Peach Blossom Land On Longyin Island Chapter 17

Sunrise at Sea

An Le left the village chief’s house and headed straight for the training grounds to find An Xiaoyu. Since he had free time today, he wanted to practice with the slingshot, get familiar with it, and have An Xiaoyu teach him how to aim.

An Le had only been gone for half an hour. When he left, the training grounds were bustling and excited, but upon his return, the atmosphere was solemn. An Linmian, An Tong, and several members of the hunting team were gathered around An Xiaoyu, their expressions serious and their eyes filled with sympathy.

“What are you all doing?” Everyone was looking down, seemingly deep in thought, so much so that they didn’t notice An Le until he spoke. Startled, they looked up at him, their faces showing an expression of wanting to speak but holding back.

An Le asked blankly, “What’s wrong?”

An Tong looked at An Le, then at An Xiaoyu, hesitating for a long while, as if carefully choosing his words. Just as he was about to speak, An Linmian cut him off.

An Linmian frowned and spoke with righteous indignation, “An Le! You’re too much! You just got married and you kicked him out of the room already?! Abandoning him after the initial fling!”

“…” It was just sleeping in separate rooms, how did that make him a heartless scumbag who abandoned his spouse? An Le was speechless.

“Le, Le Le,” An Tong also spoke up after a long pause, “Whatever it is, talk it out properly. If Xiaoyu did something wrong, just tell him directly. I see how obedient Xiaoyu is to you, there must be some misunderstanding.”

“…” An Le rubbed his forehead, even more speechless.

“An Xiaoyu, what did you tell them?” An Le directed his anger at the culprit, demanding crossly.

An Xiaoyu blinked innocently, “I didn’t say anything. I only said we were sleeping in separate rooms.”

“Yes, Xiaoyu didn’t say anything,” An Tong quickly interjected, trying to mediate. “Le Le, don’t be angry, it has nothing to do with Xiaoyu.”

“…I, am, not, an, gry!” An Le’s brows furrowed tightly, his face darkened, and he stared at An Xiaoyu, squeezing the words out through clenched teeth.

The atmosphere suddenly turned tense, a faint scent of gunpowder filling the air. An Linmian chuckled awkwardly, “Ah, I, I’m leaving now, okay? An Mai is waiting for me. You two solve your marital issues yourselves, ha, haha, we outsiders won’t interfere.”

“I, I have things to do too, I’m leaving now, Xiaoyu, I’m going. See you tomorrow, see you tomorrow.” The others, hearing this, also quickly found excuses and fled.

An Tong was the last to leave. He glanced at the innocent-looking An Xiaoyu, then at the furious An Le, and gave An Xiaoyu a deep, sympathetic look. He whispered, “Do as I taught you, and coax him properly. I’m off, take care.” With that, he also bolted.

Only An Le and An Xiaoyu remained in the training grounds. The autumn wind blew, stirring their hair and the corners of their clothes. They stood facing each other in silence.

After a long moment, An Xiaoyu said, “I really didn’t say anything. They just heard we were sleeping separately and assumed I made you angry and was kicked out. I didn’t say anything.”

He said it with such an innocent expression. An Le’s gaze was heavy, and he gritted his teeth, “Is this the time to keep silent?! Couldn’t you explain? What are you keeping your mouth for!”

An Xiaoyu spread his hands innocently, “How could I explain? I can’t exactly say we’re a fake couple, can I?”

But he couldn’t let An Le bear the reputation of a scumbag husband and a shrewish wife!

An Le felt his back molars grinding, his surge of anger having nowhere to vent.

Just then, Su Su ran over quickly, her usual innocent and lively smile replaced by a timid expression. She stood beside them, looking up, “Brother, Sister-in-law, Mother is looking for you.”

Sitting in the courtyard listening to Mother An’s lecture, An Le deeply understood how An Linmian must have felt: in just one morning, the story of him kicking An Xiaoyu out of the bedroom on the second day of their marriage had spread throughout Longyin Village.

But this time, he couldn’t blame An Xiaoyu, because the news was spread by the people who delivered the furniture. He had been the one to ask Grandpa An for the furniture, but he hadn’t expected Grandpa An to make such a big show of delivering it, under the pretense of An Xiaoyu decorating the bedroom.

Grandpa An had tricked him again, An Le sighed inwardly.

Mother An sat across from them, carefully choosing her words, speaking tactfully, “Le Le, it’s normal for couples to argue. When a husband and wife fight, they make up in bed. Talk things out properly, sleeping separately is not the way to solve problems. You are married now, it’s different from before, you can’t be willful anymore.”

An Le lowered his head slightly, gripping his clothes tightly, trying hard to maintain a compliant smile. He said, “Mother, you misunderstood. I didn’t kick him out. He chose to sleep outside himself. He said my snoring bothered him.”

Mother An was stunned. She looked at An Xiaoyu, confused, “Xiaoyu, you… don’t want to sleep with An Le?”

“No, no, Mother,” An Xiaoyu shook his head rapidly. However, when his peripheral vision caught An Le’s threatening look, he immediately stopped, lowered his head, and mumbled, “Yes, yes.”

Seeing this, Mother An understood. She glanced at An Le and lightly reprimanded him, though with a hint of indulgence, “All you do is bully Xiaoyu.” An Le forced a pleasing smile and whined, “Mother, I didn’t bully him.”

