CH 49

Until the water in the bucket had been all cooled up, Gu Wen Zhu then led the water into the drainage ditch in the yard. Xia Yi jumped into his arms and looked up at him, admiring, “Zhu. You are good!”

Gu Wen Zhu grinned, “I just want to make you feel happy.”

“How is it only about making me happy? I am telling you, not only can this ability be used to do magical tricks, this can only be used to perform tasks. It is very very useful.”

At night, the water is as chill as the water. A curled moon hung in the sky, radiating its light warmly. Xia Yi lay on a bed in the yard face-up, a layer of water covering his face. This is the cucumber juice Gu Wen Zhu had made for him. Then it had been congealed to become a water mask, sticking tightly onto his skin.

Jumping, running, even laughing and crying would not make it fall. That water mask would follow Xia Yi’s face to change itself, adjusting its formation. A small plate of dried grapes, dried mangos and beef jerky in his hand. He threw the food into his mouth and chewed sluggishly.

These were made by Gu Wen Zhu extracting the water from the food.

Xia Yi crossed his legs. He swung his fair legs casually and told Gu Wen Zhu who was beside him, proud, “Zhu. I have been telling you, this ability of yours is not just a trick for showing people some cats and dogs, it is also very practical.”

Gu Wen Zhu, smiling, patted his head. He got up and said, “I will go get some apples and make you a bowl of freshly squeezed apple juice.”

Xia Yi taught him the term ‘freshly squeezed.’ Gu Wen Zhu thought it was spot on.

Seeing Gu Wen Zhu’s tall figure go into the kitchen, Xia Yi replaced his focus elsewhere. Humming, he stuffed dried grapes into his mouth.

The sound of 179 sobbing rang in his mind.

“Stop sobbing. Technical system will be alright. You cannot eat these dried grapes.” Xia Yi did not even bother to ask. It must have been these couple of things.

179 sobbed again, sounding like he was crying.

“What’s the matter?” Xia Yi put down the dried grapes in his hands, “Just tell me about it. Don’t just cry.”

“This place is haunted.” 179’s voice was trembling.

“Haunted?” Xia Yi quickly sat up, looking around, “Where? Where is the ghost?”

There was no sight of a shadow, let alone a ghost in the yard.

“It is outside in the bamboo forest.” 179 said in a small voice, whispering, as if the ghost would hear him with a louder registration. There was a large area of bamboo outside the yard. The bamboo swayed slightly in the gentle wind. The shadows of the bamboo fell all over the ground silently.

Xia Yi followed 179’s instructions to go towards the bamboo forest. He froze when he looked. A person was standing on top of the bamboo forest. He was tall, with his hands folded behind him and his back facing this yard. That person was wearing a large and loose gown. He seemed to be weightless and swayed together with the bamboo, floating up and down.

It is really haunted.

Sob.

Xia Yi instantly felt cold and numb at the back of his head. All the hair on his body stood. He was about to call out to Gu Wen Zhu, but then the clouds moved away and the moon reappeared, a ray of light fell onto the bamboo forest. That person slowly turned around, showing himself from the shadow.

Looking closely, this person’s Qi Shan uniform was swaying in the wind. That face similar to Gu Wen Zhu was not showing any emotions. His eyes staring at the direction of the yard.

This was Ciang Yi.

Oh my. What is going on with this leader? He is already at the Qi Shan Sect to see his apprentices. Why is he peeking in people’s yards in the middle of the night? Xia Yi was thinking if he needed to wave and greet him, then he recalled meeting him inside the enchanted area last time. He fell from the cliff and had been rescued by him. Not only had he not repaid him, he even punched him in the face when he was being transmigrated back to the farming world, with his middle finger showing.

Oh no oh no. Quickly hide. How can you greet him after that? Xia Yi hurried and turned, heart pounding fast. He did not recognize me, right? The light is not sufficient during night. But even me, at the middle stage of the foundation phase, can have vision like an owl. Ciang Yi was the immortal leader, how could he not see me clearly?

