The next moment, Gu Jianli calmed down slightly, her chaotic breathing also settling. She took a handkerchief to wipe her somewhat swollen lips, then glared viciously at Ji Wujing and lowered her voice to curse, “Threatening people with children, Ji Zhao, you’re shameless!”
Ji Wujing lazily curled up one corner of his mouth into a smile. He brushed his fingertip over the sweet residue left by Gu Jianli on his lips, then smeared the residue onto Gu Jianli’s lips and casually patted her now thoroughly red cheeks.
“You!” Gu Jianli widened her eyes, accusing in a stern yet timid whisper, “Too much!”
Ji Wujing leaned close to her ear with a mischievous smile in his deep voice, asking, “Are you wet?”
Gu Jianli rubbed her reddened lips hard with the back of her hand, muttering softly, “Didn’t you already see?”
“No,” Ji Wujing slowed his speech, “I’m asking about your pants.”
Gu Jianli froze, her heart, which had just calmed down, began to pound again as if startled. She took a deep breath, trying hard to suppress her trembling breath. Once she had slightly calmed down, she looked up at Ji Wujing and asked seriously, “Is it too late for me to start learning martial arts now?”
“Huh?” Ji Wujing raised an eyebrow in surprise, not understanding why Gu Jianli suddenly asked this. He said, “Of course, it’s never too late.”
Gu Jianli then asked, “If I learn martial arts and become stronger than you, how long will it take for me to beat you and kill you?”
Ji Wujing slowly raised the corners of his fox-like eyes and smiled strangely. He took Gu Jianli’s hand, placed the back of her hand to his lips, and lowered his head to drop a kiss. He looked up at Gu Jianli and said, “If you want my life, take up a sharp blade with both hands, and I’ll teach you how to stab me in the heart.”
Gu Jianli stared at Ji Wujing’s smiling fox-like eyes, then turned her gaze away in embarrassment and annoyance, whispering, “You’re talking nonsense again…”
Ji Wujing chuckled indifferently; after all, no one ever believed what he said, and he was used to it.
Gu Jianli’s gaze fell on Ji Xinglou, noticing that a corner of his blanket had been uncovered at some point. She bent down to tuck the blanket around the two children. Even though it was summer, the wind blowing in from the four corners of the carriage could still make them catch a cold while they slept.
She sat back up and looked at Ji Wujing, finding that his gaze was still fixed on her. Her eyes dodged for a moment, and she frowned, trying hard to forget Ji Wujing’s nonsensical words. She comforted herself that Ji Wujing was always like this, he was a patient, she should let it go.
Tolerance, patience.
Gu Jianli pretended as if nothing had happened, looked at Ji Wujing again, and asked, “Where are we moving to? Xuanjing Sect?”
“Mm,” Ji Wujing nodded.
Gu Jianli, having already guessed this, was not surprised. She didn’t know where Xuanjing Sect was, so she asked, “How long until we get there?”
Ji Wujing turned his face, looking out the window through a corner of the curtain blown open by the breeze, and said, “We should arrive around dusk.”
That was still a while away.
Gu Jianli didn’t want to talk to Ji Wujing, so she kept her gaze on Ji Xinglou and Ji Xinglan. Ji Xinglou, who had pretended to be asleep earlier, was now genuinely asleep. The two children leaned their little heads against each other, sleeping soundly.
Looking at them sleeping so peacefully, Gu Jianli also began to feel sleepy.
She turned to look at Ji Wujing, finding him still watching her with that infuriating expression.
What’s so interesting to look at? She’s already disfigured, ugly as hell. Gu Jianli picked up the light red veil Ji Wujing had tossed aside and looked at the damp spot on it, her face flushing slightly. Angrily, she lifted the curtain and threw the veil out the window. The light fabric floated away in the wind.
Gu Jianli took out another new veil from the box to cover her face, then decided to ignore Ji Wujing and sleep for a while.
She looked around and faced a dilemma.
Inside the carriage, there were fixed benches on both sides. The bench opposite had some luggage on it, while on her side, Ji Wujing was sitting at one end, leaving her with no space to lie down.
After thinking for a moment, Gu Jianli took off the shawl from her arm and tied up Ji Wujing’s hands. Then, she took another dark indigo shawl and blindfolded Ji Wujing with it.
Ji Wujing shook his wrists, finding it amusing, and asked, “Gu Jianli, do you want to play a game with your uncle?”
“Yes, a game. If Uncle can stay still for two hours, he wins.” Gu Jianli placed Ji Wujing’s tied hands on his left leg, then lay down with her head resting on his right leg, her eyes curved in a smile.
Ji Wujing twisted his mouth weirdly and said, “Gu Jianli, have you forgotten that you once said you couldn’t tie me up?”
“Remember, two hours without moving. If you lose, no fish for three days.” Gu Jianli pretended not to hear Ji Wujing’s words, yawned, and went to sleep.
Bored, Ji Wujing easily untangled the shawl wrapped around his wrists, tossed it aside, and then pulled off the shawl covering his eyes. He brought his hands close to Gu Jianli’s neck, pretending to strangle her, but withdrew his hands before touching her neck, feeling bored.
Gu Jianli somehow knew Ji Wujing wouldn’t bully her anymore and slept soundly.
