Chapter 12
◎Close Relationship◎
Jiang Qiye didn't actually know how to fake an injury. He had never met a real opponent in his life. In this world, only his master could defeat him. Others could hardly even get close to him, let alone injure him.
Even Pei Xueyan's master, Ye Xiuluo, who was known as a demon, could not get the better of him.
He didn't want to be sentimental, and he didn't even want her to see how weak he looked. He quickly straightened up and said in a strong voice, "It's nothing, no problem."
But Pei Xueyan wouldn't let it go. Her eyes were red, and tears streamed down her face like broken beads. She was crying her heart out.
It's really a headache.
It wasn't that he was annoyed by her crying, but rather that the sound of her crying and her expression always reminded him of Xue Lian.
Xue Lian and Chen Weian wonder which identity she will encounter in their next life.
Thinking back to Xue Lian, she used to be just like that, always crying and sobbing, her eyes and heart filled with him, loving him to the point of obsession, loving him to the point of being unable to extricate herself, but in the end she met a tragic end.
Jiang Qiye tried to rationalize the illusion of her previous life, telling herself that it was nothing more than a mirage.
But seeing the same face stirred up his emotions, making him restless and agitated.
"Don't cry."
Pei Xueyan couldn't hold back her tears. She took his arm and helped him back to his room under the watchful eyes of everyone in the inn.
After quickly packing their belongings, the two left through the side door.
When江湖人士 (jianghu figures) fight on the rooftop, not only are tiles flying everywhere, but serious injuries are also caused. The authorities will surely arrive quickly upon hearing the news.
To avoid unnecessary trouble, they left a few silver ingots at the inn's counter and quickly disappeared into the night.
As expected, not long after they left, a group of soldiers carrying torches rushed over and surrounded the inn.
Jiang Qiye wasn't seriously injured, but Pei Xueyan's low sobs disturbed his peace of mind.
He even considered using the Ruthless Dao Technique to suppress his irritation, so as not to be bothered by her concerned appearance, which made even breathing feel somewhat uncomfortable.
The night was deep, and when the two knocked on the door of another inn, all was quiet.
If Jiang Qiye hadn't been so generous and given so much money, the shopkeeper probably would never have opened the door for a lone man and woman in the dead of night, and even given them a friendly welcome.
Upon entering the room, Pei Xueyan immediately pulled Jiang Qiye to sit down, her gaze sweeping over his shoulder.
The clothes there were soaked in blood, turning a dark color, and a wound was faintly visible.
Pei Xueyan stood up and reached out to touch his chest.
Jiang Qiye was shocked and shouted angrily, "Witch! Stop moving!"
She was startled by the sudden shout, her cheeks flushed red, and her anger flared up instantly: "You...you...I just saw you were injured and wanted to find some ointment to treat your wounds, how did that make me a witch?"
Jiang Qiye then realized he had lost his composure, softened his tone, and added, "I am your third uncle. There is a difference between men and women. How can you touch me so casually?"
"Who wants to touch you? I wouldn't even bother touching you!"
Although she had lived a carefree life with little parental control, she was still furious to be called a "witch" like that.
Even though he had just eliminated three of her enemies.
When Jiang Qiye was unsure about something, he would change the subject first. He had no intention of making things too tense with her, nor did he intend for their relationship to go beyond kinship. Therefore, it was crucial for him to maintain his status as an "elder".
He suppressed the lingering panic in his heart and apologized in a low voice: "I misspoke. My wound was hurting a lot just now, so I didn't think before I spoke."
As he spoke, he subtly moved his hand behind his back, conjuring a small medicine jar out of thin air and handing it to her, thus avoiding further entanglement in the matter.
Pei Xueyan hadn't really blamed him in the first place. Seeing him back down, her anger subsided considerably, and she even started joking around.
She unscrewed the medicine jar, dipped some ointment in it, and applied it to his wound. As she gently wiped it, she asked mischievously, "Third Uncle, have you never been in contact with a woman before? That's why you get nervous when I touch you, isn't it?"
