Chapter 14 How could Strawberry be him?
"Then hurry up and leave, lest the wild boars eat all the strawberries." As Qiao Xi said this, she had already flashed to the clothes rack to put on her cloak at lightning speed.
Jinlan doubted his eyes, because when Qiao Xi said those words, her eyes were clearly shining, so bright that they were almost dazzling, to the point that he believed the fact that the boy Qiao Xi had a crush on had glowing eyes.
Therefore, he fell into deep thought: Does Qiao Xi like people whose eyes sparkle?
Even the Emperor can do it!
Jinlan clenched her fist silently, thinking, "The Emperor will shine even brighter!"
Qiao Xi had no idea what Jin Lan was thinking at the moment. She stood in front of the clothes rack, facing the dried red cloak and the black cloak that Morax had given her. After hesitating for a moment, she took down her red cloak and put it on.
Whether it's picking strawberries or catching fish, they'll be moving around, and they'll warm up as they move. There's no need for her to wear the one Morax gave her. Besides, the Morax one is long and big, reaching all the way to her heels; it'd be perfect as a blanket at night.
Jinlan was somewhat disappointed to see that Qiao Xi wasn't wearing the Emperor's clothes. He pointed to the cloak hanging on the clothes rack and asked, "Why don't you wear this one?"
"Because this one looks good on me," Qiao Xi replied casually, tying the collar of her dress.
Jinlan Pure CP Eyes: "But I feel that the Emperor's outfit suits your temperament better, and you look better in it."
Qiao Xi tied the ribbon, stepped forward, and reached out to touch Jin Lan's forehead, hissing as she felt the coldness.
Jinlan: "Cool."
Qiao Xi frowned: "You don't have a fever, so why are you talking nonsense?"
Jinlan sighed and muttered softly, "Just so you can't wear the Emperor's clothes because of me?"
Qiao Xi overheard this and said, "So you like Morax's clothes."
She looked at Jinlan carefully for a while, sighed, and shook her head: "Morax looks better in it."
Upon hearing this, Jinlan visibly stiffened, thinking to himself, "I've stumbled!"
*
"Qiao Xi, can't you walk a little slower?"
The path down the south side of Tianheng Mountain is almost deserted in the cold, snowy winter. The dirt and stone path is frozen, and the snow on it has turned into a layer of ice, like a hard shell wrapped around a candied hawthorn.
Jinlan, holding a small wooden drill and carrying a fishing net, fishing rod, and fish basket, looked at Qiao Xi, who was walking quickly ahead with a sword on her back. She shouted at the top of her lungs, her voice full of resentment. She accidentally inhaled a breath of cold air and coughed for a moment.
Qiao Xi's legs were moving uncontrollably, almost overlapping each other. She was on the verge of tears: "Waaah, I want to go slower too, the road is too slippery, waaaah."
Jinlan sighed from behind, utterly speechless, and shouted, "Didn't your two masters teach you the art of balancing?"
Qiao Xi also exclaimed, "I've spent most of the last six months learning to read!"
Jinlan: "......"
He rushed forward quickly, catching up with Qiao Xi as fast as he could, and asked while running, "Take out your sword and use it to support yourself."
Qiao Xi: "No, I'm afraid I won't hold it properly and it'll stab me to death."
Jinlan: "......"
*
From a distance, the two people looked like two slabs of ice sliding along the deserted path halfway up the mountain, all the way to the small river to the south.
Qiao Xi, who had finally stopped, held her knees and gasped for breath: "Great, we're here."
She bent over and coughed dryly.
Jinlan, who had been chasing her all the way, was half-dead: "Finally, they've stopped."
After a moment, Qiao Xi looked up, and the sight before her made her pupils dilate slightly with surprise.
The so-called stream is actually a large lake at the end of the forest, with the surface completely frozen. The ice is thick and transparent, covered with a layer of white frost. The lake is surrounded by towering trees that have lost their leaves, with intertwined branches. Occasionally, one or two wild boars foraging for food in winter will dart by, startling a few gray sparrows.
"It's like a fairy tale world," Qiao Xi exclaimed.
Jinlan was born and raised here, spending more than a dozen springs, summers, autumns, and winters here, and is used to the scenery here: "What is a fairy tale world?"
Qiao Xi smiled and pointed to the ice in front of her: "I have never seen such a big ice surface before."
Jinlan frowned: "You're so silly."
Qiao Xi stopped joking around with Jin Lan and excitedly shouted "Fighting!" before running towards the ice.
Jinlan, carrying the wooden drill, asked, "What does 'Fighting' mean?"
Qiao Xi stood on the ice, not hearing Jin Lan's words. She drew the sword from behind her, gripped it tightly with both hands, raised it high, took a deep breath, and charged it into the ice with all her might.
With a clang, the sword trembled, Qiao Xi's wrist went numb, and a few chips fell off the ice.
"Ouch! Ouch! Ouch!" Qiao Xi clutched her sword, covering her wrist.
"Get out of the way, I'll do it."
Jinlan walked over to Qiaoxi with his wooden drill in his hand.
Qiao Xi praised while blowing on her hand: "Our Master Jinlan is still the most professional. Look at this exquisite little wooden drill, how professional it is."
Jinlan raised an eyebrow triumphantly at Qiao Xi, then tossed the wooden drill aside, unexpectedly picked up a large rock from the shore, and smashed it onto the ice without hesitation.
