Chapter 19: A Shocking Misunderstanding, Elopement?
Nanshan Village.
Within the borders of the Xingluo Empire.
To the northwest, less than a hundred miles away, is the Tiandou Empire.
There were no soul masters in the village, and they didn't interact much with the outside world. Hiding in this small village would not bring any danger.
When Su Ye heard that Zhu Zhuqing had saved his life with the Nine-Rank Qingling Herb, he didn't mind much. After all, as long as you're alive, anything is possible.
"Take me outside," he said.
"Mm."
Zhu Zhuqing nodded, lifted the quilt, and gently picked him up.
Su Ye's eyes landed on his white cloth clothes, and he couldn't help but pause for a moment.
"Did you change my clothes?"
"Mm."
"…You're not losing out now."
"..."-_-#
If you can't speak properly, then keep quiet!
Zhu Zhuqing's face turned half black, half red, and she pretended not to hear.
The sun was shining brightly, and the courtyard was warm. The weather was indeed nice.
Unfortunately, there was nowhere to sit.
Su Ye couldn't sit on the bench; he needed something to lean on.
Noticing this, Zhu Zhuqing went back inside and chose a chair.
Clang, the chair hit the ground, and the girl took two steps forward.
Then, she lifted the chair with her right foot and moved it forward again.
She kept switching back and forth like this until she successfully moved both Su Ye and the chair outside.
"…6."
"What's wrong?"
"…Nothing."
Su Ye opened his mouth, but it turned into a weak sigh, and he had no words for this situation.
He had thought that, when feeding him porridge, Zhu Zhuqing's attentive and careful demeanor showed that she was someone who could take care of others.
Now, it seemed that this noble young lady had been pampered and raised with care.
It was truly impressive that she had washed him and changed him into clean clothes. Thinking of this, Su Ye's face turned inexplicably red.
Bang—
The chair was placed next to the stone mill, and Su Ye sat down, relaxing in the sun.
Across from him, the old woman who had helped him, seeing that he was awake, approached with her cane, looking as though she had encountered a joyous event.
Knowing that this old lady had helped him a lot, Su Ye thanked her sincerely.
Through their conversation, he learned that the old woman's surname was Mu, and the villagers called her "Grandma Mu."
Grandma Mu was also a tragic figure. After her husband and son passed away, she was left all alone, making a living by sewing.
The house they lived in was the one her son had built as a wedding home, but unfortunately...
After becoming familiar with each other, Su Ye felt more comfortable speaking up.
"Grandma Mu, I noticed that the village is near the mountains. There should be a lot of people who go up the mountain to collect herbs, right?"
With lively eyes, Su Ye's refreshing face showed a sense of obedience and cleverness.
He was the type of person who was very likable.
Seeing this, the wrinkles on Grandma Mu's face lessened as she smiled and said, "Ye boy, you want some medicinal herbs to treat your body, right?"
Before Su Ye could respond, she shook her head and continued, "I'm too old to go into the mountains. Some of the strong men in the village occasionally go up to hunt or look for ginseng to supplement their income."
"They keep a stock of herbs at home, and if someone gets a sprain or something, they usually handle it themselves. But you can't just ask for herbs with your mouth."
"If you want to treat your injuries, I can go around the village and see if I can get some for you."
By now, Su Ye understood her meaning.
The villagers had modest incomes, and although they were simple and honest, everyone had to make a living. He couldn't be thick-skinned enough to take advantage of them.
Luckily, he still had eight gold coins left, so Su Ye had Zhu Zhuqing take one and offer it as a deposit.
"Grandma, the herbs should be for treating flesh wounds and meridians. If they have any, I'll buy them. Just let them give me whatever they can spare."
"Of course, I can't let you run errands for free. This gold coin is for your hard work."
"Please, don't refuse. If you run around for me, I'd feel guilty."
"Not at all..." A gold coin was too much, and Grandma Mu quickly declined, not daring to accept such wealth.
After some thought, Su Ye added up the accommodation and food costs and decided to cover them all with one gold coin.
When Grandma Mu heard that he needed some nutrition for his body and would need things like chicken, she finally felt reassured enough to accept the coin.
"Good boy. Thoughtful."
He was also nice to the elderly.
Grandma Mu couldn't help but feel more attached to Su Ye and planned to go around asking for herbs after their conversation.
While talking, she suddenly exclaimed, seemingly remembering something, and went back inside to bring them some dates.
"Come, come, try these. This year's dates are said to be particularly sweet. I'm an old woman, so I can't enjoy them anymore," she said with a laugh. "If you don't eat them, they'll probably spoil in a few days."
The dates were large and round.
Judging by their size, they seemed to be the ones she couldn't bear to eat, having selected them to sell.
The elderly in the village were like that—they would always offer the best things to those they liked, even if it meant eating the lesser ones themselves.
Su Ye had once lived in the countryside with his grandmother for a while, so he naturally wouldn't be fooled by Grandma Mu's words.
However, he didn't point it out. He planned to buy some cloth and clothes for the old lady as compensation when they left.
"Do you want one?" Zhu Zhuqing offered a date, which was indeed sweet since she had already tasted it.
Su Ye opened his mouth and bit into it. He didn't have a problem eating.
When his fingers brushed his lips, Zhu Zhuqing quickly pulled her hand back, her face a little awkward.
Noticing this, Grandma Mu's smile widened even more. She immediately turned to the young couple in front of her and said:
"Our Nanshan Village, although not as prosperous as the city, is surrounded by green mountains and clear waters. It's a nice place to settle down."
"This courtyard is collecting dust by itself, and every once in a while, I have to come clean it. You two, just settle here and don't worry, ah~."
"If you think this little courtyard is good enough, not too old, I can give it to you. It would be nice to have someone to keep me company."
Su Ye and Zhu Zhuqing naturally refused. They couldn't stay here for long; they planned to leave once their injuries healed.
Grandma Mu seemed a little anxious, thinking they were afraid of being exposed. She began to kindly advise them.
"Don't worry, the people in the village won't gossip. It's much safer here than other places."
"And things like this can't be rushed; you have to plan carefully. All parents in the world, they love their grandchildren more."
"Once you two get married and have a child, even if they're upset, they'll have to accept you for the sake of their grandchild."
What?
Su Ye froze, his throat choking as he swallowed the date.
Zhu Zhuqing also froze, her fair face visibly turning red.
She didn't expect the old woman to misunderstand. Embarrassed, she quickly explained, "Grandma, you misunderstood! How could I elope with someone like him?"
"We're not even a couple, we're just ordinary friends at most."
Su Ye snorted, rolling his eyes in annoyance, and retorted, "She's right. Who would be a couple with such a stupid woman?!"
"Just meeting her almost cost me my life. Whoever marries her would be cursed for eight generations!"
Zhu Zhuqing puffed up like an angry cat, baring her teeth and coldly saying:
"You bad egg! Who are you calling a stupid woman? Who's unlucky?!"
"Who else but you, the stupid one?!"
"Bad egg! Rude!"
"You can insult me all you want, but it won't change the fact that you're stupid!"
"Bad egg!"
"Stupid!"
"Bad!"
"Stupid!"
"…"
In the courtyard, an immature verbal battle suddenly began.
Grandma Mu chuckled knowingly, leaning on her cane as she walked away.
"Youth... is really wonderful…"
(End of this chapter)
ps: read advance chapters at https://www.patreon.com/c/lilsakka419/posts