Ji Wujing lowered his eyes, staring at her peaceful sleeping face.
After a while, he picked up the two shawls he had thrown aside. Slowly and carefully, he blindfolded himself again, tied the knot behind his head, and then picked up another shawl, recalling how Gu Jianli had just tied him. Following her method, he tied his own hands. After biting the red shawl to secure it, he shook his wrists, then leaned against the carriage wall and fell asleep out of boredom.
The carriage stopped in front of the Xuanjing Sect. Changsheng called from outside, “Master, we’ve arrived!”
Gu Jianli frowned and woke up drowsily.
“We’ve arrived?” Her voice was soft and tired. Gu Jianli slowly sat up, ready to get off the carriage.
Ji Wujing lifted his arms, wrapped them around Gu Jianli’s neck from behind, and placed his tied hands in front of her eyes.
Gu Jianli was stunned for a moment before reacting.
“Mom, why did you tie up Dad?” A just-awakened Ji Xinglan asked in a babyish voice.
Outside the carriage, Changsheng was stunned. What? The madam tied up the master? He had been tired after traveling for half a day, but suddenly he was wide awake, straining to listen.
Gu Jianli hurriedly untied the shawl on Ji Wujing’s wrists. As the shawl slowly fell, Gu Jianli turned her head to look at Ji Wujing and reproached, “Why didn’t you untie it yourself?”
Ji Wujing said nothing, just brought his face close to Gu Jianli.
Ji Xinglan loudly asked at the right moment, “Mom, you even blindfolded Dad? Are you guys playing a game? What game? Is it fun? Is it hide and seek? Lanlan wants to play too!”
Changsheng, who was eavesdropping outside the carriage, moved a step closer, his ears even more perked up.
“Xinglan, put on your coat yourself!” Gu Jianli said.
“Alright.” Ji Xinglan, who had already stood up, sat back down and picked up the small clothes beside her to dress herself.
Gu Jianli shot a quick glare at Ji Wujing, only to realize belatedly that he couldn’t see because his eyes were covered. She untied the shawl from Ji Wujing’s eyes and, confirming that his eyes were open, glared at him again.
When they got off the carriage, the people who had been riding in the carriage behind them had already disembarked and were waiting for them. Changsheng’s gaze inadvertently drifted towards Ji Wujing, hoping to notice something unusual, but found nothing out of the ordinary.
“So this is Xuanjing Sect?” Jixia asked curiously.
The mysterious Xuanjing Sect was well-known, but few knew its exact location.
The white building before them, resembling a palace, seemed at odds with the bloody reputation of Xuanjing Sect.
“The decorations hanging up there are so pretty!” Ji Xingluo suddenly exclaimed, pointing to the decorations hanging above the main gate of Xuanjing Sect.
Following Ji Xingluo’s finger, Gu Jianli squinted for a while before realizing they were stringed skulls. She was startled and instinctively moved closer to Ji Wujing.
“Afraid of that?” Ji Wujing asked casually with a smile, “I hung them up.”
Gu Jianli hugged Ji Xinglan tighter. She suddenly felt that moving to a new home wasn’t as great as she had imagined.
Holding Ji Xinglan close, Gu Jianli followed Ji Wujing, slowly walking into the white Xuanjing Sect. The sky had already darkened, and the entire empty white palace was eerily quiet. Only a few rooms cast faint, pale light through their windows.
Gu Jianli looked down, telling herself internally that she was the wife of the Xuanjing Sect’s leader, and she had nothing to fear.
They passed through the empty front hall, through the main hall dedicated to ghosts and demons, and walked along the corridor. After a long walk, just when Gu Jianli thought they had reached the end, they passed through the back door. Beyond the back door was a dim corridor, where their footsteps echoed crisply.
At the end of the corridor, a courtyard with six sections appeared in their view.
Gu Jianli looked at the courtyard in confusion and asked, “Here?”
“Yes,” Ji Wujing replied casually, “It was acquired over a decade ago and then forgotten.”
Gu Jianli asked blankly, “Does this count as part of Xuanjing Sect? Do the people of Xuanjing Sect live here too?”
Changsheng, smiling beside them, said, “Madam, the place we just passed is Xuanjing Sect. This courtyard is the master’s own.”
“Oh,” Gu Jianli responded.
Noticing her expression, Ji Wujing asked, “Don’t like it here?”
Changsheng quickly interjected, “Madam, if you don’t like it here, the master has many other courtyards, although they’re all unused. I can’t remember where they all are, but we prepared this one first…”
“It’s not that I don’t like it,” Gu Jianli shook her head, “It’s just too dark.”
“No problem!” Changsheng called out and immediately ran into the courtyard.
Soon, the large courtyard lit up, one lamp after another.
Gu Jianli walked around the screen wall, and the sight of the densely packed crowd in the darkness made her scream and step back involuntarily. Ji Wujing steadied her by holding her waist.
“Greetings to the Master, Madam, Young Master, and Miss,” the crowd chanted in unison, like a military parade.
“Why are there so many people?” Gu Jianli asked.
Ji Wujing replied casually, “Originally, I bought twenty-four maidservants, twelve old maids, and eighteen young servants. But it seemed too empty, so I expanded the number tenfold.”
