It was almost dusk.
The setting sun hung low in the distance, spilling a carpet of orange-gold afterglow across the window lattice and bedframe, and dusting the young man's dense, slender eyelashes.
The young man seemed to sense the light. He frowned and opened his eyes.
That familiar chaos once again shrouded You Su's vision. He tried to gather his focus, but the darkness did not disperse. That powerful, flame-like force that had burned without end had vanished as well.
It was as though his brief recovery of sight had merely been Heaven playing a joke on him. He was still that ordinary blind boy from a small city. True Man Ling, his monstrous junior sister, Mistress, and the Lantern Ghost had all been nothing more than a long dream.
But the stabbing pain that radiated from every part of his body told him that everything had truly happened.
He piled the pillow behind his back and struggled to sit up, but even after trying several times, he still could not manage it.
You Su secretly clenched his fists. In eighteen years, he had never suffered such serious injuries. He loathed and detested this profound sense of powerlessness.
Blind people were naturally sensitive and lacking in security.
"What are you doing?"
Ji Lingruo hurried in with a stacked food container and quickly reached out to press You Su back down, even helping him adjust the pillow.
"Lie down properly. The physician said you shouldn't move around yet."
Hearing that familiar voice, You Su immediately felt much more at ease.
"Junior Sister, how long was I asleep?"
"You've got some nerve asking. You've been asleep for almost two whole days!" Ji Lingruo brought over a stool, smoothed her skirt down from her dainty hips, and sat. "You fainted at the door yesterday morning. It's already the second evening."
"I slept that long?"
You Su sighed at how much time had passed and tried to recall what had happened before he fainted. That smooth, flawless patch of white was...
It had been the white lotus root he had washed clean a few days ago and then forgotten to eat!
As for his junior sister, You Su swore that it had still been barely dawn then. He hadn't seen a single hair!
Junior Sister, could it be that you don't know your senior brother is blind?
"Ah! Why are you bleeding again?" Ji Lingruo was frantic with worry as she anxiously took out a faintly fragrant handkerchief.
"Is there? Where am I bleeding?"
Aside from feeling his blood qi churn somewhat, You Su did not sense anything unusual.
Only when his cracked lips tasted a sweet, metallic tang did he realize that he had disgracefully developed a nosebleed.
You Su felt utterly embarrassed. And to think that in his previous life, he had even called himself an old hand at this sort of thing.
Ji Lingruo leaned closer and carefully wiped the blood from You Su's nose.
Smelling the girl's elegant, fresh fragrance, You Su could not help smiling.
She hadn't lied to me. That fleeting glimpse that day was enough to prove that Junior Sister really was the most beautiful girl under Heaven.
And the meticulous care she had shown me was enough to prove that risking my life to protect her had been worth it.
Seeing the smile tugging at the corners of You Su's mouth, Ji Lingruo somehow grew even angrier. She knitted her delicate brows.
"What exactly were you doing that day? Do you know how badly you frightened me when you came in? You were covered in blood, just like... just like a living corpse..."
"I went out to deal with a minor matter." You Su's tone was calm.
"What minor matter could leave you covered in blood?" Ji Lingruo lightly bit her lip, displeasure in her eyes. She looked just like a little wife who had caught her husband fooling around outside but had no proof. "The physician said you have no external wounds, but your internal organs were affected. You were obviously fighting someone. You have to tell me the truth."
A bead of cold sweat appeared on You Su's forehead as his mind raced.
Seeing You Su's hesitant expression, Ji Lingruo said angrily, "Did you secretly arrange a fight with those people?"
"Those... people?"
"The young cultivators in the city who are always stopping you in the street! They're a bunch of good-for-nothings who don't even qualify as dandies, yet every day they act as though they're so incredible."
Ji Lingruo clenched her dainty fists, filled with righteous indignation. Then her tone softened.
"I told you to hit them back, but I never told you to end up in such a sorry state. What if you couldn't beat them and something really happened?"
Junior Sister, Junior Sister, how did I never realize before that you were this clever? You're a freaking genius!
You Su spread his lips into a nauseating expression that said, "I'm completely fine, and I'll definitely listen to everything you say, Junior Sister," then said gently, "It's fine. Didn't your senior brother win? They won't dare come bother me again anytime soon. Since Junior Sister told me to teach them a lesson, I won't hide anymore. I have to show them how formidable we are."
You Su did not claim all the credit for himself. Instead, he cunningly attributed this nonexistent victory to "us."
Ji Lingruo indeed liked hearing that. She tucked a strand of hair behind her ear, her heart turning honey-sweet, and said softly, "When did you ever listen to me this well before? Don't do it again, understand? What's the point of acting heroic by fighting so many at once? Don't you know you should pick them off one by one in secret?"
Ji Lingruo did not believe that You Su could have been beaten this badly in a one-on-one fight against his peers in Chuyun City.
This stinking senior brother, who seemed low-key but was actually arrogant, was definitely the sort of idiot who would face a group of nobodies and say things like, "Come at me all together," or "I'll take on ten!" Other than making the other side punch harder, what use did saying that have?
As if recalling something, she added earnestly, "No matter how well you fight, they can still play dirty against you. Only if you're even more underhanded than them will they be afraid. Understand?"
You Su paused, unable to understand how such a bright and innocent girl as his junior sister had arrived at such an insight.
"Your teaching is wise, Junior Sister. I'll remember it, and if there's a next time, I definitely won't act recklessly."
"That's a good boy. Drink some soup."
Ji Lingruo's eyes and brows were full of indulgence. She opened the food container and brought out a bowl of rich broth. After carefully blowing it cool, she raised it to You Su's lips.
You Su obediently opened his mouth to take it, as if drinking sweet spring water.
"Junior Sister, which restaurant did you buy this yam and pork-rib soup from? Why is it so delicious?"
At that, Ji Lingruo rolled her pretty eyes. She really had bought it, but she still felt that You Su's direct question was far too offensive. Did he really think there wasn't even the slightest chance that she had cooked it herself?
Then she remembered the noodles she had made for You Su the first time. The more she thought about it, the more she felt that his words were sarcastic and loaded with insinuation.
"This Young Lady made it herself!"
You Su was perceptive and immediately understood what Ji Lingruo was thinking. He hurriedly coaxed her, "Really? Junior Sister is actually so good at making soup? Then I'm truly blessed."
"Hmph, at least you know how to talk. Open your mouth."
Coaxing his junior sister had never bored You Su. On the contrary, seeing her happily placated made him happy too.
He lifted his head and opened his mouth wide to receive the spoonful of soup. The larger movement inevitably tugged at the quilt, revealing the broad shoulders beneath it.
Only then did You Su notice that his body was extremely clean—and completely naked.
"Junior Sister."
"What is it?"
"Where are my clothes?"
Ji Lingruo seemed to recall some enormous, unspeakable object. Her heart sped up, her chest rose and fell, and the roots of her ears flushed crimson in an instant.
"I... how would I know? Drink your soup!"
"Oh..."
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