Chapter Thirty-Three She and He and Her

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  "What a dark horse!"

  After returning to the camp, Chao Qiuge patted the buttocks of Da Hei Ma with eyes full of envy and said.

  More than 300 miles of road, the big black horse carried such a heavy piece of meteorite plus Li Xian, and on the way, it was as if it had been injected with chicken blood, not falling behind Da Xi Chang Ru and Zhao Qiu Ge's horses at all. When they arrived at the camp and stopped, when everyone took the meteorite off the big black horse's back, they discovered another extraordinary aspect of the big black horse.

  Sweat drips from his back like blood.

  "Oh baby!"

  Chao Qiu Ge spoke from the heart, "Such a precious horse is not only hard to come by, but it's also impossible to find. An, if I kowtow three times to you, will you give me the big black horse?"

  Li Xian said: "I'll kowtow thirty times for you, will you then give up and leave?"

  "Ha ha, I'm just envious," Song Hui said with a smile. "General says you're incredibly lucky, and now I've truly witnessed it. You must have accumulated a lot of virtue in your past life to get such a precious horse this lifetime. I'd say you stepped on a bowl of dog poop, but that's an understatement - you must have stepped on a whole carriage full of dog poop to have such luck!"

  Li Xian smiled and said, "If it's really related to dog shit, I don't mind helping you pick it up from tomorrow on. I'll make sure you can't eat, drink, sleep or even take a dump without dog shit!"

  Chao Qiu Ge looked at him with a glance and said: "This horse... damn it, it's really awesome!"

  Li Xian patted the big black horse's buttocks: "Scram, go find your own food, or you'll be so spoiled that you won't know which direction is north."

  The big black horse neighed twice and walked over to the haystack with its head down.

  "Oh no?!"

  "Are you trying to make me die of envy?"

  Li Xian nodded: "Boasting is a good virtue of human beings."

  "Or would you like me to beat you up right now and drag you out for a tour of the entire camp?"

  Li Xian ignored him and asked Da Xi Chang Ru Dao: "Master, when will we start?"

  Daxi Changru asked: "What is the beginning?"

  Li Xian felt a faint sense of foreboding in his heart and asked tentatively, "Didn't you say that you wanted to forge an unparalleled sword?"

  Da Xi Chang Ru nodded: "That's right, otherwise why bother going through great difficulties to bring back the fallen iron?"

  He innocently looked at Li Xian and said seriously: "However... I won't."

  Li Xian let out a sigh of relief: "Fortunately, I didn't guess wrong...... Master, can you surprise me a bit?"

  "I may not be able, but I know who is the best in this world at forging weapons. If he were to lend a hand, he would surely be able to forge an extraordinary treasured sword!"

  Daxi Changru said with a sincere oath.

  Li Xian dragged the meteorite into the campsite and said as he walked, "Apart from your knife skills, I found that you're actually not reliable in anything else."

  Da Xi's face, which was rarely seen with a blush, turned red: "An Zhi..."

  He walked over and helped Li Xian pull the meteorite forward: "I come from a military background, I can teach you some knife skills, making ordinary knives is not a problem. But... this piece of meteorite, I don't dare to forge it carelessly. After leaving Honghua, I've been wandering on the grasslands, my understanding of meteorites isn't inferior to those grassland people. If I were to forge it casually, that would be wasting it!"

  I know!

  Li Xian scratched his head: "You know, I'm just a big mouth, what I said earlier was a joke, don't mind it."

  He smiled at Da Xi Chang Ru and said, "Let's talk about it, who is the one who made the world's number one martial arts equipment?"

  "Her surname is Ye, a very legendary person."

  Da Xi Chang Ru smiled apologetically: "More than a year ago, she was already in Yu Yang Jun, and later also arrived at the grassland. To be honest, your luck is really good. I just knew that she had arrived on the grassland, and even built a thatched hut to live in seclusion by the Weak Luo River, only fifty or so miles away."

