Chapter 75 The one I've always wanted to marry is her.

The sky was just beginning to brighten.

A distinguished guest arrived at the kitchen on the back hill. The early morning yawns, the idly turning over of the stove, and the bubbling of the boiler fell silent for a moment, then Aunt Cai's enthusiastic voice rang out, "Immortal Lord, why have you come in person?"

Aunt Cai was originally a cook for a landlord at the foot of the mountain. Later, the landlord moved away and left her behind because she had difficulty walking. Apart from being greedy, Aunt Cai was not bad.

However, in those days, gluttony was considered a grave sin by landlords and in this world.

Of course, this is nothing to the immortal sects.

Even so, Granny Cai was still very grateful to the immortal who had taken her in. Seeing Meng Ji's enthusiasm, she swayed her sturdy body, pushed aside the maid who was tending the fire, and came over with a half-eaten, dripping radish in her hand. "Hey, if the immortal is hungry, he could have just given the order. Why did he come all the way here in person?"

Meng Ji was dressed in a neat Taoist robe, which wrapped him up in layers, making him look ethereal and otherworldly, which seemed out of place in this place.

He said, "Aunt Cai, it's been a long time. How have you been?"

If it weren't for the mismatch in social status, Aunt Cai would have almost grabbed this polite young man to chat about everyday matters. However, looking at his rough hands that had been dealing with kitchen knives and cutting boards for years, she withdrew them.

"All good, all good." Aunt Cai's fine lines around her eyes were squeezed out by the flesh, and she put all the radishes on the stove. She led the people to the innermost part of the house, saying as she walked, "Immortal Lord, I made you some vegetable porridge this morning, look?"

When the lid was lifted, a generous amount of steam billowed out. The porridge, simmering slowly over low heat, looked exceptionally thick, and it even contained tender shoots of fairy vegetables that Aunt Cai had personally picked.

Needless to say, this bowl is incredibly sweet and smooth.

Meng Ji curled his lips into a smile. Although he couldn't see it, he didn't point it out. "What Auntie prepared must be good."

"but……"

Aunt Cai immediately became nervous, looking around anxiously, afraid that her vegetables might not have been cleaned properly.

"However, I don't want to eat these this morning."

It's said that the immortal sect doesn't prohibit meat, so what can't they get to eat? But over the years, ever since Aunt Cai came to be in charge of Mengji's meals, the most common thing she does is cook porridge, and at most she makes a side dish. Aunt Cai has never seen such an easy person to serve.

Therefore, even though it was the first time she had heard about this extra requirement regarding the diet, Aunt Cai was only stunned for a moment before she immediately pulled out a cleaver from the cutting board and began sharpening it. "My lord, you said that whether it's frying, stewing, or thickening and stir-frying, I can make even a Manchu Han Imperial Feast..."

"I want to eat osmanthus flowers," Meng Ji said, a slight smile appearing on his face, immediately stopping Aunt Cai from sharpening her knife.

"Does the immortal lord want to eat flowers? Or dishes made from flowers?" Aunt Cai, relying on her womanly talent, managed to deduce Meng Ji's subtle meaning, which resembled a young girl's first love.

He then personally prepared a table of delicacies and, under Meng Ji's guidance, taught him how to make a plate of osmanthus pastries, and imparted his lifelong theoretical and practical knowledge.

With expert guidance, the product's appearance will naturally be more appealing.

But when he recalled Aunt Cai's "earnest teachings," Meng Ji subtly revealed his wrist.

When his robes were "inadvertently" lifted, Xu Zhao immediately noticed. His loud voice, filled with heartache, was almost painful to hear: "Immortal Lord, you've gotten blisters on your hands from cooking! What are we going to do?"

Yao Jin: "...You did this?"

Her question was merely a casual remark, entirely a response to Xu Zhao, because in Yao Jin's memory she had eaten osmanthus pastries made by Meng Ji. Back then, no matter how she asked, the other party would avoid answering, and even suspected her of being a ferocious beast.

But to everyone's surprise, as soon as she said that, Meng Ji reached out his slender finger and poked her, the corners of his lips slightly raised, and he nodded with a slightly aloof yet not so aloof air, "Mm."

“Miss…” Meng Ji was a little uneasy and nervously pushed the osmanthus pastry over again, “This is my first time making it, and it’s not very good.”

"You're lying!" Yao Jin was about to say it when his expression suddenly froze. He sat down indignantly and said coldly, "...It's really not good."

Meng Ji's lips curled up, not letting the matter rest, "What did I lie to you about, young lady?"

Yao Jin: "I never said that."

Meng Ji gave a vague "oh" and didn't press further, but the curve of his lips became even more pronounced. "Miss, try it. How does it taste?"

With the guidance of a master chef, even a complete novice can make a dish that tastes pretty good, especially when the person making it is very careful.

Yao Jin took a bite, feeling frustrated. It was neither salty nor bland. "It's alright."

