h成人

Chapter 63

"It seems... I scared him away?"

Jiang Xiaoxiao wasn\'t entirely sure herself.

Xie Xun felt that something was amiss but couldn\'t quite put his finger on it.

In the end, the only explanation was that Jiang Xiaoxiao was a sorceress, a highly skilled and unconventional one, so it was normal for the Little Ghost to fear her.

Not dwelling further on Jiang Xiaoxiao\'s matter, Xie Xun lit the lanterns in the courtyard and found an iron shovel.

Seeing this, Jiang Xiaoxiao looked puzzled, "It\'s so late, and you still have work to do?"

"I have something buried in the ground here."

With those words, Xie Xun headed towards the only osmanthus tree by the western wall and started digging.

Jiang Xiaoxiao didn\'t ask what was buried, only standing by and watching.

After a while of digging, Xie Xun pulled out a well-preserved box from the ground.

Brushing off the dirt and unwrapping the multiple layers of oiled paper, Xie Xun slowly opened the box.

Inside, a red silk cloth cushioned a blue pyramidal crystal, which had a thread tied to it, allowing it to be worn as a necklace.

Jiang Xiaoxiao had never seen anything like it and was curious, "What is this?"

"A key," Xie Xun said, taking out the crystal.

This was the second key left to him by his Mother.

The Wet nurse had told him before her passing that the second key was very important, and he must cherish it like his own life.

The first key was a bank token that Xie Xun would occasionally use to withdraw money when he was short on funds.

He could understand his Mother leaving him some silver, but this second key...

Xie Xun couldn\'t fathom what could be so important that he had to guard it with his life.

Moreover, the shape of the key was quite peculiar; he had never seen a lock that could be opened by a key of this shape.

As for things from the mountains, Jiang Xiaoxiao had never seen many of them before.

So when Xie Xun said it was a key, she committed it to memory, not asking any further questions.

During their previous move to the County City, they had packed up almost everything from home.

Xie Xun had returned this time solely to retrieve this key.

Not wanting to put it back in the box, he wore the crystal around his neck, keeping it close to his body.

"Aren\'t you going to take anything else?" Jiang Xiaoxiao asked.

Xie Xun surveyed the surroundings, "There\'s nothing else worth taking."

"Yes, there is!" Jiang Xiaoxiao returned to her room and dragged out the box from under the bed, opening the lid.

Inside was the stuffed rabbit she used to love.

"You used to like it so much, but you don\'t like it anymore?" Jiang Xiaoxiao was puzzled.

If one likes something, shouldn\'t they like it forever?

The rabbit was made many years ago, and during their previous visit, Xie Xun had wanted to discard it, but Jiang Xiaoxiao stopped him, saying that he might like it again in the future.

Xie Xun had only embraced the rabbit when he was young due to a lack of a sense of security and having no adults at home. He was afraid to sleep at night, so he hugged the rabbit for psychological comfort.

But now...

Xie Xun glanced at Jiang Xiaoxiao, who was crouching and examining the rabbit, his gaze softening slightly, "It\'s not that I don\'t like it; I just don\'t need it anymore."

In the end, Jiang Xiaoxiao could only watch helplessly as Xie Xun locked the rabbit back in the box.

The carriage driver who had brought Xie Xun and the others to the village yesterday had returned to the County City, but he was back early this morning.

The horse carriage was parked outside the small courtyard.

As Xie Xun and Jiang Xiaoxiao were leaving, Yang Ershun and Chen Sixi happened to arrive.

Village Head Yang, his wife Lin Guifang, and their eldest son Yang Dashun followed behind.

Lin Guifang looked reluctant but, thinking about how her son had nearly lost his life just days after staying at home, she could only swallow her sorrow. She took two steps forward, "Young Master Xie, I just prepared breakfast. Why don\'t you two come and have something before leaving?"

Village Head Yang glanced at her, "What did you call him? Stop babbling nonsense."

Upon hearing this, Lin Guifang hurriedly closed her mouth.

Yang Ershun had briefly mentioned Xie Xun\'s identity to them.

The couple were both tight-lipped, and although they didn\'t spread the news, they still found it hard to believe that Xie Xun, who had lived in their village for over a decade and faced insults and abuse as a child, was actually a Prince. It felt like a dream.

"No need," Xie Xun declined politely.

Seeing his cold demeanor, the Village Head sighed inwardly.

If only he had spoken up for Xie Xun when the villagers had mistreated him, and protected him, would things be different now? Would Xie Xun not be so distant?

Whenever he thought of his silence back then, the Village Head felt profound remorse.

The silence of bystanders is often a silent knife, killing without a trace.

But he only realized this truth now, when it was too late.

No matter what he said, Xie Xun would never harbor any goodwill towards the villagers or even the Yang family.

Looking at Xie Xun, the Village Head said, "From now on, our Ershun will be troubling you. If he misbehaves, feel free to scold or even beat him; don\'t go easy on him."

Chen Sixi could sense the strained relationship between Xie Xun and the villagers.

Even if Yang Ershun followed Jiang Xiaoxiao in cultivation, Xie Xun\'s attitude towards the Yang family remained just as cold.

He glanced at everyone present but didn\'t say a word, not daring to meddle.

It wasn\'t until Xie Xun instructed them to depart that Chen Sixi pulled Yang Ershun onto the carriage.

After the Little Ghost possession incident, Yang Ershun had indeed become much more obedient and well-behaved.

As soon as he boarded the carriage, he took out a few eggs from his bulging bundle and handed one each to Xie Xun, Jiang Xiaoxiao, and Chen Sixi.

"My mother boiled them," Yang Ershun explained. "She said we didn\'t have breakfast before getting on the carriage to the County City, so we\'d definitely get carsick. She told me to bring them to settle our stomachs on the way."

He then produced a water flask, "Sister, this is cool boiled water. Drinking it will prevent stomach aches."

As he spoke, the atmosphere in the carriage finally eased.

Chen Sixi raised his eyebrows, "Little brat, you\'ve transformed after just a few days, haven\'t you?"

Yang Ershun lowered his eyelashes.

Seeing this, Chen Sixi felt somewhat regretful, realizing he might have said the wrong thing.

People need to grow and mature, and Yang Ershun was only seven years old.

The little brat wasn\'t completely disobedient before; it was just that, being a child, he didn\'t think as thoroughly as adults.

Moreover, he hadn\'t fully understood why he needed to learn cultivation before.

From the few days Chen Sixi had interacted with him, he had only heard that Yang Ershun wanted to learn abilities to avoid his father\'s rolling pin beatings, which was why he followed Jiang Xiaoxiao.

After experiencing a life-and-death ordeal these past two days and understanding his goal, it was only natural for him to change.

Chen Sixi, fearing that Yang Ershun might become sullen, quickly finished the last bite of his egg, wiped his hands, and draped his arm over Yang Ershun\'s shoulder, speaking in a nonchalant tone.

"But you know, when I was seven years old, I was much more troublesome than you are now. These days, you\'re already a little grown-up."

Hearing this, Yang Ershun initially felt somewhat gratified, but upon raising his head and seeing no reaction from Xie Xun and Jiang Xiaoxiao, he lowered his gaze again, nervously fidgeting with his fingers.

Jiang Xiaoxiao didn\'t want to argue with a seven-year-old child, but she didn\'t know how to comfort him, so after a long pause, she said, "The eggs were delicious."

Upon hearing these words, the dim light in Yang Ershun\'s eyes gradually brightened.