“No!” Purple Micro Sage’s scream shook heaven and earth.

“You still have that same scent from back then.” Yelu Xunru acted as if she hadn’t heard his scream, hugging his leg and sniffing around like a fox. “Ah, I’ve smelled countless people’s scents, but yours still smells the best.”

After sniffing, she went to feel his waist, comparing with both hands crossed. This time she seemed satisfied, tilting her head with a smile: “Your waist doesn’t seem as slim as mine. Finally, there’s something I’m better at than you.”

Poor thing, she herself was skin and bones—Jing Hengbo’s belt could wrap around her twice.

Purple Micro Sage’s back was rigid, seeming to tremble slightly.

Jing Hengbo was also trembling with laughter.

Wasn’t this called “evil people have their own nemesis”?

Seeing that Yelu Xunru seemed to want to feel Purple Micro Sage’s buttocks next, Yelu Qi coughed. Yelu Xunru “looked” at Jing Hengbo and let go, probably afraid of scaring her “sister-in-law.” She muttered: “Not touching is about the same. Your figure is still so good—I like it.”

Jing Hengbo really wanted to tell her that she actually didn’t mind—hehe, not long ago she had even poked him!

Figures flashed continuously as the seven jesters returned, surrounding their master and staring intensely, as if they’d never seen their master in this pose. Their eyes shone like searchlights. Yi Qi said with deep regret: “Bobo, you didn’t bring out that box of yours—that thing that can make pictures. If it were here, how wonderful! Then I could paint his portrait, and whenever he bullies us in the future, we could take it out and distribute it to the world! Hahaha!”

“Move aside, move aside.” Purple Micro Sage was shaking off Yelu Xunru, his movements urgent but not forceful. Jing Hengbo propped her chin, sneering: “Old immortal, Xunru is someone who’s about to die. If you dare move too roughly and kill her, I’ll definitely kill you.”

Purple Micro Sage seemed inspired, immediately saying: “If you let go of this old man, I promise to immediately cure you. If you don’t let go, there’s no hope.”

Jing Hengbo wept—such discrimination! Poor her, she’d been here for months, still working hard to earn points for detoxification, still hovering around the passing line. She was far from seventy points. Xunru had only felt him up a few times, and the old immortal immediately promised to detoxify her. If she’d known, she would have gone to feel him up too.

“Why would I want you to cure me?” Yelu Xunru’s response dropped jaws everywhere. “How long could I live if cured? Could I marry you if cured? If cured, you’d definitely run ten thousand li away, right? Living—if you can live happily, that’s best. What’s the point of living so long? Don’t make noise, don’t talk, let me smell for a while, think for a while. Ah, I seem to have returned to those days—so beautiful, so good. Don’t open your mouth. If you say one word, I’ll cut a section of your hair. I’m still short of satisfactory burial goods.”

Jing Hengbo went around to look at Purple Micro Sage’s expression—oh my, he looked like he wanted to cry.

How delightful.

“Jing Hengbo, I’ll give you extra points. As long as you help me throw her away—oh no, not throw away, please take her down. As long as you take her down and stop bothering me.” The Purple Micro Sage who dominated the world and played throughout Seven Peaks Mountain didn’t dare move, glancing at Jing Hengbo from the corner of his eye. “I’ll add however many points you want.”

“No deal.” Jing Hengbo immediately refused with great backbone. “I want to earn full marks through my own ability. You’re not allowed to insult me.”

“When I die, I’ll come down.” Yelu Xunru hugged his back, saying to Yelu Qi: “Little Qi, learn from this. Infatuated men fear persistent women, and fierce women also fear persistent men.”

Yelu Qi glanced at Jing Hengbo. Pei Shu stepped forward to block him. Jing Hengbo impatiently pushed him aside—her attention was all on Yelu Xunru! It was rare to have someone who could control Purple Micro Sage and help her vent—how could she miss it?

But then again, with Purple Micro Sage’s martial arts, no matter what condition Xunru was in, if he wanted to shake her off, he had ways. He hadn’t shaken her off all this time—why was that?

Men’s forbearance toward women was often not because they had no choice, but because they couldn’t bear to.

Did this mean that in the old immortal’s heart, he also had feelings for that girl who had once accompanied him facing the sunlight, watching the sea of clouds for a whole day?

