Seventy-two

The mountain path was treacherous, and after braving thorns and underbrush, Zhuo Zhelian finally arrived at the gates of this strange old mansion. Seeing the main doors ajar, he cautiously pushed them open and stepped inside—only to be caught off guard by the scene that unfolded before him:

A tall plum tree showered its petals under the caress of the breeze, filling the front courtyard with a rain of blossoms. Some of the scattered petals nestled in Ye Yin’s hair, their subtle fragrance wafting away on the wind. She, fragile as a wounded fawn, lay curled against Xiyu’s lap. Xiyu’s slender, pale fingers gently lifted and arranged strands of her hair with a delicate touch. Both were clad in flowing robes, their sashes fluttering; they looked for all the world like celestial beings entwined by fate.

Zhuo Zhelian froze, intending to retreat quietly, but Xiyu’s calm gaze met his, leaving him nowhere to hide.

“We have a guest,” Xiyu said softly.

Ye Yin, half-dazed, was startled by Xiyu’s quiet words and instantly became more alert. By the time she fully regained her senses, Xiyu had vanished without a trace, and in his place knelt Zhuo Zhelian, smiling gently before her.

“I heard you were unwell and recuperating in the mountains, so I came to check on you,” he said in a low voice. “Looks like I was worrying for nothing—did I interrupt something just now?”

“What are you doing here?” Ye Yin was surprised, though a little pleased. “Thank you for your concern. I’m all right.”

Zhuo Zhelian paused, then suddenly sneered, “Of course I know you’re fine. I wasn’t worried about you, so don’t flatter yourself. Commander Ye fabricated news of your death to deceive my brother. Why haven’t you cleared up the matter? If I hadn’t made a special trip to find out, he might already be preparing a memorial for you. Is he really so insignificant to you?”

“What?” Ye Yin was dumbfounded. “I’m sorry, I didn’t know she even lied to your brother…”

“Forget it.” Zhuo Zhelian stood up, resuming his usual flippant tone. “Given the way things are now, whether you’re dead or alive makes no difference to him, does it?”

Ye Yin stared at him in astonishment.

“What’s the matter, nothing to say?” Zhuo Zhelian asked with leisurely calm.

“Why are you… angry?” Ye Yin asked hesitantly.

His pupils contracted, but he gave no answer.

“I knew about the joke, but I didn’t expect her to take it so far.” Ye Yin bowed deeply in apology. “When I got back, he had already left, so I didn’t really know what had happened. I thought the joke was only on Chunxue’s people… But I’m really grateful. Thank you and Chenglan for worrying about me. It’s been hard to receive treatment in the mountains recently, but once I’m better, I’ll come and thank you both in person.”

Zhuo Zhelian sighed and bent down, looking at Ye Yin eye to eye, and asked with deep feeling, “Are you an idiot?”

“Huh?”

He gently lifted her chin, looking her over from head to toe. “That outfit is quite something. Is that strange man your doctor?”

“He does look a little odd, but yes, he’s treating me,” Ye Yin replied, scratching her head awkwardly. “I guess he’s not used to dealing with people, so he didn’t greet you. Please don’t take it personally.”

“No matter,” Zhuo Zhelian replied. “I couldn’t drink tea while looking at his killjoy face anyway.”

“Hey…”

“Well then, take care and get plenty of rest. I’ll head back.” Zhuo Zhelian smiled, standing up. “I’ll remember your promise—don’t stand us up.”

“Of course,” Ye Yin said. “Safe travels.”

After seeing Zhuo Zhelian out, Ye Yin turned to look for Xiyu, only to find him already standing beneath the tree, his robe billowing gently, expression serene.

“Sorry about that, he’s—”

“I thought that clan had died out,” Xiyu interrupted, clearly focused elsewhere. “I never expected any to survive.”

“What?” Ye Yin was puzzled.

“Do you know what he really is?”

Ye Yin was about to ask what he meant, but stopped herself, realizing it sounded insulting. She rephrased, “You mean… he isn’t human?”

“Of course not,” Xiyu replied. “He’s a descendant of the Heavenly Wolf clan.”

Ye Yin’s jaw nearly dropped. “You mean he’s… a demon?”

“Not quite,” Xiyu said. “The Heavenly Wolf bloodline is noble—far above ordinary demons or beasts, even their half-blood offspring. Still, it seems he hasn’t awakened. If he never does, he’ll be no different from an ordinary person all his life.”

“What happens if he awakens?” Ye Yin asked.

“That depends.” Xiyu’s tone was indifferent. “The bloodline has thinned over the generations—the chance of awakening is slim. With spiritual energy so scarce and deathly miasma everywhere, he’d risk being corrupted into a corpse beast instead. It’s not worth it.”

