Chapter 13 The Moon Is Not Here: "I Miss You"
"Brother Yu Bai, you're here." Hearing the commotion outside the courtyard, Song Anran quickly opened the gate and was somewhat surprised to see another person. "Young Master Yao, are you here to see our senior brother?"
Fu Yunyao withdrew her gaze from Shi Yubai and answered softly, "Hmm, what's going on here?"
Ignored, Shi Yubai pressed the tip of his tongue against his cheek, somewhat convinced.
Song Anran said, "My senior brother just went out. He told me that if you come in, you can come in and wait for a while."
As dusk fell, only a sliver of the setting sun remained hanging on the horizon.
Fu Yunyao hadn't expected him to be absent at this time, and she was thinking of going back first.
Shi Yubai, standing to the side, asked curiously, "Is it your mysterious senior brother?"
In the ten years since Jiang Wanyin's death, Shi Yubai has frequently visited the Boundless Sect, thoroughly investigating its situation.
When he first arrived at the Endless Sect, he wondered if he had gone to the wrong place. Was a courtyard with a gate that read "Endless Sect" the place where Jiang Wanyin had lived since childhood?
The Endless Sect is a small sect with an unreliable sect leader, a deceased senior sister, two young disciples they picked up from who-knows-where, and a mysterious senior brother.
Something seemed amiss. It wasn't until the third year that Shi Yubai learned they had a senior brother in their sect, whom they had only met a few times over the years. Therefore, he roughly understood why Fu Yunyao was here.
"He didn't ask Master Chen to speak." Shi Yubai never imagined that one day he would be able to speak so calmly with the person beside him again.
"Is that so?" Fu Yunyao murmured.
“A swordsman will only have one natal sword in his lifetime. I have seen his natal sword.”
If Shi Yubai hadn't personally witnessed that person's natal sword and its sword aura, which was completely different from Fu Yusheng's, he would have also doubted whether the Sword Master Chen, who fell into the deep sea ten years ago, was still alive.
His natal sword? And the Dust-Reaping Sword, which was once stained with his blood but showed no reaction whatsoever.
This made Fu Yunyao question her original, almost certain, conjecture.
But if not, why are the two of them so similar in their subconscious expressions and actions? Do two people who are so alike really exist in the world?
"Song Anran! Where did you put my sugar?!" Jiang Wanyi's voice rose from inside the courtyard.
Song Anran, who had been puzzled by their conversation, suddenly snapped out of her daze and quickly turned to the side, waving the porcelain jar in her hand. "It's with me!"
With his movements, he revealed the scene inside the courtyard to Fu Yunyao and Shi Yubai.
A bonfire was lit in the courtyard, and a strange-looking pot was placed on the firewood. The soup inside the pot was divided into two parts: one half was filled with bright red chili peppers, and the other half was a clear broth of mushrooms.
In an instant, the two people outside the courtyard stopped at the same time, as if a voice had appeared in their ears at the same time.
...
"Shi Yubai! Put the sugar down!"
It was the seventh day of Fu Yunyao's participation in the cultivation world competition. She had defeated Su Fuying, the favorite to win, but was injured in the process. When she woke up in the dimly lit room, she happened to hear Jiang Wanyin's voice outside the courtyard.
"Is this sugar? I thought it was salt." Shi Yubai put down the sugar jar awkwardly.
"Cheng Minxi, I'm cooking!" Jiang Wanyin hurriedly called out to Cheng Minxi again.
“I’m washing, I’m washing.” Cheng Minxi replied from not far away.
Shi Yubai picked up his chopsticks, just about to take a piece of mushroom while Jiang Wanyin wasn't looking, when Wen Ci knocked them away from the side, saying, "It's poisonous, and it's not ripe yet, so you can't eat it."
Jiang Wanyin, who was arranging the seasonings, noticed their commotion and roared again, "Shi Yubai!"
