Chapter 202: Unveiling (Begging for Monthly Votes)

Ye Tinglan fell silent, as if deep in thought.

Lu Xingzhou said no more, eating with Anuo to his heart's content.

By the time Ye Tinglan came to her senses, the dishes were nearly finished.

Ye Tinglan picked up her chopsticks in a huff and clamped down on a slice of radish.

The air seemed to freeze for a moment; Lu Xingzhou and Anuo chewed in perfect unison, then turned to stare blankly at her.

Ye Tinglan lifted a corner of her veil, ate the radish without looking away, and said, "Why are you all staring at me? Can't I eat? Just watching you eat?"

Lu Xingzhou smiled: "Of course you can. But isn't eating like that a bit inconvenient?"

"Trying to trick me into taking off my veil again." Ye Tinglan was both annoyed and amused: "What exactly is going on in that head of yours?"

"To be honest... it's a bit odd for a disciple not to know what their own Mr. looks like, isn't it? Have you ever seen a Mr. and disciple like this?"

Ye Tinglan paused, then realized he had a point.

The root cause was her own impure motives when taking disciples; she hadn't initially seen them as disciples, and now that she was used to it, the request to remove the veil felt awkward. This was a lingering historical issue.

Ye Tinglan thought for a moment and found herself a way out: "Complete one of my assessments, and I will remove my veil."

Lu Xingzhou simply lowered his head and shoveled rice, ignoring her completely.

"Hey!" Ye Tinglan slammed her chopsticks down: "What do you mean by that?"

"Nothing. Anuo, are you done? Let's go."

The master and disciple tossed down a fragment of silver and dashed out of the inn to stroll the streets.

Their whispers could still be faintly heard: "Having to pass an assessment just to see what the disciple looks like? Never seen anyone so pretentious."

"Shh... maybe she's very beautiful. When women get overconfident, they think this counts as a reward."

"Or maybe she's ugly? If she were truly beautiful, why cover herself every day? I think Sister Anlu would love everyone praising her."

"That's different; after all, she's a First Grade, so she has some airs."

"Does Sister Yu wear the Yanluo King mask for the same reason?"

"Not at all. That cute little demoness look of hers lacks authority; she wears it to scare people. Have you heard of Lanling Wang?"

"No..."

"Let Master tell you. Once upon a time there was a..."

Their voices gradually faded away. Ye Tinglan ate a few mouthfuls of vegetables expressionlessly; the taste was like chewing wax, and she was seething with anger inside.

If you don't want to look, fine. Do you think I'm begging you to look?

Glancing around, she noticed the diners staring strangely at her lifting her veil with one hand to eat vegetables, as if she were a fool. Ye Tinglan slammed her chopsticks down, stopped eating, and stormed back to the guest courtyard, puffed up with rage.

What's so good about this? Common worldly dishes, utterly vulgar.

She hadn't yet realized that in just a few days outside the capital, her emotions were becoming increasingly volatile...

After meditating in her room for a short while, voices drifted in from outside the courtyard; the two rotten eggs had returned from their stroll.

"Knock, knock~" The sound of knocking rang out, and Lu Xingzhou's voice called: "Is Mr. in?"

Ye Tinglan didn't want to see him at all and snapped: "What is it?"

"Anuo and I were shopping just now, and we brought some things for Mr."

"Take them back. I don't want them."

"Mr. will definitely like them."

Ye Tinglan felt a spark of curiosity: "You know what I like? Come in and see."

The door opened, and Lu Xingzhou placed a stack of veils on the side: "Seeing that Mr. hasn't changed hers in so long, it must be uncomfortable. Here are three hundred and sixty-five; change one every day without repeating, no need to wash."

Ye Tinglan's hands clenched until they cracked: "Lu Xingzhou, do you really think I won't beat you?"

"Huh?" Lu Xingzhou looked bewildered: "Does Mr. not like them? I thought Mr. treasured them greatly."

Ye Tinglan was so angry she laughed: "Get out."

"So Mr. doesn't treasure them?" Lu Xingzhou stroked his chin: "Then may I trade these three hundred and sixty-five for Mr.'s single one?"

Ye Tinglan sneered: "You said you'd remove the veil upon passing the assessment; why are you pretending not to want to see it now?"

Lu Xingzhou said: "This doesn't require an assessment at all. How about I pose a question? If Mr. cannot answer, then..."

Ye Tinglan glanced at him sideways: "You think you can stump me?"

"Just try and see. Anyway, Mr. already intended to remove the veil, so there's no loss whether you answer or not."

Ye Tinglan felt a small flush of embarrassment and chided herself inwardly: Even if I'm looking for an excuse, you shouldn't expose it so blatantly. Do you want to save any face? "Don't tell me you made up something like Lanling Wang? No one could answer that."

"Of course not... hmm, let's say it's about a well-known figure of the current era."

Ye Tinglan snorted: "If you mention some idle ruffian, I truly know less than you. But as for well-known figures, how could you stump me? Speak."

What kind of joke is this? After a hundred years of ups and downs, would a young whippersnapper know more well-known figures than her?

But she heard Lu Xingzhou say: "Hmm, what is the true origin of Yan Jun Yuan Muyu? This person is well-known enough, right?"

