Chapter 157 Green Vines: Stars and Moon

Transmigration: Of Mysteries and Songs

The moon was like a slender eyebrow, curved and very bright. The lustrous rays of light outshone all the stars. The two who wanted to admire the stars that night sat side by side on the rooftop, looking at the vast and heavy curtain of the night and whispered sweet nothings to each other.

“I haven’t been able to enjoy such scenery for a very long time; there’s only the two of us.” The moonlight was reflected in Feng Luodi’s almond eyes which were suffused with intoxicating starlight. Despite her slender arched eyebrows, she did not appear mean and strict. One would feel joyful upon seeing the arc formed by the corner of her mouth pointing upwards while the faint rosiness in her cheeks supplemented her with some flirtatious expression.

Seeing how Feng Luodi looked now, the corner of Situ’s mouth turned upwards into an arc that expressed his delight as he brought Feng Luodi into his embrace and draped the cloak over her. Then, as he continued to watch the moonlight, his gaze shifted downwards; from the withered tree in the courtyard and an outstanding red plum blossom to the faraway houses of varying heights. There were occasionally a few with lights that had yet to be extinguished and were swaying with warm rays of light.

Feng Luodi snuggled into Situ’s arms. Her hands pulled at his cloak while the corners of her mouth turned upwards like a kitty that had drunk and eaten to its fill as she enjoyed the rare silence. In the frigid night at the beginning of winter, the icy cold breeze brushed past their bodies, yet an underlying warmth silently flowed in them.

After a while, Feng Luodi raised her head to look at Situ. When she noticed the fine beard emerging from his chin, she quietly reached out a hand to touch it. As she stroked it, her hand felt slightly itchy.

Feng Luodi could not help but smile. She suddenly felt that this scene was very familiar. She remembered that it was more than one year ago when they were investigating the source of poisoning among the common people in Chang’an. Outside the city, they had stood together as well, gazing fixedly at the peach blossom grove. Then, she’d also had the impulse in her heart. At that time, she did not understand anything and forcefully stopped her hand.

Did I already fall for him back then? Or had it been even earlier? Feng Luodi gently shook her head. A smile which was simple yet elegant like that of a wild pansy[1. A common European flower. ] appeared on her face. She was glad that she was able to have him by her side right at this moment. This filled her with the courage to accompany him all the way until she has to leave.

She would never forget him. She thought that she would be constantly grieving because of the transience of their relationship, but she was not. That was because this person beside her had given her a tremendous sense of safety and confidence, allowing her to freely enjoy the moment. How will I have the time to be sad?

“When we return, Jianqiu and Qingjia would already be considered an old married couple.” Feng Luodi suddenly said when she realised that the man beside her was silent. Marriage was the topic that affected Situ the most. As expected, after Situ heard what she said, he lowered his head to look at Feng Luodi in his arms.

“We’re already an old married couple.” Just short of a wedding.

Feng Luodi raised her head to look at him and smiled at him cheekily. “Don’t tell me you feel aggrieved.”

Deep in Situ’s eyes, it only contained the woman in his arms. “I just don’t want you to feel that way.”

Feng Luodi reached out her hand, tugging on Situ’s hair which hung loosely on his shoulder. The smile on her face deepened. “Why would I feel aggrieved when I’m right beside the General-in-chief?”

Situ was stunned for a moment. Subsequently, with a gentle expression, he gently caressed the top of Feng Luodi’s head.

“Then can General-in-chief ask for a reward?”

Feng Luodi rebuked, “Don’t speak in a child’s tone. You’re almost thirty.”

“Just nice.” Situ simply placed his chin on Feng Luodi’s head. He enjoyed this feeling very much and left his sentence unfinished.

Feng Luodi knew what Situ was about to say.

He was almost thirty. When he was at the pinnacle of his fame and achievements, he met Feng Luodi and could have everything he wanted. Feng Luodi was silent for a while. Suddenly, she turned around and poked the spot on his chest where Situ’s heart lay.

