The sky over the rivers and lakes is very clear

Chapter 218

"I..." Zhu Huihui stared wide-eyed at the kitchen knife pressed against her fingers, speechless for a long time.

"What?"

"I curse your grandmother!" Zhu Huihui cursed inwardly, but had to admit it aloud: "I...I won't do it again!"

She secretly wiped the cold sweat from her forehead! Don't think that just because the old man is blind he's easy to bully. That cleaver strike just now was a clear warning from him. If he really wanted to chop her up, even if she had three hands, he would have chopped her off!

Feng Xuese gave a cold "humph," and, riding on his horse, extended a hand to her from above.

Zhu Huihui asked fearfully, "What...what are you doing now?"

"Mount up!"

"No...don't!" Why get on the horse? It'll be easier for you to chop things up if you're closer.

"Come up!" Feng Xuese's voice was stern and forceful.

Zhu Huihui was terrified: "It's...it's a great hero!"

She hated herself so much: This old man really didn't deserve any sympathy. If she hadn't gone back to pick him up out of pity, she would have been living a carefree life by now. It wasn't his place to yell at her!

But she dared not disobey the old man. She picked up the kitchen knife, tucked it back into her waistband, and limped to the back of the horse. Stubbornly refusing to take his hand, she pulled the horse up by its rump.

The Flying Snow Steed was tall and had long legs, so even if her legs weren't injured, it would be difficult for her to mount the horse from behind, let alone now that she was limping! The Flying Snow Steed waited patiently for a long time, only to find that this female hooligan was patting and touching its buttocks while muttering something. It endured it again and again, and only because it was an acquaintance did it not kick her away.

Its owner didn't have such patience. Feng Xuese waited coldly for a while, then finally lost his patience, reached out and grabbed her collar, lifted her up, and placed her in front of him.

Zhu Huihui was already used to being carried around by him, and since she was angry, she kept her mouth tightly shut and didn't utter a single complaint.

The space was cramped, which meant that Zhu Huihui was essentially nestled in Fengxuese's embrace.

His chest was broad, strong, and warm. Leaning against it felt like sitting on a comfortable and reassuring chair. Zhu Huihui subconsciously snuggled closer to him, feeling his strong heartbeat on her back. Her anger and grievances vanished, replaced by a shy and sweet feeling.

No, no! I'm a person with backbone. I can't be so spineless just because it's easier and more comfortable for me to rely on him! She immediately leaned forward, bowing towards the horse's head, keeping as far away from Feng Xuese as possible.

Feng Xuese remained calm, holding the reins and letting the horse move slowly forward. Although Zhu Huihui was angry and tried her best to stay far away from him, her hair, blown by the wind, would still occasionally brush against his cheek, carrying a faint fragrance, neither flower nor musk.

The fragrance was faint, yet pleasant. He couldn't help but wonder, how could such a dirty child who disliked bathing smell so bad? Where did the fragrance come from?

After walking for a while, he couldn't help but say, "Zhu Huihui!"

Zhu Huihui replied indifferently, "Yes, sir."

"What kind of spices are you carrying?"

Zhu Huihui turned around and looked at him with a puzzled expression: "No!"

"Nothing?" Feng Xuese was really puzzled. She sniffed again, and as she did so, the smell became much stronger. It must be coming from this dirty child, there was no mistake!

Zhu Huihui looked at him for a while, then spoke with concern: "Great hero—"

Although she was still angry with him about cutting off his hand, the great hero was already blind, and if his nose also got damaged, he wouldn't survive! Oh well, she was too magnanimous to hold a grudge, so she should at least show some concern!

"Um?"

Zhu Huihui nestled her nose into his chest and inhaled deeply. Ah, the hero was right; there was indeed a delicate fragrance wafting at her nose, refreshing and slightly cool. Inhaling it brought a sense of peace and tranquility to her heart.

She loved the smell and sniffed it intensely.

The sight of Maple Snow made her skin crawl: "What are you doing?"

"Confirmed. Your nose is fine. There is indeed a very pleasant smell!" Zhu Huihui reported to the old man.

"What?!" Feng Xuese chuckled and pushed her head away. This child is really silly!

After exchanging these few words, the pent-up anger they had been holding in was finally released.

