Chapter 53 Did he cry?
Because they weren't very familiar with Jinzha, the two of them mostly traveled in silence. Jiang Huaisu lagged behind him by half a step, staring blankly at the back of his head, thinking: Although the two brothers look similar, their temperaments are worlds apart.
Nezha is the kind of aggressive type with magma surging beneath an iceberg, while Jinzha is like a gentle spring breeze and drizzle, possessing a calm and tranquil aura that unconsciously makes people lower their guard.
However, even though she could tell that Jinzha had a good temper, Jiang Huaisu didn't dare to strike up a conversation. He was Nezha's older brother, and she didn't want to leave him with a bad impression of being noisy. Sigh, to her shame, she was actually eyeing his younger brother.
She had only recently come to the realization that she had harbored inappropriate feelings for Nezha. Their relationship was no longer purely platonic; at least, it was one-sided on her part. But she lacked experience in such matters and was unsure whether to proceed cautiously or aggressively.
Fortunately, she had plenty of time to think about this matter on the way. As for the task of traveling by cloud, it was all handed over to Jinzha. This kind god seemed to have noticed that she was not in good condition and took the initiative to take on the role of driver from the beginning, while she only needed to sit on the cloud and enjoy the scenery without expending any magic power.
As they traveled further along, Jinzha turned back to look at her and reported on the progress: "Miss Jiang, we should reach Mount Ling in about four more hours."
"Oh, oh." Jiang Huaisu came to her senses and noticed that Jinzha was descending. The area was sparsely populated, so low-altitude flight would not cause panic among the people, and it would also allow them to avoid the cold winds of high altitude, while enjoying the scenery along the way—perfect.
"Miss Jiang, are you and the Great Sage on good terms?" Unexpectedly, Jinzha, who had been silent the whole way, started chatting with her and asked in a casual tone, "Did he sculpt this body for you?"
Jiang Huaisu was taken aback. How did he know that her physical body was created by someone else? Did he have some kind of special ability?
Noticing her confusion, Jinzha continued, "Your real body is still in Lingshan, well preserved. That's why I guessed that someone might have made a temporary container for you."
Her...body? Jiang Huaisu struggled to grasp the meaning behind those words. Why was her body on Mount Ling? Shouldn't it have been torn to pieces at the Immortal Ascension Platform long ago? Even Nezha was injured so badly by the gale; she didn't think her magpie corpse could have survived unscathed.
But Jinzha obviously wouldn't lie to her for no reason. The only possibility was that Nezha had risked his life to protect her body at the foot of the Immortal's Terrace, putting himself in even greater danger. This thought horrified her. Sacrificing oneself to save another was understandable, but sacrificing oneself to save a corpse? She admitted she was moved, but such a huge risk was better left untaken!
On second thought, the fact that Nezha went to such lengths for her meant that she held a very important place in his heart. Jiang Huaisu secretly prayed that she wasn't being treated like a best friend.
After worrying for a while, seeing that Jinzha was staring at her, she realized that she hadn't answered Jinzha's question yet. She smiled awkwardly and honestly confessed, "Prince Jinzha guessed correctly. I have a good relationship with Sun Wukong. He helped me create this body, but it's not a temporary container. It's prepared for long-term use."
"How does it compare to my third brother?"
"Um?"
"Compared to your third brother, is your relationship with the Great Sage better?"
"......"
She looked at Jinzha in disbelief. What was wrong with these two brothers? She had heard a similar question from Nezha once before, and now she was going to be tortured by her older brother again.
"Is it inconvenient for you to answer?" Jinzha smiled understandingly. "It's alright, I was just asking casually. Miss Jiang, you can just pretend you didn't hear me."
That being said, for some issues, remaining silent is itself an answer.
After pondering for a moment, Jiang Huaisu decided not to gloss over the matter, but instead said seriously, "If we really have to say, it's hard to compare them. One is like family, and the other is like... a friend. But in the present moment, I miss Nezha a little more."
After all, while Sun Wukong's side had its share of twists and turns, it had a clear main storyline to follow, whereas Nezha's side was full of uncertainties.
Jinzha's eyes crinkled as he smiled and said, "I understand."
After a brief conversation, the two returned to their previous silence.
As they drew closer to Mount Ling, Jiang Huaisu felt a pang of nervousness. She was about to see Nezha; what should she say? It had only been a few days, yet it felt like an eternity. She was unsure how to face him. Could it be as Sun Wukong had said—that emotions would be more intense during the adjustment period to a new body? She hadn't had so many inner thoughts before.
Little did she know that Jinzha, who was only a step away from her, was also thinking about his troublesome younger brother. When he left Mount Ling, Nezha seemed to still be in Jiang Huaisu's body. Several days had passed; he wondered if he had switched back.
If Jiang Huaisu were to see Nezha impersonating her and wallowing in self-pity, it would be a disaster. Unfortunately, Jinzha only remembered this when they were already close to Mount Ling, and there was no time to send another message to remind his third brother to be mindful of his image.
