Chapter 23 – To Go Shopping With Jia Qizhe!

"Isn't this great?" said Venerable Flame. He sounded relieved, "One more expert to your party! You can also stop worrying about people trying to steal the Bloodlife Jade. After all, that Prince doesn't look that weak either."

Gu Qingyu got angry and shouted out, "What's so great about that! Do you know how much stress and trouble this will bring me in the future!"

Venerable Flame didn't seem to get upset by her harsh tone, instead he asked curiously, "How come?"

"What if he finds out that I'm a girl? Or that I'm a demon?" Gu Qingyu unhappily crossed her arms, "I'm also certain that there will be constant bickering between him and Jia Qizhe! What should we do if they suddenly start fighting…"

Venerable Flame tilted his head to the side, "How about I teach you some more skills?"

"SURE!" Once he mentioned learning skills, Gu Qingyu became excited and really enthusiastic, "Let's do it!"

Venerable Flame seemed rather amused, he sat up on the bed and said, "First, let me hear you call me, 'Master'."

"Huh?" Gu Qingyu started to feel uneasy, "Master??"

"Ah, good disciple." Venerable Flame nodded as if pleased.

"…" What is this? Did I even say anything? Oh, seems like I did… wait a minute! Since when did I acknowledge him as her master??

Okay, fine! For knowledge and power, I shall do as he says! As the saying goes, if you are below the low-hanging eaves, how dare you not bow your head!

"Master~~," Gu Qingyu unwillingly opened her mouth, "Hurry up and teach me!"

"Mm, okay," Venerable Flame nodded his head in satisfaction, "Then, I shall teach you a couple of ultimate spells."

Shortly, the morning arrived.

"Xiao Yu? Xiao Yu, wake up!" Xiao Qi grabbed Gu Qingyu's shoulders and shook her, "The sun is burning your b.u.t.t!"

"As if! The sun would never s.h.i.+ne through here, don't lie to me. We're on the opposite side." Gu Qingyu flipped around and continued sleeping.

"Xiao Yu…" Xiao Qi was rendered speechless. How could Gu Qingyu even know about this so clearly?? "Get up…" Suddenly, Xiao Qi got an idea, she leaned in closer to Gu Qingyu's ears, and whispered, "Jia Qizhe and the others are already eating~!"

"WHAT?!" Gu Qingyu jumped up in an instant, "Eating? Rude! They never asked me to come!"

"…" Xiao Qi just stood aside and watched her quietly.

Gu Qingyu put on her clothes, and kicked open the door without saying anything, then rushed downstairs. She grew even more furious when she spotted the cheerful and lively group of people, "You guys!"

"We?" Qi Yichen gave her an odd look, "Brother Zhu, did you forget to take your medications today?"

"Let me prescribe some for you." Mo Bai followed up.

Jia Qizhe rolled his eyes, "Why are you acting crazy the first thing in the morning? We are all waiting for you."

Waiting—For—Me—??

"You haven't started yet?" Gu Qingyu sat down, stupefied.

Murong Zuoyu quietly nodded.

"Aiyo~~ Since you are insisting on being like this, I can't help it~~" Gu Qingyu picked up her chopsticks without the slightest hesitation, "Come on, let's eat together~"

Xiao Qi held back her laughter and walked slowly down the stairs, then sat down with the rest of the group.

"Did you say something to her?" asked Qi Yichen curiously.

Xiao Qi weakly shook her head, "I just told her that you had already started to eat breakfast. At first, I couldn't get her up no matter what. However, once I told her that you were eating, she got up so fast, as if someone pumped chicken blood in her."

Jia Qizhe, "…"

Qi Yichen, "…"

Mo Bai, "…"

Murong Zuoyu, "…"

Gu Qingyu kept shoving food in her mouth, "Hewwo! Vhy ish novadi eading? Novadi hngry?"

"Actually, we…" Qi Yichen managed to keep a cool demeanor, "… already ate earlier."

