Chapter 80: Then Let’s Take Our Time
For a split second, Feng Shi thought he was seeing things.
[Host, Shen Songhe never left.] Qingqing finally got to say this sentence.
In front of him, Shen Songhe stood by the bed with his liquid, reddened peach-blossom eyes, maintaining his previous posture. It seemed he hadn’t moved at all. Seeing Feng Shi look over, his long eyelashes finally fluttered, shaking off a bit of frost.
Feng Shi’s heart gave a squeeze, and he rubbed his eyes.
He put his hands down.
The person was still there.
His newly organized heart was thrown into chaos once again in an instant. Feng Shi pressed his lips tightly together and took another careful look.
Those beautiful eyes weren’t red in the way that indicated his inner demon had taken over.
Feng Shi let out a breath. Sounding somewhat helpless, he called out, “Master.”
Shen Songhe fluttered his eyelashes again but gave no response. He just looked at him with somewhat…
Hmm… somewhat pitiful eyes.
But he should have heard it.
Feng Shi froze for a moment, then rolled out of bed.
As he moved, he felt refreshed and clean, lacking the sticky dampness from his previous sweat. Looking down, he realized his clothes had also been changed. He was now only wearing a thin, unlined inner garment, and the sash wasn’t properly tied.
As for who changed his clothes, there was no need to ask.
Thinking of this, Feng Shi felt incredibly awkward. His gaze landed on Shen Songhe’s pale, thin lips, and an image of the two of them pressed tightly against each other on a certain day suddenly popped into his mind.
His face heated up a little. He shook his head, frowned slightly, slipped on his shoes, and walked past the other to the table behind him, preparing to pour himself some water first.
Shen Songhe’s gaze followed his movements.
Seeing Feng Shi completely ignore him, the hands Shen Songhe kept hidden in his sleeves clenched. His thin lips pressed even tighter, curving into a slightly fragile arc.
The room had long since returned to its original state, save for the fact that it was still dripping wet.
Feng Shi poured a cup of water, holding it in his hands and drinking it slowly, trying his best to ignore the stare on his back.
Both harbored their own thoughts. It wasn’t until Feng Shi had completely drained an entire pot of water and there was nothing left to drink that he had to brace himself and stand up.
That’s right, it was better to find an opportunity to clarify this kind of awkward situation.
Feng Shi set down the cup, prepared his wording, and turned around, ready to have a proper talk with Shen Songhe.
But as he turned, he found that the person who had been standing by the bed had, at some unknown point, arrived right behind him, staring straight at him with glass-like eyes.
Feng Shi: “…”
Qingqing chimed in silently from the side: [Host, it seems Shen Songhe has really fallen in love with you~]
Feng Shi: “Shut up. Is it me that he loves? What he likes is merely this face.”
Hearing this, Qingqing hesitated to speak.
After saying that sentence, Feng Shi felt increasingly bitter, solidifying his intention to make things clear with Shen Songhe.
While Shen Songhe hadn’t completely fallen in yet, pulling him out now was still possible.
The very first step was to return to a pure master-disciple relationship with this man.
“Master,” Feng Shi adjusted his expression, standing up to bow to Shen Songhe.
“A few days ago, your disciple…”
The rest of Feng Shi’s words caught in his throat. At the same time, even his breathing seemed to get stuck as he stared up blankly at Shen Songhe.
[Holy crap!] Qingqing rubbed its eyes with its chubby little hands, mimicking Feng Shi’s dumbfounded expression.
Right in front of them, Shen Songhe, who had previously been expressionless with only slightly red eyes, suddenly had a thin, wet layer of mist cover his eyes. Looking closely, they even faintly shimmered with a crystalline luster!
What a beautifully shattered man!
Feng Shi’s stupefaction turned into fright: Thanks! Thanks a lot!
What about your character setting? Master, what happened to your untouchable, high-flower-on-a-mountain persona!
