Chapter 63
A cold draft wafted through the secret passage, adding to the chill on her soaked clothes, but it couldn't dispel the heat on Yin Qiu's face.
Her mind raced, reliving the previous feelings over and over in her mind, growing increasingly alarmed.
But amidst her shock, a strange and exhilarating emotion, unlike anything she had ever experienced before, began to stir within her.
Suddenly, as if noticing her unusual behavior, Man Jiangxue turned her head and asked, "What's wrong?"
Bathed in the flickering candlelight, Man Jiangxue's eyes were gentle and filled with obvious concern. Yin Qiu's throat tightened, and her ears instantly turned bright red.
She hurriedly lowered her head and whispered, barely audible, "N-nothing..."
Seeing that her face was flushed, Man Jiangxue wondered if the child had developed a fever so quickly. She quickly scooped Yin Qiu up from her back and held her in her arms, then sat down on the ground with her legs bent. She gently turned Yin Qiu's face and asked, "Why is your face so red? Are you feeling unwell?"
Upon hearing her say that she was blushing, Yin Qiu was even more embarrassed and could only reach out and hug Man Jiangxue's neck to prevent her from seeing her face.
Man Jiangxue stroked Yin Qiu's back, unusually puzzled: "If there's anything, just tell your martial uncle. Why are you hiding?"
Yin Qiu found it incredibly difficult to speak, not daring to tell her what she had been thinking. But Man Jiangxue pressed her repeatedly with great patience, her words filled with worry and concern. Yin Qiu tried to tell her several times, but couldn't bring herself to say it, wishing she could disappear into a crack in the ground.
Man Jiangxue had never seen Yin Qiu so awkward before. After a short while, she still couldn't find any injuries on Yin Qiu's body, and couldn't help but find it amusing: "What's wrong?"
Yin Qiu bit her lip, hesitated for a long time, and then whispered in Man Jiangxue's ear, "Uncle-Master... when Uncle-Master was in the water..."
Upon hearing this, Man Jiangxue paused, guessing what Yin Qiu hadn't finished saying. After a short while, Man Jiangxue seemed to suddenly realize something and chuckled, "You mean to say that I breathed air into your body in the water?"
Why did she say it so bluntly?!
Yin Qiu was speechless.
Man Jiangxue turned her head to look at her and asked softly, "Are you blushing because of this?"
Meeting Man Jiangxue's gaze, Yin Qiu, like a petrified animal, hurriedly reached out to cover Man Jiangxue's mouth, saying in a panic, "...Don't say it!"
However, after saying this, she felt a soft touch on her palm again, but it was no longer warm as before, but rather a little cold. Yin Qiu was stunned, and hurriedly withdrew her hand, lowering her head in embarrassment.
Seeing her reaction, Man Jiangxue first found it amusing, but then unconsciously became serious.
She scrutinized Yin Qiu for a moment, then said very seriously, "I saw that you were in bad shape, so I breathed some air into you, afraid that you would hold it in too much and something bad would happen." After saying that, she asked softly, "Do you feel that your martial uncle has bullied you?"
Yin Qiu was taken aback, then quickly waved her hand and said, "No way... How could my martial uncle bully me?"
Man Jiangxue continued to observe her expression and said, "If you feel offended, how about your martial uncle apologizes to you?"
Yin Qiu was completely taken aback when Man Jiangxue apologized to her. She thought for a moment, bewildered, and realized that her earlier reaction must have caused the misunderstanding. She quickly explained, "No, no… I didn't feel offended by my martial aunt, I just…"
Man Jiangxue laughed: "Just what?"
Yin Qiu racked her brains but couldn't think of any suitable words to describe her feelings. She could only stammer and hum twice before blushing and throwing herself into Man Jiangxue's arms.
"Uncle-Master, please don't ask... I don't know either..."
Man Jiangxue hugged her back, and after thinking for a moment, asked again, "Then will you blame your martial uncle?"
Yin Qiu replied firmly, "Of course not!"
How could she blame her martial uncle?
To be honest... she seemed to be inexplicably happy.
The feeling was as if she and her martial uncle had become much closer, since her martial uncle would never treat others like this, only her.
Thinking this, the flutter in Yin Qiu's heart resurfaced once again, and without her even realizing it, a smile had already spread across her face.
Hearing Yin Qiu's answer, Man Jiangxue felt somewhat relieved.
The child has grown up and knows how to be shy. In some ways, we can no longer treat her like a child. We must make things clear and not leave things ambiguous so that she will misunderstand.
Man Jiangxue felt it necessary to give her a few more words of advice on this matter, so she said gently, "When things happen suddenly, your uncle can treat you like this, but it's because he's trying to save you. But under normal circumstances, even your uncle shouldn't easily offend you, especially not others, understand?"
Yin Qiu nodded obediently, still a little hesitant to look at her, and whispered, "I understand."
·
After this little incident, Man Jiangxue carried Yin Qiu on her back again, and the two walked along the narrow path for almost half an hour before finally reaching the exit.
