99 Little Pervert

In winter, even when the sun shone brightly, it was still bitterly cold. A young man in thin yellow robes wandered through the bustling crowd. He wore very little, yet showed no sign of feeling the cold at all.

Several days had passed since his unpleasant parting with Beigong Juechen, and he had not seen the man since. Beigong Qiyi was not worried. The books recorded that "Duqing" had no cure, but Beigong Qiyi knew that aside from "dying together," there was another way to resolve "Duqing"... but no one would ever know that solution again...

Beigong Qiyi could not help but smile. If "Duqing" remained unresolved, what did it matter even if the man recovered his memories? The man held feelings for him—that was enough. Thinking this, Beigong Qiyi's gloomy mood of the past few days could not help but lift.

Brother, I have given you a gift as well... Stroking the crimson jade pendant at his waist, Beigong Qiyi slowly closed his eyes. Reining in his thoughts, he raised his gaze—only to stop in his tracks at the sight of a figure not far away. The person was watching him from across the crowd, and Beigong Qiyi's heart instantly sank again.

How long had it been? Ximo did not know. Ever since leaving "Li Manor" and leaving Beigong Qiyi, Ximo had deliberately avoided hearing any news about them, burying himself in training alone. Yet he never expected to run into him again today. He had not changed at all... Ximo watched from afar and could not help but smile bitterly. He had obtained the person he had dreamed of—surely he was living well now...

Ximo stood rooted to the spot, unsure whether to leave or stay. He had thought that deliberately forgetting would truly let him forget, but seeing Beigong Qiyi again today, he realized that some people do not merely live in your memories—they live in your heart, and the longer they stay, the deeper they become...

And while Ximo was hesitating, Beigong Qiyi walked over first. On that day, when Mumin asked him whether he felt guilty toward Ximo, he had denied it without hesitation. What he felt toward Ximo was indeed not guilt. He did not know what his feelings for Ximo were either. He knew clearly that he did not love him, but in that moment just now when he saw Ximo, his heart had jolted.

"Long time no see." Beigong Qiyi walked slowly to Ximo's side, smiling lightly. Ximo stared dazedly at the young man before him. From the moment he began walking toward him, Ximo's heart had started racing—but when the young man stopped beside him, Ximo found that his heart seemed to have stopped entirely.

Beigong Qiyi was exactly as breathtakingly beautiful as in his memory. Ximo blinked his aching eyes. "Young... young lord." He found that his voice was hoarse and dry, just like his eyes.

Beigong Qiyi smiled. "You need not call me 'young lord' anymore." Ximo's eyes instantly reddened. Yes—he was no longer Ximo, the little follower by his side, so what right did he have to call him young lord? Ximo thought, staring at Beigong Qiyi with burning red eyes.

His tears swirled in his eyes, yet stubbornly refused to fall. His lips trembled continuously, but no words came out, because Ximo knew that the moment he opened his mouth, he would be sobbing. He did not want to show weakness in front of Beigong Qiyi.

The person before him was still as thin and lean as when he had been at his side. Beigong Qiyi let out a low sigh and suddenly reached out to pull Ximo into his embrace. Ximo's eyes flew wide, unfocused, staring blankly ahead. After a moment, he suddenly clutched Beigong Qiyi's robes tightly, squeezed his eyes shut, and let his tears fall in streams. Ximo silently bit his lower lip, not making a single sound.

Gently patting Ximo's frail back, Beigong Qiyi whispered in his ear: "Ximo, I once said that no matter what mistakes you made, it didn't matter—but you could not betray me. You know, I gave you the choice. From the moment you helped my brother leave the manor, you could no longer stay by my side..."

The hands clutching Beigong Qiyi's robes tightened further. Ximo buried his face deep into Beigong Qiyi's shoulder. He knew—but he could not help it. As much as he loved Beigong Qiyi, that was how much he envied Beigong Juechen. He had not wanted Beigong Juechen to keep Beigong Qiyi by his side, but he had never imagined that everything was a trap laid by the young man himself. He had truly lost everything in the process...

"You are like a younger brother to me in my heart. I cherish you and spoil you, but Ximo, the one thing I can never give you is affection." A chilling wetness seeped through his shoulder. Beigong Qiyi gently stroked Ximo's long hair and said softly: "It is better that you left me. At least you will not sink even deeper."

"Young lord! Young lord!" Ximo lifted his head and grabbed Beigong Qiyi's wrist. "Young lord, I was wrong. I should not have revealed the lord's whereabouts. I was wrong, I don't want to leave you, young lord..." This was the last time he would stake his dignity, hoping only to remain by Beigong Qiyi's side.

Gently wiping the tears from Ximo's face, Beigong Qiyi smiled warmly, but the words he spoke chilled Ximo to the bone: "Ximo, you cannot stay by my side."

The hope in his eyes gradually turned to dead ash. Ximo staggered back two steps and laughed bitterly under his breath: "I should have known long ago. Someone like you is simply cold-hearted. I actually dared to hope you would spare me a shred of tenderness—it really was just wishful thinking..." As he spoke, Ximo roughly wiped the tears from his face. He raised his head and stared at Beigong Qiyi through tear-filled eyes, forcing a smile. "Beigong Qiyi, goodbye."

