Shen Xiuhan's face twitched twice, a dark line practically visible across his forehead.
Looking at this handsome young man whose eccentric personality was completely unpredictable, he said testily, “Let me finish!”
Hearing this, Zuo Muxian immediately quieted down and sat back obediently on the stone bench. Resting his hands on his knees, he looked at him with a silly grin.
Shen Xiuhan exhaled a long, weary sigh and said slowly, “I will also be going to Dongyi Island this time. I'm not asking you to kill Duan Xiao when you face him, just to keep him occupied. Because... I need to slip onto the island and investigate.”
He chose not to hide his intentions, as it would be impossible to keep them secret anyway. However, he didn't explain what exactly he planned to do on the island.
Zuo Muxian was a sensible man and didn't pry. He merely knitted his brows slightly. “What about Gao Fu?”
“Gao Fu...” Shen Xiuhan pondered for a moment before suddenly raising his gaze to meet Zuo Muxian's. “I have my own ways of drawing him out. When the time comes... whether you capture him or kill him is entirely up to you, Brother Zuo.”
“But there is one catch. Such a commotion will very likely alert Duan Xiao. If he senses it, he will definitely leave the island to investigate. When that happens, I need you to hold him off outside the island to buy me some time...”
Hearing this, Zuo Muxian fell into deep thought for a moment before nodding. “That's fine with me. But what about you? How confident are you in drawing Gao Fu out?”
“...Absolute certainty!”
Zuo Muxian was startled. For the first time since entering the courtyard, a solemn look appeared in his eyes, which had previously remained completely tranquil. He promised, “Go ahead and do what you must. I, Zuo, guarantee that before you make a clean escape... Duan Xiao will never take a single step back onto Dongyi Island!”
“Great!” The massive weight in Shen Xiuhan's heart finally lifted, and he exhaled a long breath. Pausing for a moment, he asked, “Brother Zuo, you are indeed a man of action! When do we set off?”
“It's already late today. Rest up and prepare yourself first. Let's make it tomorrow...”
Before Zuo Muxian could finish his sentence, a series of rapid, cheerful footsteps suddenly echoed from outside the courtyard.
Immediately after, Shen Momo—her hair tied in twin buns and a stubborn tuft of hair sticking up on her head—rushed into the courtyard with a small gray cloth bag on her back, looking incredibly fierce.
The little girl had spent the entire day at the private school. Now that classes were over, her round eyes lit up the moment she saw Shen Xiuhan.
“Big bro!”
She squealed, throwing her legs into a sprint and throwing herself into Shen Xiuhan's arms.
Shen Xiuhan laughed heartily. He bent down to scoop her up, supporting her small body with his left hand while using his right to smooth down her crooked tuft of hair. “Momo, were you well-behaved at school today? How many characters did you learn this time?”
“The teacher taught us three characters today! I've learned twenty-seven characters in total now!”
The little girl gestured animatedly, babbling as if presenting a rare treasure. “The teacher praised me for learning so fast and even rewarded me with a sweet sesame candy...”
As she spoke, she pulled a piece of sesame candy from her small cloth bag and held it up to Shen Xiuhan's face like a trophy. “Big bro, eat!”
Shen Xiuhan smiled and shook his head. “I won't eat it. The teacher gave this to Momo, so Momo should eat it.”
The little girl didn't stand on ceremony either. She stuffed the sesame candy into her mouth, her cheeks puffing out like a little squirrel hoarding nuts.
After chewing a couple of times, she suddenly froze, catching sight of another figure standing nearby out of the corner of her eye.
Clad in a moon-white robe, the exceptionally handsome man was staring at her in a daze.
“Huh?” Shen Momo tilted her head, mumbling around her mouthful of candy, “What a pwetty big brother!”
Zuo Muxian stared at her, his eyes somewhat vacant. After a moment, he murmured in a low voice, “Brother Shen... this is...”
“My younger sister, Shen Momo,” Shen Xiuhan replied warmly.
Zuo Muxian stared at Shen Momo's innocent, smiling face, completely frozen for several seconds.
Suddenly, he snapped back to reality. With an imperceptible brush of his sleeve, a small porcelain bottle appeared out of thin air in his palm.
The bottle was translucent white all over, no thicker than a thumb, with its mouth sealed with red silk. It was clearly no ordinary item.
Forcing a smile, he leaned down slightly to look Shen Momo in the eye. “Little Momo, do you want to learn martial arts?”
