Chapter 13
Shifu Says We Must Get Along
The night is very cold. Feng Yi"s slightly heavy breathing is the only thing she can hear.
He is injured and has to sleep in a long couch, he naturally will feel uncomfortable. Hu Sha crouches on her bed-side, unable to sleep.
She is no longer innocent! Hu Sha tearfully and grievously laments over her predicament. Is spending the night with a man in the same room considered the same as tarnishing one"s virtue? Dear G.o.ds, her Second Senior Brother must never let this out! They must pretend nothing ever happened, or else, she will get scolded by her shifu and Eldest Senior Brother! Never mind the scolding, her father will definitely give her a good slap while her mother will howl in the ancestral hall a whole night. As for her peerlessly handsome husband, he will definitely abandon her!
The consequences will be really grave.
Hu Sha"s forehead is full of sweat. She gets up, suddenly has the impulse to secretly smuggle him out.
She secretly walks over to him. His face is glowing under the moonlight; he looks like a ball of light wrapped in a white gauze. Hu Sha cannot help but look at him longer; her heart that has harden earlier on has now turns soft.
His injuries are quite serious; the wound is around four inch long, just under his ribs. It seems to have been inflicted by something sharp. There is another wound on his left elbow, it is deep that she can see his bone. A few package of her ordinary Jin Cang Paste is of no help.
It will be too inhumane of her if she kicks out an injured person in the dead of the night. Hu Sha can only mumble to herself as she crouches down.
The sound of breathing suddenly stops, plunging the room into deep silence.
Hu Sha looks up in shock. Feng Yi"s face is blue, his face looks like it is carved out of jade, under the moonlight. He is cold and pale and is not breathing.
He has stopped breathing again!
Hu Sha"s heart shrinks. She slowly place her hand on his face; it feels cold, definitely not like someone who is alive.
Second Senior Brother…. is dead.
Hu Sha stiffens; her compa.s.sion earlier on suddenly turns into fear. She has a secret with a jiangshi?
(TN: Jiangshis are Chinese zombies.)
Is he really dead this time or is he faking it again? Will he suddenly comes back to life, just like before?
She pats Feng Yi"s cold cheeks, softly saying, "Second Senior Brother…. Second Senior Brother…. Are you still alive?"
There is no reply.
The pitiful Hu Sha wants to call for help, but is stopped by the thought of her ruined reputation. Her forehead is full of sweat. Under the complex situation, she coils herself on the floor and falls asleep.
Someone is scratching her face with their hair. It feels very itchy. Hu Sha sneezes and wakes up in a daze. The moment she opens her eyes, the first thing she sees is Feng Yi"s smiling eyes.
"….. Second Senior Brother….." She instinctively calls out.
"It is almost 3 am, I need to leave." Feng Yi pats her head before he stands up from the long couch. He doesn"t look like someone who has been injured at all.
Hu Sha gets up, finally remembering the fearful incident last night. "Second Senior Brother! Y-You are still alive?" She follows him and grasps his hand. It feels warm and soft.
Feng Yi laughs, "Silly child! Did you have a nightmare? Of course I am still alive!"
Hu Sha anxiously says, "But, you clearly was—-"
"Did anything happened last night?" Feng Yi looks surprised. "I don"t remember a single thing. Don"t tell me I spent the entire night in the same room as Junior Sister without wearing any clothes. No way, right?"
Hu Sha"s face turns green. In the end, she grits her teeth while nodding, "….. Right."
Feng Yi gives her a warm smile. This time, he does not pinch her cheeks or ruffle her hair. He caresses her face; his slight touch feels like a spring breeze.
"Hu Sha is really good."
The lights of the dawn outside the window are acc.u.mulating in his eyes.
———–
As usual, the Eldest Senior Brother comes at 3 am. He does not say anything, he simply waits for Hu Sha to finish running and doing the horse-squats before finally opening his mouth, "Although Feng Yi appears frivolous and dandy, he does not harbor ill-intention."
Hu Sha wipes her head while nodding; she naturally knows that her Second Senior Brother is not evil.
Feng Di glance at her, his expression gradually turning warm, "Work hard, Hu Sha. You will definitely surpa.s.s me and Feng Yi. You will become shifu"s most prized disciple."
Hu Sha slips on the ice.
Something is wrong with her two Senior Brothers today. One of them keeps asking her to keep a secret while the other keeps on looking at her as though she is something wonderful.
In the end, it is better to go to her reliable shifu.
Fang Zhun"s little room is in front of the apricot forest. When Hu Sha gets there, Fang Zhun is leaning against a bamboo pole while drinking tea. His clothes are a little loose and his hair is let loose as well; it seems like he has just woken up from sleep.
It is rare for her to see Fang Zhun staying quietly in Zhi Yan House. She originally thought that since he is sick, the other elders wouldn"t look for him for anything, but she was wrong. He is really busy. Being someone from an elder generation is really hard.
She walks over with light steps, "Shifu." Even her voice is soft. She has always been one to take care of a sick person, even if that sick person is a celestial.
