31 Chapter 31: This Venerable One’s Uncle

In order to show his shizun his sincerity, the young master of Sisheng Peak asked for three whole servings of charred tofu and promised to eat every piece without wasting a single one.

Chu Wanning was most pleased, a seldom-seen approval in his eyes.

Upon seeing this, Mo Ran was most displeased. Emperor Taxian-Jun had an inexpressible fixation on Chu Wanning's acknowledgment. He immediately asked for three servings of tofu as well.

Chu Wanning glanced at him. "Can you eat it all?"

Mo Ran absolutely had to one-up Xue Meng. "Three servings is nothing. Even three more on top of that would be no problem."

"All right," Chu Wanning said mildly. He gave Mo Ran six servings of tofu. "You too: waste not."

Mo Ran stared at his six servings of tofu in silence.

Since the other two had done it, Shi Mei naturally followed suit with a smile. "Then, Shizun, I'll have three servings as well."

And so, on the first day of the Yuheng Elder's period of confinement, all three of his disciples got the runs from food poisoning. On the second day, the Jielü Elder sought out Chu Wanning and tactfully conveyed that Mengpo Hall had no need for extra assistance, and to please go sweep the fallen leaves and polish the pillars of Naihe Bridge instead.

Naihe Bridge connected the main areas of Sisheng Peak with the disciples' living quarters. A majestic structure, it was wide enough for five horse carriages to pass over side by side. Nine beasts of white jade representing the nine sons of the dragon stood atop its main pillars, and its three hundred and sixty low pillars were decorated with lion heads.

Chu Wanning quietly swept the ground, then set about diligently wiping down the jade beasts. The task took most of the day. As the sky started to grow dark, it began to rain.

Most of the disciples returning from their classes didn't have umbrellas. They squawked as they scampered toward their quarters, splashing through the puddles on the ground. Drops of rain pitter-pattered on the stone steps. Chu Wanning glanced at the disciples in the distance; the young people were drenched through and through, but the smiles on their faces were bright and carefree.

Chu Wanning knew that those smiles would vanish the moment they saw him. Thus, after thinking it over for a moment, he moved to stand beneath the bridge.

The disciples who ran ahead and arrived at the bridge first couldn't help uttering an, "eh?" as they took in the sight before them.

"A barrier?"

"Why is there a barrier over Naihe Bridge?"

"It was probably set up by the Xuanji Elder," one of the disciples guessed. "The Xuanji Elder is always so nice to us."

The translucent golden barrier covered Naihe Bridge and extended in full resplendence all the way to the main walkway of the disciples' quarters, thereby sheltering them from the rain the rest of the way.

"This is definitely the Xuanji Elder's work. He's in charge of this part of the peak, right?"

"The Xuanji Elder is the best."

"What a pretty barrier. The Xuanji Elder is incredible."

The disciples shook the water out of their dripping hair as they shoved playfully at one another. They laughed as they ducked under the barrier and continued toward their quarters, chattering the whole way.

Chu Wanning stood under the bridge, listening to the commotion above pass by. At length, the disciples were all gone and the bridge became quiet once more. Only then did he slowly take down the barrier and unhurriedly emerge.

"Shizun."

Chu Wanning was surprised to hear someone calling for him. He looked up abruptly, but there was no one on the shore.

"I'm over here."

When he followed the voice, he saw Mo Ran sitting sideways on the white jade bridge. He wore the customary silver-blue light armor of the sect, and his leg draped lazily over the edge.

The youth had striking features, his eyelashes long and thick like a little pair of fans hanging over his eyes. He held an oil-paper umbrella and as he gazed at Chu Wanning, he almost seemed to be smiling—yet also not.

One on the bridge, where leaves rustled in the wind; one under the bridge, where rain splashed in the river. For a moment, neither spoke. Both simply looked at the other.

The misty rain blurred the line between heaven and earth, nigh poignant. Now and again, fallen bamboo leaves drifted between the pair, carried by the wind and rain

Finally, Mo Ran laughed. "Xuanji Elder, you're getting drenched," he said teasingly.

At nearly the same time, Chu Wanning spoke, voice chilly, "How did you know it was me?"

Mo Ran pressed his lips together, dimples deep and eyes curved in a smile. "A barrier that big is beyond the Xuanji Elder, right? Who else could it be but Shizun?"

Chu Wanning was silent.

Mo Ran knew that Chu Wanning couldn't be bothered to put up a barrier for himself, but an idea popped into his head. He tossed the umbrella over. "I'll give this to you—catch."

The bright-red paper umbrella drifted slowly down, and Chu Wanning caught it. The glossy, jade-green bamboo handle still held a trace of warmth, and the droplets of rain that slid along its canopy sparkled as they fell. Chu Wanning looked up at him. "Then what about you?"

Mo Ran grinned deviously. "Won't I get back perfectly fine if Shizun just uses a little spell?"

Chu Wanning hmphed, but nevertheless, his hand waved lightly in his sleeve. Instantly, a translucent golden barrier spread out above Mo Ran.

Mo Ran looked up and laughed. "Ha ha, how pretty. It's even got peony patterns. Thanks."

