Chapter 15

Following the clear, pleasant voice, the waiter looked past the boy, and finally saw the girl behind him.
The tall youth had been blocking her completely. Now that she was visible, she knocked the breath from the room.
Beauty like new peach blossoms, brows curved, eyes bright. The scarlet robe hugged her slender figure and set off that vivid face perfectly. With no rouge or powder, she looked like a red lotus blooming from clear water.
Jiang Yu’s eyes sparkled as her gaze flicked toward the storage pouch at Shen Anzhi’s waist. She remembered how much he’d spent on herbs last time, his funds were probably painfully low.
Shen Anzhi’s fingertips tapped lazily against the counter. “Do as I said.”
The shopkeeper had run an inn for decades and had seen every kind of scene. He calmly cracked melon seeds between his teeth, waiting for the pair to reach a decision.
Shen Anzhi looked at Jiang Yu, one brow lifting.
Jiang Yu’s mind raced. Her wrist bell chimed softly as she grabbed the corner of his robe just as he was about to pull back. “With demons roaming here, Junior Brother and I should be watching each other’s backs,” she said, sounding perfectly righteous. “The rooms upstairs are too far apart, and not safe. If we stay close, it’ll be better. At worst, we can share a room. I’m really not fussy.”
Her bold declaration finished, she swallowed.
“I don’t mind,” Shen Anzhi replied.
He paused, just for a heartbeat, then resumed tapping the counter as if it were nothing. But his gaze slid, almost involuntarily, to the faint pink dusting her cheeks. The word like echoed again in the back of his mind.
His eyes flickered, some small thread of confusion sliding down and settling in his chest.
Jiang Yu hadn’t actually expected him to agree. The mischief in her eyes grew brighter. Life was precious; dignity was pricier; but for the sake of going home… both could be thrown aside.
She smiled, eyes crinkling. “If I get scared at night, I’m running straight over to your room,” she warned, trying to ignore the heat creeping up her face.
Shen Anzhi lifted his gaze slowly, as if turning some thought over and over. Those black pupils locked on her, his body tensing for a fraction of a second before he leaned casually against the counter again. “Senior Sister is sure?”
Jiang Yu pretended not to notice the sudden intensity of his stare. Her pale ears flushed red. “Of course.”
In the original, the demon here was described as a black mist fiend, able to take on any form at will, vicious and deadly.
With Shen Anzhi here, she could finally breathe a little easier.
She flashed the shopkeeper a bright smile and raised two fingers. “Two top-grade rooms.”
She handed over the silver without hesitation. The shopkeeper chuckled, working his abacus as he sneaked a glance between them. So young, and apparently already sharing such a close relationship.
Truly a perfect pair: handsome young man, beautiful young woman. A feast for the eyes.
“Two upper rooms,” he announced. “Here are the keys, honored guests. Third floor, first and second doors on the right.”
Jiang Yu took one key and jiggled it between her fingers as she went upstairs. Before entering her room, she peeked along the corridor, Shen Anzhi’s door was just to her right.
After making the bed, hunger finally hit her like a blow. Remembering that Shen Anzhi wasn’t one for food, she went downstairs alone and ordered a few dishes. Only one other table was occupied, four men drinking and quietly talking over their tea, their eyes occasionally scanning the room.
Apart from that table, the inn felt almost deserted.
Night fell like spilled ink. Outside, fog surged thick and heavy, swallowing the lanterns hanging under the eaves until only a bean-sized red glow remained, as if ready to devour any poor soul caught alone.
According to the waiter, Tianji City lay in a remote area. The houses were arranged in an Eight Trigrams formation, with a demon-repelling array embedded in the layout. Without a special city waist token, anyone unfamiliar with the terrain would stumble around like a blindfolded fool.
But now, the heart of the array had been destroyed. It no longer worked. Ever since the demon appeared, the shrouding black mist had grown thicker and thicker, and more people had vanished within it. In half a month, most of the population had fled.
