Edited by Zaki
In that atmosphere where the storm was about to come, life had returned to its normal calmness.
The departure of Xuan Yu and the God of Winter also took away the coldness from Lu Qingjiu’s body, making the winter less difficult for him to bear. He didn’t feel like he was being nailed to a warm Kang bed like before. Now, as long as Lu Qingjiu wore thicker clothes, he could go play in the snow without having to worry about catching a fever or a cold.
The snowfall was not as continuous as before, and there were more sunny days.
Bai Yuehu began to bring some fresh ingredients from outside every day. At first it was poultry and beasts that tasted better, but later he became addicted to fresh seafood.
Unlike the seafood in the Human World, the seafood brought back by Bai Yuehu from the Other World were all large and fresh. For example, the shrimps that looked similar to those in the Human World were as big as a human calf. When Bai Yuehu brought a bunch back, they were still jumping around and looked very tempting. Lu Qingjiu also felt that the Other World was not that bad. At least for humans who depended on food, the Other World was full of some indescribable charm.
There were many more ways to cook fresh shrimp than frozen shrimp. After steaming, it was delicious enough to be dipped in soy sauce. It could also be pureed to make shrimp soup or hot pot. All in all, there were many ways to eat shrimp, but the only thing they had in common was that everything tasted good.
Lu Qingjiu made shrimp ball soup, steamed a few and stir-fried a few. Although the shrimps were large, the meat was very tender and did not look old or bad at all. After Bai Yuehu’s introduction, Lu Qingjiu realized that these shrimps were actually newborn cubs. The adult shrimps were as big as a person, but they were a bit too old and didn’t taste as good as the young shrimps.
Lu Qingjiu was still thinking about how big a shrimp that was as big as a person would be.
In addition to shrimps, other seafood were not left behind, such as crabs, lobsters, abalones and sea cucumbers. In short, almost all the food that could be seen in the Human World were also seen in the Other World, and substitutes could be found for all.
Lu Qingjiu made a stew with abalone. Drinking it in the cold winter would not only be delicious but also able to get rid of the chill on your body. It could be said that he liked it very much.
Their happy little life hadn’t even lasted a few days, but some people couldn’t stand it any longer.
Lu Qingjiu didn’t expect Ao Run to come directly to his door and have a fight with Bai Yuehu on the spot.
The place where they fought was in the yard at the door. When Lu Qingjiu saw the two of them throwing themselves at each other, he was still worried whether the fight between the two would destroy the house, but later it turned out that he was just being overly anxious, in reality neither Bai Yuehu nor Ao Run used strong power. They were fighting each other purely by relying on their physical qualities, and had no intention of destroying the entire family. But even so, the yard still became a mess, a large section of the wall collapsed, and the original chicken coop was flattened.
Ao Run had a hateful expression on his face, and Bai Yuehu was not to be outdone. The two Dragons fought like two human beings, without using any spells, and all with punches to the flesh. Lu Qingjiu was exasperated with the two of them. He wanted to step forward to stop them, but seeing how devoted the two were in the fight and fearing that he would be accidentally injured, he could only stand aside and worry.
Yin Xun didn’t mind watching the excitement, so he took out two roasted sweet potatoes from the house, handed them to Lu Qingjiu and said, let’s eat and watch, but don’t let your body get cold.
Lu Qingjiu originally wanted to refuse, but seeing that Bai Yuehu and Ao Run had no intention of stopping, he took it and started nibbling while warming his hands.
What Lu Qingjiu didn’t expect was that while Bai Yuehu and Ao Run were fighting, he actually heard the two of them arguing. Ao Run was cursing Bai Yuehu for being heartless and unjust, while Bai Yuehu was yelling at Ao Run to mind his own business. When Lu Qingjiu heard the quarrel at first, his expression froze because he had only heard the red-haired voice before, but he didn’t expect that the black-haired Grandpa could also speak.
“They are really noisy.” Lu Qingjiu commented.
“What’s the fuss about?” Yin Xun looked confused, “Are they talking?”
Lu Qingjiu said: “You can’t hear them?”
Yin Xun shook his head, indicating that he heard nothing. Lu Qingjiu observed carefully and found to his surprise that Ao Run and Bai Yuehu were not speaking outwardly. Both of them had their lips pressed into a straight line, and the sound of their quarrel seemed to be transmitted directly into Lu Qingjiu’s mind.
