Spectating the Angsty Romance of the Master and Disciple from the Sect Next Door Chapter 36

Li Jin’an took out the dishes from the food box and arranged them one by one. She looked up and saw Xie Huaixue still standing in place. She scoffed, “Teacher Xie, aren’t you eating? If you starve, it would make someone’s heart ache.”
Xie Huaixue casually walked back and sat down and asked leisurely, “Who is ‘someone’?”
“I don’t know either, but it’s definitely not me,” Li Jin’an pouted.
“Hmm.”
Li Jin’an: “…?”
That’s it, just “Hmm”? Aren’t you going to say anything else?
She was so annoyed she laughed. She fiercely used her chopsticks to snatch the piece of meat Xie Huaixue was about to pick up, put it into her own mouth, chewed it up, and only after swallowing did she say, “Aren’t you going to introduce me?”
Xie Huaixue countered, “Introduce what?”
Li Jin’an’s phoenix eyes narrowed, and she said in a strange tone, “The one who just delivered your meal and called you Teacher Xie. I saw her for a moment; that young woman is quite good-looking.”
Tsk, she wondered what the restaurant was thinking. The clothes they gave the server were very form-fitting, emphasizing her long legs and slender waist. The young woman’s smile was very bright, and her mouth was wide open… She just had to ask, was this a proper place to eat?! Restaurants nowadays resort to truly dirty tricks to attract customers.
“I don’t know her, so how can I introduce her to you?” Xie Huaixue looked at her in confusion. “Didn’t you order the meal? She delivers it every day and picks up the food box the next, and other than that, I haven’t spoken with her.”
“As for the title ‘Teacher Xie’…”
Xie Huaixue glanced at her lightly. “Because I have a fiancée famous in Huai’an, I, a small teacher who teaches children to read, am also widely known and respected.”
Li Jin’an’s expression changed from gloomy to sunny. Her ruffled feathers smoothed down nicely, and she was even a little shy from the praise.
The corners of her mouth were almost curving up, her eyes wide and sparkling. She used the hand holding her chopsticks to cover her mouth. “Ah, you don’t need to feel too burdened. It’s just that the mortal residents of Huai’an City are too simple-minded. Just accept whatever they call you, don’t be shy, and just teach the children well.”
“Alright, I understand,” Xie Huaixue said with a smile, using her chopsticks to put food into Li Jin’an’s bowl.
Lest she get too caught up in her beauty and stop eating.
Li Jin’an was distracted. She ate whatever Xie Huaixue gave her, completely oblivious to the fact that she had eaten several pieces of vegetables she usually disliked the most.
As she ate, she felt something was off with the taste. She wanted to look up, but there were a few more pieces of meat in her bowl, so Li Jin’an had no time to concern herself with anything else and could only continue to eat diligently.
In treating Li Jin’an’s picky eating, Xie Huaixue was simply a divine physician!
While clearing the dishes, Li Jin’an even burped. Leaning on the table, she said with difficulty, “Next time, feed me less. I’m not a slop bucket; you can’t shove everything into my mouth.”
Besides, she had eaten everything, so what would Xie Huaixue eat? Xie Huaixue’s waist was so thin it looked like it would disappear. She didn’t know to eat more and gain some weight. She was truly afraid that if the wind blew, Xie Huaixue would just fly away with it. It wasn’t like they couldn’t afford food at home. There was no need to self-sacrificingly leave all the good things for the ‘child’ like many mortal parents. She wasn’t Xie Huaixue’s offspring; their family definitely didn’t need that kind of treatment.
Xie Huaixue responded with a sound and then disappeared. Li Jin’an thought she had gone to read and didn’t pay it any mind. After clearing the dishes, she returned to her small room.
She and Xie Huaixue didn’t share a room. The well-lit wing room on the east side was left for Xie Huaixue, while she lived in the smaller west wing room. The room only had a bed and a table; it was hard to even turn around, and the room was dark and narrow.
