However.
When the time came, they would still die.
In a month, not a day more, not a day less, the life-prolonging Gu would take effect, marking the countdown to the end of their life.
Zhong Liang hadn’t spoken with his father in a long time because his father was severely ill, often incoherent and unable to speak clearly. Hearing him speak today, Zhong Liang wept with joy.
“Father.” Zhong Liang, in his thirties, cried like a child.
His appearance was unattractive, and crying made his twisted features even more terrifying. But as a father, Zhong Liang’s father didn’t despise his son. With trembling, bony hands, he caressed his son’s face.
“Why are you crying?” The old man smiled, “You’re a grown man.”
Zhong Liang roughly wiped away his tears.
He smiled again and said, “Yes, Father’s health has improved. Why am I crying? In a few days, I’ll take you out for a walk.”
The old man agreed, “Good, good.”
Zhong Liang held his hand, “Father, the flowers in the village have bloomed. They are very beautiful.”
Zhong Liang’s mother also leaned by the bed to talk to Zhong Liang’s father. Ignoring the fact that he would die in a month, the scene was harmonious and fulfilling.
He Sui’an sat not far from the small wooden house, able to see and hear them. Her heartstrings were gently plucked.
Qi Buyan couldn’t empathize with or understand their emotions.
He looked down, feeding the Gu.
The Gu ate quietly.
*
The villagers of Hongye Village decided to hold a sacrificial ceremony to celebrate the “improvement” in Zhong Liang’s father’s condition. Since He Sui’an wasn’t from Hongye Village, it wasn’t appropriate for her to stay in the village, so she went to the village entrance.
The midday sun was scorching, and she and Qi Buyan stayed under a large tree.
Several carriages, clearly belonging to wealthy families, were parked at the foot of Dengyun Mountain. He Sui’an found them somewhat familiar, though she couldn’t immediately recall where she had seen them before, until she spotted the Second Young Master of the Duan family.
Madam Duan, as usual, was dressed in a purple robe, with a shawl draped over her arm. Her long hair was pinned up with a silver hairpin, her brows were gracefully arched, and her makeup was subtle but elegant, giving her cheeks the appearance of freshly plucked lychees. She exuded a dignified and gentle aura.
The famous beauty of Qingzhou lived up to her reputation.
She was supporting the Second Young Master Duan as they descended the mountain, followed by the servants of the Duan family. It seemed they had just finished their worship at the Xuanmiao Temple.
As they walked, the Second Young Master Duan suddenly went mad, insisting on returning to the temple.
Madam Duan tried to persuade him softly.
But the Second Young Master Duan shook his head frantically, insisting on returning to the temple, reminding He Sui’an of the gossip she had heard from the people of Qingzhou—that the Second Young Master Duan was so obsessed with becoming a monk at Xuanmiao Temple that he had gone mad.
“Xuanmiao Temple, you go away! Go away!” the Second Young Master Duan babbled incoherently.
“Slap!”
He was struck hard across the face.
Despite her gentle appearance, Madam Duan had decisively slapped the Second Young Master Duan. She remained outwardly calm, but the hand that hit him trembled slightly. “Husband, come home with me.”
Hearing this, He Sui’an realized that they hadn’t come to Xuanmiao Temple to worship together. Instead, it seemed that the Second Young Master Duan had sneaked off to the temple, and Madam Duan had come to take him back upon finding out.
The Duan family’s servants all lowered their heads.
They didn’t dare to look.
The Second Young Master Duan covered the side of his face where he had been hit, lowered his head uneasily, and remained silent. He started biting his fingers, constantly looking back up the mountain.
The slap had come so suddenly that He Sui’an was still staring at the Second Young Master Duan’s face. Qi Buyan rarely lifted his eyes, but he did so now, looking past them at Sanshan Zhenren.
Sanshan Zhenren had personally come down the mountain to see them off.
Undoubtedly, Sanshan Zhenren was personally seeing off the Duan couple. For worshippers at Xuanmiao Temple, this was a great honor.
The Second Young Master Duan was pulled behind by Madam Duan, who gave a cold bow to Sanshan Zhenren. “How could we trouble Sanshan Zhenren to see us off?”
Sanshan Zhenren gave a faint smile.
He stepped forward.
Madam Duan took a step back with the Second Young Master Duan. “Is there something Sanshan Zhenren needs?”
Sanshan Zhenren ignored her guarded tone. “Madam Duan, this is a talisman to ward off evil spirits for the Second Young Master. It is a token of his long-standing faith in Xuanmiao Temple.”
“Thank you for your kindness, Sanshan Zhenren, but it’s not necessary. Sanshan Zhenren should keep it for himself,” Madam Duan replied coldly.
The Second Young Master Duan reached out to take it.
Madam Duan slapped away his hand.
The slap turned the entire hand of the Second Young Master Duan red, and he quickly pulled his hand back. When it came to matters involving Xuanmiao Temple, Madam Duan was extremely firm, as the servants of the Duan family knew well.
The servants couldn’t understand why Madam Duan was like this. She was always kind and gentle to the household staff, yet she showed such disdain towards the highly respected Sanshan Zhenren of Xuanmiao Temple.
Finally, a slight change appeared on Sanshan Zhenren’s otherwise impeccable expression.
Retracting the talisman, he spoke with the compassion of a Buddhist monk, “It seems I was presumptuous. Please forgive me, Madam Duan.”
Madam Duan’s hand, hanging by her side, clenched into a fist, and a hint of resentment flashed in her eyes.
This time, she did not return the courtesy.
The Taoist priests of Xuanmiao Temple, seeing Madam Duan’s attitude towards Sanshan Zhenren, remained silent, clearly having been instructed by Sanshan Zhenren not to intervene.
