Chapter 32

Hearing these words, Yun Pianpian's ears twitched slightly.
That day, when the little beauty asked her why she had saved her, she had said she didn't want to have nightmares.
She never expected that an offhand remark she made would be taken to heart by Xiao Changyuan.
And because of those words, he had stepped in to save Xie Yu's life.
Thinking of this, Yun Pianpian's shivering body suddenly stilled.
It was as if she was no longer afraid.
The three returned to Jiangjia Village.
Yun Pianpian went to the kitchen as usual to wash rice and cook, calmly sat at the table to eat, and calmly went to the kitchen to wash dishes and tidy up.
As if nothing had happened that day.
As night deepened, the mountains and fields grew quiet, and even the crowing of roosters could no longer be heard.
After washing up, the two lay down together on the bed.
“Husband, blow out the candle. I want to sleep.”
Yun Pianpian, lying on the inner side of the bed, instructed Xiao Changyuan to extinguish the lamp.
Upon hearing this, Xiao Changyuan raised his pale, slender hand and gently extinguished the candle from afar with a cool, soft gust of his palm wind.
His martial arts were recovering faster and faster. Now, he didn’t even need to get out of bed to put out the light, just a light sweep of his hand could knock down objects from far away.
Such a cold and powerful inner strength, yet he used it to blow out a candle for Yun Pianpian, believing this to be the greatest use of his palm wind. If other martial arts masters were to find out, they would surely think he was squandering such a rare talent.
Yun Pianpian had thought that after experiencing such a terrifying ordeal that day, she wouldn’t be able to sleep.
But to her surprise, not long after her head touched the pillow, she fell into a deep, heavy slumber.
Only when Xiao Changyuan heard her breathing gradually become steady and shallow did he close his eyes in relief.
The night was long, the moonlight shifting with the shadows of flowers as the hazy moon slowly sank westward.
Yun Pianpian did not have a single nightmare all night.
Because she knew her tyrant would guard her dreams like a valiant knight.
The next day, Yun Pianpian opened her eyes and made a point of telling Xiao Changyuan, “Husband, I didn’t have any nightmares last night.”
Xiao Changyuan lowered his gaze to look at her, his handsome, aloof face showing little expression.
But the slight furrow between his long brows eased considerably.
“That’s good.”
Meanwhile, Xie Yu returned home in a daze.
Mu Bai noticed blood on Xie Yu’s shoes and, his expression shifting, immediately went to greet him.
“Your Highness, what happened?”
Xie Yu lifted his pale, handsome face, his lips colorless as he looked at Mu Bai.
“A Bai, I suddenly realized I’ve been mistaken about something all along.”
Mu Bai was taken aback. “What is it?”
Xie Yu said slowly, “Repaying kindness or seeking revenge, these are decisions only the strong can make…”
Mu Bai was puzzled. “Why would you say that, Your Highness?”
Xie Yu replied, “On our way back today, we encountered bandits. I was nearly killed, but Xiao Changyuan saved me…”
Mu Bai was astonished. “Why would Xiao Changyuan save you, Your Highness…”
Xie Yu lowered his lashes and said quietly, “Because he said he couldn’t let Yun Pianpian have nightmares.”
Mu Bai couldn’t believe it. “All for Yun Pianpian?”
Xie Yu nodded, his thin lips pressed together. “From beginning to end, it was all me, unilaterally seeking revenge against him, unilaterally wanting to repay him. Xiao Changyuan doesn’t even remember me, might not even know me. All along, it was just me struggling and hesitating. He never once saw me as worth his attention. If he wanted, he could take my life at any moment. But today, I realized he doesn’t want to kill me…”
Only today did he witness the true Xiao Changyuan.
That man who slaughtered lives like cutting grass on the battlefield, a merciless and bloodthirsty weapon of destruction.
This fearsome tyrant could lift a finger and tear bandits to shreds from thirty meters away.
He saw the indifference in his eyes.
He saw the arrogance that regarded human life as worthless.
It was only today that he realized Xiao Changyuan had never truly taken him seriously.
If he were to strike at Xiao Changyuan, Xiao Changyuan could kill him at any moment.
Killing him would be as effortless as crushing an ant.
