Chapter 70: Plucking a Plum Blossom for Whom
“Why not kill this beast?”
Riding her sword back to Suwen Peak took less than half a quarter of an hour, but Ning Ruoque squatted at the entrance of Yin Buran’s courtyard in a daze for a long time, not daring to go in.
She didn’t know how to face Yin Buran.
From the moment she learned that Yin Buran had used a forbidden art to save her, resulting in a body full of chronic illnesses, Ning Ruoque had felt a little guilty.
Now that she knew that she had crippled her own cultivation technique, apart from the guilt, there was also a sense of unease.
Yin Buran had paid too much for her, and she could give back too little.
Not only had she lost her memories of Yin Buran, but she also didn’t have the ability to protect her.
As soon as she thought of this, her heart ached terribly.
Ning Ruoque squatted in a corner with a vacant look in her eyes, staring at the wandering cloud shadows on the ground.
Suddenly, a white crabapple blossom floated down in front of her, followed by a corner of a skirt embroidered with white cranes and cloud patterns.
Ning Ruoque looked up and squinted from the sunlight.
The person in front of her asked lazily, “What are you squatting here for?”
Yin Buran had actually noticed that Ning Ruoque had returned long ago and was just waiting for her to come into the house to sleep with her.
But this sword cultivator was doing who knows what, not moving at all, so she had to reluctantly come out to find her.
Ning Ruoque quickly stood up, her eyelids still lowered.
Yin Buran sized her up and down for a long while and frowned. “Did my master want to drive you away?”
“I’ll go and talk to her—”
She turned to leave, so scared that Ning Ruoque quickly explained, “No, the Medicine King just wanted to discuss an alliance with me.”
Hearing this, Yin Buran tilted her head, and a strand of white hair slipped from behind her ear.
She clearly didn’t believe it. “Then why do you look like your food has been stolen?”
Her originally bright and clear eyes had lost their spirit, looking quite pitiful.
Ning Ruoque bit her lip, trying hard to relax her brow.
She heard Yin Buran’s expressionless comment, “It’s even more like it. At least ten steamed buns have been stolen.”
Ning Ruoque: “…”
She sighed helplessly. “Yin Buran.”
Yin Buran directly stepped forward. “What on earth happened?”
Ning Ruoque gently pulled Yin Buran’s wrist away.
After a few more breaths, she finally chose her words and said, “I… have something I want to talk to you about.”
Yin Buran frowned slightly, but she still grabbed her sleeve and obediently followed her in.
Everything in the room was as it was, no different from when Ning Ruoque had left.
Even the book on the table was still on the page she had been reading, as if after Ning Ruoque had left, Yin Buran had been too lazy to read it again.
Ning Ruoque first poured a cup of hot tea.
Just now, outside, Yin Buran’s fingertips were ice-cold, probably also due to the influence of her cold constitution, her body temperature was lower than an ordinary person’s.
Ning Ruoque sat opposite Yin Buran with a proper posture and pushed the hot tea to the other.
But Yin Buran did not drink it, only holding it in her hands. “What do you want to talk to me about?”
Her voice was a little muffled, but her eyes were very bright.
Like a cautious little cat, she had tensed up just because she had noticed some subtle changes.
Ning Ruoque observed the other’s expression without a sound and first told her the news she had gotten from the Medicine King.
When Yin Buran heard the news of Xu Chuo’s death, she let out a soft scoff.
Seeing that Ning Ruoque was hesitant and did not speak again, she tapped the teacup with her fingertip. “Is this what you wanted to talk to me about?”
Ning Ruoque shook her head.
She hesitated for a moment, lowered her eyes to stare at the tabletop, and then said softly, “The situation is complicated now…”
“Before you’ve recovered, just stay at Azurefall Creek. Let me handle the other matters, okay?”
As she had expected, Yin Buran refused without thinking.
“No, I want to go with you.”
Her attitude was written all over her face, resolute and stubborn.
So all the words that Ning Ruoque had wanted to say were stuck in her throat. She opened her mouth, but could not utter a single syllable.
The room was instantly extremely quiet.
But it was like a thin layer of ice on a stream. It was unknown when it would crack with a “crack,” revealing the surging undercurrent beneath.
Yin Buran snorted coldly. “Do you think I’m a burden?”
