Love & Redemption
Chapter 82 - 39: Si Feng’s Mask (Part 2)

Chapter 82: Chapter 39: Si Feng’s Mask (Part 2)

The second night.

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The mask had been removed by her, yet he seemed pleased? Xuanji recalled four years ago when his mask had fallen off; back then, he had been terribly depressed and even got punished by their fearsome Palace Master because of it.

She slightly moved, and Yu Sifeng immediately let go of her, wiping his face and said with a faint smile, "Sorry, I got carried away."

Xuanji looked at his pale face, puzzled. Those eyes, clear as autumn waters, were even brighter than four years ago and fixed intently on her. She felt a tightness in her chest and took a long time to remember what she wanted to say.

"I removed your mask without permission, won’t your Palace Master blame you? Last time... did he punish you? Maybe you should put it back on, and I, I’ll pretend I saw nothing."

She covered her eyes, feigning ignorance, which made him burst into laughter. Xuanji, perplexed, lowered her hands and stared at him. He slowly stopped laughing, his eyes slightly curved, and touched her messy hair, saying, "I’m fine, he won’t punish me anymore. From now on... I don’t need to wear the mask anymore."

Why is that so? Xuanji wondered. That mask of his was strange; it seemed to change on its own. She always felt there was an ominous meaning behind it, but he said nothing.

Yu Sifeng picked up the mask himself, caressed it in his hand with a trace of reluctance, as if he was about to abandon an old friend. His fingers lovingly slid over its edges and he softly said, "This mask, made from the bark of the Kunlun Mountain’s Undying Tree and filled with spiritual power, cannot be removed by ordinary people once worn. The time to take it off is now..."

He turned the mask over, pointing at it, and added, "Look, isn’t it smiling?"

Xuanji stared at it for a moment and shook her head, "No, it’s crying."

Yu Sifeng laughed, "It was crying before, but now that you’ve removed it, it is naturally smiling."

"No... it’s crying..." Xuanji struggled to say, the mask obviously had a pained expression, a face streaming with tears, nothing about it was smiling.

Yu Sifeng stared blankly for a moment, then looked down closely and indeed the mask made of Undying Tree bark had a sad expression about to cry, the corners of the mouth drooping, and eyebrows tightly furrowed, showing no sign of a smile.

He himself was puzzled, his hand incessantly touching the drooping corners, as if trying to reshape it into a smile.

"...Strange..." he murmured in a low voice, "Such a thing has never happened before. How could this be... how could this be..."

Xuanji, seeing his deep confusion, urged him anxiously, "Si Feng... if it wants to cry, just let it cry... you, you let it be, it’s just a mask after all."

Yu Sifeng was pale and said softly, "It’s not just an ordinary mask... why does it still cry after you personally removed it?"

"Si Feng?" She didn’t know how to comfort him.

Yu Sifeng lingered in thought for a while, but finally sighed heavily and with pursed lips, said softly, "This mask is specifically prepared for disciples who betray the thirteenth rule of Lize Palace. Other than oneself, only a specific person can remove it. It will gradually turn into a crying face unless that person takes it off; otherwise, it will keep crying until..."

Until what? Xuanji looked at him nervously.

He did not continue speaking, instead, he flipped and turned the mask over and over for a long time before carefully wrapping it in cloth and stuffing it into his sleeve. Then, looking up at her with a slight smile, he gently said, "It’s nothing, just a small punishment from Lize Palace. Since the mask is already off, there’s no use in thinking too much about it. Don’t worry."

He was always like this, never revealing anything he decided against sharing, making it impossible for anyone to ascertain the full story. He did not reveal what the thirteenth rule was, nor what the mixed messages of the mask’s crying and laughing meant. Understanding she could not coax an answer from him, Xuanji could only join him in his befuddlement.

Yu Sifeng pondered for a while, his expression soon returning to normal. He first took out wet bandages from the embroidered leather pouch behind his waist and spread them out on the ground, then selected two of the straightest branches and motioned Xuanji to come over, "Come here, let me set and bandage your bone."

Xuanji obediently gave him her right hand and chuckled sheepishly, asking, "How did you know my right hand was broken?"

He bowed his head carefully aligning her broken bone, his long eyelashes fluttering, as he heard her cry out in pain, then softly said, "Bear with it a little, it’ll be over soon."

After a while, he continued, "When you were injured at that time, knowing I couldn’t handle those demons, I forcefully jumped with you into the lake. We followed the underwater current downwards and when we came ashore, I didn’t notice and stepped into this cave and fell. Your arm hit the ground and couldn’t move, it must be broken."

