Chapter 6 If it were you, I would be willing to understand "Yun Jin..."

"Yun Jin, wait for me." Ming Shu had been abandoned by Qin Wenxue at Chang'an Kedao and had finally managed to get out of the formation. He was covered in dust from the journey, but as soon as he entered the city, he saw Yun Jin staring at him with an unfriendly expression.

The fox's fur was practically standing on end.

Ming Shu shrank back, not daring to make a move. Before he could even greet her, he heard Yun Jin questioning him repeatedly. He swore it was the first time he had ever heard Yun Jin speak so much at once.

"His Majesty has killed someone again? Why don't you do it yourself instead of troubling him? Do you even know what the demons of Ten Directions City are saying..."

Ming Shu interrupted, "How so?" He was genuinely curious, his eyes blinking.

Yun Jin said angrily, "Don't interrupt!"

"What else can we say? That he's cold-blooded, ruthless, cruel, and vicious, a madman who goes insane if he doesn't thirst for blood every day! You clearly knew that the demons of Ten Directions City harbored prejudice against him, so why didn't you stop him!"

"I didn't have time. That person trespassed on the Chang'an travel route and was already on the verge of being torn to pieces by the array within the barrier. Your Excellency acted too quickly, I..."

"Then you should eat the corpse too! What kind of mess is it if someone sees it?!" Yun Jin's chest heaved rapidly, she was very angry.

Ming Shu was a little flustered. He didn't know what to do, so he could only frantically try to comfort him: "Don't be angry."

"I'm not angry." Seeing the fox-like eyes filled with tears and unease, she suddenly deflated, her voice softening as she weakly said, "I'm just... a little sad. His Majesty was clearly just protecting Shifang City. It's one thing to not be grateful, but why should he suffer unwarranted slander?"

Ming Shu hurriedly explained, "That's just slander from those hypocritical cultivators in the human realm... We all know it's not true!"

"Is that so?" Yun Jin raised her eyes to meet his gaze, her eyes filled with complex emotions. "You're a demon, you wouldn't understand."

Ming Shu couldn't understand that look in his eyes, but he felt a tightness in his chest and a strange sense of irritation. Yun Jin used to always use that phrase to brush him off. He admitted that he didn't understand, but wouldn't he understand if he told her? But every time they talked about this, Yun Jin would fall silent, her eyes filled with helplessness and sorrow.

"What are you so sad about?!" He was on the verge of collapse, but dared not speak loudly, only pleading softly, "Then tell me."

Yun Jin lowered her eyes, her expression obscured by the darkness, but a faint sense of loneliness and weariness lingered around her, which became even more apparent in the flickering candlelight.

Ming Shu had a feeling that the person in front of him was about to fly away. She was like a shadow, unreal, and would disappear when dawn broke. He was a little panicked. He reached out and subconsciously grabbed the person's wrist, very tightly and heavily, and then softly called out, "Yun Jin".

Yun Jin sighed and said softly, "It's not about the clarity or ambiguity of this statement. People's words are a fearsome thing. Although His Majesty doesn't care, the Three Realms cannot tolerate a demon who has committed many evils, even if it's fake."

She paused, the silver hairpin on her forehead rustling softly. The desolate evening breeze lifted her long skirt, and a strand of hair fell from her back to her front, touching Ming Shu's cheek, which was still flushed with excitement. He was startled, his eyes softening, and he gently coaxed, "Don't be angry anymore, okay?"

Yun Jin glanced at him, her helplessness almost tangible: "I'm not angry."

Ming Shu: "Then don't be sad anymore, okay?"

“I…” Yun Jin began to speak, intending to retort, but Ming Shu anticipated her words and said, “Don’t tell me you’re not angry. Do you think I can’t tell whether you’re angry or not?”

He said in a deep voice, "The demon race has always been clear about love and hate. I really don't understand the intricacies of the human race, but Yun Jin... as long as it's what you say, I'm willing to understand. Don't be unhappy or sulk. Even if there's a huge problem, I'll stand in front of you..."

He rambled on and on, his mouth working faster than his brain. He didn't really remember if what he said made sense, nor did he know what he said that made Yun Jin look so upset.

Actually, it wasn't bad-looking, but he was a little anxious and flustered, and he thought that the look of surprise and astonishment on Yun Jin's face was anger. So he grabbed Yun Jin's wrist again, with great force, as if he was afraid that his subordinate would be scared and run away. A long and soft white tail stretched out from behind him, its fur soft and smooth, swaying in the candlelight. Yun Jin looked at the fox tail fixed in front of her eyes, her pupils trembled, and her heart skipped a beat.

The fragrance of a hundred flowers from Yunmeng Marsh wafted on the wind, somewhat intoxicating.

Qin Wenxue's figure suddenly appeared, leaving a few indistinct footsteps under the corridor, like the sound of a small animal stepping on snow, but enough for the two stunned people to perceive.

Qin Wenxue looked at the two dazed people and asked in a deep voice, "Did you have a fight?"

Upon hearing the voice, Yun Jin turned around, took the opportunity to break free from Ming Shu's hand, and bowed to Qin Wenxue: "Your Excellency."

Ming Shu felt a little uncomfortable, shifted his body, and bowed as well, tilting his head as he said, "Your Excellency." He wouldn't look directly at people, like a sulking pet.

Qin Wenxue didn't concern herself with their private affairs. Yun Jin was always composed, so if even she was angry, Ming Shu must have done something truly infuriating. He heard Shi Wenzhe's soft, pleading voice and asked, "Is there anywhere in Shifang City that sells rapeseed oil?"

"Huh?" Ming Shu's eyes widened, wondering if he had misheard.

Yun Jin was taken aback, somewhat confused, but answered respectfully, "There should be."

