Near the window, there was a set of table and chairs, also carved from wood. On the table sat a “vase” made of stone, with a lonely piece of dogtail grass inside, looking particularly pitiful. Gu Baiying stood in front of the table, flipping through something in his hands.
Zanxing approached and asked, “What’s that?”
There were probably dozens of white papers, densely filled with writing. Upon closer inspection, they were all poems and essays, with exceptionally beautiful handwriting, both elegant and romantic, immediately catching the eye. Zanxing picked up one to read aloud, “A beauty from the southern land, with a radiant lotus-like grace. Though her bright teeth never showed, her fragrant heart remained…”
She picked up another, “Purple vines hung from the cloud tree, flowers flourishing in the spring sun. Hidden among dense leaves, a sweet breeze lingered with the beauty.”
Zanxing picked up another, “Skin as fair as a true immortal, accompanying the frost. Washed clean of leaden hues. A plain face without a trace of makeup…”
Zanxing: “…”
Gu Baiying snatched the papers from her hand impatiently, “Stop reading, they’re all about ‘beauty’.”
“How beautiful must this beauty have been? So many had been written,” Zanxing looked at the thick stack in Gu Baiying’s hand, unable to help feeling amazed, “There must be a hundred of them, right?”
Gu Baiying put down the poems disdainfully, “Disgusting.”
Although Zanxing felt a twinge of jealousy, she reasoned that the person inside might not necessarily be a pervert. She opened the window and looked out at the giant tree outside, saying to Gu Baiying, “I just checked inside the cottage. There are two rooms, two beds, and on the table outside, there are two bowls and two cups. It seems like two people live here, right? Perhaps it’s a couple of immortal lovers hiding here. The husband writes poems praising the beauty of his wife. A kind of marital amusement, don’t you think so?”
“Amusement?” Gu Baiying raised an eyebrow slightly. “Can’t even leave and you still have the heart to indulge in poetry here, that’s what’s amusing.”
Zanxing fell silent. Honestly, she also felt that the most important thing at the moment was to find a way out. However, heading towards the mountain direction was blocked by a barrier, and they had already explored the route back, which was just wilderness with no end in sight. They couldn’t discern where the exit might be.
Suddenly, Mimi emerged from somewhere sneakily, her mouth stuffed with something. Zanxing pinched her nose, causing Mimi to retract her head and spit out whatever was in her mouth.
It turned out to be two muddy objects, covered in Mimi’s saliva.
After wiping off the saliva with a handkerchief, Zanxing inspected the objects in her hand. They were two clay figurines.
They could be considered figurines, as they were extremely ugly ones at first glance, resembling two monkeys. One of the figurines had a small flower carved on its head, looking like it was wearing a ‘dress’ and should be a ‘female’. The other figurine wore ordinary clothes, likely representing a ‘male’.
Zanxing didn’t know where Mimi dug up these things from. She examined the figurines in her hand and gestured for Gu Baiying to look, “It seems my guess was correct. The ones living here should be a man and a woman, and they seem to be lovers.”
Gu Baiying glanced at the clay figurines in her hand, “Are you sure these are human?”
“Of course,” Zanxing glanced into the distance. “But we haven’t seen anyone else here. Should we go out and look for them?”
“No need,” Gu Baiying pondered for a moment. “There’s no dust in this cottage, it looks clean. It’s unlikely that it has been left uninhabited for a long time.” He ran his fingertip across the table, finding it spotless without a speck of dust, and said, “Let’s just wait for them here.”
That suited Zanxing just fine. After all, she was tired from the long journey.
The two of them sat down in the cottage.
The cottage had a cozy atmosphere, with bowls, chopsticks, and cups on the table. However, Zanxing didn’t find any food such as firewood or rice inside. There was a square stone water tank in the backyard of the thatched cottage, filled with clear water and a gourd ladle floating on top. Zanxing scooped up some water with the ladle and tasted it. It was sweet and refreshing, with a hint of the fragrance of grass and wood.
Looking at Gu Baiying, he had already begun to sit in front of the square wooden bed in the room, starting to practice cultivation.
Zanxing noticed the scars on his arm. The bloodstains had dried, and she wanted to remind him to bandage it. However, she hesitated, afraid of disturbing him. She then reluctantly gave up. Mimi seemed to love this paradise, lying in the center of the courtyard, basking in the sun with all limbs sprawled out, forming a 大 shape. Zanxing sat down on the doorstep, holding the two clay figurines in her hands, feeling somewhat melancholic.
The owner of this cottage was also a mystery. Zanxing had opened the secret realm in the abyss of the tiger’s den with the Qing’e Flower-Picking Staff technique and arrived here, but she wasn’t sure if it was by chance or someone’s deliberate plan. If it was just by chance, did she change the plot? If it was deliberate, why specifically the Qing’e Flower-Picking Staff technique? Was there a connection between this place and the Qing’e Lady?
As for the owner of the thatched cottage, she didn’t know how long they had been living here. Typically, those who lived in secret realms were extraordinary individuals beyond the mortal world. If even they couldn’t leave, what would happen to her and Gu Baiying?
And what about Tian Fangfang and the others? She didn’t know their current situation…
The sun gradually sank towards the west, casting golden light over the winding river. The last ray of sunset disappeared into the darkness, and the tranquil paradise welcomed the night.
The owner of the thatched cottage still hadn’t returned.
The courtyard began to cool down as the sun set. Mimi stood up, shook her fur, and then gently leaped to Zanxing’s side, rubbing against her before slowly walking back into the cottage.
Zanxing rubbed her sore waist and stood up, returning to the cottage.
There was still an oil lamp on the stone table, probably made from crushed grass stems with a pathetic wick floating on top. Zanxing lit it with a match, and a warm orange glow filled the windows of the thatched cottage.
In the inner room, Gu Baiying, who had been practicing, opened his eyes.
Zanxing placed a cup filled with water in front of him and sat down on the stool beside him. “Martial Uncle, they still haven’t come back.”
He looked up. “Are you worried?”
“Not really.”
“Then why do you look so listless?”
Zanxing rubbed her grumbling stomach, picked up Mimi, who was trying to sneak into the bag for some pills, and set her aside. “I’m hungry.”
Gu Baiying gave her a disdainful look. “How can you be hungry again?”
“What do you mean, ‘again’?” Zanxing reasoned with him. “Since we entered the secret realm from Li’er Country until now, the last meal I had was the grilled fish Senior Brother Tian gave me. It’s been who knows how long since then, at least a day. I haven’t eaten anything all day, shouldn’t I be hungry?”
Gu Baiying sneered. “You’re a cultivator.”
“I lived as an ordinary mortal for seventeen years. It’s been less than a year since I officially started cultivating on Gufeng Mountain. Martial Uncle, don’t be too strict with me.”