Chapter 9: The Date?

It was a new dawn for the River Scale Kingdom's Capital City. Its citizens were awake and doing their daily tasks just as always.

In the public library located at the center of the city, River Scale Library, a young girl with black hair, sitting on her lonesome at a rectangular table fit for 4 people, was flipping through the pages of a book when she heard a familiar voice calling her name from behind.

"Hey Zhu Zhuqing, I brought you tea and some snacks." Feng Qin said with a smile. He wore a simple white shirt with a black jacket over it, black trousers and black shoes, and he untied his long shoulder-length silky black hair. He carried a small tray with an assortment of a dozen or so snacks and two slightly steaming hot tea in white porcelain cups.

Zhu Zhuqing, wearing the same clothes that she had yesterday, blinked her eyes and nodded her head, "...Thank you, but why?"

Feng Qin shrugged as he laid down the snacks and cups of tea, with the snacks at the center between him and Zhu Zhuqing with the cups of tea put in front of him and her. "I was the one who invited you to hang out with me, the least I could do is treat you with some snacks and tea."

Zhu Zhuqing hummed, nodded once more, closing her book in one hand she looked at her cup of tea for a moment before taking it with her other hand and took a sip.

"...It's good." She muttered, surprised.

Feng Qin smirked, "I work in a restaurant that my parents owned and managed, remember? Even when I'm their son, I can't work there unless I pass the job requirements every employee has passed."

"And making tea is one of the requirements?" Zhu Zhuqing raised an eyebrow.

"Dad forced me to learn tea making because it's a long tradition of the Feng family, even though he doesn't like tea, and I just continued it because it's kinda fun. Plus, you'd be amazed how much people would order tea everyday in the morning. And booze in the evenings as well." Feng Qin chuckled as he recalled the face his father made when he saw the number of people in the restaurant ordering tea every single morning.

He'd seen, for the first time in his life, his dad looking so pissed that he looked like he'd kill someone because one of the customers had kept on ordering tea for the entire day.

And what's more ironic is that Feng Long had only taught his son how to make tea because he'd thought his son would share the exact same feeling he has and he would be 'forced' to finally end the long tea-making tradition of their family at Feng Qin's generation.

The thought about his father made him recall last night's situation, making him frown.

'The future...' He let out a sigh. He'd think about it after his outing with Zhu Zhuqing.

As Feng Qin pulled a book from the neatly pilled stack of books on the table, he couldn't help but take a glance at the book in Zhu Zhuqing's hand, he raised an eyebrow.

"Art of War by Sun Tzu? Huh, you planning on joining the military as a strategist or something?"

Zhu Zhuqing hummed, after taking a bite of a cookie, she responded, "No, not really. I'm just fascinated with his philosophy of fighting using the mind; with strategies and psychological warfare, and not just rely on big swole muscles and awesome weapons almost every idiot I'd come across would."

She shrugged, "Plus, you never know when you need to talk your way out of a tricky situation."

"Facts. I'd prefer using my wit than my fists in fights, as ironic as that sounds." Feng Qin chuckled.

"Oh? You fight?" Zhu Zhuqing tilted her head and raised an eyebrow.

Feng Qin smiled, a hint of hesitation flickered in his eyes, and said. "Well, I might not look like one, but I'm a spirit master."

Zhu Zhuqing widened her eyes, surprised.

"Y-You're a spirit master?!" She said out loud, she winced as several other people in the library turned to glare at her and all of them simultaneously, and ironically, loudly shushed at her.

Mouthing out an apology to the angry readers, Zhu Zhuqing turned back towards the mused Feng Qin with narrowed eyes and said, with a low tone of voice, "You're a spirit master?"

"Yup." Feng Qin nodded.

"Really?"

Feng Qin quirked an eye and summoned his martial spirit. There was a slight orange glow permeating around his white shirt, hidden beneath was the orange oval gem embedded in the middle of his chest, and it soon followed by a yellow spirit ring around his waist that signified his current rank and power.