Zhu Huihui looked at the route the horse was taking: "Great hero, where are we going?"

"I don't know."

"ah?"

Feng Xuese handed the reins to her: "Spur the horse on, avoid the villages, and tell me when you see the Three Realms Stele." After thinking for a moment, fearing that this guy might not recognize the words "Three Realms Stele," she added, "The Three Realms Stele is a reddish-brown stone stele, very tall and easy to spot."

"Got it!" Zhu Huihui took the reins, spurred the horse to circle around Zhuma Village on the left, and then asked, "But what are we going to that Three Realms Monument for?"

Feng Xuese simply said, "Not far east of the Three Realms Stele, there is a long-abandoned Three Realms Temple."

Several years ago, he had passed through this place and rested briefly in that temple. Now, he could already smell the rain in the air, and since he couldn't go into the village to stay overnight, he had no choice but to temporarily stay at that deserted temple.

Moreover, although they hadn't encountered any further attacks on their way down from Qingmei Ridge, this didn't mean things were finally peaceful. The dying words of the Nine Nether Big-Headed Ghost had likely been overheard by countless hidden enemies, so even more brutal ambushes awaited them.

Now, he's going to lead them to the Three Realms Temple!

The Sanjie Temple, with its vast emptiness, desolation, and remoteness, coupled with the torrential rain, was the perfect place to resolve a feud between江湖 (jianghu, the martial arts world).

Zhu Huihui, of course, had no idea what Feng Xuese was thinking—otherwise, she would rather die than go to that Sanjie Temple.

It's less like an abandoned temple and more like a ruin in the jungle.

Sanjie Temple was in a terrible state of disrepair. The mountain gate was still there, but the courtyard walls were gone. Overgrown with weeds, there were traces of birds and beasts everywhere. Most of the houses were dilapidated. Only the main hall at the back was relatively well preserved. Apart from the eaves being somewhat collapsed and the wild grass on the roof being too long, it was still quite sturdy.

Zhu Huihui led the horse to the corridor and let it graze on the grass. Then she pushed open the door of the side hall, took Feng Xuese's hand, and walked in together.

The side hall was filled with dust and cobwebs. The broken Buddha statue had its gold plating peeled off and was leaning to one side. The offering table was clean, with dry straw on it. Straw was also scattered in the corner where it was sheltered from the wind.

Zhu Huihui was no stranger to this kind of environment. When she was wandering around, she had no money to stay in hotels, and most nights she and Zhu Huahua stayed in places like this.

She brought over some dry grass, spread it on the ground, and said, "Hero, please make do with this seat!" She helped Feng Xuese sit down.

She then gathered some dry branches and weeds inside and outside the main hall, skillfully started a fire in the hall, and then squatted in a corner of the hall, furtively fiddling with something.

Feng Xuese smelled a bloody odor and asked, "What are you doing?"

"I didn't do anything," Zhu Huihui said.

Feng Xuese gave a slight, cold laugh. Feeling a breeze on her face, she casually waved her hand, brushing away a feather that had drifted over.

He knew without even asking that she was dealing with the stolen chicken! Ugh! He was having such a headache! This girl was completely impervious to reason; no matter how he tried to teach her or scare her, she just wouldn't change her bad habits.

Chicken feathers flew everywhere in the side hall. Zhu Huihui was busy taking a kitchen knife to gut the rooster while saying, "Great hero, you said you wouldn't eat stolen food, right?"

"how?"

"Nothing much! Just checking!" Zhu Huihui cleaned the chicken up, but couldn't find any water to wash it, so he skewered it with a twig, leaving it bloody, and put it over the fire to roast.

As she roasted the chicken, she said with a smile, "This chicken was just long-feathered, but not very fat. It's just the right size for me. The hero only eats steamed buns anyway, so this is perfect!"

She patted her belly, which she had prepared to use to "dispose of the stolen goods," and sighed contentedly. Then she placed the bamboo basket containing the buns into Feng Xuese's arms: "Great hero, please, don't be so polite with me!"

The steamed buns my mother-in-law made were quite large. Although they lacked oil and salt, the wild vegetable filling had a refreshing and delicate flavor. For some reason, even though it was my own insistence, holding the wild vegetable buns made Feng Xue Se feel a little down, so she only ate one before putting it down.

