Счастье совсем рядом, за следующим поворотом

Глава 68

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I lifted the curtain and saw a few houses with lights twinkling in the air. Ruan Bicheng got out of the car with the child in her arms, lifted the curtain and said to me, "Get down. Let's rest here for the night before continuing our journey. You must be hungry."

I jumped off the carriage and followed Ruan Bicheng into the village.

The village was small, with only seven or eight households, all of whom appeared to be farmers and hunters. Ruan Bicheng went to ask for lodging while carrying her child, and I wandered around the village. Suddenly, a door creaked open and a figure peeked out from inside.

Before I could even see clearly, I heard the man exclaim in surprise, "Su Xie?"

That voice... is it Xiao Jiu?

I looked over sharply, and out of the dim light emerged Xiao Jiu! He was about to speak when I raised a finger to silence him. I turned to look at Ruan Bicheng in the distance, who wasn't looking this way, and hurriedly pulled Xiao Jiu behind the house. "What are you doing here?"

"What are you doing here?" they asked almost simultaneously. He frowned and replied, "I ran into some members of the Demonic Cult on the road and got injured. I've been stuck here for two days."

Did they encounter the Left Protector and Ye Baizhi who were escorting Yan Shu?

I didn't have time to ask any more questions and said directly, "The child is in Ruan Bicheng's hands."

He frowned and didn't speak.

I added, "Ruan Bicheng wants to take her to acknowledge her ancestors and return her to her family..."

“Her surname is Leng, not Gu,” Xiao Jiu interrupted me without hesitation.

I smiled, took his hand and asked, "Are you fully recovered now?" Seeing him nod, I whispered in his ear, "I'm entrusting the child to you."

I patted him on the shoulder and stepped out. As soon as I stood still, Ruan Bicheng looked over and waved to me.

I answered and ran over in a few steps. He asked me with a smile, "Where did you go just now? I haven't seen you for a while."

"Just wandering around," I replied casually, then asked, "Is everything arranged?"

He nodded and led me into a house. An elderly man, who was quite old, was leading his young grandson. He warmly welcomed us into the house, prepared some simple food and drink, and arranged a few simple rooms for the servants and Yan Shu to stay in.

Ruan Bicheng added some food to my plate, saying, "You can sleep here tonight, and I'll sleep on a makeshift bed on the floor in the outer room."

I nodded and asked, "Where's the child?" Before he could answer, I added, "If you're worried, then you can take him with you."

He looked at me and smiled, "I was afraid you wouldn't be able to handle her crying and fussing."

Author's Note: The update is late... This is yesterday's update, there are still 4,000 words left for today! Wait for me!

Actually, what I like to write about most is the kind of person the leader of the alliance... soft and gentle, but stabbing you in the back... *covers face*, I must have something wrong with me...

P.S.: Please don't complain about the "lighthearted" tag... it can't be changed anymore, the editor will yell at me... OTZ

eighty

The village was extremely quiet that night. The bright moon hung high in the sky, filtering through the paper windows. From a great distance came the occasional barking of dogs.

The baby slept soundly in my arms, occasionally babbling in her sleep. I gently patted her, listening to Ruan Bicheng's breathing gradually becoming steady a few steps away. I reached out and pushed the window a crack open, then closed my eyes.

Before half a cup of tea could be brewed, flames suddenly burst into the courtyard, flickering on the window paper. Someone exclaimed, "Fire!"

I heard Ruan Bicheng turn over and get up. Someone knocked on the door and said in a low voice outside, "Alliance Leader, Guan Yanshu's woodshed is on fire."

The door creaked open, and Ruan Bicheng said "I know," turning his head to meet my gaze. He paused slightly, "Did I wake you?"

"Where is the fire?" I asked him from the darkness.

He said softly, "It's nothing, just an old house." He walked over and closed the window for me, then said, "I'll go out and take a look. You can go back to sleep."

I didn't say anything more, watching him leave and close the door. Just as I sat up, I heard someone knock on the window. I opened the window and Xiao Jiu anxiously poked his head in, "Where's the child?"

I wrapped the child up and handed him the package, saying, "You take the child and go first."

"Aren't you leaving?" Xiao Jiu asked me, frowning.

