Unyielding Bone of Dust

Regardless of whether she was human or not, during times of uncertainty, he did not dare to linger with her. Thus he stood up, cupped his hands in a gesture of courtesy and said, "Thank you, young lady, for saving my life."

He intended to politely find an excuse to leave when the girl got up, but she stumbled and instantly fell into his arms.

"Ah!"

The faintly cool breath of the young lady fluttered against his neck, and a gentle warmth spread from his neck in response.

After helping the young lady to steady herself, she raised her sleeve to half-cover her blushing face and said bashfully, "I have been rude, young master, please forgive me."

In the wild outdoors, alone with a young woman, Lin Suqing suddenly felt somewhat awkward. The excuse to leave that had come to his mind was swallowed back down. For a moment, he truly did not know what to say to ease the embarrassing atmosphere.

At that moment, a maid came running from behind the woods, shouting, "Miss, I've been looking for you for a long time, how did you end up here?"

The maid's voice was loud and clear, her hair adorned with two buns embellished with beaded jewelry, and she was dressed in a bright red festive garment, heavily made up in a manner that suggested she was about to pay a New Year's visit, not like an everyday attire.

This raised Lin Suqing's suspicions, and he hurriedly looked back at the young lady he was holding, the same "miss" the maid was calling for. It was this glance that made him realize the woman was wearing a bright red wedding robe, with a phoenix crown and a ceremonial cape, quite extravagant.

What bride-to-be would appear in the graveyard of the wilderness in the dead of night?

Lin Suqing's heart skipped a beat, and he began to feel uneasy. But he quickly suppressed the pounding of his heart. He remembered the special instructions from the Second Prince before he left—stay calm in all situations, and do not panic; in this way, evil spirits would not dare to come near him.

The Second Prince would surely not deceive him. He must be calm, he must stay calm.

Lin Suqing swallowed dryly, suppressing his nervously racing heart, and asked tactfully, "If I may be so bold to ask, what brings you two young ladies to this desolate place in the dead of night... in this desolate place?"

The young lady who had sprained her ankle, aided by the maid's hand, left Lin Suqing's embrace. She looked away shyly, as if harboring some unspeakable secret, too ashamed to speak.

It was the maid, though, who spoke frankly, "Our miss has run away from her marriage, and to avoid being discovered by her family, we've temporarily settled in a small thatched cottage up ahead. We're only waiting for the man's family to dissolve the marriage arrangement before we can return. So you must not speak of this, young master, for fear the lord and lady will send people to capture us."

The maid spoke openly and earnestly, not as if she were concocting a lie to deceive him.

Lin Suqing was skeptical but believed it. So it was a case of fleeing a marriage? That was tough for the miss. Even in his own world, women fleeing marriages were rare, and with such courage to break through conventional norms, Lin Suqing couldn't help but regard her with newfound respect.

"The young lady is quite brave."

"You jest, young master," said the miss as she turned back, her eyes shining brightly in the night. She gazed intently at Lin Suqing, earnestly explaining, "It is simply unwillingness to be bound by social conventions, to marry someone whom I do not love."

Then she took the maid's hand, expressing compassion, "It's a pity to have made Xiaohong suffer, following me to such a place."

The maid named Xiaohong immediately clasped the young lady's hand back, worriedly saying, "Miss speaks such alien words. Xiaohong has served the miss since childhood, and you have treated Xiaohong like a sister. How could Xiaohong abandon the miss to suffer alone?"

The deep sisterly bond softened Lin Suqing's heart. It seemed they were compelled to make a home beside a graveyard, in this desolate mountain wilderness.

In this ominously cold place that even a man like him would fear, how much more daunting it must be for two fragile girls of blooming youth. Such determination and courage they must possess to make such a decision.

Lin Suqing suddenly felt a pang of pity, wanting to take them into his arms to give a warm embrace for comfort. However, he controlled this surge of emotion.

Last time on Danxue Mountain, he had nearly been devoured because he felt pity for the Malignant Spirits. Once bitten, twice shy, he did not dare let his compassion get the better of him again.

The young lady raised her handkerchief to wipe away tears at the corner of her eyes and said to him sideways, "We sisters have been rude, and made you laugh, young master."

"No harm done, the sisterly affection between you two has truly moved me."

Though he harbored many doubts, he still responded cooperatively and chose not to voice his concerns on the spot.

