Chapter 93: The Princess in Every Girl’s Heart
Working overtime turned out to be longer than expected.
Hua Jianglian was really determined to seriously recommend this comic series to Young Master Sang, so she pulled him in and started reading from the first volume.
Young Master Sang wasn’t particularly interested in such girly comics.
After all, those commercial capitalists at Fusa Pavilion loved nothing more than to peddle industrial sweeteners to innocent little girls who’d never had a romance.
He’d had enough industrial sweeteners in his last life, and quite frankly, he was a little over it.
But Hua Jianglian was clearly excited.
Her cute face was flushed with a smile, just like she was sharing something she loved with a good friend.
Young Master Sang didn’t want to rain on her parade, so he awkwardly squeezed in to read along.
Who would have thought?
They ended up reading into the night.
Young Master Sang felt his neck starting to stiffen, but Hua Jianglian was still engrossed, showing no sign of letting him escape.
Noticing it was already late, he secretly sent a message home using his communication device, thinking to himself, “She can’t seriously expect me to binge-read a comic all night?”
“Sect Leader, you don’t have work tomorrow, but I do!”
“What’s wrong?”
Hua Jianglian noticed Young Master Sang’s grim expression and asked with concern.
“Ah… nothing,” he forced a smile. “Just a bit stiff neck, need to move around.”
“Oh!” Hua Jianglian said, looking at him awkwardly squished next to her while reading. “That does look uncomfortable.”
She thought for a moment and jumped down from her chair.
“Here, you sit back.”
“…Huh?”
Young Master Sang sat down in the big chair, a bit dazed.
Then Hua Jianglian lightly hopped onto his lap, leaning back into his embrace.
Hua Jianglian was petite and delicate, almost resembling a teenage girl.
She was so light that Young Master Sang barely noticed her weight.
Sitting in his arms felt like cradling a soft doll.
“Isn’t this much more comfortable?”
She blinked her bright eyes.
He wanted to say, “Could you sit a bit more forward? I’m afraid being this close might… you know…”
But he figured if he said that, he might just get killed on the spot, so he held his tongue.
“It’s quite comfortable.”
“That’s good.”
Hua Jianglian gave a gentle smile and relaxed further into his embrace.
Her little head rested perfectly against his chin, and he felt he could smell the fragrance of her soft hair if he leaned forward just a tiny bit.
Her slender arms held the comic, bare feet swinging freely in the air.
It was as if she had mistaken him for a smaller chair.
Young Master Sang felt this position was definitely more comfortable.
It reminded him of cuddling with the neighbor’s little sister to watch cartoons as a kid.
Moreover, Hua Jianglian genuinely loved reading comics.
She must have read this series countless times already. Even while reading it with Young Master Sang, she elaborately explained details and foreshadowing.
Yet, she remained engrossed.
She stared with such concentration that her long lashes seemed to forget to blink.
Whenever she reached an exciting climax, she’d enthusiastically shake his arm, “Look look! The heroine finally confessed!”
Young Master Sang took a glance.
It was just an ordinary shoujo manga.
Plain, simple plot, a pure love story between a princess and a general.
It even made him feel like he could write something better himself.
But Hua Jianglian seemed to genuinely enter the story.
Every time she saw the heroine wearing gorgeous, dreamy outfits that screamed girly, her eyes would glimmer with envy.
…She was longing to be that kind of girl.
For some reason, a thought suddenly popped into Young Master Sang’s head.
Speaking of which…
The Sect Leader should be past such a girly age by now.
This question had crossed his mind long ago.
But out of respect for privacy, he never dared to ask.
…How old is the Sect Leader, really?
Hua Jianglian was, after all, a great cultivator at the Crossing Tribulation Stage. Although he wasn’t sure if it was due to her cultivation or something else, she physically resembled a little girl.
But if he considered her cultivation age, she should be nearing a century old like Master Yu Xia.
Yet, spending time with Hua Jianglian, Young Master Sang felt this soft and cute loli Sect Leader wasn’t like those old women trapped in youthful bodies.
She genuinely felt like a little girl.
In every sense.
Just like now.
Sitting in his lap, her heart and eyes were filled with the joy of sharing something that interested her.
She reminded him of a little girl dragging a friend to watch cartoons at her house.
This emotion was pure and clean, without any ulterior motives.
It made Young Master Sang feel like he was taking care of a little sister.
…
Time passed until midnight.
Without noticing, Hua Jianglian’s eyelids began to droop.
Though she still tried hard to keep reading a bit more.
But perhaps it was too comfy in Young Master Sang’s embrace, as she occasionally nodded off, waking up with a blush, pretending as if nothing happened while turning pages.
Seeing that she was truly tired, Young Master Sang couldn’t help but say:
“Sect Leader, it’s getting late. Shall we stop here for today?”
“Wait…” Hua Jianglian suddenly rubbed her eyes.
It seemed she was trying to force herself to stay awake.
“Just let me finish this volume… just this volume.”
“I finally… found someone willing to read comics with me…” Her voice got softer as she pouted.
Young Master Sang fell silent for a moment and didn’t say anything more.
They continued to quietly read the comic.
Then.
After a while, Young Master Sang gently picked up the sleeping Hua Jianglian from his lap and carried her to the bed.
She felt as light as a toy. He didn’t exert any effort at all.
As he laid her down, he was extra gentle and cautious.
He feared even the slightest move would awaken this cute sleeping little princess.
After carefully covering her with a blanket, Young Master Sang tidied up the room a bit.
He even meticulously placed a bookmark in the comic.
He knew he’d likely need it again in the following days.
Once everything was in order, Young Master Sang quietly extinguished the candle and took a last glance at the peaceful girl on the bed.
“Good night, Sect Leader,” he whispered gently.
—
—
The next day, Hua Jianglian awoke in a daze.
Sitting up, she rubbed her messy hair and looked around.
She didn’t see Young Master Sang anywhere.
That guy… sneaked off again? Hua Jianglian couldn’t help but pout in annoyance.
How rude.
It seemed he didn’t want to read comics with me at all, just stringing me along.
But this thought quickly vanished when she reached the desk.
The comic they had read yesterday was neatly placed on the table.
A noticeable little bear bookmark wedged inside, opened exactly to the page where she had dozed off.
Looking at the bear’s slightly goofy smile on the bookmark, Hua Jianglian couldn’t help but smile back lightly.
…That guy.
Maybe he isn’t so terrible after all.
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