The sharp pain caused Chu Ning’s mind to go blank for a moment. She doubled over uncontrollably, bracing her hands on her knees. She still clutched the sharp dagger so tightly that her fingertips were white.
Tears fell involuntarily for a second, but after a few ragged breaths, she managed to suppress them. Shallow tear stains remained on her face, with no time to wipe them away.
“I’m sorry.” A familiar voice drifted over, but the tone was different from usual. The voice, normally calm and crisp, sounded a bit frantic now. “I didn’t know it was you…”
Chu Ning froze. She gritted her teeth and forced herself upright. The other person hurried forward to support her, but Chu Ning jerked her arm away, avoiding the touch.
She looked up slightly and saw Lu Zhidao standing there as gracefully as ever. The silvery moonlight draped over her, adding to her cold aura. Her right hand rested habitually on her sword hilt, but her eyes were shifting. She occasionally lifted her lids to steal a glance at Chu Ning before quickly looking away, focusing instead on Chu Ning’s swollen ankle.
The tears Chu Ning had just fought back surged into her throat again—hot and bitter—the moment she saw her. She could no longer stay calm. She desperately wanted to pour out everything she had endured today, but she knew this person was no longer her traveling companion. She had sold her out for ten thousand taels! A wave of desolation hit Chu Ning, like something was clawing at her heart from the inside.
After hiding in a filthy haystack for most of the day, she could have forced herself to be strong if she were alone. But now, she felt an inexplicable sense of grievance. Tears welled up in her eyes, yet she tilted her head back stubbornly, refusing to let them fall.
Being stared at like this made Lu Zhidao feel as if she were sitting on needles. She had sprinted back and forth, searching for nearly a day and a night. Now that the person was right in front of her, she didn’t know how to speak.
Seeing that even though Chu Ning was injured, she still refused her help, Lu Zhidao felt an irrepressible sense of loss. She blinked awkwardly and carefully tucked her petty emotions away. After hesitating for a long time, she decided to stick to what she had planned from the start: no matter what Chu Ning said or did, she would just tell her professionally:
“This is my mission.”
That way, she can’t refuse, right?
Upon hearing this, Chu Ning turned her head away. The tears she had held back for so long rolled down her cheeks in an instant. The tiny spark of hope that had just ignited was extinguished. So, it’s just a mission…
Lu Zhidao panicked. Her right hand rubbed the sword hilt aimlessly. She had spent the whole day coming up with that one sentence, thinking it was the best justification, but looking at Chu Ning, she clearly hated it. The moment she spoke, she had moved the other to tears. Only then did she realize the words were inappropriate.
But Chu Ning wasn’t saying a word, and they couldn’t just stay frozen here in the middle of the night.
“Let’s… let’s go.” Lu Zhidao turned around with forced composure, assuming Chu Ning would follow.
“That’s your mission, not mine.”
Lu Zhidao’s movement stalled. She silently returned to stand before her. Just as she was hesitating over what to say next, Ling Feng’s nonchalant voice cut in: “We can kill anyone who delays the execution of our mission.”
Only then did Chu Ning notice him. He had feminine features and looked quite delicate, but his red robes looked eerie under the moonlight.
“Get lost,” Lu Zhidao hissed through her teeth.
Chu Ning had no energy to deal with them. She tried to limp away on her own, but Lu Zhidao grabbed her arm. She was strong; Chu Ning struggled but couldn’t break free, and the grip was beginning to hurt.
Lu Zhidao didn’t actually dare to use much force. She just held her, unable to stop herself from asking, “Why did you leave first?”
“In mission execution, one does not ask for reasons. If you can’t even do that, no wonder you’re ranked last!” Ling Feng leaned against a tree trunk with his arms crossed, watching like he was at a theater.
Chu Ning turned back and looked straight at her. “You left first.” Her voice trembled with a hint of grievance at the end.
“I went back to the inn and you weren’t there.”
“You decided to stay. Why should I have waited for you?”
Lu Zhidao moved in front of Chu Ning and answered seriously, “I didn’t stay.”
“And the ten thousand taels?” Chu Ning tilted her head, refusing to let it go.
Lu Zhidao reached into her robe and pulled out the ten thousand and one hundred taels she had been carrying all day. She didn’t understand why Chu Ning cared so much about this stack of notes, but she handed them over anyway.
“I don’t want it.” Chu Ning threw the money back into her arms.
“Aha! If you don’t want it, give it to me!” Ling Feng lunged forward, reaching for the cash.
Lu Zhidao gripped the notes tightly and nimbly stepped aside to dodge. Though Ling Feng’s moves were vicious, he couldn’t gain even a slight advantage over her once they actually moved.
