CH 102

Although Ren Shuhan was only two months older than Jiang Qingyue based on their birthdates, in both body and mind, he seemed like a teenager more than two years older than Jiang Qingyue.

Being overly precocious wasn’t a good thing, as Jian Ci had once told him. Being too clever was akin to being a demon, so it was best not to let others discover his special qualities.

On this point, Ren Shuhan had always done well, so today was the first time he felt the burden of being precocious.

“Why?” Jiang Qingyue blurted out, shocked and hurt. “Where are you going to live? There aren’t any spare rooms!”

Ren Shuhan only glanced back, afraid he couldn’t bear it, so he turned around to put on his clothes, saying, “Let’s add another bed here.”

Jiang Qingyue was on the verge of tears.

He got out of bed and ran a few steps to Ren Shuhan’s back, hugged him from behind, and shook his head against his back, “No, no!”

Ren Shuhan helplessly turned around, lifted him up, tossed him back into bed, tucked him in, warmed his feet, put on his socks again, and said helplessly, “I shouldn’t have let you have a carpet. Let’s see if you still dare to run around.”

He didn’t look Jiang Qingyue in the eye while speaking, only meeting his gaze after putting on his socks. He found Jiang Qingyue had shed two tears.

“Qingqing,” Ren Shuhan panicked, quickly embracing him. “Listen to me, it’s, it’s not that I don’t want to sleep with you. There are some things that, that you’ll understand when you grow up, okay?”

Jiang Qingyue already had something on his mind, and thinking about how when he grew old, Ren Shuhan would still be young, they would inevitably have to part ways, he couldn’t speak and felt very uncomfortable. Now he finally found an excuse and cried for a long time without stopping.

“… What to do,” Ren Shuhan was helpless, stroking his soft long hair, looking at the ceiling, murmuring, “It’s my fault for liking you too much, I can’t control it.”

After a while of silence, Jiang Qingyue, with his wet eyes, blinked at him and asked softly, “What do you mean?”

Ren Shuhan was tongue-tied, stuttering, “If two people like each other, the kind of liking that leads to marriage, they can’t sleep together before getting married. Think about it, have you ever seen a married couple living together before they got married? That’s not proper.”

“Um…” Jiang Qingyue understood a bit and nodded obediently. “Then stay here, don’t move out.”

“Not moving out,” Ren Shuhan wiped the tears from his face, “Didn’t I say I’ll add another bed over there?”

“Over here,” Jiang Qingyue pulled his sleeve and pointed to a nearby spot.

“… Alright.”

“Since we’re so close, why bother adding another bed? Just sleep with me.” Jiang Qingyue said again, clinging to his arm.

“Don’t be naughty,” Ren Shuhan chuckled, pushing him back into bed and letting him sleep a little longer.

After coaxing the child to sleep, he wiped the sweat from his brow.

Over the years, Ren Shuhan had always regarded Jiang Qingyue as his most precious family member. Although they kissed and hugged, both were too young to have any other thoughts. Now that they were becoming aware, he couldn’t take advantage of Qingyue.

Giving him a sense of security was probably the most important thing in Ren Shuhan’s heart.

“Sigh…”

Sitting on the edge of the bed, he stroked Jiang Qingyue’s fair cheeks, his sleeping face innocent and adorable.

“So silly, how can I leave you alone at home?”

Personality is something that’s probably hard to change once it’s set, so Ren Shuhan decided to focus on cultivating Wen Xin instead.

“Qingyue’s martial arts aptitude is not as good as yours, and he doesn’t have spiritual roots, but you’re different,” Ren Shuhan emphasized repeatedly before leaving, “So you need to hone your character, be decisive when faced with challenges, don’t get bogged down by trivial matters, and be ruthless when necessary.”

He taught Wen Xin differently from the Taoist masters at Jade Mountain. While both aimed to make the other useful, the latter didn’t have much to teach him, so they flattered him, while he was strict with Wen Xin, using strength to suppress her and promising her a bright future.

“Based on your aptitude in the mortal realm, you’ll probably reach the late Foundation Establishment stage at most,” Ren Shuhan objectively analyzed for her, “But in the Immortal Realm, the hope of reaching the Core Formation stage greatly increases. However, since you don’t have crystal roots, it’s impossible to cross the sea. We’ll think of a solution when I come back.”

Wen Xin was very obedient, understanding his meaning.

“I will protect Young Master well. As long as I’m here, no one can harm him.”

Ren Shuhan had reasons to worry like this.

But in just two years, Jiang Qingyue had grown to sixteen, with rosy lips and white teeth, eyebrows like paintings, even more delicate and beautiful than a blooming lotus. When he smiled, even the moonlight lost its color, sometimes Ren Shuhan even dared not to look at him too much.

But unfortunately, it was at this time that Ren Shuhan had to leave.

His sword speed was exceptionally fast. He promised Jiang Qingyue that whether he reached the immortal realm, found his master or made any breakthroughs in his cultivation, he would return within a year.

Jiang Qingyue broke off a willow branch at the door of his home, pinned it to his clothes, and nodded.

“Come back soon.”

He said with his head lowered, his slender neck hanging down, his fair skin, and his eyes looking with melancholy at the ground. Ren Shuhan pinched his chin, turned his face, and stole a kiss on his lips.