Ming Shu turned her head to look at her, blinked, and replied, "Well... that's not necessarily true."

Yun Jin frowned: "How could such a large city as Shifang City not have one?"

Ming Shu said innocently, "Ah... what delicious food do demons have that requires rapeseed oil? Don't they just eat it raw?"

"Don't talk nonsense."

He was startled by Yun Jin's shout. Although she was just teasing the desolation of the demon race, he thought about how the demons in Shifang City always looked like they had no will to live when they ate, and they really did seem to lack any warmth or humanity.

"It seems there are very few, and even if there are, they are powerful demons." He didn't finish his sentence, but the others understood what he meant. They had all practiced abstaining from grains and didn't need to eat, but most of the people in the city were ordinary demons. Their daily meals, clothing, shelter, and transportation were no different from those of humans, except that they lived longer.

However, their treatment is vastly different from that of humans. The land is desolate and barren, and vegetation cannot grow here, just like many little demons that never grow up.

This is a place abandoned by the gods.

Only powerful demons, while struggling to survive, would spare the energy and money to buy food in the human world, which is why even general stores rarely sell it.

Qin Wenxue's eyelashes trembled, but she showed no pity for these words. She simply said coldly, "Then go and take a trip to the mortal realm."

Ming Shu didn't ask why, and obediently nodded: "Okay."

Actually, it wasn't his place to agree, because Qin Wenxue was saying this to Yun Jin. Ming Shu, a demon whose demonic aura couldn't be concealed clearly, wasn't qualified to go to the human world alone. He was only saying this because he wanted to go with Yun Jin.

The fox-like eyes stared longingly at Yun Jin.

Yun Jin tightened her grip on the longsword, and her eyes and brows looked much gentler in the candlelight.

Ming Shu was a playful and curious fox. The demon race not only had a poor diet, but also a poor way of playing. He had lived for more than nine hundred years and had spent more than nine hundred years in the Netherworld. He did not know what the Three Realms were like, but he knew the Netherworld, his home, inside and out.

Every time Yun Jin left the city, he would be like a silent child, just staring at her longingly, not saying a word, but not retreating either, stubbornly following that figure until she could no longer see her at the city gate. Many times Yun Jin hardened her heart and left alone, but more often she would secretly take him with her.

Anyway, he turned into a puppy, and humans couldn't tell. The Yun family was a prominent clan in the human world a hundred years ago, and they had some magical treasures and methods to conceal their demonic aura. Yun Jin could sense it, and the Venerable One knew it all too well, but he just indulged her like that, time and time again, year after year.

The puppy turned into a big fox and even developed eight tails.

But this fox has grown up, yet its nature remains so childish.

He followed her furtively, his figure quite conspicuous. Yun Jin withdrew her gaze, a faint smile appearing on her lips. The night was deep, and the dust that had been so noisy during the day had settled down. The long street of Shifang City was silent. The girl's shadow stretched long on the bluestone bricks. Ming Shu followed her from one end of the street to the other, stepping on a small corner of her shadow, until she saw the towering city wall.

He understood, stopped in his tracks, and felt a pang of loneliness in his heart.

But a soft, familiar voice suddenly rang out. Yun Jin abruptly turned around, and Ming Shu, caught off guard, met her gaze. Ming Shu, standing in the middle of the long street, looked like a drowned rat. Yun Jin chuckled and asked, "Aren't you leaving?"

Ming Shu's heart pounded; nothing could be more hopeful than a glimmer of hope appearing after a period of despair. He flashed a big smile, ran over, and replied in an incredibly light voice, "I was leaving. I thought you weren't going to take me out of the city." Then he grabbed the jade pendant tassel at Yun Jin's waist.

He had bought that jade pendant on his first trip to the human world. At that time, he was very cautious. When Yun Jin was on business in the human world, she left him with a dog—no, a fox spirit—at the inn. He heard the shouts and cries of the whole city, and the aroma of pastries and food kept wafting to his nose. His heart began to stir with desire.

So he transformed into human form and walked out of the gate. The long street was full of dazzling sights, and everything he saw was fascinating. The lively atmosphere of the human world was indeed captivating. That day, the spring sunshine and bright scenery lingered in his memory, and even the veins of a leaf falling on the street were incredibly clear.

He spotted the jade pendant at a glance. It was a white and blue phoenix and peony pendant. It wasn't actually that good because there were red thread-like impurities inside. But Ming Shu liked it very much. The red thread seemed to have wrapped around his soul and finally hidden in his veins.

He didn't have much money on him. There wasn't much good stuff in Shifang City. His Venerable One would occasionally give him pocket money, but he couldn't spend it. So every time his Venerable One gave him some, he would save it. He had come to the mortal world in a bit of a rush. The money he had was given to him by his Venerable One that day, so he hadn't had time to put it away yet.

He was a little uneasy, so he took out the silver and held it in his hands to ask the shopkeeper. He was relieved when he saw the shopkeeper's happy smile, and then he happily took the jade pendant and left.

He had no idea how much silver he had, so he didn't know that the silver given by the Venerable One was actually enough to buy ten such jade pendants. But when he saw Yun Jin's astonished eyes and her rubbing the jade pendant in her palm over and over again, he smiled foolishly as if he had eaten honey.

He touched the jade pendant again; its texture was warm and smooth, and the tassel was quite old, feeling a bit rough. No matter how well Yun Jin took care of it, there would always be wear and tear. Ming Shu said, "When we leave the city this time, I'll buy you another red tassel to wear."

Yun Jin hummed in response, her voice light and airy. She hesitated for a moment before finally deciding to ask, "Do you want to eat candied hawthorns?" She seemed a little embarrassed.