WJ Chapter 104

When the Rooster Crows (2)

…W-what did this mean?

His Young Sect Leader had only made a trip to Medicine Gate — how had he come back with a medicine child in his arms?

In truth, the little medicine person had only been held in Yun Changliu’s embrace for a single instant; the next moment, the Young Sect Leader had very swiftly put the person down. But that scene had already bored itself deep into Ah Ku’s eyes, and no matter how he looked at it, it made him profoundly uncomfortable.

Perhaps Ah Ku’s expression was too terrible to behold, for even Yun Changliu was startled by it. He quickly strode toward him. “Ah Ku? You…”

“Young Sect Leader,” Ah Ku cut him off without ceremony, his face cold and merciless as he pointed — with no trace of courtesy — at the small figure in blue crouching and kneeling on the ground, not daring to raise their head. “Who is this person?”

“He…”

Yun Changliu hesitated and glanced back at the little medicine person. The matter that had occurred at Medicine Gate was rather complicated, and he couldn’t explain it clearly in a few words, so he chose a way to explain it that Ah Ku would certainly understand. “He’s one of the medicine people from the very first intake who entered the Sect…”

The first batch of medicine people? The ones who had supposedly all died, their medicinal blood drained dry in order to develop the antidote for the Fengchun Sheng poison that was meant for the Young Sect Leader?

…This child was a survivor?

Ah Ku’s expression grew even darker.

He remembered that the Young Sect Leader had once felt deeply guilty over the wretched deaths of that group of children. So now, this was…

Ah Ku and Yun Changliu had grown up side by side all these years, and each had long since come to regard the other as extraordinarily important. The former often took advantage of the latter’s indulgence, throwing small fits and bullying people — but they both knew it was all in play. As for truly losing his temper and showing coldness to the Young Sect Leader — that was something that rarely happened.

Seeing him like this now, Yun Changliu felt his heart flutter with unease, and he could not figure out what he had done to displease Ah Ku. He hurried to keep explaining. “I… just now… I saw him at Medicine Gate being forced to drink a new blood-nourishing medicine…”

Ah Ku lowered his eyelids and said coolly, with indifferent calm, “So the Young Sect Leader took pity on him, rescued him, and now plans to bring him into my house?”

Yun Changliu was highly sensitive and immediately sensed something was wrong… The problem was that while the Young Sect Leader could tell Ah Ku was unhappy, he could not figure out why he was unhappy, and he quickly said, “Of course not! If you don’t like it, I’ll send him away first…”

“— I don’t like it?” Ah Ku suddenly raised his head, stepped forward, and propped himself against the doorframe. “It sounds like the Young Sect Leader is quite fond of this little medicine person?”

Yun Changliu grew even more uncertain and didn’t dare to speak. He only gazed at Ah Ku in bewilderment, opening and closing his mouth in hesitation for a long moment — and in the end, what he awkwardly managed to squeeze out was, “…I’m sorry.”

Though, in truth, the Young Sect Leader did not even know why he was apologizing. Only that he had made Ah Ku angry, so he felt certain he must have done something wrong somewhere.

In any case, never mind the twenty-one reasons why — best to yield first and ask questions later…

— Yun Changliu’s thinking was quite straightforward. But by apologizing at this moment, wasn’t he as good as admitting that he was indeed “quite fond of this little medicine person”?!

The knuckles of the hand Ah Ku had braced against the doorframe gave a sharp crack. “…”

The atmosphere instantly froze over.

The little medicine person who had been kneeling on the ground, trembling all this while, raised their head and glanced at Ah Ku — a gaze as though looking upon some great primordial beast or savage villain. The small face had long since drained of color in sheer terror.

That single glance immediately made Ah Ku even more furious.

He naturally understood what was going through that medicine person’s mind — the supremely noble Young Sect Leader of the Zhuyin Sect, reduced to being at a complete and utter loss before another youth of similar age, unable to hold his head up. Was it any wonder that it would frighten someone’s eyes out of their sockets?

He laughed coldly to himself: If this little brat ever found out that I am in truth only a lowly medicine person just as base as him, would he not be frightened into fainting on the spot?

“Ah Ku…” Yun Changliu hesitated and called his name, drawing a step or two closer.

But the anger in the youth in blue blazed straight to his head. He reached out and blocked the doorway, refusing to let anyone pass, then gave a cold snort and pointed at the little medicine person, his voice carrying an inexplicable fury as he said with contempt:

“The Young Sect Leader may have a compassionate heart — but I, Ah Ku, do not! Whatever stray thing you pick up outside, you keep and raise yourself. Don’t go bringing it into my house at random!”

Yun Changliu was startled, flustered and at a loss. “No, I never…”

Ah Ku shouted, “Get out!”

