Chapter 61 The Stubborn Woman's Lament (XI) Treating him like a child...
After the rain, the loose bricks along the long street were stepped on, causing muddy water to gush out. Song Qiling looked down at her soaked boots, shifted her feet, and said with considerable disgust, "Elder Chu seems to be meddling a bit too much?"
Chu Yue was taken aback by her addressing him that way. His face went blank for a moment before he repeated incredulously, "Elder Chu?"
Shaking off the excess mud and water from his shoes, Song Qiling looked up at him: "What if you know? What if you don't? Junior Brother is an honest person, unlike you..."
She paused, gave a soft scoff, and said nothing more.
"Junior brother?" Chu Yue frowned slightly, as if he had heard a huge joke. "Is he the eldest son of the Gu family in Tianshui that Wu Jiu mentioned, Gu Lianzhou?"
"You've certainly found out quite a lot." Song Qiling had lost her patience. She stepped around Chu Yue and walked forward. "If you've come to me only to stop me, then please leave. There's nothing more to say between us."
Then, hurried footsteps sounded behind him; the person had caught up unwillingly.
Feeling irritated, even the sound of footsteps seemed noisy. Song Qiling turned her head and said coldly, "Elder Chu, please wait."
The footsteps suddenly stopped.
"Do we really have to be so distant from each other?" the man asked unwillingly, only to see his disciple walk away without turning back.
The pent-up frustration welled up inside him, and his once handsome and refined face was instantly clouded with gloom. His fingers, hidden beneath the wide sleeves of his robe, slowly clenched, as if he wanted to crush his knuckles inch by inch.
Okay, very good.
Song Qiling, you're doing very well.
-
As a result of this delay, Song Qiling returned to the mansion after lunchtime. As soon as she entered the courtyard, she smelled a strong, bitter medicinal odor.
Following the source of the smell, they found Gu Lianzhou squatting on a low stool under the eaves, tending to a clay stove and cooking something.
"Are you feeling unwell?" She looked her junior brother up and down suspiciously, noticing the dark circles under his eyes, and frowned slightly. "Didn't you sleep well last night?"
Gu Lianzhou paused in his fan-wielding hand, looked up at Song Qiling, and felt a growing sense of unease, as if he were having difficulty breathing.
As the saying goes, what is said without intention may be taken to heart by the listener. Liu Dai's words that morning had already taken root in people's hearts, and now, seeing his senior brother without any warning, he could not help but think of Doctor Liu's advice.
Seeing his senior brother's upright expression and clear, innocent eyes, Gu Lianzhou felt even more ashamed of himself, like a 'patient' who couldn't be seen in the light. Gu Lianzhou responded softly, then lowered his head, not daring to look at his senior brother.
Thinking back to what happened last night, Song Qiling felt she should take responsibility. So, after a moment's hesitation, she bent down and took the palm-leaf fan from her junior brother's hand, and squatted down as well, squeezing in a little further. "You've never done this kind of rough work before, let me do it."
Gu Lianzhou stared blankly at his empty right hand for a moment, then said in a flustered manner, "Senior brother, don't bother yourself. It's just brewing medicine, nothing difficult."
Song Qiling hummed in agreement but did not move.
After staring at the clay stove for a while, she couldn't help but say, "What kind of medicine is this? It smells bitter."
Gu Lianzhou paused for a moment, then said carefully, "Just some common medicinal herbs to clear heat."
Looking at the damp ground outside the corridor, Song Qiling rested her chin on her hand and said casually, "Yes, it's dry here, it's easy to get a sore throat."
Following his senior brother's gaze, Gu Lianzhou echoed, "Yes..."
Each of them was preoccupied with their own thoughts and did not find anything wrong with what he said. It was not until the clay pot on the stove was boiling and the steam was surging that Song Qiling came to his senses and reached out to grasp the handle of the pot.
"Be careful, it's hot." Gu Lianzhou pressed down on the hand, turned around and picked up a thick piece of cotton cloth from the ground, covered the pot with it, gripped the handle with both hands and placed it on the ground.
With a muffled thud, Gu and Song stared silently at the steaming clay pot on the ground. After a long while, Gu Lianzhou looked up and met a pair of dark, deep eyes.
"We haven't eaten yet..."
"Junior brother, I have something to tell you."
The two spoke almost simultaneously.
Song Qiling smiled, her lips curving upwards to reveal her bright white teeth. "I drank a lot of tea and ate some fruit at the teahouse earlier, so I'm not very hungry now."
Gu Lianzhou also smiled and said, "But we still have to eat. If we miss the time, we can make up for it later. I asked the kitchen to leave some food, so we can just heat it up and eat it."
He is a thoughtful person.
Song Qiling had not expected him to be so considerate. After a moment of stunned silence, she nodded and replied, "Then I will respectfully comply."
A moment later, Gu Lianzhou, holding the empty medicine bowl, his face wrinkled like a bitter gourd, looked at his senior brother across the table.
"Good medicine tastes bitter but is good for the disease." Song Qiling picked up a piece of bamboo shoot stir-fried with meat with his chopsticks and put it in his mouth. Seeing this, he hurriedly said, "Wait a moment."
After she swallowed her food, she reached for the hidden pocket at her waist, fumbled for a while, and finally pulled out a bag of oil paper, which she placed on the table and pushed forward.
"I grabbed this from the teahouse this morning, it's maltose, very sweet." She picked up her chopsticks again, and without looking up at the food in front of her, said, "Eat."
Gu Lianzhou's gaze swept over the candy on the table and finally landed on Song Qiling's face.
My senior brother was the first to treat him like a child.