“Get lost!” Lu Zhidao glared at him coldly.
“Fine, fine. Are we going or not? Waiting for people to come catch us?” Ling Feng was annoyed at missing the money.
Seeing him back off, Lu Zhidao hurriedly tucked the money away.
“Keep it for yourself. After all, you can only sell yourself once,” Chu Ning said bitterly. The moment the words left her mouth, she realized how harsh she sounded, but she couldn’t stop herself from taking her anger out on her.
Lu Zhidao’s hand, which had just tucked the money into her robe, froze. She stared at Chu Ning with wide eyes.
“Aha? You sold yourself?” Ling Feng chimed in again. “Ten thousand taels? Not bad, not bad. That’s a good deal.”
“Who sold themselves?” Lu Zhidao questioned angrily. “Why are you insulting me!”
The more Chu Ning spoke, the angrier she got. The sharp pain in her ankle was nothing compared to the blockage in her chest. “Then where did this money come from!”
“I sold that painting.”
“Which one?”
“The one you painted last night.”
Chu Ning was incredulous. “But… but I heard it! You asked her: ‘How much do you think I’m worth?'”
Lu Zhidao suddenly realized. She took a deep breath. “The painting was of me. Of course I asked that.” Then, she added with a hint of irritation, “Your painting isn’t worth that much on its own!”
Chu Ning’s momentum immediately halved. “But… but Miss Shen also said that from now on, you belong to her…”
“I also told her I don’t belong to her, but that the painting belongs to her now.”
“I didn’t hear that part…” Chu Ning pouted sheepishly. She really hadn’t heard that sentence; she had already stormed off in a rage before then.
“You” Lu Zhidao raised her voice instinctively. Clutching the ten thousand and one hundred taels to her chest, she was so angry she couldn’t speak.
“Aha! You actually managed to make her angry! Interesting…” Ling Feng was enjoying the show.
Prompted by his words, Lu Zhidao suddenly noticed the fluctuation in her own emotions. She tilted her head back to compose herself, then calmly pulled the stack of notes out again. She grabbed Chu Ning’s hand by force and shoved the money into it.
“Money from selling your painting! It’s yours.” As she spoke, as if acting out of spite, she pulled a single hundred-tael note back. “This one is mine.”
Her face was cold and detached, but her heart was secretly throwing a tantrum. Just because of such a small misunderstanding, this woman had left without a word, forcing her to search frantically for an entire day. Lu Zhidao couldn’t swallow this grievance.
Lu Zhidao habitually gripped her sword hilt. If it were anyone else, she would have thrown a punch to settle the score.
But she caught a stray glance and saw tears shimmering in Chu Ning’s eyes. Chu Ning was biting her lip, silent, looking as if the tears would fall the moment she opened her mouth.
Lu Zhidao’s mind went blank. Standing there stunned, the grievance she thought she couldn’t swallow was gone in an instant…
“It’s all my fault…” Chu Ning choked out, lowering her head. The moment she looked down, her eyes could no longer hold the tears, which splashed onto the ground.
Lu Zhidao felt a sudden, sharp tug at her heart, like a tearing pain. She stood frozen, her brain empty. “Uh… actually… you can’t really say that…”
In a split second, Lu Zhidao had already found a dozen excuses for her. How could she blame Chu Ning? It was all Miss Shen’s fault for sowing discord! Lu Zhidao thought fiercely, and then blamed herself for not finding her sooner and letting her suffer for nothing.
Feeling completely at a loss, she awkwardly shoved the hundred-tael note in her hand back into Chu Ning’s grasp. “Then this… give this to you too.”
“Who wants your money!” Chu Ning’s pent-up grievances finally burst. Crying, she pushed all the banknotes back.
She reached out, grabbed Lu Zhidao’s collar, pulled her forward with force, and collapsed into her embrace…
Lu Zhidao had never embraced anyone like this in her life. Her whole body felt a tingle like an electric current, and she didn’t dare move an inch. Her hands didn’t know whether to hang down or lift up; she didn’t even dare touch her. She just stood there like an idiot, letting the other hold her, but she could clearly feel Chu Ning’s warm breath against the hollow of her neck, along with a bit of moisture likely the tear stains from her face.
Lu Zhidao felt like she couldn’t catch her breath. It felt as if the air and the moonlight had frozen, leaving only her heart thumping wildly against her ribs.
It felt as though, for the first time in her life, she was vividly and passionately alive.
Aha?” Ling Feng stood with his hands on his hips. This turn of events was completely unexpected. “Are we going or not? Waiting for people to come catch us?