Rebirth of an Idle Noblewoman

Gu Xiqiao wasn’t bothered with the group of people anymore, waving her hand to dispel the river. She then let Yi Tong lead the Lisu Tribe people out of the room.

After all this, Cecily finally snapped out of her daze. She was still looking at Gu Xiqiao in shock, her mouth moving but no words coming out. She was about to say something finally, but then she caught a glimpse of Jiang Shuxuan’s eyes. They were cold and dark, like being stuck in ice and snow.

Cecily shuddered, turning pale when she thought back to the beating that he had handed out to her, the pain still felt deep in her bones.

“Q-Qiao… Qiao Qiao, I suddenly recalled something that I need to do. I’ll leave first.” Cecily tried to stop the chattering of her teeth, stumbling slightly as she turned to leave.

Gu Xiqiao’s eyes turned from Jiang Shuxuan’s to her face. “What’s wrong?”

Didn’t she long to come in just now, why did she suddenly want to leave now?

“I realize that I still have something to do!” Cecily didn’t dare to look at Jiang Shuxuan’s face, and although she still had a lot of things she wanted to talk to Gu Xiqiao about, there was a time and place for everything.

Just seeing Jiang Shuxuan in person was enough to send a healthy dose of fear through her.

Yi Bing and Yi Tong watched as Cecily left with shaking legs—their faces full of doubt and confusion. Hadn’t Cecily insisted on seeing Big Boss Jiang last time? Why did she look like she had seen a ghost when she looked at him now?

The two of them looked at each other silently, then to Jiang Shuxuan’s indifferent face. They then recalled the time that Jiang Shuxuan had beaten up Cecily.

Looks like he didn’t just give her a beating?

The two of them thought a while longer on it, then brushed it aside, looking at Gu XIqiao instead. Their eyes were burning, and looked like it could burn holes into anyone they looked at. “Miss Gu, that witchcraft that you just used?”

Thinking back to the turbulent river that had appeared just now, Yi Tong and Yi Bing were dumbfounded.

“Oh that, it’s fake.” Gu Xiqiao looked at them, before continuing, “I had a fight with a Taoist priest a few months ago in the capital, and he had a lot of talisman paper in his hand. This was one of them, it isn’t any witchcraft or anything. Witchcraft isn’t something that’s so easy, and the Lisu Tribe people really don’t understand the kind of wealth that they have in their hands.”

Hearing her explanation, Yi Tong and Yi Bing let out a sigh of relief.

“Two of you.” Jiang Shuxuan squeezed Gu Xiqiao’s hands, and looked up at them. “Tell Yi Tiao to head for the third level punishment.”

“Third level punishment?” Yi Tong was taken aback at the sudden order. “What did Yi Tiao do?” Wasn’t he just guarding the door? Why the sudden punishment?

Yi Bing immediately moved to cover Yi Tong’s mouth, and made them bow lowly. “Big Boss, we’ll go first then.”

After getting out of the room, Yi Tong slapped his hand away. “What the h*ll!”

“Just now, Yi Tiao let Miss Xiahou in.” Yi Bing looked at Yi Tong in the eye, explaining in a flat tone. Having said that, he walked away, not bothered about Yi Tong’s reaction.

Yi Tong stood rooted to the spot, carefully repeating Yi Bing’s words under his breath before taking a deep breath. “This idiot! The third level punishment? The second level is the lightest!”

In the room, Yi Tong and Yi Bing had closed the door when they left.

Gu Xiqiao looked at Jiang Shuxuan and asked thoughtfully, “What did you do? Cecy looked like she was scared out of her wits just looking at you?” Cecily was shaking all over!

Jiang Shuxuan didn’t reply, just lowering his head to look at her. His eyes darkened as he leaned over slowly, his left arm circling around her waist to pull her closer, while his right lifted her chin.

A scorching heat rushed through him, and warm lips pressed hard against the other, molding against them.

“B-Brother… Jiang…” Gu Xiqiao’s eyes fluttered as she looked at the man, her eyes slightly glazed over. She hadn’t even finished her sentence, and had thought about pushing him away but was afraid that she would agitate his back.

The words that she had yet to say were swallowed down as he pressed his warm lips against hers over and over again, and after a long while, he finally stopped. His voice was low and husky when he spoke, “Cecy? Are you close to her?”

