Xiao Se saying he liked listening to their stories could not really be considered a comforting lie. He did indeed like these stories and experiences he had not known about.
Stories were other people's lives, records that did not belong to him, yet precisely because of that, they had value in being recorded.
Whether it was the legends his older sister told him, or the youthful experiences his father recounted himself, to Xiao Se, they were all stories worth remembering. They were also tales he would never experience himself, yet could still come to know.
The arrogance brought by Father's extraordinary talent in his youth, the indifference born from his nature, even his rather distant relationship with Grandfather—compared with his current behavior, it could truly be called a world of difference.
"—So from that perspective, your Grandmaster could be considered to have tempered my temperament all over again. Otherwise, who knows what I might have become in the future."
The proudest feats of his youth, the most shameful actions, the most arrogant thoughts, and the most painful experiences—now, all of them had turned into long memories under Xiao Yan's unhurried narration, faintly tinged with a smile.
"What would Father have become if you hadn't gone through the setback Grandmaster brought you?"
Xiao Se nodded, and could not help asking curiously.
"...I don't know. Maybe I would have just settled down in some corner of the Dou Qi Continent."
Xiao Yan shook his head. He rarely thought about such ifs and futures. After all, he cherished the present very much, and sincerely believed that although this path had been full of countless hardships and dangers, he had indeed gained something even more important.
His dark red eyes looked at the young man beside him with a trace of gentleness.
Naturally, that