Jue interrupted my gaze as I scrutinized Gui Yao, turning back to ask me earnestly, "What's going on?"
After regaining my senses, I cupped the woman in my hands and was about to approach her when Gui Yao waved her hand, and Jue appeared in front of me, shielding me behind her. I heard Gui Yao's hoarse voice say, "Get out of the way! Anyone who bullies my mother will die!"
"No"
"I still can't beat you in a fight, but I won't let anyone hurt my mother, even if it's you."
She didn't. Ask her directly.
Jue held me in her arms and encouraged me to speak.
"Um... I sneaked out." After saying that, seeing Jue's expression, she continued a little scaredly, "I heard a shout, so I came to check it out. Then I saw the cherry blossom grove, so I went in and saw her crying, constantly calling out 'cherry blossom.' I thought she wanted cherry blossoms, so I picked some for her to stop her crying. I didn't make her cry." After saying that, she picked up the cherry blossoms in her hand and showed them to them.
"How will you break the formation?" Gui Yao asked, still disbelieving.
"Break the formation?" I looked at Jue in confusion, shook my head and told him that I didn't know what the man was talking about.
"There's a peach blossom maze here; only he and I can enter. How can you possibly get in?"
"No, I just walked straight in from the wooden house, there was no formation there." Hearing Jue's words, I was even more puzzled.
"What? What's that smell?" At that moment, Gui Yao flew to my side and sniffed me, making my heart race.
Jue deliberately kept us at a distance and continued watching Gui Yao.
"The scent of peach blossoms, so that's what it is," Gui Yao said, scratching her chin and nodding.
"What peach blossom scent? I can't smell it!" I grabbed my clothes and sniffed them repeatedly, but I couldn't detect any scent. Meanwhile, Jue, hearing what he was saying, started sniffing me too, making me feel embarrassed.
"Oh, I see," Jue said, hugging me.
Chapter Eleven
"What are you talking about? What peach blossom scent? And who is he? Absolutely!" My mind kept going back and forth between different questions. Ugh, my head was about to explode.
"Your body odor smells like peach blossoms. I've heard people say that the Peach Blossom Formation is useless against a certain type of person—someone who smells like peach blossoms. But such a person has never appeared before, which is why the Peach Blossom Formation is the most difficult formation to break. The person who designed the Peach Blossom Formation can only enter if they themselves are stronger than them. You have the scent of peach blossoms, so the Peach Blossom Formation didn't trap you. I never thought such a person actually existed in this world. Jue, you've struck gold!" Jue didn't speak but instead buried his mouth in my hair. The man explained all of this to me.
"He is Gui Yao, the master of Gui Manor," Jue pulled her mouth out of my hair, explaining my next question, "Yes, he's struck gold."
"What do you mean by 'picking up'? It was consensual, okay?" I retorted loudly, but when I saw Jue looking at me with amusement, I said guiltily, "Although I'm the one clinging to you, don't you think that it's your good fortune that such a cute girl like me can cling to you?" I became more and more self-righteous as I spoke.
Jue glanced at me with disdain, then ignored my nonsense and looked at Gui Yao and his mother.
However, I was surprised that this woman was a mother; she was so young!
"Slave Clothes!" Gui Yao shouted angrily at the air.
An old man with white hair flew out from the cherry blossom grove, showing no signs of old age.
"I told you to watch over the lady, where are you going?" Gui Yao waved her hand, and the old man crashed into the cherry blossom tree, but without hesitation, he knelt before Gui Yao again, "This old servant deserves to die."
"Get down!" Gui Yao ordered her, and the old woman disappeared again. Gui Yao helped his mother back into the wooden house. On the way, his mother did not move, still crying, but her movements did not resist Gui Yao.
I looked at them, then at the flowers in my hand, and hurriedly called out, "Wait!" My call caught Gui Yao's attention, and he stopped. Just as I was about to step forward, Jue grabbed me, preventing me from going, probably afraid that I would get hurt again!
I turned back and smiled at Jue, "It's alright, Jue, I'll be fine. I'm just giving the flowers to Madam, don't worry."
Only when they see my smile and hear my words will they let go.