What if he comes to ask me about that? I hit him without a reason. He is innocent. If he comes, I will apologize sincerely. It is okay for him to hit me back. And I will give him a few catties of radishes and onions to apologize.

Thinking of this, Xia Yi gritted his teeth. Then he turned to face Ciang Yi. He bowed with his face reddened, he shouted loudly when he stood straight again, “Leader. Would you like to come over?”

However, Ciang Yi did not answer. He only looked at him coldly, then he looked away to stare at the curvy moon. Xia Yi could only touch his head embarrassingly. He did not dare to sit either. He just faced Ciang Yi from afar, standing in the yard not moving.

“179. He is not a ghost. He is the Ciang Yi I have been telling you about. The leader I had mistaken for Zhu. See? I didn’t lie. They are not the same person.” Xia Yi explained to System.

“I wouldn’t say it for sure. Now you don’t have Gu Wen Zhu with you, how are you supposed to know that he didn’t pretend to have entered the kitchen, changed his clothes and climbed the bamboo instead?” 179 was now very good at arguing.

“How have you become so unreasonable?” Xia Yi felt painful, “You are such a stranger to me now. You were a cute and single system but now you are a sarcastic and single system.”

179 had been criticized in his painful spot, he started howling frantically, “That is Gu Wen Zhu anyway. You can go and prove that he is not.”

“Zhu. Zhu.” Xia Yi called towards the kitchen with a voice that could only be heard from the yard, “Come out.”

After calling, he looked back at Ciang Yi, he was still standing there without moving an inch.

But then no response from Gu Wen Zhu who had been heard from the kitchen.

179 sneered.

“Zhu. Zhu.” Xia Yi called out with a raised voice, “Answer me if you can hear me.”

It was all silent in the yard. No response could be heard whatsoever.

179 began to giggle.

Xia Yi started to feel confused. Wasn’t Gu Wen Zhu making apple juice for him in the kitchen? Why didn’t he respond? Where did he go? He did not think that Gu Wen Zhu was Ciang Yi, but was worried about him getting into trouble because of the fight with the people in the sect during daytime, that someone may want to get revenge.

It was not right. And so he sat up to find his shoes under the bed, preparing to have a look at the kitchen.

“So it’s true. Men are not to be trusted. You thought Gu Wen Zhu was good to you? He only want to have sex with you.”

“I’d prefer to believe that there are ghosts rather than believing in those men.”

“We were happy when there were only the two of us. But you have to find that heartless man to hurt you.”

It was too much for Xia Yi, he shouted angrily, “179. Enough. If you say more bad things about him, we would not be friends anymore.”

“Who is your friend? Who wants to be your friend?” 179 yelled angrily as well, “I don’t care anymore. I’ll shut it down.”

Although he said that, 179 was playing music in his head, a quick rhythm in Hokkien.

“And so it’s all sweet talking

You have been wanting to dump me

And so it’s all honeyed words

You have been giving untruthful promises

Ah… I am asking you

Ah… I am asking you

Where did your conscience go”

Xia Yi frowned. Just after he had pulled up the heels of the shoes, he saw Gu Wen Zhu walk out from the kitchen with a bowl carefully held in his hand, “Yi. Come and have some apple juice.”

“I just called you. Why didn’t you answer?” Xia Yi asked loudly, his face stern, with a hint of his wrath underneath.

No words. Nothing went wrong. Making me look bad in front of 179. And that song was still looping in his brain. F**k. And I can’t block that. It’s so irritating.

“I went to the backyard from the kitchen just now. I saw this pear tree in the yard during the daytime. The pears on the tree have matured fully, so I wanted to make some pear juice for you.” Gu Wen Zhu explained.

“What happened? Why are you so grumpy after just a moment no seeing you?” Gu Wen Zhu looked at Xia Yi’s face, laughing, “I have been failing to feed you to grow some fat, but your temper is surely bigger now.”

“You didn’t respond. I am worried about you.” Xia Yi talked back with rage, “Who’s got a big temper? I am a husband who loves his wife and will obey anything his wife orders.”

