The one-ard woman waited for a long ti but still couldn’t find the right opportunity, so she turned her back and walked away in silence.
She ca looking for him rely to explain a few things, but in reality, those matters could proceed whether explained or not.
Moreover, her prideful nature made her unwilling to et Chen Yi at this mont.
In the shadows of the tree branches, all was quiet, with only her silhouette receding into the darkness. From Chen Yi’s perspective, it looked bleak, but he hadn’t noticed her presence from beginning to end.
The next morning, Chen Yi was awakened by the distant sound of chanting. The Western monks and the Mad Scripture Master were already awake, and the temple echoed with the rhythm of the morning bells and evening drums. Even before dawn broke, they had already chanted the sutras thousands of tis.
A rustling movent stirred in his arms. Lowering his head, Chen Yi saw Yin Tingxue rubbing her eyes as she woke up.
Caught by his gaze, the little fox instinctively shrank, then mumbled dazedly, yet cautiously:
"Boyfriend?"
Chen Yi tenderly kissed her forehead and replied:
"Girlfriend."
Yin Tingxue smiled faintly, just because he hadn’t denied her—it was true now, he was her boyfriend.
Strictly speaking, friends shouldn’t get pregnant, right? How awkward would that be.
Thinking this, Yin Tingxue felt a subtle, barely perceptible sense of relief. This ti, she had managed to play a small trick on Chen Yi.
Listening to the chanting, Yin Tingxue was in a good mood and began reciting along: "Thus I have heard, once upon a ti, Buddha was in the Jetavana Grove in the city of Śrāvastī...."
Chen Yi listened for a while but ultimately couldn’t understand it and felt a headache coming on.
"Stop reciting, my head’s hurting," Chen Yi said with a laugh.
Yin Tingxue glanced at him, looked sowhat hesitant, but eventually mustered up her courage and said:
"These Buddhist scriptures contain profound truths. Your headache—are you the Monkey King or sothing?"
Chen Yi gave her a tap on the head and purposefully said coldly:
"Haven’t wielded the Golden-Banded Staff in a few days, huh? Getting bold now, aren’t we?"
Yin Tingxue instantly deflated, quickly pleading:
"Please don’t get angry."
"Why shouldn’t I be angry?"
"Because I..." Yin Tingxue thought about it for a mont and then in a soft voice said, "I’m your girlfriend."
She carefully clasped Chen Yi’s hand as she said this.
Chen Yi chuckled: "Say it again."
"I’m your girlfriend."
Chen Yi pulled her into a tighter embrace, laughing softly into her ear.
Seeing his joy, Yin Tingxue went along with his mood. Now that they were officially "friends," if he ever bullied her again in the future, she could use their status as leverage—he’d have to think twice before acting.
After spending so much ti with him, she finally held a bit more sway.
Yin Tingxue’s eyebrows arched upward, her thoughts fluttering and wild. She unknowingly began to overthink everything.
Would Master Zhou be angry if she found out about her relationship with Chen Yi?
Now that she was his friend, could she secretly dislike him without him finding out?
Could her days next to him actually be happier?
Chen Yi caught the gleam of her quiet joy in his eyes.
After holding her close for a mont, Chen Yi let go. Under the sunlight, Yin Tingxue carefully picked up a paper flower to inspect it.
The paper flower was breathtaking, with edges tinted golden-yellow by the sun.
Yin Tingxue gently placed it into her pocket—this was a keepsake, sothing she had to carry wherever she went.
"What scripture are they chanting?" Chen Yi suddenly asked.
Yin Tingxue cheerfully replied: "The Diamond Sutra—’All forms are but illusions.’ You’ve heard this line before, haven’t you?"
Soon after, the chanting of the monks ceased. The Western monk approached slowly from the distance.
After exchanging pleasantries, he spoke:
"Benefactor, it is ti to depart."
Chen Yi naturally agreed. He had already packed their belongings while they were chanting earlier.
Thus, the group began their journey. To avoid their pursuers, they traveled to a place far from the ruins of the Joyful Sect’s headquarters.
