My Green Tea Junior Sister Smells So Good - Chapter 7

Shen Qingyi’s pupils constricted slightly, she never expected Du Yuanluo to make such a request.

In her previous life, Du Yuanluo had clung to Yunyin Peak with shameless persistence. Even though Shen Qingyi knew the girl’s life there was miserable, Du Yuanluo had stubbornly refused to leave. Even as recently as yesterday, covered in wounds, she had begged Shen Qingyi not to drive her away.

Yet now, just as Shen Qingyi intended to begin making amends, Du Yuanluo had actually proposed to leave.

Shen Qingyi, who always acted with measured composure, began to wonder if she had done something wrong to make even Du Yuanluo want to flee.

“Why do you want to leave?” Shen Qingyi asked warmly, grasping the girl’s hand as if afraid this fragile woman might actually slip away from under her nose.

Du Yuanluo calmed her emotions before looking up, the first time she had ever met Shen Qingyi’s eyes directly.

“Because Immortal Shen is treating me too well.”

“How is my kindness a reason for you to leave?” Shen Qingyi found herself unable to understand Du Yuanluo once again. Beating and scolding couldn’t drive her away, yet kindness made her want to go.

“I came to Yunyin Peak to follow Master… Immortal Jiang. Even though I knew he had a marriage contract, I followed him regardless of the consequences. I didn’t expect Immortal Shen to be so kind to me. How could I return such grace with ingratitude? I cannot allow my own selfishness to harm you, Immortal Shen.”

Shen Qingyi wanted to say, “I have no marriage contract with Jiang Linchuan, your presence won’t hurt me.”

But then she reconsidered. If she said that, wouldn’t she be implying that Du Yuanluo could be with Jiang Linchuan without a guilty conscience?

She absolutely could not say that. Shifting her tone, Shen Qingyi said, “If that’s the case, you simply need to avoid contact with Jiang Linchuan. Why must you leave?”

This suggestion was undoubtedly the best outcome for Du Yuanluo. However, Du Yuanluo worried that this wasn’t truly best for Shen Qingyi. Since Shen Qingyi had already made concessions at every turn, Du Yuanluo felt she couldn’t keep demanding what was best for herself, that was no way to live.

She shook her head firmly. “Immortal Jiang was kind to me. If I cannot see him, I would burn incense and pray for him daily. But living here, we are bound to run into each other. I cannot simply treat him as if he doesn’t exist. Yunyin Peak is not a place where I belong. I should return to where I came from.”

Shen Qingyi used to think Du Yuanluo was a brainless woman whose only wits were spent on schemes. But hearing her speak now overturned those old prejudices.

Perhaps Du Yuanluo was right. Yunyin Peak really wasn’t the place for her. In the three hundred years of her previous life, she had never truly integrated into the Yunyin Sect. Even back then, when Shen Qingyi loathed her, there were times she felt exhausted on the girl’s behalf.

Perhaps she would fare better in her own world. A mortal’s lifespan is short, but spending it in a harmonious environment with loved ones, isn’t that better than suffering through centuries of loneliness?

Shen Qingyi’s opposition softened. However, in this life, she had yet to properly compensate Du Yuanluo. Even if the girl went back, Shen Qingyi wanted to ensure she lived out her life in happiness.

“Where do you intend to return to?”

“Back to where I came from.”

“Who is left in your family?”

“I have no family. Only a master.”

It took a moment for Shen Qingyi’s mind to bridge the gap to the mortal world’s terminology. Children from poor families were often sold to wealthy households as servants, creating a relationship between servant and master.

She frowned. “Then I shall give you a casket of jewels. Go back, redeem your freedom, and live a good life with your family.”

Du Yuanluo did not look happy, instead, her expression turned solemn. “I have no family left. If I redeem my freedom, I won’t even have a master. A woman alone carrying jewels would only be bullied. At least in my master’s house, outsiders wouldn’t dare touch me.”

Sigh. Why was Du Yuanluo the type to be bullied no matter where she went?

“Does your master treat you well?” Shen Qingyi asked. Seeing a slight change in Du Yuanluo’s expression, she added, “No lying.”

“I serve the Young Mistress. She treats me quite well.”

“How so?”

“The Young Mistress never hits me. During festivals, she even gives me treats…”

“Enough. You aren’t going back,” Shen Qingyi interrupted. She couldn’t fathom the depths of mortal suffering, but from Du Yuanluo’s words, she could judge that the girl’s life back home wouldn’t be any better than on Yunyin Peak. At least under her own watch, she could look after her. As for better plans for the future, those could wait.

Shen Qingyi spoke with such finality that Du Yuanluo didn’t dare argue, though she was at a loss for how to repay her.

“Then… let me be your maid, Immortal Shen. I can do anything…” Halfway through, Du Yuanluo faltered. It seemed Shen Qingyi had no need for the things she knew how to do. Suddenly, she didn’t know what use she had here.

“The Yunyin Sect has no masters or servants. For now, stay by my side. As for your status, I will think of something.”

“Status?” Du Yuanluo seemed to snap to attention. “No… no, I don’t need a status. I was wrong. From now on, I will only serve you, Immortal Shen. I won’t dare to harbor thoughts about Immortal Jiang ever again.”

They weren’t even talking about the same thing, but Du Yuanluo saw the corner of Shen Qingyi’s mouth twitch into what looked like a smile.

Du Yuanluo began to worry again. She herself was fine with never marrying, and having someone as kind as Immortal Shen as a master was a life beyond her wildest dreams. But Immortal Shen would eventually marry the Heavenly Master Jiang, how would they all coexist then?

