Red's Red, Qin of Organ... (Two-in-One)

Zhen Xian, what are you doing, Zhen Xian!

Seeing Zhen Xian's absent-minded and dazed expression, Jiang Lin felt as if he were seeing himself again when he accidentally touched his deskmate's hand while picking up an eraser for his deskmate.

Well... it was such an innocent and naive era...

"How much longer will you be looking at Red Dress, sir...?"

The girl had already lowered her head; although she had provoked others first, she now looked shy.

"Feel sorry..."

Zhen Xian took the book from the woman, quickly regained his composure, and continued his lesson.

As the class ended, a group of young ladies from prominent families returned to their courtyards to learn needlework, but Red Dress, who was born into a general's mansion, showed no intention of leaving.

It can only be said that she is indeed the daughter of a general; both her personality and courage are much more proactive and bold than other young ladies from humble backgrounds.

Following beside Zhen Xian, the girl in the Red Dress continued to ask him about various Zhen Xian Confucian Classics, but her questions were rather strange...

"Sir, why is it said that one must first manage one's family, then govern the state, and finally bring peace to the world? Does this mean that one can only govern the state after getting married? But why are so many scholars in our dynasty still serving as officials while remaining single?"

"Sir, why does it always say 'Confucius said,' 'Confucius said'? Doesn't he get tired of talking so much?"

"Sir, sir, why is it said that 'men and women are difficult to deal with'? Red Dress is very easy to deal with..."

"Sir, do you think it's serious for these two children to argue about the sun?"

Upon hearing the rest, Jiang Lin nearly spat out a mouthful of blood.

I must say, this girl's thinking is... quite novel, and she's very good at flirting, of course, provided she's pretty...

Zhen Xian didn't notice the girl's speed as he carefully explained things to her one by one, giving standard answers that even seemed a bit old-fashioned, always starting with "Sages have the answer."

And so... the girl in Red Dress pouted a little, slightly annoyed:

"What you're saying is so old-fashioned, sir Red Dress! I, Red Dress, don't want to hear any 'sages have the answer' anymore. I want to hear your own thoughts, sir!"

Then... Zhen Xian was stumped.

He began to fall into deep thought.

What exactly are my own thoughts?

Once Zhen Xian starts thinking about something, he becomes completely absorbed in it. So, as Zhen Xian walks while thinking, the girl doesn't disturb him. She simply follows behind Zhen Xian, waving a small Willow Branch, her other slender hand gently pinching the hem of Zhen Xian clothes.

Under the spring breeze, on the Mirror Lake White Causeway, the two walked one after the other, the willows swaying gently in the wind, their figures reflected in the causeway, creating a picturesque scene. Jiang Lin was completely overwhelmed by their sweet romance...

"Miss Red Dress, I apologize. My knowledge is limited. I will ponder this further and then enlighten you."

In the end, still unable to come up with his own "insights," Zhen Xian turned around and bowed.

Red Dress was caught off guard when Zhen Xian suddenly turned around and bowed. As he bowed, his fingers brushed against the girl's chest, causing her to blush, but he remained oblivious.

"No... it's alright. Actually, Red Dress likes to hear anything the master says."

The girl blushed and turned to leave.

"Please wait a moment, young lady..."

"Sir... is there anything else?"

With a flick of his finger, Zhen Xian sent a wisp of Spiritual Power into the girl's hand. The Willow Branch bent into a knot, eventually forming a beautiful ring that made the girl's eyes light up.

"This is for you, young lady, as an apology for not being able to answer your question. I hope you won't find it offensive."

"Thank you... thank you, young master..."

The girl clutched the ring tightly, her cheeks flushed, and ran away as if fleeing, leaving Zhen Xian standing there completely bewildered.

In the days that followed, Zhen Xian continued to teach the young ladies of noble families in this mortal dynasty.

Although Wutong Academy is mainly for cultivators, people from the mountains, few in the academy would look down on these mortal women; this is a matter of character.

Zhen Xian, in particular, is a genius cultivator with the title of the youngest Confucian gentleman. He is also humble and polite, even a little nervous and shy (most importantly, he is handsome), which makes him popular with the young ladies from prominent families who come to the Wutong Academy for further studies.

More and more young ladies began to tease Zhen Xian, after all, the shy appearance of this genius cultivator was too cute.

But deep down they also knew that a relationship between them was impossible.

Although the other party did not regard her as "just an ordinary woman", there is always a boundary between cultivators and ordinary people.

Putting everything else aside, the extended lifespan of cultivators alone is something that mortals cannot compare to.

Therefore, most young ladies kept a certain distance from Zhen Xian.

But there was one exception.

That's Red Dress.

As soon as class ended, Red Dress transformed into a "problem student," relentlessly pursuing Zhen Xian Zhen Xian, who patiently explained things to her.

