“Ahem… well, then, I’ll spend the day with you.” He cleared his throat. “Ling’er and Nan Xiaoxiang won’t mind if I’m a little late.”
“Tomorrow, I’ll take you on a proper date, and you can experience what it’s like to be a normal couple.”
“A normal couple?” Qingying tilted her head slightly. “What’s that like?”
Qingying realized her imagination was quite limited. She had no idea what normal couples did. Her relationship with Chen Yin wasn’t exactly typical. It mostly involved… intimate activities. Though those were quite enjoyable…
“Don’t worry, I’ll teach you.” Chen Yin puffed out his chest proudly. “We are in a relationship, after all. You can treat like a normal boyfriend.”
“Boyfriend…” Qingying mumbled, her cheeks flushing. “You’re just a pervert who only thinks about one thing.”
“Fine, then we won’t do that tonight.”
“You wouldn’t dare!” she exclaid, glaring at him possessively. “You finally co back, and you think you can just leave like this?! I’ll… I’ll…”
“You’ll what?”
“I’ll curse you to beco… impotent!” she said, her voice filled with mock nace.
…Such a vicious curse.
Chen Yin chuckled and ruffled her hair. “Don’t worry. You’ll get your rations tonight.”
As it turned out, Qingying’s bark was worse than her bite.
Her waist was soft, her words harsh,
But her body was honest.
Fortunately, she was resilient. Even after a night of… intense activity… with Chen Yin, she still managed to wake up early.
While Chen Yin was still asleep, she woke him up. “Co on, it’s morning. You promised to take on a date. Let’s go.”
Chen Yin, still half-asleep, mumbled, “Then… let teach you the first thing couples do…”
He pulled her back into bed.
Qingying: “?”
He finally got up at noon, refreshed and invigorated, while Qingying trailed behind him, a sullen expression on her face.
“What’s wrong? Not happy about our date?”
“You wasted the entire morning,” she pouted, her voice filled with a playful resentnt. “Now we only have the afternoon!”
Chen Yin chuckled at her childishness. “It’s not like this is our last date.”
Qingying just pouted and changed the subject. “Where are we going?”
“Ten Thousand Fragrance Pavilion.”
“Did you find another Chosen One?”
“No. We’re going shopping.”
Once they arrived at the Pavilion, Qingying finally understood why he had slept in so late.
There was a festival in the city, and the shops, usually closed in the morning, would be open all afternoon and evening, until midnight.
Even the streets were unusually quiet, the mortals saving their energy for the night’s festivities.
The Ten Thousand Fragrance Pavilion was also closed in the morning, and when they arrived, they were practically the only custors.
“This way, Young Master Chen,” the attendant, recognizing his token, led them to the second floor, to a private dressing room.
“Alright,” Chen Yin said, gesturing towards the racks of clothes, “choose a few you like.”
Qingying looked at the dazzling array of dresses, her expression a mixture of surprise and confusion.
“These… are for ?”
“Why not?”
“I… I don’t usually wear dresses,” she mumbled.
Chen Yin looked at her, rembering her usual attire: practical, form-fitting clothes, a habit from her ti in the Secret Division. The only tis he had seen her in anything else was when he had asked her to wear… certain outfits.
“What’s wrong?” Qingying asked, noticing his gaze, her head lowering slightly. “Do I… look bad?”
It wasn’t that she looked bad. The tight-fitting clothes accentuated her curves, making her even more alluring.
But he wanted to see her in sothing different.
“Just try them on,” he said. “If you don’t choose, I’ll choose for you.”
He picked out a few long gowns, their designs extravagant and eye-catching, so from the System Shop, others inspired by them, all elegant and sophisticated.
Qingying took the dresses and went into the changing room. She erged after a long while, a hesitant expression on her face, dressed in a long, black gown with a plunging neckline that revealed her ample cleavage and smooth, fair skin, the tight-fitting skirt accentuating her curves, her long legs peeking out from beneath the hem.
Chen Yin nodded approvingly. “Excellent choice. I have good taste.”
“Do I… look good?” she asked shyly.
“Of course,” he gave her a thumbs-up, “I was thinking of adding so high heels, a necklace, so lipstick… but now… I don’t think it’s necessary.”
She looked like a glamorous socialite from his previous world.
Qingying seed relieved, her shoulders relaxing slightly. “It’s just a dress.”
“I… I’ve never worn anything like this before,” she mumbled.
“Why not?”
“Because… you said I looked good in tight clothes…” she said, her voice soft and slightly resentful, like a child complaining to their parent.
Chen Yin was silent for a mont. “That’s why?”
She nodded.
He suddenly felt a pang of guilt. He hadn’t realized his casual comnts had affected her so deeply.
“Then let tell you sothing,” he said, his voice serious and sincere, “you look beautiful in anything. But you look best when you wear what you like.”
“Really?” she asked, her eyes shining with a hopeful anticipation.
“Why don’t you try on a few more?”
It was the biggest mistake of his life.
Because after that, Qingying seed to have found a new obsession.
She spent the entire afternoon trying on every single dress in the Ten Thousand Fragrance Pavilion.
If Chen Yin hadn’t reminded Qingying about the evening festival, she might have spent the entire day trying on dresses.
In the end, she chose the black gown he had initially picked out for her, the one that accentuated her curves and revealed just the right amount of cleavage.
As they stepped out of the Ten Thousand Fragrance Pavilion, the festival was already in full swing, the streets bustling with people and vendors, the air filled with the sounds of laughter and music.
