As she leaned in, Yi Yan Geng caught her hand and pulled her up, leading her outside.
"What are you doing?"
Xie Jiang had almost kissed him, only to be interrupted and left staring blankly at Yi Yan Geng.
"Let's find a place where there's no one," Yi Yan Geng said as they walked.
Xie Jiang was very confused but still obedient. "Why do we need to find a place with no one? We're not doing anything inappropriate."
Yi Yan Geng automatically ignored her choice of words. "Just the two of us."
Hand in hand, Yi Yan Geng's lips curved upwards, his steps light.
Not just the few counting ants in the corner, but anyone besides her was superfluous.
Yi Yan Geng led her out of the village and towards the quiet, leisurely fields.
He had thought they could stroll through the fields together, like carefree recluses detached from worldly affairs.
However, in the fields that looked quiet and deserted from afar, farmers working the land would occasionally lift their heads from the crops, and one by one, they would look at their clasped hands with curiosity.
Yi Yan Geng's gaze followed their clasped hands, slowly moving upwards, landing on her eyes and brows, which he found unforgettable at first sight.
Thinking of something, he became lost in thought for a moment.
The gentle breeze blew her high ponytail, causing her hair to flutter and intertwine with his jet-black, silken hair.
Xie Jiang couldn't help but laugh. "Do you think these people all assume we're a couple?"
She looked up at him and realized he was spacing out.
Xie Jiang waved her hand in front of him. "What are you thinking about?"
Yi Yan Geng suddenly remembered the first time he met her.
Not the time by Xian Mountain.
It was over two years ago, in the haunted Qian family mansion.
Even now, the memory made his heart pound uncontrollably for a moment.
That night, dark clouds obscured the moon and stars, lightning flashed, as if a demon had appeared.
She, in a black dress, suddenly floated down from the eaves.
The red spider lilies on her skirt seemed to come alive amidst the blood-soaked haunted mansion.
She looked at him and smiled quietly, like a phantom walking in the night, specifically designed to devour people's souls.
Yuan Liu and the others behind him were all dazed, as if their souls had been sucked away, unable to wake for a long time.
Even he…
He still hadn't woken up, nor did he want to.
Perhaps it was that glance that had already consumed his soul, making him no longer his own master.
The swaying hand in front of him pulled Yi Yan Geng out of his memories.
Yi Yan Geng had originally wanted to say that he was thinking about the first time he met her in the haunted Qian family mansion, and at that time, he suspected she was involved in the Qian family massacre.
After all, the Qian family had been wiped out overnight, and the blood aura in the Qian family mansion had lingered for a long time, so much so that even dogs dared not pass by the mansion.
Yet, she, a young girl, had appeared at the Qian family mansion late at night.
But thinking that she had forgotten her past, what was the point of bringing it up again?
Yi Yan Geng gripped the hand he was holding even tighter. "Let them think whatever they want, they are all insignificant people."
Seeing a tea mountain not far ahead, Yi Yan Geng led Xie Jiang towards it.
Xie Jiang saw the lush grass at the foot of the mountain and had a sudden inspiration. She let go of Yi Yan Geng's hand and ran to the side, pulling up a few weeds.
Seeing Yi Yan Geng look over, Xie Jiang hid the weeds behind her back and pushed Yi Yan Geng to walk ahead. "I want to make something small. You're not allowed to peek until it's done."
Yi Yan Geng looked at the clump of weeds behind her, wanting to say something but stopping himself. In the end, he said nothing and quietly walked ahead on the narrow path.
Xie Jiang followed behind Yi Yan Geng, weaving something as she walked.
The two sat down on a patch of grass at the foot of the tea mountain.
Xie Jiang busied herself leaning against Yi Yan Geng's back. After a while, she turned around, propped herself on Yi Yan Geng's shoulder, and presented him with a woven grass item in each hand.
"Which one do you like? We'll each have one."
It was a flying bird and a fish.
Yi Yan Geng glanced at the bird but chose the fish.
Xie Jiang looked at the fish in his hand expectantly. "Oh?"
Yi Yan Geng asked, "What?"
Xie Jiang said, "I thought you would choose the bird."
Yi Yan Geng's eyes flickered. "Why would I choose the bird?"
Xie Jiang replied, "Because I like fish."
His heart, which had suddenly tightened, relaxed in the next moment. Yi Yan Geng's expression remained unchanged. "Then you can weave another one for yourself."
Xie Jiang said, "I'm too lazy to weave."
Yi Yan Geng clutched the fish in his hand, not intending to exchange it for the bird. "I want the fish."
"Alright, it's yours."
Xie Jiang hung the bird on her waist and then helped Yi Yan Geng tie the fish to his belt, her mischievous hand tugging at his belt.
Yi Yan Geng stared into her eyes.
Xie Jiang was not guilty at all and looked at him calmly. "Your belt is of good quality."
Yi Yan Geng lowered his gaze, looking at the little mischievous hand still lingering on his waist. "What else do you want to do?"
"You know the answer already."
Xie Jiang looked around, her eyes lighting up. "It's so quiet here, it's a geomantically auspicious place!"
Yi Yan Geng had not studied geomancy, but he could tell whether a place was auspicious or not at a glance. What kind of auspicious place was this?
"How can you tell this is an auspicious place?"
Xie Jiang stood behind him, tilted his chin up, forcing him to look at her, and raised an eyebrow mischievously. "It's quiet all around, isn't that an auspicious place?"
Yi Yan Geng: "..."
Xie Jiang giggled without restraint, leaning over and parting his jaw, looking down along his Adam's apple. Although his collar was a bit tight, the tighter it was, the more it tickled her fancy.
Xie Jiang's mischievous hands were extremely restless, stroking his cleanly shaven chin, her eyes twinkling lewdly. "Ah, whose young master is this? How did you end up in this desolate place? Don't be afraid, young master, this young master will take you home... Ah, young master, you are so handsome, it truly makes my heart ache with longing. I won't take you home, I won't take you home... I can't walk, I can't move my legs, hurry and let me kiss you, woo ah woo ah woo ah... hurry and let me kiss you..."
Yi Yan Geng looked at her face and lips drawing closer, and his heart struggled for a moment.
It was only because she looked like this. If anyone else made such a greasy expression, he…
He would directly press them into the ground, bury them with soil, and stomp on them fiercely.
Xie Jiang cupped Yi Yan Geng's face in reverse. Just as she was about to plant a kiss on his face and proceed further, she suddenly heard a voice from above with a strong local accent, "Oh my mother!"
Startled, they both looked up.
Two farmers carrying hoes, passing by on the hillside, were even more surprised than they were.
The two big men, hiding in the mountain hollow, embracing each other intimately…
The simple farmers' worldview was shattered.
Xie Jiang blinked at their ill-intentioned eyes and then grabbed Yi Yan Geng's face and kissed him fiercely again.
The simple farmers exclaimed and stumbled away.
The tool, Yi Yan Geng: "..."
Xie Jiang fell to the ground, laughing uncontrollably.
Yi Yan Geng looked at her and shook his head helplessly. "Why are you so mischievous?"
Xie Jiang rolled over and lay on the grass, propping her chin. "It's not like I told them to look around randomly."