My Gentle and Pure Sect Leader Husband-Chapter 15 - Day of Wearing a Disguise

When Yan Hongyin returned to Yan Hong Hall, she looked around but couldn’t find Ah Yu. After asking around and hearing no one had seen him leave, she headed toward the bamboo grove.

“Thwack, thwack thwack——”

Hearing faint sounds of bamboo being cut, Yan Hongyin raised an eyebrow and looked in that direction. She saw a gentleman in deep green robes sitting on the ground in the bamboo grove, with several crooked bamboo stalks piled beside him.

“Ah Yu?” Yan Hongyin crouched beside Yu Luocha and asked, “What are you doing?”

Yu Luocha pretended to ponder, then smiled at Yan Hongyin. “Why don’t you guess?”

Yan Hongyin examined the bamboo stalks of varying lengths for a while before speaking, “Ah Yu, you’re not thinking of making a swing with these, are you? That won’t work – a swing needs sturdy wood to bear weight.”

Yu Luocha shook his head and showed her with interest. “Look, when these bamboo pieces are connected and holes are carved in the center, they make quite interesting sounds.”

Yan Hongyin took what Yu Luocha handed her and examined it, bringing it to her lips to blow. The sound it made was eerie, like a ghost appearing out of nowhere.

If Chu Liuxiang were here, he would certainly recognize this as the ghostly sound he had heard in the courtyard of the northern suburbs’ tavern.

Yu Luocha had only meant to give Yan Hongyin an excuse for why he had been here, so he said, “I just saw the courtyard was empty, and since I had nothing else to do, I thought I’d find something to occupy myself.”

However, Yan Hongyin thought about how Ah Yu must feel somewhat at loose ends staying at home every day, so she said, “Then I want a swing, right by the pond! We’ll have some wood sent over from the carpenter’s, and after Ah Yu takes his medicine these next few days, he can come sit in the courtyard to enjoy the sun and make the swing, how about that?”

Yu Luocha, who had essentially created trouble for himself: “…Alright.”

Originally he only needed to avoid Yan Hongyin’s activities, but now he had to build a swing as well?

Looking at the beautiful person smiling gently and shyly, Yan Hongyin remembered her mental preparation from the past few days. She reached out to hold Yu Luocha’s hand, feeling him involuntarily tremble, which made her heart soften even more. “By the way, I’ve arranged everything at the medicine hall and Merchant Guild. I’ll stay here with you during these seven days while you take the medicine.”

She knew it wasn’t good to avoid contact with Ah Yu like this. Since she had decided to accept Ah Yu as someone she cared for, she should invest herself fully in this relationship. Otherwise, what was the point of her sealing her internal strength?

Master’s breakthrough occurred at the peak of emotional turmoil when severing all attachments and love.- one cannot truly cut off love without understanding it. Without this, she would never be able to break through to the Grandmaster realm.

Meeting someone like Ah Yu who could stir her heart and emotions was already fortunate. If she missed this opportunity, she might never get another one in her lifetime.

Grandmasters might be rare but not impossible to find – it was the realm beyond Grandmaster that held true authority.

If she couldn’t break through to the next level, her position would always be worthless before imperial power. When the Emperor abdicated and the new Emperor ascended, she, as the former Emperor’s trusted Dark Division Commander, would be the first abandoned pawn to be stripped of power and dealt with.

She must use these few days to get used to having Ah Yu by her side, and begin to try experiencing the emotional changes brought by mortal love, to further understand how to circulate her inner cultivation method!

“From now on…” Yan Hongyin made a firm resolution to herself, “No matter how busy I am, I’ll come back every night to keep you company. You just focus on recovering your health.”

Yu Luocha forced a smile. “…Actually there’s no need to because of me…”

Yan Hongyin frowned insistently. “It’s decided.”

Yu Luocha: “…Alright.”

In that moment, Yu Luocha rekindled his desire to strangle this woman.

“By the way, have you taken today’s medicine?” Yan Hongyin asked.

Yu Luocha shook his head and took out the pill from his robes.

Yan Hongyin checked Yu Luocha’s pulse and said, “I’ll go get some water. Ah Yu, take your medicine here beside me.”

While Yan Hongyin went to get water from the courtyard, Yu Luocha looked down at the sharp point he had unconsciously carved with his small knife. He immediately applied force to flatten the point, making it completely ordinary looking.

