The tranquil moonlight draped over this secluded border town like a layer of thin gauze, elongating the shadows of the three people.
After Juzi explained a sentence to Xu Zihuang, she fell silent again. Her steps also became somewhat heavy.
The town itself wasn't large. Even though Juzi deliberately slowed her pace, they would eventually have to return to this place that was destined to stir the deepest emotions in her heart—the carefree and happy childhood spent with her parents, followed by the grief and bone-deep hatred that came afterward.
Juzi raised her head and gazed at the slightly larger three-story wooden loft. Her eyes grew misty. Scene after scene involuntarily surfaced in her mind.
She seemed to see her mother holding her in her arms, kind and gentle, and her father, who doted on her endlessly, always thinking of ways to make all kinds of delicious dishes for her.
Yet in the next instant, those warm images developed fine cracks, shattered, and dissipated. In their place were the aged traces left by time on every part of the wooden loft.
This town happened to be located at the border between the Mingdou Mountain Range and the Great Mingdou Forest. Without the Mingdou Mountain Range blocking the humid air from the South Sea coast, rainfall was abundant year-round.
It was perfectly normal for a wooden loft soaked by rain over the years to become worn and softened.
Yet Juzi, to preserve as much of her parents' traces as possible, had insisted on never renovating the place.
In that war all those years ago, she had lost too much. The only thing that could still bring her solace was this home of hers, located in the center of the town, which had fortunately not been reduced to ruins during the war.
"Sister Juzi, are you okay?" Ke Ke shook Juzi's arm.
Juzi gently shook her head. From her storage soul tool, she took out a copper key and, with a "creak," pushed open the wooden door. At the same time, she extended her fair hand and pressed it against a metal protrusion on the side.
As soul power was injected, several bright soul guidance lamps illuminated the hall brilliantly. The hall wasn't large—about thirty square meters. Tables and chairs were arranged quite closely, with a single walkway left between the two sides. At the end of the walkway stood a reddish-brown wooden front counter.
It was extremely clean and tidy; clearly, someone came to clean it regularly.
"Ke Ke, take Tianhuang upstairs to sort out the rooms. I'll go make dinner now," Juzi said softly.
Although Ke Ke usually seemed carefree and bold, she possessed an innate sensitivity in certain matters.
"Alright. But Sister Juzi, you have to make a lot. To save room for this meal, I only ate one roasted flatbread the whole way here," Ke Ke said with a cheeky grin, then winked at Xu Zihuang.
Juzi replied, "Don't worry, I'll definitely make enough to stuff you."
Ke Ke happily headed upstairs, and Xu Zihuang followed knowingly. The staircase was right beside the front counter. The two walked one behind the other, their footsteps echoing dully. The sound of footsteps mingled with the gentle soul guidance lights, adding a touch of human warmth to this long-vacant loft.
A heartfelt smile appeared on Juzi's beautiful face. With Ke Ke by her side, she was no longer alone. And there was also the Jade Heaven Emperor, who had once saved her…
Ke Ke had visited Juzi's home more than once and was very familiar with the layout of the loft. She easily led Xu Zihuang to a spacious room.
The overall conditions of the room were comparable to the dormitory assigned to him at the Sun Moon Royal Soul Engineering Academy, even including a balcony. The difference was that, aside from the protruding soul guidance lamp on the ceiling, every other item in the room was made of various kinds of wood.
Wooden bed, wooden table, wooden chairs, wooden wardrobe, and wooden railings on the balcony.
With her back to Xu Zihuang, Ke Ke took out brand-new bedding from her storage soul tool and began making the bed. Blushing, she spoke somewhat embarrassedly.
"Um, sorry about earlier. I didn't mean to say that about you. I saw Sister Juzi was feeling down and got anxious, so I spoke without thinking. Letting me make the bed for you now is my way of apologizing, okay? You're a big man—you won't hold it against me, right?"
After saying that, she turned around and playfully blinked at Xu Zihuang, showing no trace of her earlier shyness.
A total drama queen.
"Senior Ke Ke, even if you hadn't said anything, I'd almost forgotten about it," Xu Zihuang laughed.
He knew Ke Ke was simply kind and straightforward by nature. He had always felt favorably toward her.
Of course, the main reason was that, like Juzi, Ke Ke also came from the south of the Sun Moon Empire—she had once been a subject of his father's fief.
Ke Ke nodded in approval, putting on a proud, tsundere expression that said, "At least you know what's good for you."
After finishing making Xu Zihuang's bed, Ke Ke went to the room next door. From what she said, she and Juzi would be sleeping there tonight. They truly had no defenses at all against Xu Zihuang.
Taking advantage of this interval, Xu Zihuang went back down the stairs to the first-floor hall. Juzi was busy in the kitchen nearby.
As a girl who was particularly fond of food, her storage soul tool was always stocked with all kinds of ingredients.
Fresh vegetables, fruits, frozen fresh meat, and various seasonings filled the entire table. There were even freshly picked black truffles along the way. The two mountain chickens that Lü Li had given them had also been prepared by Juzi.
She looked gentle and beautiful, but her movements were swift and decisive.
