Idle flowers and shadows

Chapter 16

Actually, there's something I've never told you. Hua Hua, I have a high alcohol tolerance. That night at Luoyu Mountain, I wasn't drunk at all. No matter how much you remember, I remember it all. Hua Hua, if we're talking about taste, even a fifty-year-old Heyuan brew can't compare to you.

one

Black Charm was faster than an ordinary horse, and after galloping for two hours, it had already crossed a grassland and entered a forest. After crossing the next mountain, it would be the territory of Azure Valley. The fork in the road at the valley entrance led northwest, the end of which was the first city in the Western Regions, Yama City.

It was completely dark by then, making it difficult to continue traveling. She stopped by a stream, letting Black Demon go to drink water and eat grass, while she washed her face, built a fire, and lay down on the grassy slope to rest.

A cool night breeze gently caressed my face, and in my drowsy state, I heard a soft sound of footsteps.

The newcomer clearly made no attempt to conceal his presence, so he likely meant no harm. Su Xianhua slowly opened her eyes. In the firelight, she vaguely saw a man emerging from the woods, carrying a water bag in one hand and a riding whip in the other. He was dressed in fine clothes and had an exceptionally handsome appearance. She felt as if she had seen him somewhere before, but she couldn't quite place him.

Since they were neither enemies nor friends, she lazily closed her eyes again.

The man also saw her, but clearly did not intend to ignore her. He turned a corner and walked towards her, saying, "Excuse me, are you Miss Su?"

Su Xianhua suddenly opened her eyes and asked in surprise, "How do you know my name? Who are you?"

The man smiled charmingly, sat down beside her, and said, "Miss Su, don't you remember me? I am Xiao Xueyin from the Xue Liu family of Luzhou."

One of the Five Young Masters, Young Master Xiao of Luzhou? Su Xianhua was taken aback, then remembered that she seemed to have seen him in Fengqi Town. At that time, he had been accompanying Situ Wuyu, and his purple robes were quite eye-catching. However, their group had left almost a day earlier than her, and even if they walked slowly, they should be on the mountain by now.

She looked behind him in confusion. Xiao Xueyin raised an eyebrow and said in a soft, charming voice, "Who is Miss Su looking for? I am alone."

"Where are the rest of you?"

“My horse is sick,” he sighed. “I don’t know what it ate, but it was weak all morning and collapsed here, unable to walk any further. I didn’t want to delay the others, so I let Brother Bai and the others go first, thinking I’d catch up with them once my horse felt better.”

She frowned: "You can find someone to ride with."

“I don’t want to abandon my horse.” He smiled gently. “I rode it from Luzhou; it’s been with me for many years.”

Su Xianhua couldn't help but think of Hei Mei and Qin Shao, and felt a pang of sadness. Seeing his sincere words, she overlooked the slight impropriety in his speech, brushed the grass off her clothes, and stood up: "Where is your horse? I'll go check on it for you."

Xiao Xueyin's surprise was palpable: "Miss Su can treat horses?"

“In our mountains, horses are people’s friends. How can you be a bandit without horses? Everyone can treat minor illnesses.” She suddenly stopped and glared at him. “You still haven’t told me how you know me?” She remembered that she hadn’t introduced herself in Fengqi Town, and that little argument only happened in front of Bai Nianchen and Situ Diyin.

“Feihua Xiaozhu.” Xiao Xueyin’s peach blossom eyes narrowed slightly as she uttered a few words. Seeing Su Xianhua’s face darken, she hurriedly explained, “I have heard of Miss Su’s name before. I saw your beauty in person that day and have admired you ever since. I never expected that we would meet again today.”

His words were very cleverly chosen, completely avoiding any mention of Su Xianhua's embarrassment in the Tortoiseshell Valley that day. He used her name repeatedly, expressing "fate" and even the word "admiration," his voice soft and affectionate. Coupled with his handsome face, it was truly enough to stir a woman's heart. Unfortunately, he was unaware of the feud between Su Xianhua and Bai Nianchen, and even less aware that upon hearing the words "Flying Flower Cottage," Su Xianhua's heart was already filled with utter despair.

Nine Netherworlds and Seven Hells Chasing the Sun and Moon (2)

She ignored his compliments, walked into the woods with a stern face, and sure enough, saw a dark brown horse lying on its side on the ground, its belly heaving violently, with some white foam coming out of its mouth, looking like it was on the verge of death.

