After His Demise, the Demon Lord's Doted Canary Finally Sees the Light - Chapter 83

Jiufang Cangzewas reminded of Sheng Yan , who was always so carefree, running around the streets, making friends with all sorts of dubious characters.

He had already led the second son of the Lan family astray, so naturally, the eldest son had to shoulder the burden.

Qiu Fuxue’s voice suddenly sounded in his ear. “Perhaps it’s just that the timing of their meeting isn’t right.”

“What?” The perplexing statement made both Jing An  and Jiufang Cangze freeze.

Qiu Fuxue sighed. “Princess, if you put aside all social obligations, not talking about benefits but only about feelings, what do you think of Mr. Lan?”

Jing An tilted her head as if thinking seriously. “If that were the case, he would be a good husband.”

At the very least, he was very considerate when it came to caring for people.

“I think so too,” Qiu Fuxue said with a smile, his gaze sweeping over the person beside him.

When he was imprisoned in the Azure Sea Palace, Jiufang Cangze’s affection for him was not fake. If it weren’t for the responsibilities he bore, he might have even considered settling for that life forever.

A beautiful relationship is only lacking the right opportunity to blossom.

His sleeve was tugged. Qiu Fuxue ignored it and took out a stack of talismans to give to Jing An.

“Princess, Mr. Lan is injured. We won’t be able to leave for a while. It’s very dangerous outside, so please stay in the inn and don’t wander around.”

Back in the room, Jiufang Cangze was still holding onto his sleeve, refusing to let go, wrinkling his newly changed clothes.

Qiu Fuxue couldn’t take it anymore and rescued his sleeve.

“A-Xue, what did you mean by that?” The other man tried his best to open his narrow, crimson eyes as wide as possible, his gaze filled with anticipation.

“It meant nothing,” Qiu Fuxue scolded him fiercely, hurrying him to put out the lights and rest.

Jiufang Cangze didn’t press the matter. He knew that A-Xue was innocent yet bold when it came to feelings. When he was proactive, he often caught people off guard, but when he didn’t want to express his emotions, no matter how much you asked, you wouldn’t hear a single nice word.

And if you angered him, he would even hit you.

Before bed, Jiufang Cangze started a new round of mischief.

He stripped his own bed clean and hugged his blanket, ready to sleep on the floor next to Qiu Fuxue’s bed.

Qiu Fuxue was both helpless and amused. “You have a bed, why are you sleeping on the floor?”

He said, half-jokingly, “I want to be closer to my beloved.”

Qiu Fuxue’s normally cool cheeks suddenly felt hot. He ignored him, turned over, and lay facing the wall.

Jiufang Cangze’s only way of healing was to sleep. He closed his eyes, and his consciousness quickly became heavy.

Just as he was about to fall asleep, he suddenly heard a voice from above him. “Does your wound… still hurt?”

He jolted awake. He pulled back his sleeve to look and saw that, thanks to the pill, the scrapes had already healed.

“It hurts.” But he wanted more attention. “A-Xue, blow on it for me.”

As soon as he said that, he heard the sound of a blanket being pulled back and someone getting out of bed.

Jiufang Cangze was inexplicably nervous, thinking he was about to get a beating. A-Xue had been a little nice tonight, and he had pushed his luck too much.

A pale foot stepped onto the bed. Qiu Fuxue, wearing his inner robe, sat down beside him.

The expected slap never came. Instead, Jiufang Cangze felt a cool hand lift his arm. Then, after his sleeve was pulled back, a gentle breeze was felt.

Qiu Fuxue blew on it twice, then looked up and asked, “Does it still hurt?”

Jiufang Cangze sat up stiffly. In the darkness, he saw a pair of clear peach blossom eyes looking at him.

“It doesn’t hurt anymore,” he said softly, and rested his forehead against Qiu Fuxue’s, without making any other inappropriate moves.

However, Qiu Fuxue suddenly reached out and hugged him, resting his head against his chest and feeling his nervous heartbeat.

He closed his eyes. “If it doesn’t hurt anymore, then go to sleep.”

In the silent night, only an occasional insect chirped.

The next morning, they went to the local gold-panning river.

Qiu Fuxue stopped at a distance. The riverbank was so muddy that there was no way he would go down.

Jiufang Cangze knew of his aversion to mess. He volunteered, took off his shoes and socks, and rolled up his sleeves. He pretended to be a new gold panner, mingling with the others.

Qiu Fuxue stood on the bank and watched him laugh and joke with the others, his hands in the mud for a long time. He only pulled out a plain, unremarkable stone.

This guy, who used to maintain the dignity of a high-ranking official, could now blend in with the common people and chat endlessly. Qiu Fuxue looked down at his own clean outfit, which was not stained with a single speck of mud, and felt that he was a step further away from the mortal world.

He wished he could be so popular one day, too.

While lost in his thoughts, he suddenly heard that familiar voice call out to him.

“A-Xue—! Catch!”

A small stone flew over. He cupped his hands and caught it firmly.

The pattern on the stone was beautiful. On this riverbank, where small stones were everywhere, it wasn’t a rare item, but at this moment, it had been given meaning by someone.

He looked up and saw that brilliant smile waving at him. Qiu Fuxue’s lips curved, and he laughed. “You look like an idiot.”

After he had gathered enough information, Jiufang Cangze declined a new friend’s invitation to go drinking together and walked back to the bank through the muddy water.

He was about to reach for his shoes and socks when a long, pale hand stopped him.

“Wait, wipe them clean.”

Qiu Fuxue took out a handkerchief and patiently wiped the mud from each of his fingers.

Jiufang Cangze obediently let him, lowering his head to look at that perfect face.

At that moment, Qiu Fuxue suddenly felt the string of red beads on his wrist get very hot. “…Your heart blood is heating up.”

Jiufang Cangze tilted his head and feigned innocence. “It’s all because of you.”

The two found a restaurant by the side of the road and sat down. Jiufang Cangze ordered a few of Qiu Fuxue’s favorite dishes and then told him the information he had gathered.

“This river appeared a hundred years ago. The mud is mixed with a small amount of gold dust, and the riverbed has severe faults. Many people drown here every year.”

“‘Men die for money, just as birds die for food.’ It’s worth so many people coming in droves. There must be a rumor that there’s a gold brick at the bottom of the river, right?” Qiu Fuxue took a sip of tea and shared his guess.

“A-Xue is so smart!” Jiufang Cangze praised him from the bottom of his heart. “I don’t know who started the rumor, but the skeleton’s bone cracks are full of gold dust, so it must be related to him.”

“A hundred years ago…” Qiu Fuxue’s brow furrowed in thought. “I remember you said that the Moon Shadow Wall (月影壁) started acting strangely only in the past few years.”

“The strangeness on my end started in the past few years,” Jiufang Cangze corrected him. “I don’t know why the crimson moon restricted my power, but I have a subconscious feeling that the Nine Fiends have been escaping for a long time. The Merman isn’t the first one.”

The Moon Shadow Wall was far more complicated than he had imagined. Before he left the immortal realm, the Primordial God (太初上神) hadn’t given him too many details. Qiu Fuxue rubbed his throbbing temples. Just then, the waiter brought the dishes to the table, interrupting his thoughts.

All his favorite dishes were in front of him.

Jiufang Cangze diligently put food into his bowl.

Qiu Fuxue picked up his chopsticks, feeling content. “You always remember what I love to eat.”

But before Jiufang Cangze could get too smug, he added, “It would be even better if you weren’t spending my money.”