"I can't leave yet." I helped him wrap the child around himself, and was about to explain when I saw Ruan Bicheng looking over from another courtyard in the dim light. I hurriedly pushed Xiao Jiu, "Let's go!"

The next instant, Ruan Bicheng suddenly darted over. Before I could think, I flipped over and jumped out of the window, rushing in the opposite direction from Xiao Jiu.

As I ran out of the courtyard, Ruan Bicheng grabbed me, pulled me violently against him, and shouted sharply, "Lu Ning!"

I turned around and saw that Xiao Jiu had disappeared without a trace, so I didn't struggle and let him pull me. He followed my gaze and suddenly turned around to stare at me, saying, "You did this on purpose?"

The fire died down, and only the doors and windows of the woodshed were burned, leaving it blackened and emitting white smoke.

It was rare for me to see Ruan Bicheng so angry and embarrassed, so I deliberately asked, "What are you referring to?"

"Lu Ning!" He was furious, gripping my wrist so tightly it hurt. His expression was chillingly menacing as he asked, word by word, "Who set this fire? Was it Xiao Jiu? You and Xiao Jiu have been in contact for a while now?"

I was extremely pleased to see Ruan Bicheng's unexpected expression, and I said with undisguised joy, "Didn't you already guess?"

"You actually used Xiao Jiu to deal with me?" He was furious, extremely furious. His face turned pale as he stared at me, then he said to me with a pained expression, "Lu Ning, you have disappointed me greatly."

It means "too much," which is extremely, utterly disappointing.

I struggled, raising my wrist which he was gripping tightly, and said, "Can you loosen your grip? It's going to break."

Instead of loosening his grip, he tightened it, making my entire arm go numb instantly. He said, each word heavy and menacing, "You care so much about Yan Shu, aren't you afraid you'll really burn him to death?"

I winced in pain, but I chuckled at his words. "You said that sometimes if you want a result, you can't demand a smooth process. As long as you get the result, right? Besides..." I loved seeing that look on his face—wanting to strangle me but unable to, only able to writhe in anguish. "I still have that much sense of propriety."

He seemed very surprised, looking at me incredulously, "Lu Ning... why are you so hostile to everyone? Why are you always on guard? I told you I would let you and the child go, why don't you believe me?"

“I used to believe you, and look what happened?” I looked up at him, his eyes and brows were silvery-gray under the bright moonlight. “You learn from your mistakes. If I still don’t learn anything now, then I deserve what I have.”

“Lu Ning…” His gaze suddenly softened, and he looked at me with deep remorse. “I would rather you hate me than see you like this, do you know that?”

"I'm truly sorry." I straightened up and looked him straight in the eye. "I can't become the person Alliance Leader Ruan wants me to be."

He just stared at me without saying a word. After a moment, he looked at my bare feet and sighed very long and very low. "I'll help you back to your room."

No one slept that night. Before dawn, Ruan Bicheng left some silver and set off by carriage.

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The journey to the Central Plains took only a few days. Ruan Bicheng gave me a calming powder, and I slept in a daze the whole way. When I woke up, I was still in a daze, but I would drink water and eat food whenever I was given them.

I could only faintly hear Ruan Bicheng's soft voice as he fed me the medicine. He seemed to be sighing, "I don't mind if you hate me a little more, I just hope you hate me for a long, long time..."

I hate him, I clearly remember that I hate him, but strangely, I don't have a single thought of revenge. I just feel tired. I've been entangled with him in love and hate for so long, both in life and in death. He has exhausted all my emotions and persistence, and now I'm really tired.

I hope that in the years to come, no matter how good or bad things get, I will never have Ruan Bicheng again.

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It seemed to have snowed the day we arrived in the Central Plains. When Ruan Bicheng carried me out of the car, a few icy, cool snowflakes fell on my face as I looked up. I opened my eyes and vaguely saw fine snow falling everywhere. A wintersweet tree in front of the door was in bloom, emitting a sweet fragrance.

Ruan Bicheng picked me up and stopped under the wintersweet tree, and asked me softly, "Do you remember? You transplanted this wintersweet tree from the yard."

Really? A wintersweet tree...

He asked me, "Can you tell me why we planted wintersweet outside the door?"

Why...?

I remember someone once said that if you plant a wintersweet tree in front of your door, its fragrance will spread for miles around after it blooms overnight.

