Walking slowly, she kept pace with Xiao Qiyu.
“Fu Hong,” Lu Xiangyin called out loudly, immediately greeted by a bright smile.
“Xiangyin!” Xi Fuhong put down her hoe.
Under the sunlight, that unintentional smile looked especially gentle.
“I brought the maid I mentioned last time,” Lu Xiangyin said with a smile, stepping aside slightly, her beautiful eyes glancing at Xiao Qiyu a few times.
“Alright, let me go change clothes first.
My sleeves are all covered in dirt.
You two sit over there for now, okay?” She pointed to a wooden box by the house and hurried off.
Xiao Qiyu lost her usual composure.
From the moment she heard Xi Fuhong call out, her heart was in chaos.
Memories surged like a tide, past scenes flashing before her eyes, yet she couldn’t see them clearly.
They flickered by in a blur, gone before she could even reminisce…
After a while, Xi Fuhong came out in a plain outfit.
She walked slowly toward Lu Xiangyin, just about to speak when Lu Xiangyin stepped forward with a smile and said, “This is Xiao Qiyu.
She’ll be helping you with things around the valley from now on.
If you need anything, just tell her.
I’ll be heading back now.”
Without waiting for Xi Fuhong to respond, Lu Xiangyin turned and left.
Xi Fuhong was stunned for a moment, looking a bit awkward as she turned to Xiao Qiyu.
Maybe the two of them had once been entangled in something, but now she had forgotten Xiao Qiyu.
To her, Xiao Qiyu was just a stranger she happened to meet.
Xi Fuhong scratched her head.
Seeing the cloth over Xiao Qiyu’s eyes, as if she couldn’t see, she couldn’t help but feel sympathy for the woman.
“Xiao…” Xi Fuhong tilted her head, thinking for a moment before hesitantly saying, “Miss Xiao?”
…Miss Xiao, huh?
Xiao Qiyu gave a bitter, self-mocking smile.
Her heart warmed, but it was also filled with sorrow.
After three years, the one thing she couldn’t forget was being called “Miss Xiao.” As expected, she still couldn’t forget Xi Fuhong.
Even with her eyes covered, what she couldn’t forget was that soft call.
She still remembered how she had injured her eyes while investigating the Baili tomb.
Back then, it was Xi Fuhong who saved her, speaking to her gently along the way.
Even then, she had already become unforgettable.
—”Are you really helping people out of pure kindness?”
She had once doubted whether Xi Fuhong’s kindness was genuine.
Now she understood.
Back then, she had already carved her into her heart.
No matter the reason, Xi Fuhong had become unforgettable.
Is it true that you only realize something’s precious after losing it? How laughable, and yet so cruel.
She had sacrificed Xi Fuhong to free Ling Xue from her suffering, but then spent three years in a daze because of Xi Fuhong…
Laughable… so laughable…
Xiao Qiyu wanted to laugh, but her lips only pressed together bitterly.
Or maybe… it was just pathetic?
She, Xiao Qiyu, was a pathetic woman—whether it was with Ling Xue or with Miss Xi.
“Miss Xiao, are you alright? You look really pale.” Xi Fuhong noticed her strange expression and quickly asked with concern.
Hearing that, Xiao Qiyu trembled all over.
She took deep breaths, trying to suppress the emotions stirring inside her.
Xi Fuhong hadn’t changed.
Her kindness was still the same.
What had disappeared were the memories they once shared.
She understood now—Lu Xiangyin had sacrificed cruelly back then for the sake of a peaceful life, sparing Xi Fuhong’s life.
Now, Xi Fuhong could live carefree, even showing concern for the one who had once caused her death.
She must have forgotten the past, forgotten the pain…
Maybe that was for the best.
What was she still hoping for? That Xi Fuhong would remember something? Between them, what was there besides betrayal and hurt?
There was nothing at all…
“I’m fine,” she said, her voice hoarse, as if she were holding back some deep pain.
Xi Fuhong just nodded.
“Actually, Miss Xiao, you don’t need to serve me.
There’s no need to trouble yourself in the valley.”
“I can help keep Miss Xi company,” Xiao Qiyu said after a few deep breaths, keeping her tone calm.
“I’m not lonely.
Life in the valley is fulfilling.
I plant flowers and vegetables every day, and I can even catch fish.
Besides…” Xi Fuhong thought for a moment, then suddenly giggled.
“There’s also that crybaby Hua’er who comes by.
With her around, I don’t even have time to daydream.
She’s always crying, and I have to spend energy cheering her up.”
Though she said it casually, it wasn’t hard to hear the fondness in her tone.
