Chapter 3
With a new playmate, Luo Yan no longer lingered in bed. She would get up and dress at the third crow of the rooster and excitedly go to find Zhu Yun.
To their surprise, the room was empty; not only was the couch bare, but the sword that had been displayed on the antique shelf was also nowhere to be found.
Did he leave without saying goodbye?
But why?
Perhaps he carried a deep-seated hatred, so he feigned indifference towards his benefactor and quietly left in the middle of the night to avoid implicating innocent people. Or perhaps the poison took effect in the middle of the night, and he feared that the Jia family would be embroiled in a murder case, and he didn't want to be seen in his emaciated state, so he left all alone.
Luo Yan quickly denied it, after all, Zhu Yun didn't seem like the type to be understanding at all.
There's one last possibility: he's recovered from his injuries, taken all the money, and gone down the mountain. That's when she said the number of bottles and jars in the treasure chest was wrong.
at this time,
Grandma was already busy in the kitchen, and the aroma of steamed buns mixed with Lei Cha porridge wafted over.
She took a deep sniff, adjusted her expression in the mirror, and comforted herself: "They're gone, they're gone. There are other children anyway."
Suddenly she heard a soft laugh. She turned around in surprise and saw Zhu Yun standing outside the window with his arms crossed, his eyes full of mockery.
"You're back? No, you didn't leave."
"Where are you going?" Zhu Yun curled her lips in a cryptic smile, speaking in riddles, "The one who should leave isn't me."
Luo Yan was immersed in the joy of getting her things back, and ignored his words: "Quickly, let's set off after breakfast."
"Um."
He used his hand to brace himself against the window frame and climbed in, putting down his sword and straightening his sleeves.
The boy's long hair was tied up high today, looking neat and energetic, swaying as he walked. Luo Yan couldn't help but look at him again and again, asking curiously, "Did you do your own hair? It looks so good."
He cast a mocking glance at me, as if to say—
What else?
Luo Yan gradually got used to his temperament and was too lazy to argue. She walked behind Jia Yufang with a nonchalant air and whispered while picking up a bowl, "Grandmother, I want to learn how to style my hair. I want to comb my own hair too."
Jia Yufang could tell that she was secretly competing with the boy, and barely managed to hold back her laughter, replying softly in agreement, "Okay, I'll teach you in a bit."
But a child is a child. After the meal, Luo Yan had completely forgotten her grand words. Jia Yufang styled her hair into beautiful double buns, and then she took the candied fruit and ran off quickly.
It was still early, so the two sat down under the old tree.
Luo Yan poked her cheek with her finger, wondering whether she should smile slightly or show her teeth. Unable to decide, she could only bother someone nearby: "Hey, do I look scary?"
Zhu Yun was dozing off when she nudged him twice. He lazily opened his eyes and met the girl's overly bright smile.
It shone brighter than the sun, making him momentarily dizzy.
Luo Yan said, "When I first came to Qingyuan Village, I was in a bad mood and always had a long face. Maybe that's why they called me 'female ghost'."
"..."
She smiled and leaned closer, her tone earnest: "Isn't that friendly enough?"
Zhu Yun finally felt a pang of pity and said, "Could it be that the female ghost doesn't refer to a fierce and malevolent being?"
In folk tales and martial arts secrets, those who are called fairies and ghosts are usually born with outstanding beauty and are considered to be exceptionally beautiful.
Ke Luo Yan misunderstood, suspecting that it was her paleness that frightened them, since the entire village shared the same dark skin.
This time, Zhu Yun smiled silently after hearing this and continued to close her eyes to rest.
The aroma of dried fruit wafted through the silk handkerchief. Luo Yan picked one up and put it on her tongue; the sweetness instantly overwhelmed her taste buds, making her forget all her worries. She didn't forget to slip one to Zhu Yun, casually asking, "How old are you this year?"
Zhu Yun chewed, her brow furrowing slightly at the sweetness, before swallowing and answering, "Thirteen, I guess."
Bar?
How can age be used in a questioning tone?
But this is a world in a book, and even she has no parents, so it's normal that Zhu Yun's background is unknown. Luo Yan considerately didn't press further, only saying, "Then you're a year older than me."
Zhu Yun did not respond, as if she was about to fall asleep.
