A thick bloody scent made the unconscious Su Mu furrow her delicate brows.
Stimulated by the bloody smell, Su Mu opened her eyes and discovered she was lying on a small wooden table at a tea stall.
“You’re awake.”
Chen Qing’s indifferent voice sobered Su Mu somewhat, but the moment she turned her head and saw the several mutilated corpses lying on the ground, her groggy mind instantly cleared.
She nearly jumped straight up from the bench she was sitting on.
“Th-this…”
“Just taught a lesson to some ignorant fools who didn’t know their place. Since you’re awake, let’s keep moving.”
Chen Qing drained the last sip of tea from her bowl and stood up calmly.
Staring at the ground soaked red with blood beneath the corpses, Su Mu swallowed fearfully.
Even if she was a fool, she knew these people on the ground were the bandits who had disguised themselves on the road to rob them, and they had even drugged her into a stupor.
But gazing at these corpses with their gruesome deaths—even though Su Mu had already seen headless horse bandits before—her heart still couldn’t help but feel a twinge of fear.
Su Mu hurriedly turned away, refusing to look at the things on the ground.
Chen Qing watched Su Mu’s frightened expression, a flicker of amusement in her eyes. This was precisely the effect she wanted.
If she didn’t scare this Traitorous Shizun a little, all her little schemes would end up biting her in the back.
“Won’t leaving those corpses like that cause trouble?”
As she followed Chen Qing along the wide official road, Su Mu thought back to the scene from earlier. She felt not only afraid but also worried.
Although they were bandits, brazenly killing them and abandoning the bodies right there would surely alert the Yamen.
“Who would know I did it?”
Chen Qing’s casual words left the worried Su Mu utterly speechless.
She truly hadn’t adjusted her mindset yet. This world had no omnipresent System like a heavenly eye; for the Yamen to investigate a murder case on a desolate roadside was far easier said than done—next to impossible.
But from another angle, if Chen Qing wanted to kill her, it would be even simpler than crushing an ant.
And doing so wouldn’t cost Chen Qing a thing.
Seeming to see through the wild thoughts racing in Su Mu’s mind, Chen Qing turned back and flashed her a “kind” smile.
“Let me carry your sword. My body’s out of shape; I need to exercise more.”
Seeing Chen Qing’s loaded smile, Su Mu felt a chill run down her spine and quickly grabbed the sword herself.
Watching Su Mu’s mix of cowardice and silliness, Chen Qing suddenly found bullying this Traitorous Shizun rather entertaining.
If she wore that bullied look in bed, it would probably be even more fun.
Su Mu, clutching the sword to her chest, suddenly felt another chill on her back.
But this chill felt different from the previous one—strange, ominous.
She shook her head, suppressing the odd sensation in her heart.
She was already being so compliant; surely this Villain wouldn’t do anything to her.
The two walked one behind the other along the official road as the sky gradually darkened, leaving only the faint orange glow of the sunset on the land.
It looked like they wouldn’t reach Cloud City today.
After walking all day, Su Mu’s legs were on the verge of giving out.
Seeing the darkening sky, Chen Qing stopped rushing.
Instead, she found a relatively flat spot by the river to rest for the night.
Su Mu plopped down on the soft grass and flopped backward.
“I’m exhausted; I could sleep like this forever.”
But Su Mu hadn’t relaxed for long before Chen Qing’s words sent her crashing back to reality.
“Get up and go catch some fish.”
“Ah!”
Su Mu felt like her whole body was falling apart. This damn Villain was even ordering her to catch fish.
And eating grilled fish every day—aren’t you sick of it? You’re not, but I’m sick of catching them.
Su Mu grumbled about Chen Qing inwardly nonstop, but after witnessing her brutality at the tea stall earlier, she didn’t dare say a word. Helplessly, she took off her outer robe, rolled up her sleeves and pant legs.
The icy river water flowed over Su Mu’s slender little feet, causing her to yank the extended foot right back while still on the shore.
But glancing at Chen Qing, who was building a fire on the bank, Su Mu could only curse her silently while gritting her teeth against the cold and dipping her little feet back into the frigid water.
The river submerged her pale ankles. Her little feet shivered, slowly adjusting to the temperature.
“Ah Qiu!”
Su Mu wiped her nose. The temperature swing between morning and evening by this river was way too extreme.
She hadn’t even started fishing yet, and she was already sneezing.
It was all this damn stinky Villain’s fault. If you want fish, catch them yourself. See if I don’t overfeed you, you hungry ghost.
Su Mu reached under the rocks, groping carefully.
But the evening light was far dimmer than daytime; spotting the nimble fish in the river with her eyes alone wasn’t easy.
After fumbling around for ages, Su Mu had only snagged a few tiny fish not even worth the gaps between her teeth.
If she turned these in, Su Mu could already picture her fate.
Chen Qing would decide she was useless and toss her in the river as chum.
Getting nibbled by a school of fish? No thanks!
To save her fragile little life, Su Mu stared fixedly at the river’s surface.
Finally, she spotted a black fish swimming lazily along. Suppressing her excitement, she crept closer.
“Got it!”
She joyfully hoisted the fish out of the water. But before she could celebrate for long, the black fish thrashed its tail hard.
The slippery creature wriggled right out of her grasp, and that parting slap sent the thrilled Su Mu stumbling off balance into the river.
The freezing water soaked most of her body, splashing into her face.
The dazed Su Mu sat amid a pile of riverbed pebbles.
The escaped black fish flicked its tail once more and vanished without a trace.
Chen Qing, tending the fire, had been drawn by Su Mu’s excited shout.
But she missed the triumphant catch and instead witnessed Su Mu’s pathetic flailing after the fish’s tail-whack.
Chen Qing set down the fire starter, rolled up her own pant legs and sleeves with a sigh, and waded into the river.
“You okay?”
“N-no, I’m fine.”
Su Mu looked awkwardly at the approaching Chen Qing, her face burning with shame.
That fish had been swimming so slowly; she’d thought it would be an easy grab.
Who knew it’d school her like that.
Not only had her hand been slapped red, but plopping down on the pebbles had left her butt throbbing too.
Seeing Su Mu’s eyes glimmering with tears from the sharp pain,
Chen Qing felt a pang of inexplicable regret and scooped her up in a princess carry out of the water.
“Hey, y-your clothes are wet.”
Su Mu was surprised to be lifted by Chen Qing.
She’d figured Chen Qing would just tell her to crawl out and keep fishing, full of disdain.
She hadn’t expected this Villain to have a gentle side after all.
But Chen Qing’s next words instantly shattered that touching moment.
