Chapter 333: Xue Meng's Blind Date: Tea-Selling Little Sister 3

On that fateful day at the Wonderful Sound Pond, amidst the chaos, Mei Hanxue now found some details hazy in his recollection. In short, due to his stutter and difficulty in speaking, he couldn't defend himself, ultimately being thrown into the Yama Hall by the righteous senior brothers of the Peak of Life and Death for redemption.

In the scuffle, Mei Hanxue's outer robe had been left behind at the pond.

He stood there, clad in thin clothes with his pale golden tresses flowing loosely, his emerald eyes wide open, helplessly situated within the Hall of Reflecting Sincerity, where the banner read "One's loyalty and determination remain unchanged even in life or death." He felt deeply wronged.

"Let me out..."

Everyone treated the young ruffian harshly, so no one let him out. However, after a while, a senior brother from the Peak of Life and Death came to deliver him clothing, saying it was "from the Young Master," along with a book.

Upon unfolding the garment, Mei Hanxue discovered it was a disciple's robe for females.

Then, upon examining the book, it was even more absurd – it was a volume on "Women's Virtues."

"..."

To be honest, Mei Hanxue had always been a very tolerant person, not easily angered. But this time, he was genuinely taken aback.

He understood that each place had its customs: Shattered Leaf City had its ways, Treading Snow Palace had its rules, and Sichuan had its habits. For instance, he detested eating pork, but before leaving, his master, Bright Moon Building, had warned them about the diverse nature of human society. What one disliked might be cherished by others, and it was important not to trample on others' preferences, which was called respect. Mei Hanxue had always respected others – he would never, for example, shout "disgusting" in front of a Central Plains dweller happily devouring a roasted pig's trotter.

Despite his genuine disgust, he would still politely hand over the salt and pepper.

Then, he would return home to wash his hands a hundred times.

But this "Young Master" had no concept of respecting differences. Not only did he lack the hospitality of "Isn't it delightful when friends come from afar?", he even sent women's clothing and a copy of 'Feminine Virtue' to humiliate him.

Hadn't he just accidentally entered the wrong bathhouse? Why couldn't they have resolved it peacefully instead of resorting to such brutality?

The inexperienced outsider, Mei Hanxue, couldn't comprehend this and didn't want to think about it any further. He was inwardly annoyed.

That night, it was bitterly cold. He only had a thin, soiled robe to wear. Though it was humiliating, a man in his position couldn't afford to be picky. Eventually, he put on the clothes given by the "Young Master".

As for the 'Feminine Virtue', he unceremoniously used it as firewood. The moment the flames lit up, Mei Hanxue vowed in the darkness of his heart that he would never forget this humiliation. If that "Young Master" ever fell into his hands, he would surely make him pay!

The following morning was rather awkward.

According to the rules set by the Bright Moon Building for the two brothers, one day he would reveal his true self, while the next day, it would be his brother Mei Hanxue's turn.

When Mei Hanxue came to the Netherworld Hall to find him, intending to switch identities, he saw his brother dressed in the blue-silver garb of a female disciple from the Peak of Life and Death, with his golden hair loosely tied back, sitting in a dim corner.

Mei Hanxue: "… What kind of attire is that?"

Mei Hanxue replied, "Brother, this is the outfit you're supposed to wear today."

"…"

"Come on, I've enjoyed wearing it all night, and it still smells nice. Let's quickly switch clothes."

"Mei Hanxue!" the elder brother exclaimed in anger. "What trouble have you silently landed me in again?!"

Sometimes, Mei Hanxue felt truly sorry for his brother. Perhaps it was due to bad luck, but every time something unfortunate happened to him, it was always his brother who ended up cleaning up the mess.

This time was no different.

If wearing a female disciple's robe and roasting by the Yama Hall's fireplace all night was already frustrating enough, then what his brother endured as the "Young Master's" victim was even worse. According to the arrangement of the Yama Hall guards, his brother had to go out to the Book Collection Pavilion and clean books today.

When Mei Hanxue was forced to put on that blue-silver female disciple's uniform, he felt like he was going insane.

As the younger brother, he vowed, "If that Young Master ever crosses my path, I'll make sure to get rid of him."

