strangeness
That's impossible! They only changed back to their original appearance after going up to the second floor. Even if we really found them, how could it be so fast?!
Qi Yuan's heart sank. Pei Yin wouldn't have knocked on the door if he wasn't certain she was in the room. She told Mu Qinghuai to find a place to hide before opening the door.
After entering the room, Pei Yin looked around and saw that Qi Yuan was the only one there. His smile widened. "Senior Sister, I'm not interested in sparrow flowers. I came to Quanzhou just to find you."
"What brings you here, Junior Brother Pei? Why did you wait until this day instead of earlier or later?" she asked calmly.
"I heard that Senior Sister was spending time with a boy named Zhu Fu a while ago?" Pei Yin sat on the bed as if she were in her own home.
"...So what if it is?" Qi Yuan's expression remained unchanged.
Pei Yin sighed, glancing meaningfully at her with deep, dark eyes: "I chose this day so I could have a chance to speak with you alone, Senior Sister. That Zhu Fu is dangerous; he could kill you. I won't allow that to happen."
There was a slight movement inside the wardrobe. Qi Yuan's pupils contracted slightly, but she continued listening.
"Guess what, Senior Sister? I checked his information, but I couldn't find anything. Everyone leaves traces of their existence, but his is completely blank. There is such a person in the Zhu family, but he has no ancestors or relatives. Don't you find that strange, Senior Sister?" he asked with a smile.
Qi Yuan remained unmoved: "I understand. And then?"
Instead, Pei Yin frowned and said anxiously, "So Senior Sister, please don't contact him anymore! If you want to avoid the limelight of picking the sparrow flower, you can come to my place! I will block all news from the inns, and no one will know you were here!"
She fell into thought.
"I don't care about your identity as the fourth disciple of the Lingjian Sect, but I can't go with you," Qi Yuan finally said.
Her silence was due to her contemplation of Pei Yin's true identity, not to consideration of the conditions he had proposed.
After all, Zhu Fu was still alive; she couldn't abandon him.
Pei Yin then realized what she had blurted out, her expression changed, and she lowered her head, looking aggrieved, and said, "Senior Sister really doesn't want to come with me... It's because the person who is with Senior Sister is next door, right? Then Senior Sister, please be careful. I... I'll go first. I'll keep the news that Senior Sister is here a secret."
He actually knew that the person who came with his senior sister was Zhu Fu.
Now that his senior sister has discovered that he is not a simple person, he will go along with it and help her out again.
As expected, feigning helplessness always works. Qi Yuan softened her tone: "Thank you. Pei Yin, you... take care too."
Pei Yin was angry, but she still pursed her lips and walked out of the room.
My senior sister used to call him Ah Yin! It's all that damned Ruan Yiyun's fault; everything changed from that day on!
A hint of ferocity flashed in his eyes.
*
Qi Yuan pressed her ear against the door to make sure Pei Yin was really gone before gently knocking on the cabinet door and saying, "You can come out now."
Mu Qinghuai slowly opened the door and sat on the bed, his head down, making his expression unreadable.
He remained silent for a long time, his voice hoarse: "Don't you have anything you want to ask me?"
Qi Yuan said solemnly, "I won't ask."
“…Okay.” Mu Qinghuai was taken aback upon hearing this.
A blurry figure appeared by the window. Qi Yuan cautiously crawled under the window and suddenly stood up and opened it.
Upon seeing who it was, she fell silent again.
Ouyang Lanyue climbed in through the window, closed it, turned around, and smiled, "We meet again."
Mu Qinghuai's forehead veins throbbed as he gritted his teeth and said, "Why is it you again? Why are you everywhere!"
“There’s no way around it, no matter where you are, I can find you accurately.” He fanned himself with a folding fan, his eyes revealing a hint of unfathomable depth.
After a long pause, Qi Yuan finally said, "...Young Master Ouyang."
Ouyang Lanyue finally stopped joking and said, "The Water Spirit Sect is going to seal off all the inns nearby. They're not just asking questions; they're opening doors and checking them one by one. How about coming to my place?"
The two exchanged a glance. Qi Yuan disguised herself as Zhu Rongfei, while Mu Qinghuai removed her disguise.
Qi Yuan's frost was quite famous, and in order not to give herself away, she accepted another sword from Ouyang Lanyue.
Just in case, going to Ouyang Lanyue's inn is indeed the safest option.
Qi Yuan carried Mu Qinghuai out of the window on her sword. Although it attracted the attention of the cultivators below, they did not notice.
She had become accustomed to Ouyang Lanyue's sudden disappearance, and then Mu Qinghuai behind her gave her directions.
"Aren't you afraid that I have ulterior motives and am not a good person?" he asked cautiously.
"No. Whatever your purpose or identity, I know you are a good person," Qi Yuan said slowly, gazing at the scenery on the horizon.
Mu Qinghuai was taken aback and silently watched her retreating figure without saying a word.
Unlike before, there were other people in the inn besides Ouyang Lanyue, but they were not guests, but servants.
As soon as they arrived at the door, they noticed that there were four people standing on each side of the entrance, as if they were deliberately welcoming them back to the inn.
"This is?"
