Chapter 56: The same thing I left for you, two different reactions. ...
Two reactions to the same thing.
Lu Qing had far less worldly experience than Yu Jitang, yet she was able to keenly perceive the absurdity of the situation. Yu Jitang, on the other hand, hadn't even considered that possibility.
Wu Chen couldn't help but sigh as he looked at Yu Jitang, thinking to himself how much effort Elder Yu had poured into raising this son into a divine servant. And this alliance with him—was it perhaps just to find a wet nurse for his son?
He reached out and patted Lu Qing's head. "Let's just say we're engaged, okay?"
Lu Qing was about to nod when she quickly shook her head. "I think I mentioned that you haven't come to propose marriage yet."
Qi Ying clicked his tongue in disbelief. It was hard to believe that the village man she was talking about was actually his father.
Wu Chen smiled, "I'll listen to you. Once things are settled here, I'll go to Medicine King Valley to propose marriage."
Lu Qing nodded.
Yu Jitang pressed on, "So what exactly did I say?"
Wu Chen straightened Lu Qing's cloak. "They have eyes, they can see for themselves. Let's all rest, we still have to travel west tomorrow."
Yu Jitang watched as Wu Chen cared for Lu Qing to sleep like a child, but didn't even bother to look at him. He felt a pang of resentment and muttered to himself, "What a friend who forgets his friends for a pretty face."
As dawn broke, most of the disciples who had gathered here the previous night began their return journey as arranged by Wu Chen. Of course, some disciples, using the same excuse as Lin Xiao, decided to continue on their way.
Wu Chen looked at Lin Xiao, who had spontaneously stood next to Lu Qing early in the morning, and said, "Since you have all stayed here to find your fellow disciples, why don't you travel together? We still have places to go, so we won't go with you."
Lin Xiao's face paled. "My lord, I truly had no other intentions. I was genuinely searching for my junior sister. I don't know any of these senior brothers, and traveling with them... I feel uneasy."
Seeing her pitiful state and not seeming like the aggressive Qi Zhi, Yu Jitang said, "Forget it, let's take her with us for a while. We'll definitely run into other disciples ahead, so we can let them travel together. These few are clearly after the Spirit Fruit. We won't stop them from courting death, but it's really inappropriate to let a female disciple follow them."
Wu Chen glanced at Yu Jitang, but surprisingly did not object.
Lin Xiao breathed a sigh of relief, standing only with Lu Qing and not moving closer to Wu Chen and Yu Jitang. Throughout the journey, she had taken better care of Lu Qing than Wu Chen had. Wu Chen didn't say anything in response.
They inevitably encountered some demons on the road. Wu Chen and Yu Jitang took the opportunity to guide Qi Ying and Luo Sen, which gave Lu Qing and Lin Xiao more opportunities to spend time together.
Throughout the journey, Lin Xiao was incredibly attentive to Lu Qing. Lu Qing didn't talk much, so Lin Xiao remained silent as well. When it was time to rest at night, she would proactively take the initiative to do things, and she would often gently remind people of things that Qi Ying and the others couldn't take care of, which was quite endearing.
Because of her understanding nature, Lu Qing became kinder to her after a few days, chatting idly when there was nothing else to do. Lin Xiao was very caring, and seeing that Lu Qing always wore her hair in a ponytail or a simple braid, she took the initiative to help her dress up.
Lu Qing was still a young girl, so naturally she liked these things. Lin Xiao would style her hair in different ways every day, and Lu Qing would happily look at her reflection in the water. Even Wu Chen touched her hair and thought it suited her very well.
Lu Qing went to thank her. Lin Xiao, on the contrary, took her hand and said, "Actually, I should be thanking you. If it weren't for you, the Witch God Servant definitely wouldn't have kept me. I'm happy for you that the Witch God Servant values you so much."
"Why are you happy for me?" Lu Qingting wanted to ask, but then thought it was pointless and just smiled and let it go.
After traveling for more than ten days, they encountered several disciples of the Divine Palace, some in groups of only two or three. However, the number of other suspicious individuals gradually increased. Wu Chen decided to have these Divine Palace disciples accompany him, making sure to gather as many people as possible before leaving.
With more people, more things happen. Everyone is very curious about the siblings Lu Qing and Luo Sen. Especially Wu Chen's attitude towards Lu Qing. Although Lin Xiao is there, preventing the two from having any intimate actions, Wu Chen smiles whenever he sees Lu Qing, a treatment that even Qi Zhi never received back then.
