Half City Of Love - Chapter 11
Chapter 11
The immortal servant didn’t dare respond.
He could only stare intensely at Xuanyi, his mouth pouting so hard it could hang an oil jar.
Xuanyi readily answered, “It was me.”
The unfamiliar divine lord turned to look at her.
He was quite tall, dressed in a deep purple robe embroidered with golden blackbirds . It appeared lavish, almost flashy, yet on him, it fit so exceptionally well that one could find no fault with it.
Xuanyi stared at the fiery red gem dangling on his forehead for a long moment. The gemstone was intensely vibrant and eye-catching.
Framed by this radiant jewel, his features lost none of their color; instead, he appeared all the more striking and handsome.
Aside from Qingyan, this was the first time she had met a divine lord who could truly be described as “handsome.”
“Why?”
His tone held just the right amount of gentle warmth and affability.
His dark eyes seemed naturally imbued with a touch of amusement, making people instinctively want to draw close to him.
Xuanyi took a sip of her Nine-Nine Guiyuan Tea and said leisurely, “Because this is where I will be living from now on.”
The moment he saw the tea and pastries on the ice table, he leaned over immediately.
“Nine-Nine Guiyuan Tea and Agate White Jade Cakes.”
His voice carried a solemn tone of accusation, chiding her for knowing how to enjoy herself so well.
With a flick of Xuanyi’s finger, a crystal-clear ice chair landed opposite her.
She invited him politely, “Would you like to try some?”
Sure enough, he sat down without standing on ceremony, picking up the ice teacup with refined grace.
“Nine-Nine Guiyuan Tea is bitter when drunk alone, while Agate White Jade Cake is too sweet on its own. Pairing the two together brings out the finest flavor. You truly know how to indulge.”
He was full of praise.
Xuanyi looked at him with a smile, and he smiled back at her.
The two ate and smiled together—a scene that felt undeniably peculiar no matter how one looked at it.
The immortal servant nearby finally couldn’t hold back any longer and whispered, “Princess, this is Divine Lord Shaoyi of the Nine-Heavens Phoenix’s Qingyang Clan. He is your twelfth senior brother. Divine Lord Shaoyi, this is the new disciple recently taken under the Emperor’s lineage, Princess Xuanyi of the Zhuyin Clan, the Dragon Gods of Zhongshan…”
“Princess Xuanyi of the Zhuyin Clan, nine thousand seven hundred years old this year,” Divine Lord Shaoyi interrupted with a smile.
“I know.”
Xuanyi said in surprise, “Senior Brother Shaoyi even knows my age.”
Shaoyi smiled even more cordially. “Of course. The little loach princess is quite famous.”
Little loach princess?! What is going on!
The immortal servant panicked. How could Divine Lord Shaoyi tease the princess like this?! She was the princess of the terrifying Zhuyin Clan!
Unexpectedly, the princess wasn’t angry at all. Instead, she looked at Divine Lord Shaoyi with great intrigue.
“So I am that famous? By the way, why is Senior Brother Shaoyi here?”
Divine Lord Shaoyi gracefully blocked a yawn with his sleeve, a hint of laziness in his voice.
“Tongjing Hall is the quietest, and it’s close to the bell tower. After checking in and striking the bell, I often come here to sleep in.”
Ah, so that’s how it is.
Xuanyi nodded in understanding and refilled his cup.
“Please, Senior Brother Shaoyi.”
The immortal servant watched helplessly as the two of them chatted and laughed in complete harmony. If anyone ever claimed again that the Qingyang Clan and the Zhuyin Clan didn’t get along, he would fight them!
As if finally noticing the guiding immortal servant still standing there, Xuanyi asked curiously, “Immortal servant, why are you still here? I’m fine now, you may go about your business.”
The immortal servant looked at the surrounding world of ice and snow in despair, opening his mouth with difficulty.
“This… Tongjing Hall… Princess…”
She had turned Tongjing Hall into this—how was he supposed to account for this to Emperor Baize?!
Xuanyi kindly reminded him, “It’s no longer called Tongjing Hall; it will be called Bingxue hall from now on. You may go. If Teacher comes to blame anyone, the responsibility lies entirely with me. You don’t need to stand here.”
