Chu Wanning looked her up and down. Even back at Xuanyuan Pavilion, he’d already felt she was devastatingly beautiful. Now that he looked at her up close, it was clear that she was a stunning beauty of the mortal realm. She was as delicate as a lotus flower surfacing the waters, as gorgeous as the radiant dawn; her lustrous, silky hair was ebony-black, and almost seemed to illuminate her surroundings.

     No wonder Nangong Si would like her.

     With this in mind, he unconsciously glanced at Mo Ran, wanting to know how he would react to her.

     Yet unexpectedly, when his gaze shifted over, it met squarely with Mo Ran’s. Mo Ran wasn’t looking at Song Qiutong at all; it was as if Nangong Si was standing next to nothing but thin air. Instead, he was staring at him, and when their eyes met, Mo Ran smiled gently.

     Chu Wanning felt himself turn weak at his gaze, but he still had to fake composure, so he stared back at Mo Ran for a moment before averting his eyes, seemingly unaffected.

     “There are many faewolves kept here at the Xiaoyue Hunting Grounds, but the bravest one is Naobaijin, and I like him the best too.”

     Nangong Si led the group to the center of the vast field and took out a jade flute that hung at his waist, playing three sharp notes. After a moment of silence, demonic winds billowed within the woods in the distance, and a snow-white silhouette as fast as a whirlwind of lightning charged out of the trees.

     In almost the blink of an eye, a faewolf with glistening fur and golden claws leapt into the air, its form pulling into a smooth arc as it let out a long howl. The chilling winter day shone behind its back as it landed steadily and stopped before Nangong Si.

     “Awoo! Awoo!”

     Nangong Si went over and stroked his neck, then turned his head back with a smile, “Zongshi, look at him, he’s so big now. The year you left, he was still a little pup.”

     “He was also already the height of a grown man the year I left,” Chu Wanning replied expressionlessly.

     “Hahahaha, really? I always thought he was small. A pup.”

     “...”

     “Zongshi, come and try riding him.”

     Nangong Si blew the flute again, calling two more snow-white faewolves from the woods, “Mo-zongshi, wanna come try too?”

     The three mounted the backs of their respective faewolves, and Nangong Si instructed, “Grip the reins or the scruff and tighten your legs, it’s actually not too different from riding horses.” Then he leaned down towards Song Qiutong, “Qiutong, you’ll ride with me, I’ll lead you.”

     Chu Wanning thought he wouldn’t be able to do it at first, but after mounting the back of the faewolf and trying to walk a few steps, he felt that it wasn’t difficult at all. In fact, since faewolves were highly intelligent, they could understand perfectly what their riders wanted, so they were even easier to ride than normal horses.

     Nangong Si laughed, “How about it? Let’s run a lap?”

     “Are we allowed to go anywhere?”

     “Sure, the forest of the back mountain and Xiaoyue Hunting Grounds are free for us to roam.”

     Mo Ran smiled, “Is this a race?”

     “Let’s do it.” Chu Wanning stole a glance at Nangong Si, who had brought Song Qiutong along to ride on the same faewolf, and thought this was an opportunity for the married couple to build their relationship, so he gladly agreed.

     Nangong Si untied a bracelet made of spiritual stones from his wrist with a smile, “In that case, let’s run to Ganquan Lake, located on the north side of the forest, and catch five groupers each. The first to return here will be the winner, and this bracelet will be the prize, how’s that?”

     “A seven-star spiritual stone bracelet. Nangong-gongzi is too generous.”

     “A thousand gold cannot so easily buy my joy.” Nangong Si tightened his hold on the reins and lowered his head to Song Qiutong, “Sit tight and don’t fall. Let me know if we’re going too fast.”

     Mo Ran glanced at Song Qiutong and smiled, “I’m afraid Nangong-gongzi’s bracelet can be taken off in advance.”

     “Ha! Underestimating me, are you? I grew up on the backs of my wolves! Nevermind taking a person with me, it’d be nothing to add another even. Let’s go, I’ll count down from three, and we’ll start.”

     “Three, two—one!”

     The word had only just dropped when three snow-white silhouettes pierced through the air like arrows, their steps flashing through the desolate grassland and reaching the end of the hunting grounds in seconds before vanishing deep into the dense forest.

