“Miss, you…” The man wanted to call the woman to take shelter from the wind together, but when he looked up, he discovered the broken wall was already empty, with no trace of her anywhere around, as if everything just now had been his imagination.
It seemed only in the blink of an eye that wind and sand struck their faces. Wild winds howled, blotting out the sky and sun, frightening those hiding behind the broken walls into trembling. But it was only for the time it takes to drink a cup of tea before the fierce wind came to an abrupt stop, seeming to suddenly disappear into thin air in that instant. The yellow sand that had been swept up by the wild wind fell straight down in rustling cascades, burying the camels hiding at the foot of the wall more than halfway in sand, while the people were buried even deeper within it.
The surroundings quieted down. The people under the sand, covered with sand-proof leather blankets, pushed the blankets aside and struggled to climb out from the sand. Outside, it was already a clear blue sky with not a cloud for thousands of li. All around was an endless expanse of yellow sand, no different from any ordinary day.
The leading man patted the yellow sand from his robes and gazed far into the distance. He casually pulled down the gauze bound around his face, revealing handsome and distinguished features where nobility and some arrogance complemented each other perfectly.
“Let’s go. Return to Helian Fortress before sunset.” The man mounted the camel’s back, raised his hand to command those behind him to follow, and set off westward.
On the other side, atop a sand peak beyond the dunes, a woman in red gauze watched that camel caravan leave and head west from afar. She extended her hand and, using her finger as a brush, lightly cut through the air. Below her finger appeared a bamboo leaf, which she flicked gently. The emerald bamboo leaf flew away like a butterfly in the yellow desert, heading toward that caravan.
“Cough…” The woman felt pain in her chest, stepped back to cover her chest, swayed a few times, then fell backward onto the yellow sand. The thin gauze on her face was blown away by the wind, revealing a beautiful countenance—it was Yusang, who had left the capital Huadu several months ago.
Yusang felt weak all over, everything before her eyes gradually blurred, and at the same time, she heard the sound of horse hooves approaching her, but she had no strength to look. Someone leaped down from horseback and approached. She felt a cool sensation on her forehead as spiritual energy slowly flowed from her forehead into her limbs and bones. The pain throughout her body immediately lessened. She tried hard to open her eyes to see who was before her, but could only vaguely see a man’s face before falling into unconsciousness.
A day later, Yusang woke again from that nightmare, suddenly opening her eyes and sitting up. Before she could understand the situation, her forehead bumped into something, and she heard someone cry out in pain.
“Ouch! Are you trying to murder this lord?”
Yusang looked around and discovered she was in a crude earthen house. The room was mostly built of yellow earth and rough wood, with furnishings that were quite simple—all the crudest earthenware pottery jars. She was sitting on a wooden bed. Looking beside her, Zi Feng was sitting on the ground with a twisted expression, covering his forehead.
“Zi Feng, why are you sitting on the ground?”
Yusang threw off the covers and got out of bed, wanting to help him up, but Zi Feng suddenly widened his eyes, then immediately closed them and turned his head away, waving his hand, “Go back, go back! Put your clothes on properly.”
Yusang looked down and only then discovered she was wearing only a white undergarment. The sleeves and trousers were only half the length of Central Plains clothing, exposing half her arms and a small section of her legs.
“What’s the matter with this? You and I grew up together—it’s not like you haven’t seen this before. When we were catching fish in Taiye Lake…” Yusang muttered as she picked up nearby clothes to put on.
Zi Feng straightened up and patted off the dust he’d picked up from the ground, then turned to see Yusang had put on a dress, but was making mistakes while tying the waist sash. He casually tucked the folding fan in his hand at his waist, brushed away Yusang’s hands, and helped her tie the sash into a flower knot while saying, “Is this what a grown young lady should be saying? Childhood was childhood. By mortal age standards, you’re now an unmarried maiden. If you’re not embarrassed, I’m embarrassed for you.”
Looking at Zi Feng helping her arrange her dress while nagging, Yusang couldn’t help but smile a little. When Zi Feng looked up and saw her like this, he didn’t give her a good look. He turned around and sat on the bedside, took the paper fan from his waist, fanned himself while turning his head away in annoyance, ignoring Yusang.
Yusang moved closer and sat beside Zi Feng. Zi Feng immediately shifted away a bit. Yusang then shamelessly squeezed closer again, putting on an apologetic smile, “Zi Feng, good Zi Feng, I was wrong. Don’t be angry.”
“Wrong? Where were you wrong?”
“Wherever you say I was wrong, that’s where I was wrong. Don’t be angry anymore.”
Zi Feng raised his hand and snapped the paper fan shut with a flourish, turned to look at Yusang, and tapped her forehead, saying, “Yu Wensang, after your trip to the mortal realm, your face has gotten thicker and thicker.”
“It hurts, it hurts…” Yusang covered her forehead and stood up.
“You know it hurts? If you know it hurts, why do you run around recklessly? You’re currently living off the essence of a bamboo plant, yet you ran to this great desert. You’re not afraid of death, but afraid of pain? If I hadn’t arrived in time, you’d be a pile of dried bamboo dead in the yellow sand by now. Where would you get the chance to cry about pain?” Zi Feng pointed at Yusang and scolded loudly.
“But I’m fine, aren’t I? It’s not so easy to die.” Yusang defended herself with an apologetic smile.
But Zi Feng wasn’t buying Yusang’s act. He blocked her hands, stood up, and walked outside, saying, “This little life of yours took quite some effort to save back then. If you don’t cherish it yourself, at least think of others. Letting you act so recklessly, you’ll lose your little life sooner or later.”
“Zi Feng…” Yusang wanted to speak coquettishly, but just as she opened her mouth, Zi Feng turned back and yanked the dimensional pouch from her waist.
“What are you doing?” Yusang’s expression changed, standing up in shock and alarm. That pouch contained several soul artifacts she had collected.
“Looking at you, you’re determined to collect all four soul artifacts. Then this lord will stay and accompany you in searching for soul artifacts, but I’ll keep this thing for safekeeping to prevent you from acting rashly again.”
“Zi Feng…” Yusang’s face fell, but before she could employ her coquettish tactics, Zi Feng used his fan to block her pitiful chin, saying, “Don’t act coquettish, and don’t be displeased. As long as you’re still searching for soul artifacts, I must watch over your little life. If you’re not happy with this, then come back to Dajing City with me.”
“Fine then, let’s establish three rules.” Knowing Zi Feng couldn’t be persuaded to leave, Yusang could only settle for second best and try to secure her rights.
“This lord had the same thought. Then let’s establish three rules. First, you must listen to me. Second, you must listen to me. Third, you still must listen to me.”
Upon hearing this, Yusang immediately widened her eyes. Where were the three rules? Every single one was a rope aimed at tying her up. Just as she was about to argue, Zi Feng preempted her again, saying, “Same as before—don’t act coquettish and don’t be displeased. It’s settled.”
Afterward, Zi Feng gave Yusang no more room to speak. He opened his paper fan and strode out of the room with a swagger, leaving Yusang standing there suffering in silence.
In the afternoon, Zi Feng and Yusang left the earthen house. Zi Feng gave the house owner some silver and incidentally inquired about affairs in this desert, which included mention of a place called Helian Fortress in Red Sand City.