Chapter 1669: I Have a Friend
Yan Xuehen had the ‘two-hour’ excuse that helped her relax considerably. She clearly also planned to devote everything to this two-hour romance, as only then would she be able to end their relationship without any regrets. Then, she could completely cut off those emotions.
After their embrace, their relationship clearly became a bit more natural. The two of them held hands as they walked together.
Perhaps it was because Yan Xuehen was embarra.s.sed, or maybe because she felt awkward, but in the end, she couldn"t hold herself back and asked, “Are you not going to investigate Hub of Freedom at all after knowing about their background?”
“What is there to investigate? It has nothing to do with me,” Zu An said, looking at her carefully. “Furthermore, even if there is a relationship, it’s nowhere as important as you. I don’t care about anything else during these two hours. Spending time with you is the most important thing.”
Yan Xuehen was a bit alarmed. Was this the so-called feeling of a romantic relationship? She felt both happy and bashful right now. At the same time, there were some mysterious feelings of alarm mixed in.
The two wandered around under the moonlight just like that. No one said anything, as if they both really treasured the brief period of peace and silence.
After walking together for a while longer, Yan Xuehen looked in Violet Mountain’s direction. In the end, she couldn"t help but say, “If we continue like this, we won’t reach Violet Mountain even by the time the sky becomes bright again.”
Zu An figured that what she said made sense. There could end up being all sorts of rumors if the two of them just happened to be missing during dawn. As such, he took out the Wind Fire Wheels. Then, he made an inviting gesture to Yan Xuehen.
Yan Xuehen reflexively shook her head and said, “I can fly on my own.”
“We’re lovers, so shouldn’t we be intimate and pa.s.sionate?” Zu An said with a chuckle.
Yan Xuehen’s cheeks heated up. “Didn’t we already agree that there wouldn’t be any of those kinds of things?”
The hug and hand holding were the most she could tolerate.
“We have less than two hours of time left,” Zu An said, his frivolous expression gone. Instead, his voice was full of a sense of loss and loneliness.
When she saw his expression, Yan Xuehen felt a mysterious pain within her. She thought, Right, there are only two hours left. Either way, it’s not as if it’s something ridiculous. I’ve ridden on the Wind Fire Wheels with him before. Upon having that thought, she no longer resisted. With a light kick off the ground, she arrived at his side.
Zu An took her into his arms and carried her firmly. They soared into the sky together on the Wind Fire Wheels. Yan Xuehen felt as if arcs of electricity were running through her entire body as she rested in his arms. There was a strong air of masculinity all around her. She felt gooseb.u.mps all over, and her breath quickened. Even though there were cold winds roaring past her ears, she could only feel his gentle and warm exhaling breath.
“What did you say just now?” Yan Xuehen suddenly asked, feeling a bit embarra.s.sed. Even though there were roaring winds around them, she was a glorious grandmaster! They were so close, and yet she actually couldn"t hear what he said… Her head was definitely a mess because of how she was being carried.
Zu An raised her arm and said, “I told you to do it like this.”
Yan Xuehen trembled under his touch. She quickly said, “Don’t… Don’t touch me. I’ll move by myself.”
However, when she spread her arms out, she was a bit confused. She asked, “What is the meaning of this? This will just increase the air resistance of our flight.”
“Just stay like that,” Zu An said as he gently held her soft, willowy waist, then rested his chin on her shoulder. The two of them remained close to each other just like that.
“What… What are you…” Yan Xuehen trailed off, her voice trembling a bit. Their cheeks were pressed against each other. They were so close to each other that they could hear each other’s breathing.
“This is a cla.s.sic pose from a love story from my hometown, between the male and female lead…” Zu An slowly replied, seemingly reminiscing about something.
“What love story?” Yan Xuehen asked, stunned. She was quite knowledgeable, but why had she never heard of such a thing before?
“A long time ago, there was a young man named Jack and a wealthy miss named Rose…” Zu An told the story the way he remembered it.
Yan Xuehen couldn"t help but frown as she listened. “Why do I feel strange? Doesn’t this Rose have a fiance who loves her dearly? Why would she do something to let down her fiance and her family?”
Zu An choked. He hadn’t expected her to focus on that detail. He hurriedly explained, “Uh… she was forced into an arranged marriage. She doesn’t actually love that fiance. She and Jack are true lovers, and this was the happiest time of her life. For the sake of love, she bravely broke the shackles of their engagement. Meanwhile, for her sake, Jack gave up his life…”
Yan Xuehen suddenly said, “Are you telling me this story because you’re implying that I should break the rules and be with you?”
Zu An was speechless. Isn’t there something wrong with the way this woman thinks? He replied, “Uh… That’s not what I meant. It’s just that we’re flying through the sky, so I instinctively felt like doing this cla.s.sic pose. At the same time, I wanted to share a story with you…”
Yan Xuehen grinned. It wasn’t that often that she got to see him looking hard-pressed. But does this kid really think I don’t know what he’s planning? She continued, “If Rose and Jack really loved each other, then after Jack died for her, she should have just remained alone for the rest of her life. Why did she still marry another man and give birth to so many children?”
