This... things changed too fast. In just a few days, Lianyi was moved by this pervert?
Xiao Man patted her on the shoulder and said, "Have you been wandering around in the mountains these past few days? Why didn't you come to find me sooner?"
Lianyi rubbed her eyes: "I didn't know where Master was. It was just a coincidence that we found him this time. Luckily we found you, otherwise I would have felt guilty for the rest of my life if he had died."
Xiao Man laughed and said, "What's there to feel guilty about? He did it willingly. It has nothing to do with you."
Lianyi shook her head and said softly, "But it will make me sad. My heart is made of flesh and blood."
Did she mean that her heart was made of stone? Xiaoman touched her chest in frustration and went outside for some fresh air. She saw Gengu smiling and ignoring her as he walked past her with a bowl of soup. He walked up to Lianyi and, like a docile lamb, said softly, "Sister, have something to eat."
Lianyi's eyes reddened when she saw him, and she choked up, saying, "Brother Gengu, I failed to take good care of your prince. You must be blaming me."
Gengu laughed and said, "It's good that that bastard is dead. Your health is the most important thing, sister. Don't worry about him. How could I blame you?"
This child is really...
That evening, Lianyi and Gengu went out to forage for food. This kid is usually the type who'd slack off whenever possible, but with Lianyi around, he instantly transforms into a diligent and hardworking man, doing everything himself—even ants aren't as diligent as him. Who says beautiful women are just troublemakers? This beauty is pure, unadulterated spring water.
Zexiu touched Yelü Jing's forehead with his hand. His fever had subsided considerably, but his lips were still peeling from the heat. He dipped some water in the water and applied it to his lips. Unexpectedly, Yelü Jing suddenly opened his eyes and stared at him blankly.
"Awake?" Zexiu asked irritably.
Yelü Jing stared at him as if in a daze, tears welling up in his eyes, swirling and swirling within them...
"Good brother!" he cried out, trembling, grabbing his arm and clinging to him. "We're on the Bridge of Helplessness? You followed me here? Am I dreaming?"
Zexiu punched him in the nose, making a bloody blister, but he didn't even utter a sound before passing out again.
"You're crazy." Ze Xiu scoffed, turning to Xiao Man with a frown: "How come he's with Lian Yi? Did you let him travel with you?"
Xiao Man chuckled guiltily and quickly changed the subject: "Lianyi and the others have been gone for so long and haven't come back yet. Could they have encountered some danger?"
Zexiu glared at her: "What are you up to now!"
Xiao Man could only say, "No, look, he only has a little kid as a guard, and that kid isn't loyal to him. He doesn't have any martial arts skills, it's so pitiful for him to be out there all alone. Wouldn't it be better if he came with us? Being kind to others is a good deed..."
Would she really be that kind?
Zexiu sat on the ground and said slowly, "You have to be careful. He is someone who will become emperor in the future. He is completely different from ordinary rich people, and even more different from people in the martial arts world. While you will gain benefits, the price you pay will be even greater. If you are thinking of taking advantage of him, get rid of him as soon as possible, or it will be too late to regret it."
How could she not understand these principles? Xiaoman touched her cheek and whispered, "Do you think people who like to take advantage of others don't distinguish right from wrong and just want to take advantage of anything they see? You don't know anything."
Zexiu remained silent.
After a while, Lianyi and the others returned from foraging for food. Xiaoman waved to her with a smile: "Lianyi, come here, come here."
Lianyi put down the prey, went to check on Yelü Jing first, and then ran over, "Master, what is it?"
Xiaoman pulled a floral fabric shirt out of her bag, held it up against her, and laughed, "We lost all the high-quality fabric we bought last time. I saw that your clothes were too old, so I altered one of my own to be a bit bigger. Try it on first. When we get to the market, we'll buy some more fabric to make new clothes."
Lianyi's eyes reddened again, making her look like a little rabbit.
Xiaoman added, "Although these are my old clothes, I haven't worn them many times, so please don't mind. Besides, the size has been altered to be a bit larger, so you should be able to wear them."
Lianyi quickly shook her head: "I...I don't mind at all! Master is so good to me, he even makes clothes for me..."
Xiaoman pulled out two or three pieces of clothing and shoved them into her hands: "Here, they're all yours. Go try them on and let me see."
Lianyi ran outside with her clothes in her arms, and came back in a while later, making everyone's eyes light up. As the saying goes, clothes make the man, and this is certainly true. Even if she was a stunning beauty, she would still be eye-catching in tattered clothes, but she looked completely different when she changed into clean clothes.
Lianyi nervously clutched her floral dress and whispered, "H-how is it? Is it presentable?"
Gengu was the first to praise, "Sister, you're so beautiful! Any clothes look good on you. Even though it's the same clothes, you look so much better in them than that wicked woman!"
Lianyi blushed and whispered, "Thank you, Master. I like it very much, more than any luxurious fabric."
