Chapter 16 Past Events Flow Silently Like the Moon in a Long Ditch

"Senior brother! Xu Yi is here to play with you again!" Xi Bingyi leaned against Zhou Ziheng's window, pushed the window open, and shouted loudly at Zhou Ziheng, who was practicing calligraphy in the room.

Zhou Ziheng showed a moment of disgust. He put down his pen and patted Xi Bingyi's head: "Don't stand by the window, come inside and talk."

Xi Bingyi rushed out of the room, opened the door, looked around for a while, and asked with some doubt, "Senior brother, where's your rabbit?"

Zhou Ziheng clenched his small fist.

Zhou Ziheng found the rabbit while playing wildly in the back mountain. Little children have always been powerless against such fluffy little animals, so he happily brought it home and kept it in his room after getting Lin Youbie's permission.

Xi Bingyi also knew about the rabbit. Her room was not far from Zhou Ziheng's. Since she got the rabbit, she went to Zhou Ziheng's room every day. The two of them would stroke the rabbit's head and laugh uncontrollably.

When Xi Bingyi came to find Zhou Ziheng that day, she saw Xu Jianchun bringing Xu Yi up the mountain to visit. She knew Xu Yi, but wasn't very familiar with him. It seemed that Xu Yi especially liked to play with Zhou Ziheng, so she excitedly ran over to tell her senior brother the news.

"Xu Yi has been coming over too often lately. Does he really love playing with you? Otherwise, why would he come every day?" Xi Bingyi said, resting her chin on her hand.

Zhou Ziheng was older than Xi Bingyi and somewhat precocious. He knew perfectly well that Xu Jianchun only had something to ask of him, and Xu Yi was just trying to get to him by doing so.

But he was still willing to protect Xi Bingyi's innocence, and vaguely said, "Perhaps."

Xi Bingyi's eyes lit up. She thought Xu Yi was Zhou Ziheng's friend and was genuinely happy for Zhou Ziheng: "Did you take him to see Rabbit? Did he like him?"

Zhou Ziheng's face stiffened.

That was his first meeting with Xu Yi. Xu Jianchun left Xu Yi behind, told him to get along well with Zhou Ziheng, and then hurriedly went to find Lin Youbie.

Xu Yi looked slightly older than Zhou Ziheng. He was dressed in extremely luxurious brocade robes, and even the buttons on his clothes were made of lustrous pearls. However, he played with the pearls with an arrogant expression, as if they were just worthless stones.

"So you're Lin Youbie's eldest disciple?" Xu Yi's tone was playful, showing no respect whatsoever when mentioning Lin Youbie. Zhou Ziheng instinctively disliked him, and his expression immediately darkened. He no longer wanted to pay attention to this impolite and arrogant young master.

Zhou Ziheng turned and left, cursing the pampered young master a thousand times in his heart, and decided not to do anything to show "hostly hospitality".

"Hey, your master told you to make more friends. Is it okay for you to abandon me like this?" Xu Yi's voice rang out from behind, precisely targeting Zhou Ziheng's weak spot.

As a teenager, Zhou Ziheng was shrewd, but not cunning, and he was never tormented by the laurel seal.

He remembered that his master had indeed given such instructions, but he really didn't want to be friends with someone like Xu Yi. In the end, humility and courtesy prevailed, and he chose to tentatively make friends with him.

Perhaps Xu Yi was just spoiled, or maybe he wasn't a bad person at heart?

Zhou Ziheng decided to give him a chance, so he took Xu Yi back to his room and showed him the rabbits he was raising.

"I haven't named it yet." Zhou Ziheng's expression was gentle as he lightly stroked the soft rabbit, his tone revealing the tenderness and affection of a young boy.

As if he wanted to share his treasure with a friend, he carefully held the rabbit up to Xu Yi's face, his eyes shining: "Look, isn't it cute?"

Xu Yi looked at him with disdain. He glanced at the rabbit and then looked away, instead observing Zhou Ziheng's room. He chuckled and said, "Your eldest disciple isn't all that great. His room is so poor."

Seeing that Xu Yi didn't like rabbits, Zhou Ziheng didn't insist. Hearing Xu Yi's offensive words, his face turned cold again. He finally didn't want to force himself anymore and said angrily, "Get out of here and don't ever come back. Your father's request will never be fulfilled."

