Chapter 20 (2/3)
The two of them met at a Sichuan-style hot-pot place in Jinzhe Tower.
It had still been raining in the morning, so the weather remained pleasantly cool, and the restaurant was crowded. The décor was bright and festive, all red and bustle. The hostess led them to a booth by the window, and once they sat down, the two of them leaned together and started ordering.
Mu Wan took the pencil and immediately circled a yin-yang split broth.
Their tastes had aligned for years—that was part of why they had stayed friends so long. They had always loved hot pot, the spicier the better.
Lin Wei stared at Mu Wan in disbelief.
“Why are you ordering that?”
“I’m having the clear broth,” Mu Wan said, eyes still on the menu. “I’ve gotten too used to eating light lately. I can’t handle heavy flavors anymore.”
Lin Wei threw herself back against the seat and just looked at her.
Mu Wan glanced over.
“What?”
Lin Wei let out a long sigh.
“I swear,” she said, “you went off to seduce Taoist Liu, and instead of dragging him into the mortal world, you’re the one becoming more and more abstinent. If this keeps up, you’re going to end up his Taoist companion.”
Mu Wan twirled the pencil once between her fingers.
“So what if I do? If I become his Taoist companion, then I’ll cultivate with him.”
Her voice was not loud.
Yet once the words came out, several nearby tables looked over at the same time.
Lin Wei wore a look of profound pain.
Mu Wan: “...What?”
“‘Cultivate together’ doesn’t mean what you think it means. It’s not just two people practicing together. It means—actually, forget it. Go look it up yourself.”
“...”
Mu Wan did not wait until later.
The moment the broth came to a boil, she pulled out her phone and searched it. Steam rose from the pot. Her face started to warm.
Biting into a sticky rice cake dusted with brown sugar, Lin Wei watched Mu Wan’s face turn redder and redder and laughed inwardly.
Such a baby chick.
“Well?” Lin Wei asked. “Do you know what it means now?”
“I know.”
Mu Wan took a drink of water, as though to suppress the dry heat rising in her. Then she said, “Different roads, same destination. In the end, it still comes down to dual cultivation.”
Lin Wei burst out laughing.
After laughing for a while, Lin Wei seemed to remember something.
“Oh, right. My studio just took on a project. A villa in the south district with an ocean view. Several tens of millions.”
Lin Wei’s studio specialized in high-end interior design, so her clients were usually already rich.
But even so, a project in that range was not something she saw every day.
“That’s good news,” Mu Wan said.
She picked up a piece of sticky rice cake, too. It was so sweet it nearly melted her.
“The more expensive the house, the more you make.”
“Do you know whose place it is?” Lin Wei asked.
Then she answered her own question.
“Mu Qing’s.”
Mu Wan paused mid-bite, one brow lifting.
Back in high school, Mu Qing had attended the same school as Lin Wei and Mu Wan. Lin Wei knew the Mu family’s people and their mess well enough. She let out a cold little snort.
“She specifically came looking for my studio. After all these years, she hides it so well on the surface—but in the end she still couldn’t resist showing off in that sneaky little way.”
Mu Qing knew Lin Wei was Mu Wan’s close friend.
That was exactly why she had chosen Lin Wei’s studio.
Mu Wan had a faint feeling that Mu Qing’s intent was not quite as simple as mere showing off.
“Have you signed already?” she asked.
“I have.”
Lin Wei arched one brow.
“There’s nothing to be afraid of. It’s just a house. At worst, I breach the contract. Your girl here is a rich second generation.”
“Then you can pay for today’s meal,” Mu Wan said immediately.
Lin Wei: “...”
After the hot pot, the two of them wandered around the mall and bought a pile of clothes before Lin Wei drove Mu Wan home.
Once she got back, Mu Wan showered and collapsed straight onto her bed. The moment she closed her eyes, she was asleep.
By the time she woke up, it was already four in the afternoon.
Sitting cross-legged on the bed, she texted Liu Qianxiu.
At halftime in the basketball game, the sound of the ball striking the court still echoed through the gym. The lights were bright overhead. Liu Qianxiu sat off to one side, tilting his head back to drink water.
He had just come off the court and was damp with sweat. As he drank, droplets slid down along the line of his throat. There was something crisp and unguarded about him after exercise, something unexpectedly sensual.
Even the cheap plastic bottle looked intact and elegant inside his long, strong hand.
After drinking, Liu Qianxiu set it aside and lifted the hem of his jersey to wipe his sweat away.
His build was lean, but tightly drawn. When the white jersey lifted, it revealed the clean definition of his waist and abdomen, flashing a stark masculine force. Yet once the jersey dropped again, the coolness of his face remained unchanged. Even after hard exercise, his skin still carried that pale, cool undertone, as though his body and spirit were two separate things that never interfered with each other.
Just as he let the jersey fall, the phone beside him lit up.
He picked it up, read the message, put it away, and said to Huai Jing beside him, “I have to go.”
Huai Jing had just finished drinking too. Elbows braced on his knees, he was also soaked in sweat, but looked not the least bit tired.
He checked the time.
“Going back this early for what? It’s barely after four.”
“To cook,” Liu Qianxiu said.
Huai Jing: “...It’s barely after four.”
“Mm.”
Huai Jing leaned back, long legs stretched out, both arms braced behind him on the seating row.
“I heard from Xingkong that there was a woman with you yesterday,” he said. “Should I take that as a sign you might want to introduce her to the group sometime?”
By “introduce,” he meant the kind of thing Xu Xingkong had done when she was first brought to meet everyone—sharing a meal, making it official quietly.
Liu Qianxiu stood up from his seat and looked at Huai Jing.
Huai Jing returned the look in silence.
Liu Qianxiu was quiet for a moment, as though thinking it through.
Then he said, “Later.”
“Fine.”
Huai Jing did not press further.
That was always how it was between them. If it were something Liu Qianxiu could say, he would say it on his own. If he did not say it, then it simply meant there was no need for them to know yet.
Liu Qianxiu showered in the gym’s locker room, changed clothes, and drove back to Nanfeng Apartments.
Mu Wan had texted to say she was already on her way.
By now, she should be arriving.
He parked in the underground garage, a sports bag slung over one shoulder and a basketball in one hand, and swiped the elevator card.
The elevator began rising from B1.
When it reached the first floor, it stopped.
The doors opened.
Mu Wan was standing outside.
She had been looking at an advertisement playing on the digital screen by the elevator. When she heard the doors open, she looked in. The moment she saw Liu Qianxiu, the corners of her eyes curved.
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