Seeing that her usual sweet talk and invincible gaze had no effect, Xiao Xueyin was slightly uneasy and tentatively asked, "Miss Su?"

Su Xianhua squatted down without saying a word, pried open the horse's mouth to take a look, then touched the horse all over, and even went around to the back to check the horse's rump. Her hands were covered with grass clippings and dirt, which made Xiao Xueyin stare in disbelief.

"He ate something bad," she concluded briefly, then went straight to the stream to wash his hands. "He's probably poisoned. Did he eat any straw mushrooms or gentian root on the way?"

Xiao Xueyin was taken aback, somewhat bewildered: "I don't know..."

Su Xianhua sighed. These scions of noble families only knew how to use things, not how to care for them. She said, "Let it drink more water, and add antidote to the water, about three times the dosage for a human." Seeing that he didn't move, she raised an eyebrow and said, "You don't have any medicine with you?" It's an essential item for traveling the martial world, isn't it?

"No, nothing." Xiao Xueyin blushed slightly, touched the jade pendant and purse hanging at her waist, indicating that she had nothing else on her. "I find it troublesome to carry too much stuff on the road."

Su Xianhua subconsciously turned her head to look at the gray cloth bundle on her back. Indeed, it contained several sets of clothes, shoes, socks, medicine, and other miscellaneous items; carrying such a large bundle was unavoidable. These young masters and ladies, dressed in their finest clothes and riding in such a glamorous manner, certainly wouldn't want to spoil the show by carrying a large bundle. Although they could take a carriage, that wouldn't be as elegant.

For everyday use, all you need is silver, which is simply outrageous!

She shook her head and smiled slightly, then rummaged through her bundle and pulled out a few porcelain bottles. After considering for a moment, she handed one over: "Give it to him. This is a very effective antidote, and it doesn't have any strange smell. The horse should be able to eat it."

Seeing that he was still standing there blankly, Su Xianhua took the water bag from his hand without saying a word, walked to the stream, filled the bag with a large amount of water, slowly dissolved the medicine powder in it, wiped the sticky white foam from the horse's mouth with her hand, pried open the horse's mouth, and poured the bag of water down little by little.

Xiao Xueyin looked at her empty left hand, suddenly realized something, went to her side, and hesitated, "Miss Su, my water bag..."

"What's wrong?"

"That's for me to drink water..."

Su Xianhua frowned, gently stroking the horse's soft mane, and said, "Isn't it your good friend?"

Xiao Xueyin was speechless for a moment, staring blankly as she fed the horse water, her movements gentle and meticulous, feeling somewhat embarrassed. But asking someone as pampered as him to share a water bag with a horse was really against his usual clean and elegant lifestyle, so he stood there, not knowing what to say.

Su Xianhua looked up at him, sighed, and said, "If Young Master Xiao doesn't mind, please drink my water. If you still feel it's not clean, you can wash it first before using it."

"I...I didn't mean that..." He abruptly looked away, his face flushing slightly. He felt that encountering such a woman was a disastrous start, so he could only force a smile and walk towards the campfire.

When Su Xianhua woke up, she found Xiao Xueyin already standing by the water, dressed neatly. His back looked very dashing, but when he turned around, she could clearly see the dark shadows under his eyes, indicating that he must have had a bad night's sleep.

It was late spring, early summer, and although the nights were a bit chilly, camping in the wild wasn't too much of a hassle. Late that night, seeing that Young Master Xiao had nothing, Su Xianhua kindly lent him a cloak, leaving herself only a bundle to use as a pillow. Yet, the young master still complained incessantly, finding the woods damp, the insects bothering him—in short, a thousand and one complaints. Su Xianhua wondered, if he couldn't stand camping in the wild so much, why had he stayed by his horse all this time? He didn't seem to care much for that poor horse.

Nine Netherworlds and Seven Hells Chase the Sun and Moon (3)

Despite her doubts, it didn't bother her, and she fell asleep peacefully that night while the young master Xiao tossed and turned.

She woke up feeling great. After washing up with water, she took out a dry steamed bun from her bundle, thought for a moment, then took out another one and handed it to Xiao Xueyin, who was looking at her from across the room.

"Are you going to eat breakfast?"

He paused for a moment, then reached out and took the food, but instead of eating it, he asked, "Does Miss Su often sleep outdoors?"

