Chapter 155: The Hermit Dreams Long by Day Below

After the domineering kiss, Sheng Yuanyao felt a bit of regret herself.

She was too nervous; her first kiss was gone like that, yet she felt nothing. What a loss...

No, how could it be regret? It should be regret for being so rash. Her lover is Shen Tang; what is she doing? Offering herself up as a concubine?

Tsk!

Letting him have it once was one thing, but being bitten by a dog... being chewed by a dog.

Seeing Lu Xingzhou still looking a bit dazed, Sheng Yuanyao gave a "Hmph," turned her head, and walked away.

After walking two steps, she found her loose hair annoying and wanted to tie it up, but she hadn't brought an extra hair tie.

Just two steps later, her foot stopped; she turned around directly to grab what was in Lu Xingzhou's hand: "Give me back my hair tie."

Lu Xingzhou lifted his hand up; Sheng Yuanyao grabbed his arm, missed the first grab, then jumped up to grab again.

Lu Xingzhou pulled back, and Sheng Yuanyao ended up clinging to his body.

"Lu Xingzhou!" Sheng Yuanyao ground her teeth while leaning on his chest: "Is your leg healed just to bully girls? If I had known this, you should have stayed in a wheelchair."

"The hair tie is a gift; how can it be taken back so casually?" Lu Xingzhou stuffed the hair tie directly into his ring, supported her shoulders, turned her around, and walked arm-in-arm toward the cliff edge: "Your hair looks good loose too; classic long hair fluttering, the mountain breeze gives it a special feel."

You're quite natural, huh? What's the meaning of holding my shoulder like this?

Sheng Yuanyao was both angry and amused, so she simply wrapped her arm around him in return and even patted it: "Little Lu, if you're short on women, go find your Pei Green Tea; flirting with me is enough, be good."

The two reached the edge of the summit in a few steps; there were two ancient pines here, vigorous and green, like two dragons gazing at the lake. Between the two pines, a natural shaded spot had formed, with red flower buds winding along, half-open, half-closed, filled with floral fragrance everywhere. Turning around, the buds had even climbed onto the eaves of the guesthouse behind. Green pines and red buds, complementing each other, truly a perfect place to escape the summer heat.

"What flower is this?" Sheng Yuanyao had no research on these things.

Lu Xingzhou, who researched medicinal herbs, actually knew better than her, the owner: "Climbing Trumpet Vine. Its medicinal nature is sour and slightly cold, enters the liver meridian, has the effects of clearing heat and cooling blood, resolving stasis and dissipating nodules, and expelling wind to stop itching. It mainly treats blood stagnation amenorrhea, dysmenorrhea..."

"Stop, stop, stop!" Sheng Yuanyao scolded: "Truly burning the crane to cook the fish, ruining the mood."

"Ha..." Lu Xingzhou put away his professional habit and smiled: "This flower loves to climb, very suitable for courtyard planting; planting it at guesthouses is quite common. The flowering season is summer; it hasn't bloomed yet... but these buds are considered early."

"It was going to be soon anyway; it's already the third month." Sheng Yuanyao was very expectant: "It will definitely look beautiful when it blooms fully."

While talking, the two naturally sat side by side between the pines, looking down at the lake below from a high vantage point.

Tree shadows swayed, floral fragrance assaulted the senses; the kiss just now seemed to have been blown away by the oncoming mountain breeze, leaving no trace.

Yet as the mountain breeze swept over her slightly moist lips, Sheng Yuanyao couldn't help but feel a sour bitterness in her heart.

No feeling, what a huge loss for me; losing my first kiss and still pretending not to care.

Long hair is so inconvenient; the wind blows and it flutters wildly, hair strands brushing against her face, both itchy and blocking her vision, making the distance look blurry.

Sheng Yuanyao didn't know if her eyes just lacked focus, making the distance look blurry by nature.

That surname Lu guy, half-said something, finished feeling me up and now he's savoring it, right?

