**Chapter 13: The Little Girl Gathering Herbs at Bubu Pharmacy**
Jingchen walked hand-in-hand with Columbine through the bustling streets of Liyue.
The passersby, despite knowing Jingchen's status as an Executive, didn't deliberately avoid him. Instead, they greeted him respectfully as "Lord Jingchen."
Chihuo Rock might not have been as opulent as Feiyun Slope, but it was the most vibrant and down-to-earth district in Liyue, a bustling hub of daily life.
Quickblade Chen was hawking his wares with gusto: "Roasted Tiger-Eater Fish! Even the immortals love Roasted Tiger-Eater Fish!"
Columbine looked at Jingchen with a puzzled expression, pointing at the roasted fish. "Jingchen, does your Master like Roasted Tiger-Eater Fish?!"
"Ah?! Her Ladyship prefers Mora Meat, Pearl Jade White Jade Soup, or perhaps Clear Dew of Summer Dawn."
Columbine nodded slightly, still puzzled. "Then why does that man say the immortals love Roasted Tiger-Eater Fish?!"
Jingchen gently stroked Columbine's head. "To each their own. Most immortals do have rather unique tastes. However, as far as I know, one immortal who sacrificed his life to protect Liyue did indeed enjoy Roasted Tiger-Eater Fish."
"Who was it?"
Jingchen sighed, his thoughts drifting back to the Bronze Sparrow.
During the Archon War, to protect the village nestled at the foot of the mountain, the Bronze Sparrow sacrificed his proud wings to shield the villagers.
He fell in battle, his spirit manifesting on the anniversary of his death. As his soul returned to his homeland, his final wish was simply to taste roasted tigerfish one last time.
To gaze one last time upon Liyue Harbor, the city he had sworn to protect.
A hint of melancholy tinged Jingchen's voice as he spoke. In his memory, such ancestors were true heroes.
"The Bronze Sparrow... he was a comrade of my Master and the others."
Columbine noticed the shift in Jingchen's mood and immediately took his hand, leading him swiftly to a vendor's stall.
"Six skewers of roasted tigerfish, please."
"Coming right up! Just a moment."
Columbine accepted the skewers, turning back with a bright smile.
"Jingchen, Liyue must have a place to commemorate the Bronze Sparrow, right?"
Jingchen nodded with relief and pleasure, pulling Columbine toward a temple on the outskirts of the city.
Over a decade ago, when Jingchen held the position of Tianshu, he had repeatedly urged Keqing to rebuild this temple in her official capacity as a member of the Qixing.
After Keqing researched the Bronze Sparrow's deeds in Liyue's historical records, she readily agreed.
Thus, over three years, in the name of the Qixing and the people of Liyue, the temple was rebuilt, to serve as a place of remembrance for future generations.
(In the original story, Ying and Wang Ping'an worked together to rebuild the temple. However, Jingchen, having transmigrated from another world, already knew about Bronze Sparrow's deeds and had repaired it in advance.)
On Bronze Sparrow's death anniversary, Jingchen would often bring roasted tigerfish to offer as a sacrifice.
Yet Bronze Sparrow never manifested.
Perhaps he would only appear if Ying herself came.
Jingchen placed the roasted tigerfish before Bronze Sparrow's statue and bowed.
Columbine mimicked Jingchen's movements beside him.
As they exited the temple, Columbine pointed to a distant mountain peak.
"Jingchen! Look! There's a child climbing the mountain to gather herbs!"
"A child? Climbing a mountain to gather herbs?! What the heck?!"
Jingchen followed Columbine's gaze to the mountain peak.
Faintly, they could indeed see a purple silhouette scaling the mountain.
The two walked to the base of the mountain and looked up. Apart from the purple-white shadow, they saw nothing else.
"Aya, are you sure that purple-white shadow on the mountain is a child?"
"It does seem a bit high, but my intuition tells me it's definitely a child."