Xiao Qiyu’s heart clenched so tightly she could barely breathe.
So… Miss Xi already cared for the Divine Doctor that much…
“Could Miss Xi… call me again?” Xiao Qiyu couldn’t help the trembling of her lips, her voice full of pleading.
Though Xi Fuhong found it strange, she still softly called out, “Miss Xiao…”
“Please… one more time.” Xiao Qiyu staggered forward, her steps unsteady.
“Miss Xiao.”
“One more time…”
“Xiao—” Before she could finish, Xiao Qiyu suddenly dropped to her knees in front of Xi Fuhong, both hands on the ground, her posture utterly humble.
As the top disciple of Bi Xuan Palace, when had she ever bowed to anyone? She had lived over twenty years with a calm heart, never showing joy or sorrow on her face.
And now, for a little girl from Fog Valley, she knelt in repentance.
Even if it changed nothing, she couldn’t straighten her back in front of Xi Fuhong.
She didn’t deserve to appear before Xi Fuhong, didn’t deserve to hear her voice again, didn’t deserve even a glance.
And yet…
“Please… just one more time…” Her voice choked, unable to cry.
Seeing Xiao Qiyu suddenly kneel, Xi Fuhong panicked and crouched down to help her up.
Just as she reached out, she heard Xiao Qiyu’s plea.
“Miss Xiao?” Xi Fuhong hesitated, then called again, “Miss Xiao… Miss Xiao…”
—”You risked your life to get the White Tiger Ring Head… What exactly is in the Tiger Dragon Cave that you want?”
Thinking back to Miss Xi’s words, she hadn’t even noticed the bitterness in them.
What had Miss Xi been feeling then? What had she missed?
Regret wasn’t enough to describe it.
Now, all that remained was pain.
Only pain could make her understand.
After waiting so long, the truth she couldn’t grasp was what people called longing.
“Could Miss Xi… call me again?” Xiao Qiyu couldn’t help the trembling of her lips, her voice full of pleading.
Three years had passed, and what she still couldn’t forget… was that one soft call.
Author’s note: …Ugh… so angsty xddd, even I felt heartbroken reading it (covers face).
Hua’er’s role is slightly more prominent now.
Since shijie can’t suffer physically, let’s make her suffer emotionally!!
“Alliance Leader, you must get justice for my family!” A man covered in wounds knelt in the main hall, raising both hands high, his face full of sorrow.
“My family has been merchants for three generations.
How did we offend Jianghu people? Why did that demon slaughter all sixteen members of my household? Alliance Leader, please get justice for us!”
On the main seat, Chen Tanghe’s sword-like brows furrowed slightly.
“The Demonic Sect is a threat to the martial world.
Of course they must be eradicated!” With a strong voice, Chen Tanghe stepped forward to help the man up, offering a few words of comfort.
A servant then helped the man away.
Pacing around the hall, Chen Tanghe let out a long sigh.
In the past few months, the Demonic Sect had extended its claws toward common folk.
They wanted to catch them, but only managed to nab small fry.
To this day, they hadn’t even seen the Demonic Sect Leader’s face—how could they talk about eradication?
Chen Tanghe picked up a ceramic cup, just about to drink, when a commotion erupted outside.
He heard a servant trying to stop someone in a panic, and the next moment, the main doors were kicked open with a loud bang.
Three men in tight-fitting outfits stormed in.
They were well-built and decent-looking, but their faces were fierce, and they carried long swords, clearly ready to cause trouble.
“Hand over Luo Qingcheng!” the leading man roared.
“How dare you!” Chen Tanghe’s brows knitted tightly.
With a burst of inner strength, he forcefully suppressed the man’s aura.
The man’s expression changed slightly.
Facing Chen Tanghe’s righteous presence, he couldn’t help but feel a bit intimidated.
He gripped his sword tightly and stepped forward half a step, shouting, “Hand over Luo Qingcheng! That woman went mad during cultivation and dared to kill one of our sect’s disciples.
Don’t hide like a coward in here! We’re acting under orders from the main sect—we must take her back!”
“How can you be sure it was the Luo Family Head who did it?” Chen Tanghe’s face stiffened, suppressing his anger as he spoke calmly.
“Hmph!” the man snorted coldly.
“This weapon—there’s no mistaking it.
It belongs to that woman Luo Qingcheng!”
With a glance, one of the disciples behind him pulled a cloth bundle from his waist.
Unwrapping layer after layer of white cloth, they revealed Luo Qingcheng’s signature whip.
But the crimson handle was broken in two, and the whip itself was covered in blade marks.
Even if they got it back, it was probably beyond repair.