Jiang Shuxuan raised his head to look at Gu Xiqiao. Her peach-colored lips were parted slightly, more red than usual and a little swollen. It was very enticing. His fingers reached out to press on them, and after a while, he leaned down to press a lingering, soft kiss on her.

Half a moment later, Jiang Shuxuan stopped again. “Close with her?”

“… No.”

Giving her a small smile of satisfaction, he pressed another kiss to the corner of her mouth, and then leaned back against his chair, picking up the documents once again.

2

“You’ve had such a serious injury, don’t look at these anymore.” Gu Xiqiao plucked the documents out from his hand. “Go and rest!”

“The sooner I finish, the sooner we can head home.”

Gu Xiqiao calmly picked up the pile of documents, scanning through it. “What do you need from this? I’ll summarize it for you.”

Jiang Shuxuan watched her read through the entire pile of documents in a file in almost an instant. “…”

“How did you get injured?” Gu Xiqiao raised her head and asked, the second folder already in her hands. Her clear, bright eyes were fixed on him.

“I was careless,” Jiang Shuxuan replied calmly.

“Like I believe that?”

Jiang Shuxuan paused, clearing his throat. “It’s true.”

“You don’t have to tell me, I can always ask Yi Bing.” Gu Xiqiao was also calm. “There will be someone who will tell me eventually.” Petty! You even dare to hide it from me?

Jiang Shuxuan’s eyes drifted slightly when he heard her words. “When I was investigating the malicious vortex, I received a text message and got… distracted.”

“A text?” Gu Xiqiao scrutinized Jiang Shuxuan’s cold face for a while, to the point that there was a hint of blush on it. “What message? He was just a calm and logical person, how could he be distracted by a message, of all things?

“It was about you…” Jiang Shuxuan gritted out, pulling out his phone. He pulled up the said message, and pointed to the figure inside it, a blank expression on his face. “Who is this?”

Gu Xiqiao leaned closer to him to look, and her mouth twitched.

The picture was of her and Ying Xu.

“Because of this?” She couldn’t help but pressed her fingers to her temple. Thinking back to the deep wound on his back, one that was deep enough to see the bone, she was distressed and angry. “Are you stupid!”

Because of this? Jiang Shuxuan pointed at Ying Xu’s face. “Look at the way he’s looking at you!”

Gu Xiqiao looked at the picture again. At such a distance, no matter how much the resolution of the picture the phone could take, the face of the person was just a dot. What look was he giving her? She straightened up, glancing at him. “Then what about that Xiahou Chengqin today then?”

Jiang Shuxuan’s eyes lowered when he heard that, his head bent down to hide the expression in his eyes. He reached out to pull her close, his chin on her shoulder as he said lightly, “I’ll make her disappear tomorrow.”

This tone of his really, it sounded like something so natural no matter how she thought about it.

Gu Xiqiao wasn’t sure whether she wanted to laugh or cry at this.

“Okay, fine. Don’t do anything stupid.” Seeing the serious look on his face, Gu Xiqiao said sternly, “Brother Jiang, did you hear me?” He had an image and identity to uphold, and he couldn’t simply do anything rash like her. More importantly, it was hard to go against heaven’s will.

There was no response from him this time, only the deep breathing that she could feel at her neck.

Gu Xiqiao turned slightly to find that he had fallen asleep.

His eyebrows were furrowed even in his sleep, and there were marks under his eyes. How many days has it been since he had a good sleep?

Her hands came up, slowly soothing the furrowed brows, and she let out a soft sigh.

In the quiet of the room, only the occasional turning of paper could be heard.

There weren’t many documents, and most of them had Gu Xiqiao’s intervention in it, adding on how fast she was able to read, it didn’t’ take long before she was done. After reading through it, she took a pen and circled the main points, intending to show Jiang Shuxuan when he woke up.

Jiang Shuxuan slept through noon till night.

The temperature in the desert was vastly different at noon and night. Gu Xiqiao wore a long dress in the afternoon, but when night fell she already had her light blue coat on. She opened the door, handing the pile of documents to Yi Bing who was standing outside.

Yi Bing was just about to raise his hand to knock on the door, but before his knuckles could touch it, the door was opened. After being surprised for a moment, he took the documents from Gu Xiqiao. Big Boss was so fast about it today?