Shi Yubai retorted, "I am a cultivator, this little bit of poison is nothing to me."
Jiang Wanyin sneered, "Fine, then. You'll be eating this and seeing a villain."
"What little person?"
"My master said, 'Red umbrella, white pole, if you eat it, you'll both lie on the board.'"
She stepped out of the room and stood at the doorway, meeting the gaze of Su Fuying, who was also standing at the courtyard gate, her eyes filled with disbelief.
After washing the vegetables, Cheng Minxi noticed the person at the gate and greeted her, "Su Fuying? What brings you here?"
Su Fuying subconsciously responded, "I came to deliver medicine to Yun Yao, what are you doing here...?"
Amidst her busy schedule, Jiang Wanyin replied, "Yun Yao is still in her room." Just as she was about to point out Fu Yun Yao's room, she saw a person standing at the door with a subtle expression.
"Yun Yao, you're awake!" She waved happily.
Fu Yunyao nodded hesitantly and asked the same question as Su Fuying, "What's going on here...?"
"We're making hot pot," Shi Yubai replied. "Fuying's here too, let's eat together!"
Fu Yunyao and Su Fuying: ...Hot pot?
By the time the moonlight fell, the hot pot was fully boiling.
Su Fuying took a bite of the meat and exclaimed in amazement, "Your way of eating is truly amazing."
While busy grabbing meat, Shi Yubai didn't forget to snatch a few pieces from the mushroom soup side for Fu Yunyao and Su Fuying. "Wanyin's master is amazing; he can find ways to eat like this."
“My master, the first meal he took me to on the mountain was hot pot. He said it’s how they eat it in their hometown. Look, this strange pot is called a ‘Mandarin Duck Pot,’ and he made it himself. I came to the competition alone, and he was worried I wouldn’t eat well, so he brought this pot with me.” Jiang Wanyin put a few more pieces of mushrooms into Fu Yunyao’s bowl. “Yunyao, eat more.”
Fu Yunyao looked at her overflowing bowl and blinked somewhat slowly, her reaction a little slow.
Cheng Minxi couldn't stand it anymore, "If you keep putting food into her bowl, it'll overflow."
"Ah." Jiang Wanyin then noticed that Fu Yunyao's bowl was already full. "Yunyao, eat quickly."
Fu Yunyao obediently stuffed a piece of meat into her mouth.
Jiang Wanyin was satisfied. "It would be great if there was some wine."
"You want to drink? I have some." Wen Ci said, taking out several jars of wine from his Qiankun bag, "Qinglian Zui".
Shi Yubai was surprised, "You carry alcohol with you?"
“My master loves to drink, and he often tries to give me a drink when there’s nothing else to do, saying that we can drink together sometime.”
Jiang Wanyin opened the wine jar, smelled the rich aroma, and raised her eyebrows. "Good wine indeed."
Su Fuying chuckled, “The Qingwu Sect Leader’s wines are never bad. Qinglian Zui is the best for nourishing the soul. Even if you get completely drunk tonight, you’ll still be able to calmly participate in the competition tomorrow.”
"Alright, then let's drink until we drop tonight!"
The campfire in the courtyard went out as the moon rose high in the sky.
Shi Yubai and Cheng Minxi were drunk and passed out on the lawn. Wen Ci leaned against a tree in the yard, resting with her eyes closed. As for Jiang Wanyin and Su Fuying…
Do you know the "Most Popular Male Cultivators in the Cultivation World" list?
"I know, I know! The top spot is held by Fu Yuchen from the Yaotai Realm! The second place is Wen Ci!"
"Do you know the list of most popular female cultivators?"
"I don't know, the female cultivators aren't as popular as Sword Master Chen."
Jiang Wanyin shook her head mysteriously, "Being the undisputed number one on the female cultivator ranking is also what makes Sword Master Chen laugh, making Sword Master Chen's followers dedicated to making him the undisputed number one on every ranking!"
