73. Wooing The Master?
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Meanwhile, Luoyin's eyes flew open, and he jerked to a sitting position, his breathing, hard and fast.
'A dragon?!' A dragon had been close-by, and though its aura was mostly gone, there was a mild trail left.
The aura had appeared a bit far from the Yan house, but right within Yue City.
Too close for comfort!
So Luoyin's natural instinct was to rise at once and track it... And besides, what if this was the real 'black dragon'?
Luoyin had every reason to trail this dragon aura!
Yet he forced himself to remain still, instead casting a seal which activated the Yan house's protective wards, and then he hid his own aura completely.
There was a high possibility that the dragon was a lure to draw him out... Wouldn't he be foolish to deliver himself into enemy hands? 'Zhang Luoyin' was not quite ready to face off against Immortals.
Still he wondered how they had found him here...
After his awakening, he had performed a tracking deterrent seal on himself, so tracking spells or talismans, no matter how powerful, would never work against him.
He and Yinying were also careful to never mention any word that might trigger a reaction from the Fate Mirrors.
What then had led them to Yueyan?
His dragon pearl had flared two weeks ago... Was that it? He personally felt it was near impossible, as he himself had found no trace of it back then, yet had they somehow traced it to Yueyan?
He sighed, recalling his own words to Zhang Furen, "Nothing remains hidden under the sun."
He had always known he would be found eventually, so there was no point dwelling on it.
Rather, he mustn't sit still and simply await fate...
'Hmph. Literally.' He thought with some bitterness. The Fate Immortal and the Sky Emperor were surely looking for him.
And there was also the enemy hidden in the shadows.
So he had to ensure he was adequately prepared for the inevitable battles...
He relaxed and let out another sigh, but as he did so, a sweet sound instantly surrounded him, and he realized it had been playing even before he woke up.
'A Pipa?!' He smiled, shutting his eyes... He hadn't heard anyone play the Pipa so well in years, and the sweet melody wove around him, soothing him from within.
'A healing tone?'
With the right intent, tone, and tune, instruments could be used to heal and soothe... As the Medicine Immortal, he himself had learned and written many, using his flute for healing when it was required.
This mesmerizing Pipa was no different.
'No wonder I could sleep so soundly even after swallowing that bitter abomination!' He shuddered at the memory of the tonic, but quickly swung his feet over the bed and approached the window to peer out into a garden.
'Wah!' He exclaimed in awe.
Seated beneath a willow, amidst a bed of flowers, Xu Weiyan played the pipa with a haunting beauty, her pale fingers gently but swiftly dancing across the strings.
Around her, the flowers and the willow's long lush branches seemed to sway in time with the sheer beautiful music, and the brilliant moonlight shone down, heightening the scenery.
'Fairies have surely descended to the mortal realm...' Luoyin absently thought, completely entranced to the point where he didn't even realize how long he had stood there, simply staring!
But as that same heat wove around him, severely tempting him to storm out, seize Xu Weiyan's hand, and pull her back inside...
He slapped himself and swivelled away, storming to the bed instead and sitting down heavily.
'X- Xu Weiyan is far too dangerous!'
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Luoyin spent the rest of the night cultivating, taking advantage of the Pipa's healing sound, but ensuring his aura was sealed within his room.
Sometime close to dawn, he lay down and went back to sleep, and the sun was fully in the sky by the time a sweet scent teased at his nostrils.
'Xu Weiyan...' He recognised from the throes of sleep, his lips curving into a subconscious smile.
But then the scent of the cruel bitter herbs completely eclipsed her scent, making him jerk awake!
'Oh no! I overslept!' He thought in distress, as Xu Weiyan approached.
She had prepared the tonic before he could wake up and seal off the kitchen!
As she gently sat on the bed, Luoyin thought of simply pretending to sleep, but then a guilty feeling reminded him that she had cared for him the night before, proceeded to spend all night playing the pipa for his sake, seating out in the garden so she wouldn't be close enough to disturb his sleep,
and then she had rushed to make him a tonic so early.
He opened his eyes to see dark circles beneath hers, and reddened hands from a night of playing the pipa.
"Er..." He awkwardly began, eyeing her fingers. "Ahem! Thank you for caring for me, but don't do anything for my sake that harms you! How can you play the pipa all night?!"
He reached for the tonic in her hands, but as he accepted the bowl, their fingers slightly brushed, sending a spark through his arm.
Weiyan gasped softly, and their gazes met, locked for a precious moment...
"Ahem!" Luoyin looked away, squeezed his eyes shut and downed the bowl of unbelievably bitter tonic!
'How is it even worse than yesterday?!' But he forced a smile. "Ehehe, I'm fine now, so no need for the tonic again! Why don't you go and get some sleep?"
Luoyin did seem much better in Weiyan's eyes, so she gave a small nod and hurried away.
Luoyin sighed. "If I drink any more of that tonic, it might end this new life!"
However, his worries were just beginning...
...because recent events had proven something to Xu Weiyan...
'A-Tong's advice can be trusted!'
Which unfortunately meant Weiyan was more determined than ever to swallow every one of Tong's advices from start to finish!
On that night of worries, Tong had also said, "My Lady, you must woo the Master to ensure you're the only one in his heart!
"Why not prepare him a meal?!"
And so that afternoon, Luoyin was doing some light meditation when an anxious Meng Qiu arrived.
He politely bowed to Luoyin and Yinying who sat discussing with him.
"M- Master! The Lady has been... 'attempting' to make your lunch since morning, and -." Meng Qiu hesitated, but then bowed again and blurted out in a rush, "P- Please stop her!"
