Xuanji accompanied Linglong and Yu Sifeng for a while as they caught rabbits, and when she turned around, she suddenly noticed Zhong Minyan was missing. She couldn't help but wonder, "Eh, where's Sixth Brother?"
Linglong, a cheeky little girl, had suddenly taken a strong liking to Yu Sifeng and wasn't concerned about Zhong Minyan at all. She only focused on following Yu Sifeng, watching him shoot rabbits with a slingshot; he looked irresistibly cool.
Xuanji called out a couple of times, but no one answered her. Across from her, Linglong was still discussing with Yu Sifeng how to hold the slingshot to aim accurately. Left with no other choice, she looked around only to see from a distance, Zhong Minyan and the senior brother sitting in front of the Spiritual Spring, engrossed in conversation.
Having no interest in hunting rabbits, she simply stuffed the slingshot into Linglong's hands and ran over to slack off with them.
"Oh, Xuanji has come out too. Not hunting anymore?" Du Minxing was surprised to see her emerge from the woods. Weren't these four kids just fine a moment ago?
Xuanji sat down beside him, casually picked up the last grilled fish, took a bite, and hissed because it was hot, "I... don't know how to hunt, and it's no fun."
Knowing her usual demeanor, Du Minxing chuckled and said, "Eat slowly, if it's not enough, I'll catch a couple more fish."
By that time, Zhong Minyan had already finished a fish. He was sulking and upon hearing about catching more fish, he eagerly rolled up his sleeves, "I'll catch them!" He needed something to distract himself.
With that, he jumped into the pool. Large bubbles surfaced, gurgling, and then, silence followed.
Xuanji rushed to the edge of the pool, feeling anxious after a long wait with still no sign, she couldn't help but exclaim, "Sixth Brother? Sixth Brother!" After calling several times and getting no response, her expression changed suddenly, and she turned to pull on Du Minxing's clothes, "Senior Brother! Why isn't he coming up?!"
Du Minxing patted her head, reassuringly saying, "Don't worry. Min Yan is excellent in water, nothing to fret about."
Xuanji stared at the center of the pool, not knowing how much time had passed, and he still hadn't emerged. Even Du Minxing was beginning to worry and was just about to take off his outer clothing to go in search of him, when suddenly, there was a splash on the water's surface, and Zhong Minyan emerged all drenched, grinning at them.
"Look! I caught a fat fish!" He raised his arm high, and indeed, he was firmly holding a lively fish, over two feet long and quite plump.
Xuanji went closer, "Sixth Brother, come up, I'll help you."
Zhong Minyan's hair and clothes were thoroughly wet, with large water droplets sliding down his handsome contours. Under the sunlight, she found it dazzling, involuntarily squinting her eyes. He casually wiped his face, smiled slightly at her, and gently tossed the fish down by her feet.
"Catch, little girl. A fish your brother caught for you."
He dove back into the pool to continue fishing.
Xuanji stared blankly at the fat fish flapping at her feet, unable to utter a word.
Her face, burning hot, was scorched by the sun. She very gently touched her face as if touching something prickly, and suddenly withdrew her hand. Finally, she pursed her lips and tucked her hands back into her sleeves.
While Du Minxing was scaling and gutting the fish, getting it ready to roast on the fire, a noisy argument erupted from the woods. It turned out Linglong and Yu Sifeng had come back empty-handed.
"So much for being a manly man! Can't even let a girl do it! What's wrong with letting me shoot?" Linglong complained while she sat down heavily next to Xuanji.
Yu Sifeng frowned, "You don't know how, why let you shoot?"
"Then you could teach me! You've been nothing but fierce the whole time, I thought you were a good person at first!" Linglong glared at him, her face full of shattered dreams.
Yu Sifeng simply stopped talking. He truly didn't know how to handle this young lady; being with her was simply headache-inducing. Just now, in the blink of an eye, both Xuanji and Zhong Minyan had disappeared, leaving him alone to deal with this female demon, which was incredibly frustrating.
Seeing Xuanji sitting alone by the fire staring blankly at the fat fish, he approached her and asked, "What's the matter, you came back alone?"
Suddenly back to reality, Xuanji smiled, "I don't know how to hunt and I can't be bothered moving. You and Linglong seemed to be having fun, no?"
"Fun my foot…" he muttered under his breath.