Xiao Man smiled and went over to touch her hair, saying, "I'm glad you like it. My heart is made of flesh too, and I can't stand seeing my own people dressed like beggars. As for other unimportant people, I wouldn't even look at them if they were naked."
Gengu went hunting and was sweating profusely. He took off his shirt and used his sleeves to fan himself when he realized she was being sarcastic, so he just gave a cold laugh. When it came to witty banter and cunning, he couldn't outmaneuver this woman, so he simply kept quiet.
Xiaoman then took out Zexiu's usual clothes and cloak, folded them neatly, and said with a smile, "The clothes have all been washed and mended, but I don't know if they'll suit your taste."
Zexiu took it, which was unexpected. He nodded and said, "Thank you so much, thank you for your trouble."
He was a man who traveled the world without a care in the world. Even though he had plenty of money, he often didn't care about such trivial matters. His clothes were worn and torn, but now, when you unfold them, you can see that the torn parts have been carefully sewn up with thread. Where they couldn't be sewn up, he used cloth of the same color to make patches. The stitches were dense and numerous, which showed that his craftsmanship was excellent.
"Your needlework is quite good." He couldn't help but admire it, truly not expecting that the young master of Cangya City could even do needlework.
Xiao Man chuckled: "Of course, I'm not the kind of person who only takes advantage of others; I also make contributions occasionally."
He still speaks in such a sarcastic tone. Zexiu sighed inwardly; indeed, no one is perfect.
Gengu got up and went outside alone. Anyway, this wicked woman wouldn't do anything for him, and might even mock him. He might as well just ignore her.
Before she could react, she waved to him from behind and called out, "Hey kid, come here."
He turned around and glared at her warily: "What are you doing?"
Xiaoman tossed him a small bundle: "You didn't bring anything, not even a change of clothes, and your fur coat stinks. Take these."
Gengu was genuinely surprised that she had actually prepared something for him. His expression became complicated as he slowly opened the bundle. Inside were some of Zexiu's old clothes and a pendant made of various colored beads.
"Those clothes were too to mend, so I altered them to be a little smaller for you. Don't mind them; you can buy new ones at the market later, and you can throw the old ones away. I made that pendant out of boredom; you can play with it."
Gengu picked up the pendant, examined it carefully, and whispered, "The craftsmanship is extremely poor."
He laughed as he spoke, then took the clothes and went out to change, the pendant hanging from his waist, which he played with every now and then, clearly quite fond of it. Sigh, what a hypocritical little devil!
Seeing that everyone had changed into clean clothes and looked refreshed, Xiaoman clapped her hands and laughed, "That's better! When we travel the world, we need to be clean. If we're all dirty, we're not heroes, we're beggars..."
Before she could finish speaking, her face suddenly turned pale, and she involuntarily fell to the side. Zexiu rushed forward to catch her and looked down to see that blood was gushing from her right wrist, instantly soaking her sleeve. The veins on the back of her hand were throbbing wildly, looking extremely terrifying.
He quickly pressed several acupoints on her arm, but it was to no avail. The bleeding stopped slightly, but then it started gushing out again. Xiaoman said in a trembling voice, "It hurts so much! Quickly... cut it off, and it will be over!"
Zexiu frowned and remained silent. He hurriedly took out a bandage and wrapped it tightly around the top of her wrist, which finally stopped the pain a little. However, the veins on the back of her hand seemed to come alive, throbbing and twisting under her skin. Xiaoman was in so much pain that she was covered in cold sweat. Suddenly, she opened her mouth and bit his arm.
Lianyi was so frightened that tears streamed down her face. She rushed over, flustered and unsure of what to do, only crying and calling her name. Gengu took out bandages and tightly wrapped them around both of her hands, and miraculously, the gushing blood stopped. Zexiu hurriedly took out some ointment and applied it, asking him, "What kind of method is this?"
Gengu said solemnly, "When I was fighting with my father, we encountered some Jianghu people who hated the Khitans. They used this Azure Dragon Gu to harm people. As long as you tie your hands tightly with a strip of cloth, you won't bleed."
Ze Xiu frowned and said, "Azure Dragon Gu? Isn't it supposed to be Hundred Days of Blood Loss?"
Gengu shook his head and said, "No. The Hundred-Day Blood Loss is bleeding for a fixed hour every day for a hundred days until all the blood in the body is drained and death occurs. Look at the back of her hand, the veins are throbbing. Normally the wound doesn't hurt, and she's like nothing's wrong. This is called the Azure Dragon Gu. When it flares up, the excruciating pain will make people wish they were dead. Each time it flares up, the blood loss is twice as much as the last time. If there is no catalyst to relieve it, she will die in less than a hundred days."
As she spoke, Xiaoman fainted from the pain, her jaw slightly clenched, her mouth full of blood—Zexiu's blood.
Zexiu gently placed her on the ground, took a cloak and covered her with it, then pressed the wound on his arm and said, "I really don't know much about Gu magic. Is there any way to treat it?"
