Cohabitation with Sword Spirit-Chapter 161 - 131: Drink More Hot Water
October 18, 2017
"What did you say!?"
In the morning, Shen Qingming, who was shocked by the bad news, rolled off the bed and onto the floor, unable to get up for a long while.
Wang Jiu was also surprised: "Although I expected you to be happy, I didn't think you'd be this happy. It seems you've been looking forward to an idol group for a long time."
"Which eye of yours sees me being happy?!" Shen Qingming almost threw the shoe next to the bed at Wang Jiu's face, "You're the idol group!"
Wang Jiu said, "To be precise, I did participate in an idol group."
"Agh..." Shen Qingming choked on her saliva and coughed heartbreakingly.
But soon, she realized that the idol group Wang Jiu talked about was likely a story from the Jiuzhou Era, and those who were once his partners are now gone.
It's really a sad story.
However, no matter how sad a story is, if you experience it dozens of times, it numbs you. Shen Qingming and this whiteboard Broken Sword have been living together for over five months now, and her heart has already become as numb as a rock. So she coldly sneered in her heart and said, "Cough cough cough..."
Looking at the mount who was coughing foolishly, Wang Jiu couldn't help but marvel at how she truly reflected Shen Kaishan's legacy, showcasing the same level of intelligence.
In hindsight, if not for this, Shen Kaishan would never have completely abandoned the family's sophisticated Qi Cultivation Method and forged a new path with the Body Ascension of the Immovable Tyrant Body. Initially, Shen Kaishan never intended for his body to endure so much hardship. He accidentally discovered that his innate talent and bloodline were so resilient... Compared to Shen Kaishan, Shen Qingming was simply a genius teenage girl, clever and resourceful.
So expecting Shen Qingming to explore her bodily potential on her own was unrealistic. She found it challenging to fully exploit the potential of her physique through her intelligence and needed a mentor constantly guiding her and refining her from the front.
Thinking of this, Wang Jiu gently handed over a cup of hot water, then said in a soothing tone as the girl rolled her eyes.
"Let me tell you a joke."
"Cough cough cough!" Shen Qingming, who was in the middle of drinking water, was taken by surprise again, coughing heartbreakingly.
Wang Jiu was somewhat confused: "I haven't even started telling the joke yet, why are you laughing? But it doesn't matter, the effect seems to be the same."
Shen Qingming, who had coughed out internal injuries, curled up on the floor like a shrimp, unable to muster the energy to speak, so she raised a middle finger at Wang Jiu, expressing her simple thoughts and feelings.
——
No matter how unwilling Shen Qingming was, as a contracted artist who had formally signed a contract, she couldn't resist the demands of the company's chairman and eventually left Shen Garden with a face full of reluctance.
She had a work lunch with the newly signed artist Li Wanqing.
This was a strong request from Li Wanqing, even specifically written into a supplementary contract—a minimum of four idol group work meals per month to enhance mutual understanding and improve group chemistry. The request was reasonable, and Wang Jiu agreed on the spot.
As the inviter of the meal, Li Wanqing arrived early, ordered a table of exquisite dishes, and upon seeing the two enter, she immediately bloomed into a bright smile, "Little Sister Qingming, long time no see."
Shen Qingming awkwardly returned a smile, "Sister Wanqing, long time no see," then sat as far away from Li Wanqing as possible.
Li Wanqing continued to beam, saying, "Now that everyone's here, let's eat. The dishes were chosen by me, and I hope they suit your tastes."
Wang Jiu glanced at the table of dishes and was surprised to find that among the dozens of dishes, not even a speck of carrot was in sight. This was rare in Cyun Cloud City, flourishing with carrots.
On the other side, Shen Qingming's surprise surpassed that of Wang Jiu by threefold. Although she didn't recognize more than half of the dishes on the table, the dozen or so dishes closest to her were all her favorite dishes that she never grew tired of. Among them was a plate of cold mixed Hundred-Flavor Vegetable, which she had on her last day at the Inner Sect. At that time, because she couldn't break through the Qi Barrier for a long time, she was expelled from the Inner Sect by Lu Xin, and in the last meal at the Inner Sect's canteen, she happened to see an often ignored small cold dish made from leftover vegetables mixed with sauce.
The taste, surprisingly, matched her palate, maybe because the chef that day used an ingenious blend of sauces, or perhaps it resonated with her mindset at that time. Whatever it was, the taste of that dish left a vivid memory for Shen Qingming.
But she had never mentioned this to anyone else, not even Wang Jiu knew—unless he breached the Master-Servant Contract to spy on her deep consciousness. But how did Sister Wanqing know...
With a hint of surprise, Shen Qingming looked up at Li Wanqing, who was still wearing a face that one couldn't dislike no matter what.
"Sister Wanqing, thank you, but why did you..."
