佳偶天成 (A Match Made in Heaven) by 十四郎
Chapter 8
Qian Qiao at a loss
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"There is something really serious that I need to discuss with you."
When morning arrived, Xin Mei crouched down next to Lu Qian Qiao and shoved him awake. He seemed to be still somewhat sleepy. A lock of hair fell against his lips, and Xin Mei found his dark eyes to look rather innocent, even a bit confused.
"You are a man, and I am a woman. Right?"
Seeing Xin Mei wear such a rare and stern expression, Lu Qian Qiao thought that he should try a little harder to pay attention. He covered the sun from his eyes with his hand and vaguely nodded his head.
"Many very well-educated old guys have written books talking about this issue, about how it is improper for a single man and a single woman to come into intimate contact, and something about how to not look upon what is not yours. When a man accidentally sees a woman"s skin, he has to marry her. Isn"t that right?"
Indistinctly listening to the changing tones of her soft voice made Lu Qian Qiao grow even sleepier. He just nodded again.
"Well…I am definitely not marrying you! You know that right?"
He was nearly asleep again. He nodded on reflex.
Xin Mei clapped her hands as loud as she could. "So, what I want to say is, I need to relieve myself!"
The ends of the Demon Binding Rope around her waist were still gripped in his hands, and the leash was not very long at all. If she had to pee, then she was going to have to show her skin… more like, she would have to show a lot. Much more than just "skin"…
Lu Qian Qiao lowered his hand from blocking the sun as he stared at her woodenly. Not a single reaction.
Xin Mei repeated herself. "I need to relieve myself."
Still no response. He just blinked, looking deadpan.
With her cheeks streaming with tears, Xin Mei got up and squirreled behind a tree whose trunk could be described as thick. Choking back her sobs, she said, "You… You"re not allowed to peep!"
After pretending to hide for awhile, Xin Mei still couldn"t hear any sound. She became desperate, and she stuck her head from behind the tree to yell, "How can you actually have nothing to say? Peeping when people are relieving themselves is a seriously vile hobby!"
Lu Qian Qiao blinked impa.s.sively, and then…. And then he yawned and turned over to continue sleeping.
This guy was the type who had a hard time getting up in the mornings!
Xin Mei threw herself on him and tugged at his face. "Get up get up get up!"
He grabbed her wrist. Finally awakened, Lu Qian Qiao"s face was frosty and his hair somewhat messed. He glared up at her from the ground. "You have a lot of nerve!"
Xin Mei exploded. "I need to relieve myself!"
Relieve. This expression was somewhat foreign and yet also somewhat familiar. Lu Qian Qiao"s just-awakened brain was not exactly at its most brilliant. After thinking about it for a moment, he suddenly came to a realization. Instantly, the expression on his face transformed from shock to guilt and then to anger and then finally to a blushing embarra.s.sment.
He quickly loosened his grip as if burned, and he looked on helplessly as Xin Mei flew into the depths of the forests.
Lu Qian Qiao was wide awake now. He got up while straightening out his hair as a talisman fell from his body. He found it unfamiliar-looking. The talisman probably was not his. The paper was crafted from the refined bark of a thousand-year old parasol tree, making it well-suited for holding bird-type Spirit Beasts. Xin Mei must have dropped it earlier during her wild movements.
This was her pelican mount, wasn"t it?
He looked over the talisman for a moment, folded it, and then pocketed it in the folds of his clothes.
For this kind of thing….he had no experience in this sort of thing….the woman…how much time would she need? Five minutes? Ten minutes? Fine, he"ll give her thirty minutes. If she still doesn"t return, then he will … just have to wait another thirty minutes…
He looked at the color of sky. How much had time pa.s.sed? She still had yet to return. Should he go after her to check on her? No, he should wait a little longer…what if…yes, he should wait just a little longer…
For once, Lu Qian Qiao found himself at a complete loss.
A total of an hour and a half pa.s.sed. He suddenly got up, and just as he was about to go look for her, he heard the subtle sound of leaves crunching behind him. Turning around, he saw Xin Mei carrying an armful of fresh mushrooms with a disgruntled face. From head to toe, it was as if she was drenched in morning dew. She returned.
