Ha, Karma! – Chapter 103
by Little Panda【Extra Chapter · Ancient IF Timeline】
The Bright Moon of Bygone Years (5)
Liao Yuting told them about Lin Lan and Liao Muchen.
“Young Master Lin came to our place two years ago. At that time, my elder brother saw that he was alone, helpless, and had difficulty moving, so he took the initiative to help him out.
“After some interaction, my elder brother found this person to be exceptionally well-spoken and became interested in him, soon becoming good friends with him.
“My elder brother is a warm-hearted person. After becoming friends, he would go to see him almost every day, taking care of him daily, and helping him out in small ways.”
Liao Yuting said this while refilling Ye Zhaoqiu’s and the other person’s teacups.
“Young Master Lin is also a person who knows how to repay kindness. He felt indebted for the help he received from our Liao Manor, and mentioned several times that if we needed anything from him, we should just ask, and he would do it without hesitation.
“But what could we ask a pitiful person who cannot see to do?
“My elder brother just told him to be at ease, saying it was what he should do as a friend, and he sought no reward.”
“My elder brother would still go to see him every day, to take care of him.
“They were almost inseparable, as if they were born to be a pair.
“It wasn’t until later that I found out that my elder brother’s kindness towards Young Master Lin contained a selfish motive.”
It wasn’t just out of friendly assistance, but also affection.
A heart yearning for the bright moon, brilliant and clear, an affection that could not be known to others yet could not be suppressed.
But the matter of cutting sleeve1 was not a common occurrence in Yunshui Town.
In other places, it was likely not accepted by the general public either, because many people believed that men were yang and women were yin, and the union of yin and yang was the law of nature; otherwise, it was going against heaven and was considered improper.
Fortunately, her brother was a very open-minded person, who thought things through clearly.
Including this matter.
He didn’t care about yin and yang; the world wouldn’t change much if it lacked one instance of yin-yang union. So he decided to follow his heart and continue to love.
Thus, he treated Lin Lan even better, even more gently, to the point where he would do anything for him.
Whether it was jewels on the ground or the moon in the sky, he was willing to present them before him to win his favor.
He only wanted him to be happy.
Fortunately, heaven took pity, and his love was reciprocated.
Liao Yuting would never forget the sight of her brother rushing home that day, finding her, and excitedly sharing the good news with her.
He grabbed her hands, repeatedly confirming reality versus dream, his eyes full of light.
He was too happy, so happy that he couldn’t help but share this good news with the sister he depended on.
The one his heart delighted in also delighted in him; this was a great fortune in life!
Liao Yuting was naturally happy for her elder brother.
She also wished her brother well, wished for her brother’s happiness.
So, while feeling happy for them, she kept this matter hidden in her heart, telling an outsider for the first time only today.
“Precisely because of this, I don’t think Young Master Lin is the person who would inflict such a cruel hand on my elder brother,” Liao Yuting said.
Ye Zhaoqiu remained silent.
Fu Lianxue also said nothing, just quietly drinking tea.
After eating so many lotus pastries, her mouth was still thirsty.
After a while, Ye Zhaoqiu asked: “What about his relatives?”
Liao Yuting shook her head: “He has no relatives.
“He said his family was harmed by treacherous people. He didn’t even have time to see what the murderer looked like before his eyes were blinded, and then he was forced to wander to other lands. Fortunately, by the mercy of heaven, he met my kind-hearted elder brother.
“He thought he could let go of his hatred and live a good life, but he never expected such a great disaster to occur…”
Once these words were spoken, Ye Zhaoqiu became even more silent.
Hearing this, Lin Lan’s life seemed incredibly miserable.
His family harmed, his eyes blinded, he finally met someone with whom he shared mutual affection, thinking they could spend their lives together and settle down, only to encounter such a calamity, separated by life and death…
She sighed almost inaudibly, and at the same time, her determination to find the real culprit became even stronger.
For Liao Yuting, for Lin Lan, and also for Liao Muchen himself, to seek justice.
“Proprietor Liao, please rest assured, we will stay here for a few more days and do our utmost to help you find the real culprit.”
Liao Yuting’s expression was moved upon hearing this, and she quickly grasped her hand: “That’s wonderful! With you here, I can rest assured!”
That they could retreat from Dongshan unscathed and return safely with clues was enough to prove their capabilities; she believed in them!
“Do you two have a place to rest now? If not, why don’t you stay in my residence for these few days, and let me entertain you properly.”
Ye Zhaoqiu shook her head and declined: “Thank you for your kind intentions, we are staying at the inn. Proprietor Liao, you can come find us there if you need anything.”