The gruesome fate of those bandits, torn limb from limb, would be his own miserable end.
Mu Bai looked up at Xie Yu: “Then, Your Highness, what do you mean…”
Xie Yu’s handsome face tightened slightly. He raised his captivating peach, blossom eyes and stared unblinkingly at Mu Bai: “Since this matter, from start to finish, has been my one, sided quest for revenge, then it’s not laughable for me to choose to abandon it now, is it?”
Mu Bai observed the expression on Xie Yu’s face and immediately replied, “Of course it’s not laughable. A wise man knows when to yield. Those who stubbornly cling to their delusions only march toward certain death. Besides, Liang Kingdom was originally part of Mo Kingdom. Aligning ourselves with Xiao Changyuan is simply fate at work.”
Hearing this, the last trace of hesitation in Xie Yu’s eyes gradually faded.
He continued along Mu Bai’s line of thought: “Exactly! If we pledge allegiance to Xiao Changyuan now and demonstrate our sincerity, perhaps we can even secure official positions in the future! Others don’t have this opportunity, why not gamble on him for our future?!”
“Your Highness speaks wisely!”
Under the terrifying aura of Xiao Changyuan, the highly pragmatic master and servant swiftly changed their strategy and began dreaming of a bright future.
Cao Gui once said: “In war, it is courage that matters. The first drum stirs the spirit, the second weakens it, and the third exhausts it.”
In truth, the courage of this master and servant had quietly vanished on the very first day they saw Xiao Changyuan, when they witnessed him kill a tiger with his bare hands.
The following several dozen days were merely a process of self, persuasion, hesitation, struggle, and clinging to life by a thread.
And today, Xiao Changyuan saved Xie Yu’s life.
Xie Yu finally found a reason not to fight.
He had successfully convinced himself, ultimately achieving the unity of knowledge and action.
However, Xie Yu did not know…
It was precisely his decision to align with Xiao Changyuan today that rewrote his tragic fate in the original story.
And in doing so, he also saved Mu Bai’s life.
From that day onward, every time Xie Yu entered the city, Mu Bai would accompany him, because Mu Bai feared another bandit incident might occur.
When Xie Yu arrived in the county town, he learned that a group of bandits, who had fled from Lushan County to Qingcheng County, had been pillaging and committing all manner of crimes. The officials in Lushan County had been unable to capture them for months, but this morning, their bodies were suddenly discovered on a mountain path.
Soldiers from both Lushan County and Qingcheng County went together to collect the corpses.
Today, everyone in the teahouse was fervently discussing the incident.
There were various theories about the cause of their deaths. Some claimed they had turned on each other over uneven spoils, others suggested they were killed by an anonymous hero, and there were even those who believed the mountain deity had grown furious and slain them.
No one connected the incident to Xiao Changyuan.
Xie Yu thought about it and realized it was true, all the commoners still believed that tyrant was lying gravely ill in the palace, on the verge of death at any moment.
Who would have thought the real tyrant was actually in Jiangjia Village, not far from this county town.
Autumn came to an end, and winter arrived in the blink of an eye.
In the courtyard, Yun Pianpian sat on a bamboo, woven rattan chair, holding the storybook Xie Yu had just brought her, reading with her head lowered. Beside the rattan chair stood a small round wooden table with a plate of peach slice cakes on it.
Sitting in the rattan chair, Yun Pianpian flipped through the storybook while reaching for a peach slice cake to eat.
Was it her imagination?
Yun Pianpian felt that Xie Yu had been especially enthusiastic toward her lately.
It was as if he were deliberately trying to win her favor.
Every time Xie Yu drove his ox cart back from the county town and passed by her door, he would make a point of getting down and giving her the little trinkets he had bought, sometimes a small clay figurine, sometimes a Luban lock, sometimes a storybook. He claimed he bought them to help out the pitiful street vendors, and each time, Xie Yu would purchase many little items to give away.
Especially to Yun Pianpian.
At first, Yun Pianpian felt flustered and embarrassed to accept his gifts.
But Xie Yu would always use his silver tongue to spin elaborate tales, making it seem as though his heart would shatter if she refused. So, Yun Pianpian had no choice but to accept his offerings.
