"Master, what are you doing here?
When did you get back?"
Stepping into the central courtyard, I saw Master sitting in his usual chair as he munched on some rice buns shaped like giant peaches. Although Master has somewhat changed from his messy appearance from before, remnants of his old behavior remain.
"Ah, my dear eldest disciple. It has been some time since we last met. Come here; this master just got back after visiting an old friend.
Sit. This master has plenty more to share."
Taking out his interspatial bag, Master pulled out another plate of fragrant peach buns.
"Thank you, Master." Taking the seat beside him, I took one of the peaches and tore off a small piece to taste. The soft, smooth skin of the peach bun tore off with ease, revealing its golden filling of peach jam.
Ehm, it's sweet.
"What has called for your return?
I thought that you were going to be away for longer. After all, the Summer Hunt doesn't start until a few more weeks when the Mystic Treasure Realm opens."
And by then, Zhu Na Ran should be back home. I wonder how much she has changed since she left. Hmm, maybe she didn't change at all?
"Sigh, unfortunately, my original plans have been changed.
It turns out there's some more paperwork that I need to fill out myself and prepare for the hunt.
Aiyah, that sly sect master. Tch, making this old master do his busy work."
"I'm sure Sect Master Qing Shui just wants preparation to go smoothly. After all, if Master is overseeing it himself, I'm sure the other peak masters would be reassured, knowing it's in good hands.
"Hmph, what a honeyed tongue you got there. No doubt your junior sister has been rubbing off on you."
At the mention of her name, my heart felt as if tickled by a feather. "Master, you jest.
But, this disciple is curious…
How is Zhu Na Ran?"
Has she been eating well? Sleeping well?
H-has she thought of me?
No, no, that's ridiculous! Ah, why would I think that? There's no way she would be thinking of me.
"Hmph, she's doing well alright.
She's doing just fine and is making quite the leaps and bounds in her training and cultivation." Master grumbled as he took a large bite of his second peach bun, annoyed.
Oh? If that's the case, then why does Master have such a sour look on his face? "Master, you make that out as if that's a bad thing."
"Ehm! It is! That means that this master's fun-
Ahem, I mean, this master's training is too effective! This master is already starting to struggle a bit when I spar with her.
Tsk, ah. That girl is quite terrifying when she's determined to do something.
Oh, right.
Don't tell her that!
This master doesn't want that girl to get too cocky just yet! This master hasn't, um, taught her everything just yet!"
Raising my handkerchief, I used it to hide the smile on my lips.
Hmm, so Zhu Na Ran has gotten stronger? Strong enough that Master wants to trick her about her progress?
"Rest assured, Master, this disciple will not say a word of what you said."
"Ehm, good, good." Master smiled, reassured me. "This master is glad that I can count on you."
"I'm glad that Master holds this disciple in high regard." The two of us enjoyed the rest of the peach buns and peaceful spring atmosphere as the ever-present magnolia blooms waved in the wind.
Although, most of the peach buns were enjoyed by Master.
"Oh! That reminds me." Holding a half-eaten peach bun in one hand, Master used his other hand to grab something from his interspatial pouch. "This master has something to give you."
"Huh? For me?"
"Ehmm, well, more accurately, this is from Zhu Na Ran." Out of the bag, Master pulled out a small wooden box and placed it on the table. "Originally, this master planned on giving this to you sooner; however, I haven't gotten around to dropping by and delivering it.
Eh, better late than never."
What? Zhu Na Ran has something she wishes to give to me? I wonder for what reason?
"Whelp, this master would stay around longer; however, there is much work that needs to be done." Master got up from his seat and stretched out his arms. "Let's see what that sly fox has this grandmaster do this time."
After bidding farewell, Master left in a whirlwind, leaving me alone in the courtyard with the mysterious gift that Zhu Na Ran had given me.
Although I was curious about what was inside, there was a lot of preparation that I must complete. And unfortunately, Master made sure to leave behind a massive stack of paperwork that needed to be filled out.
Stashing away the wooden box into my interspatial bag, I got to work.
---
"Sigh finally finished." Placing the final document on the completed stack, I leaned back in my seat to admire my work. Even though it took all day, at least this would save me some trouble in the future when Master might decide to hand me more work.
Remembering the box that Master gave me, I quickly pulled it out of my bag. Placing it on my desk, it landed with a soft thud, making it evident of its weight.
What could be in here that makes this box feel so heavy to hold?
Opening the small box, suddenly, pages upon pages of paper sprang out from its small confines.
"What in the world?" Trying to organize this mess, I took the stack of paper out of their small confines and onto my desk. However, the sheer number of writings seemed to be greater than I had anticipated as already a towering stack of letters sat before me.
What is all of this?
Taking the first sheet of paper off the top of the stack, there seemed to be a crude illustration of what I believe is Zhu Na Ran being stomped on by Master.
Strange.
Why would Zhu Na Ran send this to me?
Flipping the image over to the other side, scratchy writing explained the bizarre image to me. It read:
'Hi, Senior Sister,
I hope this letter finds you in good health and that Master fulfilled his promise in delivering it. It's been about a month since Master kidnapped me to these mountains, and only after bribing him with some snacks did the stingy old man grant me some paper and ink.'
