After My Thoughts Were Read, My Master Led Me to Change My Fate - Chapter 83

After leaving the Sword Forging Pool, Ran Fanyin returned directly to Rong Ku Pavilion. She washed away the filth on her body, rested briefly, and then hurried non-stop to the Sect Leader’s Main Hall.

Hong Shengcen was currently discussing sect affairs with several other core elders of the sect. Since their last meeting, Hong Shengcen’s already aged face had grown thinner, his cheekbones showing an abnormal grayish-blue tint, and his lips were dark. Anyone with an discerning eye could tell he had been afflicted by a powerful poison.

Hong Shengcen saw Ran Fanyin and said, “You have returned. Come sit here.”

Hong Shengcen finished speaking concisely with the elders, then dismissed them. As soon as the main hall doors closed, Hong Shengcen coughed low, as if he had been suppressing it for a long time. He covered his mouth with the back of his hand, his body trembling with each cough.

Ran Fanyin watched, feeling very uneasy in her heart.

Hong Shengcen was her Shizun (Master/Teacher), and even more like her father. She had also been by Hong Shengcen’s side since childhood. Hong Shengcen personally taught her how to write and practice the sword. His genuine care and earnest instruction had echoed in her ears for all these years.

Like Cheng Yunhuan and Jiang Yue, Hong Shengcen was her fellow disciple, and also family. Now, he was afflicted by a potent蛊 gu poison. Though it might not immediately endanger his life, he might, three months later, pass away like any other mortal. To her, her Shizun, who was omnipotent and god-like, now showed such a sickly appearance. As his disciple, how could Ran Fanyin feel good about witnessing it?

“Shizun, Senior Brother Jiang Yue… has gone down the mountain,” Ran Fanyin felt a dryness in her throat as she spoke these words.

“Where to?”

“…The Eastern Sea.”

Hong Shengcen nodded as if he had expected it: “I know. He is still uneasy. Jiang Yue is normally gentle, polite, and extremely obedient, but when it comes to something important in his heart, he becomes incredibly stubborn.”

“Shizun, how is your health exactly?” Ran Fanyin couldn’t help but ask.

“Rest assured, I won’t die yet. Bei Fa currently has many entanglements. I was sitting here in the Sect Leader’s Main Hall and was struck by someone’s dark hand. The danger faced by the disciples outside can be imagined. Even if I were to die, how could I abandon Bei Fa in its current state?”

Ran Fanyin felt as though something was lodged in her chest, suffocating her.

“But my body is indeed much weaker. Every day, I still need to spend a period of time fighting the gu poison. Cheng Yunhuan is absent, and the sect affairs cannot be handled thoroughly. Are you willing to help your Master share the burden?”

Ran Fanyin quickly agreed: “Of course.”

Hong Shengcen smiled faintly: “You are a good child. I knew you would agree. I have just instructed them. Part of Bei Fa’s authority will be transferred to you from now on. You might not have much leisure time in the future.”

“Shizun overstates the matter. This disciple will definitely do my best.”

“…Your Master is not blind. Your face is pale, your qi and blood are depleted. You should be resting and recuperating, but with these sudden changes… Forget it, it’s useless to talk about this. You must still take care of your body. I will instruct them to send the documents directly to Rong Ku Pavilion from now on, saving you the trouble of constantly running to the Main Hall.”

“Yes.”

Hong Shengcen gave Ran Fanyin a few more instructions. His expression gradually became weary, and he dismissed Ran Fanyin, closing his eyes to meditate on his own.

Ran Fanyin left the Sect Leader’s Main Hall and walked along the path, feeling like her temples were about to explode. Her eyes were dry, burning, and severely aching. She felt a wave of dizziness and suddenly bent over, spitting out a mouthful of clotted blood.

The bright red blood splattered on the pure white snow, extremely dazzling.

She was not unaware of her body’s condition. She understood it better than anyone else. The residual poison from the molten lava would not kill her, but it constantly tormented her already exhausted and overstretched mind. It exploited her body’s weakness. This was an ailment accumulated over a long period. It could not be cured in a day, nor healed with a single elixir.

A light snow began to fall. She hadn’t brought an umbrella when she came out, and tiny snowflakes landed in Ran Fanyin’s dark hair. She looked up ahead.

She had originally intended to return to Rong Ku Pavilion, but a sudden impulse changed her mind, and she turned to walk toward Hong Fei Pavilion.