“Ao Yue, you actually refused to let Lu Qingjiu go. Didn’t you know he would die if he stayed here?” Ao Run was still roaring, “Do you consider him your lover?”
“Why does my lover need your opinion?” Bai Yuehu retorted coldly, “If he wants to stay, I respect his opinion. Unlike you, who has always been so dictatorial and doesn’t care whether the object of the offer wants it or not.”
The two of them were arguing in full swing, but Lu Qingjiu was a little worried. It was almost lunch time. How long would these two people keep arguing? He tentatively called out in his mind: “Hey, can you hear me?”
The movements of Bai Yuehu and Ao Run stopped instantly. They both turned their heads at the same time, showing surprised expressions to Lu Qingjiu.
“Can you hear?” Lu Qingjiu continued to shout in his mind, “How long are you going to fight?”
Ao Run immediately let go of Bai Yuehu. He climbed up from the snow, wiped the snow off his clothes twice, and returned to his gentle and elegant appearance. He walked towards Lu Qingjiu with a gentle smile: “Qingjiu! You can hear our voices.”
Lu Qingjiu said, “Yes, I just heard it.” He glanced at Yin Xun, who was a little confused, “Can’t others hear it?”
We’re sorry for MTLers or people who like using reading mode, but our translations keep getting stolen by aggregators so we’re going to bring back the copy protection. If you need to MTL please retype the gibberish parts.
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When Ao Run thought of this, he glared at Bai Yuehu coldly.
Bai Yue secretly ground his teeth angrily, thinking bitterly that if he hadn’t cared about Lu Qingjiu’s face, he would have fought Ao Run to a resolution today.
“Jiu‘er.” The voice that came from Ao Run’s mind was not much different from the red-haired Ao Run. He walked to Lu Qingjiu’s side and stretched out his hand to gently sweep away the snowflakes on his head. “Come inside quickly, it’s cold outside.”
“Grandpa, I’m fine.” Lu Qingjiu said, “Don’t fight with Bai Yuehu.”
Ao Run: “I just didn’t expect him to be so selfish.” But he was still a little unhappy, “You have cold energy in your body, how can you stay in Shuifu Village? I opened a way for you before, just because I wanted you to leave this place.”
Lu Qingjiu: “There is no coldness in my body now.”
Ao Run frowned when he heard this. The reason why he froze Lu Qingjiu was to force Bai Yuehu to send Lu Qingjiu away. Regardless of Bai Yuehu’s willingness or not, Lu Qingjiu’s body would definitely not be able to bear it if he continued to stay in Shuifu Village. Yes, in this case, Lu Qingjiu had to leave to avoid what was about to happen. Ao Run originally thought that his plan was perfect, but he didn’t expect that when he came back here after a few days, he would find that Lu Qingjiu was still at home and looking very lively.
“The God of Winter helped me drive away the coldness from my body.” Lu Qingjiu said, “I don’t have to leave anymore.”
When Ao Run heard this, his expression was complicated, and he hesitated to speak.
Bai Yuehu walked up to Lu Qingjiu, took Lu Qingjiu’s hand, and said, “Jiu‘er, I’m hungry.” He raised his chin provocatively.
Upon seeing this, Ao Run was so angry that he almost rolled up his sleeves again and attacked Bai Yuehu.
Lu Qingjiu quickly stopped the two of them and asked if they could continue after lunch. It was almost ten o’clock and they wouldn’t be able to eat if they continued to fight.
Under the temptation of food, Bai Yuehu and Ao Run finally chose a truce, but they still couldn’t stand each other, and continued to provoke each other with every word.
The most confused person in the whole process was Yin Xun. He stood nearby and gnawed his roasted sweet potatoes stupidly. He didn’t understand how the group of them reached a consensus without saying a word, and even decided to make lunch amicably. What had they spoken?
This was the first time Lu Qingjiu invited Ao Run into his home and invited him to have lunch.
Ao Run was obviously surprised by Lu Qingjiu’s invitation. Although he didn’t like Bai Yuehu, he still suppressed his violent emotions and returned to the gentle look he had before. Bai Yuehu also endured and gave Ao Run enough face. Although he didn’t like Ao Run’s self-assertion, after all, Ao Run was still Lu Qingjiu’s Grandfather, and it seemed that Lu Qingjiu had no intention of blaming him.