“Yes!” Shen Momo nodded immediately, showing no stage fright at all as she answered loudly in her childish voice, “I want to learn characters, and then practice martial arts with Auntie Mei! When I grow up, I'm going to help my big bro beat up the bad guys!”
“Very good... you have spirit.” Zuo Muxian held the small porcelain bottle out to her and said softly, “This pill is called the 『Qingyuan Black Body-Tempering Pill』. It is a precious medicine for cleansing the meridians, tempering the marrow, and regulating one's innate skeletal structure. Since this is our first meeting, I shall give it to you as a welcoming gift.”
The 『Qingyuan Black Body-Tempering Pill』?! Just hearing the name was enough to know it was anything but simple.
Without giving Shen Xiuhan a chance to refuse, Zuo Muxian stepped forward and pressed the small porcelain bottle into Shen Momo's hand.
Holding the porcelain bottle, Shen Momo blinked in confusion and instinctively looked up at Shen Xiuhan.
Seeing Shen Xiuhan nod, the little girl accepted it happily. She carefully tucked it into her cloth bag, straightened her back, and said in a clear, crisp voice, “Thank you, pwetty big brother!”
Pwetty big brother... The address seemed to evoke some distant memory.
The smile on Zuo Muxian's face slowly faded, and a complex look flashed through his eyes. There was nostalgia, melancholy, and something else that was difficult to define.
He took a deep breath, stood up, and turned to look at Shen Xiuhan. His voice suddenly became steady. “Brother Shen, I've suddenly changed my mind. I don't want to wait until tomorrow anymore.”
Shen Xiuhan was slightly taken aback.
“How about we make the trip right now?”
Shen Xiuhan looked into his eyes and, without hesitation, bent down to gently set Shen Momo down, patting her small head. “Go find Mother.”
Then, he waved toward the kitchen.
Behind the half-closed wooden door, Madam Zheng and Liang Xiuhe had been peeking out for quite some time.
Madam Zheng was still clutching a spatula, while Liang Xiuhe had flour dusted over her apron. Both of them looked nervous yet curious.
Seeing Shen Xiuhan wave, Madam Zheng quickly set down the spatula and hurried out, taking Shen Momo's small hand. “Momo, come here quickly. Let's go to the kitchen with Mother. I'll steam some egg custard for you.”
Shen Momo obediently followed. After taking a couple of steps, she turned back and waved her small hand at Zuo Muxian. “Goodbye, pwetty big brother!”
Zuo Muxian stared after her, his lips twitching slightly. Ultimately, he didn't say anything and only nodded gently.
Once the others had entered the kitchen, Shen Xiuhan turned back to Zuo Muxian and spoke solemnly, “Since you have made up your mind, Brother Zuo, I shall gladly accompany you to the end.”
“Let's go, then!”
Without another word, the two turned and strode out of the courtyard gate.
Dusk had already fallen, and candles and lanterns began to light up in the surrounding houses and alleys.
By the time they reached the West Market Pier, night had completely enveloped the area.
The river was as dark as ink, save for the tiny flickers of light from a few distant fishing boats casting swaying reflections on the water's surface.
The tavern stalls near the pier had long since packed up, leaving only a few crooked benches standing solitary in the night breeze.
Shen Xiuhan found a black-awning boat by the shore. The boatman, an old man in his fifties, adamantly refused to go anywhere near Chenjian Dock's territory, agreeing only to take them as far as Yunyi Island.
This was fine.
Yunyi Island was only a few miles of water away from Dongyi Island. Given their cultivation, they could cross the water on foot and reach it in less than the time it took to drink a cup of tea.
The black-awning boat pushed off from the shore, its bow slicing through the river water with a soft splashing sound.
An oil lamp hung inside the cabin, its flame flickering in the wind and casting shifting shadows across their faces.
Shen Xiuhan sat on one side of the cabin, while Zuo Muxian leaned against the opposite wall with his arms crossed, his eyes half-closed.
Ever since they had stepped out of the Shen family home, Zuo Muxian had remained completely silent.
The warmth and playfulness he had shown in the courtyard had completely vanished.
After some thought, Shen Xiuhan took the initiative to break the silence. “Brother Zuo, that pill...”
“It's nothing.”
Zuo Muxian waved his hand with his eyes closed. “I've kept that pill on me for many years. It was originally meant to be a birthday gift for my younger sister. But now... it is no longer needed.”
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