Chapter 212 On the Road AAA Professional Corpse Disposal Xia
They have always respected each other.
This respect isn't the distant politeness between strangers, but rather a transformation from initial caution to current tacit understanding. Because they know each other so well, they understand what makes each other most comfortable.
Just as when Qiao Yanshen was unwilling to talk, Shen Lixia would not press her for answers.
Shen Lixia knew that if she wanted to, she would naturally tell her.
The sense of security that Qiao Yanshen gave her was unparalleled and unique.
However, this sense of security has recently been shattered, and she is burning with anxiety, unable to resist asking further questions.
The other excuses were only half true; she was simply worried about Qiao Yanshen. Only after leaving the sect did Shen Lixia realize how much luck they had relied on to get to where they were today.
don't want......
Don't leave her.
It wasn't just Qiao Yan who was deeply afraid...
Shen Lixia also missed and longed for her day and night.
How could we suddenly become so distant?
She refused to speak to her senior sister and threw a tantrum. Shen Lixia knew that this was just her hoping that Qiao Yanshen would allow her to go with him, and she also knew that her stubbornness was unreasonable.
But what if Qiao Yanshen agrees?
Even if she disagreed, if she spoke a few more softly and gently, Shen Lixia would probably waver just like last night and eventually stop sulking.
That's really bad.
A simple "thank you" felt more distant than when they first met.
She wasn't that angry, but Qiao Yanshen took the initiative to step back—
They retreated the entire distance of the Nine Realms.
Ah, avoidant.
Shen Lixia lowered her eyes, and in that instant, a thousand thoughts turned into one sentence: "...You're too kind."
They fell silent, saying nothing more. Simmons, listening nearby, sensed something was amiss, but dismissed it as a lighthearted squabble between the two, and didn't think much of it, grabbing the last piece of cake from Su Jiang's bowl.
Just as she was feeling wronged, Shen Lixia suddenly heard a commotion coming from a table to the side. Then she felt a warmth in her palm as a pale red light drifted over from there.
They were the small birds formed from her spiritual energy that she had released earlier.
Ordinary people cannot see this faint spiritual energy. Shen Lixia released it only for surveillance purposes, to prevent these sneaky people from plotting against the caravan. Although the spiritual energy is weak, if injected into the body properly, it is enough to cause an ordinary person's meridians to burst.
...This was something Qiao Yanshen had told her.
The others quickly noticed them as well. The group was dressed strangely, with a rather affected air, and their faces were haphazardly smeared with rouge and powder.
Shen Lixia frowned, thinking that people here no longer dress like this or wear such heavy makeup. Even if they wanted to pretend to be women, they should at least do some research, instead of just following their own wild imaginations.
Besides, it's still winter.
Amidst the clamor of voices, the group ate their meal, uttering mostly vulgarities and complaining that the innkeeper thought they couldn't do the heavy work and were too slow. Their loud conversation made it easy for Shen Lixia to listen closely.
"Once we follow this caravan into the southern country, we'll quickly draw up a map. At that point, breaking through the defenses will be a piece of cake."
"Don't make it sound so easy. The terrain before entering the Southern Kingdom is complicated, and the border defenses have been extremely tight lately. Who knows what other tricks they might have up their sleeves? Sigh, let's just sneak in first!"
During the conversation, Shen Lixia gained a general understanding of the current situation in the Southern Kingdom.
After ascending the throne, the young emperor massacred all the men in the country, clearing the name of the wronged ruler. Besides restoring faith in the Vermilion Bird, she also strictly forbade any man from approaching the Southern Kingdom. Stabilizing the situation was no easy task; the Southern Kingdom was still in the process of recovery and building its defenses when it was targeted. Several men said she was ruthless, even monstrous, and seemed to want to devour people. People from other countries, hearing this, naturally couldn't bear it and wanted to act on behalf of Heaven, to punish the tyrant and overthrow the tyranny.
Given Qin Shiying's temperament, he might very well start cursing in court if he heard that.
See, when it comes to spreading rumors, they're the ones who really know how to do it.
They easily concealed themselves, shifted the blame, and completely forgot that given the opportunity, they would have done things a thousand times worse.
This is still Qingzhou, and Ba Gang has only been free from suffering for a few years.
The bloody sins will forever be branded upon them.
