Chapter 89 The shuttlecock soars high in the air, a gentle breeze...
The shuttlecock soared high into the air, its fluffy feathers trembling in the breeze like reeds swaying by a wetland, obscuring the sun on the horizon. Its crisp, clear sound lingered in my ears.
For Xie Baoqiong, who had never played with a shuttlecock before, it was not a difficult task. He was a cultivator, and although he had never practiced movement techniques, his agility, which far exceeded that of ordinary people, was enough for him to easily catch the falling target after he understood how to play the shuttlecock. He could even spare some time to think about other things.
He looked up at the shuttlecock rising into the sky again, its clustered feathers pressing down as it soared, resembling a blooming flower.
If only those strange emotions could be as simple as kicking a shuttlecock, or could be kicked away like a shuttlecock.
"What an amazing person!" Erqiao, who had disappeared for a while, suddenly reappeared when the shuttlecock soared to its highest point to cheer him on.
Xie Baoqiong turned his head to look at Erqiao who was approaching. The closed "flower" fell, and without turning his head, he raised his hand to catch it. The tinkling sound stopped abruptly in his closed hand and was replaced by Erqiao's crisp voice:
"My esteemed guest, dinner is ready."
When Erqiao saw him stop, she moved even closer: "Today we're having braised duck, soy sauce duck, scallion oil duck, and stewed old duck soup..." Erqiao recited the names of the dishes, slurping her saliva.
Xie Baoqiong didn't think much of the dishes that were full of ducks until the next few days, when he saw a table full of chickens and ducks every noon.
Cheng Ling noticed that Xie Baoqiong, who usually ate most of the food, hadn't touched her chopsticks for a long time, and asked in confusion, "Is the food not to your liking?"
Chicken and duck cooked in different ways were laid out on the table, their appearance and aroma incredibly tempting. Xie Baoqiong shook her head, picked up a piece of meat, and took a bite.
"So, they haven't reconciled with Lord Xie yet?"
“I didn’t argue with my father.” Xie Baoqiong didn’t want to continue the topic and instead asked, “Why is the only food we have every day chicken and duck? Does Lord Cheng like it?”
Only then did he begin to investigate Cheng Ling's true form. Could he be a member of Xiao Chun's clan?
Cheng Ling paused for a moment, then began to explain the origins of these ingredients:
"...Those diseased poultry were supposed to be disposed of, but they were stolen and eaten by rats while they were being processed. I kept the rats to observe them for a while and did not find any signs of disease. So I tried it myself and found that they were no different from ordinary poultry. I then sent the remaining poultry to the kitchen. This clinic has to support a lot of people, and with the food shortage in the city, every bit of food we can save is a bit more."
Her gaze swept across the dining table, pausing for a moment: "It's just that this quantity is indeed a bit too much. It seems we need to find a different way to consume it..."
After listening to Cheng Ling's words, Xie Baoqiong paused in her act of putting the meat, which was covered in sauce and looked delicious, into her mouth. After hesitating for a moment, she continued to eat without any guilt.
After lunch, Xie Baoqiong still chose to stay in the backyard of the clinic, sitting on the steps, watching Erqiao run to the front yard to help as usual.
He glanced through the window at Cheng Ling, who was engrossed in ancient books, his gaze wandering before finally settling on the courtyard wall that he could easily leap over.
Now seems like a good time to go out. He's becoming more and more adept at concealing his presence, not to mention he has Xiaochun's jade pendant with him.
His purpose in coming down the mountain was to find the person behind it all and settle his own karma; he should accomplish this as soon as possible.
But his body remained glued to the spot, completely still.
Xie Baoqiong tugged at the tip of the feather at the end of the shuttlecock, her eyes flashing with confusion and helplessness.
But then what?
Return to Sishui Mountain? Spend your life guarding the grave until you become an immortal or turn back into a stone.
Or perhaps with Xiaochun? But Xiaochun also has her own things to do.
