Reborn As The Short-Lived White Moonlight of the Tragic, Powerful Male Lead - Chapter 20

Chapter 20

Gu Yunqi Won’t Leave: “I’m Here, Sleep Now, Immortal Lord”

Gu Yunqi wasn’t surprised that Xie Lanting would propose a divorce, but he was surprised by the time frame: one year.

“Of course, we can maintain a friendly relationship after the divorce.”

As Xie Lanting spoke, he produced another storage ring. “Take this.”

Gu Yunqi’s divine sense swept inside and was momentarily dazzled by the contents. Wealth, spiritual treasures—it had everything. He quickly set it down. “I cannot accept this.”

“I would have agreed to the divorce even without these,” Gu Yunqi said. “And there’s no need to use a year to repay a debt of gratitude; Cangyue is already enough.”

“We both have a share of our ‘selling price,’ of course.”

After setting aside the portion of the betrothal gifts and dowry for Liu Qifeng, Xie Lanting had split the remainder in half, leaving one half for Gu Yunqi.

Xie Lanting pushed the storage ring toward him. “They treated us like chess pieces; I have to make them pay a heavy price. Cangyue is a birthday gift, and the Frost-White Branch was to save my life. I owe you a favor. Since you don’t ask for anything in return, I can’t just walk away.”

These items were things Xie Lanting had taken from the Sword Sect. He could have kept them all for himself, yet he was not only giving them away but insisting they were Gu Yunqi’s rightful due, refusing to let it be counted as a personal favor.

Many of these items, even if he couldn’t use them himself, would be incredibly useful for bribing or winning people over. Xie Lanting gave them away without the slightest hesitation.

To Gu Yunqi, Xie Lanting was a rare light in the dark years of his life.

How ironic that if Gu Bu hadn’t forced this marriage, he never would have met Xie Lanting.

It was true that he had saved the Immortal Lord’s life, but the Frost-White Branch wasn’t some heirloom of his parents—it was something he had found recently. To hide his identity, he couldn’t reveal that truth for now.

What else can I do for the Immortal Lord?

Seeing that Gu Yunqi still wouldn’t take the ring, Xie Lanting made a small joke: “Still won’t take it? Are you waiting for me to put it on you?”

The red strings were still tied around their wrists. Unfortunately, the cultivation world wasn’t modern society; there was no tradition of wearing rings for marriage. Gu Yunqi didn’t catch the joke, but he understood that Xie Lanting was determined to stay.

Gu Yunqi finally accepted the storage ring. He said, “Fine. One year. I will also do my best to find a way to heal your old injuries and restore your cultivation.”

Seeing him finally agree, Xie Lanting was satisfied. He returned the Floating Cloud jade hairpin as well. “Then I wish us a pleasant year together. Where am I sleeping tonight?”

Gu Yunqi was puzzled. “Didn’t we agree on the rental in Nanlin City…”

“I didn’t actually agree to that right away.” Xie Lanting looked around the room, seemingly thinking seriously about where to nest, before adding, “Since I said I’d stay with you, I’m definitely living with you. The low couch looks good; I’ll take that.”

Gu Yunqi’s hand jerked. Staying in the same room!?

He recalled carefully. When he mentioned the rental, Xie Lanting indeed hadn’t said he would stay there. He had told the boy, “You go ahead; I’ll talk to him.”

Gu Yunqi had interpreted it as the Immortal Lord meaning he would leave after the talk! Who would have thought Xie Lanting simply wasn’t leaving!

Xie Lanting had already pulled out his communication jade to tell Tong’er about staying at the Gu residence. Tong’er asked in shock, “What about me!?”

“The house is too small for three. Wait a couple of days; I’ll build another small cabin and bring you over.”

After soothing the boy, Xie Lanting looked up to see Gu Yunqi picking up the bedding from the bed and moving it to the low couch, replacing it with fresh bedding on the bed.

Gu Yunqi’s movements were very efficient. “I usually meditate instead of sleeping, so I don’t really use the bed. You rest on the bed, Immortal Lord. I’ll use the couch.”

In the cultivation world, many people meditated instead of sleeping, but Xie Lanting was a firm believer in actual sleep. Unless something was happening, he was the type to sleep on time every day. Thus, Xie Lanting got the bed, and Gu Yunqi went to the couch.

Living under the same roof made certain things easier. Xie Lanting was secretly plotting how to strip away Gu Yunqi’s final disguise. After all, only when they were completely honest could Gu Yunqi truly trust him with useful tasks and consider the favor repaid.