Sheng Yuanyao stole a glance, checking what Lu Xingzhou on the side was doing.

She saw Lu Xingzhou playfully pulling grass from the side, then tying the blades together one by one.

Sheng Yuanyao couldn't help but laugh: "Hey, how old are you?"

Lu Xingzhou said leisurely: "Young Lady Sheng gave me something good; I'm tying grass and hanging a ring to repay you."

"Is 'tying grass and hanging a ring' used like that? You're quite cultured."

"Of course." Lu Xingzhou was still grinding away at the rope: "You asked how old I am... it actually reminded me that I really liked playing like this when I was little, but this kind of simple happiness hasn't been around for many years."

Sheng Yuanyao folded her arms over her knees, rested her chin on her forearms, and turned her head to watch him play.

She also felt that simply sitting in the mountains playing with grass and blowing in the wind, this kind of simple happiness hadn't been around for many years either.

His profile is really so good-looking...

If he weren't so good-looking, I would have thrown him in jail on the first day we met; a dead liar, not a single true word.

Now even my first kiss has been tricked away, and he even plucked my hair tie; he's simply inhuman.

Sheng Yuanyao turned her head back and continued looking at the lake.

The mountain breeze blew her messy hair back over her eyes again; Sheng Yuanyao rested her chin on her arm, a bit too lazy to move. Just as she was worrying, a hand reached out from the side and gently brushed her messy hair behind her ear.

Sheng Yuanyao turned to look at him; Lu Xingzhou smiled slightly: "Wrong direction; turn that way."

Sheng Yuanyao gave a "Hmph," turned away angrily, and refused to look at him.

But she discovered he was combing her loose long hair, gathering it into a single bundle.

Sheng Yuanyao was stunned for a moment, then felt something tie onto her hair, re-bundling it into a ponytail.

Sheng Yuanyao sat quietly there, letting him tie her hair, and her heart started pounding again.

She clearly knew he was flirting, but she was like a martial artist with a huge realm gap; that long sword pierced from beyond the heavens, how could she dodge it? One sword pierced the heart, stuck solid and firm.

"See, the hair tie was taken back; there's always a substitute, right?" Lu Xingzhou withdrew his hand very satisfied, looking her over left and right.

Sheng Yuanyao turned around and around, found she couldn't see, so she reached out to feel.

One touch and she felt it; it was the grass he had just tied.

Sheng Yuanyao was both angry and amused: "You give me something like this? It will break in no time."

"This is a temporary substitute; seeing how unaccustomed you are to not tying your hair, I'll barely tie it up for now." Lu Xingzhou looked her over, quite satisfied with his own craftsmanship: "Indeed, a good-looking person looks good wearing anything."

Sheng Yuanyao didn't know what evil she had fallen under; clearly the other party had just given her something worthless, she was verbally complaining, yet her heart was quite happy... if she knew there was a word called romance.

The corners of her mouth unknowingly curled up: "You do have some conscience."

Pei Chuyun was quietly complaining to A Nuo: "Look at that cheap look."

A Nuo glanced at her sideways; this sentence sounded so familiar; it seemed like what Sister Yao used when evaluating you.

Pei Chuyun touched her chin and looked: "I have to say, this worthless stuff actually suits her quite well, especially the color."

A Nuo: "... You aren't wearing anything, and your color is the same as hers; is this the realm?"

Pei Chuyun: "?"

She suddenly remembered, she was so busy eating Sheng Yuanyao's melon that she forgot this was cheating on her!

Just as she planned to rush over and ruin it, she heard Sheng Yuanyao say: "A bit of conscience, but not much. You said you could get a famous poem for this place; hurry up and bring it out."

Pei Chuyun shrank back instantly, her eyes flashing.

Anuo: "... What about your catching of the adulterers?"

"For the sake of the poem, what's wrong with letting that dog couple play a bit longer?"

