Chapter 69 What does Song Mian's manly scent smell like?

"My family was in Rongdu. Our family suffered a tragedy. My mother, pregnant with my father and me, was exiled to Lingnan. My father was beaten to death, and my mother jumped into the river. If I stayed in Lingnan, I would have to spend my whole life clearing wasteland and farming, living in constant darkness, toiling away until I died and no one would know. Those on the list of refugees are not pardoned and cannot leave their place of exile, but people are treated like dirt. If someone dies or goes missing, no one will really investigate. Besides, I was born in Lingnan; I wasn't originally on the list of refugees..."

One day, I went to Laoshan to reclaim wasteland. I hid in a cave for several days, making people think I had accidentally fallen down the mountain. Once the storm had passed, I escaped in the dark. I had never left Lingnan in my teens, and once I left the city, I didn't know where to go. I wandered aimlessly to Tangshui City and was tricked by Hu Xian... onto a boat..."

Xiao Ma, confident in his intelligence, spoke with a hint of regret about being deceived. He then added, "I sensed something was wrong halfway there, knowing I'd probably been tricked. Since I was on a pirate ship, I couldn't act rashly. When we reached Canglang Island, I knew that even if I stubbornly refused to go ashore, I wouldn't have a good ending going back; I'd definitely be silenced halfway there. So I stayed on the island..."

"Let's wait and see, and leave when the opportunity arises." Feng Shisan clicked his tongue; even though he was mingling with everyone, he still wanted to act superior.

“When my father was alive, his greatest wish was to return to Rongdu and clear the name of our family. I want to walk the path he didn’t finish, and I want to do the things he didn’t accomplish.” Xiao Ma didn’t care about the implication in Feng Shisan’s words.

"We're the same, aren't we?" Feng Shisan said, sounding a little thirsty, and picked up his water bowl to take a sip.

“I’m not like you,” Xiao Ma interrupted. “You have no one to turn to for justice, but I…”

Feng Shisan immediately got angry, slammed down the large bowl, and raised his little finger at Xiao Ma, "Then why don't you go to the yamen and beat the drum? Go, or you'll be this."

"I will definitely go!" Xiao Ma had never been so confident.

Ji Fang looked around, hesitated, and then timidly asked, "Thirteenth Young Master's father accepted bribes. Little Ma, what trouble has befallen your family?"

"My home..." Xiao Ma hesitated, then stopped.

"The Ma family is loyal and righteous, what wrong have they done? How could they wrongly accuse us of minting counterfeit copper coins!"

The words of his mother's grief and indignation echoed in Xiao Ma's ears. He glanced at the faces of his companions beside him. This was a terrible injustice, a disaster that even someone like his grandfather couldn't bear. What could these people beside him possibly do to help? It was pointless to say anything more, so Xiao Ma shook his head self-deprecatingly and looked up at the sky, saying, "It's not that I don't believe you, but saying it would only add to the trouble. Ji Fang, do you still want to sleep?"

Ji Fang stuck out his tongue and said, "Although I am not very brave, I am not afraid of trouble. If there is anything I can do for you in the future, I, Ji Fang, will never refuse."

“You’re not just timid,” Feng Shisan chuckled again. “You’re incredibly timid. Last time at your house, we were just talking about something, and you tossed and turned for half the night, not closing your eyes until dawn, right?”

The crowd burst into laughter, and the tense atmosphere suddenly relaxed. Ji Fang was not embarrassed at all and laughed along with everyone. Guan Ye pulled Ji Fang's still-healing white hand over and said, "If you ask me, the bravest person here is Ji Fang. Disarming a weapon with bare hands, which one of you can do that?"

Ji Fang looked at Guan Ye gratefully, "I'm very scared, but I'm even more afraid that something will happen to Cang Yu. I'll be so scared that I can't sleep if any of you get into trouble."

After listening to the group talk about landing on the island, Lou Cangyu vaguely felt that something was wrong. "Guan Ye, you asked around, did you really just to hear this? You've really seen a ghost at the oil cake shop?"

“Originally… there was nothing left.” Guan Ye’s smile froze. The familiar face of Song Mian, who had been brought back to life, flashed before her eyes. Those left on Canglang Island were all forgotten by the world. No one cared whether they lived or died. They followed Xingguo Fang back to Rongdu, and no one questioned them. Just as Pei Chu had said: Go back to Rongdu and do what you want to do. Everyone on Canglang Island had sworn a blood oath. Knowing how to forge was as natural as a Confucian scholar knowing how to read. Guan Ye thought everyone could have a new beginning, until Song Mian appeared.

