Noticing her even breathing, Tang Ye checked her pulse with his fingers, then frowned after a moment. She had an unusually high temperature; though she didn't say anything, he could feel it. He carried her as they walked, keeping an eye out for herbs.
Hua Wuduo slept until the next day. When he woke up, he was in a dry cave with dry grass under him and Tang Ye's outer garment covering him. There was also a burning fire nearby.
Tang Ye was brewing something at the cave entrance when he saw her wake up. He carried in a wooden bowl with an unknown plant floating in it. Hua Wuduo tried to get up, but found herself too weak to move. She coughed uncontrollably with the slightest movement. Tang Ye helped her sit up and let her lean against his lap. He then fed her spoonful by spoonful with a rough wooden spoon.
She didn't know what Tang Ye had fed her, only that it tasted bitter and astringent and was quite unpalatable. However, because she was really hungry, she couldn't be picky. Seeing him so earnestly feeding her bite by bite, her heart felt like it was filled with fifteen buckets of water, making her restless. She wanted to reach out and take the wooden bowl to eat herself, but her wrist was too weak and she almost spilled the soup. Helpless, she let him feed her. He carefully wiped away the soup that accidentally dripped from her mouth. Hua Wuduo was a little flattered and accidentally ate the whole bowl clean.
After she finished eating, Tang Ye helped her lie down and said, "You should sleep for a while."
Hua Wuduo coughed and asked, "Am I sick?"
Tang Ye nodded and said, "It's alright."
"Hmm." Hua Wuduo responded. Tang Ye said it was nothing serious, so it should be fine. Right now, he just felt dizzy and lightheaded. He just wanted to sleep, so he turned his head and fell into a deep sleep again.
I felt much better when I woke up.
The sky was filled with stars, and the mountain night was enchanting. Although they were in the forest, no snakes, insects, or rodents approached because Tang Ye had placed an unknown herb in the fire. Tang Ye brought over a bowl of food, which she took and ate from herself. There was only one bowl and one spoon, and Tang Ye used the same set for eating. What was initially awkward was now forgotten in this situation; their survival was already a stroke of luck.
The assassins chasing them clearly didn't find this place; perhaps Tang Ye used some trickery. Now that the poison has worn off, there's nothing left to worry about.
In the darkness, the firewood crackled and popped as he leaned against the cave entrance, seemingly lost in thought. Inside, Hua Wuduo stared blankly at his retreating figure. Everyone said he was heartless, ruthless, and merciless, a killer who wouldn't blink an eye, but he didn't seem to treat himself that way.
Lost in thought, she drifted off to sleep again. When she woke up, she was in another dry cave. The cave was not deep, but it was very clean, and the withered grass on top must have been tidied up by him.
At that moment, Tang Ye was roasting wild game by the fire at the cave entrance. The fragrant aroma was what woke Hua Wuduo up.
Swallowing hard, Hua Wuduo stared intently at the half-cooked pheasant roasting over the fire, her gaze fixed on it. Unbeknownst to her, because she wasn't wearing a mask, her pale and haggard appearance was both breathtakingly beautiful and incredibly endearing. It's likely that any other man sitting opposite her would have been captivated. But it was Tang Ye… This situation was akin to a cow facing a magnificent peony battered by wind and rain—it offered no insight into its beauty or the pity it evoked.
At this moment, Tang Ye's hair was disheveled and loose, only loosely tied back, giving her a more effeminate appearance than usual. When Gongzi Yi first met Tang Ye, he commented that Tang Ye wasn't even presentable, but how could one always believe Gongzi Yi's words? Gongzi Yi usually spoke ill of others the more jealous he was; Gongzi Qi knew this best, but he never pointed it out, and it was already a favor if he didn't kick someone when they were down. That's what you call birds of a feather.
Looking at the few remaining flowers, one can't help but sigh, perhaps it's true that birds of a feather flock together? This peony, seemingly oblivious to its own difference, became even more unrestrained, leaving its dirty shoes and socks by the fire. Seeing this, Tang Ye, who was roasting wild game, frowned deeply and moved the pheasant further away. The peony finally realized its mistake and moved its shoes and socks further away as well.
The mountain weather was unpredictable, raining suddenly. After finishing their meal, the two intended to continue their journey, but the rain was pouring down and showed no signs of stopping anytime soon. So they huddled in the cave, waiting for the rain to stop before continuing their journey. Both of them were now in a very sorry state. Hua Wuduo had been carrying Tang Ye on his back to evade pursuit, and had even taken a wrong turn, resulting in his clothes being torn in many places and his face being injured. Later, he and Tang Ye fell into the cave, making them even more disheveled, with their shoes and socks covered in mud.
