When the weather was good, the wives in the village loved to squat by the water to wash their clothes, taking the opportunity to exchange the latest gossip.
"Did you hear? A lot of people have died in town recently."
"What happened?"
"I don't know. I just heard from the townspeople that a homicidal maniac killed them all overnight. Who knows what kind of grudge or hatred drove them. They say the blood on the ground couldn't be washed away even after days and nights."
A chill ran down the spines of many women, and they couldn't help but feel terrified and uneasy.
"That homicidal maniac... wouldn't come to our village to kill people, would he?"
"Yeah, I'm scared too!"
"He won't."
Amidst the panic, such a firm voice suddenly rang out, making everyone turn to look in unison.
It turned out to be the young wife who had recently moved into the village. She revealed a smile. "Hulu Village is blessed by deities. We will definitely be fine."
The others also recalled this rumor.
"I remember now. I heard my grandfather say that there is a saying in Hulu Village that has been passed down for hundreds of years. This place of ours is protected by deities, so for all these years, no matter how fierce the struggles between cultivators and sects outside get, our Hulu Village has always remained safe and sound."
"Speaking of sect struggles, I actually heard a storyteller in town mention that there is The Green-Clad Guest whose methods are ruthless. If anyone angers him, he will wipe out their entire sect."
Someone sighed, "Truly lawless!"
Yet someone else said excitedly, "So powerful!"
The crowd looked over again, only to find that the speaker was once again the young wife who had recently moved into Hulu Village.
The young wife was beautiful, her eyes strikingly bright. She showed not a hint of timidity, acting instead as if she were listening to a fascinating story.
Among the many wives, only Mrs. Wang was somewhat familiar with this young woman.
This was because two months ago, someone had finally moved into the empty house next to the Wang family's.
The people who moved in were a young married couple. Although the husband had a physical disability and his appearance was somewhat different from ordinary people, he was truly good to his wife.
Sometimes, they would come out for a walk at dusk. From their every word and action, one could tell that their relationship was excellent.
Later, the Wang family learned that the newly moved couple consisted of a husband who was a doctor at the town's medical clinic, surnamed Cangshu, and a wife surnamed Mu, who occasionally went to the town's workshop to sell small items.
Mrs. Wang asked, "Aren't you afraid?"
Mu Ran had been washing water chestnuts for the better part of an hour, intending to wait for Cangshu Bai to return so they could eat together. However, her mouth couldn't stay idle; she ate as many as she washed.
Hearing Mrs. Wang's question, her eyes curved as she smiled and said, "Those sect massacres are matters between big shots. We are just ordinary commoners. No matter how fierce things get outside, it shouldn't reach our little place, right? Besides..."
Mrs. Wang prompted, "Besides?"
"Isn't there a legend in Hulu Village about being blessed by deities? I believe the deities will definitely protect us."
Mrs. Wang didn't understand why Mu Ran had so much faith in this legend. As a local of Hulu Village, if it weren't for the fact that her family's situation had indeed improved a lot recently, she would have only treated the so-called legend of divine protection as a mere story.
Sharp-eyed, Mrs. Wang saw a figure appearing not far away and teased, "Your husband can't wait to come pick you up again. It's like he wants to tie you to his belt, terrified you might get lost."
Mu Ran, however, didn't blush or skip a beat, generously admitting, "Of course. My husband is just like that, always worrying unnecessarily. You guys keep chatting, I'm leaving first."
She picked up her basket, stood up, and ran to the young man in a few steps.
The young man's eyes and brows held a smile as he took the bamboo basket from her hand. Then, with her hugging his arm, the two walked together, stepping onto the path home against the afterglow of the dusk.
As the sun set in the west, their retreating figures walking hand in hand were beautiful, but it was also a fact that the green-clad, white-haired man was missing a hand.
Someone couldn't help but say, "That young Mrs. Mu is so beautiful, how could she marry a man who isn't whole?"
"Yeah, they really don't look like a match."
Mrs. Wang cast a sideways glance. "The man is handsome, and the woman is beautiful. One is mature and steady, the other is innocent and romantic. I think they're a great match. Besides, instead of spending time wondering if others are a good match, you might as well wonder why your own husbands can't be like hers and wash clothes and cook for you."
The surrounding people were stunned.
"What? Her husband even washes clothes and cooks for her?"
"My man just waits to be dressed and fed every day!"
"If I could have a husband who treated me like that, let alone missing a hand, I'd be happy even if he were a cripple."
Isn't that right?
Thinking about how she had never eaten a meal cooked by her husband, Mrs. Wang also felt a bit depressed. But then, she touched the hairpin in her hair, and the resentment in her heart diminished quite a bit.
Mu Ran and Cangshu Bai walked on the small path. She tilted her face up with a shallow smile, "Were there not many patients at the clinic again today?"
Cangshu Bai nodded, "Yes, there weren't many patients, so Doctor Hu let me come back early."
Doctor Hu was probably under a lot of pressure because he couldn't understand why, since Cangshu Bai had already confessed his identity to Mu Ran, there was still a need to come to work at a fixed time every day.
He really wished Cangshu Bai would go home early every day so he could live a peaceful life.
How could Doctor Hu know that in the past, Cangshu Bai had to pretend to be ordinary and blend into the mortal world, but now he had truly fallen in love with this earthly life.
His only wish was to be with his wife day and night, sharing three meals a day across the four seasons; that was fulfillment enough.
Mu Ran poked the basket he was carrying. "Jinzhi, can we make water chestnut sweet soup tonight?"
He chuckled softly, "Mm, we can."
Mu Ran returned him a radiant smile.
The five hundred years of wandering and hardship seemed to have vanished. They had returned to the first two years of their marriage. Even if it was ordinary, this ordinariness was exactly what they desired in their hearts.
However, when they saw a disheveled figure in the courtyard of their little home, a ripple was finally about to stir in this life that was as calm as the surface of water.
"Young Master Cangshu, Mrs. Mu." Cangshu Fenming bowed to the two with cupped hands. "It is my fault for coming uninvited and disturbing you both. But for the sake of the City Lord and the future of Zhenyue Mountain City, I had to make this trip. Please hear my request; it won't be too late to grind my bones to dust and scatter my ashes afterward."
Cangshu Fenming's face was deathly pale. His clothes were mottled with bloodstains and emitted a heavy metallic stench of blood. An ordinary person with such severe injuries would have long collapsed on the ground unable to move, yet he managed to persevere and walk all the way here, proving himself a man of resilient character.
Although his demeanor still carried an unhurried calmness, it was clear that he had already resolved to die by the time he appeared before Cangshu Bai and Mu Ran.