Jingchen waved his hand in exasperation. What kind of child would climb a mountain at dawn to gather herbs?
Wait a minute... dawn, climbing a mountain, gathering herbs...
Could it be that little zombie?
If it really was that little zombie—one of the key figures in helping Hu Tao resolve her inner conflicts—there was finally a glimmer of hope.
Just as Jingchen was pondering this, the purple shadow on the mountain peak plummeted rapidly downward.
The purple shadow ended up hanging from a tree branch, suspended just above the ground.
Jingchen squinted to get a better look.
Purple-white hair, delicate features, and a talisman left by her Master on her forehead.
It was indeed Qiqi, the little zombie.
Jingchen immediately summoned the Mechanical White Crane from his Space Backpack and maneuvered it to retrieve Qiqi.
He waved gently, greeting her.
"Hello, Qiqi."
Qiqi stared at Jingchen with a puzzled expression. Blue-white hair in a high ponytail, crimson eyes—something about him felt... familiar.
"You... saved me? Thank you."
A faint hint of embarrassment flickered across Jingchen's face as memories resurfaced of his time practicing talisman techniques with Senior Sister Shenhe on Mt. Aocang.
Qiqi had been gathering herbs on the mountain when she accidentally fell, landing directly on Jingchen, who was practicing talisman techniques.
Back then, Qiqi had said the exact same thing:
"You... saved me? Thank you."
At that time, Jingchen had been completely disoriented, his mind clouded, and he had remained unconscious for days.
If Senior Sister Shenhe hadn't rushed me to Master for timely treatment, I might have really died. Falling from such a great height—even a piece of tofu could have been fatal.
And it was Qiqi who had fallen.
*Sigh.* Just thinking about it makes me shudder.
But before I lost consciousness, Senior Sister Shenhe seemed to show genuine concern for me.
Didn't she have her emotions bound by that red rope? *Never mind, I'll worry about that later.*
"Qiqi, what happened this time?"
"Strong wind. Blew me off."
Jingchen smiled helplessly. Though he was a zombie, immune to death and pain, he still felt a pang of worry for her. After all, Master had entrusted her to his care, and...
He was about to become a father himself, and this paternal instinct to protect Qiqi, like a little girl, welled up within him.
Of course, he still remembered that night in another world, during Qiqi's painful time of suffering.
Columbine gently stroked Qiqi's head.
"Be more careful next time, Qiqi."
Qiqi gazed at Jingchen with a blank expression.
"Mm. You give Qiqi a familiar feeling, but Qiqi can't remember. I'm sorry."
"It's alright, Qiqi. Come, let's get your notebook."
Qiqi carefully retrieved her notebook, and Columbine's face lit up with delight.
*So Qiqi likes keeping a little notebook too!*
Jingchen effortlessly located the inscription left by his Master.
Jingchen, the youngest disciple of Cloud Retainer. Qiqi, rest assured, he will help you.
Below it was Qiqi's own annotation from that time.
Jingchen, is a, good brother. He will give, Qiqi, peaceful, times. Meet, Coconut Goat. Meet, Coconut Goat.
Qiqi nodded slightly. The notebook's description of Jingchen was indeed accurate.
"Jingchen, Brother, Qiqi, has finished, collecting Glazed Sandpiper. Ready, to return to Bubu Pharmacy."
"Alright, then goodbye, Qiqi."
Columbine, however, refused to let go of Qiqi, turning to Jingchen with a gentle smile.
"Qiqi is so adorable! Can we keep her company for a while?"
"Huh?!"
"Didn't we want to help Hu Tao resolve her inner conflict? With Qiqi around, we'll definitely make progress faster."
Hearing Hu Tao's name, Qiqi instinctively reacted.
"High temperature, fake smiles, and death... Dislike. Don't like."
"Sigh, Qiqi, Hu Tao genuinely wants to be your friend now."
"Qiqi, doesn't want. She wants, to bury, Qiqi."