Si Fen looked at Jing Yi in surprise. She definitely hadn’t expected this. And thinking about it for a moment longer she felt that there was a problem with this story. "Wait. You said it was your senior martial brother you traveled with that proposed to you?"

Jing Yi nodded, lowering his head. He had spoken about his mother with this on his own accord and had gone to ask Xiao Dong even before that. But other than these two occasions, he had never brought it up and it had always been Qiu Ling who insisted on calling him his fiance in public.

Now, he had actually brought it up himself in front of a woman who could still be counted as a stranger. This probably went to show how much his feelings for Qiu Ling had already changed. He wasn’t sure if he could agree to marry him right this instant but he was sure that sometime down the road, after they had some more time, his answer would be yes. The time they had already spent together and the worry he had felt since the moment Qiu Ling left him on the shore had convinced him of that without any doubt.

Jing Yi couldn’t help but smile slightly when he thought of that. As soon as he got to the capital city and saw Qiu Ling again, he should tell him honestly how he felt. Maybe Qiu Ling would feel better when he heard that.

While Jing Yi tried to think in a positive direction, Si Fen looked even more worried than before. "So he went to travel with you and then asked if you wanted to marry him and when you said no, he left you there as revenge? Is that how you came to be in the Haibin town without knowing how to get back?"

Jing Yi looked up, his eyes growing wide. "What?"

Si Fen sighed. "Well, my cousin-in-law told me that somebody from your sect that you were out traveling with left you out there and that you then walked to the town on your own but still had to get to the other side of the sea. Was that him? Jing Yi, if that is the case, you really shouldn’t marry him."

Jing Yi needed a moment longer to process what was going on but then shook his head with a smile. Even though she was completely wrong about this, it was nice to hear that she cared so much. He could really count himself lucky that he had met these people. "That’s not it. Actually, he asked me to marry him before we even went to travel with each other. I said no back then. It’s just that … Well, things happened and we eventually went out to travel together. In fact, I’ve come to reconsider things. By now, I think that marrying him wouldn’t be bad. It’s a pity I’ve only come to realize this now."

Si Fen raised her brows, some doubt still written on her face. "Are you sure that he didn’t do this out of revenge? After all, there must’ve been a reason why he just left you there. It can’t be that it happened just like that, can it?" She couldn’t help but worry more when she thought of that. Even if Jing Yi believed this, it probably wouldn’t be the truth. What if he made it back home but then this person didn’t stop? Wouldn’t the poor boy suffer then?

Jing Yi shook his head and his own expression became worried again as well. "Actually, there was some kind of accident. He went to make sure that nobody would be hurt but he didn’t return afterward. I’m worried that he was actually injured when he went to check things out." He looked at Si Fen and could see that she wasn’t quite convinced. "It’s true. When I said no originally, Qiu Ling asked me to give him a chance so he could prove he was the right one for me. While we traveled … we did get closer. So even if he had planned something like that — which I don’t believe — he would have given up on that plan by now."

"I see." Si Fen felt better hearing that but she still wasn’t sure if she had gotten the situation quite right. "Then why are you going to the Long kingdom?"

"Well, that is the place I am from. I don’t really know many other places so it’s the only one where I think I can go. Also, another disciple from our sect that was nearby went to look for him. I told him to bring him there if he’s really injured. I thought that this way we wouldn’t miss each other."

Si Fen nodded again. "Well, it seems I’ve worried too much then. Your fiance seems to be a good person."

Jing Yi nodded without hesitation. "He definitely is. He … Well, he might be going a bit faster at things but I still like him. He’s a good person."

"I can see that. He went to help other people even though there was a risk to himself and even before that, he still went to travel with you even though you rejected him. He seems like a very selfless person."

Jing Yi’s lips twitched. To be honest, even though he felt that Qiu Ling was very good, he wasn’t quite sure how much credit he should be given. After all, going to travel with him had definitely been out of a selfish motive because he felt that it would make him reconsider things.

But then again, it was true that Qiu Ling had gone to help the people on the other side of the sea without a second thought. Also, he had said that he had been helping people before coming to the Yun Zou Sect. So maybe he was even better than he gave him credit for.

It seemed that he would have to work on himself more so he wouldn’t keep judging him based on his initial understanding of Qiu Ling. No, since he had already come to know that Qiu Ling was a much better person than he originally seemed to be, he definitely shouldn’t remain in the past with his thoughts. He should look forward. That was the only way to go.