The Aloof Junior Brother I Was Supposed To Be Is Actually A Hopeless Romantic! - Chapter 6

After waking Feng Zhimu and completing a quick wash, Chen Ji led the three of them down the mountain.

At the foot of the Tianyun Sect lies Tianyun City. Protected by the sect, the citizens live a life of peace and prosperity, free from the harassment of demons. To the right of the city sits a massive canal bustling with merchant ships of all sizes. The people of Tianyun City rely on these vessels for trade with other cities to support their families and livelihoods.

Although the sun had not been up for long, the city was already teeming with life. Sailors, laborers, and merchants sat at noodle stalls and steamed bun shops, waiting to eat a hearty breakfast before beginning their day of toil.

Chen Ji found an empty table at a busy noodle stall and sat down with his three junior brothers. The owner, Auntie Xu, spotted them from a distance and walked over with a wide smile.

“A-Ji, long time no see! What wind blew you all down the mountain today?” she asked.

“There is no wind today, Auntie Xu,” Chen Ji flattered her. “It was the fragrance of your fish noodles that lured me all the way down from Emerald Bamboo Peak!”

Auntie Xu laughed so hard the wrinkles at the corners of her eyes deepened. “It has been a while, but your tongue is as sweet as ever. Will it be the usual today?”

“The usual, the usual. I could eat your fish noodles a thousand times and never grow tired of them.”

“Alright, three bowls. Wait, does this little brother also eat spicy food?” Auntie Xu noticed Feng Zhimu for the first time and looked the little fellow over.

“This is Zhimu, Master’s new disciple,” Chen Ji introduced. “Little Mumu, can you eat spicy food?”

Feng Zhimu shook his head.

Chen Ji tapped the table. “Then no spice for Mumu. The other three will be the usual. Thank you for the trouble, Auntie Xu.”

“It is no trouble at all. I am just happy you like my noodles. Wait a moment, I will go cook them for you!”

Auntie Xu went off happily to prepare the food. Even though Liu Jingyun and Qiu Lingzhou rarely said a word to her, Chen Ji’s sweet talk always put her in a good mood. Furthermore, as cultivators, they commanded a certain level of awe and affection from the ordinary townspeople who possessed no spiritual talent.

Auntie Xu added an extra fried egg to the bowls for Chen Ji and Feng Zhimu. Knowing that Liu Jingyun and Qiu Lingzhou had prickly tempers, she had not planned to give them any special treatment. However, considering they were Chen Ji’s brothers, she compromised by giving each of them half an egg.

“Noodles are here! Eat them while they are hot.”

Chen Ji noticed the eggs on the four bowls. Auntie Xu did not hide her favoritism as she served them. Chen Ji pretended not to notice and said, “Thank you, Auntie Xu.”

“Thank you, Auntie Xu,” Feng Zhimu echoed.

Auntie Xu smiled at them, then turned her gaze toward Qiu Lingzhou and Liu Jingyun. “Listen, boys, men get more delicious food when they know how to talk sweet and coax people. You two are so handsome; you should learn from A-Ji. It is a waste to have such good looks if you always keep a cold face.”

Liu Jingyun said nothing. He glanced at the half-egg in his bowl, then at the half-egg in Qiu Lingzhou’s bowl. Without a word, he picked up his half-egg and placed it in Chen Ji’s bowl. Qiu Lingzhou did the same, giving his portion to Chen Ji as well.

“Auntie Xu, they are still young,” Chen Ji apologized. “I will slowly teach them to have better personalities.”

“As long as they can improve,” Auntie Xu replied. “The girls in town know they have bad tempers and are afraid to approach them. If they scare all the little girls away, how will they ever find wives?”

Chen Ji wanted to tell her that this was a book without a heroine. Liu Jingyun had no romantic partner, and neither did Qiu Lingzhou. Both were destined to be single. Perhaps the author felt that since everyone was going to die in the end, there was no need for a heroine or a romance subplot. Instead, the author arranged for these two bachelors to fight each other to the death.

However, after living in this book for several years, Chen Ji occasionally forgot it was a novel. Everyone around him was real, possessing warmth, breath, and feelings. The only thing that felt unreal was the fact that no matter how hard he tried, he simply could not die.

He shook his head and focused on his meal. The fish noodles were truly delicious. The noodles were chewy and the broth was fresh. While they tasted great without spice, Auntie Xu’s homemade chili sauce was exceptional. It was fragrant and savory, perfectly complementing the freshness of the fish.

After finishing a bowl, Chen Ji felt warm and energized. He paid the bill, chatted with Auntie Xu for a few more moments, and then departed.

The group of four arrived at the Damantang Inn. The owner, Manyue, was standing outside chatting with several other women. They were laughing gaily about something until Chen Ji approached.

“Sister Man!” Chen Ji called out sweetly.

