Chapter 91: Battle in the Wilderness |
"I never went there last night."
Zhang Shutong was shocked to his core.
But he'd already been shocked too many times today, so he just instinctively asked:
"That statement... is it also false?"
"It's true."
"Are you saying there are two of you?"
"The person you saw shouldn't have been me."
"Then who was it..."
"I don't know either." Lu Qinglian's brow was still furrowed.
"Are you certain you didn't see wrong?" Lu Qinglian asked again.
"No, and she was also wearing a green robe," Zhang Shutong recalled more details, "Someone from your temple?"
But he immediately realized the temple only had the young woman and the old lady.
"He's not from the temple. Do you remember December 5th, this past Wednesday—that night I went fishing with you all, and left for a while in the middle?" Her speech was rapid, giving him no chance to catch his breath. "You kept asking me what I was doing. Now I can tell you—"
"It was to find him."
"You've also seen yourself?" Zhang Shutong's mind was completely in chaos.
"No, I don't even know who he is."
"What do you mean? Then how would you go looking for him?"
"Let me put it another way, Zhang Shutong." She sighed. "Your questions about me can temporarily be divided into four categories: things I know, things I don't know, things I know but can't tell you, and finally, things you're better off not knowing."
"And this one?"
"Why I'm looking for him is the third kind. As for who he is, that's the second kind."
Zhang Shutong had far too many questions to ask, he didn't even know where to start. He grabbed a handful of snow from the ground and roughly rubbed it on his face. Sure enough, it shocked him awake with its cold. Once his mind had calmed down, he asked the first question:
"You have no connection to the Gu Qiumian family matter?"
"None."
"The truth?"
"Being overly suspicious isn't a good thing. If you're still doubting me, you can carefully recall—whenever I'm unwilling to tell you something, I always phrase it a different way."
"'You can understand it that way for now'?"
"Exactly. It's actually easy to distinguish, unlike how you would fabricate all sorts of lies, isn't it?" she said flatly. "I can roughly understand that your mind is in chaos. In that case, why don't you listen to me first. Why did you suspect me just now? You seemed quite certain that Gu Qiumian would die."
Of course it was because of...
Zhang Shutong hesitated.
The tattoo, the photograph.
And Gu Qiumian's bizarre cause of death.
But now all these clues had completely reversed. He was even wondering—could it be that the clues weren't wrong, but he'd found the wrong "person"? Was the murderer who killed Gu Qiumian in the Cold Blood route really Lu Qinglian, just not this Lu Qinglian standing before him?
But then how could he determine who this Lu Qinglian in front of him was?
Did he still have to distinguish between true and false Lu Qinglians?
Zhang Shutong's scalp tingled.
Calm down, calm down.
First, since this Lu Qinglian remembered the Wednesday incident of catching the poachers, it meant that the Lu Qinglian he'd encountered after his regression was this woman standing before him.
What about that Lu Qinglian from his student days?
He could only establish conditions for communication by first confirming this matter:
"The gloves?"
Zhang Shutong asked again.
Lu Qinglian could indeed quickly understand his meaning:
"I borrowed them, because my hands had cracked from the cold. You lent them to me to clear snow. Anything else you want to confirm?"
"Should be... nothing else."
Mainly because Zhang Shutong couldn't clearly remember the details from his student days.
"Then you should answer my questions now." Lu Qinglian said again. Those amber eyes of hers were indifferent, carrying a sense of pressure. "Be careful—I want the truth."
"Probably had a dream."
"Your dreams are quite vivid." Though she said this, Lu Qinglian's tone had turned cold.
Zhang Shutong knew this excuse was far-fetched, but he still wasn't clear on what the Green Snake Temple actually represented. He'd summarized one pattern—whenever it involved temple matters, Lu Qinglian was very tight-lipped.
Moreover, her current ability to calmly communicate was built on the foundation of considering him an ordinary person;
If he directly told her, "I can regress, and I got this ability from your temple," he didn't know what her attitude would be.
Being suspicious was bad, but Zhang Shutong also wasn't prepared to strip himself completely bare right from the start.
So he could only leave it to dreams.
He'd obtained the ability at the summer festival in the fourth year of junior high.
So even if Lu Qinglian didn't believe the "dream" excuse, the current her couldn't possibly know he could regress.
"It really was a dream." He controlled his subtle facial expressions and looked at her earnestly.
