Love from the Male Protagonist's Harem

Droning from inside the hall: “When adding the materials, you should……”

Chu Yao humphed and put down her foot, pushing the door open with neither a knock or a kick.

Rudely interrupted, Goatee Master squinted at the uninvited newcomer in Jianfeng clothes: “Yes?”

“Ai, old man,” Chu Yao held her shoulders and stuck her chin out, “I have to tell you that I’m borrowing someone.”

Goatee Master’s countenance turned even more unsightly: “You’re from Jianfeng, what kind of atrocious behavior are you bringing to Danfeng?”

“Bad behavior?”  Lips curling, hostility suddenly rippled out from Chu Yao, her chin still raised proudly, “Maybe my behavior isn’t polite, but while I see people who came to Danfeng to learn, what I don’t see is you actually teaching them.”

Goatee Master immediately understood who this Jianfeng disciple was trying to rescue.  Snorting, he declared: “Students who make mistakes should be punished!”

“Tsk-tsk,” Chu Yao looked over at Huo Bai with narrowed eyes, “Students’ mistakes should be punished?  True, but punishments be fair, right?  People are biased.  But you’re a Master, that means you shouldn’t be excessively partial.”

Chu Yao looked down at the water-filled kettle in her hand, light-brown, round eyes slitted: “Enough speaking nonsense, I’ll just behave atrociously.”

With a movement of her hand, Chu Yao sent the kettle falling to the ground.  Bang!  Water went flying in all directions as Chu Yao laughed rather savagely: “That person, I will take him away!”

The Danfeng disciples were stunned by this scene, while the Master’s face turned white, his body quivering.  He said nothing further though and neither did Chu Yao, the two glaring at each other in silence for a long time.  Finally Chu Yao snorted and walked out, closing the hall door behind her with a ‘snap.’  Clapping her hands at Xia Ge still standing out in the sun, Chu Yao said: “All right, let’s go.”

Xia Ge, as a member of the audience: “……”  No, no, that wasn’t what I meant……

Despair filled Xia Ge’s heart.

She might as well have said fucking nothing……

“Why are you acting slow-witted?”  Chu Yao gave Xia Ge a sideways look, “Don’t you want to go get a drink?”

Gazing up blankly at wild geese flying southward, grapes in hand, Xia Ge spoke under her breath: “Ah, all of a sudden I want roasted geese, braised in sauce……”

After today’s little commotion, Xia Ge was afraid she was going to gain notoriety in Danfeng again.

Want to cry.

“Geese?”

Raising her own eyes, Chu Yao thought for a moment, eventually thumping her fist: “There’s no wild geese, would a red-crowned crane do?”

Xia Ge: “???”

Chu Yao: “There’s a lot of cranes like that on Jianfeng, the ones with red on their heads.  Have you seen them?”

""

“What the hell, it doesn’t matter if you’ve seen them,” Chu Yao paused, “If you want to eat one, I’ll catch some for you.”

Xia Ge: “……”

Who the fuck dared to eat nationally-protected animals?!!  Xia Ge wasn’t that kind of parasite, ok?!

Xia Ge: “……no thanks, I was just kidding.  Let’s go find a bar.”

Chu Yao: “Whatever makes you happy.”

About forty miles east of Lingxi Peak was a small town called Dongqing.

All the trees in Dongqing were evergreen, staying verdant and lush even in the winter, and the people living there were enjoyed peace and prosperity.

There was also a restaurant uncreatively named Dongqing Restaurant that Xia Ge wanted to try.

Chu Yao and Xia Ge hadn’t changed their clothes before going down the mountain, and when one of the restaurant’s waiters saw their Lingxi Sect clothes, they were especially attentive: “How may I help you?”

“I want some of your bamboo leaf-green wine!”  Xia Ge had already carefully considered what to get, “Whatever side dishes you have, and keep the wine coming, thank you!”

Finding an upstairs table by a window, Xia Ge and Chu Yao seated themselves.  Xia Ge had already finished eating all the grapes, their sweet taste lingering on her tongue.  In a good mood and ready to eat more, Xia Ge disingenuously asked: “Master Chu must be very busy, why take the time to come and find me?”

Putting a hand to her cheek, Chu Yao’s tone was mocking: “I was in a cheerful mood.”