Xu Yi's contemptuous and playful smile vanished. He stared at Zhou Ziheng with a gloomy expression, his lips curling into a venomous smirk.

But soon, that damp, cold, moldy expression disappeared, and Xu Yi turned around with a warm smile, explaining, "I was just kidding, don't be angry."

"Good brother, I was really wrong." Xu Yi tugged at Zhou Ziheng's sleeve and said aggrievedly, "Please forgive me."

Zhou Ziheng turned away, no longer wanting to listen to Xu Yi's sweet talk. He immediately turned to find Lin Youbie, wanting to tell her that he never wanted to see such a shady person as Xu Yi again.

Zhou Ziheng angrily pushed open the door and left, but halfway there his heart suddenly started racing. He slowly stopped, a sudden unease washing over him. After a while, Zhou Ziheng suddenly ran back into the room.

However, it was too late. When he pushed the door open, all he could see was the rabbit's weak, kicking hind legs, its terrified eyes, and Xu Yi, who was holding the rabbit's fragile neck and smiling sinisterly.

Finally, the rabbit stopped struggling, and its bright red eyes lost their lively light and went out completely.

Zhou Ziheng felt his blood rushing backward!

Anger and pain surged through his body, and facing Xu Yi's smiling eyes, he felt an unprecedented rage!

"Xu Yi!!" Zhou Ziheng's eyes were bloodshot with rage. He watched helplessly as his precious possession shattered before his eyes. He could no longer control himself and swung his fist, using all his strength to smash it hard against Xu Yi!

"What are you doing!" Just as his fist was about to smash into Xu Yi, Lin Youbie shouted from behind, but Zhou Ziheng couldn't care less. He raised his fist again, but before it could fall, Lin Youbie stopped him.

Zhou Ziheng's eyes were bloodshot. He looked up at Lin Youbie, and his master's eyes were filled with an unprecedented solemnity.

"What are you doing?" Lin Youbie gripped the arm with the laurel wreath tightly, his hand trembling slightly.

Zhou Ziheng gritted his teeth: "Master, he..."

Before he could finish speaking, Xu Yi suddenly coughed, then put on a warm yet helpless smile: "Maybe I accidentally used too much force when I was playing with the rabbit."

Zhou Ziheng lost his temper again: "You mean a little more force! You..."

He tried to throw another punch, but Lin Youbie held him tightly, like iron, and he couldn't move an inch.

"Calm down." Lin Youbie's expression was solemn.

Xu Yi gave a strange smile. He patted the rabbit, and the rabbit, which had been "dead," actually kicked its legs and started moving again. "It was just pretending to be dead."

Zhou Ziheng was stunned.

Everything that followed was like a painting in the sky or the moon reflected in water in his memory.

Lin Youbie and Xu Jianchun's voices drifted away like mist, and he could only remember Xu Yi's gloomy eyes, as if his scheme had succeeded.

Xu Yi was right; the rabbit had indeed only faked its death. Because of Zhou Ziheng's farce, Lin Youbie had no idea what compromises he had made. However, his regained treasure soon began to decay day by day, eventually collapsing in Zhou Ziheng's small palm.

The warmth in the rabbit's body gradually faded, and Zhou Ziheng tried everything he could, but to no avail.

He suddenly realized that Xu Yi had only used some method to delay the rabbit's death. It seemed like a fake death, but in fact, the death was already scheduled for that day.

Zhou Ziheng closed his eyes in anguish, feeling the rabbit's cold corpse, a tear sliding down his cheek.

Lin Youbie and Zhou Ziheng held a simple funeral for the rabbit. Tears still lingered in Zhou Ziheng's eyes. Lin Youbie couldn't bear it, so she hugged Zhou Ziheng and gently patted the child's thin back.

"Don't worry, I didn't agree to Xu Jianchun's request. From now on, we'll never be friends with Xu Yi again. Let's live happily with our junior sister and mistress, okay?"

Zhou Ziheng buried himself in Lin Youbie's warm embrace. He craved his master's tenderness. In his days of being alone without parents, it was Lin Youbie, Xie Yun, and Xi Bingyi who gave him a sense of home.

He shook his head, rolled up his sleeves, and said softly, "Master, the color of the laurel seal has changed."

Lin Youbie suddenly froze. She looked at Zhou Ziheng's arm, where the originally colorless and dull osmanthus flower had now turned a very pale yellow.

