Chapter 4: Washing Hands to Make Soup

Although Su Rong felt Long Ling looked familiar, she didn’t think much of it.

After all, there are many people in the world who look similar.

She raised her eyebrows slightly and casually asked, “Since your cousin has come to pick you up, you should leave with him.”

Hearing Su Rong’s words, Long Ling and Qing Xian had completely different reactions.

Long Ling’s eyes were filled with joy, and he expectantly turned to Qing Xian, waiting for his reaction.

However, he saw Qing Xian looking somewhat displeased at the indifferent woman beside him, with a hint of… reluctance? in his eyes.

Long Ling was puzzled and shocked. It was the first time he had seen such an expression on His Highness the Crown Prince, like an ordinary young man reluctant to part with someone he cared about.

But such a normal expression appearing on the face of Qing Xian, the Crown Prince of the Divine Realm, was highly unusual.

He had been strictly trained from a young age. When other children in the Divine Realm were still fighting over toys, Qing Xian was already taken by the Heavenly Emperor to Qihua Mountain to live and eat with the mountain spirits.

When he finally came out of the mountain, he was covered in blood, with not a single piece of good flesh left on his small body.

Upon his return, his favorite little toys were discarded by people sent by the Heavenly Emperor, leaving nothing behind.

At that time, the young Crown Prince showed no expression, as if all of this had nothing to do with him.

But today, he saw His Highness the Crown Prince showing reluctance towards someone. Although subtle, it was enough to shock him.

Long Ling grabbed Qing Xian’s hand and said to Su Rong, “My lady, it’s not that I don’t want to take my cousin away, but I have also come from afar, with little money left, and currently have no fixed abode. I came here to seek refuge with my cousin, hoping he could provide me with a place to stay…”

His eyes were filled with worry, as if he was truly troubled by his livelihood.

Su Rong still had no reaction, unresponsive to his performance.

Qing Xian, however, looked at him with some surprise. Was this still the Long Ling he knew?

When did he become so good at making up stories?

Long Ling didn’t mind Qing Xian’s surprise and, seeing that Su Rong was unmoved, turned to plead with Shan Zhang.

“Respected teacher, can you take in one more person? I promise to work diligently and hard. I just need a bed board.”

Shan Zhang, being older, had a soft spot for the younger generation. Seeing him like this, she couldn’t bear it and compromised, “It’s not impossible to let you stay, but there are many women in the mountain, and it’s quite inconvenient for you men to live here.”

Long Ling replied, “I can transform into a woman.”

“What?” Shan Zhang was shocked.

“Look at my stature and appearance. If I disguise myself as a woman, no one would suspect,” Long Ling said, standing up straight to show he wasn’t just talking.

“Absurd!” If the ruler wasn’t in her hand, Shan Zhang might have used it to hit someone.

“Fine, you can stay. Live in the same room as my nephew. His courtyard can be rearranged to accommodate one more person,” Shan Zhang said, taking a deep breath to suppress her unease.

What kind of man is this? How improper!

Long Ling smiled and said, “Thank you, teacher. You are my second mother!”

Long Ling’s smile was bright and unrestrained. He said this without any worry that his real mother would be angry, after all, she wouldn’t care about him anyway.

“No need for that.” Shan Zhang couldn’t handle such gratitude and said, “You two brothers go catch up.”

Meaning, don’t stay here anymore, she couldn’t take it.

Long Ling nodded and said, “Thank you, Shan Zhang. I’ll go catch up with my cousin now.”

As he finished speaking, he pulled Qing Xian away. Qing Xian looked at Su Rong, who had been standing aside the whole time as if watching a show, uninvolved. His clear eyes showed traces of disappointment.

Su Rong didn’t notice Qing Xian’s expression, and even if she had, she probably wouldn’t have cared.

She bid farewell to Shan Zhang: “There are many classes today, I’ll take my leave first.”

Shan Zhang waved her hand, not minding whether she stayed or left.

