...

Suddenly, there was a disturbance in the incense smoke. Fan Xian’s ears perked up, as if they had heard something. Feeling doubtful, he opened his eyes and saw the little incense burner trembling slightly. He was absolutely astonished. Had his seemingly devote, absent-minded prayer finally reached the heavens?

His gaze stopped at the wide incense table. Fan Xian finally discovered where the problem was. His eyes flashed. With his left hand on the hilt of his concealed dagger, he reached out slowly but firmly wit

h his right hand and lifted up the satin which draped over the table.

Lifting up the satin, Fan Xian could not believe his eyes.

Half-kneeling under the table was a girl wearing a hanfu wrapped youren style. She too was shocked as she stared at Fan Xian.

The girl had big eyes with a gentle gaze, resembling the surface of a tranquil lake. Her face was exquisitely beautiful; she had pale, tender skin and long eyelashes, like a character from a painting.

Stunned, Fan Xian couldn’t move his eyes away. He gradually noticed that the girl’s forehead was slightly big and her nose was slightly pointy. Her skin was just a bit whiter than normal, and her lips were somewhat thicker than conventional beauty standards. Despite those imperfections, her overall appearance, plus her faintly frightened expression and innate shyness, still made Fan Xian’s heart skip a bit.

His heart was moved.

The girl looked at this sky-wors.h.i.+pping youth with curiosity. She wasn’t expecting the youth to look so beautiful with his long eyelashes. She couldn’t help but sneak a few more looks at him.

Afterwards, the girl felt she was being rather inappropriate. A hint of red began to spread across her cheeks before quickly disappearing. The redness had at one point spread to her ears.

And yet she still reluctantly refused to look away. She was that curious, wondering where this good-looking youth came from.

...

It was all quiet in the center of the temple, Fan Xian’s hand still held onto the satin, his eyes were still fixated on the girl’s face. The girl had now gathered up the courage to look back at him. They mutually looked at each other. A long time pa.s.sed, everything was still silent.

Fan Xian scanned his eyes across the girl’s face, and she couldn’t help but lower her head in embarra.s.sment. An unusual glisten on the girl’s lips got Fan Xian’s attention.

He took a couple more looks before realizing the reason. What was about to happen would remain in his memory for a long time—the girl was holding a chicken leg, and the grease had gotten on her lips while she ate.

This beautiful girl in white; to think she hid under the incense table to eat chicken! Fan Xian’s jaws hung open at this contrast. He was speechless for a while.

Finally, the uncomfortably quietness was finally broken.

"Who… You… Who are you?"

The beautiful duo spoke at the same time, their gently shaking voice matching each other.

Fan Xian heard the girl for the first time. Her voice felt soft and without strength. It was a comfortable sound, but it also left him without any sense of direction. There was a feeling of excitement around his chest. Fan Xian then threw up a mouthful of blood.

"Ah!" the girl yelped in surprise. She wasn’t afraid, however, as her eyes showed intense sympathy as if she felt all of Fan Xian’s suffering.

Seeing the girl worrying on his behalf, Fan Xian’s heart warmed. He rea.s.sured her with a smile on his face: "this is nothing. I’ll get used to it."