Beggar Travels the World

Chapter 13

No, she wants to go back! She wants to go back to find Aunt Nan and Aunt Yun!

She heard herself screaming in agony, but her feet wouldn't stop. But she should have run back, why, why…

In that instant, she realized what she had just eaten.

Aunt Nan smiled radiantly in my memory: "Xiao'er, do you know what this is? It's the most wondrous poison in the world, yet also the most miraculous medicine!"

※ ※ ※

Shui Wu'er slowly woke up—in fact, she wasn't sure if she had really woken up, or if she just thought she had.

She then burst out laughing, saying, "Zhuangzi dreamt he was a butterfly."

She merely curled the corners of her mouth slightly; in reality, she couldn't utter a sound at all.

Then she realized that she was neither Zhuangzi nor a butterfly.

Because she saw a person standing by the window with his back to her notice her almost inaudible voice, who swooped down to the bedside like a crane and reached out to touch her right wrist.

She reflexively pulled her right hand away. Although she was too weak to avoid his hand, this action caused him to stop in mid-air.

There was an awkward silence in the air.

Shui Wu'er cleared her throat and spoke first: "How many days have I been asleep?"

“Three days.” His dark eyes were fixed on her. “You seem to have a lot of experience.”

“Young Master in Green, you…” She stared blankly at his chest. He was originally dressed in green, but now his clothes were red, his chest and sleeves stained with blood—her blood.

It's been three days, and he hasn't even changed his clothes. He must be a very clean person, right? At least that's what she thought.

Baili Qingyi remained silent, but insisted on holding her wrist, without revealing that her life was saved entirely thanks to his continuous infusion of true energy into her body over the past few days.

She coughed and said, "I'm fine now."

Once he confirmed that her pulse had stabilized, Baili Qingyi put down her hand and then sat down in front of her bed.

"Um...you're just sitting here?" Shui Wu'er asked somewhat awkwardly.

"Otherwise, where should I sit?"

Shui Wu'er bit her lip lightly, then said, "I... am hungry."

He then glanced at her, then got up without a word and walked out the door.

As she closed the door, Baili Qingyi suddenly clenched her fists, Baili Hanyi's long sigh flashing through her mind:

"Her pulse was so unusual that I had never seen anything like it in my life."

"How is it so peculiar?"

"...Based on her pulse, she should have been dead. But... but something protected her heart meridian, allowing her to move and live like a normal person."

"If something is protecting her heart meridian, why is she still bleeding from all seven orifices?"

“Brother, I believe there are very few people in the martial arts world whose medical skills surpass mine, but I don’t know what exactly is protecting her heart meridian. It seems to be a holy medicine for healing and a life-saving remedy, but it is also a strange poison that can operate in the body according to a person’s seven emotions and six desires.”

"What will be the consequences of this poison?"

"Brother, do you know of a woman called 'Miraculous Poisonous Beauty' more than twenty years ago? This woman was skilled in making poisons and even more adept at using Gu poison. Countless martial arts masters died at her hands. Her most prized poison was called 'Unattainable Desire'."

"'Unable to obtain what one desires'?"

"As the name suggests, the poisoned person must not have any desires, otherwise they will die instantly from the poison. The substance in Miss Shui's body is very similar to this poison, but not exactly the same. In the world today, there is probably only one person who can diagnose what is in her body."

"who?"

"Why did the 'Miraculous Healer Xuan' die at his hands?"

Shui Wu'er held her breath and remained silent until the light footsteps outside the door gradually faded away. She stared blankly at her hands and suddenly tears streamed down her face.

She knew that something had been exposed, and like a long dam bursting, it was out of control.

She had no choice but to escape.

※ ※ ※

Yuwen Hongying sat quietly in the courtyard late at night.

She rarely had a quiet moment, and when she finally did, she found the world eerily quiet, a quietness that seemed to devour her.

This wasn't the first time she had stayed at Baili Mansion in the capital. She had even been to Baili Mansion in Jiangnan several times, but at this moment, she felt as if she had never been to this place before.

She knew that in this very house lived a woman who had been nearly harmed by her, and a boy who had been crippled for life because of her; they were both beggars.

She knew that her gentle and kind-hearted older sister lived in this house; it was her home. Also living there was the man she had loved since she was sixteen, her dream. They were the two most important people to her.

But now she feels like she has nothing.

Yuwen Hongying recalled the time when she first met Baili Qingyi.

That year, she was a young girl just starting out in the martial arts world, a rising star who was listed in both the Martial Arts Beauties Record and the Weapon Ranking. Her pride was unparalleled.

After gaining fame, she challenged You Antai, the lord of Huajian Fort, to a duel at Huajian Fort to spar in martial arts. However, the old man You Antai had ulterior motives. After losing the match to her, he secretly attacked her and even tried to take liberties with her. Fortunately, Baili Qingyi caught in the act, which saved her chastity and life.

However, she was not in love with him at the time.

Baili Qingyi captured You Antai, but first asked her: How do you intend to deal with him?

In her rage, she blurted out: "I will strip this lecherous thief naked, write the words 'lecherous thief' on his chest, and hang it on the city gate for three days and three nights as a warning to others!"

It's common for people from the martial arts world to speak boldly, but she saw an unusual look of astonishment on Baili Qingyi's face, as if she were a monster that had flown in from outer space.

Her face inexplicably flushed red. She heard Baili Qingyi's soft laughter and looked up to see his joyful face.