"What?!" Gu Qingyu spit out her food, "Unacceptable!!"

"Haha, I'm just kidding!" Qi Yichen smiled and burst out in a hearty laughter.

"How can you do this do this to me!"

They finished breakfast rather quickly. Gu Qingyu asked Murong Zuoyu in a grave and earnest manner, "The journey will be full of danger and hards.h.i.+ps. Are you sure that you want to come with us?"

Murong Zuoyu nodded solemnly.

Gu Qingyu helplessly let out a sigh, "Sigh, one more mouth to feed…" As she muttered to herself, she suddenly came to a realization, "Expenses? Heavens, what nonsense am I spouting! Is it even be necessary for me to help somebody who is a Prince and maybe, the future Emperor to save money??

"Okay, tag along if you want to." Gu Qingyu shrugged indifferently, "But, first things first. If you happen to encounter something dangerous on the road, don't come looking for us."

"Ok." He nodded.

Gu Qingyu stood up, "All right then! Let's get going!"

"Where to?" asked Qi Yichen curiously.

"Bloodglaze City." Gu Qingyu had an extremely serious look to her face, "Yesterday, Bloodlife Jade asked me to go to the Bloodglaze City to look for an herb as known as『Bloodglaze』.

"Bloodglaze?" Mo Bai's eyes shone, "I've heard about this herb. It is one extreme solitary plant, and it is said to grow at the peak of Bloodgaze City, guarded by the City Lord."

"Bloodglaze City's City Lord?" Gu Qingyu slapped herself in the face, "Goodness! Another problem in our way, and it even sounds like a really big problem!!"

"True, the City Lord rarely ventures out to the world, and is a mysterious and secretive being. However, " A faint frown creased Murong Zuoyu's brows, "I've heard about the extremely poisonous character of this herb, why would the Bloodlife Jade request for this kind of herb?"

Gu Qingyu shook her head in an earnest manner, "I'm not sure, he never told me."

"He?" Jia Qizhe seemed wary, "Who are you referring to by "He"?"

"Eeee…" c.r.a.p! She accidentally spilled the beans!! Gu Qingyu started to laugh,"He is… is my heart." Gu Qingyu spoke very sincerely, "This is the conclusion that my heart and Bloodlife Jade came to."

"…" Jia Qizhe's eyes were full of suspicion.

Gu Qingyu looked away guiltily and stared at the floor, "Stop looking at me like that."

"Okay, I'll believe you for now." Jia Qizhe wiped his sword clean, "Then, let's go to the marketplace in a bit and buy some stuff. Let's form the teams, and each team will be responsible for a certain list of things," He paused, "So, let's draw lots for the teams." He brushed his hand in the air, and a couple of blue colored bamboo sticks appeared, hovering in the air.

Everyone looked towards Gu Qingyu at the same time.

"Eh… I go first?" Gu Qingyu walked up towards the bamboo stick, full of confidence and bravado, and picked the closest one. It could be said that the most dangerous could also be the safest~~

Once the bamboo stick touched her hand, a pattern appeared.

Everyone else followed up, one by one, selecting the remaining bamboo sticks.

"Who's with me??" Gu Qingyu's face was filled with eagerness as she looked left and right. However, if she could, she would've chosen Mo Bai or Xiao Qi, because those two treated her the best~.

Jia Qizhe looked at respective person, then faced towards Gu Qingyu with a blank expression, "Me."

"I…" Gu Qingyu looked at him with a tearless grief, "Can I choose to not go…"

"No." Jia Qizhe rejected her clean and simple.

Such a straightforward answer!… My heart's breaking into pieces…

Gu Qingyu gave him a stiff nod, and looked towards Xiao Qi…

"I think I'm together with Young master Qi." Xiao Qi looked at Gu Qingyu, her eyes looked sad, meaning that she was worse off.

Gu Qingyu's mood took a turn for the better in an instant~

Which means that the remaining ones, that is to say, Mo Bai and Murong Zuoyu, were in a team? Mm, it turned out quite fine.