"Thank you." He picked up the paper package, took out the amber-colored maltose inside, broke off a piece, and put it in his mouth. Instantly, a rich sweetness spread from the tip of his tongue, overshadowing the previous bitterness.
It wasn't so hard to get through after all.
"Senior brother." He sipped his candy and looked up at Song Qiling. "You mentioned earlier that you had something to tell me..."
"Hmm." Upon hearing this, Song Qiling put down her chopsticks, wiped her mouth, and then sat up straight to look at Gu Lianzhou, her expression becoming much more serious.
She said solemnly, "Tomorrow is the final round of the competition. If all goes well, we will meet Uncle-Master Fengxi, and then I will leave."
"Leave?" Gu Lianzhou raised an eyebrow, wondering if he had misheard. "Where to? Why are you in such a hurry?"
“It was a bit rushed.” Song Qiling scratched his head and said helplessly, “As you can see, the people from Tianji Sect have arrived in Nancheng, and my master has also found me. If I don’t leave first, I’m afraid I will be held back by others, and then I won’t be able to leave even if I want to.”
"As for where to go, I haven't decided yet." She smiled. "I'll probably continue south and wander the world. The world is vast, there's bound to be a place for me."
Seeing his senior brother's expression, which was a mix of seriousness and jest, Gu Lianzhou felt even more flustered.
He wasn't unfamiliar with parting from people; he had previously left home secretly and decisively, without a trace of regret, never realizing that parting from someone could be so painful.
Between breaths, he felt his chest tighten, as if a thousand-pound boulder was pressing on his heart, making him unable to speak.
Seeing that he remained silent for a long time, Song Qiling assumed he was stunned and couldn't help but say, "Although it's a bit of a downer to talk about this now, we had already agreed that once I delivered you safely to my master, my mission would be complete, and the reward..."
She cleared her throat and said, "I wonder if it still counts?"
Gu Lianzhou lowered his eyes to look at the maltose wrapped in oil paper on the table. Suddenly, he felt the bitter taste of herbs on his tongue, and his throat became very dry, making his voice hoarse. "Of course it counts. A hundred taels of gold is not easy to carry around. It would be better to divide it into a few silver notes and some loose silver, which would be more convenient for Senior Brother to spend on the road."
"Alright, you decide." Seeing that the payment was settled, Song Qiling felt that his suffering these past few days had not been in vain, and his heart leaped with joy. "The mountains are high and the roads are long, but we will meet again someday. Junior brother, don't worry about it."
"Why do you talk like you're leaving today?" Gu Lianzhou was a little annoyed, but he said with a smile, "If I break my promise and don't pay the fee, what will you do, Senior Brother? Are you just going to stay?"
If that's the case, he really doesn't want to keep his promise.
He thought this in his heart, but ultimately couldn't bring himself to say it.
Upon hearing this, Song Qiling gradually lost her smile, looked at the dark circles under her junior brother's eyes, and said softly, "Junior brother, I believe you."
The room remained quiet for a long time.
The time felt like three autumns had passed before Gu Lianzhou finally managed a slight, bitter smile: "Senior brother, let's have dinner tomorrow before you leave."
-
The rooster crows at dawn, ushering in a new day.
The arena for the grand competition was set up in a sparsely populated area on the western outskirts of the southern city. Song Qiling and the others traveled with the Murong family's carriages and horses. Through the carriage curtains, they could see a large crowd of people ahead, creating a lively scene.
Aside from the martial arts heroes and sect disciples participating in the competition, the crowd lining the roadside consisted mostly of ordinary people who came to watch, as well as peddlers and laborers doing small business.
After getting out of the car, I followed the head of the Murong family to the high platform. There, I saw several rows of mahogany chairs set up in front of the arena, which were reserved for the host.
Thanks to Yu Qi, Song Qiling and her group were seated in the front row. Looking around, they saw the other distinguished guests from the Tianshui family taking their seats with their travel permits.
Chu Yue and his senior brother Wu Jiu were prominently listed among them.
Feeling uneasy, Song Qiling withdrew her gaze and stared blankly at her toes. She was leaving today and hoped nothing else would happen.
Nine chimes rang out, and the heavens and earth were serene. With Murong Xiao's command, the grand competition officially began.
Because it was the final round, only the best of the best remained, making the scenes incredibly exciting, whether it was close-quarters combat or a contest of mechanical skills.
As soon as someone called out the name "Nie Fengxi", several pairs of eyes below the stage turned to look at the stage.
Gu Lianzhou slowly tightened his grip on his knees, his gaze fixed intently on the person stepping onto the stage.
Master.
It had been a long time since I last saw him. His hair had turned completely white, but his back was as straight as ever. With one hand behind his back, he lightly stepped forward and instantly reached the center of the stage.
Song Qiling also felt difficulty breathing.
Many years later, she finally met her Uncle-Master Nie. Unlike the one she had seen in Gu Lianzhou's dream, her Uncle-Master, though weathered by time, possessed a commanding presence and walked with a steady gait, unlike someone whose life was nearing its end.
"Nie Fengxi, a puppeteer from no particular sect, versus Xue Canzi, a Gu master from Jue Ming Gu!"
As soon as he finished speaking, an uproar erupted from the audience.
How can two control-based characters fight each other?
"It all depends on how fast the person casting the curse is."
“I have seen this puppeteer’s skills before; they are not something an ordinary person can contend with.”
"But his opponent is from the Valley of Death! Who in the martial world doesn't know the reputation of the Valley of Death for taking lives with every move? I've heard that all the participants in this competition have signed a death warrant!"
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