"Mm, it was a dream." The young woman just nodded carelessly. "So?"
"In the dream, Gu Qiumian died, right on that wasteland."
"Cause of death?"
"Don't know." He described the information about the Gu family villa. "Dogs, fences, bodyguards and housekeepers—but she still died on that wasteland. I still can't figure it out."
"So you suspect I killed her?"
"After all, you're quite special." Zhang Shutong continued, "But now I suspect the murderer isn't you, but that shadow I saw last night."
He could now clearly describe his feelings. Finally there was further progress on the murderer's trail, the answer seemed close at hand. On one hand this was naturally exciting, but on the other hand, an existence that even Lu Qinglian didn't know about... what exactly was it?
Zhang Shutong's back ran cold.
"If you don't know who he is, why would you still look for him?" Zhang Shutong asked patiently.
"The Temple Keeper's duty."
"Explain more clearly."
"What do you think is the scope of this temple's jurisdiction?"
"The whole mountain?"
"The entire island. So when certain situations occur on the island, I'll know about it."
"Through those snakes?"
"If you know too much, I'm afraid it'll be difficult for you to leave today."
Another indirect admission.
Zhang Shutong discovered that sometimes her words needed careful consideration.
"Can I understand it as—in you Temple Keepers' eyes, that wasteland to the west has developed some kind of situation?"
"You can."
"What situation?" Zhang Shutong asked without much hope.
"Grandmother told me." Unexpectedly, Lu Qinglian was quite straightforward this time.
"Then just go ask her directly?"
"I don't suggest it."
"What do you mean by 'don't suggest it'?"
"Not seeing her is to protect you, that's all."
"Wait." Zhang Shutong suddenly thought of something. "You came out to find me today—your grandmother doesn't know?"
"She doesn't know."
"Then you still wanted to take me to the temple?"
"Just like how you dug a trap. I also have other preparations."
He suddenly recalled what she'd said at the foot of the mountain:
"...So I won't give you another chance to hesitate. So now it's not about letting you make a decision, but you must—it's beyond your control..."
"What preparations?" Zhang Shutong asked again.
"Preparations to make you tell the truth."
What did that mean?
Zhang Shutong froze again.
Could it be she'd also dug a trap?
Or did she plan to imprison him once he went to the temple?
Torture?
Or administer some kind of drug?
But he heard Lu Qinglian say flatly:
"I told you, being overly suspicious is bad. I understand you better than you imagine. Making you tell the truth doesn't require any methods. Also, I have no intention of harming anyone. If I did, you all wouldn't be in your current situation."
If it weren't for her tone being completely flat, these words would sound somewhat ambiguous.
"By the way, try not to appear in front of my grandmother. I'm also not sure how long I can hide it." Lu Qinglian added meaningfully.
"Hide what?"
"The matter between you and me." Saying this, Lu Qinglian's lips curved up slightly.
Zhang Shutong knew this statement couldn't be taken seriously. It was just something she said offhandedly.
He took the initiative to press pause on this rapid-fire conversation. There was too much information, he needed to digest it.
First. The Green Snake Temple really wasn't an ordinary little temple.
Besides regression, it hid even more secrets.
Second, the young woman wasn't an ordinary young woman.
Third, the young woman's grandmother was probably not the ordinary old person he'd imagined.
Zhang Shutong felt somewhat fortunate. Good thing they hadn't followed through with what he and Qingyi had discussed—to go directly to the temple, bypassing Lu Qinglian.
Finally, the murderer had finally surfaced. Although it was more difficult than imagined, he seemed to have found an opportunity to fight alongside Lu Qinglian in the Cold Blood route—
"Let's cooperate." Zhang Shutong proactively extended his hand, saying earnestly, "I need to catch that murderer. As the Temple Keeper, you also need to find that shadow. At least in this aspect, you and I are on the same side."
"Fine." Saying this, Lu Qinglian's gaze remained on his hand, her body completely still. "I'm not accustomed to physical contact with others. A verbal agreement is fine. I hope you understand."
Zhang Shutong withdrew his hand indifferently:
"Any other intelligence we can exchange? The other party's whereabouts?"
"I've been searching these past few days too. Other than that, there should be nothing else."
"Can those snakes be put to use?"
"Why do you keep bringing up snakes?" Lu Qinglian frowned.
Zhang Shutong knew he was courting death a bit.
