leonardwarren Chapter 201 - What are you thinking about?
Chapter 201 - What are you thinking about?
Chapter 201: What are you thinking about?
Chu Xianning still held the water whip in her hand.
Jiang Huai continued to stand under the waterfall, not dodging or avoiding, looking like he was ready to accept his punishment. Chu Xianning raised the water whip again, as if each droplet was drenched in sunlight, the dazzling whip fell before Jiang Huai.
Jiang Huai closed his eyes in panic, but the anticipated pain did not come.
“Scared now?” Chu Xianning slightly lifted her chin.
“Scared,” Jiang Huai admitted his mistake obediently, with a lowered gaze.
Only then did Chu Xianning let go, and the water whip turned into a puddle on the ground. She turned her face away.
“Get dressed, we’re going back.”
With that, Chu Xianning turned and left.
Jiang Huai quickly changed his clothes and caught up with the slowly walking fairy-like master, arriving by her side, the faint scent of flowers reaching his nose. The intense summer light was fierce, and Jiang Huai opened an oil-paper umbrella, enveloping both himself and Chu Xianning underneath.
Holding the umbrella meant they had to be closer. Chu Xianning pursed her lips slightly, her voice tinged with a hint of reluctance.
“I’m not hot.”
“The sun is too glaring; it’s better to have some shade,” Jiang Huai replied with conviction.
Chu Xianning was always like this; if you gave her a reason, she seemed too lazy to argue further, perhaps also because she hated trouble?
Jiang Huai held the umbrella as they slowly strolled through the lush mountain paths. Passing disciples occasionally glanced their way, then became mesmerized by Chu Xianning’s beauty, staring for a long time.
The faint scent of flowers along the way put Jiang Huai in an excellent mood. Luckily, when he made the umbrella, he had envisioned this scene, so he made the umbrella not too large, which meant they had to stay close. Their bodies occasionally brushed against each other unintentionally, then quickly moved apart.
Chu Xianning became more and more awkward as they walked, eventually speeding up her pace in a huff, with Jiang Huai following her like a persistent dog until they returned to the courtyard.
Chu Xianning went to the pavilion, while Jiang Huai turned and left.
He was going to catch the spirit shrimps he was raising.
Jiang Huai grew up on Guangxue Mountain, which was vast, and the entire mountain belonged to him and Chu Xianning. Therefore, he had cultivated a large area of wasteland and ponds. Beneath the wasteland, warm spirit jade nourished the soil, and in the ponds, Jiang Huai had thrown several spirit jades. The small shrimps that grew in the ponds absorbed the essence of the spirit jade, becoming crystal clear and plump.
Jiang Huai picked some vegetables and caught a basket of shrimps. The vegetables were simply stir-fried, tender and green, ready to be served, while the spirit shrimps were blanched, only needing a couple of small dishes of soy sauce. Jiang Huai liked to add a little vinegar to the soy sauce to enhance the fragrance.
The shrimp and vegetables were brought to the pavilion, where Chu Xianning picked up her chopsticks and tasted a bit of the vegetables.
She had always been aware of Jiang Huai’s culinary skills, and to this day, she had not grown tired of them. Although she had been abstaining from grains for many years and her desires had long been curbed, once they were stirred, they seemed unstoppable, like a boulder rolling down a mountain. The vegetables were crisp, sweet, and perfectly fresh.
Meanwhile, Jiang Huai had already started peeling shrimp with his bare hands, placing the peeled shrimp meat gently onto the plate in front of Chu Xianning. She glanced at him sideways and said.
“I can peel them myself.”
Jiang Huai continued, after popping a peeled shrimp into his mouth.
“Doesn’t the master hate trouble?”
Chu Xianning picked up her chopsticks, lightly dipped a piece of shrimp in soy sauce, and brought the tender, crystal-clear shrimp to her moist, red lips. She gently bit into it, and the slight frown on her brow relaxed.
Outside the pavilion, the sun hung high, but inside it was cool and pleasant. When Jiang Huai had renovated the pavilion, he had placed a piece of cold marrow jade on the roof, which he activated in the summer to keep cool. He often lay on the long bench in the pavilion to sleep while Chu Xianning sat quietly on the other side, either reading or daydreaming.
Time seemed to slow down again, becoming distant and leisurely. Jiang Huai cooked sixteen shrimps in total, peeling them all by hand, eight for each of them. The white jade plate of vegetables was already empty, and Chu Xianning, with her delicate hand supporting her cheek, gazed towards the distant pond.
The lotus flowers in the pond were in full bloom, with several dragonflies perching on the lotus leaves. Having eaten his fill, Jiang Huai, with nothing else to do, set up his easel and began to paint the lotus and dragonflies before him. Chu Xianning sat quietly by his side, watching his brush move, the ink coming to life on the paper.
Both were silent, and the world seemed to grow quiet too, with only the sound of the wind rustling the leaves. Jiang Huai finished the painting, stamped his seal on it, and looked back at Chu Xianning.
“Isn’t the master going to take a nap?”
Usually, at this time, Chu Xianning would have gone back to her room to rest.
“About to sleep,” Chu Xianning replied, then stood up and walked towards Jiang Huai’s room, while Jiang Huai went out for a while; he was heading to Lingxue Lake.
...
Jiang Huai climbed the mountain for a good while before knocking on Lingxue True Person’s cave abode. The Lingxue True Person, dressed in a summer gown, opened the door and showed a hint of surprise upon seeing him.
“What brings you here?”
“I wanted to ask how Lingxue True Person’s re
“What wine are you trying to cheat me into drinking this time?”