"Xing Yan, why didn't you sleep in the fishing hut last night too?"
As the Dragon Chariot once more raced through the clouds, Lingyi finally could not resist asking the question hidden in her heart, after talking of many unrelated things. After all, once the first dizzy rush of passion had passed and they returned to the clear light of day, the girl would always be the first to regain her senses. Had she truly given her feelings free rein last night, she would not have known how to face her situation now, under the prevailing rules of propriety.
Thus, when she once again soared through the chill clouds and felt the long, cold wind sweeping over her, Ling Yier began to feel grateful to the young man sitting upright beside her.
Yet a girl's thoughts wound through tangled paths that were hard to fathom. Grateful though she was, a trace of doubt inevitably arose in Lingyi's heart:
Could it be that I'm not pretty enough? Otherwise, how could he have steeled his heart and left the hut to practice last night?
For a girl who took pride in her looks, this was no trivial question. So, however embarrassing last night's circumstances had been, Lingyi still summoned her courage, found an opening, and asked in the most ordinary tone she could muster.
At her question, Xing Yan hesitated. After thinking for a moment, he scratched his head and answered sheepishly:
"Ah, Lingyi, you know that, as a disciple of the Dao who has admired the Way since childhood, my resolve is exceptionally firm and my conduct exceptionally upright. But if I really shared a room through the long night with a girl as beautiful as you, I'd surely lose control..."
"Going to the rocks to practice and teasing little crabs