The next day, it was Bai Ningbing's turn to lie in bed, racked with pain and unable to move.
Fang Yuan, on the other hand, had recovered most of his strength and went to hoe the fields at the eastern end of the village.
The old woman came into the room to offer her concerned words.
Bai Ningbing kept insisting she was fine, that she had probably just overdone things yesterday and would recover after a day's rest.
The old woman smiled meaningfully. "Well, you did overdo it. You two have been quite loud at night these past couple of days — I could hear everything."
"What?" Bai Ningbing didn't understand at first.
"Dear, there's no use hiding it — I've been around the block!" the old woman said with a grin.
Bai Ningbing's pupils contracted. Had her identity been exposed? How was that possible? A killing intent immediately began to brew in her heart, yet she hesitated.
She could watch the Bai siblings burn to death with cold indifference, but that was because the Bai family was destined to be their enemy. Proud as she was, she was not as unscrupulous as Fang Yuan — she could not bring herself to strike against those who had shown her kindness.
The old woman before her was one such person, as was the former patriarch of the Bai family.
The old woman was completely oblivious to Bai Ningbing's thoughts. She grabbed her hand and patted it gently. "Dear, I've been around long enough to know — no man has a bottom and waist like yours! No wonder you wear that straw hat and keep quiet. I may be old, but I'm still a woman. We women have one advantage over those stinking men — we're observant."
"Huh?" Bai Ningbing didn't know what to say.
The old woman was very enthusiastic, her tone full of understanding. "I understand, dear. Being a woman traveling alone, you have to disguise yourself. Otherwise, something terrible could happen."
Bai Ningbing was speechless.
She hated it most when people used words like "woman" to needle her nerves. But faced with the earnest, good-natured old woman, she felt utterly helpless.
The old woman smiled until her eyes were mere slits, then suddenly lowered her voice. "You two must be a young married couple, right? I've heard all your nighttime activities these past two days. I'm not one to judge, but when it comes to that sort of thing, you should pace yourselves."
Those words struck like a bolt from the blue!
Bai Ningbing's expression froze, as though struck by five thunderbolts at once.
"Auntie, it's not what you think." After a long moment, she managed to force out those words, her expression stiff beyond description.
"Oh, what's there to be embarrassed about? There's nothing you can't tell me. I've lived long enough to have seen it all!" The old woman winked and grinned from ear to ear.
Then her gaze drifted, seemingly by accident, to the bedsheets.
Bai Ningbing followed her gaze and wished she could die on the spot.
Then again, the bedsheets really had been torn apart by her...
The old woman went on talking at length after that, but Bai Ningbing's mind was in such a muddle that not a single word sank in.
At noon, when Fang Yuan returned for the meal, the old woman intercepted him at the door and kindly reminded him: "Young man, your wife already told me. You young ones are full of fire, but you should take care of your own health — and even more so, take care of your wife. Remember what I said?"
"What?" Fang Yuan's jaw dropped, failing to process her words.
The old woman clicked her tongue, a mix of mild annoyance and helplessness. "You're a fine young man in every way — you're just too honest. Being this naive, you're going to suffer for it!"
If the Guye Clan, along with Iron Divine Constable and Bai Hua and Bai Sheng, could hear these words, they might just be angry enough to come back to life.
Fang Yuan stood rooted in place in a daze, then his eyes flickered — he had finally figured it out.
"Oh... that matter, heh heh..." He scratched his head and let out a sheepish laugh, nodding profusely. "Auntie, you're absolutely right. I understand now."
At the dining table, he saw Bai Ningbing.
Bai Ningbing shot him an icy glance, her entire body seeming to radiate a freezing aura.
Meanwhile, the corner of Fang Yuan's eye kept twitching ever so slightly.
This matter served as a wake-up call for Fang Yuan.
Fang Yuan could play any role convincingly because of his vast experience and broad knowledge. But Bai Ningbing was not like that — her disguises were full of flaws.
Fortunately, the flaw was minor. In this world, mortal women traveling alone did have a custom of disguising themselves as men to reduce danger.
Though the misunderstanding was exceedingly annoying, Fang Yuan had to admit that it actually served as better cover for their identities.
Bai Ningbing's mood, on the other hand, plummeted to rock bottom.
That evening, she once again demanded to know when Fang Yuan would give her the Yang Gu.
Fang Yuan could only give her a clear answer: as soon as she reached the Third Transformation cultivation level, he would hand it over.
Bai Ningbing let out a cold snort. She knew Fang Yuan well — asking her to trust his integrity would be like asking her to die! But for now, she still had no way to forcibly seize the Yang Gu.
"Once we reach Merchant City, I'll have to buy at least a Poison Oath Gu. A Three-Hand Gu or Plunder Gu would do as well..." At this thought, Bai Ningbing felt an even greater urgency to reach Merchant City.
Beyond their joint cultivation, Fang Yuan's training regimen had gained an additional component.
That was using the Crocodile Strength Gu to train his strength.
Truth be told, it was somewhat beyond Fang Yuan's expectations that the Crocodile Strength Gu had survived until now.
The greatest credit went to the Bai family. It was precisely because he had obtained a large supply of crocodile meat from them that he had been able to keep the Crocodile Strength Gu alive until now.
Otherwise, it would have died long ago from starvation.
The Crocodile Strength Gu, like the Black-and-White Pig Gu, permanently increased a Gu Master's strength.
But before the Sixth Transformation, a Gu Master was still, after all, in a mortal body. It was like a bowl — it could not hold an entire lake. A Gu Master's physical capacity was limited.