Chapter 36 – Grandfather and Uncle

After they left, the crowd slowly dispersed. The second miss remained kneeling in the street, neither leaving nor staying, the pa.s.sersby all pointed and nodded at her. She looked extremely embarra.s.sed.

She couldn't suppress the murderous intent hiding in her eyes, "Let's see if you can still be arrogant after I'm done with you!"

After having walked for a bit, Gu Qingyu put down Qi Wan.

Qi Wan's face looked complicated, "Boss, are you…"

"My G.o.d! Why are you so heavy!" Gu Qingyu waved her arms around, "Why are you still not ma.s.saging!"

Qi Wan looked at her, startled, then obediently went over, "Yes, boss!"

His hands were grabbed midair by a fair, jadelike hand. The hand was as cold as ice.

Qi Wan trembled in fear as he turned his head around, "Oh, hi… Brother Mo…"

Mo Bai gave him a faint smile, he looked very gentle, but there was that tiny bit of menace in his eyes as he looked at Qi Wan, "It's fine if you let me take care of Brother Zhu, since I'm a Divine Healer."

This was the first time he stressed that he was a "Divine Healer".

Qi Wan nodded at once and swiftly withdrew his hands, "Please do!"

Gu Qingyu, "…"

Mo Bai turned around towards Gu Qingyu, the menace in his eyes disappeared without a trace. Instead, they were gentle and soft like water.

Gu Qingyu couldn't help but gulp and swallow, "M-Mo Bai…"

"Mm?" Mo Bai chuckled. He reached out with his hands and held Gu Qingyu's arms gently, "If Brother Zhu doesn't mind, it should be fine if I help you knead instead?"

If Gu Qingyu was just casually swallowing a mouthful of saliva earlier, then she was swallowing and gulping for her whole life right now, "Yes! Of course! Sure!"

Xiao Qi watched over it all silently.

Murong Zuoyu was rather amazed over the scene: Didn't he have a wife already? Why does it feel these actions are like he's afraid of other people finding out that he is a "cut-sleeve"?1

Shortly, they set off again.

With Gu Qingyu and Qi Wan with them, the trip became unusually lively and cheerful, however, Qi Yichen stayed strangely silent.

"Brother Qi, why do you look so distracted?" Qi Wan lifted his eyebrows, his face expressed curiosity.

Qi Yichen regained his senses, "Ah? I do?"

Qi Wan and Gu Qingyu nodded seriously.

Qi Yichen chuckled, "I just suddenly feel homesick."

Gu Qingyu cursed inwardly: You have a home? Suddenly homesick? Save it, please!

Then again, it seems like no one really knows each other’s life journey. I should take some time to ask around when I have time.

At last, right before noon, they exited the capital and entered a forest.

"Boss…" Qi Wan suddenly started to wobble and propped himself against a tree, his feet turned soft and jelly.

"70k? What is it?" Gu Qingyu quickly went up to support him.

Qi Wan seemed to be in a daze, his eyes drifted around before looking confusedly at her, then struck out in a "pose", "I am not sure myself… although I haven't consumed any meds, I still feel like I'm flying!…" Before he finished his sentence, his whole body went limp and fell down.

"QI WAN!" Gu Qingyu caught him at once, "Mo Bai!"

Mo Bai came over and helped her with Qi Wan, laying him down on the ground. He held up Qi Wan's hand, taking the pulse.

He frowned slightly, "Nothing serious. Probably poisoned… let me give him some medicine. He should wake up in a couple of days."

"A couple of days? That severe?" Gu Qingyu widened her eyes, "What kind of poison is it? How did he even get poisoned?"

Mo Bai's expression was as calm as usual, "It's a poison that can make you lose your consciousness, and if you don't take the antidote within three days, then the person will surely die. I reckon Qi Wan caught it from that young lady who b.u.mped into him earlier."

