Help, I’m Being Forced to Marry a Frail and Sickly Immortal Doctor! 25

Chapter 25: Crane Returns to the Green River

Yin Buran’s lips are so soft.

As the Senior Sister of Azurefall Creek, Qin Jiangli had always been impartial and treated everyone equally.

So she didn’t give Qingtong any face and asked seriously, “What medicine? Isn’t the medicine you’re brewing right here?”

“…”

Qingtong took a deep breath and forced a smile that was both awkward and polite. “I’ll go brew the next bowl.”

After saying that, she ignored everything else, put down the medicine bowl and a red booklet, and pulled Qin Jiangli’s sleeve to leave.

Fortunately, the latter was very cooperative, but as she passed by Ning Ruoque, she glanced at her with a faint smile.

The door creaked shut, leaving only Ning Ruoque and Yin Buran.

Both were as still as if in a meditative state, neither of them speaking.

Especially Ning Ruoque. She had just been teased by Qin Jiangli and now wished she could hide herself in a dark place.

But even if she hid, her mind was filled with those two sentences—

“She probably wants you to coax her.”

“Ranran rarely acts cute even in front of the Medicine King.”

She mulled over these two sentences and couldn’t help but look at Yin Buran.

The person who had always been composed and noble was now trapped in bed. Pale and sickly, she looked as if she couldn’t even hold up that thin outer robe.

By the time she came back to her senses, Ning Ruoque had already picked up the medicine bowl and was sitting in front of Yin Buran.

Noticing the change in light and shadow, Yin Buran’s gaze flickered, and then she lifted her chin, looking extremely proud.

“You already know what I’m thinking, yet you’re still indulging me?”

Ning Ruoque scooped up a spoonful of the medicinal soup and cooled it with her spiritual energy. “It’s not indulging. The medicine has to be taken.”

How could this be considered indulging?

Yin Buran was a skinny cat, very pitiful. Even if she threw a tantrum and wanted to be coaxed, it wasn’t her fault.

Apart from in Brightlight Pavilion, Ning Ruoque had never fed anyone before, so she was very careful.

She paid close attention to Yin Buran at all times, watching her swallowing motion, her pressed lips, and her occasionally furrowed brow.

She wasn’t in a hurry either, taking it one spoonful at a time, slowly.

A gentle wind blew away the bitter taste of the medicine, and the crabapple blossoms on the tree rustled, casting mottled light in the room.

Just like that, one fed and one drank, and time quietly slipped away from the gradually emptying medicine bowl.

No one spoke, but the atmosphere was surprisingly harmonious.

When Ning Ruoque finally put away the bowl, her mood was very calm, and she even felt a rare sense of sleepiness.

She thought for a moment, then took out a piece of sweet cake from her storage bag and brought it to Yin Buran’s lips. “Have something sweet.”

This time, she was willing to part with it.

The sweet cake was only two inches long and gave off the sweet fragrance of glutinous rice.

Yin Buran leaned forward and took a bite, chewed slowly, and then took the other half into her mouth.

Before Ning Ruoque could pull her hand back, she tilted her head slightly and licked away the sugar powder on Ning Ruoque’s fingertips, not wasting a single bit.

The movement was very fast. If it weren’t for the overly obvious itching on her finger, Ning Ruoque would have thought it was an illusion.

Yin Buran’s lips are so soft. Softer than the sweet cake.

Ning Ruoque foolishly maintained the posture of extending her hand, her peripheral vision sweeping over Yin Buran’s lips before quickly retracting.

The roots of her ears were a little hot. She rubbed her fingers and silently reproached herself for her impolite thoughts.

She thought it was over, but who would have thought that Yin Buran would raise her head and say without any politeness, “Wipe my mouth.”

“…”

Since she had already fed her, Ning Ruoque decided to be a good person to the end.

In order to avoid having any more strange thoughts about Yin Buran, she used the handkerchief as a rag and wiped it across Yin Buran’s lips simply and roughly.

The latter frowned and said in a deep voice, “Closer.”

Ning Ruoque leaned over, not understanding. “What—”

Before her voice could finish, she was hugged by Yin Buran, her hands wrapped around her waist, and her chin resting on her shoulder.

Although the force of the hug was very light and could be easily pushed away, Ning Ruoque had the illusion of being stuck and couldn’t move.

She was a little unsure, comparing it with her previous memories.

What is this? Is Yin Buran coaxing her, or…

Rewarding her?

Feeling the warm body temperature, Yin Buran squinted her eyes comfortably and scolded lightly, “Next time, wipe more gently, understand?”

Ning Ruoque’s body was stiff, and her tone was also stiff. “…Alright.”

Yin Buran was slightly satisfied. A certain person was ridiculously obedient today.

She leaned back softly and instructed, “Go and get that booklet.”

She hadn’t had time to read the booklet that Qingtong had left earlier.

The sword cultivator diligently handed over the item and then sat back down on the chair by the bed.

“What is this?”

A faint smile hung on the corners of Yin Buran’s mouth, and the sunlight made her look warm and cozy.

She glanced at Ning Ruoque. “A list of items needed for the Dao companion ceremony.”

Ning Ruoque subconsciously asked, “Whose Dao companion ceremony?”

Only after asking did she realize that this was a stupid question.

Yin Buran often mentioned this. So she wasn’t just teasing her?

Really selling her body?!

An extremely vivid panic appeared on Ning Ruoque’s face, but it was quickly restrained.

Her expression was complicated. “Yin Buran, you always say that I’m your fiancée, but you can’t produce any evidence. How can I believe you?”

It wasn’t too much for her to want a definite proof.

Yin Buran’s smile disappeared. “I told you, I gave you a sachet before.”

