Chapter Five: Memories of the Past

Yinyao prepared a simple breakfast in the kitchen and placed it on the wooden table. After washing her hands and just about to call her mother and Ji Xuanyu, she heard light laughter drifting from the corridor. She recognized that one of the voices carried a weak, unstable breath—it could only be Ji Xuanyu. A slight trace of concern appeared on her face.

Ji Xuanyu walked alongside Silver Fox—Yinyao’s mother. Yinyao hurriedly stepped forward to help her mother to a seat and set out the bowls and chopsticks. Silver Fox gave Ji Xuanyu a kind smile, signaling for him to sit down and to make himself at home, as if he were family.

Yinyao sat to Silver Fox's right, filling their bowls with rice. She took her own place quietly, her expression perpetually calm and distant, as if nothing in the world could stir her emotions.

“Xuanyu, I did not expect that, despite my urging Yinyao to hurry with all her might, we would still arrive too late. In the end, we managed to save only you. I feel so deeply ashamed—I owe your father and mother a debt of life that I can never repay. To think, in the end, I could only save a single member of the Ji family.”

Silver Fox’s remorse was heavy, sorrow clouding her heart.

“No, please—don’t say that,” Ji Xuanyu replied at once, his words tumbling out in a rush, a hint of urgency betraying his gratitude. “I am already deeply grateful that you sent your daughter to rescue me. Truly, you have no need to blame yourself. I don't know what ties you had with my parents, but they never mentioned you to me. If my father thought so little of it as to never speak of it, it must have seemed an ordinary thing to him.”

“That’s not it at all!” Silver Fox interrupted his protest. “You don’t know because your father dared not let you know about it!”

Ji Xuanyu’s face showed his shock and confusion. Even Yinyao, previously indifferent, now set down her bowl and chopsticks, her gaze fixed intently on her mother.

Silver Fox sighed softly, memories flooding her mind, her eyes growing moist as she drew forth an old tale.

“Back then, I was just a wanderer in the martial world. One day, a masked man sought me out and hired me to assassinate someone. The target I was entrusted to kill was your father. But on my way, I was ambushed, gravely wounded, and poisoned. Barely conscious, I collapsed at the gates of a great estate.”

“That estate belonged to your family. By fate’s design, your family’s servants found me. Your father and mother spared no expense to heal me, caring for me until I recovered. When I awoke and learned the truth, I was filled with shame.”

“I confessed everything to your parents. They only said that my willingness to speak proved I had no true intent to harm them, and that I should not let it weigh on my heart—just focus on recovering.”

“After that conversation, I resolved to abandon that ridiculous contract and to protect the Ji family at any cost. Never did I imagine the one who had paid to have your father killed was none other than the Ji family’s eldest son—Ji Muyu. I was shocked. But by the time I learned the truth, I had already left your home.”

“I tried to assassinate him several times, but always failed. Powerless to do more, I faded from the martial world, retreating into the mountains to live in seclusion. Still, I never abandoned my vow to keep your family safe. That is why, at the crucial moment, I was able to save you.”

When Silver Fox finished her story, a deathly silence fell over the room. No one spoke; they simply sat there in quiet.

Beyond the walls, the forest was uncharacteristically quiet. Only the brook’s soft murmuring could be heard. No one attempted to break the silence, letting it be.

Ji Xuanyu’s hands were clenched tightly, veins standing out on his fingers, lips pressed into a hard line, his gaze fierce and unyielding. His taut body trembled, fingers digging into his palms until blood appeared beneath his nails. He was holding back with all his strength.

Yinyao glanced at him. Though she felt a fleeting hint of pity, mostly she was resigned. The poor man—he would need time to digest all that he had just learned.

Silver Fox, seeing his reaction, felt a surge of compassion. Yet she knew only he could help himself now. Whether he could face all this calmly, whether he could turn hatred into strength, depended on him alone.

Ji Xuanyu did not rage, did not lose control, nor clamor for instant revenge. He simply remained where he was, motionless and silent. Though his eyes betrayed his inner turmoil, he forced himself to restrain from any rash actions.

Silver Fox rose to her feet. Yinyao quickly stepped forward to support her mother, helping her away. As they departed, Yinyao glanced back at the still-tormented Ji Xuanyu, her lips moving in a silent message.

Ji Xuanyu seemed to hear her words. He looked up at Yinyao’s departing figure, a sudden light in his eyes. When he was finally alone, he rose and swiftly left as well. His eyes were red, his face distorted with pain.

Yinyao, supporting Silver Fox beneath the eaves, watched as Ji Xuanyu’s figure vanished into the distance.

“Yinyao,” Silver Fox sighed, her eyes full of tenderness and the love of an elder, “do you think Xuanyu will be all right? The child is forcing himself to endure, but after all, he is still so young. To have held himself together this long is no small feat. I fear he may do something reckless. Go after him and see.”

Yinyao looked at her mother, then in the direction Ji Xuanyu had gone, and nodded gently.

Her figure sped through the woods, scanning the surroundings. The wind blew fiercely, whipping up fallen leaves—she could tell Ji Xuanyu was venting his anger and frustration at his own weakness.

The wind howled, stinging her face. Light as a swallow, she pressed off the ground and continued forward.

Not far ahead, she spotted a figure brandishing a sword in wild arcs. Leaves swirled around him, suspended in midair by the force of the blade, forming a vortex with Ji Xuanyu at its center. He seemed tireless, his eyes bloodshot.

Yinyao perched on a tree branch, feeling the air spiral around her. Noting the look on Ji Xuanyu’s face, she frowned—if he continued like this, he would surely fall prey to inner demons. His actions made her look down on him; she was not one to be swayed by emotion, no matter the circumstance.

With a sharp flick of her right hand, a silver whip lashed out, piercing the vortex and striking Ji Xuanyu’s sword hand. The searing pain stopped his movements. Looking up at Yinyao, poised high above, he suddenly felt small and helpless.

He threw back his head and let out a long, anguished howl. The birds in the trees scattered in panic from the danger.

Yinyao watched his reaction, a faint, mocking smile playing on her lips. Retrieving her whip, she struck out again, lashing him without hesitation.

Ji Xuanyu, caught off guard, took the blow head-on. He glared at Yinyao with eyes full of hatred. She had shown no mercy—the burning pain on his back told him she had drawn blood.

They locked eyes—hers cool, almost amused. In her gaze, he was no more than a clown. This only stoked his fury further. In that moment, he forgot all that she had just said to him.

“So you despise me as well, is that it?” Ji Xuanyu shouted, sword aimed straight at her.

But Yinyao only smiled, unperturbed by his rage. “How do you think I see you? Don’t you know yourself?”

She understood that if Ji Xuanyu vented his emotions alone, he might easily lose control. It was better for her to help, to let him rid himself of his anger and frustration.

With a roar, Ji Xuanyu charged at Yinyao, sword raised, without another word.