劍問蒼天 - 第212章 迴歸 - 翰墨軒

Wen Pei studied her for a long while. Apart from a slight pallor, Lu Xueling's manner was as it had always been, and only then did she slowly set her heart at ease. Then she said, "Younger Sister, it is good that nothing troubles you. But as your elder, seeing you as you are now truly pains my heart. And there is this: since you returned to the mountain, you have seen our master only once, that very day, and since then you have shut yourself away in this little room and have not gone to see her again. Whatever the case, you must not blame our master in your heart. You know well that we were both raised by her."

Lu Xueling shook her head. "Senior Sister, how can you say such a thing? I would never dare harbor the slightest thought of blaming our master. It is only that I know myself unworthy, and fear that going to see her would only provoke her anger and distress."

Wen Pei was taken aback. She looked at Lu Xueling, and after a long moment her expression grew complicated; she was about to speak and then held back, and only sighed softly and stood up.

At that instant, far off at the edge of the sky, a flash of lightning suddenly tore across, and with it a peal of thunder burst forth, sharp as rending silk, yet it seemed to echo directly overhead, its reverberations lingering long without fading.

The wind outside the house seemed to grow a shade fiercer.

Wen Pei frowned, walked to the window, and glanced outside. "By the look of the sky, it seems the rain is about to grow heavier."

Lu Xueling rose and slowly walked to the window as well, standing beside Wen Pei and looking out. In the night, two slender figures stood shoulder to shoulder, gazing at the heavy darkness and the endless wind and rain.

From afar came the rustle of the bamboo groves, the sound of rain beating upon bamboo leaves, drifting faintly to their ears.

For a time, whether sunk in this quiet or not, neither spoke.

After a long while, Wen Pei drew a deep breath, smiled faintly, and said, "Come to think of it, it has been a long time since we watched the rain together like this, hasn't it?"

A faint smile appeared at the corner of Lu Xueling's mouth. "Yes. In fact, I remember too — when I first came up the mountain as a child, it was you, Senior Sister, who looked after me from the very start. I was foolish then, and on every night of wind and rain, whenever the thunder rolled, I was terribly afraid." She slowly turned her head, her eyes full of gentleness, and said in a low voice, "Every time, it was you who took me by the hand and sat with me by the window to watch the rain, and told me there was nothing to fear."

Wen Pei shook her head and laughed despite herself; she reached out and gently stroked the soft long hair on Lu Xueling's shoulder, then suddenly gave a sigh. "In the blink of an eye, you have grown up."

Lu Xueling felt Wen Pei's palm pat her shoulder lightly, and it seemed a little warmth came through from there. After a moment of silence, she looked at her senior sister and said, "Senior Sister, if there is something you wish to say, say it to me."

Wen Pei was briefly startled, and at last gave a faint bitter smile. "I know you have always been quick and clear-sighted, and nothing can be hidden from you." She paused, then said, "Younger Sister, in truth your intelligence far surpasses mine, so why can you not see through it, cannot grasp it, and only torment yourself to no purpose?"

The smile at the corner of Lu Xueling's mouth slowly faded, replaced by a familiar calm detachment — only now, facing Wen Pei, she no longer carried that icy feeling.

"I am not tormented!" Lu Xueling gazed at the night beyond the window and spoke quietly.