Bai Chenxiang sat on the stone steps, her beautiful eyes staring blankly in the direction of the gate.
The figure she had been anticipating, however, had yet to appear.
The cool aloofness that often adorned her face had faded, replaced by longing and loneliness.
"Three days."
"It’s already been a full three days, and that guy still hasn’t shown up."
Bai Chenxiang spoke in a plaintive tone, murmuring as she recalled the routine of the past half month.
Every morning, fresh and pleasant music from a zither would echo outside the Bai Family Courtyard, the lody lingering and intoxicating all mbers of the Min Clan.
That extraordinarily handso young man with a face that seed not of this world, would sit atop the courtyard wall, the guqin placed on his lap, his fingers like jade gliding and plucking the strings.
Even those who knew nothing of the zither could sense the emotion within the music.
Bai Chenxiang reminisced.
The man was nothing like the others, never crudely shouting out his affections with "I like you," "I love you."
He always poured all his emotions into the music, giving the girl a chance to choose, without feeling any pressure.
Bai Chenxiang had previously thought Luo Yu to be a common man, especially since his earlier actions reeked so strongly of coppery rcantilism, no, of the stench of gold.
But later she realized that was not the case, the man was so romantic.
Sitting and playing a piece on the wall each day, and when he left, there would always be a bunch of fiery red roses left atop the wall.
The aning of roses was self-evident: they represented love.
Bai Chenxiang’s lips parted slightly, exhaling softly.
"He always says nothing, yet it’s as if he’s said everything."
The girl’s heart had nearly succumbed in this half month, her feelings for Luo Yu undergoing a drastic change.
From initial resistance and repulsion, to later curiosity which grew stronger by the day.
A powerful voice in her heart.
Made her irresistibly want to approach the man, to understand him deeply.
But just as Bai Chenxiang’s silent heart began to throb with intense interest, her curiosity reaching its peak, wanting to unveil the man’s mysterious aura.
The guy disappeared!
Yes, as if he had evaporated from the world, completely vanishing from Bai Chenxiang’s life.
Apart from the three glistening mountains of gold in the courtyard and the cluster of fresh flowers preserved in Bai Chenxiang’s boudoir, proving that he had been there, there was no other trace.
"Three days!"
"Where on earth did this guy go?"
A sigh of urgency rose in Bai Chenxiang’s heart.
So things, you never realize their value until they’re lost. Over the past half month, she had grown accustod to Luo Yu showing up at the courtyard wall every day.
Accustod to listening to the man’s music each day.
Accustod to picking up flowers and bringing them back to her room each day.
But... all these habits ca to an abrupt halt three days ago.
Leaving Bai Chenxiang with a sense of emptiness in her soul.
Bai Chenxiang bit her silver teeth.
"It’s just a man gone from my life, isn’t it?"
"What’s the big deal?"
"I’ve been doing just fine all these years by myself, why do I need a man?"
Her words sounded resolute, but Bai Chenxiang’s face turned pale, the desolation clearly visible.
It couldn’t be hidden.
After a long silence, her fingers trembled slightly.
She voiced a thought that she had dared not consider for the past three days.
"Has he... has he given up on ?"
"Bai Chenxiang, Bai Chenxiang, are you perhaps being a little too proud?"
The normally decisive and cool Bai Chenxiang was filled with self-bla, a mix of emotions swirling within.
"Tap tap..."
At that mont, it seed as if there were footsteps coming from outside the door.
"Hmm?"
Bai Chenxiang’s delicate body trembled, ignoring the slight numbness in her legs from squatting too long; she quickly stood up, anxiously looking toward the door.
Her small hand nervously rested on her waist.
Can it be that he has co?
Hmph!
When he cos in, I must ask him where he has been these three days.
Others have begun to have feelings for you, and yet you just give up, how hurtful that is!
Wait a minute, Bai Chenxiang hesitated for an instant.
She couldn’t say it that bluntly; the guy would surely laugh at her and it would be a loss of face.
Just say it’s good to see him, and that he must co every day from now on, no lateness allowed.
No, no.
The girl shook her head, her twin ponytails swaying, her boot-covered feet tapping on the ground.
If she said that, would it make her seem unkind and possibly drive the bad man away in sorrow?
Pfft! Why should I care so much about what he thinks?
Bai Chenxiang was trapped in her indecision, nibbling on her lustrous vermilion lips.