I see…

Ye Yin suddenly found herself worrying about the Zhuo brothers. But surely their luck wouldn’t be that bad?

A few days later, the malevolent aura lingering in Ye Yin was completely dispelled. Feeling refreshed, she thanked Xiyu again, earnestly begging for a chance to repay him.

“If there’s anything I can do, please don’t hesitate to ask. Even if I can’t do it now, I’ll do my best in the future. I owe you more and more—I’m really embarrassed.”

Xiyu considered for a long while before replying slowly, “Then, look after this mansion for me. I may need it again someday, but I don’t have time to maintain it right now.”

Ye Yin nodded vigorously. “No problem. Leave it to me—I’ll never let it fall into disrepair.”

Xiyu gave a slight nod and disappeared in an instant.

The mansion wasn’t large, but not small either—cleaning it alone was a challenge. Ye Yin took out the puppet bone talismans she’d made, pressed them together with fallen plum blossoms, and murmured an incantation.

With a pop, the bone talismans burst into a row of half-sized dolls—each one a chubby-cheeked girl with little bun-shaped hair, dressed in pink jackets and skirts, chattering and circling around Ye Yin.

“I’m counting on you all. Keep the place tidy—I’ll drop by from time to time.”

The bun-faced girls responded in a chorus, and soon some were sweeping, others weeding, all bustling about adorably. Confident in her improving puppet craft, Ye Yin left the mountain smiling.

Yan Valley Mountain had no master, but people often came to gather oil branches, which could cause trouble. Ye Yin applied to Ye Yu for management rights of all land above the mountainside, then had a huge fence built to keep wanderers from stumbling upon the mansion.

With things settled at the mountaintop, Ye Yin remembered her promise to Zhuo Zhelian and decided to take Ye Hua with her to Base One.

“Sister, are we really going?” Ye Hua asked.

“Of course. Didn’t you want to see Teacher Yue? Here’s your chance.”

“How long will we stay?” Ye Hua asked.

Ye Yin hadn’t thought about that. “How long would you like?”

“I don’t know why, but I always feel safest here,” Ye Hua said, lowering her head. “The moment I leave, I get anxious.”

“Then why don’t you stay home, and I’ll go alone?”

“No, I want to go with you,” Ye Hua replied firmly. “I can protect you now.”

“Really?” Ye Yin laughed, ruffling her sister’s hair. “Well, I’ll count on you for protection this time.”

Ye Hua nodded, beaming.

In the command office—

“Not to complain, but you’ve taken a lot of leave lately,” Ye Yu said with a frown. “It made sense when you were sick, but what’s your excuse this time? We don’t need you on missions right now, but I still worry. I’d feel better if you stayed in the base.”

“Don’t be so sour,” Ye Yin replied coolly. “Whose fault is this trip to Base One anyway? If someone hadn’t spread rumors of my death, I wouldn’t need to go and apologize.”

Ye Yu coughed. “Fuel is precious—this is the last time.”

“Sure, as long as I don’t ‘die’ again.”

“Hahaha, that won’t happen.”

Ye Yin still didn’t understand Ye Yu’s motives. “I get fooling others, but why trick Zhuo Chenglan? He was just a hostage under house arrest then—was there any point?”

“Of course,” Ye Yu replied. “But you wouldn’t understand, so I won’t explain. Have fun at Base One and bring back some local specialties.”

“You know, when I first met you, I thought you were noble, aloof, and otherworldly. But after getting to know you, you’re really just a tough girl.”

“And now?” Ye Yu asked, amused.

“Now, I can’t see through you at all,” Ye Yin said. “You have so many faces—I don’t know which is real.”

“There’s no need to worry about that,” Ye Yu smiled. “Truth and falsehood don’t matter; people only care to see what they want. You’ve never really tried to understand the real me, have you? Trying to understand or be understood only leads to disappointment.”

“But we’re partners now, aren’t we?”

“That won’t change,” Ye Yu replied, her smile not quite reaching her eyes. “As long as you don’t change.”

At present, Base One and Base Three enjoyed an alliance, so there was a special air route and landing area for officials. The moment the helicopter touched down, a crowd surged forward to greet the sisters with great enthusiasm.

“Minister Ye, you’re finally here! The Commander’s been waiting ages!”

“That’s right, everyone’s already at the hotel. Hurry over, Minister Ye.”

“This banquet is nothing like the ones before—absolutely grand!”

“Exactly! Preparations took a whole day and night.”

Ye Yin felt like crashing the helicopter. She wished she hadn’t notified them in advance. How had Commander Zhuo still not overcome his flair for the dramatic…