“Dinner is ready, Miss Gu. Do you want me to bring it over, or will you be joining us in the hall?” Yi Bing asked.

Gu Xiqiao thought about Jiang Shuxuan’s injury, and she shook her head. “Send it over, please.”

Yi Bing nodded and was about to leave when a cold voice came from inside the room. “Has Yi Tiao gone to accept his punishment yet?”

“Yi Tong and I are getting ready to take him.” Yi Bing leaned over a little, his heart silently sending a prayer for Yi Tiao.

Jiang Shuxuan walked out slowly, and he said, “You don’t have to bring dinner over. Go on down.”

His eyes were unusually colder than usual, and Yi Bing felt like he couldn’t leave fast enough.

“Third level punishment? What did Yi Tiao do?” Gu Xiqiao asked, raising her head to look at Jiang Shuxuan.

“Military orders are absolute.” Jiang Shuxuan frowned. “Why do you care about him?”

Having said that, he took Gu Xiqiao’s hand in his own. “I’ll take you out to eat.”

“Hey, you’re injured!” Gu Xiqiao protested, worried that his wound would reopen with all the movements he was making. “Jiang Shuxuan, do you not value your life? Why can’t you stay in the room quietly? If you want to eat, I can bring it over!”

Jiang Shuxuan paused in his steps, and lowered his head to look at her. “Call me Brother Jiang¹.”

“… Brother Jiang.”

Jiang Shuxuan nodded in satisfaction and continued to pull her along to the outside.

***

In the city, Yi Tong and Yi Bing were escorting Yi Tiao for his punishment.

“I don’t pity you one bit this time.” Yi Bing said, looking at Yi Tiao as he patted the latter’s shoulder. “Of all the people that you could’ve let in, you had to let in Xiahou Chengqin? It’s not like you don’t know she’s…”

Yi Bing suddenly recalled that they were outside, and he shut his mouth immediately. “Just… reflect on your actions. You only have yourself to blame.”

Yi Tiao shook his head. “Xiahou Chegqin said that she was the only one in the world that was able to cure Big Boss when she came, and I had to let her in, even if it meant risking his anger.” Even if he could do it all over again, he wouldn’t change a thing.

“Even if you let her in, did you think Big Boss was going to accept treatment from her?” Yi Tong said softly.

Yi Tiao was startled at this, and when he thought of Jiang Shuxuan’s attitude, that was indeed something possible that the man would do.

“You’re lucky that Miss Gu turned up at that time, otherwise there would be blood decorating the floors.” Yi Bing pursed his lips.

“That bad?” Yi Tong asked, stunned.

“Why did you think Miss Gu made that long river appear for?” Yi Bing laughed lightly.

“Wasn’t it to teach the Lisu Tribe people a lesson?” Yi Tong was confused.

Yi Bing gave him a contemptuous look. “Although Miss Gu looks like a kind person, she is not a fool. Think about the Bai family and the many others in the capital that had basically been tortured to death by her. The reason she released that river wasn’t for the sake of the Lisu Tribe, it was to stop Big Boss from doing anything.”

There wasn’t any secret to Gu Xiqiao’s identity anymore, especially to these people. They clearly knew way more than any other outsider.

Those people in the Imperial Capital that had rubbed her the wrong way, which one of them didn’t get their just desserts from her? Yi Tong gave him a look. “No wonder Big Boss likes to call on you.” Why don’t you just ascend to the heavens if you’re so great?

The three of them continued to march forward, and when they passed the Xiahou family medicine hall, Yi Tong stopped suddenly. Yi Bing and Yi Tiao looked at him with some suspicion on their faces as they stopped with him. “Yi Tong, what are you doing?”

Yi Tong didn’t answer, frowning as he looked at Xiahou Chengqin, who was in the sitting hall.

Xiahou Chengqin had returned to the building like a person who had lost their soul. All the belief and confidence that she had in her whole life had been shattered. Everything that Gu Xiqiao had shown her had given her a significant blow, and she began to doubt herself. Was the path of sorcery that she had walked been wrong all along?

“Miss Xiahou, the young master of the Wang Tribe has fallen ill, and they’re here in our halls now. Please hurry and have a look!” A fat man came in, speaking respectfully to her.

He was looking at Xiahou Chengqin with eyes full of admiration and worship.

