Chapter 31

“You two still chatting? What’s so captivating you didn’t hear me calling at all?”

A clear, resonant voice finally pierced the surrounding din, reaching their ears. Looking up, who stood before them but Yan Ji, who moments ago had been at the foot of the Sword Discussion Platform?

He’d worked hard to get there. Though the match had ended, spectators were still surging towards the arena exit like a relentless wave. Yet there Yan Ji was, squeezing through the flood of people towards the small table where Chen and Yun sought refuge before the tide could fully recede.

Yun Shen was the first to look away. It was a swift gesture, almost hasty.

“The crowd was too thick just now, I didn’t notice,” Yun Shen said, his voice measured, regaining its calm facade. “How did Brother Yan fare?”

“Won! Two big wins!” The question hit the mark, delighting Yan Ji enough to curve his lips into a broad smile. “You really didn’t see? I thrashed that Mingguang Hall old man soundly—guarantee he’ll walk around me from now on—”

While he held forth, boasting of his swift techniques and precise judgment, claiming to have forced his second opponent into admitting defeat after two or three moves, neither of his listeners was truly engaged.

Yun Shen’s gaze subtly returned. The setting sun cast a long, gentle shadow from the Sword Discussion Platform onto Chen Shu’s face, creating a hazy barrier between them. Before he glanced over again, perhaps he hadn’t felt it, but Chen Shu’s eyes had remained on him. She seemed to drift back into that earlier daze—yet there was a difference. This time it felt patient, obedient, expectantly waiting for Yun Shen to turn back.

To turn back and pick up the thread of their conversation.

No one is free from curiosity about the truth, least of all Chen Shu. Her silence now held more than tact. Spring gives way to autumn, the golden wind sweeps over the Yushui River, light rain patters against window sills, sunrise after sunrise bakes the ancient trees on the Red Cliffs… But nothing remains utterly unchanging. Nights may invert, summer rain bring winter’s bite. Perhaps this time, the anticipation gradually dawning on Chen Shu’s face had slowly shifted into an expression of raw tolerance, holding something back.

Through that drawn-out, yet instantaneous pause, Yun Shen’s lips parted then closed. The practiced restraint on his features echoed the controlled expression he had worn under the full moon days before—that same small table and a pair of stools nearby.

Only this time, Chen Shu wouldn’t forget.

This time it was she who broke eye contact first. Slumping onto the table, her head lolled to the side, inky hair cascading down. Instantly, she seemed to shed her somber thoughts like discarded tresses, turning towards Yan Ji with lively interest, piping up crisply, “How about telling us about your third opponent!”

“My third? Of course I… Hey, hang on.” Yan Ji’s expression turned mock-fierce. “Why’d you ask about him so fast? Just waiting to see me squirm, weren’t you?”

Chen Shu blinked, her expression guilelessly open. “Well, didn’t you already proudly recount the first two successes? What else was I to ask?”

“Then you could also ask other questions, like how I won, or how I managed to make it to the third opponent, right?” Yan Ji spoke confidently.

“Oh, could it be that you didn’t win the third match?” Chen Shu suddenly realized.

Finally, a hint of a smile appeared on Yun Shen’s face as he patiently cleared his throat, staying silent while letting the two banter.

Yan Ji glared at Chen Shu and after a moment retorted, “—Even a god couldn’t win three matches in a row!”

“When I went up, I ran into Li Chou, and he won three matches,” Chen Shu counted on her fingers. “Wasn’t it against Xu Tuo Temple? Three whole matches! I saw that Miaoyun, and she’s probably stronger than a few folks from Mingguang Hall. It can’t be harder to win against Mingguang Hall than against Xu Tuo Temple, right?”

“You little girl, after drinking a few cups of my good milk, why don’t you help me and instead support that odd, annoying bird?” Yan Ji teased. “That’s Biyang Valley after all. If I had Li Chou’s aura, I’d expect you to be right here cracking jokes with me instead of putting on a sour face and giving me those cryptic remarks!”

Chen Shu held her head high, stubbornly responding, “But Li Chou isn’t anything special! Just wait until I meet him; you’ll see he has many flaws!”

“Alright then, so you’ve been waiting for me here!” Yan Ji couldn’t help but grin, raising his voice. “Our little monkey is now in the third round—how about we defeat Li Chou so thoroughly that we leave not a scrap behind and give your brother Yan some face?”

As soon as he finished speaking, the crowd beneath the Sword Discussion Platform gradually dispersed, and everything around them fell strangely quiet. Just as Chen Shu was getting ready to enthusiastically respond, she heard Yun Shen lightly interject.

“…Yan Ji, you might want to look back; Li Chou is right behind you.”

“Ah?!”

The previously cheerful Yan Ji suddenly gasped, color rushing to his face as he turned around quickly. His head spun so fast that his lower body couldn’t keep up, making him seem almost bird-like in his agility. Not even when he faced Mingguang Hall’s disciples in battle had he moved this swiftly.

