Chapter 28. Go one last time, go, all of you, go to happiness. ...
(28)
A Chu never mentioned her past; when Chu Li met her, she was already seriously ill.
At first, Chu Li didn't want to get involved with her.
Everyone would be disgusted and keep their distance from a sick beggar like her, fearing that her disease would infect them. Chu Li was no exception.
But coincidentally, Chu Li often saw her.
The woman was so thin she looked unrecognizable. She coughed all day long, her face was covered in spots, and her lips were completely colorless, almost as pale as her face.
Everyone said she was a plague carrier, and that getting close to her would cause you to contract the plague.
Chu Li avoided her like the plague, but couldn't help but steal glances at her. There were very few female beggars her age, and she was curious whether the other woman had also been thrown out of her home.
When the other person noticed her gaze, they would sometimes divide the dry food they had begged into half, tossing the larger half far away to Chu Li, and say with a smile, "You eat it, you'll be fine, my illness won't be passed on to you."
Chu Li didn't dare touch it, keeping her distance with respect.
Later, winter began to fall in the North. Chu Li was lucky enough to find a tattered quilt that some wealthy family had thrown away, and he survived by sheer luck thanks to that quilt.
But Ah Chu had disappeared without a trace, and Chu Li thought she had either died of illness or frozen to death.
Until one day, she passed by a dilapidated temple and found several thugs surrounding a woman.
The woman was Ah Chu. At that time, the spots on her face had miraculously faded a lot, and she was even able to stand up again. She also stopped coughing so often.
Later, Chu Li learned that it was her last burst of energy before death.
Those thugs had malicious intentions towards her, and for some reason, Chu Li recalled the scene of being kidnapped into the sorghum field by her second father.
She picked up a stone and threw it at them, yelling, "She's leper! The disease is contagious! Are you all out of your minds?"
Upon hearing this, the thugs panicked and disgusted, pushing Ah Chu away and scattering in all directions.
At that moment, A Chu's slender neck supported her head, and her eyes stared straight at Chu Li with gratitude.
Because of this incident, they were able to start talking to each other. Later, Chu Li dared to get closer to her and discovered that her illness was indeed not contagious. So Chu Li stopped distancing herself from her.
Achu would affectionately call her sister, share her food with Chuli, and tell her many interesting stories.
Unfortunately, her illness deteriorated rapidly without warning, and she soon died.
Before he died, Achu kept looking at the sky, and two lines of clear tears streamed down his face.
She gave everything to Chu Li because Chu Li had saved her life.
But once the jade pendant and birth date were removed from Achu, they became useless.
Chu Li could only rely on deception and concealment to survive in the business world. The longer she was a young mistress, the more comfortable her life would be.
The identity of the woman of yin was not something she wanted; it was given to her by A Chu to repay the debt of saving her life!
Why did fate have to allow a second woman born under the influence of the moon to appear?
Chu Li couldn't understand it, and all she could do was feel deep resentment.
"So you're the distinguished guest Yun Ge was talking about." Chu Li found it laughable. She and A Chu were homeless and even surviving was a luxury, while Chu Shuyi was a guest of honor from the Daoist Immortal Sect.
The fates of people are so different.
Seemingly sensing her hostility, Chu Shuyi frowned slightly and said in a low voice, "Please step aside. The most important thing right now is to help the person who is about to ascend overcome the difficulties. Do you intend to just watch him die?"
Chu Li clenched her fingers, and after a while, she slightly stepped aside to make way for her.
"Thank you." Chu Shuyi's brows relaxed as she walked past her and headed towards the Soul Cleansing Spring.
Chu Li coldly stared at her back, walked to Gu Ye who was protecting him, and drew the knife from his waist.
"Um?"
Gu Ye had no time to spare, only glancing at her briefly before looking away.
Who are they going to chop up this time?
Chu Li gripped the knife tightly and walked step by step toward Chu Shuyi on the shore.
If we kill her, there will be no more so-called "Women of Heavenly Yin" in the world.
The fog by the lake grew thicker, and that slender figure seemed to overlap with A Chu in a daze.
Chu Li stopped in her tracks.
She saw Chu Shuyi looking at Shang Xinglan with eyes full of pity.
