Chapter 101 The gradually withering trellis of flowering vines...

Beneath the gradually withering vines, two figures stood at opposite ends.

Xie Baoqiong moved a little faster, stepping out of the shadow under the trellis first. The sunlight generously bathed him, forming a faint halo around him.

The colorful threads on the royal blue embroidered butterfly brocade dress shimmered in the light. A gentle breeze swayed the hem of the dress, and the colorful butterflies seemed to break free from the constraints of the fabric and needlework, fluttering their wings.

The striking color shone brightly in the desolate autumn courtyard, like the only bud on a vine, yet to bloom, enough to steal everyone's attention.

"Qi Gui?"

Xie Baoqiong looked at Qi Gui, who hadn't moved for a long time, and asked in confusion.

Upon suddenly hearing his name, Qi Gui's eyelashes fluttered rapidly. When he lifted his eyelids again, the color of sapphire blue once more filled his eyes. He suppressed his sorrow and set off to chase after that bright color:

"They're here."

Just as he was about to step out of the shadow of the flower vines, Qi Gui suddenly stopped, a shadow appearing above the sapphire blue in his eyes.

He huddled in the shadows like an unnamed weed, his eyes lowered, and spoke softly:

"Greetings, Madam."

Xie Baoqiong turned around, and a cloud of fragrance swept past behind her. Four or five maids surrounded a beautifully dressed woman as they passed by.

As she passed him, the woman at the head of the group turned slightly to the side, her powdered eyelids lifting slightly as she glanced at him:

"Are you the young master of the Yongshun Marquis's mansion?"

"Does the lady recognize me?"

The woman nodded, her gaze lingering on his face. Her voice was extremely soft, the words almost vanishing in the autumn wind: "He doesn't resemble Huaijin at all."

After saying that, he nodded to him, glanced past Qi Gui who was standing frozen in place, and left without pausing.

Only after the figure disappeared down the winding path did Xie Baoqiong realize from the indistinct pronunciation who the name belonged to.

"Qi Gui, was that your brother's mother just now?"

"yes……"

Qi Gui's hands were clenched into fists and hung stiffly at his sides. His head was tilted slightly back, and he glanced at the corner where the figure had disappeared. His voice was not as natural as usual and was deliberately kept very low.

The cold palms were constantly being pressed by the fingers, turning slightly red but without any warmth.

Until a ray of sun suddenly approached, its warm and intense heat washing over his cold numbness and enveloping him completely.

Are you sad? Has she bullied you?

The warm, cozy scent of the sun wafted into Qi Gui's nostrils. He sniffed, a distinct sob escaping his lips, and continued to greedily inhale the lingering warmth.

The dampness in his throat made Qi Gui speechless. He shook his head and suppressed the tears welling up in his eyes. He couldn't cry every time he met Xie Baoqiong.

“No, Madam didn’t bully me, she just…” Qi Gui’s voice trailed off, and he finished speaking with a hint of resistance: “She just doesn’t like me that much.”

Meeting Xie Baoqiong's suspicious gaze, he continued, "But, but Madam is a very good person. She is very good to my brother."

Xie Baoqiong glanced at the eyes filled with mist, then turned and walked away, not wanting to dwell on the issue that had made Qi Gui so damp.

Just as Qi Gui thought the warmth in his hands was about to disappear, a force suddenly pulled him forward from his intertwined hands with Xie Baoqiong's.

The sunlight truly shone on him.

"Hurry up, I still want to show you the shuttlecock I tied..."

—

As dusk approached, a figure flashed past the wall of the Marquis's residence.

Before the city gates were locked, Xie Baoqiong left the city alone.

He glanced back at the closed city gate, avoided the crowd, disappeared down the official road, and plunged into the jungle.

Although it was autumn, the leaves in the forest had not yet completely fallen, and with the cover of the sky, Xie Baoqiong's figure quickly disappeared into the environment.

A tail that had been chasing from afar appeared in the distance, stopping on the branch that Xie Baoqiong had just stepped on, carefully sensing the lingering scent in the air to determine Xie Baoqiong's whereabouts.

Just as he chose what he thought was the direction with the strongest aura and was about to follow, someone suddenly patted his shoulder from behind.

He slowly turned his head, his face, hidden in the shade of the trees, was fully exposed to Xie Baoqiong's sudden appearance.

"Qi Gui, what are you doing following me?"

Qi Gui's panic vanished instantly, replaced by an embarrassed expression:

"Ah-Jung, I, I..."

He hesitated for a long time before finally pulling a white shuttlecock from his sleeve:

"The shuttlecock broke that day, so I made a new one."

The copper coins at the end of the shuttlecock were still the same few as before, with silk threads neatly wrapped around them and connected to the base of the feathers, which was much better than his craftsmanship.

Each snow-white feather stood upright, without the slightest blemish.

His gaze moved upwards and lingered on Qi Gui's face:

"Are these your feathers?"

The sounds of insects chirping in the jungle during the summer are barely audible at this time of year; only the whistling of the autumn wind can be heard.

The wind howled through the snow-white feathers, and Qi Gui, perhaps feeling the cold, shivered and hunched his neck.

"Yes..." he admitted softly, then looked up helplessly: "Aren't these monochromatic feathers ugly? But gray downy feathers don't seem suitable for making shuttlecocks..."

