The underground passage was filled with chilling drafts, and stretched far longer than Chu He had expected.
At a time like this, Chu He felt that having such good hearing might not be a good thing after all. The sounds of insects lurking nearby came and went, irregular and faint, an outright torment to the mind.
Perhaps, to the Gu Worms, she really was a fine meal. That was why the ones hiding in the darkness were so restless.
However, they were wary of the blood-red figure walking in front of Chu He and didn’t dare rush out to enjoy this delicious meal.
At the same time, Chu He caught sight of pairs of red eyes watching her.
Not long ago, these Medicine Persons had seen how the blood-red figure had fought his way through the encirclement and claimed Chu He as the perfect material for Gu Refining. Knowing they weren’t strong enough, they wouldn’t rashly make a move again.
Though they wouldn’t make a move, they still coveted Chu He.
Goosebumps rose all over Chu He again. She took two steps forward, no longer caring that the figure before her was filthy with blood, and grabbed his cuff, warily scanning her surroundings.
This place was like a murky Underworld. Every so often, a “drip, drip” sounded, though she couldn’t tell whether it was water or blood.
After walking for a long while, she could just make out stone caves appearing on either side of the passage. They were pitch-black inside, with no light at all—only pairs of moving red eyes, reminding Chu He that these caves might be the Medicine Persons’ dwellings.
Of course, not every Medicine Person had a cave to call their own. Here, every resource had to be fought for through one’s own ability.
He said nothing, simply leading Chu He straight to the very end of the passage. Then he shifted to the side, and they entered a gloomy cave.
Chu He couldn’t see a thing. Holding onto his cuff, she followed close behind, occasionally tripping over things and making quite a racket. It was a little noisy.
She gritted her teeth and drew in a sharp breath, then suddenly smacked her head against a wall of flesh.
“You can’t see?”
The youth’s voice echoed through the air, slightly easing the oppressive feeling brought on by the deathly silence.
The heavy stench of blood hit her nostrils. Only then did Chu He realize she had bumped into his chest. She hurriedly stepped back and said stiffly, “That’s right. I can’t see.”
“I actually ended up betrothed to a blind woman?”
His Central Plains speech was far from fluent, but his words were full of disdain.
Chu He’s eyelid twitched. Pretending not to hear the contempt in his voice, she instead solemnly made up a story. “I can’t see, yet you were willing to become my Betrothed Couple. There’s only one reason for that: you love me far too much.”
Silence.
She had no idea whether he was doubting what she’d said.
Chu He knew when to quit while she was ahead and hurriedly said, “I’m just not as powerful as you. There’s no light here, so I can’t see anything. As long as there’s light, there’s nothing wrong with my eyes.”
After a brief silence, a snap of his fingers sent tiny lights flickering into view in the cave. Their glow was weak, but there were enough star points to faintly illuminate the surroundings.
They turned out to be flying insects like fireflies. Their bodies glowed a faint blue, like stars in the night sky.
Chu He had never seen anything like this. Her curious eyes followed the dancing insects, and it seemed as if light had fallen into her dark eyes, too.
Before she knew it, the tense, oppressive atmosphere had eased somewhat.
She lifted her face. “You don’t remember the past, so I think we should introduce ourselves and get to know each other again. My name is Chu He, and I’m from the Central Plains.”
“A Jiu.”
After saying those two simple words, he fell silent again.
Chu He knew that A Jiu was a number, surely not his original name, but she had no need to ask. A draft slipped in from somewhere, and a strand of white hair brushed across her cheek, drawing her gaze upward once more.
With the light, the youth’s appearance became clearer.
His extraordinarily long white hair hung loose and disheveled, dotted with blood, like a wretched moonlight. His face was hidden behind it; at a glance, he looked like a vengeful ghost.
Through the strands, she could just make out his extremely pale complexion and the red eyes hidden beneath his white hair. Their crimson was pure, untainted, with a hint of innocent clarity.
He was looking at her—or, more accurately, scrutinizing her.
This Medicine Person named A Jiu still didn’t entirely believe what she’d told him.
Chu He couldn’t fight or use magic. She knew that if she wanted to live in this Underworld teeming with poisonous insects, she had to stick with him.
After all, judging by how no other Medicine Person had tried to snatch her away, he was probably the strongest one here.
Chu He discreetly surveyed her surroundings. There was only one stone bed in the cave. Wooden shelves lined the surrounding stone walls, crowded with bottles and jars. There seemed to be living things inside the black jars, and she didn’t want to know what they were.
Out of the corner of her eye, she spotted a small water pool in the corner. It would be convenient for washing up.
A Jiu didn’t seem to think there was anything wrong with his bloodstained appearance. He sauntered over and sat on the stone bed, winding a strand of white hair around one finger. His eyes, hidden beneath his hair, were like red glass jewels, fixed on her.
“You say we’re betrothed. What proof do you have?”
He remembered nothing of his past, and couldn’t imagine himself being foolish enough to fall for such a gaunt woman. But Little Green Snake had proved she wasn’t lying, so he couldn’t help but feel doubtful.