     At first, Chu Wanning was going at a slower pace, following behind Nangong Si and Song Qiutong. But eventually, with Song Qiutong’s screaming thrown back at his face, his ears inevitably grew tired. He really couldn’t stand the girl’s coquettish whining any longer, so he sped up in spite of himself and passed them.

     As the cries of “Gongzi, slow down!” behind him gradually faded away, Chu Wanning slowly began to feel the joy of riding a faewolf. Such spiritual beasts truly were intelligent, and he needed only to move the tip of his finger slightly for Naobaijin to understand what he wanted and react instantaneously. No wonder Nangong Si was so fond of these animals.

     The winter wind brushed past his face, but he didn’t feel cold. Chu Wanning raised his head to gaze at the spotted sunlight in front of him, its rays stretching out endlessly, and with a swipe of his foot, he continued to surge forward like the torrent, rolling into the distance. He couldn’t help but smile, feeling this run to be exactly what they called exhilarating, so he urged Naobaijin to dash on, and the wolf’s claws raised dust clouds behind them as they tore through the heavily needled forest.

     Mo Ran followed closely behind him, riding a black-clawed faewolf, and in that moment, an indescribable delight and relief filled his chest. He suddenly felt that he finally gained the ability to be selfish, as if no matter where he ran, there would always be such footsteps echoing ceaselessly behind him, never to be separated again.

     Chu Wanning reached Ganquan Lake at almost the same time as Mo Ran. There, the blue waters glistened, clear as a mirror. The water was extremely rich with spiritual energy.

     Thanks to nourishment from the spiritual energy, the flowers and fruit trees by the lake were unaffected by the passing seasons. Even in the middle of winter, the orange trees were still lush and flourishing; behind the dark green tree leaves, hid countless golden fruits, and the cold breeze filled the air with a sweet orange fragrance.

     After landing firmly on the ground, Chu Wanning looked around for a moment, “This is a beautiful place.”

     Mo Ran led the black-clawed faewolf over, then said with a smile, “If Shizun likes it, we’ll plant fruit trees at Sisheng Peak when we return, and use spiritual energy to make them grow year-round. Then, we can pick them whenever we want.”

     Chu Wanning let out a “Hmph,” and walked to the lakeside, raising his hand to summon Tianwen.

     Mo Ran had a feeling that something was wrong, and stopped him, “What are you doing?”

     “Catching fish.”

     “...Shizun isn’t thinking of using Wind on the waters and wringing up all the fish in the lake, are you?”

     “What are you saying?” Chu Wanning shot him a glare. He threw the golden vine over the surface of the lake, then said lightly towards the lake, “Who is tired of living? The ones who wish to take the bait.”

     Chu Wanning repeated those words three times, then withdrew Tianwen. Upon the shimmering golden leaves, there really were several fat fish looking like they had nothing left to live for, watching the sky with rolled back eyes.

     Chu Wanning looked them over, then turned to ask Mo Ran, “He said to fish for groupers, right?”

     “Mm.”

     “...Do you know what a grouper looks like?” After Chu Wanning finished speaking, he suddenly thought that the question just made things more complicated, so he simply raised Tianwen and showed Mo Ran all of the fish he’d caught, “Are there any here?”

     “...Why don’t I catch the fish for Shizun instead?”

     Mo Ran caught ten fish and divided them between the qiankun pouches hanging off the necks of both faewolves. Chu Wanning released the several fish “wanting to die” back into the waters. As he did so, he said impassively, “Life is short, so I’ll have to trouble you all to endure it a little longer.”

     Hearing such a thing, Mo Ran only felt that this man was both amusing and endearing. After he put the last grouper away, he turned around just in time to see Chu Wanning walking back to the shore from the edge of the freezing lake. The lake water shimmered behind him, gently soaking his white figure in a gentle, misty haze.

     He suddenly felt a strong desire to stride over to Chu Wanning and kiss him, to pull him into his arms and embrace him with the utmost tenderness, but also crush him. He wanted to pull him into the orange grove and pin him against a tree, then lift his legs and take him with immeasurable violence.

     As he watched Chu Wanning come closer and closer, he was struck by how contradictory and intense his desire was. The softest and roughest parts of himself were both born of meeting this man.

     Love… oh, love…

     Was this not its very image?