Afraid that she would misunderstand, Ning Ruoque quickly denied, “How could that be?”
Yin Buran still relentlessly pressed her, “Then why did you suddenly talk to me about this?”
“…”
Ning Ruoque was stunned.
She had always been clumsy with her words and preferred to take action. Now that she was forced to give a reason, she was a little at a loss.
Reason told her that she should just brush this topic aside and then soothe Yin Buran’s fur.
But emotionally, Ning Ruoque could not ignore Yin Buran’s white hair and her abnormally frail constitution.
After a long consideration, Ning Ruoque lowered her head and said in a low voice, “The demon race is making a move. I might have to go to the ancient battlefield to investigate personally.”
That place was the front line of the battle between the human and demon races, and it was extremely dangerous.
For thousands of years, the two races had shed countless blood in this place, so much so that the land of the ancient battlefield had been stained a reddish-brown.
In addition, the nine-tailed fox had escaped, and the news of Ning Ruoque’s rebirth would probably spread throughout the entire demon race.
Once she appeared on the ancient battlefield, she would be firmly stared at by countless beastly pupils.
Ning Ruoque really did not want to let Yin Buran take the risk for her again.
If possible, she would rather Yin Buran live a peaceful life, planting flowers, sleeping, and researching the medical skills she liked.
She said with a serious face, “Yin Buran, the ancient battlefield is very dangerous. I’ll go alone.”
After a brief silence, Yin Buran suddenly grabbed Ning Ruoque’s sleeve.
Her good upbringing was carved into her bones, so even though her hands were trembling, she still spoke slowly and deliberately.
“Are you so eager to push me away?”
“Do you think it’s better to be alone? And then? Then you’re going to put yourself in danger again and die alone?”
Her questions became lower and lower, and she stared at Ning Ruoque, as if she wanted to swallow this person.
The latter was as if she had been burned by her scorching gaze, and her breath caught.
Then she was so flustered that she blurted out, “No… I’m afraid I can’t protect you. You’ve done so much for me. I don’t want to implicate you and get you injured again.”
It’s not worth it.
She tried to explain clearly.
But Yin Buran’s eyes quickly turned red, and teardrops gushed out, wetting her eyelashes.
Wet and pitiful.
Ning Ruoque was instantly flustered and subconsciously wanted to wipe them away.
But the latter directly slapped her hand away, blinked, and in the end, not a single tear fell.
Yin Buran took a soft breath. She was too afraid of the previous ending repeating itself, and the string of her reason was already stretched to the limit.
She wanted to bite someone, but her whole body was so weak that she couldn’t muster any strength.
So she could only ask with a trembling voice, “What if you get injured yourself? What if you’re seriously injured?”
Ning Ruoque was stunned for a moment.
She quickly coaxed, “It’s fine. I’ll find a way myself. It’s fine.”
The mottled sunlight fell on Ning Ruoque’s face, and her vision, blurred by the tears, was unclear. Yin Buran could not see her expression clearly.
But Yin Buran knew that Ning Ruoque must have been serious when she said this.
Yin Buran tilted her head, as if asking herself, “What do you mean, it’s fine?”
She heard her own rapid heartbeat and her unusually calm tone.
“When you chose to perish with the Demon God back then, did you also think it was fine, just like now?”
“Do you think you’re considering me? Then where do you place me, and where do you place yourself?”
Perhaps because she had asked too quickly, Ning Ruoque’s mind was a blank, and for a moment, she didn’t know which to answer first.
She actually didn’t remember her thoughts back then, so she couldn’t even refute or admit it.
So she maintained a distance of three feet from Yin Buran, not daring to take half a step forward.
Yin Buran covered her mouth with her sleeve, coughed a few times, and subconsciously touched her own wrist.
However, it was empty, with nothing there.
Her whole person suddenly became very wronged, and her eyes also became moist.
She wanted to throw a tantrum, but she clearly knew that Ning Ruoque had forgotten many things.
Just like now, facing her questioning, the sword cultivator would only stand there in a daze, at a loss.
Yin Buran was silent, feeling as if she had fallen into an ice cave, so cold that her whole body had lost all feeling and she couldn’t move.
The water in the teacup was still hot, but she couldn’t use it to warm her hands, and she didn’t even have the strength to speak.
