Fallen Blossoms Had Their Intentions, but the Flowing Water Was Unfeeling; Only You Never Let Me Down (1)

Dugu Bo naturally came along too. Otherwise, he simply wouldn't feel at ease.

First, he was worried about their safety.

Second...

Young people ran hot. What if they did something out of line?

Noon.

The blue sky stretched cloudless for thousands of miles, and the blazing sun was especially dazzling.

The air was thick with an unpleasant scorched smell.

Tang San drove the carriage slowly out of Heaven Dou City.

His face was ashen, and he stared blankly at the road ahead.

Listening to the girls laughing and playing inside the carriage, he felt... a little uneasy.

As the only boy in the group, he was supposed to take on the duty of coachman.

But... why had no one come to keep him company and help him pass the time?

Surely they weren't isolating him just because he was a boy.

He didn't care about Dugu Yan and Ye Lingling, but what about Wang Dong'er and Xiao Wu? Why had even his childhood friends grown distant? Did he have to become a girl to fit in with them? Sigh!

The carriage wasn't spacious.

At three square meters, it should have been more than enough room for four slender young women.

But... Wang Dong'er thought it was too cramped.

She was wedged between Dugu Yan and Xiao Wu, with less than five centimeters of room to move. The slightest shift would make her bump into places she shouldn't.

The weather was hot, and the space was cramped.

The carriage was like a steamer, filled with the scent of young women and sweat.

The worst part was that Xiao Wu and Dugu Yan were both wearing stockings. To keep their feet from getting sore, they'd taken off their shoes, and their fair, rosy-white feet, with faint veins showing, were resting on Wang Dong'er's thighs...

Wang Dong'er felt like she was dying.

The one good thing was that the bumpy road had worn Xiao Wu and Dugu Yan out, and they'd fallen asleep. At last, she no longer had to sit squeezed between them, tormented by her conscience.

Ye Lingling sat by herself on one side. She lowered her head in silence. Her face was hidden by a veil, but a faint blush tinged her ears.

"This weather is stifling."

Wang Dong'er tugged at her collar and fanned herself lightly with her fingers. Sweat had already soaked through her clothes, and a faint milky fragrance drifted from them. She sighed.

"Yeah, this carriage is too small. Let's get a bigger one on the way back."

Ye Lingling replied softly. Out of the corner of her eye, she could see Wang Dong'er's movements.

As she caught the faint fragrance, she found herself getting a little intoxicated.

Fortunately, her veil hid her face. Otherwise, she would have embarrassed herself if Wang Dong'er noticed.

"You're dressed so warmly and wearing a veil, too. Aren't you hot?"

Wang Dong'er asked curiously, her gaze fixed on Ye Lingling's veil.

She'd never seen what Ye Lingling looked like, and she was terribly curious.

"Keep your mind... calm, and you'll feel cool."

A lie.

Wang Dong'er pursed her lips.

Ye Lingling had been quiet ever since getting into the carriage. Now her ears and neck were red from the heat, sweat dampened her hair, and a few stray strands clung to her forehead. She looked even hotter than Wang Dong'er herself.

Wang Dong'er took a paper fan from her Soul Tool and fanned it gently.

Feeling the breeze wash over her, Ye Lingling raised her head slightly, glanced at Wang Dong'er, then quickly lowered it again in embarrassment.

"Y-you don't have to do that. I'm not hot."

"The fan blows toward me on the upswing and toward you on the downswing. It helps us both," Wang Dong'er said with a faint smile.

That was how it looked, but it wasn't the whole story.

Xiao Wu and Dugu Yan's feet... How to put it? They didn't smell bad, but Wang Dong'er's senses were sharp, and she could still pick up on something unusual...

A few waves from the fan, and the smell had faded a lot.

It was just... poor Ye Lingling had to suffer for it. She was terribly sorry. With the veil on, Ye Lingling surely wouldn't notice.

"Th-thank you," Ye Lingling said.

"You're welcome..."

"I mean, for the medicinal herbs. Thank you, Wang Dong'er. They were so precious..."

Before she could finish, Wang Dong'er pressed a hand over Ye Lingling's mouth.

Ye Lingling jerked her head up in a panic and stared at Wang Dong'er in confusion. Her heart pounded like a war drum. "Thump, thump, thump..."

Wang Dong'er gave her a look and gently shook her head.

Tang San was still there. How could they talk about that with an outsider around?

What a dummy.

When Ye Lingling nodded slightly to show she understood, Wang Dong'er finally let go. But...

The carriage was too hot. At some point, her palm had grown damp with sweat.

Ye Lingling's veil had stuck to it. Wang Dong'er slowly pulled her hand away, and the veil slipped gently down over Ye Lingling's face.

Almost the instant the veil fell, Ye Lingling's face turned deathly pale. She quickly lowered her head and covered her face with both hands, afraid Wang Dong'er would see what she looked like.

When she looked up again, their eyes met. Her gaze was full of panic.

"Y-you saw?"

Ye Lingling asked in a hoarse voice.

"Mm." Wang Dong'er nodded, not thinking much of it. "No wonder you wear a veil, senior. You're so beautiful."

She'd only caught a fleeting glimpse and hadn't seen clearly, but Ye Lingling was definitely more beautiful than Dugu Yan.

Wang Dong'er had always thought that every girl liked being complimented. But to her surprise, when she said this, Ye Lingling's eyes visibly reddened.

After putting her veil back on, Ye Lingling buried her face in her knees and began to sob softly.

Wang Dong'er was utterly confused, but no matter what she said, Ye Lingling didn't respond. Neither comfort nor apology did any good. Ye Lingling only quieted down after she'd cried herself dry. But... she never said another word to Wang Dong'er.

Wang Dong'er was at a loss. She didn't bother Ye Lingling and could only wait for Ye Lingling's close friend, Dugu Yan, to wake up and explain what had happened.

The carriage wasn't particularly slow. As the sun neared the horizon, they left the main road and reached the outskirts of the Star Dou Great Forest.

The nearest city was still forty or fifty kilometers away. Only outside the Star Dou Great Forest could they restock and recover.

The carriage stopped slowly at the edge of the forest, and Xiao Wu and Dugu Yan woke up together.

Everyone got out of the carriage.

Seeing Tang San's exhausted face, Wang Dong'er said, "You've worked hard, Xiao San."

"It was nothing."

Tang San's mouth twisted into a bitter smile.

He looked at Xiao Wu and saw her pressed close to Wang Dong'er. Suddenly, he felt irritated.

Xiao Wu really didn't care about him. The least she could've done was say he'd worked hard, like Wang Dong'er had.

He sighed inwardly, then turned to look at the inn not far away.

"Let's make do here tonight. We'll set out first thing tomorrow morning."

He instinctively thought of himself as the leader of the group and spoke as if giving orders.

But no one answered for a long while. Confused, he turned around and saw that Wang Dong'er and the other three had already walked off.

Tang San clenched his fists, feeling utterly dejected.

It seemed that, just like in his previous life, he was an unimportant presence in everyone else's eyes.