"Witch!"
This time, I didn't mince words and just said it directly.
Pei Xueyan wasn't angry, but her smile deepened. She deliberately moved closer, her head almost touching his chest, her warm breath brushing against him as she gently and repeatedly applied the ointment to the small wound.
Her voice was soft and gentle, with a hint of ambiguous probing: "Third Uncle, I feel like I've seen you somewhere before... Have we really never met before?"
"No." Jiang Qiye's voice was without the slightest hesitation, and the lie came out of his mouth without hesitation. "How could that be? I was not even five years old when your father got married, and I haven't seen you for many years since. How could I have 'seen' you?"
"People often say, 'When strangers meet on the road, it is because of the accumulated karma from thousands of miles away.' I think our meeting must be a perfect fulfillment of our destiny."
Jiang Qiye didn't know what was wrong; why was he still speaking in such an ambiguous way?
Does one have to be a lover to the point of life and death to achieve the elixir no matter what one does?
This female demon is incredibly clever; she probably already knew in her heart that she wasn't her biological uncle.
To avoid getting too deeply involved in the illusion, Jiang Qiye used his internal energy on the futon last night after Pei Xueyan fell asleep, forcibly entering the Path of Ruthlessness.
The ruthless path doesn't require being overly cold-hearted. As long as you remain calm and composed in the face of her "seduction" and "liking," and don't develop any feelings that would overstep the bounds of "elders," you can pass the test.
Therefore, after finishing his meditation this morning, Jiang Qiye felt his spiritual energy flowing smoothly throughout his body, and he was no longer as agitated as usual when faced with the female demon who had already woken up and was waiting for him downstairs for dinner.
As he came downstairs, he saw Pei Xueyan sitting by the window. When she saw him walking towards her with his sword in his hand, she immediately stood up and went to greet him, bowing slightly and asking with concern, "Third Uncle, you've worked hard. Does your wound still hurt?"
The ruthless approach was indeed effective.
His expression remained calm as he walked to the table, sat down silently, and replied in a low voice, "It's alright."
Neither of them ate much. Pei Xueyan took small bites of her steamed bun, but her eyes kept drifting towards Jiang Qiye, clearly wanting to ask him something.
She put down her chopsticks and asked softly, "Third Uncle, where are we going next? Should we continue traveling the martial world, or find a place to stop and stay?"
He looked up at Pei Xueyan, his tone still calm: "Let's head south first. Your parents had an old friend who lived in seclusion in Jiangnan. We'll go find him, firstly to avoid the storm for a while, and secondly to ask about the reasons behind what happened back then."
This is half true and half false. It's quite a journey to Jiangnan, which is a good opportunity to cultivate feelings before condensing the elixir.
If it fails to solidify along the way, he will naturally have other methods once he reaches Jiangnan.
Upon hearing this, Pei Xueyan's eyes lit up instantly: "That's great! I've wanted to go to Jiangnan for a long time. Lively markets are so interesting. Traveling and sightseeing is a poet's hobby, and I'm already tired of it."
After breakfast, the two left the inn.
Pei Xueyan led the little donkey she had bought yesterday and saw that it had a saddle pad on its back, making it extremely comfortable to sit on.
They walked happily towards the south of the city.
Along the way, she asked cheerfully, "I used to hear my mother say that spring in Jiangnan has its own flowers, and there are vendors selling sugar paintings and dough figurines on the streets. At night, the river is filled with lanterns... I thought I would never have the chance to see them in my life. I never thought I could go with my third uncle. It's so great!"
"Are there dragon boats? Are the houses decorated with lanterns and colorful decorations for the Lunar New Year?"
"Third Uncle, have you been to every corner of the world?"
Jiang Qiye didn't want to talk, only occasionally responding with "hmm" or "yes," neither distant nor intimate, just right in the proper distance for an elder.
