Tonight, Liu Yan didn’t plan to personally attack Qi Buyan because the time was not yet right.
What he needed was not just a little blood from Qi Buyan, but a large amount all at once, enough to be fatal. However, for the great revival of the Zhou dynasty, what’s a few lives?
The sound of rain was continuous, water splashing onto the high-rise railings, some even splattering inside. Just as Liu Yan was about to turn and leave, a haunting flute sound echoed from the street, and venomous insects flew towards the high-rise.
Liu Yan stood still.
As the venomous insects were about to touch him, they seemed to be affected by something and fell collectively.
It turned out that two flute sounds had collided, and the venomous insects couldn’t withstand it for a moment. Liu Yan stood atop the high-rise, back facing the long street, also holding a flute, playing a sound that pierced through the rain.
In an instant, the heavy rain poured down like beads from a broken string. Qi Buyan, controlling his flute with both hands, saw his butterfly-decorated paper umbrella fall onto the blue stone slabs, rolling and breaking a few ribs in the wind and rain.
Rainwater flowed down his face, across his brows and eyes, and along his smooth jawline, dripping off.
Qi Buyan’s hand holding the bone flute was as white as jade, the dark blue tassel at the end of the flute wet and clumped together. He lowered his eyes, rain pressing down on his lashes, making it hard to see the emotions in his eyes.
Liu Yan, however, didn’t linger. After dealing with the batch of venomous insects attacking him, he planned to leave. It wasn’t that he couldn’t fight, but he didn’t want to waste his energy tonight. With his excellent lightness skill, he vanished in the blink of an eye.
The flute sound on the street also ceased.
Qi Buyan watched Liu Yan leave, put down his bone flute, and blood slowly seeped from the corner of his mouth.
The Heavenly Silkworm Gu inside Qi Buyan exerted too much control over him. Every time he used the bone flute, he would be restrained. Liu Yan didn’t have the Heavenly Silkworm Gu inside him, so using the flute had no such restraints. He likely didn’t know about this.
Qi Buyan’s expression remained unchanged as he casually wiped away the blood, stepped over the now ruined paper umbrella, and walked through the water, splashing small droplets while his silver ornaments shone brightly after being washed by the rain.
He didn’t return to the princess’s mansion, nor did he care about his soaked clothes, but went to the tallest tower in Chang’an.
From the tower, one could overlook the entire Chang’an. There were royal guards here, and no unauthorized people could enter. Qi Buyan used gu to bewitch the royal guards at the tower’s entrance, passing through unobstructed.
He crossed layers of wooden ladders and small doors, finally reaching the top floor of the tower. Looking out, Chang’an was shrouded in heavy rain, with few pedestrians on the streets, extremely dark and gloomy.
Qi Buyan placed his bone flute back into the sword knot at his waist and gazed down.
He Sui’an had concealed her presence, so the venomous insects couldn’t find her through sensing her aura. But he could let them crawl through every corner of Chang’an first to confirm if He Sui’an was still there.
Qi Buyan stood at the highest point to more accurately control the venomous insects searching throughout Chang’an.
Chang’an wasn’t like a typical small place; it was vast. Even if Qi Buyan released all his venomous insects, it would still take considerable time to search the entire city, day and night, for about ten days.
He walked towards the railing of the tower.
Qi Buyan brushed the rain off the railing, feeling the coolness as water dripped through his fingers.
—
In a stone house, He Sui’an, who was sensitive to both heat and cold, was curled up under the covers.
He Hua was packing her belongings. Some of her books had gotten wet from the rain and needed to be spread out to dry. He Sui’an offered to help, but He Hua, not wanting to trouble her, insisted on doing it herself since it wasn’t a lot of books.
Her purpose in coming to Chang’an was to open a bookshop. He Hua couldn’t stay in Fengling Town for too long; people had started to suspect her, saying they had known her for decades without seeing her age.
This was a hard thing to hide.
After all, everyone had witnessed it.
If she were to stay in Fengling Town forcibly, she would inevitably be treated as a monster, at best driven out, at worst killed.
However, He Hua was already used to this.
But she sometimes forgot time, forgot that she had lived among those people for almost decades until they started looking at her differently, reminding her that it was time to move on.
So He Hua came to Chang’an to live for several decades. Once everyone who knew her was gone, she would return to Fengling Town and live for decades again, repeating the cycle to endure her endless days.
Chang’an was her second favorite place besides Fengling Town.
She felt that long, long ago, she had lived a happy time in Chang’an with someone. Following her heart’s desire to come to Chang’an, meeting He Sui’an was a pleasant surprise, a serendipitous encounter.
The reason she ended up in this small village to avoid the rain was that the coachman who had been bringing her to Chang’an had recently tried to assault her, thinking she was mute and unable to speak.
He Hua escaped.
In retrospect, He Hua didn’t know why there was a force within her that always saved her at crucial moments, using martial arts to protect herself. This was a key reason she had survived for centuries unscathed.
Did a centuries-old He Hua know martial arts?
It was unclear.
It might also be related to her longevity. The concept of immortality was unsolvable. Since He Hua knew nothing about it, she didn’t concern herself with it anymore, as it did no harm to her body.
He Hua had just finished drying the books when she suddenly sneezed, having gotten a little wet from the rain before being brought back to the small stone house by He Sui’an.
He Sui’an wanted to express concern but hadn’t had time to speak before she also sneezed.
The weather was unpredictable.
Yesterday’s and today’s temperatures didn’t even feel like the same season. The rapid change from hot to cold gave people no time to adapt.