Chu Wanning shot him a look. "Those are haitang flowers. Only five petals."

Then he left, white robes under a scarlet umbrella, leaving Mo Ran in the rain to count the flower petals by himself.

"One, two, three, four, five… Ah, it really does only have five petals…"

By the time he looked back up, Chu Wanning had walked a fair distance away. As Mo Ran stood under the barrier, his eyes narrowed, and the childlike grin on his face slowly faded away. A complicated expression replaced it.

All of a sudden, he didn't understand what he was thinking. If only his feelings toward people could always be either simple fondness or simple loathing.

The rain didn't stop for four days. When the clouds finally parted, an entourage of horses and carriages arrived, bells jingling. They splashed through the rain puddles, breaking apart the skies and clouds reflected on the ground as they stopped in front of Sisheng Peak's main gate.

The bamboo screen lifted, and a folding fan with a red tassel peeked out from inside. It was immediately followed by a pair of silver-trimmed blue battle boots, which stepped out onto the ground with a heavy thump, sending dust flying.

Out came a burly man with thick eyebrows, large eyes, and a full, well-kept beard. At about forty years of age, he wore a full set of silver-blue light armor. Although he looked gruff, those large hands waved a dainty, scholarly fan, making for quite the strange sight.

The fan opened with a pop. The writing on the side facing others said: "Xue is Beautiful." But the writing on the side facing himself said: "Others are Ugly."

This fan was known throughout the jianghu, both for the martial prowess of its owner and the extreme awkwardness of the writing upon it. One side boasted about the owner while the opposite side mocked the rest of the world. A light wave of the fan, and everyone within a hundred miles would smell the owner's narcissism. Truly, this was a fan that every single person in the cultivation realm had heard of.

And who was the owner? None other than the master of Sisheng Peak, the one who had been away for more than two months, Xue Meng's father and Mo Ran's uncle: Sir Xue, Xue Zhengyong.

The saying went that dragons bore dragons, phoenixes bore phoenixes, and a mouse's son dug holes. It was just as true in reverse: the old man of a peacock son was just as prone to showing off his tail feathers. While Xue Meng's delicate looks were the complete opposite of his brawny old man's, their bones were made of the same stuff. Both felt that "Xue is beautiful; others are ugly."

Xue Zhengyong stretched, shook out his limbs, cracked his neck, and grinned. "Aiyo, finally home. My ass is numb after all that sitting."

Inside Loyalty Hall, Madam Wang was busy blending medicine. Mo Ran and Xue Meng sat on either side of her.

"Four taels of staunching herbs and a shouyang ginseng, please," she said softly.

"Here you go, Mom. Already weighed." Xue Meng handed over the herbs from where he sat cross-legged next to her.

Madam Wang held the staunching herbs up for a sniff. "These are no good. Being stored with patchouli for too long has tainted them—if we use these, the decoction won't be as effective. Please go fetch some fresh ones."

"All righty." Xue Meng got up to go dig through the medicine cabinet in the storage room.

"Three mace of wulingzhi, and one mace of dodder," Madam Wang continued.

Mo Ran deftly handed her the materials. "Aunt, how long will it take to boil the medicine?"

"No need to boil this one; it can just be brewed," Madam Wang replied. "When I'm done grinding the medicine, would A-Ran mind bringing it to the Yuheng Elder?"

At first, Mo Ran didn't want to, but then he shot a glance in Xue Meng's direction. He knew that if he didn't do it, Xue Meng would. For some reason, he simply disliked the idea of Xue Meng spending time alone with Chu Wanning, so he said, "Sure." A pause, then he asked, "Oh yeah, Aunt, is this medicine bitter?"

"Somewhat. Why do you ask?"

Mo Ran grinned. "No reason." But he grabbed a handful of candy from the fruit bowl and stuffed it into his sleeve.

Everyone inside the hall was hard at work making medicine when a burst of bold, unrestrained laughter came from the door.

Xue Zhengyong strode into the hall, grinning radiantly as he cried out, "Wifey, I'm back! Ha ha ha ha ha!"

Despite his status as the sect leader, he had arrived completely unannounced. Madam Wang was so startled that she nearly spilled all the powdered medicine in her spoon. Her pretty eyes widened. "Husband?"

Mo Ran also stood up in greeting. "Uncle."

"Ah, Ran-er, you here too?" Xue Zhengyong's appearance was powerful and imposing, but his manner of speech was kindly. He smacked Mo Ran's shoulder with vigor. "My boy, I haven't been gone that long—did you get taller again? How'd it go in Butterfly Town?"

Mo Ran grinned. "It went all right."

"Good. Good, good, good! I knew nothing could go wrong with Chu Wanning there, ha ha ha ha! Oh yeah, where is he, by the way? Cooped up by himself, fiddling with those playthings again?"

At this, Mo Ran grew a little uneasy. "Uh, Shizun, he…"

His uncle had a fiery temperament and was prone to acting impulsively. His death in their previous lifetime had mostly been the fault of this very personality. For obvious reasons, Mo Ran didn't want to directly tell him that Chu Wanning had taken two hundred strikes, then on top of that, gotten himself confined for three months. He was just pondering how to break the news when an, "ah" came from behind him.

