Chapter 3: ~~~二~~~
~~~在寒冷中耕种~~~
When the next morning came, Lánhuā sat before her clan leader and calmly gave a false story, loosely based off of her interaction from the previous night as she didn't want to worry the family by admitting that she had entered the forest late at night.
The male had actually lost consciousness before she even made it to the cave, so she had to heal him up as soon as she got there in hopes that he would at least survive the night and wake up when she planned to check on him, which was what she was currently preparing to do.
In a woven basket she had packed two blankets, some pain killers, a flask of water, some dried meat, and some steamed buns she had stashed away while she was eating breakfast.
Unfortunately for her, just before she could leave the estate a familiar body stood in her path with his arms crossed over his chest.
"Where do you think you're going?" Xuefeng asked as he looked down at where the female's face would be through her veil, still holding onto his sword as any good cultivator would.
"I'm going to bring some food to a friend," she answered honestly while trying to walk around him only to be blocked as he sidestepped in front of her, "Clan Leader Shu didn't give me any punishment for staying out so late so there should be no problem with this."
"Father may not have a problem with it, but I sure do," the male retorted while taking off her veil and leaning in closer to her face with narrowed eyes.
"I know you well enough to tell that everything you said this morning wasn't completely true," he continued as the woman kept her relaxed composure, "You went to the forest last night, didn't you?"
"And if I did?" she challenged with a small huff as she reached out to gently push her friend back, "What's done is done, but I have things to do, so please return my veil and I promise to actually be back before lunch if you let me go now."
"You promised that multiple times and it still didn't happen," the noiret retorted as he straightened out his back, "How am I supposed to believe you when you say it now?"
Letting out a sigh, the female placed her basket on the ground before reaching up to take off the pair of silver hoops she had received from Madam Yu on her first birthday.
Holding them out to her now wide-eyed companion, she said, "If I'm not back here by lunch, then I'm not worthy of wearing this gift from your mother... But I'll be back in time, so keep them safe for me, okay?"
One of his eyes twitched as he stared down at the pieces before he let out a sigh and took them while saying, "Fine. Back before lunch, not a second later."
"I'll see you then, Xuefeng," the woman chirped as he placed her hat back on and made sure that the veil covered around her correctly before he let her leave the estate.
About twenty minutes later, she had reached a cave deep enough into the forest and so well hidden that none of her clan members had found it yet, other than her.
Towards the back the female had an unlit fire pit with a natural opening right above it, some baskets of herbs and other supplies while a few meters away from it was the unconscious form of the male she had met the night before.
Setting her basket and hat to the side, she carefully knelt next to the man, careful not to disturb him too much as she checked his pulse and the injuries she had healed.
All of his injuries were completely healed, including his most concerning one which was his left leg that was broken with some of the bone sticking out, but now the male was running a slight fever and was still asleep so the woman couldn't leave just yet.
After carefully unfolding the extra blanket she brought and wrapping up her guest to make sure that he wouldn't get any colder than it was in the cave she let out a small sigh.
Taking out a flint stick from one of her baskets of random supplies, the female started a fire and filled her small kettle with the water before hanging it over the fire to boil.
Then, she turned to her various herbs and brought them up to her nose until she had picked out some dried ginger, lemon peels, yarrow, and elder flower to place in a small strainer ball meant for making tea.
As the female worked with her back to the male, his eyes fluttered open with his head pounding as he tried to process where he was and how he got there.
"I wouldn't even think about leaving this place just yet," Lánhuā warned, reaching over to place her veiled hat back on once she heard the rustling behind her, "Your injuries may be healed but now you're ill."
"I'm guessing that you're the one that saved me?" he asked, immediately breaking into a fit of coughs soon after before the figure in blue turned around halfway to hand him the flask of water as the tea was still steeping.
"Don't push yourself," she warned before rustling around in her basket until she pulled out one of the steamed buns that was still warm and held it out to the man, "Does anything hurt?"
