“Well, I accidentally damaged my cultivation method earlier and haven’t bought a new one yet. Let’s just have some water for now.”
Su Xuan returned to his room, his tone awkward.
“It’s fine, water is good.”
Su Yunjin held the cup, surveying the room, and said softly.
From the moment she entered, she had noticed. This courtyard was very old.
As the master of the house, Su Xuan’s room was even more spartan and empty. The door was broken.
The conditions were simply too poor.
Su Yunjin thought to herself, frowning slightly, and asked without thinking.
“Little brother, would you like to move to the Inner Market? The conditions there are much better than here.”
As she spoke, she fiddled with the cup, secretly adding in her heart.
“And… it’s closer to me.”
After just one day apart, she found that this younger brother had not only advanced his cultivation by another step, but the aura he exuded was also more… alluring.
“No need, it’s quite fine living here.”
Su Xuan considered for a moment, then slowly shook his head.
He was well aware that his current conditions were downright shabby, and he had indeed thought about moving before. But now, with Shangguan Yu and Shangguan Sheng fighting so fiercely, it was better not to go to the eye of the storm.
“Don’t worry about rent or anything, sister will cover it.”
Seeing him refuse, Su Yunjin felt a pang of anxiety and blurted out without thinking.
Only after saying it did she realize she had come on too strong, a faint blush coloring her cheeks.
“It’s not about the money. It’s really… I’m just not used to it.”
Su Xuan shook his head, refusing again.
If he really wanted to move, he could just take his token and go find either Shangguan Yu or Shangguan Sheng. He wouldn’t need to spend his own Spirit Stones.
Seeing him reject her, Su Yunjin’s gaze softened, even tinged with a bit of self-reproach.
‘The conditions are so poor. If he had money, why would he live here?’
‘He helped you such a big favor, and he wasn’t even willing to take Huan’er’s Spirit Stones. How could he accept your favor for nothing? How could you be so blunt?’
She chided herself inwardly, feeling she might have hurt his pride.
“Miss Su, what brings you here this time?”
Su Xuan didn’t want to dwell on the moving issue any longer. He let his eyes roam appreciatively over Su Yunjin’s fine figure, changing the subject.
‘Coming to my house so late at night… could it be she misses me…’
He felt a flicker of hope.
A beautiful older sister from next door, coming to your house late at night… any man would let his thoughts wander a little.
“Uh, I… I have something I need your help with, little brother.”
A spark of inspiration flashed in Su Yunjin’s mind. She thought of a way to make him accept her goodwill.
“In a couple of days, people from the sect will come to try and persuade me to return, but I don’t want to leave yet. Little brother, I need you to help me deal with them.”
“If we succeed, I’ll give you… 5… no, 10 High-grade Spirit Stones!”
She deliberately put on a troubled expression, pretending the matter was quite tricky and the offer was very high.
In reality, it was just her brother worrying about her health, occasionally sending someone to check on her. That was all.
“Oh…”
Su Xuan, who had thought she might be reluctant to part with him, felt a pang of disappointment. He added a question.
“What would I need to do? Is it dangerous?”
“Not dangerous, not dangerous at all. You just need to cooperate with me when the time comes. I’m confident we can handle it.”
Seeing his interest, Su Yunjin quickly waved her hands, afraid he might back out.
“Alright then. I’ll come find you in a couple of days.”
Su Xuan nodded, agreeing readily. He still needed to learn Pill Refinement, and he would be more than happy to stick close to Su Yunjin every day.
Seeing him agree, Su Yunjin also secretly revealed a triumphant smile.
Both of them felt they had scored a great deal.
“The water’s here! Drink up.”
Before they could each bask in their satisfaction for long, Lu Zhiyi walked in carrying a small pot of hot water.
She deliberately placed the full pot of hot water right between the two of them, creating a barrier, and sat down by herself.
“Who’s this auntie? I haven’t seen her before. What’s she here for?”
Lu Zhiyi scooped out the hot water with a ladle, intentionally not calling him ‘Master,’ as if she were the lady of the house.
“This is… a friend of mine. She came to ask for my help.”
Being questioned by her, Su Xuan felt inexplicably guilty.
‘Auntie?!’
‘Do I look that old?’
Su Yunjin immediately caught the term of address, her eyes narrowing as she stared at Lu Zhiyi.
She found the girl’s haughty demeanor strangely familiar, as if she’d seen it somewhere before.
