To Raise a Soul 32.1

During this liveliest time on the most special New Year’s Eve, Yin Le thought about running away from home.

His dad didn’t care, his mom was enjoying the show, his brother was not being a decent person, his sister-in-law… His sister-in-law had been corrupted by his brother. The days were too difficult, he couldn’t continue living here anymore. 

He was angry, but he still sat silently on the corner of the couch holding his gift.

“Xiao Le, come here. Help wrap the dumplings!” Qiu Feiqian called from the dining room.

“Uh-huh…” Yin Le lifelessly responded and glanced at the main door. 

As expected, it would be better to run away. No one in this house cares about me anymore. I’m just a cabbage¹ in the field being ground down by my brother.

“Xiao Le.”

Yu Zhen snuck over with thief-like actions. He drew a key from his pajama pocket and quickly stuffed it into Yin Le’s hand. He whispered, “Don’t be unhappy. This is for you. Don’t tell your brother.”

Stunned, Yin Le raised his hand and stared at the key in it. It looked like the key to their neighborhood’s parcel delivery box. The crushed embers of his heart resparked into a flame. He turned to look at Yu Zhen and said, “Yu Ge, this is…” 

“The latest figurine you wanted. I asked someone – um, I found a way to get it,” Yu Zhen explained. Hearing footsteps approaching, he quickly straightened up and pretended nothing had happened. He added in a louder voice, “Let’s go and help Mom wrap those dumplings. It’s your favorite shrimp stuffing.”

Yin Le, however, was not a person who could put on an act. Brimming with joy, he glanced at the discarded exam papers then gave Yu Zhen a bear hug. His voice strained under his excitement as he blurted out, “Yu Ge! You’re the one who’s my true brother! I love you! I – ”

“Yin Le.”

Yin Yan stood at the doorway between the dining room and the living room. In one hand was an apple, in the other was a fruit knife. The pointy part of the fruit knife was directed towards them and gave off a cold glint. 

“… Yu Ge, I will repay you.”

Yin Le decisively withdrew his hand and ran for the main door. Not bothering to put on his coat, he dashed out in his loungewear and bore with the cold wind as he headed to the delivery box.

Yu Zhen: “…” Pig teammate.

“Yu Zhen,” Yin Yan calmly called out.

Yu Zhen turned his head rigidly and put on a smile in preparation for some appeasing words. “Um, why did you come here again… Actually, I can explain…”

The fruit knife on Yin Yan’s right hand swiped down into the fruit in his left hand. Silently looking at Yu Zhen for a moment, he then turned and walked away.

“…” I’m doomed. He’s angry again.

Ten minutes later, Yin Le rushed back, red-faced from the cold and with a clear display case in his arms. He beamed brightly, his teeth flashing and his eyes curved into crescent shapes. 

“Yu Ge! Yu Ge! Yu Ge! How did you manage to buy this? This is really hard to get and is a limited edition! I wasn’t able to buy one even though I lined up for it!”

From the bottom of his heart, Yu Zhen wanted to kill him.

“Xiao Zhen, you even bought this for him. He’s so happy about it.” Qiu Feiqian walked over with a smile. She briefly rubbed Yin Le’s cold cheeks and looked at her youngest with an exasperated expression. Pushing him towards the stairs, she said, “Go wash your face with some warm water. Then come and drink something warm. You’d better not catch a cold.”

With the prized gift in his arms, he became very content and obedient. Giddily, he hugged the gift and headed upstairs.  

Two minutes later, Yin Le screeched in surprise. “Ah! There’s one more! Aaaaaaaaahh! I must be dreaming!”

Qiu Feiqian turned to Yin Yan, who had not spoken the whole time. Smiling knowingly, she asked, “You bought it for him too?”

“It’s only once a year,” Yin Yan replied nonchalantly, then returned to the dining room.

Yu Zhen looked at his back, listened to Yin Le’s loud fussing upstairs, and four words resounded in his mind – I really am doomed.

Initially, when Yin Yan told him to gift Yin Le the test papers, Yu Zhen thought it wasn’t very appropriate. After some mulling, he decided to make this move. It had seemed like Yin Yan didn’t want Yin Le to waste his money on these items so he decided to send it in secret.

But it turned out that Yin Yan had also bought the same thing.

This was the first time that they’d had such a poor understanding of each other, and was also, ironically, the first time that they’d had such a tacit understanding.

With a guilty heart, Yu Zhen followed after Yin Yan and stood beside him. Looking at his hands wrapping dumplings, Yu Zhen earnestly said, “Sorry, I didn’t know you had also bought it. I shouldn’t have bought the gift for Yin Le behind your back.”