This creature is born with defects, but a barrel of oil can buy them off. They love each other and so much, so why can't we wipe them out in one fell swoop?
Shen Lixia seemed to be deep in thought.
She winked at the others, ordered a few more dishes, and slowly started cooking them. Su Jiang, being a Garan, was still at an age where she was growing. Although she was full, she could still eat. When she saw the tender slices of meat bubbling up in the pot, she couldn't help but reach for her chopsticks.
She can't eat spicy food and needs to be rinsed in plain water. Simmons wanted to try and take it from her again, but she was already tired of it, so she just rolled her eyes and gave up.
Shen Lixia poked a piece of milk cake with a skewer and held it to her lips, saying, "You're always targeting the kids."
“She’s heartless, eating and drinking for free the whole way without helping at all.” Simmons bit into a milk cake and mumbled, “I know you’re going to say I was also freeloading. To be honest, I don’t have much goodwill with the Kingdom of Galan, so I don’t like people from there.”
She spoke frankly, which made Su Jiang's eyes darken. She didn't refute her, but just ate in silence.
This directness is better than indifference from the shadows.
She had tried to improve her relationship with Simmons, but aside from their tacit understanding on the night Emperor Taihui was kidnapped, the two rarely interacted closely, let alone had private conversations. She hadn't even reached the point of daring to knock on Simmons' door.
She went, but each time she returned empty-handed.
This woman, who appears carefree on the surface, actually has a heart that is hard to warm.
Yet she was so familiar with the ancient medical techniques of Garan.
Some of the prescriptions were difficult even for her to memorize, but the woman could do them skillfully with the help of hints; occasionally, a corner of her bandage would loosen, revealing the crystal-clear and blood-red stitches, like a small dragon coiling on her light wheat-colored skin.
Everything about her bears the mark of Garan.
have……
The lingering aura of the previous saintess.
It lingers, a haunting spirit.
The Buddha said, "If you cannot obtain what you desire, then let it go."
She put down her chopsticks, her jumbled thoughts suddenly brought back to her senses by Shen Lixia's voice.
"They've finished eating. Let's go, chase after them."
The boy stood up, narrowed his bright eyes, and smiled brightly.
"Consider it repaying a favor to our princess." Although she should be called emperor now.
The few thin men, having eaten and drunk their fill, swaggered out, their thin heels clattering loudly on the ground. They were heading back to the caravan, the leader still recounting the intelligence they had gleaned.
Just as it was about to open its mouth to scold the shopkeeper after finishing speaking, everything suddenly went black.
The world spun around me, and in the blink of an eye I felt myself being pulled in by a force, forced to shrink into a cramped space with my feet pressed against the cold ground.
—It was put into a sack and tied up tightly.
The other person strolled along leisurely, amidst the lively sounds of the crowd. Someone nearby asked, "Is it the Year of the Pig?"
It wanted to cry for help, but then it heard another person ask, "Is the horse fanned? I can take the knife."
The boy dragging it laughed and said, "No need, it's a sick pig, it'll be slaughtered soon."
When it reached a secluded spot, it finally stopped. An opening appeared, and it was finally able to catch its breath, sweating profusely, as it tried to crawl out of the sack.
A pair of golden, leopard-like eyes suddenly came into view, coldly gazing down at it. Immediately, several more sacks were thrown over; hearing the commotion inside, it turned out to be the same people who had been with it.
They were all bruised and battered, their breathing weak. The man was horrified. His eyes trembled as he looked around and barely spotted one that seemed easy to talk to. He tried to wriggle over and beg for mercy.
The next moment, its hand was pinned to the ground by a tree branch. The branch was extremely sharp and cold, and the blood did not flow out but instead congealed near the wound.
"Oh my!"
Simmons clicked his tongue, "The life of a tree branch is also a life."
Qiao Yanshen said calmly, "I don't want to use a sword."
"So, what brings you here?" Shen Lixia crouched down and asked with a smile, "Who sent you?"
"I--"
"So you're planning to attack the Southern Kingdom? By the way, if you don't tell the truth, your tongue is useless. I wouldn't mind cutting it off. After all, you have too many unnecessary things to worry about, don't you?" Shen Lixia said casually.
The man's face turned ashen, and he immediately realized that they had overheard most of their conversation. Then, with a whoosh, the woman in front of him actually pulled out a dagger.
