12dz Chapter 1033 Alone atop the tower, my heart remains undrunk
Chapter 1033 Alone atop the tower, my heart remains undrunk
Young people climb high buildings out of ignorance, young people climb high buildings out of confusion, and middle-aged people climb high buildings out of helplessness. The world is full of storms and snow, and ten years are spent in a dream. The higher you climb, the colder it gets.
Ji Qingfeng climbed the Moon Gazing Tower again. He stood on the Star Gazing Platform—oh, no, he sat on the Star Gazing Platform, because he was drunk.
This was the first time Ji Qingfeng had drunk alcohol since becoming the head of the family, and he got completely drunk on his first try. Just like when he was young, he sang and danced wildly, but was his heart really the same?
Superficial glory is not as good as a good drunken night, nor as good as a dream of wealth and glory!
“Father, whether I am standing, sitting, or lying down in the Moon Gazing Tower, all I see is the Ji family. Whether I am drunk, dreaming, or awake, all I see is still the Ji family.”
For over a decade, I have walked on thin ice, as if standing on the edge of an abyss, trembling with fear and trepidation. I am still me, and the Ji family remains an abyss, still ice. I can see it, yet I can never truly understand it!
Ji Qingfeng tilted his head back and drank deeply, gazing at the vast sky.
"Ten years of lamplight in the rainy nights of the martial world, the conflicts within the Ji family are far more complex than those in the martial world, and the hearts of the people in the Ji family are far more difficult to discern than those in the martial world. As the head of the Ji family, how much of the thirteen feathers of the Ji family can I possibly know, let alone how much I have mastered?"
"Father, I know why you brought me to the Moon Gazing Tower. What you're seeing here isn't the Ji family at all, but the head of the family himself. Every head of the family is like the lonely Moon Gazing Tower, isn't he? Lonely, desolate, helpless, yet able to overlook the entire Ji family. Could this castle in the air be my final resting place?"
Ji Qingfeng was truly frustrated. No, "frustrated" wouldn't be an accurate word. Before, he was lost in his drunken stupor, unable to find his way. Now, he had seen all the roads in the world, yet he still couldn't find his way. But before, it was just him; he could get lost in his drunken stupor. Now, things were different. He had to guide the entire Ji family.
This is why Ji Qingfeng dares not drink or slack off. But no matter how hard Ji Qingfeng tries, he still can't see where the Ji family's path lies. When he was wandering the world, he could be a homeless wanderer, but what about now?
Ji Qingfeng had two feelings: one was that he was standing alone on a castle in the air, which could collapse at any moment; the other was that he seemed to be in the eighteenth level of hell, bound by thousands of iron chains, never to be able to turn over.
Ji Qingfeng was tormented by these two inexplicable feelings all day long, especially after the change in the sword, he could hardly breathe.
The sword, facing the wind and clouds, stirred up the undercurrents within the Ji family, and Ji Qingfeng had a feeling that a storm was brewing.
The prison guard under the Emperor Tree is gone forever, and he can no longer enter the Hidden Smoke Residence. The world situation has now turned into melodious zither music. His son Ji Yinan's marriage is complete, and he is just waiting for Ji Yinan to return to Zhongzhou. Most importantly, many people from the Ji family have entered Yanquan, to be precise, several Ling!
These are all just superficial phenomena!
Xi Miling, the head of Ji Pingsheng, was looking for him, but he disappeared, and he vanished after entering the Ji family's imperial city! Ji Qingfeng has ordered Cui Jianling to investigate for almost half a month, but there is still no news.
Ji Qingfeng felt like he had a fishbone stuck in his throat or a thorn in his back. That was the Lord of One Feather!
On the star-gazing platform, the drunken Qingfeng struggled to her feet, leaning on the railing as she looked up at the Emperor Tree.
The Emperor Tree has changed. It is no longer lush and evergreen. You can see from the outside that some of its leaves have turned yellow and withered.
This was another huge weight pressing on Ji Qingfeng's heart, and also on the hearts of all members of the Ji family.
"Where exactly does the Emperor Tree end?"
Ji Qingfeng asked the same question as Xiao Chen'er, but what he wanted to know was how many more leaves the Emperor Tree could shed, and how much time he had left.
Ji Qingfeng recalled taking Xiao Chen'er to see the Emperor Tree in the Cloud Sea. A smile appeared on his face as he muttered to himself:
"It's good to be alive!"
Ji Qingfeng shifted his gaze to Qianzong Mountain, then turned to look at Yunshuiyao. Under normal circumstances, Shen Yichen should have returned to Qianzong Mountain and Yunshuiyao when he was ten years old, living in each place for five years to cultivate the secret techniques of the two royal families and learn various rules.