The pill tasted normal. Yu Luocha took it with water, feeling a gentle warmth spread from his dantian, and felt pleased inside.

Yan Hongyin led Yu Luocha, who was still absorbed in the medicine’s effects, into the courtyard and settled him into the rocking chair.

She counted silently in her mind.

One, two, three… sixteen, seventeen…

Yu Luocha sank into the rocking chair and fell into a deep sleep under the intense effects of the medicine.

Yan Hongyin also yawned and sat down by the lounge chair in the afternoon sun, resting her head on Yu Luocha’s knee and closing her eyes to rest.

These past few days had been so busy that she hadn’t gotten a proper sleep at all.

......

When Yu Luocha woke up, he had an unprecedented feeling of disconnection, as if he didn’t know what time it was.

The edge of the bamboo grove where it met the sky had already taken on the colors of dusk. Yu Luocha moved slightly and felt a weight on his knee. Looking down, he saw Yan Hongyin sleeping soundly beside him.

The medicine’s effects were quite potent, allowing someone to get this close without triggering any sense of alertness or wariness.

Yu Luocha roughly calculated the time and realized he had been unconscious for three to four hours due to the medicine’s effects. However, fortunately the matters he needed to handle had been arranged earlier, and if no news came out in the next few days, he wouldn’t need to risk going out again.

He looked conflictedly at Yan Hongyin sleeping deeply on his knee, his brows furrowing and relaxing, then furrowing again. Finally, considering the seven-day period of taking medicine ahead, he bent down and lifted her in his arms, heading inside the house.

Actually, Yan Hongyin had awakened as soon as Yu Luocha first stirred, but she kept her eyes closed, maintaining slow and even breathing, feeling a strange and unfamiliar thrill as she was held in Ah Yu’s arms.

She had never been cared for like this before, never been embraced in such a protective manner.

In her childhood, her status was lowly – the Emperor wouldn’t come, nor would her royal brothers. Her master practiced the Path of Emotionlessness, and though he treated her like his own child after accepting her as a disciple, he grew colder day by day, becoming less human with each passing day.

Although Ah Yu was somewhat weak from injury and illness, he had coincidentally given Yan Hongyin a warm sense of belonging.

Yan Hongyin always felt that even though she had concealed so many secrets from Ah Yu, he understood her better than anyone who knew her true identity.

Suddenly, Yan Hongyin seemed to understand a bit why her master, who had lived a solitary life without attachments, would still remember someone’s name on his deathbed.

That person… must have been Master’s most sincere attachment to this mortal world, right?

What kind of helpless despair must it have been – to have all one’s feelings invested in one person only to be betrayed – that could enable Master to break through to the next level yet leave his heart as dead as ashes for the rest of his life?

Would she…end up like that too?

When Yu Luocha placed her on the bed, his arm was jabbed by something, and his motion of withdrawing his hand paused.

What was that?

Yu Luocha instinctively bent down to reach for where he had felt it—

At this moment, Yan Hongyin suddenly opened her eyes and rolled toward the inner side of the bed, as if startled by Yu Luocha, then quickly regained her composure. “Oh, it’s Ah Yu…”

Yu Luocha understood that as a female doctor who traveled to treat patients, Yan Hongyin must be vigilant, so he didn’t suspect anything. He just said, “I just wanted to remove your accessories so you could sleep more comfortably.”

“I can’t sleep anymore, or I won’t be able to sleep tonight,” Yan Hongyin waved her hand, quickly sliding off the bed with her right sleeve covering her waist. “Ah Yu, you rest a bit, I’ll go to the front courtyard kitchen to get some food.”

Seeing Yan Hongyin leave, Yu Luocha was quite pleased with this, sitting on the bed and beginning to try circulating his internal strength cultivation method.

Yan Hongyin ran outside the courtyard, pulled out the silver nine-section whip fastened at her waist and gripped it in her hand, finally letting out a long breath.

She had hurried over from the Jinyiwei earlier and hadn’t completely removed her equipment, almost letting Ah Yu discover it.

A nine-section whip was not something an ordinary doctor should have.

Hmm.....need to hide it in the secret room.

****

Hearing Yan Hongyin’s footsteps entering the courtyard, Yu Luocha’s fingers moved slightly, and within a few breaths he had ceased his cultivation, changing from his cross-legged position to naturally standing beside the bed.

