Ultimately, they were still kicked out, leaving Jiang Moran to enjoy the entire thatched hut all to himself.
Fengqingzi and the others remained immersed in the shocking story, unable to extricate themselves for a long time, until Xu Qing woke up and stepped out of the thatched hut, only to see them all dazing out.
“What are you all doing?” Xu Qing asked, puzzled. Did they think he died, which is why they were too grief-stricken to snap out of it?
At this thought, a wave of warmth washed over his heart. Smiling, he stepped forward and patted Zhang Wuji's shoulder.
“Holy crap!”
Xu Qing was happily gifted another kick, perfectly symmetrical with the one Jiang Moran had given him. A young man in his twenties had managed to receive two kicks purely on his own merits.
“You scared the life out of me, suddenly coming up and patting me like that,” Zhang Wuji said, thoroughly annoyed.
Just now, he had immersed himself in Li Lu's perspective in the story. Had he known, he would have immersed himself in the senior's instead.
Ning Qingzhu only noticed him now, asking in pleasant surprise, “You're awake! How are you feeling?”
“Much better. What happened after I fainted?”
...
After the others filled him in on what had transpired, Xu Qing's expression grew more and more colorful, until his jaw finally dropped completely.
“Y-Your young master is Jiang Moran?!” Xu Qing exclaimed in shock, then whipped his head toward Li Lu. “And you are Li Lu?! That Number One Poison Master in the World?!”
Li Lu nodded, looking at him with a completely clear conscience. Truth be told, without that pill, this kid would already be dead.
Furthermore, taking ten thousand steps back, since he himself had almost been beaten to death, didn't this kid bear some responsibility?
Taking a hundred thousand steps back... his Deathless Pill did indeed temporarily keep the kid from dying. Dying from poison afterward was just the price to pay; there was no such thing as a free lunch in this world.
So what if he paid fifty silver coins? Why didn't he just ask the Empress to spend a night with him for fifty silver coins, then?!
The more Li Lu thought about it, the angrier he got, so he kicked him hard in the rear again.
“Hiss!” Xu Qing stumbled from the kick and turned to look at him with a face full of confusion.
Li Lu, however, didn't even spare him a glance, turning around and walking away on his own.
“Why is he like this? Even if he's Li Lu, he can't just kick people without a word,” Xu Qing grumbled, throwing a resentful glare at his retreating figure.
“Alright, alright, say no more,” Fengqingzi stepped forward to placate him. The man had almost been beaten to death; what was wrong with him kicking you twice to vent his frustration?
“Xu Qing, you should go see Qiu Zhiya. She was very worried about you,” Ning Qingzhu spoke up at this moment.
Only then did Xu Qing snap back to reality.
“Right, how is she? She wasn't injured, was she?”
“No, she's perfectly fine, just very worried about you. During the days you were unconscious, she stayed by your side the entire time.”
Saying so, Ning Qingzhu pointed toward the simple wooden hut built nearby.
Xu Qing heard this and excused himself to the others, then impatiently walked toward the wooden hut. The door wasn't locked but was left slightly ajar. With a gentle push, he opened it.
Inside, the old physician was sitting on the floor, busy with a pile of medicinal herbs, while Qiu Zhiya was asleep, slumped over a nearby wooden counter.
However, her brow was still tightly furrowed, making it clear she was not sleeping peacefully.
The old physician glanced at him and made a shushing gesture. Xu Qing nodded, softening his footsteps as he walked over.
She was still as dirty and disheveled as before, which made his heart ache. He reached out and gently brushed away the bits of dried grass from her hair, acting as though he were cradling a rare and priceless treasure.
But then again, those words weren't wrong; in his eyes, she truly was an invaluable treasure.
Qiu Zhiya seemed to feel something. Her eyelashes fluttered lightly as she slowly opened her eyes. The moment their gazes locked, the smile on Xu Qing's face froze.
“I...”
Arriving faster than his words was a wave of subtle fragrance.
Qiu Zhiya leaned across the counter and threw her arms around him, holding him tightly. The gap between them was instantly filled by the warmth of their burning hearts.
Xu Qing's hands froze in midair, his mind completely blank. He could feel her warmth, her breathing, her heartbeat, and...
A warm, wet sensation fell upon the back of his neck. Those were her tears.
“Who told you to block for me?” Qiu Zhiya choked out, her voice carrying a feigned fierceness.
“Nobody told me to block for you,” Xu Qing whispered, slowly wrapping his arms around her.
“It's just that... I wanted to.”
Clang! The sound of a pestle hitting the floor rang out, shattering the tender atmosphere between the two.
The old physician stared with wide eyes, having accidentally let the pestle slip from his hand. If he had even half of this kid's silver tongue back in the day, would he have stayed single for over a hundred years?
He had truly wasted his efforts mastering how to treat impotence for nothing.
The two quickly broke apart, looking away with beet-red faces, neither of them daring to make eye contact.
“Alright, alright, what are you two still standing here for?”
Shooed out by the old physician, they happened to run into Old Chen, who had just returned from Jinling City. When Old Chen saw Xu Qing, he froze for a moment.
“You're not dead?”
“Can you wish some good fortune on me for once?”
“Heheh,” Old Chen chuckled, stroking his beard as he said slowly, “This old man just came back from Jinling City and caught wind of two shocking pieces of news.”
Two shocking pieces of news? Xu Qing and Qiu Zhiya looked at each other, quietly waiting for Old Chen to elaborate.
“The first piece of news is that the Martial Alliance has been completely wiped out. In its place is a power called the Tianxia Association, and its scale of expansion far exceeds that of the Martial Alliance.”
The Tianxia Association? Qiu Zhiya's brow furrowed slightly. How had she never heard of this organization before?
Xu Qing wasn't thinking about that at all; he just thought she looked incredibly adorable with her reddened eyes and furrowed brow.
“What about the second piece of news?”
“As for the second piece of news...”
...
Bang!
The door to the thatched hut was kicked open with a resounding bang. Woken from a sound sleep, Jiang Moran bolted upright, squinting his half-lidded eyes at the crowd gathered at the entrance.
“Young Master!” Ning Qingzhu said, looking at him with immense excitement. “Someone followed the treasure map and actually found it! It's a city that isn't recorded on any map!”
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