“Why won’t you leave?” Ao Run was in the kitchen, lowering his head to help Lu Qingjiu handle the fresh vegetables that Bai Yuehu brought back from outside yesterday. “If you are willing, I can clear the road for you again.”
Lu Qingjiu shook his head and said firmly, “No, I’m not leaving.”
Ao Run: “But you will die.”
Lu Qingjiu: “Definitely?”
Ao Run frowned slightly and did not answer the question.
Lu Qingjiu was chopping meat for stuffing, planning to make it into meatballs and fry it. While chopping the meat, he said, “But if I leave, Bai Yuehu will die.” He remembered what Xuan Yu said.
Ao Run continued to be silent.
“Grandpa, do you know what will happen next?” Lu Qingjiu said, “Can you tell me?”
Ao Run sighed: “The God of the Four Seasons is dead, and the next step is the integration of the two worlds.”
“Then do you want the two worlds to merge?” Lu Qingjiu asked.
Ao Run raised his head, his eyes were closed, but he seemed to be staring at Lu Qingjiu’s face. “I don’t care about the two worlds, I only care about you.” Lu Qingjiu was his descendant and the only human with Dragon blood. He naturally wanted to do everything possible to keep him alive, but now it seemed that Lu Qingjiu had given up his last chance.
“You still have one last chance.” Ao Run said, “Even if you stay, you may not be able to save Bai Yuehu. But if you leave, you will definitely survive. When the two worlds merge, I can protect you. I’ll find you some Dharma books that great Masters in the Human World once practiced, when the time comes.”
Listening to what he said, Lu Qingjiu looked at Bai Yuehu. When he was talking to Ao Run, Bai Yuehu had remained quiet. It seemed that all his attention was on the basin in front of him, but the messy dishes in the dish basin showed that Bai Yuehu was tossing inside showed that he was not as calm as he showed. Lu Qingjiu suspected that if Bai Yuehu exposed his furry ears at this moment, those ears would have been carefully raised.
“Yes, I know.” Lu Qingjiu said, “Thank you, Grandpa, but I know what I want.”
Ao Run: “Do you really know?”
Lu Qingjiu: “I know. At that time, my parents died in an accident. I also wanted to take my Grandma out, but she refused. She said that Shuifu Village was her roots and there were people she wanted to protect here. I, I didn’t understand it at the time, but I understand it now.” He laughed, “If Grandma was still here, she would definitely stay.”
When it came to his Grandma, there was a hint of imperceptible pain in Ao Run’s expression. He had many things to say to Lu Qingjiu, but these words eventually turned into a low sigh, “Okay, I respect your choice.”
Lu Qingjiu felt relieved, knowing that Ao Run would not deliberately stop him again.
But despite this, the atmosphere in the kitchen was still strange, Yin Xun sat in the living room and really didn’t dare to come in, and when Lu Qingjiu asked him what was wrong when he carried the food out, he said, “Nothing, any random creature would not be able to stand it when they find out that there are two and a quarter Dragons in the house.”
Lu Qingjiu: “…..” Your count is too precise.
Because Grandpa stayed for lunch, Lu Qingjiu specially made a sumptuous lunch today, including meatballs stewed with tomatoes, steamed fish with black bean sauce, braised trotters, pickled cabbage and pork vermicelli soup, as well as a vegetarian dish and a cold dish. The portions were generous and a big plate was placed on the table.
When Ao Run came to the table, he seemed a little reserved. It seemed that he hadn’t had a good meal for a long time. But after he opened his mouth, Lu Qingjiu still felt a little tingling in his heart. Logically speaking, Lu Qingjiu’s Mother was swallowed by Ao Run himself, but he couldn’t feel like blaming his Grandfather. After getting along with him all the way, he didn’t feel any malice from Ao Run, he could only feel a strong caring heart.
Ao Run ate very seriously. He chewed each mouthful of food for a long time and swallowed it slowly. It was very similar to the way Bai Yuehu had eaten after he had just been led into the house.