Mother An sighed, shaking her head with a helpless expression, giving them a way out. She said, “You never used to snore. Maybe it’s your sleeping posture. Don’t curl your neck when you sleep. Xiaoyu, bear with it a little. If Le Le snores again, just help him adjust his posture. A married couple should still sleep in the same bed, to avoid gossip.”

“It’s no trouble, Mother, I understand.” An Xiaoyu quickly replied, simultaneously looking at An Le, as if seeking his approval.

An Xiaoyu lowered his eyes and brows, looking up at him—the exact same expression his golden retriever used to have in his previous life when it had done something wrong and wagged its tail, begging for a stroke. An Le felt both annoyed and amused, and a wave of affection rose in him. He waved his hand, agreeing.

And so, the furniture was sent back to the village warehouse, untouched.

That night, when An Le returned to the bedroom after showering, An Xiaoyu had already made the bed. Two red quilts were neatly laid side-by-side on the bed, strikingly conspicuous.

The villagers usually used plain-colored quilts, only receiving two red quilts dyed with safflower from the village upon marriage. An Le looked at the bright red quilts and found them utterly displeasing.

Two men sleeping under red quilts—it was bizarre, too bizarre.

An Le frowned. While An Xiaoyu was in the shower, he quickly changed the duvet cover to a plain color, then lay down contentedly.

When An Xiaoyu returned and saw the bedding had been changed, he paused slightly but said nothing. He turned off the lamp and obediently got into bed.

“Hey, An Xiaoyu,” An Le, who wasn’t sleepy, started his rambling mode. “How can you shoot arrows? And so well? Who are you outside? A rich young master? The son of an official? Is there a war going on outside? Three Kingdoms vying for power? Seven states competing? Tsk, if there’s still fighting outside, we should wait until they finish before going out.

“An Xiaoyu, haven’t you recovered your memory yet? Mother said your brain is fine, so there’s still a chance to recover your memory. It’s been a month, haven’t you remembered even a tiny bit? Even a fragment would be good. Just tell me what dynasty it is outside. Hopefully, it’s the Tang Dynasty, a prosperous era. The Song Dynasty is fine too, economically developed. But please don’t let it be the Qin Dynasty, the corvée labor and taxes are too heavy…

“An Xiaoyu, you really can’t remember? Sigh, I wonder if there are chili peppers and hot pot in the outside world. The food here is so bland. Did ancient times not have seasonings? No scallions, ginger, or garlic? What about oil, salt, soy sauce, and vinegar? Oh, wait, they do have animal oil and coarse salt here… Ugh, I really want to eat spicy food, cold food, sweet food… Sour, bitter, pungent, salty, sweet—why is there only salty…”

An Le’s mouth didn’t stop, talking non-stop, not giving An Xiaoyu a chance to answer any questions. He continued until he talked himself into drowsiness, yawned, and finally ended the day with a goodnight message: “Time to sleep, An Xiaoyu. Remember to wake me up early tomorrow morning.”

The next morning, just as dawn was breaking, An Le was woken up by An Xiaoyu for breakfast. The east was turning white, with clouds and rosy hues signaling an imminent sunrise. An Le suddenly realized he had never seen the sunrise over the sea at Longyin Village.

The thought instantly banished his sleepiness. An Le excitedly pulled An Xiaoyu, who was setting the table in the courtyard.

“Come on, let’s go, let’s watch the sunrise!” An Le pulled the bewildered An Xiaoyu, quickly explained the reason, and strode toward the seaside.

The red sun slowly rising from the depths of the ocean, illuminating the sea surface in crimson, with colorful clouds surrounding the junction of water and land, their colors changing instantly… How beautiful it must be!

Before even reaching the seaside, An Le was already anticipating the spectacular view of the sunrise. In his previous life, he had seen the sunrise over the sea during a vacation, and that indescribable beauty remained unforgettable. But this was his first time seeing an ancient seaside sunrise. With his expectations maxed out, An Le ran quickly, and soon dragged An Xiaoyu to the beach, facing east.

However, when An Le reached the shore and saw the vast expanse of white mist over the sea, he realized he had overlooked something: the sun was behind the mist. This meant he would only be able to see the sun once it rose high enough above the fog.

Longyin Island, this isolated island, had no sunrise or sunset over the sea.

The cold sea breeze carried chilling moisture, penetrating the skin and reaching the bone marrow. An Le felt a sense of loss, staring blankly at the mass of white fog, unsure what to do.

After a long time, the colorful clouds dispersed, and the bright sun appeared above the mist, sending light down upon Longyin Island.

The regret in his heart turned into a soft sigh, scattering with the wind.

“Let’s go back and eat,” An Le said, the light in his eyes fading with the appearance of the sun.

An Xiaoyu seemed to have known this all along, showing no surprise from beginning to end. He just watched An Le silently until An Le turned to leave, then he said softly, “The fog won’t last forever. Once we find the map, I’ll take you to see the sunrise over the sea.”

An Le gave a faint hum and asked, “You knew already?”

An Xiaoyu nodded, “I come every day, but I’ve never seen it, nor can I see any trace of the sun through the mist.”

An Le frowned, “That means the fog is truly thick. If we can’t find a way to cross the dense fog, finding the map won’t help.” It would be impossible to navigate in the mist.

“After the hunt, I want to go into the fog to take a look,” An Xiaoyu said.

“Mm, I’ll go with you.”