What proof could Chu He possibly produce?
But she was quick-witted. She pulled out a fish-shaped jade pendant and declared with conviction, “This is the token of our love. There are two fish-shaped jade pendants, and they fit together as one, symbolizing that you and I were meant to be a single married couple.”
A Jiu blinked, looking a little confused. “Why don’t I have this jade pendant?”
Obviously, because the other jade pendant was with her real fiancé!
Chu He held the fish-shaped jade pendant in both hands, her eyes reddening. “When you gave me this jade pendant, you said it symbolized our unbreakable love: while the jade remained, we would live; if it was destroyed, we would die. So, even after I narrowly escaped death time and again, I did my best to protect it.
I know, A Jiu. You must have had no choice when they captured you and made you a Medicine Person. It doesn’t matter if you lost the jade pendant. As long as you’re still alive… that’s enough.”
Chu He’s every word was choked with emotion. She couldn’t help but reminisce about the past, becoming lost in the tale.
“Back then, we were in love, but my father thought you were poor, incapable, and uneducated, and refused to agree to our marriage. So you took me away from the Central Plains, and we eloped to Miaojiang. We thought that once we’d consummated our marriage, and I had a child, we could return to the Central Plains, and my father would surely have nothing more to say.
Who could have guessed that we wouldn’t even get to enjoy a few days of happiness before you disappeared without a trace?”
Chu He raised a hand to wipe away her tears, taking care to rub her eyes red. She choked back sobs.
“These past few days, I’ve been so frightened, afraid I’d never see you again. Thank goodness you’re still alive. We’ve been given the chance to reunite.”
Her eyes were misty with tears, and every word was deeply affecting. She truly didn’t seem to be acting.
A Jiu continued gazing at her silently. It was impossible to tell whether he believed her.
Chu He gritted her teeth and decided to make her story even more melodramatic and sappy.
“You never used to look at me with such cold eyes… You said I would always be your darling.”
She swayed beneath his unfamiliar gaze, as if she might collapse from the blow at any moment.
“Could it be… could it be that you really don’t feel anything for me anymore?”
“You said you fell in love with me at first sight.”
“You said I was the only one for you.”
“You said that if I called you Husband, you’d give me your life.”
“Have you forgotten all those vows of eternal love?”
Chu He slowly moved closer, suppressing her discomfort as she cautiously hooked her little finger around one of his. She carefully leaned against him, inching into his embrace, her misty eyes full of yearning.
“A Jiu, do you really not remember any of the sweet things you used to say to me?”
The bloodstained youth’s face was hidden by his long hair in the dimness, concealing his expression.
Chu He could only turn up the heat.
She leaned farther forward, gradually letting her weight rest against him, and guided one of his hands onto her lower abdomen.
“You always used to say how wonderful it would be if we had a child here.”
With his snowy hair in the way, Chu He couldn’t see his face, so she couldn’t tell whether her act was working or not.
She had to see his face.
Summoning her courage, Chu He continued her tender sweet talk while cautiously raising a hand to brush away the hair covering his face.
“Surely all the moments we shared can’t just vanish like passing clouds because you’ve lost your memory, can they?”
The instant the strands stuck to his face were brushed away, the youth’s pale features were revealed in the faint light.
Red eyes and snow-white skin, with refined features—he was as beautiful as an exquisitely carved doll.
Earlier, she’d thought he looked like a vengeful ghost. Now, he seemed like a Mountain Ghost from a storybook, wearing alluring human skin to lure the weak-willed into a trap.
Unconsciously, as Chu He moved closer, he had no choice but to brace himself and lean back.
Their positions were now almost reversed: she was the one on top.
The youth’s moist eyes looked even more like beautiful rubies.
Chu He’s gaze shifted. The hand resting on his face drifted to the side and touched his flushed, scalding-hot earlobe.
It wasn’t as cold as his breath. It was soft, and the touch was rather nice.
With a thud, a force shoved Chu He down, and she fell onto the ice-cold stone bed. When she looked up again, the red-clad, white-haired youth had already retreated to the cave entrance.
“Foolish central plains woman! Don’t think I’ll believe you so easily!”
In the blink of an eye, his figure vanished.
Chu He slowly sat up, rubbing her chin as she drawled, “He’s embarrassed.”
Outside the cave.
The youth crouched against the stone wall, hugging himself, his eyes in disarray beneath his long hair.
Everyone knew that Medicine Persons were poisonous all over, so no one dared approach them.
But that woman from the Central Plains had not only hugged him, she had touched him, too.
“Hiss—”
Little Green Snake appeared on its master’s shoulder, its little head turned toward him as if asking what was wrong.
A Jiu grabbed the snake’s body and fidgeted with it without thinking, cruelly tying its long body into a knot.
“Xiao Qing, she seems… she really seems to be my wife. What should I do? The way she looked just now, it was as if she were going to eat me.”
Little Green Snake rolled its eyes.
—How am I supposed to know what to do about human affairs?!