With nothing else to do, she started washing her shoes and socks in the raindrops dripping from the hole. As she washed, she suddenly remembered the days she spent with Gongzi Xiu. Even when they encountered rain while traveling, even when they couldn't find shelter, he would shield her from the wind and rain with his own body. He said he had never done anything like that before, and that he felt happy being able to shelter her from the wind and rain…
She couldn't tell if it was rain or tears dripping onto her shoes and socks. She rubbed them vigorously, washing away the mud bit by bit. She gritted her teeth and told herself, what's the use of crying? They're almost in the capital. She needs to cheer up. She has so much to say to him. She wants to tell him in person that they can be together. They can.
Just as she had begun to compose herself, she heard Tang Ye say from inside the cave, "Fate is predetermined, why force it? True affection lies in sincerity, not in the duration of time."
Hua Wuduo was taken aback by Tang Ye's words and remained silent for a long time. She understood what Tang Ye meant and knew that he was trying to comfort her. Remembering something, she lowered her head and said in a muffled voice, "I have something I want to ask you. I wonder if you will tell me."
“Ask away,” Tang Ye said.
"Did you kill those bandits in Luoyang?" Hua Wu asked, though he didn't really expect Tang Ye to answer.
Unexpectedly, Tang Ye replied, "Yes."
"If that's the case, it means you have feelings for Miss Xu. Why didn't you tell her the truth that day?" Hua Wuduo asked.
Perhaps she had asked too much, for she hadn't received an answer from Tang Ye for a long time. Hua Wuduo thought Tang Ye wouldn't answer her, but then she heard him slowly say, "I've known her since I was a child, and my mother liked her very much when she was alive..." Tang Ye's voice suddenly paused, and Hua Wuduo waited for a long time without hearing anything more. She then turned to look at Tang Ye, who seemed to sense her gaze and looked back at her. The sound of raindrops outside the cave came softly and densely, as if tapping on someone's heart.
Tang Ye was her betrothed since childhood. She knew a little about the Tang family; Tang Ye's mother passed away when he was nine, and his father then made his second wife the official wife, the new mistress of the Tang family. Hua Wuduo also lost her mother at a young age. Although her longing and yearning for her mother gradually faded with age, she never forgot her, though it remained deeply buried in her heart. Hua Wuduo deeply understood Tang Ye's longing for his mother.
Hua Wuduo withdrew his gaze and remained silent for a long time, both of them missing their deceased mothers.
The sky gradually darkened, but the rain continued to fall.
When the noise subsided and only the sound of raindrops remained, time seemed to stand still, making it somewhat unbearable. Tang Ye was not far away. Something had been troubling Hua Wuduo for a long time. Although it didn't make her lose sleep or eat, it had still bothered her. Unexpectedly, she thought of this matter that she couldn't let go of. After thinking for a while, Hua Wuduo suddenly asked in the silence, "You were betrothed to the second young lady of the Fang family since childhood, but later broke off the engagement. Was it because you actually liked Miss Xu?"
In the silence, Tang Ye asked, "Why do you ask this?"
"Miss Xu likes you so much, and you grew up together as childhood sweethearts, aren't you even a little bit tempted? She's very beautiful." Hua Wuduo chuckled softly, his mind filled with ulterior motives.
Tang Ye said, "That marriage was originally my father's and aunt's idea. My mother always opposed it, but my aunt insisted on it."
Hua Wuduo knew little about Tang Ye's aunt, Tang Qian, who was a legend in the martial arts world. Rumor had it that she was extremely beautiful and the most skilled poison master among her generation in the Tang family. Even in her youth, her fame had already shaken the land, earning her the title "The Beautiful Poison Woman." Before Tang Ye grew up, Tang Qian was the most skilled poison master in the Tang family. Tang Qian never married and died young at the age of twenty-five.
"Why is your aunt so insistent?" Hua Wuduo asked casually.
Tang Ye seemed lost in memories, but didn't directly answer Hua Wuduo's question. He only said, "She devoted her life to concocting and using poisons, a rare genius in the Tang family for centuries. She could have surpassed all the ancestors of the Tang family in poison-making and created a great career, but she fell in love with someone. This person caused her pain, yet she couldn't forget him for the rest of her life. The torment of her love made her wish she were dead. She always wanted to concoct a medicine, a medicine that could make people forget the person they loved and hated most. She wanted to use this medicine to force herself to forget that person, but she couldn't concoct it in her entire life. Later, she died painfully while testing the medicine on herself. I watched her die with my own eyes." As Tang Ye said this, his eyes were dark and still, like stagnant water, without any ripples. Hua Wuduo's heart skipped a beat. She repeatedly pondered Tang Ye's strange words, vaguely realizing the hidden story behind her arranged marriage with Tang Ye. Suddenly, she dared not ask who Tang Qian loved.
A hint of mockery flashed in Tang Ye's eyes as he said, "But I've managed to concoct that medicine."
