Chapter 82 The Way to Eat Flowers

Jing Qianheng took off his coat and lay down on her bed. He seemed to have been there for quite a while. He got up and walked towards her, his tone calm, but there was no smile on his face. "Why are you sighing?"

Jiang Zhishui hadn't done anything wrong, but she felt inexplicably guilty being stared at by him and unconsciously looked away.

She put down her cup, lowered her eyes, and tapped her fingers twice on the table.

"I...missed you." Jiang Zhishui glanced at him quickly, then lowered her head shyly.

Jing Qianheng was taken aback, and said softly, "I thought... you had left."

Jiang Zhishui asked, "Where can I go?"

Jing Qianheng stepped forward, gently embraced her, and said, "I went to the Purple Sun Immortal Abode."

"Oh, then why didn't you take me with you?" Jiang Zhishui hugged his waist back. "Did Senior Brother give you a hard time?"

Jiang Zhishui patted him gently, comforting him, "Don't be angry with him. Senior brother is just a little worried, after all that has happened. With Senior Sister Liu here, senior brother will figure it out soon."

Feeling him hug her even tighter, Jiang Zhishui smiled and said, "Did you miss me too? You're hugging me so tightly."

Jing Qianheng released her, stared at her face, and said uneasily, "Don't smile, I'm scared."

Jiang Zhishui immediately pursed her lips, her face serious, "Okay, I won't smile."

Jing Qianheng stared at her for a while. Jiang Zhishui suppressed her burgeoning smile and put on a very cooperative expression. He frowned and asked, "Why are you being so obedient?"

"Isn't it better to be obedient?" Jiang Zhishui said with a stern face. "I have always respected your opinions. I will give you whatever you want, and what you asked for is not a difficult thing."

Jing Qianheng looked away unhappily and casually asked, "Where are Li Mo and that fox?"

Jiang Zhishui followed Jing Qianheng's gaze to the courtyard and asked, "Isn't he here? I didn't notice."

Jing Qianheng looked down at her feigned confusion. "You haven't mentioned going back lately?"

Jiang Zhishui looked at him and said gently, "I know you don't like me talking about these things. Every time we talk about it, you get angry, and I don't want you to be unhappy."

Jing Qianheng stared at her intently.

Jiang Zhishui lowered her head and reached out to tug at his fingers. "Have you been waiting for me for a long time?"

She had been out all day, and now the sun had set. It was dusk, and the room was rather dark as there were no candles lit yet.

Jiang Zhishui was exhausted from the torment of the Yin Emperor Gu. She rested her forehead against his chest and said in a tired voice, "I'm so tired."

Jing Qianheng held her shoulder and asked gently, "What's wrong? Are you feeling unwell?"

When Jing Qianheng returned, he found the house empty. He had thought she might have left, but he still forced himself to remain calm and went to her room to check.

Seeing that the things were still there, he couldn't feel at ease. She had been kidnapped; there was nothing here worth taking with her.

Thinking about what Lin Ye had said and his own insistence, he didn't know whether he should continue to force her.

Jing Qianheng lay on her bed, his mind in turmoil. He wanted to rush out and find her, but he also thought that perhaps letting her go was the right thing to do.

But she came back.

Jing Qianheng said in a low voice, "Look up, let me see."

Jiang Zhishui pressed herself against his chest and gently shook her head.

Jing Qianheng said patiently, "Are you hungry? I'll cook some porridge for you."

"I'm not hungry, don't bother, I... I want to stay with you." Jiang Zhishui's voice was muffled. "I didn't know before that smelling someone's scent could make someone so weak. Qianheng, did you put some kind of sleeping potion on you?"

Jing Qianheng remained silent.

Jiang Zhishui smiled slightly, gently grasped his collar, and looked up, saying, "Your heartbeat is so loud."

Jing Qianheng's cheeks flushed slightly. His gaze had only shifted for a moment when he couldn't bear to look away and immediately returned, his eyes fixed on her face without missing an inch.

When she smiled, her eyes sparkled with a playful smile, and her slightly upturned eyelashes swept across the room with just the right amount of tenderness, making one's heart itch with desire.

Afraid of doing something wrong again, Jing Qianheng said in a slightly hoarse voice, "I told you not to laugh."

Jiang Zhishui said, feeling wronged, "Do I look ugly when I smile?"

Jing Qianheng released his grip on her shoulders and stepped back.

Jiang Zhishui grabbed his collar; he took a step back, and she took a step forward, trying to press herself against him. "You're strange sometimes, you know?"

Jiang Zhishui lowered her voice: "They either cling to me like crazy, or they avoid me like the plague."

As she approached, Jing Qianheng's Adam's apple bobbed nervously, his eyelashes trembled, and he said awkwardly, "Last time..."

Jiang Zhishui had only not seen him for a few days, and she never expected that she would miss him so much.

She wandered around the empty house, feeling terribly depressed. Seeing the black chicken Li Mo lazily sunbathing under a tree, she felt a little resentful and took it outside for some fresh air.

And then those other things happened when I went out.

She wasn't worried about the Yin Emperor Gu, nor was she afraid of Pei Jing's threats; her mind was filled with Jing Qianheng.

I don't know if I'm possessed or bewitched, but I think about him all the time and really want to see him.

I finally saw him, touched him, and smelled his scent. My anxious mood of the past few days calmed down instantly. That sense of security made me feel weak all over, and I wanted to lean on him.

