Jinbao Marries a Wife

The day after driving Jinbao away, Que Siming regretted it deeply.

At the time, he was blinded by anger, wanting nothing more than for this person to disappear from his sight immediately, or else he wouldn’t be able to stop himself from strangling him.

It was only after he had smashed every visible object in the house that he finally calmed down. And then, he realized what he had done.

Why should he make things easy for Lou Jingyu? How could he just watch as Xiaohu and him fly off into the sunset? He should have dragged Jinbao back, chained him up, locked him away, hidden him, never letting anyone else see or touch him again. He should make him his for life. If Jinbao dared to think of someone else, he’d make sure he couldn’t think of anything at all. He’d guard him so tightly that there’d be no way he could ever betray him.

Life is so long—how could he keep going if he never saw him again?

With that thought, he urgently set out to get Jinbao back.

At dawn, as he was running out of the village, he was stopped halfway by his master and senior brothers, leading a group of people.

His master was so angry that even his beard was bristling. He pointed at Que Siming and scolded, “What’s wrong with you? This is a complete mess!”

Que Siming, having no idea what he had done wrong, grew even more impatient, since he was in a hurry. “What now?”

Master Que bellowed in his thunderous voice and waved him over, “Get over here!”

Frustrated but not daring to disobey, Que Siming followed behind.

His master led him to the backyard, the very place where the stone of longevity was kept—the same place where he had clashed with Jinbao the day before.

Master Que pointed to the stone wall, now scratched up and covered in ridiculous markings. “You ungrateful brat, what the hell is this? Huh? First, you made a mess with that rabbit deity, and now this… Are you trying to piss me off to death?!”

Que Siming froze when he saw the stone wall.

On the wall, a few words had been carved with a sharp blade, and each stroke felt like it was etched into his heart, making him ache unbearably.

Divorce Letter

Que Siming, you heartless, despicable bastard. I’m done with you.

Wang Erhu

Que Siming’s face twisted into a mix of a sob and a bitter smile. He stared down at his shoes, saying nothing.

Master Que stormed up to him and slapped him hard on the head. “You idiot! The Que family only has one son, and this is what you… You… You’re going to be the death of me!”

Que Siming suddenly felt no need to pretend or deceive anymore. He sighed and said, “Master, I’ve been like this since I was young…”

Slap!

Master Que, still furious, smacked him across the face again. “Say that one more time!”

Que Siming used his tongue to press against the swollen spot from the beating and slowly knelt down, saying, “Master, I’ve always been like this since I was a child.”

“You… you…”

Que Qingyuan’s eyes filled with a shame-tinged sorrow, and he looked at Que Siming with a darkened expression.

The head of the Que family was furious, but there was nothing he could do with Que Siming. The others persuaded him to go back and rest for now.

Que Siming also felt deeply guilty, but there was nothing he could do. If hearts could be controlled, he wouldn’t still be obsessing over someone who betrayed him.

Not wanting to stay even a moment longer, he seized the chance while Master Que wasn’t paying attention, gathered his people, and fled the medicine valley to chase after Jinbao.

On his way, he received reports that Lou Jingyu had hurried back to Ruyi Pavilion at Mount Qixia. So, Que Siming informed the head of Ruyi Pavilion, Lou Jingrong, hoping to meet them as soon as he arrived.

Unfortunately, he was three days late when he reached Mount Qixia, and they had already left. Lou Jingyu had taken Jinbao and run away.

Meanwhile, Master Que had sent Manager Xiao and Que Qingyuan to personally chase after him, determined to drag him back to Dongting Lake.

As for Lou Jingyu, he wasn’t about to obey his brother’s decision. He would rather die than hand Jinbao over to Que Siming again, so he fled with his people in the middle of the night.

His trouble-making fourth brother even went out of his way to prepare horses and supplies for them, grinning as he personally saw them off.

The young master of the Lou family took bundles of banknotes with him, planning to travel the world with Jinbao, indulging in food, drink, and fun.

Since the youngest had also been allowed to leave the mountain, the nine members of the Lou family had never appeared together again. The Lou family was naturally free-spirited, fond of wandering, and it was normal for them to be away from home for most of the year. In the past, Lou would travel alone, but now, with someone he liked by his side, he was truly happy.

At the end of the day, though Lou Jingyu sometimes displayed the ruthless streak of an adult, deep down, he was still a child at heart. He wanted to share all the good food, fun, and beautiful sights in this world with the one he loved.

He had no shame about his feelings toward Jinbao, not hiding a single bit. He just liked being with Jinbao, wanted to treat him well, protect him, make him happy, and be happy himself. He also wanted to touch him, kiss him, hug him, and when Jinbao no longer rejected him, he hoped he could get him to lie beneath him, making those sounds that could make anyone’s blood boil…

Although Jinbao still treated him coldly now, he kept him by his side, waiting to see who would outlast the other.

Young Master Lou looked at the vast sky, feeling incredibly at ease.

But his joy was entirely one-sided.

For Jinbao, who was being forced to stay with the one who had framed him, his martial skills sealed, and was constantly being groped, he only wanted to get away.

Moreover, compared to Lou Jingyu’s excitement, Jinbao still hadn’t recovered from the shock of hearing that Que Siming had chased him all the way to Qixia Mountain.

Why had he come? Didn’t he say he never wanted to see him again? Could it be that he regretted it? Jinbao smiled mockingly. How could that be?