“Eight Trigrams… I know a senior named Zhuge Liang who used those,” Jiang Yu muttered under her breath.
At the next table, one of the four paused mid-sentence. His gaze lingered on her, calm yet oddly heated.
Following that curious stare, Jiang Yu met a pair of light green eyes, gorgeous, almost bewitching. The young man had dark green hair pinned up in a jade coronet, his features exquisitely carved, with a hint of foreign elegance.
He dipped his chin in greeting, the corners of his lips lifting. A smile bloomed at the corner of his eyes, three parts warmth, seven parts youthful arrogance. He made her think of summer grass under a sky full of stars.
Jiang Yu returned a polite smile and went back to her food.
The shopkeeper glanced at the fog swirling outside the door and told the waiter to close up. The two of them shuttered the doors, stuffed damp cloth and white glutinous rice into the cracks.
He warned the remaining guests gravely, “Honored customers, turn in early tonight. If anything strange happens, do not act rashly. Best to stay together.”
Jiang Yu finished in a few brisk bites and all but flew back upstairs, shutting the door behind her. The pearl in her palm glowed softly, and the candlelight flickered, bathing the room in warm calm.
But remembering the ghosts and demons described in the original, she went to knock on the door next door.
The door opened halfway, steam and the faint scent of soap spilling out.
Shen Anzhi’s hair was still wet, black as ink and hanging to his waist. Damp crimson tips dripped water. Heat flushed his brow; beads of moisture clung to his temples. His eyes were rimmed with a faint red, dark irises stormy and bright.
He leaned on the doorframe, collar loosened an inch. Water tracked down his collarbones and disappeared into shadow. As he lowered his gaze to meet hers, his pupils narrowed.
Only then did he slowly straighten his inner robe, now clinging to his chest from the water, outlining lean muscle and a powerful waist. Broad shoulders, narrow waist, long legs, and just the hint of two red marks peeking through…
Jiang Yu froze for a moment, then yanked her gaze down.
“Sorry, Junior Brother. I came at a bad time.”
Beauty in the bones, not just the skin, whoever first said that must have been talking about monsters like Shen Anzhi. Even if he changed into the plainest men’s clothing, he’d still be unnervingly stunning.
Leaning closer, Shen Anzhi lowered his voice. “What’s there to be afraid of, Senior Sister?”
She stared fixedly at his mouth as he spoke, then let her eyes dart away with an awkward laugh. “I’m not afraid.”
She coughed twice. Her long lashes trembled; her cheeks were tinged with pink.
She really had come at the worst possible time…
His brow lifted in quiet amusement.
The cinnabar mole at his eye burned bright. He watched her bright, darting gaze with unreadable interest.
Jiang Yu turned to leave, and stumbled.
Something tugged at the back of her robe. She twisted to look. A single pink-tinged fingertip, still flushed from hot water, had hooked her collar. His phoenix eyes narrowed lazily, mischief curling in their depths.
“If Senior Sister wants to go back and die, by all means, be bold,” he said.
Right. Compared to the demon outside, Shen Anzhi was definitely the safer option.
Jiang Yu pressed her lips together, her eyes brightening. She thanked him in a rush and slipped into the room before he could change his mind and shove her back out again.
Shen Anzhi let his head droop, posture relaxed but gaze thoughtful. Why was she thanking him? His dark eyes followed the tiny scarlet figure as she brushed past him and darted inside.
Her loose hair brushed the back of his hand, the ends cool and damp. His little finger curled slightly. The air smelled faintly of peaches and chestnut sugar, cool and ticklish, as though something had gently scratched at his heart.
“…”
Jiang Yu set the pearl on the table, then, quite naturally by now, opened the cabinet and began spreading a pallet on the floor. The musty smell made her nose itch. She sneezed.
“I’ll sleep on the floor,” she said over her shoulder.