…

“Your Highness, how are your injuries?” Long Ling asked with some concern.

“They’re no longer serious, don’t worry,” Qing Xian straightened his back, his thin lips slightly pursed.

He himself was also shocked at the recovery speed of these wounds.

“No longer serious? How is that possible?” Long Ling asked in surprise. He had personally witnessed the Heavenly Emperor ordering people to beat His Highness. That divine whip had cut into his flesh with every lash, how could it heal so quickly?

“I don’t know either,” Qing Xian instinctively didn’t mention that it was Su Rong’s medicine that had cured him, instead glossing over it vaguely.

Although Long Ling found it strange, he wouldn’t have thought that a mortal woman would have medicine to treat wounds from a divine whip. He only assumed that this time the Heavenly Emperor had been lenient with the punishment, considering His Highness was to descend to the mortal realm.

Since His Highness’s wounds were almost healed, Long Ling’s thoughts suddenly turned to another matter.

“Your Highness…”

“Long Ling, don’t call me that anymore. We’re in the mortal realm now. It wouldn’t be good if someone overheard,” Qing Xian interrupted him.

“Then what should I call you?”

“Just call me cousin.”

“Alright then… cousin, do you like that mortal woman?” Long Ling asked curiously.

He had expected Qing Xian to coldly rebuke him for his wild imagination, but instead saw his fair face suddenly turn red: “There’s no such thing.”

Seeing him in this state, Long Ling already had an idea.

He had seen many young gods in love, and His Highness had the same look.

His Highness was the Crown Prince, and also a man, it was perfectly normal for him to have feelings for a woman. So he said,

“If you like that woman, why not tell her your feelings?”

Seeing him speak this way, Qing Xian no longer tried to hide it. He and Long Ling were close, so it was fine for him to know.

He hesitated and said, “But she’s a mortal, we’re ultimately on different paths.”

“It’s good precisely because she’s a mortal. Your punishment is only for three months. After three months, you’ll part ways, isn’t that good?” Long Ling said.

“But that’s not fair to her,” Qing Xian said.

“You should remember she’s a woman, and women are fickle. Even if you leave, it won’t affect her ability to take husbands and male concubines. Why not enjoy it while you can?” Long Ling said, his tone filled with righteous indignation.

“Is that so?” Qing Xian’s eyes were a bit lost. Can feelings really be ended just like that?

He couldn’t help but ask out loud.

“Of course they can, just think about my royal mother,” Long Ling said.

Qing Xian’s red lips quivered as he said, “But, she doesn’t seem to like me.”

“What?” Long Ling exclaimed excitedly, “You’re so excellent, if she can’t see that, she must have eye problems!”

Qing Xian felt a bit helpless, but also warmed by Long Ling’s words.

Only he thought Qing Xian was excellent.

Seeing Qing Xian remain silent, Long Ling said, “I’ve heard that women like gentle men. Why don’t you try being more gentle?”

“Hmm?” Qing Xian was a bit confused, “What counts as being gentle?”

“When I was young, I often heard my royal mother praising my big father for being gentle and virtuous. I remember my big father always made soup for my royal mother. As for other things, it’s been too long, I’ve forgotten,” Long Ling said.

Qing Xian seriously pondered Long Ling’s words and murmured, “Making soup?”

“Oh, and gentle people always speak with a smile. You’re always too stern, you never smile,” Long Ling said, “Let me see you smile.”

Qing Xian was taken aback. After thinking for a moment, he tried to imitate Su Rong’s smile, slightly curving the corners of his mouth.

But Long Ling burst out laughing: “You, you look too unnatural like that. Why don’t you try thinking of something happy?”

Qing Xian dropped his somewhat stiff smile and, instead of thinking of anything happy, asked:

“Long Ling, do you know how to make soup?”

Long Ling was stumped. He realized he actually didn’t know how.

The two fell silent, and finally decided to go to the kitchen to take a look first.