She tried to pay him for the gifts, but Xie Yu wouldn’t take the money, so she eventually gave up.
Meanwhile, Xiao Changyuan’s gaze toward Xie Yu grew increasingly icy.
Xie Yu noticed it, Yun Pianpian noticed it too.
Even though Xie Yu was aware, there was nothing he could do. Xiao Changyuan was simply too difficult to approach, like an impenetrable temple. Xie Yu couldn’t find an opportunity to pledge his loyalty to him, so he settled for the next best option: winning over Yun Pianpian with tributes.
He hoped that this temple, Yun Pianpian, would someday offer him protection.
So he could sail smoothly through life and rise to the highest official rank.
After all, the function of both temples was the same to him.
Halfway through the storybook, Yun Pianpian suddenly recalled the look Xiao Changyuan had given Xie Yu earlier.
That icy gaze seemed even colder than the winter air.
Setting down the book, she looked up and said, “Husband, you must not kill A Yu.”
Xiao Changyuan’s dark, chilling eyes fell upon Yun Pianpian’s face.
That frosty gaze, cold as snow and ice, softened the moment it touched her features.
In an instant, it melted into a tranquil, icy pool.
Though the temperature in his gaze remained cold, his expression was as calm as still water, soft and delicate, devoid of any lethality, clear like a chilly mountain stream.
Xiao Changyuan said indifferently, “If he harbors no ill intentions, I certainly won’t kill him.”
Hearing his words, Yun Pianpian finally breathed a slight sigh of relief.
“That’s good.”
Upon hearing this, a faint displeasure rose in Xiao Changyuan’s heart.
His wife always seemed to care about others more than him.
Unhappily, he raised his hand.
Those pale, slender fingers with distinct knuckles slowly reached toward Yun Pianpian’s cheek.
Yun Pianpian was lowering her head, reading a book and nibbling on a slice of peach cake, when her body suddenly stiffened.
Xiao Changyuan had actually pinched the corner of her lips.
Startled, Yun Pianpian hurriedly leaned back to avoid his touch.
The storybook in her hand fell to the ground.
Wide, eyed, her clear and bright almond, shaped eyes stared in surprise.
“Husband, why did you pinch me?”
Her heart raced uncontrollably.
Xiao Changyuan rarely touched her face voluntarily.
Where his fingers had brushed, a tingling numbness lingered, as if she had been lightly shocked by electricity.
Xiao Changyuan lifted his eyelashes and gazed indifferently at Yun Pianpian.
His handsome, aloof face showed no particular expression.
“There was cake on your face.”
As he spoke, he opened his palm.
On his fingertip was a tiny speck of white cake, no larger than a grain of rice.
Xiao Changyuan’s voice was deep and pleasant, Yun Pianpian’s cheeks flushed inexplicably.
So it was just her overreacting.
“Oh.”
Feeling somewhat embarrassed, she averted her eyes, not daring to look at him. Xiao Changyuan raised his dark eyes.
Those pitch, black, icy orbs settled on Yun Pianpian’s face.
“Wife, why did you react so strongly?”
Whether it was her own guilt or not, Yun Pianpian felt that the look in Xiao Changyuan’s eyes today seemed deeper than usual.
Her heart pounded fiercely twice. Suddenly, she found it hard to breathe.
“I need to go cook!”
Flustered, she blurted out the words, stood up, and fled without looking back.
Xiao Changyuan stood tall and graceful in the courtyard, watching as Yun Pianpian rushed headlong into the kitchen. His handsome face remained expressionless.
He lowered his head and glanced at the grain, sized crumb on his fingertip, frowning slightly.
“This thing…”
A trace of faint puzzlement flickered in his dark eyes.
“Is it really that delicious?”
His expression cool, Xiao Changyuan raised his finger and thoughtfully licked off the tiny crumb of cake.
This fragment, fallen from between her rosy lips and teeth, was sweet but not cloying, with a lingering aftertaste.
It was as if it were a dessert made just for him, perfectly suited to his taste.
Xiao Changyuan’s gaze turned toward Yun Pianpian in the kitchen. The depth in his eyes gradually intensified.