With a somewhat furtive manner, Xiao Yan slipped into his own room, shut the door in a hurry, and darted to a corner where he drew from his bosom a great bundle of medicinal herbs and a handful of magic crystals. Carefully he tucked them away into a cupboard, then raised his hands and breathed deep of the scent of herbs that clung to his fingers, letting out a low chuckle of relief.
In order to devote himself wholeheartedly to his training, Xiao Yan had this time laid in a full eight months' worth of materials. To all appearances, he intended to spend whatever remained of this year in bitter, unbroken cultivation. He gave the cupboard an affectionate pat, cracked a smile, and slouched over to the edge of the bed, collapsing into it with a sigh. The long day's running about had worn him out more than he cared to admit.
"Yan'er? Are you there?"
Through his daze, the sound of knocking drifted in. Blinking his sleepy eyes, Xiao Yan leapt out of bed at once, opened the door, and found his father, Xiao Zhan, standing outside. He scratched his head and smiled sheepishly. "Father, is something the matter?"
"Must there be a reason for me to come and see my own son? You little rascal — you've been hiding from me for two months." A large palm reached out and ruffled Xiao Yan's hair affectionately as Xiao Zhan scolded him with a laugh.
Watching that warm, gentle smile, Xiao Yan felt a stir of emotion, and his nose pricked with a sourness he could not quite put into words.
"Still brooding over that affair, are you? Ha, she could not see my son's worth — that is her loss. What is there to grieve over? A man should never make such a fuss over these things. I know it well: Xiao Zhan's son is no good-for-nothing!"
With a faint smile, Xiao Yan answered in a low voice: "Father, in three years, I will go to the Yun Lan Sect myself."
Xiao Zhan's smile drew in a little, his eyes fixed hard upon his son. After some hesitation, he said: "I have no complaints — but do you truly mean to go? I am not saying you are a match for Nalan Yanran, but the might of the Yun Lan Sect..." Xiao Yan smiled once more and nodded, his thin lips pressing together into a line of stubborn determination. "Father, there are some things a man cannot run from. If I am to be a man, then I must bear them."
"Ha, that temper of yours is very much like my own. Your two elder brothers would be glad, I think, to know you have come to see things this way." Pleased by his son's resolve, Xiao Zhan gave a gratified smile, sighed softly, then nodded with emphasis. "Good. Then I shall wait for my son to bring me honour! I want that old villain Nalan Su one day to come begging, bringing betrothal gifts with him, and plead that I take back the letter of annulment I sent!"
Xiao Yan nodded and could not help but laugh.
"Here. Take it — call it a little sponsorship from your father." From his bosom, Xiao Zhan drew a white jade bottle, one Xiao Yan knew all too well, and handed it over.
Looking at the Foundation Liquid that had gone all the way around and come right back into his own hands, Xiao Yan felt a wry lump of amusement rise in his throat, though his face kept a puzzled expression. "Father, what is this?"
"The Foundation Liquid. It can speed up the cultivation of your Dou Qi. I bought it at the auction today." Xiao Zhan grinned.
"Must have cost you a fair bit?" Taking the white jade bottle, a warm current flowed through Xiao Yan's chest.
"Forty thousand gold coins. But so long as it proves useful to you, it is worth every coin." Xiao Zhan waved it off carelessly.
"You spent forty thousand gold coins to buy me this Foundation Liquid... The elders will surely find some excuse to make trouble over it again." Xiao Yan gave a wry smile.
"Tsk. I am still the head of this clan. All they can do is wag their tongues." Xiao Zhan snorted coldly.
"Father, thank you. At the coming-of-age ceremony a year from now, I will see to it that every one of those clamouring mouths is shut for good." Xiao Yan pressed his lips together and smiled softly.
"Good! I will be waiting for the moment my son is reborn once more!" Though he had no idea where his son's confidence came from, Xiao Zhan was delighted by such unshakable self-assurance, and he laughed heartily.
"Now then, I will not keep you from your rest. If you need anything, come and find your father — we are family. There is nothing shameful in asking." With a wave, Xiao Zhan turned and strode off toward the front courtyard.
"Damn it, still have to go and play the fool with those doddering old men. It was only forty thousand gold coins. You'd think I'd gone and eaten their coffins with all the fuss they're making." Fragments of Xiao Zhan's muttered curses floated back through the darkness.
Watching his father disappear into the dark, Xiao Yan rubbed his nose and smiled softly to himself. "Rest easy, Father. I will make those fellows shut up with the plain truth. Three years ago, I could make them look up to me, and three years from now, I still can."
Standing at the door a while longer, he tucked away the white jade bottle and cast a sidelong glance toward the corner of the room. "Little girl, eavesdropping on people's talk — is that fun for you?"
"Xiao Yan-brother, your senses are sharp indeed..." A girl in a violet skirt flitted out of the corner, tilting her head, a smile curving beautifully across her face.
Xiao Yan shook his head helplessly at the playful girl before him.
"Where did Xiao Yan-brother go this afternoon?" Xun'er stepped lightly forward and asked with a smile.
"I just wandered out for a bit."
"Is that so?" Her limpid eyes swept over him, and then, of a sudden, she stepped closer, bent slightly, and wrinkled her dainty nose. "There's the scent of a woman on you."
"Cough. Don't be silly. What woman's scent could there possibly be?" A faint blush crept up his youthful face, though he was thankful the darkness hid it from her.
"Hehe." Apparently rather fond of Xiao Yan's predicament, Xun'er broke into a cascade of silvery laughter. When at last she had mastered herself, she fell silent for a moment, then said softly: "I heard what Uncle Xiao said just now. I believe in Xiao Yan-brother, truly. And... if one day you truly must go to the Yun Lan Sect, Xun'er can help."
At this, Xiao Yan blinked, his eyes fixed intently upon the girl's exquisite little face. Under such an unguarded stare, a delicate flush of shyness crept slowly across Xun'er's clear features, and she chided him in a low voice: "What are you looking at, Xiao Yan-brother..."
"Heh. So Xun'er can blush too. How rare." After a moment, Xiao Yan laughed all of a sudden.
Xun'er rolled her eyes at him. Only you, she thought to herself, would stare at a girl like that.
"All right, all right. Have a little faith in your Xiao Yan-brother. The Yun Lan Sect may be mighty, but I am still young — I have all the time in the world. And Yun Yun, whoever brought up a woman like Nalan Yanran, can hardly be anything much herself." Laughing, Xiao Yan ruffled the girl's dark hair. "It's getting late. Go rest."
Watching him wave her off, Xun'er could only shake her head and nod, then, under his parting gaze, walked slowly into the darkness.
Rounding a corridor, the sound of Xiao Zhan quarrelling with several elders drifted out from a room, and the subject of their dispute, as it happened, was precisely where those forty thousand gold coins had gone. Xun'er halted, a slight frown creasing her light brows. With a soft sigh, her slender fingers closed about a violet-gold card between them.
Her fingertip flicked once against the card, and it shot forward as a small beam of golden light into the quarrelsome room. She glanced idly at the room that had suddenly fallen still, and said calmly: "Consider the money for that Foundation Liquid as mine. There are one hundred thousand gold coins on this card. The elders need not trouble Uncle Xiao over the matter."
A profound silence filled the room. After a long moment, the faint, wry voices of the three elders could be heard, answering in reluctant agreement.