"For some reason, Ouyang's servants will be staying at the inn to serve the three of us during this period."
Qi Yuan nodded, pushed open the door and went inside, where she was greeted by several servants.
"Welcome back! Xiaochun will take care of you for the next few days!" Chunting hurriedly stepped forward to help Qiyuan.
Ouyang Lanyue looked at the two of them with a meaningful expression.
"No need, I can do it myself," she said hastily, her face full of unease.
Since being blown away last time, the system hadn't appeared again, so Chun Ting took the opportunity to blend in with the group. Although she didn't want to interact with the fictional characters, because of the system's crash, she could only observe the two main characters herself.
Ouyang Lanyue smiled and said, "No need to be so formal, just make yourself at home."
Qi Yuan stepped forward and asked hesitantly, "Are there... spirit pools nearby?"
“Yes! There’s a spirit pool in the Frost Cave, not far from here. You want the Melting Sparrow Flower, right?” He blinked.
She didn't hide anything and admitted, "That's right. It's less than a month before the sect competition. The spirit pool is adapting to my ice spirit root. Judging from my current aptitude, half a month should be enough for me to fuse the flower."
Ouyang Lanyue smiled and pointed with her fan at the person beside her: "Not bad, then let... Zhu Fu take you there. You've been traveling all day, so rest here and set off again early tomorrow morning."
"Thank you so much," Qi Yuan said gratefully. These two people had really helped her many times, and she really didn't know how to repay them.
"It's alright, I didn't actually do anything." He smiled mysteriously.
*
It was the dead of night, and all was quiet.
Qi Yuan's room was very close to the main entrance. Although there was a floor between them, the entrance and exit were just below her room.
She was a light sleeper, and the rustling sounds coming from below dispelled her drowsiness.
Upon closer listening, it could be heard as two indistinct human voices.
One was Ouyang Lanyue, and the other sounded familiar, but I couldn't remember who it was for a moment.
Qi Yuan didn't care at first, until the commotion below grew louder and louder, turning into an argument, and she even heard the sound of spiritual energy striking the ground.
Qi Yuan rolled out of bed, took a deep breath, and tiptoed downstairs.
When she reached the last corner, she stopped by the wall and cautiously peeked out at the closed door.
Just as she had guessed, one of them was Ouyang Lanyue.
Another person surprised her; it was a disciple who, by all accounts, shouldn't be here—Pei Yin.
He had just left the previous inn, and now he's here at Ouyang Lanyue's place?
Qi Yuan was surprised not only because the two of them knew each other, but also because Ouyang Lanyue in front of her felt like a complete stranger.
In the past, no matter when, Ouyang Lanyue always had a smile on her face and spoke with a smile.
At this moment, as he spoke with Pei Yin, his face was gloomy, his gaze was cold and piercing, and he exuded a strong sense of oppression.
Ouyang Lanyue's voice was not as gentle as usual; instead, it revealed a hint of danger: "Get out of here."
"I'll ask you one more time! What's your senior sister doing here! What exactly do you want?!" Pei Yin frowned, her tone displeased.
"This is none of your business. I already told you to get lost." Ouyang Lanyue said impatiently, giving him the order to leave.
"Ouyang Lanyue! When your senior sister wakes up, have her come to see me. I'm taking her away, and I absolutely won't let you hurt her!" He was anxious, and his speech became even faster.
Ouyang Lanyue frowned, closed her eyes, and flicked a finger, instantly opening the door: "We'll talk after you can beat me. Little Yin, you should know that I won't hurt your senior sister."
"...You wait. I'll buy a house near you right now, and I'll see what you're up to!" Pei Yin was furious and stormed out, slamming the door behind her.
"Take care, and don't bother seeing me off," Ouyang Lanyue said slowly, her tone filled with barely suppressed laughter.
Qi Yuan was startled. She held onto the railing, went upstairs, and quietly closed the door.
As Ouyang Lanyue passed by her room, she took a deep look at it before turning around and returning to her own room.
Qi Yuan leaned against the door and slowly sat down, beginning to think about what she had just heard.
So, Pei Yin did indeed find this place because of her, and he wanted to take her away.
How did Pei Yin find this place so precisely?
Judging from his tone, he and Ouyang Lanyue not only knew each other for a long time, but also didn't get along very well.
Hurt her...? What do you mean?
The other side that Ouyang Lanyue had just revealed looked dangerous, different from what she knew, but she didn't seem like someone who would hurt her.
Eavesdropping is pretty unethical, but what puzzled Qi Yuan the most was that with such a commotion downstairs, why was she the only one who went down?
All the servants lived in guest rooms on the third floor, which was understandable given that they were all sound asleep at night.
Mu Qinghuai lived next door to her, and his hearing was very sharp, so there was no reason for him to be able to sleep.
Maybe they just don't want to deal with it; after all, it's normal not to want to open the door late at night.
With a heavy heart, Qi Yuan propped herself up and got into bed.
However, after closing her eyes, her mind was in a mess, the scene from earlier kept playing on repeat, and she couldn't fall asleep no matter what she did.
Frustrated, she pressed her head against the pillow, trying for a long time but still unable to fall asleep. She got up, looked at the moon by the window, and calmed her breathing.
It's beautiful.
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