Abandoned Woman Busy Farming

Chapter 1306: Chapter 1308: Confrontation at the Holy Hall_1

Upon entering the Holy Hall, one could see a line of Holy Guards standing on both sides, and at the forefront stood a man in his fifties. His eyes were sharp and full of vitality, his posture erect; if not for his graying hair, he wouldn’t appear to be an elder at all.

His clothing bore the distinctive style of the Western Regions’ Holy Hall, with sleeve cuffs embroidered with various patterns of the Holy Hall. On the left side of his chest was an embroidered pattern of the Seven Stars, somewhat resembling the arrangement of the Big Dipper, seemingly representing his identity.

Standing beside him was Lady Diao Mo, who at this moment had lost the coquettish demeanor she had shown to King Yuchuan; her face was stern and serious, even somewhat dignified, making it really hard to associate her with the word ”promiscuous.”

Without a doubt, the elder was most likely the great elder, but his appearance didn’t surprise Bai Ruozhu as much as the presence of Lady Jin Jing next to Diao Mo did.

Lady Jin Jing stood next to her mother Diao Mo as if nothing was wrong, not only looking rosy-cheeked, but also standing quite steadily—nothing like someone who had lost a leg. Where was the appearance of one with a broken leg?

Even if she had to wear a prosthetic, she would need some time to adapt, right? Not to mention adapting to it, but if the wound from her leg amputation wasn’t healed, it would be difficult to fit a prosthetic, wouldn’t it?

Could it be that her severed leg had been reattached? That was even less likely, for Bai Ruozhu had seen with her own eyes that Jin Jing’s severed leg was beyond reattachment.

Seeing the surprise on Bai Ruozhu’s face, Jin Jing smiled triumphantly and deliberately took a few steps forward in front of her, saying, ”Demoness, I have personally heard you insult the Holy Hall, and today you won’t escape.”

Bai Ruozhu regained her composure and felt an indescribable strangeness about Jin Jing—yes, it was a fragrance!

She had encountered Jin Jing before, even talked with her in her room, and from such close contact she remembered that Jin Jing did not have the gentle fragrance she now carried. It seemed to be a rather expensive fragrance, but unfortunately, she was not familiar with the spices of the Western Regions and could not identify its scent.

”I heard that Lady Jin Jing was seriously ill and a beast bit off her leg. Could it be delusions from her illness? Since I came to the Western Regions to trade, why would I foolishly insult the Holy Hall and cause trouble for myself?” Bai Ruozhu said with a laugh. ”And I think unless someone’s brain is troubled, no one else would wish for a shorter life.”

”My Holy Guards can testify; your excuses are useless,” Jin Jing stated.

”Who can testify? Come forward and tell me what I have said and how exactly I have insulted the Holy Hall,” Bai Ruozhu said with utter calm. Such baseless accusations were bound to have holes, and of course, she was also buying time. Although she hadn’t had much interaction with Ao Qi and Princess Yingtong, she believed they would bring help.

Jiang Yichun stood to the side with his arms folded and chimed in, ”I’m also curious to hear what the witnesses have to say.”

Five Holy Guards glanced at Diao Mo and stepped forward. They saluted the elder and said, ”Great elder, we were ordered by Lady Diao Mo to welcome Lady Jin Jing back to Gaochang, and we can testify to the matter.”

The elder then spoke up, ”It’s good to clarify. If it’s a misunderstanding, all the better; but if anyone has insulted the Holy Hall, I will not indulge it.”

Bai Ruozhu gave him a gesture of respect and then pointed to one of the five Holy Guards, demanding, ”Tell me, how exactly have I insulted the Holy Hall?”

”You said that no one could heal Lady Jin Jing’s injury, that even the blessings of the Holy Hall are useless, and you even said that the blessings of the Holy Hall are all deceptive tricks,” said the Holy Guard, not even blinking as he spoke.

Bai Ruozhu laughed, as expected, a charge so absurd must have been fabricated.

However, this was indeed what she was thinking, but she would never say it out loud in public.

”Do you have anything else to say? Isn’t this still an insult to the Holy Hall? You say the Holy Hall’s prayers are fake, but how come I’m standing here?” Jin Jing challenged Bai Ruozhu with her chin raised, her expression very provocative.

Look, the stories they concocted must have been privately discussed in the Western Regions, just like Ao Qi and Princess Yingtong would discuss. Lady Diao Mo’s actions were not only aimed at harming them, but also at slapping the faces of those who discussed them privately, and incidentally to settle the wavering public sentiment back on track. No wonder the great elder was so supportive.

It had to be said that Lady Diao Mo was very clever, escalating a personal grievance to a higher level, which made it seem as if she wasn’t abusing her authority for personal reasons.

Bai Ruozhu completely ignored Jin Jing’s shouting and instead pointed at another Holy Guard and asked, ”Where did I say those words?”

”On the road leaving Qinghao City and heading forward,” the Holy Guard answered sternly.

”Oh...” Bai Ruozhu drew out her voice, with the corners of her mouth slightly lifted. Seeing her expression, that Holy Guard became a bit nervous, wondering if he had said something wrong.

Unfortunately, Bai Ruozhu did not continue to question him but pointed at the third Holy Guard and asked, ”Under what circumstances did I say those words? What were you doing at the time?”

”At that time, Lady Jin Jing was injured by a beast from Sangta, and Gold Elder begged you to save Lady Jin Jing, but you refused to lend a hand, leaving Gold Elder no choice but to say she would immediately be sent to the Holy Hall for treatment, and then you spoke those words insulting the Holy Hall,” stated the Holy Guard.

”And what were you doing?” Bai Ruozhu repeated the second question.

”We were battling the black panther that bit Lady Jin Jing,” the Holy Guard replied.

Bai Ruozhu laughed again, her smile making the third Holy Guard feel somewhat uneasy, while Jiang Yichun, who had been silent the whole time, watched her with eyes full of indulgence and a hint of pride, his lips also curving into a smile.

Seeing the couple so calm and collected, several Holy Guards started to feel nervous.

Bai Ruozhu then looked at the fourth Holy Guard and asked, ”Do you think, with the skills of the five of you, you would just stand by and watch the person you were protecting nearly get killed by a black panther?”

”Why do you have so many questions? Are you just stalling for time? Acting all mysterious and deceptive, the Holy Hall is not a place for you to fool around in!” Jin Jing shouted, interrupting Bai Ruozhu’s words, also giving that Holy Guard time to think.

Bai Ruozhu turned to Jin Jing and said displeased, ”You said it yourself, this is the Holy Hall. What sort of behavior is this shouting and yelling? The great elder already said I could confront the Holy Guards to clarify the matter, so since when are the words of the great elder not followed here, but yours are?”

”You...” Jin Jing, gritting her teeth with anger, said, ”Stop slandering people. You’re just delaying everyone’s business.”

”If you hadn’t interrupted, I would’ve finished asking, I’m not sure who is the one delaying everyone,” Bai Ruozhu replied with a sidelong glance.

Lady Diao Mo’s expression was very unpleasant, realizing after this exchange that her daughter was no match for Bai Ruozhu. She narrowed her eyes and said, ”Not only have you insulted the Holy Hall in this matter, but you have also disregarded Jin Jing’s life, even cursing her not to survive. I think it’s normal for her to have objections. Either finish your questioning quickly, or produce evidence of your innocence. Stop wasting time. The great elder has a lot to attend to and doesn’t have time to watch you make a fuss here.”