Chapter 7: Huaicheng

On this drizzly, overcast day, He Ci had a carriage prepared and insisted on personally escorting He Xi to her maternal grandparents' home.

Shen Lingyun helped her husband into his cloak and gently reminded him, "The weather's bad, so be careful on the road. It's fine to go slow—just stay safe."

He Ci took her hand and smiled. "I know. Every time I leave, you have to nag me about this."

Shen Lingyun shot him a look. "I have one husband and one daughter. If I don't nag you two, who else am I supposed to nag?"

He Ci shook his head with a helpless laugh.

They had been married eighteen years. Apart from that first year, when He Ci had hardly counted as a decent husband, he had begun to settle down and focus on the family not long after He Xi was born, and his relationship with his wife had only grown better with each passing year.

Shen Lingyun had a considerate husband and a sensible daughter. After so many years of marriage, her features were still soft and elegant, her figure slender and graceful—she carried a natural air of refinement even standing still.

Students passing in the distance who caught sight of He Ci and Shen Lingyun together would inevitably sigh that the two were truly a perfect match.

Shen Lingyun glanced at the carriage and lowered her voice. "A Xi is at the age where she's just beginning to understand matters of the heart. Don't be too hard on her. I can tell Pei Yan genuinely likes her and treats her well. If you're too strict, it might backfire."

He Ci sneered. "Genuine feelings won't fill her belly. He's a nominal disciple of Zhenxiang Temple, nothing but a petty demon catcher. Until he's bought property and saved enough money, he can forget about marrying my daughter. We raised A Xi with care—she's not going out there to suffer alongside someone else."

Shen Lingyun's brows curved into a smile.

He Ci's expression softened. "You think I have a point?"

Shen Lingyun nodded. "Mm. A very good point."

Hearing his wife agree so readily stirred something in He Ci's heart.

He would be away from home for two days this time and wanted a little more intimacy with his wife, but quite a few students were secretly lurking about for gossip. He could only maintain the dignity of an Academy Head—couldn't even bend his waist a little.

Inside the carriage, a similar scene of reluctant parting was playing out.

He Xi was pressed against the carriage wall, her heart pounding wildly with fright.

Pei Yan leaned down, forehead resting against hers. His warm breath swept across the shell of her ear, his fingertips lightly catching her dangling wrist, a restrained hunger hidden in his eyes.

"A Xi, let me take you to the Shen family. Please?"

He Xi kept her voice low. "My father said I can't bring you to visit relatives before we're married."

Not married meant not family—so naturally she couldn't bring him to her maternal grandparents' home.

Pei Yan settled for less. "I won't go to the Shen house. Let me accompany you on the road. Please?"

He Xi said again, "My father said we aren't married yet, so we can't let people see us getting too close."

The gloom in Pei Yan's eyes deepened. "I'll follow from far behind. No one will see us walking together."

He Xi: "My father said—mmph!"

He kissed her, a light bite at the corner of her lip. Pressed against her mouth, his dark eyes churning with displeasure, he said, angry and aggrieved, "Did your father also say you're not allowed to kiss me?"

He Xi touched her lips and nodded. "Mm. My father said that."

Pei Yan, sulking: "Well, I kissed you anyway."

He Xi burst out laughing. "I won't tell my father."

Looking at her smile, Pei Yan saw himself reflected, full and bright, in her clear eyes. The dissatisfaction and anger in his heart vanished without a trace.

His A Xi was so good. It was only right that winning her hand should come with some twists and difficulties.

Pei Yan's hand drifted to the little bell at her waist, toying with it. "A Xi, remember to always wear the Tongxin Bell."

He Xi answered obediently, "Okay."

Pei Yan pressed a pouch into her hand. "If you miss me, use the talismans inside to send me a message. If you want to see me, you have to tell me—I'll come as fast as I can."

He Xi cradled the pouch, still warm from his body heat, her smiling eyes curving. "Mm. Okay."

Pei Yan stroked her cheek. "You'll miss me, won't you?"

"I will."

"You won't fall for someone else?"

"I won't."

"When I come back, you'll still love me, won't you?"

"Of course I will."

He always needed to confirm, over and over, that He Xi would love him—as if one day she might abandon him and run.

Footsteps approached outside.

He Xi pushed Pei Yan.

Frustration flickered across his face.

No matter how ferocious a great demon, before him they were like ants, to be crushed at will.

Yet a scholar who couldn't even wring a chicken's neck—He Ci—left him utterly powerless.

The footsteps drew nearer.

He Xi took the initiative and kissed the corner of Pei Yan's lips, then pushed him again, smiling.