She was stunned. His smile was so helpless yet so joyful, and it carried a heartfelt sense of tolerance and even doting. In that instant, for the first time, she forgot that she was the second young lady of the Yuwen family, a female knight-errant. She remembered that she was a sixteen-year-old girl.

Baili Qingyi then actually did as she said, and from then on, You Antai had no face to appear in the martial world again. However, she never saw that smile again. His smile was still refined and kind, but it always seemed as if it were separated by a vast ocean.

It's an undeniable fact that countless women in the martial arts world secretly loved him, but most of them obediently married off after their initial crushes faded. She, however, remained devoted to him for six long years from that day forward. Some called her foolish, others called her infatuated, but she didn't regret it—how many opportunities in life are there to meet someone like that: in their eyes, can you clearly see your most vulnerable self?

Until... my older sister appeared.

The two sisters lost their father at a young age, and their grandmother was strict and never showed them any warmth. Yuwen Cuiyu was born with incomplete meridians and could not practice martial arts, but she was gentle, considerate, and caring, truly acting as a mother to her eldest sister. Although she was often away from home in recent years and rarely returned, the sisterly affection had not diminished in the slightest.

She never imagined that one day she and her sister would fall in love with the same man, and that her sister would become so resolute and indifferent.

From that day on, she was lost and confused. Every night in her dreams, those terrifying eyes would appear: Baili Qingyi's smiling eyes, Shui Wu'er's eyes filled with endless hatred, and her sister's eyes.

She was stunningly beautiful and possessed unparalleled martial arts skills, yet she had nothing.

A gentle breeze drifted into the courtyard, only to disappear into the air.

The unusual sound made Yuwen Hongying turn around in surprise. What came into view was a woman dressed in plain clothes, carrying a bundle, acting suspiciously.

Yuwen Hongying frowned and raised her sword to the neck of the newcomer.

Who are you?

Shui Wu'er turned her head with a bitter smile: "Are you still going to kill me?"

Yuwen Hongying was stunned: "It's you?" Wasn't this woman still seriously injured and bedridden?

Shui Wu'er nodded, slightly out of breath; she had only recovered about 70-80% of her strength.

"Don't be nervous, I just want to leave."

"Why?"

Shui Wu'er laughed: "A little beggar should go back to where little beggars are. Your world of martial arts has nothing to do with me."

Yuwen Hongying was even more puzzled upon hearing this. For ordinary people, being able to stay in a wealthy family where they had enough to eat and wear was something they would be extremely grateful for, let alone in the renowned Baili Prefecture, where the young man in blue was treating her with special regard...

This woman is full of secrets.

She put down her sword, but found Shui Wu'er even more irritating. That day, she had witnessed Baili Qingyi's attitude towards Shui Wu'er. Although there was no smile, there was no distance between them either. It was so pure that it broke her heart.

"Who exactly are you?" she demanded angrily.

“Miss Yuwen, why do you care who I am? Outside Baili Prefecture, there are countless beggars in the world, they are all the same.” Shui Wu’er said calmly.

Yuwen Hongying did not lower her guard because of these words. She had been traveling the martial world for six years and knew that the less greedy a person was, the more terrifying they were.

"If Miss Yuwen has no further questions, Wu'er must now depart. This is a farewell, and I hope you will take care." Before leaving, she paused and added, "I wish Miss Yuwen and the young man in green a lifelong union."

"You... are you really not tempted by him?" Yuwen Hongying blurted out.

"If the little beggar is not moved, he is not worthy of being moved."

Yuwen Hongying's heart skipped a beat, and a faint sense of apprehension began to spread through her.

It seemed that someone had said the same thing to her before, and her dislike for that person was no less than her dislike for Shui Wu'er.

She sneered. This woman was definitely not simple, and she was going to force her to reveal her true colors.

In the blink of an eye, she flicked her wrist and attacked Shui Wu'er from behind, using the famous sword technique of the Yuwen family, "Soul-Stealing and Heart-Shocking".

She didn't believe that Shui Wu'er really didn't know martial arts.

Hearing the metallic clanging sound behind her, Shui Wu'er was startled. Just as she was about to turn around, the tip of the longsword had already pierced her ribs.

Yuwen Hongying was startled and quickly withdrew her sword, but she was already a step too slow. Just as the sword was about to charge forward, a clear "clang" rang out in the night sky.

Yuwen Hongying stared in astonishment at the long sword in her hand: a pebble flew from who-knows-where and broke her sword in two!

She was horrified. Although her sword was not a martial arts treasure, it was made of rare cold iron and had broken countless weapons. Who had such profound internal strength that they could break her sword with a pebble?

Shui Wu'er cried out in pain, clutching her wound tightly. Although the wound on her ribs wasn't deep, blood was still gushing out. She had underestimated Yuwen Hongying's suspicion; she never expected that Yuwen Hongying would actually attack someone as defenseless as her.

A pair of arms reached out to stop her from falling. She looked up and saw Bai Can!

"I originally thought Yuwen Hongying, the 'Red-Handed Beauty,' was a chivalrous woman, but I never imagined she would be such a despicable scoundrel who attacks vulnerable women from behind!" Bai Can's expression was cold and stern. He always hated evil and would not tolerate such behavior if he happened to witness it.

"Who are you? How dare you trespass into Baili Prefecture?" Yuwen Hongying retorted without backing down.

"So what if it's the Baili family? If Baili Qingyi really took a liking to a ruthless woman like you, he'd probably be a complete fool!"

Fearing they would wake the others in the mansion, Shui Wu'er quickly grabbed Bai Can's collar and said, "Take me away!"