Chapter 389: I Really Want To Know
Not long after that, Mo Cheng called for his brother. In less than a heartbeat, Mo Jing returned to the garden. He froze by the entrance as soon as he spied Zhu Qingyue.
"How did Senior Zhu happen to step inside this reserved garden of the Herb Caretakers division?" he murmured, obviously flustered by the undetected and unsanctioned arrival of the senior. During the conversation between Li Meirong and Mo Cheng, Mo Jing had stood right outside the entrance to supervise any potential intruders. He had made certain that no one would enter the premises, and he should have been able to see anyone who so much as passed by, let alone entered the garden.
Mo Cheng whipped around and glared at his brother.
"I was wondering the same thing," he snapped.
"I stood vigil at the entrance," was all Mo Jing had to say in his defense, after recovering from the initial shock of seeing Zhu Qingyue in the flesh, "and I did not see so much of a fragment of Senior Zhu's shadow."
Meanwhile, Li Meirong remained docile in Zhu Qingyue's arms, which were possessively encircling her waist, allowing her no room to budge from his side.
Despite remaining quiet, she too looked up at Zhu Qingyue with an eyebrow raised questioningly, a silent request for an answer. 'For such a large and imposing man, how could it be possible to sneak in without anybody taking notice of him?' she pondered.
How, exactly, Zhu Qingyue had managed to quite literally pop up out of thin air inside the garden, no one except for him really knew, and he would not bother to explain himself to anyone.
Zhu Qingyue simply patted Li Meirong on the head affectionately and said, "Your husband can do many things."
"What else can you do?" Li Meirong pressed, glaring daggers at this most frustrating "darling" of hers.
His response had been cryptic, yet not at all unexpected. Instead of entrancing her, which she assumed was the reaction he had been aiming to get from her, it made Li Meirong wonder if she would ever get a proper explanation for anything from this man.
As all eyes belonging to those present turned to Zhu Qingyue for answers. The white-haired senior simply curled his thin lips into an easy smile that could mean anything and nothing at all.
Then, slowly, he bent his head down until only Li Meirong could see the mischievous tilt to the corner of his lips.
"That is a rather private question," he said. His low voice was only a whisper, but was still loud enough for everyone to hear. His expression shifted subtly as his stare turned fervent.
Li Meirong's heart skipped a beat. She thought perhaps it wasn't the question itself that was private, but the way his irises darkened as he stared at her hungrily.
The way he stared at her made her tingle all over. His eyes seemed to hold a dark knowledge in their golden depths.
Apparently, their recent springtime had not left him satisfied, but had instead opened a gateway to an endless craving. His smoldering gaze was filled with the unspoken promise of a desire that she knew would likely leave her bedridden for three days again.
Li Meirong swallowed the saliva that had pooled in her mouth, a tad embarrassed by her awareness of his provocation. Feeling awkward and unsettled, she pushed against his chest in a futile attempt to keep a distance between them for her sanity's sake. His grip on her, however, was rock-solid and entirely unshakeable.
As if to prevent himself from pouncing on her right then and there, Zhu Qingyue moved a little further forward and rested his chin right atop her head.
"If you wish, we could head home right this moment, and I shall demonstrate all the skills I have not yet shown you." His low, magnetic voice resonated from above her, making goosebumps rise upon her skin which had very little to do with the weather.
"I don't want to see anything of the sort, pervert," she hissed.
"What are you talking about, silly girl?" Zhu Qingyue was the epitome of innocence as he asked. "I was planning on continuing our qinggong lessons. Once you excel at martial arts, you will be able to easily pass by your enemies undetected."
"You… were referring to instructing me in martial arts?" Li Meirong bit her lower lip, ashamed of herself. She had misunderstood his good intentions once more, it seemed.
Did this mean that her jumping to such conclusions made her the pervert whose head was filled with amorous fantasies?! That couldn't be true!
Zhu Qingyue's eyes curved into playful crescent moons as he looked down at her, his eyes filled with mischief as he winked at her with a knowing smile.
"Were you thinking of matters most unbecoming of a lady?" he teased her.
"Of course not!" Li Meirong huffed. "It's just a misunderstanding on my part." She thumped her little fists on his chest, somewhere between embarrassed and petulant.
Zhu Qingyue was purposefully attempting to get under her skin, and she would not let him!
"Then what was my little wife thinking of? I really want to know."
"I was thinking we should focus on the matter at hand and save Mo Cheng."
"Ah." Zhu Qingyue hummed in agreement, as if her response made perfect sense. "Of course, we should hurry up to save the boy."
"Oh, it is so nice to be remembered," Mo Cheng interjected, voice heavy with sarcasm. He waved for his brother to come forward. "See what I had to deal with?"
"Senior Zhu is very fond of Sister Meirong." Mo Jing nodded dumbly as he went to stand beside his brother. He had not expected the likes of Zhu Qingyue - a person possessing such an intimidating aura - to be the teasing and affectionate type of man.
Mo Cheng huffed aloud.
Mo Jing was not alone in holding this particular opinion. Although Mo Cheng's initial impression of Zhu Qingyue was of the worst kind imaginable, he could not help but feel bitter with himself for admiring certain traits that this villain possessed, even though he would never admit to it.
Furthermore, witnessing Zhu Qingyue's most unscrupulous behavior around Li Meirong had inadvertently caused Mo Cheng to lower his guard against the man.
It was not that Mo Cheng's opinion of Zhu Qingyue had changed all that much, for although Senior Zhu was a character with a lofty position and a noble appearance, he was, in fact, still a villainous character, and one full of mischief at that. He still thought that Li Meirong was terribly foolish for siding with the villain of the story. Yet despite knowing this, Mo Cheng could not help but respect the immeasurable depth of the white-haired villain's spiritual perception.
For one to be able to stabilise a soul into a body that was not their own was no easy feat to accomplish; Mo Cheng was aware of that much, at least.
Only a cultivator who had achieved divinity, a level that far surpassed that of any mortal in this world, could possibly accomplish such a technique.
How was Mo Cheng expecting to vanquish this villain who had surpassed the level of a nascent soul stage cultivator? He wondered about it, pondered on it.
The book he had read had never bothered explaining this one important and particular detail.
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