"Anyway, you let it slip yourself. I'll help you keep it secret. Can you talk about something else?"
"No." She refused. "But I can tell you, those frozen snakes were outside my expectations."
"You mean, because of this heavy snow?" Only then did Zhang Shutong realize he'd overlooked this snow. Clearly it was the most unexpected thing before all this. "Is it related to the Divine Temple?"
"Unrelated."
"Certain?"
"Certain."
It seemed she also wasn't clear about the origins of this heavy snow. If she wanted to deceive him, she had no need to say this.
Zhang Shutong reviewed the conversation content once more, confirming he'd asked all the questions that should be asked. What remained were either things she didn't know, or matters concerning the Green Snake Temple that she didn't plan to discuss.
But Zhang Shutong now had no time to explore what else that temple hid. As he'd just said, Gu Qiumian's death was imminent. The urgent priority was to reach cooperation and find the murderer together.
He clenched his fist hard. Although today's experiences completely exceeded his imagination, counting them up, they were all positive gains.
Except for being kicked once.
But this matter... Zhang Shutong glanced again at her lightly lifted foot. An eye for an eye—it was actually quite normal.
So Zhang Shutong asked again:
"Then I need to go down the mountain to make some arrangements. What about you, returning to the temple? How do we contact each other in the future?"
He'd originally wanted to say they should keep in constant contact, but then remembered Lu Qinglian didn't even have a phone. There was no way to send messages anytime. He couldn't possibly climb the mountain every time he needed to find her.
"No," Lu Qinglian shook her head, "I'm also going down the mountain. Time is tight. Don't think that thing is easy to find. I also advise you to give up the idea of confronting him directly. Have you considered that since he can enter the villa, he might have unexpected methods?"
"Like those snakes?"
Lu Qinglian fell silent, but her eyes were dangerous.
Zhang Shutong apologized. He didn't want to mention those snakes either, but the only example he could think of for methods beyond common sense was them.
"What about your grandmother's side? Do you need to tell her?"
"She doesn't know school was canceled today, so I can stay outside all day."
"Your relationship with her seems mediocre?" Zhang Shutong read a different meaning from this statement.
"Zhang Shutong-tongxue," Lu Qinglian said coldly, "I've already reminded you three times. I hope there won't be a next time. Your relationship with me hasn't reached the level where you can pry into my private affairs."
Zhang Shutong decisively shut his mouth.
......
However, the woman who just minutes ago had said "my relationship with you isn't good enough for this" was now lying on his back.
Zhang Shutong carried Lu Qinglian on his back, carefully walking down the mountain path.
Her ankle was sprained more severely than he'd imagined. At most she could slowly move on flat ground, but there was no flat path for her to walk on in these surroundings of ice-and-snow-covered mountain rocks.
As for resting in place, that was also impossible. It was very hard to find somewhere to sit down. Even if they found a spot, the surroundings were too cold. Once they stopped moving, body temperature would rapidly drain away. This also confirmed one thing for him—Lu Qinglian should really be human.
Watching her skin become increasingly pale from the cold—normally when frozen, people's skin would only turn red, but Lu Qinglian was exactly the opposite. Her skin revealed a flawless cold light like porcelain, the blood color growing increasingly sparse. Zhang Shutong then proposed carrying her down the mountain.
Now this porcelain-like woman was on his back. Of course he had no romantic thoughts. Right now he was exhausted enough. Every time he took a slightly larger breath it would tug at the wound on his chest. Moreover, once the adrenaline wore off, he discovered not only his chest hurt, but both arms as well.
"Move your hands down a bit." A cold warning came from behind him. "Don't touch my thighs."
"Sorry." He forcefully hoisted the young woman upward, hooking under her knees. "First time carrying a girl, no experience."
"This is also my first time being carried by a male." Lu Qinglian of course wouldn't hook around his neck, but instead gently rested her hands on his shoulders. "So you'd better be careful, Zhang Shutong."
Both felt this topic was best left alone.
He'd just called his mom. Zhang Shutong's face felt a bit hot, because he'd said he wouldn't disturb his dear mother's beauty sleep.
But Mom still rushed over after receiving the call. As for where to go next, honestly Zhang Shutong hadn't figured it out yet, but at least they had to walk down to the foot of the mountain before deciding.
"How much strength do you have left now?" Zhang Shutong asked.
"Dealing with you is no problem."
"I mean if that murderer is really good at fighting, are you confident you can handle them?"