With that, he raised his hand and shoved the Young Sect Leader hard. Yun Changliu stumbled back two steps and nearly fell. Ah Ku showed no mercy and moved to shove again — but this time, his hand unexpectedly made contact with a swathe of pale blue fabric.

— It was actually that little medicine person who had been kneeling behind Yun Changliu all this while.

This child had no idea what sort of villain he had taken Ah Ku to be — some brute bullying Young Sect Leader Changliu — and at this moment had actually mustered his courage and foolishly thrown himself forward to shield Yun Changliu.

And then he was sent stumbling by Ah Ku, who could not pull his force in time, tumbling backward head-over-heels to the ground, and no one knew what he had hit, but he curled up into a ball and let out a pained, muffled whimper.

At this, both Yun Changliu and Ah Ku stilled.

In truth, for these two young youths whose martial arts had long since far surpassed their peers, scuffling and tussling was commonplace. Every time Ah Ku pushed and shoved at the Young Sect Leader, Yun Changliu received it quite naturally — neither of them had ever thought anything of it.

But this time, Ah Ku looked at the little medicine person shaking with pain, and felt as though he had been slapped across the face. For a moment he was filled with nothing but rage and embarrassment.

He glared fiercely at Yun Changliu and said through gritted teeth, “Go… go away! Don’t come looking for me!”

With that, he slammed the wooden door of the wooden house shut with a heavy bang, locking the thoroughly bewildered Young Sect Leader Changliu outside.

…

A short while later, the person outside the wooden house had already left.

The depths of the peach grove had long since returned to silence.

Inside the room, Ah Ku was still leaning against the door, his breathing unsteady. His face, lowered and downcast, carried a dark and murky expression, while his gaze was unfocused and vacant.

…Heavens — what was wrong with him?

How had he become like this?

Ah Ku stepped back a few paces and sat down on the floor, legs folded, his back against the wall, staring into space. Wisps of black hair fell forward and covered the corners of his eyes.

Was it jealousy?

Or had a sore spot been prodded, leaving him feeling frightened and unsettled?

All these years, Yun Changliu had kept only to his side, day after day. Even Yun Guyan had wracked his brains trying to find a few other companions for the Young Sect Leader, but all in vain — there had never been a gap between the two of them that anyone else could wedge themselves into.

And so Ah Ku had always unconsciously assumed that he and the Young Sect Leader would go on being this close forever.

…He had forgotten: Yun Changliu was the one and only, unparalleled Young Sect Leader of the Zhuyin Sect. All of Mount Shenlie, all of Xifeng City, every territory through which those nine-bending crimson rivers flowed — all of it would one day be his.

Yun Changliu cherished him, was willing without limit to indulge him and protect him. But within the Zhuyin Sect there were so many more medicine people with far more tragic pasts, far frailer bodies — what did he amount to, in the end?

And for those medicine people whose dignity had been ground away, who had grown accustomed to misery, even the tiniest drop of kindness bestowed by the Young Sect Leader would be enough to move them to tears of gratitude and trembling awe — just like that small child a moment ago.

The youth in blue couldn’t help but lower his head and smile bitterly.

…Unlike him — a person of the most lowly standing, who spent his days bossing the Young Sect Leader about with impunity. Displacing his temper, throwing fits, harshly driving people away, and apparently injuring that little medicine person the Young Sect Leader felt so tender toward.

If one day Young Sect Leader Changliu came to his senses and found him tiresome and cast him aside — what would he do then?

Ah Ku suddenly felt a wave of misery. He drew a soft breath, pulled his knees together and sat up straight, half-burying his face in his folded arms, his heart tangled in knots as he wondered whether this time too he ought to be the one to take the initiative and apologize to the Young Sect Leader, to try and mend things.

— Knock knock knock.

A rhythmic rapping sounded at the door. Ah Ku’s hunched spine gave a gentle shudder. He heard Yun Changliu’s voice carry through the door. “Ah Ku… Ah Ku?”

Yun Changliu knocked outside in an unhurried, methodical way, with inexhaustible patience, saying over and over again, “Open the door… I’ve already sent him back. It was my fault — don’t be angry anymore. Come open the door for me…”

Ah Ku lifted his face slightly, feeling a little dazed.

It was clearly he who had been unreasonable and made a scene, and yet in the end it was the Young Sect Leader who apologized first.

Yet somehow, though Yun Changliu was already using gentle words to coax him, Ah Ku felt a rush of grievance and bitterness rise up inside him. He bit his lip and said, his voice deliberately cold:

“Not opening it. Go away.”

But in his heart, he was very contradictorily hoping that Yun Changliu would not go.