Hearing absolutely nothing and not feeling him take the food, the female opened her mouth to ask another question only for it to turn into a yelp as she was suddenly tugged forward with her hat tossed off to the side.
"So, you really can't see," the male gasped, his russet toned eyes widening as he saw the band of metal wrapped around where hers should be.
"Of course I can't!" the ravenette huffed with a frown as she began to struggle lightly, not wanting to be so close to a stranger but not wanting to further irritate his ill form with rash movements, "What reason would I have to lie about that?"
Thinking back to their brief interaction last night as he urged spiritual energy into his eyes to see the faint glow of runes written across the metal, the male thought, 'Who's cruel enough to place such a seal on a child at such a young age?'
Once she had finally managed to release herself, the nineteen-year-old let out a huff and thrust the bun forward while saying, "If you're going to be touchy, then at least tell me your name first!"
Letting out a small chuckle, the male took the bun in one hand while using the other to take her hand and bring it up to his lips before saying, "Forgive me, Miss. My name is Hēi Mázhe."
"Thank you for saving me," he continued while the woman shook her head and took her hand back before turning back to the cup of tea to remove the strainer full of herbs.
"Don't thank me yet," she muttered with a small frown as she held the cup out to him, "If you keep acting suspicious, then I'll just have to kill you."
"Are you sure you would be able to-" Mázhe started, only to break into another fit of coughs just as he took hold of the cup.
'Karma, bitch,' she thought with a small snicker before standing up to place her hat back onto her head and went to empty the contents of the strainer outside of the cave.
"May I have the pleasure of knowing the name of my savior?" the male rasped once she returned, taking slow sips of the soothing concoction every few seconds.
"My name is Cháng Lánhuā," she replied while taking out the cloth she wrapped the buns and meat in before collecting her basket, "And I'll be back this afternoon after getting some licorice, more ginger, and some soup for you."
"Awe, you're leaving already?" he whined as the young woman turned back towards the exit, "But I just woke up!"
"And that's why I came here in the first place, to make sure you did wake up," she replied, turning her head halfway over her left shoulder, "But my clan is already wary of me leaving the estate today, and I still need to buy more herbs, so I need to leave now... I'll come to you later."
'Your clan?' the male thought as the ravenette exited the cave with her blue robes fluttering behind her, 'You're a part of the Shu Clan? Then how come I've never heard of the name Cháng in that clan?'
"Whatever," he sighed while falling back onto the blankets he had been sleeping on, "She didn't react to my name so I doubt she'd turn me in. This is all good for me."
On the way back to the Shu Clan Estate, the nineteen-year-old did stop by the markets to buy more herbs to restock her little cave hideout and her ingredients for making incense for her room.
She had made it back just in time as she had met the Young Master in blue at the gate who was just about to go looking for her.
"What do you know? It looks like you are capable of coming home on time," he spoke in mild relief as he took the female's hand and placed her earrings into it, earning a small huff.
"The guests are eating in the main hall with Father and Mother, so Jiějiě brought lunch out to the pier balcony today," Xuefeng explained as he took the female's hand and began guiding her through the halls, though she already had them memorized after her nineteen years of living there.
"They're still here?" she asked while tilting her left ear closer to him, allowing herself to be dragged along, feeling the concrete change to aged wood underneath her bare feet, "I thought they were only here for a meeting."
"Turns out it's a bit more important than that," the noiret sighed as the table and his sister came into view, "I haven't heard what it's about yet, but I'm sure we'll get news soon."
"That's kind of scary," the younger female commented as she was led into the seat closest to the railing and water, "If meetings last for more than a day, then the issue is bound to be serious."
"Unless they're just drinking the entire time," the male scoffed only to earn a slap on the shoulder from his elder sister.
"Some of the other clans may do that, but these are refined guests from the Shéng Clan," the darkette spoke as she handed the youngest a bowl of rice and selected meats and vegetables, "They aren't even allowed to drink alcohol."
