Lord Meishan immediately burst into tears, snatched Little Crow over and held it in his arms crying: “Little Crow! Which bastard hurt you like this?!”
Zhen Hongsheng said: “I’ve been quite bored these past few days. Thinking that Fu Jiuyun fellow sent you a new set of drinking vessels, I came over to ask you for a drink. Who knew that while flying my carriage near Wanlan Mountain, I saw your precious crow fallen on a treetop, badly injured, so I kindly brought it back for you.”
Lord Meishan couldn’t listen at all. The spirit ghosts had already brought out bottles and jars of medicinal ointments, pills, and powders. He poured them all over Little Crow at once, turning the crow into a white crow, only then treasuring it in his arms and nourishing it with his own immortal energy.
Zhen Hongsheng couldn’t be bothered with his neurotic behavior. He turned to look at Xin Mei, then at Lu Qianqiao, thoughtfully looking him up and down completely, finally giving him a fierce once-over with his eyes before reluctantly saying: “You little girl, haven’t seen you for a while and you’ve already found your ideal husband? Mm, he looks pretty good, and… quite manly…”
Xin Mei obediently greeted him: “Fox Immortal sir, he’s not my husband. Speaking of manliness, your outfit today is…”
“Stop!” Zhen Hongsheng immediately changed color and waved to prevent her from continuing. With lingering fear, he wiped his sweat before asking: “How did you come to Meishan Residence?”
Well, well… that would be a very long story to tell. Xin Mei was considering how to explain the ill-fated relationship between herself and Lu Qianqiao when Lu Qianqiao suddenly spoke: “Were there any strange phenomena near Wanlan Mountain?”
Zhen Hongsheng felt annoyed just looking at his distinguished bearing.
How could someone wearing just an ordinary light blue robe be so manly? He touched his own wide sleeves, then touched the glittering golden crown on his head. Fearing Xin Mei might say something like “your outfit today looks like a heavenly lady from a painting,” he quickly used an illusion technique while she wasn’t paying attention, changing into flowing white robes with a fan in his hand, waving it dashingly a couple times before steeling himself to meet Lu Qianqiao’s disdainful gaze.
“I didn’t pay attention to the area around Wanlan Mountain. If you’re worried, you can go back and check.”
Lu Qianqiao pondered for a moment, temporarily remaining noncommittal. Lord Meishan sniffled and choked up: “Little Crow is badly injured, I don’t know when it will wake up. The matter you asked about will have to wait until it recovers. If it’s urgent, you should leave first. I’ll notify you when I get news.”
Lu Qianqiao nodded: “That’s fine, thank you for the trouble.”
A clever spirit ghost had already led Lie Yunhua out for him. He leaped onto the horse’s back and reached out his hand toward Xin Mei: “Get on.”
Zhen Hongsheng suddenly said gently: “Little Mei doesn’t have to leave, does she? Wouldn’t it be nice to stay and play for a few days?”
Lord Meishan had been holding Little Crow and crying, but hearing these words he immediately perked up and suddenly lifted his face.
Xin Mei hesitated, looking back at Lord Meishan’s face full of earnest expectation mixed with fear, then looking up at the expressionless Lu Qianqiao. He said nothing, only took a talisman paper from his chest and played with it between his fingers.
It was Qiuyue!
She immediately obediently jumped onto the horse’s back and smiled apologetically at Lord Meishan and Zhen Hongsheng: “Uh… maybe next time…”
Zhen Hongsheng thoughtfully watched Lie Yunhua ride away on the wind, then suddenly heard Lord Meishan speak: “You fox, why did you tell her to stay for no good reason? Making that War Ghost come trouble me for nothing?”
Zhen Hongsheng smiled and turned to look him up and down: “I just think… she’d be safer with you. It’s quite dangerous mixing with that War Ghost general.”
Lord Meishan was bewildered: “What danger?”
Zhen Hongsheng rolled his eyes: “I’m just guessing randomly! Stop nagging, are we drinking or not?”
Unlike when they came, this time Lu Qianqiao seemed somewhat anxious. Lie Yunhua sensed its master’s emotions and ran wildly with all four hooves, fast as a shooting star. Xin Mei was somewhat curious: “Lu Qianqiao, what are you worried about? Although Little Crow was injured near the Imperial Tomb, didn’t you say the Yunwu Array was very powerful?”
He shook his head without answering.
Perhaps he couldn’t explain the vague anxiety in his heart either. Little Crow’s wounds weren’t caused by ordinary weapons – those wounds were very familiar… But how could that be possible? Was it her? Could it be her? It had been so many years already…
“Lu Qianqiao, today seems to be April 28th. In two more days it’ll be May.”
She seemed to sigh.
Lu Qianqiao said quietly: “So what about May?”
“On May 3rd I’ll be sixteen. Father said no matter what, I must marry before I turn sixteen. But I still haven’t been able to buy a husband.”
