already complex and dangerous road ahead had become extremely unpredictable, with each wrong step potentially being fatal. She couldn’t afford any mistakes and needed to be extraordinarily vigilant.
She didn’t know what the relationship was between the man and woman living with her.
At first, when she was confined to a small room, she missed her mother so much that she couldn’t sleep. In the dead of night, she would carefully recall every bit of her mother’s teachings, rapidly flipping the Golden Cicada Knife between her fingers, practicing to increase her speed.
When waking up to practice martial arts, she would often hear the enchanting sounds coming from the main room, which was the voice of Yue’s Ah Jiao.
Ah Jiao’s voice sounded pained, yet carried a strange pleasure and uncontrollable indulgence. Upon closer listening, the sounds of the bed frame shaking and water splashing could be heard continuously.
Zhen Wenjun roughly knew what they were doing. The art of controlling women should not be peeped upon, but at twelve or thirteen years old, she was most curious about human pleasures. She knew it was inappropriate, but she couldn’t move her feet. Her legs were glued to the spot by Ah Jiao’s honey-dripping voice, through which she could discern the extent of Ah Jiao’s indulgence.
After this incident, Zhen Wenjun avoided Ah Jiao for a while, until Ah Jiao gave her 《The Great Pleasure of Heaven and Earth’s Yin-Yang Harmony》 and 《The Classic of the Mysterious Woman》, instructing her to memorize their principles and techniques.
Zhen Wenjun thought the titles suggested explanations of Yin-Yang divination and female crafts, but upon opening the scrolls and reading a few lines, she was nearly blinded.
The so-called principles and techniques turned out to be entirely about bedroom arts. Zhen Wenjun was extremely shocked to see the scrolls boldly recorded the “Nine Methods of the Mysterious Woman”: “First, Dragon Flip: let the woman lie flat facing upward, the man lies on top of her… penetrate her valley, then attack her from above, with gentle movements, eight shallow and two deep, as if dying and coming back to life, hot and strong, the woman will feel irritated and joyful, her pleasure like that of a performer. This can cure infertility and eliminate a hundred diseases. Second…”
Zhen Wenjun almost spat out a mouthful of blood, and the scrolls nearly fell from her hands.
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Standing in front of her, Ah Jiao was extremely serious, ordering her to memorize the Nine Methods:
“Dragon Flip, Tiger Pace, Ape Grapple, Cicada Cling, Turtle Rise, Phoenix Soar, Rabbit Suck, Fish Connect Scales, Crane Cross Necks. Memorize these nine methods and their detailed explanations. In three days, I will personally test you.”
Upon hearing the words “personally,” Zhen Wenjun prepared her Golden Cicada Knife, determined to kill Yue’s Ah Jiao to protect her purity if she dared to act improperly.
Three days later, Ah Jiao unexpectedly took her into the room, but did not lay a hand on her. Instead, when Jiang Daochang performed the ritual, she had Zhen Wenjun observe from the side and recite each method she saw by name. Zhen Wenjun, seeing the two mature adult bodies, felt her eyes dry up and her whole body trembling. She grabbed the teacup beside her and threw it forcefully before fleeing the room.
Captured by Jiang Daochang and given a severe beating, Zhen Wenjun laughed fearlessly, “Do you really think these wicked tricks can overthrow the Grand Princess and restore the kingdom? Isn’t that too childish?”
Ah Jiao, wearing only an inner garment, her long hair loose, sat behind a veil not far away, half-hidden and half-revealed.
“Do you know when a man is most defenseless?”
Ah Jiao’s serious tone was completely at odds with her wanton demeanor, making it seem not like she was speaking of something shameful, but rather with a gravity that invoked fear.
“Naturally, it is the moment before climax when one loses control. Wei Zizhuo, the youngest of the Pingcang Wei family, what kind of person is he? The women he has seen are not just in the thousands. To make him take an extra look requires great effort, let alone the chance to serve him in bed and deliver a fatal blow at the critical moment. Do you think I have nothing better to do or that my face is as thick as a city wall to insist on teaching you seductive arts and engaging in an illicit act with a stranger?”
The “stranger” Jiang Daochang, who was named, had a faint and indistinct ripple in his usually calm eyes, which quickly subsided and disappeared.
“Everything is for the sake of Da Yu,” Yue’s Ah Jiao spoke with loyalty embedded in her gentle voice. “We never expected you to understand this for the sake of Da Yu, but even if only for your mother’s sake, you should set aside your pretensions and think carefully about the path of survival you should take. You haven’t forgotten the pain of Xiaoshi’s severed fingers, have you?”
How could she forget the pain of her mother’s severed fingers? Ah Jiao’s reminder was not a reminder but a threat.
Zhen Wenjun, with her big eyes unblinking, suddenly said, “Phoenix Soar.”
Ah Jiao’s eyebrows moved slightly.
“I say, this method of yours is called ‘Phoenix Soar.’ The woman lies down, raises her legs, kneels between her thighs, both hands on the bed… pierces her Kun Stone, firm heat pulling inside… conduct the number of three-eight, pressing urgently… This is the sixth position among the nine positions in the 《The Classic of the Mysterious Woman》, Phoenix Soar.”
The old courtyard quickly welcomed spring, and the scenery of the four seasons—spring, summer, autumn, and winter—was imprinted in Zhen Wenjun’s eyes.
In the blink of an eye, a year had passed. The birthmark on Zhen Wenjun’s collarbone had almost fully developed, allowing her to secretly slip itching powder into Jiang Daochang’s wine without anyone noticing. Her increasingly fair and delicate skin had shed the dark hue of a field slave. Under Ah Jiao’s meticulous care, Zhen Wenjun gradually became plump, her facial features slowly maturing, and a hint of mature allure subtly appeared between her brows.
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Early on the Winter Solstice, Jiang Daochang, who had not appeared for a while, drove a donkey cart back to the courtyard and nodded to Ah Jiao.
From a distance, Zhen Wenjun saw him dressed in shabby, dirt-gray clothes, with mud under his fingernails, clearly a deliberate disguise.
Ah Jiao handed a patched-up, ragged jacket to Zhen Wenjun and told her to put it on.
“From now on, Jiang Daochang is your father,” Ah Jiao’s words sounded like advice, but were mostly a threat. “Whether you live or die after leaving with him depends on your fate.”
Zhen Wenjun’s heart tightened.
She understood that Wei Zizhuo was already close to her.
LP: No matter how you spin it, this is all disgusting! Poor Alai (╯︵╰,)