"Plus the guests are all senior disciples along with Young Master Shéng," she continued while pouring out some tea, "All very responsible individuals."
"I wish I could say the same for our disciples," the young man huffed, picking up his chopsticks while rolling his eyes.
"Xuefeng, you better not be mad at Louis and Charla," the ravenette warned as she reached forward for her own chopsticks, "it wasn't their fault that I tend to disappear, so don't take it out on them."
"I should be taking it out on whoever allowed such new disciples to escort you, knowing that you would escape anyways," he responded, earning a pointed stare from his sibling and a frown from the blind woman.
"Dìdì, you're going to be the Clan Leader in the future, you must calm yourself," the older female chided as the breeze blew ripples over the river's surface.
"She's right, Xuefeng," the other agreed before taking a bite out of a piece of beef, "To be a good leader, you have to see things with no bias and remain impartial to make the just decision."
"So if you get caught sneaking out again when I'm Clan Leader, you would want me to punish you according to our rules?" the noiret questioned with a raised brow as he raised his cup of tea up to his lips.
"Yes," the female answered with no hesitation, causing him to choke on the hot beverage, "You can't show any bias to some random girl that was taken in, I have to be treated equal otherwise it could be seen as a weakness by our clan's enemies and could eventually be used against you."
'You self sacrificing piece of shit!' the Young Master thought, grip tightening on his tea cup as his eye twitched at the sight of her eating so calmly after saying what she did.
"Alright, if you sneak out against my father's orders in the future, then I'll be the one to make sure you stick to your punishment," he declared, only earning a silent nod in return.
After they had finished eating, the trio all helped to bring the dishes back to the kitchen before separating to go back to their own rooms; but instead of training or studying like the others, the ravenette packed her needed herbs back into her basket with some soup she ordered from the kitchen and a deck of cards in preparation for leaving the estate once more.
Since, everyone had known that she left earlier in the day she figured it would be suspicious to leave again, so she just decided to sneak out through the back gardens through one of her many hidden routes.
The back gardens were usually devoid of people since it was known that she used that place to practice her music when she wasn't anywhere else in the estate, so she didn't expect anyone to be there that afternoon but her senses never lied.
Just as she approached her favorite peach tree to escape over the wall her senses picked up on the soul of an unfamiliar human cultivator entering the back garden, but before she could even turn around she heard the sharp ring of a sword being unshesthed and quickly sidestepped to hear something whiz past her veil.
"Who are you?" a deep voice questioned, the female hearing the sword return to its owner as she turned in the direction of the voice.
"I feel like it would be more appropriate for me to be asking you that question when you attack me in my own garden," she retorted with a hidden frown, not seeing the way the stranger's brows knitted together as she took a step back towards the tree.
"Who are you anyway?" the woman continued as she reached her right hand out to her side to feel the rough texture of tree bark, "You don't feel or sound like any of the Shu disciples, so what are you doing here?"
'She... can't see,' the male noted as he slowly sheathed his silver toned blade back into its scabbard, his white robes fluttering slightly in the wind, 'this is the blind girl Clan Leader Shu took in.'
"I am Shéng Nijìng," he answered simply and that was all it took to answer all of the female's previous questions.
"Aren't you supposed to be discussing something with Clan Leader Shu?" she questioned, relaxing slightly as she switched which arm was holding her basket, "Why are you here right now?"
"We were given a ten minute break," the male answered, earning a small nod from the female before she looked between him and the tree.
"Well, I hope you enjoy your break and I also hope that you won't tell Young Master Shu about what I'm going to do," she spoke before crouching down and leaping straight up to grasp onto the branch directly above her.
With wide eyes, the male just watched silently as the woman pulled herself up with ease before making her way across the branch that hung over the other side of the wall and dropping once she was over.