Anuo fell silent; in truth, she wanted to say she feared that after hearing the poem, Lu Xingzhou would want to give himself to her to play with.

Regrettably, it was inappropriate for a child to say such a thing, so she let it be.

Lu Xingzhou was speaking: "There are many poems about boating on the lake; originally, I wasn't very sure which to use, but the flowers here are quite interesting... This time, there truly is a poem."

Sheng Yuanyao nudged him: "Speak quickly, don't keep us in suspense."

Lu Xingzhou softly chanted: "Two dragons rise opposite, white armor and gray beard amidst the mist and rain. Sparse shadows, faint fragrance, below lies a recluse in a long daytime dream."

Sheng Yuanyao was stunned, her heart drumming once more.

This was not a poem about scenery; it was a poem about her.

The secret dream in her heart, unspeakable... he knew it...

"You..." Sheng Yuanyao began to stutter: "This, this poem has nothing to do with this garden... This garden has mountains and a lake, yet relies on no recluse..."

"Of course there is a lake," Lu Xingzhou continued. "The lake wind is clear and soft; two magpies fly over, quarreling noisily at dusk. Green ripples, light red, occasionally dropping the hundred-foot trumpet vine flower."

Sheng Yuanyao's appreciation was average; she couldn't quite discern how good it was, but with trees, flowers, and a lake, it should be fine... Her heart was mainly occupied by "sparse shadows, faint fragrance, recluse, long daytime dream," and her heartbeat remained unsettled.

Pei Chuyun, eavesdropping in the distance, stood frozen there, motionless for a long time.

Her mind was far clearer than the uncultured Sheng Yuanyao's; this so-called recluse did not necessarily refer to a woman; this clearly described a mountain scene beyond the world, a layman resting idly in the mountains, full of immortal intent.

As if only at this very moment did Pei Chuyun suddenly realize that everyone was cultivating immortality.

However, trapped in the mundane world for so long, she had long forgotten the appearance of immortals.

In fact, even Lu Xingzhou himself was pondering this question; the ci was copied, but whether it was Li Taibai copied before or Su Dongpo the Layman copied now, they always brought a feeling like immortal music from beyond the world, at least making them seem more like immortals than the vast majority of the busy, mediocre people of this world.

Could it be that the cultivation of this world cannot reach the ancient times because of this very point?

Riding the void, controlling the wind, driving the mist, and soaring the clouds had all become high-level pursuits unattainable for the vast majority; then what of the even higher levels? Would they not even have the qualification to hear of them?

Sheng Yuanyao's eyes sparkled: "I'll go find someone to engrave a stele, right here among the pines, carve these few lines of yours, and will this garden become famous?"

Lu Xingzhou did not answer; Pei Chuyun murmured in her heart: "It will."

The few small lyrics she had written herself were far inferior in quality to these, and also inferior to the few poems Lu Xingzhou had given her before, yet the reputation of the Pei family's talented lady had spread throughout Jingcheng within half a month, admired by everyone.

If these few poems of Lu Xingzhou's could not still control the scene and spread a beautiful name, that would truly be strange.

Sheng Yuanyao was speaking: "I'll arrange for someone later. Now the sun is still early; shall we go inside to rest for a while?"

"Fox spirit, in broad daylight, inviting someone into the room, do you have no shame!" Pei Chuyun almost wanted to flash over and cause trouble.

Anuo held her tightly: "Sister, don't bring shame upon yourself; how many times have you and Master been making love in the room? Going there will only get you scolded."

With just this one obstruction, Lu Xingzhou and Sheng Yuanyao over there had already entered the room and disappeared from sight.

Pei Chuyun fumed: "You are clearly siding with Sheng Yuanyao! You have a good relationship with her and like her to be your stepmother, right? She is deceiving you; if she truly becomes a stepmother, she will beat you every day!"

Anuo sighed softly: "But Sister, what use is it for you to destroy it? The one who dares not commit is yourself."

Pei Chuyun fell completely silent.

(End of this chapter)