Spectating the Angsty Romance of the Master and Disciple from the Sect Next Door Chapter 37

Since Li Jin’an’s single sentence had such a startling effect, it’s hard to say what happened behind the scenes, but their overt interaction remained unchanged. It was still the same as before.
When Xie Huaixue went out, she was Teacher Xie, and Li Jin’an was still a bounty hunter, occasionally going hunting in the mountains to improve their household meals. If she hunted ferocious beasts like bears or tigers, she would sell their paws, gallbladders, and similar parts to wealthy families, while the rest would be sold for a high price to restaurants.
However, Li Jin’an still held an imaginary grudge; she just couldn’t stand the sight of the restaurant. She just had to take it out on them!
As for the pelts, she left them for Xie Huaixue. For some reason, Li Jin’an just felt Xie Huaixue would like them. However, in the end, Xie Huaixue sewed these pelts into clothes and bedding for Li Jin’an, only keeping a few pieces for herself.
Every time this happened, Li Jin’an would, with great curiosity, lie beside Xie Huaixue and watch her mend and sew. Her expressions were extremely rich; at one moment, she would exclaim in surprise, her curiosity and admiration impossible to hide, and she would playfully poke and touch with her mischievous hands.
She always felt there was an indescribable strangeness about Xie Huaixue when she sewed and did needlework. Li Jin’an couldn’t describe it well, but she just found it very strange, strange enough to make her shiver. Too bad she didn’t have a memory stone nearby. Otherwise, Qingxiao, Qing… she couldn’t remember. Forget it, she wouldn’t think about it. Li Jin’an was used to her brain acting up occasionally. Terms that didn’t exist in Huai’an City would often pop up, and she would try to recall them but couldn’t, so she didn’t pay it any mind.
Under the veranda, she joyfully dove into the sun-dried pelts and pulled Xie Huaixue to lie with her.
In the intervals of lying down, Li Jin’an looked at Xie Huaixue’s flawless profile, withdrawing her gaze a second before being noticed, and involuntarily pressed her hand to her chest.
Her heart beat like a drum. That was too close; Xie Huaixue almost caught her staring.
Since she said “Don’t tell me you’re trying to take advantage of me” last time, Li Jin’an noticed that something seemed to be subtly changing and fermenting between them in an unknown corner. However, this change wasn’t obvious; it was quiet and imperceptible.
She didn’t know if this change was good or bad, and couldn’t say if she was looking forward to it or resisting it. She could only observe Xie Huaixue’s expression from time to time.
Then Li Jin’an turned this into a game only she knew. That’s just how she was. Even if the sky were to fall, she could still play with the falling clouds for a while.
But Li Jin’an was a bit dissatisfied. Her heart was in turmoil, and she secretly observed Xie Huaixue every day.
Xie Huaixue, on the other hand, was calm as still water, without ripples, as if nothing could move her. A cold and heartless bad woman.
“The firewood at home is almost used up. I’ll go up the mountain to chop wood later, and I’ll pass by Molan Village. Do you want me to bring you an orchid?” Li Jin’an, feeling drowsy as she lay there, asked Xie Huaixue lazily.
Ordinary life passed day by day. Li Jin’an could still go hunting to relax, while Xie Huaixue, when not at the private school, could only pass the time by reading.
Li Jin’an was very afraid that Xie Huaixue would read all the books in Huai’an City’s bookshop. Then she wouldn’t be able to buy new books, and what if Xie Huaixue wanted to teach her to read?
So she helped Xie Huaixue cultivate a hobby of tending to rare plants and herbs, lest Xie Huaixue put her attention on her.
“Alright.”
Li Jin’an felt relieved upon hearing this word. Unable to resist her drowsiness, she peacefully drifted into sleep. Not long after she fell asleep, her body, as if having a will of its own, accurately turned over and burrowed into Xie Huaixue’s embrace.
Right exactly into her embrace.
