FID – Chapter 1046

Chapter 1046: He Is a Lonely Man

“I’m not from your village,” Liu Yusheng said as she lifted her veil, smiling at the girl, no longer hiding her face.

While traveling outside, women of the Saintess Tribe are not allowed to lift their veils, so during this time, she hadn’t worn a mask on her face—just the veil was enough.

Aside from the veil, this was her true face.

Qian Yi immediately widened her eyes and scrutinized the girl from head to toe. Finally, she sighed, “You’re really beautiful.”

“…” Normally, wasn’t the first reaction to ask who she actually was?

But this girl focused on her face first instead.

“Though compared to me, you’re just a little behind.” Qian Yi said, nodding affirmatively. “Your eyes aren’t as cute as mine.”

“…” Liu Yusheng’s head thudded onto the table, powerless.

“Hahaha, don’t be upset. I’m the most beautiful girl in the Saintess Tribe. It’s natural you can’t compare, it’s no big deal. Actually, you’re already more beautiful than many girls in our village, really.” The girl reached out and patted Liu Yusheng on the shoulder reassuringly.

“I think you know Xue Honglian.”

“……”

“Right? I’m not wrong, am I?”

From the twitching corner of Liu Yusheng’s eye, the girl seemed to have glimpsed the truth. This was serious.

She dragged a chair over and sat next to Liu Yusheng, arm against arm. “Are you friends with Xue Honglian? How did you meet? I’m his friend too, so let’s be friends! I’ll take that as a yes, so from now on we’re friends. Friends should be honest, so I’ll confess first: I’m actually Xue Honglian’s fiancée, though only temporarily, but it still counts. How long have you known him? Do you know a lot about him? Does he sometimes chatter endlessly in front of you and other times go cold, like a lunatic? …”

Her rapid-fire, self-talking questions hit Liu Yusheng like a volley of cannon fire, leaving her completely stunned.

Pursing her lips, she muttered, “Speaking of chatterboxes, you beat him.”

“Really?” The girl clapped her hands, eyes curved into crescent moons with delight. “Finally, there’s something I can beat him at!”

“…” Liu Yusheng glanced toward the door. Really, anyone, just take this one away.

She now felt a surge of sympathy for Xue Honglian—and even more curiosity: after spending so much time with this girl day and night, how had he survived?

Her face was gently turned by a pair of small hands, meeting the girl’s eager, shining eyes. “Just tell me.”

Liu Yusheng felt helpless but also amused. The girl talked a lot and was quite naggy, yet somehow not annoying at all.

Perhaps it was because of her eyes—they were so pure.

“What do you want to know?”

“Tell me what kind of person Xue Honglian is,” she said, leaning closer to make sure she wouldn’t miss a single word from Liu Yusheng in case she spoke lower.

Liu Yusheng gave her a sidelong glance, smiling. She thought for a moment about how to summarize Xue Honglian.

“Xue Honglian is a very good person, and… he’s also a very lonely person.”

She felt that lonely was the most fitting word to describe him.

Back when Xue Honglian had taken her to the small island where Baicao Valley was, she remembered being furious and even throwing small stones at him.

He wasn’t angry; instead, he picked up the stones she threw and tossed them back at her, letting her continue throwing.

At the time, she had called him crazy for this, but now she realized it wasn’t that at all. He simply saw it as playing a game.

He saw it as her playing with him.

He really was a lonely person.

Whether it was Honglian or Qinglian, it seemed neither of them had a childhood.

From a very young age, he had witnessed the annihilation of Baicao Valley and was then taken under Xue Zhong’s wing. From that moment, he had been forced to grow up.

Day after day, there was nothing but endless training.

He lived for only one thing: revenge.

Honglian and Qinglian, in truth, had never truly lived for themselves.

The smile on Qian Yi’s face vanished suddenly; even she didn’t know why she couldn’t hold it.

He was a lonely person. Just those few words twisted her heart.

It hurt.

The silence beside her was unexpected. Liu Yusheng looked at the girl and saw her mouth half-open, eyes slightly red.

She was dazed, as if struck by a blow. Something inside her gaze trembled—pain, heartache—and a mist veiled it, making it hard to read.

Sniffling, Qian  Yi stood and gave Liu Yusheng an apologetic smile. “I’ll go back to my room and rest. I’ll come chat with you again next time. Remember, we’re friends now.”

Watching the girl leave, Liu Yusheng remained silent for a moment, then slowly smiled to herself.

Qian Yi really was a very interesting girl.

Xue Honglian was able to bring her along into the caravan, so perhaps subconsciously, he didn’t reject her.

In the eunuch’s room, one wave of doctors came and went after another, and by nightfall, they still hadn’t diagnosed anything. As for the suspected poisoning, there was no evidence to support it. The eunuch furiously berated every doctor who had been summoned.

Fearing his status, the doctors didn’t dare argue openly. Once they stepped outside, many would turn back and spit in the direction of that room.

The eunuch’s injury, due to the incompetence of the quack doctors, was ultimately unresolved. By then, it was already late at night. Even if the eunuch was desperate to seek a skilled physician in Dazhou City, he could not disregard the safety of the saintesses and travel through the night.

All he could do was endure and depart at first light.

That night, it happened to be Xue Honglian’s turn to keep watch, responsible for the back courtyard of the inn.

He found a random pillar in the yard, leaned against it with eyes closed. He wasn’t really going to stay awake, but he had to make it look convincing, so as not to cause any trouble.

Thus, he rested against the pillar.

Not long after, a very faint rustle came from behind him.

Xue Honglian’s eyelids twitched, but he didn’t open his eyes, not even changing his breathing.

As the movement slowly approached him, he suddenly struck, his hand flashing like lightning to grip the other’s throat.

“Ugh! Ugh!” The girl’s throat was squeezed, and she couldn’t breathe. She pounded on his hand, signaling him to let go.

Once he recognized who it was, Xue Honglian frowned and released her. “What are you doing here? Go back.”

“Cough, cough, cough! You almost killed me! You’re so powerful!” Tears sprang from Qian Yi’s eyes as she clutched her neck and pouted in complaint.

Xue Honglian didn’t look at her and leaned back against the pillar to continue resting.

If he hadn’t smelled her familiar scent in time, her neck would already be broken, and she wouldn’t even have a chance to stand there accusing him of trying to kill her.

After a while, her coughing eased, but she didn’t leave as he had warned. Instead, she leapt onto the railing next to him, leaning against the same pillar.

“Xue Honglian, look! The moon is still half-full!”

“Idiot.” Of course it’s a half-moon before mid-month.

Something so obvious, yet she acted like she had discovered a treasure.

Even after being scolded, the girl didn’t get angry. She leaned closer, smiling, and poked his solid arm with her finger. “You have to keep watch all night, right? It must be so lonely being in the yard by yourself. I’ll keep you company.”