Her failure to buy a husband was mostly his fault. She looked up at him resentfully.
At a time like this, what… what should he say? Lu Qianqiao fell silent. Should he comfort her that she’d definitely find a suitable husband in the future, or tell her that husbands weren’t something you buy? He was a bit conflicted, carefully considering how to speak.
“Seeing how you keep forcing me to fly around with you, why don’t I just save myself the trouble and marry you? What do you think would be a fair price?”
This bolt from the blue made him drop the reins.
Lie Yunhua was racing at full speed when – whoosh – both of them were thrown from the horse’s back, falling straight down from ten thousand feet high. Xin Mei’s scream was only brief and thin, but the next moment he spread his arms and forcefully pulled her into his embrace. In the rapid descent, he desperately blew his whistle.
Lie Yunhua was extremely intelligent. As soon as it realized the two people had fallen from its back, it immediately turned around riding the clouds, gently nestling beside Lu Qianqiao. He grabbed the reins with one hand, twisted his waist, and finally safely mounted again.
He wiped the cold sweat from his forehead and looked down with lingering fear at that little troublemaker who always said shocking things. She had her mouth wide open, still savoring the recent thrill. After a long while, she slowly closed her mouth and mumbled: “I… I was actually just joking…”
He looked down at his own hands, really wanting to strangle her, then revive her, then strangle her again in an endless cycle…
Xin Mei giggled: “Did you take it seriously?”
Lu Qianqiao kept a cold face and took out the talisman paper where Qiuyue resided from his chest, waving it.
She immediately lowered her head: “I was wrong, sorry.”
Having learned this lesson, Lie Yunhua never dared fly so high and fast again. It slowly descended below the clouds, leisurely traveling along the treetops that were green as the sea.
The warm spring breeze blew against the back of her head. Xin Mei shook her head uncomfortably, only then realizing that because of falling from the horse and being pulled back up, she had ended up sitting face-to-face with Lu Qianqiao. One of his arms was still around her waist, and her whole face… uh, her whole face had been pressed against his chest all along.
“Lu Qianqiao… Lu Qianqiao.” She looked up and called to him.
He started his paralyzed face act again, pretending not to hear.
Xin Mei leaned back: “You’re holding my waist too tight, it hurts.”
The paralyzed face suddenly froze, as if only now realizing how intimate their seating position was. He stiffly pulled his hand back, his face immediately flushing red, even his ears turning bright red. He suddenly turned his head away.
Xin Mei finally felt a bit embarrassed: “Why… why are you blushing…”
Making her feel embarrassed too.
This was too awkward. Usually in plays when there were similar scenes, someone would come interrupt or something… Well, whoever it was, please come interrupt quickly!
Heaven seemed to really hear her inner voice, because Lu Qianqiao’s sunset-red face instantly turned pale again. He gently pulled the reins, and Lie Yunhua obediently stopped at the treetops.
“What’s wrong?” Xin Mei was bewildered.
Lu Qianqiao didn’t answer. He just quietly gazed ahead several zhang away – blue sky, green trees, a snow-white carriage, and two people standing beside it. The breeze fluttered their clean white robes. Their posture was like thousand-year-old trees, upright and proud. Under their jade-like foreheads, a pair of blood-red eyes made one’s hair stand on end.
Red eyes with double pupils – the appearance of War Ghosts filled with killing intent.
Every muscle in Lu Qianqiao’s body instantly tensed like a bowstring pulled to its limit.
Xin Mei’s eyes rolled back and forth between the two War Ghosts and that snow-white carriage. Seeing their blood-red eyes, she couldn’t help but be startled: “Such red eyes, like…” Like strawberries.
Her words were gently covered by Lu Qianqiao’s hand. He covered her mouth, still somewhat shaken: “…You’d better not speak.”
The killing aura of red-eyed War Ghosts targeted any provocation, whether it was well-intentioned, unintentional, or malicious.
He placed the talisman paper where Qiuyue resided in her hands. The Qiuyue he had used to bully her, imprison her, and coerce her all this way – he just casually returned it to her like that.
“Go back, return to Xinxie Manor.” He instructed.
Xin Mei was stunned for a while, then thought: “You’re going to fight? Afraid I’ll drag you down?”
“…Leave quickly.” He was truly helpless, gently pushing her head.
She summoned Qiuyue and nimbly jumped onto its back, turning to look at him seriously: “Then I’m leaving. Be careful, don’t get killed.”
She never seemed able to say anything pleasant or gentle.
Lu Qianqiao watched Qiuyue fly away, only then urging Lie Yunhua to leap down from the treetop and land gently across from the carriage.
The snow-white carriage, spotlessly clean; the black Screaming Wind mare, with lightning under its hooves.
It really was her. After so many years, he was meeting her again in such a place.
Lu Qianqiao dismounted and strode over to kneel before the carriage, his voice calm:
“Mother.”