Someone like the old immortal appeared to the world as forever cynical, forever disrespectful, forever playing with the world, but she knew that the more such people were like this, the more they often had huge hidden pain in their hearts. How many times over the years had he watched the sea of clouds alone day and night? And how important was that year’s silent companionship to him?

She gestured for everyone to step back, giving Xunru some space. Although Xunru didn’t care, this was the respect they should give.

Of course, no one was willing to leave. It was rare to see Purple Micro Sage suffer—even if she was willing to leave, the seven jesters wouldn’t.

She sat on a large rock to the side. Pei Shu immediately followed, muttering: “When will you treat me like Xunru treats Purple Micro…” After thinking, he negated himself: “No, women can’t be so domineering and wild. They should be gentle and virtuous. How about this—I’ll allow you to do this once, but not in the future…”

Light wine fragrance came from above. Ying Bai poked his head down, tapping Pei Shu’s head with his wine flask: “Being drunk in wine country daily, I’m still more sober than you. Want me to pour out the wine and give you a mirror?”

“Ying Bai, why do you always oppose me? How have I offended you?” Pei Shu jumped up to fight with Ying Bai. Tian Qi tidied his hair disdainfully, muttering: “Bickering lovers.” Then he looked intensely over there: “Hey, Xunru, cut some hair! Cut it! I’ve wanted the old guy’s hair for a long time. Cut it down and exchange it for mine—my hair quality is always a bit dry…” He finished by showing Jing Hengbo his split ends.

Jing Hengbo stood up, avoiding to the other side of the rock, worrying whether having Tian Qi around was good or bad. After no one discriminated against him, he gradually forgot about trying to be a man and became more and more like a woman.

Another person sat beside her, with a familiar night wind and warm spring scent. She didn’t move, hugging her knees and saying softly: “It’s been hard on you.”

“It’s nothing.” He smiled. “You’ve had it hard too.”

“Want to cry?” She turned to gaze into his eyes. “Don’t force yourself. You’re different from Xunru. She truly doesn’t care—she’s seen through everything. But your feelings for her are particularly tender.”

Yelu Qi’s expression showed slight melancholy—this was the woman he liked! She seemed casual but always possessed the most delicate consideration and her unique gentleness.

She was always so good, so good that even when he wanted to let go, he couldn’t.

“Would you perhaps lend me your shoulder to cry on?” He looked at her teasingly.

Jing Hengbo immediately straightened her chest, frankly offering her shoulder: “Come on.”

Yelu Qi smiled, but his eyes dimmed slightly.

Such generous frankness was also a kind of distance. What he hoped more to see was her shyness.

Her shyness… could he wait for it in this lifetime?

Jing Hengbo was also just joking, calculating that he appeared gentle but had his own dignity and wouldn’t really lean over. Just as she was about to withdraw her shoulder, he suddenly reached out, gently gathering her hair and picking away a fallen leaf stuck in it: “I’ll wash your hair for you later. Look how messy your hair is.”

He leaned very close, his breath brushing her cheek like silk. This beautiful man was only startlingly tender when he met her, like a bright, soft sword that could be rigid or flexible.

But she stiffened.

Washing hair…

Deep in her organs, shock and pain stirred. In a trance, it was that day again under spring sun and flower shade—she saw the lying woman and sitting man again. Her black hair swayed in the copper basin, and he sat beside her head, gently washing her long hair. Light and shadow like gauze covered them in pale golden-red dawn light. The sound of water was slight, smiles were shallow, flowers bloomed faintly, wind passed gently.

Low murmuring voices also returned like dreams, winding and turning.

“Gong Yin… washing hair is very comfortable…”

“Gong Yin, in the future I want to wash yours…”

“Gong Yin… I want to bear your children…”

And his voice after voice, breaking through her dizzy dreams.

“Change the water.”

…

The smile that had just bloomed at her lips was immediately blown away by the cool wind over today’s lake.

However sweet the past, so desolate the present.

No matter how many worries, how much suffering, it couldn’t match this human fate. She had once wanted to be the helmsman of the Great Wilderness, but ultimately was expelled far from that sweetness and warmth, wandering everywhere.

Even with countless hidden grievances, she still resented.

Those flowers might have been very beautiful and good, that path might ultimately have led to perfection, but none of it was what she wanted.