Xu Zihuang quietly watched the busy Juzi. Only after she finished what she was doing did he walk over.
"Senior Juzi, let me make one dish too."
"You can cook?" Juzi looked at Xu Zihuang in surprise, her face full of curiosity.
Xu Zihuang smiled faintly.
"This is my first time cooking, but the taste shouldn't be bad."
The curiosity in Juzi's eyes grew even stronger, yet for some reason, she felt an inexplicable trust in the youth before her.
"Alright, feel free to use any of the ingredients here."
Xu Zihuang didn't stand on ceremony. He stepped past Juzi, picked up a kitchen knife, and began slicing the black truffles that still had a few glistening water droplets on them. Every slice was extremely even and thin.
After finishing the three black truffles, he also sliced several other kinds of fresh mushrooms into thin pieces.
The curiosity in Juzi's eyes gradually turned into deep emotion. Her red lips parted slightly as she murmured to herself in her heart.
"Black truffle stewed mountain chicken… why this dish?"
At this moment, Xu Zihuang had no idea what Juzi was truly thinking and simply focused on preparing the dish.
For various reasons, he set aside his pride as royalty to perform this act of serving others.
One reason was naturally to make Juzi fall for him, so that in the future she would become an aid in his unification of the continent. Another was guilt toward Juzi—or more accurately, guilt toward all the subjects who had lost their lives or loved ones in that war.
He couldn't even protect his own people—what right did he have to speak of imperial pride?
At his current stage, he was weak—too weak to change anything.
Where there are people, there will be conflict; that cannot be avoided. But one day, he would create a unified and peaceful Sun Moon Empire.
Juzi's gaze almost froze on Xu Zihuang. Those practiced movements made it impossible to tell this was his first time cooking.
Finally, he sprinkled the sliced black truffles into the rolling chicken soup and covered the clay pot.
"Senior Juzi, you can continue with what you're doing. It needs to simmer for about half an hour for the flavor to be at its best."
Not long after, Ke Ke came downstairs, wrinkling her delicate nose as she sniffed.
"It smells so good! Sister Juzi, you made chicken soup too? I could smell it from far away."
Juzi instinctively glanced at Xu Zihuang, while Xu Zihuang merely smiled and carried the dishes Juzi had finished to the dining table in the first-floor hall.
Juzi had made three dishes in total: roasted chicken, braised beef, and a plate of stir-fried greens. Knowing Ke Ke was impatient, she had chosen dishes that could be prepared quickly.
It wasn't especially lavish, but the portions were generous. Paired with reheated roasted flatbread, Ke Ke ate until oil dripped from her mouth.
"How is it? I didn't lie, did I? Sister Juzi's cooking is delicious, right?" Ke Ke bragged in front of Xu Zihuang.
Xu Zihuang smiled and nodded in acknowledgment, then stood up.
"The chicken soup is ready. I'll go serve it."
The clear, amber-like chicken soup, the tender and melt-in-your-mouth mountain chicken, and the umami fragrance released by the black truffles—all testified that the creator possessed extremely high skill.
Stimulated by the rich aroma and outstanding presentation, Ke Ke impatiently took a sip of the soup. Her eyes immediately narrowed in bliss, and she cried out excitedly.
"Wow! Sister Juzi, you made this? How come it tastes way better than usual?"
Yet Juzi's eyes held a trace of bewilderment, and her heart was filled with an indescribable feeling. She savored the chicken soup in her bowl as though it were a treasure, occasionally lifting her head to look at Xu Zihuang, her voice gentle yet tinged with unexplainable emotion.
"I didn't make this. Tianhuang did."
"You made this?" Ke Ke stared at Xu Zihuang in shock, her reaction far more exaggerated than Juzi's earlier.
"I never imagined you had this skill!"
"Senior Ke Ke, eat it while it's hot. It won't taste as good once it cools," Xu Zihuang replied with a smile, his gaze briefly meeting Juzi's across the table.
In Juzi's eyes, he saw all kinds of emotions. Though for now it was mostly a form of emotional reliance, he knew his goal had been achieved.
Ke Ke and Juzi sat together, and because of the angle, Ke Ke didn't notice anything unusual about Juzi's expression. As a fellow food enthusiast on Juzi's level, upon hearing Xu Zihuang's words, she no longer bothered asking questions and began devouring a piece of tender chicken with gusto, followed by a big gulp of soup.
Only when she truly couldn't eat any more did Ke Ke finally stop.
Juzi stood up and said to the two of them, "It's getting late. You should rest early. I'll clean up later."
"Sister Juzi, I'll head back to the room first, then. Come back soon, okay?"
Ke Ke smiled ambiguously, not thinking too much about it, and went upstairs first.
Xu Zihuang followed right after, returning to his own room, where he calmly entered a meditative cultivation state.
Lost in her own world, Juzi ladled another bowl of soup from the clay pot and savored it slowly. The gentleness in her eyes turned into boundless sorrow and remembrance.
"Mom, Dad… did you send him to protect little Juzi? Otherwise, why would there be such a coincidence in this world? He saved me back then, and now the black truffle stewed mountain chicken he made tastes the same as yours, Dad."
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