In the center of the lake, Shang Xinglan appeared to be exhausted. Although he was clearly in the vast lake, his body was burning with a faint spiritual fire, and he was only barely able to float on the water by relying on demonic energy.
—Please do not stop me, otherwise Shang Xinglan will lose his life here tonight.
Chu Li lowered her eyes, and after a long while, released the knife.
What right did she have to kill Chu Shuyi, and kill Chu's sisters?
That face was so similar to A Chu's that Chu Li thought she had forgotten what she looked like, but she recognized Chu Shuyi at first glance.
If Achu hadn't gotten sick, she might have been just as beautiful.
She had enjoyed the good life and Shang Xinglan's tenderness; it was time to wake up from her dream.
Without her, everything will only get better. Shang Xinglan will be cleansed of demonic energy and ascend again. Chu Shuyi can help him become an immortal and go to the heavenly realm with him.
Chu Li slowly squatted down, hugged herself, and silently shed tears.
I'm so envious, so jealous.
Go, go, all go to happiness.
She's fine. She still has Yinyin. Yinyin won't abandon her.
But Yinyin will eventually get married and start a family, and he can't stay by her side forever. What will she do then? Where will her home be? She doesn't want to be all alone anymore.
She was afraid, alone.
A moment later, a pair of snow-white boots appeared before her. Chu Li wiped away her tears and looked up at the other person.
Chu Shuyi's face was grim. She took Chu Li's hand and helped her up, whispering, "He won't let me help him. Could you try to persuade him?"
Chu Li was stunned for a moment, then turned to look at Shang Xinglan in the center of the lake.
Hidden in the clouds and mist, she couldn't see the other person's appearance.
She sniffed and whispered, "Then you wait."
He was still unwilling to go, but when the real Heavenly Yin Maiden came to save him, he was still not happy?
Chu Li walked to the shore, only to see the figure in the lake dive into the water.
She opened her eyes slightly, and instinctively jumped into the water, swimming towards Shang Xinglan.
The icy lake water chilled her to the bone. Chu Li hated being sick, but at that moment she couldn't think of anything else but to pull Shang Xinglan out of the water.
When she swam to the center of the lake, she finally touched Shang Xinglan's hand in the water. Despite being in the lake for so long, his body was frighteningly hot, and his eyes were tightly closed, as if he had lost consciousness.
Chu Li was startled and tried her best to lift him to the surface of the water, but the next moment, Shang Xinglan forcefully pushed him out of the water.
Water choking in his mouth and nose was incredibly uncomfortable, and a nameless anger rose in Chu Li's heart.
What does he want to do?
If you can't endure it, you want to die?
He used to say he would suffer his own calamities alone, but now he's giving up on a mere Soul Cleansing Spring. Useless!
Chu Li took a deep breath and submerged into the water again.
She swam to Shang Xinglan's side, tightly gripped his clothes, and kissed his lips.
Shang Xinglan finally opened his eyes in the water. After seeing the person in front of him clearly, he was slightly stunned for a moment, but soon obediently took air from her mouth.
Chu Li passed the breath to him, and after a while, he swam to the surface to catch his breath before diving back down.
After repeating this process, Chu Li felt like her arms and legs were about to break, but the flames on Shang Xinglan's body still hadn't gone out.
How could there be fire underwater? Does that mean that any demonic cultivator who enters the Soul Cleansing Spring will be burned by fire?
That's really strange.
Chu Li didn't have time to think, she cupped Shang Xinglan's face and kissed his burning lips.
She was running out of strength. Chu Li was never good at swimming. She had only learned to swim once when she was being chased to the riverbank for stealing something and had to escape.
Just one more time, just one more time.
Chu Li told herself this.
If he still fails to surface next time, then just leave him be.
However, when Chu Li went down and saw Shang Xinglan's tormented appearance, she couldn't help but continue to help him breathe.
Okay, this is the last time. This job shouldn't have been hers to do in the first place. If Chu Shuyi had come, she might have been able to help Shang Xinglan get through this difficult time.
Exhausted, Chu Li surfaced, taking deep breaths, feeling as if her lungs were about to burst.
She dived underwater to breathe on Shang Xinglan and saw that the flames on his body were beginning to subside.
