When we first met
If the talisman is destroyed, it means either the talisman is faulty and ineffective, or no one on the other end can receive the communication.
The first scenario is impossible; Zhou Xialian is an extremely talented demon hunter, and it's unlikely she would be so careless unless she intentionally harmed someone. But Zhou Chunhe, who has read the novel, knows this is even more impossible.
Could it be that they've encountered some kind of danger and are unable to receive communications?
Zhou Chunhe tapped his head with his hand—"You blockhead, hurry up and think! How exactly is the original plot written?"
Oh right! Zhou Chunhe had a flash of inspiration. In the original novel, the female lead and Fu Huaiyu took that route and encountered a large formation on the way. They were trapped in the center of the formation and could not break free for a while.
In the end, the female lead and Fu Huaiyu worked together to break through the great formation.
Now Pei Jin and Xie Sinian have replaced Fu Huaiyu, which means that the three of them are facing the great formation, while the careless trap that should have been encountered by the three of them has been encountered by Zhou Chunhe and Fu Huaiyu.
That explains why the communication symbols don't work.
According to the novel, the great formation could neither transmit messages from the inside out nor from the outside in; to use a communication talisman, one had to break through the demonic formation. Therefore, Zhou Xialian and Fu Huaiyu had no choice but to solve the problem on their own, as they could not seek outside help.
Zhou Chunhe sighed and estimated the time; they would probably have to stay here for another half an hour.
As expected, the male lead is more reliable. The novel describes the three of them traveling together very smoothly, without encountering any traps at all.
Now that the male lead is gone, and the sickly younger brother has been replaced by Fu Huaiyu, neither of them noticed anything amiss, and thus they both fell into the trap.
However, Zhou Chunhe also discovered something from this: it seems that the plot has a high degree of freedom. She can not only change the plot in subtle ways, but also at more important junctures.
—The fact that the system gave her a side quest, which required her to team up with Fu Huaiyu in place of the female lead, is proof of this.
Does this mean that, without compromising the overall premise of the novel's world, as long as the three main quests are completed, no matter how much she acts recklessly or disruptively, it won't affect the ending?
Moreover, the novel's world was even more complete than Zhou Chunhe had imagined. It was not only logically consistent, but also had complete character settings, though she hadn't noticed it as a reader.
—Some of them were even unexpected by the author, yet they all exist in this world.
Zhou Chunhe couldn't help but ponder. Before, when she read novels, she only regarded the characters in the novels as two-dimensional figures. But when she actually accidentally transmigrated into the book, she realized that even a minor character that she might not have noticed while reading the book had their own unique story.
Of course, Zhou Chunhe couldn't directly tell Fu Huaiyu about Zhou Xialian's encounter with the enemy. She thought for a couple of seconds, then changed her words, telling Fu Huaiyu that it was her own speculation. She also reassured Fu Huaiyu not to worry too much: "My elder sister is very capable, and with Brother Pei and Xie Sinian by her side, there certainly won't be any major problems. We just need to wait a while, and once my elder sister and the others are out of trouble, they can come to rescue us."
Fu Huaiyu smiled and nodded.
This girl is quite adorable; she's clearly not a brave person herself, yet she's comforting others instead.
The cave was eight feet square, barely enough to fit two people. Zhou Chunhe and Fu Huaiyu sat facing each other, their gazes inevitably falling on each other.
Fortunately, Zhou Chunhe didn't feel embarrassed at all, and even enjoyed admiring Fu Huaiyu's appearance.
She had only glanced at Fu Huaiyu before and hadn't really looked at his face properly. Now that she had the chance, she naturally wouldn't let it go.
Despite having just fallen awkwardly from above, Fu Huaiyu's face remained clean, and even her hair was perfectly styled.
He wore a light blue robe with bamboo leaf patterns on the collar, which suited him perfectly. Fu Huaiyu wore a crown on his head, and his light-colored hair cascaded down his back. His eyes were very pale, and when he looked at people, his eyes were full of affection. He was truly unique in the world, and every move he made made people feel as if they were bathed in a spring breeze.
Huaiyu, Huaiyu, truly lives up to her name, like the most beautiful piece of jade in the world.
Such a person should live on a pedestal for life, and should not associate with ants and grass clippings.
Zhou Chunhe thought of Xie Sinian again and couldn't help but sigh that the two were indeed worlds apart.
A dashing young man in fine clothes, and a gentle, refined nobleman.
One in black, one in white; one with a high ponytail, the other with light-colored hair cascading down her shoulders… Tsk, how could the female lead bear to give up these two to choose the male lead?
Fu Huaiyu noticed Zhou Chunhe's gaze and couldn't help but chuckle softly: "What are you looking at, young lady?"
His voice was so gentle... and so pleasant to hear. It was just ordinary speech, yet it made one feel as if he was using all his patience to coax someone... Zhou Chunhe, wandering the world, subconsciously blurted out: "Young master, you are as handsome as Pan An, truly captivating."
Fu Huaiyu seemed amused by Zhou Chunhe's words, her lips slightly upturned, her eyelashes lowered, and she said softly, "It's just an ordinary appearance, Miss is too kind."
Fu Huaiyu gently raised his hand and touched his hair. Zhou Chunhe followed Fu Huaiyu's movement and looked at his hair, only then noticing that Fu Huaiyu's hair was as smooth and beautiful as silk. Zhou Chunhe thought of her own dry, frizzy, and sparse hair before she transmigrated into the book, and asked with half envy and half jealousy, "Young Master Fu, how do you usually take care of your hair? It looks so beautiful."
