Xi Fuhong stood by, dumbfounded.
She had never seen any kind of magic before.
At this moment, she was both amazed and scared, wondering how she, as a woman, could be so useless while others could make a grown man obey like a dog.
She felt a deep admiration.
She originally wanted to explain to Xiao Qiyu what had just happened, but when she turned around, Xiao Qiyu was gone!
She heard a girl’s playful voice, “Senior Sister!!”
Turning around, she saw Xiao Qiyu already standing in front of the three women.
They greeted Xiao Qiyu with cupped hands, leaving Xi Fuhong puzzled.
Senior Sister?
Was Miss Xiao their Senior Sister?
“Senior Sister, your eyes…”
Qin Ke Yun frowned.
“It’s nothing, just a minor injury.”
Xiao Qiyu continued to smile gently.
She turned to Xi Fuhong and said, “Let me introduce you.
These two are my fellow junior sisters, Ke Yun and Qi Er.
This is Miss Xi.
Thanks to her care along the way, I was able to return to the city safely.”
Xi Fuhong blushed deeply, knowing she had been freeloading off Xiao Qiyu.
At this moment, Fang Qi Er stepped forward, looking Xi Fuhong up and down.
Her gaze wasn’t exactly friendly, but it wasn’t hostile either.
After a moment, she pulled out an embroidered money pouch from her bosom and stuffed it into Xi Fuhong’s hands.
“This is a token of appreciation from Bi Xuan Palace.
Please accept it, Miss.”
With that, she returned to Xiao Qiyu’s side.
Holding the money pouch, Xi Fuhong was in a daze.
This money…
is for me?
“Miss Xi, I will return to Bi Xuan Palace with my junior sisters.
Consider the money a token of respect.
Until we meet again.”
With a cupped hand farewell, Xiao Qiyu and her group left grandly.
Watching them leave, Xi Fuhong stood there dumbfounded.
Just… left like that?
She felt a bit of loss, mixed with regret. Initially, she and Xiao Qiyu had just happened to cross paths, mere strangers. There shouldn’t have been any attachment. But as she gazed into the distance where Xiao Qiyu had disappeared, that gentle smiling face kept reappearing in her mind. She couldn’t help but long to hear her call her “Miss Xi” once more.
“Hehe, miss, you have such a kind heart. Spare some for this crippled old man, will you?” A voice interrupted her thoughts. At some point, an old beggar had approached. Xi Fuhong snapped out of her reverie, feeling the weight of the purse in her hands. When she opened it, she saw more than ten silver coins inside. Money had never been of much value to her, so she casually handed two coins to the beggar before wandering off.
She bought a horse and headed straight for Li Jiang Mountain. Shaking off her earlier melancholy, she had more important matters to attend to. Along the way, she asked several farming households and found that, just as Xiao Qiyu had said, Li Jiang Mountain wasn’t far from Wang E City. However, midway through the journey, for some reason, the temperature became colder and colder the further east she went. Though it wasn’t yet cold enough to require a heavy coat, the chilly wind made her shrink her neck in discomfort.
“…ugh…” Gripping her wrist, she slowed the horse.
It was odd. Every night, when the weather turned cool, her limbs would tingle painfully. She had initially thought it was due to hunger, but after recalling her time as a human guinea pig not long ago, she began to suspect it was an aftereffect from that ordeal. Now that the weather was getting colder, the numbness in her hands and feet had worsened, becoming more painful.
Even though her hands and feet weren’t quite obeying her, she could see the towering mountains in front of her and was determined not to stop. She rode for a day and a night, and when she finally reached the foot of the mountain, she breathed a little easier. The mountain path was winding and steep, making it impossible to ride up, so she dismounted and prepared to continue on foot. She pulled out a piece of fruit she had picked along the way and took a bite. Though sour and bitter, it gave her a bit of energy.
Having solved her hunger, Xi Fuhong found a stick to use as a walking staff and began her shaky ascent. Along the way, she noticed frost on the branches and the ground was slippery with wet mud. She nearly slipped several times, but thanks to her staff, she managed to avoid falling off the mountain. Luckily, the path had no steep cliffs, so while progress was slow, it wasn’t too exhausting.
