They dressed Qun Tao up in fresh garments, replacing her old tattered robes. Liu Suye found her a headscarf and veil to cover her mutilated visage and neck. Like this, she was like any other woman who sat daintily in front of Xu Hexian at the tea house. That was. Aside from her giant t.i.ts. That Xu Hexian was trying really, really hard not to stare at.
…
And there was also the fact she had the strength to snap his spine in half!
And the fact that she was dead…!
Nervous sweat was beading at his brow as he poured two cups of tea. The sound that came out of his lips didn"t really sound like laughter. Xu Hexian was trying really hard to buy time to come up with a topic to talk about… But how could he talk about with a ghost that couldn"t even speak!? "The weather…isn"t bad today!"
Actually it was cloudy outside. Even though Qun Tao said no words to say, her shoulders sagged with a sighing sound of disapproval. Could Xu Hexian just toss his pride out the window? This was too much.
Of course with the veil over her head, she couldn"t drink the tea. Though, she was dead in the first place so what was even the point of this whole charade? Xu Hexian found his eyes veering around. From the crowd of patrons that shuffled about the teahouse, he spotted two familiar white-robed young masters. Even though their expressions were different, Xu Hexian could easily recognize disappointment and disapproval clearly painted on their faces.
He sighed with a heavy groan. Just how was he supposed to survive the day? A small fluff shuffled about under his garments and tumbled out of his sleeve.
Huo Tang pointed a stubby wing at him accusingly, "I heard from everyone that you were sweet with words. What happened to this rumored skill!? Why are you being so odd and awkward? Do you not know how to talk to women!?"
He wanted to cry. This was just bullying! "O-of course not! Do you think me some sort playboy…? I"ll have you know I"m actually a very innocent person!"
Xu Hexian wanted to stab himself after those words left his mouth. Didn"t he just inadvertently admit to his inexperience?
There was a soft chuckling sound coming from the woman sitting in front of him. A small hand was held to her mouth in a show of modesty. With gestures as such, she seemed rather cute and for a moment, Xu Hexian almost forgot she was a ghost.
His shoulders sagged, "Do you think this is funny too? Ah well, I hope I can at least be entertaining to you then…"
Qun Tao shook her head. Xu Hexian raised a questioning brow, but she had no words to say to him. Instead, she shyly held out her hand.
"What…?" He asked, a little baffled. Cautiously, he reached for her cold fingers. They were stiff and extremely cold to the touch. But in his mind, an image flashed. It was too quick for him to catch the details but he was sure that he saw smiling lips basking in the glow of an afternoon sun.
"Oh." He said dumbly, a soft heat warmed his cheeks. "I see." This time, when he looked upon her he didn"t see a ghost but instead a sweet maiden. He tried a smile and stood from his seat. "Okay, since you can"t really drink or eat anything, why don"t we go out for a walk?"
Qun Tao gave him a nod and stood up as well. Her movements were a little clumsy but it only added to her charm.
Xu Hexian hadn"t accompanied the Liu brothers on their investigation, thus in comparison to them, his knowledge of Qun Tao"s background was extremely limited. Sure there was that one old woman who spat curses about her, but Xu Hexian had simply attributed the woman"s rudeness to her distress from having her son attacked.
The sky, though dense with clouds was still rather bright. Light reflected upon the s.h.i.+ning snow around them. Fat flakes slowly began to descend and Xu Hexian decided to buy an umbrella to s.h.i.+eld them from the snow.
Qun Tao had her head tilted in question. She came from a very poor background and couldn"t understand why he was spending his coins for something as useless for the occasion.
"Huh?" Xu Hexia furrowed his brows, "Well, even if it"s snow, once it melts it"ll become water and make your clothes and hair all wet, right?"
Hm, but snow was easy to just brush off.
Xu Hexian could feel the apprehension radiating off of her. So he rubbed the back of his neck and looked away, "Well… I just thought…you know, it might be nice to walk under an umbrella with a girl once, right?"
Xu Hexian wasn"t tall and didn"t look as strong nor as handsome as the Liu brothers. Instead, he looked more delicate and his face was one that often smiled and appeared cheery. It would be more accurate to call him pretty and approachable. Xu Hexian was by no means an unattractive person.
Qun Tao lowered her head a little and walked closer to him to stay under the umbrella and s.h.i.+elded them from the lazy tumbling snow. They strolled the streets leisurely and headed towards the ca.n.a.l for a more scenic path.
The snow sprinkled down slowly like dandelion seeds, fat and full enough to see their intricate flakes. It was quiet between them but some of the tension had thawed. "Aren"t you going to say something?" Huo Tang hissed at him from his shoulder.
Xu Hexian only found himself sighing and then looked around, "Were you born in this village?" He asked the girl at his side.
She nodded her head.
"That"s nice. I was born elsewhere but my parents brought me here and I was raised on w.a.n.gyun Peak. When I was a kid I used to think that I wanted to travel and see the world and maybe even return to the place of my birth." Xu Hexian"s voice trailed off. There were some young men walking towards them in the distance and they were laughing and chattering rather loudly so Xu Hexian made sure to walk on the outside of the road.
