It was already evening by the time the three of them returned to the city from the outskirts.
The original plan was to practice until noon, come back for lunch, and head out again when the sun began to set. However, Song Yueyao got addicted to the practice. She kept drawing her bow and shooting arrows, refusing to stop until this very hour.
Chai Xiaomi was already so hungry that her stomach was touching her back.
Around noon, when she was so starved she was seeing stars, Wu Li slowly pulled an oil-paper-wrapped meat pancake from his robes. He claimed he was afraid that if he took it out any earlier, she would have devoured it as a snack.
She had no idea when he prepared it. He had even forgotten to bring a waterskin, yet he remembered to pack a pancake.
Chai Xiaomi relied on that single meat pancake to keep herself alive.
She offered to share it with the two of them, but neither wanted any.
They were practically two immortals made of iron.
By evening, Chai Xiaomi was once again so hungry that her soul felt like it was leaving her body. Limp as a wandering ghost, she ultimately relied on Wu Li, who carried her back on his back the entire way.
During the final stretch before entering the city, even Song Yueyao showed a hint of fatigue between her brows.
Then there was Wu Li. The guy who survived solely on water had been running back and forth between the two girls to teach them all day. Aside from acting a bit unusually when he drank water, he was still bursting with energy right now. His eyes were bright, as if his body was running on an endless supply of batteries.
His physical stamina was so incredible that he could easily compete in an Ironman Triathlon.
Sister Yao could probably manage two of the events.
And her? Zero.
Chai Xiaomi slumped on Wu Li's back, weakly grumbling in her head: Looking at the state of the three of them, why did it seem like she was the one who had been working herself to the bone drawing a bow under the sun all day?
At this hour, the street vendors had already hastily scarfed down their dinners. Seeing the streets growing crowded, they hurriedly set down their bowls and chopsticks to lay out their dazzling array of goods, preparing for the night market to open.
Resting on Wu Li's back, Chai Xiaomi's gaze lazily swept across the street scene.
She thought she saw that child who had made a wish to the evil god again. His asthma clearly hadn't improved; he was coughing violently while helping his mother set up their market stall.
His tiny frame looked no older than seven or eight, but his back was perfectly straight. His movements were swift and nimble, and he was quite adept at putting up the frame.
Watching him, Chai Xiaomi fell into a daze, inexplicably recalling that small figure building the treehouse.
That very figure was now right beneath her, bearing her weight.
Without her realizing it, his back had grown so broad and steady.
During the period around the New Moon Archery Tournament, there was a massive influx of foreign visitors. It was the perfect time to do good business and make a fortune.
Whether in ancient times or the modern era, ordinary people were always toiling away to make a living.
She sighed silently. As her eyes shifted, she caught sight of two sedan chairs parked not far away.
Those two sedan chairs were truly resplendent. It looked as if they had tried to embed their entire family fortune onto them. They were completely decked out in colored glaze, gemstones, and lanterns, making them exceptionally conspicuous on the darkening street. They were so tacky that they actually had an imposing aura.
Look at that. Some people were just born in Rome.
Wait, that's not quite right.
Hold on!
Chai Xiaomi lifted her head a little higher and squinted to get a closer look. Why did the two people sitting inside "Rome" look so familiar?
Poking out of the window of one of the sedan chairs were two heads: one large and one small, one white and one black.
Weren't they Jiang Zhiyu and Alchemist Ji!?
Walking beside them, Song Yueyao also froze, her footsteps unconsciously slowing down. "Am I seeing things? Are the ones sitting in the sedan chair the two people we know?"
They had only been gone for a single day. What on earth had those two cooked up?
"Sister Yao, you're not seeing things. They are the two people we know," Chai Xiaomi analyzed with squinted eyes.
She had almost forgotten that Jiang Zhiyu was originally born in Rome, but the problem was that his "Rome" wasn't here. This was Liangya Prefecture.
So where did these two sedan chairs come from?