Ning Ruoque thought of the sachet in her bosom, with its indescribable embroidery.

“Where is that sachet?”

“It’s your thing. How would I know?”

Yin Buran snorted coldly. “You don’t even remember our first meeting. It’s normal for you to forget where you threw it.”

Ning Ruoque wasn’t annoyed, after all, she really had no impression.

She continued to ask, “Is there anything else?”

“When you took me traveling, we hung a wishing knot together at a temple fair in the lower realm.”

It would be fine to go and see, Ning Ruoque wasn’t afraid of the trouble, but the person before her changed her tune.

“But fifty years ago, a bolt of lightning struck down, and both the tree and the wishing knot were burned.”

This time, without waiting for her to ask, Yin Buran spoke on her own, “You sent me a few letters, telling me about your experiences during your training.”

Ning Ruoque paused and tentatively said, “I can also identify the handwriting.”

Yin Buran tilted her head and said innocently, “Thirty years ago, the brocade box for storage suddenly malfunctioned, and everything inside turned to ash.”

Finally, she shook the jade bracelet on her hand again. “You gave me a strand of sword qi. It’s inside.”

Ning Ruoque quickly said, “This can be taken out to see, right?”

But Yin Buran still shook her head, leaned against the soft pillow, and refused very crisply.

“Let’s try other methods first. I won’t use it unless it’s a last resort.”

“…”

After a long silence, Ning Ruoque sighed helplessly. “Yin Buran, stop fooling around.”

How could there be so many coincidences in the world? She just felt that Yin Buran was fooling her. Making up things to change the subject, in reality, she just wanted to trick her into marrying her.

Yin Buran was very dissatisfied with her reaction. “I’m not fooling around. It doesn’t matter if it’s destroyed or forgotten. I will remember.”

When she said this, her eyes were icy cold, and her shoulders were slightly tensed, with a morbid obstinacy.

So much so that a few light coughs made Ning Ruoque so frightened that she was afraid she would cough until she fainted.

Ning Ruoque didn’t dare to ask anymore. Seeing her yawn sleepily, she said cautiously, “Sleep for a while?”

“Mm.”

Yin Buran answered obediently, but suddenly grabbed Ning Ruoque’s collar—

She couldn’t pull her. To be precise, with her current strength, she could only simply tug on it.

She didn’t feel very embarrassed and insisted on her request, “You can’t leave my sight. I want to see you when I wake up. If you want to practice your sword, carry me to the window.”

Only after Ning Ruoque nodded in agreement did she shrink back into the quilt with peace of mind.

Ning Ruoque simply sat on the edge of the bed, listening as Yin Buran’s breathing gradually became regular.

She boldly stretched out a finger and gently poked Yin Buran’s face.

Perhaps because of the medicine, the other person was sleeping very soundly.

So Ning Ruoque took out a transmission talisman that Yin Buran had thrown to her before and hadn’t used up.

This kind of transmission talisman could be used to change the recipient of the transmission with spiritual energy, and Ning Ruoque happened to have someone she wanted to find.

Items might be damaged over time, but there were still many long-lived cultivators like her who could record the changes over thousands of years.

If she really had some relationship with Yin Buran, then the people around her would definitely have an impression.

She manipulated her spiritual energy and skillfully drew a few communication runes.

Before long, the transmission talisman lit up.

But the other side didn’t speak, only the sound of flames crackling.

Knowing the other person’s personality, Ning Ruoque lowered her voice and got straight to the point.

“Chu Xuan, it’s me. I don’t know how I’m alive either, but that’s not important right now.”

She chose her words carefully. “I seem to have lost a part of my memory because of my rebirth. I want to ask, did I have a fiancée before?”

There was another silence on the other side.

Then a sneer full of ridicule came out, “What, you’re getting married soon, and you hope I can give you a wedding gift?”

Ning Ruoque said honestly and sincerely, “It hasn’t reached that stage yet.”

Unexpectedly, this sentence successfully detonated Chu Xuan’s emotions. She didn’t hold back anymore and started scolding.

“Damn it, who are you to impersonate Ning Ruoque?”

Ning Ruoque was stuck for a moment, then turned to look at Yin Buran’s movements.

This was not strange. Anyone who suddenly received a message from a friend who had been dead for a hundred years would probably doubt the other’s identity.

Chu Xuan was very annoyed. “How could I not know what Ning Ruoque is like? She’s a killing machine, with a wooden face all day long. How could she have a fiancée? Don’t be ridiculous.”

“You’d better be honest. Don’t let me catch you!”

Her loud voice, even with the sound-proof barrier Ning Ruoque had set up, still made her ears ring.

What was even more terrifying was that Yin Buran frowned and showed signs of waking up.

“Ning Ruoque…” she murmured, her hand fumbling around, not touching the familiar person.

The originally happily ranting Chu Xuan was dumbfounded, like a stuck cannon. “Wait, this voice is—”

Seeing that the person was about to wake up, Ning Ruoque didn’t have time to explain too much. “I have something urgent here. I’ll contact you when I have time. See you later.”

“Wait, don’t—”

Chu Xuan came to her senses and hurriedly tried to stop her, but Ning Ruoque mercilessly cut off the transmission and turned to tuck Yin Buran in.

The transmission talisman flickered incessantly, like a jumping meerkat eager for gossip.

Finally, the spiritual energy was exhausted, and it completely turned to ashes.

Feeling the familiar aura, Yin Buran fell into a deep sleep again, not forgetting to hold on to a section of Ning Ruoque’s sleeve.

Ning Ruoque lowered her eyelids and also put away her complicated thoughts. Her friend’s reaction only represented one result.

Perhaps, she and Yin Buran were not in that kind of intimate relationship.

After a moment, she forcefully pulled her sleeve out.