After the elder brother heard the entire story, he edited it for his younger sibling, removing the "if."

Mei Hanxue said coldly, "Just you wait. Once I finish dusting these books, I'll deal with him."

Then, he marched off to the Book Collection Pavilion with his short legs.

At that time, there were a few arrogant and overbearing senior disciples from Kunlun's Treading Snow Palace who had come to reside temporarily at the Bright Moon Building on the Edge of Life and Death. These individuals disliked Mei Hanxue because the sect leader favored him. Among them was the most despicable one, who, upon hearing that Junior Brother Mei had been disciplined by someone from the Edge of Life and Death, eagerly ran to the Book Collection Pavilion to witness the spectacle.

Upon seeing that Junior Brother Mei was wearing a female disciple's robe and standing on a small wooden ladder with a frosty expression as he dusted books, he burst into laughter and called his group of like-minded friends to humiliate him.

"This isn't Junior Brother Mei... Oh no, it's Junior Sister Mei, right? You're so beautiful, hahaha!"

"How did you provoke someone from the Edge of Life and Death to treat you like this?"

"Quickly tell Senior Brother who it is, puhahaha! Senior Brother will go give that person flowers!"

Mei Hanxue had an aloof personality and disliked unnecessary chatter. Frustrated, he directly engaged in a fight with this group. However, he was still too young and had yet to learn many techniques. Moreover, he was fighting alone against multiple opponents, so he was eventually pinned to the ground by these irrational fellow sect members.

Unaware that Mei Hanxue had a twin brother, they angrily said:

"Don't you have something wrong with you? Why are you all amiable one day and then shouting for battle the next? Does Senior Brother need to fix your mind for you?"

"Strip him of his clothes! He's clearly from our Treading Snow Palace, why is he wearing robes from the Peak of Life and Death?"

Amidst their scuffle, they suddenly heard the humming of a blade. A gleaming, long crescent-shaped saber was thrown over, piercing deeply into the wooden floor!

"What are you doing?!"

The bunch of scoundrels from Kunlun's Treading Snow Palace were startled and quickly dispersed, turning around —

"Xue... Xue Meng?!"

Upon hearing that name, Mei Hanxue instantly brushed aside the disheveled golden locks hanging before his sapphire eyes and abruptly lifted his gaze.

Beholding the figure standing with arms crossed at the entrance of the Book Collection Pavilion was a half-grown boy. He was endowed with a handsome and domineering countenance, clad in a full set of silver-blue armor from the Pinnacle of Life and Death, his hair tied back in a horse tail, and his fingers, sheathed in black protective coverings, impatiently tapping lightly on the crook of his folded arms.

Xue Meng said with a tinge of annoyance, "Did you ask my father, my master, or even me before bullying someone on the territory of my Death and Life Peak?"

A disciple from the Kunlun Treading Snow Palace chuckled obsequiously, "Oh dear... This is just a lesson for our disobedient little junior brother... Hehe... Hehehe..."

"You call that a lesson?" Xue Meng widened his eyes, pointing at Mei Hanxue. "You guys are just bullying the weak with your numbers, aren't you?"

"Y-Yes... You're right..."

Xue Meng erupted in anger. "What are you still doing here? Scram!"

These people were all cowards who picked on the weak and feared the strong. Xue Meng was, after all, the son of the sect leader; they dared not provoke him. They immediately bowed and scraped before scattering like startled birds.

With a stern expression, Xue Meng's iron-reinforced boots creaked against the wooden floor as he lifted his hand to grasp Longcheng Saber. He intended to pull it out with an air of aloofness, but when he tried to draw it with one hand, he found it immovable.

Xue Meng could only clear his throat rather awkwardly, applying force with both hands and focusing his breath in his dantian before he managed to pull the sword, almost as tall as him, out of the ground.

He even stumbled backward two steps.

Xue Meng: "…"

Mei Hanxue: "…"

Xue Meng coughed again, equally embarrassed, and turned his head to look at Mei Hanxue.

