When Yun Qing draped an outer robe over his shoulders and leisurely pushed open the hall doors, the crowd outside, who had been bickering in low voices, fell silent as one.
Then-
"Eldest Brother!"
"Are you feeling all right, Eldest Brother?"
"We only found out afterward that Your Majesty took you away yesterday because your old injuries hadn't healed..."
Voices tumbled over one another in a noisy swarm.
The eleven young masters, along with Yun Yao, were all planted outside his door, not a single one missing. Some stood, some sat, some leaned against pillars, and others rested against the railings. They were clearly the finest prodigies of the Yun Clan's generation, yet for some inexplicable reason, they reminded Yun Qing of kittens crouching outside the front door, waiting for their older brother to wake up.
The sheer liveliness of the scene momentarily dazzled Yun Qing.
His gaze swept over them one by one. Yun Tianluo still wore his moon-white scholar's robes, his folding fan half closed and his expression gentle. He looked the most presentable of the lot-provided one overlooked how he became everyone's granddaddy the instant he swung that enormous axe.
Yun Baojian cradled his sword, maintaining his cold-faced, taciturn aloofness. It would have been even better if he had never been "Yun Baojian of the Azure Lotus Sword Sect."
Yun Ruyi stood beside him, her pale-yellow skirts clean and soft, her eyes curved in a smile. She looked the most obedient and harmless. This one... well, he would skip her for now.
The Three Masteries trio still stood together. He wondered whether they remembered how they had so thoroughly stood up their beloved Eldest Brother back then.
Yun Zui leaned off to one side, her wine flask never leaving her hand. She waved at him with hazy,