TYMRHBDES Chapter 45.3

At the dining table, Jiang Luoluo stirred the red bean porridge in his bowl, listening to the System’s incessant urging in his mind:

[Host! Go for it, Host!]

[You need to build rapport with your target! Isn’t this the perfect opportunity?]

Jiang Luoluo swirled his spoon through the porridge, his gaze sweeping across his three disciples’ faces. “Xu Bai and Yunqi’s house needs repairs. There are two spare rooms in the Qingfrost Hall’s side hall. You two should move in.”

Fearing they might think he still harbored ulterior motives, Jiang Luoluo added, “Heavy snow is expected in the coming days. Your house might not withstand it, and you could catch a cold.”

“One of the rooms is on the west side, next to Zhiyan’s. The other is on the north side. How do you two want to arrange it?”

The west room was far from his sleeping quarters, while the north room was right next to them.

Chu Xubai glanced at Jiang Luoluo’s hand, which was holding a spoon. For a moment, he could almost feel those fair, delicate fingers patting his shoulder through layers of clothing.

His reason told him that his Master was no good, likely plotting some scheme or trick.

But when he met those bright eyes, he found himself clinging to a sliver of hope…

Yesterday’s medicine, today’s training platform, the drafty house…

These things, one after another, were things his Master would never have done before.

Perhaps… he really had changed for the better…

After only half a second of meeting Jiang Luoluo’s sparkling gaze, Chu Xubai seemed to crumble, his voice barely audible as he said, “This disciple will follow Master’s arrangements.”

Mo Yunqi watched the undercurrents between the two with half-lidded eyes.

After hearing Chu Xubai’s ambiguous answer, Mo Yunqi’s thick, ink-like eyebrows furrowed, and his thin lips tightened.

Didn’t the Chu fellow despise him?

Shouldn’t he have chosen the west room, which was farther away?

“Follow Master’s arrangements”? Would he have agreed if Master had assigned him the north room?

What was he up to?

When Mo Yunqi’s gaze fell on Chu Xubai’s reddened earlobes, his eyes darkened, and his heart skipped a beat.

*Could it be that this good senior brother of mine has ideas on Master?!*

*What if Master lets him stay in the North Room? They’d be so close, like the moon first rising over the nearby water. And that man has no shame…*

*Could they possibly…*

Before Mo Yunqi could finish his thoughts, he heard his Junior Master’s cheerful voice: “In that case, Xu Bai, you should—”

“Master!”

Mo Yunqi looked up, interrupting Jiang Luoluo’s unfinished sentence. His lone wolf-like eyes fixed on the other man, his voice steady: “Master, Senior Brother Chu prefers quiet. The North Room is too close to the kitchen; it might disturb him.”

Jiang Luoluo nodded. “Oh, I see.”

He already had a reputation for trying to take advantage of Chu Xubai. If he insisted on forcing the man to stay next to him despite knowing his preference for quiet, he’d only make Chu Xubai hate him even more.

He slowly nodded. “Then Xu Bai, you can stay in the West Room.”

Chu Xubai’s hand, holding his chopsticks, stiffened slightly as he replied, “Yes, Master.”

Xu Zhiyan, completely oblivious, continued to beam. “This way, the three of us can call each other in the mornings when we go to the training grounds! It’ll be so much more convenient!”

Jiang Luoluo picked up a small crispy fish and secretly asked the System in his mind, “Now that I’ve changed their living arrangements, has the favorability changed?”

“Has the affection level increased?”

*Not yet.*

The system added *Host, but this isn’t obvious enough. You need to be even kinder to him~*

Watching Chu Xubai pick at his food, Jiang Luoluo switched chopsticks and picked up a piece of sweet and sour pork.

Just as he was about to reach out, he caught his little disciple’s gaze.

He was seated in the main seat, with Xu Zhiyan and Mo Yunqi on either side of him, and Chu Xubai, the target, directly across.

Whether he served Chu Xubai alone or reached across the two people beside him to serve him first, it would seem too deliberate.