Luoyin was a bit touched to hear that Weiyan was preparing a meal for him, and he couldn't understand Meng Qiu's anxiety.
Nor could Yinying, who simply shrugged
Surely, the attempt couldn't be that bad...
But as Luoyin and Yinying followed Meng Qiu to the kitchen, the sky suddenly darkened with thick smoke, and the sight on the large kitchen table frightened Luoyin more than the tonic.
"Ei?! An array of darkness?!" Luoyin had halted a short distance away. "What is this darkened food? Even the ones not cooked are black... How can one interpret this?!"
"Xiaobai! Did you offend your wife in any way?!" Yinying asked, nearly tripping in shock, and Meng Qiu coughed in a bid to stem his laughter.
Luoyin hurried further into the kitchen to find Weiyan staring intently at another burnt dish, as if wondering why it didn't look like normal food, while Tong stood panicking to one side, and a line of maids stood on another,
apparently resigned to watching their precious kitchen 'borrowed' to make high-level burnt offerings!
"Pfft!" Luoyin couldn't resist a small laugh at Weiyan's sooty cheeks and robes, and her innocent oblivion to the state of the kitchen around her!
But the little outburst drew her hurt eyes in his direction, and her bottom lip jutted out in a mild pout.
"Aiyaya..." He hurried forward. "Y- Yanyan?" He had instinctively called her 'Yanyan' before his duel with Zhang Cheng, but he found it a bit strange now...
"Y- Yanyan, tomorrow is the final stage! Why not spend this time meditating, huh?" He stylishly ushered her from the kitchen.
Behind Weiyan's back, the maids sent Luoyin a grateful look, and he waved them away, glaring at Yinying and Meng Qiu who were now openly laughing!
When they reached the round entryway to Weiyan's courtyard, Luoyin suddenly stopped and took her hand.
"Yanyan," he began, using his handkerchief to gently wipe her sooty hands, "I don't mind whether you can cook or not..."
He reached up and lightly rubbed at her cheeks with the fast-blackening cloth.
"You're my wife, but you're also a cultivator- a highly skilled one, so it's understandable if you don't prioritize such things.
"And besides, I'll be dedicated to you whether you do these things or not, so please don't harm yourself on my behalf! How about you leave the cooking to the servants? Uhm?"
She gave a small nod, and out of sheer instinct, Luoyin gently caressed her cheek, marveling at how silky smooth her hair was as he tucked a loose strand away...
"Ahem!" He quickly withdrew his hand. "Why don't you supervise dinner? You can direct them to make whatever you want!"
Weiyan simply gave another small nod, and having handled the situation, Luoyin turned to leave.
But behind him,
'A good idea!' Weiyan gave another nod of understanding. 'I can supervise them to make his favourite meal!'
But there was the matter of not knowing his favourite meal, and she was too embarrassed to ask.
And so she turned to something she understood...
Cultivation!
'His cultivation base feels like water...' She thought, recalling the day the 1st stage had ended, and how he had shared his aura with her.
'Sea food won't go wrong!' She concluded, but...
That evening, there was a slight knock, barely audible, right before Weiyan's mild aura washed over Luoyin.
'Is it another Burnt Offering?! Another tonic?!' He wondered in dismay, but automatically said, "Enter."
The door swung open, and Weiyan walked in with a large stepped lunchbox, the same as she had done on the New Year.
"I brought dinner." She said simply, and began to lay out the meal.
Meanwhile, hidden in the corner, Yinying didn't hesitate to send Luoyin a smirk.
~"Heh! Whatever shall we wifeless ones do?!"~
But the scent of the dishes had Yinying raising an eyebrow, and it brought a sudden wave of nausea to Luoyin.
His eyes widened at the table, which held a spectacular array of seafood!
There was a large platter of fish- specifically a carp, with some rice, a shrimp based side, seasoned seaweed, two dishes, one with shrimp wonton soup, and the other with abalone and mussels Soup.
This would be a supreme feast for almost any eyes...
Not his!
Underwater folk certainly ate fishes and the creatures of the sea, but in his case?
Bailong's younger brother was a Carp, and his nanny as a child had been an ancient shrimp!
~"Xiaobai!"~ Yinying was also aghast. ~"First the tonic, then charcoal food, and now this... Did you really not offend her?!"~
~"I don't know! Ah! Could it be she discovered I'm Yin Xiaolong?! Is this a deliberate mental torture??!!!"~
But Luoyin easily dismissed that thought, and surprising himself and Yinying, he smiled and sat down. "Ehehe, let's eat, let's eat!" He said, and Weiyan joined him.
For whatever reason, Xu Weiyan had spent one whole night and an entire day, trying to take care of him.
'I can't be ungrateful!'
And so, he lifted a shaky pair of chopsticks to the wontons, taking one and placing it in his mouth...
"H- haochi!" He exclaimed, and then he reached over to pick some fish and place it atop her bowl of rice. "Eat!"
Happy with the simple gesture, Weiyan began to eat.
But after some time, she began to notice that Luoyin avoided the fish and shrimps, eating mostly rice and the seaweed, with some abalones and mussels.
'Now that I think about it, he also avoided the fish during the New Year meal...' She recalled, but at that time, she had barely been able to look up from her rice bowl.
She sighed.
'I was too hasty... I'll do better next time!' She vowed, and then boldly leaned over to place some seaweed on his bowl.
Meanwhile, Yinying shook his head and silently vanished, as the two smiled at each other in the soft candlelight.
'Hmph. Whether Xiaobai knows it or not, he has certainly met his mortal match!'
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