Transmigrating into the world of Jade Dynasty, I was targeted by the female lead in a reverse romanc

Life is slow, but it also goes by quickly.

In the blink of an eye, more than two months have passed since I last stayed in Qilidong. The vegetables in the vegetable garden have grown, and Xiaobai has picked them, stir-fried them, and made soup with them.

Her cooking skills improved; the dishes were no longer burnt, and the rice was no longer undercooked. Jiang Xiaochuan ate at every meal and sometimes asked for more rice.

She also learned to brew wine, glutinous rice wine, which she sealed in jars, saying she would open the jars and drink it next year.

Jiang Xiaochuan said he couldn't wait.

She said she would wait.

The two also went into the mountains.

The mountains of southern Xinjiang are deep and the forests are dense. There are beasts, birds and springs. They climb the mountains. Little White has long legs and walks fast. He is always in front and then turns back to wait for him.

Jiang Xiaochuan followed behind at a leisurely pace, looking at the trees, rocks, and moss. Sometimes they came across mountain springs with clear, cool water.

Xiaobai took off her shoes and socks, stepped into the water, which reached her calves. She bent down, scooped up water to drink, then turned back and smiled at Jiang Xiaochuan: "Sweet, come and drink."

Jiang Xiaochuan walked over and scooped up some water to drink; the water was indeed sweet.

They also spent the night in the mountains, built a fire, and roasted the wild animals they had hunted. Xiaobai could recognize wild vegetables, picked them, and cooked them into soup. The soup was fresh, the meat was fragrant, and they ate it by the moonlight. After they were full, they lay on the grass and looked at the stars. The starry sky in southern Xinjiang was bright and dense, like a handful of crushed diamonds.

Xiao Bai pointed out to him that it was the Big Dipper, that was the Cowherd and the Weaver Girl, and that was the Milky Way. Jiang Xiaochuan looked and listened, occasionally humming in agreement.

Sometimes when it rains, they take shelter in caves. The caves aren't big, but they're dry.

The two huddled at the cave entrance, watching the rain fall densely and the mountain mist rise, turning everything white. The sound of the rain was like countless tiny beads hitting the ground. Xiao Bai didn't speak, and neither did Jiang Xiaochuan; they just quietly watched the rain.

The rain stopped, and the mountain looked as if it had been washed clean, shining with a vibrant green. The air smelled of earth and grass, and it was damp. They descended the mountain, their footsteps crunching over fallen leaves.

Life goes on like this, plain but fulfilling, like a stream, gently flowing, not rushing, but always flowing.

That day, they went to the market again.

The village was bustling with people. Xiaobai pulled Jiang Xiaochuan and stopped in front of a silver jewelry stall. The stall owner was an old silversmith with thin, but skillful hands. He was hammering a piece of silver with a small hammer, making a crisp, ringing sound.

The stall had a lot of silver jewelry: bracelets, necklaces, earrings, hairpins, all sparkling.

Xiao Bai took a fancy to a hairpin. It was silver, with the head carved into the shape of a fox lying down, its tail coiled, and its eyes were two small, bright rubies.

She picked it up and looked at it in the light. The fox was exquisitely carved, with clear fur and red eyes, as if it were alive. She liked it and asked the price. The old silversmith gave her a price, and Xiaobai took out her money and bought it.

She handed it to Jiang Xiaochuan: "Help me put it on."

Jiang Xiaochuan took it and looked at her hair. She had styled it into a simple bun today, tied with a wooden hairpin.

He pulled out the wooden hairpin, and her hair fell down, black and shiny like satin. He gathered it up with his hand, tied it back up, and inserted the silver hairpin. The fox lay in her hair, its red eyes bright.

Little White looked at himself in the bronze mirror on the stall, from left to right, and laughed, "Does it look good?"

"It looks good," Jiang Xiaochuan said.

Xiaobai turned to him, smiled, and said with her eyes crinkling, "Everything you bought is beautiful."

Jiang Xiaochuan turned his face away, looking elsewhere, his ears turning slightly red.

The two strolled around some more, buying rice, meat, and salt. Just as they were about to head back, they suddenly heard a commotion ahead. A group of people were gathered there, making a racket.

I squeezed in to see what was happening. It was a man lying on the ground, foaming at the mouth and convulsing. People around him were panicking and pointing, but no one went forward. A woman was kneeling beside him, crying and shouting something in Miao language, which I couldn't understand, but judging from her expression, she was the man's family member.