By this time, the sky outside was already beginning to lighten. Judging from the terrain, they seemed to have already left the area of the Ziwei Sect's main altar. Man Jiangxue carried Yin Qiu to a quiet forest, looked back, and thought that Ji Wanshu was, after all, the chief disciple and had been through countless battles over the years. She should be fine, and Wen Chaoyu would definitely not abandon her. So she gave up the idea of going back to pick up Ji Wanshu and decided to take Yin Qiu to a safe place first.
The forest wind was bitterly cold in the early morning, and both of them were still wearing wet clothes. Listening to Yin Qiu's soft breathing, Man Jiangxue turned her head and asked, "Are you cold?"
Yin Qiu's face was pale from the cold, and her lips were bloodless. She tried her best to keep from shivering. She shook her head to deny it, and then hesitated before saying, "My stomach seems to hurt a little."
Man Jiangxue paused, "What kind of pain?"
Yin Qiu thought for a moment, wiped the cold sweat that had suddenly appeared on her forehead, and said, "I don't know... maybe it's because I drank too much ice water."
She had just finished speaking when she felt a sudden spasm in her lower abdomen, and the pain intensified instantly.
Seeing that her expression was not right, Man Jiangxue immediately put Yin Qiu down, but she did not expect that as soon as she put her down, she found that her hands were covered with dark red blood.
Yin Qiu was immediately stunned, clutching her lower abdomen and saying, "How come there's blood...?"
Man Jiangxue quickly took Yin Qiu's pulse and found no internal injuries. She then examined Yin Qiu's body again but found no external injuries.
After a moment's thought, Man Jiangxue reached out and touched her back. Sure enough, there was a lump of warm blood there. However, since Yin Qiu was pressed against her back, their body heat covered the blood, so she didn't notice it in time.
Yin Qiu was startled and quickly endured the pain to get up and check on Man Jiangxue: "Is Martial Aunt injured?"
Man Jiangxue glanced at her and waved her hand: "No, I'm not injured." As she spoke, she picked Yin Qiu up in her arms again. "It's because you've had your period."
Gui water?
Yin Qiu looked bewildered. Recalling what Fu Xiang had told her about menstruation, she blankly reached out and touched her buttocks.
It really is Gui water!
Looking at the blood on her hands, Yin Qiu panicked: "What... what should I do?"
Man Jiangxue hadn't expected Yin Qiu to arrive at this time. She discerned the direction and leaped through the forest, saying, "Don't be afraid, just wash up. Let's find an inn to stay in first, and then your master will teach you."
She could feel warm liquid flowing down her inner thighs, and her lower abdomen was still wracked with pain unlike any she had experienced before. Yin Qiu whimpered and leaned weakly against Man Jiangxue's shoulder.
·
As soon as the two figures disappeared into the woods, a group of people slowly emerged from the sheltered mountain hollow behind them.
"Master, the Ziwei Sect hasn't sent anyone to chase after them. Should we escort them for a while?" a subordinate asked the person standing in front of him.
“No need,” the woman in purple said. “Things are going better than expected. You don’t need to follow anymore. Go back.”
The group responded in unison with "Yes, sir," and then retreated in an orderly fashion.
Beside her, the little girl strummed the bowstring with her fingers, saying with a look of lingering regret, "What a pity! I've been waiting for so long, just to see you and Nangong Min fight, but who knew she'd be such a coward, she didn't even dare to spar with you!"
“It’s not that she’s afraid, it’s that she doesn’t want to,” the woman in purple said.
"Why wouldn't she want to? She watched helplessly as Yin Qiu was taken away; shouldn't she have taken her back?" the little girl said.
“This shows that she doesn’t really want to keep Yin Qiu by her side,” the woman in purple said. “Yin Xuan is dead, and Yin Qiu has now entered Yunhua Palace. Nangong Min has no feelings for her at all. She kidnapped Yin Qiu to Ziwei Sect just to use her. It’s not like she said she wanted to take care of Yin Qiu as her niece.”
A mountain breeze swept by, carrying the pungent scent of wildflowers. The little girl sneezed, rubbed her nose, and said, "But the Ziwei Sect seems to have suffered a huge loss this time. Even if she used Yin Qiu, she didn't gain anything, did she?"
"Who says she didn't benefit?" the woman in purple said. "Both I and the man in black showed themselves; that alone is a huge gain for her."
The little girl pouted, "You still have the nerve to say that? I already said I wouldn't get involved, but you insisted that I shoot that arrow, and now we've been exposed!" She paused, then added, "But who is that man in black robes? Why is he also going after the Ziwei Sect? And judging from his appearance, he seems to want to save Yin Qiu as well."
The woman in purple chuckled softly and turned around: "Then we'll have to ask him himself."
Just as the little girl was about to ask where to find him, she saw the woman in purple's gaze sharpen, as if she had seen something. Following the woman's gaze, she saw the black-robed man they were talking about standing in the woods not far from them, as if he were waiting for them.