Yelu Qi sensitively noticed the change in her expression, sighing slightly in his heart.

No matter how pervasive his gentleness, it couldn’t fill the holes torn by heartache.

…

Yelu Xunru held Purple Micro Sage’s hair, clinging to his robe hem.

“You still like wearing robes, purple robes? Thanks to you, I still remember purple. Other colors—I’ve forgotten most of them.” She touched his smooth purple robe, pouting, feeling this guy’s clothes were more particular than hers.

“All these years, have you often watched sunrises? Watching sunrises hurts the eyes. I watched many sunrises later—I won’t be hurt by them anymore. Are you envious?” She gripped his hair, thinking of many, many years ago when she wanted to touch his hair and was thrown off the cliff by that guy. Now she could touch whenever she wanted, and this guy seemed to be enduring with great difficulty. Hehe, let him endure—she had endured for so many years.

“You’re the seven jesters’ master, you’re Purple Micro Sage. So you’re an old man—how old are you? I’m twenty-three this year. You’re not eighty-three, are you?” She calculated—so when she first met him, he was already very old. Ah, if she’d known he was so old then, would she have forgotten him?

No.

Maybe at first sight, she was attracted by that face, but after watching sunrise and sea of clouds on the mountaintop for a whole day, sharing a day of silence with him, thirteen-year-old she suddenly understood the most important truth in life at that moment.

Patience and waiting.

Beside him, from her heart’s wild beating to gradual calm to finally having no distractions, to spiritual communion with him, she finally saw at the edge of the vast sky and endless galaxy above, the most magnificent truth belonging to the universe and fate.

Waiting from one sunrise to another, that final moment of glimmering golden light across thousands of miles told her that as long as she persisted forever and never despaired, she could always see the brilliant golden wheel beyond the clouds.

Her fingers caressed the purple brocade. Her hands were covered with wounds, and her pitted skin made the silk fray with a rustling sound.

Purple Micro Sage never turned back. He gradually calmed down too. The lake reflected his slender figure, still vaguely like those days, with emptiness beneath his feet and a ten-thousand-zhang sea of clouds. And she sat beside him, so quiet.

“I’ve missed you so much all these years. Have you ever thought of me? I think you must remember me. Do you know? I talk a lot—my mother always said I was a chatterbox. But that year, that day and night, I held back from talking. I just wouldn’t speak, just wouldn’t speak. I felt that if I didn’t talk, you would definitely remember me. People in the world, whoever they meet, they have to talk. It’s rare to have someone spend a day with you without saying a word. Anyone would remember that, right?”

He didn’t speak. She giggled, slowly climbing onto his shoulder to touch his face, saying intoxicatedly: “Your skin is still so good, but don’t face the sun anymore—you’ll get spots… But do you know? Later, I talked to you my whole life facing the wall, my whole life…”

Purple Micro Sage wanted to escape again, but she quickly reached down, extending into his collar and fiercely grabbing something unknown. Purple Micro Sage’s entire body immediately stiffened.

The lake reflected his expression—probably looking like he wanted to die.

Yelu Xunru looked completely satisfied, as if her heart’s desire was fulfilled, smiling happily.

“Thank you for enduring me because I’m about to die, but I won’t be embarrassed to stop because of that.” She declared boldly: “I want to die while teasing you, and be reborn to tease you again in the next life.”

In the distance, Jing Hengbo heard this line and felt she must record it to ask Taishi Lan later if she could say something so awesome.

Yelu Xunru’s voice gradually lowered.

“Do you still sing that fox song? I thought about that song for many years afterward and felt it wasn’t a nursery rhyme at all. If I get a chance, I’ll tell you my thoughts, but you have to sing it once more for me…”

Her body gradually softened, her hand loosened, and the ink-brocade-like long hair slipped away.

Yelu Qi and Jing Hengbo suddenly stood up.

Purple Micro Sage jumped up with a “whoosh,” not looking back, shooting across the lake surface with a “swish” and disappearing.

His flying, long purple robes swept over the clear lake, beautiful as a fairy, but his fleeing posture was very unseemly.

Words like “running like wolves and pigs” and “fleeing in panic” were quite suitable to describe it.