She had been walking for quite some time, and a lot of snow had settled on her shoulders and in her hair. When she arrived at Hong Fei Pavilion, a nearby disciple saw Ran Fanyin, quickly greeted her as “Venerable One,” and offered his own umbrella to Ran Fanyin.

Ran Fanyin did not take it, her expression overly indifferent. She proceeded to the disciples’ sleeping quarters.

Arriving in front of Ning Songwu’s room, Ran Fanyin was about to raise her hand to push the door open, but her hand stopped halfway, rigidly frozen there.

After a long pause, Ran Fanyin retracted the hand she had reached out. Her gaze held a trace of loneliness as she stared blankly at the closed wooden door for a very long time. The cold outside was intense. Ran Fanyin’s sensitive ears were stained bright red by the cold air, and a fresh layer of snow settled on her fur robes.

After a long time, as the sky was about to turn dark, she turned around and quietly departed without saying a word or sighing.

She had stood in front of that door for so long, yet she hadn’t even touched it once.

The light footprints Ran Fanyin had left behind quickly became covered by the heavy snow. The area outside the sleeping quarters was unchanged from before she arrived, as if the peerless woman in white robes had never been there at all.

Everything returned to tranquility.

The days of recovering from her injuries passed quickly. Every day, she opened her eyes to daylight, ate her meal and medicine, and closed her eyes to darkness. She didn’t need to get up early for classes or stay up late practicing the sword.

She was too idle, so idle it made her restless.

Ning Songwu spent large chunks of time every day spacing out, sometimes staring blankly at the ceiling above the bed, sometimes holding a medicine bowl in her hand and staring blankly. After a long time of zoning out, she suddenly couldn’t recall what she had been thinking about.

Perhaps she had slept too long and her brain had become dull.

Cen Ran had duties to attend to and couldn’t stay by her bedside all day. Ning Songwu cocked her head and saw He Lan Mianmian hunched over the desk, writing something. After her health improved significantly, He Lan Mianmian had moved back in.

Ning Songwu suddenly spoke: “He Lan Mianmian.”

He Lan Mianmian immediately looked up and smiled faintly: “What is it, Ning Songwu? Are you thirsty?”

“Not thirsty.” Ning Songwu paused, then asked: “What time is it now?”

“It’s Youshi (5-7 PM); the sky is already dark.”

“Oh…” Ning Songwu fell silent again. After a long while, she spoke again: “How many days has it been since… that day?”

He Lan Mianmian didn’t understand and asked in confusion: “Which day?”

“…The day Shifu returned.”

He Lan Mianmian said “Oh,” counted carefully, and said: “Counting today, it’s been nine days.”

“Nine days… mhm… Is Shifu… busy with something?”

“You still remember the Venerable One. I thought you didn’t care that the Venerable One hasn’t come to see you, living so leisurely every day.” He Lan Mianmian chuckled softly: “The Venerable One has been in Rong Ku Pavilion all this time. She is very busy. I don’t know what she’s busy with.”

“Shifu… busy…” Ning Songwu murmured softly, her eyes unfocused.

He Lan Mianmian continued: “Yes, Sister Cen Ran came the day before yesterday and told me about it. The Venerable One always gets up early and sleeps late. There are many affairs in Rong Ku Pavilion. When she gets a little free time, the Venerable One rushes over to the Sword Forging Pool without resting.”

“…” Ning Songwu listened in deep silence.

“Sister Cen Ran also said that the Venerable One has been coughing these past few days, and her complexion is worsening. A few days ago, Sister Cen Ran personally saw the Venerable One cough up blood…”

“What? Blood?” Ning Songwu seemed startled. She bolted upright, her face aghast.

“Yes. To come see you, the Venerable One forced a seven-day journey into only three days, not even riding a horse, flying the entire way with qinggong. Before she could rest properly, Venerable Jiang Yue left the mountain, and a pile of affairs was shifted to Rong Ku Pavilion. Alas, you unfilial disciple, you must have almost forgotten the Venerable One.”

A buzzing sound filled Ning Songwu’s mind. She paid no attention to what He Lan Mianmian was saying. Shifu didn’t just have that injury on her hand; she also had severe internal injuries! Shifu can’t rest properly all day and even coughed up blood, yet I’ve been sleeping peacefully in bed?!