His spirit, called the simple Orange Gem, looked the same as ever and its size didn't change as well. Besides that day, five years ago, his spirit remained the same. Even when he got a spirit ring, it didn't make any changes to it except for enhancing his physique, defense, strength, perception, etc.

"See? I told you I'm a spirit master." Feng Qin said to Zhu Zhuqing after he unsummoned his spirit. "Is that really so hard to believe?"

Zhu Zhuqing shook her head and responded, "No, but I've only known you for like a couple hours or so and what I've seen so far is that you're a real friendly guy that doesn't bluntly flirt or get clingy with me, unlike most guys I've known in my life, and a waiter of your family's restaurant."

"You honestly struck me as an honest and straightforward normal boy." She said, a small smile on her lips.

Feng Qin was struck speechless as he slightly blushed at what he heard and even more at Zhu Zhuqing's smile.

He turned to look away, grabbed a cookie and took a bite, grumbling and said. "Why are you smiling?"

"Hm? What are you talking about?"

"You know what I'm–" Feng Qin paused and he turned back to face Zhu Zhuqing, tilting her head, looking at him with her emotionless expression.

"Really?"

"I honestly don't know what you're talking about. I don't smile."

"..." Feng Qin incredulously stared at her but Zhu Zhuqing merely ignored him and took another sip of her tea.

A few minutes passed and unexpectedly, Zhu Zhuqing was the first to strike a conversation again.

"Hey, Feng Qin."

"Yeah?" Feng Qin absentmindedly replied as he munched on another cookie while he read a book about a legend of an ancient spirit master's spirit that lets its host reincarnate into a different body every hundred years or so.

'Oh wow. So this guy or girl can only reincarnate in the body of someone with one of the four elements associated with: air, water, earth, and fire? And later in their lifetime they can also use and master all these four elements? This is really an interesting story...'

"Why did you really take me here?" Zhu Zhuqing suddenly said, her eyes sharp.

She had been born and trained in an environment where only the strong survive, the law of the jungle was strong in that place. Where blood, familiarity, sentiments and compassion was scarce and you would get killed off in your sleep by even your own sibling.

This was the price of her family, her Zhu clan, received when they stood besides the true ruling family in the empire and tied their fate together with them forever.

But, as a saying goes, a great tiger doesn't easily share its land with others. Especially for a king.

Zhu Zhuqing was suspicious of Feng Qin, from the time he asked her out even though she bluntly told him she has a fiancee, probably, and still continued on asking her out. No normal person was that persistent, especially towards a stranger they first met.

Her suspicion was further enhanced when he revealed himself to be a spirit master.

'I didn't want to suspect you, or anyone for that manner. But I just, can't take the risk. I don't want them to find me, not before I get to meet him again.' Zhu Zhuqing's lips trembled for a moment. She wanted to confirmed it.

She didn't look or say it, but she wanted a friend as well. And as much as it shames her, Feng Qin is probably the first real friend she ever made outside of that 'place'.

Feng Qin was confused, saying. "Um, to hang out and be friends? Didn't I already establish that when I asked you?"

"I just...wanted to be certain." Zhu Zhuqing stared straight at his eyes, trying to find any ill-intent but all she could see in his eyes was worry, kindness and... affection.

Zhu Zhuqing was trained to differentiate the emotions of people in their eyes so she could easily spot any lies and deceit of people. It was the only lesson she ever loved to learn, for it was the only time her mother had spent any time with her and it was how she could understand the affection in Feng Qin's eyes.

"You look so pretty..." Zhu Zhuqing blinked her eyes.

Feng Qin blinked his eyes, face slightly white and sweat dropping from his face.

Zhu Zhuqing blinked for a couple more seconds before she leaned back on her chair, face expressionless, grabbed her book on the table and started reading it again whilst hiding her face from view–in truth however, she was hiding the permeating blush covering her face.

"..."

"..."

There was only awkward silence.

....

AN: Not my best chapter. But if you like it, gimme that power stone; comment on what you think; and become a patron to read ahead!

Link: pa–treon.com/FroztDouluo