Still Secretly In Love With My Enemy Today - Chapter 32

Chapter 32: 

In the dead of night, two days before the Temple was set to arrive, Xie Huaishuang and I went to meet Zhou Xun.

Upon seeing Xie Huaishuang, Zhou Xun’s gaze lingered on him for a moment before turning to me. “He’s coming along too?”

“He is.”

Zhou Xun thought for a moment, then nodded and turned around. “Six locations in the inner perimeter and nine in the outer perimeter have been set up according to your instructions, Senior Brother.”

I usually make it a point to perform a routine check before any operation. Noticing Xie Huaishuang’s hands were a bit cold, I asked him, “Are you cold?”

Xie Huaishuang shook his head, the moonlight tracing the clean, sharp lines of his profile. Zhou Xun turned his head and said gloomily, “I am.”

“If you’re cold, go back and put on more clothes.” I found him incredibly odd. “Why are you telling me?”

“…”

Zhou Xun went silent. I noticed Xie Huaishuang was also looking at me with an unreadable expression. “What is it?” I asked him.

“Nothing.”

What is it with everyone today? Is there something I’m not supposed to hear?

Xie Huaishuang’s qinggong (lightfoot technique) was the best among the three of us. After we checked one location and leaped across two more rooftops, I saw him standing on the eaves again, waiting for Zhou Xun and me. This was likely less than sixty percent of his actual capability.

I reached his side first. In the night, his deep green eyes shimmered faintly under the moon. When he saw me, they curved slightly.

“You guys are truly impressive.”

Zhou Xun’s footsteps drew closer. I actually heard him clearly, but I asked anyway: “What?”

Xie Huaishuang didn’t realize Zhou Xun had caught up. He raised his voice slightly: “I said, you guys are truly impressive.”

I heard Zhou Xun’s footsteps pause behind me. Xie Huaishuang noticed him this time and immediately fell silent. His face resumed its cold, detached mask, though his eyes betrayed a hint of awkwardness. He was still quite unaccustomed to speaking so directly in front of others.

Turning slightly, I told Zhou Xun, “He’s praising you.”

Zhou Xun’s gaze drifted. “Much obliged.”

Stop pretending. He was clearly thrilled to be complimented.

“You too… you are as well.”

Xie Huaishuang, now able to read lips, froze for a second before smiling. His voice was soft: “Thank you.”

…

The fifteen arrangements across Star-Gazing City were well-placed. Zhou Xun had improved significantly; aside from a few minor issues, the traps and personnel deployment were flawless. There was almost nothing for me to correct.

This was a good thing, but as I jumped down from the eaves behind Xie Huaishuang, a dark thought crossed my mind—in a way, it wasn’t entirely a good thing.

In the past, whenever I corrected problems, Xie Huaishuang had never seen it with his own eyes. Now that he was following along, Zhou Xun wasn’t making any mistakes, and I had no opportunity to show off: “I’m actually a bit more impressive than you think.”

I pondered it and realized that to make Xie Huaishuang like me, just being “good” to him wasn’t enough. He has the most beautiful eyes in the world and the best sword; who would—or who would even dare—to try and win his heart? After all…

My rambling thoughts were cut short. Lost in reflection, I failed to notice a dip in the path and nearly tripped.

Xie Huaishuang grabbed me instantly. “Did you twist your ankle?”

Great. Not only did I fail to “display my plumage” in front of him, but I also looked like a fool who can’t walk straight. I’m never going to win him over like this!

“It’s nothing… I just didn’t see clearly.” Xie Huaishuang let go, but I couldn’t help but explain: “I was thinking about something… I’m usually not like this. Really, never.”

Xie Huaishuang tilted his head, his eyes reflecting a deep green under the moonlight. He stared at me for a moment, then suddenly laughed, like ripples spreading across a jade pool.

“I know.” He touched the back of my hand. “I know you’re very impressive. Extremely impressive, actually.”

Xie Huaishuang always does this. A single sentence from him can stir up a whirlwind in my heart. I wonder if it’s intentional.

But I hadn’t asked him to praise me. How did he know?

“I know I’m impressive,” I muttered to myself. “If I wasn’t, how would I dare to like you?”

Xie Huaishuang suddenly stumbled. I caught him, startled. “Did you twist your ankle?”

“No… no.” He shook his head blindly and went silent.

Zhou Xun cleared his throat behind us. I suddenly remembered there was another person there and hurriedly pulled my thoughts back from the drifting willow catkins of my mind. I put on my usual calm mask. “Do you have… anything else?”

He shook his head and shrugged. “Nothing else, just cold.”

“…” I’d be a fool to believe him.

…

According to Xie Huaishuang’s calculations, the Temple would arrive outside the city in one day. When we went out in the morning, the streets were already draped in colorful banners embroidered with soaring phoenixes and long tassels.

When the Temple arrives, the spectacle is always grand. I was worried Xie Huaishuang would be upset seeing this, but he seemed not to care at all, standing by the roadside with his hands behind his back, watching a group of children play with a wooden sliding puzzle (Huarong Dao).