Jiang Luoluo bent her arm and placed a piece of meat into Mo Yunqi’s bowl. “Eat more.”

“Thank you, Master.”

Jiang Luoluo smiled at her obedient disciple, Mo Yunqi, then picked up another chopstickful. Just as she was about to place it in Chu Xubai’s bowl, the familiar mechanical voice echoed in her mind:

[Affection +2]

Jiang Luoluo’s eyes lit up. She quickly placed the tenderloin in Chu Xubai’s bowl, her smile radiant. “Eat more meat to strengthen your body.”

Afterward, she treated Xu Zhiyan equally, placing a chopstickful in his bowl as well.

Mo Yunqi, who had been listening, silently set down his chopsticks.

Strengthen his body?

What body part needed strengthening?

Had he performed poorly that day?

Why did he have to say “strengthen your body”???

Days passed like water flowing through a stream. The relationship between the master and disciple in Qingfrost Hall had eased considerably, shedding the tense atmosphere of before.

Several days later, just as dawn broke, Mo Yunqi received a message talisman from Jiang Luoluo, instructing him to come to his chambers after getting up.

Mo Yunqi clutched the talisman, his expression shifting uncertainly.

Going to his chambers at this hour…

He wondered if the message was meant for him alone or if the other disciples had received a similar summons.

Mo Yunqi dressed and stepped down the stairs, knocking lightly on the door.

“Come in,” a soft, sleepy voice called from within. Mo Yunqi pushed the door open.

A slender, pale hand parted the bed curtains. His Junior Master was clad in a snow-white inner robe, his raven hair half-draped over his shoulders. His fair face bore the lingering drowsiness of just waking, his pupils veiled in a misty haze that made him appear even more delicate and beautiful.

Seeing Mo Yunqi enter, he slowly sat up, curling his small frame into the blankets. His voice was unusually soft: “Yunqi.”

Mo Yunqi nodded, his deep gaze sweeping over his face. His expression was unusually respectful: “Master.”

“Come here.”

At the sound of that soft, gentle tone, Mo Yunqi took a few steps forward.

With each step, he felt his heart beat faster.

Mo Yunqi lowered his eyelashes, thinking a rebellious thought:

He didn’t want to hear that person call him “Yunqi.”

With his current appearance and voice, he was much more suited to be called “husband.”

Wrapped snugly in the quilt, revealing only a docile little face, he would whine softly, “Husband, come here.”

Just imagining this scene was enough to stir his desire.

Jiang Luoluo had no idea what his outwardly respectful and obedient disciple was thinking. He bent down, picked up a book from beside the pillow, and handed it over.

“Your aptitude is excellent, even better than your two Senior Brothers. Though you started cultivating later, with diligence, you’re sure to achieve great things in the future.”

“This is a cultivation manual I wrote specifically for you, tailored to your current state. Take it and study it yourself.”

Jiang Luoluo softened his voice, trying to make his expression gentler.

Since his System task was to win over the villainous characters, his second disciple, Chu Xubai, was likely no good either.

The last time Chu Xubai had betrayed him, Jiang Luoluo had treated it as a dog bite. But he couldn’t keep getting bitten by the same dog.

Based on his experience from reading novels, villains like Chu Xubai were usually incredibly powerful. If Chu Xubai went berserk, and his eldest disciple, Xu Zhiyan, couldn’t handle it, he’d inevitably have to rely on his youngest disciple.

So, Jiang Luoluo decided to be kinder to Mo Yunqi, helping him with his cultivation and striving to be a good Master. That way, if he ever ran into trouble, he could at least cling to his youngest disciple’s thigh.

Jiang Luoluo blinked, giving himself a big thumbs-up for his brilliant idea.

Sure enough, after hearing his words, Mo Yunqi reached out and took the book. He held it with both hands, gazing at the fresh ink on the title page. Then he looked up at Jiang Luoluo, his eyes focused. “Did Master write this for me?”

Jiang Luoluo nodded firmly.