Manyue jumped and turned around. When she saw Chen Ji and the others, she looked terrified and tried to hide inside the inn. Chen Ji saw this and quickly caught her.

“Sister Man, what are you doing? We finally meet and you try to hide from me.”

“You little troublemaker! Why have you come down the mountain?” Manyue grumbled. “Don’t you have to cultivate? Have you broken through to the Golden Core stage yet? If you haven’t reached the Nascent Soul stage, why are you wandering around down here?”

Chen Ji chuckled and played along. “Sister Man, we have a small situation at Emerald Bamboo Peak and are short on silver. I came here to see if you have any work for us.”

Given the cultivation levels of Liu Jingyun and Qiu Lingzhou, they could earn money much faster by taking on missions to slay demons. However, because Tianyun City was protected by the sect, not a single demon could be found for miles. Furthermore, inner sect disciples were not allowed to leave the sect’s territory without the Sect Leader’s permission. This forced Chen Ji to find mundane jobs for the two problem children.

“Little troublemaker, if it were just you, I would be happy to give you work. But I wouldn’t dare hire these two great deities,” Manyue complained as she looked toward Qiu Lingzhou and Liu Jingyun.

“Why is that?” Chen Ji was confused. “Aren’t their cooking skills excellent? If you announced that they were working in your kitchen, people would surely come from all over just to taste their food.”

“You little troublemaker, do you have no idea what your two junior brothers did the last time they were at my inn?”

“What did they do?”

Usually, whenever Emerald Bamboo Peak was short on cash, Chen Ji would come down to work alone to support his two unfilial sons. In the beginning, he wanted to win them over, so he spared them from any hardship. It was only after he realized that they were stubborn and constantly caused trouble that he started bringing them along to earn their keep.

The last time they were here, Chen Ji had been called away by the Sect Leader. He had not been able to supervise them and had no idea what they had done. Manyue and Chen Ji had a good relationship, so for her to be this resistant, he knew they must have caused a major disaster.

Manyue let out a heavy sigh. “That little Jingyun… I asked him to go to the kitchen and make some braised vegetables for the guests. He took a sword and sliced the stove in half! He said his food is only for his Senior Brother and that no one else is worthy. As for little Zhouzhou, he was willing to cook, but he made a spicy chicken dish for Master Zhang. He threw every single dried chili in my kitchen into that pot! Master Zhang’s lips were swollen like sausages the next day. He ended up with a flare-up of hemorrhoids and made me pay for his medical expenses!”

Manyue shook her head helplessly.

Chapter 20: Haiyangzi Returns

At first glance, those words sounded harmless.

But listening closely, Chen Ji felt they were subtly belittling Liu Jingyun and Qiu Lingzhou while elevating him. Even though the facts were as they described, he despised this kind of pulling one down to lift another up behavior.

“If Lingzhou and Jingyun make mistakes, it is ultimately my shortcoming,” Chen Ji said.

Jiang Cichao’s brow furrowed, and he said softly, “A-Ji, what does this have to do with you?”

“I entered the sect before them, yet my cultivation is inferior. Because of that, they never received a formal way of training. Jingyun and Lingzhou are exceptional talents with immense spiritual power, and that is precisely why they lack restraint when they spar. If my power were above theirs, I could stop them when they overstep.”

Chen Ji let out a heavy sigh. “In the end, it is still my fault.”

“Senior Brother, this has nothing to do with you.” Qiu Lingzhou’s brow lowered slightly, appearing somewhat angry. “Stop constantly taking my mistakes upon yourself.”

“A son’s lack of upbringing is the father’s fault! You stay quiet and listen, no talking back!” Chen Ji scolded him sternly.

Knowing he was in the wrong from before, Qiu Lingzhou did not dare to argue.

“Senior Brother Cichao, you see? They are willing to listen to reason; they just cannot control their strength yet,” Chen Ji said.

The surrounding disciples were speechless. They only listen to you, though.

Jiang Cichao forced a stiff smile. “A-Ji, since you defend them so much, I have nothing more to say. This is Bone-Severing Ointment. Elder Luying said your foot injury is severe and asked me to bring this to you.”

“Alright. Once my foot is better, I will find time to go and thank Elder Luying personally.”

Jiang Cichao wanted to say more, but glancing at Qiu Lingzhou and Liu Jingyun beside Chen Ji, the words died in his throat. He hurriedly said, “I have other things to attend to, I’ll be going now,” and left.

Chen Ji did not linger either, leading his two unfilial sons back to rest. Qiu Lingzhou and Liu Jingyun, having been slightly spooked by Tianjizi, spent the next two days quietly accompanying Chen Ji while he recovered.

Their spiritual power was strong, and after two days of regulating their breathing, their injuries were mostly healed. Unable to sit still any longer, the two went to the back mountains to spar.

Sitting in the courtyard, Chen Ji watched the trees in the back mountains fall one by one and felt quite relieved. It did not matter if the trees fell, as long as it was not a house.

