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Join the ServerLu Hongzhuang’s mind reeled.
The remuneration.
Gazing at Su Qinghan’s pale face, which was nonetheless graced with a playful smile, a surge of nameless fury, tinged with indignant frustration, lodged itself in Lu Hongzhuang’s chest, neither rising nor falling.
That scoundrel, Jia Qinglian, not only intended to use them as his pawns, but also chose such a demeaning method to humiliate them!
“You…”
Lu Hongzhuang tried to speak, but the words caught in her throat, refusing to emerge.
For Su Qinghan’s words rang true, every single one of them.
This was Jia Qinglian’s brazen scheme.
He had taken the safety of Moonfall Town’s populace, bundled it into a gruesome package, and flung it directly at her feet.
By this act, he had already offered his ‘apology,’ implying that if she refused to go, it would be Lu Hongzhuang herself who was unwilling to save the villagers, paralyzed by cowardice, thus providing him with a convenient scapegoat.
Should she refuse, the horrific plight of those two villages would merely be a prelude to the suffering that awaited many more.
“There, there, don’t fret so much.”
Su Qinghan’s voice drifted, light as a feather, yet carried a strangely soothing power.
“Anger will only harm your body, and then you’d have to spend money on medicine. It’s hardly a worthwhile exchange.”
She gently patted the edge of the bed beside her.
“Help me lie back down. I need a little more rest.”
Lu Hongzhuang’s chest rose and fell sharply several times, but she ultimately managed to force down the surge of indignation.
She stepped forward, carefully helping Su Qinghan settle back, then gently drew the quilt over her, meticulously tucking in the corners.
Each gesture, though subtle, bespoke a tenderness and care she herself seemed unaware of.
Just then, from outside the room, the hesitant voice of Master Qian’s Guard Xiao Li echoed once more.
“Heroine Lu… um… Junior Sister Yun is back again…”
Lu Hongzhuang’s brows instantly knitted together, a wave of impatience washing over her.
Again?
Hadn’t she already made herself perfectly clear?
She was about to dismiss the visitor when she heard Xiao Li hastily add another detail.
“Junior Sister Yun… she… she appears to be injured, and she’s carrying numerous items.”
Lu Hongzhuang’s movements faltered.
She glanced back at Su Qinghan, who lay on the bed with eyes closed in meditation, and lowered her voice considerably.
“Let her wait in the courtyard.”
Having spoken, she turned and exited the room, pulling the door shut with a soft click.
In the courtyard, Junior Sister Yun stood, a picture of nervous discomfort.
The moment Lu Hongzhuang clearly discerned her appearance, her heart gave a sudden, sharp lurch.
In just a single day, the young woman before her seemed utterly transformed.
Her once pristine Demon Exorcism Division uniform was now grimy and tattered, several gashes from sharp claws revealing fresh bloodstains beneath.
Her face was smudged with dirt and marred by several scrapes, her lips were chapped, and her entire being radiated an overwhelming weariness and haggardness.
What Lu Hongzhuang found most impossible to ignore were Junior Sister Yun’s eyes, which typically shone with an admiring light, but were now bloodshot, with prominent dark circles beneath them.
At her feet rested several exquisite food and gift boxes, each bearing the distinctive mark of Huichun Hall, the most esteemed apothecary in Moonfall Town.
“You…”
Lu Hongzhuang’s throat felt parched, and she managed to utter only a single, choked word.
Junior Sister Yun lifted her gaze, and upon seeing Lu Hongzhuang, attempted a smile that twisted her lips into a grimace more painful than a sob.
“Senior Sister.”
She offered no further pleas, simply gesturing towards the items scattered on the ground.
“I… I overheard Doctor Wang mentioning that Miss Su’s health has suffered greatly. These are my stipends from the Division, along with my personal savings, all spent on these restorative tonics. Please… please take them for Miss Su to help her recover her strength.”
Lu Hongzhuang’s body froze solid.
She found herself unable to meet Junior Sister Yun’s gaze.
A potent wave of guilt, cold as an incoming tide, threatened to engulf her entirely.
Here she was, attending to Su Qinghan and luxuriating in the comfort of Master Qian’s estate.
Meanwhile, her junior sister, a fellow disciple, had been fighting tooth and nail outside, returning covered in wounds.
“For Senior Sister’s dearest friend… I truly hope she makes a swift recovery.”
Junior Sister Yun’s voice was barely a whisper, imbued with a raw hoarseness.
With that, she cupped her fists, turned to depart, and offered no further words of persuasion for Lu Hongzhuang to intervene.
“Wait!”
As if by some inexplicable impulse, Lu Hongzhuang called out, stopping her.
Junior Sister Yun halted, but did not turn to face her.
Lu Hongzhuang gazed at the slender yet resolute figure of Junior Sister Yun, and a question that had long swirled in her mind spilled out unbidden.