Luo Yan stopped arguing with him, picked up a twig and scribbled on the ground, trying to recall the parts of the story she still remembered.
She remembered that "The Legend of Wu Yang" was divided into two volumes. The first volume took place in the martial arts world, while the second volume was set in the imperial court. The author doted on the male protagonist, not only making Cui Wu Yang stand out among the heroes of the martial arts world, but also arranging for him to fight against external threats and pacify the internal strife, becoming a legendary emperor.
The story is long, and naturally there are many supporting characters.
There are about a dozen villains, big and small, and countless supporting characters. There are eight prominent families whose names are well-known. However, there is no one with the surname "Zhu," nor any with the same pronunciation but different characters.
This is the main reason why she removed Zhu Yun from the danger list and felt comfortable taking him in.
Luo Yan erased the writing and sat back down. Seeing the shadows of the trees dancing between his eyebrows and eyes, she asked softly, "Are you asleep?"
"......"
She wondered if the boy was really asleep or not, so she leaned very close, her shallow breath brushing against his thick eyelashes.
It's very itchy.
Zhu Yun had no choice but to open her eyes and glare at her: "What is it now?"
Despite the boy's harsh tone, it didn't dampen Luo Yan's desire to share. She continued, "You know what? Their leader is Liu Changsheng. He's the same age as me, but he's huge, so everyone's afraid of him."
Is this what's bothering him?
Zhu Yun's eyes were dark, and his face showed displeasure.
Unfortunately, Luo Yan was not good at reading between the lines. Since she had an audience, she became even more enthusiastic: "To catch the thief, we must first catch the king. Let's bribe Liu Changsheng first."
"What does this have to do with me?"
"What does Li mean?"
With a piece of candied fruit in her mouth, she showed no power when she got angry. Zhu Yun was amused and wanted to tease her a bit more, but the poison suddenly took effect, and she choked on a mouthful of blood.
"Hey." Luo Yan quickly caught him. "What's wrong?"
The girl's bright eyes were full of concern, shimmering with tiny golden light under the warm sun.
Suddenly, I couldn't bring myself to say those cold, indifferent words.
"It's nothing." Zhu Yun wiped her lips with the handkerchief she gave her, swallowed a few more tonic pills, and softened her tone. "Are you trying to use me to intimidate Liu Changsheng?"
Luo Yan recognized the porcelain vase and was about to ask if it had been stolen from her when Zhu Yun exposed her intentions, causing her to blush.
But we absolutely cannot admit it.
She shrugged: "I have many, many more games. Just tell me if you want to join."
Zhu Yun was genuinely interested: "How do we play?"
"You help me win them over first." Luo Yan saw four or five village children leading calves over from afar and gestured for Zhu Yun to follow, reminding him, "Just use your usual fierce expression on my face and maintain your momentum."
"......"
The village children tied the calves to the hillside and discussed whether to play grass fighting or cockfighting that day. One of them spotted Luo Yan and pointed in her direction; the rest immediately gathered together and whispered among themselves.
Luo Yan took a conciliatory approach today, stopping a few steps away and calling out, "Liu Changsheng, would you like some candied fruit? It's very sweet."
Zhu Yun paused, wondering if this could fool anyone.
Unexpectedly, the chubby boy named Liu Changsheng's eyes lit up, and he took a few steps forward without hesitation, but his sister Liu Changyi quickly pulled him back.
That was close!
I almost fell for it.
Liu Changsheng rolled his eyes, wanting to retreat but afraid of being laughed at by Gu Yu and the others. But then he heard his younger sister say anxiously, "Brother, I want to eat candied fruit too."
Luo Yan, realizing her plan was working, seized the opportunity to peel back the oil paper: "It's really sweet! You can ask if you don't believe me..."
She glanced at Zhu Yun, then fabricated an identity on the spot, saying, "You can ask my brother."
"Dawdling and procrastinating."
Zhu Yun took it from her hand, circled around the crowd to make sure everyone could smell the fragrance, and then pointed at Luo Yan and said, "Have you ever seen such a short female ghost?"
Luo Yan: ?
Gu Yu, the second son of Wang the hunter, thought for a moment and said to his companion, "My brother said that female ghosts usually like to wear white clothes and like to eat children, but she is about the same age as us and always wears colorful clothes."
