Love from the Male Protagonist's Harem

Xia Ge, moving around too thoughtlessly, had managed to alarm the Jianfeng guards.  Grinding her teeth, Xia Ge ripped the red ribbon off her wrist and shoved it into her pocket.  She reactivated {ghost and shadow} to hide herself as she whispered to Xiaohong: “If you tattle on me again, I’m going to tie you to a candle!”

Pausing, Xia Ge wondered if Xiaohong even knew what a candle was, so she hoarsely added: “It burns.  You know what burning is, right?”

The red ribbon squirmed a little in the pocket.

……consider yourself informed.

System: [……]

“It was right around here……”

Li Liu wandered around the base of the persimmon tree, brow furrowed: “I don’t know, maybe I heard wrong?”

Chang Nian answered: “Either way, let’s be more careful and stop the chit-chat.”

Then he glanced back Ye Ze who was following along behind him and snorted: “You, don’t close your eyes.  Those who don’t know might think you’re blind.”

Ye Ze made no reply until suddenly asking a moment later: “Brother Chang……are you wearing a bell?”

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Chang Nian froze for a second before turning red-faced and angry: “Who’s wearing a bell?  I……”

Li Liu stared blankly at both Chang Nian and Ye Ze: “Er……”

His eyes then sweeping over a few hawthorn trees to the east, Li Liu imperceptibly stiffened.  Yet he quietly withdrew his gaze.

“I just heard the bell ring again.  And it came from you.”  Ye Ze, not noticing Li Liu’s behavior, added, “This is the second time.”

Chang Nian: “……”

Seeing that everyone in the guard was looking at him, Chang Nian went: “Humph!  So what if I’m wearing a bell?  What is it to you?!”

Li Liu was astonished: “Brother Chang, why would you bring a bell with you while on guard duty?”

Taking out a small, delicate silver bell that looked like a woman’s plaything, Chang Nian shook it and it made no sound: “See? I’ve got a bell, but it doesn’t ring!  Stop making wild aspersions!”

Li Liu: “……alright, Brother Chang.  Although, what use is a bell that doesn’t ring?”

Never mind that it looked like……a bell a woman might put on her ankle.

Chang Nian irritably tucked the bell back away: “Not your concern.”

Scowling at Chang Nian’s bell until it was put away, Ye Ze then glanced at Li Liu, but stayed silent.

Li Liu said: “Since it wasn’t Brother Chang’s bell that made the ringing, perhaps the bell that Ye Ze heard……”

When he realized that Ye Ze was content to clutch his sword and say nothing, Li Liu shifted the conversation, pointing westwards: “

“There’s no one here, let’s go over there and take a look.”

Since no one objected, the group headed that direction, Ye Ze following.  But after a few steps, Ye Ze halted, looking over at the overgrown hawthorn trees to the east.

Chang Nian, brooding over the fact that Ye Ze had exposed his bell, saw that Ye Ze had stopped and used it as an excuse to find fault: “Why aren’t you coming?  You think you see an immortal over there?”

Li Liu chimed in: “Brother Ye, what are you doing?  I think there might be movement to the west, let’s hurry and check it out.”

Ignoring Chang Nian, Ye Ze nodded to  Li Liu: “I’m coming.”

So the guard left the area.

No long after, Xia Ge, who’d been hiding behind a hawthorn tree, cautiously poked her head out, carefully looking in every direction.  The  small red ribbon on her head mimicked Xia Ge’s actions, hiding its body behind tree, it stuck out its ‘head,’ bobbing this way and that.

Once she felt sure the danger was gone, Xia Ge sighed with relief: “……finally, they left.”

Pulling Xiaohong off her head, Xia Ge told it with bitter resentment: “That was all your fault.”

The red ribbon twisted around, pretending not to hear.

Xia Ge: “……”

Fine.  Think I can’t punish you?!

Grinning evilly, Xia Ge tied the red ribbon to an overhead branch with a double knot.

System: [Don’t Do That.  If Jianfeng People Find It, Danfeng Will Become A Target!]

Xia Ge: “……”

“Tsk,” Xia Ge untied the red ribbon, putting it in her pocket, “Don’t think I won’t take care of you once we get back.”

System: [Just Quickly Find Out Where Chu Yao Lives.  You Shouldn’t Dawdle Here.]

Xia Ge frowned: “I’m going, I’m going……but I do think it was kinda strange.”

System: [What Was Strange?]

Xia Ge: “……maybe it was just my imagination?  I felt like Li Liu knew someone was over here.”

System: [That Can’t Be Right.  If He’d Really Noticed Something, Why Would He Have Had Everyone Go Westwards?]

Xia Ge: “That’s what I find the weirdest……”

Like Li Liu had known, but……had deliberately let it go.

Could it be that……

Pupils slightly contracting, Xia Ge quickly tucked her persimmons away: “Let’s go!”

The system didn’t yet understand: [Why?  What’s Going On?]

“I don’t know if my guess is correct or not, but you’re right about one thing, we should find Chu Yao’s lodging now!”

Xia Ge had looked over a map of Jianfeng before she’d come, and felt like she had a decent idea where Chu Yao’s room would be.  Generally speaking, Lingxi Sect would give Senior disciples upscale lodgings.  Not knowing if her surmising was accurate or not, Xia Ge speedily found Chu Yao’s place.

Chu Yao’s lodging was an exquisite little bamboo building, built against the mountain, with a small bridge over a flowing stream, and a towering Wutong tree extending its lush branches over the roof.  Lightly landing on a branch of the Wutong tree like a graceful, silent cat, Xia Ge’s whole body was hidden in heavy darkness.

She held her breath.

System: [This Is The Place?]

Xia Ge nodded: “It’s here.”

Although Xia Ge found it surprising that in the dead of night there was still light coming from the bamboo house, and there were even many fireflies outside, illuminating the night.  Shooing some fireflies away, Xia Ge checked to make sure her last two persimmons had made the journey safely, happily sighing: “Ah, I ran too fast, but they’re still good.”

The system exercised its self-control: [Why Didn’t You Put Them In Your Silver Ring?]

Xia Ge solemnly replied: “If it’s food, you feel more relaxed if it’s where you can readily touch it.”

System: [……]

Gazing down at the bamboo house, Xia Ge wondered: “It’s so late, why is she still awake?”

[Probably Because She’s Busy.  Now That You Know Where Her Rooms Are, You Should Head Back.]  The system hesitated for a moment, then continued: [……After All, Xiaohong Is With You.]

Xia Ge glancing down at her pocket where Xiaohong was.

What the system was getting at was……

If nothing else, Senior Sister knew exactly where Xia Ge squatting at the moment.

But Xia Ge just shook her head: “Something doesn’t feel right, let’s stay a little bit longer.”

After all, it wasn’t like Xia Ge was doing anything bad.

It was just that Li Liu’s actions earlier had been a bit too peculiar, making Xia Ge vaguely uneasy.

Fireflies driven away, the mosquitoes advanced.  About to slap at them, Xia Ge heard a ‘pop.’  Thanks to the red ribbon, a dead mosquito rolled off Xia Ge’s neck.

Xia Ge: “……”

“Who told you to come out?” Xia Ge asked Xiaohong rhetorically, “Go back, go back.”

Throwing away more dead mosquitos, Xiaohong retreated back into Xia Ge’s pocket with exasperatingly slowness.