The immortal servant could only shed a line of silent tears and leave sobbing.
Shaoyi caught sight of the flower in the small pocket on the servant’s chest and couldn’t help but smile.
“That flower is quite unique. I haven’t seen it in Mingxing Hall. Where did you pick it?”
“Does Senior Brother Shaoyi like it?”
Xuanyi set down her teacup and lightly gathered a handful of white snow.
“Let me sculpt one for you as well. What kind of flower do you like?”
Just as Shaoyi was about to speak, a lighthearted female voice suddenly came from behind.
“Shaoyi?”
Xuanyi turned her head and saw a goddess in a yellow dress drifting down like a butterfly onto the frozen ground.
She had a round face, round eyes, and a very sweet appearance.
Looking around in confusion, she walked over.
Her wandering gaze first landed on Xuanyi before quickly moving away.
Shaoyi offered a lazy greeting, then said, “Little Loach, this is your eleventh senior sister, the youngest daughter of the Red Emperor, Princess Yanxia of the Lieshan Clan. Little Sunset, this is Princess Xuanyi of the Zhuyin Clan, the new junior sister who arrived today.”
Little Loach, Little Sunset… It seemed this divine lord was quite fond of giving goddesses intimate nicknames.
Xuanyi bowed in greeting.
“Senior Sister Yanxia, my greetings.”
Princess Yanxia patted Shaoyi gently in reproach.
“Why do you address Junior Sister like that? She is so beautiful, how does she look like a loach?”
With that, she stepped forward and warmly took Xuanyi’s arm, smiling faintly as two charming dimples appeared on her cheeks.
“Senior Sister Zhixi and Senior Sister Fuluo are rare beauties, and now the new junior sister is this gorgeous too. Seeing such beauties every day makes me feel more and more outclassed.”
Xuanyi smiled modestly.
“Senior Sister Yanxia praises me too much.”
With nimble hands, she shaped the snow into a delicate peony.
Smiling, she presented it with both hands to Princess Yanxia.
Looking into her slightly startled eyes, Xuanyi said softly, “The peony is refined and graceful, perfectly matching your demeanor, Senior Sister. I hope you won’t mind it.”
Her words filled Princess Yanxia’s eyes with delight, and she smilingly tied the snow peony to her chest.
“Thank you, Junior Sister! You are so clever and skillful!”
Turning back to Shaoyi, she spoke rapidly and briskly.
“I heard a new disciple arrived today. Senior Sister Fuluo and the others are at Junior Brother Fucang’s courtyard—it’s very lively there. I thought you’d be awake by now, so I came to Tongjing Hall to get you to go together, but who knew it would turn into this! It gave me quite a shock.”
Shaoyi spoke lazily.
“I don’t care for crowds. You go ahead.”
Princess Yanxia grew anxious.
“Senior Sister Fuluo asked me to come get you. You won’t go even for her?”
Shaoyi’s dark eyes cast her a playful, teasing look.
“If she wants to invite me, let her come herself. If she doesn’t come, why should I go? I’d rather stay here and drink tea with Junior Sister.”
Princess Yanxia’s face suddenly flushed slightly.
“Then if I ask you to go, will you?”
Shaoyi gave a light laugh and made a gesture as if lightly pinching her round cheek with his finger.
“You just wanted me to accompany you and used Fuluo as an excuse, little girl.”
Princess Yanxia rolled her eyes at him playfully.
“Nonsense! You clearly… fine! Hurry up and let’s go!”
She grabbed his sleeve to pull him along without another word. Shaoyi burst out laughing.
“Take it easy, or you’ll tear my clothes. Why don’t you ask if Junior Sister wants to come?”
Princess Yanxia froze for a moment, feeling a bit awkward.
She had been so focused on Shaoyi that she had forgotten about the new junior sister.
She quickly smiled.
“Oh right, would Junior Sister like to come? All the senior brothers are there, it’s very lively! Earlier, Senior Sister Zhixi and Senior Brother Guting even brought you up and told me to bring you along if I saw you!”
Xuanyi shook her head with a smile.
“Thank you for the invitation, Senior Sister, but I still have things to attend to, so I won’t be going.”