She couldn't hold back her tears.

"It's all my fault, it's all my fault... The laurel wreath devours emotions, the more intense the emotion, the faster it's consumed..."

Tears streamed down Lin Youbie's face as she choked back sobs, "If I could have stopped Xu Yi, you wouldn't... you wouldn't..."

Zhou Ziheng gently wiped away Lin Youbie's tears, and the two embraced. He whispered, "It's not your fault, Master. I would have been like this even without him. Master, please don't tell Master's wife and junior sisters."

From the moment he was born with the seal of honor, his fate was sealed. Xu Yi was merely a catalyst, a trigger, Zhou Ziheng understood this, but it was difficult for him to remain indifferent.

The young man felt a surge of hatred in his chest, for Xu Yi, and for himself who was forced to walk the predetermined path.

"Master, please promise Xu Jianchun. I will make them pay the price."

Satisfy him, pamper him, let him have his way, and then let him fall hard—

Perhaps it was seeing Xu Yi again that brought back some rare memories for Zhou Ziheng. The intense love, anger, and hatred in those memories had gradually faded, becoming like a faint mosquito bite in his mind. He stroked the orange-red laurel wreath, his gaze indifferent.

How strange, why is the laurel-pin still orange-red? Zhou Ziheng wondered, why wasn't the color deepened?

He was completely baffled and leaned against the window of the "inn," his thoughts drifting away.

Zhang Yuanhan found a place near the port that resembled a "post station"—Zhou Ziheng didn't know what it was called in places like Xiheqin, but it was essentially the same as a post station.

After Zhang Yuanhan appeased Xu Yi, he led them here, saying that the shop had a partnership with the Zhang family and was a "royal post station".

Xi Bingyi cheered with an "Wow!"

Huo Qin, however, was disappointed and said, "Royal? You Zhang family can use such a term now?"

Zhou Ziheng added, "Only here is Xiheqin. You'll see if Zhuang Lan would dare to say that."

As he spoke, he gripped the Red Dust Sword and made a throat-slitting gesture: "If they dare to say that, the imperial court will send people to wipe them all out in a moment."

Zhang Yuanhan chuckled: "Just venting, just venting."

It was already late at night when the group settled in. Xu Yi had long since disappeared, and Zhou Ziheng was too lazy to seek revenge at this point.

Nothing is more important than resting yourself, no matter how vast the world may be.

He sat casually on the window frame, one leg bent at will, his arm draped lazily over his knee, slowly wiping away the dust of the world. His other long leg dangled down, swaying gently in the cold wind.

Snowflakes were falling heavily outside the window, and the north wind swirled ice crystals into Zhou Ziheng's slightly open collar, but he didn't seem to care.

An oil lamp was burning behind him, swaying precariously in the wind.

Outside the window, the streets were already swallowed by snow, leaving only a chaotic gray-white expanse between heaven and earth. In the distance, the sea lay dormant behind the snow curtain, with only a lone light occasionally flickering on its surface in the wind and snow.

Huo Qin, who lived downstairs, could no longer bear it. He pushed open the window, wishing he could break Zhou Ziheng's dangling leg.

"What are you doing in the middle of the night instead of sleeping?"

Upon hearing Huo Qin's voice, Zhou Ziheng looked down and said with great interest, "Brother Huo, so you also have this refined interest, enjoying the snowy night of early winter?"

Huo Qin flipped himself up from downstairs, grabbed the windowsill with both hands, and used his waist and abdomen to land smoothly in the second-floor room. His movements were so fast that he was just a black shadow, yet his landing was as light as a snowflake.

He came up suddenly, bumping right into Zhou Ziheng, who was leaning against the window watching the snow. Caught off guard, Zhou Ziheng was knocked backward and fell directly into the room through the narrow window frame.

"A good dog doesn't block the way," he said coldly.

Zhou Ziheng was about to draw his sword when he died, but Huo Qin had no intention of playing around with him. He quickly grabbed Zhou's wrist and forced the sword, which had just been drawn, back into place.

"Stop fooling around, get down to business." Huo Qin lowered his voice. "What do you want with me?"

Zhou Ziheng's outward anger was dissipated by the wind. He chuckled softly, turned around, and closed the window.

How did you know I needed to talk to you?