"You…" He felt a little awkward, not knowing what to say.
Irritated, Xin Mei dropped the mushrooms on the ground. Just now, she had let slip such an amazing opportunity to escape! But she had turned her clothes inside out and she couldn"t find head or tail of Qiu Yue"s talisman. She must have dropped it earlier while throttling him. How hateful! Without her mount, it was nearly impossible for her to travel through this deep mountain forest filled with trees in every direction that she looked, not to mention escape from it…
"…Do you have Qiu Yue?" she asked.
Lu Qian Qiao thought and then nodded.
"You can"t hurt it!" Remembering what Lu Qian Qiao said yesterday about baked pelican, she panicked. "Qiu Yue is very old now, its meat is very coa.r.s.e. It is not tasty at all!"
(Inside Lu Qian Qiao"s pocket, Qiu Yue wept: I"m not even six yet… how am I old?)
Lu Qian Qiao was silent for a moment and then he said, "Then we"ll have to see if you behave well."
Xin Mei wrapped her arms around herself, stepping backwards fearlessly. "Hmph! Even if you possess my body, you won"t possess my heart!"
…He thought he was talking seriously with her. He was definitely wrong.
Taking the mushrooms that she brought back and rinsing them once, he tossed them into the leftover soup from last night. After bringing it to a steady boil, just as the previous night, he ladled soup into a bowl and placed it beside her feet. Xin Mei turned her head stubbornly, "I am not eating! Not unless you give me back Qiu Yue!"
Oh. Well, if you are not eating then you are not eating. Lu Qian Qiao very calmly drank his own soup. Because the jerky steeped overnight, its fragrance was at its strongest. The meat also seemed to have softened quite a bit.
He was definitely doing it on purpose. His bowl had a lot of meat, and as he ate, the fragrance permeated the whole camp.
Xin Mei peeked over several times, seeing him with his head lowered and solely focused on eating. Since he wasn"t looking, she began to sneak her hand towards her bowl. Just as her fingertips reached the rim, she heard him move, and she whipped her hand back to her side like lightning, continuing her stubborn act.
Lu Qian Qiao had no choice but to let out a chuckle. After a while, he said, "Stop. Eat breakfast."
Far from mean or mocking, his tone was quiet and serene.
Tears streamed down Xin Mei"s cheeks as she lifted the bowl to her lips. Qiu Yue ah! I am a bad owner! But first, let me finish breakfast, and then I will think up with a strategy to save you from this fiend!
Xin Mei originally thought that he would drag her to Bai Tou mountains to look for Mei Shan Jun. Who would have thought that they were following the mountain ridge this whole time, and in a couple of days, the two people arrived back at Huang Ling again.
It was her second time walking along the divine path filled with blooming cherry blossoms. Xin Mei felt very nonplussed about it now. Fortunately, this time Lu Qian Qiao did not immediately toss her inside a room and lock her up. He kept her by his side until they reached a small guest hall called Gui Hua Pavilion.
"Welcome back, General."
Si Lan brought forward tea. He glared daggers at Xin Mei, clearly remembering the night when she knocked him out. It was totally the greatest humiliation of his entire life.
Xin Mei pretended she didn"t see Si Lan"s glares as she looked all around her and studied the decorations in Gui Hua Pavilion. She eavesdropped on Si Lan"s reporting of all the happenings at Huang Ling the past few days.
"Ever since General you brought back the tiger demon"s neidan for Tao Guo Guo, he has been undergoing closed-door cultivation. Yesterday he finally healed and has returned to his original appearance……Lord Zhao says that he has just finished writing a new play over which he has been laboring his heart"s blood. He says that he is sure that this time it will be a good enough story for the twelve puppets that you carved……The bear demon from the northwest has proposed marriage to Miss Ying Lian for the fifty-third time. He laid down an entire path of lotus flowers for her, but Miss Ying Ling ended up burning them all……"
Xin Mei grew bored listening, and she couldn"t help but yawn a few times. Finally Si Lan finished his report, and Lu Qian Qiao exited Gui Hua Pavilion again. They wound up a steep hill, the top of which was filled with blooming, tender pear blossoms. Amidst the trees were two people having a conversation. Hearing their approach, they both turned at the same time and caught sight of Lu Qian Qiao in great delight.
