one,
The incident began when food and medicine went missing from the valley.
The entire Floating Flower Valley had fewer than ten people in total. Because of their limited supplies, any shortages were easily noticed. The cook and the apothecary, fearing the Valley Master's wrath, immediately informed Green Ivy, who was in charge.
Three days later, Green Ivy knelt and waited for the Valley Master, who had been in secret seclusion, to emerge from his retreat, and respectfully reported the matter.
Logically speaking, there was no need to bother the Valley Master with such a trivial matter, but since this matter was most likely related to Young Master Lingxiao—there had been several times before when the Young Master had rescued injured birds and beasts and secretly kept them, and the food and medicine that had disappeared were used on them—Green Ivy dared not make decisions on her own.
As expected, Valley Master Sang Rong immediately understood Green Ivy's guess and asked with a hint of surprise, "When did Ling Xiao return to the valley?"
"Seven days ago, the young master did not notice that the Valley Master was in seclusion." Inside the room, Sang Rong washed up and put on her wooden mask again, while Green Ivy stood guard outside the screen with her eyes fixed straight ahead.
“He said the valley was too stuffy, so he went down the mountain for a stroll, and then he didn’t return for three months… What kind of precious bird or beast did he rescue this time?” Sang Rong’s words carried a faint smile as she left a table full of prepared food and led Green Ivy toward Ling Xiao’s villa.
The quiet and humid morning was refreshing. Sang Rong did not see Ling Xiao after entering the main house, but she did smell the aroma of food wafting from his bedroom.
Inside the room, the bed curtains were half-drawn, and Ling Xiao sat to one side, holding a bowl of congee. The aroma emanated from there.
He scooped up a spoonful, blew on it awkwardly, and then handed it behind the scattered curtains. A slight blush appeared on the man's handsome face, like a shy young man experiencing his first love.
“Your hands and feet are not very mobile, so I will feed you. Also, Sang Rong doesn’t like outsiders in the valley, so you will have to stay in the room for a while.”
"I understand. Young Master Ling, who is this Sang Rong you're talking about?" Her voice was indescribably sweet and pleasant.
The woman Ling Xiao had gone to such lengths to hide this time was actually a beautiful young woman.
"This is outrageous!" Green Ivy couldn't hold back and kicked the door open before she could give any instructions.
Suddenly, the soft whispers disappeared, replaced by a girl's abrupt, high-pitched scream.
She was already used to such reactions from others. Her long, wooden robe was indeed strange and frightening.
Green Ivy angrily questioned, "Young Master! Floating Flower Valley has always refused to accept outsiders. You have been by the Valley Master's side since you were a child, so you must know this rule!"
At this moment, Ling Xiao couldn't care less about anything else, and hurriedly said to her, "Sang Rong, Sang Rong, listen to me, Ping An injured her hands and feet when she accidentally entered Fuhua Valley, that's why, that's why... Can you, can you please stop..."
Her tactful pleas for mercy made it seem as if she were some heinous, ruthless monster.
"You were injured by accident, is that how it happened?" She turned to ask the girl, who nervously hummed in agreement and shrank back behind Ling Xiao.
She beckoned Ling Xiao closer, then stood on tiptoe and gently cupped his face in her hands.
Leaving aside the woman's matter, he soon changed to a blaming tone: "How come you've lost so much weight after coming down the mountain?"
Ling Xiao had been with her since childhood, and over the past ten years, he had long been accustomed to their close relationship: "Have you lost weight? I have been practicing martial arts."
"Your skills are nothing..." She suddenly laughed, instantly easing the tension, and then said, "Alright, staying to recover is no big deal. You can be my host. Green Ivy, prepare a room for Miss Ping An."
"Valley Master!"
"Sang Rong—"
Regardless of the reactions of the people inside, she turned and strode away, thankfully she acted quite naturally and Ling Xiao probably didn't notice anything unusual.
She knew this day would come sooner or later, and she could accept it calmly.
No matter how oblivious he is to matters of the heart, Ling Xiao is no longer a child.
When she first met Zhuo Yan, wasn't Zhuo Yan also this age?
two,
The moon shines brightly, and the wind stirs the bamboo curtain.
When she found herself increasingly drawn to memories, she finally admitted that nothing can withstand the passage of time.
Once, in the prime of her youth, she met a man for whom she was willing to give everything. Youth fades quickly, and the past turns to ashes. Now, she is no longer young, and even secluded cultivation cannot restore her former health; she even has difficulty seeing.
Otherwise, she wouldn't have needed to touch Ling Xiao herself during the day to know that he had lost weight; even her favorite painting, though right in front of her, could only be seen in a rough outline by the light.
The outline belongs to Zhuo Yan.
Zhuo Yan is cold and taciturn, with sharp, icy eyes, and is skilled in wielding swords and spears; Ling Xiao is approachable, with a gentle smile, and usually enjoys reading novels and painting, but a bitter face appears when martial arts are mentioned...
She should have realized long ago that Ling Xiao was not Zhuo Yan, nor was he like Zhuo Yan at all. Even in his dealings with others, he was more thorough and cautious than Zhuo Yan.
For example, he has been lingering outside the door for a long time, perhaps just trying to come up with a reason to see her late at night.
"Xiaoxiao, come in—"
She called him in, wanting to have a good talk with him, but after the door closed, she heard a clear, heavy thud of someone kneeling.
A man's knees are worth their weight in gold. What could be making him so nervous?
"What are you doing? Get up and talk."
Ling Xiao refused to get up, hanging his head like a child who had done something wrong: "Sang Rong, I lied to you today. Anping... I already knew her when I was at the foot of the mountain."
A skilled painter met a girl who seemed to have stepped out of one of his paintings. They hit it off immediately, and fell in love at first sight. They spent three months together, day and night, and were reluctant to part. Hearing that the man was returning to the valley, the girl actually followed him.
“I know the rumors about Floating Flower Valley, and I also know that various martial arts sects have been coming to cause trouble in recent years. If it weren’t for Sang Rong’s array techniques, Floating Flower Valley would have fallen long ago… But I can guarantee with my life that Ping An is definitely not one of their people!”
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