Jing Hengbo was so angry she cried, cursing loudly: “You heartless old immortal…” She rushed over in one stride to check on Yelu Xunru, but didn’t dare feel her breath or ask Yelu Qi, who was half-kneeling to take her pulse, afraid of hearing news she didn’t want to hear.

After a long while, Yelu Qi turned back, showing her a smile that was unclear whether joyful or bitter, saying softly: “…Still alive. He just regulated her breathing.”

Jing Hengbo let out a long sigh of relief, looking up.

Everything before her eyes was somewhat blurred, only feelings were distinctly clear.

…

Yelu Xunru settled down at Seven Peaks Mountain.

Her physical condition was actually still not optimistic. The years of poison injury were secondary—years of hostage suffering and long-term enormous pressure had long exhausted this woman’s heart and strength. Si Si had taken her pulse, saying her organs had various injuries. Anyone else would have died years ago. With her exhausted body challenging limits, she had persevered for her brother with sheer willpower. Now that she felt her brother no longer needed her, that supporting strength was also exhausted.

According to Si Si, even exhausting all human power could only let her live a few more years.

Si Si also said that for someone like her, there was no need to hypocritically say things like “try to eat more good food” or “make the patient happy.” Truly strong people didn’t need others’ attention and care—letting her be was best, being herself was best.

Si Si was very active this time, seriously managing Yelu Xunru’s body. Jing Hengbo was suspicious about this—were these really Si Si’s words, or Purple Micro’s?

However, the seven jesters’ attitudes were all proper. They ran all over the mountain every day actively looking for medicine. Jing Hengbo felt they hoped Yelu Xunru would live longer so they could destroy the old witch.

Yelu Xunru herself truly appeared indifferent. Even toward Yelu Qi, she didn’t show too much reluctance to part. Every morning when she got up, her hair would fall out in large amounts, and she would always smile and say she could collect it to make a doll. When her body felt better, she would run wildly all over the mountain, chasing Purple Micro Sage everywhere.

She carried scissors with her. Whenever she caught Purple Micro Sage, she would “swish” and pull them out. Her big white teeth and the scissors’ blade edge would flash together, and Purple Micro Sage would run faster each time.

Jing Hengbo had asked her why she carried scissors with her. Yelu Xunru said that since seeing him at thirteen, the scissors had never left her body. Her wish was to cut off this guy’s hair and mix it with her own hair to make a doll for burial.

Cutting hair was like wanting the old guy’s life, but Jing Hengbo felt that Purple Micro Sage’s reason for running as soon as he saw Xunru might also be because those scissors were really too big and hard, completely unlike those prepared for cutting hair—the kind sufficient to cut tree branches. She seriously suspected that pervert Xunru really wanted to cut something else for burial, and believed Purple Micro Sage thought the same as her.

Speaking of which, it was also strange. Purple Micro Sage had always been very hard to find. Even the seven jesters and Jing Hengbo couldn’t figure out where he lived or where he might appear. Yet Xunru, who had lost her sight, seemed to have a telepathic connection and could often catch him.

When she drank medicine, she would turn the bowl over and smile at the air: “Finished drinking! Was that fast?”

At first, Jing Hengbo thought this was her talking to herself, but once after taking away the medicine bowl, she saw a corner of purple robe under the eaves.

When she was halfway through eating, she would suddenly run to the cliff edge and dump the rice from her bowl down below with a “splash.” Soon, Purple Micro Sage would come up cursing while touching his dirtied hair. Yelu Xunru wouldn’t get angry, listening with a grin, then bringing out the hand she’d hidden behind her back, holding a bowl of soup: “Come drink soup. After you finish, I’ll never dump rice on your head again. And I absolutely won’t keep flashing scissors at you.”

Purple Micro Sage would snatch the bowl, gulp it down in two or three mouthfuls, then scamper away like a rabbit—if he stayed longer, Xunru would come up with more things to make him unable to leave.

However, he didn’t appear for three days after drinking it. According to Xunru, that soup was an aphrodisiac—she wanted to test whether the old guy’s abilities in that area were still there.

Once, she suddenly got up in the middle of sleeping, ignoring all attempts to stop her, lifting her skirt and running outside. A group of people followed, unable to figure out what she was doing. It turned out she ran to a hidden small lake that no one had ever discovered, where Purple Micro Sage was bathing. Seeing a large group of people suddenly appear, he immediately let out a tragic scream.