"I didn't see a ghost, I saw a person."

A person!? Lou Cangyu was slightly taken aback, lowered her eyebrows and pretended to be nonchalant, but her eyes kept stealing glances at Guan Ye's lips, wondering who she had seen.

“On the boat that Ajiu and I were on, there was a man who jumped into the sea. We thought he was going to die…” Guan Ye took a deep breath and looked at Ajiu. “With such big waves, how could he survive? Who knew, he didn’t die. At the oil cake shop… I saw him.”

Xiao Ma was just about to moisten his throat with the large bowl when he heard Guan Ye's words. He loosened his grip and the bowl fell to the ground, the sound of it shattering startling everyone. "You... Guan Ye, you've mistaken me for someone else. That sea stretches to the horizon, how could anyone possibly be alive?"

Ajiu's brows furrowed. "There's no mistake. I saw him too. His name is Song Mian. We were on the same ship for seven or eight days. It's him." Ajiu paused and then said, "Not only that, he had heard of Canglang Island and Xingguo Ward. When he learned that the ship was going to Canglang Island, he immediately jumped into the sea, saying that he would rather die than go."

“Then he’ll know that you and Guan Ye smuggled yourselves to the island, and now you two have come to Rongdu with Xingguofang…” Xiao Ma’s face turned red. “If he tells anyone… Xingguofang is a serious crime, and we… we…” Xiao Ma started to stammer in his anxiety. “Don’t even mention us, everyone will probably be in big trouble.”

Lou Cangyu tried his best to recall the glimpse of the oil cake shop assistant. He was covered in grease, thin and pale, and had been slapped so hard by the shopkeeper that he was completely disoriented. He didn't seem like the kind of person who could cause trouble... He stared at Guan Ye and clearly recognized her as an old friend. Xiao Ma was right. If this person were to spread the word about Guan Ye and A Jiu's background, it would definitely bring trouble to Xingguo Ward and even the entire Canglang Island.

"The first time I saw him, I was terrified," Guan Ye said with lingering fear. "At the time, I thought the same thing as Xiao Ma, but now that I've calmed down and thought about it again... Song Mian might not be what we were afraid of."

Lou Cangyu suppressed the turmoil in his heart and waited for Guan Ye to continue.

“Song Mian said his grandfather had been an official.” Guan Ye said, glancing at Feng Shisan. “His family suffered a misfortune and ended up on Hu Xian’s boat. Why would he rather die than go to Canglang Island? Because he still hoped that the emperor would grant a general amnesty and that he could return to his hometown one day. Judging from his appearance, he must have had a hard time these past few years. An official’s son, even in such a state of destitution, he still insists on staying in Rongdu. It seems that his obsession runs deep.”

Seeing that Xiao Ma remained silent, Guan Ye called out, "Xiao Ma, if you were him, would you report us to A Jiu and fight to the death if you encountered us?"

“No, not at all,” Xiao Ma blurted out. “If I have a goal, I will do my best to achieve it. This Song Mian should be exiled. Since he is on the list of refugees, he can only go back to the capital and hide his identity. Reporting you would be harmful to others and not beneficial to myself. I will not do such a thing.”

"So what would you do?" Guan Ye's big eyes sparkled.

Xiao Ma suddenly came to his senses, and his tense expression slowly relaxed. "Well, Guan Ye, you've gone around in circles and still managed to get something out of it. But we don't know what Song Mian is thinking, so we still need to be careful."

"After saying all that," Ji Fang asked curiously, "I think I understand now. You all traveled on the same boat. So who is that boatman named Hu Xian? Why would he be smuggling people for Xingguo Ward?"

Ajiu lowered her dark eyes and glanced at the bewildered faces of the group. "This is not something we can know. Perhaps we can only ask Steward Pei and the shop owner."

Ji Fang would rather avoid these two people than see them. If asked anything, Ji Fang would rather swallow pebbles.

Feng Shisan yawned. "Don't worry about tomorrow's problems today. Live one day at a time. Let's all go home. If the sky falls, I, Young Master Shisan, will hold it up. Why don't you go to sleep?"

Yawning seems to be contagious; Ji Fang's eyes also became glazed over. He got up and went to the east wing. Lou Cangyu wanted to ask a few more questions, but hesitated and swallowed them back. The name "Song Mian" lingered in his ears, giving rise to an inexplicable fear.

"They've all left, why aren't you going back yet?" Guan Ye tugged at the leaves behind her, her eyes downcast, not looking at A Jiu.

