Ao Xinyu truly didn’t want to see Lin Que walk into danger again.
She vividly remembered how, a few years ago, Lin Que had fought a deadly battle against evil cultivators in order to save an entire city of mortals. In the end, the people were saved, but his cultivation was crippled.
For a long time afterward, Ao Xinyu couldn’t reach him. The letters she sent to the Sword-Seeking Sect went unanswered. It wasn’t until she visited the sect in person that she learned Lin Que had suffered such a calamity.
By that time, his cultivation had mostly recovered and he had already become Dao companions with Jiang Moqing.
She had been a step too late.
But Ao Xinyu couldn’t really be blamed. As a dragon, a race known for their long lifespans and the saying “a hundred years, one age”, her sense of time was very different from that of ordinary humans.
Most of her childhood companions had also been dragons, so in Ao Xinyu’s eyes, going ten-plus years without contact still seemed normal. Besides, at the time, her Glazed Pavilion was in a rapid growth phase, and it was hard for her to make time. All she could manage was to stay in touch with Lin Que through letters.
Of course, that habit changed completely after she reunited with Lin Que and realized how drastically things could change in just a single year without contact.
During that period, she made time to visit Lin Que almost every month. Even the scars on his face and body were healed thanks to the countless heavenly materials and treasures Ao Xinyu threw at him as if they cost nothing.
Otherwise, Lin Que’s face would still be marked by a huge scar.
As for why she didn’t seek him out in the following years…well, that had to do with what Jiang Moqing told her…
“When he needed someone the most, you weren’t there. So now, there’s no need for you to appear again. He has me, and that’s enough. Your presence is nothing but an eyesore.”
“These spirit stones in the storage ring are enough to pay for your heavenly treasures. You and him. We’re even now.”
From that moment on, Ao Xinyu never took the initiative to appear before Lin Que again until today, when he came to her on his own.
“Why… why didn’t I go see him during that time?”
“The news about the Sword-Seeking Sect’s chief being crippled was such a huge stir…I should’ve noticed.”
Reclining against her dragon throne, Ao Xinyu looked up at the ceiling, her eyes gradually misting over.
It wasn’t just because she had been a step too late those few years ago—
It was also because now…
He had found a new Dao companion.
To be honest, Ao Xinyu had sensed it to some extent. Jiang Moqing’s extreme personality was destined to be incompatible with Lin Que in the long run. But she hadn’t expected that day to come so soon—
Even more unexpected was that, when they met again, Lin Que already had a new Dao companion.
She was once again too late.
Letting out a deep sigh, Ao Xinyu lowered her head and returned to the documents on her desk.
Immersing herself in work was the best way to take her mind off things.
The twin shopkeepers stood nearby, serving her tea and waiting quietly for orders.
By the time she finished her work, the sun was already setting outside. Ao Xinyu rubbed her temples and leaned back, closing her eyes.
One of the shopkeepers placed a herbal-soaked towel over her eyes for a warm compress, while the other gently massaged her shoulders.
These two were not only highly esteemed shopkeepers of the Glazed Pavilion, but also Ao Xinyu’s personal maids among the very few people who could speak freely with her.
“Tell me… am I really that unworthy…? Even after he broke up with Jiang Moqing, he still didn’t come to find me.”
This proud little dragon girl, the master of the Glazed Pavilion, now spoke with a rare tone of self-doubt.
Seeing her grow more discouraged with each word, the older twin immediately spoke up in reassurance:
“Pavilion Master, please don’t belittle yourself! If even you give up on yourself, how will you ever win in the future?”
The younger twin shopkeeper chimed in as well,
“Exactly! It’s that Chief Lin who has no taste. How could he ignore a beauty like you, Pavilion Master, someone so stunning it puts even the moon and flowers to shame, and instead go chasing after someone else? He’s truly blind!”
“Don’t you dare speak ill of him!”
Ao Xinyu huffed, and the younger shopkeeper immediately lowered her head.
“Besides, if his taste were truly bad, then what does that make me, someone even he doesn’t fancy? In any case, no one is allowed to say anything bad about him.”
“We understand,” both shopkeepers answered in unison.
After a while, the younger one couldn’t help but ask, “Still, if I may be so bold… why is Pavilion Master so attached to Chief Lin?”
