Chapter 6 - The House of Yun (2/2)

The darkness of the night fell upon the surrounding.

Ye Chen returned to his private quarters, his path illuminated by the faint glow of the moonlight. Upon approaching the entrance, he noticed that he was not alone. A lady clad in a white satin dress was frantically cast her gaze at his direction. Her raven-black, fine hair was disheveled but they reached her shoulders, radiating an aura of serene beauty. Her skin appeared to be emitting a soft, white glow too as the moonlight hits her skin. She was a lone, fresh lotus blossoming in the middle of a quiet night – pure and otherworldly.

It was no other girl than Ye Rou.

“Big Brother Ye Chen! You’ve finally returned.” Ye Rou’s heart calmed down considerably as her eyes caught him.

“Why are you here, Little Miss?” Ye Chen asked, barely concealing his cheeriness. He could sense the girl’s concern – being an orphan in his past life had made him grateful by her concern for him.

He looked down to study her properly. The white satin dress was hugging Ye Rou’s slender figure tightly, her supple neck and chiseled collarbones showing. Her pleated skirt draped down from her figure like a stream of ivory-colored moonlight gently pouring down onto the earth, while a fine sash sat between the graceful downward stream of her dress and her youthful, ravishingly-protruding bosom, adding even more touch of feminine elegance in her bearing.

‘When did Little Miss with pigtails turn into a pure and charming lady?’ Ye Chen could even smell a faint trace of a young maiden’s bodily scent emanating from her, tugging at his heartstrings.

Ye Chen had always treated Ye Rou as his little sister but as they grew up, it seemed that something else had flourished in their dynamic.

“This evening, when we were in the hall, I saw that Uncle’s face paled. I…I thought Big Brother’s body had…” She cut herself short, eyeing Ye Chen with mild anxiety.

“Silly Little Miss! My body’s fine as it is! Look!” The young man smiled coolly, giving his body a whirl to illustrate his point, his heart swelling with affection. “You should return to your own quarters, Rou. It’s late. If someone sees us, rumors could fly.”

“Rumors don’t bother me,” she replied firmly.

“Little Miss…my meridian channels have fully recovered. You no longer need to be worried nor do you need to expend your own Celestial Chi just to nurture my meridian channels,” Ye Chen said.

Ye Rou would usually show up just to supply the young man with some of her Celestial Chi whenever there was a full moon night, all so that it could help lessen his bouts of excruciating agony. Ye Chen had always suspected that if it was not for these extra expenses, Ye Rou’s own talent in martial arts would have easily elevated her to the Sixth Stage by now!

“Big Brother Ye Chen, is that true?” Ye Rou’s beautiful eyes reflected her incredulity at what Ye Chen had revealed.

“Would I lie to you about this?” Ye Chen’s lips curled into a smile. Then, briefly revolving his Celestial Chi, a gust of energy burst out from his palm.

“It…it’s true…” She muttered in a daze. Suddenly, tears started streaming down her cheeks.

“But you shouldn’t tell anyone about this, okay?” He smiled. “H-Hey, why are you crying, Rou? Shouldn’t you be happy instead?”

“This is wonderful – Big Brother’s healed! I…I’m so happy!” The girl jolted up – as if she had acknowledged what was being said – and ran into his embrace, sobbing.

Ye Chen was a little stupefied at the girl’s sudden burst of emotions but he recovered soon enough with a small grin and started patting the girl’s back.

Ye Rou wept for a little while longer before wiping away her tears. Her voice cracked as she mumbled. “D-don’t worry, Big Brother. I won’t tell a single soul about this.”

Both of them took some time to calm down. Somehow, with Ye Rou in his embrace, the softness of her bosom, as well as that faint sweet scent of her body, struck all of Ye Chen’s feelings. He could feel a strange, new emotion arising within him. Instinctively, he patted the girl’s bottom and chuckled. “Careful, Little Miss. Your snot is all over me!”

It was that unexpected bouncy feedback coursing through his palm, like a bolt of electricity, that had stunned him in mid-action.

Meanwhile, that warmth in Ye Chen’s body was starting to draw Ye Rou back to her senses— in her joy, she had forgotten to observe the boundaries between a man and a woman. The emotion she felt when Ye Chen hit her bottom had roused her from her daze. Now, mindful of what she had done, Ye Rou jerked up abruptly like a cat with its tail stepped on.

Her face was burning hot, her eyes cast downward as she avoided meeting the young man’s eyes. “Y-your meridian channels had just been healed, Big Brother. You would need all the rest in the world so I should get going.”

“Maybe I should accompany you on your way back,” Ye Chen replied in embarrassment. He, too, had finally realized that he may have crossed a line.

“There is no need.” In a flash, the girl hurried away.

Watching her silhouette fading into the night, Ye Chen could not help but chuckle. He looked at his hand and a thought popped into his mind. ‘Well, Little Miss Ye Rou sure has a firm bottom.’

Far away from Ye Chen and hiding in the shrubs was Ye Rou watching the young man entering his quarters. She stood still in her spot, her cheeks still blazing while her heart was beating irregularly. After a few minutes, she pursed her lips and grumbled a little sourly. “How dare you bully me like that, Big Brother! When has it ever been the norm for a boy to hit a girl’s bottom so flippantly?”

Following that, she burst into a fit of giggles, her smile wide and carefree. Yet, just as abruptly, as if an unpleasant thought had dawned on her, her expression darkened.

‘How much longer can I stay in the Ye Castle?’

Echoing the maiden’s morose question was the lonesome shivers of tree leaves.