Chapter One Hundred and One: No One Enters the Mountain Gate at Midnight

After the effeminate one and the rosy-cheeked girl left, the Qing Shui Pavilion quickly returned to its usual cold and quiet state.

My eyelids grew heavy, drowsiness deepened, and the overwhelming urge to sleep made it nearly impossible to keep my eyes open. Amidst the dizziness and sluggishness, I forced myself to stay alert, glancing furtively toward the door again and again—no one there, no one, still no one. Even if no one comes, I must wait until he returns.

“Miss Yuge, Miss Yuge.”

In my hazy half-consciousness, I heard someone calling my name again.

“Miss Yuge, Miss Yuge...”

The voice echoed persistently beside my ear, grating on my nerves.

“Miss Yuge, Miss Yuge, open your eyes and look at me! I am Putai.”

Putai? That name sounded vaguely familiar, as if I had heard it somewhere before.

“Who is Putai?” I wondered, mumbling softly, “I’ve never heard that name; how could I possibly know you?” I tried to turn my body away from the bed, seeking to escape that irritating voice, but a sharp pain surged through my arm, so intense it took my breath away. I stopped moving, no longer attempting to turn. In front of my nose was the faint scent of lotus on the quilt. Taking a deep breath, I decided to inhale that gentle fragrance, letting it draw me closer to Zi Lian.

“You little stinker.”

A finger lightly tapped my forehead. I frowned, displeased, and slowly opened my eyes. Opposite me were a pair of dazzling, sparkling eyes. I looked at him, and he returned my gaze. Pouting at those peach-blossom eyes, I shouted, “Meng Shao!”

Why was Meng Shao here? Had Zi Lian invited him to Qingluan Hall to tend to my wounds?

“Meng Shao?”

A voice of confusion arose, sounding unlike Meng Shao’s.

My gaze drifted down from those peach-blossom eyes to a handsome, slightly delicate nose and thin, tender lips that seemed somewhat effeminate. Raising my eyes again, I finally saw his face clearly.

“So it’s you, Putai,” I said in surprise, amazed to see him here.

Seeing that I recognized him, Putai smiled faintly and sat by my bedside. “I heard you were injured.”

“Hmph!”

I guessed he must have heard some idle gossip from those in the Six Realms with nothing better to do, and found it amusing enough to come and verify the truth. I glared at him irritably, then closed my eyes—out of sight, out of mind.

He chuckled softly. “Oh, it’s been so long since we last met. Miss Yuge, don’t you miss me even a little?”

“No.”

I opened my eyes and shot him another glare. Seeing the amusement in his gaze, I quickly shut my eyes again.

Silence returned to the room. I sneaked a peek at him and unexpectedly caught a fleeting expression of loneliness on his face. But just as quickly, it vanished, replaced by a radiant smile, as brilliant as spring blossoms in February.

“But…” he hesitated, then slowly said, “I think of you every moment, Miss Yuge, longing to see you again.”

Afterward, he sighed mournfully.

Smooth-talking, I thought bitterly.

Though I hadn’t known this pretentious scholar long, nor spent much time with him, I understood well that his words at this moment held ulterior motives.

The last time Zi Lian and I toured the mortal world and stayed overnight at an inn, he had secretly come to whisk me away, all to check if Zi Lian had any old wounds left unhealed.

Now he had come alone again. If it wasn’t about Zi Lian, then what was his purpose?

“Miss Yuge, Miss Yuge.”

Putai called my name again, reaching out to push my shoulder, making me break into a cold sweat.

“Don’t touch me.”

I shouted at him loudly.

If he pushed me without care, the pain would be unbearable.

His smile froze, and his hand, suspended mid-air, retreated abruptly. “If Miss Yuge no longer wishes to see me, then... then I shall leave now. From this moment on, I will never appear before you again to disturb your life.”

Listening to his pitiful words beside the bed, my heart grew somewhat heavy.

It wasn’t that I doubted him, but his actions inevitably bred suspicion. I truly wanted to believe him, yet when it came to everything involving Zi Lian, I could not afford even the slightest carelessness.