The Young Man from Miaojiang is a Black Lotus Chapter 40

 

At the same time, in the Su residence, Su Yang also received a letter with identical handwriting.

 

The letter had no signature, only the words “To the Princess” on it. Su Yang found it strange because few people wrote to her due to her aloof personality and lack of friends.

 

The twin brothers standing behind her also found it somewhat curious. Zhong Huan’s emotions remained inscrutable, with his usual expression of mourning parents, while Zhong Kong kept glancing at the letter.

 

Who dared to send a letter to their princess?

 

Quite bold indeed.

 

A few years ago, there were many pampered young masters who sent love letters full of saccharine words to their princess, but after Su Yang declared that she would only accept letters from those who could defeat her, no one dared to write to her anymore.

 

There were a few at the beginning.

 

Without exception, they were all beaten down by Su Yang, leaving in disgrace.

 

Not being able to deliver a letter was not the worst; the worst was being beaten down by a woman and not being able to get up, which was too humiliating to mention.

 

The princess was beautiful, but they could not enjoy her company. They preferred a gentle embrace to a punch, a kick, or a whip.

 

Su Yang took the letter but did not open it immediately. Instead, she turned and headed back to the residence.

 

On her way back to her room, she encountered Su Ruilin.

 

She greeted him coldly and was about to continue on her way when he stopped her. “Are you really going to ignore your father? I only have you, my precious daughter.”

 

Su Yang remained silent, trying to walk around him.

 

Su Ruilin blocked her path again. When she moved left, he moved left; when she moved right, he moved right. After several attempts, Su Yang finally couldn’t help but exclaim, “Father, what do you mean by this?”

 

“Is my Yang willing to talk to her father?” Su Ruilin smiled, his demeanor in the residence pleading for his daughter’s attention completely different from his decisive command outside the residence.

 

“Father.”

 

Su Yang’s expression turned serious.

 

Su Ruilin stroked his short beard, laughing cheerfully. “Your father is here.”

 

“Father, why do you hide so much from me? You said you used the plague to cover the Yin Corpse Gu because it might have a greater impact than the plague, fearing future imitators. I agreed.”

 

Su Yang pursed her lips and continued, “But do you know what I fear the most? I always feared that the Yin Corpse Gu matter was related to you. If that were the case, where would you place me?”

 

Hearing this, Su Ruilin’s smile faded.

 

Zhong Huan glanced at Zhong Kong.

 

Zhong Kong, quick-witted, immediately moved away from Zhong Huan to guard the vicinity of the courtyard, preventing anyone from approaching and overhearing their conversation.

 

Taking a glance at the courtyard, only they remain.

 

The wind rustled through the pagoda tree in the courtyard, leaves whispering, and the fragrance of flowers filled the air.

 

Su Yang: “I asked you when I returned from the ancient tomb, what were you doing there that night? You refused to tell me. I’ll ask you again today, what were you doing in the ancient tomb that night?”

 

“Was it also to investigate the Yin Corpse Gu without alarming others?” She offered him an excuse, “As long as you say so, I will believe you.”

 

Su Ruilin’s smile completely disappeared.

 

If this matter wasn’t clarified, Su Yang would not let it go; no one knows a daughter better than her father.

 

His once dependable, mountainous figure suddenly slumped, his voice barely audible: “I… went to activate the self-destruct mechanism of the ancient tomb.”

 

Su Yang was incredulous.

 

In the ancient tomb, he hadn’t seen her.

 

At that time, only Su Yang and a few others saw him. It was after she came out of the tomb and questioned him that Su Ruilin realized his daughter was still in the tomb when he activated the self-destruct mechanism.

 

Just barely.

 

His daughter was almost killed by him.

 

It was as if his deceased wife was protecting their daughter from heaven, allowing her to escape safely after the mechanism was activated. Otherwise, if Su Yang died, he wouldn’t have the face to meet his wife in the afterlife.

 

Su Yang’s thoughts were in disarray.

 

This matter was too unbelievable.

 

She forced herself to calm down and asked, “Was it you who activated the tomb’s self-destruct mechanism? Why? To destroy the Yin Corpse Gu? No, how did you even know where the mechanism was?”

