Venerated Venomous Consort

Gu Xijiu had always been very optimistic in life. She believed that there was no obstacle that she could not overcome. When she was poor, she would convince herself that money was just another possession that she could always earn. If she did it right, money would eventually become her possession again.

When other assassins were hunting her, she would do everything she could to escape from the threats. If she survived, she would get her revenge and make them understand why they should not mess with her.

Even after Long Xi’s betrayal, she could readjust her mentality very quickly to survive in a whole new era. She fought despicable men and even dealt with objectionable women. Her life had never been more interesting. She had indeed had a great time!

However, she was tired of it all now. She had always thought that everything she did was right and meaningful. She could easily deal with her debt of gratitude or revenge. At this very moment, however, nothing seemed right anymore.

The relationship severely costed her love, her health and her emotions. It had even caused the doom for her friends. She was wrong, absolutely wrong. She was not as strong as she thought and yet she kept trying to be free. Her hope was all in vain.

While she was still in her state of unconsciousness, nightmares constantly haunted her. She was always sweating in anxiety and kept saying nonsense from time to time. The most frequent phrases were ‘I am sorry’ and ‘I will not do it again.’

Even when she was unconscious, she knew that someone was always holding her hand tightly. She could hear someone apologizing to her, saying that it was not her fault.

She was not always conscious. Sometimes, she could not quite differentiate the voices, as they kept fading away, but she knew that they were not from the same man. However, she did not listen clearly to what the voices were saying to her.

Someone made her eat medicine. She also knew there was someone who whispered songs in her ear. The sound of the flute echoed. The melody was very comforting like she was being cradled in the arms of her mother.

Time passed and Gu Xijiu had been trapped in the stupor state for a while now. Finally, she was able to regain consciousness.

She slowly opened her eyes. The first thing that caught her eyes was the delicate wooden framed window. There was a single twig of plum flower along with shadows all over the paper window from a distance. The window was half open. The light of the setting sun shone through, giving the room a warm sense of evening glow.

The silver pot in the corner of the room was still boiling with some medicine. The herbal scent filled the entire room.

The back of a man was facing her. He was busy stirring the medicine in the pot.

The man was wearing a light green robe, seemingly tall and slender. His figure was unquestionably attractive.

Her movement on the bed had caught his attention. The man turned around and lit up immediately with great delight. “Xijiu, you are finally awake!”

“Teacher Long, I am sorry…”

The man was Long Siye. Before Gu Xijiu could finish her apology, he signaled her to stop apologizing any further and gave her a comforting smile. “Don’t say sorry anymore, alright? I have listened to it far too many time over the past few days.”

Soon, the medicine was ready. Long Siye poured the herbal soup from the pot and filled the bowl to its fullest. He took medicine to Gu Xijiu and instructed, “Come. Drink it.”

The boiling hot herbal soup had already been adjusted to a tolerable temperature when he passed it to her; it was neither too cold nor too hot. It was perfectly drinkable. He held the medicine in one hand and two sweets in the other, “The taste of the herbal soup is a little bitter. Take the sweets after you drink it.”

Gu Xijiu did not argue any further and consumed the herbal soup. She drank it all.

The herbal soup was indeed bitter, almost as unbearable as Coptis Chinensis[1]. She did not seem to notice the bitterness though. She did not even frown a little.

After taking the medicine, she did not even ask for the sweets.

Long Siye noticed the changes. He knew that she had always been afraid of the taste of bitterness. When she was sick or hurt, she would always choose to take pills or modern medicines, as she was strongly against the idea of Chinese medicines. She would not agree, even if it was the best for her. Whenever she had no other choice, she would need a few sweets to keep the bitterness away.