"Once a wench, always a wench!" Gu Qingyu clenched her teeth, "Since she keeps pus.h.i.+ng my bottom line, why should I still endure it?"

"Your bottom line… is Qi Wan?" Jia Qizhe opened his mouth and asked.

This seemed to be the first sentence he said today.

Gu Qingyu looked at him strangely, then shook her head, "My bottom line is all of you."

Every single one of you are my friends.

Jia Qizhe turned taciturn.

"I just knew that girl had something up her sleeve." Gu Qingyu snorted audibly, "At least Qi Wan is fine. Let's continue."

"You're just going to let her be?" The smart and brilliant Qi Yichen immediately followed up after his sentence, "… No, you did something to her as well, right?"

Gu Qingyu nodded, "That's right, clever one. I got it from Mo Bai. In fact, at most it'll just make the skin around her body and face rot or something similar…"

"…" Xiao Qi broke out silently in a sweat: Thank goodness that Gu Qingyu was in the same team as them!

"If she didn't touch our Qi Wan." Gu Qingyu laughed nonchalantly, "I was going to send the antidote through a carrier. But… it seems like there's no need for that now."

"So, you're saying that she doesn't have any antidote?" Xiao Qi couldn't help but ask.

Gu Qingyu snapped her fingers chicly, then leaned against Mo Bai's shoulder, "Produced by Mo Bai! Definitely high-quality goods!"

Like this, she was exactly like a salesperson.

Mo Bai smiled, "Brother Zhu, let's continue our journey. Rest a.s.sured, besides me, no one else that has the antidote."

"Mmhm! I am!" Gu Qingyu waved her hands, "Qi Yichen! I know that you've been secretly in love with Qi Wan for a very long time already!"

Despite how smart Qi Yichen was, he still couldn't figure out the meaning behind Gu Qingyu's random words, "Ah?"

"Yeah, I'm giving you the chance in your lifetime to carry a damsel like a prince!" Gu Qingyu clasped her chest and looked very sad and reluctant, "Ah! My Qi Wan! To be given away at such a young age!" She looked like an old mother who couldn't bear with letting her daughter getting married. If Qi Wan were to wake up now, he would definitely spit out blood.

Qi Yichen looked at her in disbelief, "Brother Zhu…"

"Mm, got it~~" Gu Qingyu nodded, then gathered Jia Qizhe, Mo Bai, Murong Zuoyu and Xiao Qi, "All of you, let's not disturb them. Scat, scat, go away!"

The rest looked as if they had seen the ghost.

"I'm exhausted…" Gu Qingyu looked around at the surroundings, "Why are we still not out yet?"

If she had estimated correctly, then from the start when they entered this forest until now, they had been walking non-stop for more than five hours already!

"Brother Zhu, are you not embarra.s.sed when you say that…" The voice sounded like it was on the verge of death.

Gu Qingyu rubbed her nose, feeling a little guilty, "Qi Yichen…"

"Did you call for me?" Qi Yichen glared at her fiercely, he threw down Qi Wan and rolled up his sleeves.

Wasn't Qi Yichen just a weak scholar? These values are getting knocked over too quickly…

Gu Qingyu laughed dryly, "Nope. You, do you…"

Qi Yichen finished rolling up his sleeves, then lifted Qi Wan up again on his shoulders like a sack of potatoes.

Big bro, do your family know how cruel and rough you are…

"We're almost there." said Jia Qizhe faintly as he gazed to the front.

"What?" Gu Qingyu didn't get what he meant at first.

"You dimwit. We're almost out of the forest." Jia Qizhe tapped on her forehead.

"Oh…" Gu Qingyu rubbed her forehead and jumped to Murong Zuoyu's side, "Ehem, Brother Leng…"

"Yes?" Murong Zuoyu looked up, he had a piercing cold look in his eyes.

"Umm, please don't get mad at what happened earlier… and I wanted to say a word, thank you." Gu Qingyu mumbled softly.