She felt that this bad man really seed to have walked into her heart; the old her would never have been this entangled or cared about soone’s feelings so much.
She waited for a long ti, but no one pushed the door open and ca in.
Bai Chenxiang’s face, lit up with joy, faltered.
She cocked her ear to listen.
The rustling sounds of footsteps gradually faded away.
"A passerby?"
Her voice was full of disappointnt, a bright and splendid flower abruptly wilting.
"Bang bang bang!"
Just then, soone knocked on the door of the Bai Residence.
Bai Chenxiang quickly looked up, her beautiful eyes sparkling with a distinct hue.
"It’s him."
"It must be."
"The Bai Residence hardly receives visitors on a regular basis; it must be him who has co."
She turned into a white streak of light, reaching the door in an instant, moving the door bolt.
She grumbled from the corners of her mouth:
"Stinky man, aren’t you used to climbing over walls? How co you have the decency to use the front door today?"
As the door opened, Bai Chenxiang’s eyes widened, her pupils reflecting the images of three n—old, middle-aged, and young—bearing resemblance to grizzly bears.
The three n of varying ages also stood there dumbfounded, looking embarrassed.
Had they just overheard sothing they shouldn’t have??
The atmosphere turned awkward.
"Ahem!"
The middle-aged man cleared his throat and said in a resonant voice: "Niece Chen Xiang, long ti no see."
"Why is it you guys?" Bai Chenxiang pouted slightly.
"Hiss—"
The expressions on the faces of the trio beca even more awkward.
"This... Niece Chen Xiang, the way you say that makes us feel quite unwelco," said the middle-aged man.
"Whoosh!"
At that mont, a streak of white light flew out from the hall and in the blink of an eye, arrived at the door.
It turned out to be Clan Leader Baihe who had heard the commotion outside.
He greeted them with a smile:
"Old Gorilla, have you brought your children and grandchildren with you?"
The elderly man standing at the door shook his broad shoulders and folded his arms with a cold snort:
"Old White Crane, our Four Great Sects have a gathering every two years. It seems like your Bai Family Courtyard is not all that welcoming to us."
The three were exactly the forefathers and descendants from the Power Clan who had co for the eting.
Titan, Taino, and Tailong.
"Welco, we’re all old friends of many years; how could we not welco you?"
"Co on in, please."
Clan Leader Baihe greeted them warmly and approached the elder Titan, whispering an explanation in his ear:
"Old Gorilla, please be patient, my granddaughter has been moody lately, longing for love; even I dare not provoke her."
"Is that so?"
Titan laughed understandingly, having a notion of what was going on when he recalled the plaintive voice he had heard outside the door.
"No matter, no matter, what young girl doesn’t harbor feelings of love."
"I understand, hahaha."
"Chuff! I’m whispering to you, and you announce it out loud; what’s the point of that?" If Clan Leader Baihe hadn’t thought the other was too tough-skinned, he might’ve slapped him.
"Grandpa, what nonsense are you telling Grandpa Titan?" Bai Chenxiang stomped her jade feet, annoyed, her eyebrows knitting together.
Clan Leader Baihe’s scalp tingled.
He glared at Titan fiercely.
Old Gorilla, do you even have a brain? You’re going to be the death of .
"Ahem."
Clan Leader Titan laughed sheepishly, glancing back at his grandsons with him.
The two hurriedly lifted the gifts they brought.
"Don’t be mad, brother. I know things have been tight for you, so I specifically ca to support you."
"Hmph, indeed things are tight, and I do need your support," Clan Leader Baihe retorted without any pretense to his long-standing friend.
"Don’t worry, it’s all minor things," Titan said generously, laughing. "Our Power Clan still makes a bit of money from ironwork."
"Well then, thanks in advance for your generosity, old friend," Clan Leader Baihe bowed his hands in gratitude.
"Let’s go, we should talk inside," Titan suggested.
As Clan Leader Baihe led them through the main gate into the courtyard, Titan and his grandsons were nearly blinded by a dazzling glare.
"Chuff! Old White Crane, are you trying to kill ? Putting copper mirrors in the yard???"
"What copper mirrors? Take a good look," Clan Leader Baihe replied with a bitter smile.
Upon closer inspection, Titan and his descendants were shocked.
They were dumbstruck, their eyes wide open.
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