Chapter 160: If Only Life Were Like the First Meeting

“Su Yan!”

Everyone showed expressions of terror, watching helplessly as one of Li Rong’s souls entered Su Yan’s body!

Sun Mang grew frantic and wanted to rush forward, but he was grabbed by Cao Meng.

“Master Cao, don't stop me! Go save Su Yan!”

“Calm down! Do you even have a way? Rushing in now without knowing the situation will only harm her!” Cao Meng barked at him.

It was precisely at times like this that they needed to remain calm.

Sun Mang froze suddenly, and after a few seconds, a look of despondency appeared on his face.

“Master Cao, Brother Ma.”

They could only place their hopes on the two of them.

Cao Meng and Ma Chulong were equally anxious and helpless.

“Li Rong, what have you done to Su Yan? Don't think that just because you have some skills we can't deal with you. You are no longer in a position to be alive!”

Li Rong’s sinister gaze swept over, her sharp voice seemingly scraping against everyone's eardrums.

“I am merely letting her see everything with her own eyes. However, you can also try to see if you can make my soul dissipate.”

Ma Chulong’s expression was grim; he truly harbored murderous intent.

However, a second later, he was stopped by Cao Meng.

“One of her souls is inside Su Yan. We cannot act rashly.”

At the very least, they had to ensure Su Yan's safety before making any further plans.

This sudden turn of events was unexpected for everyone.

“Su Yan, are you alright?” Sun Mang shouted at the top of his lungs.

With their eyes covered by black cloth, they had no way of identifying Su Yan's condition through her expression.

Su Yan had no reaction; she simply stood there, motionless.

“Stop shouting, just wait.” Ma Chulan, who had been silent until now, suddenly spoke up, seemingly sensing that Su Yan was not in immediate great danger.

Or rather, she saw that the current Li Rong held no killing intent toward Su Yan.

Everyone except Yuan Jing watched Su Yan's every move with intense tension.

At this moment, images were flooding into Su Yan's mind one after another.

“My name is Li Rong. What is your name?”

A young girl smiled mischievously, her entire being radiating the vitality of youth.

“My name is Yuan Jing. Why are you in a place like this?”

The Yuan Jing in the image was also around twenty years old; he lacked maturity and worldly wisdom, even carrying a hint of timidity and innocence.

He was looking around in trepidation.

And the place where the two were standing was, quite unexpectedly, a desolate graveyard.

“Me?” Li Rong’s eyes curved into crescents, as if Yuan Jing had asked an incredibly foolish question.

Facing Yuan Jing's gaze, she put her hands behind her back and said with feigned nervousness, “I got lost.”

Yuan Jing didn't doubt her at all; instead, he proactively comforted her: “I got lost too, but I can tell directions, so I can lead you out. Don't be afraid, there are no ghosts in this world; these are just some mounds of earth.”

Li Rong was amused by his solemn yet trembling manner. “Who says there are no ghosts in the world?”

She suddenly found this silly man quite entertaining.

Yuan Jing shuddered violently, a layer of cold sweat breaking out on his forehead, but even so, he straightened his back further.

“Of course there aren't!”

“Then they're right behind you.”

Li Rong's words caused his expression to change instantly, and he began running wildly through the graveyard like a madman.

“Hahaha.”

Li Rong's bell-like laughter drifted far, far away.

Once the silly boy had been scared away, she began her actual business.

To deliver the souls of all the deceased here.

After an unknown amount of time had passed, the sound of footsteps and heavy, panting breaths suddenly echoed through the silent graveyard.

Li Rong knew someone had arrived.

However, when she saw Yuan Jing returning, she was still surprised.

“Why did you come back?”

“I... I was too nervous just now and forgot you here. I came back specifically to fetch you,” Yuan Jing said, panting heavily.

Li Rong's teasing gaze gradually turned serious.

Looking at the man before her—who was clearly scared to death yet had returned for this stranger without hesitation—she felt a strange sensation in her heart for the first time.

“You really are a fool.”

Yuan Jing felt his scalp tingle just standing there; he couldn't care about anything else. Seeing that Li Rong had no intention of leaving, he grabbed her hand and pulled her toward the exit without a word.

Li Rong did not break free; instead, she began to run along with him.

Su Yan knew this was the scene of their first meeting; she could even feel Li Rong's emotions at that moment as if she were experiencing them herself.

*If only life were always like the first meeting.*

The images changed quickly.

“My home is in a very remote mountain valley. My father favors boys over girls and doesn't like me, so I ran out on my own, thinking that one day I could prove to him that a girl is no worse than a boy.”

Li Rong sat in the courtyard of the two earthen houses where Yuan Jing lived, gnawing on two wild fruits he had given her.

“Then wouldn't you be homeless?” After hearing her story, Yuan Jing felt both admiration and sympathy for her.

Li Rong nodded vigorously. “Mhm, Brother Yuan, could you take me in for a while? Once I find a way to earn money, I will definitely repay you.”

Yuan Jing looked troubled. “But there are distinctions between men and women, and besides, look at my current situation.”

He didn't finish his sentence, feeling a sense of embarrassment.

Li Rong glanced at the dilapidated little house; instead of being repulsed, she smiled brightly.

“It doesn't matter! It's fine as long as it provides shelter from the wind and rain. I don't have high requirements for food or housing. Besides, I can read faces; Brother Yuan, you will surely prosper in the future!”

The young girl's charming appearance was thus imprinted upon Yuan Jing's heart without warning.

In the end, he did not refuse Li Rong, claiming to outsiders that she had come to seek refuge with him as his cousin.

And so, the two lived their lives together.

As Su Yan watched the subsequent scenes of stable and warm life, it felt entirely natural that a girl like Li Rong, who had never experienced romantic love, would fall for Yuan Jing.

“Brother Yuan, are we going to set up a stall in the south of the city today? I saw yesterday that there were more people in the north, so why don't we go to the north instead?”

“Alright.” Every time, Yuan Jing would respond with a smile.

His impoverished life had gained hope because of Li Rong's appearance.

“Rong'er, the money I earned in the north today is more than I made in the south in half a month! You really are my lucky star!”

“Of course! Didn't I tell you? I'm actually quite amazing.” Every time Li Rong said this, a proud smile hung on her face.

“Brother Yuan, it's going to rain this afternoon. Take an umbrella and come back early.”

Yuan Jing looked up at the azure sky; it didn't look like it would rain at all, but to put Li Rong at ease, he took an umbrella.

When the heavy rain poured down in the afternoon, he was the only one who calmly opened his umbrella, weaving through the rushing pedestrians.

(End of Chapter)