The knife tip pressed against my chin, a sudden chill followed by a searing pain.
A small piece of flesh hung from its jaw, dripping blood, not yet completely cut off. She acted without hesitation, clearly not intending to use gentle methods.
"You, you..." The man was unable to move and could only speak in despair, "Buddha, the Buddhist sect has issued an order to take the map of the Southern Kingdom, saying that the World Honored One will join forces with the Emperor to seize this precious land that rightfully belongs to them."
It swallowed hard. "It's still in the planning stage, that's about it..."
Before it could finish speaking, it was stomped on, its face sank into the ground and scraped, letting out a heart-wrenching scream.
"World Honored One...World Honored One?" Su Jiang stepped on its head, clenching her fist. "You bastard! The World Honored One is a woman, how dare you even approach her?"
In a fit of anger, she calmed down and, with Shen Lixia's permission, began punching and kicking the man. The sack between them made it less unpleasant.
After a while, they walked out of the alley, behind them was a clean and tidy place, and the faint smell of burning quickly dissipated.
The situation isn't dire now; the map project has fallen through, so it seems that group's preparations were nothing more than a makeshift operation. Since Su Jiang wasn't familiar with these matters, the discussion was limited to the three of them.
Finally, Shen Lixia decided to write a letter to Qin Shiying to tell her about the situation and remind her to be careful.
She thought for a moment and wrote "A friend far away" at the end of the letter. Presumably, Qin Shiying would understand who it was just by looking at the handwriting; there was no need to specify, lest someone worry and leak the contents.
After finishing these matters, they rode off on horseback. They changed carriages midway, and for a long distance, Shen Lixia leaned against the side out of boredom, while Su Jiang and Xi Mengsi, though they didn't get along, unconsciously leaned against each other in their drowsiness.
Shen Lixia pursed her lips and secretly glanced at Qiao Yanshen.
At this moment, only the two of them are awake, and they are sitting on the same side.
The atmosphere became subtle again.
The carriage jolted, and the young man's eyes were slightly closed, a sliver of cold, deep blue light appearing and disappearing in the distance. Her long, silky hair swayed gently, her hands folded on her thighs, resting on a thin book, as if she were dozing.
The sky outside the window was as white as cold jade, its light so pale and colorless. Yet even this light, falling upon her calm eyes, seemed to soften somewhat.
The yellowed paper rustled slightly in the incoming wind, and Qiao Yanshen shifted his fingertips, pressing down on the corner of the page.
She wasn't reading a book, but she also didn't look at Shen Lixia.
Shen Lixia looked at her, and before she knew it, she was tired of looking at her. They had gotten up early, and now the carriage was quiet. After getting used to the bumpy ride, she was not so dizzy, but only slightly sleepy.
When she felt sleepy, she couldn't help but want to talk to Qiao Yanshen. She wanted to be close to him like before, her lips trembling, her mind hazy, not even knowing what she was saying... but she would smile softly and involuntarily.
It doesn't matter what nonsense you spout, even just repeating "I like it" over and over again.
Perhaps, I was just too willful...
A moment later, Qiao Yanshen felt a weight on his shoulder.
She slightly raised her eyes and saw the boy with his eyes closed, leaning against her as usual. His soft eyelashes trembled, but quickly calmed down along with his breathing.
Like a butterfly finally landing, folding its shimmering wings, it rests only in her palm.
Qiao Yanshen sighed softly, adjusted his position, and carefully pulled Shen Lixia closer to his chest, his hands resting on her hair.
She glanced at the storybook on her lap.
I bought the sequel to the book my junior sister had kept under her pillow last time because I was worried she'd get bored on the journey, but it seems I won't need it now.
Qiao Yanshen remained silent for a while. The pale light from outside shone through the curtains, and at that moment, his dark eyes appeared an extremely bright blue, crystal clear like a pair of ice beads.
She composed herself, closed her eyes and then opened them again, and the color faded.
However, her face had become a little paler.
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Author's note: The reason I wrote this is because there will be a part of the story about the extermination of V (lol) and the Southern Kingdom.
If you haven't criticized V harshly enough, let me know and I'll criticize him even harsher. (Hey!)
Incidentally...
Feel free to leave any comments, I really don't mind, TvT readers and moms...!!
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