Inner thoughts: (Although even when crying, he’s still incredibly beautiful and cold, absurdly good-looking.)
[Host, it seems you’ve bullied him…] Qingqing touched its smooth, round head, looking sluggish.
Step one was temporarily declared a failure.
Feng Shi took a breath and pulled Shen Songhe over to sit on a chair. Then, he half-squatted in front of him, though he didn’t cross boundaries like before.
After thinking about it, Feng Shi decided to brave the risk of Shen Songhe’s two teardrops falling, patiently explaining his thoughts.
“Master, I know that you… um… you see me as Immortal Venerable Yiliu, which is why you indulged me in doing those kinds of things to you. But rest assured—”
Before Feng Shi could finish, Shen Songhe interrupted him.
“It’s not that.”
“Huh?”
“I don’t see you as him.”
Shen Songhe frowned slightly. A speck of frost was shaken loose, landing on his dry lips, instantly melting into a tempting moisture.
Feng Shi processed this for a second, then shook his head with a light chuckle.
Naturally, he didn’t believe it.
Yet he still retorted: “Then do you like me?”
“Is the person you like, me, Feng Shi?”
Shen Songhe blinked, his Adam’s apple bobbing. He gazed steadily at him without a moment’s hesitation: “Yes.”
Hearing this, Feng Shi scrutinized his expression, trying to find any trace that he was looking past him at someone else.
However, there was none.
In Shen Songhe’s clear eyes, it seemed there really was only his reflection.
Is it necessary? Feng Shi asked himself.
Was it really necessary for Shen Songhe to specifically concoct such a lie to deceive his little disciple?
The disgust in this person’s eyes when Feng Shi first arrived in this world, and the undisguised deep affection at this very moment, could not be faked.
Feng Shi was confused.
He thought back to Shen Songhe’s attitude before he planted the Child Gu.
Aside from mistaking him for Liu Yi once or twice in moments of passion, the rest of the time, although not terrible, he was extremely cold. Yet, during the short half-month he was influenced by the Child Gu, Shen Songhe underwent a massive change.
Could a person really go from disgust to deep love for another person in such a short period?
It was one thing if Feng Shi couldn’t detect it while under the Gu’s influence, but now that he was clear-headed, he had to think deeply about it.
Seemingly seeing through Feng Shi’s conflicted doubts, Shen Songhe reached out and grasped his wrist, repeating once more: “It’s you. It’s Feng Shi.”
His hand was extremely cold, like glacial jade, pulling Feng Shi from his thoughts.
Facing Shen Songhe’s earnest expression, a decision suddenly formed in Feng Shi’s heart.
He was going to surpass Liu Yi.
He refused to be Liu Yi’s substitute. He refused to live forever in the shadow he left behind, and he didn’t want the affection Shen Songhe offered out of charity because of it.
He wanted to be the next legend of the cultivation world, and this legend’s name would be Feng Shi, not the disciple in people’s mouths who looked very much like Liu Yi.
If one day in the future, he truly couldn’t control himself and fell deeply in love with Shen Songhe. Then, he wanted all of Shen Songhe’s love.
The kind of fresh, new love that had nothing to do with this face, given solely to him, Feng Shi.
They said the living could never compete with the dead, but he insisted on trying, to prove that Feng Shi would never be anyone’s replacement.
No matter how long the process took.
In just the span of a few breaths, Feng Shi had already made up his mind.
He had always been someone who stayed true to his word. Once he set a goal, he would firmly march toward it, not just a three-minute passion.
And facts had proven that he indeed possessed the capability.
Returning to the present, facing Shen Songhe’s gaze, Feng Shi smiled faintly. He stood up and said, “I understand, Master.”
“Then let’s take our time.”
Translator’s Note: Feng Shi has made a bold declaration! He refuses to be just a replacement for Liu Yi and is determined to win Shen Songhe’s heart as his own true self. But Shen Songhe’s sudden shift in feelings is definitely leaving him (and us) with a lot of questions!
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