Gengu shook his head: "Go find whoever cast the Gu. This is different from illness or poisoning. Unless you cast the Gu or are an expert in this art, you are helpless against it. Be careful. The first few times it happened, you could stop the bleeding by tying your hands with cloth strips, but later it won't stop."
Lianyi cried her eyes out, tears and snot streaming down her face. Holding Xiaoman's hand, she couldn't speak, wishing she could take her to her death. Zexiu pondered for a long time before saying, "We can't wait any longer. We'll set off for Taibai Mountain tomorrow morning. I have an elder... who might have a way to deal with this."
Treasure Scroll, Chapter 18: Marching into Mount Taibai (Part 3)
Updated: 2008-10-04 15:09:18 Word Count: 4394
Second update.
**************
The next morning, everyone changed their appearance and disguised themselves as Khitan civilians, which would make it easier to pass through the checkpoint.
Xiao Man was in pain all night, but miraculously woke up the next morning full of energy. After learning that she had been poisoned by a Gu technique, she fell silent. Yelü Jing was still running a fever and needed someone to carry him, but Lian Yi carried Xiao Man, and neither Gen Gu nor Ze Xiu wanted to take care of him. Gen Gu even said viciously, "Just leave him in the mountains. He's just a burden."
Lianyi looked at Zexiu pitifully, but he deliberately turned his head away as if he hadn't seen her. She could only look at Gengu, who touched his nose and said in a low voice, "Okay... alright, I'll carry it."
This is why even heroes can't resist the charms of a beautiful woman.
Zexiu saw Xiaoman leaning blankly against the back of her dress, her face pale from the blood loss. She carried a large bundle on her back, which made her appear even smaller and thinner, like a child. He had always found it strange; she never seemed to have many spare clothes, and her usual cosmetics were always empty. He wondered what was inside that huge bundle.
He tapped it with his hand, and it made a hollow sound, as if it were a piece of wood.
Xiao Man looked up at him quietly, without saying a word. Ze Xiu couldn't help but whisper, "Don't worry, even the most powerful Gu has a way to be broken, it will be cured eventually."
Unexpectedly, this time she didn't argue, but just obediently nodded and handed him the bundle on her back: "You take it, it's very heavy."
Sigh, it turns out she was just using this as an excuse to act cute. Zexiu took the bundle and saw a piece of dark wood sticking out from inside. It was a very old pipa with a broken string.
"What are you doing carrying that?" He flicked his finger across the pipa, producing a pearly sound, and couldn't help but praise, "The tone is quite good!"
Xiao Man remained silent for a long time before saying, "It's my mother's keepsake."
"From the previous young master?" No wonder, the pipa looks old and worn, but its tone is surprisingly clear and bright. "There are so many good things in Cangya City."
Xiao Man was clearly not in the mood for conversation today. She hummed twice and then lay on the back of the dress, pretending to be dead. After a while, she whispered, "Don't keep talking about Cangya City, Cangya City. They're gone."
Zexiu paused for a moment, then said, "I'm sorry, I didn't mean to remind you of these things."
Xiao Man shook her head and said softly, "You've never called me by my name. Do you even know what my name is?"
“Xiao Man,” he answered fluently.
Xiao Man suddenly smiled, a sweet smile on her face, and agreed.
Zexiu's heart skipped a beat, and he smiled slightly, but forgot what he was going to say next.
******
They soon arrived at a capital city, where the streets were bustling with activity. Xiaoman had already regained her usual spirits. Sitting on horseback, she hugged her dress around the waist, looking around curiously, whispering to herself, "Look, there's a silk shop over there. We'll go there to buy some fabric later. Look at that stall, is it selling hairpins?"
Lianyi could only make out a vague outline, giving incoherent replies. Suddenly, she sighed, "Master, my eyesight seems to be getting worse. I can only see your face clearly when you're this close; anything further away is just a blur. Will I go blind someday?"
Xiao Man casually replied, "I'll find a doctor to take a look at you later. Maybe an acupuncture treatment will make you better."
As they were talking, Zexiu suddenly rode his horse toward a notice board with several wanted criminals on it. He looked at it for a while, then reached out and peeled off one of them, stuffed it into his pocket, and turned back to say, "Let's find an inn first, and continue our journey in a couple of days."
Lianyi whispered, "Master, is Uncle Zexiu a constable?"
Xiao Man shook her head. She had absolutely no idea what Ze Xiu did, where he came from, or what his identity was, and he never said a word about it. When it came to playing the mystery card, he was even more thorough than the ice-cold-faced Tian Quan.
Upon arriving at the inn, Yelü Jing was utterly dissatisfied: "How can anyone live in such a shabby place? There's not even a pond for goldfish, no incense in the room, and who knows how many bedbugs are crawling on the bed. Let's go, let's find another place!"
Lianyi hesitated, "But... you've already changed three inns, this is the best inn in town..."