SHIZUN MUST NOT BE HURT

Chu Wanning lowered his head and inspected his wound. The cut wound was not that deep. In two lives, he had had way worse injuries. This was nothing.

Mo Ran did not share the same opinion. Shocked, the disciple reached for the shoe that injured his shizun and poured its content out. A piece of broken ceramic hit the ground with a soft thud. Some of Chu Wanning's blood was stuck on the sharp edge. Intent on taking a closer look at the ceramic shard, Chu Wanning reached out for it but he was pulled back against his will.

With one swift movement, Chu Wanning was deposited into Mo Ran's arms and pressed into the latter's body like an endlessly precious treasure.

"Shizun," Mo Ran mumbled in distress, his warm breath blowing at Chu Wanning's forehead like a tender kiss. His arms were trembling. Not from cold or fear but anger.

Who did this?

Who dared to hurt Chu Wanning???

"Mo Ran, put me down," Chu Wanning said with a frown. It was only a small cut, why was Mo Ran kicking up a fuss?

He expected Mo Ran to put him down right away, but the disciple refused to.

"No."

Chu Wanning was baffled. What was Mo Ran trying to do?

The man used his qinggong and flew toward the little courtyard that they shared. Upon seeing Mo-zongshi tread through the air lightly like a god, the villagers started to shout and cry with admiration. The Village Chief's wife was more attentive. Immortal Mo was not the type to show off his skills. He was in a hurry. Something had happened to the man in his arms. It was the Lord Immortal!

Once the plump woman arrived at the courtyard, she knocked hastily against the door.

"Immortal Mo? Lord Immortal? Is everything alright?"

Mo Ran opened the door almost immediately, his face dark and gloomy.

"Madam, please bring me a basin of warm water, a clean cloth, some medicine, and some bandages."

The Village Chief's wife was in awe. For some reason, Mo-zongshi looked like a husband whose wife just got hurt. Or maybe it was just his endless filial piety that caused him to act that way.

"S-sure. Immortal Mo, I will get those items now."

"Mo Ran."

Chu Wanning sat on the bed, his slender feet hanging out at the edge beautifully. Blood was still dripping from the wound on his sole. Every drop was like a stab into Mo Ran's heart.

"Don't exaggerate," Chu Wanning admonished him. "I can heal it with spiritual power just fine."

Spiritual power manifested itself in form of soft golden light in Chu Wanning's hand, illuminating the inside of the hut.

"No!" Mo Ran said, grabbing Chu Wanning's hand before he healed himself using spiritual power. "Shizun's wound must be properly disinfected and bandaged. We don't know whether the shard was poisoned or not!"

Chu Wanning stared at Mo Ran. "What disinfection? What poison? It was just a normal piece of ceramic!"

Before Chu Wanning said anything else, Mo Ran already grabbed his injured foot and observed the wound. In his heart, he kept asking himself who wanted to hurt his shizun. Could it be that the enemies who lay dormant for five years show their ugly faces again to hurt Chu Wanning? It was his carelessness this time that caused Chu Wanning to get hurt. Why didn't he check the insides of the shoes first before putting them in front of Chu Wanning to wear?

Mo Ran clenched his jaw in resentment. It was his fault. It was his fault Chu Wanning got hurt.

"Immortal Mo, I brought the items..."

The Village Chief's wife hurried into the room with the basin of warm water and medicine supplies. She wanted to stay to help, but Mo Ran had another task for her.

"Madam, my shizun was hurt by a ceramic shard inside the shoes that I bought from Butterfly Town this morning. Can I bother you to investigate?"

"Oh... no, not at all. Of course..."

Before the Village Chief's wife left, she could not help but cast one last curious look at the pair of shizun and disciple. Truly, the way Immortal Mo held on to Lord Immortal Chu's foot was very intimate. It was as if there was no treasure more precious than his shizun's foot. Against the villagers' first impression, this pair of shizun and disciple actually had a very good relationship...

Mo Ran lowered Chu Wanning's injured foot into the warm water and scrubbed at the wound. Although he tried to be as gentle as possible, the resulting pain still made Chu Wanning wrinkle his forehead.

