Mu Sui’s reaction was somewhat beyond Meng Ruji’s expectations.

Meng Ruji looked him up and down, seeing his injured arm still bound to his chest, his complexion an unpleasant pale, but those eyes gazed at her like an abyss, making the smile at the corner of her mouth involuntarily restrain itself.

But!

Meng Ruji steadied her mind and told herself: What is there to fear? Now with the marriage certificate in hand, it’s like having victory assured. Once they return to Zhuliu City, she can enjoy half the city’s wealth, and returning to the mortal world is just around the corner!

So Meng Ruji endured her emotions and let Mu Sui help smooth the hair at her temples, then smiled sweetly: “We husband and wife will return home together. I haven’t seen Zhuliu City yet.”

“Dream on! Bad woman!” The rabbit crouched on Mu Sui’s shoulder, cursing at Meng Ruji.

Meng Ruji didn’t respond, but heard a voice from above their heads:

“Oh, so lively?”

At the bottom of the pit, three people and one rabbit all looked up, and saw Mo Li lying at the opening above, stretching out his head and tilting it to observe below: “So many people. Take me along, let’s chat together.”

Seeing him, Mu Sui’s eyes darkened. Ye Chuan looked on curiously, while Meng Ruji let out a joyful exclamation: “You’re back at just the right time! Come down quickly, I’ll use you to cast spells to get up…”

Before she finished speaking, her waist tightened. Meng Ruji was startled and looked down to see her waist encircled by Mu Sui’s arm.

“What are you doing?” Meng Ruji looked at Mu Sui in confusion.

Mu Sui held Meng Ruji’s waist tightly with one hand while his other injured hand hung from his neck. He brought his face close to Meng Ruji’s ear: “With your husband here, why does my wife still seek help from others?”

Meng Ruji was startled and glanced at his pale face: “Can you manage?”

Before she finished speaking, Mu Sui, holding Meng Ruji and using the hard chunks of earth and stone on the pit walls, brought Meng Ruji and the rabbit directly out of the pit bottom, brushing past Mo Li’s head.

“Good skills, Qianshan Jun.”

Mo Li lay on the ground, looking at Mu Sui and Meng Ruji with a half-smile: “So afraid of little Meng using me?”

Mu Sui coldly glanced at him. The rabbit jumped from Mu Sui’s shoulder to the ground and, standing by Mu Sui’s feet, began scolding Mo Li: “How dare you! Being rude to my City Lord big brother!”

“Oh, there’s a little white rabbit here, too? Can it be eaten?”

The rabbit was so angry it jumped: “Shameless scoundrel! Exactly like this bad woman!”

“Such a temper. Let’s make spicy rabbit then.”

The rabbit became even more furious, chattering curses at Mo Li.

With the rabbit making noise, Mu Sui seemed to have a headache, but didn’t stop. He just walked aside with his arm hanging, while Meng Ruji asked in surprise and confusion: “You could bring me out? Then, when we fell earlier, why didn’t you come out immediately?”

After the rabbit finished cursing Mo Li and heard Meng Ruji’s words, he quickly jumped behind Mu Sui and scolded Meng Ruji: “Didn’t you see that City Lord big brother’s hand is injured!”

Meng Ruji interrupted: “Wasn’t that your fault?”

“It was clearly to save you!”

“So noisy.” Mu Sui spoke, and with one sentence stopped the clamoring rabbit, who immediately closed his mouth pitifully.

Mu Sui coughed dully twice, said no more, walked to the side, leaned against a tree, and sat down, casually picking up a fruit left on the ground from before and taking a bite.

The rabbit followed over heartbroken: “City Lord big brother…”

Then received a “Shut up.”

The rabbit crouched pitifully to the side, not daring to make another sound.

Meng Ruji observed Mu Sui and saw that he seemed a bit unwell. After thinking for a moment, she realized he seemed somewhat weak ever since coming out of the illusion.

Could it be that using the power of his Inner Core had some effect on him?

If so, why did he insist on carrying her out of the pit?