As a result, the empty words of coming and going in Qianzong Mountain have been empty for more than ten years, and the empty words of listening to the rain in Yunshuiyao have also been empty for more than ten years. Although his son Ji Yinan is the young master of the Ji family, he cannot enter these two places, because they truly belong only to Shen Yichen himself, whether in life or in death, they will always belong to Shen Yichen himself.
Ji Qingfeng knew very well that Qianzongshan and Yunshuiyao must have already sent people into the martial arts world, and Shen Yichen was their hope.
From this perspective, Ji Qingfeng, the head of the family, and Ji Yinan, the young master, may never have been recognized by the three royal families. Perhaps this is the rule of the Ji family, that even as the head of the Ji family, one cannot overstep the orthodox lineage.
Ji Qingfeng then turned his gaze to Yunxia Mountain, a place that not only he didn't understand, but probably the entire Ji family didn't understand either.
Ji Qingfeng had never been to Yunxia Mountain. Even after he became the head of the family, the Yunxia Mountain royal family, like the Emperor Tree, remained an unfathomable mystery to him.
Ji Qingfeng tilted his head back and drank deeply. The disappearance of Xi Miling and Ji Pingsheng must be related to the three royal families, but where exactly? He really couldn't guess.
Another issue is Cui Jianling's attitude. More than half a month has passed, and Chief Cui Jianling has neither come to see him nor reported back. This is really not normal.
Cui Jianling is the strongest member of the Ji family and is responsible for protecting the Ji family's imperial city and the defense of the entire Central Continent. Every move of Cui Jianling is extremely important.
“Father, I resented you when I missed the position of family head. I even thought about living a miserable life. But fate has pushed me to the position of family head again. How could I have thought about living a miserable life? Child, was I really wrong?”
Ji Qingfeng muttered to himself, questioning his conscience, before collapsing back to the ground.
A life of glory is not as good as a drunken revelry. Ji Qingfeng got drunk, but his mind remained clear. He was surprised to find that his mind could not get drunk. The past cannot be swept away by the wind, and what he sought in this life has become a dream. He cannot get drunk!
"Quijian Lingling greets the Clan Head!"
Another person arrived at the Star Gazing Platform of Wangyue Tower. It was Ji Xuanyu, the one with the red dot between his eyebrows. He stood at the entrance of the tower, looking at Ji Qingfeng, who was drunk and slumped over, with a calm expression, without surprise, worry, or joy.
Ji Qingfeng reached out and raised the wine jug, shouting:
"Senior, how about we grab a drink together?"
"Patriarch, half a month ago, after Xi Miling, the chief concubine, entered the imperial city, she was taken away by the royal family of Yunxia Mountain!"
After Ji Xuanyu finished speaking, he left without saying goodbye or getting Ji Qingfeng's permission.
Ji Qingfeng seemed unconcerned, as if he hadn't heard, and continued shouting loudly while holding up the wine jug:
"Come on, have a drink!"
Ji Qingfeng drank half a pot of wine, his eyes glazed but his mind clear. The royal family had interfered in the Ji family's affairs; the storm was truly brewing for the Ji family!
Ji Qingfeng closed his eyes and remained silent for a long time.
After a long while, Ji Qingfeng slowly stood up and threw the wine pot in his hand down from Wangyue Tower.
"Notify Ling Shuang Valley and the Ji Clan Ancestral Hall that Nan'er's wedding ceremony will be held on the eighth day of next month!"
Ji Qingfeng compromised. Since the royal family was interfering in the affairs of the Ji family, he needed the support of the Ji family members, especially the older generation of the Ji family.
"Hey!"
A soft sigh echoed from the void above the Moon Gazing Tower.
Ji Qingfeng persisted for so long, but in the end she bowed her head, which is truly heartbreaking and pitiful!
Ji Qingfeng shook his head and muttered to himself:
"Wine can't intoxicate, only dreams can. But once a person chases their dreams, they can never get drunk again!"
Ji Qingfeng floated down, reeking of alcohol, and headed straight for the small courtyard under the Emperor Tree.
The courtyard was still covered in fallen leaves, and someone was cleaning it up—the prison guards, of course.
The prison officer was in that thatched hut. Ji Qingfeng knew that the prison officer had gone in before he arrived. The prison officer did not want to see him, but Ji Qingfeng really did not know why.
"Senior, the three royal families have interfered in the affairs of the Ji family!"
"Fengling Tower has nothing to do with the Ji family, and I have no interest in the Ji family's affairs!"
"I've only come to let you know!"
Ji Qingfeng left after speaking.
After a long while, the prison guard came out of the thatched hut, still chewing on a blade of grass, but he looked even younger.
The prison guard, watching the leaves of the Imperial Tree falling from the sky, muttered to himself:
"Ji Xuanyan, you're not lying to me, are you? Has the person I've been waiting for really appeared? The calamity of the Ji family has begun. Will I be able to live to see that day?"