Ninety-Five. Baili Came Again to Aid Xie Wuji

Have I got a sweetheart? Xie Wujie scratched his chin, utterly baffled. With a wistful sigh, he could not help feeling that his luck with women was still painfully poor.

What had happened with Ye Fang before had merely been a scheme; Ye Fang had not actually liked him. That, too, left Xie Wujie feeling helpless.

As though she had touched on a sore spot, Dongmen Xianyun hurriedly said, “I, I was only joking... Oh, right, Brother Xie, you said there was once a girl from your hometown whom you got along with very well. What became of her now?”

“Looks like you don’t know about that,” Xie Wujie said, and then told her about Zhu Feifei. It made Dongmen Xianyun very indignant.

“How could she do that? To choose another man just for money? Does that woman have no shame at all?”

“In my hometown, things are a little different from here. How should I put it? It’s more of a custom, I suppose. There, women have a much higher standing than men. For a man to marry a wife takes an enormous amount of effort. Bride price, a car, a house, and all that... It can cost a man’s parents half their lifetime savings,” Xie Wujie said.

“That’s the opposite of here,” Dongmen Xianyun replied.

“Hm?”

“In our place, preference for sons over daughters is still quite serious. When a daughter marries out, the family has to prepare a great deal of dowry, and everything depends on the husband’s family’s mood. If the husband’s family wants to divorce the wife, there’s not much to be said about it.”

Xie Wujie laughed. “Both are bad, in my view. Favoring men or favoring women—it’s all bad. A marriage should be built on equality between the two sides. After all, boys aren’t spawned from stones, are they?”

“Pfft...” Dongmen Xianyun was amused. “Brother Xie, do you have any plans to settle down and start a family soon?”

“Me?” Xie Wujie blinked. “Once I’ve finished with what’s on my plate, if I get the chance... That does sound like a good suggestion, heh heh...”

His lecherous eyes swept over Dongmen Xianyun, making her blush furiously. She thought he was speaking of her, but in truth Xie Wujie’s grin was always that sleazy.

Xie Wujie thought to himself that he still had to go find Bai Liyan’er. Right now, his top priority was to clear his name; the longer this dragged on, the more disadvantageous it would be for him.

So after lingering for a while in the Alchemy Hall, Xie Wujie went to Bai Liyanqing’s residence.

In fact, Bai Liyanqing had mentioned his residence once before in conversation. He had said that he lived with his elder brother, and Xie Wujie had, of course, believed him completely.

Xie Wujie went to the elder’s domain to look for him, only to find that the disciples there were none too friendly toward him.

At that moment, Bai Liyanqing, on the second floor, happened to open the window and see Xie Wujie. He bit his lip and murmured, “Why has he come? Could it be because of the affair with Ximen?”

His thoughts were in turmoil. Should he help him or not? Last time, he had already secretly shown Xie Wujie the alchemy notes behind his master’s back, but this time it was his master who wanted to deal with him. If he helped him again, then...

Bai Liyanqing clenched his fists. “If I don’t help him, then once my master presses down step by step, and if he cannot find evidence quickly to prove Xie Wujie’s innocence, Xie Wujie will be in real trouble. At best he’ll be expelled from the sect; at worst, his entire cultivation will be ruined...”

If Xie Wujie were to end up in such a miserable state, Bai Liyanqing would find it hard to bear.

He glanced at the women’s clothes hanging on the wall and smiled bitterly. “I originally planned to tell him my true identity soon. Looks like I’ll have to keep up the disguise a while longer...”

With that thought, he reached out toward the women’s clothing.

By the time Bai Liyanqing had dressed properly and applied a little makeup, there came a soft knocking at the other window.

“Liyan’er, Liyan’er, are you there?”

Hearing Xie Wujie’s voice, Bai Liyanqing hurriedly opened the window and climbed through. “Are you out of your mind? If you come looking for me and my brother sees it, he’s bound to beat you.”

“Heh heh, aren’t we friends? It’s only natural for a friend to come looking for a friend,” Xie Wujie said with a smile. He was also carrying a gift: a box of sweet pastries.

Bai Liyanqing was a glutton, and the scent of the pastries reached her at once.

“You’re trying to bribe me again?”

“Well, listen to yourself,” Xie Wujie said. “I just wanted to share something good with you... Miss Bai, shall we go talk at the teahouse?”

