Chapter 6: 第五章 失而复得（二）

When Qin Yang finished his hurried inspection, picked up the box, and stood up, Qing Yao, who had witnessed everything from not far away, was already dumbstruck. She merely stared blankly at Qin Yang, her vacant eyes revealing terror, suspicion, and disbelief!

Qing Yao had never before seen this box emitting a strange light, nor the things inside it. This made her feel extremely uneasy, and it made her feel that this "Brother," who had already deeply captivated her, was so mysterious, even terrifying.

Seeing Qing Yao in such a state, Qin Yang knew that his careless actions just now had frightened his simple and kind younger sister, and he felt a surge of guilt. He hurriedly stepped forward, gently stroking Qing Yao's shoulder, and said softly, "Little Sister, I..."

What Qin Yang never expected was that his state of mind had been slowly melting over these past two days, becoming no longer so cold and ruthless. In truth, Qin Yang also knew that in his original time, such a lapse would have been enough to cost him his life. It was only because he now regarded Qing Yao as the person he could trust most that such a lapse had occurred. No one knew what consequences such a change in Qin Yang would bring.

Before Qin Yang could finish his sentence, Qing Yao pushed his hand away, retreated in quick steps, and asked in a hoarse voice, "You, you... Brother, who exactly are you? What are those things in your box? Why did you lie to me..."

At this moment, Qing Yao's beautiful eyes were filled with tears, looking wretched and sorrowful; she simply could not believe any of it.

Qin Yang felt another pang of heartache and said hurriedly, "Little Sister, don't be anxious. Listen to me first. Brother didn't intend to lie to you. Brother has unavoidable difficulties. Because Brother does not belong to this era of you and Grandfather; Brother comes from a place you cannot understand. Brother came here because there are many important things to do. I want to ensure this world no longer has wars or so many heavy taxes and corvée labors, so that everyone under heaven can live a good life. And these things are necessities for Brother to accomplish those tasks."

"Little Sister, I know you might not be able to accept this all at once, but it is the truth. But no matter what, you will always be my sister, and I will never harm you or Grandfather, because whether in the past or now, you are my only kin. No matter what happens in the future, you will always be the deepest concern in my heart."

Qin Yang spoke the most affectionate words of his life, and fine beads of sweat had already seeped from his forehead.

Qing Yao stood still in silence, her budding chest heaving continuously, her melancholy eyes flickering incessantly. After a long, long time, Qing Yao finally said, "Really? You aren't lying to me?..."

"Really, I'm not lying. I can swear to the heavens..."

"Who wants you to swear? I believe you. As long as we are in your heart, that is enough..."

Before Qin Yang could finish his words, Qing Yao had already leaned gently into his arms like a young swallow returning to its nest, her soft hands gently covering his mouth.

Waves of maidenly fragrance rushed into his nose; the flustered Qin Yang was suddenly intoxicated, nearly turning into a "statue."

After a long while, Qin Yang reached out his somewhat stiff hands to pat Qing Yao's shoulder and said, "Little Sister, we should head back."

Upon hearing this, Qing Yao realized she was still leaning in her brother's arms and instantly turned bright red, unable to contain her shame. She said urgently, "Bad, Brother is bad..." She turned and ran straight toward the path home, shouting as she ran, "Brother, come chase me..."

Qin Yang was speechless, caught between laughter and tears. Two phrases involuntarily surfaced in his mind. One was "A young girl's face, like the July sky, changes in an instant." The other was "It is hardest to bear the favors of a beauty." Qin Yang did not like Confucius, so he forced himself to forget the Master's classic line.

Having recovered his equipment, Qin Yang was in high spirits, and Qing Yao's beautiful eyes were brimming with affection. The two of them even forgot to gather medicine; they simply made a bag out of weeds and vines to hold the box, and Qin Yang carried it as they headed home amidst their playful banter.

Along the way, Qing Yao asked Qin Yang many questions. Qin Yang picked only easy-to-understand tidbits of modern knowledge that didn't involve his missions and chatted away, leaving Qing Yao startled and amazed.

Watching Qing Yao's girlish manner, Qin Yang felt waves of amusement, but he could only suppress it, his face nearly turning red from the effort. Fortunately, Qing Yao did not notice anything amiss, otherwise, Qin Yang would have had another headache on his hands.

On the contrary, Qing Yao's interest grew immensely as she listened to these unheard-of strange tales. She asked incessantly, "An iron box can run on the road without being pulled by a horse? Many people can fight while being contained in a tiny box the size of three inches? Two people can see and talk to each other even when thousands of miles apart? And lamps that don't need oil? And..."

Qin Yang had woven a web for himself, and troubles continued to arise. However, there was an advantage: in Qing Yao's heart, Qin Yang's image grew taller and taller, so large that it filled her entire heart.

By the time they returned to the village, it was already the hour of Si (10:00 AM in the original time). The July sun beat down from directly overhead, and the two were already drenched in sweat. When the villagers saw Qing Yao walking with a man of commanding presence, although they were somewhat surprised, no one spoke up to ask questions; they merely nodded in greeting, which saved Qing Yao a lot of trouble.

As they approached the house, the two saw Zhao Yun in the yard, laboriously turning over drying medicinal herbs with his right hand on a flattened patch of ground. Qin Yang felt a pang of sorrow; he felt he should do something for this family, so he couldn't help but call out, "Grandfather, come inside and rest. Grandson has urgent matters to discuss with you."

Qing Yao quickly took over Zhao Yun's work.

"Yang, tell Grandfather quickly, what urgent matter is it?" Zhao Yun asked immediately upon returning to the house, not even bothering to wipe the sweat from his brow.

"Grandfather, I won't hide it from you. You must have noticed many strange things about me, but I cannot explain them to you clearly in a short time. Furthermore, it is better if you know as little as possible about my affairs, otherwise, it might bring life-threatening danger. I will let Qing Yao explain the details to you later. You are familiar with the situation in the city; I ask Grandfather to go to the city with me to exchange some things."

"Yes, Grandfather. Everything Brother said is true." The newly arrived Qing Yao chimed in. Her heart was already deeply tied to Qin Yang, so she didn't care what he was going to do; she simply believed him without reason.

"Yang'er, Grandfather believes you too. I know you are not a bad person. Tell me, what do you need to exchange? Wait for me to get ready, and we will go immediately." Zhao Yun did not hesitate in the slightest.

"It is not a very big matter, just exchanging gold for silver coins." Having said that, Qin Yang opened the box and took out the two gold ingots.

When Zhao Yun saw Qin Yang pull two gold ingots out of that pitch-black box as if performing a magic trick, even with his wide experience, he could not help but be shocked. He had never seen so much gold, nor had he even heard of it.

"Grandfather, there are four catties of gold here, but it is too large and not convenient for small transactions. I want to exchange it for smaller pieces and some silver coins. Also, I want to buy a good horse."

"Alright, no problem. Qing Yao, make lunch at home; we will be back shortly." Zhao Yun responded repeatedly and was the first to walk out the door.

...