El viaje de un mendigo alrededor del mundo

Capítulo 25

Fan Qingbo was getting anxious. One of the bookish scholars wouldn't cooperate, fine, but this cunning bastard wouldn't cooperate either. How was she supposed to keep up this act? Just as she was about to say something, she heard the five ghosts behind her echo Gongye Bai, "That's right, the Silver Scholar is ours!" Enraged, she turned around, raised an eyebrow, and unleashed a curse: "Bullshit!"

Then, she grabbed the scholar and pulled him in front of Gongye Bai, who was watching the show with his arms crossed. Right in front of Gongye Bai, she cupped the scholar's face, stood on tiptoe, and kissed his lips hard.

"This is my man, your brother-in-law! So, now we're not strangers anymore, are we?"

She was speaking to Gongye Bai, but her eyes glanced at the Guigu group of five: Trying to steal my man? Tch.

All of this happened so suddenly and so quickly that the person labeled remained in a dazed state with dilated pupils and lifeless eyes after the incident. The five-person observation group from Guigu Valley were also stunned by Fan Qingbo's bold actions, which rivaled those of any martial arts enchantress.

Only Gongye Bai remained calm and composed, raising his eyebrows in a surprised expression and saying, "Huh? I don't remember having this man among your men before I went to Jiangnan?"

The dazed scholar instantly snapped out of his daze and accused him with angry eyes: "Besides Zhou, what other men have you had before?"

The stunned ghosts regained their senses and once again accused him with condemning eyes: You bastard, you heartless man!

Besieged on all sides, Fan Qingbo had no choice but to turn his gaze to Gongye Bai: Hey, fabricating rumors to slander your sister, is this how a brother should act!

Gongye Bai laughed heartily, showing no remorse or sibling affection, and then reached out to ruffle her messy hair. He'd had his fun; it was time to stop. This adopted sister was no pushover either. He cleared his throat and said apologetically to the five members of Guigu, "Unfortunately, as you can see, this scholar is my sister's man; he can't go with you."

A murderous glint appeared in the ghost's eyes. "Then don't blame us for being impolite!" it said, lunging at him.

"Be careful, his gloves might be poisoned!" Fan Qingbo and the scholar warned in unison.

Gongye Bai smiled faintly, dodging several more palm strikes. While exchanging blows with the fierce ghost, he also guarded against attacks from the other four disciples on Fan Shu and his companion. In an instant, dust and sand flew in the wilderness, the wind from the palm strikes whipped through the air, and even the grass and trees were startled and broken.

In the chaos, Fan Qingbo picked up the bamboo whistle that Gongye Bai had thrown out, blew it gently, and a white butterfly flew over. She quickly pulled the scholar up and followed the butterfly.

"Miss Fan, where are we going?"

"Our handsome brother told us to go first, and Yingdie should take us to a safe place."

As soon as she finished speaking, she felt a pulling force, forcing her to stop. Turning around, she saw the scholar's disapproving expression. "Your brother is fighting to save us. How can we be cowards and abandon him? That would be against morality!"

She felt helpless. "The problem is that you've crippled yourself and are suffering from severe poisoning and blood loss. I also have no martial arts skills. What use would we be if we went back, except to be captured and used to threaten you, my handsome brother? For someone like us who is a burden, the best thing we can do for you is to disappear on our own."

He thought about it for a moment, but still felt it wasn't a good idea. "Why don't you go first, Miss Fan, and I'll go back and check on things?"

Completely at her wit's end, she beckoned to him, and after he lowered his head, she kissed his lips, satisfied to see him freeze again. Then she pulled him up and continued running. After running for a while, he came to his senses and started to hold her back again. She used the same trick again, and it worked perfectly, so they continued on.

This process was repeated several times, and it always worked.

When the scholar regained consciousness for the last time, they were already on the official road. Yingdie led them to Gongye Bai's carriage.

Then another problem arose, and it turned out that they really were from two different worlds.

Fan Qingbo, filled with the excitement of a new lease on life, climbed onto the carriage, eager to leave this hellish place as quickly as possible. The scholar, however, insisted on waiting where they were. She tried to persuade him that perhaps her handsome brother would take a shortcut back to the city after defeating the monster, but he insisted on emulating Wei Sheng clinging to the pillar. He believed that abandoning their companions to survive was already wrong, but to be unable to even wait was even more beastly.

This could almost be considered their first argument, well, except for the one about him insisting on marrying her.

She finally realized his stubbornness, or perhaps it should be called his adherence to principles. In short, her decision not to marry him was indeed the right one.

One is a bookish nerd who values principles, etiquette, and strong morals; the other is a free-spirited woman who is seen as unrestrained and disregards etiquette in the eyes of people of this era. Dating them might create a charming contrast, but marriage and living together would definitely be a tragedy. It's only a matter of time before they grow to hate each other.

The scholar's insistence on this point is similar to Chairman Mao's: any relationship not aimed at marriage is just playing around.

So even though his rugged and aloof demeanor captivated her, his gentle and shy nature evoked her pity, and the sensation of his lips kissing her was exquisite... it could only end there.

And so, lost in thought and arguing, time slipped away unnoticed.

When Gongye Bai returned, he saw a man and a woman arguing. The man was standing by the roadside and the woman was sitting in the car.

"Wow, that was intense."

Fan Qingbo said without turning his head, "Yeah, this idiot is so stubborn, I really want to strangle him!"

"Oh no, I meant intense... your lips."

The two, lost in their argument, abruptly stopped, their gazes involuntarily falling on each other's lips, where a swollen, red mark, clearly from past humiliation, was visible. Suddenly, the scholar's exposed areas turned red with embarrassment. Then, Fan Qingbo's exposed areas also turned red, seemingly infected by the redness.

"Hahahahahaha..."

At midnight, a series of loud, booming laughs rang out along the official road.

Gongye Bai grabbed the two blushing, dumbfounded lovers, one in each hand, and tossed them into the carriage. He snapped his fingers to untie the reins tied to the tree and leisurely drove the carriage towards the inner city. Every now and then, hilarious conversations could be heard coming from inside the carriage.

"Uh, um, I'm sorry, I didn't mean to—" (This is a euphemism for a kiss.)

"I understand! This isn't just Miss Fan's fault..." After all, it takes two to tango.

"Well, at least you understand." This conversation is heading in the wrong direction.

Awkward silence.

"By the way, saying you're my man or something—" is just a temporary measure, please don't take it seriously.

“I understand! Miss Fan has good intentions.”

"Okay, I'm glad you understand!" It's rare to see this guy so easy to talk to.

"I understand, but I've already taken it seriously."

"..." Take back that inner monologue from a moment ago.

"So, our wedding date is still set for next month?"

"..." Hey, this line sounds so familiar!

To lie still, to play dead.

"Well, there's something else, but I'm not sure if I should say it."

"Actually, I am very happy that you and Young Master Gongye are siblings."

"However, men and women are ultimately different, so it's best not to overstep the bounds of propriety."

"……"none of your business!

The carriage wheels clattered as it slowly moved forward, heading towards the rising sun. In the opposite direction, the five members of Guigu, defeated by Gongye Bai, also moved slowly, but not leisurely.