He’d written the cover himself, and the book was compensation for the System’s recent glitches—he had no idea which world it had pilfered it from. But since it was given to him, it was his.

So, rounding up, you could say he wrote it.

Mo Yunqi’s emotions were complex, his fingers trembling slightly beneath the pages.

Ever since his demonic possession, he had been hiding and dodging, terrified of encountering his former enemies.

Dethroned from the highest position in the Demon Realm, he had endured countless hardships, wandering through desolate wilderness, always vigilant, sleeping in the open, eating wild beasts for sustenance.

Later, to obtain certain items, he had infiltrated Purple Cloud Mountain during its disciple recruitment, but his depleted spiritual energy prevented him from joining Azure Frost Peak.

If Jiang Luoluo of Qingfrost Hall hadn’t brought him to Azure Frost Peak, he might never have entered that cave, forever confined to the firewood shed, clinging to life with hatred and shattered spiritual energy.

He had hated the former Jiang Luoluo’s hypocrisy, his mouth full of righteousness and morality, yet no different from the deceitful people outside.

But in a single night, his Master seemed to have completely changed, no longer the person he once knew.

He would send medicine, watch them practice swordsmanship, move them into exquisite residences, and even pick food for him at meals…

And he would write a custom-made cultivation manual for him…

Mo Yunqi looked up and met Jiang Luoluo’s eyes.

The person under the covers only gave him a faint smile. Now that he was closer, he noticed the beautiful eyes were bloodshot, a watery red that contrasted sharply with his snow-white face, making him look especially pitiful.

Could this be what he’d been working on all night, staying indoors for the past few days?

Mo Yunqi’s lips twitched. “Master, you didn’t sleep all night?”

Jiang Luoluo nodded. “It’s nothing.”

Last night, besides pestering the System for a Cultivation Manual as compensation, he’d also managed to snag a pure romance novel from it: “Bone-Deep Sweet Pampering: CEO Bo’s Little Beauty is Flirting Again.”

I’d only meant to kill some time, but I got so engrossed that I stayed up all night reading.

If he hadn’t had to meet Mo Yunqi this morning, he would have finished the chapters about the little sweet omega getting pregnant!

Jiang Luoluo drifted off, lost in thought about last night’s plot.

His pale face bore the dazed confusion of sleep deprivation, and he unconsciously let out a small yawn.

But to Mo Yunqi, this sight made the hand gripping the scroll clench involuntarily. For the first time, a sharp ache pierced his heart.

Mo Yunqi had stayed up all night to write him a Cultivation Manual…

And yet, he had once humiliated him so deeply…

His throat felt choked, but a warm flame slowly ignited in his chest, warming his limbs and causing his voice to tremble slightly.

His fingers white from gripping the manual, Mo Yunqi spoke in a low, soft voice, “Was it worth it?”

Was it worth doing all this for him?

Jiang Luoluo hadn’t fully recovered from his sleep deprivation. He simply nodded after hearing the question, his voice soft and sleepy. “Worth it.” [footnote] T/N: Worth it. I 100% agree with Luoluo [/footnote]

The novel was genuinely good, and he especially enjoyed the pregnancy plot!

He could have stayed up for three nights straight, not just one!

As the final syllable faded, the figure before him loomed closer.

Mo Yunqi’s crisp, refreshing aura enveloped Jiang Luoluo, who found himself tightly embraced. Mo Yunqi’s hot breath brushed against his ear, sending shivers down his spine. “Master…”

Jiang Luoluo’s hands remained tucked beneath the covers, while Mo Yunqi’s arms held him firmly from the outside. He felt like a cocooned silkworm, utterly immobile.

“Yunqi, let go first…”

Jiang Luoluo shifted uncomfortably, and the tight embrace loosened slightly. Mo Yunqi stepped back, his gaze locked on Jiang Luoluo’s eyes, his expression more earnest than ever before. “Master, your disciple knows your goodness.”

Jiang Luoluo had intended to sternly scold him and lecture him about maintaining distance.