It seems Shang Xinglan has held on. If she tries a little harder, maybe Shang Xinglan will be able to get through this completely. At that time, she might be grateful to her and completely forgive her for the mistakes she made before, and go back to Xiaofushan with her to live a good life.
This is the last time, really the last time.
Chu Li's mind went blank, and her vision was blurred, so dark that she couldn't see anything. She swam to Shang Xinglan's side with all her might, relying solely on her memory, but the moment she touched his body, she used up her last bit of strength.
Suddenly, she was plunged into boundless darkness and lost consciousness. The breath that was meant for Shang Xinglan escaped from her lips, and a steady stream of lake water flowed into her mouth.
Its small body sank towards the bottom of the lake, like a drifting leaf.
A hand gripped her wrist tightly.
*
Cangshan School, Yangshui Pavilion.
As soon as a leaf falls, autumn is known. A cool breeze blows through the small window of the attic. Chu Li opens her eyes groggily. She feels something heavy pressing on her chest. She reaches out to touch it and finds a warm little ear.
As her vision returned, she opened her mouth in confusion and called out, "Yinyin?"
His voice was hoarse and broken, as if his throat had been slashed with a knife.
Upon hearing her voice, the little boy suddenly raised his head, tears welling up in his eyes, "Mother, you're finally awake."
Chu Li tried to sit up, but her hands were too weak to move, and she could barely feel her limbs due to the pain.
The little one climbed onto the bed like a puppy, snuggled against her neck, and cried loudly.
"Don't cry, don't cry," Chu Li said, her clothes soaked with his tears. She kissed his little head. "Mother is fine, just too tired."
"You've been sleeping for two days now," the little one sobbed. "What's wrong with you? Why are you sleeping for so long? I'm scared."
When he woke up, he saw his mother sleeping on the soft couch, with Shang Xinglan sitting beside her, her eyes red as if she were crying.
He was terrified, thinking his mother had some serious illness. If Chu Li hadn't been breathing, he really wouldn't have known what to do.
Chu Li yawned wearily and said softly, "I'm just too tired..."
She remembered that when she was giving Shang Xinglan a boost, she ran out of strength before she even touched him, and everything went black as she lost consciousness.
She vaguely felt as if someone had grabbed her hand and pulled her tightly into their arms.
"Where is your father... your demonic senior?"
The little boy wiped his eyes and whispered, "Mother, let's not pay attention to him anymore. Ever since he came into our lives, you've always been in trouble."
He drove the evil spirit away, not wanting him to stay with his mother.
First he fell into a hunting pit, and then he almost never woke up. He didn't want his mother to go through these dangerous things again.
Chu Li chuckled softly, and said with relief, "Yinyin still knows how to care for her mother. It's alright, I'm perfectly fine, aren't I?"
"Good? You almost lost your life."
Gu Ye leaned against the door, his tone cold.
The little boy turned around and saw him, then angrily got out of bed and tried his best to push Gu Ye out of the room.
"Get away! Get away! You're not allowed to come near your mother again!"
Gu Ye picked up the cub casually, his gaze sweeping over Chu Li, and said in a very calm voice, "I'll go and call the master."
Sometimes you're smart, and sometimes you're so stupid.
If she were to drown in that lake, there would be no one who could save her.
He sighed inwardly, then reached out and smacked the brat's bottom. "Alright, you brat, don't be ungrateful. Uncle will take you down the mountain for some good food."
Chu Li watched him leave, then blinked.
Shang Xinglan survived.
They survived even without the help of the Heavenly Yin Maiden.
She saved Shang Xinglan.
She couldn't help but chuckle softly, trying to sit up, but then collapsed back onto the soft couch, exhausted.
Looking up, I saw a tall figure standing in front of me.
"Shang Xinglan, I..."
Chu Li's voice stopped abruptly.
Xie Liyi looked travel-worn, his clothes still damp with the autumn wind, clearly having just returned to the Cangshan Sect.
He looked down at her, his tone extremely deep.
"Chu Li, how dare you bring a demon to stay in my residence."
Chu Li: ...
So what? Didn't he stay at her house too?
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Author's note: There will be a second update, it will be late, so please don't wait!
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