With a sudden "boom," Qiao Xi jumped up in fright, scurried to the shore, covered her ears, and almost burst into tears.
"Splendid Blue!"
"Yes!" Jinlan answered as she squatted down.
He smiled, picked up a small wooden drill from the side, and started drilling into the small hole he had smashed into the stone.
Qiao Xi took a deep breath, on the verge of tears: "You should have told me in advance, it scared me to death."
*
Just then, Morax and Yixiao reached the wild strawberry bushes not far away when they heard a loud noise coming from the riverbank ahead.
Morax frowned slightly.
Yi Xiao was puzzled for a moment, but then he realized: "Xiao Xi didn't practice her skills properly and ran out to play."
Morax paused for a moment, brushed his index finger across a strawberry covered in white frost, and looked at Yi Xiao: "Does she have that much strength?"
Yi Xiao said casually, "There's a Qianyan Army soldier on guard duty named Jinlan. We get along very well. She's the one we met not long ago."
Morax knew this person, and he nodded.
Yi Xiao shook his head and sighed.
After finishing his business with Morax, he was sitting in the lakeside pavilion in the cave enjoying tea when he saw the milk pastry on the table. Suddenly, he remembered the boy Qiao Xi mentioned and the strawberry-flavored candy, so he told Morax that strawberries grew along the riverbank and asked if the Emperor wanted to go and see them together.
It was originally just a polite remark before leaving; normally, Morax wouldn't have been interested in coming with him.
But this time the emperor said, "Things from the mountains and fields may be commonplace, but they are also a rare pleasure. Let's go together."
So Yi Xiao followed Morax here, but unexpectedly, he ran into his dislike-studying disciple again.
Yi Xiao was truly disappointed in the boy and wanted to go to the riverbank to lecture him, but Morax spoke up before he could:
"Yixiao, you should go back first."
The two had just arrived here when the Emperor ordered him to go back?
He was the one who suggested coming here, so the current situation is a bit hard to understand.
Yi Xiao's beard flew wildly in the wind, completely bewildered: "Your Majesty?"
Morax glanced down at him and said, "Liu Yun and Gui Zhong will be here soon."
Yi Xiao frowned. He knew that the Emperor's perception was stronger than his own, but if he could sense it here, why couldn't he sense it in the cave? The two places weren't far apart.
Is the signal better here?
Yi Xiao stopped his wild thoughts, nodded, and asked Morax, "And what about you, Your Majesty?"
Morax: "I'm waiting for someone."
Yi Xiao thought Morax was referring to the five Yakshas. He glanced worriedly in the direction of the river and said to Morax:
"Your Majesty, Xiaoxi is timid. If the Yakshas come, please ask them to put away their weapons so as not to frighten the child."
Morax lowered his eyes slightly and nodded.
*
Qiao Xi squatted down beside Jin Lan, watching him fish.
Suddenly, the fishing rod moved, followed by a tug on the fishing line, and Qiao Xi became excited.
Jinlan suddenly pulled the fishing rod upwards, and it snapped with a "crack".
Qiao Xi: "..."
She turned to look at Jinlan.
Jinlan blinked, a little confused: "Am I stronger, or is the fish bigger?"
Qiao Xi took out another fishing rod from behind her.
These fishing rods were all made of bamboo by her. The bamboo in the bamboo garden is very tough, and with her expertise in mechanical arts, they shouldn't have broken so easily.
It must be the Chiyan Army; they are well-trained and incredibly strong.
Qiao Xi looked at the hole that Jin Lan had smashed into the ice and became even more determined in her decision.
She pushed Jinlan aside, saying, "Let me do it."
Jinlan made room for her and squatted down beside her, watching Qiao Xi fish. He yawned out of boredom, and after a while, he seemed to smell the faint aroma of strawberries again.
He asked Qiao Xi, "Want some strawberries? I'll go pick a few."
Qiao Xi turned her head: "Didn't we agree to go together later?"
Jinlan looked at her fishing rod, which remained motionless: "I'll get some first, and we can eat while we fish. If you catch anything, come find me over there."
As he spoke, he pointed Qiao Xi in a direction.
Qiao Xi looked in the direction Jin Lan was pointing and gave an "OK" sign.
"I'll come find you soon."
Jinlan laughed: "If you can catch a fish that quickly, I'll kowtow to you."
Qiao Xi smiled and said, "It's a deal."
*
Not long after Jinlan left, Morax appeared unhurriedly from the other side of the woods.
He stood not far away, watching Qiao Xi squatting by the river, holding a bamboo pole like a dumpling, intently watching the water.
The wind blew across the ice on the river, knocking the hood off Qiao Xi's cloak. She had two slightly messy low braids hanging down on either side of her face.
Morax stepped forward and called out in a low voice, "Qiao Xi."
Qiao Xi's attention was entirely focused on her fishing rod, and she didn't hear it. Just then, her fishing rod swayed, and Qiao Xi reacted quickly, pulling it up and catching a small fish that leaped out of the water.
Morax called out again, "Qiao Xi."
His voice was diluted by the continuous wind, making it difficult to discern the timbre for a moment.
Immersed in joy, Qiao Xi thought the person behind her was Jin Lan. Holding the fishing rod, she turned around triumphantly and said without thinking, "Quickly kowtow to me!"
Almost simultaneously, she recognized the person as Morax, and noticed Morax's slightly furrowed brows.
Qiao Xi's smile froze.
A note from the author:
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See you tomorrow!
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