While speaking, he quickly and adeptly set and bandaged her bone, securing it tightly with the two branches to ensure it wouldn’t come off before finally, profusely sweating, he let go of her hand.

He himself had broken ribs, yet he had held on until now. Xuanji looked at him helplessly, since he didn’t allow her to set his ribs for him, was she supposed to just sit idly by? She took her handkerchief, gently wiped his sweat, and seeing him smile at her from time to time, she couldn’t help saying, "I thought we were going to die, but it turns out we’re still alive."

Yu Sifeng had exerted great effort to fix his own broken ribs. It was painful and exhausting, and his body was drenched with sweat. Lying back down, he looked at the distant opening above him and said softly, "As long as we are alive, there is hope. For now, let’s recuperate here. We still have water in the water bag, enough to last us a few days."

Xuanji, having nothing to do and her back also in severe pain, lay down next to him, and the two idly watched the bright opening together. Suddenly feeling someone watching her, she turned her head and met Yu Sifeng’s smiling eyes.

"Is there something wrong with my face?" She touched her face subconsciously. Like all girls who care about their appearance, she was no exception.

He shook his head with a smile, probably moving his wound, which made him wince with the pain and sweat profusely. She had always appeared light and clean, in her white clothes and black hair, her skin fair as snow, seeming like a Heavenly Immortal not of this world. Now, this Heavenly Immortal had fallen to the ground, covered in dirt, her hair a mess like a bird’s nest, and her face streaked with mud. Honestly, it had given him quite a shock at first sight.

But somehow, he suddenly felt closer to her, thinking he was the first to see her in such an unpolished state, and he felt a surge of joy.

It’s said that impeccably dressed individuals can only impress strangers, while a disheveled appearance is a symbol of intimacy. Unconsciously, he moved closer to her, and the once intangible figure at the tip of his tongue and bottom of his heart finally materialized into flesh.

"Xuanji," he barely managed to lean in closer, their heads almost bumping together, "are you hungry?"

He should not have mentioned it; as soon as he did, she became hungry, covered her empty stomach, looked at him with a fallen face, and nodded, "I’m hungry, but there’s nothing to eat here anyway."

He squinted and smiled, reaching into his leather pouch and rummaging around. After a long while, he finally pulled out a dripping wet steamed bun and stuffed it into her hand.

"Here, it’s nothing fancy, just a leftover bun from the day before yesterday. You eat it."

She held the bun in front of her eyes, staring at it for a long while as if it were not a bun but a flower. Finally, she tore the bun in half, giving him the larger piece and stuffing the smaller one into her mouth.

"Have some too." She mumbled with her mouth full, finding the damp bun incredibly sweet in her hungry state.

But he refused to eat, simply propping his head up and watching her, his gaze as gentle as water. After a long while, seeing her puzzled look, he grinned and pickily said, "I just can’t eat something so coarse. I only eat buns from Yongfang Pavilion."

He really was behaving like a spoiled rich young master . . . in such a deserted place, where could he possibly find a meat bun from Yongfang Pavilion?

Xuanji, feeling defiant, snatched the bun and ate it all herself, choking and hiccupping. Eventually, she managed to straighten her neck and then, very seriously, extended a finger and said, "Do you know what I want to eat now?"

"What?"

"Last time Linglong and the others went down the mountain, they bought pickled duck feet from Qingxiang Building, so delicious I couldn’t eat anything else for three days. Now I really want to eat it." Saliva almost dripped from her mouth.

"That’s nothing. Do you know about the sweet osmanthus seed soup from Liu Feng Restaurant? It’s so sweet and smooth, just smelling it can make you crave it even if you’re full."

"Ah, I also want Peach Seed Chicken Cubes."

"Then I want Eight Treasure Duck."

"I also want . . . roasted venison."

"Then I’ll have another beef noodle dish."

The two suddenly became very enthusiastic about the delicacies from various places. In such a barren place, they ended up salivating more and more, their stomachs rumbling even louder.

Xuanji sighed, closed her eyes, and murmured, "Right now . . . even just soy milk and dough sticks would be fine . . ."

Yu Sifeng waited a long time, but when she didn’t speak again, he turned his head to look, and she had fallen asleep, her breathing sweet. He lowered his gaze, and not knowing quite what he felt, he finally couldn’t resist, leaning over to gently kiss her on the face.

"Xuanji . . ." he softly called her name, the sound echoing in the empty cave, spreading in circles at the tip of his tongue and in his heart. (To be continued. For further episodes, please visit www.qidian.com. More Chapters are available, support the author, support genuine reading!)