“We,” Yin Wuxiao raised the corners of his mouth, “are nominally cousins, but actually we are not related by blood.”
The girl in black bit her lip.
"He...won't marry you just because his parents want him to."
“But he won’t marry anyone else as long as I refuse.” Yin Wuxiao looked at her with a smile. She’s given herself away, hasn’t she? They’re about the same age, but she just can’t stand the girl’s indifferent and cold-hearted attitude.
"Then... what does that have to do with me?" The girl turned her head away, feigning bravado.
"But you like him."
"I don't...like him at all." The girl suddenly turned around and glared at her, but the last three words lacked conviction. Yin Wuxiao, on the other hand, was startled by her angry and embarrassed gaze.
"You really don't like him? Brother Fenglang is a young hero of the new generation, dashing and gentle, compassionate and noble..."
"Shut up!" The girl in black suddenly blushed.
She knew, of course. She had walked a tightrope between life and death, and it was Qiao Fenglang who pulled her back. It was also Qiao Fenglang who calmed her down with gentle words when she was in excruciating pain and on the verge of madness. She had a volatile temper and was hostile to everyone. At first, she refused to eat, and it was Qiao Fenglang who personally fed her every day, eating the food himself first to prove it was safe before gradually gaining her trust.
This man was outrageously kind and patient. She was just a stranger he'd met by chance, and not only did he offer her a helping hand, but he also showed her the kind of care only close relatives would give. She lived in a world filled with fear and hatred; she hated her grandmother, her family, her mentor, yet she feared she couldn't meet their expectations, couldn't do what they wanted her to do. But now, there was this man who, without any reason, cared for her, looked after her, and worried about her, without requiring her to do anything.
It was at this moment that she suddenly understood. Those people she had desperately tried to gain praise and affection from were nothing more than tools to achieve their own goals.
It was at this moment that she realized this young man was worth her lifelong pursuit.
Yin Wuxiao carefully studied her expression.
"Don't you want to know if he likes you or not?" In any case, she had never seen Qiao Fenglang treat any other woman like this.
The girl in black, Yuwen Cuiyu, was stunned. She hadn't considered what Qiao Fenglang thought of her.
Yin Wuxiao chuckled to himself.
"I bet Fenglang has feelings for you." Being a good person is one thing, but being this happy about being a good person is another. Although this girl has an extreme personality and an unknown identity, she genuinely likes Qiao Fenglang. As his younger sister, shouldn't she lend him a hand?
"If you keep talking nonsense, I'll cut out your tongue!" Yuwen Cuiyu scolded her, her face flushed, but the murderous intent in her eyes had vanished. The fifteen or sixteen-year-old girl was vaguely thinking, what if he really did something to her...?
"Why are you in such a hurry? I'm just trying to be helpful!" Back then, her family's head steward, Cen Lu, was tricked into signing a sixteen-year indenture by her silver tongue.
"I've invited Brother Fenglang to go to the garden to admire the peonies tonight. Are you coming?"
Yuwen Cuiyu's expression changed, thinking that she was showing off again.
"I'll ask him for you then, okay? Brother Fenglang loves me the most, he would never lie to me. You can hide behind the pavilion, Brother Fenglang won't notice." Yin Wuxiao's eyes crinkled with a smile.
"I……"
"Isn't that a very tempting offer?" Yin Wuxiao added fuel to the fire.
Yuwen Cuiyu's heart skipped a beat.
Who can argue with that?
By the moonlight, Yin Wuxiao glanced at the pavilion. A patch of dark fabric was visible behind the tall bushes.
"Xiao'er." The voice behind me was somewhat broken, with a heavy nasal tone.
She quickly turned around and recognized Qiao Fenglang, which put her mind at ease.
"Is Brother Fenglang's throat uncomfortable?" Yin Wuxiao stepped forward with concern.
Qiao Fenglang shook his head, his bright eyes shining in the darkness.
"Why are you looking at me like that? Is there something on my face?" She suddenly felt a dryness in her throat.
"Xiao'er..." Qiao Fenglang called again, this time with a hint of a sigh.
"What's wrong?" Yin Wuxiao blinked. Why was the night wind so cold?
"It's nothing." He suddenly smiled, his usual gentle and loving smile. "I'm just happy to be able to call you that. By the way, what's the matter with calling me over tonight?"
Yin Wuxiao composed himself, walked around the pavilion, picked up the wine pot, and filled the two small cups.
"The town is famous for its Daughter's Red wine. Since I rarely get to come out, I asked Uncle Nian to go and get some."
"Oh? Why is Xiao'er in such a good mood?" Qiao Fenglang raised an eyebrow and obediently sat down.
The aroma of wine permeated the entire garden. It was strange that Qiao Fenglang hadn't forbidden her from drinking tonight. Oh well, this was exactly what she planned for—to speak her mind while drunk.
"Brother Fenglang, how old were we when we got engaged?"
Qiao Fenglang's brows furrowed.
A few very faint sounds also emanated from the bushes.
"Who?" He suddenly stood up, staring into the bushes, his face full of wariness.
Yin Wuxiao hurriedly pressed down on his tense arm, soothing him: "It must be rats. I caught two big rats behind the pond yesterday, their fur was shiny..."
Before he could react, she stopped talking, then pointed at him and screamed, "Don't change the subject! You must have forgotten, right? How could you forget something so important?"
"I..." Qiao Fenglang was speechless, caught off guard as she steered the conversation back to the original topic.
Yin Wuxiao's expression softened slightly, and he asked with a smile, "When will you marry me?"