Jiang Zhishui frowned and stared at him. As he continued, his breathing hitched slightly, and he said softly, "...Weren't you afraid when I treated you like that last time?"

"..." Jiang Zhishui's expression froze, and the fingers that were tightly gripping his clothes slowly loosened. She looked away awkwardly, speechless for a moment.

"I've been thinking a lot lately about you and me. I want to be with you forever, Qianheng."

Jing Qianheng stared into her eyes. "And then you're going to tell me you can't, right?"

Jing Qianheng had always known that they would have to face those unspoken issues sooner or later.

"No," Jiang Zhishui paused before saying, "I need to leave for a while. Can you wait for me?"

Jing Qianheng asked, "How long do we have to wait?"

"Wait...it won't be long. That golden feather needs to be returned. You followed me here without permission, and your body is already..."

"I understand that you often hide your condition from me, but... this can't go on forever."

"So, the only way right now is for me to take the Golden Feather and go back to my original world first, while you stay here and wait for me to come back."

Jiang Zhishui herself knew that these words would hardly convince him. After she finished speaking, she lowered her head, took Jing Qianheng's hand, and walked towards the bed.

Given Jing Qianheng's previous temper, he should have lost his temper long ago, but he didn't; he was unusually quiet.

Jing Qianheng let her lead him as he sat on the bed, looking dazed.

Jiang Zhishui stroked his fingers and asked softly, "Why aren't you saying anything?"

Jing Qianheng's eyes flickered slightly as he watched her hands restlessly rubbing his fingers. His gaze slowly moved upwards to look at her face.

Jiang Zhishui lowered her eyes, her gaze fixed on his hand, unconsciously stroking and rubbing it, unaware that he had already looked over.

Jing Qianheng suddenly hooked her finger around his own, his voice low and deep: "What if you never come back?"

Jiang Zhishui looked up in surprise, "I don't know how..."

"Can you guarantee that?" Jing Qianheng immediately interrupted her. "You're not sure yourself, are you?"

Jiang Zhishui was caught off guard and turned away slightly, instinctively wanting to escape, but Jing Qianheng grabbed her hand and forced her to face him.

Jing Qianheng gripped her wrist tightly. "You said last time that if you were to leave, you would take me with you."

“I did say that, but your current physical condition means you can’t come back with me.” Jiang Zhishui said worriedly, “Do you think I don’t know how many times you’ve coughed up blood? Relying on your magic to hold on like this isn’t a solution. You might not feel anything now, but if it happens again, I’m afraid you won’t be able to handle it.”

Jing Qianheng's face showed panic, but he stubbornly said, "I'm fine, I'm alright!"

Jiang Zhishui looked at him quietly, without giving in.

Jing Qianheng's clenched grip suddenly loosened, and he held her hand loosely, looking completely bewildered.

Jing Qianheng said unwillingly, "What if I don't agree?"

He paused, frowned, and asked, "Why didn't you leave without telling me like last time? Why are you trying to reason with me so nicely? Since you're not going to listen to me and have already made up your mind, you didn't have to tell me. You could have just left me behind."

Jiang Zhishui said sincerely, "I was wrong last time. I didn't realize my true feelings then, I only thought of myself and didn't consider you. It was my fault. But this time is different. I don't want to abandon you. I am..."

"I want to be with you forever." Jiang Zhishui leaned closer to Jing Qianheng and whispered, "Qianheng, I love you, I want you. Even if your destined one appears in the future, I will not give you up."

Jing Qianheng didn't understand what she was saying, but he was touched by her words of liking her, and his eyes changed.

Jiang Zhishui had said she liked him several times, but it was all empty talk and lies. She said whatever she wanted, and he could tell how much of it was genuine and how much was fake.

In the past, the lies told with feigned affection, though they didn't make me feel good, at least sounded nice.

But now, she only utters her heartfelt words of love when they are about to part, making it all the more agonizing for the listener.

Jing Qianheng didn't want to be bewitched by her, so he quickly pushed her hand away and stepped back a little.

He was afraid that he wouldn't be able to hold on and would be fooled again.

"Oh, wait a minute." Jiang Zhishui thought of something to coax him, got up and ran out, took out the red berries she had hidden earlier from the kitchen, and a few small red flowers. "I went to pick the berries and ran into Aunt Wu... Aunt Wu. She said these flowers are edible. I tasted them, and the honey inside is very sweet. You should try some."

Jing Qianheng reached out and took the small red flower she offered. He twirled the flower and asked, "What do you mean by 'destined person'?"

Jiang Zhishui also had a flower in her mouth, and was about to demonstrate to Jing Qianheng how to eat it when Jing Qianheng looked at her and said, "So you're saying that my destined person isn't you, but someone else, and you already knew that, which is why you never paid any attention to me before, right?"

"..." Jiang Zhishui gently bit the petal, her eyes widening slightly.

Jing Qianheng chuckled, stood up and walked towards her. He put his arm around her waist, pulled her into his arms, and opened his mouth to bite the little flower on her lips.

Jiang Zhishui's mouth was half-bitten by the flower, and she quickly let go, reminding, "Wait, that's not how you eat it, um!"

Without a word, Jing Qianheng silenced her with a kiss, tearing a small flower to pieces with bites and nibbles. The remaining juice seeped from her lips, which he gently licked, not missing a single drop.