  "Is your surname Ye? From Youyang Commandery?"

  Li Xian's heart moved slightly.

  "Master, don't tell me that the Ye Dajia you mentioned, who is said to be the best at crafting weapons in the world... is a woman."

  "How did you know?"

  Daxi Changru was surprised and asked.

  Li Xian sighed: "Not only is she a woman, but also a beautiful woman who makes people unforgettable. I think, I know who you are talking about."

  Yu Yang County Yi Hong Yuan, Ye Family Residence.

  Li Xian's mind involuntarily conjured up the image of that elegant and refined lady, with a smile as captivating as a siren. He recalled the parting words she had given him, tinged with a hint of mockery, and her gentle smile when they last parted ways. When she sat quietly reading, his heart would also calm down. Occasionally, she would reveal a glimpse of her charm, enough to enthrall all who laid eyes on her. It had been a year and a half since they parted, yet whenever he thought of her, Li Xian could still vividly recall her appearance.

  Only she didn't know if she still remembered the young man who had asked her to read the thread-bound edition of Jin Ping Mei.

  Li Xian thought of Ye Dajia, and his heart couldn't help but feel a little regretful. When they parted ways, she had said that she hoped the next time they met, Li Xian wouldn't still be a self-righteous child. A man should have great prospects to be proud of. These words had been etched in Li Xian's mind, and every time he thought of them, his heart would stir up some ripples.

  After careful consideration, Li Xian found that there was no significant difference between his current self and the one from a year and a half ago. The only progress he had made was in his knife skills, which had reached an advanced level. Apart from that, he had grown taller, felt more handsome, but nothing else had changed. Even if he were destined to soar high like an eagle, for now, he still needed the protection of others. He curled up his immature wings and sought warmth under someone else's wing, relying on luck or the charity of others to shield him from the wind and rain.

  Alms, perhaps it's really like that, who knows which old witch's so-called prophecy before her death was just a lie fabricated out of kindness to let herself live on?

  If she were to ask for it so bluntly, would she be ridiculed?

  Li Xian was disappointed to find that this world is really big when it says big, and really small when it says small.

  It's possible that you may never have the chance to meet again with someone you want to see in the future, even if they are only a day or two away from you. For example, Ouyang Qingqing. On the other hand, there are people you don't want to see for five years, ten years, or even half a lifetime, but you end up having to face them again unintentionally, such as Ye Dajia.

  "Yi Hongyuan's Ye Dajia, such a gentle and elegant woman, how could she be an expert in forging weapons? Can she even hold a hammer? Does she dare to approach the furnace?"

  Li Xian couldn't help but question Da Xi Chang Ru's words.

  "Is everyone in the Yihong courtyard?"

  Da Xi Chang Ru sneered, "You think the three words 'Ye Da Jia' refer to a courtesan? Although I don't know how you met her and what happened between you two, there's one thing you must remember. Ye Da Jia, these three words are not referring to her appearance, but rather an honorific title for her unparalleled skill in crafting the world's finest weapons."

  Her name is Ye Huai Xiu.

  Da Xi and Li Xian moved the meteorite into the house, then went to sit at the door.

  Li Xian pulled out a withered grass from the ground and put it in his mouth, sat down beside Da Xi Chang Ru, the two people's shoulders leaned against each other, their line of sight unintentionally looked towards the west where the fiery red sun was about to set but no longer dazzling.

  "This name is great!"

  Li Xian's heartfelt praise.

  "She arrived at Yuyang County more than four years ago and then stayed in that Yi Hong Yuan you mentioned. Hmm... I don't know what kind of person the owner of Yi Hong Yuan is, or what means he used to get Ye Dajia to agree to stay there for three years. And with Ye Dajia's aloof and indifferent personality, she actually ended up living in that old, dirty, and shabby building, and over the past three years, she has hardly ever left that small courtyard."

  For some reason, Da Xi Chang Ru seemed to be very clear about Ye Huai Xiu's situation.