“Buying the gift was from your good intentions. You did nothing wrong,” Yin Yan replied. The hands which wrapped the dumplings moved steadily. Each movement was exact and very pleasing to behold.

Yu Zhen was entranced… So good-looking. Yin Yan’s hands are becoming more and more beautiful.

After Yu Zhen had entered the Way and cultivated up a rank, certain aspects of Yin Yan also seemed to have improved. Although his inner state was unclear and he was still the same person, each detail of his outward appearance became even more eye-catching. 

That’s right, our lives are linked. If I obtain merits, half of them will be given to Yin Yan. I’ve grown taller and become stronger. Yin Yan should be similarly affected.

“What are you looking at?” Yin Yan asked.

“Looking at how good you look,” Yu Zhen instinctively replied. 

With a ‘poof’, the dumpling in Yin Yan’s hand exploded from an abrupt squeeze.

“Pfffffftttt.” Having followed behind the two and eavesdropping on them, Qiu Feiqian muffled her laughter. With a teasing glint in her eyes, she exclaimed, “Ai ya, our family’s Xiao Yan is shy.”

Shy? Yin Yan being shy?

Yu Zhen’s heart skipped a beat and he looked up at Yin Yan.

But Yin Yan put down the dumpling and turned around. He picked up a plate of dumplings from the table then headed into the kitchen, leaving Yu Zhen with the view of his back.

He’s running away so quickly. It can’t be that he’s really feeling shy?

There was a sudden itchiness in Yu Zhen’s heart. As soon as he decided to follow, Yin Le quickly rushed in with a piece of paper in his hand. “Yu Ge! Yu Ge! Yu Ge! There is also a figurine in my room. The gift giver’s name is signed as yours! Hehehe, someone gave me a gift using your name! Look!”  

The slip of paper, or rather a New Year’s greeting card, was moved into Yu Zhen’s line of sight. The words on the card were printed rather than handwritten. There was a sentence of well-wishes and, as mentioned, his name was indeed printed at the bottom. 

Yu Zhen took the card into his hands. With his senses now far superior to that of the ordinary person, Yu Zhen could pick up on a trace of Yin Yan’s scent from the card. His mind helpfully supplied the image of a serious-faced Yin Yan preparing the gift and card. Heart racing, a corner of his lips lifted.     

“Hehe, Yu Ge, your smile…hoho~.”

Yin Le’s mouth opened, about to cackle, however, Qiu Feiqian swiftly clamped a hand over his face and dragged him away.

Yu Zhen touched the card, his heart filled with warmth as he was moved by Yin Yan’s actions. After a brief pause, he strode towards the kitchen.

He used my name to give Yin Le the present. He even decided to make it a surprise – it’s probably to let me get a couple more brownie points with the Yin family. But, really, the Yin family has already shown that they like me a lot. 

Stepping into the kitchen, Yu Zhen walked up to Yin Yan. While facing his back, Yu Zhen held out the hand with the card and said, “Thank you.” 

Yin Yan set the dumplings in the fridge and closed the fridge door. As he turned around, he pulled out a box from somewhere and stuffed it into Yu Zhen’s outstretched hand. “A New Year gift. You’ve grown another year older. You have to put even more effort into cultivating this year.” He then patted Yu Zhen’s head and walked away. 

“…” Why does he not look shy, but angry instead?

Yu Zhen’s smile disappeared. He looked at the carved wooden box in his hand and patted it a few times. Suddenly, he had a light bulb moment and he felt he understood why Yin Yan was angry.

… Is it because I prepared gifts for everyone in the Yin family, but I didn’t prepare one for him?

With this conjecture in mind, Yu Zhen began to watch Yin Yan. After the family welcomed in the new year and the couple returned to their room, Yu Zhen deliberately gave Xu Wu a small present in front of Yin Yan. 

“I don’t know whether you’ll like cat toys or not. I bought the wool and wound it into this ball. I’ve soaked it in the lotus pond so it’s become very fragrant. It’ll make you feel relaxed if you smell it. Here, have a smell.” 

The ball of wool looked good. It was made of bright, colored threads and there was a decorative design on the surface. It also held true to Yu Zhen’s claim and had a fragrant, calming scent.

Xu Wu liked it very much. He couldn’t help but stretch out a paw to push and pull the ball around. From the corner of its eyes, Xu Wu saw its owner looking at it calmly. But underneath the expressionless mask, there resided a murderous aura. Trembling, it meowed in reply and carried its ball to vanish back into its own space.

“It’s time to wash up and sleep.” Yin Yan got up and entered the bathroom calmly.

Yu Zhen watched his back, paying attention to his walking speed. Finally, he burst out laughing.

He really is upset because there’s no gift for him.