Until a shadow fell before her.
Yin Buran slowly looked up. A certain sword cultivator was bending over, carefully pushing the teacup into her hand.
That movement was so stealthy, and her expression was a little nervous, looking very comical.
Being stared at by Yin Buran, she immediately shrank back timidly, stammering as she tried to explain.
Ning Ruoque didn’t have time. A teardrop first slid down Yin Buran’s cheek.
It landed on the table with a “pat,” making a muffled sound.
Yin Buran’s voice was even more muffled. She said to herself, “It’s not a burden.”
“I like you.”
Ning Ruoque was completely stunned.
After a few breaths, she scrambled to put the velvet blanket on Yin Buran. Because she was distracted, she accidentally knocked over the teacup.
The cup rolled on the table and finally landed on the couch.
Ning Ruoque didn’t know where that moment of panic came from.
It was as if she had encountered something she had never seen before, and no one had ever taught her how to deal with it. Even with a sword in her hand, she could only look around in a daze.
She couldn’t figure it out. What reason did Yin Buran have to take the risk with her?
While she was looking for the teacup with her head lowered, she said haltingly, “I might not be able to protect you well. I can’t repay you now. I—”
“But I like you.”
This sound was even lower, but it could easily interrupt Ning Ruoque’s words.
“…”
Yin Buran stared at her, her tone a little tired. “Why don’t you understand?”
Ning Ruoque was speechless.
She stood stiffly, not feeling uncomfortable, just that for a moment, she couldn’t get over this.
Her heart felt as if a crack had opened, and something had pierced into it.
Then it broke through the soil, then it sprouted, and from it extended an indescribable tingling numbness.
She watched as Yin Buran slowly turned her back and said calmly, “Let’s put this question aside for now. You think about it yourself, and I’ll calm down too.”
Although her words meant that they should each take a step back, but looking at her actions, it was very obvious that she didn’t want to pay any more attention to her.
The sky gradually darkened, and a gentle breeze blew through the white crabapple blossoms, and the wind carried a damp rain vapor.
Ning Ruoque answered in a hoarse voice, “Alright.”
She walked out of the room and greeted Yin Buran.
“I’m going out for a walk. I won’t go too far. Call me if you need anything.”
Then she gently closed the door and stared at the crack in the door for a long time.
Hearing no movement from inside, she frowned and hesitated for a moment, then left on her sword.
*
On Sleeping Jade Peak, the Medicine King was playing chess with a woman in black.
She said in surprise, “You’re saying that Ning Ruoque and Ranran might have had a fight?”
Qin Jiangli replied respectfully from below the platform, “I’m just guessing. After all, when I went, Junior Sister had already closed her door to guests.”
But the moment Ning Ruoque had left Azurefall Creek, Qin Jiangli had gone to Suwen Peak and had been met with a closed door.
From her understanding of Yin Buran, this guess was probably eighty or ninety percent correct.
The Medicine King knitted her brows, her expression one of displeasure and authority.
She placed a piece on the chessboard. “I know.”
Qin Jiangli nodded, bowed to the woman in black, and then took her leave.
As soon as she left, the woman in black slammed the chessboard. “Why not kill this beast?”
She was clearly very angry and wished she could immediately capture that heartless sword cultivator and beat her to death.
The chess pieces scattered in a clatter. The Medicine King hurriedly took her hand and coaxed her.
“Calm down. This is a matter for the younger generation. We don’t know the cause and effect. How can we interfere?”
“Besides, it’s normal to have a little friction in a relationship. Let’s wait and see.”
Mo Jue glanced at her coolly and coldly pulled her hand away. “We’ll sleep in separate beds tonight.”
The Medicine King was stunned. “Why?”
No, Ning Ruoque and Yin Buran are having a conflict. What does it have to do with her?
Mo Jue sneered, “Heh, it’s normal to have a little friction in a relationship. Where do all these ‘whys’ come from?”
The Medicine King: “…”
She let out a soft hiss and immediately gave up her face, leaning softly into Mo Jue’s arms and poking her chest with her beautiful nails.
Her tone was also extremely charming. “No~ I’ll think of a way right away!”
“I’ll order right now to pick ten more sword cultivators for Ranran! I don’t believe there isn’t one she likes!”