The two monks led the way, walking quite a distance ahead.
Doubling back now would require significant effort—they had to be cautious of traps and potential ambushes along the road, so their pace wasn’t fast.
Today was the Winter Solstice. The mountain air was chilly, and snow drifted down in scattered flurries. Icy droplets clung to their foreheads. The little fox looked up and saw tiny specks of white, her nasake flowers—a sprinkling of delicate snow.
As the two monks continued ahead in silence, the group walked through cold, empty mountain paths. After a while, amidst the snow-laden trees, they caught sight of the corner of an inn’s rooftop.
The group approached the inn, hoping to gather information and rest for a while.
The movent of Wuxiang Zen Master’s vestnt robe had stirred half of the Great Yu Jianghu. The inn ahead was bustling with chatter and clinking cups; the commotion was apparent even from outside as the shopkeeper darted about busily.
"Have you heard? The Prince of Annan’s mansion has posted a thousand-tael bounty to kill Chen Yi."
"Chen Yi? You an the West Factory Thousand Households who saved the Emperor?"
"Who else could it be? The Demon Empress crushed the Lin Party—that was like Qin against Qin, dog eating dog. With her ruling through the curtain for so many years like Empress Lü, shouldn’t she be publicly condemned? Not to ntion the massive enmity between the Demon Empress and the Prince of Annan. This ti, his army marched to the capital only to return empty-handed. Chen Yi has beco a thorn in the Prince’s flesh!"
"The Prince mansion is vast and powerful, upholding a reputation for generosity—facing off against the Prince of Annan, isn’t this like stirring a pot with a toothpick?"
Even before they reached the inn, Yin Tingxue could hear the chatter inside.
She blinked her eyes and turned to ask:
"What does stirring a pot with a toothpick an?"
Chen Yi twitched his lips slightly, unsure how to explain.
After so thought, he casually replied:
"They’re saying I’m overestimating myself. But they’re wrong."
"Why are they wrong?" The little fox looked puzzled.
Chen Yi considered for a mont, pulled a water canteen from his belongings, and told Yin Tingxue to open her mouth. After she obediently complied, he poured water into her mouth.
As the water trickled out from the corners of her lips, Yin Tingxue flailed and slapped his thigh in frantic realization—now she understood why they were wrong.
"Can’t drink anymore, huh?" Chen Yi teased, playfully brushing her nose.
Yin Tingxue’s cheeks flushed with embarrassnt. Thankfully, no one was around—only the two of them, while the monks had walked far ahead, unaware of his teasing.
"When we enter the inn later, I need to set an example and strike fear. You’ll need to help set the mood, understood?"
"H-how do I help?"
"Just take a sharp inhale in surprise."
As the group neared the inn, the Western monk and Mad Scripture Master entered and casually sat down anywhere. When Chen Yi stepped across the threshold, wearing his straw hat and carrying his blade and sword, the entire inn fell silent.
The atmosphere in the inn instantly beca icy. The shopkeeper looked around in perplexity.
Chen Yi found an empty table and sat down with Yin Tingxue. The inn’s patrons stared at him with unblinking eyes, as if the thousand-tael reward were close enough to touch.
Chen Yi turned to the shopkeeper and said, "Serve whatever you like."
The sowhat dazed shopkeeper ca to himself and hurried off to the kitchen.
The inn’s tension escalated; no one dared to speak loudly. One of the drunk patrons who had been talking about stirring pots with toothpicks awkwardly approached with a bowl of wine, laughing nervously.
"I’ve long heard of the renowned Chen Qianhu..."
Before the wine bowl could reach him, Chen Yi picked up a pair of chopsticks from the table and jabbed them into the patron’s eye socket.
A sickening crack echoed as the patron’s eyeball burst. The chopsticks protruded from the back of his skull as he collapsed to the floor, revealing the Prince mansion’s waist token clattering onto the ground.
The entire inn plunged into a deathly silence.
Chen Yi turned his head.
The little fox imdiately caught on.
"Hiss."
In the perfect quiet, she let out an audible sharp inhale, appropriately setting the murderous tone.
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