Chapter 13: A Stirring Heart

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Yuliu Zhu furrowed her brows, her gaze subtle and complicated. From childhood until now, she had always held great respect for the Xie family, though she had never grown close to them. Her impression of her grandmother, Xie, was that she was enlightened and understanding, never making things difficult for her daughters-in-law nor harshly reprimanding her grandchildren.

If her memory served her right, at this time in her previous life, Xie had already begun fasting and chanting Buddhist sutras, completely withdrawing from the affairs of the household.

Why, then, in this life, was it different again and again?

She could not bear to look at Shen Qinglu; the fresh red mark on her eyes was like a fire burning from her eyes into her heart, making her increasingly uncomfortable.

Especially since Shen Qinglu still clutched that fake snake tightly.

The imitation snake was incredibly lifelike, with a triangular head and brown snake patterns, vivid and realistic. Its size and feel were indistinguishable from a real snake, a testament to the craftsman's skill.

“Little sister Ali, quickly throw that thing away. Don’t scare grandmother,” said someone.

Shen Qinglu hid the fake snake inside her sleeve and shook her head. “It’s fake. Grandmother isn’t afraid.”

Xie had been somewhat startled at first, but upon learning it was a fake snake, she relaxed a bit. Still, she couldn’t help but chide Yuliu Jingliang a little, “Er Lang, you mustn’t scare people like that again. Thankfully, your sister Ali was brave enough to see it was a fake snake at a glance. If it had been someone else, they might have been scared into something terrible...”

Before she could finish, she sensed something amiss.

Because the “someone else” who might have been so scared was none other than Yuliu Zhu herself.

Yuliu Zhu was nothing but irritation toward her second brother Yuliu Jingliang. Sometimes, she darkly wished that their parents had only had her and their eldest brother.

Perhaps Yuliu Jingliang had countless times wished he didn’t have such a sister, which explained why his words, seizing the moment, were always like knives.

“Sister Ali’s bravery is exactly befitting of being the second young master of the Yuliu family’s sister.”

Though the speaker was careless, those who heard the words were attentive; both Xie and Yuliu Qingxue’s hearts skipped a beat.

Fearing he might say something more shocking, Xie quickly changed the subject. “Er Lang, now that you’ve joined the Divine Martial Camp, you must not be as careless as before, spending all your days tinkering with those strange and useless toys.”

Yuliu Jingliang scratched his head, somewhat ashamed. “I understand, grandmother. Lately, I’ve been learning from the camp’s bow and crossbow masters how to make bows and crossbows. The elders of the Divine Mechanism Division even praised my talent.”

The Divine Martial Camp was the Emperor’s personal guard, home to the greatest military forces and the most skilled creators of mechanical weapons in the entire Daye Dynasty.

Though his entry was aided by the Shen family’s recommendation, it was after rigorous screening. Without true skill, he wouldn’t have been admitted.

Xie, as grandmother, was immensely pleased and felt compelled to encourage him.

“What is a bow and crossbow?” Shen Qinglu suddenly asked.

Yuliu Jingliang’s eyes lit up. “Sister Ali, do you want to see?”

He had just finished crafting a bow he was quite proud of last night and was eager to show it off.

Shen Qinglu nodded. “I’ve never seen one.”

“Then I’ll take you to see it.” Without awaiting Xie’s response, Yuliu Jingliang grabbed her hand and said, “Grandmother, may I take Sister Ali out to play?”

Before Xie could reply, Yuliu Qingxue quickly intervened, “Er Lang, your sister Ali is not like ordinary people. I’m afraid she can’t play with you.”

Shen Qinglu looked at Xie with eyes full of hope and a clear hint of pity.

Xie was like a scale balancing between two weights: on one side, she herself; on the other, Yuliu Qingxue. Their weights were equal, both playing the emotional card.

She always knew how to move others, winning their sympathy. Those increasingly pitiable eyes were her constant raising of the stakes.

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Now it depended on whose weight carried more; Xie would lean toward that side.

Xie thought to herself that the child had improved and should go out more to see, learn, and know more. Perhaps this would help her recover faster. After some thought, she said, “Just playing inside the mansion, no trouble should arise. Let Er Lang take good care of her.”

Thus, Shen Qinglu won this round.

“Grandmother, rest assured, I will return Sister Ali exactly as she left,” Yuliu Jingliang said joyfully, beating his chest in assurance.

Xie felt deeply moved by the natural bond between them and instinctively glanced at Yuliu Zhu.

“Tang’er, if you have nothing to do, you should come along too.”

Yuliu Zhu and Yuliu Jingliang had always been at odds, and she had no interest in bows and crossbows. She replied, “I promised mother I would help her settle last month’s accounts later.”

Upon hearing this, he snorted disdainfully through his nostrils and took Shen Qinglu away.

Xie felt a wave of helplessness wash over her. She ordered Yuliu Zhu to return quickly and kept Yuliu Qingxue behind.

Yuliu Qingxue knew Xie’s intent well and knelt before her without hesitation, weeping bitterly. “Mother, I don’t want it to be like this either. I can’t control myself. Just like you always protected me and my eldest brother before.”

This was a confession for hitting Shen Qinglu to protect Yuliu Zhu.