“You are clearly so frail…”
“The last time, at the gates of Master Qian’s estate, the malevolent aura of those two martial artists was enough to make you tremble uncontrollably, barely able to grip your sword.”
“You understand perfectly well that, given your current strength, rushing into battle often means you cannot save others, but merely endanger yourself.”
“Why, then… do you still insist on charging to the forefront?”
A profound silence settled over the courtyard.
Only the gentle rustle of the wind through the osmanthus tree broke the stillness.
After a considerable pause, Junior Sister Yun’s voice finally drifted back, soft and steady, without her turning around.
“Senior Sister, you are right.”
“I am indeed very weak.”
“But…”
Her voice faltered, and each word that followed seemed to be uttered with every ounce of her strength, striking Lu Hongzhuang’s heart with profound impact.
“Though drawing my sword may not guarantee salvation, to save, one must draw their sword.”
“Last night, when wolf demons stormed into Zhangjia Village, despite my meager strength… I still managed to rescue three individuals from the clutches of the lesser demons.”
“A mother clutching her child, and an elderly man.”
“It’s not many, I know.”
“Yet, even insignificant demon exorcists like myself are striving with all their might.”
“Senior Sister…”
Junior Sister Yun’s voice held a trace of an almost imperceptible plea.
“I… we really need you.”
“I hope Senior Sister can also… soon set aside these personal affections and lend us your aid.”
Boom!
The four words, ‘personal affections,’ struck like a piercing sword, thrust deep into her very core!
She felt utterly bewildered, her cheeks instantly flushing crimson with heat!
“You… what utter nonsense are you spouting! What ‘personal affections’?”
Her voice warped, carrying a subtle tremor of panic that she herself failed to register.
Junior Sister Yun offered no further argument, merely shaking her head gently.
“Should any urgent missions arise in the future, I will notify Senior Sister via carrier pigeon.”
“Whether Senior Sister chooses to go or not, the decision is yours alone.”
With those words, she lingered no longer, dragging her weary body, step by arduous step, out through the grand gates of Master Qian’s estate.
Lu Hongzhuang remained frozen in place, her mind a chaotic whirlwind.
****
Clutching the valuable tonics, she pushed open the door to the room.
“Who is it?”
Su Qinghan’s voice drifted from the bed.
“No one in particular, just… a delivery of tonics.”
Lu Hongzhuang mumbled a vague reply, setting the items on the table, her gaze subtly evasive.
She said nothing more, instead pulling a small table closer, settling down not far from the bed. She then produced talisman paper and cinnabar, and began meticulously drawing talismans.
The soft, scratching sound of her brush filled the quiet room.
She sought to use this methodical task to calm her tumultuous heart.
Su Qinghan made no further inquiries, simply lying quietly on the bed, her eyes closed as she regulated her breathing.
A peculiar tranquility settled over the room.
One lay on the bed, deep in meditation, while the other sat at the table, meticulously drawing.
Time itself seemed to stretch and slow.
Suddenly.
“Flap, flap, flap—”
A flurry of beating wings abruptly shattered the stillness.
A grey pigeon soared in through the window, alighting with uncanny precision on the table directly before Lu Hongzhuang.
Lu Hongzhuang’s heart plummeted.
She unfastened the message cylinder from the pigeon’s leg and unfurled the tiny slip of paper within.
With a single glance, her breath hitched, growing ragged.
Though she strove for utmost composure, the sudden tension in her shoulders and the stark white of her knuckles, clenched tightly around the paper, irrevocably betrayed her agitated state.
“What’s wrong?”
Su Qinghan’s voice resonated, soft and knowing.
Her eyes remained closed, yet it was as if she perceived everything with perfect clarity.
“Nothing.”
Lu Hongzhuang swiftly tucked away the paper, her voice notably stiff.
Su Qinghan did not open her eyes, but a faint, knowing curve graced the corner of her lips.
“If you wish to go, then go.”
Her voice was utterly calm.
“I am considerably improved; protecting myself poses no issue.”
“Absolutely not!” Lu Hongzhuang retorted without a moment’s hesitation. “I must stay and guard you!”
Finally, Su Qinghan opened her eyes.
She turned her head, fixing her gaze upon the stubborn expression on Lu Hongzhuang’s face, and then deliberately jingled the money pouch brimming with silver coins that lay beside her on the bedstand.
The coins clinked sonorously.
“He has already conceded, offering two hundred taels of silver and a new wheelchair. This ‘apology’ is, by no means, a light one.”
Su Qinghan spoke, her words slow and deliberate.
“Before this matter is fully resolved, here in Moonfall Town, I am the safest person alive.”
“He fears my misfortune more than anyone else.”
“So, go on, don’t let this leave a scar on your heart.”
“Heroine Lu~.”
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Read : Transmigrated Into a World With a Wife
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