Chapter 24.4

Our Discord Server: https://discord.gg/PazjBDkTmW

Candy was a rare treat, and giving it to this big bird was sure to get her scolded.

Looking at her younger sister’s sheepish expression, Fan Changyu couldn’t bring herself to reprimand her harshly. Instead, she chuckled, half amused, half exasperated. “Goshawks don’t eat candy; they eat meat.”

Changning’s round eyes widened in surprise. “Really?”

Nearby, Aunt Zhao overheard and laughed. “These things are fierce in the wild. That goshawk that crashed into the east wing’s window last time was just as big, and it was downright vicious. But this one you caught, Changyu, is surprisingly tame. It doesn’t hurt anyone and even seems protective of its owner.”

After a brief pause, she added with a wry smile, “The only problem is that it eats too much.”

One big bowl of meat a day—if she and her husband had to feed it, they’d go broke in no time.

Fan Changyu glanced at the hawk and found herself liking it more and more. “Maybe Yan Zheng trained it,” she mused.

Originally, Fan Changyu had planned to keep the goshawk, let Yan Zheng train it, and then sell it for a good price. But the bird showed remarkable intelligence and had even saved Changning. Fan Changyu decided it would be better to release it back into the wild once its injuries healed.

Later that evening, after dinner, Aunt Zhao carried a yawning Changning to the room she and Uncle Zhao shared. When she returned, she found Fan Changyu still sitting by the firepit and couldn’t help but ask, “Why aren’t you heading upstairs to sleep?”

The Zhao family’s house was similar to Fan Changyu’s, with three rooms on the ground floor. The central room served as the dining area with the firepit, while the south room was where the elderly couple slept. The north room used to have a bed, but after a goshawk crashed through the window, Uncle Zhao had stored wooden planks and the furniture he was making for others in there.

Now, only the attic was habitable.

Fan Changyu, still thinking about sneaking back to her house, replied, “You go ahead and sleep, Auntie. I’ll sit by the fire a little longer.”

Aunt Zhao, having lived a long life, could easily see through the situation. The young couple hadn’t officially become close yet. Back at Fan Changyu’s house, the two had slept in separate rooms, and now this girl was probably planning to spend the night by the firepit.

Aunt Zhao frowned and scolded, “It’s late! If you don’t go to bed and just sit by the fire, you’re wasting firewood!”

Fan Changyu hadn’t expected Aunt Zhao to be so direct in forcing her to go upstairs. With the attic providing access to the roof, she figured she could still sneak back to her house that way. Reluctantly, she stood and said, “Alright, I’ll go to bed.”

At the base of the stairs, Fan Changyu asked, “Do you have an extra quilt?”

She would need it to sleep on the floor.

Aunt Zhao refused flatly, “No!”

Fan Changyu hesitated, considering whether to explain the fake marriage arrangement. “Actually, about Yan Zheng and me…”

Aunt Zhao cut her off without letting her finish. “I don’t care what you’re thinking, but that Yan Zheng, I can tell, is a fine young man. Look at how your family’s in such a mess right now—he dragged himself, injured as he was, to help take care of Changning and get her to safety. And now he’s sick and wounded, and you’re acting like this? Are you turning your nose up at him?”

Fan Changyu was at a loss for words. “I’m not—”

Aunt Zhao shooed her up the stairs. “Then stop making excuses about sleeping on the floor. If I were Yan Zheng, I’d be heartbroken! He risked his life to protect your little sister, and in the end, this is how you treat him…”

Fan Changyu felt like one of those wayward rakes scolded by their own mother, being told not to break the heart of some poor girl. With no other choice, she reluctantly climbed up to the attic.

The door closed behind her, and Aunt Zhao’s scolding finally ceased. Fan Changyu took a deep breath, but when she turned around, she was met with Xie Zheng’s calm, steady gaze. Realizing that he must have overheard everything, her face turned red with a mixture of embarrassment and awkwardness.

She walked toward the chair and said, “I’ll just rest my head on the table for a while. Once Uncle Zhao and Aunt Zhao are asleep, I’ll climb out through the attic and head back.”

There was a bed in the attic of her own house as well, so after retrieving what she needed, she could make do there for the night and return before dawn.

Fan Changyu didn’t plan to let Uncle Zhao and Aunt Zhao know about her wall-climbing plans. After all, it was against the law. If they found out, they could be charged with the crime of not reporting her.

Xie Zheng didn’t say much in response.

When the candle was extinguished, the room plunged into darkness. Fan Changyu rested her head on the table for a nap, while Xie Zheng lay quietly on the bed, his breathing light and barely audible.

But whether it was the night deepening her fears or her own delayed reactions catching up, her mind began to wander. She thought about returning to her house—a place where so many had died. That day, she herself had killed several people. Now, their gruesome deaths slowly resurfaced in her mind, their expressions frozen in terror.

Outside, the north wind howled, wailing like ghosts in the night.

Fan Changyu shifted restlessly, trying to find a comfortable position, but nothing worked. Finally, she gave up and sat upright.

The bed remained silent. Tentatively, Fan Changyu asked, “Yan Zheng, are you still awake?”

“I am. What’s wrong?” His voice, clear and cold, carried through the darkness.

Fan Changyu pressed her lips together, forcing her tone to sound casual. “When you woke up at noon, you were drenched in sweat. Were you having nightmares about killing someone?”

There was a long silence before a soft “Mm” came from the other side.

Fan Changyu felt as if she’d found an ally. Swallowing hard, she said, “It was my first time killing someone too.”

After a brief pause, she asked, “Are you still afraid now?”

The room fell silent again. After what felt like ages, a calm voice finally came from the bed, “Come here.”

“You really don’t need to be so scared,” she said as she moved toward the bed. “Just think of it like slaughtering pigs. Do you know how to butcher a pig? I can teach you someday. That way, if you don’t want to work as a guard anymore, you’ll still have a trade to rely on…”

She kept talking as she fumbled her way to the bedside, eventually sitting down near the head of the bed. Clearing her throat twice, she bolstered herself with more confidence. “Go to sleep. The elders say that butchers carry a heavy sha qi—a murderous aura—and even ghosts won’t dare come near them. If I sit here, you won’t have any nightmares.”

===

Translator’s Note: In case anyone forgot, Yan Zheng is an alias used by Xie Zheng.