When they rented the place, the agent had given false advertising. How could two people live well renting this small courtyard?!
When Li Jin’an lay in bed at night, she felt her life was hopeless, afraid that one day the roof would collapse on her.
She always felt that her life shouldn’t be this bleak. But no matter how she thought or recalled, she was still the swordswoman Li Jin’an. Far from being able to casually replace emperors, she couldn’t even pamper her fiancée like a princess.
Not long after she lay down, there was a knock on her door.
Li Jin’an scrambled out of bed. She opened the door and found Xie Huaixue carrying a bucket of hot water, which she quickly took.
“What is it?”
“To welcome you back and cleanse away dust,” Xie Huaixue said, holding up the mugwort leaves in her hand. “After a trip out, it’s customary to dispel evil and ill luck when returning home.”
Li Jin’an’s mind suddenly went blank, her focus oddly specific. “You think I’m dirty?”
To be fair, for the past nine days she’d been out, she really had rough it out to save time, riding against the wind, sand, and dust. She didn’t even dare to open her mouth to breathe, afraid of eating a mouthful of sand. She was definitely dirty, but that wasn’t Xie Huaixue’s reason to dislike her. Every night, Xie Huaixue would bathe first, and Li Jin’an would use the leftover hot water. Mainly because her bathing was comparable to washing her face; just a quick rub-down was enough. While washing, she would mumble about purification spells, spiritual energy dust removal, immaculate bodies, and a bunch of other things she didn’t even understand herself. It wasn’t that she didn’t like bathing, or that she didn’t like cleanliness! Every time she muttered in front of Xie Huaixue, Xie Huaixue would respond in a low voice. Li Jin’an felt she was too obviously perfunctory, and she would silently sulk.
Xie Huaixue chuckled, shaking her head. “No, this is a custom in Huai’an City. If a family member travels far, upon returning, they should bathe with mugwort leaves to wash away the dust and ill luck from outside.”
Li Jin’an softly said, “Oh,” and carrying the bucket, she was about to enter her room. Before taking two steps, she turned back and looked at Xie Huaixue in astonishment. “I’m bathing, what are you doing following me?”
Are you trying to be perverted?!
“I’ll help you wash your hair.”
A false alarm.
“…” Li Jin’an flattened the corners of her mouth and said, “Not now. I’ll call you after I’m done bathing.”
“Alright.”
Her waist-length hair was usually tied into a high ponytail with a hair ornament, which was very convenient and wouldn’t come undone even during fights. But washing it was truly troublesome. When she was recovering from injuries earlier, she’d washed it halfway and found the activity utterly boring, so she confidently entrusted her head to Xie Huaixue. She had her own logic to convince herself: this wasn’t a sign of weakness, but a necessary step to keep her hair clean.
While bathing, thinking that Xie Huaixue was still waiting for her, Li Jin’an got out of the wooden tub after fifteen minutes. It was practically like she had barely touched the water before coming ashore.
Li Jin’an simply put on an inner garment, her long hair half-damp. Her body radiating misty warmth and dampness, she pushed open the door. Water vapor filled the air; her sharp phoenix eyes were faintly visible behind the mist, and in an instant, they landed on Xie Huaixue.
Her usual sharp aura hadn’t diminished in the slightest; only her overly captivating features were fully revealed, complementing each other perfectly. Even without makeup, her magnificent and dazzling beauty, utterly unreserved, seemed to pounce forward, declaring its presence.
Along with this came the unique, fervent and warm aura from Li Jin’an’s body, overwhelming and surging forth with steam. It instantly enveloped Xie Huaixue, completely covering her, perfectly snug, leaving no room for breath.
Normally, she wouldn’t feel anything. But now, with a single breath, her nostrils, mouth, lungs, and heart were filled with Li Jin’an’s essence. It inexplicably gave her a sense of inescapable allure.
