And then he saw Jin Zixuan standing there on the side, completely stunned. Of course it had to be that damned asshole again! Wei Wuxian flew into a rage, launched a kick at Jin Zixuan, and the two began to tussle.
It was an earth-shaking fight. All the cultivators in the area swarmed out en masse to try and break the two apart. After piecing together what had happened from all the talk swirling around, Wei Wuxian was even more livid. He demanded that someone drag the female cultivator out for questioning, all while swearing to Jin Zixuan that he would one day die by Wei Wuxian’s hand.
When the full truth came out, Jin Zixuan was completely frozen. His face was ashen, and he didn’t attempt to rebut a single bit of the verbal abuse that Wei Wuxian continued to sling at him. He didn’t even defend himself against Wei Wuxian’s fists. If Jiang Yanli hadn’t gone forward to catch Wei Wuxian’s hand, and if Jiang Cheng and Jin Guangshan hadn’t also shown up to drag Wei Wuxian away, Jin Zixuan probably wouldn’t be participating in today’s Mount Baifeng Siege Hunt.
Though Jiang Yanli remained in Langye to help out, she focused on her own duties and never delivered soup for Jin Zixuan again. She no longer even looked him in the eye.
The crisis in Langye was resolved not long after, so Wei Wuxian and Jiang Cheng took her back home to Yunmeng. Whether it was because he felt guilty, or because he’d been horribly scolded by Madam Jin, Jin Zixuan started asking after Jiang Yanli more and more often after the conclusion of the Sunshot Campaign.
Those who knew about the incident called it a simple misunderstanding. What did it matter, now that things had been cleared up? But Wei Wuxian vehemently refused to accept this. He hated Jin Zixuan—that presumptuous lord princess, that ostentatious peacock, that boggle-eyed blind man who only cared for outside appearances! He didn’t believe for a moment that an arrogant prick like Jin Zixuan would recognize his own mistakes and suddenly start caring about Jiang Yanli. The changes in his behavior were almost certainly only due to Madam Jin’s intervention. She must have badgered and rebuked him so hard that he’d finally dragged himself to reluctantly and arduously complete his mission.
In this present moment however, whatever his personal feelings might be, Wei Wuxian had to stay hidden if he didn’t want to make things difficult for Jiang Yanli. Lan Wangji turned and regarded him with a confused expression. With no time to explain, Wei Wuxian only placed his finger against his lips to gesture for silence before continuing to spy on the other two.
A pair of light eyes briefly stared at those full, wet, warm lips before moving their gaze elsewhere.
On the other side of the clearing, Jin Zixuan pushed apart some tall grasses to reveal the thick, meaty body of a snake monster. He leaned over to examine it for a moment and then announced his findings.
“It’s dead.”
Jiang Yanli nodded.
“It’s a Sizing Snake,” Jin Zixuan explained.
“Pardon?”
“A monster from the barbaric lands in the south,” Jin Zixuan continued on. “When it encounters humans, it’ll push itself upright to compare heights. If it’s taller than you, it’ll swallow you whole. It’s not too tough, though. It only looks scary.”
Jiang Yanli seemed confused as to why he was suddenly giving her such explanations. At times like these, it would have been polite to respond with “Jin-gongzi is very knowledgeable,” “Jin-gongzi is much composed,” or other such polite banalities. But what he had just said was common knowledge, and an extremely shallow observation at that. He seemed to be talking just for the sake of making conversation. Any compliments she paid him would be obviously fake and insincere—Jin Guangyao was probably the only one who could say such things without qualms.
And so, Jiang Yanli could only nod again in response. Wei Wuxian figured she’d been doing that the whole way here.
A suffocating blanket of silence descended on the scene after that. The awkwardness was tangible, oozing through the grass to take hold of the two hiding behind it as well. It was a while before Jin Zixuan finally began to escort Jiang Yanli back the way they came. He was still explaining as he walked.
