Five Miles of Fog (Part 1)

Chapter Eleven

The flamboyant young master named Lou Xia never appeared again, but he sent a waiter to bring up a large table of delicacies. Xie Yuan's eyes almost lit up when she saw the full six dishes and soup.

"Young Master Song, these crystal shrimp are delicious, you should try them!"

"This steamed sugar-coated cheese is also quite good!"

"And cherry meat..."

"........"

As the saying goes, those who achieve great things must not only be highly efficient in carrying out tasks, but also possess excellent observation skills, so that they can achieve merit for their masters ahead of everyone else.

Lou Xia peered through the crack in the hidden door, squinting as she made her difficult observation.

He was too blind to notice anything particularly different about his master, but the girl's gaze towards him was not like that of someone she admired. Yet, she clearly cared for him, even serving him so much food.

Someone with the cultivation level of the Lord would have already abstained from grains long ago, and as far as he knew, the Lord basically had no appetite. In any case, he had never seen the Lord eat anything. Seeing that the Lord's bowl was almost piled up like a small mountain, he probably thought that the Lord would not eat the things that girl gave him.

The Lord may appear cold-hearted and ruthless, even more so towards others, but he cherishes his master immensely.

Although the girl looks a lot like her master, the master is definitely a person who can distinguish right from wrong, and no matter how similar they are, she is just a substitute.

Lou Xia silently analyzed the situation while wiping the sweat from her brow with her sleeve. The air in this secret space was indeed a bit stuffy, but upon seeing what was happening before her, her mouth gaped open in an "O" shape, and she muttered softly, "It seems the weather is about to change in the spring..."

To be honest, I didn't see any real romantic tension between them.

But he could see something.

The Lord did indeed listen to that girl...

"Is it tasty?"

"Um."

"Then try this one."

"good."

"How about this one?"

"Can."

"........"

Xie Yuan seemed to enjoy feeding the animals even more than she did herself, and kept reminding them, "Don't waste food."

Song Ling ignored her, but he slowly and methodically ate everything she put on his plate.

Compared to Xie Yuan, who ate heartily without caring about her image, Song Ling ate with great care and attention, chewing slowly and deliberately, displaying the refined and aloof demeanor of a noble young master, with an innate air of elegance.

Xie Yuan was very open-minded. As long as her apprentice brought honor to the family, she, as the master, didn't need to stick to the old ways.

Unfortunately, she still had no clue why she had suddenly been reborn.

She also sensed that there was more to the story than met the eye regarding the bandit stronghold.

While searching for Song Ling, she discovered a cellar in one of the rooms, filled with human bones, mostly those of girls with slender skeletons. Without exception, they were all missing the middle part of their skulls, with clean, smooth cuts about the size of a bowl. This was definitely not just a simple case of trafficking girls; it seemed more like a pre-operative ritual required for some kind of evil magic. However, she wasn't quite sure what kind it was.

You can't just ask Song Ling directly; that would be too easy to expose her "ulterior motives."

Xie Yuan's eyes flickered, glancing at him every now and then, as if the words "I have designs on you" were written all over her face.

Song Ling ignored the girl's obvious thoughts, pretending not to know, and remained calm and composed.

My master's personality is still the same. When she lies, she has eight hundred little tricks. I don't know how she is with others, but she can never hide it from him.

In her past life, she spent a third of her time by his side, but as she grew older, he gradually became dissatisfied and even began to feel jealous.

The outside world she spoke of, her carefree life in the martial world with her old friends, her life practicing martial arts with her master while listening to the rain in the bamboo forest...

But all of that was before he was born; before he even came into this world. Why should those people be able to participate in most of her life?

The dead were right; he was a born destructive psychopath, a complete monster. He only found pleasure in watching others struggle and suffer, and the pain he derived from their death.

But then someone else came along who could bring him even more pleasure.

She said she came for him...

"Young Master Song, where shall we go next?"

Xie Yuan decided to take the initiative and inquire about the situation. Given her identity, her elopement would likely cause Dongling great anxiety, and they would send people to catch her sooner or later. Moreover, her elopement partner was that elusive young master of Nanjiang.

Today, the world is divided into four kingdoms.

The rise of the Southern Frontier has instilled fear in all three kingdoms.

Xie Yuan had long held a bad attitude towards Southern Xinjiang. Although her little apprentice was from Southern Xinjiang, it didn't stop her from disliking that place, since the suffering her little apprentice had endured was caused by them.

She couldn't even imagine being thrown into the Ten Thousand Gu Cave, a place teeming with insects and snakes, just one month after her birth. Even a normal person would have turned evil by then, let alone attribute this to some ridiculous plot.

Xie Yuan remembered that a severe plague had once occurred in the southern border region, which killed almost everyone. The few survivors either fled or stayed behind. She and her little apprentice found a mountain and went into seclusion as agreed.

"Jingzhou City".

"Is it also for your mission?"

"Um."

"Given my current status, it would be troublesome to expose myself in Bei Zhao. The Eastern Mausoleum Princess has secretly come here; the Bei Zhao royal family will find out sooner or later. Then I'll be arrested and sent back, and no one will play with you anymore..."

Xie Yuan blinked her eyes, like butterflies fluttering into his gaze, and it was clear at a glance that she had come up with some mischievous idea again.

Song Ling raised an eyebrow, signaling her to finish speaking.

