Chapter 332

"What are you—"

"What are you—"

Wang Xin and Chen Chen Chen Qingshan spoke at once, then both fell silent, glancing at each other, before speaking in unison again:

"Why are you hiding?"

Both paused, a flicker of thought passing through their eyes.

The wind through the grove rustled fallen leaves, breaking the brief silence; the next instant, their voices overlapped again, though this time with slight difference:

"So you're not with them?"

"So what are you doing here?"

Wang Xin frowned slightly:

"Can you stop always speaking at the same time as me? I can't hear."

Chen Chen Chen Qingshan thought a moment, then said:

"Fine, you go first."

"Thanks."

"No problem."

Then they stared at each other.

This time it was Chen Chen Chen Qingshan who frowned:

"Speak."

"Oh, it's just… uh… hmm… that… I forgot. You go first."

Wang Xin's face flushed slightly.

Chen Chen Chen Qingshan didn't want to speak first; she felt this situation fell under what Wang Yang had once called "striking after the opponent moves"—something like "When the situation is unclear, remain silent as a cold cicada; when the signs are clear, strike like thunder breaking the sky…" Wasn't that how he put it?

Chen Chen Chen Qingshan said:

"It's fine, think it through first, then speak."

Wang Xin was surprised:

"You're actually quite nice…"

Chen Chen Chen Qingshan felt a little embarrassed:

"Not really…"

Wang Xin suddenly turned cold, stepped back two paces, and raised her silver spike:

"Are you trying to poison me right now?"

Chen Chen Chen Qingshan froze, gripping her long spear tightly:

"Poison? What poison?"

Wang Xin, drawing on the unique "caution" she'd cultivated from constantly skirting conspiracies (in her own mind), spoke slowly, each word deliberate and grave:

"Wō, hú, biàn!"

Chen Chen Chen Qingshan was first bewildered, then recalled the time outside Ruyi Pavilion when Wang Yang had tricked Wang Xin into being poisoned, and said: "I didn't poison you."

Wang Xin stared at Chen Chen Chen Qingshan, then slowly shook her head:

"If Wang Yang said that, I'd believe him. From you, I don't believe it."

Chen Chen Chen Qingshan widened her phoenix eyes:

"Why????"

"I just don't find you as trustworthy as Wang Yang."

Chen Chen Chen Qingshan: ……

"If I were going to poison you, it would've been when we just fought."

"You moved too fast—I had no chance," Wang Xin said, smug.

Chen Chen Chen Qingshan recalled how Wang Yang had tricked Wang Xin, and felt the urge to imitate him—but decided the trick didn't suit her, so abandoned it, and instead said:

"I really didn't poison you. I don't carry poison on me…"

Wang Xin sneered: "The more you talk, the more false it sounds. I won't fall for it."

Chen Chen Chen Qingshan raised an eyebrow: "Then what do you want to do?"

Wang Xin's gaze turned dangerous, her body tensing like a leopard ready to pounce.

Chen Chen Chen Qingshan narrowed her phoenix eyes, her toes grinding into the decaying leaves, her wrist turning slightly as she drew the spear's butt to her waist, lowering the tip…

"Are you asleep?"

"Yes."

"If you're asleep, why are you talking?"

"Dreaming."

"You're clearly not asleep!!!" Bao Yue snapped.

"Sleep your own sleep—why do you care if I'm asleep or not…"

"I can't sleep."

"Count sheep."

"Count Yang?"

"One sheep, two sheep, three sheep—keep counting."

"One… Yang?" Bao Yue, thinking of something, let out a soft laugh.

Wang Yang had been pondering every possible scenario, growing anxious from imagining the worst outcomes, compounded by several burdens weighing on his mind—he felt a stifling pressure.

He was usually cheerful, but since his transmigration, the pressure had become too great, making him fear he might develop depression, so he actively regulated himself. Earlier, he'd felt his thoughts had gotten stuck in a dead end, so he'd decisively set them aside; now, with Bao Yue interrupting him, he felt relief. He didn't know why Bao Yue was laughing, so he said casually:

"You have a low sense of humor…"

As soon as he spoke, his expression darkened. That phrase had been what his mother used to tease him.

After laughing, Bao Yue's mood also dipped slightly, and she whispered:

"When I couldn't sleep before, my mother would hum songs to me."

But her voice quickly brightened, tinged with pride: "My mother's humming was so beautiful!"

Wang Yang fell silent.

"Does your mother hum songs to you?" Bao Yue asked.

"No."

"Oh."

"But she made me listen."

"Listen?"

"Yes. She'd assign me many pieces to listen to—like homework, like lessons."

"What pieces?" Bao Yue asked curiously.

"You wouldn't know them."

"How can I know if you don't tell me!"

Wang Yang paused a moment, then said:

"Bach, Haydn, Ravel, The Beatles, U2, The Animals…"

Bao Yue was baffled:

"Wait, wait— are you speaking barbarian??"

Wang Yang smiled: "Something like that…"

"Barbarian tunes?"

"Sort of."

"I've never heard any of them. I've heard plenty of Goryeo, Baekje, and Western Regions tunes—what's this 'Ba… Ba He' thing? Where's it from?"

"From a place very, very far away."

"Even the farthest places have names—Da Qin? Persia? Funan? Mount Mount Tianzhu? Lion Country? Langyashiu?"

Hearing Bao Yue mention "Langyashiu" (Lankasuka, an ancient kingdom on the Malay Peninsula), Wang Yang laughed:

"You know quite a bit."

Bao Yue asked sharply: "Farther than those?"

Wang Yang paused, then answered slowly:

"Yes. Farther than those."