"I see. But in terms of strength and appearance, it's not surprising at all that you say he's number one."
"I also heard..."
"..."
"Young Master Yao and Brother Yu Bai, would you like to have something to eat together?" Song Anran's words interrupted their reminiscence. He warmly invited them, "My senior sister makes the best hot pot!"
Fu Yunyao should have refused, but for some reason, she ended up walking into the courtyard anyway.
As soon as Jiang Wan saw the two of them in the courtyard, she waved enthusiastically and took out two jars of wine from her Qiankun bag.
“These are two jars of Zhufengyin that I secretly took from my master. Tonight we…” Her eyes darted between Fuyun Yao and Shi Yubai before she changed her words, “A little drink is good for the soul.”
...
When Fu Yusheng returned to the courtyard, the campfire had already gone out.
Shi Yubai had already left. Ten years had passed, and he was no longer the boy who would get drunk. After Jiang Wanyi took the drunk Song Anran to her room, she returned to her own courtyard.
The courtyard, which was not lively to begin with, was now even more silent.
Fu Yunyao took a sip of wine from her bowl, the bamboo hat she had been wearing on her head now placed to the side, her gentle and graceful face appearing even more ethereal in the moonlight.
A gentle breeze swept by, and she squinted, meeting the gaze of the white figure leaning against the courtyard gate.
The person was still wearing a mask, so their true appearance could not be seen.
Fu Yunyao stared at him intently. She thought of that day when Fu Yusheng leaned against the courtyard gate like this, and slowly walked up to her as she looked at him.
The breeze stopped, and Fu Yusheng walked up to her, bending slightly to look her in the eye, his eyes shimmering. "Drunk?"
Fu Yunyao remained silent, staring intently at the mask on his face.
Fu Yusheng still smiled, his hands clenched tightly under his sleeves, trying hard to resist the urge to touch her.
"I'm sorry, I didn't expect it to take so long. I've kept you waiting."
Fu Yunyao tilted her head slightly, her eyes filled with intoxication, and murmured softly, "Fu Yusheng..."
"I am here.
He almost blurted it out, then swallowed the last word with difficulty. His Adam's apple bobbed slightly, and he added in a low, hoarse voice with a hint of helplessness, "You've mistaken me for someone else again. I'm not the Sword Master of the Dust Sword Sect."
Fu Yunyao lowered her eyes, concealing the clarity within them, and murmured again, "I miss you."
The courtyard remained quiet for a long time. She kept her head down and didn't see how the person in front of her awkwardly looked away, with the veins on his neck bulging and his ears, hidden in his hair, turning a bright red.
Fu Yusheng knew perfectly well that the "I miss you" was just a test, but he still couldn't help but feel a surge of emotions.
He sighed inwardly.
Liao Liao, don't test me like that, I'll take it seriously.
He calmed himself down and slowly said, "Didn't everyone say that you and Sword Master Rangchen had been constantly at odds, to the point that it was a fight to the death? Are you thinking about him because he treated you well before?"
His voice carried a teasing tone, as if he were genuinely curious.
Fu Yunyao looked up, her eyes no longer showing any signs of drunkenness. She took another sip of wine from her bowl, sat quietly gazing at the moonlight on the treetops, and said nothing more.
Fu Yusheng didn't expect an answer from her. "You came to me because you accepted my invitation to form an alliance?"
"Mmm," Fu Yunyao responded softly, her eyes flickering slightly.
He looked up as the branches swayed in the breeze, making soft rustling sounds and bringing with them a gentle sigh.
"He really is very good to me."
A note from the author:
----------------------
Our Yu Yu was kept hooked by Liao Liao, and he would agree to anything Liao Liao said.
Mini-theater:
Liao Liao: Fu Yusheng.
Yu Yu: You've mistaken me for someone else.
Liao Liao: I miss you.
Yu Yu: ...I am
(Yu Yu, who gets hooked in a second~)
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