The Qingheng Sect needed a facade, a deterrent against the vengeful Wangyuan, and a model for all cultivation sects. It necessitated the existence of a cultivator like Wenren Qi, whose appearance and cultivation were both flawless. Even if he did nothing but sit through the four seasons and the frost and snow, his presence alone was stability.
“It is not strange. It is very impressive.” Cen Moyu rummaged through the cloth strips in the basket and found clothes for a human child. “You could make this many in one night? You are much more capable than Brother Yu Xiang.”
Without Wenren Qi needing to ask, the little Fairy Pitta told him how Yu Xiang usually made a living. It did not sound like an easy life, though at least he was relatively free under the City Lord’s protection. It was much better than wandering outside where he might be killed as an evil demon by cultivators or captured by demon cultivators to build walls in Wangyuan.
Wenren Qi finished wrapping the chick’s rump and placed the drowsy little fellow into the nest on the table. He said naturally, “He naturally cannot compare to me.”
“Did you learn this after transforming?” Cen Moyu could only explain it away with these hundred years. “This kind of craftsmanship could sell for a lot of money if you took it to that shop in the east of the city.”
The demons in the Capital did not intentionally copy human customs of marriage and funerals, but even for cultivators, there were those whose lifespan ended. The Demon Capital was a melting pot. Half-demons were inherently weak, and even after taking human form, they might only have a few years of life. Cen Moyu rarely wandered around since he arrived, but a funeral had been held at the Weasel Demon’s house next door. Crows had come to provide the music, and it was very bleak. However, every time the mourning music played, the little fellow, who was then still a bird egg, became very excited. He did not know who the child took after.
Wenren Qi said, “It is not for sale at any price.”
Cen Moyu glanced at the diaper stained with bird droppings. It was not for sale at any price, yet it was used to wipe a bird’s bottom. He was moved again and took Wenren Qi’s hand. “You are so kind.”
Gemini said
Wenren Qi was not accustomed to such proximity with others. Perhaps it was because Cen Moyu’s hands were no longer as warm, and he feared the little bird might suddenly perish, so he took the other’s hands into his own. The Vine Demon’s hands were dry and warm, but his words were harsh. “Why are your hands so cold?”
A small bird should have a high body temperature; even in human form, a bird demon’s temperature should be higher than that of an average person.
Cen Moyu loved everything warm.
In his snowy hometown winter nights, a fireplace would roar inside the house. With hot apple pie and tea biscuits, he could play the piano for hours.
In the Demon Capital, the four seasons could change within a single day, and the weather outside was unpredictable.
In the guest room where they stayed, a seven-fold screen was covered in purple flower vines. The window lattices were closed. In the bird’s nest on the low table lay the little bird he had given birth to; perhaps in time, it would turn into a lovely child.
The man with the cold face warming his hands was a friend of the original host, yet he had said he liked the current Cen Moyu.
Although he felt guilty, Cen Moyu forced himself to believe it. Perhaps they really could live their lives here.
“Maybe I caught a draft earlier. It is a bit cold.” As a Fairy Pitta in human form, every strand of his hair was incredibly smooth. Even in the rainy, unlit room, one could catch a glimpse of a faint shimmer. “A-Qi, your hands are so hot.”
Sitting on the soft couch, Wenren Qi was taller than Cen Moyu. From this angle, the little demon’s lips were rosy, looking far more vibrant than the wretched state he was in when they first met.
It seemed he was meant to live in a gilded cage of jade and gold, rather than being broken by the wind and rain outside.
If he is obedient and stays away from Wangyuan, there is no reason he cannot remain by my side.
“Do you not have a surname?” Cen Moyu suddenly looked up, his eyes meeting Wenren Qi’s fixed gaze. He seemed startled and shyly lowered his eyes. “Brother Yu Xiang said that those in the Demon Capital usually take a human name. He chose his own name.”
“You are a wooden vine that cultivated into a human. Perhaps there are other wooden vines who have done the same.”
“A piece of wood does not necessarily have to be named ‘Mu’.”
Cen Moyu could not pull his hands free from the other’s grasp. The man’s strength was great, so he stopped struggling and sat by his side. It felt as though he would allow the man to do anything to him.
Wenren Qi had no objections. “Call me whatever you like.”
“But Gugu’s name is already…”
“I just like the sound of drums,” Cen Moyu said, unsure of what the little bird had told the man. “Choose a name for yourself. ‘A-Qi’ is just something I called you on a whim. What do you want me to call you?”
The city gates were already closed. Wenren Qi worried about unexpected complications and only wanted to bind the boy tighter. “Husband or My Lord, either will do.”
Cen Moyu suddenly found him quite childish; he could not hide his intentions at all. Yet, he could not help but feel happy that someone wanted to be so closely connected to him.
He nudged Wenren Qi. “If you will not choose one, then forget it. I need to prepare the music for tonight. Brother Xinchi gave me a stack of scores.”
He was going to be very busy, yet he looked forward to his new life in the Demon Capital.
Wenren Qi recalled the images he had found through the Cloud Mirror back at the Qingheng Sect. The gate-keeping disciple would spend day after day either playing the flute or writing on paper. Perhaps it was these musical scores he spoke of.
It was not strange for a bird’s hobby to be singing.
Wenren Qi had only taken two steps when he was pulled back.
The Vine Demon’s embrace carried a familiar scent, like a refined, noble incense that Cen Moyu could not quite identify. Previously, Mai Li had also mentioned he carried a strange fragrance, but after hesitating, he had remained silent.
