"W-what? The apprentice was just practicing with swordsmanship and was not injured."
Shen Qingmang let go of Gu Sui Han, and quickly grabbed one of his hands and rolled up his sleeves. The exposed arm was smooth and slender. She then remembered that when Gu Sui Han advanced from the Qi Refining Stage to the Foundation Establishment Stage, his body cells should have been renewed and there would be no scars left.
But she felt even worse.
Scars can be covered up, but what about the pain? If she doesn't investigate, is he going to say nothing and endure everything on his own?
"Master, what are you doing?" Gu Suihan gently pulled his hand away and lowered his sleeve. "Did you have a nightmare? I'm fine."
"You're saying this again, Gu Suihan. How long are you going to keep whitewashing everything?" Shen Qingmang murmured softly, "You're making me feel really incompetent."
"Master, you..." Gu Sui Han still looked confused and had no idea what was going on.
Shen Qingmang took a deep breath, pulled out a brocade box from his sleeve, and handed it to him. "This belongs to you."
Gu Suihan took it, his lips curled up. "Master, did you give me another gift? This is..."
He opened the brocade box and saw the jade bracelet inside. His expression froze instantly and he slowly closed the brocade box.
"Where did you go? How did you get this thing?"
"I..." Shen Qingmang calmed down and said, "I went to Chunhui Town. I originally wanted to find out about your father's situation, but I didn't expect that he... had passed away. The neighbor lady gave me this and said it was left by your mother for her future daughter-in-law."
"Is that so... Then Master, please keep it."
"What?" Shen Qingmang raised his voice.
Gu Suihan smiled softly. "Suihan has no intention of marrying, and keeping her for myself would be useless. I might as well give her to Master. Thank you for your troubles on my behalf."
"Are you angry?" Shen Qingmang said softly, "I am wrong. I shouldn't have pried into your privacy. I'm sorry."
"Master is not wrong." He shook his head. "Master cares about me, and I'm grateful enough. How could I harbor resentment?"
"Sui Han, you..." Shen Qingmang felt a little powerless in her heart. It was like this again. He always seemed to want to hide his emotions and only show her the positive side.
"Master, I've also been reborn once. After two lives combined, I'm no longer a child." Gu Suihan took a step closer, gently resting his forehead against hers, and whispered coaxingly, "Please treat me like a man, okay?"
Shen Qingmang's cheeks instantly grew hot, and he moved away. "What are you talking about? Even if your combined magical skills are more advanced than mine in both of your past lives, I'm still your teacher. I'm more mature than you in terms of my magical skills."
"You are right." Gu Suihan smiled and appreciated her expression.
Shen Qingmang felt his perfunctory attitude and was a little annoyed, but if she got angry with him, that would be a real disgrace.
An excellent teacher must be calm and composed.
She repeated it silently several times, then looked up at him. "You have your own concerns, and I understand. I just want to tell you that you can rely on me, and you don't have to bear it alone. But if you feel you've grown strong enough and no longer need me, we can live our own lives from now on."
After she said it, she felt a little regretful. She felt that she still had some resentment in her heart and didn't want him to see it. She turned around to leave, but unexpectedly he hugged her from behind.
Gu Suihan's voice, relaxed from earlier, became trembling. "Master, I was wrong. Please don't ignore me. What do you want me to do? Do you want me to cry? Then I'll cry for you to see."
"No, I..." Shen Qingmang was at a loss for words. She wanted to turn around, but he was holding her tightly. She could only reach back with great effort and pat the back of his head. "I don't have that kind of bad taste. You're mistaken!"
"Then what do you want? As long as I have it, I can give it to you."
"Oh, I...are you trying to coax me? Sui Han, I don't need your coaxing, just let go."
"No, if I let go of your hand, Master will leave and never care about me again."
"How grown up are you? Learn to act like a spoiled brat like your junior brothers and sisters."
"Master, didn't you always think I was just a child? Now you think I'm childish again. Master is really hard to serve." Gu Sui Han said aggrievedly.
For the first time, Shen Qingmang was at a loss for words. She bit her lip, wondering how this child could have this side to him. Had she come to the wrong place today? Where was her older, well-behaved apprentice? How had she become such a spoiled, clingy person? Had she gone from a Samoyed to a Ragdoll cat?
But it's better to have emotions than to have no emotions. After all, he is showing weakness to me.
Teacher Shen felt a strange sense of satisfaction in his heart and said, "Alright, alright, I'll take care of you. Isn't that enough? I'll take care of you now. Please, please, loosen your arms, okay?"
Gu Suihan finally let her go, his eyes sparkling. "Master, how are you going to manage me?"
"Answer whatever I ask you."
"good."
"Did he abuse you?"
"……yes."
"Did it hurt?"
"It hurts...it doesn't hurt that much. Master, have you forgotten? I have the heart of heaven and earth, I can bear it."
"It would hurt, too. You're not made of wood or stone." Shen Qingmang frowned. "Besides, you were still young at the time. It must have been painful. Why did he do that to you? Because he wanted you to cultivate?"
"Well... he was very happy when he found out I had spiritual roots, but when the test showed they were Primordial Spiritual Roots, he thought I was useless, but he wasn't willing to accept that, so he tried every possible means to make me like a high-level cultivator, fearless of cold and heat, and invulnerable to swords and spears. That way, maybe I'd be accepted into the sect."
"This madman..." Shen Qingmang gritted his teeth. "It seems they really didn't lie."
"It's all over, Master. It's okay." Gu Suihan looked at her gently. "I'm doing well now. I used to only want to escape my father, and after joining the sect, I had no ambition to advance. It was Master who gave me the warmth of home. I only wish I had understood it sooner and practiced more diligently. Fortunately, I made it in time this time. Master, you asked us in class earlier why we chose the path of cultivation. I cultivate for you."
Tears welled up in Shen Qingmang's eyes again, and he instantly understood why Gu Suihan, despite his extraordinary talent, ultimately fell into mediocrity. Without his father's torture, perhaps he could have fully realized his brilliance. But with such a father, cultivating immortality was nothing more than an obsession forced upon him. He escaped his father's pursuit of immortality through cultivation, but he also found it repulsive because of his father's hatred of cultivation.
When had Qiongju ever given him the warmth of home? She had merely given him a place to stay, and had not insulted or punished him. Because of his excellent physique, she had occasionally given him guidance and praised him, and he had actually found satisfaction in that.
The crying child gets candy, but there is a kind of child who dares not cry at all, but smiles just because of the light reflected by the candy wrapper.
"Don't do it for others, do it for yourself," she said seriously. "Work hard to control your own destiny."
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