Luzhou Moon - Chapter 88
"You remembered?" Lian Junchu asked softly, staring at her fingertips.
Yue Ruzheng did not answer, but shook her head slightly, still stubbornly trying to reach out in his direction.
The aloofness and arrogance that had previously surrounded him seemed to have subsided somewhat, but he still kept his eyes down and his complexion was not very good.
"Don't move around." He scolded in a low voice and stepped forward.
Yue Ruzheng's fingertips could finally touch his hanging sleeve. Tears still clung to her face, but a faint smile appeared on her lips.
He turned slightly to the side, glanced at it for a moment, and then stared steadily at the ground.
After a moment of silence, Lian Junchu slowly said, "I can't send you away right now, because it would damage your heart meridian. But I will arrange for someone to send a message..." He paused, seeing that Yue Ruzheng didn't seem to care about what he was saying and was still clutching his sleeve, he couldn't help but glance at her with a hint of anger, "Take your hand back."
Yue Ruzheng was startled, and Lian Junchu continued, "Don't take this lightly. You'll need someone with profound internal energy to heal you afterwards..."
Yue Ruzheng pursed her lips and remained silent.
"Jiang Shuying has the Beauty-Preserving Pearl, so her internal strength must be quite strong, right?" he said calmly, but with a hint of coldness.
Yue Ruzheng trembled, took a deep breath, and looked at him, saying, "No, that's all."
"What?" Lian Junchu didn't understand what she meant and raised an eyebrow to ask.
"I said, the Youth-Preserving Pearl is gone." Yue Ruzheng said this slowly and heavily, feeling as if she was about to collapse.
"Gone?!" Lian Jun Chuhan, who had been calm just moments before, turned pale and abruptly turned to face her. "Didn't I give it to you to take? How could it be gone?"
Looking into his dark eyes, Yue Ruzheng felt another chill in her heart. Her right hand, which had been outstretched, felt even colder, yet she was reluctant to retract it.
When Lian Jun first saw the complex mix of pain and panic in her eyes, he turned his face away sullenly, sat down on the edge of the bed, and after a moment of restraint, asked, "Tell me, when did you lose it?"
Yue Ruzheng shifted her gaze from him, staring blankly at the ceiling, her voice suppressed as she said, "It wasn't lost. Back then, after taking the Divine Pearl, Mo Li snatched it away." She paused, glancing at him, and seeing the astonishment in his eyes, continued, "It was precisely because we needed to deal with him that we were trying to find a way to retrieve the Divine Pearl..."
As she spoke, her heart grew heavy, and her thoughts became jumbled, causing her to pause.
Lian Junchu sat blankly on the edge of the bed, breathing in the cold air, staring blankly ahead. After a long while, she smiled coldly, "Yue Ruzheng, just how many things are you hiding from me?"
When Lian Junqiu returned, the two of them remained silent in the small room.
Lian Junchu stood by the wooden window, lost in thought. Yue Ruzheng turned her back and lay on her side, breathing rapidly. Hearing the door open, Yue Ruzheng turned around with difficulty and was filled with surprise when she saw Lian Junqiu.
Lian Junqiu glanced at her briefly before pulling Lian Junchu away.
"Junchu, you look terrible. Is your leg still hurting?" Lian Junqiu asked in a low voice outside the hut.
"No." Lian Junchu took a moment to come to her senses and managed a weak reply.
Lian Junqiu said worriedly, "When I went out just now, I found that the people from Bliss Valley hadn't gone far. I was wondering if Yue Ruzheng had encountered them and that's why she suffered internal injuries?"
"Paradise Valley?" Lian Junchu was shocked, frowning. "If that's the case, perhaps only Mo Li could have injured her so severely..." He paused for a moment, a hint of anger flashing in his eyes. "I originally thought he wouldn't pursue us. It seems he's truly determined to make an enemy of Seven Star Island at all costs!"
Upon hearing his words, Lian Junqiu paused, then gave a wry smile: "Junchu, Seven Star Island seems to have been quite peaceful these past few years, you…"
"You think I'm the one who's going to start trouble?" Lian Junchu asked in surprise.