Qun Tao didn"t understand why he paused and looked at him expectantly for more.
He scratched the back of his neck and chanced a little smile, "I don"t really know anymore though. w.a.n.gyun Peak is my hometown. I don"t think I could bear the thought of leaving."
The female ghost next to him gave a tiny nod. It was difficult to guess what expression she was making under her veil but if he had to guess, Xu Hexian wanted to believe that she was smiling.
Rowdy voices became louder as they walked by the group of young men. Their prying eyes swept them over from head to toe and stopped at Qun Tao"s chest. Xu Hexian noticed how she hunched and hid behind him.
One of them had the audacity to whistle, "Nice catch brother."
Another one laughed, "Have fun!"
"What"s up with her face?"
Xu Hexian felt a rare surge of anger and s.h.i.+elded Qun Tao from their nasty stares and dirty words. "Mind your own business," he spat at them.
Of course, there was Huo Tang on his shoulder to ruin his moment, "So Xiao Xian can act like a man too, who knew?"
He sputtered at the words and almost flicked her right off his shoulder but Qun Tao distracted his annoyance by taking his hand into hers.
It was as cold as ice but the chime-like voice that fluttered through his mind was soft and pleasant, "Thank you…"
A blush tickling his cheeks and Xu Hexian returned to rubbing his nape, "Don"t worry. Those guys were being rude. Don"t let them bother you."
Xu Hexian wondered if it was possible for a ghost to radiate warmth. He tried to remind himself that he was just on a fleeting little date with a ghost, a soul that was due to move on but wouldn"t. There was no reason for him to develop any sort of attachment or feelings for her.
But Xu Hexian was young and naive and even when he thought those things, he couldn"t fully deny the fact that he enjoyed the act of escorting a lady around the block. Even if it was all just a show. A moment from a fairy tale.
They rounded the bend and Xu Hexian had planned to take her beyond the village bounds for a more private and peaceful stroll through undisturbed woods. Though he felt a little sorry because of the biting cold, he supposed to didn"t really matter to her, as she was already dead.
But before they could escape the confines of the village, a small crowd of people had mysteriously gathered to block their way. Among them, Xu Hexian counted the faces of those rude young men that made jeering remarks earlier.
"Stay behind me…" Xu Hexian stepped in front of the veiled ghost, his head held out protectively with determination upon his face. He was hardly a brave person and would tremble at the side of large crowds that shot pointed glares his way.
But Xu Hexian reminded himself that he was a cultivator that knew his way handling a sword. He was not impressive upon the throngs of geniuses and prodigies atop the mountain but he liked to believe that he could hold his own against a mob of villagers. "What"s the matter?" He tried for a smile that didn"t quite reach the curve of his eyes, "What is the meaning behind this gathering? Could there be some sort of New Years" festivity going on?"
One of the young threw out his arm and scoff, "Does it look like we"re having fun here?"
Judging by the ugly scowls of his brothers" faces, Xu Hexian wanted to sneer and mock, yes! But he was more delicate with social situations than that, "Then, if there isn"t anything fun or interesting, I guess we"ll have to leave." He was about to take Qun Tao by the arm and leave but one of the men was quick to stop him with a shout.
"Hey! Do you even know who that is!?" He sneered and laughed as if he thought his words were funny. "I can recognize those saggy t.i.ts anywhere! It"s that wh.o.r.e Qun Tao!"
Xu Hexian, never in his life, wanted to hit someone so badly before. He blinked and whispered to the ghost who trembled like any terrified maiden, "Don"t listen to them. They know nothing."
One the men looked a little pale and joined in on the pointing, "It really does look like Qun Tao. But she"s dead! I know she"s dead. I even saw her corpse. It"s her, isn"t it? The one that"s been attacking the men in the village. She wants to steal our souls!"
The friend next to him nudge him with an elbow and laughed with a raspy voice, "But haven"t you heard? She"s only interested in fresh, juicy, virgins."
"Qun Tao isn"t like that…! Do you guys even know her personally?" Xu Hexian felt his voice raise a little, frustration nipping at his stomach.
The small crowd parted and a man whose robes were finer than the rest stepped forward. He could not compare to the beauties that Xu Hexian was accustomed to seeing growing up but next to the rest of the villagers, this young man looked more like a proper Young Master. He did not sneer nor spit ugly words but he did point towards Qun Tao and very calmly said, "That woman is a thieving snake. Don"t get deceived by her."
Xu Hexian could immediately tell there was something different about this young man. He didn"t seem like the type who blindly followed like sheep in a herd and it was unlikely he was making accusations out of the blue. But he couldn"t let this go on for long. Qun Tao was shaking beside him and it was only at this point that he could feel a string of resentful energy begin to simmer from within her. "Do you have proof?" He kept his voice steady and asked the man.
The young man nodded, "In fact, it was I, Mu Dong, from whom she stole!"