 

Su Ruilin gazed at the horizon, speaking in a way that seemed both to himself and to her.

 

“The ancient tomb’s secrets must not be known to the world. Your father had no choice, otherwise, it would cause a massive upheaval. No one can resist the temptation of immortality, no one can…”

 

Su Yang only heard the first half.

 

The second half of his words grew softer and softer, so much so that she couldn’t hear the rest.

 

When Su Yang asked Su Ruilin again, it was as if he snapped out of a trance and didn’t continue, instead, he brushed her off with irrelevant matters.

 

Just as Su Yang was about to show her displeasure, he collapsed.

 

She was greatly shocked.

 

Zhong Huan, hearing the commotion, jumped down from the eaves and helped Su Yang lift Su Ruilin. Zhong Kong hurriedly sent for a doctor.

 

The doctor said that Su Ruilin was not seriously ill at the moment, but he had been overthinking and overly stressed recently, and he needed to rest well in the coming days. If not, his health would deteriorate.

 

Su Yang had no choice but to give up on asking further questions about the matter.

 

If she wanted to know something, she would investigate it herself.

 

After taking care of Su Ruilin day and night for several days until his condition significantly improved, Su Yang finally stopped watching over him all the time. After all, there were other servants in the residence.

 

Besides, she had other matters to clear up at the moment.

 

Returning to her room, Su Yang pressed her aching temples. A letter slipped out of her sleeve, and she remembered she hadn’t read it yet.

 

Su Yang opened the letter. The entire sheet was filled with unruly handwriting, almost like chicken scratch. She first looked at the signature on the letter. There was none on the envelope, but on the letter, it was signed by Shen Jianhe.

 

Why would he write to her?

 

Su Yang lightly frowned.

 

The letter contained no important content, only mentioning that he was leaving Fengling Town and was somewhat reluctant to do so. The reason for his reluctance was not detailed, and he also mentioned something about meeting again if fate allowed.

 

This person was really strange. Their relationship wasn’t close enough to warrant a farewell letter, let alone sending it specifically to the Su residence.

 

At the end of the letter, he had drawn a mouth with a big cross over it.

 

Was this a promise to keep her secret?

 

Su Yang burned the letter and called in the Zhong brothers, instructing them to prepare a carriage to visit the inn where He Sui’an and Qi Buyan were staying.

 

She wondered if they might know something she didn’t.

 

They had been apart for too long that night.

 

Su Yang encountered people or things they hadn’t seen. They might have had similar experiences.

 

Zhong Kong thought they would never see them again.

 

Hearing that Su Yang wanted to find those two, he thought he had misheard: “Princess, why do you still want to find them? I think they are of unknown origin, it’s better to have less contact with them.”

 

Su Yang replied, “Zhong Kong, remember, the martial world never asks about origins. They may be of unknown origin, but they once lived and died with us. No matter what, we must never look down on them.”

 

Zhong Kong was shamed by her words: “Yes.”

 

*

 

Upon arriving at the inn, Su Yang told the innkeeper she wanted to see a guest named He Sui’an or Qi Buyan. The innkeeper remembered them without needing to check the registration names.

 

The innkeeper said it was unfortunate, as the two guests Su Yang was looking for had left the inn early this morning and seemed to be leaving Fengling Town. He didn’t know where they were headed and couldn’t provide any information.

 

Su Yang still held a glimmer of hope.

 

“What time did they leave?”

 

The innkeeper couldn’t recall the exact time, so he called the errand boy who had seen them off to ask.

 

The errand boy, seeing Su Yang’s distinguished attire and her two personal guards, realized these were people he couldn’t afford to offend. He recounted everything he remembered.

 

They had left an hour ago.

 

As for which path they took, the errand boy didn’t know. Once out of Fengling Town, there were three branching roads, and a morning rain had washed away any traces of their path, leaving no clues.

 

Moreover, they might not have taken the land route. Fengling Town was near water with several docks, and they could have left by boat.

 

Hearing this, Su Yang knew she wouldn’t find them today.

 

Was this fate?

 

She left the inn feeling a bit lost, momentarily unsure of which path to take in the future. The sun, emerging after the rain, was slightly blinding.