Shaking his head, the Young Master just turned around and walked away as it was none of his business what happened within the Shu Clan as long as it didn't directly affect his own.
When the female had made it back to the cave, she removed her hat since the stranger had already seen her face and immediately went back to building the fire back up.
"Lánhuā, is that you?" the male questioned as he wiped the sleep out of his eyes to see her back to him again, "You're finally back?"
"I was only gone for four hours at most, but I do apologize for not being back sooner," the ravenette stated as she immediately went to make another cup of the tea she had made for him that morning, "There were guests at home I was busy avoiding."
"Back at the your Shu Estate, you mean?" Màzhe questioned as he sat up and watched her work only to pause at his words.
"How did you know?" the woman questioned as she continued moving carefully, but efficiently around her condensed work area.
"Your wearing their robes so I would guess that's where you come from," the male explained before she took the kettle off the fire and poured some water into the cup with the herb filled strainer.
"So, are you one of their cultivators?" he questioned with his curious eyes completely focused on her form, "I mean you must be if you were able to heal all of my injuries overnight."
"I believe it was when I was carrying you back here that I said that I only knew a few healing spells," the female replied only to pulse spiritual energy through her hand as she raised it up to block an e
nergy coated weapon.
"Still, seems like you're decent with your energy manipulation," the man commented as he pulled the weapon back, "And your cultivation base is decent for someone who doesn't formally train."
"You could still be a cultivator if you wanted to," he continued before leaning forward with a smile, "I could teach you as a way to pay you back for saving my life."
"You're a cultivator?" Lánhuā questioned as she handed the male the tea and moved to heat up the soup, "Well, that would explain why you were crazy enough to enter the forest in the first place."
"Don't make fun of your patient!" He huffed before taking a sip of the now sweeter tea thanks to the added licorice, "Will you let me teach you or not?"
"How exactly would you teach me if I can't see?" the woman retorted as she added more sticks to the fire, "It's the exact reason why no one could teach me when I was a child."
"You don't need to see to be a cultivator," the guest huffed with a small frown, "I know plenty of other rogue cultivators who are blind, you know?"
"You just need to be able to sense what I'm doing with my energy and mimic it," he continued while the female poured the soup back into the ceramic bowl she originally brought it in, "You can do that can you?"
"I can, but why do you care?" she questioned in return, carefully handing the bowl and spoon over to the male, "We just met and you don't know me."
"I just don't want to see potential talent going to waste," he responded while taking in the rich smell of the soup, "So what do you say?"
"If it makes you behave while you recover, then I'll try to learn, but I can't promise that I'll be any good at it," the ravenette sighed while shaking her head.
"What makes you think that I won't behave while I'm here?" the male huffed in between sips of the warming meal.
"Will you?"
"Of course!"
"Liar," the female scoffed as she turned to her basket and pulled out the deck of cards, "Your soul just screams mischief."
"Here, so you won't get too bored while I'm not here," she continued, tossing the deck towards him before cracking her neck, "I had them lying around in my room and have no use for them."
'Who the hell gives a blind girl normal playing cards?' the male thought but thanked her for them anyways, 'Such an inconsiderate thing to give.'
He kept inspecting the the cards until his curious eyes drifted over to the wooden instrument that was holstered at the woman's hip.
"Hey, what instrument is that?" the guest questioned, prompting the younger female to reach for her lyre, "It doesn't look like anything from this country."
"Because it isn't," she replied while removing it from her hip before running her hands over the strings, "It's a lyre from the Qilan Empire."
"Can you play me something?" the darket questioned with a bright smile, "I'm sure it'll help me get better faster if I hear it."
"Of course, would you like me to sing for you as well?" the woman questioned with obvious sarcasm laced in her voice.
"Yes!"
"I... whatever," she sighed, shaking her head while making sure her instrument was in tune, "As you wish."
Deciding on a simple lullaby, the ravenette allowed the melody of her lyre to resonate through the cave before following with her voice, sining the soft words from memory as the male listened intently to her performance.