Meng Ji didn't mind the evaluation and continued to place each dish in front of Yao Jin in order. Yao Jin was unknowingly fed a lot. When he stopped eating, his belly was round and bulging, and his eyes were also round and bright. "Are you really blind? How did you go blind?"

It wasn't that Yao Jin was suspicious, but rather that the meal went too smoothly. She liked trying new things, yet she couldn't bear to leave behind the other delicious dishes she had already tasted. Every time she paused, those dishes would conveniently appear in front of her, allowing her to enjoy and savor every single one of the dishes while finishing the meal.

So even though it was presumptuous of her to say it, she still said it.

Fortunately, Xu Zhao had already taken Meng Youhui away early on, otherwise he would have been furious upon hearing such words.

The distance between the two grew closer and closer during the meal. The sweet fragrance of osmanthus mixed with the girl's scent wafted over them, and Meng Ji's ears turned slightly red, but he did not distance himself from her.

Instead, she gently rubbed the fragrance and said softly, "I'm really blind, blinded by crying."

"Huh?" Yao Jin asked curiously, "You can cry?"

"How could I not? I cried my eyes out for my wife." Meng Ji, who was not good at expressing himself, carefully chose his words. At the same time, Aunt Cai's wise saying, "The squeaky wheel gets the grease," kept swirling in his mind.

After a pause, Meng Ji was able to speak fluently: "I love my wife very much. She has a misunderstanding with me and mistakenly believes that I will marry someone else."

"But in fact, the one I've always wanted to marry is her."

Yao Jin knew half of all this, but she pretended not to know. Her heart felt like it was being scratched by hundreds of cat paws at the same time, and what she was scratching was not only curiosity, but also some indescribable complex emotions.

"Go on, I'll analyze it for you." Yao Jin leaned even closer.

"Hmm." Meng Ji's lips curved into a smile, and he lowered his head even further, to an angle where he could speak at eye level, an angle that was enough for the other person to hear every word.

He said, "My wife has a pitiful background. She has been manipulated all her life and is looked down upon even in a different place. I want to become the leader so that I can speak up for her and prevent her from drifting aimlessly."

"However, the position of sect leader requires marrying a junior sister, which is the least likely way to harm innocent people. I was young at the time, and I always felt that my wife would understand me, or that she would be jealous. In this way, I could both protect her and hear her love for me."

Finally, Meng Ji sighed, and his eyes, which had never been opened before, suddenly snapped open. His unfocused, hazy eyes, however, now shone with a glistening light.

"Actually, there's no such thing as wanting both in life. She didn't love me enough, but I loved her enough."

Even if she doesn't love me, I still love her.

The hoarse voice, accompanied by a continuous stream of airflow, penetrated into the ear canal, as if it could reach the very depths of one's heart.

With a sudden burst of heat, Yao Jin felt like she was on fire. Realizing something, she leaned back to block the other person from getting too close. "What can you do for her even if you become the sect leader? Does she even know what you're thinking? In the end, it's all about you imposing your own ideas on her, isn't it?"

"Yes, do not do to others what you would not have them do to you." Meng Ji did not miss any of the other party's movements. Even though he could not see, he still judged the other party's possible expression by the direction and the changing air currents. After a while, the water droplets that had been hidden and had not appeared suddenly fell.

He rose and bowed respectfully, his eyes fixed on Yao Jin without looking away. "I used to understand this principle, but I forgot to respect others. Love must be equal and pure."

"I was confused."

The misunderstandings of the past years have become a joke at this moment, but what follows are the things she has actually done. In this instant, any words of apology seem pale and deeply inadequate.

A perfunctory apology is too vague, as if saying it would be a joke in front of this immortal lord who has cried his eyes out and taken a knife for her sake.

"No, you're not confused." After struggling for a long time, Yao Jin finally managed to utter these words.

The food that had been piling up in her stomach finally felt heavy and substantial. Yao Jin almost stumbled as she fled the room, but as she left Wugou Pavilion, a figure blocked her way on the road behind the mountain.

"Miss Qingwen, may we talk?" Meng Youhui asked with a complicated expression.

When Meng Youhui learned from Xu Zhao that the girl who might become his stepmother was "Qingwen", he felt a different kind of emotion.

He didn't mind the other person's almost impolite silence, but after bowing, he said what he wanted to say: "I don't know why you followed my father so carefully, but in my heart, my father is a kind man."

"so……"

"So what?" Yao Jin looked at him with displeasure.

Qingwen was just a name Yao Jin made up on the spot. It was the first time someone had called her that, and she didn't react immediately. She felt a little apologetic, but Meng Youhui's words made her feel that she wasn't so apologetic after all.

As expected.

Meng Youhui asked, "So, who instructed you, young lady? And how did you manage to leave my father?"

Yao Jin was immediately annoyed. "He looks respectable, but I didn't expect him to be such a scoundrel."

Meng Youhui: "...Miss, what did you say?"

Yao Jincai disdained repeating what she had said, but she didn't mind repeating this insult a second time. However, before doing so, she paused and suddenly asked, "Are you Meng Ji's biological son?"