  "A year ago, just after we arrived here, Ye Da Ren also left Youyang County and headed north into the grasslands. I received news a few days ago, so I had Tie Lang Wolf pay special attention to it."

  "The Weak River flows around a small hill about fifty miles away, and Ye Dajia built a thatched hut at the foot of the hill to live in seclusion."

  Daxi Changru said.

  "She's a woman who ran to the wilderness to hide, and even chose to hide in the grasslands between the Xianbei and Khitan tribes. How bold! This place will soon become a battlefield, and even ordinary men wouldn't dare to stay here carelessly. Isn't she afraid that some savage from the grasslands would covet her beauty and take her away to be his wife?"

  Li Xian asked with some sighs.

  Da Xi Chang Ru sighed: "As soon as the banner of Huai Xiu Cao Lu flies, even the leader of the grassland's largest tribe wouldn't dare to provoke her easily. What is she still afraid of?"

  "Rumor has it... she's the sworn sister of Luo Yi, the Tiger General of Youzhou. And for some reason, Ashina Gutu also holds her in high esteem. With these two powerful figures backing her up, there's really nothing to fear in this half of the world."

  "Does it work for both black and white?"

  Li Xian thought of these four words.

  He scratched his hair: "More than a year ago, I saw her. Just... maybe she didn't have a good impression of me, and I was afraid that if I rashly asked her to forge a weapon, she would refuse."

  Da Xi Changru nodded: "Men who go to brothels, she really doesn't think any of them are worthy."

  He turned his head and asked Li Xian: "I'm just curious, when you left Youyang County at the age of eleven, how did you end up in a place like that?"

  Li Xian smiled awkwardly: "Observation... merely in an academic sense."

  Daxi Changru shook his head: "You're also tired today, go back and rest. Tomorrow morning we'll set off early and try our luck."

  Li Xian asked anxiously: "Master, you and she don't have a relationship?"

  Da Xi Chang Ru shook his head: "We met by chance and have a fleeting acquaintance."

  Is it also in Yihongyuan?

  Li Xian is very annoying and always asks too many questions.

  Unexpectedly, Da Xi Chang Ru didn't get angry or refute: "Mm."

  A word made Li Xian have endless reveries.

  Daxi Changru stood up and walked out of the house, not giving Li Xian another chance to continue his nonsense. But Li Xian was certain that there must be some unspeakable secret between Daxi Changru and Ye Huai Shou.

  All the way back over 300 miles without rest, Li Xian was indeed a bit tired. After washing with cold water as usual, he threw himself on the bed, his eyes were very dry and sleepy, but Li Xian couldn't sleep, he didn't even want to close his eyes.

  Because as soon as I close my eyes, the image of that girl with tears welling up in her eyes keeps emerging in my mind.

  "Always feel like I've missed something..."

  Li Xian let out a soft sigh and forced himself to close his eyes.

  You're still not ruthless enough!

  Li Xian found himself hypocritical and shameful.

  If you can really be ruthless, why bother saying those harsh words?

  Green Cow Lake Shore

  A woman wearing exquisite leather armor, with a beauty like a peach blossom, and an air of three parts elegance and seven parts charm, stood by the broken ice at the edge of the lake, and let out a soft sigh.

  She is so beautiful that every man who sees her will have a crush on her.

  The cuirass fits well and the skirt is beautiful.

  "She arrived at the prairie a year ago... I just found out that half a month ago she raised her flag by the Weak Luo River."

  In the morning, the woman's soft sigh was like a spring breeze, rippling a pool of emerald water.

  "She shouldn't have come."

  Rang Long Hong stood behind the woman and spoke softly, so softly that even he himself didn't know what kind of emotion he wanted to express.

  "Why?"

  The charming woman turned around and looked at Dalang's face, asking word by word: "You guard me, she waits for you, is this really the ending we hope to get?"

  She looked into Dalang's eyes with a sincere tone: "Don't think about that anymore, I... have really given up."