With their own thoughts, the two entered the territory of Mount Ling. Jinzha originally wanted to take Jiang Huaisu to pay homage to the Buddha first, but Venerable Ananda said that the Buddha had already accepted the Jade Emperor's invitation and gone to the Heavenly Court to subdue the demon monkey.
Unfortunately, he just missed Jinzha.
"May Buddha have mercy." Jinzha turned to look at Jiang Huaisu, seemingly to comfort her, and said, "The Great Sage will be alright."
Sensing his goodwill, Jiang Huaisu smiled in response. Monkey King's life was indeed out of danger, but he couldn't escape punishment. She would have to find more opportunities to visit him at the foot of Five Fingers Mountain to at least relieve his boredom, otherwise five hundred years would be too difficult to endure.
Afterwards, Jinzha led her to see Nezha. After searching around, they finally found Nezha's figure in the pine forest.
Nezha had set up a swing here at some point, but he didn't sit on it. Instead, he held the swing rope behind the seat and pushed it forward one step at a time.
Seeing this, Jinzha breathed a sigh of relief. Fortunately, his third brother had returned to his original body and was no longer occupying Miss Jiang's body.
Jiang Huaisu, with her sharp eyes, noticed someone sitting on the swing; judging from the figure, it seemed to be a girl, and she looked somewhat familiar. She couldn't help but wonder, when did Nezha make such a playmate on Mount Ling?
She tiptoed forward and turned to face the swing.
"Huh?" Jiang Huaisu was stunned when she saw the scene in front of her. The person on the swing looked exactly like her, except that he had his eyes closed and looked like he was sleeping peacefully.
She quickly realized, could this be her corpse? She thought it would be preserved in some kind of ice coffin or secret chamber, but she never expected that her own body would be swinging on a swing here, which was both eerie and warm.
It's quite novel to observe myself from this perspective. It seems like someone has drawn my eyebrows and applied rouge to my face. I look quite healthy and don't look like a dead person at all.
As she intently examined the corpse, Nezha also watched her. He stopped pushing the swing, and the swaying of the vines gradually decreased until it came to a complete stop.
Her gaze slowly shifted to Nezha's face. Yes, he was still so handsome and fair-skinned, with exquisite features, so beautiful he seemed to have a natural makeup effect. There were no obvious external injuries on his body, so he seemed to have recovered well.
The moment they finally met, all the worries and tension that had been building up along the way seemed to vanish, replaced by a feeling of pure joy at being reunited. Jiang Huaisu stood before the swing, their eyes meeting for a long while before she couldn't help but smile, raising her hand to wave: "Long time no see?"
Actually, it hadn't been long for her, but Nezha had been at Mount Ling for several years. Sigh, she didn't have to suffer this punishment; it's all that damned White Fang's fault. I wonder what that evil demon has been reincarnated into now. Heaven help him, he must be in serious trouble.
There was no time to think any further, because Nezha suddenly strode towards her in three quick steps, stretched out his arms, and hugged her tightly.
Jinzha wisely slipped away, leaving only the two of them in the pine forest.
The surroundings were silent, with only trees and wild grass serving as a backdrop, yet Jiang Huaisu suddenly felt as if she were standing under a spotlight. Sunlight filtered through the branches and leaves, falling on them, and at this moment, the two of them had only each other in their eyes, like the male and female leads in a stage play. While it's possible she was overthinking things, being held so tightly in someone's arms like this was undeniably heart-fluttering.
At the same time, she clearly realized that their relationship could never go back to what it was before. Ever since she realized her own feelings, even ordinary physical contact had changed in her eyes, and she could no longer return to the state of indifference she once had.
Feeling the tight embrace, she naturally put her arm around Nezha's shoulder and patted him. "Third Prince."
"Um?"
"I'm so glad you're alright."
"I should be saying that," Nezha said sullenly. "Who told you to do that?"
She paused for a moment, then realized that Nezha was probably referring to her suicide at the Banishment Terrace.
"Do you think I can't protect you? I won't let you fall, no matter who falls. The worst outcome is that I will lose my cultivation and be reborn in the lower realm."
"That's what I'm afraid of." Jiang Huaisu sighed. The thought that Nezha might be reincarnated as a pig made her feel that the worst nightmare in the world was nothing more than this.
She thought they would have to discuss the matter further, but instead of receiving a reply from Nezha, she felt a dampness on her shoulders and neck.
"...You're crying?!" She was a little surprised and instinctively wanted to push Nezha away to see if he was really crying. She didn't seem to remember ever seeing Nezha cry, but at this moment she could clearly hear low sobs and feel a dampness on his neck and shoulders... It couldn't be drool, could it?
However, her attempt to push him away failed; instead, Nezha hugged her even tighter, making it difficult for her to breathe. It was reasonable to suspect that Nezha didn't want her to see him cry, but Jiang Huaisu really didn't want to miss this unusual scene. She felt sorry for him, and she genuinely wanted to see it.
However, the difference in strength was too great. Even Nezha, whose injuries had not fully recovered, was not someone she could easily push over.
She could only accept the hug, her head pressed down so she couldn't move, and she waited quietly for him to calm down and wipe away his tears.