Shen Qingyi seemed to read her mind. “Tell me then, in what way was Jiang Linchuan good to you?”

Du Yuanluo assumed Shen Qingyi was jealous. Even an immortal was not immune to such things, and Shen Qingyi had already been very magnanimous.

“No matter how good Immortal Jiang was to me, that is all in the past. You and Immortal Jiang are of one heart and mind, Immortal Shen. Repaying you is the same as repaying him.”

“Who is of one heart and mind with him? Answer what I asked, and don’t be vague.”

Even without the grudges of her past life, Shen Qingyi enjoyed competing with Jiang Linchuan. She liked to test herself against him in every aspect and was never graceful in defeat. She couldn’t understand what tricks Jiang Linchuan had used to make Du Yuanluo so utterly devoted.

Du Yuanluo had no choice but to list things out day by day. “Immortal Jiang almost lost his life to save me. While I accompanied him in the village to recover from his wounds, he punished the villains who bullied me. Despite being a high and mighty Immortal, he never looked down on me. He taught me not to call myself ‘this slave,’ told me not to kneel at every turn, and allowed me to sit at the table to eat…”

Du Yuanluo went on for a long time, listing trivialities without a single major point.

“What kind of ‘kindness’ is that? Saving you was to slay a demon, that is a cultivator’s duty and a mission of the Yunyin Sect. As for those other details, they are merely common courtesy. What do they have to do with ‘grace’? Even if you insist on seeing it as a debt, you paid it back while nursing him to health. You owe him nothing. You two are even, do you understand?”

It was unclear if Du Yuanluo truly took it to heart, but she nodded obediently. “I understand. From now on, my life belongs to Immortal Shen. I will listen only to you.”

“Your life is your own. But if you truly want to listen to me, I have three requirements.”

“Please give your orders, Immortal Shen. I am listening.”

“First: No lying to me.”

“Yes.”

“Second: If anyone bullies you or if you need anything, you must tell me proactively. Don’t make me guess.”

“Yes.”

“Third: No contact with Jiang Linchuan.”

“Yes.”

Du Yuanluo felt these three conditions were too simple, they weren’t demands so much as blessings. She felt a bit guilty. “Is there anything else?”

“Not for now.”

“Then please tell me whenever you think of something.”

“I thought of one.” Shen Qingyi actually didn’t like Du Yuanluo’s subservient way of speaking, she preferred people to be open and confident.

“I’m listening.”

“If there is something you don’t want to agree to, you don’t have to agree to it.”

Du Yuanluo didn’t have her own room, so she stayed in Shen Qingyi’s for the time being. However, there was only one bed. Shen Qingyi gave the bed to Du Yuanluo while she herself sat on a prayer mat to meditate.

Du Yuanluo couldn’t possibly lie down in peace. “Immortal Shen, I am here to serve you. How can I sleep in your bed?”

“I can go without sleep. Can you?”

She really couldn’t. Du Yuanluo tried a compromise: “I can sleep on the floor.”

“You are a mortal of flesh and blood. What if you get sick sleeping on the floor?”

“I won’t…” Du Yuanluo originally wanted to say that she had slept on the floor for months while caring for Jiang Linchuan, but she was tactful enough not to mention her past with him in front of Shen Qingyi.

After several failed attempts to refuse, she decided to simply sit and meditate with Shen Qingyi. But she had no idea how to meditate, before long, she slumped over and fell asleep on the floor.

Shen Qingyi sighed, picked her up, and placed her on the bed. Looking at Du Yuanluo’s features, she thought that while the Creator had favored her beauty, Fate had not been so kind. She was clearly someone who inspired pity, yet also invited bullying.

Thinking back, Shen Qingyi realized she had bullied her once, too. Fortunately, the Heavens favored Shen Qingyi, giving her a chance to start over. Everything could be made right.

With Du Yuanluo living in Shen Qingyi’s room, Jiang Linchuan didn’t dare to barge in looking for her. Instead, it was Shen Qingyi who found herself pursued. In the past, while she hadn’t been clingy with Jiang Linchuan, she had never avoided him. Now, she fled the moment she saw him and never gave him a kind look.

The fellow disciples began to gossip that even this unflappable, otherworldly fairy could not pass the trial of love. They whispered that she had not only hidden away Jiang Linchuan’s little lover but was also throwing a temper tantrum, casting aside all decorum.

Shen Qingyi offered no explanation. Regardless, she intended to guard against Jiang Linchuan anyway. Rather than alerting him by speaking of the things she had seen in her past life, it was better to use this “unseemly” jealousy as an excuse. When she was young, she thought public opinion was fearsome; having experienced death and returned, she realized that words were meaningless.

But Jiang Linchuan felt wronged. During those days in the mortal realm with Du Yuanluo, he had indeed experienced the gentle, submissive affection of a mortal woman, a memorable experience no immortal fairy had ever given him. Yet he still held his childhood bond with Shen Qingyi sacred. How could he lose a Dao companion like her for the sake of a mortal woman?

He had assumed that given Shen Qingyi’s character and upbringing, she wouldn’t refuse to let Du Yuanluo stay. He figured they could keep Du Yuanluo like a little pet, a small diversion on the long road of cultivation. But to lose Shen Qingyi for her would be a terrible bargain.

He had tried to explain himself several times, but Shen Qingyi wouldn’t even give him the chance to speak. He had considered that Du Yuanluo’s presence might create a rift, but he never expected Shen Qingyi to completely turn against him.

After weighing the pros and cons, he decided it would be better to send Du Yuanluo away.