[Who Hears Right and Wrong] She Returned to the Path of Immortality
The birds singing outside the window were too noisy. Zhou Suyao closed her eyes, picked up something she didn't know what it was, and threw it against the window with a bang.
The birdsong stopped briefly, but immediately, the birds outside the window began chirping again.
She struggled to get up and tried to close the window.
But she was really too sleepy!
Her eyelids felt as heavy as if they were pressed down by two mountains. Every time she tried to open her eyes, it would last less than three seconds before they slowly closed again without any prediction.
Beneath her was a soft mattress that had been replaced by no one, and it was so comfortable to sleep on that she could hardly resist at all, and her consciousness quickly sank.
She entered a chaotic dream very briefly.
She saw Xuan Yangming's distorted face, the overwhelming resentment and grief from the demon clan, and Ning Qinggui - she stared calmly into her eyes with a calm expression, and the next second, she turned into the ferocious appearance of the underworld, rushing towards her as if to tear her into pieces.
...Countless chaotic and sharp images collided in the darkness, until they finally stopped at the weeping willows by the lake, with the back of that person who looked like a banished immortal.
“Big Brother——!”
She screamed and subconsciously rushed over, trying to catch the phantom from a hundred years ago.
But the next moment, she woke up.
Her hand was still suspended in the air, as if she wanted to grasp something, but the emptiness in her hand made her realize all the reality inescapably.
It was really just a dream - a chaotic, unreal dream.
All right.
Zhou Su thought about it.
She withdrew her hand, suppressed the strange emotions in her heart, and slowly raised her eyelids.
What she saw was still the familiar look - the dark brown beams with traces of years of smoke and fire, the thin morning light that squeezed in through the gaps in the window frames covered with thin paper, the dry dust floating in the air and the faint bitter smell of herbs, all told her.
All that deep pain, that past that had nothing to do with her, could come to an end for the time being.
At that time, she was on the path to becoming an immortal, so at least she was safe—
?
“Squeak—”
The door was pushed open unceremoniously, bringing with it a chill of early morning air and a series of startled cries.
"Hey! Did you turn over? Did you dare to open your eyes?"
Third senior brother Zhou Zonglan’s loud voice was so iconic that Zhou Suyao could hear his voice before she even saw him.
He carried a steaming bowl of medicine so strong it could kill mosquitoes, and trudged over to her bedside with his usual playful smile. "How come you've only been lying here for seven days? I thought you were hibernating like those bears in the back mountains, staying here until next spring."
After saying that, he handed the large bowl in his hand to Zhou Suyao and said in a tone that did not allow for negation: "Hurry up and drink it while it's hot. The eldest brother personally watched over the fire and brewed it. Don't leave a single drop!"
Behind her was Second Senior Brother Qu Mingwu, leaning against the door frame with his arms folded. He still had that gloomy expression on his face, as if the whole world owed him money. However, the deep worry in his eyes faded the moment he saw her sit up, turning into a cold snort: "You woke up and felt like moving around. Don't be such a mess. Do you know that your mountain is almost covered in bird shit? Even Wangcai doesn't dare to dig a hole."
"Ouch!" Zhou Suyao raised her hands in surrender, suppressing the urge to roll her eyes. "Uncles, please just let me be in peace for a few days. I feel like vomiting when I smell the medicine!"
"An Sheng?!" Zhou Zonglan's eyes widened exaggeratedly, and she threw the medicine bowl onto the small broken table beside her bed, wailing immediately: "My dear little aunt, you know that during the seven days you were unconscious, Master almost turned the medicine pot upside down. If it weren't for Second Young Master Qi locking Xuan Yangming up in the prison of Raotiandao and not being able to trouble Xuan, Master would have chopped him into pieces! Even Wangcai has lost a lot of weight. If you don't wake up, my second brother and I will have to go down the mountain and jump rope to call back your soul, my ancestor!"
This barrage of attacks stunned her until the second brother said impatiently, "You're talking too much nonsense. Take some medicine."
It is so concise and to the point, and there is no doubt about it.
Zhou Suyao sighed resignedly, knowing that she could no longer avoid the bowl of "good medicine". She had no choice but to reluctantly reach out to take the scalding hot medicine. However, as soon as her fingertips touched the wall of the bowl, she shrank back from the heat.
"Hey, my little ancestor!" Zhou Zonglan yelled, and immediately went over to pick up the bowl, "You are so precious, let me help you!"