"It's alright. If we weren't in such a hurry, who would want to sleep in the middle of nowhere? But if we're really pressed for time, we don't have to be so particular." Su Xianhua said, gently brushing her tangled hair back and forth with her fingers. She didn't know how to style her hair; with Zhong Zhan gone, she could only casually tie it up with a hair tie.

“Miss Su is indeed a woman of strong character, quite different from ordinary women.” Xiao Xueyin chuckled softly, glanced at her with her peach blossom eyes, and handed over the cloak in her hand. “Thank you, Miss. I will certainly repay your kindness in giving me this garment.”

Su Xianhua reached out to take it, but he grabbed her wrist and pulled her forward unexpectedly, magnifying her beautiful, fair face several times over. A captivating smile played on his lips as he gently touched her mouth, his voice low and husky as he said, "Your face has bits of grass on it, I'll take it for you..."

Such an ambiguous atmosphere, such passionate voices. Xiao Xueyin has never failed to win over any woman she sets her mind to.

Unfortunately, the woman he was facing was no ordinary woman. Strictly speaking, she was just someone who had only recently begun to resemble a woman. Moreover, compared to the kingly aura of a certain man that night, this level of temptation was truly shallow.

His clear, black-and-white eyes stared directly into Xiao Xueyin's affectionate gaze, his eyes bright and his voice calm: "Young Master Xiao, are you trying to seduce me?"

Xiao Xueyin, who was originally full of pride, suddenly froze, her fingers stiffening on her face, speechless.

"Hey, why are you doing this? I'm neither a beauty nor from a prestigious family, so I'm of no benefit to you. Besides, I'm not going to Biluo Valley, I'm not looking for Lin Chongye, and I don't even know the Sword Saint. So, don't waste your time on me!" She finished speaking quietly, smiled at him, turned her head and moved a few steps away from his close body, and began to pack her bags.

She wasn't a fool. If she had initially believed Xiao Xueyin's explanation that she had stayed in the woods because of her love for the horse, after seeing his attitude towards the horse and the small "Wan" brand on the horse's hind hoof, she realized that he actually had ulterior motives.

The subsequent intentional or unintentional displays of intimacy and physical contact made her wonder if he had been waiting for her.

Finding out her whereabouts was easy; all it took was planting spies in Fengqi Town. For the eldest son of the prestigious Xue Liu family, doing something like this was a simple matter. As for why, he had already explained: it was because of the "Flying Flower Cottage" that day.

That day was both her humiliation and her immense glory. Zhong Zhan was right; because of Cheng Hongxiao and Duan Ruhua, she became famous among the young heroes of the land. And her name would surely spread throughout the martial world, accompanied by descriptions such as "the one who answered the Sword Saint's question" and "the only guest of Feihua Xiaozhu."

So some people follow her, some people want to ambush her, and some people want to seduce her.

All they did was claim to be the "Sword Saint".

After she finished packing, Xiao Xueyin had already led the sickly horse over. Although he was still a little embarrassed, he had recovered his composure. He bit his lip, glancing at her sideways, from head to toe. Then from toe to head, and finally, a smile appeared in his affectionate eyes as he slowly said, word by word, "Miss Su, my horse wasn't brought from Luzhou, but bought in Brother Bai's Wancheng."

"I know." Su Xianhua nodded, then looked at him with a puzzled expression. "Why are you suddenly being so frank?"

“Let’s not beat around the bush. Since you’ve guessed my intentions, I can’t lie to you, so let’s be frank.” He led his horse, following closely behind her, his expression no longer tender and affectionate, but clear and discerning. “You’re a strange woman. Are you uninterested in men?”

Nine Netherworlds and Seven Hells Chase the Sun and Moon (4)

No! I was interested in it once, but some bastard trampled on it all!

Su Xianhua gritted her teeth for a while and said in a muffled voice, "Young Master Xiao, it must be quite difficult for you to spend the whole night with me."

"That's not entirely true." He chuckled. "If you look closely, Miss Su is actually quite beautiful, but she lacks a certain charm compared to the young lady from the Situ family. She might make men hesitate to approach her."

Once he started speaking frankly, he was surprisingly cheerful and direct. Su Xianhua snorted, "Thank you, you don't hold back at all."