"It's a pity you didn't catch any mountain chickens or wild rabbits. That fish, did you guys catch it?" He quickly touched it with his finger, flipping it expertly to continue roasting.
Xuanji nodded, "Sixth Brother caught it, he said..."
He said he had caught the fish for her.
She suddenly felt quite happy, wanted to smile, yet felt foolish too.
"Why do you always call him 'Brother'? It's too impersonal," Yu Sifeng remarked as he took out some salt, crushed it, and sprinkled it finely over the fish.
Xuanji remained silent. Of course, she also wanted to call him by his name, or even joke and call him 'Sixth.' However, she guessed that as soon as she said it, Zhong Minyan would lose his temper and then ignore her.
She knew Linglong was different, everyone liked her. She, however, was not the same.
"Where is Sixth?" Linglong had been fussing for a while before she finally remembered Zhong Minyan and looked around.
"He's catching fish in the pond. He just came back in a huff."
It was only then that Du Minxing slowly finished eating his fish.
"What is there for him to be mad about? I should be the one who's angry!" Linglong rolled her eyes at Yu Sifeng, jumped up, and ran to the pond's edge, yelling, "Sixth! Sixth! Come up now!"
No sooner had her words fallen than Zhong Minyan emerged with two fish, looking up at her with a smile that was not quite a smile, before finally drawling, "You finally thought of me, huh? What's up?"
Linglong stamped her foot, "What nonsense are you talking about! Get up here! The fish are about to burn!"
Zhong Minyan tossed the fish to Du Minxing and quickly climbed ashore, dripping wet from top to bottom. He didn't mind, wiped his face, wrung out the hem of his garment, and then sat down to share the big fish with Yu Sifeng.
"Why did you run off without a word earlier?" Linglong untied his hair for him, casually arranging it with her hands.
Zhong Minyan didn't speak, but Linglong clapped her hands, laughing, "Ah, you must've guessed we wouldn't hit the wild rabbits or mountain chickens, so you came back to catch fish, right? Sixth is indeed the smartest!"
Zhong Minyan gave a lukewarm laugh, "Yes, catching fish merely to serve you, Miss High and Mighty!"
He cut a large chunk of meat from the belly of the fish and handed it to her, meanwhile saying, "There's no help for it with you. Here! Eat it while it's hot!"
Linglong, smiling cheerily, grabbed his wet sleeve and shook it, "I knew Sixth is the best! The smartest and most considerate!"
Zhong Minyan couldn't help but smile at her enthusiasm, truly feeling elated.
Suddenly seeing Xuanji still sitting there motionlessly, he cut another piece from the other side of the fish belly and handed it to her, "Eat up, silly. The fish will start to smell if it gets cold."
Xuanji managed a weak smile, quietly saying, "Thank you… Sixth Brother."
Although they didn't have any mountain chickens or wild rabbits, the fish Zhong Minyan had caught was enough for a full meal.
While everyone was eating and laughing, they suddenly heard voices coming from behind, as if someone was approaching.
They all turned around and saw Chu Yinghong leading several disciples from Yuyang Hall, followed by five or six men clad in green robes and wearing masks, all chatting and laughing as they came nearer.
"They say the most beautiful place on Shouyang Mountain is Little Yang Peak, and now I am fortunate enough to see it; truly, its reputation is well deserved. It's a paradise on earth," said the man in the lead with a smile. Although he spoke at a normal pace, his accent was very odd, sounding a bit like Yu Sifeng.
Chu Yinghong returned the smile, saying, "Palace Master, you are too kind. Lize Palace stretches for miles, majestic and stunning, awe-inspiring to all who see it. That is true marvel."
As she finished, she looked up and saw several children in front of her, their faces shiny with grease, staring back dumbly.
She was also startled, curious, "Xuanji, Linglong, Min Yan… What are you doing here?"
Linglong, the quickest, hurriedly replied, "We were showing Si Feng the sights of Little Yang Peak, it's his first time at Shaoyang Sect, and we naturally wanted to extend our host's courtesy."
No sooner had she finished than the man in a mask at the front laughed, "Thank you all for your warm hospitality toward my disciple. He is naive and inexperienced in speech; should he offend in any way, please excuse him."
Oh? Disciple?
Everyone's gaze turned uniformly towards Yu Sifeng.
His face pale, he slowly stood up, walked over, and knelt on one knee, saying in a deep voice, "Disciple Yu Sifeng greets Master."