Atkin

Chapter 581 Are you afraid that I will poison you?

Back at Mount Qixia, the mountain breeze blew gently, but it failed to blow away the deep sorrow on Ajing's face. She looked like she had a lot on her mind.

Xiang Zhu keenly noticed that Ajing was acting strange, and asked with concern: "What did you talk about today?"

Ah Jing raised the corner of his mouth slightly, revealing a half-smile, and looked at Xiang Zhu and asked, "Don't you know?"

Xiang Zhu shook his head innocently, saying sincerely, "I don't know. I definitely don't know. What did we talk about that made you so unhappy?"

Ah Jing's eyes became serious, he looked directly into Xiang Zhu's eyes, and said slowly: "Xiang Zhu, you really won't hurt the people of Fenghua City, right?"

Xiang Zhu was slightly startled, with a puzzled look on his face, and asked, "Why do you ask that?"

"Maybe it's intuition." A Jing sighed softly, with a trace of worry in his eyes, "I'm still worried that you will do something to hurt humans, even though the elves may always represent justice in human cognition. But the people of Fengcheng are too innocent, and I don't want them to be harmed."

Xiang Zhu remained silent, and A Jing also remained silent. The atmosphere between the two of them was a little solemn, as if the air had become heavy.

They sat quietly in the small courtyard of Qixia Mountain. The fire in front of them was burning fiercely. The flames occasionally emitted some bright sparks, but still failed to break the awkward stalemate.

In this silence, Xiang Zhu suddenly stood up, turned around and walked into the house.

After a while, he brought out a table of delicious dishes with a gentle smile on his face, and said: "You must not have eaten such delicious food in Huayutai. I guess you are still a little hungry now." His voice was soft, trying to ease the slightly tense atmosphere.

Ajing nodded gently, the corners of her mouth slightly raised, revealing a faint smile: "Aren't you hungry? I've been chatting with City Lord Hua for so long that I haven't had time to eat." As she spoke, her eyes fell on the table of sumptuous dishes, and a hint of anticipation flashed in her eyes.

When Xiang Zhu saw Ajing's response, the tension in his heart was relieved a lot. He greeted Ajing with a smile: "Try it and see if it suits your taste. These are all prepared by me carefully." As he said that, he served Ajing a bowl of soup and handed it to her.

Ajing gently stirred the soup in the bowl with his hands, his eyes wandering a little, and he was reluctant to pick up his chopsticks.

She looked up at Xiang Zhu and opened her mouth as if she wanted to say something, but in the end she didn't say anything and just continued to stir the bowl of soup.

"Have you eaten?" Ajing broke the silence first and asked softly.

Xiang Zhu shook his head slightly, looked at her tenderly, and said, "No, I'm waiting for you."

"Well, this bowl of soup is for you. I'll get another bowl." Ajing said, and handed the bowl of soup in his hand to Xiang Zhu.

Xiang Zhu took the bowl of soup, drank it all without hesitation, and then put the empty bowl aside.

The corners of his mouth slightly raised, and he said with a smile: "Why, are you afraid that I will poison this soup?"

Ah Jing was slightly startled by Xiang Zhu's words, then he gently shook his head, with a helpless smile on his face: "No, I just... just saw that you haven't eaten yet, so I thought of letting you drink some soup to fill your stomach first."

She paused, her eyes became serious, and continued: "Xiang Zhu, I just...actually I have a lot to say to you, but I don't know where to start. After talking with City Lord Hua today, I feel a little confused."

Seeing that Ajing still looked a little worried, Xiang Zhu used a serving chopstick to pick up a piece of tempting roast duck for Ajing. The roast duck had a crispy skin, a little fat seeped out, and exuded a burst of fragrance.

Then he picked up a piece of glutinous rice lotus root in sugar sauce. The lotus root slices were cooked until soft, sweet and covered with crystal sugar sauce.

Then he picked up some fried pork with mugwort. The pork was tender and matched with the refreshing mugwort, which was colorful. Xiang Zhu said gently, "Let's eat first. Are you really afraid that I will poison you?"

Ah Jing bit his lip lightly and said seriously, "I'm scared. I'm really scared."

She stared at the chopsticks of food that Xiang Zhu was holding, her eyes revealing a complex emotion, and continued, "I have never been so scared."

Xiang Zhu was slightly stunned after hearing what Ajing said, but he didn't say much. He just picked up the dishes silently and ate by himself.

The courtyard fell silent for a moment, with only the occasional crackling of flames and the clatter of dishes and chopsticks.

Ajing looked at the food in the bowl but was reluctant to pick up her chopsticks. The inner conflict made it difficult for her to swallow.

Shousheng was in his own yard, his fingers gently touching the strings of the zither. The melodious sound of the zither poured out like a gurgling stream, flowing over the courtyard wall, and slowly drifting to the small courtyard where Ajing and Xiangzhu were.

When Ajing heard the sound of the piano, he was slightly startled, and his already solemn expression became even more complicated.

She couldn't help but think of her conversation with Hua Nuan'er, and all those worries and concerns resurfaced in her mind. The future of Fengcheng, the plans of the spirits, and the delicate relationship between her and Xiang Zhu, all of these were like a tangled mess that entangled her.

She listened to the piano quietly, with a hint of confusion in her eyes, not knowing how to proceed in the future.

When Xiang Zhu heard the sound of the piano, his brows slightly frowned, and a hint of imperceptible worry flashed in his eyes.

The two of them just sat there quietly, each with their own thoughts, surrounded by the melodious yet somewhat melancholy music of the piano. The atmosphere in the courtyard became increasingly quiet and solemn.

"It's not directed at you." Ajing said softly. As soon as she said it, even she found it a little funny. She was also surprised in her heart why she suddenly became so distrustful of the spirit race and Xiang Zhu in front of her.

Xiang Zhu was slightly startled. He wanted to ask, but paused. After thinking for a long time, he slowly said, "You said so, but every word you said tonight was directed at me. Why did you suddenly become like this after talking with City Lord Hua?" There was a hint of confusion and helplessness in his eyes.

"It's not sudden, is it?" Ajing shook her head gently, with a complex emotion in her eyes, "Maybe it has nothing to do with the city lord. It's accumulated over these days and such a long time. I don't know, I don't know you very well, Xiang Zhu." Her voice was a little low, revealing a little confusion.

"Why does Shousheng play the piano so sadly? It seems we have to find Ling Luanluan back for him." Xiang Zhu held his chin and said jokingly, trying to ease the slightly heavy atmosphere.

"Look at you, changing the subject again. What does this have to do with Shousheng?" Ajing frowned slightly, with a hint of helplessness in his eyes, obviously dissatisfied with Xiang Zhu's behavior of changing the subject.

At this moment, Shousheng's piano playing stopped abruptly, as if someone in the next yard had really overheard their conversation by accident.

"Hey, Shousheng, do you want to eat together? No one is eating the prepared food." Xiang Zhu shouted loudly towards the next room.

Shousheng's voice came from across the courtyard wall: "I won't join in the fun. You two should just have a good meal. If you have anything to say, just talk about it. After all, it's all in front of us."

Shousheng's voice carried a hint of gentle consolation, as if he saw through the conflict between the two and hoped that they could be honest with each other and solve the problem.

After hearing Shousheng's words, Ajing was slightly stunned and thought to himself.

Xiang Zhu also quieted down, the smile on his face gradually faded, and his eyes became more serious.