Zhu Huihui twirled the branch from which the roasted chicken was hanging, sighing, "Speaking of chickens, the ones raised by Widow Sun in Qingyang City are the best! Those chickens grow up eating the seeds and insects of the Dream-Breaking Grass, and their meat is incredibly fresh, fragrant, and sweet. It's a pity that I haven't had any since the last time at Yanhe Pagoda!"

Feng Xuese asked, "Is it the time when the brother was killed because he refused to eat or drink?"

Zhu Huihui laughed heartlessly, "That's right! If those two fat guys hadn't happened to come and die, I might have been the one killed back then!"

These words made Feng Xuese want to hit her! He took a deep breath and said coldly, "There's no need to rush to your death. Maybe it'll be 'your' turn soon!"

Zhu Huihui turned her head to look at him: "Huh? What do you mean?"

Feng Xuese ignored her, and simply took the sword wrapped in cloth and placed it across her lap.

As soon as Zhu Huihui saw him take the sword, she immediately sat far away from him, secretly laughing to herself. She knew he was angry. Haha, who told him to play dumb? He wanted her chicken, so he should just say so! Too shy to say it, so he tried to snatch it with a sword? Hmph, if he managed to get it, that would be a different story…

As I was pondering this, I suddenly heard a noisy commotion outside, accompanied by the sound of footsteps, which shook the ground and caused even the birds in the evening sky to fly around in disarray.

"Boss, you ate two extra steamed buns just now!"

"Which eye of yours saw me eat it? It was the second son who ate it!"

"No! It wasn't me! It was the third brother who ate it!"

I'll slap you to death!

"That's what the fifth brother ate!"

"It was clearly the boss who ate it! The boss even ate an extra half pound of beef!"

"Yes, yes, I saw it too!"

"..."

Upon hearing this chaotic noise, Zhu Huihui immediately pictured five large, clumsy men wielding enormous vajras. What were they called again? Right, the Five Heroes of Qiyun! She couldn't help but exclaim softly, "Heroes!"

Feng Xuese covered her forehead with her hand, her delicate brows furrowed: "What's all the noise about!"

"I didn't make a sound! They were the ones making a sound! Those five idiots!"

"Don't talk nonsense! They're not stupid, they're just... just a little confused."

"..." That's not the same thing!

As the two men were talking, one of the five big, clumsy guys kicked open the broken door of the side hall and walked in.

Upon seeing the ten boat-shaped feet and the five pillar-like vajras, Zhu Huihui immediately moved closer to Feng Xuese, grabbed a kitchen knife, and made up her mind that if these five people rushed up to attack while the old man's eyes were not functioning properly, she would find an opportunity to chop off their big feet!

However, the five people who came in only glanced at them. Seeing that it was a patient and a little black girl who was even uglier than them, they ignored them, sat down on the ground, and started arguing about who had eaten more steamed buns and beef.

Feng Xuese frowned deeply, one hand on his sword, the other hand's fingers gently rubbing his temples. He was filled with deep regret; if he had known he would encounter Master Huizhi's five talkative disciples from Qiyun Mountain at the Sanjie Temple, he would have preferred to brave the rain and travel rather than come to this place!

Zhu Huihui was also dizzy from the noise of the five rascals. Several times she wanted to chime in and join in their bickering, but in the end she was afraid of their big feet and vajra pestle, so she bit her tongue and held back.

She lowered her voice: "Um... cough, does your head hurt? Let me rub it for you!" She secretly pinched herself. Idiot! Calling someone a hero in front of strangers is practically admitting who she is!

Feng Xuese shook her head.

"How about... I grab a couple of chicken feathers and stuff them in your ears?" Zhu Huihui asked kindly.

Maple-colored lips curled slightly: "Your roast chicken is burnt!" This silly girl! He's already blind; if his ears are also plugged with chicken feathers and he can't hear, wouldn't he be at the mercy of others?

Zhu Huihui hurriedly turned the roast chicken over, and just then, a whirlwind carrying the scent of rain rushed in. The flames dimmed for a moment, then blazed brightly, making a crackling sound as the bamboo and wood burned.

She looked up in surprise and saw a person slowly walking into the palace.

This is a woman.