Chapter 156 Day 20 of Transmigrating into an Imperial Examination Novel

Chapter 156: Day Twenty in a Transmigration Imperial Examination Novel

An Yi withdrew his hand, simply flexing it.

He adjusted his slightly wrinkled sleeve, then turned and walked out of the restaurant.

"Let's go," he said with a faint smile, without looking back.

Qin Cang immediately followed without hesitation, practically right behind An Yi, maintaining a distance that felt oppressive.

When passing the table where the personal guards were seated, Qin Cang didn't pause, only tossing out a cold order: "Go rest on your own."

The guards looked at each other, watching their general follow the man in the blue robes like a shadow, his posture...

There was something inexpressibly strange about it.

Still, it was a good thing. Their mission here was complete, and with the general absent, they had rare freedom to do as they pleased!

An Yi carried the unfinished jug of osmanthus wine, his gait light and easy as he walked along the flagstone-paved street.

The sunlight stretched his shadow long and thin. Qin Cang followed silently within that shadow, his gaze greedily tracing An Yi's slender, upright back, his heart aching with emotion.

He had changed.

After two years of military service and the fear of losing An Yi, the stubbornness and possessiveness ingrained in his very being had not been worn away. Instead, like vines spreading wildly in the shadows, they had become tougher and more overbearing.

But now, he no longer expressed dissatisfaction through childish grievances and anger. Instead, he used actions—never leaving his side, refusing to take no for an answer—to re-enter An Yi's life, keeping him firmly in his sight.

He wouldn't lose him this time.

The two walked one behind the other, through the bustling market, turning into a quiet alley.

Old Lady Wang was still sitting at her door, fanning herself. She smiled and greeted An Yi as he approached, then paused, noticing the imposing presence of Qin Cang following behind.

But seeing An Yi's calm expression, she nodded politely.

An Yi stopped in front of an ordinary-looking wooden door in the middle of the alley, took out a key, and unlocked it.

The small yard wasn't large, but it was very tidy.

In the corner of the yard stood a few pots of lush green ornamental plants, a stone table, and two stone stools. Simple, yet exuding a refined atmosphere unique to An Yi.

An Yi pushed open the yard gate and stepped aside: "Please, come in."

Qin Cang stepped into the yard he had longed for.

An Yi placed the wine jug on the stone table, turned to look at Qin Cang, who stood as straight as a ramrod in the middle of the yard, and spoke calmly: "Sit down."

Qin Cang sat down on a stone stool as instructed, his back still straight as a ramrod.

An Yi sat opposite him, not rushing to speak. He casually picked up the teapot on the table, poured a cup of cold tea, and pushed it toward Qin Cang.

Qin Cang lifted the cup of cold tea, his fingertips rubbing against the rough surface of the ceramic.

He lowered his gaze to the swaying cold tea in the cup, and briefly summarized his experiences over the past two years.

"After leaving the village, I drifted from place to place. Later, I ran into border troops suppressing bandits and joined the army."

He omitted how he had searched frantically like a headless fly, how he had teetered on the brink of collapse from disappointment.

How in that skirmish, he had fought his way out with reckless disregard for his life, and how the old general had found him barely alive, only hanging on by a thread of obsession.

"...Thanks to the old general's regard, I stayed by his side, earned some small achievements, and was promoted."

He spoke lightly, as if those two years of bloody trials and life-and-death struggles were nothing out of the ordinary.

An Yi listened quietly, his gaze landing on Qin Cang's sharply defined face. Those eyes that once held youthful stubbornness and wildness now held depths of heavy, unknowable things.

He knew that Qin Cang's path deviated from the original story.

In the original text, Qin Cang at this time should have just joined the army, still an illiterate ordinary soldier struggling at the bottom. There was absolutely no way he could have risen to a rank worthy of being called "general" in just two years.

His rapid rise, besides his own fierceness and the rudimentary knowledge he had gained from An Yi's early instruction, was likely... related to his early departure from Tuhei Village.

And his early departure from Tuhei Village... was probably to search for him.

Over the past three years, through comments occasionally appearing in his mind, An Yi knew that Fang Huaixing, the destined one of this world, had already become the famous top provincial scholar. He would be heading to the capital next year for the metropolitan exam, marching toward the legend of acing all six imperial examinations.

Everything was progressing smoothly, just like in the original story.

Only this young man before him, who was supposed to have a supporting character's fate, had taken a completely different path.

"I see."

An Yi didn't point it out. He just nodded slightly, his tone gentle: "Being able to establish yourself in the military—that's good."

Qin Cang raised his eyes, his gaze deep as he looked at An Yi. Too many complex emotions surged within, eventually settling into a seemingly calm question: "Master... how much longer will you stay here?"

An Yi lifted his own teacup, his fingertips pale as jade, a stark contrast to the rough ceramic.

He pondered for a moment, his gaze sweeping over the lush green plants in the corner of the yard, then toward the sky above the wall, painted golden-red by the setting sun. His voice carried a hint of wistfulness:

"I don't know. Perhaps... when I've taken in enough of this place, I'll leave."

His tone was light, carrying an air of casual detachment, as if nothing in this world could truly hold him back.

Those words pierced Qin Cang's heart like a needle, bringing a subtle but persistent pain.

The fingers holding the teacup tightened almost imperceptibly, the knuckles whitening slightly.

But unlike three years ago, he didn't show his fear and panic on his face. He just let out a soft "Mm," to show he heard.

Then, he set down the teacup.

The sunlight stretched both their shadows, intertwining on the flagstone pavement.

The small yard was peaceful, with only the rustle of wind through leaves.

----------

That evening, a sudden rain had just stopped, leaving a gorgeous rainbow hanging in the sky.

The air was fresh and damp. The flagstone road had shallow puddles reflecting the darkening sky and the lamps gradually being lit.

An Yi and Qin Cang walked one behind the other in the alley back to the small yard.

The hem of An Yi's moon-white robe brushed over the wet ground but didn't pick up a speck of mud.

Qin Cang followed behind, his gaze fixed on An Yi's nape, moistened by the mist and gleaming like white jade. His Adam's apple bobbed uncontrollably.

Qin Cang had already stayed here for quite a while. The military kept urging him to return.

Return?

But what if, when he came back, An Yi had vanished again?

How could he bring himself to leave?