So unwilling to accept help from others?

Insisting on showing off his strength?

Unable to see through him, Meng Ruji simply stopped looking.

“You pull him up.” Meng Ruji walked over and ordered Mo Li to pull up Ye Chuan, who was still in the pit.

Mo Li looked at Meng Ruji with feigned tears: “Little Meng, I went out to help you deal with Luo Yingfeng, encountered danger and returned, and you don’t even care about me before starting to order me around?”

“Stop acting.” Meng Ruji said coldly.

Mo Li pouted: “Earlier, when you controlled me to deal with Luo Yingfeng, I had just seriously injured him and stolen three gold when your spell was withdrawn, and I fell directly to the ground, returning to human form. Luo Yingfeng was fierce, desperately striking me with a palm, and his subordinates chased me for a long way. I spent the night barely escaping death. But I didn’t expect…”

Mo Li pointed at Mu Sui nearby, then pointed at Ye Chuan in the pit: “You’re here enjoying romantic fortune.”

Meng Ruji’s face was cold and numb: “I’ll leave this romantic fortune for you to enjoy. Quickly fish him out!”

“Sigh, unfilial daughter, you don’t care about me either.” Mo Li sat up and helplessly spread his hands: “I’m injured and can’t use my powers.”

Hearing this, Meng Ruji’s expression darkened: “Can’t use your powers? I can’t use you to cast spells either?”

Mo Li nodded: “It’ll take at least a month to recover.”

She knew it…

A free tool for her to use spells – how could such good fortune fall to her…

Meng Ruji rubbed her forehead, already accepting her identity as the “Unlucky Person of the Land of No Return.”

“Let’s find a vine.” Meng Ruji looked around and dug out a vine from the soil, extending it downward: “Ye Chuan, grab this and come up.”

“Thank you, Miss Meng.” In the pit, Ye Chuan was polite and proper, grabbing the vine and climbing up with its help.

Mo Li sat beside them, supporting his head with his hand, looking at Ye Chuan in the pit, then glancing at Mu Sui leaning against the tree, eating fruit. He beckoned to Meng Ruji like an old patriarch gossiping quietly:

“I think this polite one is better. Why don’t you switch?”

Behind them, a cold gaze shot over diagonally. Meng Ruji didn’t need to turn around to know who it was.

She rolled her eyes at Mo Li: “Shut up.”

“Don’t refuse so quickly. We can ride the donkey while looking for a horse – more options.”

“I’m about to go to Zhuliu City. Things are finally back on track. Don’t cause trouble for me.”

“Oh, you still want to find someone rich. Then Qianshan Jun is richer. This one looks like he’d have to start from scratch – too hard in the early stages, can’t provide a good life for us, father and daughter.”

“Are you sick!?” Meng Ruji scolded him, but strangely, the cool gaze from the back of her head disappeared.

This time, Meng Ruji couldn’t help but turn back to look at Mu Sui.

Mu Sui sat under the tree eating fruit like the obedient little wild man from before, without a trace of killing intent, as if he hadn’t heard them discussing “riding the donkey while looking for a horse.”

“Thank you, Miss Meng.” Ye Chuan climbed out of the pit along the vine. While he was in the pit, Meng Ruji and Mo Li were chatting above – no matter how quietly they spoke, the pit acted like an echo chamber, transmitting their words to his ears.

So the first thing Ye Chuan did after climbing out was bow to both Meng Ruji and Mo Li:

“Senior should be Miss Meng’s… elder?”

“I am.”

“He’s not.” Meng Ruji interrupted decisively: “Just someone with a signed contract, nothing more.”

“A care contract.” Mo Li supplemented proudly: “Taking care of me until I die.”

Meng Ruji: “…”

Ye Chuan: “…Uh… In any case, I must speak clearly.” Ye Chuan said seriously, “I have already caused Miss Meng much trouble. My life should have ended long ago. Now, coming here must be heaven’s opportunity. Ye Chuan asks for nothing else, only hoping to spend the rest of my life serving Miss Meng, at her disposal, to atone for my sins.”

