“What did my mother say?” Zhu Siyao blinked, long lashes still adorned with dewy droplets of Qi, her expression tinged with unmistakable shyness and a faint, hard-to-detect nervousness.
To be honest, after experiencing such a thrilling and unspeakable event, she still didn’t know how to face Zhuxin.
“She…” Jiang Huai’s face showed a hint of helplessness.
“She’s avoiding me, and won’t talk to me.”
“Every time I go to Blazing Residence to see her, she starts throwing things out before I can say more than a couple words, not giving me a chance to speak at all.” He rubbed his brow and added.
“Qin Qingyue also refuses to help me smooth things over. She says I have to handle this myself, and she won’t interfere.” Qin Qingyue has her own reasons.
She’s well aware that she once forcibly intervened, almost “snatching” this relationship into being.
If she used her status and position to help Jiang Huai “scheme” for someone’s daughter again, she felt it was simply unreasonable—too overbearing.
Upon hearing this, Zhu Siyao gently pressed her smooth chin to the damp rim of the wooden tub, thinking for a moment before lowering her voice:
“I see. Then you should go tell her I’m awake and want to see her.” “She cares about me, she’ll probably come see me.” “Alright, I’ll go tell her in a bit.” Jiang Huai nodded in agreement.
At that, the two fell into a brief silence.
Inside the Master’s Secret Chamber, only the faint trickle of Spiritual Liquid and the soft sound of their breathing could be heard.
Zhu Siyao leaned against the tub’s edge, cheeks flushed as if dusted with the most vibrant rouge.
A few damp, jet-black strands clung to her fair cheeks and the side of her neck, lending her a fragile, alluring air. Yet in her beautiful eyes, embarrassment mingled with an indescribable anticipation, the watery light reflecting beneath the steamy air and milky backdrop, making her breathtakingly beautiful.
“You…” Zhu Siyao suddenly looked up, staring directly at Jiang Huai, her voice as soft as a mosquito’s buzz.
“You’re not angry with me?”
If it hadn’t been for her falling under the Heavenly Demon’s bewitchment and leading him into danger, he wouldn’t have been so seriously wounded, nor would all the ensuing troubles have happened.
Jiang Huai shook his head without hesitation, his tone gentle:
“I don’t blame you. The Heavenly Demons from beyond the domain are cunning and unpredictable, skilled at playing with hearts and corrupting the spirit.”
“It’s not just you—back in that Secret Realm, even someone as strong-willed as Qingyue was once trapped by her Heart Demon, lost her senses, and nearly died.”
He brought up the past to comfort her—even Qin Qingyue had succumbed once. Zhu Siyao’s cultivation was still shallow, so being manipulated was hardly her own fault.
Who, after all their years of cultivation, hasn’t battled a Heart Demon?
Hearing this, Zhu Siyao seemed to breathe a sigh of relief, her taut shoulders relaxing a bit.
Then, the corners of her lips curved into a self-mocking smile: “As long as you’re not mad… Actually, sometimes I feel really awkward, and really sorry to you.”
Jiang Huai quickly said, “I told you, you don’t have to blame yourself.” “I don’t mean that.” Zhu Siyao softly interrupted him.
“Hmm?” Jiang Huai was a bit taken aback.
Zhu Siyao’s gaze returned to his face, baring her heart with a kind of reckless honesty as she said clearly:
“I mean, after all that’s happened, deep down, I’m really happy—so happy I can’t control it.” She saw the flicker of surprise in Jiang Huai’s eyes, and continued:
“I’m happy I finally got to express the feelings I buried for so long, no matter the way it happened.” “I’m also happy that, after everything, it feels like you and I have gotten a little closer.” Her voice gradually faded, carrying a trace of complicated emotion.
“Even if this ‘closeness’ was bought at the cost of you nearly giving your life for me.”
The changes in their relationship had come at a huge price—blood, pain, and brushes with death all intertwined.
Precisely because of that, deep in her heart, Zhu Siyao felt a strange, aching sense of preciousness.
Jiang Huai was silent for a moment, digesting her candid, complicated feelings.
At last, he met her gaze and replied seriously:
“I understand how you feel. It’s alright, I get it.”
“That’s good.” Zhu Siyao seemed to finally shed her last burden, letting out a long breath, her whole body relaxing as if even her soul had become lighter.
The relief of surviving disaster and the joy of having her feelings understood mingled together. She beamed at Jiang Huai, her smile bright and mischievous as she tilted her head and playfully asked:
“So, why did you come today?”
“I…” Jiang Huai’s gaze instinctively drifted to the milky Spiritual Liquid in the tub. He didn’t finish his sentence, but the meaning was clear.
He had come to “apply medicine” for her, using his own yin-yang essence to continue nurturing her wounded spirit and body.
“This water feels a bit strange to soak in.” Zhu Siyao seemed oblivious to his awkwardness. She dipped a delicate jade hand into the milky Spiritual Liquid, then slowly lifted it.
Like silk, it slid through her slender fingers; her fair, lustrous skin, bathed in Spiritual Liquid, seemed to glow even more radiantly, like the finest pearl with a gentle sheen.
They both knew well what this “medicine” truly was.
“Close your eyes.” Jiang Huai picked up a small stool and stepped on it, making things more convenient.
