Fairy, please have some self-respect. I am not the reincarnation of your deceased husband.

"and…"

Pei Wanyun tugged at her disciple's sleeve, leaned closer, and gently sniffed his neck.

They seemed to take it for granted, and also seemed unaware that this posture had crossed the line of ordinary master and disciple, and was somewhat too ambiguous.

"The closer you get... the more pronounced the scent of rouge becomes."

"It smells sweet and refreshing, and the ingredients are of high quality, so it is definitely not something cheap."

"..."

The moment his master approached, Chen Lianshu paused slightly.

Suddenly, a delicate fragrance of lotus blossoms wafted over.

But the fragrance couldn't suppress the faint, sweet scent of rouge emanating from his clothes.

"..."

At such close range, Pei Wanyun's warm breath rested against her husband's neck.

And being able to clearly feel his body temperature, she could no longer suppress the desire in her heart to be close to him.

She had waited for too long and searched for too long.

I just "reunited" with him in this courtyard yesterday.

Before she could even calm her anticipation of seeing her husband, she noticed that his clothes were stained with the scent of someone else's perfume...

This made her feel uneasy and depressed.

However, given his current position, he cannot impose stricter controls, so he can only take this opportunity to give a reprimand.

However, her long-suppressed desire to possess her husband's affections was affecting her.

She couldn't help but get closer, and her gaze gradually became infatuated.

They even completely forgot that they were being interrogated...

Just as Pei Wanyun was getting closer and closer to him, Chen Lianshu suddenly snapped out of his daze amidst the fragrance of lotus blossoms.

"Reporting to Master."

He quickly took two steps back, as if afraid she would misunderstand, and explained:

"My disciple stayed at his residence throughout the day, except for one person whom he visited at noon."

"woman?"

Seeing her husband pull away, Pei Wanyun clenched her sleeves.

A bittersweet feeling welled up in her heart, but her face still wore that gentle and tender smile.

I mustn't rush things... I mustn't frighten my husband.

But she couldn't pretend to be indifferent.

I must find out about my husband's network of relationships!

Aside from his own emotionally slow-witted disciple, are there any other people?

"It's not a woman, but a close friend of my disciple."

Chen Lianshu observed the unusual movement of the red lotus heart on her head.

According to his recent exploration, such fluctuations generally correspond to the emotion of "displeasure".

Immediately, alarm bells rang in his mind. Although he did not know why his master was angry, he had a plan to deal with it.

Although Xu Yi's perfume had caused him trouble once, if handled properly, it could actually become an asset.

"My friend is fond of business and is quite well-known in the outside world."

"I bought some gifts from him and would like to present them to my master as a gift for becoming his disciple."

"However, because that object was special, it was accidentally tainted with fragrance."

"Gift?"

Pei Wanyun was quite surprised.

Chen Lianshu took out an exquisitely packaged rouge gift box from his storage bag, along with a jade hairpin.

"I really don't know what to give to my master."

He looked up at her, his expression carrying just the right amount of sincerity:

"Therefore, seeing that the newly released 'Snow White Skin Powder' has a delicate fragrance, I bought it."

"As for this jade hairpin..."

He paused, his gaze falling on the hairpin.

"It was obtained by chance by my disciple, who felt that its form and spirit were extremely compatible with Master's demeanor."

"Although it is not a rare or precious item, it has a calming and soothing effect."

"I hope my master will not find this writing too simple."

The jade hairpin was entirely green and lustrous, with a lotus bud carved on the head and adorned with lotus petals. It was elegant and exquisite, and truly suited Pei Wanyun's temperament perfectly.

However, Chen Lianshu's gaze did not fall on the jade hairpin, but instead quietly moved upwards a few degrees.

There hangs a red heart with a lotus pattern, just like the one Pei Wanyun had.

This is the item given by the system when the progress of the [Master-Disciple Path] reaches 10%.

【Pure Lotus Jade Hairpin】

[Affection Level: MAX (Deep Affection)]

[Rank: None]

【introduce】

Carved from rare and precious jade, its warm and lustrous texture has a calming and soothing effect.

[This is a highly effective gift for a gentle and kind master who is deeply in love with the host.]

"Since it's a gift from my disciple, how could I possibly refuse it?"

Pei Wanyun did not refuse this gesture.

