Chapter 3066: Anecdote – Sharing Peaches
Di Xuyue was a child of vivacity and high spirits. She had collected many items, mostly from Di Hao. He was her favorite person ever, which was why she liked being around him. She would always follow him around no matter where he went.
He, in turn, would pamper her in every way that he possibly could. He would play with her, or sometimes even teach her Kung Fu. Di Xuyue was proud to have a brother who cared deeply for her, but one day, he just stopped breathing. There was no warning. He just laid lifelessly on the bed.
She was very scared, feeling as if her world was tumbling down. Her parents told her that her brother was simply asleep, and they promised to do everything they could to wake him up. Because of this, her parents had to take both her and her brother’s lifeless body back to the Upper Bound. It was a risk worth taking. They were finally back to the ninth heaven.
Mist wreathed the entire Biwu Palace. It was a rather spectacular view – even better than anywhere else in the Lower Bound, but she was not in the mood for sightseeing. All she could think of was her brother, who was in a coma.
His body was preserved in an ice coffin. As for her parents, they only gave her a few quick words before leaving hastily for their rescue mission.
Her mother promised to revive her lifeless brother so that their family would be, once again, completed.
After her parents left, Di Xuyue stayed by the ice coffin every day, even though the surrounding temperature was freezing cold. She would talk to Di Hao, hoping that he would suddenly open his eyes and stare back at her. She waited for the day when he would finally rub her head and tease her.
Before she went to bed each night, she prayed for her brother’s recovery, only to wake up in disappointment the next morning. Days went by, and her parents were still nowhere to be seen. Di Hao made no progress in his recovery, either.
One day, Di Xuyue moved all of her toys to Di Hao’s side and showed him each of them, one by one. Those were the ones that were given to her as gifts. “Brother, when are you going to wake up?” She asked.
Tearfully, she stared at Di Hao in desperation. “Brother, you promised to give me a nine-ring set as a gift when I finally learn to fly at least five hundred miles on my own.”
Ever since Di Hao fell into a state of unconsciousness, she had never expressed her sorrow in front of him. This was the first time she broke down and started crying.
Tears rolled down her cheeks and dripped onto his skin. She tried to wipe the tears away from his body but was taken aback by the sudden changes. Di Hao’s body was slowly melting away.
Frantically, she hugged him tightly in her arms. “Brother! Brother!” However, in a swift second, Di Hao’s body had completely disappeared.
With a stagger, Di Xuyue then fell into a trance trying to recall what happened to the empty ice coffin, but could no longer remember who used to be there. Her heartache was the only thing that she could truly feel as she started sobbing uncontrollably.
Before her parents left, Di Xuyue was handed over to someone reliable to be her caretaker. In the absence of her parents, Gu Zhanyu was now responsible to care for her. Years of cultivation finally paid off, for he had ascended and become an immortal.
Gu Xijiu brought the eight mythical beings with her, leaving Gu Zhanyu behind to take care of the everything left behind. His first and foremost responsibility was to take care of Di Xuyue.
Di Xuyue’s loud cries prompted Gu Zhanyu to come and check on her. “What is wrong? What is the matter?”
“Uncle!” Di Xuyue rushed into his arms while sobbing continuously.
“Xuyue, what is the matter?” Gu Zhanyu gently patted her back to comfort her.
“I… I don’t know. I just feel like crying.”
Gu Zhanyu did not make any comment on her statement as he, too, was affected by a sudden feeling of doom and gloom. It was as if a family member of his had just pa.s.sed away.
He looked around and caught the ice coffin. “Who used to be there in the ice coffin?” He was perplexed, obviously.
Di Xuyue looked at the ice coffin with her reddened eyes but could not remember. She could somewhat remember that there used to be many toys around the ice coffin, but none of those were in sight anymore.
…
Everyone broke into celebration and excited cheers once the desert finally collapsed under the influence of the Pusuo Gate. They were grateful for being able to survive the great calamity.
However, the cheers suddenly when mute when they realized that Gu Xijiu and Di Fuyi were both missing. She had just channeled the immense power of her love and compa.s.sion in order to open the gate, thus offering a second chance for the resentful spirits in the Pusuo World. Apparently, the two of them left immediately after.
…
When Gu Xijiu recalled her memory, she felt great sorrow but did not show it on her face at all. No matter how badly Fan Qianshi had sinned, he would always be the beloved disciple that she used to cherish. For decades, they used to keep each other company and the connection that they used to share remained. No amount of time could make her forget how much she actually cared for him.
After finishing off the mess that he left behind, she realized that she needed some time to be alone and sort things out within herself. Without any warning, she teleported right away.
With the power of a Creation Deity, her teleportation skill had attained the acme of perfection. She could cover hundreds of miles each time with ease.
She came across a place that was ablaze with peach blossoms and decided that it was the place she needed to be. Gu Xijiu then sat on a tree to take a rest. All alone, it was time for her to think about the fragments of memory that she had just recovered.
Suddenly, she was reminded of her first encounter with Fan Qianshi. Coincidentally, it happened where peaches blossomed. She saved his life from a brutal murder. With a sigh, she sat up and saw that the peaches were almost ripe. Some were pink, and some were red. Others were green. Wonderful colors filled the gaps between branches.