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When Yan Hongyin pushed open the door carrying the food box, she happened to see Yu Luocha undoing the ties of his outer robe.

Yan Hongyin instinctively looked at the moonlight outside and said, “So early?”

Yu Luocha’s movements paused, and he gave Yan Hongyin a helpless look, saying, “I got some dust on me in the bamboo grove this afternoon. It’s still early, so I thought I’d change and wash it.”

Yan Hongyin’s gaze wandered to one side as she said, “Today is the Mid-Autumn Festival. The kitchen has made mooncakes and steamed crabs. Would you like to come sit outside?”

Yu Luocha stood still, lost in thought for a moment.

He wasn’t from the Central Plains – the Western Regions didn’t have as many festivals and solar terms as the Central Plains, but when the moon became full in the Central Plains, the moon over the great desert was just as full.

His people would sing and dance around tall bonfires, with clear bell sounds and songs rising up to meet the firelight reaching toward the sky.

That was the romance of the desert, something he once had…

“Ah Yu?”

The woman’s puzzled voice interrupted Yu Luocha’s momentary descent into memories. He unconsciously looked at Yan Hongyin, his gaze still immersed in past memories, deep and distant, like gazing at an unreachable full moon.

“Are you alright?” Yan Hongyin, who had been standing at the door, saw Yu Luocha’s poor complexion and walked in a couple steps, raising her hand to check his pulse.

Yu Luocha grabbed Yan Hongyin’s wrist first, then took the heavy food box from her hands, saying softly, “I’m fine. Let’s go moon-viewing.”

Yan Hongyin followed Yu Luocha’s lead toward the outside, but turned her head slightly.

The medicine cabinet that had been set up for drying in the courtyard had already been moved into the room for use, leaving that space empty.

There weren’t many tall trees in Yan Hongyin’s courtyard, and looking out, one could see only endless green meeting the sky, supporting what looked like a bright round moon so close it might fall.

Yu Luocha’s outer robe had been hanging loosely on him, so he simply took it off and spread it on the ground. After sitting cross-legged, he looked up at Yan Hongyin with a smile and said, “It’s already dirty anyway, might as well wash it all at once later.”

Yan Hongyin didn’t say anything, just turned and walked back into the room.

Yu Luocha took out the still-warm crabs and a plate of osmanthus sugar taro from the bottom layer of the food box, delicate pastries from the upper layer, and even found some dried fruits in the very top lid of the box.

After Yu Luocha had laid everything out, his shoulders suddenly felt heavy as thick warmth seeped into his muscles through the cloak on his shoulders.

Yu Luocha didn’t look up at Yan Hongyin, but waited until she sat down on the spread-out outer robe before turning his head to smile slightly. “Thank you.”

Without waiting for Yan Hongyin to respond, he immediately continued. “I know that Mid-Autumn Festival customs include eating mooncakes, taro, and crabs, but there’s also drinking under the moon. Doctor Yan, it’s Mid-Autumn Festival today – where’s our wine?”

“You’re calling me ‘Doctor’ and still asking for wine?” Yan Hongyin gave Yu Luocha a sidelong glance and said, “While taking medicine, alcohol and spicy stimulating foods are forbidden.”

“You said it,” Yu Luocha wore a serious expression, “While taking medicine, stimulating things are forbidden. This braised fish and stir-fried goose eggs…should count too, right?”

Yan Hongyin: “…”

Yu Luocha knew when to stop teasing the slightly pouting Yan Hongyin, and picked up an osmanthus sugar taro to take a bite.

Sweet.

Sickeningly sweet.

Do people in the Central Plains all like to eat such overly sweet things while viewing the moon?

Yan Hongyin picked up a large hairy crab full of golden roe, efficiently untying the strings and removing the legs, then lifting off the shell.

Yu Luocha smelled the distinctive fishy smell of seafood, turned to look at Yan Hongyin, was silent for a moment, then asked in an inquiring tone. “I don’t understand what’s the point of eating something like this?”

The effort it takes to eat one crab would be enough to slice a plate of roasted lamb leg.

And this crab doesn’t look like it has much meat.

Yan Hongyin raised an eyebrow. “If Ah Yu tells me what you were thinking about just now, I’ll teach you how to eat crab and what parts are the most essential, how about that?”