"Are you an immortal?"
A clear and crisp voice came.
When Yan Ruyu lowered his head, he saw the ragged little girl standing in front of him.
Before he could reply,
the little girl's expression changed. She took out a few dried grapes from her painting and reluctantly held them out to him, saying, "Do you want some purple balls?"
Purple balls?
Yan Ruyu's heart skipped a beat.
His thoughts seemed to drift back hundreds of years.
That woman always called grapes purple balls.
Looking at the child's expectant eyes, Yan Ruyu's hand involuntarily picked up the dried grapes and put them in his mouth.
The dried grapes were sweet with a hint of sourness.
Seeing the celestial - like man in front of her eat the purple balls she had offered, the little girl's face beamed with a bright smile.
Then she retracted her hand and put it behind her back, drawing circles on the ground with her feet.
Then she timidly said, "Since you've eaten the purple balls, I'm yours now."
Yan Ruyu was stunned and looked at the little girl with a triumphant look on her face.
Her tone was so much like Ling'er's.
It was a pity that he would never see Ling'er again.
At this moment, Yan Ruyu never associated the little girl in front of him with the peerless beauty Luo Feiyan from five hundred years ago.
He smiled.
He just thought the little girl in front of him was cute and reached out to touch her head.
Seeing that Yan Ruyu didn't dislike her,
the little girl said, "Sir, please take me as your disciple. I promise I won't be gluttonous or lazy. If you take me into your mansion, I won't ask for a single cent. I'll surely work hard for you. Okay?"
Yan Ruyu shook his head.
He did have a position in the sect, but he had never brought a stranger into such a place.
Seeing this,
the little girl quickly said, "Sir, Ling'er will surely work hard. Please take me in. Okay?"
Ling'er?
She was also called Ling'er?
Yan Ruyu's cold expression softened. He lowered his head and gently asked, "You're also called Ling'er?"
As he asked this,
the hand behind his back seemed to be trembling slightly.
"My surname is Ye. My name is Ye Ling. I remember this was the name my old man gave me. But I really don't remember them. I'm not a liar. I'm really homeless now. Sir, please take me in. I promise I can endure hardships."
The little girl's mouth kept moving.
But after she said her name, Yan Ruyu didn't hear a single word.
Five hundred years ago, because Ling'er died in his arms, although he was mentally prepared, he was still heart - broken.
So in the end, he risked going against the Heavenly Way to protect the pure land Ling'er loved - the Great Wilderness of Dongze.
Yan Ruyu was willing to accept the Heavenly punishment. Most of the time, he was trapped in the cave on Qingyun Peak, facing the Starlight Formation alone.
Only when there was a major event in the world and he really had to step in would he come out.
This time,
he left the mountain.
Thinking of what Ling'er had said before she died, he came to the Great Wilderness of Dongze.
His original intention was to see what the Great Wilderness of Dongze was like now and to take a good walk along the rivers and lakes.
There should be Ling'er's ashes in those places.
However, as soon as he set foot on this land, he saw this little girl.
Facing a stranger, she was so brave, perhaps because she was desperate.
Yan Ruyu originally wanted to help her but had no intention of taking her with him, until she said her name was Ye Ling.
Moreover, she knew that grapes were purple balls.
This sentence, which Yan Ruyu had not taken seriously before, now echoed in his mind again and again.
"Really, have you heard of this? There is reincarnation in this world. If I really die and have to go somewhere, I want to go to the Great Wilderness of Dongze."
"Ling'er."
"I like the name Ye Ling. If you see her and her name happens to be Ye Ling, please take her home."
These words kept echoing in Yan Ruyu's mind.
Was this a coincidence?
No.
It definitely wasn't a coincidence.
Then, she was Ling'er, the Ling'er he had missed for five hundred years.
Seeing that the man showed no expression on his face, the little girl said dejectedly, "If you really don't agree, I can't force you. But you ate my purple balls. They were what I saved for my younger brother. You have to compensate me."
"I think you're dressed so richly. You shouldn't play tricks on me, right?"
"The purple balls are nothing special to you. If you really don't have any on you, just give me a tael of silver and take me into the city."
"Sir, I think the monster beside you is really beautiful. It can fly, right? Can it take me for a while?"
"It's really cold outside. Please show some mercy and take me in. Okay?"
Ye Ling kept chattering.
She didn't know.
At this moment, she was so cute in Yan Ruyu's eyes.
She was still talking.
But Yan Ruyu smiled slightly, took off his red cloak and put it on the shivering little girl.
The chattering little girl stopped.
She looked up.
Looking at the green - robed man who was like a celestial being,
she said stupidly, "Can I not have your cloak? It looks very valuable, but I can't pawn it if I can't get into the city."
Yan Ruyu smiled gently.
This smile really dazzled Ye Ling's eyes.
She quickly covered her eyes.
"Don't smile at me. Your beautiful smile won't work on me. I'm still young. This trick won't work on me."
Yan Ruyu softly asked, "Would you like to be my disciple?"
Ye Ling was stunned.
She slowly lowered her hands.
She looked at the green - robed man in front of her in disbelief.
He was so unattainable, but at this moment, he was so close to her.
Ye Ling swallowed.
She said, "What do I need to do if I become your disciple?"
"You need to do a lot, but I can make you stronger."
"As strong as you?"
Yan Ruyu smiled.
His smile was so warm in this winter.
"Yes, even stronger than me."
The little girl also smiled.
After wandering for so long, she finally had a real home after meeting him.
Yan Ruyu picked up the little girl. Her breath was warm, which really told him that she was alive, a real person.
The little girl lay on Bai Ze's back, feeling so warm.
On her back was Yan Ruyu's pure - white silk cloak.
Before long,
the little girl fell asleep.
Maybe she was too tired.
Or maybe,
she finally had a home and there was someone behind her who made her feel safe enough to fall asleep.