 

*

 

The sun also stung the eyes of He Sui’an.

 

She had gotten up before dawn, too tired to keep her eyes open and had been led along by someone else. Once Qi Buyan had checked them out of the inn, they went to Fengling Town’s dock to board a boat.

 

On the boat, He Sui’an stood on the deck in the sunlight, trying to wake herself up.

 

Qi Buyan was also on the deck.

 

This large boat primarily carried cargo and earned its main income from transporting goods, with passengers providing extra earnings by occupying any spare space.

 

There were all sorts of people on board. He Sui’an had noticed some fair-haired, blue-eyed foreigners who seemed to be cargo owners because the crew treated them with great respect.

 

Anyone treated this way by the crew was either a cargo owner or someone of importance.

 

Having experienced many events since leaving the city, He Sui’an had developed a habit of observing her surroundings and the people in them, even if those people did not pose an immediate threat.

 

In fact, she didn’t even know the destination of the boat, only that it stopped at fixed docks for half an hour before continuing its journey.

 

During each stop, the cargo on board would decrease.

 

Box by box, it would disappear.

 

He Sui’an couldn’t see what was inside the boxes as they were wrapped in cloth and weren’t big enough to hold even small animals. There were hundreds of such boxes on the large boat.

 

“Want to know what’s inside?”

 

The young man spoke as he saw her looking at the boxes.

 

He Sui’an turned her head to look at him. Qi Buyan was leaning on the railing with his elbows, a few strands of hair hanging in front of him, while the hair behind him was lifted by the sea breeze, fluttering in mid-air.

 

The silver ornaments in his hair also swayed with the wind. His limbs, covered in dark blue clothing, were long and slender. Even though they were hidden by fabric, one could sense the vitality typical of a young man.

 

She glanced at Qi Buyan, then at the water below the boat. “Just a bit curious.”

 

Not necessarily needing to know.

 

He seemed about to say something else when they were interrupted by the sound of a growling stomach.

 

He Sui’an awkwardly covered her stomach.

 

“You’re hungry.” Qi Buyan wasn’t asking; he was stating a fact. He called a crew member and asked for some hot sesame buns.

 

Before leaving Fengling Town, they had bought some dry rations, but if there was hot food available, they would naturally choose that.

 

He handed some silver fragments to the crew member who brought them the buns.

 

He Sui’an quietly tried to stop Qi Buyan.

 

Last time, she had wanted to stop him when he gave the inn’s errand boy silver for answering a few questions, but she had held back. This time, she couldn’t help it. It was all bright silver, and once spent, it would be gone. (TL: The new update starts here)

Sesame buns cost only a few coins each.

There was no need for so much silver; it was enough to buy a lot of buns.

He Sui’an suspected Qi Buyan might not know the value of money after spending too much time in the secluded mountain.

His response was: “Yes.”

“I once heard people from Tianshui Village say that money can make even the devil work for you. They also talked about how much silver they spend when they go out. So, whenever someone asked me to refine Gu, I asked for gold.”

These silver fragments were exchanged from gold after he came down from the mountain. Giving a bit of silver at a time was very convenient.

He Sui’an’s mouth slightly opened in surprise.

She exclaimed, “Ah?”

After cleaning his hands, Qi Buyan picked up a sesame bun, tore off a small piece, and stuffed it into her mouth. He Sui’an instinctively chewed and stopped trying to prevent him from giving silver to the crew.

His feeding movements were very practiced, similar to tearing flesh to feed newly refined, still unskilled Gu worms.

After being fed a few bites by Qi Buyan, He Sui’an took the bun and started eating it herself.

She wasn’t without hands and feet.

Since they boarded the boat, Qi Buyan’s Gu worms hadn’t appeared. She didn’t know where they were hiding, not on him. He Sui’an looked around and saw the red snake asleep among a bunch of red ropes in the distance.

The black snake was coiled around the ship’s railing, looking like a black cloth tied there to secure the sail. If she hadn’t seen it move, she wouldn’t have known it was Qi Buyan’s black snake.

As for the other Gu worms, she hadn’t found them yet.

These Gu worms were like their master, very clever.

