Chapter 41

As the weather grew increasingly cold, the New Year arrived in the blink of an eye. Even during the New Year, Ye Qing merely paid respects to his ancestors and visited his elders, then devoted himself to his studies.

To be honest, in his previous life, Ye Qing had studied the Three Classics and Five Canons diligently, but his experiences on Earth always made him feel a slight disdain. Reaching the rank of a scholar was already due to his good fortune in his previous life.

After being reborn, Huīhuī truly immersed himself in his studies, reading the classics, pondering the texts, and tracing their origins. Gradually, he felt a transformation, his foundation becoming more solid bit by bit.

In the morning, Ye Qing would assign some tasks to Qianqian, who would sit opposite him, quietly watching him read books seriously. When Ye Qing read about geography, military affairs, governance records, or cultural travelogues, Qianqian would sit with him, listening to his casual comments.

Sometimes, Ye Qing would fall into deep thought or say things she couldn't understand.

Qianqian wouldn't interrupt him randomly but would silently remember them, either flipping through books or finding an opportunity to ask. Some questions Ye Qing would answer, some he would explain partially, some he would illustrate with stories, and some he would reveal as secrets.

Day by day, she gradually learned to infer from the context when she heard his explanations.

One night, Ye Qing didn't read books and went to bed early due to fatigue.

In his dreamless sleep, he suddenly saw himself emitting light and woke up to a foul smell.

"Master?" Qianqian woke up alertly, quickly got up, lit a lamp, and exclaimed, "Your body!"

Ye Qing looked and saw himself covered in mud, which had stained the bedding. He was stunned for a moment but then smiled, "It's fine!"

"But..." Qianqian didn't avoid the mud, feeling its sticky texture, which smelled like stagnant water.

"Go fetch some water... No, I'll go to the well directly!"

Ye Qing left the courtyard. It was deep into the night, and the courtyard was quiet. Fortunately, it hadn't snowed. He drew water from the well, undressed, and splashed water to wash himself, not minding the cold.

Qianqian came out with the lamp, breathing in the cold air and glancing at the night sky.

"There are signs of snow..." She took a deep breath, placed the lamp on a branch, and helped him fetch water and rub his back.

After rubbing until his skin turned white, he was finally clean. Ye Qing took a towel to dry himself and asked, "Why didn't you ask?"

"Master is fine, that's all!" Qianqian said, a bit embarrassed but also proud, "If Master can tell Qianqian, he will surely say it."

Ye Qing gently scratched her small nose, "Clever."

The Six Yang Diagram was a secret of the Daoist sect, worth more than ten thousand gold. Ye Qing simply said, "This is the result of reaching a certain level of cultivation, where the body has completed its foundation."

Qianqian nodded and followed him into the room, her face suddenly blushing, "Master, I've already tidied up the bedding, so..."

"So what?"

"Come to my place..." Qianqian's voice gradually became as soft as a mosquito's.

The lamp was extinguished behind the window, and the courtyard returned to silence.

In the early morning, the window turned white, and sunlight illuminated the embroidered bed, the gauzy canopy, and the fragrant quilt in the west chamber.

Under the white plum blossom quilt, a faint red silk belly band could be seen, and a girl with skin as smooth as jade lay with her bare shoulders and half-exposed breasts in the man's arms, suddenly twitching her nose.

"Master, wake up, we still need to read... It smells so good?"

Mumbling vaguely, she opened her eyes, feeling dazed for a moment. Her eyes gradually focused, staring at the sleeping Ye Qing for a long time. Feeling the strong hand around her waist, her face was full of smiles.

In the severe cold of winter, she loved this warm, intimate, and strong embrace... Yes, this time, it smelled fresh.

It was the soap fragrance she had washed herself with, the special feeling of a man's body, and... huh?

"Was that fragrance just now a dream? It felt like the morning forest... Could it be a woman's perfume?"

Qianqian sniffed Ye Qing's neck and hair, unsure. After a moment, she burrowed into the quilt, like a kitten discovering an intruder, her fur standing on end.

Ye Qing felt her doing something strange and pulled her out of the quilt by her waist, "What are you doing?"

"Uh..." Qianqian was a bit embarrassed and shy, lowering her head and stammering, "I smelled a strange, fresh fragrance..."

"So what?" Ye Qing glanced at her red silk belly band, the faint, round, and slightly developed mounds, and couldn't help but hold her against his chest, enjoying the cool, soft feeling of her body.

"Ah—In the stories Master tells, this is the scent of a beautiful virgin... I was half-asleep and thought maybe another woman had slept here, or maybe Master was replaced!" Qianqian said, her eyes bright with suspicion.

Feeling the gentle and delicate female body in his arms, memories from his previous life flowed through him, accompanied by the same fragrance: "This is the result of reaching a certain level of cultivation, where the body expels impurities and becomes pure."

"The fragrance you smelled doesn't actually exist; it's just the absence of the original foul smell, a contrast that creates an illusion."

"Master, you're deceiving Qianqian again, and Master didn't smell bad... not at all, he smelled very good—" Qianqian paused, her voice trailing off.