“So, of course we have to hide our identities!” Xie Yuan smiled gently, her bright eyes sparkling. “I’ve already decided that, given our ages, being siblings or brother and sister would be the most suitable!”

"Let's play rock-paper-scissors, whoever wins decides, okay?"

Xie Yuan was determined to win the game of rock-paper-scissors with Song Ling. She had only lost to Song Ling two or three times before, and she had won almost every time they played after that.

Lou Xia's understanding of the Lord was completely overturned by listening to their conversation.

No, he needs to calm down; he's completely lost.

Lou Xia simply sat down with her back to the hidden door. Hearing such an absurd and childish request as rock-paper-scissors, even a three-year-old might not be able to play it.

His master said, "Alright."

Lou Xia: "???"

Xie Yuan said enthusiastically, "Then let's get started! One sentence will decide the winner!"

"Rock, paper, scissors!"

The cloth produced by Xie Yuan.

Song Ling threw a punch.

As expected, she won again!

Xie Yuan was so happy she could hardly stop smiling. "Young Master Song, in order for us to adapt to our new identities as quickly as possible, from today onwards you will call me 'sister,' and I will call you 'A-Ling,' how about that? We're siblings, it's normal to be affectionate, don't you think?"

Xie Yuan tried her best to persuade him, saying that she had never heard her little apprentice call her "sister" before, and she had to seize this opportunity.

"good."

Xie Yuan had thought it would take some persuasion to convince him, but she was surprised that Song Ling agreed so easily. She was stunned.

"real?"

"Um."

"When did you become so easy to talk to? Are you planning something bad?"

"That........"

Xie Yuan quickly spoke first, "It's settled then. Come on, call me 'sister' first." She didn't care anymore; it would be foolish not to take advantage of a good deal. Whether he tricked her or not, she could worry about that later. If he regretted it tomorrow, she wouldn't lose out.

Lou Xia scrambled to his feet and peered through the crack again: Could the Lord really tolerate this?! Isn't this obviously a joke?

Song Ling narrowed his eyes and met her expectant gaze. He smiled faintly before asking seriously, "Sister, are you satisfied?"

This call really hit Xie Yuan hard. She'd really gotten herself into trouble. Her face flushed slightly, and she pinched her cheek, muttering softly, "Such a sweet voice, I wonder which little girl will get lucky with it..."

——

As dusk settled, snow fell on the long street.

After dinner, they walked towards Cangyue's clinic while digesting their food.

The two, dressed in identical red outfits, looked exceptionally well-matched as their silhouettes receded into the night.

Lou Xia watched the two leave from outside the door until their figures completely disappeared before turning away.

Song Ling held up an oil-paper umbrella, subtly tilting the canopy towards the girl beside her.

"Ah Ling, I remember the first time I saw you in the bandit stronghold, I think I saw a little bell on your braid. Why don't you wear it anymore?"

Xie Yuan ran out of the umbrella, put her hands behind her back, and walked backwards while asking him questions.

Outside the umbrella, snowflakes fluttered down. Song Ling, holding the umbrella, gazed at her from afar through the snow curtain, her hand gripping the umbrella handle slightly tighter.

Master, it's been a long time...

Xie Yuan had her reasons for asking that question.

In the story, the main villain has only one surname, Song, and no given name. The name Ling was given to him by her, which is a homonym for "bell".

I give you a bell, each step you take rings, each step you take brings a thought.

Song has no home, so she hopes that Song Ling will have one.

And she was willing to be the place that carried his longing.

May you have no worries and be happy every year.

She made a bell herself, intending to give it to him as a birthday gift for his ninth birthday.

But in the end, he was unable to give this gift in person.

The bell she received when they first met was not the one she intended to give him as a gift.

Song Ling smiled faintly at her, his eyes filled with sorrow and grief, but he quickly regained his composure in an instant. His voice was cold and restrained, with a hint of bitterness and resentment. "That day was the anniversary of my master's death."

Xie Yuan almost slipped and fell flat on her face when she heard him say that.

"...the anniversary of your death. I'm sorry, I've brought up something painful again."

Look at her mouth, what nonsense she's spouting. Xie Yuan obediently shut up and silently retreated under his umbrella.

It turns out that the day they reunited was the anniversary of her death, an anniversary she herself didn't remember, but he remembered it so clearly.

So he wore that bell to commemorate her...

Seeing an object reminds you of someone; if you had to carry it with you every day, it would definitely make him miserable.

Her little apprentice wasn't as clingy to her before; she was usually the one searching for him all over the mountains and fields.

Later, to make it easier to find him, she took it upon herself to braid a braid into his beautiful black hair, and tied a crooked bow at the end with a red string, with a small bell at the tip.

The wind blows, and the bells ring.

That way, no matter where he runs, she can find him by following his voice, and she won't have to worry about him getting lost in the woods.

“My master said that if I missed her, I should remember to ring the bell and she would find me by following the sound of the bell. Later, I rang the bell many times, but my master never found me again.”

His voice was very soft, clearly without much emotional fluctuation, yet it made the listener clearly feel the indescribable bitterness.

Xie Yuan felt a buzzing in her ears, and an indescribable feeling spread deep in her heart, as if she were being choked and pulled, which was very uncomfortable.

I feel a deep bitterness that I cannot express.

"Ah Ling, she must miss you a lot too."

Xie Yuan couldn't help but gently take his hand, which was hanging by his side, and squeezed his cold fingertips in a comforting way.

These were words she wanted to say to him herself.