“Somehow, he can hop around with so much energy after just a few days of rest. Even if he didn’t have that weird pyromancer old man as his master, his talent alone deserves our attention,” said Chan Goh Shue as he leaned against his chair. He brushed the few strands of white hair on his forehead and laughed at himself, “I’m getting old…”
An elegant voice replied, “I understand, Uncle Goh. You’re trying to say that you’re getting old, therefore the mission of restoring the Yau Branch falls on my shoulders. One more person who can help me with this mission means a better chance of restoring the Yau Branch, am I right?”
“Hmph, you’re an intelligent girl, but sometimes that works against you. What I was trying to say was that I want to see you have a kid,” said Chan Goh Shue while rolling his eyes. He stared at Chan Chi Yuet as she sat in her corner and said in a dissatisfied tone, “You’re already nineteen. An ordinary girl would already be finding a husband.”
“Uncle Goh, you want me to restore the Yau Branch and you want me to get married and have a kid. I didn’t know the Chan Clan Mantra had a technique for creating clones,” she pouted and replied, “Not to mention I’m still eighteen right now. It’s not my birthday yet.”
“Two birds with one stone. Find a good husband and he can help you get pregnant and restore the Yau Branch simultaneously,” said Chan Goh Shue with an expectant look. Chan Chi Yuet sulked, but he continued saying, “However, back in the capital, there’s still the second…”
Chan Chi Yuet immediately narrowed her eyes and placed her slender finger on her red lips and hushed Chan Goh Shue as she said, “Shush, Uncle Goh. Can we please not talk about this?”
“Alright, alright, I won’t talk about it,” said Chan Goh Shue. He shook his head and did as he said. Meanwhile, his gaze landed on a letter on the table. Things weren’t going to be easy to deal with…
“You didn’t even tell me when you used my personal seal to send a gift to Wun Fan,” said Chan Chi Yuet as she pouted. She puffed out her cheeks and tried to look cute, but annoyed.
“I can’t count on your personality. You like someone but you won’t make the first move. When are you planning to wait until?” said Chan Goh Shue with a chuckle. He stared at the teenage girl in front of him with a helpless look. He didn’t want to do it, but he had to.
“I’ve tried making the first move, but did it work then?” said the girl in a quiet voice. Even she didn’t know if she was replying to Uncle Goh or just making fun of herself. She picked up the glass bottle on the table, took off the cork and enjoyed the fresh fruit juice inside. She looked satisfied with her breakfast. Suddenly, her eyes gazed off into the distance and the smile faded from her face. She opened her lips slightly and said softly, “A word to silly girls who fall in love, be careful whom you hand your heart over to… ”245Please respect copyright.PENANAd2AUMZQQDY
Wun Ching Yeung helped Wun Fan back to his room. Wun Fan had to rest for over four hours before he felt good enough to move around. He then started recovering his soul energy with Old Lei’s help. He moved his body around slightly. His back still hurt, but his mind kept wandering to the matter of going on a journey. He opened his mouth and asked, “Old Lei, about the matter of going on a training journey…”
“Mm.” Old Lei floated out of the ring. His silhouette was much more opaque than before. He must have been restored by the aether in the Spiritstartler Ring. He held his chin with one hand while tapping his forehead with a finger as he said, “We should go find that little girlfriend of yours first and make some preparations. You’re still a newbie. No amount of preparation will be too much.”
“Er, Old Lei, she’s not my girlfriend…”
Old Lei completely ignored Wun Fan and continued, “Also, we promised to concoct pills for her. I have never broken a promise in my life. Let’s go find your girlfriend to prepare the necessary ingredients.”
“...”
Old Lei casually walked to Wun Fan’s side and dove into the Spiritstartler Ring with a flash of green light. Just two seconds later, somebody knocked on the door.
Knock knock.
Wun Fan looked at the water clock beside him. It was already twelve noon. It must be the servant here to serve lunch. He replied, “Come in, the door isn’t locked.”
He was never worried about someone barging in and seeing Old Lei because he forgot to lock the door. After all, the old man was practically a human radar.
Creak. A maid pushed the door open and came in. Wun Fan remembered that this girl was called Sui Ceon. She usually attended to Siu Lan, so why was she here to serve lunch to him?
Si Ceon held the tray in her hands as she bowed and said, “Young master Fan, the young lady told me to bring lunch over to you. She said she made it herself and wanted you to taste it.”
Siu Ceon placed the tray on the table and opened the lid. Suddenly, a fragrant sweet and sour smell filled the room and found its way into Wun Fan’s nostrils. Wun Fan suddenly felt very hungry when he smelled the food. He couldn’t help but think to himself, Stupid girl. She seemed to have learned a lot of stuff after her trip to Earth, hasn’t she?
At the thought of this, he couldn’t help but have a strange thought. Could everyone from Heaven’s Martial World go to different worlds to learn new things through their inner demon tribulation? In particular, he was reminded of the product placement and interior design of the Hundred Treasures Hall. It was completely unlike the mainstream thought process of Heaven’s Martial World and was very similar to modern sales psychology.
Siu Ceon didn’t know what Wun Fan was thinking. She simply bowed again and invited him to eat, “Please enjoy, young master. This dish was only made with cheap tomatoes and eggs, but it has an extraordinary fragrance. The young lady’s cooking skills shocked all of the clan’s chefs.”
Wun Fan approached the table and waved his hand, taking in the familiar yet unfamiliar smell of the dish. He took a closer look. The stir-fried egg with tomatoes was done very well. The color was not too dark or light, it wasn’t too watery and just enough starch was added to the dish. In particular, the tomato’s sour fragrance was even more prominent after being fried with garlic and blended perfectly with the egg’s fragrance.