Hua Wuduo was taken aback, then casually replied, "You also test medicine on yourself?"
Tang Ye shook his head.
"Then who will you test the medicine on?" Hua Wuduo asked again.
“There are many people like you,” Tang Ye replied.
Upon hearing this, Hua Wuduo felt a chill run down his spine. Fortunately, he had already concocted that medicine; otherwise, she would surely have become a guinea pig. He knew this topic couldn't continue, so he changed the subject, saying, "Now that you're no longer bound by a marriage contract, why don't you marry Xu Qingcheng without hesitation?"
"Why should I marry her?" Tang Ye asked rhetorically.
"You secretly did a good deed and saved her without letting her know, you clearly like her... um..." Before Hua Wuduo could finish speaking, something blocked her throat. Hua Wuduo's eyes widened, and she swallowed the thing with a gulp. She was shocked, thinking that Tang Ye had given her some kind of poison. She tried to vomit and gag herself for a long time, but in the end, she had no choice but to look at Tang Ye with teary eyes and plead, "I was wrong... give me the antidote."
Did I say it was poison?
"Isn't that right?"
"opinionated."
Upon hearing this, Hua Wuduo finally understood that Tang Ye was reprimanding her for her earlier tactlessness. Still somewhat uneasy, she asked, "What did you give me to eat just now?"
"Medicine for healing wounds."
"I'm not hurt!"
Tang Ye turned his head away and added some firewood to the fire, seemingly unwilling to pay any more attention to her.
Hua Wuduo was uneasy, clutching her stomach and feeling uncomfortable all over. Unable to bear it any longer, she moved to Tang Ye's side and asked hesitantly and uneasily in a low voice, "It's really not poison?"
Tang Ye glanced at her and saw her staring at him with wide eyes, looking at him uneasily, her face pale and filled with ridiculous worry. He then said, "You depleted too much of your internal energy last night. That medicine is to help you recover your internal energy."
Hua Wuduo was overjoyed upon hearing this. She patted Tang Ye's shoulder twice and praised him with great satisfaction, "Brother Tang, you really aren't a bad person." Seeing Tang Ye glancing at her sideways, she chuckled, then clutched her stomach and leaned against the rock wall contentedly, closing her eyes to rest. As soon as she closed her eyes, she began to think of Liu Xiu. She smiled sweetly and fell asleep while thinking about him.
Now that Tang Ye has woken up, those assassins are no longer a threat.
After several exchanges, the opposing side suffered heavy casualties. Hua Wuduo, having changed her mask, was not recognized by the group and often watched the show from the sidelines. Once, while she was eating a boiled egg and watching Tang Ye being beaten up, she suddenly smelled a strange odor. Startled, she quickly threw away the egg and covered her mouth and nose, thinking it was poison. Later, she realized that she had accidentally farted.
She had been traveling too fast recently and felt unwell. Afterwards, she asked Tang Ye for a prescription to regulate her body, and she felt much better. When Hua Wuduo went to Tang Ye to explain the situation and ask for a prescription, Tang Ye's expression was gloomy and somewhat irritable. He threw the written prescription on the ground and told her to pick it up herself, clearly showing that he had never treated such a trivial illness before. However, Hua Wuduo was in a good mood and felt that following Tang Ye wasn't all bad. Not only was food and drink provided, but medical treatment was also free.
She never asked Tang Ye who was hunting him down, perhaps knowing she wouldn't get an answer. She naively assumed that since Tang Ye was connected to an assassin organization and was a notorious poison master in the martial arts world, it was normal for someone to want to kill him, given the nature of the martial arts world. She simply thought it was a feud within the martial arts community, unaware that the death of Li's uncle at the Fang and Li family wedding and the assassination of Li Kang were both related to Tang Ye, and that she was implicated because of that mask.
As for why Tang Ye would appear near Luzhou, and how he could so easily tell that her sadness was due to love, Hua Wuduo, who was originally somewhat careless and preoccupied with her own thoughts, did not pay much attention to these matters.
They soon arrived in the capital. Hua Wuduo ate the large steamed buns of the capital, and the long-lost taste made her very happy, and her smile became even brighter.
Tang Ye has grown increasingly displeased with her lately; whenever she smiles, her face hardens. The reason is simple: she always smiles while eating, and he finds her eating too much.
Hua Wuduo scoffed at this, arguing, "In life, eating is the most important thing. Only when you eat and drink well can life be truly wonderful."
Tang Ye ignored her with a cold face.
Hua Wuduo ignored him and continued eating.
Fortunately, Tang Ye had never been stingy and refused to pay. That's why she was able to eat her fill the whole way.
Gradually, Hua Wuduo found that getting along with Tang Ye wasn't difficult. Although he always frowned when he looked at her, he was no longer as cold as before. Instead, she felt that he had become more human. To be honest, he hadn't even seemed like a human being before. He didn't talk much, and even if he sometimes uttered a word or two that could leave her speechless, Hua Wuduo found that she could adapt to everything after getting used to it.
