After Sheng Jun Chapter 67 (Part 2)
Translated by Sylver (ko-fi)
Chapter 67 Sustained Effort (part 2)
As his words fell, a hearty laugh suddenly came from nearby, "Hahaha! When has Ting Xue Sheng Jun ever been so polite? Since the fragrant mulberries are planted beside the rest platform, they're naturally meant to entertain distinguished guests from all directions."
Jiang Xingzhi and Zhong Ming turned their heads to see a white-haired and white-bearded Fusion Stage cultivator walking toward them—it was Penglai's Jìng Míng Zhenren.
A wave of spiritual power passed by, and then a large bundle of fragrant mulberries wrapped in broad leaves was handed to Jiang Xingzhi. Pure Sound said, "Please enjoy, Sheng Jun."
Jiang Xingzhi thanked him, "Thank you, Zhenren."
The fragrant mulberries wrapped in broad leaves made quite a large bundle in his hands. Just as Jiang Xingzhi was about to take it, a large palm reached from the side and took it for him. Zhong Ming took it and held it in front of him, "Eat. I'll hold it for you."
Jiang Xingzhi declined, "This doesn't look good."
Zhong Ming swept his gaze around, driving back the covertly observing looks, "What's wrong with it?"
Jiang Xingzhi said, "It looks like you're feeding a dog."
"......" So it was bad for his own image. Zhong Ming said softly, "I didn't ask you to take it directly with your mouth."
Jiang Xingzhi suddenly understood and then reached out to pick and eat from his palm.
Jing Ming: "......"
Watching their interaction, he smiled slightly, "So the rumors are true."
Jiang Xingzhi crunched on the fragrant mulberries, the sweet and sour taste filling his mouth, "What rumors?"
"That Xu Jian Sheng Jun seeks to win Ting Xue Sheng Jun's favor, that you two are inseparable all day, and your relationship is very different from before."
Jiang Xingzhi choked: These people...! They had just left the Xuantian Sword Sect, and the news had already reached Penglai—how well-informed these people were.
Zhong Ming said frankly, "That's correct."
Jiang Xingzhi quickly nudged Zhong Ming, "Alright, alright." Save these sweet words for later~ It's so embarrassing in public!
Jing Ming across from them saw Jiang Xingzhi's embarrassment and couldn't help but sigh: Even someone as thick-skinned as Ting Xue had such a shy side... Indeed, as Gong Hu had said, good news was coming soon.
He extended an invitation, "If you two don't mind, why not stay at Penglai tonight? Tomorrow you can join our Penglai's Floating Goblet Poetry Gathering—there will be good poetry, fine wine, and delicious food... as company."
Delicious food as company? Jiang Xingzhi rolled up the mulberry leaves, "That sounds wonderful."
****
Penglai's guest courtyards were built in the mountains.
In the quiet mountain forest, the courtyards were built with elegant refinement. The courtyards were arranged as one courtyard per dwelling, and since most guests were Mahayana cultivators from the Three Realms, each courtyard was quite far apart to avoid mutual interference.
Jing Ming personally led them to the courtyard entrance, "Will you two be staying separately or..."
Jiang Xingzhi said, "One room is fine for us." Otherwise, he and Xu Jian would be too far apart.
Two gazes simultaneously fell on him. Jiang Xingzhi tried to cover up by adding, "There are many guests, so we'll save a room."
Jing Ming smiled without exposing him, "Very well."
….
The two entered the room together.
After a day of touring, it was now past dusk. The carved window in the room faced west, so Jiang Xingzhi opened it, letting the evening glow fall into the room.
Creak. The door was closed from behind.
Jiang Xingzhi turned to look at Zhong Ming standing by the door. The rosy evening glow reflected on his sculpted features, his brows and eyes exactly as he liked them.
Their gazes met, and Jiang Xingzhi looked away, his heart secretly racing.
Xu Jian was truly handsome...
Footsteps approached from behind, and just as Jiang Xingzhi expected another fierce embrace, he heard the sound of a chair being pulled out, followed by Zhong Ming sitting down.
He turned to glance at Zhong Ming.
Tall and broad-shouldered, with a straight back, sitting steady as a mountain.
Jiang Xingzhi immediately felt frustrated: Such perfect atmosphere! They were alone together, just the two of them—why wasn't Xu Jian being bolder and more uninhibited?
After a pause, he turned around and with a "swish" untied his belt, removing his outer robe and casually hanging it on the clothes rack by the window. A gaze immediately fell on his back. In the quiet room, the breathing behind him seemed to skip a beat.
The slanting evening light outlined Jiang Xingzhi's figure in gold.
His form, silhouetted against Zhong Ming, was outlined under his thin inner garments—the moving shoulder blades and flexible waistline were all visible.
This familiar scene suddenly reminded Zhong Ming of when he and Jiang Xingzhi had just reunited—when he had shamelessly followed this person around as "Bai Mu," sharing a guest room.
Back then, Jiang Xingzhi had been sensitive to cold, so he had specifically gone downstairs to get hot tea. When he entered the room, he had caught sight of this person wearing only inner garments, his back to him under the warm candlelight, like flowing light and soft jade.
Thinking of this, Zhong Ming's heart stirred, and he suddenly stood up.
The "Bai Mu" of that time had thoughtfully given Jiang Xingzhi a warming magical device—now as "Xu Jian," he couldn't fall behind.
Jiang Xingzhi had been posing by the window for quite a while, finally hearing the approaching footsteps. His heart raced, and before he could turn around, he was wrapped in a thick fur cloak.
Whoosh. The cloak was large and heavy, wrapping around him airtight, with a warming array running inside.
Jiang Xingzhi's eyes widened: ...So, so hot!
Half his face was buried in the fluffy collar, with only two round eyes visible through the dense fur. Perhaps because the cloak was tied right under his nose, Jiang Xingzhi felt like he might suffocate.
A muffled voice came from under the cloak, "Xu Jian, what are you doing?"
Zhong Ming lowered his head to wrap him up tightly, using a tone a thousand times gentler than Bai Mu's, "I was afraid you'd catch a cold."
After speaking, he glanced at Jiang Xingzhi's face.
Under the reflection of the setting sun outside the window, the fine sweat on Jiang Xingzhi's forehead faintly reflected the evening light, his gaze could only be described as deadly.
Zhong Ming's movements stopped, and he fell silent.
….
A moment later.
Jiang Xingzhi lay sprawled on the bed in his inner garments while Zhong Ming used a magical device to blow cool air on him as compensation.
He secretly regretted: How could he forget that Jiang Xingzhi had already restored his soul and was no longer afraid of cold? This time he had won the competition against "Bai Mu" but lost Jiang Xingzhi's favor!
"Still hot?" Zhong Ming asked tentatively, increasing the wind force.
Under the whooshing cool breeze, the hair on top of Jiang Xingzhi's head floated like drifting seaweed. He stared at the bed canopy in a daze: If this continued, Xu Jian's competitive spirit would be satisfied, but he himself would go crazy.
No, it seemed he needed to increase his efforts.
Tomorrow at the Floating Cup Poetry Gathering, he would push back all of Xu Jian's progress!