Shen Anzhi bolted the door and disappeared behind the screen. When he emerged, his clothes were neat and dry. He tugged the towel from the screen and ran it through his hair as he stepped out, just in time to see Jiang Yu finished with her makeshift bed, lying on her side, curled up with only her head sticking out.
He walked past her and sat on the bed, then stretched out fully clothed.
Her head was positioned right opposite his bed. Watching him lie down, she whispered, “Junior Brother, your hair should be dry before you sleep. Otherwise you’ll get a headache.”
Forgetting, once again, that cultivators didn’t exactly worry about hair dryers.
She tugged the blanket up and burrowed into it, closing her eyes.
Flat on his back, arms folded, Shen Anzhi found his gaze drifting sideways, to the girl with her hair spread out messily on the floor bed, half-asleep.
She looked fragile like this. Far more interesting than the arrogant tyrant she used to be. If he wrapped his fingers around that slender neck and squeezed, obediently dying, her expression would probably be… fascinating.
Something dark and unreadable flickered in his eyes. For no reason, irritation prickled under his skin. He shoved the thought away and instead let a slow smile curve his lips.
“In that case…” he drawled. “Since Senior Sister is here, she won’t be stingy about helping me dry my hair, will she?”
“Sure, I’ll do it,” Jiang Yu sighed, resigning herself. She climbed out of the blankets, took up the towel, and walked to the side of the bed.
Shen Anzhi pushed himself up, his hair spilling like silk across the mattress. He angled his head slightly, lips curved. A few damp strands clung to his neck; as he inclined his head, droplets rolled from the ends and landed precisely on Jiang Yu’s wrist.
She folded the towel and began at the top, gently working her way down. The red-tinted ends dripped water onto the back of her hand. The trail of moisture slid along her wrist bone, strangely warm.
From her angle, his long lashes cast shadows as his gaze moved, like a fox who’d just sunk its teeth into a rabbit’s throat and was still pretending to be wronged.
Out of habit, she murmured, “If I tug too hard, tell me.”
She couldn’t help envying his hair, black, smooth, and heavy.
“Junior Brother, how do you take care of your hair to keep it this dark and soft?” she asked.
The steady motion of the towel was pleasantly relaxing. Shen Anzhi, without realizing it, let his guard slip and slowly closed his eyes. “I was born this way,” he said.
Her fingers carried a faint warmth as they moved through his hair. When they skimmed the delicate skin behind his ear, her hand jerked back, breath hitching. She took a second to steady herself, then resumed as if nothing had happened.
A strange feeling surged up, stronger and faster than before. His breath stalled, Adam’s apple bobbing as his eyes snapped open.
Emotion rose inexplicably in his chest, faster than he could pin it down.
Shen Anzhi tilted his head slightly, forcing down the urge to grab her pale wrist. To hide how unnatural he felt, he asked offhandedly, “Why is Senior Sister’s technique so practiced?”
The candle crackled softly, sparks jumping.
In his phoenix eyes, faint threads of dark red glimmered in the depths, almost impossible to notice.
Jiang Yu’s hands stilled.
Why is he asking a question like that… a straight road to digging my grave…
When she didn’t answer right away, Shen Anzhi’s fingers curled slightly. Before he could stop himself, he asked, “Does Senior Sister also… dry the other junior brothers’ hair in your courtyard?”
The second the words left his mouth, he regretted them. What a pointless, idiotic question.
“Forget I asked.”
Jiang Yu reacted immediately, shaking her head. “You’re the only one I’ve ever done this for.”
His lips lifted just a fraction before the hint of a smile vanished. He looked away. “Then I’ll trouble Senior Sister, from now on. For the rest of our journey, my hair is in your care.”
Remembering the accidental touches from a moment ago, Jiang Yu’s heart skipped. This was a perfect opportunity, if she didn’t make it too obvious. She coughed lightly and whispered, “Am I… allowed to refuse?”