That day, Jing Hengbo was blissfully happy and vindicated. She took away Purple Micro Sage’s clothes and even saw the old guy streaking through the forest wearing tree leaves.

It must be said that Purple Micro Sage truly had eternal youth—Yin Wuxin was far inferior to him.

Another time, she said she wanted to play on the mid-mountain. Yelu Qi carried her down, but halfway there she suddenly said she needed to relieve herself. Jing Hengbo accompanied her, but she didn’t go behind trees, beside small streams, or to any secluded place. She insisted on climbing a protruding platform. After Jing Hengbo carried her up, she saw that below the cliff was a river with a beach beside it. Purple Micro Sage was defecating on the beach, covering it with sand while humming a song. His long purple robe was hung on tree branches and draped down, looking like a purple transparent tent, while he was like a cat that buried its waste, facing the mountain wind with his butt and singing folk songs to the river.

Jing Hengbo laughed so hard she almost fell off the cliff.

Purple Micro Sage was singing happily when he looked up to see two gleeful faces peeking down from the cliff top. He gathered his robe and fled in panic, leaving a piece of robe hem torn from the branches fluttering in the wind. Desolate.

After that, everyone would ask him daily: “Master, master, did you wipe your butt that day?”

Everything in the world has its nemesis. From then on, at Seven Peaks Mountain, the arrogant and insufferable Purple Micro Sage would flee at the sight of Yelu Xunru.

After hearing about Purple Micro Sage’s examination system, Yelu Xunru was indeed very interested and instigated Jing Hengbo to choose the second question from the original first test paper.

Within three hours, find Purple Micro Sage’s residence and obtain a pair of clean underwear.

That day, the two set out. Indeed, with Yelu Xunru’s help, Jing Hengbo found Purple Micro Sage’s residence in one hour and easily obtained a pair of the legendarily non-existent clean underwear.

Moreover, all the underwear in Purple Micro Sage’s clothes chest was clean. Jing Hengbo clearly remembered that Zirui and Yong Xue hadn’t helped him wash underwear recently.

She held up the underwear to express her amazement to Yelu Xunru, who just smiled.

“I often smell the scent on his body. How would he dare wear dirty underwear?”

Jing Hengbo declared that Sister Yelu was truly her lucky star.

At the same time, she noted that women dress for those who appreciate them, and men bathe for those who delight in them. Purple Micro Sage’s sudden understanding of cleanliness, even knowing to dig holes to bury his waste like a self-conscious cat—didn’t this also prove from the side that he actually cared about Xunru?

She could also see that Purple Micro Sage’s small cave dwelling had extremely elaborate mechanisms and traps inside, but they hadn’t served their proper function at all. Was it because when Xunru came, he simply let her pass through?

So taking advantage of this rare opportunity, she turned Purple Micro Sage’s cave dwelling upside down, stuffing her pockets full of seemingly useful things.

When she finished ransacking through boxes and cabinets, she turned around to see Yelu Xunru had climbed onto the old guy’s jade bed, playing with something in her hands.

Jing Hengbo immediately went over. Recently, she had come to admire Xunru’s beast-like intuition with complete reverence. What she found might be the most crucial thing.

In Xunru’s hands was a handkerchief. It was clearly very old—the snow-white silk had yellowed, but it was preserved with great care, without even a fold.

This handkerchief had no fragrance, no embroidered patterns, nothing special about it. If Jing Hengbo had seen it, she would definitely have dismissed it as useless at a glance.

“This embroidery is very fine.” Xunru’s fingers gently caressed the handkerchief, also with a cherishing manner.

“What embroidery?” Jing Hengbo was puzzled. There was clearly nothing on the handkerchief.

A blind person’s sense of touch was also amazing. She had a sudden realization, took the handkerchief, and held it up to the light, only then seeing a fox embroidered with same-colored thread.

A white fox with a graceful figure, snow-white fluffy tail, in a half-turned, looking-back pose that actually brought to mind phrases like “charming glances, seductive and adorable.” The embroidery work was superb.

A fox?

“The two sides are different,” Xunru reminded.

Jing Hengbo turned it over to look, and this time it was nine-layered palace towers, flying cranes, clouds like flowing silk, sun and moon rising together.

