Chapter 55: I Will Do It
I Will Do It . . .
"Cha-Eun Xiao, are you sure you aren't just messing around with me?" Wen-Ren Chu-Chu's eyes were ablaze with determination, and her face contorted with an expression of sheer displeasure.
Cha-Eun Xiao appeared genuinely surprised as he savored a drumstick. His innocent gaze and bewildered demeanor gave him an air of purity.
"What?" He inquired, taken aback. "Can you please clarify, Chu-Chu?"
Wen-Ren Chu-Chu practically seethed with frustration. "Can't you see, can't you understand the boundaries between men and women? The solution you proposed... How could you even suggest it? How could I..."
She faltered, overcome with shyness.
Finally comprehending her distress, Cha-Eun Xiao withdrew the drumstick from his mouth abruptly. Suddenly, he too felt a wave of embarrassment wash over him, rendering him momentarily speechless. Clearing his throat, he stammered, "I... I'm terribly sorry about that. I didn't think it through properly... Forgive me. I'm truly... I... I've never been close to a woman in my entire life... So, I didn't give it enough thought... I assumed, since you're also a cultivator, perhaps... you might not mind..."
Cha-Eun Xiao rambled on incoherently, his face flushed with embarrassment. This was the first time the Xiao Monarch, usually brimming with confidence and eloquence, found himself grappling with such an awkward situation.
He couldn't deny it. Even if he tried to deny it, his words would only sound like a feeble excuse. Cha-Eun Xiao genuinely hadn't considered this aspect: "I'm just trying to help you with your ailment, after all."
Apart from solving the problem, he hadn't taken anything else into account.
As Wen-Ren Chu-Chu witnessed the tough-as-nails Master Feng suddenly transform into a bumbling, awkward mess, she couldn't help but burst into laughter. A sudden "puh" escaped her lips. She never would have imagined that this Master Feng, who appeared to be in his thirties, would act like a young boy when faced with such matters.
The squirming, the awkward embarrassment, the helpless shame – these were certainly not things one could fake.
"It seems this guy is so focused on alchemy that he's never been in a relationship," Wen-Ren Chu-Chu mused, unsure why this thought occurred to her. "What he just said indicates he really didn't think about it. Otherwise, he wouldn't be this embarrassed. Maybe it's me who's overthinking things..."
She continued to contemplate the situation. "Feng Zhi-Ling is skilled in deception, has a thick skin, excels in cultivation, is a master alchemist, possesses profound wisdom, and a strong will. He understands human nature and is well-informed. But why does he seem utterly clueless about matters between men and women?"
Wen-Ren Chu-Chu was perplexed, finding Cha-Eun Xiao to be an enigma.
"Well, I apologize, Lady Wen-Ren, but you should really give it a try. After all, it concerns your life and future accomplishments," Cha-Eun Xiao said, casting a quick glance at her face. "Please rest assured, I have no inappropriate intentions towards you."
What Cha-Eun Xiao meant to convey was, "I will heal you, and then we can part ways as friends. I won't think much of you, and you needn't worry about me."
However, he shouldn't have glanced at her face while saying it.
Wen-Ren Chu-Chu was so incensed that she felt she might faint. "You looked at my face while telling me you're not interested in me?"
"Cha-Eun Xiao, are you implying that I'm not attractive to you? That I'm ugly?" Wen-Ren Chu-Chu's voice dripped with incredulity as her initial shyness gave way to frustration. Her face even turned a shade of green.
"No, no, that's not what I meant at all," Cha-Eun Xiao hurriedly clarified, realizing he had made a grave mistake. He waved his hands frantically, his words tumbling out incoherently. "I meant to say that you aren't... I mean, you're not that unattractive... No, no, Lady Wen-Ren, please let me explain. You know what I meant, right? You must understand... Ahhhh!~~~"
And then, in a sudden outburst of anger, vegetable soup splattered across the face of the Xiao Monarch.
The room echoed with the sound of the soup hitting his face.
As Master Feng began the futile process of wiping soup from his face and was about to demand an explanation, he witnessed an enchanting sight: Lady Chu-Chu, in a fit of rage, was storming away, her every step punctuated by the loud creaking of the wooden floor.
She was clearly furious.
What had moments ago been a serene, almost poetic scene had disintegrated entirely. Soup dripped down Cha-Eun Xiao's face and onto his clothing. A fishbone rested on his shoulder, and the once-fine silk now hung limply, stained by the soup and resembling a lifeless fish.
Cha-Eun Xiao sat there, utterly stupefied, unable to utter a word. Eventually, he could only shake his head and sigh. "Why are you so quick to anger? I told you, we're both cultivators. I can't believe you didn't understand that. I was trying to help you... I tried to make that clear, and you treated me like this... My goodness... Whoever ends up marrying you in the future must be blind..."
Without another word, he retreated to his room to change his clothes. A bath would have been a luxury he couldn't afford.
"A true gentleman doesn't fight with a woman," Cha-Eun Xiao thought to himself. "Especially when there's no way I could win..."
...
After some time, Wen-Ren Chu-Chu returned, strolling casually with her hands behind her back. She smiled sweetly and said, "Brother Feng, I apologize for startling you earlier."
