He Still Did Not Know the Secret of That Day

Li Qingluan flipped her hand, and a blood-red Spirit Grass appeared in her palm. The leaves of the herb were still covered with dewdrops, and the faint sound of a dragon's roar echoed from them.

"This Dragon Blood Grass was obtained from the True Dragon Secret Realm; it should be useful to you." She pushed the Spirit Grass toward Qin Wangchuan.

While Qin Wangchuan was sweeping through the Forbidden Palace, Li Qingluan also emptied the outside area, reaping a considerable harvest.

Qin Wangchuan's eyes flickered slightly.

"I never expected this thing would end up in your hands."

Li Qingluan asked, "Then who should have originally been on it?"

He shook his head, didn't refuse, and reached out to take it.

The next moment, a fingertip brushed across the Storage Ring, a golden light flashed, and an item appeared on the table—

It was a golden fruit with mysterious patterns flowing across its surface, vaguely forming the shape of a golden lotus bud about to bloom.

"Golden Lotus Sacred Fruit?" Li Qingluan's eyes narrowed.

This stuff is even rarer than Dragon Blood Grass, and its greatest effect is stabilizing one's cultivation level.

"I don't need the gift from my teacher a few days ago," Qin Wangchuan said calmly, as if he had just casually taken out an ordinary item. "You've just entered the Celestial Being Realm, and your foundation isn't stable yet. This item is perfect for you."

"Also, the Zhou Clan went crazy yesterday and sent over a whole bunch of things."

"There's a bottle of Purple Phoenix Liquid inside; it should be useful to you."

After saying that, he gestured for Ye Jianwei to fetch the items.

Those in the know would understand that they were exchanging unused items, while those who didn't would definitely think that two bandits were dividing up the loot.

Li Qingluan tapped the table lightly with her fingertips, a slight smile playing on her lips, "Our Young Master Qin is truly generous. If he were to give such a priceless treasure to everyone he met, he probably wouldn't have enough money no matter how wealthy he was."

"Of course, not just anyone can take what's mine."

"Moreover."

Qin Wangchuan looked up at her and said calmly, "You've given me far more than I've given you, haven't you?"

Although it was a question, the tone was one of certainty.

Since they met, the things Li Qingluan has given him could probably fill a small Treasure Pavilion.

Not to mention that the Guluan Sword, which he was comfortable using, was a gift from her, even the Crying Lixiao, a gift from his Eldest Brother, was left gathering dust in its box.

Not to mention those heavenly materials and earthly treasures — the Chaos Green Lotus Seed that can revive the dead and heal the wounded, the Mystic Ice Jade Marrow that protects the body, and the Dragon Blood Grass from just now—these are merely the tip of the iceberg.

Compared to that, the things I gave her were really nothing.

Upon hearing this, Li Qingluan leaned back slightly, her legs swinging gently on the edge of the table, her shoe tips brushing against his hem. "I'm a few years older than you, so it's only right that I take care of you."

"Besides, with your flamboyant personality, if we don't protect heavenly materials and earthly treasures, you might suffer a great loss one day."

Qin Wangchuan looked up at her, a hint of amusement in his eyes. "Are you saying you're old?"

"So what if I'm old!" Li Qingluan, who had been maintaining an air of an older sister, instantly lost her composure upon hearing this. She sat up abruptly, her fingertips almost touching Qin Wangchuan's nose, "Then I'm yours too..."

He suddenly stopped mid-sentence.

She hurriedly withdrew her hand, forced a light cough to regain her composure, and tried to regain her previous calm:

What I mean is... I'm yours too...

"My what?" Qin Wangchuan looked at her leisurely, a mischievous glint in his eyes.

Li Qingluan, who had previously projected a semblance of elder sister authority, completely lost it and simply turned her face away. "Anyway... anyway, you know."

"I don't know," he said deliberately. "Why don't you explain it clearly, Miss Li?"

"You!" She glared at him angrily, but quickly looked away when their eyes met. "It's... that..."