Ruan Bicheng carried me into the courtyard, where the old man guarding the gate hurriedly came out to greet us, saying, "Young master, why didn't you send someone to announce your return first?"

The sound was like a bell, making my eardrums buzz and vibrate.

Ruan Bicheng pointed at him and asked, "Do you still recognize him?"

"Zhong..." I remember an old man with a bad temper whose voice matched his name perfectly; he was the gatekeeper, Old Man Zhong.

“Yes.” Ruan Bicheng chuckled.

Old Zhong glanced at me, then asked in a low voice, "Young master, who is this?"

Ruan Bicheng didn't answer him. He carried me and continued walking inside. The corridors were covered with green tiles and the paths were made of bluestone. The flowers and trees along the way were lush and green, from holly to osmanthus trees. Every time we passed a place, he would ask me if I remembered.

It's like I had a dream, a dream about things from a very, very long time ago, about every flower, every blade of grass, every forest, every tree. In all those past events, I meticulously planned everything for one person.

He loved to practice swordsmanship in the backyard. I remember I set up a table and chairs under the pear tree in the backyard so he could rest.

He loved red carp, and I remember I replaced all the carp in the pond with red carp.

The candlesticks in the main hall are broken; I wonder if they've been replaced?

These small, trivial memories poured out like a flood breaking through a dam, surging and submerging me along the way.

He carried me into the side room, the room that was once intended to be our bridal chamber. I remember I was the one who chose the apricot blossom and child-shaped screen.

"Do you remember?" He placed me on the side couch, covered me with a small fox fur blanket, and sat down beside me, asking softly, "You decorated this house yourself, do you remember?"

I stared at him blankly. The person in front of me kept overlapping, separating, intersecting, and swaying into countless versions of him from three years ago.

Ruan Bicheng... Ruan Bicheng, he pushed me away step by step, and now he's trying to pull me back little by little.

"It's okay, take your time." He reached out and brushed a stray hair behind my ear, speaking softly to me, "You rest for a bit, I'll go make some arrangements and come right away."

He tucked the blanket in, got up, and went out the door.

I leaned back on the soft couch, unable to see or hear clearly, frozen in a daze. The strong effects of the drug made my whole body numb, and my head was buzzing.

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I don't know how much time passed before the door was pushed open.

Ruan Bicheng seemed to have brought someone with her. A thin figure swayed back and forth on the screen. I heard the person complain with a hint of dissatisfaction, "Brother Ruan, I haven't had dinner yet. What's the rush?"

That voice... seems to be Lu Mingxiu?

"It's nothing serious." Ruan Bicheng helped him sit down in the outer room, poured him a cup of tea, and said with a light smile, "I just got back and wanted to chat with you."

Lu Mingxiu grumbled in dissatisfaction, "Can't we talk properly after I've eaten... I'm so hungry..."

Ruan Bicheng smiled, handed him several plates of pastries, and said, "Now, may I ask Young Master Lu to do me the honor of having a chat?"

Lu Mingxiu said sullenly, "Brother Ruan is making fun of me again."

After a soft laugh, Ruan Bicheng asked, "How is the Lu family doing while I was away?"

“Okay.” Lu Mingxiu replied while picking at her snacks, “Father is in good health, Mother is in a good mood, and Second Sister is busy with that martial arts contest to find a husband, which is good despite being busy.”

"Then... what about Lu Ning's mother?" Ruan Bicheng asked again.

The room was quiet. Lu Mingxiu said "oh" and casually said, "Second Aunt, is she alright... You know, Second Aunt hasn't been doing well since Eldest Sister died. She looks quite pitiful. This time, Father went out to take her out to cheer her up, but he didn't expect to run into Su Xie, which made things very unpleasant. After they came back, Second Aunt has been crying all the time. She said she dreamed that Eldest Sister was very unhappy, covered in blood, sitting on the edge of the bed crying..."

Lu Mingxiu shrank her neck and whispered, "It sounds really scary. My mother said she's probably gone mad, and now she doesn't dare let me go out."

Ruan Bicheng said "Oh," and seemed to look over. I stared blankly at the swaying screen, and then heard him ask Lu Mingxiu, "What kind of person do you think Lu Ning is?"

Lu Mingxiu was taken aback and asked in surprise, "Why is Brother Ruan suddenly asking such a strange question?"