Lu Qingjiu looked at him and thought of Bai Yuehu who couldn’t eat enough. He felt a little uncomfortable, but he couldn’t show it, so he just quietly added extra.
Bai Yuehu was unusually unprotected today. He even put the bowl down after eating a bowl of rice, saying that he was full and had something else to do, so he got up and went out. Yin Xun was also smart for once. After finishing a bowl, he said that he would help Bai Yuehu clean up the yard, leaving the food and alone time to Lu Qingjiu and Ao Run.
Ao Run accepted the kindness of the two of them. While eating, he slowly talked to Lu Qingjiu in the unique way of the Dragon Clan. He talked about many things in the past, including the first time he and his Grandma met.
“Your Grandma was not very good at cooking.” Ao Run said, “Before I moved in, she ate pickles and white rice every day, and she was too thin to look good.”
Lu Qingjiu listened. In fact, after he was born, his Grandma could perfectly control the heat to make delicious food. At that time, Ao Run had left his lover for many years, and she was forced to learn to live alone. However, the sadness hidden in these simple words was difficult to describe simply in words.
“She liked whatever I made.” Ao Run said, “She ate a lot of everything.” When he talked about old things, his expression showed nostalgia and tenderness that Lu Qingjiu had never seen before, “It’s just that although she ate a lot, she was not fat at all, I don’t know where the food went.”
Lu Qingjiu: “Grandma was very thin.” Until she left this world, she was a thin old lady. Other old people in the village tended to gain weight as they got older, but she was still the thin one. It made people feel distressed.
“En.” Yao Run said, “Everything was fine at that time, until I was corrupted.”
This was the first time that Ao Run talked about corruption, and Lu Qingjiu felt a little nervous when he heard it.
But Ao Run didn’t say much about this matter. It seemed that even he himself didn’t understand why he was contaminated. However, he told Lu Qingjiu a detail that he was not aware of before, Dragons who fell in love with humans were more likely to be contaminated. As for why, he did not explain, maybe even he himself could not figure it out.
Ao Run talked a lot about his Grandma when she was young, about their love, separation, and the birth of their child.
“I was forced to leave at that time. When I came back again, your Mother was already three years old.” Ao Run said this with a smile, “Humans looked like this when they were young, completely different from Dragons.”
“Can’t Dragons transform when they are young?” Lu Qingjiu asked.
Ao Run: “Yes, Dragons look like little Dragons when they are young. They have to wait until they grow up and take off their horns to turn into human form. The little Dragons look like snakes and are not cute at all.”
Unexpectedly, Ao Run was quite straightforward. Lu Qingjiu immediately thought of Bai Yuehu who was hurt by him previously. From this point of view, Bai Yuehu, who was disliked by children, seemed to be excusable.
“Human beings are different.” Ao Run seemed to be in a good mood and talked a lot, “They are soft and small, and fall down as soon as you push them. If you fall down, you will cry, and your nose will be red from crying.”
Lu Qingjiu strongly suspected that Ao Run had bullied his Daughter behind his Grandmother’s back, otherwise how could he describe it in such detail.
“But it didn’t matter if they cried.” Ao Run said, “Just put candy in their mouth, they will be coaxed easily.”
Lu Qingjiu said suspiciously: “Grandpa, you didn’t do this often, did you?”
Ao Run: “No.”
Lu Qingjiu: “Really not?”
Ao Run said calmly: “I just did it once or twice.”
Lu Qingjiu: “….”
Ao Run suddenly remembered something and said, “Jiu‘er, Do you still have your baby Dragon horns?”
Lu Qingjiu replied: “Yes.” This young Dragon horn was extremely sensitive. Normally, he would not dare to show it at all. He would only be forced to show it if he was ruthlessly tossed by Bai Yuehu occasionally. However, the consequences were a bit more miserable after revealing it and he would be tossed even more. Thinking of this, Lu Qingjiu couldn’t help but blush a little, but fortunately, Ao Run’s eyes were closed and he didn’t seem to have noticed.
“What’s wrong, Grandpa?” Lu Qingjiu wanted to change the subject.
Who would have thought that after he asked this question, Ao Run, who had been almost calm, would explode again. He said angrily that Bai Yuehu was really not a good dragon, and that Lu Qingjiu, a young Dragon, had not yet taken off its horns, and was still just a pitiful, weak and helpless Dragon. He actually laid hands on a young Dragon!