‘Who exactly does she remind me of?’
She pondered, unable to recall immediately, but she was sure she’d seen it before.
“Hmph, a friend?”
Lu Zhiyi gave a cold laugh, sneering inwardly.
‘Looking at Su Xuan’s guilty expression, they’re just ordinary friends?’
‘If that’s true, I’ll drink this whole pot of boiling water on the spot.’
“It’s so late. Is Auntie staying at our place tonight? Should I go make the bed?”
Thinking this, she pretended to be very considerate and thoughtful.
In reality, she was already trying to drive the guest away, as no woman could have the nerve to agree under such circumstances.
‘Still calling me auntie?!’
‘You’re the auntie!’
Provoked repeatedly by this young girl, Su Yunjin’s anger also flared, her eyes gradually filling with a competitive glint.
“Little brother, is this young lady your sister? We’ve known each other for so long, how come you never mentioned her?”
She deliberately spoke ambiguously, hinting at a close relationship with Su Xuan.
“Oh, no, she’s not my sister. This is my disciple.”
Su Xuan explained, then turned to ask.
“Zhiyi, do you need something? Do you want to go practice?”
He didn’t understand the battle between the women, but he vaguely sensed the atmosphere was off and instinctively wanted to send Lu Zhiyi away.
“So she’s your disciple, little brother.”
“Oh dear, look at this. It’s our first meeting, and I, as the elder, didn’t bring any gift. Here, take this for the child to play with.”
Having clarified Lu Zhiyi’s identity, Su Yunjin pulled a hairpin from her own hair, placed it in Lu Zhiyi’s hand, and said warmly.
She completely ignored Lu Zhiyi’s previous remarks. Since this little girl deliberately addressed her as old, she would just treat her like a child accordingly.
When elders are talking, you, a junior, go play somewhere else.
“I… I don’t want it.”
Lu Zhiyi was no match for her. At a loss for words, she hurriedly shoved the hairpin back.
“Master, I have some issues with my cultivation. Can you explain them to me?”
She gritted her teeth and requested.
“Little brother, I think it’s still not too late. How about I teach you like last time?”
Seeing her flustered, Su Yunjin smiled slightly, meeting challenge with challenge.
“Great!”
Su Xuan was delighted. Her taking the initiative to teach him Pill Refinement was exactly what he wished for.
But…
He couldn’t let his disciple see the state they were in yesterday. How embarrassing.
***
After thinking for a moment, he said to Lu Zhiyi.
“Zhiyi, your master… needs to discuss alchemy with Miss Su. I’ll explain everything to you properly tomorrow, alright?”
“Master, I…”
Lu Zhiyi, hearing him send her away, widened her eyes in disbelief.
Then, her lips trembling, she stamped her foot, turned around, and walked out.
‘What’s up with this disciple? Can’t I, your master, have friends?’
Seeing that she seemed to be angry, Su Xuan found it rather unreasonable.
“I do still have some questions about the timing and dosage for adding those medicinal herbs. Miss Su, could you focus on explaining those again this time?”
Shaking his head, he felt Pill Refinement was more important and spoke to Su Yunjin.
“Of course, certainly.”
Su Yunjin looked at him with her beautiful eyes, the faint scent from his body reaching her nose. She smiled.
“You… maybe you should close the door first?”
Remembering the steamy teaching session from last time, she felt her face grow warm. Pointing at the missing door panel, she said in a slightly strained voice.
Su Xuan nodded upon hearing this, went to the courtyard to fetch the door Lu Zhiyi had repaired, skillfully fitted it onto the hinges.
‘Not bad at all. It’d be a waste of talent not to become a carpenter.’
He silently praised his disciple’s handiwork, looking at the door that seemed as good as new. Then, with a thud, he closed the door.
***
In the kitchen, Lu Zhiyi, who had been eavesdropping with pricked ears, was startled by the sound of the door closing, her whole body jerking.
‘Coming to my home, seducing my master, taking advantage of me, using the door I repaired to sneak around…’
“That… is… mine…”
Lu Zhiyi stared fixedly at her master’s room, her eyes seemingly veiled with a fierce intensity, her entire body radiating a murderous aura. She murmured the words one by one.
Her hands were clenched tightly, each word making her grip tighter.
Her sharp fingernails pierced her palms, but she seemed utterly unaware, her gaze fixed silently on her master’s lit room.
Drop by drop, blood flowed down.