He took a wooden spoon and placed a mouthful of egg in his mouth. The egg was smooth but not oily, with slight charring on the edge. It was soft but not too loose. The tomato was sour but with a sweet edge and was incredibly soft in his mouth. It was very appetizing. Stir-fried egg with tomatoes had always been an easy dish that was hard to master. This was the case for most dishes. The easier it was to cook, the harder it was to cook it well.
Siu Lan had made an excellent dish of stir-fried eggs with tomatoes, comparable to some of the best restaurants on Earth.
Wun Fan didn’t hold back anymore. He sat down and dug into the dish, eating it with rice. Pouring the stir-fried eggs on top of the rice was a different eating experience. After just a few spoonfuls of rice, nearly half the food was gone.
Siu Ceon couldn’t help but smile when she saw this and said, “The young lady invites the young master to have dinner with her later tonight. The young lady said that she would prepare dinner for you and that you should go to her room at seven in the evening.”
“Mm, tell her that I got it,” said Wun Fan through a mouthful of food. He suddenly remembered something and mumbled, “Siu Ceon, can you prepare a black coat for me?”
The fine snowflakes would often melt when they landed on clothes, leaving wet spots on them that didn’t look the best. For the past three years, Wun Fan hardly ever went outside. Even when it snowed heavily, he would just train without a shirt on in the mountains. He never had any use for a heavy coat.
Siu Ceon lowered her head, thought for a moment and replied, “Young master, the coats we use in the clan are black and white. We don’t have all-black coats.”
“Mm, that’s fine. Bring them to me,” said Wun Fan before returning to decimating the rest of his food. He didn’t think too much about it. He just needed a coat to use right now.
“Understood,” said Siu Ceon before walking out of the room. Only the sound of a spoon clinking against dishes could be heard.
245Please respect copyright.PENANAMCeIfZnATE
Wun Fan stepped out of the mansion and walked toward the Hundred Treasures Hall.
He wore the black and white coat of the Wun Clan. The patterns of alternating color were arranged in an aesthetically pleasing fashion and looked extremely good from a distance. The emblem on the coat was the emblem of the Wun Clan, a long sword with the ancient symbol for ‘Wun’ or ‘cloud’ carved on the blade. Moreover, the coat that Siu Ceon prepared was for the exclusive use of lineage disciples. It looked different from the coats that everyone else in the clan ordinarily used. The patterns of the coat were joined together with bluesteel thread. The three colors of black, white and blue gave the coat a cool aura and made its wearer look even more imposing and elegant.
However, this design only drew more attention to Wun Fan, the complete opposite of his intentions. He didn’t know whether to be angry at Siu Ceon or to laugh. In the end, he smiled bitterly and pulled his hat lower to hide his face.
However, the world was always full of people ready to gossip. Plenty of people saw the special coat for Wun Clan lineage disciples and started talking amongst themselves.
“Black and white and joined with blue thread. I recognize this coat. It’s the coat of lineage disciples. Young Master Wun Ping always wears this coat when he goes on his walk,” someone reported his observations to a friend.
“Judging from their height, it’s not Young Master Wun Ping. I took a peek earlier. I didn’t see their face, but I didn’t see a mask either. It’s probably not Miss Siu Lan,” someone else chimed in, before suddenly gasping, “Could it be the prodigy of Green Sea Town? Is it Young Master Fan?”
Several of the audience drew cold breaths and exclaimed, “As expected of a true genius. He’s humble even when he’s going out on a walk. He has his hat down and he’s bending over while walking. No wonder he could endure that kind of humiliation for so many years.”
Wun Fan couldn’t help but smile when he heard the comments. He had to hold back his laughter. Who would’ve thought that he could go from a dishonored cripple to a prodigy that can endure humiliation in a matter of days?
However, Wun Fan wasn’t used to being the center of attention. He walked quickly and entered the market as fast as he could. Once he reached the shop area, he saw Siu Ji waiting for him with an umbrella. Once again, Wun Fan was impressed by the Chan Clan’s intelligence network and efficiency. They always had everything ready before he even arrived.
Siu Ji was very attentive. She walked over the moment she saw the black and white coat and gave her greetings. She then said politely, “The young lady has been waiting a long time for you, Young Master Wun. Please follow me to the auction house to meet the young lady.”
“Mm, please show the way.”
Just like that, Wun Fan walked into the auction house and went up the stairs to Auction Hall Mortal on the first floor. He entered through the door and saw a teenage girl standing on the stage. Her slender fingers moved nimbly as she blew on a small bamboo flute. The sound of the flute was ethereal, seemingly near yet far, but crystal-clear in its quality.
The beautiful girl was wearing a black and pink dress today. The straps of the dress and the lace on the chest were pink, whereas the arms, the waist and the skirt itself was all black, with a light pink finish at the end of the dress. The girl had her half loosely tied up today. The hairstyle had been intricately put together. The ends of the hair curled lightly, giving her an aura of elegance that complemented her dress. The bamboo flute as well gave her the air of an accomplished musician and Wun Fan couldn’t turn his eyes away.
The clear but sorrowful sound of the flute had been ringing ever since he stepped into the auction house. The music almost seemed to be crying, hinting at an emotion of regret and reluctant farewells. Every step towards the stage was very difficult. The sound of the flute would flutter past Wun Fan, passing through his ears but leaving a mark on his heart. Every note would cause his heart to seize for a brief moment.
Chan Chi Yuet almost seemed to be drunk on the atmosphere. Her eyes were glazed and half-open as she stared at the boy in front of her, staring straight into his heart. The flute’s music came to a halt as she said softly, “You’re leaving?” 245Please respect copyright.PENANAuG3TjpPf5Z