The morning sunlight was cool and pleasant. The chirping of birds sounded clear and melodious. The fresh, humid air of the Shou Ri Forest invigorated the spirit, bringing a sense of joy from the inside out.
At this moment, a group of six people was walking lightly through the grassy forest within Shou Ri Forest. Except for a young girl of about fifteen or sixteen casually sauntering at the front, the other four men and a boy of the same age were moving very cautiously, paying close attention to their surroundings. Each step was as quiet as possible, as if danger lurked everywhere and they were facing a formidable enemy.
These six individuals were Qingyan and his group, who had just escaped from a military camp. However, Qingyan's face did not show any joy at regaining freedom; instead, he wore a bitter smile, like a gourd.
At this moment, Tian Shu, walking behind Qingyan, lightly nudged him. Tian Shu's gaze swept back and forth across the girl in front, carrying a threatening meaning that made Qingyan sigh helplessly. He looked toward the bouncing girl, who was already five or six meters ahead, and reluctantly took a few quick steps, softly calling out:
"Uh… well… Xiaoxuan, can't I just say sorry to you? Once we return to Jingdong City, you can do as you please. But… right now, you have to explain to us what's going on first, right?"
"Hehe, how sincere of you!" The girl didn't slow down at all, her laugh sarcastic.
Qingyan smiled awkwardly and then said, "Xiaoxuan, now is not the time to discuss this, right?"
"Hmph! Don't say such familiar things. Who exactly are you to me? ‘Xiaoxuan' is not something you can call me!" The girl suddenly turned her head, her bright red hair swooshing back and covering half of her face, revealing that this was the same Du Gu Xiaoxuan who had stayed at the Mu family's residence just a few days ago.
However, Du Gu Xiaoxuan now no longer had her formerly gentle, watery smile. Her face was full of anger! She planted her feet firmly, stared furiously at Qingyan, and shouted:
"Qingyan, I really misjudged you back then!"I really didn't expect that you could say something like that to a girl. Don't you feel ashamed?”
There was no leniency in her words. It seemed that the harsh words Qing Yan had reluctantly shouted back then had left Du Gu Xiaoxuan quite offended, making her completely resent Qing Yan, whom she had only known for a few hours.
Qing Yan looked a bit displeased, but under the current circumstances, it seemed he still had to rely on Du Gu Xiaoxuan to save his life. He forced himself to suppress his emotions and slowly said in a deep voice:
“That is… for a reason…”
“For a reason? Haha, if there's a reason, why didn't you say it back then? What, after a few days, did you make up an excuse?”
Du Gu Xiaoxuan seemed completely unaware of Qing Yan's unusual emotions. She sharply interrupted him, and in her words, there was a biting sarcasm aimed at him.
“I ask you, when will you ever finish?!”
Qing Yan was a good-tempered person, but that didn't mean he wouldn't lose his temper. Listening to Du Gu Xiaoxuan's scolding, Qing Yan became completely furious and began to retort sharply:
“I think you're not any better yourself. Just from a single scolding, you lost your temper like this. Don't you think about the current situation? Is this the time for you to act like a princess with your tantrums? The thing you agreed to just now, are you going to cancel it over such a trivial matter?”
Qing Yan felt that in the five years he had been in Jingdong City, he had never lost his temper like this. Even when he was constantly mistreated by Mu Gong Xiaoyu, at least he knew when to be willful and when to stop. But Du Gu Xiaoxuan in front of him left him completely at a loss.
“I, I never said I'd cancel it? I, I just… just really dislike you… sniff sniff…”
Perhaps because of the words Qing Yan had said in anger, Du Gu Xiaoxuan felt a bit scared and guilty. But unwilling to admit defeat, her voice began to tremble, and in the end she crouched down and quietly began to cry.
Indeed, Du Gu Xiaoxuan knew that once she promised something, she had to follow through. But whenever she saw Qing Yan in the tent, a wave of inexplicable anger welled up in her chest, and she would throw a tantrum irrationally, not even understanding what she really wanted Qing Yan to do.After all, the inexplicable sense of trust that arose between the two of them the first time they met made it impossible for them to believe that the other was a villain. Or rather, somehow in their fate, they never wanted the other to become someone they disliked.
"Huh..."
Qingyan exhaled deeply and turned his head away. Qingyan was most afraid of a girl's tears; once they fell, no matter how angry he was, he couldn't continue.
After a long pause, Qingyan, facing Dugu Xiaoxuan, gently said:
"I'm sorry, I shouldn't have been angry with you..."
At this moment, Uncle Tian approached from behind, gently patting Dugu Xiaoxuan on the shoulder and said softly:
"Child, don't cry. Although I don't know what happened between you two, I believe that Yan'er isn't the type to make a fuss without reason. He must have his reasons, and at the right time, I think he will let you know."
By this time, Dugu Xiaoxuan had gradually stopped crying. Perhaps Qingyan's 'sorry' made her feel much better. Or perhaps, from the very beginning, she just wanted to hear a sincere apology from Qingyan to console her emotions.
This is a strange thing about communication between people. Many times, even if one understands the other's unspeakable reasons, or understands one's own mistakes, a person still continues to be angry at another. What the heart waits for is just a step, a sincere apology. And the reasons become something insignificant.
"Uncle Tian, I'm sorry, I was being willful. At times like this, I shouldn't lose my temper."
Dugu Xiaoxuan wiped her tears and, feeling a bit guilty, continued speaking to Tian:
"Actually, the reason I said I could guarantee your safety here in Shouri Forest is because of an innate ability of mine, a kind of power that can subdue magical beasts."