The next few hours just passed with the nineteen-year-old keeping her new friend company in the cave, easily exchanging conversation and small stories until she took in a sharp breath.
"Shit, Xuefeng!" she muttered sensing another energy entering the forest, scrambling for her veiled hat and basket before she stood up and turned in the direction of the male.
"I have to go now, one of my friends is looking for me, but I'll try to bring you some new clothes when I come tomorrow," the female explained, "I'm sure you must be uncomfortable in what you're wearing right now."
"I don't mind being covered in blood as long as I get to see you again," he chirped in response, pulling a sigh from her as she walked out of the cave.
"On second thought, maybe I just won't come," she huffed quietly while making her way back through the forest, trying to make her way around the energy she sensed.
However-
"Lánhuā!" called a familiar voice, causing the woman to jump out of her skin and fumble around a little bit with her basket.
"Aish, Xuefeng!" she called with an exasperated sigh as she turned in the direction that she heard crunching footsteps, "How come you can never approach me like a normal person?!"
"How come you can never stay in the estate when you're supposed to?!" He retorted while dragging her back towards the exit of the forest by her upper arm, "Do you know how concerning it is to hear that Young Master Shu saw you climbing over the wall after you didn't show up for dinner?!"
'Wait, I didn't show up for dinner?' the female thought to herself as she ignored the very loud lecture she was being given, 'How long have I been out here for?!'
As soon as she was brought back to the estate, the nineteen-year-old was given a long lecture by the clan leader and madam due to her late disappearances for two days in a row.
In order to avoid being questioned further, she just suggested her own punishment of kneeling out in front of the ancestral shrine which was originally refused by the leading figures, but she did it anyways, feeling guilty for making the ones who took her in feel so worried.
"A-Lán, you don't have to do this, just come inside and go to sleep," the noiret sighed as he stood behind the female who knelt before his ancestors in the darkness the night.
"No, I made a mistake and I need to repent," she retorted, remaining unfazed by the cold with her veil fluttering around her in the breeze.
"Father and Mother already said you don't have to do this why do you have to be so stubborn?!" Xuefeng groaned as he looked down at his long time companion.
"Because I feel bad- Hey! Wait!" the ravenette yelped as he suddenly slung her over his shoulder, "Xuefeng, put me down!"
"No, you have bad knees and it's cold outside," the Young Master retorted as he just continued to carry her back to their courtyard, "If I let you stay out here, then you wouldn't be able to walk properly tomorrow and on top of that you would be sick."
"I would have brought that upon myself, just let me go!" the woman exclaimed as she continued to struggle in the male's hold.
It was quite a sight for those put on night guard in the Shu Clan that night as they watched one of their Young Ladies slung over the shoulder of their Young Master as he crossed the estate, both yelling at one another the entire way over to her room.
"Xuefeng!" she cried upon being thrown onto her bed, attempting to get up only for both of her wrists to be pinned at either side of her head with her heart pounding in her head as a heavy breath sounded next to her left ear.
"If you even think about leaving this room tonight, I will not hesitate to tie you up," the older male growled with his chest heaving, "Do you understand?"
"I..." the woman started, her mind starting to fail her as heat rushed up her neck and face, "Y-yeah... Yeah! Just leave already!"
"Good," he hissed before getting up and leaving her laying on the bed to process everything that just happened.
As soon as she had calmed down enough, the female turned to bury her burning face in her pillow and let out a loud squeal.
'Oh my fucking god, that did not just happen!' Lánhuā thought as she shakily stood up and began to shed off her blue robes, 'It meant nothing...'
'Yep! Absolutely nothing!' she continued as she changed into her silky night clothes, 'He was just holding himself back from trying to kill me!'
The next morning, all of the main family, including the Cháng woman, were gathered in the main hall right after breakfast to talk with the disciples from the Shéng Clan.