Liao Yuting saw that the two were unwilling to stay, and seeing this, she no longer insisted.
“Alright, then if you two need anything, just ask me. As long as you can help me find the real culprit who killed my elder brother, I, Liao Yuting, will do anything!”
That was her only relative, the brother she depended on; she would absolutely not let go of the person who harmed him!
Night had fallen, and the two left after having dinner at the Liao residence.
They walked towards the inn under the moonlight.
It was very quiet along the way, only the sound of footsteps.
The mountains were dangerous at night, inconvenient to enter, so for safety’s sake, they rested first and would continue tomorrow.
Tomorrow, they also had to go find that Young Master Lin.
Ye Zhaoqiu didn’t hear Fu Lianxue’s voice and suddenly felt very unaccustomed to it.
Usually, Fu Lianxue would be chattering in her ear, actively striking up conversations with her, never letting there be a dull moment. Today, however, she was surprisingly quiet.
She turned her head to look.
Fu Lianxue was walking beside her with a calm expression. Seeing her turn to look, she even asked back: “What’s wrong, what are you looking at?”
“Curious,” Ye Zhaoqiu said, “Why aren’t you talking right now?”
Fu Lianxue said: “Isn’t it because I saw you weren’t talking, and thought you were thinking about the case, so I didn’t disturb you? What do you think, aren’t I quite considerate?”
Ye Zhaoqiu: “…”
“Aren’t you going to go play?” she asked.
Fu Lianxue was clearly the one who most wanted to go down the mountain to play, but in the end, she was still accompanying her, running around.
“Play, ah.”
Fu Lianxue seemed to have been suddenly reminded.
“Of course I’m going to play, I don’t have to catch demons like you.”
She had just inexplicably followed her, inexplicably been dragged into this case.
Fortunately, she remembered now.
Then she would start playing from now on.
“Where to go…”
She touched her chin and thought for a moment, then asked: “I’m going to stroll around the town, are you coming or not?”
Ye Zhaoqiu shook her head, saying with a serious face: “I should return to the inn to meditate and cultivate.”
Fu Lianxue immediately felt it was uninteresting.
Yes, every day at this time, she would meditate and cultivate, rain or shine.
Such a boring person, such boring Dao cultivation.
“You’re really no fun. Then you go back, I’ll go play by myself~”
Fu Lianxue waved her hand and walked away. After a few steps, she suddenly turned back, untied an exquisite purse from her waist, took out some silver pieces2, and stuffed the rest into Ye Zhaoqiu’s hand.
“Here, your money pouch, back to you.”
Today, Ye Zhaoqiu had promised her that as long as she helped find clues, her money pouch would temporarily be under her control, so after coming down the mountain, Ye Zhaoqiu’s money pouch had been hanging on her waist.
Now that they were parting ways, she naturally had to return it.
If she didn’t return it, what if Young Miss Ye needed money later?
Young Miss Ye looked at the money pouch, then at the money in her hand, and after a moment of silence, unconsciously asked: “This little, is it enough?”
Fu Lianxue nodded: “Enough, enough, I’m very full right now, I can’t eat anything else!”
After saying that, she waved at Ye Zhaoqiu: “I’m off then, be good and stay at the inn, I’ll bring you a gift~”
This time, she really left.
Ye Zhaoqiu stood on the spot watching her leave, her brow furrowed slightly.
Using her money to buy her a gift?
Forget it, let her be.
Ye Zhaoqiu calmly put away the money pouch and turned back to the inn.
The bright moon hung high, and all sounds were hushed.
Ye Zhaoqiu sat cross-legged on the bed, slowly opening a pair of clear and cold, beautiful eyes.
She looked at the moon outside the window.
The moon was bright and silent; an unknown amount of time had passed, and Fu Lianxue still hadn’t returned.
She seemed to have played until she forgot the time.
Just as she thought of Fu Lianxue, a gust of purple wind suddenly blew in through the window.
When she blinked again, Fu Lianxue was already sitting steadily on the round stool, looking at her with a smile in her eyes.
As if she was up to some mischief.
Ye Zhaoqiu: “?”
“Don’t cultivate for now, let me show you the gift,” Fu Lianxue stood up and walked towards her, “I learned something from you humans~”
As her voice fell, the clothes on her body were lifted by the wind.
Amidst the curling purple qi3, the clothes on her body began to transform, becoming light and alluring, revealing a slender waist and long, fair arms.
Bells on her wrists and ankles jingled, an exotic attire.
“Let me dance for you~”
Her voice was delicate and sweet, like warm breath blown beside one’s ear, very ticklish.
