Reincarnation to the Past

Chapter 74

-five days later-

Lì's POV

"Brother Lì!!! It's here!!!" Yun-Yun exclaimed in excitement. After a whole day of begging to accompany her to the gambling den in the marketplace to test her luck, I finally complied. The Gambling Den was an event that took place for a week every three months. In the middle of the market, a tent was set up where a new shipment of large quantities of mined ores was presented for sale.

Each ore had the possibility of possessing a mineral with varying quantities of qi within it. The only problem was that it was impossible to tell from the outside whether a particular ore possessed such minerals or if it was empty. And even if you are lucky enough to purchase an ore with a crystal, the amount of qi could be much less. So that is where the gambling came in. You gamble on a particular ore piece, purchase it, break into it either publicly or privately, and see if you come out lucky.

It wasn't of much interest to me; I'd rather spend my time cultivating or reading up on reports. Gambling wasn't my thing, especially when there's a chance you could lose money for nothing. Bai Zou remained by my side, while Bai Ze and Yun Yun went and explored the different ores.

"Are you not interested, master???" Bai Zou asked, noticing my bored and lazy glances around.

"You should know best that this kind of place is not my area of interest. I only came because Yun-Yun wanted to...", I remarked with a bored sigh.

"Master, though it is not my place, I believe it would be best if you reveal your relation with Yun-Yun to Xiao Yǔ as soon as possible. It would be worse if she finds out from somewhere else...", Bai Zou advised cautiously after a few seconds of silence.

She already knows, I thought remembering our last encounter, and exactly how Bai Zou suspected. "Does it look like I have that kind of relation with Yun-Yun???", I asked. It didn't feel that way to me, I only saw her as a sister or friend so why is it a big deal for even Bai Zou to remind me???

"You two seem very close, especially with the way she clings to you. It may seem innocent to you since you're used to it but you'd never know what others think. I advise Master to draw a clear line between the two of you so that Xiao Yǔ need not worry. And also with other women for that matter." came his reply as he eyed me judgingly, obviously referring to the Persea incident, and continued by asking a question: "Have you told Yun-Yun about your engagement???"

"Not really... It never came up." I shrugged, to which Bai Zou turned and gave me a look that said, 'What exactly are you waiting for???', which made me wonder whether it was wrong that I didn't mention it sooner. What harm could it possibly bring???

"Brother Lì!!" Yun-Yun ran up to me from behind and threw her arms around my neck. "I found a pretty rock; could you buy it for me???". She was pointing toward a particular table so I followed her finger, only for my line of sight to freeze at a particular girl standing beside the very same table, staring straight at me.

SHIT!!!

I immediately separated myself from Yun-Yun, as Yǔ slowly turned her attention back to a small rock, picking it in her hand and examining it before dropping it back on the table. I was hoping that she may have missed that but I knew it was highly unlikely. Don't tell me she was ignoring me out of anger again???!!!

Bai Zou, who also noticed what I did, was giving me a judgmental look that said, 'What did I tell you?' If only he knew about what had happened the last time...

"Brother Lì??", Yun Yun called out worriedly, grabbing at my hand, which I quickly recalled. Please, for the sake of all that is good in this world, stop trying to touch me, woman. I noticed a hurt expression crossing Yun Yun's face but I didn't have the time to concentrate on that. All my focus was on catching Yǔ's attention.

I had stretched out my right hand to call after her, only to feel a sharp pain in my index finger. When I looked down, much to my astonishment, I saw a small, dark bunny softly nibbling and licking my finger. Where did this little beast come from and why was it trying to chew my finger off? I wondered as I tried to free my finger from its grasp but it stubbornly held on, following my movements. I heard a soft chuckle from ahead and when I looked up, I saw that Yǔ was staring at me. She was giggling, trying to cover her mouth with her closed fist. She looked cute...

It was at this point that I noticed something weird... Yǔ seemed a bit off, lifeless, constantly pressing her finger against her temples; her eyes were drooping and there were dark circles right under her eyes, as though she hadn't slept in a while. She had her right arm crossed in front of her stomach, with a bunch of rocks held within her embrace.

She used her free hand to summon a small jade bottle containing a large amount of black pills infused with darkness qi. Using her mouth, she pulled apart the lid and held it a bit up. Almost a second later, the bunny's head shot up, took a few whiffs of air, released my finger, floated over to her, and held out its paws, staring at her expectantly. Yǔ giggled again and tilted the bottle just enough to let one of the pills roll out and into the bunny's outstretched paws, which disappeared almost instantly.

Even tired, Yǔ looked so cute that I couldn't stop staring at her, as a subconscious smile formed across my face. Without realizing it, my legs started moving towards her until I was standing right in front of her. I placed my right palm on her cheek, tilting her face upwards, as she rested her cheek against my hand and closed her tired eyes for a full minute.

"When was the last time you slept???" I asked, my voice laced with worry, "Has your family been causing problems???"