I slowly approached Gui Yao and the others. Gui Yao's eyes were full of wariness. Every time I took a step closer, he pulled his wife back a step. I realized this wasn't working, so I said, "Your name is Gui Yao, right? Then I'll call you Xiao Yao. Um, I won't hurt your mother. I'm just giving her the flowers." When Gui Yao heard the way I addressed him, his lips twitched, and his hand holding his wife stiffened. In that instant when he froze, I had already walked up to his wife, smiled at her, and said, "Here you are, Madam. These are the cherry blossoms you wanted." Then I held up the flowers in my hand.
The lady was stunned. She looked at the flowers in my hand, then at me, without moving or crying out. Gui Yao was very surprised because her mother had never been so quiet before. In the past, the manor would only become peaceful when her mother fell asleep. Now, this woman had actually made her mother so quiet.
Seeing that the lady didn't move, I took her hand and placed the flower in her palm. I smiled at her again, and Gui Yao was stunned by that smile. It was a pure and innocent smile, a smile that brought sunshine and warmth—the first time he had felt warmth since that incident. No wonder Jue fell in love with her; she truly was a treasure, a beautiful person whom no one with darkness in their heart would want to destroy.
"Sakura, Sakura... It really is Sakura, you're so kind, will you come and play with me from now on?" Gui Yao was startled. This was the first time her mother had spoken so normally to someone who didn't reject her.
I looked towards Jue and asked, "Jue, how long are we going to stay? Can I stay like this?"
Jue nodded, smiling at me. Ah, I saw Jue smile again, but this time the smile was different, filled with more love.
I turned to look at Gui Yao again, and seeing him nod, I happily said, "Yes, I will come to accompany you, Madam."
"What's your name?" Gui Yao asked, looking at me.
"Zixue, just call me Zixue," I replied with a smile.
"Mother, it's time to rest. Zixue will come to keep you company tomorrow," he said, helping the lady inside.
"Alright, Xue'er, let's go." Jue came over and pulled me back. I noticed his address and followed him with a little giggle. Jue accepted me! He called me Xue'er! How happy I am!
On my way back to my room, I turned to Jue and said, "Jue, you're so good to me. I love you, so you have to love me too."
After saying that, I kissed Jue on the cheek, then happily ran ahead, glancing back at Jue every now and then.
Jue touched the woman's face, which she had just kissed; it was warm and comforting. Looking at the woman in front of him, who was smiling like an elf, he felt for the first time how fortunate he was to be alive and to have met her. For the first time, he was very grateful to God for sending her to him.
Chapter Twelve
I followed Jue back to the original room and found Xiao Wu anxiously looking around as if searching for me. When she saw Jue and me return, she breathed a sigh of relief. Jue led me into the room, and we each sat down in chairs. He casually poured a cup of tea, and then Xiao Wu suddenly knelt down in front of him.
"Your subordinate deserves to die."
"He truly deserves to die." He still didn't look at the person kneeling on the ground, but simply touched my head. However, the touch sent chills down my spine, and my heart pounded with fear.
What? Why did Xiao Wu kneel before Jue? Why did Jue say that? Could it be that...?
"Jue, don't blame Xiaowu. I was the one who sent her away. I really couldn't stand staying in the room anymore. I wanted to go out and see what was going on." I touched my fingers together and lowered my head shyly as I spoke.
"Hmm," Jue said, looking at me with burning eyes. I didn't dare look up, afraid of seeing Jue's terrifying gaze.
"Jue, don't blame Xiao Wu, it's really my fault." I gently tugged at Jue's sleeve.
"Go down!" With a wave of his hand.
Xiao Wu stood up and looked at me with worried eyes. I told her not to worry from a direction she couldn't see.
"Yes," Xiao Wu said, stepping back and closing the door behind her. Seeing her close the door, I was puzzled. Did she think we were going to do something? Why was she closing the door in broad daylight?
Jue had been watching the teacup since earlier. He chuckled inwardly at his own foolishness. "Don't think I didn't see what Xiao Wu did. Looks like this little one really thinks I wouldn't dare do anything to her?"
"Hehe, Jue, you're so magnanimous. Please forgive me for being cute." I quickly ran behind Jue and started massaging him.
"En," Jue pulled me into his arms. Looking down at me, he said seductively, "Xue'er, you have to behave yourself. You can't do anything reckless here." I was captivated by Jue's flawless face.
I was tempted by her beauty and nodded. Seeing my actions, she immediately looked away and sipped her tea.