A mother knows her daughter best; similarly, a daughter knows how to manipulate her mother's weaknesses.

Sure enough, Xie immediately empathized.

She had been a young widow, strict as a mother, and over the years, she had fought recklessly to protect her two children.

After a moment, she sighed deeply.

“Qingxue, now that things have come to this, I can only try my best to help you. So I will take care of Ali. No matter what happens in the future, if your eldest brother and sister-in-law blame or hate me, I will bear it.”

“Mother!” Yuliu Qingxue wept even harder, tears flowing nonstop. “It’s my misfortune, causing you worry. Sister-in-law is a person who tolerates no flaw. Even if you take good care of Ali, she won’t let things go. If not, we might as well keep it a secret...”

“No!”

“Mother, I’m really scared, scared that you will be blamed... Anyway, if Ali can’t get better, she can’t marry well, nor bring any benefit to the Yuliu family. It’s better not to say anything, for our sake and for elder brother and sister-in-law’s...”

“I said no!” Xie’s heart pounded fiercely. Taking a deep breath, she said earnestly, “Qingxue, we cannot keep making mistakes. We should make amends instead.”

Amends?

If she was ruined this life, who would make amends for her?

Yuliu Qingxue’s heart raged, screamed, and resented, but she feigned compliance. “I understand, mother.”

*

Yuliu Jingliang’s courtyard was at the northernmost part of the mansion. Along the way, he talked to Shen Qinglu about everything they passed—from the rockery to the trees, how they were made and when they were planted—telling her everything he knew.

Now that they had come onto his territory, he spoke as though reciting a cherished treasure, endless and enthusiastic.

“...This residence was part of my great-great-grandmother’s dowry. She was the only daughter of the Marquis of Changping, with a very substantial dowry. Before she passed, she instructed that this house should be passed to the Shen family’s daughter. The Shen family has had no daughters for three generations, so this house ended up with my mother.”

While with the Shen family, he had seen a portrait of that ancestress in her youth—a woman of noble bearing and great beauty.

Casually turning his head, he met Shen Qinglu’s face, slightly tilted in earnest listening. He inexplicably felt that his cousin’s brows and eyes bore a faint resemblance to the noble aura of that ancestress.

The thought flashed briefly, and his gaze fell on the still-fresh red mark on her forehead. Against her pale jade-like skin, it was even more striking in the daylight.

“Ali, does it hurt?”

“No,” Shen Qinglu would never miss such a good chance to win sympathy. Her large, dark eyes looked bewildered as she touched her chest. “It just hurts here.”

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“I know that feeling, Ali. It’s okay. Once we get used to it, it won’t hurt anymore.” His tone was low, then he gave a self-mocking smile.

Shen Qinglu nodded obediently. “Er Ge, I will get used to it.”

Her sensible and obedient demeanor made Yuliu Jingliang feel, for the first time in his life, what it was like to be an older brother.

Unconsciously, their relationship climbed several levels.

His courtyard was not large but arranged with wooden dummies, stone weights, a coiling dragon lever, and a target, along with stone tables and benches—clearly the residence of a martial artist.

In a side room, various weapons were displayed.

“Ali, this is a bow. Do you want to touch it?”

Feigning curiosity, Shen Qinglu carefully took the bow he handed her and listened to his explanation of its structure. When he grew excited, he even tried to teach Shen Qinglu how to use it.

There was a target right in the courtyard, which was convenient.

Holding the bow, aiming, drawing the string, shooting—one taught seriously, the other learned carefully.

“Yes, yes, just like that!”

Yuliu Jingliang was so excited he almost broke his voice.

He hadn’t expected that after only a few tries, Shen Qinglu could learn quite well, her string-pulling strength rivaling that of a man. It surprised and delighted him.

“Now you try it yourself.”

With that, he stopped instructing and stepped aside.

Shen Qinglu was not timid. With her back to him, she nocked the arrow and drew the bowstring smoothly.

A cool breeze blew, her red clothes fluttering like rising flames. The red mark on her forehead seemed like the blood-stained cloth soldiers tied to their heads on the battlefield, a symbol of resolve to fight to the death.

Her elegant and striking aura did not hide her determination and coldness, stunning onlookers and deeply moving them, as if witnessing the flames of war and the beating of war drums stirring their blood.

Outside the courtyard gate, Mu Lin seemed to hear the pounding of his own blood.

“Whoosh!”

The arrow Shen Qinglu shot struck near the center of the target.

Yuliu Jingliang cheered, then saw Mu Lin and grew even happier. “A Lin, why are you here? You just saw it, right? My Ali is gifted—a natural martial arts talent.”

Mu Lin quietly steadied his emotions and walked in.

Seeing the red mark still on Shen Qinglu’s face, he asked Yuliu Jingliang with his eyes. Yuliu Jingliang pulled him aside, briefly explained, then went inside to fetch something.

Shen Qinglu’s gaze remained fixed on him.

The man before her was handsome and steady, with a completely different temperament from the warm jade-like gentleness of the one deeply etched in her heart. Yet because of their resemblance, it comforted her longing across life and death and time, bringing tears to her eyes.

Unable to ignore her gaze, he returned her tear-filled, gem-like eyes and asked involuntarily, “Miss Ali, we met three years ago. Do you remember?”