After all, this was specially chosen for her by her husband.

Although it stemmed from filial piety between master and disciple, it was still a token of goodwill.

"?!"

But the moment she received the jade hairpin, she froze.

Looking at the jade lotus hairpin, I could only feel disbelief.

Isn't this... a token of love given to her by her husband in her past life?

Although it was much earlier than expected, this spirit jade was extremely rare, and its design was exactly the same as I remembered.

She never expected that this item would be in her husband's hands at this moment.

Even more unexpectedly, this important item, which should have been a token of their love, has become the "apprenticeship gift"...

"you…"

Pei Wanyun looked at her husband in disbelief.

Looking into his clear eyes, she seemed to have something to say, but for a moment she didn't know what to say.

What should she say?

What could she possibly say?

Does he expect him to take back the hairpin and give it to her again as a token of their love after they "rekindle their romance"?

"...You're so thoughtful."

In the end, all the words in the world were reduced to these four words.

Pei Wanyun put away the rouge and jade hairpin.

The lotus hairpin, in particular, was carefully put away.

"However, if you need to purchase women's items in the future, you will no longer need to go in person."

"Just tell your master, or have your senior sister do it for you."

Her thoughts were extremely complicated at this moment.

There was joy at the filial piety of his disciple, regret at the wrong time for giving the token, and a hint of unspeakable resentment.

In the end, he could only console himself in silence:

It's better to give this lotus hairpin as a gift when you become an apprentice than to let it fall into the hands of other women.

"Yes, disciple will remember."

Chen Lianshu lowered his head and agreed, secretly relieved.

But some doubts remain.

The system clearly stated that gifting it to the Master would have a "miraculous effect," but not only did the progress of the karmic tribulation not increase at all, even the Master's reaction became unpredictable.

Pei Wanyun's changing favorability indicates the complexity of her feelings.

That's strange...

"Disciple, you should go back to your room and practice this technique."

"It's perfect timing, as your teacher is here. I can offer you some guidance."

Lotus Heart gradually calmed down, and Pei Wanyun took out a scroll of cultivation manual and handed it to her.

This was precisely the cultivation method she had carefully selected last night, the most suitable for her husband to practice right now.

"Yes."

Chen Lianshu did not refuse and turned to walk back into the house.

Despite possessing cultivation insights at the Foundation Establishment stage, he still needs guidance on cultivation techniques.

Inside the house was a small, quiet room, just the right size for cultivation.

Pei Wanyun sat down on the prayer mat and gestured for Chen Lianshu to sit in front of her.

"Close your eyes, concentrate, and circulate your energy throughout your body."

Her voice was soft and gentle as ever.

Chen Lianshu followed his instructions, closed his eyes, and began to regulate his breathing and internal energy.

Since it was the first time practicing this technique, the spiritual energy felt stagnant after circulating to a certain point.

It's like a stream encountering a large rock, with only a few strands of spiritual energy passing through.

And at that very moment—

A soft, gentle hand lightly touched the stagnation point of spiritual energy.

Do not resist.

A wisp of gentle, pure water-based spiritual energy cleared the blockage and guided his spiritual energy to move slowly.

"Follow my spiritual guidance."

The gentle voice was very close, almost touching his ear.

Her presence drew ever closer.

The two were not exactly touching, but they were very close.

Therefore, Chen Lianshu could clearly sense the other person's body temperature and the elegant fragrance of lotus.

Logically speaking, channeling spiritual energy only requires touching the palm of the hand; there is no need to move the palm as the spiritual energy flows.

But at this moment, as the water-based spiritual energy flowed within him, her hand also moved slightly.

"..."

Chen Lianshu simply considered this merit as something special and did not think much of it.

He happened to have his eyes closed and could not see his master's expression at that moment.

"..."

For someone of Pei Wanyun's cultivation level, channeling spiritual energy was a simple matter, requiring no special concentration whatsoever.

Her gaze settled quietly on the handsome face before her.

Deep within those eyes, there was a suppressed, burning heat, as solid as a tangible substance.

As her hand roamed over his veins, this intimate and ambiguous gesture still wasn't enough for her.

not enough.

I want to get closer.

I want to reach out to more.

想…

She could barely contain herself.

Only their soft breathing and a growing, ambiguous, and dangerous flutter remained in the quiet room…