"Please bear with it, Shizun," Mo Ran begged as he worked as fast as possible to clean Chu Wanning's foot. The blood seeped into the water, coloring the basin red in an instant.

Mo Ran lifted Chu Wanning's ankle and pressed his lips against Chu Wanning's wound. The man on the bed ripped his eyes open in horror.

"What are you doing!"

Mo Ran sucked out some blood and spat it into the basin. He did it a few more times until he was sure that there was no poison, and then he swiftly put some medicine on the wound and then wrapped layers of bandage around Chu Wanning's foot. The end result was so thick that Chu Wanning could barely move a muscle on his foot.

"..."

Was this not too much?

Mo Ran wiped Chu Wanning's blood from the corners of his mouth. He did not taste any poison. Thankfully, just as Chu Wanning said, it was only a normal shard of ceramic. But how did the ceramic shard end up inside the new shoes? Mo Ran did not get it. Was it all just an accident?

"Mo Ran, I can barely walk with this foot," Chu Wanning complained.

Good, Mo Ran thought. Chu Wanning should just sit or lie down and enjoy the fresh air and beautiful village scenery while Mo Ran did the farm job for the two of them. Of course, he did not say it out loud, else Chu Wanning might just throw a tantrum. His shizun was not the type to relax while others did the job for him.

"Please rest at least one day and one night, Shizun," the sly disciple coaxed the shizun. "This disciple will take care of Shizun."

Chu Wanning narrowed his eyes at Mo Ran. Mo Ran swallowed hard. Was that improper? But he did not mean it any other way! Was his shizun getting upset? What was Mo Ran supposed to do???

Mo Ran's anxiety was written all over his face. Suddenly Chu Wanning felt more tired than ever.

"Forget it," he said. "I will stay put for a whole day and night."

Mo Ran breathed out a sigh of relief.

"Then, this disciple will go and get Shizun some dinner."

"Mn."

Mo Ran already had a foot out when Chu Wanning called after him again.

"Mo Ran."

Mo Ran turned and looked at Chu Wanning who was still sitting obediently on the bed.

"Thank you. And also... I received the book."

Mo Ran frowned. "What book?"

Chu Wanning stared at him. "The records you compiled during these five years. You left it at Red Lotus Pavilion's entrance."

Oh.

That book.

Red color crept into Mo Ran's face, casting dark shadows over his tanned cheeks.

"I like it very much. Thank you."

Mo Ran stood there, frozen on spot.

That night during the banquet, he had wanted to give Chu Wanning the book in private. But then Jiang Xi gave Chu Wanning a ring. When Chu Wanning took the ring, Mo Ran's heart was shattered into pieces. It was all too late. Chu Wanning had decided to accept Jiang Xi's affection. In the end, his wife decided to marry another man. Although his dog blood screamed for him to go finish Jiang Xi off so that he could have Chu Wanning all for himself, Mo Ran decided to concede defeat and pulled out of the race to win Chu Wanning's heart.

But then...

His eyes wandered to Chu Wanning's hands. He was not wearing Jiang Xi's ring. Mo Ran had not seen him wear it even once. Did it mean that Jiang Xi's proposal was turned down? Hope flooded Mo Ran's heart. Did Mo Ran still have a chance to win Chu Wanning's heart?

Mo Ran's heart was beating hard inside his chest.

Should he say it?

Could he say it?

He should say it.

Now.

Mo Ran could not suppress his feelings for a minute longer. He wanted to tell Chu Wanning that he loved him. That he would be there to take care and protect him for all eternity, for as long as Chu Wanning would have him. So Chu Wanning should stop seeing Jiang Xi. There was nothing in this world that Mo Ran could not give Chu Wanning in Jiang Xi's stead. If only his shizun would only look at him, Mo Ran was willing to devote the rest of his life to his lover...

"Shizun, I..."

"Mo-Gege, I..."

Mo Ran's burning heart was extinguished in an instant. He turned around to see Ling'er standing behind him, her eyes glistening with unshed tears. She was not alone. The Village Chief's wife was also with her.

"I am so sorry, Mo-Gege," the girl sobbed pitifully. "I bought a small ceramic vase for my mother in Butterfly Town and stuffed it inside the same bag as the shoes. It must have broken by accident during our trip back to the village. I found the remaining shards in the bag..."