Now that she was in the capital, it seemed inappropriate to continue following Tang Ye, especially since she wanted to go back to Nanshu Academy. So she decided to go find Gongzi Yi first. Having made up her mind, she said four words to Tang Ye: "I'm leaving."
Tang Ye looked into the distance, nodded upon hearing this, turned around and strode away down the street without asking anything or even saying goodbye.
Hua Wuduo stared blankly at Tang Ye's retreating figure for a moment, then touched her nose, scratched her head, and turned to go to Daming Prefecture to find Young Master Yi. As she walked, she wondered if Tang Ye was relieved that this troublesome woman had finally left on her own. Thinking of this, she felt a pang of resentment. After all, they had been through thick and thin together twice; even if they hadn't seen true affection, there should still be some friendship left, right? Hua Wuduo thought, feeling a surge of indignation.
Thinking of going to see Young Master Yi, Hua Wuduo specially went to the street to buy a new outfit. Although it was not gorgeous, it fit her very well and made her look even more elegant. She changed into the Hua Wuduo mask she used at the academy and came to the front of Daming Mansion with a light heart.
Returning to this place after a long time, I was suddenly filled with emotion.
Daming Prefecture remains unchanged. Thinking back to the days when I was Young Master Yi's bodyguard, it feels like several years have passed. But in fact, it was only in the spring.
As she reminisced at the doorway, several people emerged from inside. The one in the lead was handsome and dashing, exuding a wild and unrestrained air—none other than Gongzi Yi. Upon stepping outside, he came face to face with Hua Wuduo, and was momentarily stunned. He opened his mouth, then abruptly turned to Gongzi Qi beside him and asked, "Did I see a ghost?"
Gongzi Qi shook his head and then nodded firmly, saying, "Yes, no."
Is it right or wrong? Gongzi Yi frowned. Just as Hua Wuduo was curling her lips in disdain, someone suddenly rushed over and hugged her tightly. The force with which the person rushed over almost made Hua Wuduo fall backward.
It was Gongzi Yu who hugged her. With tears welling in her eyes, the emotional Gongzi Yu shook Hua Wuduo's shoulders excitedly, saying, "Wuduo, Wuduo, where have you been? I missed you so much!"
Hua Wuduo was dizzy from being shaken around, but he still managed to force a smile and say, "I've been traveling around, and now I'm back to see everyone."
Gongzi Yu wanted to hug her again, but Gongzi Zheng, who came after him, forcefully separated them. Gongzi Zheng coughed a few times and said to Gongzi Yu, "Look carefully before you hug me."
The young master, not understanding the meaning, looked at Hua Wuduo carefully and replied, "It is indeed Wuduo."
Gongzi Zheng looked helpless. "Wu Duo is a girl. Yu, you have overstepped your bounds."
"Ah..." Upon hearing this, Gongzi Yu suddenly realized, slapped his forehead, and exclaimed, "I was wondering why something seemed different."
Sighs rose and fell all around.
Hua Wuduo also sighed in agreement, but his expression was all smiles.
Seeing this group of people dressed in their finest attire, seemingly about to head out, Hua Wuduo asked, "Where are you all going?"
Upon hearing this, Gongzi Yi's expression changed slightly.
Gongzi Qi looked at her, seemingly wanting to say something but then stopped himself.
The young master smiled and looked at her, replying, "Xiu is getting married, and we are just about to go to the ceremony."
Gongzi Yu said casually, "Wuduo has come at the perfect time. Come with us. Xiu has been thinking of you a lot and will be happy to see you."
Hua Wuduo stared blankly at Gongzi Zheng, as if she hadn't heard what Gongzi Zheng and Gongzi Yu were saying.
Gongzi Zheng was startled by her gaze and looked at Gongzi Yi, puzzled. Gongzi Yi's gaze darkened, and he took a few steps forward to her side, softly calling out, "Wu Duo."
Hua Wuduo suddenly woke up with a start, her vision went black, and she felt unsteady on her feet. Gongzi Yi moved closer and subtly supported her.
Gongzi Yi smiled and said, "How far have you traveled to the capital to see us? Are you tired? Let me take you inside to rest for a while."
She lowered her head, clutched Gongzi Yi's clothes tightly, and whispered, "Take me there."
At this moment, Gongzi Qi also walked up to her. Hearing her words, he glanced at her with some concern, then looked at Gongzi Yi, lowered his gaze, and sighed.
Gongzi Yi's eyes flashed with worry as he whispered in Hua Wuduo's ear, "Some things can't be changed, but no matter what, I'll always be by your side." He tightened his grip on her hand, but only for a moment before letting go.
From then on, we were strangers.