When he moved to block the door, not only was Feng Rugu startled, but Ruyi was also surprised by his own action.

However, he quickly realized it.

After being "bitten" by the Jade of Testing Love, Ruyi still hadn't given up on testing Feng Rugu's heartbeat.

Today, when using the prayer beads to lead Feng Rugu's hand across the ice bridge, he had tried once and the result made him breathe a sigh of relief.

This person was indeed not his adoptive father.

But after careful consideration, Ruyi felt that using prayer beads to take a pulse was often inaccurate. To be on the safe side, he needed to try again. So his staying in Lord Yunzhong's room now was an entirely reasonable thing.

Having figured this out, Ruyi became much calmer.

His adoptive father wanted him to take good care of Feng Rugu and stay by his side at all times. It was his duty, even if he didn't want to be with Feng Rugu at all.

Feng Rugu was also only stunned for a moment before warmly letting Ruyi into the room.

...Great, this kid is warm. There will be someone to snuggle up to at night.

Upon learning that he would be staying with him, Feng Rugu's joy was too obvious. He smiled with curved eyes, a look that, in Ruyi's view, made his thoughts plain as day.

Ruyi had always disliked such frivolous smiles.

But since the person smiling like this was Feng Rugu, it was understandable.

After all, he was such a frivolous person to begin with.

Feng Rugu didn't care what his own son was thinking. He quickly took off his outer clothes and socks, and threw himself on the soft bed, rolling around a couple of times.

For Feng Rugu who was used to being lazy, walking around the rugged mountains today was a big hardship. He sat on the bed with a bitter face, moving his feet, and his mind naturally turned to various thoughts.

Only at times like this did Feng Rugu not need to control his expressions.

He was moving his ankles when he vaguely felt a gaze sizing him up. But when he raised his head, he only saw Ruyi standing to the side, lowering his head to untie his sword. He secretly laughed at himself for being overly sensitive. He crossed his feet, swayed his body, and started to joke with Ruyi, "Is that sword so difficult to untie?"

Ruyi's movements stiffened for a moment. He turned sideways to block his waist buckle and calmly said, "It's just that the sword tassel is tangled with the belt. No need to trouble Lord Yunzhong."

Feng Rugu gestured, "Why don't you come over here, I'll help you... ah?"

Ruyi lowered his head and coldly refused, "No need."

Feng Rugu puffed out his cheeks, ignoring him. He lay down on the bed and thought sullenly, growing up really makes one unlovable.

...When he was little, whenever his belt was tied in a dead knot, he would bring it to me and beg me to untie it, calling me adoptive father with every word.

On the other side, Ruyi frowned slightly.

...Just now, in order to keep an eye on Feng Rugu's movements and prevent him from coming up with any more unexpected tricks, he ended up staring absentmindedly and nearly got caught red-handed by him, even causing him to have misunderstandings that shouldn't exist.

This also caused him to accidentally tangle the belt with the sword tassel, and now he had to divert his attention to untie it.

It was the first time Ruyi felt this sword was so difficult to untie, difficult to the point that he even felt a bit of inexplicable annoyance.

Having finally untied the sword and hung it up, Ruyi walked behind the screen and changed into a monk's robe.

He thought that with Feng Rugu's flirtatious nature, he would definitely take this opportunity to come flirt with him and say some unbearable frivolous words.

To avoid trouble, he purposely changed quickly.

Who would have thought that when he came out from behind the screen, Feng Rugu was too lazy to even get off the bed, lying on the bed smoking, looking tired and comfortable like a contented cat that had just had its belly rubbed.

Ruyi walked to the table expressionlessly and sat down. He took a scroll of Buddhist scripture, thinking that his adoptive father was indeed not wrong. There was a kind of person who was best at playing hard to get, using it to control people's hearts.

He ignored Feng Rugu and softly recited the Buddhist scriptures to calm his mind.

Before long, Hua Ruohong sent another messenger, again inviting Lord Yunzhong to the banquet.

Feng Rugu was exhausted after the long day. He was lying on the bed with his bones feeling soft. How could he be willing to get up?

He said loudly, "Tell them I'm dead."

The messenger who came to deliver the message: "..."

He didn't dare to report back these words, but he was also afraid that if he couldn't invite Lord Yunzhong, Hua Ruohong would question him and even punish him when he went back. Just as he was feeling apprehensive, he suddenly heard the sound of turning pages of Buddhist scriptures from inside the room, followed by a clear and steady voice transmitting from within, "Just say that Lord Yunzhong is not feeling well and cannot attend the banquet. Please ask Sect Leader Hua to forgive him."

The little messenger felt as if he had been saved. He repeatedly said yes three times and left in a hurry, wiping his sweat.

Unexpectedly, after a while, Hua Ruohong personally came to invite him.

It seemed that he attached great importance to this distinguished guest and was afraid that something was wrong with him.

At this critical moment, he didn't want to lose such a powerful external aid.

He knocked on the door a few times and said, "Is Lord Yunzhong's discomfort due to not being accustomed to the water and soil here? Is there anything we didn't attend to properly?"

Seeing that there was no response from inside the door, Hua Ruohong continued to flatter relentlessly, "If Lord Yunzhong is ill, it is the fault of Feihua Sect. I have some medical knowledge. Why don't I..."

The door was suddenly pulled open from the inside.

That monk with pretty yet cold features stood at the door. He was wearing an old and faded monk's robe, which should have given a sense of holiness, but he was too tainted by killing. Like his sword, even if he wore a monk's robe and recited Buddhist scriptures, he couldn't conceal the murderous aura all over his body.

Hua Ruohong felt a chill all over his body just from being stared at by him.

Ruyi said in a flat voice, "Lord Yunzhong has been working hard all day and wants to rest. Please don't make a fuss here, Sect Leader Hua."

Hua Ruohong shuddered and put on a flattering smile, "Lord Yunzhong has worked hard. I don't know how the investigation of that little Daoist is going..."

Ruyi said, "Sect Leader Hua is so concerned. Is it because the chaos in Jianchuan is related to you?"

Hua Ruohong, even if he was stupid, knew that this wasn't a good thing to say. His scalp tingled and he quickly clarified, "Just asking, just asking. Lord Yunzhong should rest first. If there's anything, be sure to instruct the disciples. I will do my best to get it done for you."

Hua Ruohong deliberately raised his voice during the latter half of the sentence so that Feng Rugu, inside the room, would hear it; his intention to curry favor was obvious.

Ruyi's expression remained unchanged. Seeing that he had finished speaking, he nodded slightly at Hua Ruohong and closed the door in his face.

Feng Rugu, who was too lazy to move and was lying on the bed, saw Ruyi stand up for him like this and said with a smile, "Thank you, little Hongchen."

Ruyi moved his lips, wanting to reiterate that he shouldn't call him that. The words reached his mouth but he swallowed them back. In the end, he only simply spat out two words, "No problem."

...So troublesome.

Ruyi picked up the Buddhist scriptures, thinking that if it weren't for his adoptive father's request, he wouldn't be here dealing with these troublesome things for Feng Rugu.

Living with Feng Rugu always brought trouble.

Outside was a grove of bamboo. When the wind blew, the bamboo rustled and whispered incessantly, singing with the breeze.

After about half an hour, Feng Rugu, who had been napping on the bed, was awakened by the bamboo's song. He dazedly poked his head out from under the covers and looked around, as if pondering where he currently was.

...He looked just like a drowsy cat waking from slumber.