What a scene full of immortal energy.

The embroidery on this side was also in same-colored thread. Looking at the entire handkerchief in sunlight, she realized it wasn’t pure white but had a faint silver glow, so the double-sided embroidery done with silver thread would be hidden under normal light.

What amazed Jing Hengbo more was the embroidery work of this handkerchief. If she remembered correctly, this continent hadn’t yet developed double-sided embroidery techniques, but this handkerchief was not only double-sided embroidery—even the embroidery skill itself was unparalleled.

It could be said that this handkerchief itself had immortal energy. If she weren’t a time traveler but a native of the Great Wilderness, she might have felt an impulse to “worship this as an immortal treasure.”

Although Purple Micro Sage had feminine features and loved wearing robe-like garments, this handkerchief was definitely not his own.

A fox song, a fox handkerchief, now collected in this cave dwelling—the significance of this item to him was obvious.

Jing Hengbo hesitated a bit, unsure whether she should remind Yelu Xunru not to carelessly dispose of this handkerchief. She believed that with Xunru’s perceptiveness, she must have guessed the meaning and origin of this handkerchief. She was afraid that in anger, she might simply destroy it.

Yelu Xunru seemed to guess her thoughts, but just smiled, spreading the handkerchief flat and placing it in a roll of handkerchiefs nearby.

Only then did Jing Hengbo discover that beside Purple Micro Sage’s pillow was a stack of cloth towels that looked like ordinary cloth rolls. The handkerchief was placed neatly in the center, neither conspicuous nor allowing dust or wrinkles while protecting it well.

It was hard to imagine how Xunru, a blind person, could discover the mystery within that stack of ordinary cloth towels.

“He doesn’t store it well this way—it wrinkles easily.” She carefully smoothed the handkerchief, pressing it down with a hard jade plate on top.

Jing Hengbo stared at her blankly, not understanding what she was thinking. She suddenly no longer felt she was like Taishi Lan. If Taishi Lan wanted a man, she would charge forward the same way, but once she confirmed the other party’s heart belonged elsewhere, she would definitely pat her butt and leave.

“Do you think I’d be jealous? That I’d make a scene? That I’d tear up the handkerchief?” Yelu Xunru laughed heartily, tapping her forehead. “Why? Is it necessary? He guards this thing so carefully—doesn’t that just show it didn’t work out either? It’s all just a fantasy now—why should I make a life-and-death fuss about it? Who do I think I am to him? No matter how bad my temper, I won’t do such annoying things.” She stretched lazily, murmuring: “Actually, this is quite good. I never thought about possessing him. He remembers his, I like mine—each preserving a beautiful state of mind for ourselves. Feelings are beautiful things—don’t pollute them with unnecessary tears and inappropriate behavior.”

Jing Hengbo felt that all the petty-minded women in the world should come listen to this.

Yelu Xunru didn’t stay long in Purple Micro Sage’s cave dwelling. Unlike ordinary women who hoped to understand more about their beloved’s daily habits, she just lay on his bed and hummed a song softly. Jing Hengbo recognized it as that fox nursery rhyme.

After singing, Yelu Xunru looked up at Jing Hengbo with a smile: “It’s still early. Let’s go see his experimental marsh.”

Jing Hengbo had long heard that Purple Micro Sage had selected a marsh at Seven Peaks Mountain to trial the marsh cultivation improvement plan she had proposed at the imperial reception ceremony. She had always been very interested in seeing it, but unfortunately had been kept spinning by Purple Micro Sage’s endless examinations without time. Now it was good—Xunru had come, Purple Micro Sage avoided her like the plague, so as long as she stayed with Xunru, it was like having a vacation.

Di Ge was also now promoting experimental marshes, but it hadn’t yet affected other countries and tribes. The Great Wilderness pattern was too strange and complex—Jing Hengbo felt her wish to benefit the entire Great Wilderness was very difficult to realize.

The experimental marsh was on another mountain peak, but this distance was nothing to Jing Hengbo now. She held Xunru’s hand for a series of teleportation flashes. Xunru squinted her eyes and said cheerfully: “My little Qi will be blessed in the future…”

Jing Hengbo pretended not to hear.