Ye Chuan spoke solemnly. Meng Ruji looked at him, bowing deeply, and was somewhat stunned: “It’s not necessary to go that far…”

“No, I caused Miss Meng to mistakenly enter this place. If Miss Meng doesn’t want to stay here, then I must send you back. This is what I must do. Please don’t drive me away, Miss Meng. Fulfill my ‘bearing thorns and pleading for forgiveness.'”

Mo Li clicked his tongue in admiration: “Good young man, very reliable. Little Meng, how about choosing a good tree to nest in?”

“Senior, please don’t speak such jests!” Before Meng Ruji could scold him, Ye Chuan spoke seriously: “I now only feel guilt toward Miss Meng, no improper thoughts. I want to follow Miss Meng only to atone for my sins.”

Ye Chuan made his position clear.

Meng Ruji was still willing to trust him. She pondered – although Ye Chuan was previously possessed by malevolent qi and acted extremely, the malevolent qi in his body had now been removed. When he was in the mortal world, he could make her Five Guardians join forces to deal with him, so he must be quite capable.

Now, Mu Sui was scheming, and Mo Li was no less so – they all had their demands and weren’t wholeheartedly on her side. She needed someone who was truly “one of her own.” Ye Chuan had achieved enlightenment precisely because he was too upright. Keeping him would be trustworthy.

Moreover, he was also a medical immortal…

He should be kept.

It’s just…

No matter what, in Zhuliu City later, she would also be living under someone else’s roof…

Meng Ruji couldn’t help but look back at Mu Sui again.

This time, she didn’t expect that Mu Sui wasn’t eating fruit anymore – he was also looking in her direction. When their eyes met, Meng Ruji blinked, but Mu Sui was very calm: “This is your matter. You decide for yourself.”

Meng Ruji was somewhat surprised: “Qianshan Jun is so generous?”

Mu Sui casually picked up another fruit, wiped off the dust on the bandage of his suspended hand that Meng Ruji had bound for him, peeled the fruit, took a bite, and said: “Being good to my wife is part of my duty.”

Meng Ruji hesitated no more: “Ye Chuan, let’s set off for Zhuliu City together.”

“Yes, Miss Meng.”

“Then… the money you brought with you when you came here?” Meng Ruji widened her eyes, looking at Ye Chuan expectantly: “How much is there? Is it silver? Or gold?”

With one sentence, Ye Chuan’s face turned ugly.

“Money…” Ye Chuan looked toward the rabbit at Mu Sui’s feet.

The rabbit anxiously hopped twice in place, but constrained by Mu Sui’s earlier command, it kept its mouth shut and didn’t dare speak.

“Let it talk!” Meng Ruji was anxious.

“Speak.”

“You dare mention money!” The rabbit was so angry it jumped, bouncing high in place: “You possessed me and cast spells all the way here, which already drained most of the spiritual power from the two or three silver I had hidden. Then you opened an illusion! My money exploded when your illusion broke! Not even dust remains!”

After the scolding, the forest returned to silence.

“That is to say…” Meng Ruji’s hands trembled as she pointed at everyone present in a circle: “Four people and one rabbit can’t scrape together a single coin…”

Mo Li pursed his lips and whistled twice with detachment: “It’s not my fault.”

Ye Chuan sighed: “It’s all my fault, all my fault!”

The rabbit: “It’s all your fault! All your fault!”

Mu Sui silently ate his fruit. After a moment, he stood up, picked up some fruits, and stuffed them into his clothes. While he was gathering them, Meng Ruji also emerged from despair.

“What else can we do…” Meng Ruji sighed.

With Meng Ruji’s words, Mu Sui had already walked to her side. He handed her a fruit, then strode off in one direction.

Meng Ruji resignedly took the fruit, bit into it to fill her stomach, and followed.

“Where are we going?” Mo Li asked.

“To the market.” Meng Ruji said lifelessly: “To find work…”

A life of toil – it wasn’t joking with her.