"Not certain."
An itchy sensation came from the back of his neck. He knew it was Lu Qinglian shaking her head, her hair swaying along with the movement.
Logically this should make one's heart race, but Zhang Shutong only felt regret.
It seemed... he'd just weakened the hard-won combat strength like this.
"Sorry."
"You should apologize." Though he couldn't see her expression, there probably wasn't one.
"But what you said in the car made it hard not to overthink things."
He had to explain:
"Like something about how the snakes will resume activity after it warms up, you should be careful not to get bitten..."
"That was to warn you not to develop improper curiosity about those snakes. What did you associate it with?"
Zhang Shutong was silent for a moment, then asked:
"What about that kind of very playful cold laugh? Actually it was quite frightening."
"Did you see that bird?" Unexpectedly Lu Qinglian suddenly asked. "Standing on the second tree over there."
As a result, as soon as Zhang Shutong turned his head, the bird flapped away.
"A startled bird?"
"More or less. Do you still remember the experiment from the first-year biology textbook?" Worthy of being first in the grade, she pulled out examples at will. "Exploring the influence of light on the lives of woodlice."
"What do you mean?"
"The first time I heard the name 'woodlouse,' I found observing them rather interesting. I probably smiled then too. So do you know what I'm thinking now?"
"What?"
"Thank goodness woodlice can't dig holes."
"You're saying that wasn't a cold laugh, but a laugh from observing some kind of organism?" Zhang Shutong understood—this woman was insulting him in a roundabout way.
"You can understand it that way for now." Lu Qinglian said flatly. "On one hand, you're overly suspicious. On the other hand, you do have some things on you that can pique my interest, things worth studying. But don't misunderstand—the interest I'm talking about probably differs greatly from what you understand."
Zhang Shutong couldn't think what it might be. It sounded like he was a lab rat. He could only understand it this way for now.
"When I was young, I raised a cat in the temple. Your reaction to me is about the same as that cat seeing a snake." Lu Qinglian delivered another blow.
"Alright, stop." His face darkened. "Then why did you change your mind again? Shouldn't you have taken me to the temple?"
"That was the original plan, but you got too carried away by the pit, revealing a lot of intelligence. For me, it's enough. Actually, I don't need to tell you too much."
"Can we stop and rest?"
"You're stalling for time again?" She seemed to be frowning.
"No, you're heavier than I imagined..."
"Zhang Shutong, I haven't told your friends yet about how you dug a pit to bury me. Are you sure you want them to know why you dug such a deep hole?"
Zhang Shutong thought of Ruoping and Du Kang's reactions, and shut his mouth again.
What a troublesome woman.
Soon they reached the foot of the mountain. Zhang Shutong could finally be free. He went into the small shop to find a chair and set Lu Qinglian down.
The shop auntie looked at them both very strangely.
Zhang Shutong bought two bottles of water and handed one to Lu Qinglian.
"Thank you." Lu Qinglian politely accepted it.
He went outside again to call his mom. Mom asked how the two of them were enjoying themselves?
Zhang Shutong didn't know how to answer.
She'd probably be dumbfounded when she arrived:
When the two kids left they were fine, how come when they returned one had a sprained ankle and the other had been kicked?
What exactly did you do on that mountain?
Imagining these questions, Zhang Shutong's head ached terribly. Fortunately Lu Qinglian wasn't the type of girl to tattle.
Soon their family's black SUV arrived. He called out to Lu Qinglian, and the two got in the car. Because Lu Qinglian deliberately slowed down, Mom didn't notice her foot was injured.
The first thing she noticed was the empty plastic bag in the young woman's hand:
"You two really did eat the apples. Don't I have great foresight?"
Mom looked at him again with a beaming smile:
"Oh my, who was being stubborn this morning, saying it wasn't a picnic and not to disturb my sleep?"
Zhang Shutong's eye twitched at these words.
That was true.
Not just a picnic, but a wild...
Thinking this, he couldn't help glancing at Lu Qinglian through the rearview mirror. The young woman's expression was calm.
As if this trial in the snow, the chase, the ambush, the counter-ambush, all that expanse of white, the flying snowflakes... all of it was an illusion.
But the pain in his chest told him not much time had passed.
So not just a picnic, but a full-scale battle conducted in the wilderness.
Zhang Shutong came up with an appropriate description.
Yes, that was it.