Chapter 22: 22. Dirty Little Girl
Two years passed quickly
Qian Renjue was almost six years old. As he grew, his range of activities expanded beyond the small hill in the center of Spirit City.
In his spare time, he would often pull Qian Renxue along, wandering around Spirit City.
They would explore the eastern part of the city today and the western part tomorrow, with Qian Renxue always following closely behind.
At this moment, having just finished their training and during their break, the siblings found themselves on the back side of the hill where the Pope's Palace was located, an area belonging to the orphanage and the Spirit Academy.
They strolled around casually, with Qian Renjue running around joyfully.
His golden hair flowed freely, and a warm, radiant smile adorned his young face. Standing over 1.2 meters tall, he ran swiftly.
Even now, Qian Renjue cherished these carefree days of freedom, thoroughly enjoying every outing.
"Sister, let's go to that sand pile!" Qian Renjue called out to Qian Renxue, smiling back at her as he pointed to a nearby dune.
Without waiting for her response, he dashed off.
"Jue! Slow down, or you'll get hurt again!" Qian Renxue called out, trying her best to keep up.
Her long hair fluttered in the wind, her delicate, refined features glowing, and her skin as smooth as peeled lychee.
To make it easier to practice swordsmanship, she wore a fitted golden dress.
Although slightly taller than Qian Renjue, she doted on him immensely, watching over him as he played and smiled.
Qian Renxue had no particular interest in the scenery of Spirit City.
In the past, a mere glance would reveal every detail of the city to her. To her, known things were not worth wasting time on.
She only followed Qian Renjue closely, watching him play, watching him smile. If Qian Renjue was happy, she was happy.
Having Qian Renjue around brought a new light to places she otherwise found uninteresting.
"Jue!" Seeing Qian Renjue disappear behind a small dune in the sandy area, Qian Renxue ignored the restrictions of her dress and ran even faster.
She quickly crossed the low dune.
By the time she caught up, Qian Renjue was already standing on the other side, waving at her and calling out, "Sister! I'm over here!"
"Jue, don't run so fast. This is a sandy area; what if you twist your ankle?" Qian Renxue said as she walked over, concern in her voice. As she spoke, she handed him a candied hawthorn. (Tanghulu)
"Mm, I got it," Qian Renjue nodded happily, taking the skewer and pointing to the side of the dune with excitement, "Sister, look! I just found a dirty little sister."
Before he finished speaking, Qian Renjue bent down and helped a little girl squatting by the sandpile to stand up.
"A little girl?" Qian Renxue raised an eyebrow, finally noticing someone else was there. She looked down and was momentarily stunned.
The little girl, around two years old, had short orange hair and yellowish-gray eyes. Even though she was young, Qian Renxue recognized her immediately—this was Hu Liena, who would one day become a disciple of Bibi Dong.
Qian Renxue frowned. How could this woman be here?
Then she realized they were near the orphanage, and this was the playground for the orphans, which explained Hu Liena's presence.
"Little sister, big brother didn't mean to jump over your head just now," Qian Renjue gently rubbed the little girl's head, apologizing.
He had been running fast earlier, and the girl had been in his blind spot. He had almost kicked her when he came down the dune.
Despite his attempts to comfort her, the little girl remained silent. Qian Renjue bent down to look at her, speaking softly, "Little sister, why aren't you talking? Did big brother scare you?"
The little girl, looking at the strangers before her, appeared slightly frightened.
Her soft, weak voice finally emerged, "I... I'm okay."
"Haha, that's good. If anything hurts, just tell big brother, okay?" Qian Renjue smiled kindly, gently rubbing her hair.
"Mm," Hu Liena nodded nervously. Not yet two years old, she was just learning to control her bodily functions.
Her face and clothes were a bit dirty from playing on the ground.
She stared at Qian Renxue, who was dressed elegantly and beautifully, her gray eyes filled with envy and self-consciousness.
The sweet aroma from the candied hawthorn caught her attention, and she couldn't help but look at it longingly, swallowing involuntarily.
Her dirty face turned a shade of red in embarrassment.
"Haha, do you want to eat some? Big brother can give you one," noticing Hu Liena's gaze, Qian Renjue laughed and removed a hawthorn from the skewer, placing it gently into her small mouth.
Hu Liena blushed deeply, but the sweet taste quickly made her forget her embarrassment.
She held the hawthorn with her little hands, murmuring a shy thank you, "Thank you."
"You're welcome," Qian Renjue said as he stood up, rubbing her head again before walking back to Qian Renxue, "Sister, let's split the rest between us."
"Mm," Qian Renxue nodded, her face slightly flushed as she bit into the hawthorn he offered her.
"Sis, why do you think that little sister was all alone here?" Qian Renjue asked curiously.
Qian Renxue answered truthfully, "She probably wandered out from the orphanage nearby."
"Orphanage?" Qian Renjue looked at Hu Liena in surprise, his eyes filled with sympathy.
"Mm, this sandy area is for them to play," Qian Renxue nodded, glancing at Hu Liena, who was still eating the hawthorn gingerly.
Although Qian Renxue did not harbor hatred toward Hu Liena, she still held a prejudice against her.
After Bibi Dong's departure and the collapse of the Spirit Empire, Hu Liena and the others had saved her during a dangerous time.
But back then, she was blinded by her own mistakes, so who was she to judge?
In this life, if Hu Liena repeated her mistakes, Qian Renxue would not hesitate to draw her sword.
With no hostility, but still harboring some bias, Qian Renxue tugged on Qian Renjue's hand, wanting to leave quickly. "Jue, since she's fine, let's go back and practice our swordsmanship."
Just as Qian Renxue spoke, a grumbling sound came from Hu Liena's stomach, catching Qian Renjue's attention.
After eating the single hawthorn, Hu Liena's hunger resurfaced, and her stomach growled loudly. Embarrassed, she held her belly and lowered her head.
"Haha," Qian Renjue couldn't help but laugh. Hu Liena, now even more ashamed, covered her stomach and kept her head down.
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