“There are too many people at the teahouse; I don’t like it. Let’s go to the Spirit Bamboo Grove instead. It’s quiet and elegant there,” Bai Liyanqing said.

He did not want anyone to recognize him.

Xie Wujie nodded. “That works too. The grove it is. There’s even a wooden hut over there, so we can make something to eat...”

The moment food was mentioned, Bai Liyanqing brightened instantly. The two of them arrived at the place, and Xie Wujie, as usual, brought along an iron pot. This time, however, he had put quite a few frozen dumplings inside.

Bai Liyanqing said, “What kind of pastry is this? It tastes very good.”

“Sweet wife pastry,” Xie Wujie said.

In an instant, it was as though Bai Liyanqing had been struck by lightning. He looked at the pastry in his hand, then at Xie Wujie, and his brows drew together at once.

“Could it be that Xie Wujie is hinting to me... No, absolutely not. If he finds out who I really am, wouldn’t he hate me to death?”

“I’m not eating it,” Bai Liyanqing said, putting the pastry down.

“Huh?” Xie Wujie asked in confusion. “Not tasty?”

“No, no, it’s very good. Sweet, a little chewy, but if you’re trying to make some sort of insinuation with this pastry, I won’t accept it. You know your position and mine— even if I agreed, my brother would never agree.”

Xie Wujie laughed. “You don’t think I’m trying to confess my love to you or something, do you? Don’t worry, I know my place. I’m just an ordinary man, with equally ordinary cultivation. I wouldn’t dare reach for Miss Bai Liyanqing’s hand, and of course I’m not worthy of you either.”

He was smiling, but the smile was a bitter one.

And that trace of bitterness was seen by Bai Liyanqing, who suddenly felt an inexplicable pang of ache in his heart. He picked up the pastry again. “That’s not what I meant, and you’re very good too. Look at you... You’ve only been at the Crimson Clouds Sect for a little over two months, and yet everyone from top to bottom already remembers you. To be honest, you’re already very outstanding. And you were even accepted by the sect master as a disciple—how many people dream of such a thing, yet don’t even dare to imagine it?”

“Is that so?” Xie Wujie looked at Bai Liyanqing. “Miss Liyan’er, you should know why I came. In truth... I don’t want to leave the Crimson Clouds Sect. I really like this place...”

“It’s about Ximen, isn’t it?” Bai Liyanqing said.

Xie Wujie nodded.

That made Bai Liyanqing deeply troubled. He knew exactly how the matter of Ximen had unfolded. But if he told Xie Wujie now, and Xie Wujie really did notice the clues, then how would he continue hiding it from his master?

The notes he had shown Xie Wujie before had been returned on time, and fortunately his master had not noticed. After all, those things were usually organized by Bai Liyanqing. But this time it involved the major affair of Ximen. If his master were to find out, wouldn’t that make him utterly unfilial?

He was in a dilemma, a dilemma like none he had ever known. Suddenly, he was frightened even by himself. All along, he had always put his master first, yet now he was actually hesitating.

Was it because Xie Wujie in front of him was also important to him?

A trace of sorrow appeared on Bai Liyanqing’s exquisite face, and his long lashes seemed to gather a faint, desolate gloom.

“Liyan’er?”

“Ah?” Drawn back by Xie Wujie’s call, Bai Liyanqing gathered his thoughts. He clenched his teeth and thought he could not let Xie Wujie leave. So he said, “I’m not very clear about this matter either, but there is one thing I do know... If you want to prove your innocence, then you have to find Ximen.”

“What do you mean? Since Ximen has already fled, where am I supposed to find him? Besides, I’m under confinement right now,” Xie Wujie said.

Bai Liyanqing said, “Think carefully. Who is responsible for guarding the gates of the Crimson Clouds Sect?”

“Well, sometimes it’s the senior brother, sometimes the second brother. They’re both members of the guard team.”

“You came back today, and three days ago was exactly when Ximen vanished. So tell me, who was guarding the gate during those three days?” Bai asked again.

“The senior brother.”

“Exactly. Since it was your senior brother, and since his impartiality is famous throughout the sect, do you really think Ximen could have left through the only exit?” Bai Liyanqing said.

Xie Wujie suddenly saw the light and sprang to his feet in shock. “You mean Ximen is still in the Crimson Clouds Sect?!”

Riiip.

He had stood up too quickly, and the crotch of his trousers split open again, leaving Bai Liyanqing dumbfounded.