Yet what disappointed him was that Yun Changliu said nothing more, and no further sound came from beyond the door.

Ah Ku’s heart sank heavily downward.

He lowered his lashes, and simply buried his face in the crook of his arm again, unmoving.

— Then in the very next moment, the window let out a sudden sharp noise!

“Young Sect Leader?!”

Ah Ku’s head snapped up in startled astonishment, and he let out a cry — only to see the Young Sect Leader Changliu who, not long ago, scorned him for not using the front door properly — now, with an expression of perfect calm, climbing in through the window as well.

Yun Changliu had evidently been given quite a shock by the sight of Ah Ku hugging his knees in the corner with that dejected and forlorn look, and he quickly strode over and sat down beside the youth in blue. He gingerly stretched out both arms and embraced him from the side, saying in a flustered, urgent voice:

“Ah Ku! I didn’t mean to, truly I didn’t. Don’t be angry — listen to me explain…”

Ah Ku pressed his lips together. He himself felt a little embarrassed. He kept his eyes lowered and leaned into the hollow of Yun Changliu’s shoulder, saying in a muffled voice. “What is there to explain… Young Sect Leader, it wasn’t your fault.”

He knew full well that it was he who had let those messy, chaotic emotions take hold of him and acted unreasonably toward the Young Sect Leader — he was not so lacking in self-awareness as to be blind to that.

Yun Changliu stroked his spine gently, then rubbed his chin against Ah Ku’s cheek, saying in a small, guilty voice, “Don’t be sad. It was my fault.”

Ah Ku let out a light sigh, closed his eyes, and tugged at Yun Changliu’s lapel with a helpless sort of exasperation, murmuring, “You… you shouldn’t always let me bully you like this.”

“I never intended to bring him to your place,” Yun Changliu said softly into Ah Ku’s ear. “It was he who escaped from Medicine Gate and followed me down the mountain path on his own… it was too far — I didn’t notice. It was only when I arrived in front of your wooden house and heard a sound that I turned around and saw him sliding down from the mountain path above.”

Only now, hearing the Young Sect Leader’s account, was Ah Ku startled enough to open his eyes and raise his head.

Wait — if that was the case…

When he had opened the door, Yun Changliu had just landed using his lightness skill, and the little medicine person had happened to be in his arms — so…

Ah Ku blinked, and ventured tentatively, “You… holding him — it was only to save him from falling?”

Yun Changliu quickly nodded, though in his heart he was quietly turning over a thought:

So Ah Ku doesn’t like him holding other people?

For some reason, the Young Sect Leader felt not the slightest displeasure at this — on the contrary, there was a faint, rising warmth of happiness.

But Ah Ku was not happy — not one bit!

He had been a fool. How could Yun Changliu possibly go out of his way to hold a complete stranger?

Why, when he and the Young Sect Leader had first met all those years ago, this person had been someone who could be frightened into running away by a single touch on the hand…

Ah Ku immediately felt that his earlier bout of self-pity and anxious fretting made him look like an utter fool. His cheeks burned faintly red — and naturally he displaced his frustration onto the Young Sect Leader’s head once more. “Why didn’t you explain that clearly from the start!”

Yun Changliu shrank back a little, and said weakly, “You were the one chasing me away…”

“Didn’t I ask you what kind of person he was?!”

“I answered — he was one of the first batch…”

“— Who wanted to hear that?! What kind of person are you?!” Ah Ku was half-maddened with aggravation. He fixed his gaze on the Young Sect Leader, still not letting it go, and pressed him. “Let me ask you then — that little medicine person secretly following you — weren’t you even angry about that?”

Yun Changliu, the picture of innocence: “Of course I was displeased. After rescuing him, I had fully intended to scold him…”

“But the moment the door opened you came glaring over at me so angrily — naturally I put you first… When I sent him back just now, I already gave him a piece of my mind.”

Well, by all accounts, it turned out the fault was entirely his own!

Ah Ku was immediately overcome with mortification — and that mortification swiftly transformed into furious embarrassment. He leapt to his feet, seized Yun Changliu by the arm and hauled him up, bit his lip, and shoved the Young Sect Leader back toward the door. “Out you go! Out, out, out! There’s no lunch for you today — go, go, go…”

Yun Changliu: “???”

And just like that, the Young Sect Leader was once again shoved out of the wooden house by Ah Ku, thoroughly confused.

With a bang, the wooden door closed in front of Yun Changliu, shut so tightly that not a crack remained.

“…”

This time, Young Sect Leader Changliu stared at that wooden door, his brow knitted in absolute bewilderment, unable to work it out no matter how he tried.

He had clearly explained everything — so why was Ah Ku still angry at him…