A female disciple then pulled Lin Xiao aside and whispered in her ear, "What exactly is the relationship between this Miss Lu Qing and the Witch God's Attendant?"
Lin Xiao shushed, "I don't know either. The Witch God Servant didn't say anything, and the Jade God Servant didn't say anything either. However, when we encountered the Witch God Servant, she told us all to return. It was only after she spoke up that I was able to stay. The Witch God Servant values her highly, so you must not offend her. She has a rather straightforward temper. If you provoke her and make the Witch God Servant angry, don't blame me for not warning you."
One of the female disciples' eyes lit up. "Is that so? If I go and ask her to pass on a message, I wonder if I can stay too." Whether the news about the Spirit Fruit is true or false, the Witch God Servant is real. If she could have the chance to stay by the Witch God Servant's side and win his favor, being a personal maid after returning to the Divine Palace would be better than anything else.
Lin Xiao hesitated for a moment, "You absolutely mustn't. She's quite... quite close to the Witch God Servant. If you say that, she might overthink it. You don't want to get yourself into a lot of trouble."
The female disciple curled her lip. "Look at her, she's not even that good-looking, yet she manages to monopolize the Witch God's servant. It's probably just that the Witch God was kind enough to let her stick around." If someone with such looks can make the Witch God's servant soften, why can't she try?
Lin Xiao patiently advised her, "Don't talk nonsense. Although her cultivation level isn't very high, if you offend the two divine servants to stand up for her, you'll be in for a lot of trouble."
The female disciple glared at him, "One isn't enough, why two? I just don't understand. She's not a disciple of the Divine Palace, she has no official title or status, so why would two Divine Attendants harm us for her sake?"
"That's not what I meant." Lin Xiao continued to persuade her, but the more she tried to persuade her, the more indignant the female disciple became. "Senior Sister Lin, you have a good nature and are willing to be bullied by her, being ordered around like a maid all day long. I'm not afraid of her."
Some of the more composed female disciples glanced at Lin Xiao, curled their lip, and smiled disdainfully.
More than one female disciple had become restless because of Lu Qing, but none of them were foolish enough to directly provoke her. Instead, they seized every opportunity to surround Lu Qing, using the same reasons as Lin Xiao, asking her to plead their case to Wu Chen.
Lu Qing opened her eyes wide and said, "Ah! Really? Miss Lin Xiao's matter has nothing to do with me. How could I, an outsider, possibly investigate the affairs of the Divine Palace? The Witch God's attendant isn't such a reckless person. Have you misunderstood something?"
The female disciples couldn't openly say it was Lin Xiaochuan's words, so they could only stammer and change the subject.
Lin Xiao was very anxious as she watched more and more people gather, and Lu Qing pretended to be stupid and slippery.
That evening, the group encountered a herd of demonic beasts. These beasts were out hunting, and seeing so many humans, they weren't about to let them go. A fight immediately broke out.
Qi Ying and Luo Sen led the disciples of the Divine Palace in front, with Wu Chen and Yu Jitang bringing up the rear, while the female disciples stood together on high ground to watch.
Just as the fight was in full swing, Lin Xiao, who was standing next to Lu Qing, suddenly screamed and fell to the ground.
Everyone was stunned, including Lu Qing. Of all the female disciples, she was the only one standing closest to Lin Xiao.
Suddenly someone shouted, "Did you push your senior sister?"
Lu Qing could hardly believe her ears. She glanced at the female disciple who had spoken, then at Lin Xiao, who was about to fall into the pile of demonic beasts. She scoffed and jumped down.
Wu Chen had already sensed the commotion behind him. Turning around, he saw Lu Qing leap down. He slapped his sword sheath, and Taiyi transformed into a streak of azure light, flying to Lu Qing's feet. Lu Qing continued his momentum, plunging into the horde of demonic beasts, grabbing Lin Xiao by the back of her collar, and then swiftly leaping into the air, flying back to a high place. He then tossed Lin Xiao down in front of the female disciple.
Everyone was startled by this sudden turn of events and surrounded Lin Xiao, asking her what had happened.
Lu Qing took a few steps back, stood outside the crowd, crossed her arms, and looked at her with a cold expression and raised eyebrows.
Lin Xiao's heart skipped a beat, and she quickly said, "I'm fine, I'm fine. I just lost my balance and fell down."