In a flash, over half a month passed, and the early spring weather began to warm.

One morning, after finishing breakfast, Chen Ji lay in his rocking chair. He watched the two figures sparring in the back mountains and then looked at Feng Zhimu, who was sitting nearby practicing his mental cultivation. Chen Ji’s lips curled up slightly as he took a sip of tea.

This was what being a Big Senior Brother should be like: watching his junior brothers work diligently at their cultivation while he enjoyed his tea in leisure.

“Little Ji, long time no see. You are looking more and more like a proper Big Senior Brother.”

A voice sounded from behind him.

Startled, Chen Ji’s hand slipped, and the tea he was holding drenched a large patch of his clothes. He did not bother cleaning up, instead spinning around to see the speaker, none other than their irresponsible master, Haiyangzi.

“You old geezer! You finally decided to come back!” Chen Ji clenched his fists in anger.

Haiyangzi chuckled, picked up the teapot from the table, and took a long swig directly from the spout. “Little Ji, we have not seen each other in so long and your temper is still this explosive. How have you been getting along with your junior brothers?”

“Do you actually care about me and your other disciples? I thought you were having so much fun out there you forgot you had four students,” Chen Ji said irritably.

Facing the grumpy Chen Ji, Haiyangzi continued to smile. His gaze landed on Feng Zhimu.

Feng Zhimu walked over and bowed respectfully. “Greetings, Master.”

“Little Zhimu is quite good, very polite. Little Ji, you should learn from your junior brother,” Haiyangzi remarked.

Chen Ji gave a huff but did not respond.

Haiyangzi patted Feng Zhimu’s shoulders, feeling his physical constitution. “A good talent. By my count, you have not been in the sect for even a month yet?”

“Yes, today is my twenty-third day.”

“To have this level of cultivation in twenty-three days is excellent!”

“Old man, you rarely come back. Did you really just return to see if we were doing well?” Chen Ji could not help but ask.

“I did return for a specific reason, but I’ll wait until your other two brothers are back to announce it.” Haiyangzi looked toward the clearing in the back mountains and shouted, “Little Jingyun, Little Lingzhou! Master is back, come here for a moment!”

Haiyangzi infused his voice with spiritual energy, making it so loud that even Liu Jingyun and Qiu Lingzhou in the distance could hear it clearly. Hearing their master’s voice, they stopped their sparring and quickly flew back.

Seeing that it was indeed Haiyangzi, the two bowed with reasonable politeness. “Disciples greet Master.”

“Aya, every one of you has grown into quite a handsome young man.”

Haiyangzi stood up and walked over to them, scanning them from head to toe. “Not bad, not bad. It seems you have been practicing well; your dantians are full of spiritual energy.”

“Master, you rarely return. How many days will you be staying?” Qiu Lingzhou asked.

Haiyangzi replied, “Until tomorrow. I leave tomorrow.”

“So soon?” Chen Ji frowned.

Haiyangzi laughed. “One meeting is enough. Little Ji, do not miss this old man too much.”

“Old man, do you know that half a month ago, our Emerald Bamboo Peak…”

“I know. Senior Brother Sect Leader already sent a letter to tell me. That is why I came back. Little Ji, you and Little Jingyun should go down the mountain together tomorrow for experience.”

Chen Ji and Liu Jingyun were both startled.

Chen Ji asked in shock, “Old man, you know what happened at Emerald Bamboo Peak half a month ago and you still want us to go down for experience?!”

Half a month had passed, and Emerald Bamboo Peak had long been rebuilt, but Tianjizi had insisted they stay at Juyang Peak out of concern for their safety. Haiyangzi coming back and immediately sending them away felt like he was sending them to their deaths!

“Senior Brother Sect Leader told me. That bastard Ghost King has a grudge against the Tianyun Sect and will continue to cause trouble for our disciples. But when you go down, just do not wear your sect uniforms, wouldn’t that solve it?” Haiyangzi said easily.

Chen Ji suppressed the urge to hit him. “Old man, do you realize that Ghost King knows what the four of us look like?”

“I know.”

“You know, and you are still making us leave?”

“A-Ji, staying at Juyang Peak indefinitely is not the answer. Even though Emerald Bamboo Peak is sect territory, it is still isolated. If you return there, that fellow might take advantage of the opening again. So, it is better to go down and travel. If you are constantly moving with no fixed residence, it will be much harder for him to find you.”

Chen Ji lowered his eyes and thought about it, suddenly finding Haiyangzi’s logic very sound.

“Besides,” Haiyangzi added, “you have reached the age to see the world. There is no need to keep staying on Emerald Bamboo Peak. You go with Little Jingyun.”

Chen Ji nodded. “Since you put it that way, I will listen.”

“Master,” Qiu Lingzhou interjected, “if Senior Brother and Liu Dog are going down together, what about me and Feng Zhimu?”