At this point, Zhen Xian still started by saying "The sage has an answer," but after saying "The sage has an answer," Zhen Xian would add some of his own opinions.

The girl would listen attentively from the side.

As for Jiang Lin, even though he didn't want to eat it, he had no choice but to eat dog food, and every day was a happy one for him...

Just a year later, Zhen Xian's knowledge seemed to advance by leaps and bounds, and his cultivation level kept breaking through.

In just one year, Zhen Xian successfully transcended the tribulation from the Sea Gazing Realm to the Dragon Gate Realm.

The moment Zhen Xian successfully overcame his tribulation, his first thought was to tell Red Dress the good news. Red Dress was naturally happy for him when she heard it.

What Zhen Xian didn't know was that behind every moment when the girl was happy for him, she would secretly cry under the covers every night.

If the girl was initially just teasing Zhen Xian as part of a playful Xiao Xiao bet between her female friends...

Soon after, the girl gradually fell in love with him, and became more and more deeply involved, as if she had stepped into a swamp and could not extricate herself.

She was indeed happy for Zhen Xian's improvement in cultivation, knowing that cultivation was the foundation of a cultivator.

But she also knew that the higher Zhen Xian's cultivation level, the further apart their relationship would become.

Having already reached the Dragon Gate Realm, he would never age and his lifespan would be as long as a thousand years. But how many years could a woman like herself live?

Sitting in front of the Dressing Table, Red Dress gently stroked her cheek.

Admittedly, she wasn't bad-looking and had some beauty, but what did she amount to among cultivators? Besides, her appearance would eventually age.

When the day comes that I grow old and lose my beauty, while he remains as gentle and refined as jade, and he wants to leave me, what reason do I have to try to keep him?

Moreover, as the daughter of a general from the mortal realm, and with him being a Confucian gentleman bound by rules and regulations, how could he possibly marry her?

However, the girl wouldn't reveal these thoughts to him. She didn't want to disturb his cultivation; she wanted him to be better, and her happiness was his happiness as well.

Thus, a scholar unaware of the girl's feelings, and a girl unwilling to reveal her own.

They acted as usual.

One asks nonsensical questions, while the other tries to answer no matter how strange the question is.

It seems like everything will remain quiet like this.

However, this bubble-like stability will eventually come to an end.

In the girl's country, the struggle for the throne among the princes is becoming increasingly fierce. As the Great General who protects the country, the girl's father cannot escape the vortex of this struggle for the throne, even if he does not want to take sides.

In the third year after Red Dress came to the Wutong Academy, a document was delivered to the girl's courtyard.

Standing beside the girl, Jiang Lin saw that it was a marriage certificate. It was a decree from their dynasty's emperor betrothing Red Dress to the crown prince, requiring Red Dress to return to the dynasty the following month to prepare for the wedding.

After receiving the marriage certificate, Red Dress cried for many days. She stopped going to class, Zhen Xian, a straight man with a chauvinistic attitude, didn't know why.

Although he wanted to go to Red Dress's courtyard several times, he stopped himself each time.

After all, the young woman was still a maiden; if he, a Confucian gentleman, were to go in, it would truly be troublesome.

However, the truth will eventually come out.

Finally, through a princess from the same dynasty, Zhen Xian learned that Red Dress would be descending the mountain in five days to return to the dynasty and prepare for the wedding.

Then...

Then Zhen Xian became withdrawn...

Seeing both the man and woman become withdrawn, Jiang Lin anxiously picked his toes to keep quiet.

This is just like when Jiang Lin was watching "Kaguya-sama: Love Is War" back then; Jiang Lin was so anxious that he almost moved the entire Civil Affairs Bureau over to them!

But the difference is that at least Kaguya-sama was showing off their love, while these two are practically selling stomach medicine!

At this moment, Jiang Lin could only sigh and remark, "The rain has soaked the sky, ruining it in a very sophisticated way," before sitting down next to Zhen Xian.

As Kong Ba Ba had told Jiang Lin before, Jiang Lin knew that, barring any unforeseen circumstances, the girl would come to find Zhen Xian on the last day.

However, Kong Ba Ba is clearly making things up!

In fact, on the last day, Zhen Xian, who had been withdrawn for many days, came to the Willow Embankment where they had walked together on the first day they met.

The girl was also standing on the bridge at that moment.

The two met unexpectedly.

Neither Zhen Xian nor Red Dress ran away; on the contrary, they were together again on the Willow Embankment.

On this day, they finally finished walking along the not-too-long Willow Embankment.

Zhen Xian clenched his fists tightly, and in the end, it was beyond Jiang Lin's expectations!

This chauvinistic man actually went up to A and expressed his feelings.

But...

"Sorry..."

Red Dress gripped her skirt tightly, her trembling eyes avoiding his gaze, and slowly spoke.

I have someone I like.

When Jiang Lin heard Red Dress's voice, he gulped down several bottles of stomach medicine, not to mention Zhen Xian was petrified on the embankment.

