"If I gave it to you, just take it!"
Ah Ya went quiet all at once, standing stock-still on the spot. She looked down at her hands tightly clutching the silver, then looked up at Jiang Zhaoye, who stood half a body taller than her, her lips quivering for a long while without a word coming out.
Made uneasy by those shimmering, watery eyes, Jiang Zhaoye turned his face away and grumbled, "You're a boy... Being this short won't do. Take the silver and buy yourself more food so you can grow."
As he spoke, he couldn't help but add, "And change into warmer clothes. Ju City is freezing like this... I really don't know how you survived wearing just a single layer."
Young Master Jiang had actually considered taking Ah Ya directly to buy new clothes, arranging a whole outfit inside and out; after all, he wasn't short on money. But on second thought, an orphaned child without a backing like Ah Ya wearing high-quality clothes in a shantytown would most likely not end well.
He couldn't stay with her all the time, and the kid still had to make a living under the Crooked Snake Band. Dressing too decently would only draw trouble to herself.
It was better to give her the silver directly and let her buy things on her own.
After spending most of the day together, Jiang Zhaoye had also realized that Ah Ya was actually quite smart—very good at reading people's expressions, gauging the situation, considering everything thoroughly, and slick and clever beyond her years.
At any rate, Jiang Zhaoye felt very comfortable being around her.
How did that saying go? When you feel extraordinarily comfortable spending time with someone, it means their emotional intelligence is higher than yours.
Ah Ya still remained silent.
Jiang Zhaoye took two steps forward, then looked back at her. His gray veil swayed in the twilight wind. "What is it?"
Ah Ya stood in the evening light looking at him. After hesitating for a long moment, she asked in a low voice, "Benefactor... do you... want to test your spirit root?"
Under his straw hat, Jiang Zhaoye raised an eyebrow, neither confirming nor denying. "What about it?"
"When the immortals come to test spirit roots, they don't charge money..." Ah Ya bit her lip. "If Benefactor wants to take the test, once the immortals arrive, just go line up at the city gate."
"But Benefactor... don't let people know you're an outsider. The locals... aren't very polite to outsiders."
Jiang Zhaoye froze for a moment, then said gratefully, "Got it... Thank you, Ah Ya."
Ah Ya lowered her head, remaining quiet.
"Well then... see you next time~" Just as Jiang Zhaoye said goodbye and turned to leave, Ah Ya suddenly spoke up rather abruptly.
"Ben... Benefactor... Ah Ya isn't a boy."
Jiang Zhaoye's steps paused. Through Xiao Ling's translation, he froze for a moment, sinking into deep thought before turning his head back stiffly, like a clunky robot.
Under the hat, his eyes widened.
Comrade Ah Ya, aren't there a bit too many surprises on you that I don't know about?
Ah Ya kept her head down, her expression hidden, but her voice quivered slightly, as if she had summoned immense resolve to speak: "Ah Ya is a girl... Disguising myself as a boy was just to stay alive."
In this kind of world, for a young and frail orphan, a girl was in far, far more danger than a boy.
Having said that, she finally raised her head slowly. Her eyes, brimmed with tears, stared intently at Jiang Zhaoye's veil, as if trying to pierce through it to read his expression.
Jiang Zhaoye was indeed very surprised.
He sized Ah Ya up. That small face was dirty, so thin that her cheeks were sunken and her cheekbones stuck out, but looking closely, her underlying features weren't ugly at all.
If washed clean, well-fed, and properly cared for, she would surely be a delicate, adorable little girl.
Her eyes were large and lively, and whenever she looked at someone, it was easy to make their heart soften... Jiang Zhaoye stayed silent for a while before he couldn't help asking, "Why tell me this?"
He wasn't stupid. With a second thought, he could understand how dangerous a girl living alone would be in a shantytown.
Ah Ya bit her lip. "Because Ah Ya wants to follow Benefactor."
"Follow me?"
"Benefactor clearly looks like a young master from a wealthy family; you must be lacking people to serve you."
"Ah Ya doesn't want wages! Just a bite to eat is enough! I can do anything... serving tea, pouring water, running errands, delivering messages, doing laundry, cooking—Ah Ya can do it all!" She spoke rapid-fire, her words spilling out fast, the urgency and longing in her voice completely undisguised. "Ah Ya is very clever! I learn everything fast, and I definitely won't cause Benefactor any trouble!"
Looking at the little girl about his age who stood like a tiny pudding in front of him, Jiang Zhaoye felt troubled.
It wasn't that he hadn't considered this question.
Having spent the day with her, he truly felt Ah Ya was clever and sharp, familiar with Ju City, and the most ideal guide.
But he couldn't take her with him.
Jiang Zhaoye had too many secrets: the teleportation array, Xiao Ling, Blue Star... Any single one being exposed would bring catastrophe.
Moreover, he couldn't stay in Ju City forever. In a few days, when Ms. Wen finished her business trip, he would definitely have to return to Blue Star, and who knew when he could come back next time.
He could give silver, buy meals, and help in an emergency, but he couldn't take responsibility for another person's safety... or the rest of her life.
"I can't take you," Jiang Zhaoye refused decisively.
Being ambiguous at a time like this would only drain both of them.
Surprisingly, Ah Ya's expression didn't change much. She seemed to have anticipated this answer long ago, yet she couldn't help asking, "Why? Ah Ya eats very little..."
Tears trickled down from the corners of her eyes, tracing two clean tracks across that dirty, gaunt, misshapen face. It didn't look pitiful so much as wretched and tragicomic.
At this moment, even she herself didn't know whether these tears were faked for the soft-hearted young master before her or out of genuine sorrow.
She hadn't cried in a very long time.
The world had taught her that tears were the most useless thing in existence.
"It's not a matter of how much you eat... Nor am I short of that little money." Feeling a bit constrained by pity, Jiang Zhaoye nevertheless tried his best to make things clear: "I don't live in Ju City permanently. I'm leaving in a few days. If you follow me, I won't be able to look after you at all."
Ah Ya lowered her head and said nothing more.
Seeing her standing thin and solitary in the twilight, Jiang Zhaoye felt a bit uneasy. He reached into his robes again, retrieved a few more pieces of broken silver, and held them out. "Take these as well."
"Winter is harsh; stock up on more food."
Ah Ya didn't take them.
She still didn't speak, just standing there with her head down. After remaining silent for a while, she suddenly raised her head and flashed a smile at Jiang Zhaoye: "Benefactor, I'll take the silver from earlier. Thank you, Benefactor! It's getting late, and curfew is approaching. Please head back quickly, Benefactor."
Saying that, Ah Ya tucked the silver into her clothes, turned, and ran off into the night. Her scrawny figure quickly vanished at the end of the alley.
Jiang Zhaoye stood on the spot, watching her figure disappear, feeling an ache in his heart.
He gripped the dagger at his waist. The cold metallic touch brought him back to his senses. Finally, he turned around and walked toward the White Foal Inn.
Returning to the inn, he quietly shut the door and sat at the table, having Xiao Ling compile all the information gathered today.
Looking out the window at the night sky that had gradually quieted into pure black, Jiang Zhaoye forced himself to stop dwelling on Ah Ya's matter, and slowly began calculating other plans in his mind.
He still had two weeks before school started.
Even if Ms. Wen returned home in a few days and his time became limited, no longer as free as it was now...
Even if he could only come occasionally during the day, two weeks would still be enough for him to figure out the situation in this city.
Rate on N.U.