What kinda answer was that?  What was Xia Ge supposed to say?

Xia Ge chose to look out the window: “Oh.”

Chu Yao eyed the young man propping his chin on his two hands, watching people come and go down below.  His face was in profile, his feline eyes were long-lashed, his lips were bright red, and his hair was pulled back to expose delicate ears.

It was probably her imagination, but Chu Yao felt like the boy had become somehow softer since she’d last see him.

Chu Yao couldn’t help deriding him: “Xia Wuyin, you’re getting more and more effeminate.”

……you really know how to call a spade a spade, huh?

Xia Ge still had no answer for Chu Yao’s words.

Forcing her mouth up into a little smile, Xia Ge went: “Haha, you don’t say.”

Clicking her tongue, Chu Yao moved on to a different subject: “How long are you going to waste time at Danfeng?  I’m asking you, when will you come to Jianfeng?”

Xia Ge: “……”  You really are just trying to poach talent, aren’t you?

Shaking her head, Xia Ge said with all sincerity: “Jianfeng would make me work too hard.  I’ve no desire to suffer.”

“Work hard?  You don’t want to work hard?”

Looking at Xia Ge incredulously, Chu Yao hadn’t expected such reasoning and didn’t bother to hide her disgust: “Why are you such a runty waste?”

Xia Ge: “……”  This girl’s mouth was even more poisonous than little puppet’s.

……forget it.

The bamboo leaf-green wine and side dishes arrived at their table.  Face lighting up, Xia Ge told Chu Yao excitedly: “I’ve heard that this wine is very tasty, let’s try it.”

Chu Yao frowned, but had Xia Ge fill their cups.  Drinking away, the two chatted.

“Is there anything you really hate?”

After three rounds, Chu Yao had become a bit tipsy.  Light brown eyes squinting against the light of the setting sun, Chu Yao willed the light breeze to clear her head.

Too comfortable.

A sober Xia Ge was looking outside too, twirling peanuts in her fingers, and enjoying the same breeze.  When she heard Chu Yao’s question, she answered without hesitation: “Of course I do.  I hate not being able to eat my fill, I hate not having enough money, and I hate being destitute.”

Chu Yao poured herself another drink, light brown eyes intoxicated: “……that’s all?”

Xia Ge: “Yes, that’s all.  What else would I hate?”

There was nothing to be gained by hating anything else.

“Oh,” Chu Yao sighed, “Then I truly envy you.”

Xia Ge found that bafflingly ridiculous: “What’s enviable about being hungry and poor?”

Chu Yao shook her head: “If you have money, you won’t go hungry.  If you don’t have money, you go out and earn money.  Being poor at one time doesn’t mean being poor forever.  The things you hate can be changed.”

Pausing to glance at Xia Ge, Chu Yao’s voice turned soft and husky: “Furthermore, you have the ability to change.”

Looking out the window, Xia Ge said nothing.

“What you hate can be changed, and you have to power to do it,” Chu Yao said, “But what I hate, I cannot be change.”

Slightly startled, Xia Ge turned her head to peer into Chu Yao’s eyes.

Reflecting the rays of the setting sun, Chu Yao’s light brown eyes were warm and strange.

Xia Ge was used to people wearing cosmetic contact lenses in modern times.  She even had the ability to turn her own eyes violet, now that she was in the book.  But she was only just realizing that almost everyone around her had pure black eyes.  Chu Yao was an exception.

Murmuring to herself, Chu Yao slowly covered her eyes with her pale hands, her voice hoarse: “I cannot change my identity and I cannot dig out my own eyes.”

“That’s what……I envy the most about you.”

TN-I got hit by the winter flu.  Fever, cough, etc.  Next chapter will post in two weeks.  Hopefully after that I’ll be able to get back to a chapter a week.

丹顶鹤 Grus japonensis ; red-crowned crane

Included in the ” IUCN Red List of Threatened Species ” (IUCN) ver 3.1:

2016 – Endangered (EN). [16]

2021 – Vulnerable (VU). [10]

Included in Appendix I, Appendix II and Appendix III of the Convention on International Trade in Endangered Species of Wild Fauna and Flora (CITES) 2019 Edition. [15]

Included in China’s ” National Key Protected Wildlife List ” (February 5, 2021) level one. [14]