I'm Already the Richest Man, Why Did My System Just Arrive?

Chapter 326: Chapter 189: She Only Wants

Several jars of wine later, it was late at night.

Zheng Xiu had dozed off for a moment before Xie Luohe slapped him awake. Xie Yunliu was sprawled limply on his back on the floor, ignored by all. Chu Chengfeng and Wen Shishan were nowhere to be found, and the area around the table was a complete wreck.

Xie Luohe’s cheeks were flushed red, like two peach blossoms. She smiled and patted Zheng Xiu’s cheek until he opened his eyes. Xie Luohe laughed and said, ”I’m drunk. Help me back to my room.”

”You’re not Feng Bei... Go back by yourself!”

Zheng Xiu buried his head back in the crook of his arm, having no intention of dealing with her.

Xie Luohe narrowed her eyes, grabbed Zheng Xiu’s topknot, and lifted his head. Then, she pried his eyelids open with two fingers.

”Xie Luohe, stop messing around.”

Xie Luohe gave a dazzling smile, her eyes hiding a deep, tender affection.

”What if I told you... that right now, I *am* Feng Bei?”

...

Zheng Xiu swore.

’From now on, I can’t believe a single word that comes out of Bandit Xie’s mouth.’

After Xie Luohe’s words sobered Zheng Xiu up a bit, she took one look at his stunned expression and burst out laughing. There was a hint of madness in her demeanor, and the deep affection in her eyes had instantly turned to playful mockery.

In the end, it was unclear who was supporting whom as Zheng Xiu and Xie Luohe made their way up the stairs.

Jianghu Bai Xiaopang had extravagantly booked the entire inn, so all the guest rooms were theirs. Xie Luohe led Zheng Xiu toward a superior room.

Passing down the corridor, the faint sound of a bed frame rocking—CREAK... CREAK...—came from one of the rooms.

Zheng Xiu perked up his ears and tried to make it out. It sounded like that scoundrel Chu Chengfeng. He nodded.

’The battle of the flesh is raging.’

’Worthy of people of the Jianghu. Their skills are profound indeed.’

He escorted Xie Luohe into her room.

”Should I get Xiaotao to help you change?”

Zheng Xiu swayed and asked.

”No need.”

Xie Luohe took off her boots and long socks, then lay on the bed with her fair, plump bare feet, and closed her eyes.

Zheng Xiu thought for a moment.

He prepared to close the door and go to sleep.

Suddenly, Xie Luohe, with her eyes still closed, began to hum a song.

The moment the tune started, Zheng Xiu, who had just stepped over the threshold, stopped in his tracks and turned back in surprise.

”There’s always a wind or two in this mortal world, to stir my hundred thousand dreams. There’s always a cup or two of fine wine, to ease the world-weary sorrow of my heart. There’s always a backward glance, a soft smile, that quietly fills a space in my soul. But alas, the wind only passes through, like autumn waters and endless skies, impossible to hold.”

Humming the song with her eyes still closed, Xie Luohe opened them a crack. She held out her hand, fingers extended, and stared quietly at it.

The song faded. Xie Luohe stared at the back of her hand, though it was unclear what she was looking at.

”Close the door,” Xie Luohe said suddenly.

”Stop pretending. You know I don’t believe you.”

Zheng Xiu said helplessly, closing the door and coming back inside.

”Do you want to...” As soon as Zheng Xiu turned around, he saw that Xie Luohe had, at some point, crossed her legs and was sitting on the edge of the bed. Her toes swayed gently as she asked, her eyes full of seductive charm.

”I don’t want to be beaten to death.” Zheng Xiu shook his head.

He wasn’t drunk.

Therefore, Zheng Xiu wouldn’t give Xie Luohe the chance.

Xie Luohe giggled and pointed at Zheng Xiu. ”I was asking if you want to know what *her* wish is.”

Hearing this, Zheng Xiu froze. ”You know?”

Xie Luohe nodded. ”Of course I know.”

Zheng Xiu pulled over a stool and sat at a distance. ”Tell me.”

Xie Luohe smiled. ”Monsters, Demon Fiends, evil spirits, Mystics, the inhuman...” She held up one hand, folding down a finger for each word she spoke.

”I’ve said before that I can hear the Voice of All Things. You just thought my hearing was sharp, far beyond that of a normal person.” Xie Luohe’s smile grew even brighter. Seeing the surprise on Zheng Xiu’s face, she let out a soft sigh and said calmly, ”But that’s not the truth. What I can hear... is a voice from deeper within.”

Zheng Xiu’s vision blurred.

Xie Luohe was standing in front of him, leaning in close. She reached out and poked Zheng Xiu gently on the chest, saying, ”I can faintly hear... the voice in here.”

”I originally thought this was a gift from Heaven, but in reality, it’s not.” Xie Luohe poked Zheng Xiu’s chest forcefully. POP. A hole was poked through his lapel. Xie Luohe’s fingernail touched Zheng Xiu’s skin, and a drop of fresh blood trickled down her nail.

”You once asked me why I always wake up so early. Have you ever considered that since becoming a Mystic, I haven’t slept at all?”

Xie Luohe’s finger was pressing very hard, and pain radiated from his chest.

But at that moment, Zheng Xiu was so shocked that he ignored the pain in his chest.

”How is that possible? Didn’t you say you were once in a dream...”