Uh, I snapped out of my reverie, excitedly standing up from Jue's embrace. "No," I said, "I have to go be with Madam. I can't stay in the room all the time. Jue, do you want me to be a liar?"
"We can stay here for a few days," he said, walking towards the door before turning away.
"Oh, what? So you agreed? Wow, you're the best!" I jumped around in my room.
Jue hadn't walked far when he heard Xue'er calling from behind. A smile appeared on his face. Look how happy she was. All she wanted was for her to accompany Yao's mother.
Jue returned to the study where he had been talking to Yao, only to be interrupted by Xue'er; the plan hadn't even been discussed yet.
"You've arrived. That woman is quite interesting," Gui Yao said, looking up at Jue from behind her desk.
"She's not someone you can mess with." Jue casually found a chair and sat down, her movements fluent and graceful, without the slightest hesitation.
"Oh, it seems you've taken a liking to her. However, I'm still quite interested in her. What's her identity?" Gui Yao sat down opposite Jue, raised her teacup, and looked at Jue with a reddish glint in her eyes.
"I don't know," I replied dismissively.
"What? You actually let a woman of unknown origin stay by your side and even care about her? That's not something you would do." Gui Yao continued to sip her tea elegantly, without a trace of surprise in her words.
"Then your mother?" Jue glanced at Gui Yao.
"I don't know why, but I just wanted to stay with her."
"She is my 'absolute'" he said, frowning.
"I know," Gui Yao paused.
"Alright, what's next?" Gui Yao stopped discussing the woman and continued the topic that had been interrupted.
"Let them play first," Jue revealed a sinister glint in his eyes, his gaze filled with ruthlessness and determination.
"I know, so what are you planning to do next?"
"Go to the palace"
"What, you're going to expose her to them? What about her? Is she going to stay here?" Gui Yao asked casually for some reason, but in her heart she hoped that she would stay. Was it because of her mother, because of her mother's abnormality, or because of that smile?
"No need, I won't let anyone hurt him." Jue swept his sharp eyes over Gui Yao. This gaze made Gui Yao feel as if her thoughts had been read, and she felt a little flustered. However, having lived in the darkness for so long, Gui Yao had learned to hide her emotions, so she looked back at Jue expressionlessly.
Leng Tian's voice, "Master," interrupted their eye contact.
"Come in," Gui Yao said casually, sipping her tea.
"Master, uh, Miss Zixue, the Ghost Manor Master's estate has been renovated." Leng Tian wiped away cold sweat, glanced at the expressions of the two important figures in the room, and seeing no reaction, continued, "She said, the Ghost Manor is too cold, too eerie, like a funeral parlor for the dead, it needs to be transformed into..." Leng Tian stopped.
"Oh, so what does this little girl want to change it to?" Gui Yao put down her teacup, tapped the table lightly, and a bewitching smile appeared on her lips.
Leng Tian was instantly mesmerized.
"Master, Master, something terrible has happened! Miss Zixue has torn down all the jade pendants in the corridor and replaced them with pink ones. She's also removed all the jade and gold ornaments from the chairs in the hall and taken them to her room, saying she's going to sell them. She's saying you're wasting resources, Master. And she's even demolished your room, and if she can't demolish it, then..."
"So what?" Gui Yao spat out the tea she was holding when she heard the butler's report. She glared resentfully at the guy watching the show. What kind of woman did you bring? How dare you mess with me?
"Burn it!" the butler said timidly, glancing at his master's increasingly radiant smile. Others might not know, but having lived with his master for so many years, this smile meant he was very angry, extremely angry.
"What?! What did you say again? Burn it down?! That brat actually burned down my palace!" Gui Yao and Jue immediately went out, and upon closer inspection, one's eyes were blazing with anger, while the other's eyes were full of tenderness.
Switch screen
I looked at my masterpiece with great pride.
"Is it beautiful?"
"Yes, of course, it's spectacular," I replied naturally, unaware of the voice behind me.
"Really? You brat, what do you take me for?" Gui Yao yelled wildly into my ear. The servants were terrified and quickly knelt down, seeing their master so out of control for the first time.
When he called out to me, I quickly turned around and saw it was Gui Yao. I hurriedly hid behind Jue and peeked out to see what had happened to Xiao Yao.