Green Mountain
Chapter 102 - 78, See you again someday

Chapter 102: 78, See you again someday

He stood in the brilliant white snow, pouring bucket after bucket of icy cold water over his head to wash away the bloodstains, dust, gunpowder smell, and restlessness from his body, persisting until his skin turned bright red. Then, he finally dried himself off.

Chen Ji returned to his room and changed into dry clothes before lighting the stove in the kitchen and tossing his old clothes into the fire.

He sat on a small bamboo stool in front of the stove, allowing the warm, orange-red glow to envelop him. The dry wood crackled in the fire, creating a particularly peaceful atmosphere.

Wu Yun, stepping lightly through the snow in the yard, came into the kitchen. He jumped onto Chen Ji’s lap and curled up comfortably. "It’s so cold... I followed Gui and Wu Hongbiao, making sure they got out of the city safely before coming back."

"How did they get out of the city?"

Wu Yun responded, "There are subordinates of Gui in the Luocheng Military Department who secretly let them pass. I heard them say on the way that if you had stayed, it would have been very dangerous. Have you considered going to the Jing Dynasty with them? It seems these two new friends really care about you."

Chen Ji smiled as he stroked Wu Yun’s head. "I don’t seem to be good at making friends; as soon as I make a friend, I quickly lose them."

Wu Yun thought for a moment. "I will stay with you."

Chen Ji pondered for a moment. "Now, only Consort Yun in Luocheng knows about my identity as a spy. I need to think about how to keep it a secret."

"Consort Yun," Wu Yun said with annoyance when he remembered her, "She brings Bai Bore to Late Star Garden every day to beat me up, it’s infuriating!"

Chen Ji laughed. "We’ll find a way to get back at her! However, she is a bit different from Princess Consort Jing; we might be able to deal with her."

"Why?"

Chen Ji analyzed, "Princess Consort Jing and Consort Yun are completely different types of people. When you were with Princess Consort Jing, if you couldn’t defeat Bai Bore, you wouldn’t even get to eat, and you’d also get scolded by Chunrong. Look, you have left Late Star Garden for so long now, and she hasn’t even sent anyone to look for you. She’s dangerous because she only cares about herself."

"And what about Consort Yun?"

As Chen Ji recalled, he spoke, "If Bai Bore gets hurt, she would have a doctor treat him. There are persimmons on the tree in her yard for birds to eat during the winter; she leaves room for others in her actions. Also, Princess Bai Li was raised by her, and I think a mother who could raise a daughter like Princess Bai Li can’t be all bad."

"That makes sense."

Voices came from outside the courtyard. Chen Ji used an iron poker to push the clothes that had not yet burned completely into the fire, then he hid the short knife in his sleeve before slowly walking out of the kitchen to check.

In the next moment, he was taken aback.

He saw Bai Li, who had climbed onto the courtyard wall early in the morning, greeting him with a cheerful smile, "Good morning."

Bai Li, teetering on the shoulder of the Princely Heir, had her hair neatly tied back, and the red carp pendant hanging on the collar button of her dress stood out strikingly against the white snow.

Chen Ji hesitated, "Good morning."

Bai Li curiously asked, "Why are you in the yard, did you not sleep last night?"

Chen Ji paused for a moment, "No, I went to bed very early last night and just woke up."

Bai Li was skeptical, "Really?"

"Yes."

Bai Li asked again, "Did you go out last night? Don’t lie to me; I can usually tell when someone is lying."

Before Chen Ji could respond, the Princely Heir interrupted from across the wall, "Bai Li, can you climb over before starting to chat? My shoulders are killing me! Little monk, come let her step on you for a while!"

"Princely Heir, how could I make physical contact with a woman?"

"When those sisters touched your face back in Hongyi Lane, you didn’t refuse then!"

Bai Li, with her hands braced, flipped over the wall and descended step by step down the ladder.

She didn’t care whether the Princely Heir climbed over or not; she just circled around Chen Ji, sizing him up from top to bottom, and even leaned in close to sniff his scent.

