Chapter 59: Nothingness |
[September 3, 2023]...
The hug was too realistic and the heartbeat too powerful. Shěn Lí was shocked by her own frenzied, racing heart. She pushed Xíng Zhǐ away and nearly tripped over the fishing net in the process. Xíng Zhǐ grabbed her and sighed. “So reckless. If you fall into the water, who do you think is going to rescue you?”
Xíng Zhǐ was surprised the words came out of his mouth. He turned to the side and coughed awkwardly twice, but Shěn Lí didn’t seem to have noticed. She was looking down at the treasures in the boat and said, “Well I won’t be polite and just take the one I want then.”
Xíng Zhǐ looked at Shěn Lí’s profile in surprise and his gaze softened. “If you like them, you can keep all of them. I won’t return them to the sea.”
Shěn Lí paused her search for the perfect shell. Although she had only stayed in the Immortal realm for a short time, she knew Xíng Zhǐ didn’t accept gifts without reason. He could accept one or two things from the Sea king to give him face, but keeping everything would carry a different meaning.
Shěn Lí didn’t reply but kept searching amongst the boatful of treasures silently. Finally, a white round stone that resembled jade caught her eye. Shěn Lí picked it up even though it was a little plain. “This is pleasing to my eyes. I want it; everything else is up to you.”
Xíng Zhǐ nodded. “Let me exchange the shells for some fish first, then we can go home for dinner.”
They climbed onto the pier and Xíng Zhǐ began looking for someone to exchange shells for fish. He found an honest fisherman and was just negotiating when an unfamiliar voice came from beside him.
“I see this brother caught some nice clamshells again.” He stepped forward and gave the other fisherman a meaningful glare. The fisherman was just about to hand over his fish to Xíng Zhǐ, but when faced with such a vicious look, he pulled the fish back weakly.
The fisherman hurriedly put away his fish before glancing apologetically at Xíng Zhǐ and hurrying away.
Only then did Xíng Zhǐ deign to look at the newcomer. He smiled calmly as he watched the self-proclaimed Lǎozǐ pull up the belt of his pants. “I’m afraid you don’t know me; I’m Wáng Bǎo, the eldest son of the village chief. I see little brother trading clamshells for fish every day. I think you must not like clamshells much. It just so happens I have a lot of fish I can trade with you. The ones you have in your hand and the ones you have on your boat, I’ll take all of them.”
“No trade.” Xíng Zhǐ said. “I want to toss them back to the sea.”
It was the truth, but Wáng Bǎo interpreted it differently. He raised his voice slightly. “Audacious! I am the eldest son of the village chief! You would insist on throwing away those treasures instead of giving them to me?! Do you have a problem with me? Remember, if you have a problem with me, it’s the same as having a problem with the village chief! Be careful, you won’t be able to bear the consequences!”
Shěn Lí narrowed her eyes. She couldn’t stand people who used their position to bully others. She was about to speak out, but Xíng Zhǐ acted like the guy was invisible and pulled her hand to lead her away.
Wáng Bǎo, furious, rushed to stop Xíng Zhǐ. “Stop! Didn’t you hear me talking to you?!” As he finished speaking, Shěn Lí caught his eye. She was wearing a cotton and linen dress Xíng Zhǐ brought for her, and because of her injuries, her face was wan and delicate from the lack of vitality.
Wáng Bǎo’s face lit up and he eyed Shěn Lí from top to bottom. “You have a really nice-looking lady for someone who has no manners.”
Shěn Lí sneered. She would have already beat the guy up if not for her injuries.
“Your eyes aren’t bad.” Xíng Zhǐ said faintly.
Shěn Lí noticed his voice was chillier than usual, which was odd, because based on her understanding of Xíng Zhǐ, he was a god that rarely revealed his true feelings about things. And even then, it was only because he chose to do so. But in that moment, Shěn Lí was keenly aware he wasn’t controlling himself.
“You should be thankful you have such good eyes.” Before Xíng Zhǐ finished the last word, he’d already reached forward and punched Wáng Bǎo in the face, knocking him out.
A bruise slowly formed on Wáng Bǎo’s face as he lay unconscious on the ground.
Xíng Zhǐ’s expression didn’t change as he stepped over Wáng Bǎo’s body. He didn’t even bother to look down at him.
Shěn Lí, completely stunned, stood with a shocked expression as she gaped at Xíng Zhǐ. The expression remained on her face as Xíng Zhǐ dragged her back to the yard.
“Is my face also swollen? Why are you looking at me like that?”
Shěn Lí blinked a few times. In a daze she said, “No, I just. . . didn’t expect you to use such a direct method.”
Xíng Zhǐ. . . wasn’t he the kind of person who favored using trickery?
After a pause, a complicated expression flashed across Xíng Zhǐ’s eyes. He endured for a moment before speaking, “He was disrespectful towards you.”
“Uh. . . well. . . that. . . ” The answer startled Shěn Lí, so she was a bit dazed.
“If it were you, how would you handle it?”
“Knock him out. . . ”
“So, I did exactly what you would do.” He turned his head and coughed, as if to show he felt unappreciated. He muttered, “I thought you would be happier this way.”
Shěn Lí looked at him in a daze. After reflecting on the meaning behind his words, her cheeks flushed. Was he trying to please her? “Yes, happy. Very happy.” She lowered her eyes and looked at the ground. Her normally cool eyes softened. Emotions roiled her heart like waves, surging up and down, and soaking her through before fading away.
Shěn Lí knew that perhaps Xíng Zhǐ could only treat her like this when he was dressed in the identity he was now. If he wanted her to be reckless, then why not do as he wished?