Qi Gui raised his hand, wanting to take the shuttlecock back: "I'll find some flowers, dye it, and then give it to you."

Xie Baoqiong avoided his hand and instead tucked it into her sleeve.

“It looks great, better than the original one. But you don’t need to pluck your own feathers. My father said that people should cherish their feathers, and you, as a little bird demon, should cherish your feathers even more.”

Qi Gui vaguely felt that Xie Baoqiong's choice of words was problematic, but his mind was completely occupied by Xie Baoqiong's lack of disdain for his feathers and her insistence on his care, so he couldn't concern himself with this minor issue.

His doe-like eyes lit up with joy: "Arjun is my first friend. I've read in books about the story of giving someone a feather as a gift, which symbolizes deep affection. Giving my own feather should better symbolize the affection between us."

"Is there such a story?" Xie Baoqiong, who had read more storybooks than serious schoolwork, asked the illiterate question.

Qi Gui nodded vigorously: "Yes."

...

Having accepted the shuttlecock, Xie Baoqiong looked at Qi Gui, who showed no sign of leaving:

"I'm leaving. The city gates are already closed. What are your plans?"

Qi Gui looked up, his eyes filled with hope and a hint of hesitation: "Can I come with you?"

Xie Baoqiong didn't mind having Qi Gui along the way, but he still asked:

"Is anyone in the Qi family still bullying you?"

"No." Qi Gui's expression was much better than when they met for the second time, and he didn't seem to be pretending to be strong. "After I went back last time, my brother was furious and replaced everyone in my courtyard. I listened to what you and Young Master Su said and have been cultivating diligently. They don't dare to provoke me now."

At this point, Qi Gui raised his hand, gathered a wisp of spiritual energy, and showed it to Xie Baoqiong: "I cultivated this by following the inherited memories left to me by my mother."

He dispersed the spiritual energy, his tone turning somber: "I want to go find my mother, to ask her why she didn't take me with her when she left?"

Will the person who leaves him with the legacy treat him the way his wife treated his elder brother?

"I don't know where to look for her, but if I go to more places, I'll eventually find out about her. Ah-Qiong, let me go with you, I can help you," Qi Gui pleaded.

Xie Baoqiong didn't mind bringing Qi Gui along, so she immediately agreed.

He took out Cat Brother from his sleeve, tossed it into the air in front of him, and leaped onto the blade with a light touch of his toes.

"Let's go, let's find a faster way to get there."

The moment Qi Gui stepped onto the longsword, the longsword, controlled by Xie Baoqiong, shot into the sky as if it had been pulled up from the ground.

Xie Baoqiong's voice lingered a moment later: "This is my first time trying to control a sword, so I might not be very skilled at it yet."

Wild geese flew south in flocks, their formation momentarily disrupted by two figures that suddenly appeared, before they quickly adjusted and reformed.

Accompanied by wild geese, Xie Baoqiong flew anxiously towards Sishui Mountain.

Occasionally, you could hear Qi Gui's pale-faced suggestion: "Ah Qiong, do you want me to carry you?"

After a bumpy journey, we finally arrived at our destination at dawn on the second day.

Xie Baoqiong wielded her long sword and charged straight towards Su Xiaochun's cave.

A loud boom followed, and Xie Baoqiong peeked out from the treetops, relieved to see the intact cave dwelling.

He pulled Qi Gui from the tree trunk, jumped to the cave entrance, released the seal, and shouted into the dark interior:

"Xiaochun!"

After calling out several times, the cave remained silent. Just as Xie Baoqiong put down Qi Gui and was about to go in for a look, a voice suddenly sounded behind her:

Xiaochun has not yet returned.

He turned around and looked in the direction of the sound, his attention immediately drawn to the crimson figure on the branch:

"Senior Xin, what are you doing here?"

"I heard the blasting noise from far away, so I came to see what happened?"

Xin Xuan's long hair was unbound, her dark purple sash loosely tied around her waist, her clothes half-open, as she leaned against a branch, her face full of mockery:

"Xiaochun made you angry, so you came to blow up someone's cave."

"No, I'm here to see Xiaochun..."

Xie Baoqiong explained her plans.

"Oh, you're looking for that fox."

Xin Xuan leaped down from the branch and walked barefoot on the fallen leaves:

"That might be a bit troublesome. You'd better find another way."

A frivolous smile appeared on Xin Xuan's face. He leaned down and lifted Xie Baoqiong's chubby chin, his breath brushing against her face.

"For example, you can ask me."

Oh right, how come he didn't think of that? Senior Xin might have seen it back then. Xie Baoqiong was about to ask when his sleeve was suddenly tugged. He turned around and saw Qi Gui with a pale face, pulling on his sleeve, looking somewhat uncomfortable.

Xin Xuan straightened up and shifted his gaze back:

"Is this your new friend?"

After receiving Xie Baoqiong's affirmative answer, Xin Xuan slightly concealed the aura emanating from his body and said with satisfaction:

"That's right, it's time to make friends."

Qi Gui's complexion gradually returned to normal. Xie Baoqiong stepped aside and introduced, "Senior Xin, this is Qi Gui."

"Qi Gui, don't be afraid, Senior Xin is a very good person."

Qi Gui sized up Xin Xuan, who wasn't emitting any malice. He had just sensed a terrifying suppressive aura emanating from Xin Xuan.