How could a female demon's mind contain a woman who is deeply in love and so talkative and romantic?
It's truly a surprising contradiction!
But Pei Xueyan didn't find him cold; on the contrary, she found her third uncle to be exceptionally reliable.
She thought of her parents, who always bickered and hit each other with tree branches. She thought that this was how husband and wife should behave. Later she found out that her parents were actually martial arts masters who were hiding their true abilities.
At this moment, she sat on the donkey's soft cushion, her legs swinging gently, with a quiet companion beside her, feeling exceptionally comfortable.
After walking for about a morning, an apricot grove appeared ahead, with pink and white petals falling softly and covering the ground.
Pei Xueyan's eyes lit up, and she immediately jumped off the donkey, ran quickly to the edge of the apricot grove, and reached out to catch a falling petal.
She turned to look at Jiang Qiye and exclaimed with a smile, "Third Uncle, look! These flowers are exactly the same as the ones Mother used to plant! But the flowers here are blooming more profusely. It seems that the soil down the mountain is more suitable for growing flowers and living here."
Jiang Qiye stopped and looked in the direction she was looking.
She played for a while.
He looked up at the sun, roughly judged the time, and said, "There's a teahouse ahead, we can rest when we get there."
Pei Xueyan immediately replied "Okay," and hurriedly walked out of the apricot grove, hopping and skipping as she led the donkey to catch up.
As they walked, she pulled the donkey rope closer to Jiang Qiye, smiling and praising, "Uncle, your martial arts are so amazing, you must be very strong too, right?"
"Hmm." He didn't know how to answer.
Pei Xueyan immediately shoved the donkey rope into his hand: "Then you can lead this stubborn donkey."
As soon as she finished speaking, she happily ran towards the tea stall by the roadside.
When he arrived at the teahouse, Pei Xueyan had already found a seat at the back, with a bowl of freshly brewed iced tea in front of her.
Seeing Jiang Qiye leading the donkey, she shook her head, her tone full of amazement and boasting: "Third Uncle, the donkey was so well-behaved when you were leading it! Were you scared?"
“When I was walking it yesterday, it kept running to the ridges of the fields by the roadside and trying to eat the crops that other people had planted. I tried my best to pull it away but I couldn’t. I didn’t expect it to be so well-behaved today with you here.”
Jiang Qiye had been flattered and praised before, but he still found it quite pleasing to hear this female demon's somewhat naive praise.
I felt inexplicably relieved.
Without much thought, he immediately promised, "From now on, I will lead this donkey."
Pei Xueyan immediately smiled and said, "Thank you, Third Uncle. You're so kind."
After the waiter came over and led the donkey to the backyard to feed it, Jiang Qiye sat down opposite her. When his gaze swept across the table, he noticed a few pieces of osmanthus cake on a plate.
I haven't eaten much these past few days, so I was quite hungry and picked it up to take a bite.
The first taste is a sweet osmanthus fragrance, which is surprisingly delicious.
I never expected to find such delicious osmanthus cake in the middle of nowhere.
“The apricot tree that my mother planted was in the yard. It would bloom every spring, but not as many times. Back then, my father always said that when I grew up a bit more, he would take me to Jiangnan to see a bigger apricot grove. I never expected this…”
Jiang Qiye looked up at her and saw that she had her eyes downcast and a melancholy expression. She had lost some of her previous liveliness and gained a pitiful fragility.
For him, everything before him was nothing more than an illusion that helped him condense his core; but for Pei Xueyan, these memories and this world were the real world she had lived in for more than ten years.
He was silent for a moment, then slowly spoke to comfort him: "When we get to Jiangnan, we will see even better scenery than this."
Really?
"real."
"You promise?"
"Um."
Upon receiving an affirmative answer, Pei Xueyan immediately smiled, extended her slender fingers, and gently hooked her little finger with his, her tone earnest with a touch of childlike innocence: "Third Uncle keeps his word, pinky promise."
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