When Liu Zhiheng woke again, the sky had darkened to dusk. Outside, heavy snow continued to fall, but Duan Wujiu was nowhere to be seen.
Had he gone to catch another chicken?
Liu Zhiheng got up and noticed a note left in a conspicuous spot on the eight immortals table. It read: I’m looking around the village. Xuelang.
A sense of unease crept into Liu Zhiheng’s heart. She worried that if Duan Wujiu were seen by the villagers, it might cause unnecessary trouble. Carrying a lantern, she went out to search for him.
The snow outside had grown heavier.
It had been snowing for four days now, with no sign of stopping. High piles of snow were stacked outside every household. Most villagers had shut their doors and windows, and few people were out on the roads.
Liu Zhiheng searched with her lantern for a while before a dark figure suddenly landed in front of her. Though dressed plainly, the man’s extraordinary grace was impossible to conceal.
It was Duan Wujiu.
Liu Zhiheng was surprised. “How can you fly?”
“I believe I know martial arts. I discovered this yesterday when I was chasing that chicken in the mountains,” Duan Wujiu replied curiously. “Did A Heng not know?”
Liu Zhiheng choked back her words and quickly changed the subject. “Even so, you shouldn’t be flying around everywhere. Your wounds have only just scabbed over—aren’t you afraid they’ll reopen?”
She glanced around nervously and asked, “You didn’t run into anyone, did you?”
Duan Wujiu shook his head. “The snow is heavy outside. I mostly stayed on rooftops and didn’t encounter anyone.”
Liu Zhiheng sighed in relief. Noticing the map in Duan Wujiu’s hand, she asked, “What are you doing with that map?”
“I saw the Geomancy Map of Peach Blossom Village on your table. This map is unlike any I’ve seen before, so I wanted to test its accuracy,” Duan Wujiu explained, a hint of excitement in his expression. “To my surprise, it’s incredibly precise.”
“You remember the maps you’ve seen before?”
Duan Wujiu nodded, looking somewhat puzzled. “I don’t recall specific events, but I know I’ve seen many maps. I also know that this Geomancy Map makes me very happy.”
Liu Zhiheng wasn’t surprised. In cases of amnesia like his, memories that have become common knowledge aren’t forgotten—only specific people and events from a certain period are lost, as those memories are stored in different parts of the brain.
“Where did this map come from? It must have been drawn by a master, right?” Duan Wujiu asked.
“I drew it myself. But it’s nothing special—Peach Blossom Village is so small, how could I possibly get it wrong?”
“A Heng drew this?” Duan Wujiu was astonished. “How did you measure it?”
“You have a keen nose, and I have sharp eyes,” Liu Zhiheng said proudly. “What’s so difficult about it? My eyes are the ruler!”
Duan Wujiu couldn’t help but feel amazed. “I never imagined A Heng possessed such extraordinary talent.”
Liu Zhiheng knew that in ancient times, not just anyone could practice geomancy, and drawing maps without permission was a capital offense.
In fact, even in the era she had lived in before, all geological survey data was classified and strictly confidential.
Having such geomancy skills in ancient times truly counted as extraordinary talent.
If she hadn’t known that Duan Wujiu would forget everything about Peach Blossom Village in a few months, she wouldn’t have admitted to drawing the map today.“It’s almost dark, let’s head back. I’m hungry.”
Duan Wujiu nodded, carrying the lantern for Liu Zhiheng as the two walked side by side through the swirling snow toward home. But this scene was witnessed by Chuncao.
…
Chuncao was the fourth child in her family, with an older brother, two older sisters, and a younger brother. Her two older sisters had been married off by their parents in the past two years. Though it was called marriage, it wasn’t much different from selling their daughters.
Now she was the only daughter left at home, responsible for all the household chores. Even in this heavy snow, she had to empty the chamber pot for her good-for-nothing brother.
The family still needed someone to do the work. Once her brother married, her parents could order her sister-in-law around, and she herself would soon be married off too. So, Chuncao didn’t dare disobey.
Chuncao turned to go home but suddenly spotted two figures walking side by side in the distance. She couldn’t make out Duan Wujiu’s face, but his clothes looked like those of Liu Yigu.
Had Liu Zhiheng’s father returned?
Chuncao followed, trying to get a clearer look, but the man suddenly turned and glanced in her direction.
With just one look, Chuncao knew this man wasn’t Liu Zhiheng’s father, Liu Yigu.
Their eyes met. Though he was the most handsome man she had ever seen, his gloomy gaze sent shivers down her spine.
Chuncao quickly hid, but she still felt a murderous glare piercing through her.
