As an elder, meddling in the affairs of the younger generation is generally ill-advised.
Especially since Yin Feijing was merely his Dao companionâs niece.
Yin Zhi, the ruler of the Lan Kingdom, had even less reason to interfere.
So, tactfully, he prepared to leave.
After all, an angry woman in a relationship was like an uncontrolled flying swordâcapable of indiscriminate attacks.
Even a passing dog might end up slapped twice for no reason.
Yin Zhi had no intention of becoming collateral damage.
Claiming he needed to fetch more silk, he readied to slip away quietly.
But as soon as he stepped out of the grand hall and into the garden, he spotted a familiar figure approaching at high speed.
It was none other than Ye Yu, his long-absent nephew-in-law.
Waving energetically, Yin Zhi refrained from calling out to avoid alarming anyone. Fortunately, Ye Yu noticed and descended directly.
âYouâre Yin Zhi, the ruler of the Lan Kingdom?â Ye Yu asked cautiously.
Although Yin Zhiâs transformation was drastic, traces of his old features were still recognizable. Besides, how many people in the Lan Kingdom could be waving at Ye Yu while dressed in dragon robes?
âThatâs right,â Yin Zhi replied with a smile. âQuite the change, isnât it? Hard to recognize me now, huh? You must be here for Yin Feijing, right?â
Since Yin Feijingâs arrival the previous day, Yin Zhi had sensed something unusual.
Why would Yin Feijing return here out of the blue, offering no explanation and saying only that she would stay for two days before leaving?
Now it all made senseâshe had chosen the Lan Kingdom as a waiting spot, expecting Ye Yu to come.
Ah, love.
The push and pull of emotions, the mix of anger and anticipationâit was classic.
Ye Yu, unaware of the romantic implications, simply asked, âWhere is she? I need to speak with her.â
âSheâs in the grand hall,â Yin Zhi replied, grinning. âGo on. But Iâll warn you, sheâs brimming with resentment right now. What did you do to make her so angry?â
Yin Zhiâs tone was playful, and internally, he was curious to know the juicy details.
Ye Yu, however, was baffled.
What? Resentment? From her?
He snorted internally.
Since ancient times, men and women didnât touch casually.
A man and a woman alone, and she had the audacity to sneak up behind him, trying to grab his tail?
Even if he were a real fox demon, that wouldâve been crossing the line!
Whatâs more, she didnât stop after the first timeâshe went for it again.
Naturally, Ye Yu had restrained her, pinning her to the table to stop her antics. He hadnât done anything beyond that.
And yet she was the one holding a grudge?
Snorting coldly, Ye Yu didnât respond and strode toward the grand hall.
Yin Zhi didnât stop him.
After all, young Dao companions arguing wasnât unusual.
âQuarrels on the bedside, peace at the foot of the bed,â he thought.
However, to avoid potential embarrassment, Yin Zhi motioned for a guard.
âClear the area around the grand hall. No matter what sounds you hear, no one is to approach. Disobey, and youâll be executed.â
The guard hesitated momentarily but complied. After all, his job wasnât to ask questions but to follow orders.
Inside the grand hall, Yin Feijing sat fuming.
She silently vowed that if Ye Yu didnât come to find her today, she wouldnât take him to see the true dragon.
Even now, her thoughts spiraled.
What could Ye Yu and that woman possibly be doing at this hour?
Something shameful, no doubt!
Her breathing quickened in frustration. She abruptly stood, only to hear a cold command from outside:
âSit down!â
Instinctively, Yin Feijing sat back down and looked toward the door, where Ye Yu now stood.
Her heart leaped with joy, but she quickly masked it with a cold snort.
âOh, so you remembered to come find me? I thought you werenât coming!â
Turning her head aside, she deliberately avoided looking at him.
Womenâhuman or demonâalways seemed to express their thoughts through body language.
Turning away but not leaving was an unspoken invitation to be coaxed.
But such tactics didnât work on everyone.
Ye Yu strode forward and flicked her forehead.
âOw!â Yin Feijing cried, leaping to her feet, only to be pushed back into her seat by Ye Yuâs single hand.
âWhat are you doing?â she demanded.
âWhat am I doing? What are you
doing?!â Ye Yu snapped.
âYesterday, you show up out of nowhere, grabbing and poking at me, and I didnât even get angry. Yet here you are, full of grievances. If I donât teach you a lesson today, youâll be climbing over my head tomorrow!â
Irritated, Ye Yu pressed her down onto the table, mimicking her actions from the day before.
With a sharp jab to the final vertebra in her spine, a fluffy fox tail popped out.
Ye Yu blinked in amazement.
So thatâs how it works. No wonder she kept pressing that spot on me yesterday. This is the tail-revealing switch. A valuable discovery indeed!
Yin Feijing flushed with a mix of shame and anger.
âWhat are you doing? Donât mess around!â
Ignoring her protests, Ye Yu smirked and gave her tail a light smack.
âDisobedient, huh? Got grievances, huh? Will you dare again?â
Each smack chipped away at Yin Feijingâs defiance. By the time he was done, she was trembling, her eyes watery and her voice quivering as she whispered, âI wonât, I wonâtâ¦â
Her pitiful appearance would have melted anyoneâs heart.
Satisfied, Ye Yu released her and sat down.
Feigning nonchalance, he remarked, âSeriously, what possessed you yesterday? Trying to grab my tail? Do I look like I have one?â
Yin Feijing pouted but said nothing.
In truth, she had tried everything the day beforeâfrom revealing monster stones to targeted pressesâand still, Ye Yu hadnât shown a tail.
He seemed entirely human.@@novelbin@@
And from their first meeting after the dream realm to now, he had acted as though he had no memory of those events.
This left Yin Feijing deeply puzzled.
Could he really have forgotten?
Regardless, she remained convinced that those memories werenât just dreams but real.
She would find another chance to confirm it.
But not now.
Pain was not something she wanted to experience again anytime soon.
Seeing her silence, Ye Yu didnât press further. Pouring himself a cup of spirit tea, he said calmly, âAlright, tell me about this true dragon.â