Ye Tinglan stared blankly at him, momentarily frozen.

Of course she is well-known, and you've asked the right person.

You could ask everyone in the world, and no one would know the details of Yuan Muyu's origin better than her, Ye Tinglan. She even knew exactly what color diapers Yuan Muyu wore as a child; she changed them herself.

But is this something she can say?

Lu Xingzhou's intelligence made it obvious he had already guessed she and Yuan Muyu shared the same origin; Yuan Muyu's "running away from home" back then was just a quarrel with her, which was easy to deduce. And then? If she said they were from the Heavenly Yao Holy Land, wouldn't that plainly tell him she was the Imperial Preceptor Ye Tinglan?

Her current cover story is the hidden Xian Sect, Yunyin Xian Sect; for this, she even created a fake model, so anyone investigating "Lady Ye's" background would find this real-existing sect.

So should she tell him that Yuan Muyu also originated from Yunyin Xian Sect? But that isn't "true"; by the rules of the question, that would be the wrong answer.

Even if she wanted to cover it up, this fellow is so familiar with Yuan Muyu; if they met someday and he asked about "Yunyin Xian Sect," and Yuan Muyu replied she'd never heard of it, wouldn't everything be exposed?

After being frozen for a while, Ye Tinglan slowly came back to her senses, thinking inwardly that since removing the veil was just about finding an excuse, she might as well do it.

So she said: "You might be slightly mistaken... I am not very familiar with Yan Jun, which is why I asked you so many questions. I truly cannot answer this question."

Having spoken, she reached out, lifted the veil, and casually set it aside: "You are right; a disciple ought not to be ignorant of her teacher's appearance. Now that you have seen clearly?"

No one responded.

Lu Xingzhou stood there, dazed and stunned, his heart about to leap out of his throat.

You don't know her? You look so much like Yuan Muyu, a mature and charming version of Yuan Muyu. You say you don't know her!

I would even believe you if you called her Yuan's mother.

It is just that their temperaments are vastly different.

In her youth, Yuan Muyu was petite and coquettish; later, as she performed more demonic rites and her status rose higher and higher, the demeanor of the little demon girl was restrained, giving way to an increasingly sharp, ruthless majesty and malevolence.

But the Lady Ye before your eyes, whose temperament also carries a majestic coldness due to her long-standing high position, is yet calm and profound; when she looks at you steadily, it is like the distant night sky shining quietly, without a ripple.

It seems this pair themselves reflect the divide between the Blue Heavens and the Yellow Springs, between Immortal and Demon.

Ye Tinglan had thought up a host of questions but never considered the matter of her resemblance to Yuan Muyu; she had been blind in the light of the lamp... Seeing Lu Xingzhou's dazed expression, those calm eyes gradually filled with shamed anger: "Do you need to wipe off your drool?"

"Ah?" Lu Xingzhou came to his senses: "Uh, Mr. misunderstood; I have seen this appearance many times..."

Ye Tinglan: "?"

Lu Xingzhou cautiously and quietly reached for the veil on the tea table, snatched it up with a "whoosh": "Then I'm taking this wager."

Ye Tinglan reacted: "Stop! What wager? Isn't it just lifting the veil?"

Lu Xingzhou spoke with grave seriousness: "I just said 'then...' and didn't finish. Combined with what was said earlier about exchanging three hundred and sixty-five veils for this one, it naturally means 'then give me the veil'."

Having spoken, he pressed the ring, turned, and ran.

Just as he ran out of the room, a void palm descended from the sky, "Bang!" smashing him into the ground; he twitched twice and lay still.

Ye Tinglan blew on her palm, looking at the little man outside the room with some amusement, yet in the end did not go to snatch back the veil, merely waving her hand as the door slammed shut.

As if separating dimensions, the air grew quiet, and the heart inexplicably felt much lighter, even a bit inclined to laugh.

He said he hoped for something lighter... It seemed that whether provoking anger or teasing, he employed many small tricks all aimed at this goal.

One must admit, it was quite effective.

It seemed that with the unveiling of the veil, a burden was lifted; henceforth, she was not the Imperial Preceptor carrying the weight of the world, but simply his teacher. She could appear with an unadorned face and meet people at will.

No wonder those noble ladies said little puppy dogs could provide emotional value; they did not deceive me.

Ye Tinglan rose from her seat, stretched, displaying her mature and charming figure without restraint, then leisurely stood by the window gazing at the night, standing silently.

She enjoyed the moon with a light heart, while Lu Xingzhou rolled on his bed, tossing and turning, eyes wide open, completely unable to sleep.

I have seen this appearance many times...

Yet the unspoken words hidden in the heart were: but it is this very appearance that most tugs at the heartstrings.

Moonlight shone on the windowsill, very white.

Lu Xingzhou did not even dare to think: the next time they sat side by side, heads together for private tutoring, would he still be able to hold back his racing heart? Those were the unremarkable earlier years, the memory most deeply imprinted on his heart.

It was as if in the blink of an eye, nothing had changed; she was still sitting beside him teaching, only a bit more mature.

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PS: Though not yet ten thousand, it is close enough~ Righteously asking for monthly tickets!

(End of this chapter)