Though he had once imagined Que Siming regretful and crying in anguish, it was just a fantasy. Que Siming was far too proud, rarely ever saying anything soft. Maybe he came for something related to Yu Mingjing.

Besides, Jinbao didn’t care if he regretted it. Jinbao thought to himself, no, he didn’t care. He was the one who dumped Que Siming first.

Jinbao lowered his head, gripping the reins as if they were Que Siming’s neck, twisting with force.

Lou Jingyu rode up, giving him a swift kick to the butt, complaining, “Hey! What are you daydreaming about? I’ve been calling you for ages.”

Jinbao raised his head, stunned, looking at that annoyingly smug face, feeling a surge of anger. “What?”

“I’m asking you, where do you want to go?”

Jinbao replied, irritated, “I want to go home.”

“And where’s your home?”

Jinbao thought for a moment, “Dali.”

Lou Jingyu tilted his head, “Well, it’s not impossible, but what if we get there and you turn your back on me, ditching me? What then?”

Jinbao shot him a glare, “I already turned my back on you. You’re the one who insisted on dragging me along. When will you finally stop?”

Lou Jingyu pouted, looking at him with grievance. “What exactly do you dislike about me? Am I not good to you? Or is it my face that makes you lose your appetite? How am I worse than Que Siming? Is it just because I didn’t meet you as early as he did?”

Jinbao couldn’t help but laugh and cry. “No, seriously, let me ask you—what exactly do you see in me?”

Lou Jingyu blinked his eyes, then smiled shyly. “I like being with you.”

Jinbao’s face turned red at Lou’s bashful expression. He had only casually asked the question, never expecting such an honest response. It was the first time in his life someone had expressed affection for him so openly. Even though it wasn’t what he wanted, he couldn’t help but feel a little flattered and embarrassed.

Seeing Jinbao’s slightly flushed cheeks, Lou Jingyu sweetly leaned in closer, saying, “Brother Jinbao, I know I wronged you in the past, but I did save your life once. Let’s call it even, okay? Why don’t you give it a try with me? I promise I’ll treat you sincerely, not like Que Siming. I won’t doubt you, and I won’t deceive you. Just give it a chance, will you?”

Jinbao frowned, “Get lost, you little brat. What do you even know? Let me tell you, I’m done getting involved with men. My brother was right, nothing good ever comes from it. I’m going home to farm…”

Lou Jingyu shouted, “You can’t judge all men just because Que Siming was awful to you! What’s wrong with giving me a chance? What do I lack compared to him? I could treat you a hundred times better—would that kill you to try?”

Jinbao, growing impatient, replied, “What happened between Que Siming and me isn’t what you think. It’s not about how he treated me… Damn it, can you stop bringing him up? Anyway, there’s no chance for us. Stop messing around and let me go. Go find a nice girl or guy to have fun with, nobody’s stopping you.”

Lou Jingyu, fuming, kicked him again. “Do you believe I’ll force myself on you? Do you? I’ve never been more humiliated in my life, especially in front of you! How did I end up this unlucky, taking on a mission and ending up with a troublemaker like you?”

A few days ago, Jinbao might have been worried, but after spending some time with Lou Jingyu, his guard had lowered significantly. He realized this kid mostly just talked big and liked to grope, but compared to the real trouble Que Siming had caused him, Lou was harmless.

So, Jinbao just curled his lip and turned his face away.

Feeling defeated, Lou Jingyu thought for a moment, then said, “How about I take you to Dali?”

Jinbao turned his head, surprised. “Really?”

“But on one condition.”

“Name it.”

“You can’t chase me away. However long I want to stay with you, you have to let me stay.”

“Why the hell should I? What’s with you? Don’t you have parents who worry about you? Why are you wasting your time hanging around me?”

Lou Jingyu shot him a glare. “Take it or leave it. If you don’t agree, I’ll drag you off to the mountains for training, and you’ll never see Dali again in your life.”

Jinbao’s face darkened, and with gritted teeth, he reluctantly agreed, “Fine. If you want to follow me back, go ahead.”

Lou Jingyu added, “Don’t think you can just kick me out once we get there. Without my antidote, your martial skills will never be restored.”

Jinbao, gritting his teeth in frustration, muttered, “Fine!”

Only then did Lou Jingyu smile. “Alright, it’s settled then. We’ll go to Dali.”

With that agreement made, the two of them stopped dawdling and began heading for Dali.

Though they were traveling together, their minds were on completely different things.

Jinbao thought that once he got back to Dali, he’d be on his home turf. With Young Master Su’s skills, he was sure he could get his martial arts back. Then, with the help of Zhaocai, it would be easy to drive this little troublemaker Lou Jingyu away.

Meanwhile, Lou Jingyu had other plans. He was skilled in disguise, voice mimicry, and acting. Winning people over came naturally to him. On this journey, he was determined to soften Jinbao’s heart. If that didn’t work, he’d win over his friends and family in Dali. After all, everyone had a soft side. He refused to believe Jinbao wouldn’t fall for him eventually.

With their plans in mind, the two began to get along a little better on the road.

However, Dali was still thousands of miles away, and with Lou Jingyu’s love for chaos and Jinbao’s heroic dream of defending the weak, their journey was anything but peaceful—more like constant chaos with no moment of calm.