After Breaking Off the Engagement, I Started Pursuing My Master-Chapter 72 - The Melody of Warm Jade

Chapter 72: The Melody of Warm Jade

Chu Xianning quickly closed the door and returned to her room.

Jiang Huai stood there, grinning foolishly for a while. It was rare to have a moment of playful banter with his master. When she was in a bad mood before, she would ignore him, or if he accidentally went too far, he would get a beating. It seemed Master was in a good mood today.

Jiang Huai plucked a peach branch from the courtyard and swung it around as if it were a spiritual sword. At the ninth level of the Immaculate Golden Body, he should have combat power close to that of a Core Formation cultivator at full completion. He needed to take some time to adapt to it.

……

Inside the room.

Chu Xianning had not gone to bed.

She often suffered from insomnia, so she usually went to bed late. After locking the door, Chu Xianning opened her wardrobe. She first took out her diary and, after hesitating for a moment, added a few sentences to it.

“The rebellious disciple has been increasingly rampant lately. I need to find an opportunity to properly discipline him.”

Chu Xianning had grown accustomed to recording the events of each day over the years. Otherwise, she tended to forget. She had lived for six hundred years, and many of the people and events she had seen during that time were no longer clear in her memory. Only the memories of the last few decades remained vivid.

After finishing her diary entry, she carefully put it away and took out a delicately crafted little book from the other side of the wardrobe. The book even had some illustrations, and the cover bore gilded characters:

The Melody of Warm Jade.

Chu Xianning, of course, knew the true identity of Ah Mumu. Once, when Jiang Huai went down the mountain to explore a secret realm, leaving her alone in the courtyard during the rainy season, she remembered something on a rare sunny day. She went to his room, took out his quilt to air it, and inadvertently saw the unfinished manuscript of Floating Clouds and Splendid Elegance on his desk.

Floating Clouds and Splendid Elegance was Ah Mumu’s first book.

Ah Mumu’s works were popular among the younger generation of cultivators in the Eastern Region. Chu Xianning had never heard of this name before, but later, during a casual conversation with Luo Yueguan, she heard Luo Yueguan recommend it, praising the beautifully written romantic scenes. Chu Xianning wasn’t interested until she realized that all these works came from the hands of the rebellious disciple.

Out of curiosity, Chu Xianning took a glance.

Although she already knew the rebellious disciple was no good, what he wrote in the book seemed a bit too much. Ha, his fondness for women’s feet was blatantly revealed in the book, which is why Chu Xianning never gave him a chance to take advantage.

There was also the time she went to his room and saw him holding her Evil-Repelling Ice Silk White Socks. In an instant, Chu Xianning thought of The Melody of Warm Jade, where the fox demon, in front of the scholar, removed her silk socks, still warm from her body, and gave them to him to alleviate his loneliness and longing at night. Furious, Chu Xianning ended up hanging Jiang Huai up on a tree and beating him.

She had almost finished the latest issue of The Melody of Warm Jade, and for some reason, she had a strange premonition that the ending of the next issue would be an irreversible tragedy. The endings of Ah Mumu’s previous two books were harsh, with the protagonists having the opportunity to be together but missing it due to unfortunate mistakes, leading to lifelong regret. And The Melody of Warm Jade seemed to hint at a future where the scholar would grow old with white hair, the fox demon would accompany him until death, burying his bones, while she would remain alone until her hair turned white.

After all, the title of this volume was, “Bury your bones beneath the spring, I remain in the world with snow in my hair.”

There were rumors that a seventh realm cultivator, after reading the endings of Ah Mumu’s first two books, was so furious that he stormed to Ziyun Pavilion, demanding to skin Ah Mumu alive. Fortunately, Ziyun Pavilion’s confidentiality was excellent, and they never revealed Ah Mumu’s true identity. Otherwise, who knows how much trouble Jiang Huai Jr. would have caused.

There was also a seventh realm cultivator who was willing to offer thousands of spirit stones, not for anything else but to have Ziyun Pavilion pass a message to Ah Mumu. As long as he was willing to change the ending, those spirit stones would be his. But Ah Mumu, with his ironclad integrity, claimed to have the backbone of a literary man and refused to change it.

‘Not even the king of heaven could make him change the ending!’, Ah Mumu said.

Chu Xianning held the little book, read through The Melody of Warm Jade once more, and after closing it, she lay down on the bed and turned to look at the bright moon outside the window.

She did not like that kind of ending.

……

The next day, early morning.

Chu Xianning opened her eyes on time.

She sat up and went to her wardrobe. She actually had quite a few dresses in her wardrobe. Jiang Huai had brought her some new styles from Ziyun Pavilion when he went down the mountain. She had never given Jiang Huai her measurements, but he had guessed them roughly, and they fit quite well. However, Chu Xianning had never worn them.