     Hard and hot, it was the scorching blade that cut you open; gentle and soft, it was the tenderness of spring water that wrapped around you.

     “Nangong Si is really too much.” Chu Wanning didn’t notice the mixed emotions in Mo Ran’s eyes. He came to Mo Ran’s side to check the qiankun pouch around Naobaijin’s neck, “Running so slow with a girl.”

     “He could be doing something else, you never know.”

     Mo Ran’s mind was a little hot. He stared at Chu Wanning’s exposed, pale neck wolfishly, and felt a burst of heat burn in his lower abdomen. He had murmured the response under his breath without thinking.

     Chu Wanning blinked, “Doing what?”

     “...” Only then did Mo Ran come back to his senses. He suddenly felt out of place and coughed dryly, looking away, “Nothing.”

     However, Chu Wanning had already wrapped his head around it by now, and his eyes widened before narrowing dangerously, appearing slightly angry, “What are you thinking about? Get on your horse and go back!”

     Mo Ran’s lips moved. He wanted to say, “It’s not a horse, it’s a wolf,” but seeing Chu Wanning’s somber face and the flushed tips of his ears, the words that came to his lips were swallowed once more.

     He gazed at Chu Wanning with some regret as the other mounted Naobaijin with skill and grace, incomparably refined, his beauty unparalleled. He couldn’t help but yearn for the man. He thought, if only Chu Wanning was his, he could fuck him until he could ride neither horses, nor wolves, and could only come into his arms.

     Immediately, he felt both shocked and guilty for his thoughts, and subconsciously shook his head.

     It just so happened that Chu Wanning spotted this action, and he asked, “What’s wrong? Why are you shaking your head? Was I wrong in my scolding?”

     “No, no, Shizun’s teachings are always right. I’m the one who's thinking too much.”

     But I’m not thinking about that Nangong Si and Song Qiutong crap. The one I’m thinking about is you…

     Then Mo Ran thought with a sigh, if only he could break Naobaijin’s legs; that way, Chu Wanning would have no wolf to ride, and might be willing to mount his black-clawed wolf.

     He really wanted to hug him again, like someone dying of thirst, longing for that sweet dew he’d once wasted…

     Mo Ran couldn’t get rid of these lingering thoughts as he followed closely behind Chu Wanning. When they returned to the Xiaoyue Hunting Grounds, they saw that Nangong Si and Song Qiutong were already waiting there.

     Song Qiutong sat on the ground, her slender ankles exposed, skin as crystalline as jade, but dotted with blood. It turned out that halfway through the race, she had forgotten Nangong Si’s instruction to tighten her legs, so her skin was cut by several thorns. While they were minor injuries, Nangong Si still refused to neglect them, so he’d brought her back early to tend to her.

     Mo Ran glanced at her legs; they could be considered good-looking, but when compared to Chu Wanning's, they still fell short. Yet there his past self had been, liking Song Qiutong’s legs.

     So blind.

     Now, he thought everything about Chu Wanning was good. It didn’t matter if he looked at him horizontally or vertically, the man was good no matter what. Even his pair of frosty, harsh eyes, aloof and proud; that’s how Chu Wanning should be, that was his temperament. He was good-looking, very good-looking.

     He was so good-looking that even when Mo Ran saw him glaring, scolding, or rolling his eyes at him, he felt elated.

     “I admit defeat.” Nangong Si was unbothered, and easily handed the bracelet worth a thousand gold off to Chu Wanning, “This is for zongshi.”

     Chu Wanning looked at the bracelet and said, “Seven-star spiritual stones are good for nourishing spiritual cores, I really do need them. Thank you.”

     Mo Ran felt slightly aggrieved after hearing this, and suddenly grumbled to himself, “Next time, I’l buy you something better.”

     “What’s that?” Chu Wanning didn't hear clearly, and turned to look at him.

     Seeing how Chu Wanning’s phoenix eyes were so close that his own face reflected clearly in his pupils, the bitterness in his heart subsided somewhat.

     Mo Ran smiled, “I said, next time I see something more suitable for Shizun, I’ll buy it for you.”

     “Alright.”

     Chu Wanning agreed without hesitation, which made Mo Ran even happier.