“Wait for me.”

Ren Shuhan turned around, mounted his horse, and left.

Just around the corner from where he left, Jian Ci returned from his four-year journey, leading his horse to the main gate of the Jiang Mansion.

“I’m looking for Ren Shuhan who lives in your house,” he said coldly to the servant at the door.

“What do you mean by living here?” The servant replied unhappily, “Master Ren has grown up in our mansion since he was a child, he’s one of us! Many people want to see him every day, do you think you can just see him whenever you want?”

“I am his master,” Jian Ci’s face darkened, “Hurry up and let him come out to see me.”

The servant hesitated for a moment, seeing that he indeed looked like a cultivator, he went in to find someone. The first person he found was Ah Lu in Ren Shuhan’s yard.

Ah Lu didn’t dare to make decisions on his own, so he asked Jiang Qingyue. So, Wen Xin stayed close to Jiang Qingyue, followed behind him, and came to see Jian Ci together. They were all surprised—

Jian Ci was too young!

He looked like he was only twenty-seven or twenty-eight, but when he picked up Ren Shuhan, he was already thirty. After more than ten years, according to Ren Shuhan’s description, he should be in his forties, holding a fan, with a goatee, sharp-eyed, and speaking with an official tone. How could he be this youthful?

“I don’t think so.” Jiang Qingyue shook his head.

“You heard it too,” the servant told him, “These are the three people closest to Master Ren recently, and they all think you are not him. You better leave today.”

Jian Ci looked displeased. “Oh? Four years ago, your Jiang Mansion received me and said I could visit my unruly disciple once a month. Now you don’t recognize me?”

“I’ve never heard of it,” Jiang Qingyue said.

“It seems like there was such a thing,” the servant pondered, “But who remembers what happened four years ago? The servants back then all went elsewhere, and the master wasn’t in the mansion either. You’d better come back another day!”

Jian Ci had already expected this outcome and left with a sweep of his sleeves.

Anyway, the Sword Trial Competition hosted by the Jade Mountain was coming up next. He would win first place then and come back to slap these people’s faces!

Jian Ci gave Jiang Qingyue a cold look before leaving, full of disdain.

Jiang Qingyue returned quickly and didn’t notice, but Wen Xin did. She frowned and glared back, surprising Jian Ci.

“What’s with that look?” Jian Ci turned back, narrowed his eyes, and looked at Wen Xin, asking in a low voice, “Do you have a problem with me?”

Wen Xin sneered, turned around, and followed Jiang Qingyue away.

“Hmm?” Jiang Qingyue wanted to ask what was going on, but Wen Xin pushed his shoulder and made him go back.

“It’s nothing,” Wen Xin said expressionlessly, with a flat tone, “Just heard a stray dog barking.”

Jiang Qingyue: “?”

Ah Lu, who was watching the scene beside them: Wow!!

Jian Ci stood still, his face flushed red. He clenched the hilt of his sword, but ultimately let go.

He endured it…

This was impossible.

Since when had he endured such grievances? Letting you off now is for a better chance to slap your face in the future! After leaving the Jiang Mansion’s gate, Jian Ci opened his system’s panel and prepared to rewrite the original story.

He remembered the Sword Trial Competition. Ren Shuhan didn’t go, but Wen Xin did, and she performed well, ranking among the top in the younger generation, being one of the rare talents in the mortal world. After all, she had always been Ren Shuhan’s most trusted subordinate, so Jian Ci decided to change the opponent of her last match to himself.

Originally, he didn’t want to deal with you, why don’t you just be a supporting role honestly?

Jian Ci turned back, looked coldly at the gate of the Jiang Mansion.

Inside the gate, Wen Xin suddenly closed her eyes.

On the other hand, as soon as Ren Shuhan left the mansion, he suddenly heard a strange voice:

“System prompt: Jian Ci will soon appear, countdown three days. Detected that the host’s body has no firewall, which poses a high risk. It is recommended to activate the special shielding function for the protagonist.”

Ren Shuhan: “…”

Ren Shuhan: “?????”

Where did this come from?

He hadn’t even looked around when the system poured a series of system-related knowledge into him, inexplicably defaulting the existence of this thing.

“Detected high risk, preemptively activate the Wen Xin Assistant mode for the host, any needs can be directly raised, wishing the host a pleasant experience!”

Ren Shuhan stood still on the horse for the time of a stick of incense1Should be around 30-40 minutes, and then helplessly got off the horse and returned to the courtyard, but didn’t find anyone. Maybe all three of them had gone out to buy things.

Forget it, he thought, I’m going to the immortal realm this time, it’s dangerous. It’s better to try this system first and then tell Qingyue when I come back, otherwise, I’ll worry him for no reason.

He had originally wanted to come back to get a piece of clothing that he left in the house, but now he didn’t go back to search for it. Instead, he walked out directly, asking the system as he walked, “Can you bring me back the clothes?”

The system instantly transported it to him.

It’s actually true… impressive!

Ren Shuhan was in a good mood, spurred his horse, and quickly left the city of lights.

In the original story, he should have accidentally returned home, heard news about Jian Ci, and stayed behind, and also gone to watch the Sword Trial Competition. But at this moment, the first major plot point was changed, and he went directly to the immortal realm.

And now it’s time for the system to come back too!

Thank you for reading