In her sleep, Li Jin’an naturally rubbed her head against Xie Huaixue’s neck. Once comfortable from the rubbing, like a pet kitten rubbing its scent onto its owner to mark them, she contentedly rested her head on Xie Huaixue’s shoulder and officially entered dreamland.
Xie Huaixue, who was forced to lie on her side, sighed softly. Her gaze lingered on Li Jin’an’s face for a long time.
A moment later, she raised a hand and gently brushed away the stray hairs from Li Jin’an’s forehead. Her warm yet cool fingertips lightly traced downwards, across her serene brow, her high nose bridge, her full lip philtrum…
Her fingertip paused on Li Jin’an’s lips.
Xie Huaixue couldn’t resist and gently pressed down.
A sigh of deep contentment almost spilled from her heart.
Even though Li Jin’an was sleeping soundly, her face serene, with no signs of waking up, Xie Huaixue’s fingertips still trembled. As if afraid of disturbing something, she held her breath for a long time.
Her fingertip moved downwards again, finally stopping at her throat, neither higher nor lower.
Xie Huaixue stared blankly at her index fingertip, breathing in and out. Finally, she raised her arm and pulled Li Jin’an closer, head to head, shoulder to shoulder, and also had a good dream.
The hottest part of the day had passed when the small courtyard gate was knocked.
Xie Huaixue opened her eyes, her gaze clear. She looked at the still-sleeping Li Jin’an beside her, paused for a moment, gently withdrew her numb arm, and got up to open the door.
It was the neighboring old woman.
Xie Huaixue invited her in, but didn’t lead her inside the house. Instead, she stood by the gate and spoke softly.
The small courtyard wasn’t big; a glance could take in everything within it.
The neighboring old woman took a quick look and saw Li Jin’an sleeping restlessly under the veranda. She immediately understood what was going on and looked at Xie Huaixue teasingly.
These young wives certainly know how to be romantic.
Xie Huaixue lowered her gaze and said nothing, asking the neighboring old woman if there was anything.
The neighboring old woman’s granddaughter was learning to read and count with Xie Huaixue at the private school. Plus, with their occasional neighborly visits, they were quite familiar with each other. The old woman had come to say that her younger daughter was going to marry the butcher’s younger daughter from the east side of the city and invited her and Li Jin’an to the wedding banquet.
“She’s not young anymore. Like her father, she spends all day tinkering with old wood, doesn’t like to talk or go out. Her niece is already going to private school, and she still hasn’t found a match. She wouldn’t even agree to meet matchmakers. Who knew that a few days ago, Butcher Zheng came to my house to propose? Only when I asked did I find out these two had long been fond of each other; they just wouldn’t say anything! It really drove me crazy!”
As she spoke about what drove her crazy, the neighboring old woman’s face never stopped smiling, clearly showing she was extremely satisfied with this marriage. And she had an overwhelming desire to confide; even though she kept her voice as low as possible so as not to wake Li Jin’an, she still had to tell Xie Huaixue her family’s gossip.
For some reason, the elderly people in this alley particularly liked to pull Xie Huaixue aside to chat about daily trivialities. Perhaps it was because Xie Huaixue would listen quietly, never contradicting the other person no matter what she heard, and occasionally politely agreeing, just like now.
“This is an excellent marriage.”
They, on the other hand, didn’t like talking about these things with Li Jin’an, or perhaps it was because Li Jin’an was always running around the city, making it hard to catch her.
Although Xie Huaixue’s expression was indifferent, and her tone was very calm while saying words of agreement, the neighboring old woman was still very happy and casually asked, “So when are you and Hero Li going to formalize things? You two have settled in Huai’an City for so long; it’s time you considered getting married. ‘Fiancée’ never sounds as good as ‘wife’.”
Persuading people to marry seemed to be the biggest hobby of relatives and neighbors. The neighboring old woman was no exception; her younger daughter was no longer a concern, so she started worrying about Xie Huaixue and Li Jin’an’s marriage.
Xie Huaixue’s expression remained unchanged. “I will discuss it with Jin’an.”
