When the group returned to camp, Wu Ling treated everyone to a hearty broken rice soup with broth made from the bones of yesterday's grouse combined with finely diced mushrooms and wild greens picked by Yu Jinqi.
"Brother Wu," Zhang Buyan said after several spoonfuls of the hearty soup. "Where did you learn to cook like this? It's… not like any soup I've had before. That isn't to say it's bad, but it's very different."
"It's better with an egg or two scrambled in," Wu Ling said, ladling more into Zhang Buyan's empty bowl. "My mother's hands were crippled years ago to prevent her from holding a sword again. She enjoys family meals more if it's a rich soup that she can drink instead of something that she needs to have fed to her."
"Brother Wu!" Jin Wuya exclaimed, horrified that someone would go so far to prevent another person from holding a sword again while leaving them alive to suffer. "Who would do such a thing?"
"It's not important," Wu Ling said with an awkward glance at Xiong Dahuo. "If you want the story, ask Brother Xiong some other time. I'm sure his Master has given him all the details by now. The important thing is that I learned to make a hearty soup that does a good job of sustaining the body. Hopefully, it doesn't taste too bad either," he finished, spooning more of the savory soup into his mouth.
"So this is common for you," Yu Jinqi said, poking at the thick, humble soup and comparing it to the luxurious meals that even the most common Alchemy Initiate dined on in the Jade Cauldron Sect.
Unless an Alchemist was an embarrassment to their profession, few alchemists ever lacked for wealth, and humble meals like this were a rare sight. When he'd first met Wu Ling, he'd taken him for another wealthy scion of a powerful family but it seemed like he'd misunderstood some of Wu Ling's circumstances and how far apart their worlds truly were.
"Speaking of your family, Brother Wu," the young alchemist said, trying to shift the topic. "I believe I ran into your sister the other day. She's such a captivating beauty that…"
"That can't be," Wu Ling said, nearly dropping his spoon in shock.
"How do you even know about his sister?" Xiong Dahuo asked, his hand dropping to the hilt of his saber. "And what do you mean calling her a captivating beauty? How would you even lay eyes on her?"
"There must be a mistake here," Su Xiang said, jumping in before the overprotective Brawler could draw his blade. "Brother Ling's little sister isn't yet twelve summers old. I understand that she never leaves her mother's courtyard, so perhaps Brother Yu saw someone else?"
As soon as Su Xiang mentioned the age of Wu Ling's sister, several members of the group cast suspicious and uncomfortable looks at the young alchemist. Thankfully, Yu Jinqi himself looked horrified at the mistaken implication and quickly waved his hands as though warding off evil.
"No, no, I, I'm sorry," Yu Jinqi stammered, utterly baffled by the hostility radiating from Xiong Dahuo. What kind of relationship did the crimson-haired Brawler have with Wu Ling's sister to be so murderous?
"It was at the Amber Lily Academy's recent Alchemy Exchange," he said in a rush. "She was in the company of Alchemist Huang and had a companion Golden Crow very similar to Hou. She even wore a dress trimmed in the same Burning Yang Lunar Bear fur that Brother Wu favors so I assumed…"
"Oh, I see," Wu Ling said, realizing that he'd been seen while accompanying Huang Yeyan during the alchemy event. He'd have preferred to attend as his masculine self, but since so many people at the Amber Lily Academy knew him as 'Sister Wu Ling' he'd been forced to attend in his feminine guise.
Outside of Big Sister Yeyan, he hadn't thought he'd encounter anyone who knew his real self but it seemed like he'd need to be more cautious in the future.
"You should all know that my cultivation is different from most artists," Wu Ling began. "I inherited my cultivation method from my Master, the Illusory Butterfly, Hua Jue. The person you likely saw can be considered my Senior Sister, Hua Qianhu," he explained, blending truth with fiction.
He omitted that Hua Jue was an Immortal Empress. Wu Ling didn't think anyone present would believe it anyway, and he didn't explain how he'd come by his manual either. When he'd chosen the name 'Hua Qianhu', however, he'd done it in part to honor his master, so when he called his feminine alter ego his 'Senior Sister', he felt like people would make the assumptions he wanted them to make without having to explain anything too explicitly.
"While we cultivate the same methods, I encourage Brother Yu to stay away from my Senior Sister," he cautioned sagely. "She's more vicious than I am. I wouldn't want to see Brother Yu bullied," Wu Ling teased, leaning over to punch the alchemist softly in the arm.
"I, I see," Yu Jinqi said, his ears turning beat red. "I was taken with the similarities and I heard that she'd been asking about alchemy flames for her Golden Crow so I thought, perhaps Brother Wu had a sister who studied alchemy," he finished quietly.
"Ha, Brother Jinqi," Xiong Dahuo said, pointing at Yu Jinqi across the fire with his spoon. "From now on, I'm your partner in all forms of hunting. We'll hunt beasts together with that nose of yours and we'll hunt women together too! I'll find you some woman worth being your cauldron and…"
"Brother Xiong!" Zhang Buyan interrupted, slapping his friend on the back with a meaty palm. "This isn't one of Brother Fang's parties, we have women present," he said, his own face flushed with secondhand embarrassment at the way his friend behaved in front of Jin Wuya.
"Brother Wu," Zhang Buyan said, hoping to change the course of the conversation. "You told us you had a target for our first hunt? Perhaps we should talk about that."