Xie Luohe cut him off. ”The moment I close my eyes, I’m in *her* dream! I experience her caution, her loneliness, her hopes, her past, her desperate cries! The moment I open my eyes, all I remember is that village, that night, and the man who, just like her, looked so much like a Demon Fiend! It was him! It was you who led her out of that place!”

Suddenly, Xie Luohe’s fingers tightened, clamping fiercely around Zheng Xiu’s neck. THUD! Zheng Xiu’s back slammed hard against the wall. The entire inn actually trembled slightly under Xie Luohe’s terrifying strength.

Black patterns quietly crept up from below her neck onto her delicate face, making her look incredibly ferocious.

Her long hair fell over her right eye. As she choked Zheng Xiu, the corners of her mouth curved up, and she chuckled.

”It’s really... so noisy.”

Two doors down.

Chu Chengfeng, who was in the middle of his ’hard work,’ felt the vibration. He stiffened for a moment before it dawned on him, and he sighed in admiration. ’As expected of the Big Leader.’ He paid it no more mind and continued his advance and retreat with Wen Shishan.

Meanwhile, in Xie Luohe’s room...

Xie Luohe had suddenly attacked, pinning Zheng Xiu against the wall.

With his neck being choked, Zheng Xiu’s drunkenness completely vanished, leaving his mind perfectly clear. Luckily, he had a habit of carrying a brush with him. He struggled to pull the Luohe Brush from his waist, gritted his teeth, and swung it hard at Xie Luohe’s head.

But just as Zheng Xiu’s Luohe Brush was about to smash into Xie Luohe’s head, a tear fell from the right eye hidden by her long hair. At that moment, Zheng Xiu saw not a trace of killing intent in her eyes, but rather... an expression he might never be able to describe in his lifetime.

Zheng Xiu’s Luohe Brush lost most of its force midway, stopping in mid-air.

”Just go.”

Xie Luohe’s fingers loosened. Zheng Xiu fell to the floor, coughing violently as color gradually returned to his face. She turned and walked toward the bed, then extended a palm, and a gentle force pushed Zheng Xiu out the door from a distance.

Xie Luohe clenched her fist, and a wild wind raged, slamming the door shut.

Xie Luohe’s soft sigh came from inside:

”She just wants... to be a Human.” Her voice was like sleep-talking, ethereal and detached. ”To become a normal person again.”

...

What happened in the room that night didn’t affect Xie Luohe’s attitude toward Zheng Xiu.

The next day, Xie Luohe was clutching her head, asking the now-recovered Xiaotao to brew her a bowl of hangover soup. In her own words, she had drunk too much and forgotten everything that happened.

Chu Chengfeng, exhausted from his busy night, mysteriously poked Younger Brother Gongsun in the small of his back the next day, spouting all sorts of strange phrases like, ”You worked hard,” ”Congratulations,” ”Take care of yourself from now on,” and ”A brother understands.”

Xie Yunliu, who had been drunk from start to finish and was completely in the dark, loudly declared that he hadn’t had enough. He insisted on finding Zheng Xiu for another drinking competition to determine a clear winner at the table.

Meanwhile, the Craftsmen hired to excavate the underground river arrived in Li City one after another. Bankrolled by Bai Xiaosheng, they began work overnight.

Not long after the banquet, Zheng Xiu learned that Xie Yunliu hadn’t come to Yanzhou alone. He had brought nearly all the bandits from Yunhe Village with him. However, to avoid attracting attention, Xie Yunliu had them break up into smaller groups and travel separately.

Now, several hundred strong and sturdy bandits were disguised as Craftsmen, helping with the excavation at the blocked section of the underground river on Ba Mountain.

With work proceeding day and night, and thanks to the efforts of twenty-six of Yanzhou’s top Craftsmen, the excavation went very smoothly. But just as they were about to reach the location Xie Luohe had mentioned, Bai Xiaosheng shrewdly dismissed all the Craftsmen, leaving only the bandits from Yunhe Village and the few of them who were in on the secret.

It took the better part of a day to dismiss the Craftsmen, leaving behind a ground full of iron pickaxes.

Xie Luohe entered the stone tunnel, carefully tapping on the stone walls. After confirming the location, she single-handedly drew her Longbow and shot an arrow into the depths of the tunnel.

The end of the stone tunnel shattered on impact. Gurgling water, SPLASH SPLASH, gushed out from the opening created by Xie Luohe’s arrow.

”Hey, we’ve struck water! We’ve struck water! So much water!”

With Nie Gong’s Treasure Vault on the verge of being opened, everyone raised their hands and cheered, ecstatic.

Except for Zheng Xiu.

”Truly the Luohe Divine Arrow! How terrifyingly powerful!” Bai Xiaosheng exclaimed in awe, making an inviting gesture. ”We invite Lady Xie to continue.”

”Heh, no rush.”

Xie Luohe gave a faint smile and turned, the long arrow on her bow now pointing toward the forest.

”Do I have to personally invite you to come out?”

As Xie Luohe’s voice fell, a sinisterly graceful figure slowly walked out of the forest.

The newcomer wore an official’s hat and a beautifully embroidered long robe, adorned with lively flying swallows.

It was none other than the Director of the Secret Factory, Lou Mengkong.

And also, the other ”Monk,” Fan Yao.