Cen Moyu had smelled it for a long time and even asked the System about it. The System suggested it might be the scent of the green pine at the mountain gate. Since Cen Moyu worked all year round without a break, it was possible he had been marinated in the scent of pine wood.
“What is it now?” Wenren Qi now knew what a little bird smelled like after that night.
A woody fragrance mixed with the scent of fruit, it seeped into his heart as if he had smelled it for ten thousand years in a dream.
Wenren Qi finally asked, “Why are you so certain that Gugu’s mother—that destined person—is not you?”
It would not have mattered if someone else asked this, but from the perspective of two demons who had decided to marry, Cen Moyu felt it was necessary to answer properly. It sounded as if the man were asking if he had feelings for the child’s other father.
“It is just not me.”
Cen Moyu could not be certain of other things, but on this matter, the System could testify, as could the content he had read before transmigrating. Even if Cen Moyu had only read five chapters, he would not have misheard the plot.
Wenren Qi’s fingers brushed a lock of hair from Cen Moyu’s temple as he stared into those eyes he could not forget. “What kind of man is he? Why are you so insistent that he is involved with his disciple?”
He did have a disciple, that much was true. But that boy, Lu Jijun, had long ago set his sights on the Young Sect Leader of the Hehuan Sect. He had descended the mountain many times to meet her in secret and was currently worried about how to make it public. After all, the Hehuan Sect was not considered an orthodox path; most of its members were unconventional, and the elders would not agree.
Lu Jijun had stammered several times, hoping his Master would make the decision for him. An alliance between the two sects would cause the Qingheng Sect to lose face, so Wenren Qi found it difficult to handle and had set it aside. Had the rumors outside already reached this version?
Nonsense.
Cen Moyu replied, “I just know.”
He thought that since they were getting married anyway, and this man took great care of the baby, even if he looked ordinary, he was suitable for a life together. He had dated handsome men before; they were just “alright” and very good at letting people down. Perhaps an ordinary-looking man would be more faithful.
Cen Moyu was not a skilled liar and dared not meet the man’s eyes. He simply hugged his fiancé’s shoulders, buried his face in the crook of the man’s neck, and whispered, “It is the will of heaven. I was an accident and cannot destroy a predestined marriage.”
Wenren Qi hated hearing about the “will of heaven” most of all. Yet, the child was also considered the will of heaven, and everything had come to pass.
“Who said that?”
To run away after sleeping together, and then try to set up the person he slept with with a disciple who was infatuated with a demoness—not to mention Wenren Qi, Lu Jijun might go mad if he knew the truth.
Wenren Qi suddenly remembered something. On the day he learned Cen Moyu was the gate-keeping disciple, he had heard a rumor.
“Could it be that you adore the disciple, yet you were with the disciple’s Master?”
Cen Moyu’s body stiffened. He instinctively tried to pull away, but the man took the initiative and held him. He had no choice but to rub his cheek against the Vine Demon’s neck.
Though the man looked ordinary, he had a very good physique. With broad shoulders and a narrow waist, his back was not bursting with muscle but was very firm. Leaning against him felt unexpectedly grounding.
Cen Moyu had grown up with no one to rely on. The childhood friend he had chosen had left him covered in scars. Even though he knew that relying on others brought no benefit, in this moment, he needed a shoulder to lean on.
Even if he did not like the man that much yet.
He felt even more guilty.
“I do not adore the disciple,” Cen Moyu said dejectedly. “I do not like anyone.”
His words displeased Wenren Qi. The hand gripping Cen Moyu’s slender waist tightened. “Then who do you like?”
The little Fairy Pitta knew how to read the room. Since they were marrying anyway, it was not impossible that he might like the man in the future.
He leaned close to Wenren Qi’s ear and said slowly, “I like you.”
Even as a puppet, the body was very realistic; one could not detect any flaws even when pressed together. Perhaps it was too realistic, for the body was far more sensitive than Wenren Qi’s actual body.
At the moment he meant to push Cen Moyu away, Cen Moyu also felt the change in Wenren Qi’s body.
The beautiful bird demon flushed red and asked, “Do… do we… do we have to have the bridal chamber first?”
How could he be so unable to leave men alone?
Even if I were a real demon, it has only been a short while!
Wenren Qi could not tell if he was angry or ashamed, but the desires of the puppet body were difficult to suppress.
The little bird, having already experienced such things, did not take the protagonist’s part to heart. He still practiced the idea of being faithful to one person. The Vine Demon, whom he knew well, was likely going to live with him. Since they were marrying, there was no need to be so distant.
He looked at Wenren Qi with a shy expression. “Do you need me to help you?”
“No need.” Wenren Qi pinched the face that was leaning close. This bird had stolen his essence, ruined his plans, secretly given birth to their child, and still wanted to mingle with other men, get married, and even live permanently in the Demon Capital.
Even if it had nothing to do with Wangyuan, he would take him away and punish him.
“Alright, then calm your anger. I will go look at the scores.”
Just as the bird demon who had started the fire was about to take the child and leave, a dark shadow fell, enveloping him from behind. It was like the dark clouds brewing lightning that night, or like the cultivator in the cave who had pulled him back to drive deep into him.
The raspy voice, mixed with desire, sounded strange and eerie.
Wenren Qi bit Cen Moyu’s earlobe and whispered, “Stay.”