Unaware that this was the "ruffian" from yesterday's Wonderful Sound Pond, Mei Hanxue didn't recognize him either. The two stared at each other for a moment. Xue Meng noticed the boy's disheveled golden hair, blood on his lips, and his torn clothes that were barely recognizable. The only intact garment he had was a delicate silk robe specially made for the Treading Snow Palace of Kunlun Mountain. Xue Meng frowned at the sight.

"That's utterly unacceptable."

He then removed his own outer robe and draped it over Mei Hanxue's shoulders with a swoosh.

"Put it on."

Mei Hanxue, now clothed in the robe, lifted his head to study the child's features carefully. He found that this young one bore no resemblance to his benefactor, Xue Zhengyong. His face was delicate and exquisite, with a pert nose, almond-shaped eyes that were sharply defined, and a natural radiance and arrogance that shone through his gaze.

He hesitated slightly, "Are you... Xue Meng?"

"Yes, indeed," Xue Meng replied smugly. "What do you think? Am I skilled? Does my reputation precede me?"

So he was indeed the son of that benefactor.

Just as Mei Hanxue was about to express his gratitude, Xue Meng burst into laughter and continued, "Since this young master came down the mountain, no one has been able to defeat me!"

"..."

"Are you the Young Master?"

Xue Meng: "What else could it be?"

.

"Isn't 'Young Master' a title for an individual?" That night, when Mei Hanxue returned to his room, Mei Hanxue was surprised to ask, "How did it become the son of a benefactor?"

As the older brother, he was more composed, quietly rummaging through their luggage to retrieve a tome titled 'Comprehensive Translation of Shattered Leaf and Kunlun Scripts into Mandarin.' The two brothers then sat side by side, huddling over the lamp as they pored through the book together.

"Apprentice Lord," Mei Hanxue punctuated each word with his finger, "refers to a young master, typically the heir designated by an elder master."

Mei Hanxue: "..."

Mei Hanxue: "..."

A prolonged silence ensued between the two. After a while, Mei Hanxue inquired,

"Are we not supposed to get rid of him anymore?"

His elder brother pondered for a moment, glanced at the garment draped over his shoulder, then lowered his pale golden eyelashes, replying coldly, "What do you think?"

Mei Hanxue heaved a sigh, his jade-green eyes resembling those of an exotic feline. "Alright, alright, I understand."

"..."

"But surely teasing him is allowed?"

"No way."

"Brother, look how he bullied me yesterday."

"No way."

"He even made you wear the female disciple's attire!"

Mei Hanxue fell silent for a moment before responding to his brother with four words: "...Alright. But don't be too harsh."

After that incident, Mei Hanxue frequently sought out Xue Meng, and gradually, the two children became playmates.

However, in Mei Hanxue's eyes, Xue Meng was incredibly slow-witted. Despite alternating between being his brother one day and himself the next, Xue Meng never seemed to notice anything amiss. He merely took Mei Hanxue's fluctuating temperament as a quirk. On the other hand, the young junior apprentice brother who often accompanied Xue Meng, known by his given name Shi Mo and his nickname Xue Ya, seemed to sense something off about the situation. He would often look at Mei Hanxue thoughtfully.

Mei Hanxue didn't particularly favor the intellectually sharp and refined Shi Mo; he preferred someone like Xue Meng, who strolled about like a crab with an unassuming demeanor. Someone like that was more to his taste for friendship, and they were entertaining to tease.

The only issue was—

"You're not allowed to sleep with me tonight!"

"Aah?" Mei Hanxue clutched his bamboo cushion, dressed in a sheer silk robe with his golden tresses cascading down. His wide, sapphire eyes blinked in confusion. "Why?"

Xue Meng seethed with anger. "Because you kicked me out of bed in the middle of the night yesterday! Don't you even remember that?"

Mei Hanxue: "…."

Didn't his brother promise not to bully Xue Meng? What kind of behavior was it to silently kick someone out of bed at midnight?

Mei Hanxue chuckled. Although he hadn't fully blossomed into his mature charm yet, this smile already held a hint of the allure that would later define him as Mister Mei.

"I won't tonight. I'll sleep on the outside. If you're worried, I can even cuddle up next to you."