The second senior brother behind him sighed heavily, turned away with a look of disgust and said, "Zhou Zonglan, if you continue to pamper her like this, be careful that you will be asked to sweep up the bird shit."
"I'm happy to! What's your business?"
Zhou Zonglan shook his head and made a face at his second brother, then carefully held the bowl, brought it to Zhou Suyao's mouth, and blew on it exaggeratedly, saying, "Little ancestor, come here, open your mouth, be careful of the heat, ah——"
In this chaotic yet unconcealable atmosphere of joy, the light from the doorway was blocked by a tall figure without anyone noticing.
Senior Brother Zhou Shanyuan had been standing there quietly for some time.
He was still wearing the same plain green robe, and his figure was even thinner than before he fell unconscious. The wide sleeves hung empty, as if a gust of wind could carry him away.
His face was pale, like fine white porcelain, with an almost shattered transparency that made the bruises under his eyes even more conspicuous. His long, inky hair was gently pulled back with a simple mahogany hairpin. The loose strands that couldn't be tied up fell around his cheeks, making him look even more emaciated.
In his hand, he habitually held a small piece of freshly broken peach branch, and his fingertips were filled with sawdust that still had the fragrance of grass and wood.
His arrival was like the melting snow nearby, instantly extinguishing Zhou Zonglan's noise in the room, and even the air seemed to freeze for a moment.
Zhou Zonglan, who was standing beside the bed, saw him coming. His hand holding the medicine bowl stopped in mid-air, and moved back and forth between him and Zhou Suyao. He opened his mouth to say something, but was glared back by Qu Mingwu.
There was deathly silence in the room.
It wasn't until a long while later that the eldest brother opened his mouth slightly. His voice was low and pleasant, like the tapping of jade, but it was also a little hoarse and weaker than usual: "It's good that you're awake. Drink it while it's hot, it's better to cool it down if it's bitter."
Those words were like a furnace; though not quite warm enough, they at least melted some of the frozen atmosphere. Zhou Zonglan instantly seemed to have received a supreme instruction. He quickly brought the bowl closer to Zhou Suyao's lips and said, "Did you hear that? Senior Brother has spoken. Drink quickly. I'll go get you some candied fruit. Drink it quickly. If the medicine gets cold, even the candied fruit won't be able to alleviate the bitterness on your tongue."
After saying that, he stuffed the medicine bowl into Zhou Suyao's hand, stood up, grabbed Qu Mingwu and was about to run away.
Although Qu Mingwu didn't know what this junior brother was up to, he couldn't stand up to his brute force and was practically dragged out of the hut. He turned around and frowned at Zhou Suyao, urging her to drink, "Drink!"
The door was closed with a creaky sound, almost instantly blocking out the morning light outside and taking away the relaxing noise.
The hut immediately became quiet, leaving only the strong and bitter smell of medicine in the air, and that... senior brother who was standing there, no longer seemed as approachable as before...
Zhou Suyao held the still warm bowl of medicine in her hand. The burning sensation on her fingertips seemed to be suppressed by another deeper chill. She lowered her head and looked at herself in the bowl of soup, her thoughts in a mess.
The eldest brother's eyes... and his divinity that was so cold that no one dared to touch him... was it her illusion?
It must be an illusion...it must be the remaining fragments of her nightmare...
How could her gentle senior brother have such a cold side that people dare not approach him, and how could he stand by and watch the demon clan being exterminated?
So the person she saw must not be the eldest brother, but... a man who looked like him... It must be...
Is it definitely...?
Her mind was in a mess, so she could only clench the soup bowl tightly, letting the still warm bowl wall burn her palms, bringing a touch of real pain, trying to dispel the unreal heart palpitations.
At the door, Zhou Shanyuan did not leave immediately. He still stood there quietly, his eyes fixed on her lowered head, and there was deep fatigue in his eyes.
He did not urge her to take the medicine anymore, but was like a silent and fragile jade Guanyin, emitting an aloof and weak aura.
A long time passed, so long that even the medicine in Zhou Suyao's hand felt cold, so long that she thought he had left silently, before she heard his low, hoarse voice rise again. It was softer than before, with a barely perceptible sigh.
"The medicine has cooled. Not only does it taste bitter, but it's also less effective. You were only supposed to take it for two days, but now you'll have to take it for a week."
Zhou Suyao shuddered violently, and almost reflexively picked up the bowl, held her breath, and drank the bowl of medicine that was so bitter that it made her scalp numb in one gulp.