     He very pettily looked in Nangong Si’s direction. Nangong Si didn’t care for something like this at all, but Mo Ran had to compete anyway. He smugly wanted Nangong Si to know that Shizun would politely say thanks when he accepted gifts from him, but with Mo Ran, Shizun would drop the formalities. He wasn’t an outsider at all.

     Chu Wanning added, “Remember to ask the owner to write a ticket and I’ll give you the money.”

     Mo Ran: “......”

     Ten freshwater groupers were taken out of their qiankun pouches, and Nangong Si took them to a hunter’s cabin by the Xiaoyue Hunting Grounds.

     Outside the cabin, there was a black and gray hearth; all of the pots, bowls, ladles, and basins were there, but the wooden cabin seemed to be mottled and old. Compared to the magnificent grass field, it didn’t appear to be built at the same time.

     Chu Wanning brushed his fingers along the fence, and stopped when he came to an old rope tied onto it. The rope had weathered countless storms, and was eventually battered by wind and rain, so it no longer looked as gorgeous as it was before.

     Nangong Si came out of the cabin with seasonings, and when he saw Chu Wanning looking at the old rope, he smiled, “I tied that there the year zongshi left. Now, it’s almost rotted away.”

     Chu Wanning didn’t say anything, only letting out a soft sigh before sitting on a small wooden stool.

     Back when he'd stayed at Rufeng Sect, Nangong Si had been but a small child. He'd often taken him to the Xiaoyue Hunting Grounds to run around, and this hunter’s cabin was left behind from that time.

     The fire was quickly lit, and the groupers were set to cook, skewered with fruit tree branches. Luxuriant fish fat sizzled and dripped from the crispy flesh, emitting a rich aroma.

     Nangong Si gave six fish to the faewolves crouching by the wooden fence, then sprinkled salt over the remaining four and distributed them to everyone.

     Song Qiutong only took a few bites before passing the roasted fish to Nangong Si, who had already swiftly eaten a whole fish. She said, “I can’t eat anymore. Will gongzi help me finish?”

     Chu Wanning glanced over at them, and saw Nangong Si take the fish, happily starting to eat his second one. He thought Song Qiutong looked modest and gentle, a considerate person, and not at all like the cheating woman in the rumors. As expected, rumors could not be believed.

     Just as he was deep in thought, a lotus leaf was passed to him. The fish meat on it was finely cut and carefully divided, though the main detail was that the bones had all been picked out. The tender white meat was emitting steam, along with a delicious aroma.

     Chu Wanning was slightly surprised, and he looked over at Mo Ran, who was just putting away the silver dagger he always carried. Mo Ran smiled, “Shizun, have this instead.”

     “Where did you get the lotus leaf?”

     “I picked some earlier when I was catching fish by the lake.” Mo Ran handed him the fish meat, “Eat it while it’s hot, it won’t taste good when it’s cooled.”

     Chu Wanning accepted the lotus leaf with a slight ripple in his heart, “Thank you.”

     It was true that he didn’t enjoy picking out fish bones while eating, and the treated grouper meat melted in his mouth.

     Chu Wanning ate, piece by piece, not finding it overly greasy, and by the time he was done, the tea brewing over the fire was boiled too. Song Qiutong rose to remove the iron kettle and poured a cup of tea for everyone.

     She offered the tea with both her hands, “Chu-zongshi, please have some tea.”

     Slender jade-like hands held a small, white porcelain cup; her arms were as pale as the bright moon, and on her wrist was an astonishing dot of cinnabar.

     Chu Wanning suddenly recalled that back then, at the Xuanyuan Pavilion auction, the pavilion master had said that her wrist was dotted with chastity cinnabar by Cold Scale Sacred Hand, so that must be what it was. Since the chastity cinnabar was untouched, then Song Qiutong and Ye Wangxi’s affair was nothing but nonsense.

     Having thought this, Chu Wanning finally heaved a sigh of relief. Nangong Si was a pure and simple-minded person, like a wild horse of the grasslands, or a lone wolf who moved alone. He possessed the natural carelessness of a spirited horse, and he wasn’t someone Chu Wanning disliked, so he didn’t want anyone unvirtuous by his side.

     Song Qiutong then offered tea to Mo Ran.

     Mo Ran accepted the tea, but didn’t drink it. He placed it aside and smiled, “Miss Song, I have something to give you.”