The female disciple shouted angrily, "Senior Sister Lin, you don't need to be afraid of her. She was the one who pushed you down."
Lin Xiao's face turned pale. "Please don't misunderstand. Lu Qing was standing in front of me. How could she push me down?"
"That's even stranger. If she were standing in front of you, how come she's fine but you fell down? Senior Sister Lin, you don't need to be afraid of her, and you don't need to cover for her. Even if Lord Wu Shen is her backer, she can't be unreasonable."
"She really didn't push me." Lin Xiao was anxious. If she fell and got injured or lost consciousness, she could at least stay out of it. But who knew that Lu Qing, whose cultivation was not high, would jump down to save her? Just for that reason, even if Lu Qing really did push her, there was nothing that could be done to Lu Qing.
Lu Qing smiled at Lin Xiao, but showed no intention of approaching. She walked to the side and sat down to continue watching the fight below.
Wu Chen turned around and glanced at her. She nodded at Wu Chen, who smiled and didn't ask any more questions.
But Lin Xiao and the female disciple were practically arguing. No matter how Lin Xiao explained, the female disciple insisted that Lin Xiao was covering for Lu Qing.
Lin Xiao burst into tears of anger. She had originally intended to use this person as a tool, but now he had put her in a very difficult position. She had finally managed to lower Lu Qing's guard, but now not only had all her efforts been in vain, but she also feared that Wu Chen would no longer tolerate her.
The female disciples beside her weren't stupid either; they guessed her intentions to some extent. Except for the one who kept trying to "stand up for her," the others dispersed when they saw that she was alright.
After the fight was over, Wu Chen and Yu Jitang came up together. "What happened just now?"
Lin Xiao lowered her head. "My lord, I accidentally fell down just now, and it was Miss Lu Qing who saved me. This junior sister and I have a small misunderstanding, which has nothing to do with Miss Lu Qing."
The female disciple was so angry that her eyes were squinting, but she dared to shout a few words when Wu Chen wasn't around. However, in front of Wu Chen, she didn't have any real evidence and instead chickened out.
Seeing this, Wu Chen simply nodded, "We can't stay here any longer, let's set off quickly."
Yu Jitang had just heard people crying and shouting upstairs, but when they came up, it seemed like nothing had happened. He couldn't help but look at everyone suspiciously.
Wu Chen ignored them, turned around, reached out to Lu Qing, and pulled her downstairs.
Among the group of female disciples, someone sneered, the tone of which was quite sarcastic.
Lin Xiao's pale face instantly turned red.
Yu Jitang didn't understand, so he pressed Lu Qing for an answer, "What just happened?"
Lu Qing's voice was crisp and clear, "Lin Xiao deliberately fell into the group of monsters, probably trying to make herself look seriously injured or unconscious, so that those girls would blame me."
"Huh? Why? I thought she was really nice to you," Yu Jitang said.
Lu Qing glared at her twice. "What's so good about it? Honeyed words, a dagger in your heart, a smile hiding a knife. You've been whispering in my ear about how much the Divine Servant values me, how important I am. You can't wait for me to casually boss you around. When you realized you couldn't get through to me, you went to instigate those female disciples to come to me. If I agreed to everything, I'd be labeled as arrogant and domineering; if I didn't, you'd be seen as spoiled and willful. Look, if I hadn't dragged her up here just now, she'd be unconscious until I got into a huge argument with everyone. The women of this Divine Palace are indeed extraordinary. How do you two survive dealing with them all this time?"
Yu Jitang listened with a series of clicks of his tongue, as if he were hearing a book written in heaven.
Wu Chen gave him a deep look. "Now you know how powerful I am!"
Yu Jitang was taken aback. "What do you mean?"
Lu Qing turned around and gave him a disdainful look. "Still don't you understand? The reason I kept Lin Xiao around was to teach you a lesson, not to amuse me. Do you really think I'm missing a maid to comb my hair? Humph!"
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Author's Note: Thank you to all the little angels who voted for me or watered my plants with nutrient solution between 2020-07-12 22:13:15 and 2020-07-13 16:40:18!
Thanks to the little angel who threw the landmine: Someone passed by with 1;
Thank you to the little angels who watered the nutrient solution: Repigon 20 bottles; EatFish 10 bottles;
Thank you so much for your support! I will continue to work hard!
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