The slender figure slowly disappeared into the crowd. Beigong Qiyi watched from afar, feeling the weight in his chest grow even heavier. Ximo, you are wrong again. I am not a cold-hearted person, nor am I unwilling to spare you a shred of tenderness—but if you remained by my side, you would only suffer even more.

Better to end the pain quickly than to drag it out. Ximo, grow up...

"Young lord truly is a heartless one," Ran Luo said, gliding gracefully to stand behind Beigong Qiyi. "Using everyone around you that can be used—truly, you stop at nothing to achieve your goals."

Glancing at her sidelong with a faint expression, Beigong Qiyi smiled lightly. "Sect Leader Ran, have you forgotten the deal we once made? If anything, we are the same kind of people."

"I am not the same as you." Ran Luo's face suddenly darkened. "At the very least, I would not hurt the ones I love under the pretense of love." She took another small step forward, nearly pressing against him. "Compared to you, I am far more normal. Beigong Qiyi, you are a deviant."

Beigong Qiyi turned to look at Ran Luo, a hint of mockery on his strikingly handsome face. "Sect Leader Ran, why must you criticize me when you are just as bad? I am a deviant, but you are no normal person either. If you could control Qiang Yanxi, why would you not simply keep her imprisoned by your side? You refine gu with living people and turn your enemies into gu puppets. Ran Luo, compared to me, how much more normal are you, really?"

Ran Luo's expression shifted, and a chill flashed sharply in her seductive peach-blossom eyes. She stared straight at Beigong Qiyi. The young man's expression did not change, but his pitch-black, glass-like eyes grew even darker. After a long standoff, Ran Luo suddenly smiled. "The young lord is right. The gap between you and me is no more than fifty steps versus a hundred. I happened to run into you today only to tell you this: yesterday I went to see my brother and happened to run into Lord Beigong as well."

His eyes narrowed slightly. Beigong Qiyi said: "May I ask what Sect Leader Ran said to my brother?" Hiding her face behind her sleeve, Ran Luo laughed lightly. "The young lord need not be agitated. I did not say anything to Lord Beigong. However, I did learn from Lord Beigong that he has been afflicted with 'Duqing.'"

"So what of it?" Beigong Qiyi said in a low voice. Ran Luo pursed her lips and blinked, then said softly: "The books record that 'Duqing' has no solution other than the death of both the one who cast the gu and the one who bears it. In other words, 'Duqing' is essentially incurable. But I would like to ask the young lord—is 'Duqing' truly beyond any other remedy?"

Beigong Qiyi's heart tightened. His pitch-black eyes were like two coldly gleaming swords, shooting straight at Ran Luo. "Does Sect Leader Ran know of another solution?" Ran Luo stared into Beigong Qiyi's eyes, her smile undiminished. "The young lord is a genius at crafting gu and equally a genius at dissolving them. You must know that all things in this world give rise to and overcome one another. Since a gu poison can be made, there must naturally be a way to unmake it."

Beigong Qiyi secretly breathed a sigh of relief. Looking at her, he said with a light smile: "Since Sect Leader Ran suspects 'Duqing' has another solution, then go find it. Forgive my shallow learning—I do not know of any other remedy."

"Is the young lord truly unaware, or..." Ran Luo's eyes narrowed as she said in a low voice: "...or does the young lord know, but is unwilling to say?" The wind blew the hair on the young man's forehead across his face. Beigong Qiyi casually brushed it aside and said with an ambiguous smile: "Why must Sect Leader Ran ask me? Even setting aside the fact that I do not know—even if I did, do you think I would tell you?"

Seeming to have obtained the answer she wanted, Ran Luo lowered her gaze and smiled softly, not pressing further. That "Duqing" had another solution known to someone did not bother Beigong Qiyi in the slightest, because they could only know that another solution existed—never what that solution actually was.

"If Sect Leader Ran has nothing else, I shall take my leave." Before his words even faded, he suddenly darted to the side. Where he had stood a moment before, a flying dart whistled past, grazing a strand of Ran Luo's hair and embedding itself in the wall of a nearby building.

Raising his eyes to look at the dart glinting coldly in the sunlight, Beigong Qiyi already knew who had come. He smoothed his robes and raised his voice slightly. "Long time no see, Miss Qiang. Your dart technique is still as precise as ever."

A dark figure flashed into view. Qiang Yanxi stood beside Ran Luo with a cold face. The streets, which had been fairly crowded, now held only three people. Beigong Qiyi casually flicked his hair aside. "Though Miss Qiang's darts are accurate, attacking from the shadows is hardly the act of a gentleman after all."

"With you, there is no need." Qiang Yanxi said coldly. Beigong Qiyi let out a light sigh and put on a wounded expression. "Ah, Miss Qiang, even though you did not become my sister-in-law, it was you who left with the person beside you at your own wedding. That has nothing to do with me. Why must you keep targeting me?"

Qiang Yanxi's expression turned even colder. Ran Luo knew things were about to go wrong and moved to stop her, but it was already too late. Three darts flew from Qiang Yanxi's sleeve, shooting straight toward the three major acupoints on Beigong Qiyi's upper body.