“I won’t.” Zhu Siyao tilted her head back, gazing up at Jiang Huai, who looked taller standing on the stool.
“Why should I close them?”
“Fine.” Jiang Huai had no choice but to start undressing.
The rustle of clothing sounded unusually loud in the silent Master’s Secret Chamber. As he faced Zhu Siyao, completely off guard—
Suddenly, he felt a tight grip!
Zhu Siyao had lunged forward, grabbing him firmly in her palm, and gradually squeezing harder.
“What are you doing?!” Jiang Huai was caught completely off guard, sucking in a sharp breath from the pain.
Zhu Siyao, like a child who had succeeded at mischief, clung tightly and tilted her face up, asking a question that made Jiang Huai’s scalp tingle:
“Between me and Chi Lian, who do you like more?!” “I’m better-looking, right?”
“How can you compare that?” Jiang Huai tried to step back, but she held on tight, refusing to let go.
“We were only able to escape safely because she risked coming to help us.” “Then let me ask another way.” Zhu Siyao furrowed her brows, dissatisfied.
“I don’t want to come after her. Didn’t I know you first? Didn’t I come sooner?”
…
“No.” Jiang Huai shrugged helplessly.
“Qingyue already said—I can’t just decide this on my own, I have to discuss it with her.” He paused and added,
“Besides, you can’t really go by who came first or second. That wouldn’t be fair to the others, either.”
“I see.” At the mention of Qin Qingyue, Zhu Siyao immediately wilted like a kitten caught by the scruff, reluctantly releasing her grip, a disgruntled expression on her face.
With gentle Jiang Huai, she could act a little “willful” knowing he’d never really do anything to her.
But with Qin Qingyue—that was someone truly decisive and hot-tempered, someone who might slap her twice without hesitation. Who would dare joke with her? Even her own mother wouldn’t dare bring up such things!
“Fine, forget it.” She pouted, unwilling but helpless.
“I’m starting.” Jiang Huai warned.
“Mm, go ahead.” Zhu Siyao answered, not only not shying away, but even inching closer.
“Don’t get so close,” Jiang Huai warned, staring at her face just inches from his.
“You’ll regret it later.”
Before he finished, there was a soft “smack”—Jiang Huai, with a bit of playful revenge, lightly slapped Zhu Siyao’s cheek, leaving a faint red mark.
“I like it this way,” Zhu Siyao didn’t mind at all, giggling and pressing even closer. Her whole face nearly touched his, gazing up at him, her eyes misty and tinged with passionate pink at the corners, her voice seductive.
“Can’t I use my face…like this?”
She nuzzled him gently with her pointed nose, pouting playfully.
At this moment, most of the girl’s lovely face was covered, only her steamy, stubborn and passionate eyes and her blushing cheeks showing.
“Then you help me.” Jiang Huai simply let go, letting her do as she pleased.
“I won’t help.” Zhu Siyao shook her head, but rubbed her burning cheek even more insistently, mumbling,
“When my mother agrees, then I’ll help.”
Clearly, the girl still held to certain mysterious lines she wouldn’t cross.
“Cough, cough, cough—why is there so much?” Zhu Siyao suddenly raised her head, coughing violently, her face and hair nearly unrecognizable, looking a complete mess.
She coughed and grumbled at the same time.
“This is…way too much, isn’t it?”
Jiang Huai steadied himself on the tub’s edge, breathing a little heavily as he looked at her wretched state and said helplessly,
“I told you you’d regret it.”
“You did it on purpose.” Zhu Siyao, now acting every bit the willful girl, gave him a hard shove.
“I’m going to complain to my mother!”
Outside Blazing Residence.
Jiang Huai straightened his clothes and went to Blazing Residence, where Zhuxin was.
He had just reached the door when, before he could even call out, there was a loud “bang!” as the door flew open a crack from within, and some unknown magic tool was flung out, almost hitting Jiang Huai.
“Zhuxin, I…” Jiang Huai hurried to speak.
But a Jade Slip came flying out, whistling through the air.
“Let’s talk, Siyao, she…” “Whoosh!”—this time it was a Putuan.
No matter how Jiang Huai pleaded and explained outside, inside, Zhuxin remained silent, expressing her attitude and anger only with a constant barrage of thrown objects.
Jiang Huai had no choice but to raise his voice and call out:
“Siyao’s awake! She says she wants to see you!”
That sentence seemed to work miracles—the barrage of flying objects abruptly stopped.
The next instant, a scorching red wind swept out from inside, so fast that Jiang Huai didn’t even see a figure, just a blur in front of his eyes.
That familiar, anxious, and angry crimson figure sped past him without even a glance, heading straight toward the Master’s Secret Chamber.
Only then did Su Yingman, Tang Zhaoxue, and Chi Lian—who had been quietly crouched in a corner watching the drama—dare to poke their heads out.
Su Yingman covered her mouth and giggled:
“Oh, still not smoothed over? What now?”
Tang Zhaoxue’s face was cold as usual, but a trace of concern flickered in her eyes:
“Should we go take a look?”
Chi Lian simply blinked her clear eyes, saying nothing.
Jiang Huai looked at the three “spectators” who were never satisfied until the drama peaked, sighed helplessly, and without another word, turned and hurried after Zhuxin.