"I just don't want you to get involved in those conflicts," Lian Junqiu sighed softly. "I've had enough of the backstabbing and bloodshed; that kind of life is exhausting."
Lian Junchu looked up into the distance. The sky was a grayish-blue color, gradually merging with the vast plains, and the whole world seemed to fall into a state of chaos.
"I won't get tired." Despite the lingering pain in his knees, he straightened his back as much as he could, his eyes holding a cool light.
Lian Junqiu faced her younger brother, her heart filled with unspoken words. He was serene and composed; though his robes were tattered and his face pale, he exuded an unyielding and resilient strength. She turned to push open the door, but stopped, asking softly, "You've met her again… will things continue?"
She didn't turn around when she asked the question, and Lian Junchu didn't answer immediately. Just as she was about to take a step, his cold, indifferent voice came from behind her: "No more."
Lian Junqiu was startled and turned to look at him. He lowered his head slightly, his eyes hidden in shadow, and pressed his lips tightly together, as if he was unwilling to say another word.
After returning to the house, Lian Junqiu brought Yue Ruzheng some herbal medicine that she had prepared.
"Drinking this should make you feel a little better for now." Lian Junqiu helped Yue Ruzheng sit up and let her lean against the headboard. Seeing that she was only wearing a tube top, she quickly picked up some clothes and put them on her.
Yue Ruzheng silently finished her medicine. Only then did Lian Junqiu notice the string of beads on the wooden table. She frowned slightly, looked up at Yue Ruzheng, and said, "This string of beads..."
Yue Ruzheng then realized that her ornaments had been taken off. Despite her weakness, she desperately braced herself, grabbed Yingluo, held it tightly in her hand, and turned her back to her.
"What are you doing?" Lian Junqiu was both puzzled and displeased. She stood up, wanting to ask something, but when she looked back at Lian Junchu, who was standing quietly by the door, she held back what she wanted to say.
When Lian Jun first saw Lian Junqiu, she seemed lost in thought. Lian Jun walked up behind her and asked, "Is something the matter?"
"It's nothing..." Lian Junqiu hesitated for a moment, then shook her head without answering directly. At this moment, Yue Ruzheng stubbornly remained with her back to the outside of the bed. Lian Junchu stood there for a moment, then whispered, "Big sister, could you go outside for a while?"
A somber expression settled over Lian Junqiu's face. She smiled silently, turned, and left the room.
Lian Junchu heard her close the door, but didn't speak immediately, remaining silent for a while. Yue Ruzheng's shoulders rose and fell slightly, but Lian Junchu, standing by the bed, couldn't see her expression.
"Can't you behave yourself?" he scolded, slightly annoyed. Yue Ruzheng shrank back, but her shoulders were still outside the blanket.
When Lian Jun first saw her, she was still the same as before, as if she would resist with a long silence the moment he spoke. He couldn't help but sneer, "I don't know what you're trying to do. Are you blaming my older sister for saving you, or blaming me for not leaving?"
"Where did I say I blamed you?" Yue Ruzheng's voice sounded somewhat weak, but it still carried a deep stubbornness.
"So what exactly do you want?" He tried his best to suppress his voice and his anger. "I told you before that you've suffered internal injuries and can't move around! Are you deliberately trying to make me uncomfortable?"
Yue Ruzheng suddenly turned around, her face streaked with tears, her complexion pale, and the necklace in her hand was so tightly gripped that it almost broke.
"Why do you always think so badly of me?" Her body trembled, her voice trembling with tears. "I already explained the past to you, but even now, in your eyes, am I still always malicious? I saved your men, and you said I was just putting on an act! But after I left, you wouldn't let me go! Now, even when I avoid you, you say I'm deliberately making things difficult for you! Lian Junchu, do you want to watch me be driven to a dead end?"
"Aren't you making wild guesses about me now?!" Lian Junchu retorted angrily. "I was just reminding you not to recklessly use your inner energy, and you're saying I'm forcing you!"