Ye Qing continued to persuade her, "Fragrance and foulness are both forms of stimulation. At their extremes, people can't distinguish between them. You find it pleasant because of your affection, and your body has adjusted to accept it. If you smell other men, it will only be sweat and odor."

Qianqian listened, half-understanding, but was already used to her master's strange words. She retorted, "Why would I smell other men? I wouldn't do that!"

In the midst of the girl's pouting, Ye Qing dressed and went out, seeing a heavy snowfall covering the garden, with sunlight shining through.

Focusing inward, he saw that the fine red lines on his face had disappeared, leaving only a smooth red aura. He was not only not surprised but felt great joy.

"The Six Yang Diagram is personally transmitted by the Daoist Lord and can change one's destiny. Indeed, as the foundation is completed, my destiny has advanced to the next level."

Seeing no one around, he took out the golden cup and examined it, finding it filled with a light green aura, but about a third was missing. The light white aura no longer seeped through but was directly connected to him.

"This time, changing my destiny has consumed more than a third of the aura bestowed by the Dragon Lord, but my capacity has greatly increased, so I no longer need the golden cup."

He then took out the Chuanlin Notebook and opened to the sixth page. The originally faint little carp had become much clearer, but there were no new marks.

"The carp is complete!" Ye Qing pondered, unsure whether to be happy or angry. After a moment, he thought, "Without these three thousand famous poems, my own knowledge would only make me a quasi-scholar. But after this period of reading, reflecting, and pondering, I can now be considered a true scholar."

"The deviation caused by the 'Taiping' cannot be remedied, and I must be cautious with other poems, especially those from Earth."

Qianqian came out and saw Ye Qing personally lighting a fire pot.

"Qianqian, bring me the poems I wrote, the stack about a foot high on the side of the bookshelf... Yes, that stack. Bring them over and burn them."

"Burn... burn them?" Qianqian jumped up, having been trained to understand the value of the poems.

"Yes, if these poems are kept for too long, the literary aura will condense, and with you flipping through them every day, the aura will become uncontrollable and might be discovered."

"Is it bad if they are discovered?" Qianqian held the poems, puzzled, unwilling to let her master burn them.

"Great talent is a curse, and I said I would give them to you alone. A man must keep his word." Ye Qing habitually persuaded Qianqian.

"Is that so..." Qianqian blushed, her grip loosening, and Ye Qing took the poems and lit them.

In the flames, hundreds of famous poems turned to ashes.

For some reason, after burning these poems, Ye Qing felt a great relief, as if a heavy burden had been lifted, and his body felt comfortable.

"Indeed, keeping these poems would have been a disaster."

Just as he thought this, he heard a knock on the door. Ye Qing was startled, paused, and then opened the door.

A girl in a silver-white fox fur coat approached, removing her white hood and scanning the courtyard. Seeing the fire pot and the large pile of ashes, she looked suspicious, but it was Xiaohé.

However, this expression quickly passed, and she bowed respectfully, "Ordered by the clan leader, I must come. Considering Master is studying in seclusion, I chose to come at this early hour when no one is around, but it feels like I'm a thief. Please forgive me for the disturbance."

Ye Qing closed the courtyard gate and examined her.

This girl had fair skin, bright eyes, and white teeth, with a fragrant wooden fan-shaped hairpin in her cloud-like hair. She had become even more beautiful in the two months since they last met. Last time, she was plain-faced, but this time, she had applied a light makeup, making him smile and shake his head, "If a thief could be this beautiful, I would keep her and scold her severely."

"You're being silly again!" Xiaohé glared at him. The distance and unease from their long separation had indeed faded, and her face darkened slightly as she sighed, "Master is fearless, which is the mark of a great man, but these words are deeply etched in our hearts. What did you say last time?"

Her words were soft, her posture low, her eyes like water, and her meaning profound. Ye Qing's heart stirred, but he changed the subject, "What does the clan leader want?"

"In seven days, the Spring Examination for scholars will begin. Xiaohé, on the clan leader's orders, has brought a letter of recommendation for Qing Master, so you don't need to go to Pingshou County again. You can go directly to the city!" Xiaohé took out a letter with an official seal from her chest and spoke solemnly.

Ye Qing took the letter, feeling the warmth and fragrance of the girl, and sensed a hint of authority, confirming it was the official seal of the county office. Without looking, he put the letter in his chest and asked, "Is there anything else?"

"Nothing. Xiaohé must return to report, so I won't stay longer!" Xiaohé bowed and turned to leave, but when she reached the door, she couldn't push it open.

Feeling the cold of the door, Xiaohé's mind suddenly became clear. Being chosen by the clan leader as the daughter of a guest, her keenness and determination to rise above the ordinary had always been her strength. At this moment, a flash of insight came to her, and she realized, "If I have to choose, now is the only chance."

"Once you become a scholar, even the daughters of wealthy families in the county will vie for your attention. How will I have a chance?"

"Having already made a mistake in choosing, and lost the initiative, if I miss this opportunity again, it will be irreparable." Thinking this, Xiaohé suddenly turned around, disregarding the snow, and knelt down, saying, "Qing Master, save me!"