Xue Meng had returned, holding a pile of staunching herbs in his arms. On seeing his father, he shouted, ecstatic. "Dad!"

"Meng-er!"

Mo Ran secretly let out a sigh of relief. Any time this father and son met, a bout of mutual flattery was bound to ensue. That would give him plenty of time to think of a way to tactfully break the news about Chu Wanning's punishment.

Sure enough, the peacock father and peacock son spread their tail feathers and busied themselves pelting each other with compliments.

"My son has grown even more handsome in these last two months! You're looking more and more like your daddy!"

Xue Meng took entirely after his mother and looked nothing like his father, but he took his father's word for it. "And Dad, you got even buffer!"

Xue Zhengyong waved a large hand, grinning. "The whole time I was at Kunlun Taxue Palace, I kept thinking about how none of the youngsters there can even hold a candle to my son and nephew! Aiyo, I got so tired of looking at that gaggle of foppish boys. Meng-er, do you remember Mei Hanxue?""

Xue Meng instantly assumed an expression of contempt. "The chubby one who's been training in seclusion for like a dozen years? I heard he's the eldest disciple of Taxue Palace. Did he finally come out of seclusion?"

"Ha ha ha, what a good memory. That's him. The kid stayed with us for a while, way back when. You guys even shared a bed."

"Fat as a dog and kicked in his sleep—how could I forget him? I got thrown off the bed constantly. You saw him, Dad?"

"I saw him, I saw him." Xue Zhengyong rubbed his beard contemplatively, lost in thought.

"And?" pushed Xue Meng, the darling of the heavens, who was competitive to a fault.

Xue Zhengyong laughed. "Of course you're better. Even though he's a boy, for who knows what reason, his master taught him stuff like dancing and playing instruments. He even sends flower petals flying everywhere when he uses his qinggong! Your dad almost died laughing, ha ha ha ha!"

Xue Meng wrinkled his nose as if grossed out. A little porky with baby fat, playing instruments and dancing while petals fluttered about… "Then how's his cultivation?"

Mei Hanxue had trained in seclusion for more than ten years, after all. He'd only just emerged a few months ago and hadn't yet revealed his capabilities to the jianghu. Since he had already won in the category of looks, Xue Meng wanted to see how he fared in terms of cultivation.

This time, Xue Zhengyong didn't answer straight away. He thought for a while, then said, "I didn't get to see much of his skills. No matter. Meng-er will surely get to cross swords with him at the Spiritual Mountain Tournament."

Xue Meng's eyebrow twitched. "Hmph. Who knows if that stupid fatty will even get to challenge me?"

Madam Wang finished blending the medicine and got up. She patted Xue Meng's head with a smile. "Meng-er must not be so arrogant. Remember to be modest and respectful."

"What's the point in being modest?" asked Xue Meng. "That's for weaklings. I'd rather be forthright like my dad."

Xue Zhengyong chortled. "See? This tiger has no cub for a son."

"This is all your doing. You taught him all your bad habits and none of the good," Madam Wang said, displeased. "What is this nonsense?"

The irritation on her face made Xue Zhengyong realize that she really was a bit irked. He checked his grin and scratched his head. "Wifey, I was wrong. We'll listen to whatever you say. Don't be mad!"

Mo Ran and Xue Meng watched on in long-suffering silence.

Madam Wang had been a disciple of Guyueye in her early years, and rumor had it that Xue Zhengyong had stolen her away. There was no saying whether that rumor was true, but Mo Ran did know that his uncle was profoundly in love with his wife, so much so that his iron bones were but soft threads for her to wrap around her fingers. Madam Wang, on the other hand, didn't feel quite the same passion for her husband. Though she was gentle by nature, she often got mad at him over little things.

The years had gone on in this rocky way. Anyone with eyes could see who in this couple felt more deeply for the other.

Xue Meng naturally wasn't going to hang around to watch his own parents flirt with each other. A little grossed out, he clicked his tongue and turned to leave in a huff.

"Meng-er?" Madam Wang hurriedly called, rather embarrassed.

Xue Meng waved his hand and strode briskly away.

Mo Ran also had no intentions of interrupting the couple's reunion and used this excuse to conveniently dodge his uncle's questions. The topic of Chu Wanning's punishment would be better brought up by Madam Wang, after all. He sure didn't want to be the one to deal with it. After collecting the medicine on the table, he made his escape with a smile on his face, even closing the door for them.

Medicine in hand, he strolled leisurely over to the Red Lotus Pavilion.

Chu Wanning's body was weak these days due to his injury, so he'd taken down the barriers that usually surrounded the pavilion. Thus, he had no way of knowing if someone intruded. And so it was under these circumstances that Mo Ran beheld this scene:

Chu Wanning, bathing in the lotus pond.

It would've been one thing if he had been bathing by himself, but in that lotus pond—which was reserved for the sole use of the virtuous and incorruptible Yuheng Elder—were the silhouettes of two other people…