There were inconveniences too. For instance, the house was tiny and didn’t even have a screen. When Xie Lanting bathed and changed, Gu Yunqi consciously stepped outside.

Standing by the door, the rustling of clothes and the sound of water couldn’t be hidden at all. Gu Yunqi listened for a moment before walking away from the door with a blank expression, heading into the yard to pull weeds and calm his mind.

Gu Yunqi pulled weeds with extreme focus, as if they weren’t weeds but rare spiritual plants. Even though he could have cleared a whole patch at once, he insisted on pulling them one by one, using the repetitive, boring action to calm his inexplicably agitated heart.

After pulling about a dozen, Shiwu and Chuqi appeared. They had just returned from outside. Seeing Gu Yunqi seriously weeding, they were stunned and looked down to observe. To them, these were just plain, non-threatening weeds.

What is the Young Lord doing?

Gu Yunqi finally had serious business to distract him. He used secret sound transmission: “Report.”

Shiwu and Chuqi sensed someone in the house and reported back via transmission: “The wedding banquet is over. The people from Cangxing Mountain are expected to stay for three days. Their young disciple went straight to the largest brothel in Nanlin and called for the new top courtesan. If she serves him well, he’ll likely stay at Baixiang House for the next few days.”

Gu Yunqi stood up. The sword Xie Lanting gave him was still hanging at his waist. He ran his hand over the hilt and asked the two, “Does this sword look good?”

Shiwu and Chuqi nodded. Gu Yunqi said, “The Immortal Lord gave it to me.”

Shiwu and Chuqi: “…Oh.”

“A good sword must be blooded.” Gu Yunqi couldn’t put Cangyue down, his tone airy despite the terrifying words. “Pick a good spot in the Purple Bamboo Sea. I will personally send him on his way.”

The young disciple of Cangxing Mountain was the one who had brazenly insulted the Immortal Lord at the banquet. Even without that, his death had already been decided.

But for him to cause such a scene… Gu Yunqi pressed his hand on the hilt, his expression unreadable.

Shiwu looked at the house and switched to hand signals: Is the Young Madam inside? Won’t that make things inconvenient in the future?

He switched to hand signals because words weren’t enough; he added an ambiguous gesture at the end. Gu Yunqi: “…Put your fingers away. I managed to hide from Gu Bu’s constant surveillance; this won’t be a problem. Besides, the Immortal Lord likes to sleep at night. I’ll just use a bit of harmless sleep-inducing incense when the time comes.”

Gu Yunqi thought for a moment. “Use some tonight. Chuqi, you take the Immortal Lord’s pulse then. See if his poison is truly gone, and check his old injuries.”

Chuqi was the most skilled medic among the guards. He nodded.

Gu Yunqi slowly stroked the blade, murmuring as if in a daze, “Cangxing Mountain… is just the beginning.”

The sound of water inside stopped. The two guards watched as their cold, murderous Young Lord instantly changed his aura. With a gentle expression, he drifted to the door and knocked softly. “Is the Immortal Lord finished? Leave the cleaning to me.”

Chuqi and Shiwu looked at each other with complex expressions. “Do you think the Young Lord has been raised a bit… distorted by us?”

Shiwu transmitted: “I think I’m pretty normal.”

Chuqi reflected seriously. “I’m also pretty normal.”

Then it must be the fault of the other guards. Definitely!

…

Late at night, Xie Lanting lay down while Gu Yunqi meditated. Without a screen, they used an empty display shelf as a barrier between them. Though it was empty and one could see everything by simply opening their eyes, it provided a bit of psychological comfort.

The lamp was extinguished, and the room went silent.

It was quiet inside, but not outside. There had been some muffled thunder during the day, but it grew heavier at night. Xie Lanting lay there, the thunder making him restless and unable to sleep. It was just irritability at first, until a bolt of lightning tore through the sky and a torrential downpour began—

Xie Lanting’s hand gave an uncontrollable jerk.

Night, lightning, heavy rain.

On their own, or even in pairs, Xie Lanting wouldn’t react. but when all three combined, it was a disaster for him.

Xie Lanting went pale, reaching his hand out from under the covers. He saw his hand shaking incessantly, beyond his control.

If “ghosts” brought him fear, then thunderous nights were different. It wasn’t a fear that could be easily summarized in words. His mind was clear, yet his heart felt squeezed tight. It wasn’t like the pain of his old injuries, yet it was wretched—he struggled to breathe, feeling as though he were being drowned alive by the air.

He would rather face a ghost story than be alone in a thunderstorm.

He’d had this extreme reaction to thunderous nights since he was a child. He had been to hospitals, but the doctors were baffled. Even if it were psychological, there should have been a trigger—something that happened in such an environment involving all three elements. But he had none; he had been like this for as long as he could remember.

