Chapter 67

The girl’s words reminded Bai Sha of the scene of Young Master Yin slicing people’s heads with a sword in the mountain stronghold, and she couldn’t help but shudder.

Young Master Yin seemed… not as simple as she had thought.

For a moment, Bai Sha felt somewhat worried. After all, it was an order from her superior. Now that Young Master Yin had left, besides dereliction of duty, it wouldn’t be good to send a message to her superior. If her superior truly blamed her, she feared she wouldn’t be able to return to the Shen residence.

“Why are you still standing there? Hurry up and follow.” Shen Yao Xing turned back and called to the person daydreaming by the small stream.

“Ah, yes!”

Unable to dwell on it any longer, Bai Sha hurried to catch up. For now, she had to take things one step at a time, and protecting the young miss was the priority.

However…

She wondered if she should tell her superior about Young Master Yin’s knowledge of martial arts.

The young man’s departure didn’t cause much of a stir. Shen Yao Xing still ate and drank as usual, only feeling that the journey was a bit duller than the previous two days.

This time, the route didn’t pass through Plum Blossom River like before, but took another road. The journey was quite smooth, only extended in duration. They had been jolting along for several days without reaching their destination.

Shen Yao Xing was sprawled limply inside the carriage, her head leaning against the window. Out of boredom, she occasionally blew open the curtains, her face wearing an expression of utter listlessness.

That childish little face had lost its usual vibrancy, looking so wilted that even Meng Xin Yi couldn’t bear to watch.

“Do you want some water?”

Shen Yao Xing shook her head weakly, not even bothering to open her eyes.

Meng Xin Yi sighed, “We’ve been camping outdoors for the past few days. I know you’re bored and hungry. We should reach a place to rest soon if we go a bit further. Just hang in there a little longer.”

The girl’s expression finally softened a bit. Her somewhat dull eyes looked towards her, “How much longer? You said the same thing yesterday.”

Meng Xin Yi coughed lightly in embarrassment, continuing to reassure her: “We didn’t make it yesterday because it got too dark. Today’s half-day journey should be enough.”

Shen Yao Xing was half-skeptical. She raised her hand to rub her slightly stiff face, yawning as she leaned into the corner of the carriage.

“It better be…”

The girl mumbled before closing her eyes.

Meng Xin Yi’s lips curled into a smile. Her gaze swept over that sleeping face, even more delicate than a young master’s, and landed on the saber fastened at her waist.

The girl seemed particularly fond of this saber, with its hilt carefully wrapped in bright red cord.

The smile on her lips gradually faded. Meng Xin Yi looked at the girl’s sleeping face, her mood somewhat complex.

This time, Meng Xin Yi truly hadn’t deceived her. After just half a day’s journey, they arrived at a place to rest – a rather bustling town.

After finding an inn and putting away their luggage, Shen Yao Xing eagerly ran down to the inn’s main hall, quite generously ordering several delicious dishes.

It was just past noon, and there weren’t many people. Besides their table, only two or three other tables in the hall were occupied.

While waiting for the food to be served, Shen Yao Xing grew impatient. Her fingers unconsciously tapped on the table as her eyes scanned around, finally landing on a woman who had just entered and was walking towards the counter.

The black and red robes outlined a beautiful figure, tall with good proportions. Shen Yao Xing inwardly admired her, as most women she had seen before were rough and stout, rarely with such a pleasing figure.

She couldn’t help but be curious about her appearance.

However, the person wore a conical hat with a black veil, making it impossible to see her face clearly.

Shen Yao Xing clicked her tongue in disappointment and withdrew her gaze.

That night, despite finally having a comfortable bed after several days of jolting travel, Shen Yao Xing unusually found herself unable to sleep.

For someone like her who usually fell asleep as soon as her head hit the pillow, this was truly uncomfortable.

Tossing and turning, her mind was in a chaotic mess, with the young man’s dejected expression constantly flashing through her mind, refusing to go away.

“Tsk.” Shen Yao Xing irritably scratched her head. As she turned over again, she suddenly glimpsed a figure that had appeared in the room. Startled, she abruptly sat up, instinctively assuming a defensive posture, her expression vigilant.

Someone had entered the room without her noticing at all. When had her emotions become so chaotic?

As the figure stepped out of the darkness, Shen Yao Xing’s expression became somewhat peculiar.

She remembered this “person” – it was the death guard who had always followed Jiang Ming Yue. Recognizing who it was, Shen Yao Xing unconsciously relaxed.

“…Do you need something?”

The man’s face remained expressionless, as pale as a corpse in the moonlight. Yet his movements were not at all stiff. He walked to a spot some distance from the bed and extended a red box towards the girl with one hand.

It was just one motion, without a single word spoken.

Somehow, Shen Yao Xing vaguely guessed what might be inside the red box. She didn’t immediately take it, instead asking, “Did Jiang Ming Yue send you?”

The man’s face showed no change. He held out the red box, like a stone statue.

Probably if she didn’t take it, he would maintain this posture until the end of time.

With no other choice, Shen Yao Xing reached out to accept it. The next moment, the man spoke.

“My master instructed this servant to inform Miss Shen that he is currently occupied with urgent matters in the pavilion and cannot leave. He ordered this servant to deliver this item to Miss Shen, for her to decide what to do with it.”

His voice was as emotionless as a simple message-relaying machine.

It was the first time Shen Yao Xing had heard this “person” speak such a long sentence. His voice was hoarse as if it had been abused, unpleasant and incomprehensible.

She opened the red box as expected, and inside were indeed two intact deerskin maps. Her brows furrowed slightly, even more confused about its meaning. “What am I supposed to do with this? It’s of no use to me.”

The death guard’s face remained bloodless, his half-lidded eyes empty and lifeless, like a puppet controlled by someone else. He mechanically replied, “The master said Miss Shen should decide.”

What did that mean?

Was he trying to prove that the mountain stronghold incident had nothing to do with him? Is that why he gave her these two maps?

Just thinking about it made her head ache. Shen Yao Xing frowned deeply, biting the soft flesh inside her lip hard. She looked at the “person” opposite her and asked, “Did he say anything else?”