“The real Situ Muye is right here. It has nothing to do with age and anything else. This is the Situ Muye I like.”

Situ was stunned for a moment. Immediately, the smile extended into his dark and profound eyes.

“I thought about it again, and I still want a reward.”

As soon as Feng Luodi raised her head, a shadow fell across her. The clouds concealed the moon’s face while it silently watched the two people on the rooftop.

A good while later, Feng Luodi used her hand to act as a fan to fan herself and fan away the heat on her skin. After fanning for a short while, the man beside her pulled her into his embrace again. Her head was still used as a platform to rest his chin by a certain someone.

“Where do you want to go next?”

Feng Luodi played with Situ’s jet black hair. “It’s pretty late already. If we don’t sleep soon, how are we still going lay an ambush tomorrow?”

Situ chuckled lowly. “Sleep together?”

“Go away.” Feng Luodi gently pounded Situ with her fist. “I don’t feel sleepy at all. Why don’t we stay up to see the sunrise?”

“Okay,” Situ readily agreed. However, he looked at the scenery around them with disdain in his eyes and shook his head.

“Let’s go, we’ll go somewhere else to see the sunrise.”

“Where to?” As Feng Luodi quickly stood up, she missed her footing and stepped on a glazed tile, causing her body to fall backwards. Situ delightedly got the opportunity to ‘catch a beauty in his arms’.

After the beauty was in his arms, Situ immediately embraced Feng Luodi and used his cloak to wrap her in it before he leapt off into the night.

It was even later in the night, with much dew in the air. Feng Luodi was originally attacked by the cold of the first days of Winter, but the warmth transmitted from the man beside her made her involuntarily break into a smile. The frigid wind blew at her face so she simply buried her face into Situ’s embrace and reached out her hand to hug him.

If only we could be like this for an entire lifetime, I would have no regrets.

The cliff under the night sky had crumbling walls and ruins and was swaying as it was about to fall. It was as if the nearby mountain peak which struck terror in people’s hearts and made them dizzy was merged together with heaven. The precipice that pierced the clouds instilled fear in people. With multiple ranges of mountains which stood tall and towering into the sky, every mountain made Feng Luodi’s heart hammer.

This was her first time climbing to such a high and perilous mountain peak and this was all due to Situ’s Qinggong[2] . He carried her in his arms for the whole journey and she enjoyed the treatment of a queen. She did not have to exhaust her mental energy or exert any strength.

The frigid wind howled but Situ’s body was just like a hot brazier. It made Feng Luodi extremely envious, unable to keep her hands away from his body. Situ felt helpless and caught Feng Luodi’s naughty hands. “Be obedient.”

Feng Luodi twitched her mouth but did not retract her hand.

When they stood at the summit of the tall mountain, they could see the sky studded with twinkling stars. This was a different feeling from the stars they saw in the deserts of the north.

At the apex of the mountain, the two lovers accompanied each other. They experienced the profundity and marvels of the universe and experienced its mysterious and colourful nature.

“Situ, I will remember this place forever.” Feng Luodi smiled widely at the starry sky.

Situ’s gaze moved from the far away scenery to the smiling face of the woman beside him. He also put on a smile. “As will I.”

“If you like it, we can come here often in the future,” Situ added.

“Mhm.” Feng Luodi nodded vehemently and secretly wiped at the corner of her eyes.

Time ran into the distance like flowing water, singing a small tune. It was unclear when the birds in the surrounding woods started to sing again and perform a symphony with the breezing of the wind through the tree leaves. The faraway sky slowly changed from a dark black to a marble white colour of dawn, which then morphed into a cinnabar red hue, like that of an extremely bashful young lady. The red clouds slowly spread into the middle of the sky and also plated colours for the surrounding scenery.

Only when Feng Luodi finished exclaiming about the beautiful scene of nature did she see that the distant sky had turned into a brilliant gold. Everything in the world was separated by a layer of golden fog. All things were draped with a golden yellow muslin dress which made them peerlessly beautiful.

