Repaying a favor?

When Chu Qing returned to his small courtyard, the assassin's corpse was still lying there, looking rather desolate.

Chu Qing glanced at it silently before entering the house.

Wen Rou was still meditating on the heated brick bed. Hearing footsteps, she finally opened her eyes, her voice tinged with weakness:

"You're back."

"Mm."

Chu Qing took out the bottle of antidote from his robes and tossed it to Wen Rou:

"Antidote."

Wen Rou opened the bottle, took out a pill, and swallowed it, then circulated her Internal Energy to activate her cultivation.

Watching the dark energy on the back of her hand gradually recede, Chu Qing turned and went out, fetched a shovel, and began digging a pit in the courtyard.

A short while later, a large pit was dug.

Chu Qing inspected the assassin's corpse again. Unfortunately, the assassin had nothing on him, yielding no gains. He then threw the body into the pit, filled it with soil, and buried it.

Only after stomping the patch of earth firm did Chu Qing let out a breath:

"It seems the Corpse Burier's trade isn't easy either..."

There was a group of people in the Jianghu who sought neither fame nor fortune, nor cared about their future. They specialized in burying bodies that died in Jianghu conflicts and were unclaimed.

They were known as Corpse Buriers...

In Chu Qing's memory, he had seen them once. These people were taciturn. Some carried coffins, while others simply had a roll of straw matting strapped to their waists.

Perhaps due to their constant dealings with corpses, they all carried a chilling aura about them.

Shaking his head, Chu Qing put down the shovel and went back into the house to check on Wen Rou.

As soon as he reached Wen Rou, he saw her suddenly spit out a mouthful of black blood. After glancing at Chu Qing, her eyes rolled back, and she lay down on the brick bed.

Chu Qing's heart leaped, thinking the antidote had a problem.

He took her wrist to check her pulse and finally breathed a sigh of relief.

The anomaly within her body was gone, but the room was now empty...

"So, she's asleep?

"Hey, you really think I'm a good person? You're sleeping here, where do I sleep?"

Looking at Wen Rou curled up on the brick bed, her face still showing a hint of pain, Chu Qing, after nudging her a couple of times with no reaction, was speechless for a long time.

He knew she wasn't just sleeping, but had fallen into a deep slumber.

However, after sleeping this off, her injuries would likely be healed.

Sighing, he grabbed the quilt and threw it over Wen Rou.

He then walked out of the room, brought in two chairs, and sat down cross-legged, continuing his cultivation.

The night passed without incident. The next morning, Chu Qing's ears twitched as he heard movement from the bedroom.

Knowing Wen Rou was awake, he stood up and stretched his limbs.

After sitting for a whole night, his bones had become stiff, emitting crackling sounds as he stretched.

Entering the room, he saw Wen Rou sitting against the wall, hugging the quilt. She looked up at Chu Qing, her eyes still holding a hint of confusion:

"Who exactly are you?

"Your scent is a bit like Big Brother Chu's, but not quite the same."

"Is your nose really that sensitive?"

Chu Qing looked at Wen Rou with surprise.

Wen Rou nodded:

"Very sensitive."

"If you've met someone before, even if they disguise themselves, you can recognize them at a glance?"

"As long as their scent hasn't changed, I can recognize them."

Chu Qing pondered for a moment, then said:

"Wait a moment."

He went to the kitchen, cooked two bowls of congee, and added some small pickled vegetables to the bowls. He brought one bowl to her.

Wen Rou licked her lips, looked at Chu Qing again, and then cradled the bowl, slurping it up.

"After you finish eating, you should leave here."

Chu Qing was eating as well.

Wen Rou didn't linger, merely giving a soft 'Mm'.

However, after a while, she looked up at Chu Qing:

"But... you saved my life."

"So what?"

Chu Qing looked up at her.

"Master said that a life-saving debt should be repaid with marriage."

Wen Rou said words that could make one's ears burn and heart pound, with an expression devoid of any ripples.

Fortunately, Chu Qing was no novice. Hearing this, he merely smiled:

"Are you sure you haven't confused 'repaying a debt' with 'seeking revenge'?"

"?"

When Wen Rou looked at Chu Qing again, the confusion in her eyes deepened.

"Don't overthink it."

Chu Qing said softly:

"We met by chance, and I was fortunate enough to save your life. I didn't seek any repayment from you."

He felt a bit speechless internally. Had he attracted romantic trouble recently?

First there was Xia Wanshuang, and now Wen Rou... What was going on?

Women were like a quagmire, especially in his current predicament. He absolutely could not get entangled.

Wen Rou pondered for a moment, then didn't speak. She quickly finished the bowl of porridge.

Her complexion improved significantly afterward.

She lifted the covers and got out of bed:

"Then I'll be going."

"Mm."

Chu Qing nodded, but as Wen Rou was about to leave the room, he called out to her again:

"Wait."

"You want me to repay you with marriage?"

Wen Rou turned back and asked him.

"...Can we forget about the 'repaying with marriage' thing?"

How worried was Cui Buno that Wen Rou wouldn't get married?

What kind of nonsensical things had he taught her all day?

Why was it like being extorted every time he saved her?

Chu Qing said softly:

"If you want to repay me, then agree to one thing for me."

"Okay."

Wen Rou nodded seriously.

"Don't come to disturb me again in the future. You, or anyone you know, are not allowed to come here."

Chu Qing said in a deep voice.

This woman's constitution was actually a bit troublesome.

He had a feeling that even if he moved, it would be meaningless to her. As long as she wanted to, she could find him by following his 'scent.'

Instead of hiding like this, it was better to be upfront with her.

Wen Rou thought for a moment:

"Okay."

Hearing this, Chu Qing waved his hand, and Wen Rou finally left.

However, as he watched her disappearing figure, Chu Qing couldn't help but frown...

His identity as an assassin made him naturally suspicious.

She agreed so readily, could she be feigning compliance?

Unfortunately, he had no good way to deal with this woman.

Their relationship was a mess. He couldn't fight her, nor could he kill her. It was truly troublesome.

Fortunately, in the following two days, Wen Rou really didn't come looking for him. She had probably taken Chu Qing's words to heart.

Chu Qing continued his routine, practicing his skills every morning and cultivating his qi at night. In the middle of the night, he would go to the oil and grain shop to find Zhou Yi. Sometimes he would help him resolve the Demonic Seed, and sometimes he would check if Wu Qianhuan had left a message.

He wasn't in a hurry about Cheng Sihai's matter. As long as the man was in Heavenly Dance City, Chu Tian would be able to find him.

As expected, by the evening of the next day, Chu Qing received news from Chu Tian.

The content was long, but Chu Qing summarized it.

Cheng Sihai was currently hiding in the Liu Family in Heavenly Dance City.

The Liu Family wasn't some established Jianghu family. The Liu Family patriarch, Liu Dafu, similar to Xia Wanshuang's family background, was a wealthy merchant in Heavenly Dance City.

Cheng Sihai, under the alias Ji Changchun, was working as a strategist for the Liu Family.

As for the Four Great Protectors, they had become the Liu Family's martial arts guards.

Up to this point, it was unclear whether the Liu Family patriarch knew about these individuals' situations.

Of course, this later information wasn't important to Chu Qing.

All he needed to know was Cheng Sihai's location.