She did not like dresses that revealed too much skin, even in the courtyard, even if it was just Jiang Huai and her. She always felt that the gaze on her skin was scorching, making her slightly uneasy.

Chu Xianning’s fingertips brushed over those dresses and suddenly caught sight of a rice-white cheongsam. The cheongsam was sleeveless, with a long hem but a slightly high slit, revealing glimpses of her legs as she moved. Moreover, the back of the cheongsam was exposed, almost revealing half of it. When Jiang Huai gave her this dress, she had hit him on the head with a wooden sword, but to throw it away… it was a pity, as Jiang Huai had spent over a hundred spirit stones on it.

Chu Xianning had always been frugal. Over the years, she had saved quite a bit of wealth. Part of it was used to pay Granny Jiuyou to treat Jiang Huai’s injuries, and the rest was given to Jiang Huai to buy materials for cultivating the Immaculate Golden Body. Her savings were now down to just a few tens of thousands of spirit stones.

So, she always suspected that she owed this debt collector in her past life.

Somehow, Chu Xianning took the dress down, gently touched the embroidery on the fabric for a while, and looked at herself in the mirror. After hesitating for a moment, she gently removed her clothes, revealing her body in the room, with the light outside the window shining brightly.

……

Jiang Huai got up on time to make breakfast.

He always tried to make a variety of dishes for breakfast because a good breakfast could bring a good mood for the day. Over the years, Jiang Huai had come up with over a hundred varieties. Today’s breakfast was steamed rice cakes and a cup of milk tea he had mixed.

However, Chu Xianning seemed to open her door a bit later than usual today. Jiang Huai sat quietly in the courtyard waiting until Chu Xianning’s room door opened, and he looked over.

Something was not right.

Jiang Huai closed his eyes, opened them again, and looked once more.

Still not right.

Jiang Huai tilted his head, looking at Chu Xianning, who was wearing the rice-white cheongsam.

Master Chu Xianning had an excellent figure, slender and tall. Although her chest was slightly lacking compared to someone like Luo Yueguan, who had a voluptuous and charming figure, it was only a minor regret. The curve of her chest was supported by her bosom, and the lines between her slender waist and hips were like the undulating landscape in a painting.

This cheongsam was one that Jiang Huai had bought for Chu Xianning a long time ago, and now it seemed he had guessed right; it fit perfectly. Jiang Huai looked at his master’s shoulders, now sprinkled with the gentle sunlight falling quietly from the eaves.

Strange and curious.

Was his master in such a good mood today?

Could it be that she was so happy because she heard he was going down the mountain in a few days? Oh no, Jiang Huai was starting to overthink again.

Chu Xianning walked over calmly and sat down. Only then did Jiang Huai suddenly realize that he had been so focused on the cheongsam that he had missed the Evil-Repelling Ice Silk White Socks she was wearing beneath it.

They were super, super thin Evil-Repelling Ice Silk White Socks, with her delicate feet in jade-colored high heels, tapping on the bluestone floor with a ding-ding sound.

Chu Xianning picked up a piece of rice cake and took a gentle bite, then took a sip of the milk tea on the table. Her eyes remained cool and indifferent. Jiang Huai didn’t dare to say anything.

If something abnormal happened, what if he got beaten for being cheeky?

Jiang Huai silently ate his rice cake, and after he was full, his eyes fell on Chu Xianning, who still had the same expression. She went to the pavilion, her hand picking up a white Go piece. Jiang Huai sat down opposite her, holding a black Go piece.

The two played two silent games of Go until Chu Xianning suddenly spoke.

“Have you read The Melody of Warm Jade?”

“Ah? W-what? Never heard of it.”

Jiang Huai was suddenly a bit guilty. The Melody of Warm Jade was written by Ah Mumu, and Ah Mumu was Jiang Huai Jr.

Why was his master suddenly asking about this?

“Pretending again?” Chu Xianning’s chin lifted slightly, a hint of disdain in her eyes.

“Alright, I’ve read a bit.” Jiang Huai nodded, his forehead covered in cold sweat.

The Melody of Warm Jade wasn’t too bad; the overall story was quite pure and romantic, except for some risque parts, there wasn’t much to criticize. But the previous book, Floating Clouds and Splendid Elegance, was filled with indecent content throughout—mother and daughter, sisters, master and disciple, imprisonment, and all sorts of fancy play, almost nothing was left untouched.

“How did you come to know about this? Are you interested in such vulgar novels?”

Jiang Huai immediately asked Chu Xianning innocently, trying to take the upper hand.