For some reason, Bao Yue suddenly pictured Wang Yang lounging on a couch like a spoiled nobleman, surrounded by foreign female musicians—and she felt a pang of annoyance.

"Hey, wait a minute. You're so poor—how could you afford so many foreign musicians?"

Poor??

Who are you talking to, woman???

I'm the founder, chairman, and CEO of Wanshan Group (Wanshan Freight Station), just completed Series A funding—you're telling me I'm poor?

Hehehe!

Wang Yang turned to Bao Yue, asking with regal defiance:

"Who told you I'm poor?"

Bao Yue turned to face him, silently watching him.

Wang Yang met her gaze for a moment, then looked away.

"I'm poor, okay..."

"Hahahaha..."

Bao Yue laughed again, pounding her small quilt.

Wang Yang turned over and lay flat, staring blankly at the ceiling.

Hearing Wang Yang fall silent, Bao Yue ventured, "Are you angry?"

Wang Yang's expression was melancholy, but his tone remained casual, still teasing:

"You're thinking too much—I'm too poor to afford anger..."

Bao Yue sat up slightly, studied Wang Yang for a long moment, then lay back down and said:

"You're not angry."

Wang Yang's voice was lethargic: "Of course—I'm too poor to even get angry..."

"You're thinking of your mother," Bao Yue whispered.

Wang Yang's heart jolted; he stared at Bao Yue in surprise:

"Why do you say that?"

Bao Yue also stared blankly at the ceiling, her voice tinged with sorrow, murmuring:

"Because when I think of my mother, I feel the same way..."

"Wait!" Chen Chen Chen Qingshan lowered her spear; her phoenix eyes remained sharp, but now held a clearer light—she knew he needed her clarity. "Let's clarify things first before we fight."

"We have nothing to say!" Xin Yi's gaze was resolute, his body still poised to strike.

Chen Chen Chen Qingshan felt a headache coming. She didn't know how to say it, but she couldn't keep fighting blindly like this. She wasn't afraid of death—she feared dying uselessly. Right now, her most important task was to save him. Fighting Xin Yi to the death—win or lose—wouldn't help him at all.

She began to imagine herself as Wang Yang: What would he say?

"Actually... actually, we do have something to say..." Chen Chen Chen Qingshan cursed her own clumsiness, yet forced herself to continue:

"If we really had nothing to say, you wouldn't have asked me, 'So you're not with them.' You asked me—that means you wanted an answer. And I asked you, 'What are you doing here?' So we both have questions, and we both have answers. How can you say we have nothing to say?"

Oh my god, what am I saying?

So bad. Terribly bad!

Chen Chen Chen Qingshan finished weakly, her face flushed. The thought that she'd imagined herself as Wang Yang made her want to vanish—she felt she'd shamed him...

"Makes sense."

Xin Yi retracted his silver stinger, his striking posture dissolving.

Xiao Shan was stunned.

"Then tell me now—is what I said right?" Xin Yi asked.

Chen Chen Chen Qingshan was still dazed. "What's right...?"

"That you're not with them—"

"Yes yes yes!" Xiao Shan hurriedly said.

Xin Yi smirked. "I told you—you wouldn't have hidden yourself otherwise."

Chen Chen Chen Qingshan asked: "What are you doing here?"

"I'm here to—" Xin Yi began, then grew wary: "You answer first—what are you doing here?"

Chen Chen Chen Qingshan answered bluntly: "I'm here to rescue someone."

Xin Yi was taken aback: "You're here to rescue someone too? Who?"

"My young master."

"Your young master... Wang Yang?!" Xin Yi was startled.

"Yes."

"Impossible! Wang Yang's martial arts come from Young Master Nan, the great master of martial arts from the Eastern Zhou era! He's also a master of poison! How could he be captured? You're lying to me!"

Xin Yi, who had grown "suspicious" (in his own estimation) from believing he saw through every hidden motive, refused to believe it.

Chen Chen Chen Qingshan wanted to tell Xin Yi the truth, but feared it might backfire. After a moment's thought, she replied calmly:

"My young master's martial skill is high, but two fists can't fight ten hands. The barbarians sent all their top experts, plus ambushes—that's how he was captured."

Xin Yi nodded thoughtfully:

"So they came prepared. The two barbarians I killed were weak—they must have known Wang Yang was strong, so they sent their best to capture him."

Chen Chen Chen Qingshan exhaled softly in relief and agreed:

"That must be it. Since your young master was captured too, we can join forces to rescue him!"

Xin Yi was shocked: "How do you know my young master was captured?!"

Chen Chen Chen Qingshan:...

"I guessed."

Xin Yi glanced at Chen Chen Chen Qingshan, secretly impressed. Though he'd held the upper hand in their mental duel, he hadn't expected her to deduce his young master's capture. He'd underestimated the world's heroes. This person's intellect might rival Wang Yang's.

"You guessed right—then—"

"Then let's join forces to rescue him!"

Xin Yi studied Chen Chen Chen Qingshan, a flicker of admiration in his eyes, and nodded:

"You're good. I've already planned the rescue. You can be my assistant."

Xiao Shan's spirits lifted. She hurriedly asked: "What's the plan?"

Xin Yi didn't answer right away. He swiftly scanned the surrounding forest, then stepped forward and lowered his voice:

"We sneak in first, rescue the people, then get them out."

Chen Chen Chen Qingshan blinked, puzzled:

"I didn't quite follow—what's the actual plan?"

Xin Yi frowned: "You didn't get that? Fine, I'll say it again—listen carefully..."

Xin Yi repeated it once more, then asked: "Understand now?"

Chen Chen Chen Qingshan: (¬_¬)