"What are we going to buy?" Gu Qingyu looked at Jia Qizhe, "Hurry up and a.s.sign the tasks."

"Okay, " Jia Qizhe had a wooden expression on his face, "Mo Bai's team, you are in charge of buying the cloth wrappers and bags, we need a couple of new ones because our old ones are getting worn-out. Also Mo Bai, you can buy some additional herbs or ingredients that you need."

Mo Bai nodded.

Jia Qizhe continued, "Xiao Qi, you and Qi Yichen are responsible for our provision."

"Food?"Gu Qingyu immediately protested, "Why are you letting Qi Yichen to go? Can I go instead?"

"No." Jia Qizhe had an "Immune to Protests"-expression on, "We are going to buy some everyday supplies."

"Then, can we switch tasks?" Gu Qingyu's face was filled with antic.i.p.ation.

"No."

"…" Gu Qingyu walked silently to Qi Yichen's side, "Qi Yichen."

"Yeah? What can I do for you, Brother Zhu?" Although it seems like he could already guess what Gu Qingyu wanted, he still looked full of spirits.

"Qi Yi… ah, Brother Qi~" Gu Qingyu immediately pandered to him, "Could you also bring me some snacks while you are at it~ Anything is fine! Like roasted chestnuts, candied gourd, fruits…" She kept blathering on, creating a huge list.

In the end, Qi Yichen nodded as if he had a vague idea of what she wanted, "Okay, don't worry!"

She felt relieved after hearing him saying this. So, why didn't she ask Xiao Qi? Because if she asked Qi Yichen to buy them, perhaps he might be more reliable. Lest Xiao Qi be careless and forget to buy.

"In that case, let's move out." With a flourish of his sleeves, Mo Bai stood up.

He still wore the white robe, and when paired together with his black hair, he appeared very beautiful and docile.

Sometimes, Gu Qingyu felt that Mo Bai was more suited as a scholar.

"Okay." Jia Qizhe nodded, he put away his sword and walked out.

"Everyone, see you again around noon." Qi Yichen waved.

"Yes!" Gu Qingyu looked at Mo Bai, "Byebye!"

"Byebye1?" Mo Bai's expression seemed quizzical.

Gu Qingyu was stunned for a moment, then followed up with laughter and explained, "Mm… It's just a way of saying 'Goodbye' in my hometown~"

"Oh," Mo Bai laughed as well, "Byebye."

"Mm~You are a quick learner~" Gu Qingyu turned around, "Huh? Where did that b.a.s.t.a.r.d go?? Hey! Wait for me!!"

Walking around the street, merchant's street cries could be heard everywhere.

"Jia Qizhe~Jia Qizhe~ I want to buy that one~" Gu Qingyu's eyes sparkled as she looked at a bracelet, "Can I buy it~"

"Why would you buy that," Jia Qizhe crossed his arms and stood in a casual posture, "Brother~Zhu~"

"Yelp! Such a pretty name can also be turned into something else by you." Gu Qingyu curled her lips, "I'm still a girl, okay?"

"But right now, you are still a young man." said Jia Qizhe indifferently.

"Ah," Gu Qingyu walked anxiously further and further away, gazing towards the distant bracelet, "No~ Don't leave me~~"

"You women are strange, "Jia Qizhe sighed, "Why do women like these kind of stuff so much?"

"To stand out! And become prettier!!" said Gu Qingyu as if it was only natural.

Jia Qizhe thought it was even more absurd, "Easy! If you want to stand out, go and roll in a mud pool, you will get a head turning rate of a hundred percent. Become prettier? That's even easier! Just wash the mud off your face afterwards."2

"…" Gu Qingyu didn't know if she should cry or laugh, "How did I get acquainted with this fellow!", "I don't know you. See! You!"

Just as she was about to leave, she heard Jia Qizhe picking up an item, "Boss, how much?"