Finally, the servants from the General's Mansion arrived at the Willow Embankment. Red Dress brushed past Zhen Xian, got into the carriage, and left Wutong Academy.

On that Willow Embankment, all that remained was Zhen Xian watching her gradually disappear into the distance.

"I'm sorry... I'm so sorry..."

On the departing carriage, clutching the Willow Branch ring in her hand, she hugged herself tightly, burying her head between her legs and weeping silently for an unknown period of time.

She wanted to be with him, and she thought about him all the time.

But she knew they couldn't...

How can a Confucian gentleman have any connection with the children of ordinary officials and generals? This is against the rules.

So she was afraid, afraid that if she also expressed her feelings, she would ruin his promising future, simply because she was just an ordinary woman.

He is a Confucian genius, a future sage; I cannot ruin him...

After Red Dress left, five years passed as time went by.

During these five years, Zhen Xian devoted himself to scholarship, but he no longer lectured to young ladies of the mortal world.

However, he, who used to be a very serious man who had never touched alcohol, also fell in love with it and always carried a Wine Gourd at his waist.

He would tease girls a little when he met them, making them blush.

Three years later, she received a letter from the Bei Ming Country, her own country.

The letter was written by the Great General of the Bei Ming Country, who was also Red Dress's father.

The letter originally stated that Red Dress was about to marry the Crown Prince, and as Red Dress's teacher at the Wutong Academy, as well as a virtuous person in the academy, he hoped that he could attend the wedding.

The letter contained no other meaning than a simple invitation; it was indeed proper for the General's Mansion of Bei Ming Country to send such a letter out of courtesy.

As per the rules, scholars and cultivators of the academy were not allowed to have any dealings with the powerful and influential figures of the mortal dynasties. Zhen Xian also needed to go through the motions by writing a letter to decline, thus completing this unnecessary formality that both parties knew perfectly well was "too expensive to invite and unable to come."

However, Zhen Xian found himself unable to put pen to paper.

In the end, there was no reply.

Five more years have passed since she left, making it more than eight years in total.

As a virtuous man, Zhen Xian was given a mission: "The princes of Bei Ming Country are vying for the throne, and one of them has hired cultivators to disrupt the mortal world." Zhen Xian, as the representative of the academy, went to investigate.

Although both were in Wutong Province, the Bei Ming Dynasty was located in the far north of Wutong Province, quite far from the Wutong Academy. When Zhen Xian arrived in Bei Ming Country, the first thing Zhen Xian was go to the General's Mansion.

Although Zhen Xian was somewhat reluctant to go, he had to first discuss matters with the Great General of Bei Ming Country, and since she was already the Crown Princess, she should also be living in the Eastern Palace.

However, when Zhen Xian arrived at the general's mansion, it was already engulfed in flames!

Sensing something was wrong, Zhen Xian rushed inside!

Zhen Xian was already late.

The general's mansion was already destroyed, and a dozen or so cultivators were still cleaning up the mess, their killing frenzy reaching a fever pitch.

In the general's mansion filled with corpses, Zhen Xian saw Red Dress, who had committed suicide to prove her innocence.

It turned out that Red Dress had just returned to her parents' home for a visit that day.

He held Red Dress's body, and in her hands she was tightly clutching something.

When Zhen Xian trembled as he opened her palm.

It was on that day on the Willow Embankment that Zhen Xian used his Spiritual Power to weave her Willow Branch ring that would never fade or wither.

That day, Zhen Xian slaughtered all the cultivators in the general's mansion who were plundering treasures, raping, killing, and kidnapping, leaving no one alive.

The rebellion in the capital was quickly quelled by Zhen Xian and the prestige of the Wutong Academy. Zhen Xian crippled the Spiritual Apertures and bones of all the cultivators who deserved punishment, almost killing them. The last prince was also bound and sent to the academy for punishment.

In the end, after much struggle, the youngest prince inherited the throne.

As the matter drew to a close, Zhen Xian learned that she had a daughter who had survived, but whose whereabouts were unknown. Zhen Xian then stayed in the capital.

One winter, a little girl snatched a steamed bun and accidentally bumped into Zhen Xian.

The little girl tried to run away, but Zhen Xian caught her.

The little girl opened her mouth and bit Zhen Xian, leaving a bloody tooth mark.

Seeing the steamed bun stall owner chasing after them, Zhen Xian paid for the little girl's food.

Zhen Xian squatted down in front of a dirty but bright-eyed begging girl.

The little girl clutched her steamed bun tightly, her big eyes watching Zhen Xian.

Looking at the little girl, Zhen Xian smiled gently and bought a few sesame cakes from the nearby stall.

"Little girl, what's your name?"

The little girl swallowed hard as she looked at the sesame seed cake in the man's hand.

"Hong Qin... the 'Hong' of red, the 'qin' of organ..."