…
Seeing Duan Wujiu turn around, Liu Zhiheng also looked back curiously but saw nothing.
“What is it? What are you looking at?”
Duan Wujiu had already masked the ferocity in his eyes, softening his tone. “Nothing, I just caught a foul smell.”
Liu Zhiheng sniffed the air but could only detect the crisp scent of winter.
“What smell?”
Duan Wujiu replied gravely, “A sticky, clinging, rotten-egg stench.”
“I don’t smell it.”
Duan Wujiu smiled gently at Liu Zhiheng. “It’s nothing. I often notice all sorts of smells, but not all of them are worth paying attention to. Let’s go back.”
Liu Zhiheng nodded and led Duan Wujiu back to the small wooden cabin.
After returning, Liu Zhiheng kept thinking about telling Duan Wujiu the truth. Strangely, over the next two days, every time she tried to speak honestly with him, something would interrupt.
“Xuelang, there’s something I need to tell you…”
“A Heng, is it time for my medicine?” Duan Wujiu suddenly asked.
Before she could react, he began undressing, soon stripping down to just his inner robe.
Duan Wujiu had an excellent physique—tall and lean in clothes, yet muscular without them. Staring at his eight-pack abs and narrow but powerful waist, Liu Zhiheng unconsciously swallowed, her mind filling with indecent thoughts, and she forgot once again about confessing to Duan Wujiu.
“A Heng?”
Duan Wujiu called out, and Liu Zhiheng snapped back to reality, blushing as she went to fetch the ointment.
After several days of rest, the smaller wounds on Duan Wujiu’s body had mostly healed, with barely any scars visible.
It had to be said, Duan Wujiu’s ability to recover was on par with Liu Zhiheng’s own.
As she gently touched the scars on his back, Liu Zhiheng absentmindedly tried to broach the subject.
“Xuelang, actually…””Will A Heng tell me more about those stars later?” Duan Wujiu suddenly said.
These past few days, the snow had been so heavy that even going up the mountain was inconvenient, so the two had once again begun staying indoors.
Liu Zhiheng was bored out of her mind and could only chatter away with Duan Wujiu every day. Over the last couple of days, she had been telling him how to use the positions of stars in different seasons to navigate in the desert.
“It’s been snowing so much lately. Let’s wait until the snow stops, then I’ll take you to see the stars,” Liu Zhiheng said. “Just by looking up at the stars in the sky, I can tell exactly where I am.”
“A Heng knows so much.”
“But when it comes to poetry, songs, history, and literature, Xuelang knows more,” Liu Zhiheng said sincerely.
After all, she was a science student.
“A Heng doesn’t need to know those things, because A Heng is different from other women.”
“Stop praising me. You’ve been complimenting me every day—it’s a bit embarrassing.”
These past few days, Liu Zhiheng had been living in a constant stream of Duan Wujiu’s flattery. She suddenly understood why ancient emperors were so fond of listening to sycophants—it really was comforting to hear.
…
At night, the two lay on the heated kang bed, with a considerable distance between them. The room was pitch black, and nothing could be seen. In the darkness, Liu Zhiheng could hear that Duan Wujiu’s breathing seemed somewhat uneven.
Liu Zhiheng tentatively asked, “Are you asleep?”
Duan Wujiu: “Not yet. Does A Heng want to do something?”
“No, I just can’t sleep.”
“Hmm… me neither.”
“Do you get bored staying in the house with me every day?”
“No, as long as I’m with A Heng, I’m happy.”
Liu Zhiheng smiled. She was a little happy too.
Duan Wujiu added, “When the snow stops, let’s go together to walk in the snow and look for plum blossoms, alright?”
Liu Zhiheng didn’t speak, and the air suddenly grew quiet.
“What’s wrong?” Duan Wujiu asked with some concern. “Did I say something that upset A Heng?”
“Xuelang… you really shouldn’t go out casually. It’s not very safe.”
Duan Wujiu: “Why wouldn’t it be safe?”
Liu Zhiheng thought for a moment, then got up and lit the lamp again. This time, she didn’t give Duan Wujiu a chance to interrupt, straightforwardly pouring out everything she had to say.
“Actually, you’re not my child groom. I only rescued you from the snow seven days ago, and the name Xuelang was something I made up on the spot. I’m sorry, I lied to you…”
Duan Wujiu’s eyes darkened. He lowered his head, his long eyelashes concealing the gloom in his gaze.
Why didn’t his little liar keep lying?
How cruel…
Since she had deceived him, she should have deceived him to the end.
The room was dim, so Liu Zhiheng didn’t see the fleeting obsession in Duan Wujiu’s eyes.