Mei Hanxue's intentions were well-meaning. He wanted to sleep close to Xue Meng so that if Xue Meng fell off the bed, he would fall with him – true brothers sharing both good times and adversity.

But the issue lied in Mei Hanxue's poor Mandarin, so what he meant by "close" sounded to Xue Meng like...

If you're not at ease, I can lick you to sleep.

Lick... lick me?

Xue Meng was taken aback. After imagining that scene, he couldn't help but throw a cushion at him fiercely. "Ah! How can you people from Kunlun be so perverted? Get lost right now!!"

Due to the language barrier he had experienced with Xue Meng during his childhood, Mei Hanxue had learned early on how fascinating communication could be. Thus, whenever he got the chance, he would proactively engage in conversation with Central Plains female cultivators. Generally, these ladies were more patient than men and were willing to teach him, albeit occasionally sobbing as they exclaimed:

"I feel like you don't like me at all! You're only with me to learn the official dialect!"

But those were matters of the past.

Recalling those times now, Mei Hanxue still found it amusing. As he cupped his hands around his mouth and laughed, the door creaked open. He turned his head towards the sound, and in the flickering light, Xue Meng entered, appearing both arrogant and unsure of himself as he made his way over to Mei Hanxue.

"Cough... Uh, hey there."

Mei Hanxue wasn't the least bit upset. With a smile, he lowered his leg, which he had propped up on the bookshelf for comfort, and sat up straight. He chuckled and said, "Oh, it's the sect leader."

Xue Meng cleared his throat. "Yes."

"What did the Sect Leader want to talk to me about?"

"Umm..."

"Hmm?"

Xue Meng didn't reply, only stammering as he glanced at him. Gradually, his face flushed red.

"..." Mei Hanxue's smile faltered, turning slightly hesitant. "Huh?"

He had seen countless people, both men and women, whose cheeks blushed at the sight of him. He was well aware of what such a reaction signified.

But never in a million years would he have expected Xue Meng to display such an expression towards him in female attire. The Xue Ziming he knew wasn't like that.

Xue Ziming was proud, straightforward, handsome but not particularly intelligent, and had no clue how to charm girls. Apart from practicing martial arts, his favorite pastime was probably admiring himself in the mirror.

Has he taken the wrong medicine to blush at a female cultivator?

Even if this "female cultivator" was his own disguise, Mei Hanxue still found it odd, as if he were looking at a pure white Persian cat he once raised in the Treading Snow Palace. He had nurtured it from kittenhood, always thinking of it as silly and adorable, believing it should remain that way forever.

Until one day, he witnessed his Persian cat mating with another wild cat, not just one, but two, with a third cat watching them perform this astonishing act.

Mei Hanxue was stunned. At that time, he couldn't understand what had happened. Where had his innocent, cute, and foolish little kitten gone?

Now, facing the blushing Xue Meng, Mei Hanxue felt a subtle resemblance to that moment in his past.

Seeing Xue Meng's increasingly awkward expression, biting his lips repeatedly before letting go, seemingly on the verge of speaking but holding back, Mei Hanxue began to ponder how he should tactfully and gently reject him if Xue Meng truly confessed to the "Queen of Longevity."

Should he tell him that "he" actually liked women, or reveal that "he" was terminally ill and would soon die a sudden death?

—These were the lines he'd used effortlessly when breaking up with female cultivators. Despite having said them countless times and being able to elaborate on them eloquently, he somehow felt a sense of unease using them now.

Just as he was struggling with his thoughts, he heard Sect Leader Xue, with a flushed face, start to speak: "Cough... um..."

"..."

"Well, you've been at the Summit of Life and Death for quite some time now. I have a question for you."

"...Please go ahead, Sect Leader," Mei Hanxue replied calmly, though his mind was buzzing with thoughts.

What should I do? How should I answer? Do I say I like women or that I have a terminal illness? Or do I confess to liking men instead?

Xue Meng spoke awkwardly, "I, I just want to ask..."

"Hmm?"

"Sigh." Xue Meng steeled himself, stomped his foot, and mustered up the courage to ask loudly while clenching his fists, "May I ask!!! How do you manage to casually pat Cabbage Bun's belly without getting scratched???"