Xie Huaixue’s fingertips twitched. She lowered her eyelids, avoiding Li Jin’an’s gaze, her eyelashes fluttering briefly. Her voice was so light it was almost unheard. “I’ll help you wash your hair.”
Li Jin’an responded lazily, “Let’s wash it in the courtyard.”
The room was too small, really not enough space for two people.
Xie Huaixue seemed to think of something and was momentarily distracted. Only then did she carry the bucket and walk out.
Li Jin’an brought out the long bench she had foresightfully bought earlier. She lay on it, her head resting on Xie Huaixue’s lap, and rubbed a few times uncomfortably. Finally adjusting to a comfortable position, she looked up at the other person with a grin. “Don’t splash water into my eyes.”
“Don’t move around.”
As she rubbed against her like a kitten or puppy, the soft flesh she was rubbing against felt hot and itchy. Xie Huaixue’s heart trembled, and her expression subtly changed. If she instinctively threw Li Jin’an away, Li Jin’an would surely raise hell.
“Oh.” She wasn’t honest for long. Li Jin’an stared at Xie Huaixue’s chin and asked, “From this angle, does looking at me particularly damage my beauty?”
Xie Huaixue, who was wetting her dark hair, showed no change in expression, her hands not stopping. “No, your appearance is unsurpassed; all human beauty is like dust.”
“…What does that mean?”
Can’t you praise people more directly?!
“No one is more beautiful than you.”
Li Jin’an pouted again. Who praises someone with such a quiet and indifferent tone and expression? Perfunctory, too perfunctory. If only Xie Huaixue would even glance at her face, it might have some credibility.
She reciprocated the compliment. “You’re beautiful too.”
“Hmm.”
How boring.
Li Jin’an then turned to examine the jade pendant on Xie Huaixue’s lapel. This was something she had carefully selected and bought, so she was naturally very familiar with it. But in front of Xie Huaixue, her hands and mouth just couldn’t stay still.
Xie Huaixue’s technique was too gentle, and after being constantly busy for nine days, Li Jin’an’s body had long reached its limit. She dozed off in a daze.
When she woke up again, the sky had already completely darkened. Tree shadows swayed, and the night breeze gently blew, bringing with it waves of coolness. Xie Huaixue was wiping her long hair dry.
“Are your legs numb?” Li Jin’an struggled to sit up. She still remembered how Xie Huaixue’s shoulder had gone numb when she leaned on her before.
“Don’t move. It’ll be dry soon.”
Li Jin’an obediently stayed still. She found her entire body was dry, but Xie Huaixue’s clothes around her waist were splashed with water.
She lightly traced the wet part of Xie Huaixue’s clothes with her fingertip. It brushed across her heart like a flying feather, and she said with emotion, “Good thing I bought you new clothes,”
Xie Huaixue grasped her hand, paused for a moment, and still said those two words, “Don’t move.”
Li Jin’an stared blankly at their clasped hands, fair and delicate, with a faint blush on the knuckles. Each possessing its own unique charm, yet perfectly harmonious when intertwined, like colliding jade stones, stunningly beautiful.
Originally, she should have immediately pulled her hand away from Xie Huaixue’s. But seeing this scene, she inexplicably hesitated for a few breaths. Her normally calm heart began to beat wildly, thumping repeatedly, tumultuous and fervent, it just wouldn’t stop. In the silent night, it seemed as if someone’s heartbeats overlapped, deafening.
Li Jin’an didn’t move, and neither did Xie Huaixue.
The two gazed at each other in silence.
The atmosphere solidified. Not a confrontation, but more intense than one. Li Jin’an was very uncomfortable and wanted to break eye contact, but if she was the first to look away, wouldn’t that mean she was more guilty than Xie Huaixue and at a disadvantage? Xie Huaixue’s gaze rested lightly on Li Jin’an’s face, silent yet heavy.
“Don’t tell me you’re trying to take advantage of me?” After holding it in again and again, Li Jin’an’s voice was dry as she finally managed to squeeze out a sentence.