Auntie Cui came over and knocked on the door, inviting them to come out and have some warm wine. If they didn’t drink some warm wine to ward off the sudden cold tonight, they would surely fall ill, and getting medical treatment in the small village was no easy task.
He Sui’an, hearing that there was warm wine to drive away the cold, got out of bed immediately.
He Hua also heard Auntie Cui’s suggestion.
He Sui’an asked He Hua if she could drink wine, mentioning that using warm wine to ward off the cold was a good method for dealing with the sudden temperature drop and worth a try.
He Hua nodded. Although she appeared delicate, she could drink a thousand cups without getting drunk. In her centuries of life, she had never been drunk, not even once, out-drinking even those who boasted of their great drinking capacity.
They opened the door and walked out of the room.
The stone house had a small hall for eating and keeping the fire going. Auntie Cui was sitting by the fire pit, while Ah Xuan placed a few bottles of wine into boiling water. This was their simple and rough method for warming the wine.
Auntie Cui pushed two low chairs towards He Sui’an and He Hua. “Can you both drink wine?”
He Sui’an: “Yes.”
He Hua nodded again.
“That’s good.” Auntie Cui handed them two bottles of warmed wine. “This wine is brewed by the villagers and is called Shaodaozi. It burns like fire when you drink it, excellent for warding off the cold. Drink it cautiously.”
The wine sold in Chang’an couldn’t compare to the strong Shaodaozi brewed by the villagers of this small village. Auntie Cui loved drinking and would always try the local wines wherever she went.
He Sui’an took a sip and felt as if her throat had been scorched by fire.
The taste was also very intense.
It burned the throat.
But its effect in warding off the cold was remarkable. After just one sip, He Sui’an felt her body warming up, so she took a few more sips.
Auntie Cui, seeing He Sui’an drink so many sips, reminded her, “Shaodaozi is very strong, with a particularly strong aftereffect. Even people with a good tolerance for alcohol can easily get drunk. The local villagers don’t dare drink too much of it.”
He Sui’an, holding the small green porcelain bottle of wine, said, “I won’t get drunk easily.”
Auntie Cui looked at her with a doubtful expression.
“Really?”
To prove it to Auntie Cui, He Sui’an drank all the Shaodaozi in the small porcelain bottle and then turned the bottle upside down, shaking it to show there wasn’t a drop left. “See, I’ve finished it all.”
Her face was flushed. It was unclear whether it was from the warmth of the fire pit or from the fiery Shaodaozi burning through her system.
He Hua gently pulled at He Sui’an.
She waved her hand, trying to persuade He Sui’an not to drink too much, just enough to keep warm.
“You can really drink, finishing a whole bottle at once,” Auntie Cui laughed, lifting a bottle of wine herself, and looked at He Hua. “Let her drink, He Hua. If she gets drunk, she’ll just sleep it off.”
He Hua stopped trying to persuade her.
He Sui’an had explained to He Hua why she was there and why she had been separated from Qi Buyan for a while. Her explanations to He Hua were similar to what she had told Auntie Cui, not going into great detail.
He Hua, understanding social subtleties, could tell that He Sui’an didn’t want to talk much about it and that she had something on her mind. Being still young, He Sui’an sometimes found it hard to hide her emotions.
He Hua quietly drank her wine.
The fire in the brazier crackled, and He Sui’an watched the rising flames.
She had come to find Auntie Cui in the rain today, dirtying her dress. She had changed into a red dress, with a matching silk ribbon tied in her black hair, which was long and smooth, hanging down to her lower back, almost touching the ground.
After finishing a bottle of Shaodaozi, He Sui’an hugged her knees and sat by the fire. Auntie Cui, whose health had not been good recently, went to rest early. After finishing the remaining Shaodaozi, she was helped back to her room by Ah Xuan.
He Hua stayed with He Sui’an for a while longer.
Only when the fire in the brazier was almost out did they return to their room. Though He Sui’an could handle her alcohol, the extremely strong Shaodaozi was something else entirely.
When she first finished the bottle of Shaodaozi, she only felt like her whole body was burning, with no other notable effects. Now, however, she felt as if her brain was on fire, making her dizzy.
The aftereffect of Shaodaozi was indeed powerful.
If He Sui’an had been alone or with strangers, she wouldn’t have drunk the whole bottle, staying alert and cautious.
But He Sui’an wasn’t alone; she was with Auntie Cui, He Hua, and Ah Xuan, who, following Auntie Cui’s instructions, would certainly not harm her.
He Sui’an hadn’t expected to get drunk.
She had overestimated herself.
The wine she had drunk before couldn’t compare to tonight’s Shaodaozi. She staggered back to the bed and sat down, her eyes dazed.
He Hua poured her a cup of warm water.
He Sui’an didn’t drink it. Instead, she clumsily took off her shoes and crawled into the bed. He Hua couldn’t help but smile, putting the warm water aside and letting He Sui’an sleep. She also prepared to rest.
The weather had turned cold, and sleeping on the floor would result in a chill. There weren’t any extra blankets, and since they were both women, there was no need for formalities. He Sui’an had already suggested during the day that they share the bed.
He Hua was about to take off her outer garments when He Sui’an suddenly sat up.
Half-closing her eyes, He Sui’an leaned her head towards He Hua. He Hua, puzzled, heard her say, “Help me.”
At these words, He Hua hesitated, unable to ask her directly. She considered getting a pen and ink to write it down, but she doubted a drunk He Sui’an would be able to read it. He Hua felt a bit at a loss.