"Qian Qiao da ge (brother)!"
A young man about the age of seventeen or eighteen called out in a somewhat bashful manner. His appearance was rather charming, but his round eyes and round face made him look somewhat childish. A pair of large, light yellow wings sprouted from his back, and the feathers fluttered and danced in his excitement.
Lu Qian Qiao nodded. "Are you all better now?"
The youth blushed slightly. "Yes. I"ve already completely recovered. Qian Qiao da ge (brother), I"ve troubled you so much… if it wasn"t for you stopping me, I would have made the grave mistake of stealing a mortal soul… From now on, I will not run off recklessly like that again."
From behind came the sound of a girl"s laughter. A beautiful young girl wearing an all-pink gown walked to the young man"s side, smiling as she said, "Ever since Guo Guo recovered, he hasn"t stopped saying this. In my opinion, I think you were much cuter looking when you were still missing your neidan as a little boy."
Tao Guo Guo blushed deeper. "Ying Lian Jie (sister), you"re teasing me…"
After saying so, he suddenly noticed the girl standing next to Lu Qian Qiao. A willowy body with a face as fresh as a cherry blossom whose eyes stared blankly up at the sky as if deep in her daydreams and thoughts… Tao Guo Guo shook, jumping as he pointed at her and yelled, "You?! How are you here?"
Xin Mei started and drew back her gaze to the scenery in front of her. She looked Tang Guo Guo up and down twice before she suddenly clapped, as if she recognized something. "Hey. Aren"t you that little bird demon who was pretending to be a ghost?"
Tang Guo Guo felt both fear and dislike for this person. He pointed a trembling finger at her, "Y-y-you… You bad woman…"
Xin Mei looked at him seriously. "I see. You grew up. You no longer have chicken wings on your back. You"re now a true bird person." (this phrase "bird person" can also be a crude insult ^_^;)
Tang Guo Guo"s face turned green as he falteringly put away his wings. Finally, he pressed his lips together, sobbed, and then turned his head and ran away.
Ying Lian smiled. She looked at Xin Mei, and then she looked at Lu Qian Qiao as she spoke gently, "Lu da ge usually never approaches girls. Who would have thought that he would have such good affinity with Miss Xin. I feel that I will soon be able to drink at Lu da ge"s wedding feast."
Behind them, Si Lan couldn"t stop himself from speaking up, "Miss Ying Lian, you"re wrong. She is the General"s prisoner! How could the General ever possibly… with this kind of girl… hmph!"
Ying Lian appeared completely surprised, "What is the meaning of this?"
Lu Qian Qiao did not respond. He only tugged on the Demon Binding Rope, and Xin Mei couldn"t help but be dragged along behind him. She said, "I want to take a bath."
His hand jerked, and he turned around to look at her dispa.s.sionately.
Xin Mei hardened her expression. "It is improper for single women and men to be intimate. You"re going to have to release me. Otherwise I am going to take it that you want to peep."
"You already took a bath once today."
He said the truth.
"I want to take another one."
She was going to be completely unreasonable.
Lu Qian Qiao did not respond as he continued to drag her along.
Xin Mei grew desperate, "Y-You want to peep?!"
He seemed to have laughed. A mocking and slightly teasing smile hung from his lips as he said, "It would be no different from looking at a door."
"You…" Xin Mei blew up in anger.
Ying Lian watched the two of them talk and walk together as if there was no one else around them. For a while, she was quiet.
Si Lan couldn"t bear it any longer and he told her quietly, "Miss Ying Lian, she really is only a prisoner. That girl knows how to break the Mist Formation. The General is afraid of her leaking it to the outside world, so he used the Demon Binding Rope to tie her up by his side."
Ying Lian smiled slightly, turning around to walk away. "Lord Si Lan, you are thinking too much. I"m simply curious."
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