He almost twisted the tips of his fluffy feathers into a rope. As if suddenly realizing this, he scraped at the tangled feathers with his fingernails, trying to straighten them out, but he could never restore them to their original shape.
Xie Baoqiong stopped, the loose downy feathers on the tips of the feathers sticking together, just like his current state of mind.
In fact, he had many opportunities to act like today, but the hidden anxiety in his heart made him procrastinate again and again, and he even made many excuses to cover up his unwillingness to end everything he had now.
Humans are indeed adept at deceiving monsters.
But he couldn't find anything wrong with Xie Zhuo.
The only fault one could find was that he was too good to his son of unknown origin, which revealed that Xie Zhuo was not as smart as others said, but rather incredibly stupid, unable to even recognize his own bloodline.
Let's talk the conflict out.
Xie Baoqiong's tightly furrowed brows relaxed for a moment, but then quickly became tangled up again.
Revealing the truth is tantamount to handing the right to choose to Xie Zhuo.
In a game of strategy, relinquishing the right to choose is tantamount to losing the initiative and falling into a disadvantageous position.
That's a poor choice.
unless……
Xie Zhuo's teachings flashed into his mind like a sudden inspiration, but he couldn't recall them immediately afterward.
Xie Baoqiong vaguely remembered that what followed seemed quite important as well.
At that time, it seemed that he had lost the game, losing all his snacks for the day along with Xie Rongjing's help, and then cheated and took back the game from Xie Zhuo.
Xie Zhuo, however, acted as if he hadn't heard him. He picked up a piece of pastry and ate it without blinking in front of him, and then slowly said these words to him.
Xie Zhuo couldn't take back the move he made after all. He picked up the pieces from the board and put them back in the jar. He then played another game with Xie Zhuo, promising to return half of the pieces to him if Xie Zhuo won.
Before the game began, Xie Zhuo placed two jars of chess pieces in front of him and let him choose.
He naturally didn't understand what Xie Zhuo meant by those words, so he listened to Xie Zhuo's explanation:
There are two exceptions to the original statement.
In a game of strategy, relinquishing the option to choose is a poor strategy.
Unless you are certain that the other party will make the choice you want.
Or perhaps the person you're playing against is soft-hearted.
"Who is 'father'?"
He remembered asking that question.
The Xie Zhuo in his memory looked at him with a gentle expression, but he did not answer his question.
At that time, he was not familiar with Xie Zhuo. He stared at Xie Zhuo's face, placed his hand on the black chess piece container, and saw Xie Zhuo's calm expression. He quickly moved his fingers and hooked the white chess piece container back. When he saw Xie Zhuo sigh, he secretly felt smug.
Both he and Xie Zhuo had a difficult time in that game; one won with difficulty, and the other lost with difficulty.
Anyway, he ended up having some dessert.
...
Looking back now, Xie Baoqiong can vaguely discern the answer Xie Zhuo didn't say. Perhaps it was both, or perhaps in Xie Zhuo's eyes, it didn't matter which one he chose.
The only two people Xie Zhuo would soften towards unless he was involved in a conflict are Xie Baoqiong and Xie Baoqiong.
He seemed unsure of the choice Xie Zhuo would make.
Even after Xie Zhuo picked her up in the evening, Xie Baoqiong still seemed absent-minded.
"Qiong'er." Xie Zhuo noticed Xie Baoqiong's low spirits and couldn't help but worry:
"What happened? Are you unhappy because your father made you stay at the clinic?"
Xie Zhuo sat in a corner of the carriage, his body showing a brief relaxation of fatigue, with faint dark circles under his eyes, not very noticeable in the shadows.
The carriage was covered with a thick carpet. Xie Baoqiong sat cross-legged on it, with food prepared by Xie Zhuo in front of him to fill his stomach. He glanced at it, then leaned back and tilted his head to the side, resting it on Xie Zhuo's lap.
Xie Zhuo enjoyed his closeness and was secretly pleased, but this feeling was soon replaced by another, more profound emotion.