Murong Zuoyu might be the only one among them that didn't know Gu Qingyu's real name nor her real gender, which is why Gu Qingyu felt most guilty towards him.

Not to mention, he had such unwavering, unconditional faith in her…

"Don't mind it." Murong Zuoyu replied faintly, and continued walking.

Huh? He's acting strange… could it be that this brat is mad? That's right, an ice princess like Murong Zuoyu wouldn't show off his emotions when angry…

Hmm, it should be fine if I just comfort and talk some sense into him when I have time. Moreover, I could even take the chance to tell him about the situation regarding my gender.

"F*ck! I'm not doing this anymore!" Qi Yichen suddenly hurled Qi Wan to the ground.

That throw…

"Cough cough…" Qi Wan coughed a little.

Gu Qingyu quickly dashed over, "70k, how are you feeling?"

"Boss…" Qi Wan coughed weakly, "My head feels dizzy…"

"Mo Bai, didn't you say that he needed at least a couple of days to wake up? It hasn't even been half a day…" Gu Qingyu scratched her head.

Mo Bai cast a glance at Qi Yichen, "Probably, when he got thrown a couple of times… he might've knocked his head, and thus woke up."

Gu Qingyu, "…… Excuse me?"

Qi Wan supported himself on Gu Qingyu and sat up, "I was thrown around? Which b.a.s.t.a.r.d dare throw this grandfather, I?"

"It was I, your uncle! What are you going to do about it!" Qi Yichen put his foot on a rock, he had thug written all over him.

"Yooh~ Are you tired of living? Let your grandfather fix you up!" Qi Wan rolled up his green sleeves, he spit into both of his hands and then rubbed his hands together.

"Yooh~ Do you think I, your uncle am afraid of you?" Qi Yichen did the same and rolled up his snow white sleeves. That scholarly air of his totally dispersed in an instant.

… These two blockheads…

Could someone please tell her why these two handsome men suddenly turned into like those big men at a butchery?! One called himself "Grandfather", and other "Uncle"?!

"Everyone, calm down a bit…" Xiao Qi quickly put herself in between to stop the fight, "We still have a long way to go…"

"Hmph, your grandfather (your uncle), I will not bicker with you anymore!" The two said, and turned their heads away simultaneously.

"We're leaving, my dear blockheads~" Gu Qingyu rolled her eyes helplessly.

"Your grandfather (Your uncle) don't eat vegetarian!" The two shouted at Gu Qingyu. (We're not that easily bullied!)2

By her sides, Jia Qizhe and Mo Bai turned their head around towards the two, their eyes glinted dangerously.

"We're sorry…" said the duo, again in unison, and their overbearing aura dissipated.

Gu Qingyu couldn't help but laugh out heartily.

They managed to finally reach the outskirts of the forest and arrived at a small village in the late afternoon.

An old man sat at the entrance, he seemed to be in a trance.

"Gramps?" Gu Qingyu gave him a warm, wide and pleasant smile.

"Mmhm?" The old man looked up slowly.

"We're just pa.s.sing by this place on our journey, so we're wondering if we could stay here for the night." Gu Qingyu glimpsed inside the village.

The old Gramps shook his head, "No can do. We don't ever accept outsiders."

"Grandfather Zhang, do you not remember me?" A cold, but could still be considered as a kind voice, sounded from behind. It was Murong Zuoyu.

"You are… Prince Yu?" The old Gramps clutched his cane and rose up at once, "Follow me."

What hospitality…

Gu Qingyu rolled her eyes.

"Young master, I didn't know you were Prince Yu's friend earlier. Please forgive me!"

Although it left a bad taste in her mouth, but it seems that Murong Zuoyu was very welcomed and loved by the commoners… Especially with everything happening in the morning until now.

"Don't mind it. Thank you." Gu Qingyu smiled back at him.

Understandable. After all, we were neither friends nor relatives.