Gu Yunqi had been waiting for Xie Lanting to fall asleep before lighting the incense, so he noticed the change in aura immediately. Gu Yunqi opened his eyes and felt Xie Lanting’s breathing grow rapid and weak. This wasn’t right.

He frowned and called softly, “Immortal Lord?”

Xie Lanting didn’t respond, but just then, thunder cracked across the sky. Xie Lanting’s breath hitched and stopped.

Gu Yunqi ignored everything else, flicking his finger to light the lamp. he rolled off the couch and hurried to the bedside. Xie Lanting had his back to him, his blanket slipped below his shoulders. He was staring at his own hand, deathly pale and trembling all over.

“Immortal Lord!”

Xie Lanting finally reacted. He gasped, turned over, and a sound trembled from his throat. He probably wanted to say “You,” but because the syllable was so tuneless and broken, he immediately bit his lip and shut his mouth upon realizing it.

Gu Yunqi frowned. “You look very unwell.”

Perhaps because there was light in the room and someone by his side, the feeling of suffocation eased slightly. He finally managed to utter words that could be understood: “Old injury… flare up. It’ll pass… Did I wake you?”

His voice was weak. There was no way such a small sound could have woken someone; if Gu Yunqi had truly been in deep meditation, he wouldn’t have been disturbed at all.

Gu Yunqi pursed his lips and murmured, “Pardon me.”

Before Xie Lanting could understand what he was pardoning, Gu Yunqi crouched by the bed and grasped Xie Lanting’s cold hands.

The warmth enveloped his palms completely. Xie Lanting’s dark eyelashes fluttered.

Gu Yunqi channeled spiritual energy into Xie Lanting’s body through his hands. Pretending to be at the Foundation Building stage, he didn’t dare let the energy feel too deep, giving it only bit by bit. He whispered, “Is that better?”

It wasn’t a real flare-up of his old injuries, but the suffocation was miraculously smoothed out. Though he still looked weak, he was mostly fine. He smiled. “Much better.”

It was strange. Back in the orphanage, the director had stayed with him on stormy nights, yet it had never felt this reassuring. Is this also because of the protagonist’s halo?

Xie Lanting lingered on the warmth between their fingers for a moment. “Stop giving me energy. Go rest.”

Gu Yunqi didn’t leave. “I just had an insight while meditating; I’m wide awake and want to think on it. I’m here. Sleep, Immortal Lord.”

Gu Yunqi freed one hand to gesture behind him. Chuqi saw the signal and flicked a wisp of smoke wrapped in spiritual energy into the room.

Gu Yunqi could resist the smoke, which is why Chuqi felt safe using it.

Being watched while his hand was held like this… it was warm, but honestly quite embarrassing. Xie Lanting thought he would be too awkward to sleep, yet after a few blinks, his eyelids grew heavy, and he actually fell asleep just like that.

“Immortal Lord?”

Gu Yunqi called him. Once he was sure there was no response, Chuqi landed on the floor.

Xie Lanting’s sleeping expression was unsettled, his brow lightly furrowed. Gu Yunqi used one hand to smooth his brow while the other remained clasped. Chuqi looked at their joined hands and felt his eyes ache; he didn’t dare say much and took Xie Lanting’s free hand to check his pulse.

The more he checked, the grimmer Chuqi’s expression became.

“No toxins. The Immortal Lord’s old injuries are indeed severe, mainly affecting his foundation. Given the current state of his foundation, it would be lucky if his cultivation doesn’t regress, let alone progress. When the foundation is touched, the whole body follows; he will be weaker than before.”

Chuqi withdrew his hand and concluded, “This is difficult.”

“Can he be nurtured with supplements?”

“I can only say it’s better than nothing.”

Gu Yunqi was silent for a moment. Doing things in the shadows was truly a hassle. If he could make more connections with capable people outside, he might find more ways to treat Xie Lanting. It seemed he needed to pick up his pace…

Furthermore, Gu Yunqi felt that Xie Lanting’s condition tonight wasn’t just a flare-up of old injuries. Because he was holding Xie Lanting’s hand, he could clearly sense that every time lightning flashed, Xie Lanting would tremble violently.

It was as if the lightning caused his discomfort, yet there had been thunder during the day, and Xie Lanting hadn’t reacted…

As Gu Yunqi was thinking, Xie Lanting gave another start in his sleep. He hurried to look down, only to unexpectedly lock eyes with Xie Lanting.

—Xie Lanting had actually opened his eyes.