He stroked the soft hair in his arms, trying to dispel the child's low spirits.
He didn't urge her, but waited quietly for Xie Baoqiong to speak.
“Father…” Xie Baoqiong tilted her head, her eyes carefully choosing where to focus. When she caught a glimpse of Xie Zhuo’s shadow, she quickly looked away, finally settling her gaze on the plate of food that Xie Zhuo had prepared.
His fingers twirled between his hair and Xie Zhuo's robes, as if trying to blend his hair into the dark patterns of the robes: "I want to tell you something."
"Alright, Father, listen to me. What does Qiong'er want to say?"
He couldn't see Xie Zhuo's face, only that tolerant and gentle voice slowly and steadily entered his ears.
Yet he was still not satisfied, his desire for more insatiable:
"Dad, you should call me Xiaobao."
Where Xie Baoqiong couldn't see, a moment of surprise flashed across Xie Zhuo's eyes, which were then filled with a smile:
"the fat is in the fire?"
An affectionate voice came from above his head. Xie Zhuo gently pinched the soft flesh on his cheek with his fingertips and shook it. His tone was flat, without any anger or anything else.
He didn't hear the name he was looking for.
Xie Baoqiong turned her head to make sure she couldn't see Xie Zhuo at all.
He really messed up, he really messed up a huge mess.
He pursed his lips, covered his face, and stopped speaking.
Seeing his childlike appearance, Xie Zhuo's eyes sparkled with amusement, almost spilling over onto Xie Baoqiong.
"Good little Bao, tell me quickly what's wrong."
Xie Baoqiong savored Xie Zhuo's new title, her voice muffled as it seeped through the fabric: "Father needs to do something first, then I'll tell you."
"Oh? What is it?" Xie Zhuo asked patiently.
"Dad, pluck the moon for me."
Xie Baoqiong managed to make even unreasonable remarks sound perfectly reasonable.
He didn't want to give up what he had now; his heart of stone had been eaten away by greed, and he wanted more.
He was willing to give Xie Zhuo the right to choose, but he couldn't gamble on whether Xie Zhuo would be soft-hearted about a stone.
So he would wait until the moon fell from the sky before telling Xie Zhuo the secret he had been hiding.
By then, it will be too late for Xie Zhuo to regret it.
Xie Baoqiong's eyes, hidden beneath the brocade, were deep and clear, filled with pure longing.
By then, even the hottest flames wouldn't seem to have much of a problem cracking the stone.
...
"Then I'll have to think of a good idea."
Two warm hands lifted his head off the fabric, interrupting his despicable thoughts. Xie Zhuo gave a not-so-surprising answer with a burning gaze.
Xie Baoqiong was helped to sit down by Xie Zhuo, who seemed to be seriously considering how to pluck the moon from the sky. The car fell silent for a moment.
a long time,
"Is Xiaobao unhappy because of what he wanted to say?"
Xie Zhuo's clear voice struck Xie Baoqiong's heart directly, but before he could react, Xie Zhuo's words nourished his greed like a gentle stream:
"If it won't hurt you, you don't need to tell me. Everyone has their own secrets."
Xie Baoqiong stared intently at Xie Zhuo, wondering if Xie Zhuo was aware that she was feeding a monster and the monster's ever-growing greed.
"What if it's something that will upset Father?"
Xie Zhu snorted lightly, his gaze scrutinizing Xie Baoqiong as he meticulously listed her past offenses: "Tell me, did you break my favorite teacup? Or did you spill ink on the document I finished writing?"
Distracted by Xie Zhuo, Xie Baoqiong's pent-up frustration dissipated, and she muttered, "I didn't do any bad things, and I didn't do it on purpose before."
The next moment, he was pulled into Xie Zhuo's arms, and above his head, Xie Zhuo's voice, tinged with laughter, said:
"Naughty Little Treasure".
The vibrations of his chest resonated close to his ear:
"Even a naughty little treasure is still Daddy's little treasure."
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