After the young lady and Xiao Hong wiped away each other's tears, she pointed to a narrow path behind the graveyard and said to Lin Suqing.

"We sisters live just ahead, where it's even quieter at night. It's dangerous for you to travel alone after dark. If you don't mind, you could stay in our humble dwelling for the night and continue your journey after daybreak, for safety's sake."

Lin Suqing immediately thought of the scar-faced man from earlier, whose mottled figure stood starkly in his memory. He intuitively agreed—traveling at night was indeed dangerous.

Apart from bandits and outlaws, there were those creatures which were not human. This time there was only one man following him, but what if next time there were two, or a group?

To say nothing of those creatures that lurked in the darkness, which he couldn't guard against. Even if a mere bandit suddenly pounced, he would be defenseless.

Compared to the two girls by his side, if they were merely ordinary people, then naturally that would be for the best. But if they were not human, then two frail girls would still be easier to deal with than two men.

Moreover, the young lady had just saved him once. If these two girls were ghosts with malicious intent to harm him, they could have taken action right then and there; why bother luring him somewhere else? Wouldn't they fear him discovering something amiss and escaping on the way?

Perhaps they were indeed just ordinary people fleeing a forced marriage.

Seeing his hesitation, the young lady said with a gentle expression, "If you disdain our humble abode, then..."

"Oh, sir, what are you afraid of? We two weak women are not scared, what have you to fear?" Xiao Hong was much more outspoken than the young lady and immediately interrupted, saying, "My lady is kindly offering to shelter you, not minding that your reputation might suffer by going with us, yet here you are, afraid of this and that, hesitating. Xiao Hong looks down on you for that—if you don't want to go, then don't."

"Sigh, Xiao Hong, you mustn't be rude." The young lady immediately grabbed Xiao Hong's hand, trying to calm her, "You're well aware of the situation around here, with graves everywhere and bandits running rampant. The gentleman is clearly a foreigner; how can we stand idly by and neglect to help?"

Xiao Hong, clearly chagrined and indignant, said: "I know the lady is trying to be kind to him, but just because we're trying to be hospitable and lend a hand, doesn't mean he's willing to accept it. Making advances towards someone uninterested, I find it unworthy."

"Xiao Hong, do not be impolite." The young lady stopped Xiao Hong's words. Seeing her lady slightly angered, Xiao Hong had no choice but to give up, yet she still pouted, quite dissatisfied.

The young lady, seeing her maid running her mouth and they continuously breaking the conventions, thus performed a formal bow as she solemnly apologized to Lin Suqing.

"Xiao Hong did not intend to offend. Please forgive her impulsiveness, sir, and do not take it to heart." After speaking, she raised her eyes to Lin Suqing for a moment before quickly lowering them again and looking aside, too shy to face Lin Suqing directly.

"Meeting for the first time, being strangers to one another, and in such a peculiar place, it's only natural for you to be cautious," she said as she glanced at Lin Suqing again, her eyes bright and heart-stirring.

"Xiao Hong and I simply wanted to be kind. This barren place is indeed not suitable for nighttime travel; otherwise, we would not disregard female propriety to invite a gentleman to stay in our home."

The young lady took Xiao Hong's hand and they bowed together, continuing, "We sisters won't press you further, sir. Please, feel free to consider it for yourself."

After much deliberation, Lin Suqing weighed the options in his mind and suddenly felt it wouldn't hurt to go with them. Even if they were not benevolent, he had the talisman personally drawn by the Crown Prince, which was doubtlessly effective against female ghosts. Besides, ghosts should be easier to deal with than other things. It seemed like a reasonable choice.

Having thought it through, he returned the bow and said, "Thank you both for the invitation. I shall humbly accept your offer and apologize for the intrusion."

The young lady was gentle as water: "You are too courteous, sir."

Xiao Hong was still outspoken: "See, wouldn't it have been much simpler to agree earlier? Linger in this graveyard for too long, and it's enough to creep you out." She then turned to the young lady with much tenderness, "Miss, we should leave quickly; this place is unfit for a long stay."

In the midst of this, Lin Suqing felt quite ashamed. Being cautious wasn't inherently bad, but now he had been upbraided several times by Xiao Hong, a mere woman, which was somewhat embarrassing.

Nevertheless, it wasn't something to dwell on too much, considering she indeed seemed more courageous than him and was also a woman. Therefore, he said no more, only offering a laugh to brush it off.