Chapter 279 - 172: "Luohe

Chapter 279: Chapter 172: "Luohe

Xie Luohe sighed. "You shouldn’t have gone in."

Zheng Xiu asked, puzzled, "You mean... the Path?"

"What else could I mean?"

"Haha, it’s fine. I went in a long time ago."

Unconcerned, Zheng Xiu waved the Iron Pen again, and the Blood Umbrella dissipated into the wind and snow.

Xie Luohe had wanted to tell him it was a dream, that it wasn’t real.

But the words died on her lips. She knew she couldn’t persuade this man with just a few words, so she could only shake her head and turn toward the cabin.

At the door, Xie Luohe suddenly remembered something. "What’s the name of that pen of yours?" she asked.

Zheng Xiu scratched his head. "I haven’t gotten around to it..."

"Luohe."

Zheng Xiu froze.

"We’ll call it ’Luohe’."

Zheng Xiu was exasperated. "But it’s mine!"

"My people forged it for you," Xie Luohe said, perfectly justified.

Zheng Xiu was speechless.

’Just like a domineering CEO, isn’t she.’

He knew he was in the wrong, so he had no choice but to back down.

But he still refused to concede.

"Why?"

The name itself didn’t matter. Zheng Xiu just felt that Xie Luohe’s motives were unclear.

"Don’t forget, you were the one who proposed the wager. You want me to admit that I’m Feng Bei, and likewise, I want you to admit that you are Gongsun Mo."

A faint smile played on Xie Luohe’s lips as she looked up at the sky. "The snow has stopped."

The snow had stopped.

Xie Luohe told him to wait.

Only when Xie Luohe emerged from the house, changed into a black combat-ready outfit with a pack on her back, did Zheng Xiu realize that today was the "day of departure" she had spoken of.

It was happening today, of all days. Zheng Xiu had every reason to suspect that Xie Luohe knew he was secretly forging a weapon and had been waiting for him to finish before she left.

"We’re leaving today?"

Zheng Xiu asked, his eyes wide.

Xie Luohe was firm. "We’re leaving today."

Xie Luohe brought Xiaotao along.

When the bandits of Yunhe Village heard their Big Leader was leaving, they gathered at the gate, crying and wailing as if the sky were falling.

But Zheng Xiu could clearly see them stifling their laughter. They were obviously thrilled.

’What a bunch of actors.’

After receiving Xie Luohe’s orders, and before Zheng Xiu could make any arrangements, Xiaotao had already packed two large bags and slung them over her back.

"You’re only fourteen. What are you trying to prove?"

Zheng Xiu snatched the bags from her. Inside were clothes, travel money, hidden weapons, Soporific Medicine, Human Skin Masks, wound salves—in short, all the essentials for traveling the Jianghu.

Xie Luohe’s own pack was long and large, clearly concealing her bow.

When Chu Chengfeng and the other two learned that Zheng Xiu was actually going to travel the Jianghu with Xie Luohe, their eyes nearly popped out of their sockets.

This was especially true for Xiao Buping. He had only joined Yunhe Village as a temporary measure and was constantly thinking of escape. Now, Zheng Xiu was actually getting to leave with Xie Luohe... ’Wait a minute.’ Watching the trio from afar, Xiao Buping was suddenly overcome with joy. ’With Xie Luohe gone, and with my unparalleled Qinggong, won’t escaping Yunhe Village be a piece of cake?’

Xie Yunliu walked a few steps with them. The sadness on his face vanished, replaced by a grave expression. "Sis, you must be careful on this journey."

Xie Luohe started, "Don’t..."

Nearby, Zheng Xiu’s ears perked up.

"Hmph. No need to worry. I know what I’m doing."

Xie Yunliu had arranged for three swift horses.

Zheng Xiu deftly mounted one of the horses and held out a hand to Xie Luohe. "Here, ride with me."

The corner of Xie Luohe’s eye twitched. The gesture suddenly reminded her of another time.

"Get lost."

With a light tap of her toes, Xie Luohe leaped onto the other horse.

"Yah!"

Xie Luohe kicked her heels into the horse’s belly, and it shot forward.

His little ploy seemingly exposed, Zheng Xiu could only turn and offer his hand to Xiaotao.

Xiaotao didn’t know how to ride a horse.

Zheng Xiu helped Xiaotao onto his horse. Then, in a voice he thought Xie Luohe couldn’t hear—but which rang in her ears like thunder—he whispered to Xiaotao, "Remember, a young lady should always ride sidesaddle. Don’t be like the others. All that bouncing around... you might bounce off something precious."

Ahead of them, Xie Luohe faltered in the saddle.

Xiaotao didn’t fully understand, but she obediently shifted to sit sidesaddle, squeezed onto the same saddle with her Young Master. It was so warm.

’How embarrassing!’

’To be squeezed so close to the Young Master...’

’It’s so brazen!’

Xiaotao’s face flushed so red it felt like it was on fire.

With Xiaotao seated behind him, Zheng Xiu urged his horse forward, catching up to Xie Luohe.

"Where are we going, anyway?"

Xie Luohe said nothing, her expression sullen. Instead, she held up a red invitation card between two fingers and tossed it at Zheng Xiu’s face.

Zheng Xiu reached out and caught it.

Letting the horse canter on its own, Zheng Xiu glanced at the cover of the card.

The wax seal on the red card had long been broken, and on the cover, two flamboyant words had been written in gold lacquer.

"Heroic Invitation."