Chapter 117

Chapter 117

Chapter 117: Eavesdropping

The young lady’s and her mother’s voices drifted from the corridor.

First, Madam Cheng couldn’t help but scold: “I told you to eat quickly, don’t wait until the food gets cold! And what happened? You’re always so slow. Now look, midnight stomach ache—what if it causes trouble again—”

Cheng Yaoniang interrupted her: “Mother!” Her tone wasn’t harsh or angry, just a bit embarrassed, so she raised her voice and elongated her words: “Step back a little.”

Madam Cheng: “……” Her eyebrows danced vividly for a moment, then, as her daughter said, she replied, “Alright, alright. I’ll wait at a distance, you hurry up.”

Cheng Yaoniang: “Ah, how can such a thing be hurried?”

Madam Cheng didn’t respond further.

Her pupils contracted as she noticed the three people who had somehow appeared behind and beside her.

Bai Zhengliu made a “quiet” gesture, then slowly released the hand covering Madam Cheng’s mouth.

Madam Cheng took a breath, her eyes gradually filling with surprise and astonishment. Now freed, her lips moved slightly. Judging from her mouth shape, she wanted to ask: “You… why are you here again?”

Bai Zhengliu glanced at Master Cheng.

Master Cheng stepped forward, coming right in front of his wife, lowering his voice: “The two heroes said, Yaoniang went out twice at odd times, so they wanted to follow and see.”

Madam Cheng was taken aback.

She immediately thought of her daughter’s earlier behavior inside the house. Normally, Yaoniang could be coquettish at times, but she was generally sensible—how could she suddenly act like this?

Furthermore, her husband mentioned “timing”… Yaoniang, having heard that Bai and Mei had no intention of rescuing Song Lang, then immediately said she would go out herself. At first it didn’t seem strange, but now thinking back, it was indeed a bit odd.

Realizing this, Madam Cheng licked her lips and didn’t speak further.

She and Master Cheng watched the backs of the two young men. They trusted them, but since Yaoniang was a young lady, some concern was natural.

Fortunately, Bai Zhengliu and Mei Yinghan did not interfere. In an instant, the couple felt warmth spreading through their bodies. They looked around in confusion, seeing nothing different from before. Could this warmth be just an illusion?

—Of course not.

They were already very close to where Cheng Yaoniang was. Bai Zhengliu heard soft words from inside.

It was the young lady muttering to herself: “I’ve come out, Song Lang, why don’t you come see me?”

His body froze. The answer came suddenly, but Bai Zhengliu had already anticipated it, so he didn’t feel any “surprise.” Only one thought crossed his mind: Is it because I’m waiting outside that the thing Cheng Yaoniang is waiting for hasn’t come?A thought stirred, and naturally Bai Zhengliu’s mind recalled the situation beneath Tianshan. They had been surrounded by countless wandering spirits, and Yang Chunyue had led them safely out.

Afterward, Yang Chunyue quickly fell into a deep sleep, not saying much to Bai Zhengliu and Mei Yinghan. But from this incident, Bai Zhengliu had already realized with ease: if “spiritual energy” is used properly, it can help hide one’s presence.

But how should it be used?

Bai Zhengliu didn’t know the answer, yet his thoughts kept churning and spinning. Following his idea, faint streams of light scattered from the swordsman’s dantian and sleeve edges. Not only did it envelop them, it also extended outward, covering Master Cheng and Madam Cheng, who were looking in this direction.

The young man pressed his lips together. He wanted to say something, like “What’s happening?” or “Is this spiritual energy moving according to my will?” But Mei Yinghan spoke first: “Zhengliu, look—”

Bai Zhengliu turned his body along with him, and his gaze fell to the ground beside the two of them.

It was empty. The shadows that should have been there had vanished entirely from beside Bai and Mei.

…

…

“Ah, Song Lang!”

A door apart, the young lady called out joyfully.

Objectively, the Cheng family was also wealthy. Though they were in a side room, there was no unpleasant odor. On the contrary, a strong aroma of incense wafted forth, so much that even the wooden door frame seemed soaked in it.

But… hmm, Bai Zhengliu quietly adjusted his position, increasing the distance between himself and the door frame.

Anyway, Cheng Yaoniang’s voice wasn’t soft; from this position, she could still hear him.

Once properly positioned, a faint voice inside the room—distinct from Cheng Yaoniang’s—became audible.

It could only be Song Lang.

The words were muffled but still understandable. He was speaking to the young lady: “You told them everything I said to you?”

Cheng Yaoniang hesitated: “Hmm.”

Bai Zhengliu’s fingers twitched slightly.

He was about to grip the hilt of the Twenty-Eight Generals’ sword. But before that, another hand came from the side, covering the swordsman’s wrist.

Bai Zhengliu’s motion to draw his sword was stopped. He turned to look at Mei Yinghan. Mei Yinghan glanced at him first, then lifted his chin slightly toward the direction of the door.The two exchanged glances, surprisingly failing to reach a consensus.

Bai Zhengliu: “‘Song Lang’ is here! We should barge in!”

Mei Yinghan: “This, after all… is a side room.”

Bai Zhengliu: “But there’s a vengeful ghost!”