Fang Zhun turns around with a wide smile before handing her the tea cup, "You come at the right time. Please help me add more hot water, thank you."
When Hu Sha returns while carrying a steaming cup of tea later, Fang Zhun is already half-lying on the ground, playing with the Xue Suan Ni.
From the look of it, the Xue Suan Ni seems to like her shifu the most. It has never been this coquettish in front of her Senior Brothers before. The Xue Suan Ni is hugging Fang Zhun"s arm with it"s two front paws while kissing and licking him. For those who didn"t know, they would think that it is trying to eat Fang Zhun.
Hu Sha carefully makes her way over. The Xue Suan Ni immediately reacts as she gets close; it gives her an unfriendly look. It is as though she is an obstruction to the Xue Suan Ni"s desire.
"Ah, Hu Sha. Come, come." Fang Zhun beckons her over. "Why don"t you get to know Xiao Guai a little better. We will go to Mount Tao Yuan in Feng Lin Prefecture in a few days. Xiao Guai will go with us. You can ride her."
(TN: Xiao Guai means the Little Obedient One. It can also mean Good Boy/Good Girl.)
What?? Both Hu Sha and the Xue Suan Ni are shocked.
"Shifu…. Can I not go?" Sweat covers Hu Sha"s forehead the moment she receives that murderous glare from the Xue Suan Ni.
Fang Zhun blinks, "It is alright if you don"t go, but Feng Yi will go. If he is gone, no one will be here to buy you food. You are a new disciple; if a disciple hasn"t trained for one year, they are not allowed to leave the mountain without their shifu or Senior Brothers. There is nothing you can eat here. We will be there for half a month."
Hu Sha smiles bitterly, "Then…. This disciple will definitely join you."
Fang Zhun smiles at her warmly, "Xiao Guai is just a little haughty. Once she knows you better, she will treats you better. Come and greet her."
He pulls Hu Sha"s hand and helps her pat the Xue Suan Ni"s back. She pats it once and twice. The frightened her can feel the Xue Suan Ni"s fur raising, "Shifu… it is better if I…."
"Don"t be afraid." He pats Xiao Guai"s head before giving Hu Sha a smile, "What are you standing there in a daze for? Hurry and get to know her."
Hu Sha gives him a smile that is even worse than tears. She forces herself to squeeze out some words, "Xiao Guai, you are so obedient. Haha…. I….. I am Hu Sha…… Y-You are so beautiful…."
The fur on that Xue Suan Ni"s back rises even more. Hu Sha retracts her hand in panic, but Fang Zhun forcibly press it down, "Xiao Guai loves praises. You praised her so she was pleased."
Hu Sha blankly watches the Xue Suan Ni who is turning her head to bare her teeth towards her. "En, she sure looks happy," she mumbles.
Fang Zhun place his teacup next to him while lovingly patting Xiao Guai"s ear, "She will start to speak in a few months, she is big now."
Hu Sha is surprised, "She can speak?"
"Of course, Xiao Guai is a spirit animal." Fang Zhun continues toying with it"s ear. Xiao Guai is really pleased, lying on it"s back while purring. "She can understand human language and will start to speak once she reaches 30. She is a rare and precious Xue Suan Ni, she is naturally very clever."
Xiao Guai is really happy at being praised. She swings her tail while rolling on the ground with a speed as fast as the lightning. Hu Sha can only see a white silhouette; at one moment, she is in the house, while the next, she is on the ground.
"Ah, right." Fang Zhun knocks his own head a couple of times, "I have not feed Xiao Guai, why don"t you go and feed her today, Hu Sha. To improve your relationship with her."
Hu Sha"s face collapses again. Her shifu is smiling so gently, she will feel like a villain if she refuses to do as he said.
Xue Suan Nis are spirit beasts, they don"t eat meat. They only eat a certain celestial gra.s.s called, "Gui Lian Lan". There are a lot of it around Zhi Yan House.
Hu Sha picks one up and tremblingly heads over to where Xiao Guai is at. Xiao Guai jumps up in front of her and gives her a look of disdain. Even though she knows that Hu Sha is holding her favorite "Gui Lian Lan", she refuses to bow down and let Hu Sha feed her.
"X-Xiao Guai, come and eat," Hu Sha gives her a strained smile, secretly praying that Xiao Guai will not bite her arm off.
Xiao Guai"s nose moves a little before she gives Hu Sha a sharp look. She looks over to where Fang Zhun is sitting with a victimized look only to find him looking at them while laughing happily.
Realizing that her owner isn"t going to do anything about it, Xiao Guai is left with no other choice. She can only lower her head and eat the "Gui Lian Lan" slowly.
Hu Sha lets out an "ah". She looks really pleased as she presents more "Gui Lian Lan", "Eat some more!"
Xiao Guai eats three mouthfuls. She cannot endure it anymore and turns to look at Fang Zhun again only to find him gone. Where has he gone to? He has always been mysterious. Once he goes missing, he will not return until 2 or 3 days later.
Xiao Guai"s little pink female heart immediately breaks. All of her fury is directed on Hu Sha. She turns around and gives Hu Sha"s sleeve a good bite.