“The skin of the Sizing Snake is scaled, and its long fangs commonly grow past its chin. That specimen is likely a mutated variety. The average cultivator can’t easily handle them, and common folks can’t even breach the scaled armor.” He paused briefly, then regained his nonchalant tone. “But it’s really no big deal. There’s no prey worthy of note at this year’s Siege Hunt. Well, nothing that can hurt anyone from Lanling.”
That conceited haughtiness surged up again toward the end of his speech. Wei Wuxian was quite irked by the whole thing, but he suddenly noticed that Lan Wangji was staring impassively at Jin Zixuan. He curiously followed his gaze and was instantly struck speechless. Since when does that guy walk like he’s got two left feet?!
“It would be best if no one got hurt at all during Siege Hunts,” Jiang Yanli said.
“What’s the value of prey that can’t do harm?” Jin Zixuan replied. “If you come to the Jin Clan of Lanling’s private hunting grounds, you can see a lot of rare monsters.”
Wei Wuxian snorted in silence. Who wants to go to your family’s hunting grounds?!
It seemed Jin Zixuan had started drafting her itinerary all on his own. “It just so happens that I’m free next month, so I can take you.”
“Many thanks for Jin-gongzi’s invitation, but there is no need to go to the trouble,” Jiang Yanli replied quietly.
Jin Zixuan was taken aback for a moment before blurting out, “Why?”
How did one answer a question like that? Jiang Yanli bowed her head, seeming uneasy.
“You don’t like watching Siege Hunts?” Jin Zixuan guessed.
Jiang Yanli nodded.
Jin Zixuan pressed further. “Then why did you come this time?”
Jiang Yanli certainly wouldn’t have come if it hadn’t been for Madam Jin’s enthusiastic invitation. But how could she provide an answer like that?
Seeing her remain silent, Jin Zixuan’s face turned a myriad of colors, from cherry-red to ashen pale. Clearly extremely upset, he tried to hold it in for a moment, then forced out a stiff question.
“Do you not like watching Siege Hunts, or do you not like being with me?”
“It’s not that…” Jiang Yanli said in a small voice.
Wei Wuxian knew what was going on here. She was afraid that Jin Zixuan had been unwilling to invite her and had only done so because Madam Jin demanded it. And so, she didn’t want to trouble him any further. But how could Jin Zixuan know all that? He only knew that he’d never felt so embarrassed in his life. Not only was this the first time he’d ever been rejected by a girl—it was also the first time he’d ever extended a girl an invitation like this. And it had been rejected! A burst of hostility rushed up within him, and after a moment, he sneered.
“Fine.”
“I’m sorry,” Jiang Yanli apologized.
“What’re you sorry for?” Jin Zixuan said coldly. “Think what you will. Either way, it wasn’t me who wanted to invite you. So if you don’t want to come, then forget about it.”
The blood shot straight to Wei Wuxian’s head. At first, he wanted to charge forth and punch Jin Zixuan again, but then he had a thought. It’ll be good for shijie to see that guy’s true colors and cast him aside forever. Never pay him another thought again. And so, he suppressed his anger and steeled himself to endure it a bit longer.
Jiang Yanli’s lips quivered, but she said nothing. She bowed to Jin Zixuan. “Please excuse me,” she said quietly.
She silently turned to leave on her own and head back to the observation decks. Jin Zixuan stood there numbly for a moment, his gaze directed away from her. Moments later, he suddenly shouted to her.
“Hold it!”
Jiang Yanli didn’t turn around, however, and Jin Zixuan only became more furious. With three large strides, he caught up to her and moved to catch her hand—but was thwarted by the sudden appearance of a black blur in front of him. Before he could see what it was, he received a blow to his chest. Staggering back, Jin Zixuan swiftly drew his sword. When his eyes focused, he made an angry noise.
“Wei Wuxian, why is it you again?!” he raged.
Wei Wuxian, shielding Jiang Yanli behind him, raged right back. “That’s my fucking line—why is it you again?!”
“Attacking for no reason—have you lost your mind?!” Jin Zixuan yelled.