That night, Shěn Lí was trying to sleep when her ears perked up. Her hearing had been sharper the past few days and she could easily make out four pairs of footsteps in the yard. Based on their footfall, she could tell they were not cultivators, so she ignored them and went back to sleep.
It was impossible for Xíng Zhǐ to not have measures in place. . . .
Sure enough, before the four intruders could make their way into the hallway entry, two muffled groans sounded, as if two of them had fallen down. Shěn Lí sighed. The other two, panicked and short of breath, ran off. One rushed into Xíng Zhǐ’s room, while the other rushed toward her room.
Shěn Lí didn’t bother opening her eyes when her door was pulled open. From his scent, she guessed it was the Wáng Bǎo bully from earlier in the day.
He was frightened and breathing hard, but after a while, seemed to see Shěn Lí in bed. He approached slowly and gulped audibly once he got close enough to Shěn Li’s side. Sickened by this, Shěn Lí opened her eyes and her murderous gaze reflected the moonlight.
Wáng Bǎo backed away unconsciously because he was so startled. Once he came to his senses, he whispered fiercely, “Don’t cry out little beauty!” He was relieved when Shěn Lí remained quiet. “You guys sleep in separate rooms?” Understanding dawned on him. “I. . . I am the eldest son of the village chief and I’m many times better than that fisherman guy. So why don’t you come with me tonight little beauty?”
“How can you compare yourself with him?” Shěn Lí sat up as she spoke, her voice light and delicate. “That’s like comparing the sky to mud.”
Wáng Bǎo stared at Shěn Lí in stunned silence. He listened as she said, “This king has lived for a thousand years, but this is my first time experience being molested this way. It’s a pity you’re so unsightly that this king has no heart to pity you.”
“What thousand years?” Wáng Bǎo was confused.
Shěn Lí was too lazy to explain. She stood up, waved her hand and slapped him. She wasn’t fully recovered, so her strength wasn’t at one hundred percent, but it was still enough. Between being hit by Xíng Zhǐ earlier in the day, and now Shěn Lí’s slap, Wáng Bǎo’s swollen face was at its limit. He let out a wail and stepped back, but how could Shěn Lí let him go that easily? She reached over, intending to grab him, but missed her mark and grabbed his waistband instead. Wáng Bǎo twirled around twice before losing his pants around his ankles and exposing his legs.
It wasn’t what Shěn Lí intended, but Wáng Bǎo exclaimed, “Why is beauty so impatient?!”
Shěn Lí’s lips twitched. Her vision suddenly turned dark as a cool palm covered her eyes. The man behind her said, “Indecent, don’t look.”
Shěn Lí relaxed and let herself fall back into the body behind her. Once Xíng Zhǐ lowered his hand, Shěn Lí could tell the intruder left in a panic because of the wide-open door. She looked back at Xíng Zhǐ. “I could have handled that myself. There was no need for you to intervene.”
Xíng Zhǐ smiled. “I know. But you can choose not to deal with it.”
Because he would help her.
Shěn Lí lowered her head and remained silent. In fact. . . her body had already made that decision for her.
The next day, Xíng Zhǐ got up early as usual and went fishing while Shěn Lí slept in. She woke up naturally, and upon opening her eyes, immediately felt something was wrong. She couldn’t smell, couldn’t see, couldn’t hear. She tried to open her mouth to speak, but her throat was so constricted she knew she wouldn’t be able to make a sound. Taste was questionable because she had no way to test it.
It felt like she had fallen into an empty abyss. Maybe she was dead; she wasn’t sure.
Shěn Lí got a grip on her emotions and allowed herself to just float in the darkness. Thinking she would be fine once the day was over kept the panic at bay. But she had no way to track time, so in the end, she had no idea how long she waited. She didn’t know how Xíng Zhǐ would react when he saw her condition.
It felt like she was the only person in the world, wandering around a nothingness she couldn’t escape.
Fear bloomed in her heart. What would she do if she never got better? What if she was like this for the rest of her life? There were still things she wanted to do, to say. She was unwilling! How could she spend the rest of her days like this?
She ran nonstop, trying to escape, but in the endless darkness, she wasn’t sure if she was even moving. Was she running? She couldn’t see what direction she was going in; she couldn’t see the roads she was on; she couldn’t even see her own body. Was she even alive?
Time was both slow and fast. She couldn’t tell how long she was in the dark when a soft voice called out to her. “Shěn Lí, don’t be afraid. I’m here. Don’t be afraid.” The speaker suppressed his emotions, but Shěn Lí could still clearly hear the distress. There was such an overpowering amount of distress, it felt like she would be overwhelmed by it.
She could smell the outside world on the tip of her nose, the fishy smell of the sea coming off his body, and the faint fragrance unique to Xíng Zhǐ, and she was reassured.
Gradually, the feeling in her limbs returned and she could feel Xíng Zhǐ hugging her. It was a tight hug, filled with the desire to protect and the need for reliance. It took a lot of effort, but she managed to hug him and raise her arms to stroke his back to comfort him.
“Have you been here the whole time?” Her voice came out hoarse, as if she was too tired to say another word.
The hug got tighter and Shěn Lí felt like her bones were being squeezed to death. But it was a welcome pain that made her feel comforted and alive.
“I’ve always been here.” He swore. “I will always be here.”
Shěn Lí smiled. “Then next time I won’t be so afraid.”
Xíng Zhǐ choked up and couldn’t say anything for a moment.
https://www.patreon.com/justreads