"Well, I usually like to grow some exotic flowers and herbs. Some of these flowers and herbs have hair-nourishing effects. I sometimes take pills or mix them into hair oil to nourish my hair as well."
Speaking of this, Zhou Chunhe recalled what he had said about sachets before and couldn't help but ask, "So, do you also use exotic flowers and herbs that you grow yourself to make sachets?"
Fu Huaiyu nodded and looked at Zhou Chunhe gently, saying, "The young lady is indeed clever."
Zhou Chunhe touched his nose, thinking to himself, "This is something to praise."
She then asked, "Will you also use your flowers and herbs to make incense for me? But your home is hundreds of miles away, how can you make a sachet for me?"
Fu Huaiyu gently gathered his sleeves and took out a Qiankun bag: "I moved all the flowers and plants into this Qiankun bag before we came. Miss, you don't need to worry."
The Qiankun Bag is a treasure; it can contain the entire universe and preserve the items inside in their original state for a long time. Fu Huaiyu uses the Qiankun Bag as his "back garden" to grow things, so naturally, he has no shortage of space.
Zhou Chunhe's eyes lit up, and she immediately moved closer to Fu Huaiyu: "Really? That's wonderful! Thank you, Young Master Fu."
Fu Huaiyu lowered her eyes slightly, her slender fingertips lightly touching her red lips, then looked up at Zhou Chunhe and smiled, "You're too kind, Miss."
Zhou Chunhe used the same excuse he had given Xie Sinian and took the initiative to say to Fu Huaiyu, "I have something to discuss with you, young master, what do you say?"
"Please speak, young lady."
"Look, we've gotten to know each other now, so don't keep calling me 'Miss,' it makes us seem so distant. Why don't you just call me by my name? My name is Zhou Chunhe. If you still feel that's too formal, just call me 'Chunhe,' okay? I'll call you 'Huaiyu.'"
Fu Huaiyu was taken aback, looked up at Zhou Chunhe, and then smiled gently, her eyes sparkling like a pool of spring water, leaving Zhou Chunhe stunned: "Okay."
Zhou Chunhe, who was captivated by Fu Huaiyu's beauty, took a while to come back to her senses. She thought to herself, "This person is much better than that unruly Xie Sinian. He is gentle and speaks softly and politely. This is the kind of person the female lead can entrust her life to."
With nothing else to do, Zhou Chunhe pestered Fu Huaiyu to show her what was growing inside the Qiankun bag. The bag indeed contained a considerable number of flowers and plants, each one exceptionally precious.
Fu Huaiyu introduced them one by one, leaving Zhou Chunhe speechless with his mouth agape.
As Fu Huaiyu spoke, he couldn't help but watch the girl's expressions. She watched as her eyes widened and her mouth opened, her expressions incredibly varied and completely unpretentious. She said whatever came to mind; when shocked, her eyes widened; when frightened, her brows furrowed; when amused, she clapped and laughed. Fu Huaiyu found it all very novel.
After talking for a while, they had only said less than a tenth of what they had said. Fu Huaiyu, fearing that Zhou Chunhe would find it boring, stopped talking and didn't say anything more.
Zhou Chunhe was secretly alarmed. It seemed that Fu Huaiyu genuinely liked these things. Some of the flowers and plants were extremely difficult to find, yet Fu Huaiyu had spent decades trekking through mountains and rivers to find them all. Clearly, he did not regard these things as ordinary objects.
After the two finished discussing the contents of the Qiankun Bag, Zhou Chunhe made Fu Huaiyu reiterate that he would make her a sachet before she stopped harping on the flowers and plants.
There was still no news from Zhou Xialian. Zhou Chun played with her hair for a while out of boredom, and then, with Fu Huaiyu's permission, she tidied up his hair.
"Tsk tsk tsk," Zhou Chunhe exclaimed repeatedly. His hair was indeed smooth. He could comb it from head to toe with his fingers without a single tangle.
Zhou Chunhe's hobby of braiding children's hair resurfaced at this inopportune moment. She smiled and said, "When we get out and I have time, I'll braid your hair for you, okay?"
Fu Huaiyu was taken aback.
Zhou Chunhe thought he didn't believe him, so he quickly patted his chest and said, "Don't worry, although I may seem unreliable, I'm actually quite good at braiding hair. Don't laugh at me, but I used to braid the hair of all the younger members of my family..."
Fu Huaiyu smiled again and said gently, "Okay."
Zhou Chunhe was stunned, unable to look away for a moment.
Fu Huaiyu is practically a femme fatale; even Zhou Chunhe, standing so close to him, is finding it hard to control himself.
Sitting in the same position for so long, Zhou Chunhe soon felt her legs go numb. She said, "Huaiyu, don't you feel uncomfortable sitting in the same position all the time? Put your legs on my left side, I want to change positions."
Upon hearing the girl's natural use of the word "Huaiyu," Fu Huaiyu's heart stirred. Before he could even process the meaning of her words, he subconsciously followed her instructions.
Zhou Chunhe shifted around for a while, then awkwardly changed his position, which made him feel much more comfortable.
She gave a bright smile and was about to continue speaking when she heard a "ding" in her mind, followed by the system's voice: "Congratulations, host, the male supporting character Fu Huaiyu's favorability has increased by ten."
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