…

The academy’s kitchen was well-stocked with all kinds of ingredients, but these foods didn’t recognize Qing Xian, and Qing Xian didn’t recognize them either.

Not long after, Long Ling came in.

“Your High-… Cousin, I found a cookbook. You can learn from this,” Long Ling said to Qing Xian, holding up a book about an inch thick.

Qing Xian took the book and flipped through it, then asked, “Is this the corn for the corn and bone soup mentioned in the book?”

Qing Xian held up a long yellow object and asked Long Ling.

“I know this one, it’s a carrot, not corn,” Long Ling said, “But carrots can be used to make bone soup too.”

Qing Xian nodded, deciding to use carrots.

Following the steps in the book, he cut the carrots into round pieces, and then… where were the bones?

Qing Xian asked Long Ling, “Long Ling, which one is the bone?”

“Huh?” Long Ling didn’t know either, but as the most valued subordinate of the Crown Prince, he casually picked up an ingredient from nearby and said, “It should be this one, right?”

Qing Xian looked at the ingredient in his hand, which did indeed look a bit like the bones he usually ate. He nodded and took it, cutting it into sections and putting it into the pot.

After adding “salt”, he covered the pot and started cooking.

An hour later, Qing Xian carried the finished “carrot and bone soup” back to the small courtyard.

“Su Rong?” he called softly, but there was no response.

Qing Xian, familiar with the place, gently opened the door a crack, and sure enough, she had fallen asleep while reading again.

He pushed the door open and walked in, placing the soup tureen on the table, then quietly walked to Su Rong’s side.

She was sleeping soundly, her long, dense eyelashes like soft feather fans resting on her fair skin. Qing Xian’s heart couldn’t help but soften.

It was strange, she was always out in the sun during the day, yet still maintained this pale complexion.

He reached out and gently pushed her, softly calling, “Su Rong.”

Su Rong slowly woke up, her peach blossom eyes half-covered with a thin layer of mist, looking at Qing Xian as if gazing at her lover.

Qing Xian’s breath caught, his fingers unconsciously tightening on Su Rong’s sleeve, his heart racing.

“Hmm?” Su Rong asked.

Her voice, still husky from sleep, sounded like a gentle murmur, or a deep, indulgent tone.

Qing Xian’s ear tips turned slightly red, and he said somewhat shyly, “I made some soup for you. Would you like to try it?”

There was surprise in Su Rong’s eyes. She really couldn’t see Qing Xian as someone who would cook.

Her gaze turned to his slender, delicate fingers, noticing several knife cuts on them.

She shifted her gaze away, turning towards the soup on the table.

Qing Xian lifted the lid of the soup tureen. Inside was water, carrots, and…

“What is this?” Su Rong asked, pointing at something she couldn’t identify.

“Bones,” Qing Xian said, also feeling a bit confused.

He had thought it looked like ribs earlier, but why did it fall apart after cooking? Long Ling said it was because he cooked it for too long. He thought that might be the case… probably.

Su Rong found it a bit amusing. This was vegetarian ribs made in the kitchen, made from tofu, prepared to be sent to some monks at the Five Path Temple down the mountain.

Both Five Path Temple and Five Path Academy were built on this Five Path Mountain. Every year, Five Path Academy would send students to Five Path Temple for a few days of fasting.

The temple didn’t have many worshippers, so the academy often sent food over, which could be considered mutual assistance.

“This is vegetarian ribs that the academy was going to send to Five Path Temple,” Su Rong said with a smile.

She wasn’t angry, just a bit amused.

When Qing Xian heard this, he realized he might have made a mistake. He looked at Su Rong nervously, his pink lips pressed tightly together.

Seeing him like this, Su Rong couldn’t help but reach out and gently pinch his face, saying, “Don’t worry, the amount of soup you made won’t have much impact.”

Qing Xian let out a sigh of relief, but also blushed a little.

She had just pinched his face!