But upon hearing Mo Yunqi’s heartfelt confession, he changed his mind. His expression softened, and he gently stroked Mo Yunqi’s head.

“Good disciple.”

As soon as Mo Yunqi left, Jiang Luoluo sent a sound transmission talisman to Chu Xubai.

The moment the talisman vanished into the air, a series of notifications rang in his ears:

[Affection +5]
[Affection +5]
[Affection +5]
[Affection +5]

Jiang Luoluo rubbed his head, puzzled. “This Chu Xubai is being too polite…”

He hadn’t even done anything yet, and the man’s favorability had already shot up.

But he couldn’t treat Chu Xubai as casually as he treated Mo Yunqi. After all, that rebellious second disciple of his was capable of anything, even betraying his master and ancestors.

After getting dressed and putting on his hair crown, Jiang Luoluo sat at his desk and quietly pulled out the pregnancy novel again.

Before long, a knock sounded at the door. “Master.”

Jiang Luoluo straightened up, adopting his masterly demeanor. “Enter.”

Chu Xubai, clad in a moon-white robe, his eyebrows and eyes as gentle and refined as a humble scholar, bowed to him. “Master called for me?”

Jiang Luoluo hummed in acknowledgment, then asked casually, as if they were just chatting, “Are you settling in well these days?”

Chu Xubai lowered his gaze and replied, “Yes, Master.”

After speaking, he glanced up at Jiang Luoluo. “Thank you, Master.”

Jiang Luoluo gestured to the chair beside him. “Sit down and let’s talk.”

Chu Xubai complied, sitting opposite him. His gaze immediately landed on his master’s face, so beautiful it was almost dazzling.

But there was a faint redness around his eyes, and his clear eyes still had some bloodshot veins, as if he had been crying.

He… could he cry too?

The fingers resting on the edge of the ebony table twitched, and their owner spoke. “Xu Bai, Master wronged you in the past and caused you great harm. I should apologize.”

Jiang Luoluo turned his gaze, trying to soften his expression as he looked at Chu Xubai. He said gently, “Later, you did some… less than ideal things, but Master doesn’t blame you.”

Chu Xubai assumed he was referring to his repeated provocations and disrespectful remarks. He replied, “Thank you for your magnanimity, Master.”

Jiang Luoluo carefully chose his words. “But in the future, you must never do such things again… After all, there are many ways to resolve issues and express dissatisfaction, not just through that method…”

Jiang Luoluo’s face grew redder as he spoke, feeling increasingly uncomfortable under Chu Xubai’s earnest gaze.

He hastily reached for the water pitcher to distract himself, but his fingers fumbled, and the pitcher rolled off the table, spilling water all over him.

Jiang Luoluo immediately stood up. The water was scalding hot; a few drops that had splashed onto his hand had already turned his skin crimson. The rest seeped through his clothes, burning him so badly he gasped.

Chu Xubai, watching the steaming water on the floor, quickly rose to his feet, his voice filled with concern.

“Hurry and take it off, or the burn will fuse your clothes to your skin!”

Jiang Luoluo fumbled to undo his clothes, but his burned fingers were too painful to bend, making even the simplest movements difficult. After struggling for ages, he still couldn’t get them undone.

“Let me.”

Chu Xubai quickly unbuttoned his clothes. “Master, forgive my intrusion. Where’s the burn cream?”

Half-undressed, Jiang Luoluo sat on the edge of the bed, watching Chu Xubai kneel before him and apply the ointment.

“Ouch, ouch, ouch!” Jiang Luoluo’s voice was teary and nasal, and tears were about to spill down his cheeks.

The door creaked open, and a corner of a black robe fluttered into view.

---

T/N:”I stayed up all night writing a cultivation manual, but all I gained was bloodshot eyes and the undying devotion of a morally questionable disciple. Worth it? Absolutely. Who needs sleep when you have plot armor and pretty boys?”

And these chapters are becoming extremely long that it takes me 2 days to translate 1 chap. Sorry babies..~