“So… what do couples usually do?” Qingying asked, her voice soft and hesitant.
Chen Yin didn’t answer, just took her hand and led her through the crowd.
Qingying’s hand tensed slightly in his, a strange and unfamiliar sensation.
Sensing her nervousness, Chen Yin turned to her, his voice gentle. “What’s wrong?”
“It’s just…” she mumbled, her head lowered, “this feels… strange.”
“What’s so strange about it? Couples hold hands all the ti.”
“It just… does,” she said, her cheeks flushing slightly.
Chen Yin chuckled softly, amused by her shyness.
…Such a simple gesture, and yet it made her blush and her heart race.
It made him feel strangely old, as if he had forgotten what it was like to be young and innocent, to experience the thrill of holding hands with soone you loved, the butterflies in your stomach, the blush on your cheeks.
He had beco jaded, his heart hardened by the passage of ti.
But she was still so innocent, so pure.
Her world was simple, her emotions unburdened by the complexities of life and loss.
Her love was simple and straightforward, the kind of love that made your heart flutter at a single glance, your cheeks flush at a touch.
“This is actually the first ti I’ve held your hand like this, on a date,” he said, his voice filled with a gentle amusent, “you seem so nervous. Have you… never held hands with anyone before?”
Qingying pouted and looked away, her silence a childish sulk.
He understood. It was probably the sa feeling as being called a “single dog.”
“It’s okay, it’ll get easier,” he said, squeezing her hand gently. “You’ll get used to it.”
Qingying looked at him, a flicker of sadness in her eyes.
He was about to continue walking when she said softly,
“It’s not the… hand-holding…”
“I just didn’t realize… that walking beside you… would make so… happy.”
Chen Yin stopped, her words echoing in his heart.
She wasn’t just unused to holding hands.
She was unused to being seen with him, to being treated like an equal, a partner, not just a shadow in the background, a tool to be used when needed, then discarded.
She had spent too long in the darkness, hidden from the world.
Unlike Luo Luo, who had friends, Luo Qiaoqiao, who had her family, or Shen Shuanglian, who had her disciples,
Qingying, after her brother’s death, had only him.
“Want so snacks?” he asked suddenly.
Qingying looked at him, confused. She didn’t really care about food, but she had learned to trust his judgnt, so she nodded.
He bought two skewers of grilled lamb and handed her one.
She took a bite, her eyes widening slightly at the savory flavor. “This is good! Try so!”
Chen Yin leaned closer and took a bite from the sa spot where her lips had been a mont ago, then nodded in satisfaction. “It is good. Now do you understand what couples do?”
Qingying looked at him blankly.
“Real couples… they don’t have to do anything special. They just… enjoy each other’s company. They share their food, their experiences, their joys and sorrows. They’re there for each other, in every mont.”
He handed her his skewer.
She took a bite obediently, the grease from the at clinging to her lips, making them even more alluring.
Her initial awkwardness seed to fade, replaced by a quiet contentnt.
“Is it good?”
“…Yes,” she murmured, “I think… I understand now… the joy of… dating.”
Chen Yin smiled and ruffled her hair gently, then led her through the crowded streets, their hands clasped tightly.
As night fell, they explored the festival together, sampling every snack, watching every performance, their laughter echoing through the air.
Ti seed to fly by, and soon, they reached the end of the market.
“So? Did you have fun?”
“Yes,” Qingying said, chewing on a sugar figurine, “but it was too short.”
“We can do it again. I’ll take you here every day, until you get tired of it.”
“You’re just saying that,” she said, rolling her eyes playfully. “Who knows when you’ll rember again?”
Chen Yin coughed. “I was busy with the Triennial Heavenly Tribulation… and I did spend the whole day with you today. I’ll take you out more often when I have ti.”
Qingying looked at him, then turned away, a faint blush on her cheeks.
“…Okay,” she mumbled softly.
She had to admit,
She was enjoying this.
This feeling of… normalcy.
Just walking beside him, sharing simple monts, experiencing the joys of an ordinary date.
Even just for a few hours, it was enough.
“Look, there’s a feast at that restaurant,” Chen Yin said, pointing towards a brightly lit building. “Let’s go and see!”
He pulled her towards the restaurant, which seed to be hosting a celebration for so wealthy family, the doors open to anyone dressed appropriately.
Qingying’s dress, as if tailor-made for the occasion, drew admiring glances as they entered.
A portly, middle-aged man, the host of the feast, his eyes lingering on Qingying’s curves, approached them and started chatting, his tone overly familiar and slightly lecherous.
Qingying wondered why Chen Yin was interested in such a mundane event, then she saw him smiling and chatting with the man,
While the scroll in his chest glowed faintly.
A mont later, a small orb of light erged from the man’s body and disappeared into the scroll.
“Well, it was nice eting you, Mister… we have to go now,” Chen Yin said, steering Qingying away from the man.
As they left the restaurant, Qingying remained silent, her head lowered.
“What’s wrong?”
“He was a Chosen One, wasn’t he?” she looked up at him, her eyes red-rimd, her voice filled with a mixture of hurt and betrayal. “You lied to ! You weren’t taking on a date! You were just after his Heavenly Dao Fragnt!”
Chen Yin chuckled awkwardly. “It was just a coincidence… I swear…”
“I hate you, Chen Yin!”
It seed like it was going to be another sleepless night.
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