The strong bitterness instantly swept through her entire mouth and rushed straight to her forehead, choking her and causing her to cough violently, even coughing out tears.
"Cough... cough cough... I'm done..."
"Um."
A very soft answer came from the door. He seemed to stand still for a moment before slowly turning around and leaving silently.
In a place that Zhou Suyao didn't notice, the monotonous yet fresh peach blossom branch swayed gently at his fingertips, and a few pink peach blossoms fell silently.
In the next few days, the path to becoming an immortal seemed to be back on track.
The master still spent his days lying on his own hilltop, picking his feet. He would either pet his dog or go down to the village at the foot of the mountain to pet the villagers' cats. Occasionally, he would run to the eldest brother's hilltop to pick a basket of peach blossoms to make peach blossom cakes. Then he would turn around and shout at the eldest brother's closed door, "Su Yao said she's tired of peach blossom cakes. Why don't you try osmanthus flowers instead?"
Second Senior Brother initiated a brutal rehabilitation program for Zhou Suyao. Every day, before dawn, he would pull her out of her soft bed and force her to jog around the hilltops, claiming that jogging would induce sweating, stretch her muscles, and disperse the effects of the drug. In reality, Zhou Suyao's eyes went dark from running. Then, she would practice a set of basic spiritual energy exercises that the eldest senior brother had taught her years earlier. If she slacked off, he would glare at her and say, "Okay, stop practicing. Go back to your bed and hibernate."
Third Brother continued to uphold his perfect and conciliatory attitude. Whenever Qu Mingwu was about to break her apart through training, he would appear in front of them with fruits and refreshing side dishes. While feeding Zhou Suyao, he said to Second Brother with a playful smile, "Hey, Second Brother, that's enough. Junior Sister just woke up. Everything should be done slowly... Come on, have some sweet soup. I made it especially for you: Tremella and Lotus Seed Soup."
At this time, Zhou Suyao would smile and slip away from the two of them, waiting for the opportunity for the third senior brother to persuade the second senior brother, and then quickly find a shady place to hide, drinking the watermelon juice squeezed by the third senior brother, while looking into the distance at the top of the mountain where the eldest senior brother was.
Since the day she woke up, she had seen her eldest brother once. Otherwise, he remained a recluse, spending most of his time in his bamboo hut. Only in the evening would he occasionally appear at the stone table outside, sitting there quietly. The afterglow of the setting sun fell on his jade-like face, coating him with a warm golden glow, making him look as peaceful as a quiet spring in the mountains.
For several days, Zhou Suyao hid in the once-blooming peach blossoms, watching him from afar. His downcast eyes, and the gentle expression on his face as he always calmly brewed tea, almost made her believe that the man who had previously cut her palm with an expressionless face, and those golden pupils that brought a sense of suffocation, were all just illusions she had seen in her trance after being seriously injured.
And he, Zhou Shanyuan - her senior brother, is still the gentle, powerful senior brother who protects all of them.
At that time, there was still a lingering shadow deep in her heart, like a dark vine growing out of a thousand-year-old tree, tightly entangling her.
Until the evening of that day, after being tortured by Qu Mingwu and then being stuffed with snacks by Zhou Zonglan, she did not return to her own hut immediately, but turned around and walked towards the top of the hill where her eldest brother was.
The sun was setting at that time, and the afterglow of the setting sun burned the peach forest into a golden color. Zhou Suyao brushed her hand across the lush peach blossoms in front of her eyes, and happened to see Zhou Shanyuan sitting at the stone table in front of the bamboo house.
He had his back to the direction she came from, his head slightly lowered, and seemed to be carving something in his hands, making a subtle and regular rustling sound.
Looking at this peaceful scene between heaven and earth, Zhou Suyao slowed down her steps. She was reluctant to disturb such a scene, so she just stood beside a peach tree in full bloom not far away, quietly looking at his back.
She just watched, and the anxiety in her heart seemed to be soothed by this peaceful scene. Perhaps... she really was overthinking it.
Xuan Yangming has been controlled by Rao Tiandao, and the truth about the underworld has been made public. Although the eldest brother is seriously injured and has not recovered, it is good that he can carve calmly like this.
At this moment, Zhou Shanyuan seemed to have completed the carving. He slightly raised the peach branch he was holding, facing the light of the setting sun, as if he was looking at the appearance of the branch to see if it was exactly the same as he had imagined in his mind.
This action is very natural and common.
But the moment he raised his hand, Zhou Suyao immediately looked into his eyes.
Those eyes are clearly golden!
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