Mei Yinghan: “It’s a side room with a young lady inside…”

Bai Zhengliu: “……”

In the end, he silently restrained his force. Well, what Mei Yinghan was concerned about now was exactly what he had felt slightly awkward about.

However, just as the swordsman felt awkward and unsure how to act, the sounds from inside the room drew both of their attention.

Most likely, it was Song Lang’s voice asking: “What does this mean? Did she tell them or not?”

Cheng Yaoniang: “She told them. It’s just… just that they are unwilling to rescue you.”

Song Lang sounded surprised: “Why?”

Cheng Yaoniang repeated what Bai and Mei had said earlier.

Having heard it, Song Lang sneered repeatedly: “What do you mean ‘too far to intervene’? In my view, it’s simply that the Tianshan disciples and that unaffiliated, wild swordsman are cowardly and scared of trouble. They speak well on the surface, calling themselves righteous people who must act when injustice is seen. But when it comes to real trouble—hmph.”

Cheng Yaoniang: “Eh?”

Song Lang: “What’s wrong—uh, Yaoniang, don’t blame me for saying this. I’m just being chased, life and death unknown. Hearing this, I can’t help but be angry.”

Cheng Yaoniang: “Song Lang! Of course you should be angry, there’s nothing to say about that. But that swordsman isn’t a ‘wild rogue’!”

Song Lang, surprised: “Then who is he?”

Cheng Yaoniang: “They’re both Tianshan disciples.” She paused. “My father and mother said so themselves.”

Song Lang fell silent.

Outside, Bai Zhengliu and Mei Yinghan also remained silent.

Bai Zhengliu felt an immense sense of relief that he hadn’t recklessly drawn his sword to rush in. Otherwise, he might not have heard Song Lang’s following words at all.

This vengeful ghost of unknown origin… seemed as if it had seen them before, knew them? Otherwise, how could it know that between the two, only Mei Yinghan was a Tianshan disciple, while Bai Zhengliu was the “wild rogue”?Realizing this, Bai Zhengliu’s heart raced. Memories of people he had met and events he had experienced flashed before his eyes, then settled on the time he had known Mei Yinghan and traveled the jianghu with him.

His thoughts rose and fell with the years. One door away, “Song Lang” finally spoke in a hoarse voice to explain: “Is that so? I see he wears dark robes, quite different from the Tianshan disciples I’ve seen before. So he’s also from Tianshan, just dressed differently from the rest of his sect.”

Cheng Yaoniang: “Song Lang, you’ve seen other Tianshan disciples?”

Song Lang: “In all these years of studying, I’ve not only studied… In short, Yaoniang, if they don’t come to rescue me, I fear I have only a few days left. It would be one thing if it were only me dying, but now that your soul is linked with mine, that vengeful ghost will never let you go.”

Cheng Yaoniang, both shocked and saddened, whispered: “But Father and Mother don’t believe me.”

Song Lang gently comforted her: “They only want what’s best for you. As for me, I’m just someone proposing marriage they’ve never met; how things unfold afterward, it’s understandable that Master and Madam don’t care.”

Cheng Yaoniang: “Sob… Song Lang.”

Song Lang: “Keeping those two jianghu visitors at your house now is merely a stopgap. If you live a few more days, eventually…”

Cheng Yaoniang: “Sob… sob!”

Song Lang seemed to make a decision: “Then I’ll teach you the family’s spirit formation. You and Master and Madam hide within it; ordinary vengeful spirits won’t dare touch you. But this formation can only hold for four or five days; beyond that, it can’t defend. Four or five days… if those two jianghu visitors act fast, it should be enough for them to arrive.”

Cheng Yaoniang: “That… is it just letting them arrive?”

Song Lang: “If they come and save me, everyone rejoices. If they can’t, then it’s because I lack the fortune. You… sigh.”

Cheng Yaoniang was silent for a moment.

Bai Zhengliu, who had been deep in thought, was drawn back by this unusual quiet, pondering: “Hearing this, it sounds just like that sect leader earlier, trying to trick Mei Yinghan and me into leaving so he could deal with the Cheng family himself. No matter how clever Cheng Yaoniang is, she can’t believe this, right?”

Cheng Yaoniang: “Alright! If Song Lang truly lacks that fortune, we’ll meet underground later as a ghost couple.”

Song Lang, seemingly moved: “Yaoniang! How fortunate I am to meet such a good young lady like you.”

Cheng Yaoniang: “Sob… Song Lang!”

For a while, the two exchanged affectionate words. Cheng Yaoniang seemed about to continue, but Song Lang began urging her to learn the formation.

During this, Cheng Yaoniang anxiously asked: “Song Lang, while you stay here with me, is your physical body really alright?”

Song Lang replied: “Don’t worry. I’ve found a safe place to hide my body. As long as my body isn’t destroyed, even if my current soul is found and scattered by the vengeful ghost, there’s still a chance to recover.”

Cheng Yaoniang: “Hearing you say that, I feel at ease.”Bai Zhengliu: “……” Hearing the words about roaming spirits, he couldn’t help himself and once again removed his hand from the sword hilt. In his heart he thought: “If the body isn’t destroyed, the soul persists… there really is such a theory?”

Author’s note:

Here it comes, here it comes!

Just by looking at today’s update time, you can tell Jiangjiang is staying home…! But a little preview: tomorrow will also be updated at noon.