Chapter 926: [Illness Comes Like a Collapsing Mountain] (Part 1)

Huo Shengnan was so embarrassed she couldn't control herself; she shoved his hand away, trying to stand, but Huo Xiaotian grabbed her and kissed her lips again—this time even more outrageously, slipping his tongue between her lips. Huo Shengnan clenched her teeth, not daring to breathe, her beautiful eyes glaring fiercely at him, yet she realized she could summon no killing intent against him and understood that Huo Xiaotian was deliberately exploiting her guilt over accidentally hurting him to profiteer and take great advantage of her.

Huo Xiaotian was certainly not the type to stop when he had enough; he only pressed harder and pushed further, his big hand already slipping into Huo Shengnan's clothing. Huo Shengnan's body went soft from his touch, she writhed slightly and let out an "Eh!" of protest, her white teeth parting, and she felt Huo Xiaotian's tongue slip into her mouth like a loach.

Huo Shengnan thought she should feel disgusted, but her true feeling was not resistance—rather, she enjoyed it a little, feeling as if she were floating on clouds. The fleeting thought of biting off Huo Xiaotian's hateful tongue vanished instantly, melted away by his passionate kiss.

Huo Xiaotian stroked Huo Shengnan's flat, smooth abdomen, seeing her dazed, lovestruck look made his blood surge even more—if he were to sit idle now, would he still be a man? He shoved Huo Shengnan onto the bed and was about to take the next step when he suddenly heard Liang Da Zhuang's voice from outside: "Young master, are you back?"

Huo Shengnan was snapped out of her daze by that call, her face flushing crimson with shame; she shoved Huo Xiaotian away without mercy. Caught off guard, he went sprawling flat on his back on the ground.

Huo Shengnan didn't even pause to see if he was hurt; she flung the door open and fled back to her own room like the wind.

Huo Xiaotian lay on the ground, feeling a faint ache at the base of his thigh. His chest also ached faintly, his heart as well. "Liang Da Zhuang, you bastard, you ruined my fun!" he shouted, holding back his strength, and bellowed from the depths of his heart: "Bastard! Are you going to let me sleep or not?"

Liang Da Zhuang was startled by Huo Xiaotian's shout, trembling as he stood at the gate and said timidly, "Young master, Zhan Peng and Zhan Zhuangshi have returned; he says he has urgent business to see you."

Hearing that Zhan Peng had returned, Huo Xiaotian's anger faded—if Zhan Peng was back, Long Xi Yue must be with him. Thank goodness Liang Da Zhuang woke him up; otherwise, if he'd arrived a moment later, he and Huo Shengnan would have been like dry tinder and spark, and if Long Xi Yue saw this scene, it would be hard to accept; being too amorous is no virtue for a man.

Huo Xiaotian slowly climbed to his feet, opened the door and headed for the gate. The arrow wound at the base of his thigh hadn't healed yet; his steps were unsteady, and after two steps he felt a piercing pain in the wound. He glanced at Huo Shengnan's tightly closed door across the way, wondering if his earlier actions had angered him. He had almost groped Huo Shengnan all over—would this heroine think him a profiteering scoundrel? Then he thought: if a woman likes you, even your licentiousness seems charming to her; if she doesn't, your charm just seems lecherous. Better dead than alive, bird facing upward. Since I dared to reach out my claw at General Huo, I've already prepared to bear any risk—how could it be worse? Could you even eat me?

Huo Xiaotian hobbled to the gate, drew the bolt, and saw Liang Da Zhuang standing outside. Liang Da Zhuang, still shaken from being cursed by Huo Xiaotian, looked uneasy and apologetically said, "Young master, I truly didn't mean to disturb your rest; Zhan Zhuangshi says he has urgent business that must see you."

Huo Xiaotian nodded and asked, "Where is he?"

Liang Da Zhuang said, "I have him waiting in the flower hall."

"Then hurry and ask him in!"

Liang Da Zhuang hurriedly turned to call Zhan Peng.

Huo Xiaotian sighed, trudging toward his room with difficulty; as he turned, he saw Huo Shengnan standing behind him and jumped. Huo Shengnan had changed back into male attire, donned a human-skin mask, glared at him fiercely, yet a tenderness she couldn't hide shone in her eyes as she softly said, "Since you're injured, don't go running around." She took hold of his arm.

Huo Xiaotian pushed further, slinging his whole arm over her shoulder and sighed, "Besides, my thigh still burns with pain."

"Serves you right to die of pain!"

Huo Xiaotian said, "Dying of pain wouldn't matter to me; it's just that it hurts in my body and aches in your heart—I'm afraid you'll feel sorry for me."

Huo Shengnan replied, "Even if you dropped dead before me, I wouldn't shed a tear."

Huo Xiaotian said, "Heart of iron!"

Huo Shengnan helped him back to the room and set everything straight. In that moment, Zhan Peng had already entered; Huo Shengnan knew they had things to discuss, rose and left, and Liang Da Zhuang finally withdrew, closing the door behind them.