Ye Zhaoqiu blinked her eyes gently.
She saw her approaching with enchanting, sparkling eyes and a smile on her lips, each step accompanied by a clear, pleasant jingle, as if stepping on one’s heart, incomparably bewitching and demonic.
As her waist swayed gracefully and her arms moved lightly, it was as if decadent music that bewitched the heart sounded by her ears.
Ye Zhaoqiu: “…”
Deliberate.
She was doing it deliberately.
She wanted to corrupt her Dao heart again.
Her heartbeat suddenly accelerated like a drum, the reason unclear.
Ye Zhaoqiu sat upright, closed her eyes again, and regulated her breathing, seeking calm.
Fu Lianxue saw her close her eyes and immediately moved closer to her, her tone bewitching: “Why did you close your eyes, open your eyes and look at me~”
When she was strolling outside, she happened to see a dance workshop.
Hearing the laughter of women from inside, she impulsively leaped onto the roof beams and then saw them practicing a dance.
It was an exotic dance, extremely enchanting, extremely beautiful; even she unknowingly became engrossed in watching it.
Then she thought of Ye Zhaoqiu.
A dance that even a meiyao like her found beautiful and moving, perhaps it could also handle that blockhead?
So she lay on the rooftop and learned it very seriously, then returned full of confidence to find Ye Zhaoqiu.
But Ye Zhaoqiu simply closed her eyes!
She touched Ye Zhaoqiu’s face, saying unhappily: “I’m dancing so beautifully, how can you close your eyes?”
Ye Zhaoqiu said with her eyes closed: “I treat you to food, and this is how you treat me?”
She smiled and sat in her lap: “That’s right, you treat me to food, I treat you to a dance, isn’t that good? I learned this myself, open your eyes and take a look~”
“Take a look at me, Zhaoqiu~”
“I need to continue cultivating.”
Ye Zhaoqiu’s tone was calm, she didn’t even open her eyes.
Fu Lianxue looked at her unmoved appearance, feeling very dejected and extremely bored: “You are truly heartless!”
Then she couldn’t help but doubt herself: “Strange, did I not learn it properly? Impossible, I clearly learned it by following their dance…”
After muttering a few sentences, she looked at Ye Zhaoqiu again and decisively gave up.
This wasn’t her problem, it was definitely this unromantic blockhead’s problem!
Her heart was simply as hard as a rock!
“No fun, time to sleep!”
She climbed out of Ye Zhaoqiu’s lap in disdain, lay down directly on the inner side of the bed, not at all discouraged, turned her head, and went to sleep comfortably.
Gathering her strength, preparing for the next temptation.
If the seduction failed today, she would try again tomorrow, and the day after; one day she would be able to shake this blockhead’s Dao heart!
After a long time, the person cultivating with a clear heart opened her eyes.
There was no tempting dance before her eyes, nor any soul-stirring wind by her ears.
She slowly turned around, only to see that mischievous yao lying behind her, breathing evenly, sleeping very well.
Ye Zhaoqiu raised her hand and pressed it to her heart.
The beating here had also become calm.
A very inexplicable change, but no matter what, it was good that it had calmed down.
She looked at the sleeping meiyao again.
After a while, the quilt on the bed was picked up, that hand suddenly paused, and did not fall for a long while.
Ye Zhaoqiu couldn’t help but think: She always wants to corrupt my Dao heart, treating me like this, why should I still be good to her?
She looked at the sleeping yao, pondering for a long time.
Then, the quilt was gently placed over Fu Lianxue.
Heaven has the virtue of cherishing life5, she just didn’t want to see her catch a cold—it must be so.
Having convinced herself, Ye Zhaoqiu turned back, closed her eyes again, completely composed.
Footnotes
- 斷袖 | duànxiù | Lit. “cut sleeve.” An allusion to Emperor Ai of Han cutting off his sleeve rather than waking his male lover Dong Xian, who had fallen asleep on it. Refers to male homosexuality.
- 銀兩 | yínliǎng | Silver taels/pieces; a form of currency. Liǎng (兩) is a traditional unit of weight, also used for currency, approx. 37.5 grams.
- 氣 | qì | Vital energy, life force, spiritual energy.
- 眼不見為淨 | yǎn bù jiàn wéi jìng | Lit. “eyes not seeing is clean/pure” | Fig. What the eye doesn’t see, the heart doesn’t grieve over; ignorance is bliss.
- 上天有好生之德 | Shàngtiān yǒu hào shēng zhī dé | Lit. “Heaven has the virtue of loving life.” | Fig. It is a virtue to cherish all living things; often used to justify an act of mercy or kindness.
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