QG Chapter71

I finally understood why An Pu had told me to come to Dongjiang Miao Village first.

 

Turns out Shen Jianqing was here.

 

“I thought I’d have to go into Shidi Mountain to see you; I was already prepared for it.” I said softly.

 

Shen Jianqing smiled with a hint of something unreadable in his expression.

 

He led me upward, through the commercial area of Dongjiang Miao Village, and then along a small path. The higher we went, the weaker the commercial atmosphere became, replaced by a strong, vibrant ethnic charm that enveloped us.

 

After passing a drying ground, we arrived at a stilt house. Along the way, people occasionally looked at us, and some greeted Shen Jianqing. He responded cheerfully to everyone, even deliberately showing off the hand he was tightly holding mine with for others to see.

 

Among these people, many faces looked familiar to me, mostly young men. I pondered for a moment and finally remembered that when Shen Jianqing had led people into the Gu Insects Forest and returned injured from a fall, it seemed these were the very people who carried the dying Shen Jianqing back.

 

Shen Jianqing pushed open the door, and only then did I realize this was his residence. The stilt house was a bit old, with only two small rooms, incomparable to the one he had in Shidi Mountain. But inside, it was spotlessly clean and well-organized, with a strong sense of lived-in warmth.

 

As soon as we entered, I opened my mouth, a belly full of questions ready to spill out, when suddenly my neck tightened. Shen Jianqing had abruptly lifted me from my side.

 

This came so unexpectedly that my heart skipped a beat. The next moment, his other hand cupped the side of my face, his burning breath spilling over me.

 

The bamboo door slammed shut with a “bang.” Shen Jianqing turned, pressing against my body, firmly locking me in the small space between him and the door. He impatiently bit my lips.

 

His familiar scent enveloped me once more.

 

His lips were warm and soft. I raised my hand to his waist, tilting my head back, attempting to respond to him.

 

I heard a very pleased muffled laugh and couldn’t help but gently nip at the corner of his lip.

 

Until our breathing grew heavy, Shen Jianqing reluctantly let go of me. His forehead rested against mine, and with each word he spoke, his lips gently brushed my cheek, sending shivers through my heart.

 

“Yuze Ah-ge, you chose me, didn’t you? You won’t let go of me, will you?”

 

Tiny beams of light brightened the room. In that light, I looked directly into Shen Jianqing’s eyes and gave him my solemn answer.

 

“Yes, Shen Jianqing, this life, it’s just you!”

 

In that moment, Shen Jianqing looked utterly stunned, as if he couldn’t believe it. Then his face lit up like he’d just won the lottery, and he threw himself into my arms.

 

“You can’t go back on your word!”

 

I rested my face on top of his head and shook my own.

 

“Even if you wanted to go back on your word, it’s too late. I only gave you one chance to choose,” Shen Jianqing said fiercely. “If you dare to regret it, I’ll… I’ll…” He trailed off, not finishing his threat.

 

But I just smiled, unconcerned.

 

I suddenly felt that my decision to come back was incredibly correct. This was the first decision in my twenty-one years of life that had made me feel so satisfied.

 

We stayed pressed together in silence for a long time before I suddenly asked, “How did you end up here? What exactly happened?”

 

Shen Jianqing rose from my chest, pulled me down to sit beside him, and said, “I led a part of our clan away from Shidi Miao Village.”

 

I was stunned. “Was it because of me?”

 

Shen Jianqing gave me a cunning look. “No, not entirely.”

 

He seemed to be deliberately teasing me, pausing before continuing, “Yuze Ah-ge, I’ve always been so glad I met you. You made me realize that this world isn’t just as big as a Miao village; there are so, so many places worth seeing out there. There are schools, flowers I’d never seen before, tall buildings… On my way to find you, I traveled a lot and saw so many things I couldn’t have even imagined in my dreams.”

 

“After I experienced these things, when I looked back at Shidi Miao Village, I suddenly felt that the so-called pursuit and struggle for leadership power were meaningless. Our ancestors chose to retreat into the mountains for survival, willing to live with and be troubled by Gu insects every year. But now, I think that for our people to survive long-term, being cut off from the world might no longer be the only way. They shouldn’t be confined to those mountains their whole lives.”

 

This path must have been difficult. Looking at Shen Jianqing’s gleaming eyes, I suddenly realized that he truly seemed to have become a leader capable of bearing responsibility.

 

“What about Wan Ying and your maternal grandfather, then?” I asked.

 

Shen Jianqing scoffed, “They haven’t seen the outside world; they don’t believe in it and also don’t want to. Fortunately, some of the clan members were willing to follow me, so I brought them out.”

 

So that’s how it was.

 

I thought for a moment, then asked, “How did you end up in Dongjiang Miao Village?”

 

Shen Jianqing explained, “Dongjiang Miao Village originally belonged to a branch of Shidi Miao Village. I heard that a long time ago, another young leader led his clan out of the big mountains and established it.”

 

I nodded, suddenly understanding.

 

No wonder An Pu and Ah Li knew about Shidi Miao Village’s existence.

 

In fact, if Ah Li hadn’t let it slip back then, none of us would have known about Shidi Mountain.

 

I hadn’t paid attention to those details at the time, but today it all became clear.

 

So, not only did Shen Jianqing change me, but did I also change Shen Jianqing?

 

This thought inexplicably brought me a sense of pleasure and accomplishment.

 

“Why didn’t you tell me?” I said. “I thought you were still in Shidi Mountain.”

 

Shen Jianqing looked directly into my eyes and countered, “Then, Yuze Ah-ge, you chose to come back, thinking I was still in Shidi Mountain, and you still came back, just because of me, and not for any other reason, right?”

 

I nodded solemnly.

 

Shen Jianqing smiled triumphantly, the red mole above his eye gleaming with vitality. “I didn’t tell you because I wanted any decision you made not to be out of pity for me, gratitude towards me, being moved by me, or any other emotion. I don’t need your pity, and I don’t need you to be moved either. I just need you to love me.”

 

With every word he spoke, my heart softened a bit more until it finally melted into a pool of spring water.

 

“I want you to steadfastly choose me, simply because you love me.”

 

I couldn’t help but hug him, tears welling up in my eyes again.

 

“What if I hadn’t come back?” I asked, choked with emotion.

 

Shen Jianqing put his arm around my waist, his voice close to my ear. He said, “Then I would have been a bit more pitiful, but I never considered it. At least now I gambled correctly, didn’t I?”

 

I heard his heartbeat, merging with mine, as if resonating at the same frequency.

 

Without any hesitation, and with unwavering certainty, I gave Shen Jianqing the answer he wanted.

 

“Shen Jianqing, I love you. It’s just you, and only you.”