“Some time ago, Luo Yueguan recommended it to me, so I got a copy of The Melody of Warm Jade from her. Thinking that you are of the age to like these kinds of plays, I wanted to ask you about it.”

“Oh, that. I’ve also glanced at it a bit. The writing and the twists in the story are unquestionably exciting, but the author is a lecher. That person must be condemned. Whenever I come across obscene scenes, I always skip them! Never look at them!”

Chu Xianning was taken aback by Jiang Huai’s brazen lie, staring at him for five or six seconds, watching him blatantly lie. After thinking about it, she ultimately didn’t expose him, but her lips curled slightly.

“What part did you get to?”

“I got to the latest one.”

“And the ending… what do you think will happen?”

Jiang Huai thought for a moment.

“In my opinion, in the end, the scholar should have worked hard and achieved his lifelong ambition of gaining fame. However, he catches the eye of a princess who wants to choose him as her prince consort. The scholar still remembers his promise to the fox demon, so he simply gives up the fame he’s worked for over ten years and flies away with the fox demon. But the fox demon lives for a thousand years, and even though she tries hard to find many spiritual medicines for the scholar, he still only lives for a hundred years before turning into a handful of yellow soil. The fox demon then guards the lonely grave alone for a thousand years, never marrying.”

“You seem to know a lot?”

Chu Xianning’s eyes narrowed slightly, and she leaned back, crossing her legs under the cheongsam, the sharp high heels somewhat dazzling.

“These details have all been hinted at in the previous plot. Everyone can actually guess the ending, but it’s precisely because it’s inevitable that it’s tragic. And based on what I know of Ah Mumu’s previous two books, he will probably focus on writing about the fox demon once having the chance to find a spiritual medicine that could extend the scholar’s life by a thousand years, but just missing it by a little bit of luck. Then he’ll emphasize the scholar’s serious illness and impending death, their reminiscences of the past, and as the scholar’s consciousness fades, he actually regrets and suddenly longs for a life of wealth and glory, feeling that his years with the fox demon were too poor and uninteresting. Yet the fox demon doesn’t blame him and still guards his spirit for a thousand years.”

Chu Xianning’s gaze was fixed on him.

“I don’t like that kind of ending.”

“But this is more realistic, isn’t it? The scholar is a mortal, and when consciousness is blurred, it’s actually very easy to be overwhelmed by some hidden desires. The purpose of tragedy is to make those who see it live without regrets in reality. Hehe, I think it’s good.”

“But I think it’s not good.”

“I think it’s very good.”

“I don’t like it.”

“I like it.”

Jiang Huai’s responses became more and more guilty.

Chu Xianning’s eyes seemed to sharpen a bit.

“You like it?” Chu Xianning lifted her chin slightly, asking him again.

“I-I actually… also, don’t like it that much…”

Jiang Huai stammered, “What do you think it should be like?”

“The fox demon finds the life-extending spiritual medicine for the scholar, and the two of them, disregarding the prejudices of the world, love each other for a thousand years, becoming a beautiful tale.”

“That’s too cliche!”

Jiang Huai blurted out, but the next second Chu Xianning blinked slightly, “What did you say?”

“Nothing, I said your idea is really great. If I were Ah Mumu, I would definitely write it that way!”

Jiang Huai answered nervously, Chu Xianning crossed her arms, looking into his eyes, “Do you really think so?”

“Of course, my thoughts must be the same as my master’s.”

“I didn’t force you to think the same way. If you don’t like it, then you don’t.”

“No, I like it. The story’s ending should be perfectly happy.”

“Really?”

“Really.”

“But you don’t seem like the type of person who would think that way. Are you sure it’s not because you’re afraid of me that you’re saying this?”

“Where did that come from? I’ve never been afraid of my master. My master would never hurt me. I’ve only ever felt respect and affection for my master.”

“I didn’t spare you from beatings when you were little.”

“Beatings and scoldings are signs of affection. When my master beat me as a child, it was in the hope that I would become a better person in the future. If my master hadn’t taught me properly back then, who knows what kind of bad egg I would have become by now.”

Chu Xianning’s gaze drifted toward the clouds under the azure sky.

“Regarding The Melody of Warm Jade, I was just thinking about it. How Ah Mumu wants to write it is his business, I don’t care.”

“No worries, maybe this time Ah Mumu will have a change of heart with The Melody of Warm Jade.”

Jiang Huai followed Chu Xianning’s lead, quietly observing her micro-expressions. Chu Xianning remained unfazed. According to her usual character, she was someone who spoke her mind.

It seemed she hadn’t realized he was Ah Mumu. It was just a coincidence she mentioned it.

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That’s good, that’s good. There’s still hope.

Otherwise, if Chu Xianning found out about the master-disciple tragic romance he was planning to write next, she would probably want his head.