Chapter 69: So It Was Only a Sense of Duty!

“Don’t worry, Mother,” Qin Youtian replied, though his heart was heavy with sorrow. He shot a glance at Hua Qinci and called out, “Are you still dawdling? If you keep this up, the sky will be bright before we leave. The walk up the mountain takes more than three hours!”

“Alright,” Hua Qinci answered, her gaze lingering on Qin Youtian. In truth, she felt a twinge of guilt—after all, he had always treated her well.

“Go and come back quickly. Look after each other on the road,” Qin Mingyue said, handing a basket to Hua Qinci as she wiped her eyes. “Take some food for the journey.”

“Oh, okay.” Hua Qinci, uncertain what to say, felt her resolve soften at last.

She grabbed the small bamboo basket and, swift as the wind, hurried after Qin Youtian as they left the house together.

As they climbed the mountain path, Hua Qinci observed her surroundings. Aside from a road leading to the county town, the landscape was an endless stretch of green mountains, forests, and farmland. Lush greenery was everywhere, and the air was thick with the scent of flowers.

They ascended the winding trails along the great mountain. This was Hua Qinci’s first time venturing up here, and as she walked, she thought that perhaps it was a fitting farewell to Creek Village. Maybe she would never return.

The two walked in silence, one ahead and one behind. Neither spoke a word. Qin Youtian had no idea what to say to make the girl who had stirred his heart for the first time stay with him—this girl who, after all, was his wife.

At this moment, it seemed this was the only way they could quietly be together, the only way she would willingly follow behind him. Qin Youtian couldn’t help but feel like a complete failure as a man: unable to provide his mother with a peaceful old age, unable to win his wife’s affection, unable to fulfill his mother’s wishes, unable to cure her illness, and unable to solve his wife’s troubles. In the end, perhaps it was best simply to let her go.

Hua Qinci stared quietly at his back, not wishing to say anything more. She felt this was the best ending for the two of them.

They walked for who knows how long. Hua Qinci soon felt a dull ache in her feet and her breath began to quicken—her body was still delicate, she thought with a sigh.

At last, Qin Youtian stopped. He plucked a leaf, rolled it up, filled it with water, and handed it to her. “You must be thirsty. Here.”

“Th-thank you.” His sudden thoughtfulness caught her off guard, stirring something in her heart. She accepted the leaf, the cool sweetness of the water mingling with the leaf’s astringency as it swirled in her mouth.

“How are you holding up? Tired?” Qin Youtian asked. “If you are, we can rest a while before continuing.”

She was pleased by his suggestion. Since waking that morning, it had been nothing but arguments; ever since she’d arrived in Creek Village, there had been no peace. This rare moment of tranquility was unexpectedly pleasant.

“Why are you so good to me? After all, I haven’t treated you well,” she blurted out, almost regretting the words as soon as they left her lips. Why did she have to ask that?

When he’d asked if she’d ever cared for him or liked him, she’d wanted so much to ask him the same. Yet, she’d always held back.

But now, she could not restrain herself any longer.

Qin Youtian gave her a meaningful look. “You are my wife. If I don’t treat you well, who else should I treat well? Do you want me to be good to some other woman instead?”

After all, she had married him—she was his responsibility.

“So that’s it. Just responsibility,” Hua Qinci murmured, her eyes dropping as she gazed at her reflection rippling in the water.

Was that really her?

She was surprised. She’d never looked in a bronze mirror; even if she’d bought one, she’d never dared to use it for fear she’d hate the face she saw. Yet now, wonder filled her: so this was what the original owner of this body looked like.

“Of course. What else did you expect?” Qin Youtian stood and adjusted his hunting bow and arrows.