Cha-Eun Xiao sighed and raised his hands in surrender, speaking earnestly, "Of course. Lady Chu-Chu, if you don't care about your health, or if you no longer wish to live... You can treat me as your captor again. You know how stubborn I can be. Don't expect me to cure your illness or maintain our friendship..."
"It was my fault," Wen-Ren Chu-Chu replied with a soft smile. "Brother Feng, you're a magnanimous man. I'm sure you won't hold it against me, right?"
Cha-Eun Xiao retorted with annoyance, "How do you know whether I'm magnanimous or not? Honestly, even I don't know if I'm a magnanimous man! Do I care? Of course, I care!"
Wen-Ren Chu-Chu was taken aback. [Why is he being so narrow-minded in front of a woman? What kind of man is he?]
But after a few more conciliatory words, Cha-Eun Xiao realized he couldn't push her too far. He had already gained all the advantages he could from their situation. He definitely couldn't provoke this fiery woman again.
If this unrestrained girl lost her temper once more, he might truly find himself imprisoned.
Wen-Ren Chu-Chu was torn.
[What should I do? I don't care about my own life. If I die, so be it... But what about my beloved master who treats me like her own daughter? The opportunity is right in front of me. I have to take it. If I don't, how can I know if this guy is lying or not? But if I do it, what about my reputation?]
The thought of a man touching her abdomen made her whole body flush with heat, despite her normally shrewd and decisive demeanor. She felt both helpless and hesitant.
"May I inquire about your cultivation level?" Cha-Eun Xiao broached the subject, breaking the tense silence.
The atmosphere in the room grew heavy with silence, and Cha-Eun Xiao felt it was necessary to break it. After all, he was the man in this situation, so he cleared his throat and initiated the conversation.
In a casual tone, Wen-Ren Chu-Chu replied, "I'm at Level 9 of the Grade of Diyuan."
"Ahem!" Cha-Eun Xiao coughed and couldn't help but break into a nervous sweat. Inside his mind, he was grappling with the fact that this petite young woman had reached the ninth level of the Grade of Diyuan. He thought to himself, [What on earth? This young girl has actually attained the ninth level of the Grade of Diyuan. It's a good thing I didn't engage in combat with her; she could have easily defeated me with a single finger. I'm only at the 1st level of the Grade of Diyuan...]
He composed himself and complimented her, saying, "You truly are a genius. It's quite remarkable. However, if you're concerned about your reputation and the person you wish to save isn't that significant to you, we could wait for a few more years. Another opportunity might present itself in the future."
Intrigued, Wen-Ren Chu-Chu inquired, "What do you mean? What kind of opportunity are you talking about?"
Cha-Eun Xiao explained, "While your cultivation level is undoubtedly high, there's still some time before you absolutely require the Regeneration Ink Lotus. You need more time... Perhaps, by then, you might have already married someone. If you come to me for the cure with your husband, that would solve the reputation issue. You wouldn't need to worry too much about me, and your reputation concerns would become less severe."
Wen-Ren Chu-Chu raised her eyebrows again, her eyes wide open in surprise. She became visibly angry and exclaimed, "Are you suggesting that my reputation becomes irrelevant once I'm married? Feng Zhi-Ling, what do you mean by that? Are you enjoying making a fool out of me?"
Cha-Eun Xiao's eyes widened, and he was momentarily struck dumb. [What in the world! What do you want me to say then? If we proceed now, you're worried about your reputation! But you also want to stay alive and improve! I suggested an alternative solution for your benefit, and you rejected it and got angry instead! If your reputation matters so much to you, why don't you just accept the consequences and die with it? At least, I wouldn't be in this agonizing predicament! Every word feels like a battle against a million foes... This is incredibly frustrating!]
"I will do it!" Wen-Ren Chu-Chu declared with determination, and the blush on her face nearly reached her chest.
She had made up her mind, reasoning, [This is not my true appearance anyway. This fellow will never know my true identity... Besides, the situation with my master doesn't allow for any more delay. I am her chosen heir. How can I pass up this opportunity, no matter how slim it may be? If I have to endure some hardship... so be it. I should consider it as a dog bite.]
"What? Did you just say... you'll do it?" Cha-Eun Xiao was taken aback by her sudden change of heart.
He had been honing his mastery of the two extremes of heat and cold in his cultivation and had become proficient in controlling them. He had invented the term 'Purple Sky-fire' for his technique, although it wasn't entirely fabricated. The process of curing her involved using scorching yang qi to dispel the cold qi in her body, and this hot qi was indeed derived from the East-rising Purple Qi. So, referring to it as the Purple Sky-fire wasn't entirely inaccurate.
While the name might not have been entirely truthful, even if there were a real dan fire called the Purple Sky-fire, it would still pale in comparison to the most powerful martial art in the universe - the East-rising Purple Qi! It was the unparalleled rival of every other martial art.
With this knowledge, Cha-Eun Xiao was confident in his ability to cure her. However, he had never anticipated that after all her talk about reputation, her repeated refusals, and even the soup-throwing incident, she would suddenly change her mind and agree.
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