In his eyes, Yin Yan was very powerful, omnipotent, and reliable. Even if Mount Tai were to collapse in front of him, Yin Yan would remain unfazed. But it turned out that he would quietly sulk because he didn’t receive a present. His acting was also somewhat awkward. 

He’s like a child.

Yu Zhen had always felt a sort of reverent respect for an elder when he faced Yin Yan, but that feeling was suddenly smashed into pieces. 

He called out Xu Wu, and asked for the small fragrance pouch he had secretly made. He pinched the pouch awkwardly and then, after a bit of hesitation, temporarily placed the pouch beneath his own pillow. 

After washing their faces and brushing their teeth, Yu Zhen nonchalantly laid down on the bed. After the light had been turned off, when Yu Zhen thought Yin Yan was asleep, he slid a hand underneath his pillow and grasped the fragrance pouch. He reached out stealthily to slip it under Yin Yan’s pillow.

Pa!

The back of his hand suddenly became warm as it was gripped by another hand. 

Yu Zhen’s eyes widened in shock and he reflexively jerked his hand backward.

“Don’t move.” Yin Yan’s voice rang out in the dark. Then with another ‘pa’ sound, a bedside lamp was switched on.

Yin Yan sat up and raised the hand he had caught. He gently pried open the fingers Yu Zhen had clenched shut, then picked up the dark blue cloth pouch. On the pouch, in white embroidery, was the word ‘Yan’.

“It’s for me?” Yin Yan turned the simple and plain pouch around in his hand. His eyes were lowered as he asked the question. 

It might have been a trick of the light, but Yu Zhen thought he saw a smiling expression with a hint of shyness from the man before him.

Shy? No, no, no, it must be an illusion.

His face grew red. He withdrew his hand and covered himself in the quilt, only making a small hum in reply.

In truth, Yu Zhen wasn’t originally planning to give him the fragrant pouch. However, a large portion of the things he owned were given to him by Yin Yan, including his more precious belongings, the Bodhi lotus seeds and the lotus petals. 

He had debated with himself over it and ultimately thought those two items were very suitable for the fragrance pouch. Since Yin Yan was an ‘antique’, he should have worn things such as this as an accessory. Yu Zhen had looked for a how-to guide and summoned up the courage to make one. 

Met with Yin Yan’s silence, Yu Zhen began to explain, “Inside, it has lotus petals which were sun-dried then ground into powder. Also, I plucked a few lotus seeds and added their cores² inside. The scent is very light and it has a hint of bitterness, so it isn’t too feminine. I used the lotus seeds to make a lotus cake. Xu Wu has it. Y-you can have some.”

Once he finished the explanation, he shrank back and turned around. Wrapping himself in the blanket, he continued, “It’s late. Let’s sleep. Goodnight.”

Despite his words, Yu Zhen’s eyes remained open and his ears were perked up in attention as he carefully listened to Yin Yan’s movements.

The silence stretched on for a long time before he heard the deep and low sound of Yin Yan’s laughter. “You hid in the dimensional pot everyday to make this?”

It was the first time that Yu Zhen had heard Yin Yan’s laughter. It carried a relaxed and delightful feeling. The sound was like a smooth piece of silk as it slipped into his ears. It’s very nice.

He buried his head underneath the sheets. His ears felt itchy and he was a little hot from his ears to his neck. “I didn’t spend long on it… My handiwork is quite crude – I hope you don’t mind.”

There was another short period of silence.

“Thank you, I like it very much.”

Yin Yan’s voice regained its calm again. Yu Zhen felt a sudden warmth on his head as it was gently patted.

“Sleep, goodnight.”

Pa.

The light was put out and it was followed by some movement on the mattress. After a while, Yu Zhen thought the person beside him should be asleep.

Yu Zhen’s tense body slowly relaxed. He wanted to turn around to see what kind of expression was on Yin Yan’s face, but he didn’t dare. Not to mention, there was no light in the room so he wouldn’t be able to see anything anyway. But the idea had taken root in his heart and he became restless.

That’s it? A gloomy feeling overcame him.

The pouch had his personal embroidery. Although it was a little ugly, it was something he had especially made.

Could it have been too dark and Yin Yan didn’t see it?

As his imagination ran wild, his body eventually relaxed and his eyes closed, little by little.

After Yu Zhen had fallen asleep, Yin Yan opened his eyes. He touched the fragrance pouch underneath his pillow and pinched it. A corner of his mouth lifted and he pulled the person in front of him closer. Slowly, he raised his body then he lowered his head and planted a kiss on Yu Zhen’s forehead. 

“Evil disciple.”

Even in the cultivation world where there were no longer as many rules and customs, the fragrance bag remained symbolic. Only lovers would mutually exchange those tokens to express their feelings.