If no one saw it, it's the same as not crying. You're just fooling yourself, aren't you?
Ultimately, affection prevailed in her heart. Jiang Huaisu neither mocked nor ridiculed him, but instead raised her hand to soothe him and stroked his hair. "Alright, it's all over now, we're both fine. Look, the shell Sun Wukong made for me is really sturdy, it's no different from the original one."
"I will never let you get hurt again."
"Okay, okay." She went along with him and said gently, "I'll never get hurt again."
"I'm serious."
"I know."
As the embrace came to a close, Nezha's hand slowly lowered, gently stroking her back. He then took a step back and released her. Jiang Huaisu, now free, immediately turned to look at his face, where faint traces of undried tears were visible, and the corners of her eyes were slightly red. Unfortunately, the tears had already stopped, and his expression returned to its icy demeanor.
Because they still had a lot to say, the two naturally sat down side by side on the swing. Fortunately, there was enough space, and they could squeeze in, but with the corpse resembling Jiang Huaisu sitting next to them, the scene became a bit eerie.
Nezha glanced at the corpse and said to Jiang Huaisu, "I still suggest you use your original body. Changing to another vessel will deplete your soul power. After all, your own is the best."
Jiang Huaisu naturally had no objection. His body was so well preserved that even the wound on his neck had been removed by Nezha in some unknown way. He was in a state where he could reunite his body and soul at any time, which was an unexpected surprise.
However, she still felt a little regretful: "Then I'll have to discard this vessel."
"No. It can continue to be used as a backup, just like before." Nezha paused. "Was this container prepared for you by Sun Wukong a long time ago?"
"Yes, it's better to be safe than sorry."
She wasn't a native of this world, hadn't gone through the process of reincarnation, and wasn't listed in the Book of Life and Death. But she didn't feel out of place; on the contrary, she felt content with the status quo. Logically, once she was reincarnated with a new name, she would be added to the Book of Life and Death, but what if her foreign soul wasn't compatible with the local reincarnation system? Therefore, it was best to avoid those unknown risks as much as possible.
Now that Nezha has clearly stated that he can exchange her for his own body, that would be perfect, adding another resurrection point usage.
The two pondered together where would be the safest place to put the container this time. Carrying it with them wasn't appropriate; a typical example of the opposite was Sun Wukong, who, after being thrown into the Eight Trigrams Furnace, almost caused Jiang Huaisu to be refined as soon as she was resurrected.
After some discussion, they decided to place the container in the Lingshan Pavilion. Their reasoning was that while the Heavenly Court had been attacked, Lingshan had not, suggesting a lower likelihood of danger there. Furthermore, the Heavenly Court, with its complex structure and numerous celestial officials, was more prone to unforeseen events. Moreover, Jinzha was permanently stationed at Lingshan, making it easier to promptly inform them of any potential problems.
The venerable one guarding the pavilion readily agreed; these immortals were indeed easy to talk to.
In the days that followed, Jiang Huaisu stayed at Mount Ling to help Nezha repair his lotus body. At the same time, she herself needed to recuperate for a period of time. Having undergone two body swaps, her soul and body still needed to be re-integrated and stabilized.
During this time, she learned of Bai Ya's fate from Nezha. Somewhat surprised, she hadn't expected him to kill Bai Ya while still in his own body. This act of revenge made Jiang Huaisu, who was absent, feel a strange sense of involvement.
Two years have passed in the blink of an eye, and Buddha has still not returned to Mount Ling. Is the process of subduing Sun Wukong really that long? Jiang Huaisu was a little worried.
But then I thought, maybe the Monkey King is already trapped under the mountain. The Jade Emperor, happy that the problem is solved, might invite the Buddha to stay for a meal and a chat, and even a victory banquet before leaving. Perhaps the gods are currently singing and dancing in the heavens; in comparison, the Monkey King's situation seems even more pitiful.
Just then, Nezha's lotus body was repaired, even his hair was refurbished, and he was fully charged. After bidding farewell to Jinzha, it was time to return to the Heavenly Court, taking Jiang Huaisu with him.
This was the result of his persistent pleading, allowing Jiang Huaisu to stay with him in Yunlou Palace for a while longer. During this time, the Jade Emperor, mindful of his recent recovery from serious injuries, would probably not assign him any major tasks, so he could enjoy a period of leisure at Lianxin Residence.
Jiang Huaisu agreed, but she and Nezha agreed to first scout out the location of Five Elements Mountain so that it would be convenient for future prison visits.
She couldn't take her eyes off Nezha's retreating figure as she walked.
After her soul returned to her body, she didn't know if her extraneous emotions and sorrows had been stripped away and transferred to a vessel like before, but that didn't matter anymore. Two years had passed, and she was certain that her feelings for Nezha hadn't disappeared. This was definitely not a result of being carried away by emotions, but a conclusion reached in a rational state.
According to her observation, Nezha also likes her, but she can't be sure what kind of liking it is. If he treats her like a good sister like Sun Wukong, that would be very bad.
She secretly made up her mind: wait for a more appropriate time... and find an opportunity to test him.
Continue read on readnovelmtl.com