The little girl blinked and gave the woman in purple a questioning look. The woman in purple glanced back at her and walked towards the man without saying a word.
The two entered the forest one after the other, standing opposite Gongzi Fan. Neither of them spoke, and they silently observed each other.
A moment later, several men in black rushed out from the depths of the forest, bowed to Gongzi Fan, and said, "Godfather."
Gongzi Fan turned slightly to look at them: "How are the children?"
A man in black replied, "Father, rest assured, our eldest brother has arranged for the remaining disciples to evacuate safely. However, the fierce battle last night resulted in many deaths and injuries, and it is difficult to collect the bodies of our younger brothers and sisters. Please do not blame us, Father."
Gongzi Fan hummed in agreement: "It's not your fault. Things have come to this. You should go back and rest as soon as possible. Be careful to travel separately on the way and don't let the Ziwei Sect's pursuers find out your secrets."
"That godfather?"
"I have something to discuss with this young lady. You may leave now."
The men in black received their orders and immediately turned and left, their steps as light as birds, and they quickly disappeared from sight.
In this way, the forest returned to the previous scene of the three people facing each other.
“Young master, you seem to have quite a few adopted sons and daughters, even though you are so young.” After a brief silence, the woman in purple spoke first.
“You flatter me, young lady. I am over thirty years old and no longer a young man,” said Gongzi Fan. “Although I have many children, they cannot compare to your little apprentice, whose lightness skill is unparalleled and whose archery skills are extraordinary.”
Hearing him praise her, the girl was very pleased and raised her chin, saying, "Hey, you have good taste!"
Gongzi Fan smiled slightly and looked at the woman in purple, saying, "My little sister is still young, yet her skills are already so impressive. I imagine your abilities must be even more astonishing."
The woman in purple met his gaze and calmly said, "My master and I are nothing but nameless people. How can we compare to you? In the martial arts world of the Central Plains, there are very few who dare to invade the Ziwei Sect."
Gongzi Fan said, "Miss, there's no need to be so modest. There are very few people who have the courage to face Nangong Min alone."
The woman in purple scrutinized him with clear, cold eyes: "There are many sects in the martial world, but there is probably only one person whom the disciples call 'godfather'," she paused deliberately, then asked, "Excuse my boldness, but may I ask if you are from the Brahma Heart Valley?"
Gongzi Fan remained calm: "I smell the medicinal fragrance on you, young lady, made from the extremely precious winter orange blossom. As far as I know, this winter orange grows at the bottom of the sea and is extremely difficult to find. Even if someone were to pick it, it would have to be processed within the time it takes to brew a cup of tea, otherwise the winter orange blossom would quickly wither. And there is currently only one sect in the martial world with such skills." He paused here, deliberately adding a touch of mystery, and asked, "Excuse my impertinence, but may I ask if you are from the Nine Immortals Hall?"
Upon hearing his reasoning, the young girl was stunned, and a hint of murderous intent flashed in her eyes.
The woman in purple remained remarkably calm. She smiled and said, "I presume you are the renowned Master of Brahma Heart Valley, Young Master Fan."
Gongzi Fan glanced at the two of them back and forth, a smile appearing on his face. He said, "You must be Meng Wugui, one of the world-renowned Nine Immortals of the Nine Immortals Hall."
The two of them deduced the other's identity clearly in just a few words, yet they both acted in a friendly and open manner. Even after the other revealed his origins, they did not show any surprise or defensiveness. Only the little girl looked at her master and then at Gongzi Fan with a shocked expression.
She wondered, what's going on with these two? How did they suddenly know who the other person was?
How could she not tell that this man was from the Brahma Valley?!
Also, what kind of sect is Fanxin Valley? How did it become so famous?
She'd never even heard of it!
A series of questions popped into her mind. Just as the girl was about to ask a few questions, she looked up and saw that Meng Wugui and Gongzi Fan had already walked quite a distance away. The two of them were chatting and laughing politely, as if they had agreed to continue their conversation in another place, leaving her behind. Neither of them looked back at her.
Why didn't you wait for me?!
The little girl stomped her foot in anger, then quickly leaped ahead of the two adults, leaving them far behind.
"How rude! Don't expect me to wait for you!"
Author's Note: Ah, writing this story really made my head spin; it was even more brain-draining than my last martial arts novel.
So I'm swearing! Next time I'll definitely write a modern essay to give myself a break!
Here's the important part: I've posted two pre-orders for modern stories in my column, and I've even drafted the outlines when I had some free time. But I haven't decided which one to write first after this one is finished. Please check out my column, my little angels, and if you find them interesting, please add them to your favorites!
Starting today, I'll check which pre-order item has the most new favorites before deciding which one to write.
You all probably know my writing quality and update stability. If I'm going to write, I'll definitely write well. I'm a little embarrassed to advertise, hehe.
This chapter continues the tradition of giving away red envelopes! Leave a comment before midnight to receive one!
Please support the child! Thank you!
Continue read on readnovelmtl.com