“Situ, I’m so happy.” Feng Luodi who had been silent all the while suddenly jumped up and hugged Situ. She raised her head, showing the wide smile on her lips.

Situ hugged her back. As he lowered his head, a deep smile overflowed from within his eyes.

“Me too.”

“Let’s come again together in the future.”

“Definitely.”

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In the early morning, Situ and Feng Luodi who had finished watching the sunrise at the frontier of Dingtao Province happened to bump into Lu Buping. Only at this moment did Lu Buping feel extremely uncomfortable and that he was a misfit at the yamen.

“Can I go already?” Lu Buping scratched his head. He was still functioning after a night without sleep, his Neigong[3] helping to greatly increase his stamina, but the corners of his eyes were extremely tired.

“If I stay in this yamen for one more day, I will go insane.” Lu Buping twisted his shoulders and appeared uncomfortable.

On the contrary, Feng Luodi who had not slept for the whole night was repeatedly yawning and was itching to instantly return to her room and lie on her bed to rest. However, as she was concerned that Situ might not be willing to interact with Lu Buping, she hung around and coped with her sleepiness to talk to Lu Buping.

“Did the people at the yamen not look after you well?” Feng Luodi wiped away the tears which seeped out from the corners of her eyes.

Lu Buping had a miserable expression. When he made such an expression with his baby face, it was a bit hilarious.

“Eh, how should I explain? After ruminating and asking myself, I reached the conclusion that I did not commit any crime so it feels strange to stay in the yamen.”

Of course, he was afraid that the Supremo of the Demonic Sect would know about the matter and that he would land himself in serious trouble with consequences he could not bear. Lu Buping shivered involuntarily. He did not dare to think about the Supremo’s methods at all. Feng Luodi blinked her eyes. She could not understand the equivocal words from Lu Buping very well.

Situ caught up to the two of them and pushed Feng Luodi, his voice soft.“Go rest.”

“Hm?” Feng Luodi raised her head to look at him. The corners of her eyes revealed her sleepiness again. She glanced at Lu Buping again.

Lu Buping felt the chilly aura emanating from Situ and finally caught up to the situation. Next, when he thought about how this man and woman before him did not return for the whole night, he hastily waved his hand at Feng Luodi. “Miss Feng should quickly go rest. I was just grumbling a little.”

Feng Luodi nodded. She patted Situ’s hand and headed into the room, yawning as she walked.

Only after Feng Luodi had left did Situ look straight at Lu Buping. His eyes were profound and unfathomable and his voice was deep.

“I’ll need you to meet with someone.”

When he heard that, Lu Buping raised his head and puzzlement flashed across the bottom of his eyes.

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Feng Luodi slept all the way until noon. The sun spared no effort in scattering light on the roof, resulting in a warm golden colour everywhere in the room. When Feng Luodi subconsciously remembered about her watching the sunrise together with Situ in the early morning, she closed her eyes lightly and tilted the corner of her mouth upwards to express her good mood. After she got out of bed and finished freshening up, Feng Luodi left the room and walked to the courtyard. She looked at that room which belonged to Situ and slanted her head. She was a little doubtful whether Situ was still inside at that time.

Just as she was wondering, Situ walked in from outside. His hair was half tied up and some of his jet-black hair hung freely. He possessed a temperament which slightly resembled that of the people from the Jianghu who dressed in a carefree and unruly manner, causing Feng Luodi’s eyes to light up.

“Are you going out?”

“You’re coming with me.” Situ walked closer and reached out his hand to caress Feng Luodi’s hair. Feng Luodi was already not as bashful as she was in the past.

“Where to?” Feng Luodi was calm and at ease.

“Going to watch a good show.” An arc faintly appeared at the corner of Situ’s lips and that piqued Feng Luodi’s curiosity even further.

Here's a short Wikipedia page if you're interested: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Qinggong
Breathing and other exercises to build up strength and stamina. It is associated with Chinese martial arts. Here is a short Wikipedia page for your reference: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Neigong

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