Inside the sedan window, the white cat raised a paw, its pink toe beans showing as it waved at them excitedly.
If you ignored its raised, charred-black tail, it was actually a quite beautiful cat.
Jiang Zhiyu, sitting next to it, had a rather resentful expression on his face.
Previously, his master had forbidden him from following them to watch Yaoyao practice archery, insisting he stay at the Phantom Sound Pavilion to guard against vixens. And the result? As soon as his master heard there was good food and drink, he immediately hopped onto someone else's sedan chair without a second thought.
So he wasn't guarding against vixens now?
Jiang Zhiyu felt that his master was doing this on purpose just to deprive him of the chance to spend more time with Yaoyao.
Just as the three of them approached, the curtain of the other sedan chair was hurriedly thrown open.
A young man in brocade clothes quickly stepped out, waving off his servant's helping hand, and came forward eagerly. "Xiaomi, Xiaomi! I've come to pick you and your friends up for dinner at my estate. I've finally waited for you to return!"
Ouyang Rui smiled and turned sideways, pointing at the sedan chair behind him. "You see, I've already invited your two friends aboard."
Chai Xiaomi was stunned for a moment before she remembered that when she asked for his help transporting wood last night, she had indeed casually agreed to be a guest at his estate tonight.
She slid off Wu Li's back, steadied herself, and waved at him. "Ouyang Feng."
"..." Ouyang Rui paused, though the smile remained on his face. "That's right, it's me."
Chai Xiaomi was just about to respond.
"Ouyang Rui."
A cold voice suddenly rang out beside her, carrying a hint of undisguised mockery.
She looked over in surprise and saw Wu Li slightly raise an eyebrow. As his gaze swept over Ouyang Rui, his eyes revealed a dismissive arrogance, and his tone was teasing. "Apologies, my wife has always had a poor memory. Especially when it comes to insignificant names, she forgets them as soon as she hears them."
"I'm just helping to offer a reminder, lest Young Master Ouyang feel wronged. Why accept a name that doesn't belong to you?"
The lazy smile in his eyes suddenly sharpened with an icy edge. "One shouldn't covet what doesn't belong to them in the first place. What do you think, Young Master Ouyang?"
The smile on Ouyang Rui's face froze.
From childhood to adulthood, his father had granted his every request. There was nothing he set his sights on that he couldn't obtain.
Therefore, he never understood what it meant to covet. In his view, as long as he wanted it, he could have it.
But last night, he had tossed and turned, unable to sleep. One moment he wished for the dawn to come quickly, and the next he wished for dusk, all just so he could see Xiaomi again sooner.
For the first time in his life, he tasted the feeling of coveting.
Remembering the way Xiaomi had clung to her husband's arm and acted affectionately, he felt an unprecedented sense of envy and jealousy.
At this moment, the icy warning in the youth's words couldn't be any clearer.
Ouyang Rui had lived a smooth life since childhood and was never used to backing down.
A surge of provoked irritation mixed with an unyielding stubbornness welled up within him. Instead of retreating, he took a step forward, meeting Wu Li's gaze.
"Whether I covet or not is my own business. I presume I am a few years older than you, so today I will teach you a lesson. If something is destined to be yours, no one can snatch it away no matter how they try. You should be completely fearless," he lowered his voice, his gaze locked tightly onto those bewitching heterochromatic eyes. His voice was so low that only the two of them could hear.
"Young Master Wu is so eager to declare your sovereignty. Could it be that you lack confidence and are afraid?"
"I actually looked into a few things after I went back. I heard that the Voodoo Tribe has a secret art called the Love Gu."
He dragged out the last syllable, his gaze meaningfully sweeping over Chai Xiaomi, who was furrowing her brows beside them, unable to hear their conversation and trying to read their lips. Then, he turned back to Wu Li's face and chuckled softly as he spat out the second half of his sentence:
"I wonder if Miss Xiaomi's affection for Young Master Wu is truly genuine, or if it stems from... something else?"