She had no clue how to find the Li Jiang Mountain Shi Residence. She wandered aimlessly along the mountain paths, hoping for divine guidance. As dusk fell, after two days of travel, Xi Fuhong’s consciousness began to blur. She could hardly feel her limbs anymore. At first, only her fingertips were numb, then came the stabbing pain, and now she couldn’t feel anything at all.
Finally, in the dim light of the mountain, she spotted wisps of smoke rising from a distance. Without a second thought, she rushed towards it. But when she arrived, she found it was just a small mountain hut, not the Shi Residence. Outside the hut, a man was preparing to slaughter a wild chicken. When he saw a girl suddenly charge out of the forest, he was startled, thinking it might be a bear.
“Eh?!” Xi Fuhong was equally surprised to see the man, and they both stared at each other in confusion.
“…Miss, are you… human… or a ghost?” The man muttered, recalling the rumors of ghosts in the mountains. Could this be one?
“I-I’m looking for the Shi Residence… Shi Cuiyan’s father. Do you know where it is?” Xi Fuhong gasped, trying to catch her breath. The man, still holding the flapping chicken, shook his head.
“I’ve lived here for over twenty years and have never heard of a Shi family. But there is a Si family at the foot of the mountain that farms.” Seeing Xi Fuhong’s dirty and tattered clothes, the man thought she must have fallen down the mountain and hit her head. Out of kindness, he offered, “Miss, are you a distant relative of the people in the valley? If you don’t know your way, I can take you back down the mountain.”
“I’m not! I’m looking for the Shi Residence! Li Jiang Mountain Shi Residence… How could it not exist…” She tugged at her messy hair in frustration, mumbling to herself, “How could it not exist… How could it…”
What about Sister Cui? Where’s the Shi Residence? And what about the granny’s old friend…
“Could it be that someone deceived you? Li Jiang Mountain is just a farming area, no noble families live here. The people who live here are all farmers and hunters. If you want to find the Shi Residence, you might want to ask around in Wang E City,” the man suggested, seeing how distraught Xi Fuhong was.
Deceived…
Those words struck her like a thunderbolt. She stopped tugging at her hair and stared blankly at a nearby tree. Did Sister Cui lie to me? Did she lie about granny being chased by enemies? Did she trick me into leaving the valley to look for granny together? Why? I’m just a servant. What’s the point of lying to me?
“I need to return to Wang E City…” Xi Fuhong muttered after a long silence.
If I return to Wang E City and ask around, maybe I can find the Shi Residence. Maybe Sister Cui didn’t lie to me…
“Yes, if you go back to Wang E City, you can ask the local authorities,” the man nodded in agreement.
He watched as Xi Fuhong hurriedly left. He thought about chasing after her but hesitated. This girl seemed a bit deranged, running off so quickly. Could she really be a forest spirit? With that thought, the man grew wary and decided not to pursue her. Meanwhile, Xi Fuhong stumbled down the mountain, her thoughts a jumbled mess. She had never doubted Sister Cui’s words, but now, every time she recalled the man’s comment, “Could it be you’ve been deceived,” it felt like a punch to the gut, knocking the wind out of her.
But she hadn’t… she hadn’t yet confirmed that Sister Cui had lied to her…
As she rounded a pine tree, she saw faint firelight in the pitch-black night. It wasn’t a forest fire, as she noticed the lights were moving quickly — and towards her. A chill ran down her spine, and a bad feeling crept over her.
Soon, a group of people dressed in red surrounded her, and her unease was confirmed.
“You are Xi Fuhong?” the leading young man asked.
Xi Fuhong nodded in response.
The young man turned and made way for someone in the crowd, and Xi Fuhong, looking past him, saw a woman standing with her hands behind her back.
She couldn’t help but furrow her brows. The aura this woman exuded made her uneasy.
The woman was extremely beautiful, tall and straight, slightly taller than Xiao Qiyu. Her long, jet-black hair was tied neatly with a red ribbon, and her fair skin was as delicate as snow. Her slender brows gave off an air of strength, but despite her striking appearance, her eyes…