The people on the boat were used to seeing foreigners and didn’t find it strange, continuing with their routines as usual.

However, those people frequently cast glances at He Sui’an and Qi Buyan, finding them too good-looking for their age, thinking they were young lovers who had run away from home.

Being watched was a noticeable feeling, and He Sui’an felt uneasy. Eventually, she decided to ignore it and quietly ate her sesame bun.

Halfway through, she needed to use the restroom urgently.

She handed the unfinished bun to Qi Buyan, asking him to hold it for her until she returned to finish it.

He Sui’an was unfamiliar with the ship and didn’t know where the restroom was. After wandering around, she found a woman who was cooking on the ship and was called Sister Song by the crew, and asked her for directions.

Finding the restroom, she quickly took care of her needs, washed her hands, and headed back to the deck.

A shadow passed by her.

He Sui’an looked over.

It was a young girl walking in the opposite direction. Although she didn’t see the girl’s face, He Sui’an felt a sense of familiarity.

It must be an illusion, she thought, and turned to head back to Qi Buyan. Then she heard the girl call out, “Third Uncle!” and saw her skip away to a place out of sight.

Jiang Xuewan, Miss Jiang?

She looked too much like Miss Jiang.

He Sui’an hesitated, then turned and followed.

Back on the deck, Qi Buyan glanced up and saw He Sui’an, who was about to return to his side, suddenly turn and head in another direction, as if she had seen someone and went after them.

Who could it be?

He watched the spot where He Sui’an disappeared for a moment, then smiled and didn’t plan to go after her. Instead, he leaned against the railing, watching the fish swimming in groups below.

After throwing something into the water, a dozen fish floated to the surface, belly up, all dead.

The young man watched, slowly smiling.

Completely lacking empathy.

Someone on the boat exclaimed in surprise, wondering why so many fish had suddenly died, thinking it was a bad omen.

The crew, who worked at sea, were very superstitious about sea gods and omens. Seeing a dozen fish mysteriously die today, they feared this voyage might be unlucky and quickly offered prayers to the heavens.

This news seemed to reach the ears of the fair-haired, blue-eyed foreign employer, who came out of the cabin and said a few words to the crew in a foreign language.

The crew bent low, listening to his instructions.

At that moment, He Sui’an returned to the deck.

She didn’t know what had just happened and was puzzled by their solemn expressions, as if they were worried about some misfortune.

Logically, He Sui’an shouldn’t understand the foreign language, but she caught a few words. The foreigner said, “Make sure to carefully watch the cargo; just wait for tomorrow night’s contact to take it.”

Had she learned a foreign language before losing her memory? He Sui’an wondered in confusion.

“Back already?”

Qi Buyan looked at her with a smile.

His skin, rarely exposed to sunlight, was so pale that the fine blood vessels underneath were clearly visible. When exposed to the sun, it would turn red, looking as if it would get sunburned with prolonged exposure.

When he first came down from the isolated mountain, it was winter, with little sunlight. Now it was spring, and although the sun wasn’t as strong as in summer, it was almost always sunny except when it rained.

He Sui’an nodded.

He suddenly asked, “Were there a lot of people?”

“What do you mean by a lot of people?” He Sui’an didn’t immediately understand.

Qi Buyan’s smile grew broader, his fingers tapping the railing intermittently. “Otherwise, why did you take so long to come back? I thought you got lost.”

If she lied, he would…

“Not many people.” He Sui’an finally understood what Qi Buyan was asking. He was asking if there were a lot of people at the restroom. “I thought I saw Miss Jiang.”

The young man’s tapping hand paused, his murderous intent gradually dissipating.

“Miss Jiang?”

He said softly, “She’s on the boat?”

He Sui’an looked a bit disappointed. “I followed to check, which is why I took longer to come back. It seems I was mistaken.”

“Is that so.” No matter what expression Qi Buyan made, his face always appeared gentle.

She nodded earnestly.

Even her demeanor was completely honest, leaving no room for doubt.

Indeed.

During this time, she rarely lied to him. When she really didn’t want to answer, He Sui’an usually chose to avoid the question instead of lying.

Thinking of this, his smile became more genuine.

