To Ruby, "jianghu" had once been just a distant word from storybooks. She'd heard merchants passing through Q…
To Ruby, "jianghu" had once been just a distant word from storybooks.
She'd heard merchants passing through Qinghe talk about jianghu affairs—heroic warriors, secret manuals, enchantresses... The heroes were always dashing and handsome, while the enchantresses were always to blame for everything.
She thought these stories entertaining, but wondered how could one person be behind every bad thing. It didn't make sense, just like how her father always blamed her whenever something went wrong at home.
And she also had one big question: What exactly was this jianghu? It must be some enormous place to fit all those people and all those stories.
She used to imagine it as a massive, magical lake somewhere far away.
Qinghe had lakes too, of course, but they just had ducks and fishermen.
So in those days, Ruby never dreamed of venturing into this "jianghu."
A small girl from a small place like her would be better off focusing on practical matters—like how to sneak past her father and climb Moonveil Mountain alone.
Three years ago, on the night Madam Han left home, Ruby finally accomplished her great challenge, secretly climbing to Moonveil Mountain's peak.
But someone was already keeping watch at the summit—a person as mysterious as the night yet gentle as the breeze.
That day, Ruby witnessed the true jianghu. She realized that Qinghe wasn't so far from the jianghu after all.
Perhaps she too could explore this world?
From that moment, Ruby resolved to make her way in the jianghu, never backing down even after her father gave her a thorough thrashing upon her return home.
Next time, given the chance, she would go again!
A hundred times, a thousand, however many it took, she would sneak out again on that same night. No matter how hard it got, she'd become a true hero of the jianghu... or rather, a twin hero!
Why "twin"? Because she would bring the her cousin along, of course. Her most beloved, most cherished elder cousin.