"Your leg was waving in front of my window like a secret signal, how could anyone not know?"

Zhou Ziheng sneered: "You're just being presumptuous."

However, he still got to the point, without beating around the bush, and went straight to the point: "What do you think of the threat of pirates at sea..."

The two exchanged a knowing glance, and just then, the already dim oil lamp went out completely, the last glimmer of light disappearing from their eyes.

They said in unison:

"It was no coincidence, but a scheme!"

...

The next day, just as dawn broke and the streets were deserted, Zhou Ziheng was already awake.

Huo Qin was practicing boxing at the entrance of the post station when the sunlight slowly broke through the clouds and fell directly on him as he finished his boxing practice.

He looked up and met Zhou Ziheng's gaze as Zhou poked his head out.

Since arriving in Xiheqin, Zhang Yuanhan has been busy arranging trade matters while inviting Zhou Ziheng and the other two to stroll through the commercial streets of Xiheqin.

"The same place as always, you guys go, no rush to make a move. Find out what the market is like now and come back to tell me," Zhang Yuanhan instructed. Seeing Zhou Ziheng come down, he turned around and smiled, "Brother Ziheng, let me show you around, this place is quite interesting."

Zhou Ziheng had gone to bed too late last night and was still a bit lazy. He shook his head and said, "You take Huo Qin and Mei Le with you. I won't go."

Huo Qin had just finished boxing and entered the inn when he heard this, and he shook his head: "I don't like these things, and I'm not going there either."

Seeing that both of them refused, Zhang Yuanhan was a little disappointed. He sighed and said, "Alright, I'll ask Sister Mei when she wakes up."

Xi Bingyi showed no signs of being unaccustomed to the new environment. She slept until late morning before coming downstairs, yawning and covering her stomach shyly, saying, "I'm so hungry."

The three people downstairs were sitting around the table. Seeing that Xi Bingyi had finally woken up, Zhang Yuanhan nodded and smiled, "We've been waiting for you to eat together."

Xi Bingyi blushed slightly, stuck out her tongue, and quickly ran over.

"I want this fried meat patty, tomato stew noodles, cream of mushrooms... What are these? I've never heard of them before, let's try them." Seeing the novel food, Xi Bingyi kept ordering, and only after finally ordering everything she wanted did she look up and ask, "What do you guys want to eat?"

Zhou Ziheng has never been a big fan of food, Huo Qin eats whatever is available and is not picky about food, only Zhang Yuanhan added a few more dishes.

After finally filling the table with dishes, Xi Bingyi's eyes lit up, showing great interest in Xi Heqin's food: "Their food is so delicious!"

Zhang Ziyuan nodded: "I liked it the first time I ate it, but after coming more often and eating more, I realized that they actually don't have many kinds of food. You can only order a few things."

Xi Bingyi exclaimed "Ah!" and then said with relief, "Luckily, we're only staying for a few days before we leave."

“Speaking of which,” Zhou Ziheng suddenly said, “doesn’t Xu Yi eat here?”

"He's probably busy with something. It seems like their ship has been tampered with and can't set sail. He's been busy with that lately."

"I really hope I can go back soon," Zhou Ziheng smiled.

It wasn't until dusk that Zhou Ziheng finally received Xu Yi.

When Xu Yi returned to the post station, Zhou Ziheng was sitting crookedly. When he saw Xu Yi return, he only raised his eyelids slightly, looking heartless.

Xu Yi didn't want to talk to Zhou Ziheng too much. He glanced at Zhou Ziheng casually and was about to go upstairs to rest. However, Zhou Ziheng had been waiting for Xu Yi all this time, so how could he let him leave so easily?

"Xu Yi, it's been so many years, won't you treat me to a drink?" Zhou Ziheng magically produced a flask of wine. He uncorked it, and the aroma of the wine immediately wafted out, filling the entire post station with a strong fragrance.

"You were really lucky to survive the massacre of the entire Xu family back then."

Xu Yi stopped in his tracks.

He slowly turned around, looking directly at Zhou Ziheng. His severed right ear now resembled an ugly black hole, telling the story of its owner's tragic fate.

"Do you need me to speak in Brother Xu's left ear?" Zhou Ziheng smiled innocently.

A note from the author:

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Doesn't anyone think Zhou Ziheng is kind of slyly handsome? (Nods)