'Oh my lord, why am I here?' the youngest female thought as she knelt at her place next to the noiret, 'I definitely should not be here.'
"Children, you were called in here today at the request of our guests," the clan leader explained before turning to one fo the senior disciples wearing white.
"Thank you, Clan Leader Shu," the male spoke, in a higher pitched tone compared to the one the ravenette had spoken to the previous day, "We would like to ask all three of you to come back to Dangsu to help us deal with a series of demons."
"All three of us?" the veiled female asked, voicing the confusion of herself and her friends, "Jiějiě and me included?"
"Yes, Young Lady Shu is known for her medical and acupuncture skills which will be needed with how many we already have injured," another one of the disciples replied, "And according to Madam Shu, the sensory abilities of Young Lady Cháng surpass that of herself."
"Uh-" "Absolutely not," Shu Xuefeng snapped, earning a pointed stare from the Young Master that sat across from him, "It's too dangerous."
"Dìdì, you have to be respectful in front of our guests... but you're right," the darkette sighed as she turned to the cultivators across the room, "My brother and I can go with you, but with her disability Mei-Mei cannot come with us."
"I agree," the ravenette added as she kept her head angled down and fiddled with her hands underneath her table, "I'm blind and have never seen any sort of battle, so you'd have someone with sensory talent, but you'd also be sacrificing focus in order to defend me as I can't do so for myself."
"It would be in your best interests to find someone who can actually fight alongside you while providing the abilities that you need," she concluded with a small bow.
"That's understandable, Young Lady Cháng," said the first of the disciples with a small nod, "But I do genuinely hope that you can explore somewhere outside of Fengrao."
"That's what we're scared of," the noiret muttered under his breath before the younger female stood up with a salute and made her way out of the hall.
Left to herself once more, the woman made true to her promise and took some extra clothes from one of the warehouses along with the usual food and water before making her way back to the forest.
When she arrived to the cave, she could already hear the crackling of fire and sensed that the male wasn't laying in his usual spot.
"It should be appropriate for me to say, 'I see you're feeling better,' but I can't," the female chuckled as she stepped closer and removed her hat.
"Welcome back, Lánhuā," the man chuckled as he moved back to his makeshift bed to let her have her workspace, "I am feeling now much better thanks to you."
"Glad to hear it; but actually, tell me how you're feeling," the woman replied as she set a kettle of water above the fire once more, "does anything hurt or feel sore?"
"Other than my throat feeling a bit scratchy and being cold all the time, I'm fine," the darket replied as he wrapped the blankets around his shoulders.
"That's to be expected, and that reminds me," she said, reaching into her basket to pull out the folded clothes she had taken, "I was able to snag these, but I have no clue if they'll fit you."
"You can go change while I make your tea and heat up your food," the female instructed, feeling the bundle being taken from her hands, "Tell me if it doesn't fit right and I'll try again for tomorrow."
"Oh, you're staying with me for the whole day today?" Mázhe mused as he watched her pour the hot water into a cup with the strainer full of herbs, the smell slightly different than from the day before.
"I didn't give the people at the estate an exact time that I'd be back so I'm free for the whole day," the ravenette replied, as she moved to heat up his food, "Until someone comes looking for me, that is."
"That's good then!" the male chuckled as he took the tea from her hands with a large smile, "I can start teaching you how to cultivate today!"
"I don't get why you're so excited over this, but okay," the woman replied while shaking her head and standing up to go empty the strainer, "We can start the process after you finish your food without any complications."
"There won't be any complications," the older figure huffed as he took a sip of his tea, "I'm already pretty healthy as is."
"That's what they all say and then they end up passing out two seconds later from something stupid," the female scoffed while taking the food away from the fire.
"You sound like you know that from experience."
"That's because I do."
~~~Fin. Chapter 2~~~
Gifts
-- Gift
received Weekly Power Status
-- Power
Ranking 
-- Power
stone