Ah Jiu leaned back against the tree trunk, moved closer to Guan Ye, and stretched out her hand. "I'm not sleepy, take your hand out."

Guan Ye suddenly clenched her left hand, which was wrapped in a handkerchief. Seeing her hesitation, A Jiu pulled her hand away and, by the light of the starlight, saw the bloodstains on the handkerchief. She then lovingly covered it with her palm. "It's my fault for not being by your side today. I let you, a woman, go and test the sword."

Guan Ye unwrapped the handkerchief and waved to A Jiu, "It was just cracked a few times, it's fine now. At least we know why our sword broke, so it was worth the bloodshed."

Ajiu took the handkerchief from her hand, unfolded it, gazed at it under the moonlight, then gently sniffed it. A hint of something in his eyes flashed across his face. He put one arm around Guan Ye's shoulder and pressed his forehead against her ear. "This handkerchief has a man's scent."

Guan Ye's ears itched from his hot breath, and a familiar tingling sensation rose throughout her body. "Manly scent? What does that smell like?"

Ah Jiu chuckled softly, pulling Guan Ye even closer, so close she was practically in his embrace, impossible to escape. "So...did you smell it? Did you smell it?"

Guan Yeru was like a little beast he had captured, stubbornly trying to escape. In the struggle, Ajiu simply wrapped his arms around her and hugged her, his dry lips lightly brushing against her forehead, "Can you smell it?"

Guan Ye didn't answer his question. She pressed her face against A Jiu's and stopped struggling. A Jiu threw the handkerchief aside, suppressed his deep breaths, and said with difficulty, "It's him?"

Guan Ye responded softly, "He really looks like you, but he is not you."

“I am Ajiu.” Ajiu rubbed her back. “There is only one Ajiu in the whole world, and that is the person in front of you. No matter how much he looks like me, he is not me.”

“Next time, I’ll take you to see him.” Guan Ye raised her eyes and stared at A Jiu’s brow bone. The scar twitched slightly due to suppressed desire. Guan Ye couldn’t help but press her lips to his. The sudden softness excited A Jiu, who couldn’t help but hug Guan Ye tighter.

"I can't breathe," Guan Ye said angrily, giving him a shove.

Ah Jiu took deep breaths of the night wind, and after a while, she calmed down. Reluctantly, she let go of Guan Ye's arms and leaned her back against the tree trunk.

“The east wing is right behind us, aren’t you afraid they’ll peek?” Guan Ye turned around and glanced back.

Ajiu didn't move. "They wouldn't dare."

Guan Ye picked up the handkerchief from the ground, dusted it off, and seeing A Jiu tilting her head and looking at her sideways, she casually put it into her sleeve. "Next time I see it, I'll wash it clean and return it to her."

“I didn’t say anything.” A-Jiu grinned. “What’s it to me?”

Guan Ye opened her mouth to him, revealing a set of white teeth. "Not only is my tiger's mouth split open, but he used such force with his sword that it loosened my teeth."

"Oh?" Ajiu laughed and straightened up, examining Guan Ye's teeth. "Let me see if they've fallen out." He pressed his face against hers, his dry lips about to touch her budding lips, but Guan Ye nimbly dodged. Ajiu missed again. The girl blushed, and Ajiu, not wanting her to think he was clueless, chuckled and stopped teasing her. His rough palms gently stroked her smooth cheeks. "We haven't even had our fried cakes yet, but we can't lose our teeth. That man is so inconsiderate. If there's a next time, I'll teach him a lesson."

"His name is... Mu Chenbi," Guan Ye said slowly, word by word.

Mu Chenbi. Ajiu's palm landed on Guan Ye's cheek.

"Have you heard of this person?" Guan Ye noticed Ajiu's stunned expression.

Ajiu shook her head. "We're new to Rongdu, how many people do we know? The names sound familiar, but I don't recognize them."

“A-Jiu…” Guan Ye suddenly remembered something and abruptly grabbed A-Jiu’s wrist. “Speaking of which, today… I think… I really saw a ghost.” Thinking of the horrifying parts, a chill ran down Guan Ye’s spine. “Song Mian appeared right in front of me, alive and well, in broad daylight. He could talk and move; he must be alive, but… there was another… another person… no… she wasn’t human… she… she…”

"Tell me slowly," Ajiu comforted her. "Who else did you see?" Ajiu tried her best to remember. "Lou Cangyu...you mean the person next to Lou Cangyu?"

Guan Ye nodded firmly, "The rain was too heavy, and although I couldn't see clearly, the person who escorted Lou Cangyu out... looked exactly like her."

Who does he look just like?