I Have a Date with a Thousand-year-old Female Corpse
Chapter 577 Queen of Yue Kingdom_1

Chapter 577: Chapter 577 Queen of Yue Kingdom_1

"If it were said that the Thousand-Year Fragrant Torreya tree below hid Queen Ya Yu of Yue Kingdom, I would know a few legends about her."

Xian Qianling’s voice came, and you couldn’t help but look over, "Oh? Let’s hear it."

"Just as the world knows, after Goujian was defeated, he took his wife Ya Yu to King Wu Fuchai’s palace and served as a slave for three years. Fu Chai tried every method to humiliate Goujian, he even made him taste his own excrement."

Walking slowly forward, Xian Qianling gently placed her fair hand on the trunk of the Three Thousand-year-old Fragrant Torreya tree in front of her, feeling its rough and time-worn exterior.

"While Fu Chai merely humiliated Goujian, he was quite considerate of the Queen of Yue, only making her act as a maidservant by his side. All of this, however, was observed by the general Wu Zixu. Wu Zixu did not agree with Yue’s surrender and intended to annihilate Yue Kingdom with an armed strike, doing everything in his power to obstruct and humiliate Goujian—who, however, hid his feelings too deeply and remained unmoved. Later, Wu Zixu shifted his attention to Ya Yu. Knowing how deeply Goujian loved Ya Yu, even during their enslavement, he ensured she was well cared for."

Hearing this, you couldn’t help but touch your nose, chuckling, "Crazy woman, you’re not going to tell me that a dignified minister of Wu State would lay a hand on a frail Queen of Yue, are you?"

The response you got was a glare from Xian Qianling, "It was also by chance. Ya Yu was ordered to leave the palace to make some purchases, and on the way, she was spotted by an envoy from Jin State. The Jin envoy, coveting her beauty, openly harassed her in the street, and even abducted her to his own station. At the time, there were those who wanted to inform Fu Chai, because Goujian and Ya Yu were his personal slaves, under his full control, but the messenger was intercepted by Wu Zixu, who then used this incident to extort the Jin envoy by revealing Ya Yu was the Queen of Yue Kingdom."

You nodded, quite approving of Xian Qianling’s account, "That makes sense. Wu Zixu, in his determination to avenge his father and brothers, had the audacity to dig up King Ping of Chu’s corpse and whip it three hundred times. For the interest of his country, he would certainly commit to such stone-killing-two-birds actions as a high-ranking official."

"Ya Yu had a strong will. After leaving the station, she threw herself into the river."

"She died just like that?"

"No, Wu Zixu sent people to save her and even apologized to her." At this point, Xian Qianling scoffed, "Having done the deed, to then superficially apologize—men are such hypocrites!"

"Hey, aren’t you firing that ’map cannon’ a bit too broadly? What do you mean by ’you men’? With that phrase, you’ve offended all the men in the world!" you howled in dissatisfaction.

In response, Xian Qianling, the crazy woman, glanced sideways with sharp eyes and stared at you, "Are you even a man? A fledgling still without fully-grown feathers, yet boasting about being a man—tch!"

"You..."

Well, although you had a girlfriend, you couldn’t alter the reality of still being a virgin.

Seeing you speechless, Xian Qianling finally showed a victorious smile, "Originally, Wu Zixu thought Ya Yu would return to Goujian and make a scene with crying, trouble-making, and threats of hanging herself, but he was wrong. From the moment Wu Zixu rescued her, she abandoned the name ’Ya Yu’, along with her awareness as a woman. From that moment, she was no longer a person, but a state apparatus, the Queen!"

"Hey, that’s a fresh way to put it, the Queen, a state apparatus."

"Isn’t it? The Queen is just a title, a state apparatus. Anyone can assume the role if the Emperor likes them." Seeing you nod, Xian Qianling continued, "To avoid causing Goujian distress and distraction, jeopardizing the revival of Yue Kingdom, Ya Yu took it all upon herself. Afterward, Wu Zixu seemed to realize the inappropriateness of his actions and ceased harassment of Ya Yu and left Goujian be."

"So what you’re saying is, Goujian was able to survive three years under Fu Chai’s nose largely thanks to Ya Yu?"

"Of course! Otherwise, with Wu Zixu’s nature, would he allow Goujian to return alive to Yue Kingdom? That was three years of time. As a high-ranking official of Wu State, second only to the king, to Wu Zixu, killing a slave was as simple as stepping on an ant."

"There’s some sense to that." Nodding, you asked Xian Qianling, "How do you know all this?"

A few brief words caused the previously triumphant Xian Qianling to suddenly fall silent, a mournful hue rising in his eyes.

"Uh, let’s pretend I didn’t say that."

Realizing that your words had inadvertently touched upon Xian Qianling’s sorrows, you hurriedly spoke, ready to change the subject.

"My grandmother was a descendant of the Pisces lying Konghou players, and the Pisces lying Konghou was invented by Ya Yu."

"Konghou?" You were startled, "That must be the predecessor of the harp, right?"

"Yes. Since the Pisces lying Konghou is very difficult to play, producing a mournful and desolate sound, it wasn’t popular back then. My grandmother casually took up the piano and the xun flute, becoming the first female piano performer in China."

Knowing you couldn’t continue on this topic, you quickly asked, "So how did Ya Yu die?"

Xian Qianling glanced at you and for the first time, without a forceful tone, his words carried a hint of sadness, "After returning to Yue Kingdom with Goujian, Ya Yu devoted herself to reviving the nation, working with her own hands. She even devised the plan to bribe the then-assistant minister Pi, ultimately framing Wu Zixu for treason, leading King Wu Fuchai to order Wu Zixu’s death."

"Impressive!"

Beyond that word, you couldn’t think of a better adjective.

"After painstaking efforts, Goujian eventually managed a surprise attack on Wu State, trapping King Wu Fuchai on a mountain and forcing him to take his own life. When the news of Wu State’s downfall arrived, there was great rejoicing throughout Yue Kingdom, but Ya Yu went alone in a carriage to a secluded palace, where she took poison and committed suicide."

Xian Qianling looked around and sighed, "It seems that this place is the very palace where Ya Yu took poison. After learning of Ya Yu’s death, Goujian grieved for three days and nights, after which he ordered the palace to be buried and provided a burial for Ya Yu."

"I see."

Looking around, you couldn’t help but sigh deeply and said to Du Xishan, who was still in conversation, "Lao Du, it seems our speculation was correct. The Glazed Stone is indeed related to King Goujian of Yue. However, beneath this Earth, there is nothing but emptiness and besides a fish-shaped jade in Ya Yu’s coffin, there is nothing else. I think, let’s not disturb her rest."

"Indeed, that is appropriate," Du Xishan said gravely, "Since that’s the case, let’s put this matter aside for now."

Although Du Xishan did not specify, you knew that what he cared about more was undoubtedly the issue of Hong Xiu’s revival.

You immediately said with a smile, "Don’t worry, since I have already promised you and Hong Xiu, I will definitely take care of this matter. Wait for my good news."