21 Loves You

On the road, it suddenly occurred to Xiaoyun that he had not yet asked Snow Blossom where she came from, or where she was headed. So he asked, “Sister Snow, where is your home? And why do the Second Miss Xiao and her companions trouble you?”

Snow Blossom found it difficult to answer his question. The tangled grudges and feuds of the martial world could not be explained in a few words, and besides, she did not wish for Xiaoyun to become entangled in such matters. After a long pause, she finally replied, “My homeland lies far away. As for why the Second Miss Xiao wishes me harm, I do not know.”

Xiaoyun did not believe her. “Sister Snow, you just don’t want to tell me, isn’t that right? How many secrets are you hiding from me, deep in your heart?”

Snow Blossom smiled wryly. “Perhaps I am simply too foolish to understand it all. But tell me, Xiaoyun—why did you save me?”

Xiaoyun grinned. “Isn’t that obvious? Because I like you, of course!”

Snow Blossom smiled faintly, then asked, “Then what about Sister Ling—why did she save you, why does she treat you so well?”

A blush crept over Xiaoyun’s cheeks. He was unwilling to admit that Sister Ling loved him. After thinking a moment, he muttered, “It’s because Sister Ling is kind.”

Snow Blossom laughed. “Then I understand. It must be that the Second Miss Xiao and her friends simply dislike me, so they treat me this way.”

Xiaoyun felt a pang of disappointment; he understood that Snow Blossom simply did not wish to share the truth. With a sigh, he said, “Very well, I won’t ask about that. But tell me, Sister—where do you plan to go?”

His question reminded Snow Blossom of her uncertain fate, and her expression grew somber. With a long sigh, she said, “I must go far to the west, to the great desert where I grew up…”

Xiaoyun could not help but ask, “Sister Snow, do you think I’ll ever see you again?”

“If fate allows,” she replied, “then we shall surely meet once more.” Hearing the sorrow in her words, Xiaoyun too felt a dull ache in his heart. “I hope that one day we’ll meet again,” he said softly.

Suddenly, unable to restrain himself, Xiaoyun blurted out, “Sister Snow, five years ago, in the western desert—did you ever save a little girl of seven or eight with your whip?”

This strange question left Snow Blossom at a loss. She had saved and killed so many people in her life that most faces blurred together, but the great blood feud between the Long and Bai clans five years before was unforgettable. She distinctly remembered saving a little girl then, though she had thought little of it at the time. What puzzled her was that only the people of her own Bai clan had witnessed that rescue—how could Xiaoyun possibly know?

“How do you know about that, Xiaoyun?” she asked in surprise. “Could it be that you were that little girl?” For a moment, she could hardly believe such a coincidence could exist.

Xiaoyun realized at once that if he answered, his past would be exposed. How mortifying for Sister Snow to know he had once disguised himself as a little girl! So he lied, “I heard about it from an old childhood friend. She always remembered that a young woman in white, with a soaring eagle tattooed on her arm, saved her from chaos. When I saw the eagle on your arm, I couldn’t help but ask.”

“Where is this friend of yours now?” Snow Blossom asked.

“I haven’t seen her in years,” Xiaoyun replied hastily. “No idea where she’s living now.”

Snow Blossom sensed his evasiveness but was not in the mood to press further.

As they spoke, they walked on, soon arriving at the place where Snow Blossom had once fought Xiao Tianfeng. Suddenly, Snow Blossom sensed a shadow flit ahead—a movement so swift that only someone of her skill could have detected it. At once, her heart leapt. How could such a martial master be hiding in this forest? From the glimpse she caught, she judged this newcomer’s abilities to far surpass Xiao Tianfeng’s; this was someone who could threaten her very life. Instinctively, she heightened her guard.

The approaching figure, seeming to sense her wariness, slowed their steps. To Xiaoyun, though, it was simply as if a person had suddenly appeared on the path ahead; by the time he looked closely, the newcomer was only a few dozen paces away.

The newcomer was a young woman of about eighteen or nineteen, her long hair cascading over her shoulders, dressed in a pale blue gown. Her skirt fluttered in the mountain breeze, lending her a graceful, ethereal beauty—a vision almost like that of an immortal.

When Xiaoyun saw her clearly, he could not contain his joy; he ran forward, calling, “Sister Ling, I’ve missed you so much!” As he ran, he turned back to Snow Blossom. “Sister Snow, this is my Sister Ling!”

Snow Blossom, seeing that this was the ‘Sister Ling’ to whom Xiaoyun was so deeply attached, felt a sudden urge to observe her closely.

Xiaoyun ran up to Sister Ling, affectionately embracing her slender waist and resting his head against her chest.

She had no choice but to hold him in her arms, laughing softly. “Xiaoyun, you’ve grown so much! Yet still you act so childishly in front of others—aren’t you afraid they’ll laugh at you?”

By now, Snow Blossom had had a good look at this young woman. Her features were radiant, her teeth white as pearls, and her entire countenance suffused with an extraordinary gentleness. Especially when she gazed at Xiaoyun—her eyes shone with boundless tenderness.

From their expressions, Snow Blossom understood there was an unusual affection between them. Sister Ling’s gaze conveyed concern and warmth, more than lovers’ passion, yet also more than mere sibling affection. Watching their intimacy, Snow Blossom felt a sudden, inexplicable sense of loss.

Remembering her manners after Sister Ling’s gentle admonition, Xiaoyun turned and pointed toward Snow Blossom. “Sister Ling, let me introduce you—this is Sister Snow, whom I’ve just recently met.”

Sister Ling had already been curious about Snow Blossom’s origins, but, delighted at seeing Xiaoyun, she had not paid much attention until now. At Xiaoyun’s introduction, she studied Snow Blossom intently, wondering how the two had met.

Though she had never seen Snow Blossom’s skills, Sister Ling could sense that they were matched—both were martial artists of the highest order, possessing unfathomable strength. Not only that, but both were endowed with a rare intelligence. Between such people, much could be understood with a single glance—there was little need for words.

As the saying goes, “One leaf heralds autumn.” They were people of the same realm, and whether friend or foe, they shared a common language—the sort that Xiaoyun could never hope to grasp.