Finally, they stopped before a large marsh that had been planted densely with mulberry trees. It wasn’t yet time for leaves to sprout, but chickens and ducks roamed freely in the mulberry grove. Jing Hengbo knew that sometimes when going down the mountain, they could have very fresh, rich chicken soup at the mid-mountain residence. By the marsh, many reed shoots had already sprouted tender green stems and leaves. The marsh itself showed no visible changes, but Jing Hengbo knew that if she went down to step around, she could step on lotus roots that hadn’t fully grown yet.

Yelu Xunru couldn’t see but could smell the scents in the air. She breathed deeply, her eyes brightening: “This is the first time I’ve smelled fragrance in the scent of mud—it seems to have the smell of mulberry leaves.”

“There are also lotus roots in the pond. Maybe we can fish some up to stir-fry a dish.” Jing Hengbo suddenly became interested, wanting to use the products of this marsh to create a farm feast.

Xunru was a woman forever full of interest in life. She also rolled up her skirt and pants to go down and pick lotus roots with her. Of course, she could only symbolically pick one or two roots before becoming breathless, watching Jing Hengbo covered in mud and water showing off her skills.

Even so, Jing Hengbo was very satisfied, feeling as if she saw the dawn of Xunru’s recovery. She carried the lotus roots ashore and looked up to see Xunru’s gaze fixed directly on her. She couldn’t help but laugh: “Why are you staring at me?”

In front of Xunru, there was no need to avoid words like “blind” or “look”—she wouldn’t mind.

“I’m thinking,” Xunru said leisurely, “how wonderful it would be if you really were my sister-in-law.”

Jing Hengbo stood still, smiling and pointing at her: “Hey, let’s say this upfront—if you really die in the future, you’re not allowed to give me some deathbed request to entrust your brother to me, asking me to agree for the sake of your impending death. I won’t fall for that trick.”

Yelu Xunru tilted her head with a smile: “What, scared?”

“Scared.” Jing Hengbo honestly replied: “That day when you looked like you were dying, lying there looking at me, my little heart was pounding—I was afraid you’d beckon to me.”

“If you don’t want to, just refuse.” Yelu Xunru chuckled.

“I would refuse, but I’d feel uneasy, uncomfortable, like I owed you, especially after you died—I’d feel this debt could never be repaid.” Jing Hengbo grabbed her hand: “Sister, that’s too cruel—you absolutely mustn’t!”

“Hahaha, you’re overthinking.” Yelu Xunru patted her hand, speaking seriously: “I do want you to marry little Qi, not entirely because I’m his sister, but because I think little Qi is more suitable for you. But no matter how much I want it, I would never try to use my death as leverage to force a woman’s lifelong happiness. If little Qi wants you, let him fight for it himself. A real man relying on his sister to get a wife? Yelu Xunru won’t do such disgraceful things, and Yelu Qi even less so!”

Jing Hengbo smiled slightly, also patting her hand, feeling that while she had encountered the coldest winds and snow of her life at Di Ge, she had met the best people on this journey after leaving Di Ge.

The emptiness deep in her heart was slowly being filled day by day.

“However,” Yelu Xunru suddenly bumped her shoulder, saying mysteriously: “Won’t you really consider it? Little Qi is very good—he knows so many things, and he can even make clothes…”

Jing Hengbo burst out laughing, but melancholy emotions surged in her heart. She slowly pulled Xunru’s hand to press against her own heart: “Sister, this place was once full, then became empty. Do you know? If someone has ever been in each person’s heart, then it’s like a dug hole that only fits that one person. When it becomes empty later, the space left actually isn’t suitable for any new person. Whoever fills it, he suffers, and she suffers too. When that perfectly fitting person is gone, it’s better to let it stay empty forever. I’m that kind of person, and I think you are too.”

Yelu Xunru squinted her eyes, facing the wind with its faint scent of water grass, saying softly: “Yes. Over the years, I’ve also refused marriage proposals. The place dug out in my heart was only meant for him. If not, then it stays empty forever… It’s just…” Her tone held pity: “Such persistence isn’t happy.”

“Not persisting wouldn’t be happy either.” Jing Hengbo hugged her knees, looking at the setting sun gradually falling behind distant mountains.

The conversation didn’t continue.

They leaned against each other’s shoulders, facing the vast mountains and deep marshes, thinking about that person who left their hearts empty.