These words dispelled the fear of the village children. Wang Guyang, who had recently celebrated his fifth birthday, approached with drooling eyes, gazing longingly at Luo Yan.
Luo Yan generously extended her hand: "Everyone who sees it gets a share."
After distributing them all, there were three left over. She fed them to Zhu Yun first, whispering, "If you want some, there are more at home."
Then he went to the Liu siblings, giving one to Liu Changsheng and one to Liu Changyi.
Feeling obligated to help someone who has paid for your meal, Liu Changsheng instantly became shy, twisting his slightly chubby body as he said, "Thank you."
"We're all friends, no need to thank me." Luo Yan stood up straight, proudly raising her chin as she showed off to Zhu Yun, "I told you it would work."
"oh."
"......"
After everyone finished eating, they washed their hands by the ditch, and Luo Yan suggested playing Eagle Catches Chickens.
The rules were simple; even five-year-old Gu Yang could participate. But she overlooked one thing: Zhu Yun wouldn't indulge anyone.
He played the eagle, relying on his agility to catch one with each hand, winning without any suspense.
For the sake of the game experience, Luo Yan urgently called a halt: "No, no, this round you'll be the mother hen."
He nodded indifferently and switched places with Liu Changsheng.
No matter how much sweat Liu Changsheng ran, he couldn't touch Zhu Yun's clothes. Instead, the chicks behind him were flung about.
Luo Yan, panting, leaned against the tree trunk and waved her hands, saying, "I request a break."
Liu Changsheng also came over and mimicked her, saying, "I request a break."
Considering that their friendship wasn't yet solid, Luo Yan calmed herself down and suggested again, "Let's play hide-and-seek instead. I'll bring you some other delicious food tomorrow."
With a prize in hand, the children were in high spirits.
In the first round, Wang Guyu was the ghost, but he couldn't count, so Luo Yan had to say that he could open his eyes when it was almost time.
After giving his instructions, Liu Changsheng carried his sister and hid behind a haystack; Qinglian from the carpenter's family was agile and climbed onto the back of an ox; as for Guyu's younger brother, he was young and picked up a leaf to cover his eyes, thinking he was the best hidden.
Luo Yan looked around, not wanting to hide in a low place to avoid getting her skirt dirty, but also not wanting to go far away to bask in the sun.
She said with a troubled expression, "What should we do?"
“It wasn’t us,” Zhu Yun pointed to the sky above, correcting her. “I’m hiding in a tree.”
Upon hearing this, Luo Yan glanced at the lush old tree; it was indeed an excellent hiding place.
The problem is that the heavy-duty branches are only a few feet off the ground, so how do we get them up there?
Seeing that Gu Yu slowly lowered her hand, she grabbed Zhu Yun's sleeve, both anxious and fierce: "If you don't take me with you, I'll tell Gu Yu where you're hiding."
"......"
Seeing that her threat worked, she continued, "Next time there's something fun, I won't tell you either."
Zhu Yun admitted that he was very interested in the so-called games.
In the past, at Lan Yue Tower, all I could remember was practicing martial arts and getting beaten up. As I got older, I started taking on missions to kill people.
He didn't know what ordinary children did or what kind of lives they led.
Now I understand, it's not unpleasant at all, but rather quite novel.
Meeting the girl's determined gaze, Zhu Yun reached out and wrapped his arm around her waist, then gracefully flew up to the treetop.
It really flew.
Luo Yan felt her vision blur for a moment, and when she regained her composure, her feet were already firmly planted on the tree branches.
It was as if she had opened the door to a new world.
Seeing her unfocused pupils, Zhu Yun frowned and asked, "Are you afraid of heights?"
"Don't be afraid, don't be afraid." Luo Yan hugged his arm tightly and said ingratiatingly, "Master, please accept me as your disciple."
He nearly fell off the tree because of that title.
The leaves fell with a rustling sound, and Wang Guyu was hit, about to look up.
Driven by a competitive spirit, Zhu Yun, carrying the girl, leaped to a higher place with ghostly ease, completely disappearing into the greenery.
That's absolutely legendary light-footed skill!
For the first time, Luo Yan felt a real connection to her transmigrating into the book. She excitedly tugged at his sleeve and shook it, saying, "Master, Master, Master."
Noisy.
Zhu Yun rubbed his temples, pondering whether or not to throw her down.
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