Li Wanqing said, "Because I was on site that day, you just didn't see me. Ha, back then, even though you wore a gloomy face, the faint smile you gave while eating the dish, like the first sunshine after a drizzle, still lingers in my memory."
"You were there? But hadn't you already left the mansion by then..." Shen Qingming covered her face in disbelief, feeling her cheeks burn bright red.
"I specially asked Wuqing Daoist for leave. I told him the woman he fell in love with was unhappy in life and her husband treated her poorly. Then, wielding the full set of Wuqing Flying Swords, he went to Blue Sea."
Shen Qingming was taken aback: "Huh?"
Li Wanqing waved her hand: "Just a guess. I was only 13 at the time, how could I know what was happening across the vast Blue Sea? But logically speaking, most women aren't too happy after getting married, so saying her husband wasn't good to her is probably right nine times out of ten."
Shen Qingming wanted to refute, but considering the experiences of her own biological mother and stepmother, she suddenly felt that she couldn't say a word.
Li Wanqing said: "After taking time off, I originally wanted to comfort you. After all, being expelled from the Inner Sect would be quite stressful for a ten-year-old girl. But when I saw you, I found you much stronger than I expected. You neither cried like typical girls nor blamed others in your heart. Instead, you decided to train harder in the Outer Sect to one day prove yourself to everyone. Honestly, at that moment, my heart fluttered a bit."
"Sister Wanqing, you're making things up again, what do you mean by heart fluttering..."
Li Wanqing said: "I will be moved by all the beautiful things in the world, and at that moment, the most beautiful sight in my eyes was your smile as you took small bites of the food."
Shen Qingming felt she couldn't take it anymore and quickly kicked Wang Jiu under the table — of course, this action had no real effect on an illusion without substance.
But the perceptive Wang Jiu still received the signal immediately.
"Want some hot water?"
"Thank you." Shen Qingming accepted the hot water, and the anxiety in her heart was instantly replaced by a feeling as calm as stone.
Li Wanqing, missing her mark, gestured and handed over a distant dish.
"At the time, I made a mental note to find that chef in the kitchen to see which master could make a dish that brought out such a beautiful smile from my cute little sister. He was truly a remarkable genius. Later, he left the Li Family Mansion and opened a small dining room of his own. This morning, I specially invited him to the Drunken Immortal Tower to make a few simple yet heartfelt home-cooked dishes, hoping you would like them."
"You actually went out of your way to find that chef?" Shen Qingming was astonished. She instinctively picked up a piece of braised meat that Li Wanqing handed over. As soon as it hit her mouth, it melted with a wonderful flavor that spread throughout her entire being.
"Of course, it's to make up for the neglect over the past few years."
"Neglect?"
Li Wanqing said: "Honestly, when Sister Xin kicked you out of the Inner Sect, I knew what she wanted to do. I actually wanted to tell her that it was so stupid, like a 13 or 14-year-old boy going through a clumsy adolescence trying to attract a girl's attention using methods she dislikes. Unfortunately, I didn't get the chance to do anything before being sent out of Cyan Cloud City to practice on Yuqing Mountain. In the years following, I heard that you and Sister Xin went through some unpleasant events, both hurting each other... If I had known, I should have at least sent a few letters to Sister Xin."
Shen Qingming listened in a daze, finding it increasingly unbelievable: "You, you always... knew?"
"Of course, I've been watching you both for a long time, I wouldn't get it wrong."
"Watching for a long time... My god."
Shen Qingming had always thought, in the years after being expelled from the Inner Sect, that she was completely invisible in the Li Family Mansion. That's why she eventually moved to Shen Garden without a second thought. Yet, she hadn't expected that Sister Wanqing had always been... watching her.
"I've wanted to be the Guardian of young girls since I was little, so I definitely wouldn't miss the most beautiful girls in the mansion."
"The most..."
Shen Qingming had to kick Wang Jiu under the table again.
"Need some hot water?"
"Thank you."
After drinking the second cup of hot water, Shen Qingming suppressed the blush on her cheeks and said seriously: "Let's get down to business."
"Sure, it's meant to be a work meeting, after all." Li Wanqing was unfazed by the change in topic and casually handed two stacks of documents to Wang Jiu and Shen Qingming.
"These are some ideas I have about an idol group, please give your professional opinions."
Wang Jiu opened the document, took a glance, and nodded: "Not bad, let's go with this."
Shen Qingming protested sharply: "Which eye of yours sees this is not bad?! What's with this idol cohabitation plan? I have to eat, live, and even regularly bathe with her in a private bathhouse?!"
Wang Jiu said curiously: "This is the best way to build partner synergy. This is how Zhao Yuming designed it for me back then."
"Cough, cough, cough..."
"Need some hot water?"
"Go to hell!!"
