Chapter 41: Short-Lived People Like It Too
That night, you cooked a table full of dishes—all of them your little sister's favorites.
Watching her eat until she was full and round, you smiled with satisfaction.
She really was the little sister you had raised; she was still so easy to take care of.
In the small courtyard, there was a stone table very similar to the one at your academy.
After eating, drinking, and cleaning up, the two of you sat on opposite sides of the stone table, just as you used to at the academy.
"Little sister, are you really not going home to visit?"
You asked.
Fu Xuan's face visibly paled, and a trace of pain flashed in her eyes.
"Not for now…"
"I can't forget what Master said. He told me the scenes he had divined. I know he was only trying to teach me that destiny has only one path…"
"But, Big Brother, truly… I'm not willing. If the path of birth is already fixed, then what is the point of being born at all?"
You nodded slowly, carefully observing the girl in front of you. Most of the youthful innocence in her eyes had already faded…
"You've grown up… Little sister."
Fu Xuan was taken aback, not understanding why you would ask such a heavy question only to arrive at such a… frivolous conclusion.
"Open your mouth…"
You picked up a grape from the table and gestured for the girl to open her small mouth.
Her cheeks flushed, but she still opened her mouth slightly.
You smiled in satisfaction and gently placed the grape into that small mouth you had fed countless times before.
Miss Fu Xuan, chewing the grape, was confused. The words she had accumulated over the years—everything she wanted to say to you—would probably take her the entire night to express.
And yet, you had silenced her with a single grape…
"Eat in peace. Your big brother will take care of everything."
"Mmm!"
She nodded obediently, just as she had been so well-behaved when you were her tutor.
You continued chatting. You told her about what had been happening recently on the Yuque Heavenly Ark, and she told you about the delicious food and fun places in Luofu.
Suddenly, she leaned closer to you, looking at you with a serious expression, as if she were about to confess something important…
Facing the girl's solemn expression and her eyes fixed on yours, you felt a slight nervousness rise within you…
In your mind, a dramatic scene had already unfolded: "Big Brother, I like you…"
But the girl's soft, quiet words pulled you back into cold reality.
"Big Brother, a white hair…"
Her eyes were serious as her small hand deftly found that dazzling white strand on your forehead…
She carefully pulled it out.
You looked at the white hair and sighed softly in your heart. Only a decade had passed, and the white hairs were growing again.
It seemed the effect of that Ganoderma-like plant was quite limited.
The desolation in your eyes flashed and vanished, returning to your usual gentle and magnanimous demeanor—but that fleeting hint of desolation was caught by the girl in front of you.
"Big Brother…"
She called softly, burying her head gently against your chest.
"I like you…"
"Why? I'm just a short-lived species…"
You were struck by the girl's frankness; those four words came out so easily. Unable to counter them, you could only bring up the argument of "short-lived species"…
"I like short-lived species too…"
"I'm old…"
"I like old people too…"
Her voice grew softer and softer.
"If there were no wars, I could stay with Big Brother every day, cling to you. When you can no longer walk, I'll support you, carry you in my arms…"
"If Big Brother loses his teeth and can't eat, I'll chew the food slowly and feed it to you…"
"If Big Brother has no children, I'll be the one to care for you in your old age and see you off…"
You were struck as if by lightning.
You felt the hot little face pressed against your chest.
Your throat tightened, and you didn't know what to say…
Suddenly, she lifted her head.
The blush covering her cheeks showed that every word she had spoken was true.
"If Big Brother wants children, Fu Xuan also—"
You found it even harder to stop her, so you had no choice but to block her mouth…
"Mmm…"
Naturally—with another grape.
Your mind was in complete turmoil, unsure how to face this pure yet fervent emotion.
But at the same time, you didn't want such a kind and sincere girl to have a relationship that began intensely but ended weakly.
"Doesn't Big Brother already have a daughter as grown as you?"
"Hmph…"
The girl let out a charming snort, clearly dissatisfied that you were using the same excuse she had once used to fend off matchmakers…
Then she wrapped her arms around you, resting her head against your arm…
And fell into a deep sleep, just as she had done countless times before…
…
The light in the celestial grotto gradually dimmed; days in Luofu seemed shorter than on the Yuque Heavenly Ark.
You carefully picked up the girl, settled her in her bedroom, closed the door, and left quietly…
Luofu's night market was not as lively as Yuque's; pedestrians were sparse in the streets.
Your mind was in a muddle, unsure what you were thinking—just like that year when you lay in the hospital bed, lost in thought.
You found a small tavern that had not yet closed.
You ordered a fine aged wine, but poured it into your stomach clumsily, as if chewing peonies.
Memories of the past surged endlessly. Slightly drunk, you were like a passerby, coldly witnessing moments you had personally lived through.
You were drunk…
Just as you were about to close your eyes and give in to the intoxication, you heard a sweet "Big Brother"…
Just like that year, at the Divination Commission, when the young Fu Xuan shyly yet sincerely called you "Big Brother"…
Then you collapsed onto the small square table outside the tavern door and fell asleep.
Fu Xuan came. She woke from her sleep and found you.
She walked a long way, using divination—and with that strange hexagram, painstakingly found you.
"Big Brother, Big Brother…"
She called softly, but you were already in a deep sleep.
You could not respond to her calls.
She gently lifted your hand, and imitating the countless times you had carried her, she carried you on her back.
Because of the difference in height, she had no choice but to rest her head against your chest.
Slowly but steadily, she carried you back to that small courtyard.
"Big Brother~"
Exhausted, she lay beside you, curled up, murmuring…
The night was deep, and nothing happened that night…
Except that you had another dream:
You stood before a giant mirror, looking at yourself with a head full of white hair reflected within it. Above your head, the Light Arrow whistling down like a meteor from the sky was also reflected in the mirror…
Oh, Arbiter of the Rainbow Reign, please hear my confession. I am an outsider, yet I sought longevity under your protection, seeking the favor of the Ancestor of the Plague of Longevity…
Even now I cannot free myself; I desire only eternal life, even if I become a puppet of Abundance.
Judge me…
Arbiter of the Rainbow Reign…
Destroy me. Avenge yourself upon me…