The sky over the rivers and lakes is very clear - Chapter 114
In the gloomy sky, the ship, with its carved railings and painted decorations, seemed to glide slowly on the waves.
A snow-white gauze lantern hung high at the bow of the ship. Under its lemon-colored light, a person stood tall and elegant, his apricot robe fluttering like the rosy clouds of the western sky, radiant and noble.
Zhu Huihui jumped up and called out loudly, "Brother Liuyue! Brother Liuyue! I'm here!"
As the boat drew closer, Zhu Liuyue gazed at the cheering girl, his eyes crinkling with a smile. He lightly touched the bow with his toes, and he was already flying forward.
At that time, the two ships were several dozen feet apart. His long robe and wide sleeves spread out, making him look like a golden phoenix riding the wind. Zhu Huihui only felt a gentle breeze on her face. She blinked slightly and Zhu Liuyue had already landed in front of her, while her own ship did not even sway.
That display of lightness skill was simply breathtaking! Not only was Zhu Huihui dumbfounded, but even the two experts from Maple Snow City were stunned. The same thought simultaneously arose in the minds of all three: this person's martial arts were truly unfathomable! If Young Master Xue Se were to compete with him, who would be superior?
Zhu Huihui then thought, the great hero once said that his and Liu Yue's martial arts skills were evenly matched, but now that his glasses are inconvenient, he is afraid that Liu Yue will suffer a loss.
The thought that the hero might actually lose made her feel very depressed, and then she felt ashamed. In fact, Brother Liu Yue had been very good to her, but she still favored the hero, and she felt a little sorry for Brother Liu Yue...
Liu Yue stood beside her, watching those bright, big eyes blink as if they were thinking about something. She smiled and flicked the tip of her nose with her finger: "I said yes, we'll meet again soon!"
Zhu Huihui turned her head and smiled broadly: "I knew it! What a coincidence!" His boat looked really beautiful, but it moved so slowly. He had left much earlier than her, but she still caught up with him.
"What a coincidence." Liu Yue took the fan from her belt, unfolded it, and gently shook it a few times. "I've been waiting for you!"
"Waiting for me?" Zhu Huihui was quite surprised. "How did you know I would pass by here?"
"I guessed."
"But... I couldn't have guessed it myself."
Liu Yue recalled the longing and loneliness in her eyes when she was catching fireflies alone outside, and smiled slightly, saying, "Because I understand you better than you understand yourself."
Zhu Huihui was immediately flattered. Look at that prince, his words are so sophisticated! The same answer, if it were a chivalrous hero, he would say "That's because you're not paying attention"; if it were that bald master who was expelled from the temple, he would only say one word: "Stupid!"
At this moment, the two experts from Maple Snow City had recovered from the shock of the incredible lightness skill and immediately came over to exchange pleasantries. Although they had seen Liu Yue before, they knew that the apricot-colored robe he wore was unique in the martial arts world and belonged only to Young Master Liu Yue.
Liu Yue was very humble and exchanged a few pleasantries with them with a smile. Then she turned to them and asked, "Grey, where are you going?"
Zhu Huihui said, "I'm going to see the Blood Tower."
Liu Yue nodded: "Then it's on our way."
Zhu Huihui asked curiously, "You're going to see the Blood Tower? Wasn't he going to chase after the Japanese turtle?"
Liu Yue said, "It should be a direction, but I'm not sure if the goal is the same as yours."
Zhu Huihui blinked; what he said seemed ambiguous, and she only vaguely understood. Did he mean that the Japanese tortoise was on the same path as her? Oh dear, what if they met on the road? Wouldn't that be terrible...?
Liu Yue asked, "Grey Grey, would you like to come with me?"
"Yes, yes, I definitely want to!" Zhu Huihui said hurriedly. Knowing that she might run into Dead Turtle and his gang, she would shamelessly follow them even if Brother Liu Yue hadn't invited her.
Moreover, Brother Liu Yue's boat is big and comfortable, and there's plenty of delicious food. It's just that I and that effeminate Steward Qin can't stand each other...
Liu Yue seemed to know her thoughts and said with a smile, "Chief Steward Qin is not on this ship."
Upon hearing that he couldn't see the effeminate man, Zhu Huihui was overjoyed and immediately wanted to board Liu Yue's boat.