Chen Ji laughed helplessly, "Commandery Princess, what’s gotten into you, did something happen last night?"

Bai Li pouted, "Never mind, forget it!"

Chen Ji shook his head, "Commandery Princess, I really have no idea what you’re talking about."

Suddenly, Bai Li sniffed the air, "What is that smell? It doesn’t smell like burning wood."

As she spoke, Bai Li turned and headed for the kitchen, only to be quickly intercepted by Chen Ji at the doorway, "Commandery Princess, the kitchen is smoky and scorched, your white clothes will get dirty if you go in."

"I’m not afraid, I’ll just wash them when I return."

"Smoke stains are hard to wash off."

"Oh," Bai Li turned away, then after a few steps, spun around to catch Chen Ji off guard, but Chen Ji stretched out his arms and stopped her again.

Bai Li gave a sly smile, suddenly bent down, and peeked under Chen Ji’s armpit towards the stove.

Inside the orangish-red fire, Chen Ji’s old clothes had already burned almost completely, leaving only some freshly charred fabric.

Bai Li stood up, triumphantly tapping Chen Ji’s collarbone with her finger, "Don’t worry, my lips are sealed!"

Chen Ji remained silent...

Just then, someone knocked at the Medical Hall door, and the Princely Heir who had just climbed into the courtyard said, "I’ll go open the door."

By the time the Medical Hall’s main door was opened, the wind and snow rushed in, and Liang Gou’er stood at the entrance, disheveled, his hair as messy as a bird’s nest.

Everyone was stunned, for since Jin Zhu last visited, Liang Gou’er had vanished, and Chen Ji thought he might have gone to Hongyi Lane to loiter, but that didn’t seem to be the case now.

Liang Gou’er strode into the courtyard and stuffed a small porcelain bottle into Chen Ji’s hand, "I went to Laojun Mountain to ask Daoist Leader Cen Yunzi for this medicine for you. It’s ’Soft Jade Ointment,’ refined by the medicine officials there. Ordinary sword and blade wounds can heal in three days. It’s very effective."

The Princely Heir and Bai Li’s eyes lit up.

Chen Ji looked at the porcelain bottle in his hand, and then at Liang Gou’er, "Is this for me?"

Liang Gou’er rolled his eyes, "Who else? Although I can’t help you fight against the Eunuch Party, I’m not the type to abandon loyalty. Over three hundred li of mountain roads there and back, it nearly killed me!"

The Princely Heir curiously asked, "Brother Gou, do you have a connection with the Daoist Leader Cen Yunzi of Laojun Mountain? Their medicine is hard to come by."

Liang Gou’er said nonchalantly, "My father knew him, but I don’t."

During the conversation, the little monk slowly clumsily climbed the courtyard wall.

Before he could descend the ladder, the Princely Heir suddenly crouched down, scooped up a large snowball, and with a loud laugh, smashed it on the little monk’s bald head.

"Ouch!" the little monk sprawled on the eaves, caught in a dilemma.

Taking advantage of Chen Ji being distracted, Bai Li secretly molded a ball of snow and stuffed it down his collar.

Seeing Chen Ji cringing from the cold, Bai Li bent over laughing but didn’t expect Chen Ji to grab a handful of snow and stuff it into her mouth.

Liang Mao’er, She Dengke, and Liu Quxing were also awakened, and the three of them, wrapped in cotton jackets, joined the battlefield, and somehow the courtyard turned into a free-for-all snowball fight.

Liang Gou’er watched the group of "kids," chuckling, bent down, and molded a few snowballs.

But the snowball he threw smashed into She Dengke’s face with a "bang," the snowball carrying a gentle True Qi, causing She Dengke to stagger.

He threw another snowball hitting Princess Bai Li on the shoulder, causing the Commandery Princess to topple unsteadily into the snow.

Everyone was dumbfounded, who had ever seen such snowballs?!

In the flurry of heavy snow, the Princely Heir grabbed Liang Gou’er by the waist and roared, "Run!"

The clouds rolled and shifted above; the clouds drifted away, then drifted back.

...

Volume One, First Acquaintance, concluded.