Lu Qingjiu said in horror, “But grandpa, I’m already twenty-seven.”
Ao Run: “Twenty-seven, you were only twenty-seven. Dragons are only eggs when they are 27. He actually laid his hands on an egg.”
Lu Qingjiu: “Grandpa, please calm down. Look at how my healthy limbs look. Where do I look like an egg?”
Ao Run was obviously very upset about the fact that Bai Yuehu, a pig, had taken advantage of his little cabbage. If Lu Qingjiu hadn’t stopped him, he would have rushed out to fight with Bai Yuehu again.
Lu Qingjiu could only try his best to persuade him, saying that he really couldn’t judge by the standards of the Dragon Clan. If he was really allowed to fall in love based on the Dragon Clan’s lifespan, wouldn’t he be considered to have fallen in puppy love even if he was 200 years old. You couldn’t let Bai Yuehu hold a pile of bones and call it honey, right?
“And I remember that my Grandma was only eighteen when you fell in love. She was nine years younger than me.” Lu Qingjiu said as he thought of this, “Grandpa, you…”
After a moment of silence, Ao Run decided to skip the topic and said that today’s food was delicious.
Lu Qingjiu thought that Grandpa’s change of topic was too obvious.
Lu Qingjiu chatted with Ao Run for a while, but then he remembered something. He turned around and went into the bedroom. He took out a pair of earmuffs made of wool and handed them to Ao Run, saying that they were knitted by him, and asking him to wear it over his ears to keep warm. In fact, it’s not that he didn’t want to give Ao Run something else, it’s just that the other things hadn’t been knitted yet, so the earmuffs could be used, but they were still knitted according to the proportions of Bai Yuehu’s ears.
“The Chinese New Year is coming soon. I wish Grandpa a Happy New Year in advance.” Lu Qingjiu smiled.
Ao Run carefully took the earmuffs and wanted to try them on his ears, but found that the earmuffs stood up and could not be inserted into the sides. Lu Qingjiu explained that these were earmuffs for Dragon ears, and Ao Run, after hearing this, simply showed his erect dragon ears. Lu Qingjiu noticed that the ears were also furry and moved around, which made his hands itch. However, considering his status as a junior, he could only hold it back, but still asked politely, “Do you need help putting it on?”
Ao Run nodded in agreement.
Lu Qingjiu was a little surprised. After picking up the earmuffs, he carefully helped Ao Run put them on. Ao Run’s ears felt similar to those of Bai Yuehu’s, except that the hair was slightly thicker, but still had the same feeling of softness and furriness. Lu Qingjiu saw Ao Run wearing earmuffs, and couldn’t help but laugh.
Ao Run tilted his head and asked: “Does it look good?”
Lu Qingjiu smiled and said it looked good.
“Then I’ll keep it.” Ao Run said, “It’s getting late, I’ll leave first.”
Lu Qingjiu: “Why don’t you stay for dinner?”
“No.” Ao Run said, “I still have things to deal with.”
Lu Qingjiu stopped talking.
But just as he was hesitating, Ao Run had already stood up and walked out. When Lu Qingjiu rushed to the door, he was a little disappointed when he could no longer see Ao Run. Bai Yuehu, who had been repairing the yard with Yin Xun, walked up to him and said, “Why is he wearing my earmuffs?”
“Oh, I thought it was time to celebrate the New Year, so I gave it to him as a New Year’s gift.” Lu Qingjiu said strangely, “I thought you didn’t like ear muffs.”
Bai Yuehu said unhappily: “Who said I don’t like it.” He even revealed his ears and shook them a bit saying, “It’s cold.”
Lu Qingjiu looked at Bai Yuehu’s jealous look and couldn’t hold back, he stretched out his hand and held Bai Yuehu’s furry ears. He was not polite this time. After holding it, he kissed him hard: ” It’s okay, I’ll knit you a new pair, no, I’ll knit many, many pairs.”
Ahhhhhhhhhhh groundhog screams first to comment on new chapter! Thanks so much for translating this! I love this novel (((o(ﾟ▽ﾟ)o)))
Glad he finally got to have a nice long talk with Granddad
Falling in love with an egg !!! Lolol !!!