He Sui’an sat under a large tree at the entrance of Hongye Village, and due to her position, they would find it hard to notice her and Qi Buyan unless they were looking closely.
She rested her chin on her hand, deep in thought.
The people of Qingzhou revered Xuanmiao Temple and its priests like gods, especially Sanshan Zhenren. Their respect for Xuanmiao Temple stemmed entirely from Sanshan Zhenren.
In He Sui’an’s memory, only Xie Wenqiao could maintain a reasonable perspective on Sanshan Zhenren, keeping his rationality intact.
Other Qingzhou residents were unconditionally biased in favor of and believed in Sanshan Zhenren.
Madam Duan, however, was different.
Her attitude towards Sanshan Zhenren was rare among the people of Qingzhou.
But it shouldn’t be like this.
Even if Madam Duan had not benefited from Sanshan Zhenren during the plague ten years ago, she should not show such disdain towards someone almost universally revered.
The only possible explanation was that something had happened between them. But what could possibly have occurred between an old Taoist priest from Xuanmiao Temple and the Second Madam of the Duan family?
He Sui’an couldn’t figure it out.
She felt like her head was going to explode.
Although He Sui’an could be slow to understand certain things, she wasn’t foolish. In recent days, she had vaguely sensed that Qi Buyan wanted to deal with Sanshan Zhenren of Xuanmiao Temple.
If Qi Buyan wanted to kill someone, he would do it directly. Since he didn’t kill Sanshan Zhenren, it meant that wasn’t his goal.
So, what was Qi Buyan’s objective?
This was why He Sui’an couldn’t help but ponder whenever something related to Sanshan Zhenren came up.
Qi Buyan pressed his fingertips against He Sui’an’s furrowed brow, the dappled shadows of the tree falling on his chiseled face. “What are you thinking about?”
He Sui’an had a habit of furrowing her brows when thinking.
Qi Buyan smoothed her brow.
“Is it about Sanshan Zhenren?” Qi Buyan guessed with an innocent smile, “Why are you thinking about him? Have you guessed? Guessed that what I’m doing is to deal with him.”
He Sui’an pulled his hand down. “Did he do something to you?”
Qi Buyan’s shoulders shook with laughter.
“Why is your first reaction that he did something to me, rather than I simply want to harm him or kill him?” He did not pull his hand away from hers.
“Because I believe you,” He Sui’an said each word firmly, “I believe you.”
Qi Buyan paused slightly.
He seemed to find her answer very strange. “You believe in me…”
“Yes, I believe in you.” He Sui’an looked directly into Qi Buyan’s eyes as she said this, her fingers unconsciously squeezing the hand still in her palm.
Seemingly pleased by He Sui’an’s gaze, Qi Buyan let the previous question go, gently playing with her hand, reluctant to let go.
While they were talking, the Second Young Master Duan and Madam Duan had already left Dengyun Mountain.
Sanshan Zhenren had returned to the mountain.
From start to finish, no one else noticed them. He Sui’an and Qi Buyan stayed under the tree for a while longer. She felt thirsty and wanted to ask him to join her in finding some water to drink.
When she turned her head, she saw that Qi Buyan had his eyes closed, as if he were asleep, so she didn’t wake him.
He Sui’an had a good memory and could remember paths after walking them once. The terrain around Hongye Village was complex and took a couple of walks to remember.
During the two days they had been staying in Hongye Village, He Sui’an had mostly stayed in the treehouse but occasionally went out for walks with Qi Buyan.
So He Sui’an knew there was a river diagonally opposite the entrance of Hongye Village.
The hot spring river was for bathing.
The clear water river was for the villagers’ daily drinking needs. He Sui’an could go there to get some water. She wanted Qi Buyan to have a good sleep, so she quietly got up and headed towards the river.
As she approached the river, the sound of flowing water grew louder. He Sui’an walked over.
She squatted by the riverbank, cupped some water in her hands, and drank. After drinking a few mouthfuls, she washed her face to refresh herself.
Many trees grew around the river. He Sui’an stood on tiptoe to break off a large leaf, folded it in a cross pattern, and filled it with water. When Qi Buyan woke up, he might want some water too.
After filling the leaf with water, she headed back the way she came.
After taking a few steps, He Sui’an suddenly heard someone calling her, a stranger’s voice.
Instinctively, she turned her head to look.
She saw a person standing beside a large rock by the river. This person was tall with striking features, their age difficult to determine at first glance. They wore an indigo long dress and had silver ornaments on their forehead.
The person was dressed like someone from the Tianshui Village in Miaojiang because they also wore seven butterfly bell silver chains on their wrist, something only people from Tianshui Village wore.
The person spoke, “Little girl, can you come over and help me?”
Their voice was low and somewhat androgynous.
He Sui’an didn’t immediately go over. “What’s wrong?”
The person revealed an ankle that was injured by a rock, also adorned with seven butterfly bell silver chains. “I’m hurt. Can you help me get to a place where there are people? I can’t walk on my own.”
After speaking, the person lifted their head, revealing a face with heavy makeup, undeniably beautiful. He Sui’an was a bit far away and could only vaguely see the person’s facial features.
She couldn’t see the pronounced Adam’s apple moving in their throat as they spoke.
Bian Yichen watched her.
On the other side of the large rock where He Sui’an couldn’t see, several bloodied corpses lay.
Bian Yichen’s left hand, hidden behind his back, held a curved sickle he had picked up. Blood was slowly dripping from it, drop by drop, gradually staining the pebbles under his feet red.
TL: Updated 13 chapters!