Zu An scratched his head and said, “As for that… I guess we can just say that their culture is different. Sacrificing yourself for love wasn’t considered something worthy of advocating for…”
Yan Xuehen shook her head and said, “I just feel that your story is strange. There are many parts that don’t make sense.”
Zu An felt a bit dejected. It really was as Yun Jianyue said; Yan Xuehen really was a stone cold woman! She had actually focused on the plot holes in such a touching story of romance.
However, Yan Xuehen felt a bit conflicted too. In Zu An’s story, Jack and Rose had kissed each other after embracing each other like this. What was she going to do if he kissed her here?
Even though she wasn’t willing to admit it, she knew that she wasn’t resisting him as much as before. After all, the two had already experienced the most intimate things together. They had already kissed once before, so what was another…
Ahhh! Yan Xuehen, Yan Xuehen! What kind of nonsense are you thinking?!
The only thing I agreed to with him was these two hours. This can be considered an ending to our ill-fated relationship.
But apart from a kiss, I definitely won’t let him do anything else!
Especially those mischievous hands of his. If he dares to move them wantonly, I’ll definitely freeze them!
Let alone anything that goes even further…
That memory of Great Snowy Mountain couldn"t help but surface in her mind. Her skin turned a faint pink, and her entire body became a bit softer.
A while later, she pursed her lips. Why is this kid so obedient today? He’s not kissing me, and his arm is only gently hugging my waist. He’s not doing anything else?
A while later, she couldn"t help but bite her lip. They were almost at Violet Mountain, and yet he still hadn’t kissed her. There wasn’t going to be another chance.
However, as they arrived near Violet Mountain, Zu An only hugged her gently. He didn’t do anything else.
“This is the first time I’ve been unhappy with how fast the Wind Fire Wheels are,” Zu An said with a sigh. He let her go and continued, “Let’s just separate here. There are many grandmasters on the mountain and divine senses are sweeping around everywhere. Your reputation will be harmed if we are noticed by them.” He waved toward her and headed up the mountain with a forlorn expression.
Countless scenarios of Zu An pestering Yan Xuehen had run through her mind, including how she would deal with them one after another. She hadn’t expected him to just give up so easily. At that instant, she felt really out of sorts.
She had already prepared herself, thinking that she would devote herself completely to this two-hour romance. It was to the extent that as long as he didn’t cross that final line, she could have accepted anything. That was how she had wanted to end things so that she wouldn’t have any regret and could have a proper conclusion. Then, she could just forget about everything she felt about him. After that, she could face him and Chuyan as a proper senior. From then on, there would only be a Sect Master Yan, never again that ‘big sis Yan’.
However, things hadn’t gone according to her plans. This guy had suddenly become a proper gentleman, leaving her confused.
Her lips opened and closed several times, but after some hesitation, she didn’t say anything for a long time. How could she be the one to speak about such things first?
…
When she changed her clothes and returned to her courtyard, she saw that Chu Chuyan was waiting for her.
“Master, where did you go?” Chu Chuyan asked, sighing in relief when she saw Yan Xuehen return.
“I went out for a stroll.” Yan Xuehen said, feeling a bit annoyed. She couldn"t just say that she had gone on a two-hour date with Chuyan’s husband, right?
Chu Chuyan looked at her in surprise, saying, “Master seems to be annoyed by something. Maybe you can tell me about it and I’ll see if I can help you?”
“You’re overthinking things. I’m fine,” Yan Xuehen said. She naturally didn’t want to say too much.
Chu Chuyan didn’t back down, continuing, “Master, we’ve already lived together for so long. How could I not be able to tell that you have something on your mind? I know that you don’t want me to be distracted, but master is also important to me.”
Yan Xuehen knew that she couldn"t deceive her quick-witted disciple that easily. She shook her head, feeling a guilty conscience as she said, “You won’t be able to help me with this.”
Sigh, just how would she view her own husband if she found out the truth?
“That’s hard to say,” Chu Chuyan said, clinging to Yan Xuehen’s arm. “Master definitely knows far more than I do in terms of cultivation matters, but master might not have as much experience in secular affairs. I might be able to offer a different insight.”
For better or for worse, she had operated a great clan in Brightmoon City for so many years. She naturally knew more about the secular world than her aloof master.
Yan Xuehen was about to refuse, but she couldn"t withstand Chuyan’s eager gaze. She could only say, “Um… Actually, this is what happened. I have a friend, and they… unknowingly made a mistake. But if they spoke about this mistake, it would harm the ones closest to them. However, if they didn’t talk about it, it would make them feel really restless and uneasy.”
“If it’s the ones closest to them, they’d definitely forgive that person for that unintentional mistake,” Chu Chuyan replied. At the same time, she wondered who this friend her master was talking about was. Martial Uncle Chen? Martial Aunt Xiao?
Yan Xuehen shook her head and said, “This kind of mistake isn’t one that the closest person to them could forgive. If they found out, the two would no longer be the closest people to each other, and they could even become enemies.”
“So it was like that… Then that is a bit tricky,” Chu Chuyan said. She frowned and became silent.
Yan Xuehen smiled bitterly. It’s more than just tricky…
Chu Chuyan suddenly raised her head. “Master, that friend of yours… If they had a chance, would they make that mistake again?”
Yan Xuehen was completely stunned when she heard the question.