After saying so, he walked back to the bed and sat down heavily. He kicked strongly so that his shoes flew meters away one by one.

“Right. Right. You are right. Your temper is not big. You are a sweetie.” Gu Wen Zhu put the bowl on the small table, then he picked up the shoes, and comforted him gently, “Do you not want some juice? Let me help you–”

“I am not drinking. You give it to whoever wants it.” Xia Yi interrupted him with an irritated face.

Then he picked up the bowl on the table, and splashed the content onto the bamboo on his side. The song was still playing in his mind. Anger rose in Xia Yi’s heart. He smashed the empty bowl onto the stone pavement fiercely.

The bowl broke into pieces with a loud smash. The song playing stopped as well.

Gu Wen Zhu was stunned for a moment. He raised his head to look at him. Without a word, he bent over to pick up his shoes. Blowing away the dust on the shoes, he came back to Xia Yi and crouched before him, taking his foot to help him into his shoes.

Sitting there, Xia Yi’s chest, which was moving up and down due to heavy breathing, slowed down its movement. He looked down to see Gu Wen Zhu putting his foot into the shoes with a serious expression, he suddenly had an anxious feeling.

179 irritated him, so he became angry with him. What kind of husband who loved his wife was that? He had made up his mind to be a great husband before marriage, and this was how he treat his wife after marrying him?

Gu Wen Zhu, speechless with his head down, had a strand of hair sliding down his neck and sticking to his face due to his movement of putting the shoes onto Xia Yi’s feet. His eyelashes were pointing down. His expression was calm, soft, gentle and focused.

Xia could not help but stretch out his hand, helping him to lift that strand of hair which was blocking the sight back up. The shoes were already on his feet, Gu Wen Zhu kept his crouching position, slowly raising his head to look at Xia Yi. His eyes were deep like obsidian. They were full of the softness that could make anyone fall for them. Those eyes were sparkling with the shimmering light from the moon.

Xia Yi was stricken by those eyes. He became soft again. F**k why am I such a scum?

His hand held its position beside Gu Wen Zhu’s ear. Then it moved to the back of his head along the way. With little force, he pushed Gu Wen Zhu into his arms.

Gu Wen Zhu also held his waist and let his head be buried against Xia Yi’s chest. Xia Yi bent. He gave him kisses on the top of his head, onto his ebony black hair. He murmured affectionately, “Baby. Sorry. I didn’t mean to come at you.”

Gu Wen Zhu nodded in his arms.

Xia Yi then said, “I was angry with something else. It’s not about you. I am always your sweetie.”

It seemed like Gu Wen Zhu was chuckling, because Xia Yi felt a couple of vibrations of his shoulder.

179’s shaking sobbing voice echoed again.

What are you sobbing about? Laugh. Continue to laugh. Until you are satisfied.

It almost made them argue. Xia Yi did not give any response to System.

“Host. Sorry.” 179 saw that Xia Yi was not replying to him, he thus carefully said, “You apologized to Gu Wen Zhu. He has forgiven you. Now I am apologizing to you. Can you forgive me also? I admit that I am jealous. I am a jealous system. Ciang Yi and Gu Wen Zhu are not the same person.” Seeing Xia Yi focused solely on hugging Gu Wen Zhu, 179 could not help but begin to feel sad, “If you hadn’t been saying that I am single, I wouldn’t have laughed at you like that. I will not be like that again. I was wrong. Sorry.”

179 was about to cry, Xia Yi, in view of that, started to admit his fault. “Fine. I should apologize to you as well. I shouldn’t have called you a single system.” 

“Then we are good again. We are still BFFs from now on.” 179 smiled through tears, he hurried and said merrily, with the intention to make up with Xia Yi.

Upon hearing 179’s words, he remembered about Ciang Yi. He immediately pushed Gu Wen Zhu away and stood up, “Zhu. Ciang Yi, the immortal leader, was outside in the bamboo forest.”

Then he turned to look towards the bamboo forest. The shadows of the bamboo were swaying. There was no one on top of the bamboo. Only a curvy moon was hanging in the sky in silence.

There was no Ciang Yi.