Xiahou Chengqin froze for a moment, and her shattered faith was slowly pieced back together. She repeatedly told herself that the sorcery that she had painstakingly studied wouldn’t be any less better than some young little girl from nowhere. The people in the medicine hall who were looking at her with respect and worship only served to affirm her belief in herself.

This gave a huge boost to her self-confidence and courage, and her expression shifted. The lost lamb look that she had previously disappeared, and she stood tall once again.

“Miss Xiahou, please save my son!” The leader of the Wang Tribe was carrying his son as he came in, his voice choked up as he pleaded.

 Xiahou Chegnqin walked over with a talisman, but before she reached, she heard another voice carry over. “This gentleman, I’d advise you not to place your son in Xiahou Chengqin’s hands. She only knows how to cause harm to people, and not how to cure illness. Miss Gu is staying in the front building, and if you’re willing, I can call her over to treat your son.”

The patriarch of the Wang Tribe held his son tightly, watching as Xiaohou Chengqin stopped her drawing of the talisman when the voice drifted over. He turned his head to snap at the person. “Where did this ignorant child come from? Miss Xiahou’s family has generations of doctors, and have saved countless lives. She’s not someone who can be compared to any ordinary people!”

“Miss Xiahou, don’t bother about this lunatic. Please treat his illness.” Having said that, he turned towards Xiahou Chengqin, his eyes full of reverence.

Yi Tong was angry. Gu Xiqiao had said that Xiahou Chengqin’s so-called sorcery was initially the art of calling down the winds and the rain. Disregarding exorcising evil spirits, but it wasn’t meant to be used as a way to save people. When the illness resurfaces again, it would be too late to turn a hopeless situation around!

He grabbed a patient who was about to enter, his voice rough as he said, “Listen to me, look for Miss Gu, or some other doctor. Xiahou Chengqin will kill you!”

“If Miss Xiahou is here, what other doctor would dare to go out and dig a hole for themselves?” That patient pushed his hand aside and sneered at him. “You’re not from around here are you? Wait till you see how Miss Xiahou heals us, then you’ll know why she is so revered. What Miss Gu you’re going on about, I think you’re people sent here by her, hmm? Really, how dare someone insignificant come and try to slander Miss Xiahou!”

Saying that, the person joined the people around and pushed Yi Tong out. “Go on and tell that Miss Gu, don’t come out and shame herself!”

Everyone laughed at that, really, where did these people come from? They weren’t even well informed about Miss Xiahou’s identity, and they dared to challenge her.

They really didn’t know their own place!

Xiahou Chengqin obviously recognized Yi Tong, and when she heard his words, she was so angry to the point that her lungs and heart ached.

Fortunately, the reaction of the people around her gave her the confidence that she needed. She quickly drew on the talisman and pasted it on the forehead of the child from the Wang Tribe. She then fed him some water that was mixed with a burnt talisman, and the boy started to stir. Seeing the child waking up, Xiahou Chengqin breathed a sigh of relief.

The people around cried out at the miracle that they had just witnessed.

Yi Tong stood at the side, stomping his foot. “They dare to ignore my words, hmph! Just wait, even if you cry and beg me later, I won’t recommend Miss Gu to come help them!”

“What did you mean by that just now, Yi Tong?” Yi Bing and Yi Tiao walked over, not knowing why Yi Tong would suddenly go nuts and say things like that.

“It’s because I pity that child, he’s only what, seven, eight years old? And he’s going to be put to death by Xiahou Chengqin. Miss Gu has said that the talisman only temporarily controls the body with some mysterious power, but the illness is still there. Once it gets out of hand, even the gods will not be able to save them anymore.” Yi Tong glanced again at the waking child, gritting his teeth, it was so tempting to shred Xiahou Chengqin into pieces right now. “What rotten luck that there’s only a sorceress here, and no other doctors!”

“How slanderous of your ignorant mouth, daring to curse my son!” The Wang Tribe leader shouted. “Get out of here! You can only imagine what Miss Xiahou is capable of. No good words can be expected of a scoundrel!”

Some people were holding brooms and chased Yi Tong away from the area.

Yi Tong pulled Yi Bing and Yi Tiao away with him as they left, and he wiped his face. “Looking down on Miss Gu, just wait, you’ll regret it.”