Mo Ran narrowed his eyes at Ling'er.

Really?

A broken piece from the vase just happened to enter the shoe and injure Chu Wanning? For some reason, Mo Ran thought that there was something else behind it. He wanted to investigate further, but Chu Wanning spoke ahead of him.

"It is alright, Miss Ling'er. No need to cry over such a trivial matter."

Ling'er hiccuped. She bowed deeply toward Chu Wanning. "I am so sorry, Immortal Lord."

Then, she turned to look at Mo Ran with a pair of puppy eyes. "Mo-Gege, Ling'er is wrong. Please don't be mad at me, okay?"

Mo Ran's face was as cold as an ice statue. How could he just forgive Ling'er, accident or not? His shizun got hurt!

"Mo Ran, it was an accident. Let it be," Chu Wanning spoke again behind him.

Mo Ran sucked in a deep breath a few times before he stiffly nodded. "Just don't let it happen again."

Ling'er started to cry. "Mo-Gege, I am so sorry, wahhhhhhh... please don't hate me..."

The Village Chief's wife looked more than uncomfortable. She put an arm around the girl to comfort her, but she also knew that the village had to compensate Mo Ran and Chu Wanning somehow. "Immortal Mo, Lord Immortal, this child is stupid and careless. You two came here to help us but the Lord Immortal got injured instead. Please tell me what I can do to make you feel better. I will do my best to help."

Chu Wanning pushed himself off the bed. He was not a weakling. He wanted to show that he was still able to walk, but the thick bandage around his wounded foot caused him to lose balance and fall.

"Shizun!!!"

Mo Ran caught Chu Wanning's body just before the latter hit the ground. The shizun was again enveloped in the warmth of his disciple's embrace.

"As you see, I am fine," Chu Wanning said through gritted teeth. "No need to exaggerate."

The Village Chief's wife and Ling'er bowed deeply toward Chu Wanning. "Wishing the Lord Immortal speedy recovery. Please rest well for the night. Then, we will excuse ourselves first..."

Chu Wanning glared at Mo Ran.

"How much longer do you want to hold me? Impudent!"

"..."

Mo Ran helped his shizun to bed and left to get dinner.

Meanwhile, the Village Chief's wife asked Ling'er to take a walk with her. Unlike Chu Wanning, the Village Chief's wife knew that it was not a mere accident.

This girl Ling'er had been quite possessive about Mo Ran ever since he first came to help Yuliang Village with harvesting season. Although other children also greatly admired Mo Ran and wanted to play with him, Ling'er always monopolized Mo Ran for herself selfishly. This was the first time that Mo Ran brought another person with him, and the former showered the latter with so much attention and care. How could Ling'er not get jealous?

And then suddenly the shizun got hurt? There was no such coincidence.

"Ling'er," the elder woman called, her tone sharp with a hint of admonishment. "This must not happen again."

Ling'er's rueful facial expression changed into an obstinate one after hearing the other woman's words.

In front of the Village Chief's wife, Ling'er did not need to play pretend or lie. The elder woman read her like a book.

"It was just a little prank," she scowled. "It's not as if Lord Immortal lost his foot."

A crisp slapping sound echoed through the air a moment later. Ling'er held onto her stinging cheek. She looked at the Village Chief's wife in bewilderment.

"You must NEVER do that again," the Village Chief's wife repeated, her whole form trembling from anger. "Sisheng Peak has done a lot for this village, year after year. Is this how you want to repay your Mo-Gege's kindness???"

Ling'er lowered her eyes and glared at the ground resentfully. She just wanted to punish the Lord Immortal a little for treating her Mo-Gege badly! If anything, she was just trying to help her Mo-Gege! Everyone agreed that Mo-Gege was mistreated by the Lord Immortal, but once the Lord Immortal got hurt a little, everyone started fussing about him.

How infuriating!

Hearing no response from the girl in front of her, the Village Chief's wife grew impatient. She shook Ling'er's shoulders. "Did you hear me? This kind of thing must NEVER happen again!"

"It won't," Ling'er said with a low voice. She curled her fingers into fists.

She should focus on winning Mo Ran's heart instead.