"Because Xueyin knows that Miss Su won't blame me for this, right?" Xiao Xueyin smiled. "Although I am not quite up to par as a woman, as a friend, Miss Su is someone everyone would want to befriend." She paused, stopped, and clasped her hands in a fist salute. "What Xueyin said earlier is true. Miss Su gave me clothes to keep warm, and Xueyin will definitely repay you in the future!"

Su Xianhua glanced at him: "You want to be friends with me?"

He smiled gently: "Is that alright?"

"I'm not going to Biluo Valley, I don't know Lin Chongye, and I have no connection with the Sword Saint. I have no intention of solving that damn riddle," she repeated. Don't harbor any illusions about her, thinking that if romantic love doesn't work, she'll resort to friendship or loyalty.

"I know. Xueyin will inquire about the matter of Biluo Valley herself. Becoming friends with you is unrelated to that."

"When it comes to making friends, I can never have too many." Su Xianhua mounted her horse and smiled slightly. "If Young Master Xiao is really so kind, I'll treat you to a drink next time we have the chance."

After saying that, she whipped her horse and rode away. The mountain wind ruffled the hair on her cheeks, but it couldn't hide her bright eyes. She had a unique and dashing appearance, which made Xiao Xueyin stare in a daze for a moment.

two

Xiao Xueyin's horse was able to walk the next day thanks to Su Xianhua's treatment, though it wasn't going very fast. Su Xianhua felt awkward riding with him but also didn't want to abandon him, so she slowed down Hei Mei's pace and accompanied him as he slowly traversed the mountains and valleys.

Xiao Xueyin probably felt embarrassed as well, so she was very careful along the way, only talking about interesting things about the Xue Liu family and the Fifth Young Master. Although he was a young master who lived a life of luxury, he was also a rising star who was good at both literature and martial arts. He spoke clearly and logically, which was very entertaining to listen to.

He also revealed a secret that greatly surprised Su Xianhua. To be honest, it wasn't really a secret, as most people who went to Biluo Valley knew it, but Su Xianhua didn't.

"Miss Su, do you know the lineage of the great swordsman Ye Hu Lin?"

She thought for a moment, then shook her head.

Xiao Xueyin smiled mysteriously, a hint of smugness in her smile, and said softly, "Legend has it that... Ye Hu Lin Chongye was an outcast from Jianyu City at the foot of Jueyun Mountain."

“The Capital of Sword Yu?” Su Xianhua raised an eyebrow, incredulous. “But Master Lin doesn’t use a sword.”

“That’s why they’re called outcasts,” Xiao Xueyin sighed softly. “The two city lords of Sword Yu Capital are one cruel and the other aloof; naturally, they wouldn’t allow outcasts to use their sect’s martial arts anymore…” He shook his head as he muttered to himself, “Everyone’s thinking that this might be a good starting point for the challenge…”

Su Xianhua didn't hear what was said after that. She lowered her head slightly, seemingly lost in thought.

After traveling for most of the day, in the afternoon, they saw a simple tea pavilion on the mountainside in the distance.

Xiao Xueyin said, "Miss Su, you've been walking all day without resting. Why don't you stop and have some tea?"

"Alright."

The so-called tea pavilion was actually just two sheds made of bamboo poles and thatch. The old woman and her husband worked there; she brewed tea over a stove, while the old man greeted the guests. There were very few tea drinkers, only one or two hunters and farmers from the mountains, who left shortly after they sat down.

Since realizing her special identity, Su Xianhua had become more cautious in everything she did. She only picked up her own teacup after Xiao Xueyin had finished her tea. The tea was coarse, and the cup was wooden—in this desolate wilderness, they couldn't even find a decent rough porcelain cup.

Before leaving, she gave the elderly couple extra money. The old man bowed and thanked her profusely, but the old woman was hard of hearing and simply continued to sit by the stove brewing tea.

Nine Netherworlds and Seven Hells Chase the Sun and Moon (5)

The two continued along the mountain path, and after walking for another half an hour, the weather turned cold and gloomy. After a while, it started to drizzle, and the rain grew heavier and heavier. In addition, it was sunset, and the surrounding light became increasingly dim. There was a mist in front of them, and the ground was muddy and difficult to walk on.

Xiao Xueyin, who had never suffered much hardship, was already unwilling to walk any further and couldn't help but say, "Miss Su, the road is slippery in the rain, and there are no road signs here. It would be bad if we got lost. Besides, horses are also prone to slipping. Why don't we find a place to take shelter from the rain first?"