She plucked a peach and washed it with a cleaning spell before putting it into her mouth, which reminded her that peaches used to be one of her favorite foods. Every time the peaches were ripe, Fan Qianshi would always collect and slice the peaches into small pieces before delivering them to her.
As an invaluable handyman, Fan Qianshi perfected his cooking skills in order to please Gu Xijiu’s greedy stomach. Knowing what she liked, he learned to make many different cuisines using peaches. He made soup with peaches, wine with peaches, and even preserved the peaches as snacks.
Recognizing that her only disciple was dead, she suddenly lost all her appet.i.te even though the peaches looked tempting. Someone reached out to her and took away the peach from her hand.
Shocked, Gu Xijiu turned to her side and saw Di Fuyi sitting on another branch with a peach in his hand. “Are you craving for peaches? The taste of these are not good at all. They are even hard to swallow. You will not like it,” Di Fuyi said.
Intrigued, Gu Xijiu answered, “You have not even tasted it yet. How do you know that it does not taste good?”
She plucked a big one that bloomed in full pink and continued, “These peaches look so good, don’t they? I am telling you that these peaches are good. I have tasted them before, and they are just as good as the ones from the Upper Bound.”
Di Fuyi’s expression was hard to study as he replied, “Baby, what you think is not what you know. Give it a try.”
Gu Xijiu gave it a quick wash before taking a deep bite into its flesh. Unfortunately, all she tasted was disappointment. The peach looked tempting, but its taste was unexpectedly bitter and sour.
Nonetheless, she could not spit it out, as Di Fuyi was there to observe her. With the urge to prove her point, she decided to swallow the peach, even though it tasted really bad.
“Is it good?” Di Fuyi tried to guess from her expression.
Gu Xijiu insisted, “Not bad.”
Amused, Di Fuyi then answered with a smile, “Good to know. I know that you like to eat peaches. In that case, you should finish the whole fruit.”
Gu Xijiu hesitated. “All good things should be shared between us. It is better to be happy together. Here, have half of it.” She then split the peach into two halves and handed the first half to Di Fuyi. “Have a taste of it,” she urged in enthusiasm.
Di Fuyi gave her a quick look before accepting her offer. He took the first bite and swallowed it without any hesitation. He then continued to take the second and third bite.
Gu Xijiu started to question if his taste buds had failed to function. Worried that the peaches might be poisoned, she quickly took the fruit from him and tossed it away, together with her half. “Stop eating it. What if the fruit was poisoned?”
Di Fuyi wrapped his arms around her waist and happily said, “I will accept everything that is given to me by my beloved wife, even if it is poisoned.”
Gu Xijiu was at a loss for words. His presence had taken away all of her sorrow. Nevertheless, she could not help but look at him with judgment for a moment. “As the Master of the Heavenly Law, shouldn’t you be less flirtatious?”
Di Fuyi caressed her hair and replied, “No matter who I have become, I will always be your man. I do not care who you really are, a G.o.d of Creation, or even just a normal immortal, you have always been, and will always be, my woman. There is no changing it.”
Pampered, Gu Xijiu buried her head into his chest. Ever since they recovered their real ident.i.ties, there had not been many chances for them to talk as there were many things that required their immediate attention. Finally, they had some time to be alone.
Apparently, Di Fuyi was still the same man. The change of his ident.i.ty did not bring about the change in his att.i.tude.
Meanwhile, Gu Xijiu continued to examine the peaches and asked, “How did you know that these peaches tasted bad? Have you tried them before?”
Casually, Di Fuyi leaned against the tree but still had his arms around her. “Silly, this place is close to a village with many children. If the peaches tasted so good, why would there be any left at all? Those kids would have finished them.”
He was right, as usual.
Gu Xijiu would have figured it out herself if she had not been so preoccupied with the loss of her disciple. “I briefly remember that the peaches here taste good.”
Di Fuyi calmly explained, “Some things may seem beautiful in your memory, but what happens, in reality, may not turn out to be the same. Things change, so there is no need for you to keep thinking about it.”
Enlightened, Gu Xijiu knew that Di Fuyi was trying to give her an understanding of the situation. In fact, he was right. She put herself through a struggle by only remembering the good parts of the story when something was forever lost. She forgot that there were also some bad parts of the same story, too.
She looked at him, only to catch his eyes looking back straight at her. The look in his eyes was intense, as if he was studying her.
“Why are you looking at me like that?” She felt herself blushing scarlet.
“Baby, you are so, so beautiful.” Captivated by her beauty, Di Fuyi gently traced her soft lips with his fingers before leaning in for a pa.s.sionate kiss.
They had been together long enough for Gu Xijiu to know what he was thinking. Her heart thumped at his attempt, but she had to push him away. “Don’t you unleash your inner beast here in public.”
Although they were in the woods, there was a village that was really close by. They could not be sure that there would not be any visitors.
Di Fuyi laughed out loud. “Of course, let’s go somewhere else!” He then lifted her up.
Amused, even her ears started to blush. “That is not what I meant,” she said while squeezing his robes in a gentle protest.
“This is exactly what I mean.” Di Fuyi whispered. “Xijiu, let’s have a son, shall we?”