The neighboring old woman said a few more words before leaving.
Xie Huaixue closed the door and turned around, standing face-to-face with Li Jin’an, even able to feel each other’s shallow breaths.
Li Jin’an seemed to want to scare her, so she stealthily stood close behind Xie Huaixue, all her martial arts skills used for this purpose.
“When did you wake up?” Xie Huaixue not only wasn’t scared but calmly asked her when she had woken up.
“When you mentioned what drove you crazy.” Li Jin’an thought of something and chuckled. “A carpenter and a butcher, a perfect match, can also be considered a family alliance.”
She wasn’t interested in who was marrying whom. After all, the faces she was most familiar with in Huai’an City were those of wanted criminals and yamen runners; she hadn’t even seen the protagonists who were about to get married. She was just being purely mischievous.
“We can go to the banquet together then, and you won’t have to wash dishes,” Xie Huaixue said, glancing at her.
In their home, Xie Huaixue cooked, and Li Jin’an washed dishes. Otherwise, they would eat out. There was no option for Li Jin’an to cook, in any case; otherwise, they would have to be holding hands and weeping in the medical hall.
Li Jin’an hummed, not refuting. Thinking of what the neighboring old woman had just said, she burst into laughter. She put an arm around Xie Huaixue’s shoulder, guffawing, “Why is she still rushing us to marry? She wouldn’t think that the ‘Fuzi’ in ‘Teacher Xie’ means ‘Madam’ and ‘wife,’ would she? What do you say, Teacher Xie?”
Teacher Xie, Hero Li’s madame and wife. Honestly, ‘Teacher’ and ‘Hero’ sounded perfectly matched.
Xie Huaixue didn’t swat her ‘paw’ away but merely said blandly, “Teacher Xie doesn’t know, but Teacher Xie can give you a remedial lesson.”
Li Jin’an immediately withdrew the ‘paw’ resting on Xie Huaixue’s shoulder and put it behind her back, her face plastered with ‘honesty.’ “No need for that! I have to go chop wood now, see you!”
She grabbed her axe and ran, her two legs moving incredibly fast, afraid that if she was a step too slow, Xie Huaixue would catch her and subject her to a horrific ‘re-education’ for adult slackers.
She came out and walked on the street. Li Jin’an wasn’t in a hurry to chop wood, but wandered aimlessly through the streets.
From one end of the street to the other, from East Street to West Street.
She didn’t know if the neighboring old woman’s words urging marriage affected Xie Huaixue, but they definitely affected her.
Li Jin’an felt a bit bewildered. She always felt that everything she saw was illusory, and only Xie Huaixue was real. But she couldn’t find any traces of illusion; all there was was her occasionally acting-up brain. Fortunately, she would calm down whenever she saw Xie Huaixue.
Otherwise, she couldn’t imagine how insane she would become.
Li Jin’an knew she would spend her life under the same roof as Xie Huaixue, but she had never thought their relationship could advance further.
Further than fiancée. That meant ‘madam,’ ‘wife’…
Li Jin’an rubbed her hot, flushed cheeks as if kneading dough. The moment she thought of calling Xie Huaixue by such titles, she felt as if her blood was flowing backward, everything felt wrong. She wished she could run around Huai’an City for three days and three nights; only then could she release the restlessness in her heart.
How strange, countless times stranger than Xie Huaixue doing needlework.
Li Jin’an was at a loss for words. She somewhat regretted not having studied with Xie Huaixue, so she could only cover her chest, trying to make her wildly beating heart calm down.
Something she had never considered was suddenly brought to Li Jin’an’s attention, and she immediately panicked and lost her composure.
Say she disliked Xie Huaixue? Did she dare? Breaking off the engagement? That was simply alarmist talk, don’t even think about it!
“Did she want to marry Xie Huaixue?” Li Jin’an asked herself honestly.
“…”
Li Jin’an felt her heart was too disobedient. Beating so fast, did it want to jump into Xie Huaixue’s hands? How shameless!