“Obviously because he’s handsome! And strong!”
Ao Xinyu answered without hesitation, “Out of all the beings I’ve ever met, his looks are the most dashing!”
“Eh?”
The younger shopkeeper was clearly stunned. She had considered many possible reasons, but she never imagined that Ao Xinyu might be drawn to Lin Que simply because he was good-looking.
They always said dragons were naturally lustful—
Could it be that their own Pavilion Master was really just… purely thirsting after Chief Lin’s body?
“If you like handsome men, Pavilion Master, why not just take on a few consorts? Why hang yourself from the tree of a man who’s already taken…”
“Pah, pah, pah! I’ve seen the consorts my relatives take….those men look so delicate, they could be mistaken for women! No, someone like Danque, with that masculine aura, that’s the real deal.”
As she spoke, Ao Xinyu suddenly fell silent, realizing she had said too much. Waving her hand, she dismissed them.
“You may go now. I want to be alone.”
“As you command.”
The twin shopkeepers responded in unison and quietly exited the Pavilion.
On the way back, the younger twin still looked puzzled.
“Big Sister, do you really think the Pavilion Master chose Chief Lin for that reason? If it’s just about looks, there are men across the cultivation world who are more handsome than him.”
“And if we’re talking about strength… I noticed earlier…since that disaster, Chief Lin’s cultivation hasn’t advanced at all. The other prodigies he once defeated during the contest for the chief title have probably surpassed him by now…”
Hearing the disdain in her younger sister’s tone, the older sister immediately covered her mouth.
“Don’t speak nonsense! Chief Lin is not someone we can speak lightly of!”
Only when her sister nodded repeatedly, indicating she understood, did the older shopkeeper release her hand and begin explaining in a low voice, “You weren’t around back when the Pavilion Master first worked with Chief Lin, so it’s understandable you don’t know what kind of person he truly is.”
“Then… what kind of person is Chief Lin?”
Seeing her sister’s serious expression, the younger shopkeeper shrank her neck and grew curious.
“That man… he’s truly a harbinger of death. Do you know how the Glazed Pavilion managed to grow so powerful in a place like Ten Thousand Treasures City? Chief Lin carved a bloody path for us!”
“All those powers that once tried to destroy the Pavilion were wiped out by him alone. There were at least several hundred lives lost in that massacre…”
“What?!”
Hearing this, the younger shopkeeper instinctively covered her mouth, her beautiful eyes wide with shock. She hadn’t been managing the shop for long. In fact, she had largely gotten the position thanks to her older sister, so it was only natural she lacked her sister’s knowledge.
“But just now, I thought Chief Lin seemed so kind… He didn’t look like a killer at all…”
Lin Que’s behavior earlier truly resembled that of a courteous gentleman. He looked gentle and modest, even giving her the faint feeling of a spring breeze brushing past.
“That has to do with Chief Lin’s past. It’s not something we’re in a position to judge,” the older shopkeeper said, patting her sister on the head.
“But still, big sister, I don’t understand why the Pavilion Master likes Chief Lin so much. She even turned down several marriage proposals from powerful clans because of him. If she had accepted one of those geniuses’ support, wouldn’t the Glazed Pavilion’s current crisis be easily resolved…”
“The Pavilion Master’s feelings for Chief Lin can’t possibly be for such shallow reasons. She just doesn’t want to reveal what she truly thinks. To borrow that senior’s words, I think this is what they call… tsundere?”
“I see.”
“In any case, as her servants, our duty is simply to support every decision the Pavilion Master makes. Now that you’re working under me, there’s still a lot for you to learn.”
“Got it, big sister.”
The two sisters walked off shoulder to shoulder, chatting and laughing as they went.
***
Inside Moonview Pavilion, Ao Xinyu sat alone on her dragon throne. With no one else around, she opened a drawer and took out a stack of carefully preserved letters.
These were the letters exchanged between her and Lin Que over the years.
The last one was dated four years ago, shortly after Lin Que had become Dao companions with Jiang Moqing.
Gazing at the handwriting on the letter, Ao Xinyu reached out and gently touched it.
“Why… why is it that you still couldn’t choose me?”
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