"That?"

"Qin Wangchuan!" she finally slammed her hand on the table in a fit of rage.

"Alright." He calmly stood up, his long, slender fingers gently grasping her wrist, pulling her back into her seat with just the right amount of pressure. "Fiancée is fiancée, why get angry?"

Strangely enough, she didn't feel anything when others called her "fiancée" on ordinary days, but when she said those three words herself now, it felt like she had a piece of red-hot coal in her mouth, burning her tongue.

Li Qingluan's fingertips trembled slightly. Her wrist, held by him, felt as if it were being branded with a hot iron. She couldn't break free, nor could she not break free.

After a long pause, a muffled "hmm" finally escaped from his lips.

I don't know what she was saying.

This nonsensical response almost made Qin Wangchuan burst out laughing.

As the two were talking, Ye Jianwei returned.

After putting down the Purple Phoenix Liquid, he did not continue playing the zither, but stood to the side, looking hesitant.

Qin Wangchuan noticed something was wrong and asked a question.

Upon Ye Jianwei, Ye Jianwei stiffened, her fingers unconsciously tightening around the hem of her clothes.

She lowered her head, her Adam's apple bobbing a few times before she managed to squeeze out a few words through clenched teeth. "Young Master... the Jade Pendant you gave me before..."

Before she could finish speaking, she suddenly knelt down, her knees slamming heavily on the floor tiles, yet she seemed oblivious to the pain. "She disappeared after... after leaving the True Dragon Secret Realm..."

His voice grew softer and softer, the last few words almost muffled from his lips.

Ye Jianwei's shoulders involuntarily shrank, her fingers gripping the hem of her clothes tightly. "I've searched the entire way we came, but... but I just can't find it..."

Seeing her trembling violently, Qin Wangchuan suddenly felt like teasing her.

He leaned forward, lifting Ye Jianwei his fingers to force her to look up, gazing at her pale face as he slowly said, "That Jade Pendant... is a symbol of our first meeting."

"Since you dared to lose it... then I will punish you..."

Ye Jianwei trembled all over. His chin was lifted by Ye Jianwei's fingertips, but he didn't dare to look up. He felt a tightness in his throat.

Just as her breath hitched, she suddenly felt a cool sensation in her palm—a warm, smooth Jade Pendant had been slipped into her hand by Qin Wangchuan.

"Keep this safe."

Upon hearing Ye Jianwei looked up, only to meet Qin Wangchuan's smiling eyes.

Sunlight filtered through the flowering trees in the courtyard, casting dappled golden rays into his eyes. His smile, like a spring breeze in March, melted away the serious expression he had just carefully cultivated.

"Yes!"

She clutched the Jade Pendant tightly in her palm, pressed it against her pounding heart, and felt a warm glow in her eyes, a mixture of gratitude and guilt.

'If that Jade Pendant was truly lost in the Secret Realm, that would be one thing, but what if some foolish person stole it...'

Thinking of this, a sharp, cold glint flashed in Ye Jianwei's eyes, a stark contrast to his usual docile demeanor.

Seeing this, Qin Wangchuan's smile deepened, but he stopped teasing her.

He turned around and sat down, resuming his conversation with Li Qingluan about Heavenly Gate.

"Speaking of which, I haven't asked you yet what was inside when you Heavenly Gate?"

Li Qingluan, who was holding a teacup, paused upon hearing this.

She lowered her eyes and chuckled softly, her petal-like lips curving into a mysterious arc. "Well..." Her long eyelashes cast a shadow beneath her eyes, completely concealing the emotions within them.

"Secret."

Before the words were finished, a gentle breeze suddenly swept by in the distance, carrying a few peach blossoms that drifted into the teacup.

Li Qingluan gazed at the swirling petals, her eyes drifting into the distance, as if she were returning to that day at the Heavenly Gate—

That was indeed the closest she ever came to death.

So much so that I almost got lost inside.