Oh? I didn't realize that Zhu Na Ran would have to resort to such means to get some writing material.
Maybe I should talk to Master about this later. Perhaps he could give me a reasonable explanation for isolating Zhu Na Ran to this extent.
Making that mental note, I continued to read the letter.
'Also! Master is such a big bully!
Did you know that Master is surprisingly competent with the sword?!
I mean, I already knew of his stories of his glory days and blah, blah, blah, but I didn't think he would be this good!
When we were sparing after dinner, Master managed to take me down in a blink!
I didn't even see it coming! What kind of supernatural skills is this?!
I feel that Master must've cultivated some sort of stealth technique because how can an old guy like Master be as nimble as a leaf in the wind?
Aiyah, anyways, when I tried to retaliate, I ended up being defeated, and Master's taunts weren't helping in making the whole thing any better ah.
But that's alright!
One day, I'll return the favor to Master hehe.'
Hah, I'm sure Zhu Na Ran would be able to surpass Master in a few years with enough practice and training.
Much to Master's chagrin, of course.
However, I'm sure that it's every teacher's goal to see their students soar to new heights, ones much higher than their own.
'Anyways, not much really happens up here.
I mean, the scenery is nice, and the place is peaceful enough. However, it's a shame I don't have any good company up here.
Oh! I know!
Maybe when you get this letter, you can come and visit me!'
After reading that line, my face started to prickle a bit, perhaps from the summer heat.
Sigh, silly girl. You're supposed to be focusing on cultivating, not playing around.
The subsequent few letters seemed to be like Zhu Na Ran's journal entries as they went about describing her day and how her progress with her cultivation was going.
It seems like sending her away to focus on training purely was a smart move on Master's behalf. As illustrated in one of the letters, Zhu Na Ran can now ride and manage her own flying sword.
Quite a momentous achievement.
I wish I could've been there to see it.
The following letter of the pile depicted Zhu Na Ran running down a mountainside with various objects thrown her way.
Well, this should be interesting.
Turning the page, the letter read:
'Senior Sister! You won't believe what Master made me do today!'
Oh? I believe that I infer what happened based on the lively illustration.
'Master is such a bully! The king, no, the emperor of all things cruel and malicious!
As you know, I am terrible at directions! So do you know what "genius" idea Master had?'
I wonder what it was.
'A f*cking mountain full of traps!?
Master made me run down an entire mountain littered with traps all over the place! And he dares to say, "This will prepare you for when you venture into the Mystic Treasure Realm!"
I've lost count of how many times I've nearly fallen into a pit full of bamboo spikes or almost gotten punched in the gut by a giant tree log!
Sniff, if you're reading this, Senior Sister, send help!
Master is trying to kill this junior!'
Goodness…
The letters followed were more SOS calls for help as Zhu Na Ran detailed her various interactions with the numerous contraptions.
However, it soon seemed like Master was able to make it up to her somewhat as the number of SOS calls decreased.
Well… either that or Master stopped giving her paper to write with.
Whatever the reason, I should thank her for sending me these entertaining letters. Perhaps, I should write a response?
Ehm, no…
Right now, Zhu Na Ran should be focusing on her cultivation and nothing else. I'll just thank her in person when she returns.
Carefully placing the stack of letters back into the box, gently closed the lid of the box, careful not to catch any paper on the edge. Stretching out my sore limbs, I sat in my chair and listened to the soft chirps of crickets and admired the faint glow of fireflies dancing outside.
The view was oddly reminiscent of a dream I had the other night. The only missing component being Zhu Na Ran.
It was so strange.
And it felt so real as well.
It felt as if Zhu Na Ran was really there. I could practically feel the warmth from her body as she laid her head on my shoulder. The smell of sunshine that came from her hair and the subtle roughness of her palms as she held my hand in hers.
Even after the dream was tragically cut short, I could still feel the sensation of her body being against mine.
It was as if she were really there.
"Sigh, what's wrong with me…?"
Even though Shao Xiu Lan has already exposed me to the true extent of my feelings, a nagging part of me still couldn't come to terms with it.
It's… it's just not right for someone like me to feel this way. And for my innocent junior, no less. I can't imagine how she would react if I told her.
And yet… my mind couldn't stop thinking of that fictional, fantastical scene of the two of us by the waterside.
The cool sensation of the water brushing against my feet as Zhu Na Ran rested by my side. And then the searing heat came soon after when Zhu Na Ran asked that ridiculous question:
"So given the opportunity, Senior Sister isn't unwilling to marry this junior?"
F-for her to even ask such a question! No doubt that was just a dream! T-there's no way she would ask such a thing!
However, when Zhu Na Ran leaned in and awaited my answer, I knew that some curse or spell must've enchanted me.
The way she stared at me, awaiting my answer, I wanted nothing more than to lean closer to see what was behind her eyes.
The gentle caress of her warm breath on my face started to drive me mad at our closeness. At how she was within arms-reach and with one word, she would be mine.
A-and no doubt had the dream not ended as soon as it did, I-I don't know what shameful thing I would've possibly done afterward!
I'm such a terrible senior…