Faint starlight cast upon Li Zijun's face. Strands of hair on her forehead were dotted with water droplets, which trickled down to her collarbones.
Her clothes clung to her body after getting wet, making her exquisite and well-proportioned figure seem like a half-revealed, perfect fruit. Her jade-like arms were slightly bent, her captivating grace fully revealed.
Her fair hands gently gathered her water-soaked hair behind her head. The water drenched her dress, outlining her perfect figure. She looked at Ji Nanjue, feeling sowhat embarrassed.
Her clothes, not yet fully removed, clung entirely to her tender body, faintly revealing the color of her skin beneath. Her usually loose-fitting dress concealed much, but now, one could finally see its Mount Lu's true face.
Ji Nanjue looked at her with obvious surprise, then a corner of her lips curled up as she said teasingly,
"True to teacher and disciple, even your lies are carved from the sa mold..."
"Forget it. If you want to call Sister, then do so. 'Mistress' sounds so old-fashioned."
"..."
Her jade-like legs, hidden beneath the water, gently stirred the surface, creating a few splashes.
Then, with a gentle push of her jade-like arms, she stood up, completely unclothed. The water reached just past the tops of her thighs, revealing the lower half of her trim waist—slender and flat, without a trace of excess flesh.
"Take off your clothes. You can't bathe with them on, can you?"
This dress had been with Li Zijun for who knows how long on their journey, though it bore no stains.
Li Zijun, sowhat shyly, took off her dress, placed it on the bank, and then imdiately sat down in the pool, concealing herself thoroughly in the water.
Ji Nanjue didn't laugh at her and sat down beside her.
The air was sowhat heavy; the period before rain always felt particularly oppressive.
Her small hands gently splashed the water, letting the droplets fall, as she suddenly spoke,
"You've only seen him a few tis, yet you're so certain of your feelings?"
"At your age, it's quite normal to admire soone, but from your words and actions, you don't seem like an impulsive person."
"I'm quite curious, could you share your thoughts with ?"
Pausing, as if feeling her question was sowhat pointed, Ji Nanjue added with a smile,
"Of course, it's alright if you don't want to say..."
As Ji Nanjue spoke, her eyes were fixed on Li Zijun.
"Thoughts?"
Li Zijun gently pursed her thin lips. Without looking at Ji Nanjue, she murmured softly,
Staring into the sowhat murky pool water, she pondered for a mont, then said softly,
"Does liking soone necessarily require reasons?"
"Isn't it that at a certain mont, because of sothing that deeply touches your heart, you unknowingly find that person taking up a place within it?"
"Perhaps it's just one look, just one gesture."
Ji Nanjue paused, stunned for a mont. Li Zijun's voice sounded sowhat lancholic; though her tone was very gentle, Ji Nanjue could sohow detect a great deal of underlying frustration in it.
She then pulled Li Zijun into a tight embrace, pressing her cheek against hers.
"Love at first sight?"
Perhaps before, I would have sneered at such a term, dismissing it as ludicrous—the idea that two people could confirm their feelings for each other with just one glance. To , that only ant one thing: coveting the other's physical beauty. Yet now, my heart has gradually co to accept the term. My life trajectory and Su Bei's have always seed to align unintentionally. After we returned from death's door that one ti, the bond forged from sharing such hardship was naturally profound. Perhaps even before that night, his shadow had already been imprinted on my heart, but my long-sealed heart had never admitted it.
"That's one way to look at it."
Li Zijun gave a bitter smile. It seems I've been misunderstood by her. My feelings for Su Bei are far from the casual description I just gave. They are the result of nearly a century of mutual understanding and growth; only then did I beco certain of my heart's desire.
"Sister Nan Ji, Zi Jun is feeling a bit cold..."
She hugged her arms gently and blinked, looking at Ji Nanjue.
"Let's go back," Li Zijun said.
"This... Sister will stay alone for a while," Ji Nanjue replied.
Ji Nanjue then gave Li Zijun a gentle smile, her own heart rife with complex emotions.
Ultimately, I am a woman. Even though I know Su Bei and I can never publicly be together, I still feel a sense of rejection towards any woman who wants to take even a sliver of his tenderness away from . Moreover, this woman is his disciple... By any asure, emotional or rational, it feels utterly perverse. A rather strange thought surfaced in my mind: his disciple, her master... and stuck in the middle? What a complicated relationship... like three generations under one roof, isn't it? It's all Su Dudu's fault. There's no right or wrong in matters of love. But if bla must be assigned, the root cause is that philandering Casanova. If he hadn't spread his affections everywhere and flirted around, how could he have possibly racked up so many emotional debts? He certainly enjoyed himself...
Li Zijun waved her hand in front of Ji Nanjue's face a few tis. When Ji Nanjue snapped out of her daze, she playfully tapped Li Zijun's delicate nose and said with a smile,
"You've worn that dress of yours for too long. If you don't mind, wear this one of mine for now."
"..."
Her hand pointed towards the white gauze dress on the bank.
Li Zijun blinked and then gave Ji Nanjue a sweet smile.
With a soft RUSTLE, she put on the dress and headed towards the Daoist Temple.
Ji Nanjue watched Li Zijun's receding figure and sighed softly.
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