However, behind him, apart from the now-empty Sword Discussion Platform with a few bare platforms and the Linbo Prefecture group anxiously glancing at him not far away, there was no sign of Li Chou.

A few spectators remained lingering, not following the others out, strolling leisurely through the crowd as Yan Ji thought to carefully scan around, raising his hand to shield his forehead from the sunset sunlight. He focused intently, searching for someone resembling Li Chou, who once opened a peacock. But to his surprise, Chen Shu reacted faster than he did, bursting into laughter.

“Haha! Look at how you were just now, speaking with such righteous zeal. Upon seeing Li Chou, you look like a mouse seeing a cat!” Chen Shu laughed heartily, adding rapidly, “Stop searching; there’s no Li Chou. Yun Shen is just fooling you!”

Yan Ji didn’t mind her teasing; instead, he felt a lingering unease as he glanced back at the few passersby.

“Really, there’s none?” he confirmed once more.

“Truly none,” Yun Shen said. “I just saw members of Linbo Prefecture calling for you, so I lied about Li Chou being here. But speaking of which, now that today’s match is over, Young Master Yan should actually return. We can talk more another time.”

“Alright. I’ll head back first.” Yan Ji was understandably disheartened after the scare, turning to leave. After taking a couple of steps, he turned back to put on a fierce expression, saying, “I’m not afraid of Li Chou; I just felt uneasy about someone talking about me from behind!” He pointed at Yun Shen, accusing playfully, “You started it!”

“What are you pretending for? You, the habitual thief, still afraid of being caught talking bad?” Chen Shu snorted.

Yan Ji made a face at her, and then without looking back, he dashed toward the Linbo Prefecture crowd.

Chen Shu wanted to mimic him with a silly face, but her natural charm and cheerful personality made it hard for her to pull off strange antics. After grappling with it for a while, Yan Ji had already vanished into the crowd at Linbo Prefecture. Just then, Yun Shen patted her shoulder, and she turned back to him, sporting that odd “silly face,” which made Yun Shen’s lips curve up.

As the area emptied out, the sky grew more and more distant, losing its color; wisps of smoke rose from who knows where, swirling into the clear sky. The sunlight had already slanted across a corner of the table, and it was dusk—the shadows turned soft, casting gentle layers on Chen Shu’s forehead, stirring tranquil ripples in her heart.

In reality, it wasn’t quiet; there were still enthusiastic discussions happening occasionally, but compared to moments before, they didn’t need to shout to be heard clearly by the person just an arm’s length away. Watching Yun Shen’s mood seemed inexplicably better.

He reached out, gently smoothing Chen Shu’s still slightly twisted cheek, and brushed away the dust from her nose, which she must have picked up somewhere in the alley. Lowering his voice, he said softly, “Right Supervisor was right; I’m not from Zhanglin Village, and I’m not a Scholar rushing to take the exam in the capital. The only reason I didn’t speak is…”

“You don’t need to say anymore.”

Yun Shen was taken aback; perhaps Chen Shu’s response was too quick, too decisive. He didn’t even have time to hide the hint of surprise that showed on his face.

This was also the first time Chen Shu had so clearly interrupted him, her expression radiating unprecedented clarity. Yun Shen quietly looked into her eyes for a moment and perhaps understood that under such clear skies, no elaborate lies could escape scrutiny. Thus, he stopped debating and simply smiled gently.

“I don’t have much else to say either, but some things still need to be clarified. If you think I have ulterior motives, that’s fine.”

“You don’t need to worry about that.” Chen Shu looked at him, straightforwardly stating, “If I believed you had ulterior motives or that you were untrustworthy, I would simply turn around and leave.

“I just wanted to understand! If you don’t want to talk, there must be reasons you don’t want to. I used to be too immature and lacked the proper measures. I saw how nice you were and didn’t understand why I felt that you must certainly like me back, so I grew closer without thinking.

“But now I realize that I am indeed someone who digs deep, yet I am even more annoyed when you make up lies to deal with me. You’re right; the way ahead is broad, and we each walk our own path. Ultimately, we will have to part ways; we should each take a step back, aim to be good traveling companions for ten or fifteen days. By then, I’ll return to my sword and my Tianyu Mountain, and you can visit your old friends—a lovely story after all.”

So saying, perhaps seeing how gloomily Yun Shen’s face had stiffened, she forced out an awkward smile herself, stepped forward on tiptoe, and playfully patted Yun Shen’s shoulder with feigned maturity.

But her clothes—originally cut short by Zou Dai—had been repeatedly jostled in the crowd, and the object hanging at her back finally snapped free from its thread at this sudden movement, falling with a soft “plop” just half a step away.

The setting sun blazed brilliantly beneath the towering Sword Discussion Platform, its warm light spilling over that small bundle, making it look all the more delicate.

Pursing his lips, Yun Shen silently flexed his fingers. Yet Chen Shu moved a beat faster, letting out a clear, startled cry:

“My sword tassel!”