Ning Songwu threw off the quilt and leaped to the ground, feeling an intense jolt of pain in her body. But she ignored it. She grabbed a fox fur coat, threw it on, and stumbled straight out.

He Lan Mianmian anxiously tried to stop her but failed. He stamped his foot in worry: “Hey! What crazy thing are you doing? It’s dark! Where are you going in that condition?”

Ning Songwu couldn’t hear He Lan Mianmian’s words. All she wanted at this moment was to see her Shifu—to see her immediately. She didn’t want to avoid her Shifu anymore. She desired Shifu’s proximity more than anyone!

Ning Songwu ran quickly, and having injuries, she fell several times in the snow. Her wounds reopened, and blood soaked through the gauze, but she paid it no mind.

Ning Songwu’s body was covered in soft snow stains. There was also snow on her face and hair. It melted from her body heat and slid down into her collar, making her shiver constantly. She felt like her back was killing her. The sweat that seeped out from her exertion soaked into the split wounds, making her feel as though she wanted to tear her entire back out.

She ran dizzily, almost losing consciousness, relying only on her body’s memory of the Bei Fa route to run all the way to Rong Ku Pavilion.

The attendant keeping watch at Rong Ku Pavilion saw the swaying, small figure. His sleepiness vanished instantly, and he rushed up to greet her—

Ning Songwu gripped the attendant’s arm, her forehead covered in sweat. She murmured: “Shifu… Shifu…”

“The Venerable One is inside. She is not asleep yet. I will take you to see the Venerable One right away.” The attendant did not dare to relax, hastily supporting Ning Songwu toward Ran Fanyin’s sleeping quarters.

It was quite late in the night. At this time, Ran Fanyin was naturally bent over her desk, handling sect affairs. The candlelight was dim, making her vision of the paper a little blurry. She set down her brush and picked up the teacup beside her to take a sip of tea.

There was a commotion outside the door, and suddenly the door was pushed open. A familiar small figure stumbled in, nearly tripping over the high threshold.

Ran Fanyin instinctively dropped the tea she was holding. The tea splashed out and dampened her hand, but she only cared about rushing forward in one stride, steadying Ning Songwu firmly in her arms.

Ning Songwu’s eyes were red like a little rabbit’s. Her hands tightly clutched the fabric around Ran Fanyin’s waist. She was gasping for air, clearly not yet recovered from her intense run.

Ran Fanyin very naturally stroked her back to soothe her, softening her voice: “Why are you here? Have your injuries healed? Are you no longer angry with me?”

Ning Songwu was too busy catching her breath to answer Ran Fanyin. Instead, she fiercely rubbed her head into Ran Fanyin’s shoulder, soaking it with her sweat.

Ran Fanyin felt Ning Songwu’s back was slightly sticky to the touch. Lifting her hand, she saw that her palm was covered in blood that had seeped through, and she frowned: “Your wound has reopened. Why didn’t you tell me? Come here, I’ll treat it first.”

Ran Fanyin tried to let go of Ning Songwu to get medicine and gauze, but Ning Songwu felt Ran Fanyin trying to leave. She immediately raised her arms, clamped them around Ran Fanyin’s neck, and pulled Ran Fanyin’s face close to her own.

She didn’t want to say anything. She didn’t want to say anything at all.

This cool face, like that of a celestial being, was right in front of her. Right in front of her. Only two inches from her nose.

She wanted to kiss her.

Because she liked her. She liked her intensely, so she wanted to kiss her.

If she wanted to, why shouldn’t she?

Ning Songwu stood on her tiptoes and tremblingly kissed Ran Fanyin’s forehead.

Ran Fanyin maintained her half-bent posture, which accommodated Ning Songwu’s height. She was utterly stunned, unable to react for a moment.

Ning Songwu grew more frantic, cupping Ran Fanyin’s flawless face and kissing it like raindrops falling. Her eyebrows, her eyes, her nose bridge, her cheeks.

Finally, she didn’t even know where she was kissing. She only knew she was endlessly getting closer to Ran Fanyin. She liked Shifu. She liked Shifu. She liked her immensely.

Ning Songwu suddenly felt her lips meet a very soft area. The sensation of that touch was extremely wonderful, like holding the first snow of winter in her mouth, cool and subtly sweet.

Ran Fanyin snapped out of her daze. She immediately pulled away the misbehaving Ning Songwu, her face full of astonishment, her finger brushing against her oddly touched lips.

Ning Songwu, still panting, stared intently at her.