Zhan Peng came before Huo Xiaotian, lowered his head and clasped his fists: "Young master, I have failed your great trust; I come specially to apologize!"

Huo Xiaotian jumped up at the news, his first thought being whether Long Xi Yue had met with trouble, and he asked in a trembling voice, "Did Long Xi Yue return with you?"

Zhan Peng said, "Young master, she has gone missing!"

Huo Xiaotian gasped, "How could she disappear? She's always been with you!"

Zhan Peng's face fell with guilt: "Young master, I and Gao Yuan accompanied her first to Hailing Commandery; later Zhou Dage caught up and joined us, and together we escorted her by boat to Hai Prefecture. Along the way we were utmost careful, fearing any slip-up, and finally reached Hai Prefecture without wind or wave. We stayed there a few days, hearing that you had returned from Yongdu, we all waited for you to come to Hai Prefecture to meet. That night the princess said she would host us for drinks, unable to refuse her warm invitation we had a little drink. Though I and Zhou Dage should have been fine with our tolerance, we quickly passed out after drinking."

Huo Xiaotian's expression darkened; when he mentioned Long Xi Yue at Heaven Dragon Temple with Ji Feihua, he had already felt some ominous premonitions. Though he tried to deny them deep down, the very thing he feared most finally came to pass.

Zhan Peng would not deceive himself; Long Xi Yue's use of this method to slip away from them shows she has other plans—what in this world could be more important than himself? Huo Xiaotian's heart felt as if cut by a knife; he had always believed he was her sole reliance, the most important person in her heart, yet this pure and kind princess actually kept things from him. Huo Xiaotian suddenly felt insecure, even finding it hard to breathe.

Zhan Peng said, "The next morning, after we woke up, we were startled—we had thought the princess had been kidnapped, but after searching her room we found a letter addressed to you."

Huo Xiaotian took the letter from Zhan Peng's hand, broke the wax seal, and inside found a neatly folded silk handkerchief embroidered with a cute monkey and a line of small characters: "Sun and moon double wheels, heavenly eye; reading myriad volumes, a woman's heart." He of course remembered this couplet from when they were trapped in the empty valley. "A woman's heart is a needle at the sea bottom—truly elusive." All along she had kept things from him, and he recalled his own words to her: "Marry a chicken, follow the chicken; marry a dog, follow the dog; marry a monkey, roam the hills." Perhaps in Long Xi Yue's heart he is merely a mischievous monkey; she is the daughter of the Dakang Emperor, well-read, and would never willingly follow such a monkey over the mountains.

Huo Xiaotian silently put away the handkerchief; his whole body suddenly felt as if struck by a serious illness, his voice weak as he asked, "What about Zhou Dage and the others?"

Zhan Peng said, "We were worried the princess might have come to harm, so we inquired everywhere, but we couldn't find any trace of her. She has a disguise-made human-skin mask, making it all too easy to hide. Zhou Dage and Gao Yuan are still searching locally in Hai Prefecture, hoping to discover something."

Huo Xiaotian's expression darkened: "If someone truly wants to hide, we probably won't be able to find her."

Seeing Huo Xiaotian's expression, Zhan Peng knew his feelings must be at their lowest, and apologetically said, "Young master, this is entirely my fault for failing in my duties; please punish me."

Huo Xiaotian shook his head: "She left on her own; what does it have to do with you, Zhan Peng? You've come a long way, dusty and weary—rest awhile; I still have things for you to do later."

"Yes!" Zhan Peng clasped his fists and took his leave.

After Zhan Peng and Liang Da Zhuang left, Huo Shengnan came to Huo Xiaotian's door, saw it wide open, and found him sitting on the bed, staring blankly outside, a lost soul. Not knowing what had befallen him, she appeared utterly dejected, approached his side, and gave a soft cough.

Only then did Huo Xiaotian snap out of his reverie, his voice dry as he asked, "You've come?"

Huo Shengnan asked anxiously, "What happened? How did you end up like this?"

Huo Xiaotian suddenly pulled her into an embrace, his face pressed against her chest, his body trembling slightly. Huo Shengnan first thought he had reverted to his old ways, trying to take advantage of her again, but seeing his state she realized it was different and whispered, "What's wrong with you? Don't let anyone see—the gate isn't even closed."

Huo Xiaotian said, "Will you lie to me?"

"What nonsense! Let go of me first, then we'll talk."

Huo Xiaotian not only didn't release her, he held her even tighter, nearly making her unable to breathe: "Tell me, will you lie to me? Will you?"

Huo Shengnan was somewhat frightened by his state: "Are you running a fever?" She reached out and touched his forehead, discovering it was scorching hot.

"Answer me?"

Huo Shengnan shook her head: "You're so cunning, even if I wanted to deceive you, I couldn't!"

Huo Xiaotian nodded; this answer was clearly not what he wanted, he murmured, "I knew it..." After saying that, his vision suddenly went black and he fainted.

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