6: Chapter 6 This servant has been utterly rude; I beg the Immortal Master's forgiveness.

The candle flame flickered a few times, finally burned down to the end, and went out.

The room was plunged into darkness.

A Xiang's voice drifted out from the darkness, intermittent and soft: "Cultivator..."

Jiang Xuan leaned down and said softly, "Good."

During the second half of the night, the room gradually quieted down.

A Xiang lay beside Jiang Xuan, her eyelids lowered.

She had never done these things before; she had learned everything tonight only under Jiang Xuan's step-by-step guidance.

Jiang Xuan reached out and gently stroked the top of her head, his fingertips passing through her hair.

Watching her dignified face, which now wore a look of earnest focus, a layer of approval rose in his eyes.

"Do you like it?"

A Xiang's movements paused for a beat. Her face burned even redder, and her voice was muffled: "As long as it is the Cultivator... I like it very much..."

After she finished speaking, her lowered eyelashes trembled, and a faint, subtle smile appeared at the corners of her mouth.

After a long while, A Xiang slowly sat up.

Jiang Xuan reached into the Storage Pouch beside him and pulled out a small jade bottle containing clear spring water.

She took it and moistened her throat with a few small sips.

Once finished, she lay softly against his chest, her nostrils fluttering as she let out faint, ragged breaths.

Her cherry-red lips looked exceptionally rosy and full at this moment, glistening with moisture.

Jiang Xuan looked down at her with a smile: "Why not have more?"

A Xiang buried her face in his chest, her voice so soft it seemed like it was melting: "Because it was given by the Cultivator... naturally, I cannot bear to waste it."

The room returned to silence.

Only the sound of two people's breathing remained, intertwined—one long, one short.

After quite some time.

"Cultivator..."

"Hmm?"

A Xiang was silent for a moment. She turned her face and pressed her ear against his chest, her voice soft and gentle: "You are a good person."

Jiang Xuan chuckled: "I am just a businessman; I wouldn't call myself a good person."

A Xiang shook her head, her voice growing fainter, every word heavy with exhaustion: "To be so kind to a Mortal like me..."

"In my heart... you are a good person..."

Her voice trailed off at the end, becoming slurred and unclear.

Her breathing gradually evened out as she drifted into a deep sleep.

Jiang Xuan did not move. He rested one hand on her back, staring blankly at the wooden beams overhead.

His mind was preoccupied with thoughts of his next steps.

How should he build the shop's reputation?

Should he come up with some new gimmicks...

As he thought, his eyelids grew heavier and heavier. Overcome by fatigue, he, too, closed his eyes.

...

The next morning.

At the first light of dawn, a pale cyan glow shone against the paper windows.

Jiang Xuan woke first. He turned his head and looked at A Xiang, who was still fast asleep beside him.

She was wrapped entirely in a thin quilt, her sleeping face peaceful, revealing only a glimpse of a fair shoulder and disheveled hair.

Jiang Xuan's gaze lingered for a moment on the undulating contours beneath the quilt.

Through the thin quilt, her plump, soft curves were visible.

He reached in and gently kneaded them a few times.

A Xiang hummed in her sleep but did not wake.

Jiang Xuan withdrew his hand, rolled out of bed, and got dressed.

A wisp of pear blossom scent lingered on his collar, different from the faint orchid fragrance Ye Baiyuan had left the previous night.

The scent of pear blossoms was gentler, sweet, neither too strong nor too faint—just right.

He walked to the Backyard; the morning air was crisp and cool, carrying the scent of dew on the grass.

As usual, he sat cross-legged on the stone platform, closed his eyes, and began to circulate his Qi.

Spiritual Qi entered his body, slowly traveling along his Meridians, thread by thread, refining and polishing.

About an hour later.

In the room, A Xiang finally woke up in a daze, feeling her whole body aching and weak.

There were faint dark circles under her eyes, but an irrepressible smile of satisfaction hung at the corners of her mouth.

After all, she was a Mortal; her physical strength and recovery speed could not compare to a Cultivator's.

Fortunately, Jiang Xuan had restrained his strength quite a bit last night.

Seeing the empty space in the quilt beside her, A Xiang panicked. She hurriedly forced herself up and dressed.

She had just tied the belt at her waist and smoothed out her moon-white skirt when the door was pushed open.

Jiang Xuan walked in. Seeing that she was already dressed, he chuckled, "You're awake?"

A Xiang hurriedly bent her knees in a slight curtsy, her tone apologetic: "Good morning, Cultivator."

"I have been truly impolite to have slept until this hour; I hope the Cultivator will forgive my offense."

Jiang Xuan smiled, walked over to her in a few strides, and reached out to pull her into his arms by the waist.

As his palm pressed against her, he could feel the suppleness and warmth of her waist through the thin fabric of her skirt.

A Xiang subconsciously raised a hand, her soft palm resting against his chest.

Before she could say anything, she heard him lean in close, saying with a smile, "Then I shall punish you by having you accompany me once more."

A Xiang's face flushed visibly, the heat spreading from her cheeks to the tips of her ears.

The fingers resting on his chest tightened, then relaxed.

She did not push him away, but instead lowered her eyelids, her voice as thin as a mosquito's hum: "As long as the Cultivator wishes... A Xiang is ready at any time."

Before she could finish, he lowered his head and captured her lips.

The sweetness of pear blossoms bloomed between Jiang Xuan's lips.

A Xiang closed her eyes, responding to his demands with clumsy, eager affection.

Before long, the moon-white dress she had just put on slid off her shoulders once more, pooling silently at her feet.

Jiang Xuan sat on the edge of the bed; she sat facing him, her arms wrapped around his neck.

Her warm breath washed over his face with every exhale, carrying the characteristic languor of the morning.

A Xiang looked at the man in her arms, her face flushed, her eyes filled with a hidden, lingering attachment.

She knew very well.

She was merely a Mortal, and a widow at that.

There was destined to be no future between her and this young, handsome Cultivator.

To be chosen by him and to accompany him for a night was something she had never dared to imagine.

Therefore, she cherished every breath of this moment, giving everything she could without reservation.

More than half an hour later.

A Xiang lay on the bed. Jiang Xuan pulled the thin quilt up for her, carefully tucking it over her shoulders. His voice held a smile: "I am going out to open for business. You rest well here."

A Xiang had not yet regained her strength, but she nodded, her voice hoarse and soft: "Very well... Cultivator."

The sunlight outside was just right, and the breeze was gentle.

Jiang Xuan stood at the shop entrance and stretched comfortably, feeling refreshed from head to toe.

He took a deep breath of the morning air and silently sounded a warning bell in his heart.

"Jiang Xuan, oh Jiang Xuan, you are a businessman! How can you delay serious business for the sake of such pleasures? Every Spirit Stone less earned means the day you achieve the Dao is pushed back by one day. You must never do this again."

He nodded heavily, establishing a rule for himself.

After about the time it takes to drink half a cup of tea.

A fully dressed A Xiang walked out from the Backyard.

Her moon-white dress was tidy, her hair was re-styled, and a simple wooden hairpin was tucked into her bun, making her look fresh and neat.

However, her gait was somewhat unusual.

She paused for a beat with every step, her legs seeming not quite under her control, her knees slightly buckling.

Anyone with a discerning eye would know exactly what had happened.

Jiang Xuan's lips curved slightly: "Why not rest a while longer?"