Xiao Bai glanced at it and said to Jiang Xiaochuan, "It's hysteria; he's been frightened by the mandrill."

Jiang Xiaochuan looked at her: "You can cure it?"

"Let's give it a try," Xiaobai said, walking over.

She crouched down, placed her fingers on the man's wrist, and after a moment, examined his eyelids and tongue coating. Then she took out a small cloth bag from her bosom, opened it, and inside were silver needles of varying lengths.

She took one and stuck it between the man's eyebrows, gently twisting it. The man's convulsions gradually stopped, but he still didn't wake up. She took another one and stuck it in his philtrum, and then another one in the tiger's mouth.

After three needles, the man stopped foaming at the mouth and his breathing became steady. Xiao Bai then pressed on his chest a few more times with a special technique. After the massage, the man's eyelids twitched and he slowly opened his eyes.

The surrounding people fell silent, then burst into gasps. The woman rushed forward, hugged the man, and cried. She then kowtowed to Xiaobai, saying something, probably thanking him.

Xiao Bai waved his hand, stood up, and said to Jiang Xiaochuan, "Let's go."

The two squeezed through the crowd and walked back.

After walking for a while, Jiang Xiaochuan asked, "You also know medicine?"

"I've been at the Xuanhuo Altar for three hundred years. I was bored, so I started thinking about these things," Xiaobai said. "I just tried them on myself." She laughed and said, "Anyway, I won't die, so I just messed around."

Jiang Xiaochuan looked at her profile. She was talking as if she were talking about someone else, but he remembered the harsh cold and scorching heat of the Xuanhuo Altar, the iron chains, and the loneliness day after day.

For three hundred years, he tested medicines and administered acupuncture himself. His throat moved as if he wanted to say something, but he didn't.

Xiao Bai seemed to know what he was thinking. She turned to look at him and smiled, "It's all in the past. Isn't everything fine now?"

Jiang Xiaochuan nodded: "Mm."

Back in the wooden building, Xiaobai cooked. She had bought meat that day, cut it up, and stir-fried it with wild vegetables. It smelled delicious. She also made soup with mushrooms in it, which was very flavorful.

During the meal, she said, "That man went into the mountains to gather firewood and encountered something unclean. There are many spirits and monsters in the deep mountains of southern Xinjiang. We should be more careful in the future."

Jiang Xiaochuan hummed in agreement and picked up a piece of meat for her.

Xiao Bai looked at the meat in the bowl, then at him, smiled, picked it up and ate it.

At night, Jiang Xiaochuan was cleaning his sword downstairs. The sword, Mo Xue, was unsheathed, its blue light shining brightly, illuminating the cold room. He carefully wiped it with a cloth, from the tip to the hilt.

Xiao Bai sat to the side, sewing clothes by the light. It was for Jiang Xiaochuan, another short jacket, indigo blue, this time embroidered with bamboo leaves.

The two did not speak, but the atmosphere was quiet and beautiful, with only the rustling sound of wiping swords and the soft sound of needle and thread passing through fabric.

After wiping it clean, Jiang Xiaochuan sheathed his sword, looked up, and saw Xiaobai's profile as she bent over sewing. Under the lamplight, her eyebrows and eyes were gentle, and her eyelashes cast a faint shadow under her eyes.

Her fingers were nimble, the needle moving up and down, the thread pulled tight and dense.

He looked at it for a while, then suddenly asked, "Can you see clearly at night?"

Xiao Bai looked up and smiled, "I can see clearly, fox eyes, can see in the dark."

She paused, then said, "What?"

"It's nothing," Jiang Xiaochuan said, looking away. "I was just worried about straining your eyes."

Xiaobai smiled, didn't say anything, and continued sewing. After a while, she said, "Jiang Xiaochuan."

"Um."

"Once this garment is finished, let's go to the mountains for a few days. I've found a great place with hot springs."

Jiang Xiaochuan was taken aback: "Hot spring?"

"Yes, I found it in the mountains. The water is warm, and it feels nice to soak in," Xiaobai said.

"You should relax a bit. All you do all day is cultivate and polish your sword. Aren't you bored?"

Jiang Xiaochuan thought for a moment and said, "Okay."

Xiao Bai smiled again, head down sewing, the corners of her mouth curving upwards.

Outside the window, the moon was high in the sky, shining brightly. The stream gurgled, and in the distance, dogs barked, once or twice.

Late at night.