The two experts from Maple Snow City firmly disagreed. Although Young Master Liu Yue was famous and highly skilled in martial arts, their young master had instructed them to personally escort Miss to the Blood-Seeing Tower, so there was absolutely no reason to hand her over to someone else midway.
After some negotiation with the two experts from Fengxue City, Zhu Liuyue finally persuaded them to allow Zhu Huihui to travel with her, on the condition that they stay with the young lady. So, in the end, everyone on Zhu Huihui's ship, including the pigs, was transferred to Liuyue's ship.
The dragon boat was spacious and lavishly furnished. With Steward Qin out of the way, Zhu Huihui sat on a thick Persian carpet, surrounded by dozens of jade platters, holding a basket. The platters contained all sorts of dried and fresh fruits, pastries, and candied fruits from all over the world, many of which she had never seen before.
Zhu Huihui looked left and right, her face beaming with joy. "Hehe, is this melon from the Western Regions? It looks so beautiful! Is that fruit from overseas? It's so fuzzy! This carpet is so soft... Ah! It's so comfortable hanging out with Brother Liu Yue!"
Compared to all these delicious foods, the steamed buns in her arms seemed insignificant. Zhu Huihui wanted to put the buns aside, but in this weather, they would soon go bad—they were given to her by the hero, and she couldn't bear to waste them. After holding back for a while, she finally decided to finish the buns first, and then go eat the food given to her by Brother Liuyue.
She reached out and grabbed a steamed bun, about to eat it, when she suddenly remembered something. She looked up at Zhu Liuyue and asked, "Brother Liuyue, would you like some steamed buns?" He had treated her to so many good things; it would be too much of a fuss if she were stingy!
Liu Yue moved to sit next to her, took the bun, and slowly ate a bite, seemingly oblivious to the little black paw. Her peach-blossom eyes were full of smiles.
Zhu Huihui took a bite of the bun himself and said, "Brother Liuyue, I've traveled all over the world and eaten many kinds of buns. Your buns are the best, and then the ones from the hero's family are the best!"
Hehe, she was actually using a "strategy"! She had eaten quite a few steamed buns, but usually from roadside stalls or street vendors. She would buy them when she had money in her pocket and steal them when she didn't. She hadn't even eaten steamed buns made by a proper restaurant's pastry chef many times, let alone those made by the family chefs of You Liuyue and Feng Xuese.
Liu Yue smiled gently and said, "Grey Grey, you've traveled to many places?"
“Yes! So many!” Zhu Huihui tilted her head and thought for a moment, “There are so many that I can’t even remember them all.”
A hint of pity flashed in Liu Yue's eyes: "Would you be willing to follow me from now on?"
"Follow you?" Zhu Huihui's eyes sparkled. That was a very tempting offer!
She spent years wandering the streets and often heard thugs say, "Follow the boss and you'll have meat to eat." She used to look down on these people, thinking they only knew how to eat meat and had no ambition. Following a boss meant they were still poor and had nothing to do but eat meat. The boss's underlings had no future.
But Liu Yue is different from those poor gang leaders. He's a prince, rich and powerful. If you follow him, you can eat whatever you want and bully whoever you want...
Liu Yue smiled and said, "Yes. How about joining me?"
Looking into those shimmering black eyes, Zhu Huihui felt as if she were drowning in them. She struggled in vain for a moment, and then blurted out a "good".
Liu Yue's smile was like a summer flower, her cheeks and brows radiating gentle tenderness.
But as soon as Zhu Huihui agreed, she immediately regretted it. While following him would be beneficial, she still had many things to do! For example, she needed to find her mother, and she had promised to be the hero's eyes in case the great hero's eyes couldn't be healed. Moreover, if she followed Brother Liu Yue as his follower, she would often see that effeminate Steward Qin, not only being bossed around by him but also having to serve him tea and water like him…
Pshaw! Being a lackey is too much trouble, XX quits!
It was too embarrassed to back out immediately, so it said, "However, I have to go find my mother first before I can follow you." Let Brother Liu Yue wait. Who knows where his mother is hiding? Finding her is uncertain!
Zhu Liuyue was incredibly clever; the moment she stopped, she knew what the other woman was up to. She smiled, pretended not to know, and said, "I'll help you find your mother."