The love - inducing poison that Lu Xunguang had been poisoned with was not very severe. After splashing cold water on his face and raising his head again, his expression had long since returned to its usual clarity.
He stared fixedly at Li Ying. The apprentices in Deji Hall all tactfully retreated one by one. Even Shihu pulled the indignant A Man and quietly closed the door.
For a moment, only Li Ying and Lu Xunguang were left in the room.
After a long while, Li Ying asked softly and tenderly, "What are your plans for Qing Liu?"
Today's incident was witnessed by many. There were already quite a few onlookers whispering that, by some strange twist of fate, the young master of the Lu family had had physical contact with Qing Liu. Logically, he should give her a proper title. Otherwise, with her reputation ruined, this beautiful young girl would truly have no way out.
Lu Xunguang remained silent. The evening light cast a thick shadow on half of his face, silently hiding all his emotions.
"Don't worry. I will surely give you a proper explanation for this matter."
He got up and walked out of the room directly. His figure disappeared at the end of Li Ying's sight.
A Man waited until he was far away before entering the room. She said angrily, "This Lu Xunguang had better explain things clearly to that Qing Liu. Otherwise, he really doesn't deserve the title of 'brother - in - law' that I once gave him!"
Li Ying noticed that in the past few days, A Man seemed to be even more indignant than herself. After much thought, she simply took A Man's hand and told her in a soft voice that Lu Xunguang was a trustworthy person.
Although her tone was extremely determined, A Man still remained resentful and snorted suspiciously.
"I just hope he won't let down elder sister's sincerity and trust!"
The two sisters were having a private conversation in the room when Shihu came in a hurry. As soon as he entered the door, he knelt in front of Li Ying with a rather ugly expression.
"Boss Li, I know I'm just a servant and have no right to interfere in your private matters with the young master. But I really can't hold it in anymore! Even if there is a rift between you and the young master, you should still care about his health!"
Li Ying raised her eyebrows, not understanding his meaning.
A Man also frowned.
"Shihu, what do you mean? Isn't Lu Xunguang going to talk to that Qing Liu? It's not like he's going into some dangerous situation. Why are you making it sound so perilous?"
Shihu kowtowed heavily again and then replied firmly, "Boss Li may not know that in order to rush back to the village as soon as possible to celebrate the New Year's Eve with you, the young master hasn't had a proper night's sleep in the capital for many days!"
"Those high - ranking officials and noble families, each and every one of them, required the young master to pay personal visits. The young master drank too much, which damaged his health. He even fell seriously ill. As soon as the high fever subsided, he completely ignored the doctor's advice and traveled day and night from afar!"
"Even if he had an iron - clad body, he couldn't hold on anymore! If not for this, how could he have so easily fallen into someone else's trap?"
A Man and Li Ying glanced at each other. A look of emotion flashed across their faces, but then they said indifferently, "Isn't my elder sister also exhausted? Can it be that only Lu Xunguang has good intentions?"
Shihu had no choice but to give a helpless bitter smile. "The young master repeatedly told us never to tell this to Boss Li, because he didn't want to make her feel embarrassed. But... Boss Li should understand the young master's good intentions!"
"The young master thought you were disgusted that he was tainted by Qing Liu. Now he's standing under the waterfall, saying that he won't stop until he's been there for two hours..."
Before he could finish speaking, Li Ying immediately stood up abruptly.
Although it wasn't extremely cold in the fishing village, Lu Xunguang had just recovered from a serious illness. How could he let the damp and cold air invade his body?
She hadn't blamed him in the first place. She thought he was just going to clarify things with Qing Liu, so she didn't stop him. Who would have thought that this single - minded man would misunderstand her meaning?
Li Ying felt a pang in her heart. Without caring about anything else, she rushed out of the door in a few steps and headed straight for the north of the city.
Because of the breeding of the northern goats, the north of the city hadn't been overly developed yet, and there weren't many tourists. Compared with the lively and festive village, it was rather desolate and deserted at the moment.
Li Ying didn't waste much time before she spotted Lu Xunguang standing on the bluestone platform at a glance.
He was bare - chested, showing his strong chest. His back was covered with criss - cross scars. Presumably, they were left from the near - death experience when he was ambushed and assassinated by Lian Ji and others in the past.
The water mist enveloped his whole body, making him look hazy. Li Ying's heart skipped a beat, and she unconsciously remembered the first time she met him in the dilapidated temple.
At that time, she didn't know that in the future, she would be so deeply entangled with this patient man. She never thought that he would unknowingly become the one she would stay with for the rest of her life without hesitation.
Li Ying couldn't bear to look anymore. She found a path and was about to go up to pull him.
The stone steps were slippery. She walked carefully step by step, almost slipping to the ground. She was afraid of distracting Lu Xunguang, so she was extremely nervous.
Li Ying covered her lips and finally managed to stabilize herself.
"Lu Lang!"
She called out to him, but the rushing sound of the water was so deafening that it mercilessly swallowed up her voice.
Just as Li Ying was about to call out again, Lu Xunguang's immobile body suddenly turned.
She felt a sweet feeling in her heart, thinking that he had noticed her. But unexpectedly, he turned his back even more. Beside him, several of Qing Liu's little sisters were kneeling.
"Master Lu! Please, for the sake of Sister Qing Liu's deep affection for you, save her!"
"Master Lu! Sister Qing Liu knows that she has ruined your marriage with Boss Li and your reputation. She originally wanted to end her life, but her life was saved by you. She hasn't repaid your kindness yet. How could she be so reckless as to die?"
"Sister Qing Liu knows that she has no hope in this life. She just wants to cut off the earthly ties. She... she even wants to shave her hair and become a nun!"
"Master Lu, please have mercy. Sister Qing Liu is a poor girl. Even if you don't want to marry her, it would be good if you could persuade her to change her mind! Sister's long - cherished wish is to find a true love and stay with him until the end of their lives. At such a beautiful age, if she were to enter the nunnery..."
The girls surrounded Lu Xunguang tightly. Regardless of the stinging pain caused by the splashing waterfall on their bodies, they kowtowed one after another sincerely.
Li Ying vaguely heard the general idea. A knowing smile appeared on her fair and delicate face.
What a good move of retreating to advance!
The last time Qing Liu tried to drown herself, it was to portray herself as a chaste and affectionate woman in front of everyone and gain public sympathy.
But she also knew clearly that a calm man like Lu Xunguang would surely detest such petty tricks of crying, making a scene, and threatening to commit suicide.
So this time, she simply changed her strategy and played the role of a woman who was heart - broken and only wanted to get rid of the worldly troubles.
In the storybooks, the people who practiced a simple and ascetic life in front of the dim lamp and the ancient Buddha still had a burning passion in their hearts. This strong sense of contrast was as charming as a poison.
Qing Liu really put some thought into using this tactic against Lu Xunguang.