The afternoon sun was lazy, painting the lake water with a shimmering, flowing gold.
Li Dixian lay on the grass by the lake shore.
With a wave of his hand, a gentle breeze swept up a lotus leaf, slowly letting it settle on his face.
Tomorrow, he would depart for the Blue Lightning Clan.
After telling Qian Renxue yesterday, he asked her to wait by the Lotus Lake.
Time flowed silently.
Li Dixian was on the verge of falling asleep.
Just as his consciousness was about to drift away, a faint rustling of footsteps came from beside him.
The footsteps, treading on the soft grass, carried a cautious air.
Li Dixian's sleepiness dissipated for the most part.
But he didn't immediately remove the lotus leaf from his face; he just tilted his head, listening intently.
The footsteps stopped beside him.
Only then did Li Dixian raise his hand and lift the lotus leaf.
The sunlight was a bit dazzling, and he instinctively squinted.
Once his vision adjusted to the light, that graceful figure clearly entered his sight.
Qian Renxue wore an elegant white dress today, perfectly outlining the slender waist of a young girl.
The sun seemed to have a special fondness for her, dancing and flowing across her beautiful face and golden hair.
When Qian Renxue's beautiful eyes met Li Dixian's, a blush spread across her cheeks, and her gaze quickly darted away.
She raised her hand, brushed back a strand of hair that had fallen by her ear, then quickly lowered it.
Her slender hands were clasped in front of her, fingertips slightly curled, revealing an awkwardness she didn't know how to place.
"You..."
Qian Renxue's voice was softer than the lake breeze.
"You wanted to see me?"
As the words left her mouth, even she was surprised by the shyness in her voice.
Though she had met Li Dixian countless times, whenever she faced him as a woman, her heart would always flutter.
Like a mimosa, she nervously and joyfully curled herself up.
Li Dixian sat up, patting the grass clippings from his white robe.
"Tomorrow, I'll be leaving for the Blue Lightning Clan."
"It will likely be some time before I can return."
"Before I left, I just wanted to see you."
Qian Renxue's slender hand smoothed her long skirt over her bent leg.
She sat down beside Li Dixian.
"Thank you for still thinking of me."
Li Dixian smiled.
He casually plucked a slender blade of grass.
His fingers moved nimbly.
In just a few movements, a grasshopper woven from grass lay in his palm.
"Here, for you to play with."
Qian Renxue looked at the grasshopper in Li Dixian's palm with surprise.
A faint smile broke through her nervousness, like ripples spreading across ice.
She extended her fingertip, touched the grasshopper's slender "antennae," and laughed, "It's a bit ugly, isn't it?"
"Then I'll throw it away."
Li Dixian made to take it back.
"Don't!"
Qian Renxue's tone suddenly rose.
She snatched the grasshopper as if in a race, clutching it tightly in her palm.
—This was the first gift Li Dixian had ever given Qian Renxue.
Realizing her eagerness, Qian Renxue quickly turned her face away, pretending to be absorbed in watching the lotus flowers on the lake.
However, her slender fingers repeatedly caressed the small woven grasshopper hidden in her embrace.
That forced composure intertwined with the uncontainable shyness in her eyes was breathtakingly beautiful.
The warm afternoon sun made one's bones feel languid.
The lake breeze, carrying the scent of flowers, brushed against his cheeks, and the warm, fragrant presence of the young girl enveloped him.
Li Dixian, who had been mentally exhausted from trying to comprehend the fourth form of the Green Lotus Sword Song for days, felt his eyelids grow heavy.
In a hazy state of consciousness, he felt a soft, warm support gently cradle his head.
The touch was tender and elastic, bringing an indescribable sense of peace.
Li Dixian instinctively adjusted to a more comfortable position, burying his face deeper into that reassuring softness.
Qian Renxue lowered her beautiful eyes, her eyelashes trembling slightly.
She gazed at the white-robed young man resting on her lap.
Her heart was filled with an indescribably burning emotion, almost scorching through her chest.
She froze for a moment before cautiously reaching out to brush away a few strands of dark hair that obscured the young man's brows.
"Li Dixian is truly handsome..."
Time seemed to stretch infinitely in this tranquil afternoon, frozen between the girl's downcast gaze and the serene sleeping profile of the young man.
After an unknown period, the person on her lap stirred.
Qian Renxue recoiled as if burned, quickly withdrawing her hand.
Li Dixian's eyelids fluttered, then slowly opened.
His consciousness was still a bit hazy.
He only felt that this sleep had been unprecedentedly peaceful and comfortable.
He blinked, adjusting to the light, and looked up to meet Qian Renxue's downcast gaze.
He paused for a moment before belatedly realizing where he had been resting.
Li Dixian abruptly sat up, a rare hint of embarrassment flashing across his handsome face.
"Cough... I fell asleep? How long was I asleep?"
"Not long at all."
Qian Renxue smoothed her wrinkled skirt, concealing the flutter in her heart.
"Tomorrow... what time do you depart?"
"At Chen Shi, from the South City Gate."
Qian Renxue was silent for a moment.
"I... I'll see you off."
Li Dixian froze.
"See me off?"
He knew Qian Renxue's identity was sensitive and should not be exposed to the Heaven Dou powers.
Qian Renxue pursed her lips tightly.
She wanted to see him off, as Qian Renxue.
"My situation is very complicated."
"But Li Dixian, please believe me, I would never do anything to harm you."
"It's not convenient for me to reveal my whereabouts in front of the Heaven Dou powers."
"But I truly want to see you off."
After a long pause, Li Dixian looked at her downcast yet stubborn profile and replied gently and firmly, "Alright."
With the agreement made, the two sat together by the lake.
They watched the night creep in, the sunset burn across half the sky, and the stars dot the inky blue firmament.
The next day, at the beginning of Chen Shi, outside the South City Gate of Heaven Dou City, Li Dixian, Dugu Yan, Ye Lingling, Yu Tianheng, and eight others were ready to depart.
Crown Prince Xue Qinghe, dressed in casual clothes, came to the city gate to see them off.
Li Dixian's gaze met Xue Qinghe's, and he felt a pang of confusion in his heart.
Wasn't Qian Renxue supposed to see him off?
Xue Qinghe's gaze lingered on Li Dixian for a moment, then she displayed a graceful smile.
"This journey is long and arduous. I wish you all advanced strength and the fulfillment of your desires."
"Li Dixian..."
Her gaze fell on Li Dixian again.
"Return soon. I truly wish to fish with you."
Yu Tianheng and the other seven cupped their fists in return.
Li Dixian smiled and nodded in agreement, but his gaze subtly swept over Xue Qinghe and Porcupinefish and Snake Lance behind her.
His confusion deepened.
Under such public scrutiny, and with Xue Qinghe still here, how would Qian Renxue appear to see him off?
The time had come.
Li Dixian and his party mounted their horses, bowing to Xue Qinghe.
Their horses' hooves struck the official road, galloping toward the distant horizon.
Li Dixian couldn't help but turn his head to look back at the city gate, and even at the towering trees and rolling hills along the road.
But he still didn't see that beautiful figure.
The white-robed young man became a blurred outline at the edge of his vision, finally disappearing around the bend in the official road.
At this moment, Xue Qinghe lifted her Crown Prince's brocade robe and walked into the dense forest on the hillside beside the official road.
Once she was certain no one was watching her, her aura suddenly changed...