Pei Yan pulled her into his arms, buried his face in the crook of her neck, and drew a deep breath.

The instant the carriage door swung open, his figure vanished.

He Ci swept his gaze across the carriage interior. Only He Xi sat there, posture straight and proper. Besides her, there was no one else inside.

But under He Ci's gaze, He Xi felt inexplicably nervous.

She often had this illusion—that her father was some extraordinary figure, a man whose eyes could see through everything.

Just as He Xi's unease peaked, He Ci smiled. "A Xi, off we go."

He Xi let out a quiet breath of relief and nodded obediently. "Okay."

The sky was misty, the air thick with dust.

Pei Yan stood behind a tree, watching the carriage grow smaller and smaller in the distance, his silhouette growing lonelier by the moment.

He touched the Tongxin Bell at his waist, and couldn't help muttering inwardly.

He really wanted to marry A Xi soon.

He had to find a way to earn more money. With savings and a house bought, He Ci wouldn't be able to refuse to let him and He Xi be together.

On the road back to Zhenxiang Temple, Pei Yan mulled over how to make money fast.

The path ahead was desolate, wild grass choking the way. A piercing cry for help suddenly split the gray sky.

A wealthy young lady lay sprawled in the mud, clothes disheveled. Behind her, green water churned, and a dripping water ghost dragged its foul-smelling claws forward, step by step, splashing mud everywhere.

The girl had heard of the recent water ghost killings in the city, but she never thought she'd run into one traveling in broad daylight.

All her servants had died at the water ghost's hands. She was the only one left alive.

Just as despair took hold, she spotted a youth in blue robes walking by a tree and cried out frantically, "Daoist Master, help! Save me!"

Seeing a Daoist sect member passing through, the water ghost hesitated, unsure whether to press its attack.

Pei Yan kept his head down, calculating the cost of buying a house. He didn't stop walking, didn't so much as glance sideways, and strode straight ahead—completely ignoring the person and the evil ghost behind him.

The girl was shocked and frantic. She never imagined a Daoist Master could stand by and watch someone die. In desperation, she raised her voice: "My family has countless gold and silver treasures! Save me, and I'll give them all to you!"

The moment the words landed, the youth's steps halted.

He turned. "Countless gold and silver treasures?"

The girl rushed to answer, "Yes! My family is very rich!"

Sticky water mist rushed at them. The water ghost's pale, bloated hands formed claws, carrying bone-deep cold and the stench of wet mud, and lunged straight for the wealthy girl's face.

Terrified, the girl went rigid, her pupils contracting sharply, a scream caught in her throat.

A blue figure suddenly flashed—so fast it was barely a blur.

No one saw how Pei Yan struck. They only heard a faint hiss—and the ferocious, arrogant water ghost didn't even manage a scream before its massive spectral body burst apart into a spray of black water, scattering on the cool wind.

Silence fell over the world in an instant.

The girl's lashes trembled. She didn't dare open her eyes until she was sure there was no trace of cold malice left around her, and only then did she timidly lift her lids.

Under the hazy daylight, the youth stood tall and alone, blue robes fluttering, his back straight and sharp.

The girl stared blankly at that lean, upright figure and couldn't come back to herself for a long while.

He turned his head and looked calmly at the still-shaken girl. "Payment."

The girl blinked. "I—I don't have money on me, but my family does. As long as you take me home, my parents and brother will reward you generously, I swear!"

Pei Yan frowned, clearly regretting having saved her.

The girl scrambled up from the ground. Bedraggled as she was, it was still easy to see she was pretty. Facing Pei Yan's sour expression, she broke into a bright, radiant smile.

"I'm Shen Qinghe, young miss of the Shen family in Wufang City. My family really is very rich—ask anyone, they'll tell you. I'm not lying to you, Daoist Master. Please take me home, and I can pay you even more!"

A sunny, cheerful girl who could smile so optimistically even in dire straits—who could bear to refuse her?

And yet Shen Qinghe was still clutching the hem of her clothes, her heart tight with nerves.

There was no telling what dangers lay along the road, and all her servants were dead. This Daoist Master looked formidable. With him, she'd surely make it home safely.

Plenty of people said her smile was beautiful, that it could melt anyone's heart—but she was still afraid this Daoist Master would refuse.

At her words, Pei Yan's eyelids flickered. "You're saying you're from the Shen family of Wufang City?"

Shen Qinghe nodded. "That's right."

Pei Yan's mouth suddenly curved upward. "Well then. I'll take you home."

Watching the youth's smile, the stone in Shen Qinghe's heart slowly settled.

Sure enough—he hadn't been able to refuse her after all.