It was a simple puzzle he could solve at a glance. He watched for a long time, and seeing the children couldn’t find a clue, he reached out to offer a hint, only to be blocked by their small hands. “Big brother, don’t tell us yet, okay? We’ll figure it out soon—very soon!”

Habitually, I wrote this in his hand. He laughed, glanced at the kids, and kept his chuckles low. Their “very soon” lasted quite a while. By the time we walked through the main streets and returned with a bag of jasmine cakes, they were still “just about to figure it out.”

Xie Huaishuang commented: “They have a lot of patience.”

When they saw us, they waved happily. “Big brother, you’re back!” Before Xie Huaishuang could speak, they stopped him again: “This time we really are just about to figure it out!”

The banners on the street flapped in the wind, their shadows flickering on the pavement. Xie Huaishuang laughed silently again, his lashes fluttering. He unwrapped the oil-paper package and hesitated. “Does anyone want one?”

I noticed the shell of frost he had grown in the Temple was melting further. In the past, he would never have struck up a conversation with strangers like this. It was a wonderful change.

Xie Huaishuang gathered the remaining jasmine cakes, blinked, and looked at me with some confusion. He held out the package. “Are you eating now?”

“We’ll eat at home.”

“Oh.” He tied it back up, but still looked up at me. “Why are you smiling?”

I don’t know what’s been going on with him the past two days, but whenever he looks at me, he quickly averts his gaze as if burned. I racked my brain but couldn’t think of anything I had done wrong.

“It’s nothing,” I took the package. “I just… thought of something happy.”

“Something happy?” He didn’t press further, then added after a pause, “I thought it was because you heard those people bad-mouthing the Temple.”

As the Temple elders were arriving, the city had been preparing for days. We heard plenty of gossip and saw a dozen more wanted posters of me. Iron Cloud City’s work was clearly showing results; many were now dissatisfied with the Temple. Five years ago, no one would have dared say a negative word.

The only thing was—while I loved hearing the Temple being cursed, hearing people curse the High Priest was different.

It seemed the person pulled in to replace Xie Huaishuang was struggling. They hadn’t cleared the mountain bandits, and Iron Cloud City had repeatedly disrupted their ceremonies.

Luckily, he can’t hear, I thought as we walked through the rumors. He was just lost in his own thoughts, his expression unchanged. For once, I thought—it’s better that he doesn’t hear this.

“No,” I shook my head. “Just something happy, that’s all.”

“Alright.” He pointed to the cakes. “Let’s talk at home then. They’ll get cold.”

As he spoke, the sound of wooden blocks clacking came from behind us. I looked; the General on the wooden board had finally escaped the ambush. Amidst the cheers of the children, Xie Huaishuang’s eyes crinkled.

He whispered to me, “That escape was truly not easy.”

…

In the evening, I wrote down the things I heard about the Temple during the day—excluding the parts attacking the High Priest—for Xie Huaishuang.

He seemed to want to say something, but when I waited for him, he stopped and held out his hand. “Keep writing.”

I had only told him the gist earlier. Xie Huaishuang tapped his knuckles against the table as I finished writing, then smiled.

“It seems Iron Cloud City’s goal has indeed been achieved.”

I pushed a cup toward him—he always forgot to drink water, and even when he remembered, he forgot it should be warm.

After being monitored while drinking the warm water, he continued: “Your Covert Division has indeed influenced people’s hearts, and the Temple has indeed been fooled by your overt disruptions.”

I had never explained the division of labor between the two branches of Iron Cloud City to him. He had seen through it all along.

But looking at his expression, I felt he wasn’t just stating a fact. He continued: “In that case, why not let people’s hearts waver a bit more?”

“I was thinking about this yesterday—when I saw that wanted poster the Temple made specifically for me to see.” Xie Huaishuang smiled. “If the God of the West Wing cannot even protect the High Priest of his own Temple, then ordinary people will feel even more that they cannot rely on him.”

“You mean,” I guessed his thought, my heart skipping a beat, “let everyone know… that the person I captured isn’t just a regular official, but you—the High Priest?”

“Yes. I heard…” He saw me looking at him and obediently took a sip of tea before continuing. “I heard the current ‘High Priest’ isn’t very effective. The Temple wants me back now likely to appease those who provide for them.”

“What if we let them know now that even the High Priest of the Temple receives no protection or blessings?”

He spoke casually, as if it had nothing to do with him.

“The Temple is heavily guarded. Logically, this would be hard to pull off,” he gestured on the table. “But since the Temple is looking for me, if I use this chance to return… if I want to, you can ‘kidnap’ me again.”

He looked at me, waiting for an answer. I thought it over and finally asked.

“Have you made up your mind?” I looked into his eyes. “Once you do this… there is no turning back.”

I knew he cared about his past identity and wanted to break clean from the Temple. But at the end of the day, love and hate can flip in an instant. If he does this, once the faith collapses, all the worship and following will turn into a thousandfold panic and resentment.

Even if Xie Huaishuang regrets it one day, that divine pedestal will never hold another person.

“I’ve made up my mind.” Xie Huaishuang gave a light laugh and lifted his eyes. “I’m not looking back.”