Qiao Fenglang stared blankly at her.
“Anytime…no, when do you want it to be?” He suddenly reached out and grabbed her hand.
Hmm... This is a bit different from what she expected... Shouldn't Brother Fenglang be struggling to express the last remaining brother-sister affection between them?
"Um... I mean..." She stared at his pupils, which were beginning to sparkle, with a sense that something was amiss.
"I mean, even if you only feel brotherly affection for me, and even if you are very, very likely to fall in love with another girl, you still have to marry me?"
She's already hinted so clearly, so speak up! Loudly and passionately protest her words! Tell her he will be true to his heart and bravely pursue his love!
Qiao Fenglang took a step closer, his dark eyes gazing intently into her pupils: "What makes you think that I only have brotherly feelings for you?"
Huh? Huh? Huh? Huh?
"Isn't it...?" Yin Wuxiao suddenly had a premonition of impending doom.
"Xiao'er," Qiao Fenglang took another step forward, placing his hands on her shoulders to close the distance between them, and looking down at her into his shadow.
“I, Qiao Fenglang,” he paused, a fleeting hint of disgust in his voice, “I swear I will have you in this life, and I will marry no one but you.”
"What?"
“I said, I love you.” A meaningful smile appeared on Qiao Fenglang’s lips.
"Wait..." Yin Wuxiao gasped, frantically covering his rapidly approaching face.
"What about the girl in black in the east wing? What do you think of her...?"
“You are the only one in my heart, and only a woman like you is worthy of me,” Qiao Fenglang interrupted her firmly.
"This..." Yin Wuxiao looked distressed. Had she made a mistake by trying to do something clever?
A loud shout suddenly came from behind the bushes, the voice sharp and angry.
"Yin, Wu, Xiao!" The woman in black leaped out of the air, brandishing a long sword and gritting her teeth.
“I…I…” Yin Wuxiao didn’t know how to explain.
Qiao Fenglang alertly shielded her behind him and met the attacker with a palm strike. After only a few exchanges, he struck Yuwen Cuiyu with his palm.
Yuwen Cuiyu coughed up a mouthful of scarlet blood, her slender body flying up and crashing hard into the courtyard wall.
She struggled to her feet for a long time, relying on the support of the longsword in her hand.
"You... do you really treat me like trash?" Yuwen Cuiyu trembled as she covered her wound, looking at Qiao Fenglang, who was full of caution, in disbelief.
After a long pause, Qiao Fenglang slowly spoke:
"Who are you?"
Yuwen Cuiyu and Yin Wuxiao both opened their mouths wide at the same time.
The difference was that Yuwen Cuiyu quickly closed her mouth.
She swayed, then swayed again, and suddenly burst into a vicious laugh.
"Yin Wuxiao, the humiliation you have inflicted on me today, I will repay you tenfold or a hundredfold in the future!" She spun around, stepped onto the top of the wall, and leaped away.
Yin Wuxiao opened his mouth wide, and after a long while, he licked his lips.
Qiao Fenglang shrugged: "I just hate these kinds of persistent women."
That same year, Qiao Baiyue, the leader of the Qiao Gang, fell seriously ill and passed away.
That same year, Qiao Fenglang, with his astonishing courage and strong tactics, took control of the Qiao Gang and succeeded as its leader.
That same year, the young master in blue robes from Baili Prefecture, already renowned throughout the martial world despite his young age, rescued a severely injured, amnesiac, and disfigured youth from the bottom of a cliff. He took him back to his residence, adopted him as a sworn brother, and made him acknowledge the patriarch of Baili Prefecture as his godfather. The patriarch named him Qin Qiyun, meaning to dwell in the clouds and forget the mundane world.
The following spring, the patriarch of Baili Mansion passed away suddenly, and the martial arts world lost another grandmaster. Baili Mansion was officially taken over by Baili Qingyi. That year, the young master in green inscribed a couplet on the screen wall in front of the Baili Mansion hall, and the rumor that the woman who could match the couplet would be the young master's destined lover spread like wildfire.
Chapter Twenty: How Many Green Lotuses Lean Against Each Other in Sorrow (Part Two)
The wind blows on the mountain, carrying the sounds of flutes and cranes; people gaze at the verdant clouds before the mountain.
Mr. Yin, carrying a basket, tiptoed carefully across the stones in the stream. On the other side of the stream lay an ancient temple hidden deep in the mountains.
The young novice monk sweeping leaves at the gate saw her and pointed towards the backyard in the distance.
Mr. Yin nodded, went around the temple gate, and climbed over the back wall into the backyard.
The ancient temple is nestled against a sheer cliff, with strangely shaped rocks protruding from the cliff face, covered in mottled moss, making it quite a beautiful sight. At the foot of the cliff is a large rock, polished to an extremely smooth finish, where people often sit to meditate and read scriptures.
At this moment, a slender figure dressed in a light green robe sat facing the wall on a large rock, his black hair like fine jade silk, hanging down to the bottom of the rock, his whole being like an immortal in meditation.
Mr. Yin placed the basket on the ground and called out softly:
"elder brother."
The man in green seemed not to hear.
Mr. Yin bit his lip, not daring to call out again. After a long while, he couldn't help but ask again, "You... you're not going to eat anything today either?"
There has still been no response.
Suddenly, Yin Zhangzhang's nose stung with tears, and his voice trembled with sobs: "You...you really don't want to become a monk, do you?"
The man finally stirred, but he coldly snorted, "How could Buddha accept a monk like me?"