Qi Buyan handed He Sui’an the half-eaten sesame bun. She focused on eating it, her cheeks puffed up. “Did that foreigner just talk about dead fish? What fish?”

He casually pointed to the water. “The fish they were talking about are those.”

The dead fish were still floating on the surface.

He Sui’an stood on tiptoe to look. “I remember there weren’t any dead fish here when I left. It does seem a bit strange.”

Qi Buyan closed his eyes and enjoyed the breeze for a moment.

He Sui’an, munching on her bun, felt a bit dazed, recalling the scene when she followed the girl. Did she really see wrong?

The girl’s back resembled Miss Jiang, her voice sounded like Miss Jiang’s, and she even called out to someone as Miss Jiang would to her “Third Uncle.” But when He Sui’an caught up, the girl was gone.

They had met in Fengling Town a few days ago.

It wasn’t impossible to be on the same boat by chance.

He Sui’an decided not to think about it anymore.

If they were indeed on the boat, she would see them again. After all, the boat wasn’t that big, and there weren’t many places for passengers to go. Most areas were restricted to the crew.

After finishing her bun, He Sui’an grew tired of the scenery on the boat, feeling her legs aching from standing. She decided to find a place to lie down and rest in the cabin.

Qi Buyan agreed, telling her to go ahead, and he would join her later.

The cabin had rooms for passengers.

Inside the cabin, there were over fifty rooms lined up in a row, with sliding doors that could only be locked from the inside. The doors on either side of the corridor corresponded to each other.

Due to limited space, the rooms were small.

But despite their size, they had all the basic amenities.

Each room had a narrow bed, a table, a stool, and a set of roughly made tea utensils—a teapot and two teacups, all in plain earthenware without any decorations, quite simple.

In the upper left corner of each room, there was a small window, which was actually a ventilation hole.

The small window was about the size of an adult man’s hand.

The window faced the sea, not the interior of the ship.

If one were to look through the small window, they would see only the vast expanse of the sea, not the interior of the ship. To see what was happening inside, one had to leave the cabin and look from outside.

Some rooms had bells hanging on their doors. From He Sui’an’s observations, these rooms were mostly occupied by people of wealth or status.

She stayed in a regular room.

They had boarded the boat that day without making prior arrangements with the boatman, so there was only one room left, meaning they had to share a bed for the duration of their journey.

He Sui’an was already used to this.

After organizing their luggage, she rolled to the innermost part of the narrow bed, leaving the outer space free for Qi Buyan to join her for a nap.

She didn’t expect that by the time she was almost asleep, Qi Buyan still hadn’t come in. Worried that something might have happened, she decided to put on her shoes and check. Just as she was about to get up, the door opened.

Qi Buyan entered.

The clinking of his silver ornaments was his unique identifier.

He Sui’an gathered her skirt back to her side and let her hair ribbon fall to her shoulder. She wanted to ask, “Are you going to take a nap?”

Even if Qi Buyan wasn’t planning to sleep, there weren’t many places for him to stay in the room. The small stool was too low and uncomfortable to sit on for long.

It was best for him to sit on the bed.

But if Qi Buyan didn’t sleep, and she did, it would feel awkward for him to watch her sleep. So she hoped his answer would be yes.

Qi Buyan answered with his actions.

He lay down on the bed. Although narrow, the bed was long enough. Since most of the passengers were men, the beds were designed to fit their height.

He Sui’an looked small on the bed. Qi Buyan reached over and picked up one of her hair ribbons. “Not taking it down to sleep?”

“No, if I do, I’ll have to tie it back again when I wake up.”

Qi Buyan let go of the ribbon and didn’t press further. He lay down, their clothes making faint rustling sounds. He Sui’an, already half-asleep, clutched the blanket and closed her eyes.

Unexpectedly, she slept until evening. As she started to wake up, she sensed a shadow falling over her face.

The shadow enveloped her.

He Sui’an opened her eyes.

Qi Buyan had sat up. The candle outside the room cast his shadow over her. Why did he wake up while sleeping? He Sui’an was puzzled.

Looking more closely, she sat up, stammering, “This… you…”

Qi Buyan’s hands were covered in blood.

The thick, fishy blood stained his fingers, looking alarming.