Chapter 68: A Day of Shopping and Unexpected Compliments

On the small path outside the academy,

Hua Yan waved at Hua Xiangrong.

“Go on, Rongrong, remember to study hard and listen to your teacher.”

“I know, Mother. You say that every day; don’t you ever get tired?”

Hua Xiangrong, carrying her small satchel, turned back and wrinkled her nose.

She then suddenly remembered something and added, “Oh, Mother, the academy’s seasonal exams are in a few days. After they’re done, we’ll have our winter break.”

“Before we’re dismissed for the break, there’s a closing ceremony. The teacher said all parents must attend for the unified announcement of grades and to discuss our performance at the academy.”

“Alright, I’ll go with your mother.”

Hua Yan smiled, waving at her again, and watched as she and her little friends skipped into the academy.

“A closing ceremony?” Hua Yan turned to Yun Xueshang beside her, her eyes filled with curiosity. “How is it that your Carefree Sword Sect’s academy announces grades and discusses children’s progress at a closing ceremony, instead of through home visits or letters?”

“The academy has many children, and quite a few aren’t from the Carefree Sword Sect; they’re sent from outside,” Yun Xueshang softly explained. “Visiting each family would be too time-consuming, so the teacher came up with this method.”

“When I was little… it was the same way.”

So that was it. It certainly was an interesting approach.

Hua Yan, who had received one-on-one instruction from Hua Yuheng and the elders of the Hundred Flowers Valley since childhood, was hearing of such academy rules for the very first time.

“So, how were your grades when you were little?” She suddenly grew interested.

“I…”

Yun Xueshang paused, seemingly a little embarrassed, yet she still answered honestly, “As a child, only my martial arts scores were passable; everything else was a mess.”

“When Master was alive, every time she returned from the closing ceremony, she would always say I disgraced her, calling me an unteachable blockhead.”

Hahahahaha!

Hua Yan immediately burst out laughing.

“Heh, I knew Xueshang’s liberal arts couldn’t be good! It sounds even worse than mine!”

Imagining a miniature Yun Xueshang being tapped on the head by an awkward-faced Daoist nun, bewildered and scolded, filled her with uncontrollable mirth.

Patting Yun Xueshang’s shoulder, Hua Yan stifled her laughter and comforted her,

“Oh, it’s alright, you have me, don’t you? My mind is exceptionally sharp, and Rongrong looks clever too; she must take after me. Her grades surely won’t be bad.”

“Indeed, Yan’er is naturally intelligent.” Yun Xueshang nodded earnestly.

“Hahahahahaha… you certainly know how to talk.”

Hua Yan gazed at her, smiling. Ever since recognizing her true feelings, the more she looked at Yun Xueshang’s straightforward demeanor, the more endearing she found it.

“Come on, I’ll take you down the mountain today to buy some winter clothes and accessories.”

She glanced at the thin, plain white robe Yun Xueshang wore and took her hand.

“You’re so beautiful, yet you have no idea how to dress. It’s truly a waste of such a face. Today, let me properly spruce you up. How about we look dazzling for the New Year?”

Yun Xueshang gazed at Hua Yan’s smile, as bright as the morning sun, and unconsciously nodded, “Okay.”

***

Not long after, inside the Heavenly Garment Workshop, the closest to the Carefree Sword Sect.

“How about this one? It’s quite similar to your usual style.”

Hua Yan picked up a plain white immortal dress embroidered with silver threads and adorned with sparkling diamond shards.

She held it up to Yun Xueshang, nodded with satisfaction, and then beckoned for a silver hairpin crafted from a mythical tree branch.

“This hairpin will definitely look good with this outfit. Go and try it on quickly.”

“But, Yan’er, weren’t we… weren’t we here to buy winter clothes?”

Yun Xueshang looked at the maids and shop assistants beside Hua Yan, who were already beaming with arms full of clothes and accessories, and felt a little uneasy.

She was currently dressed in an ice-blue cloak with silver patterns, trimmed with snow-white fox fur, and a short, cross-collared jacket with delicate patterns underneath.

Silver-blue tassel floral ornaments adorned her hair, making her appear less ethereal and more gracefully elegant, like ice and snow.

‘Oh, I already told you you’re beautiful. Of course, you should pick out more clothes. Anyway, everything looks good on you.’

The more Hua Yan looked, the more she felt Yun Xueshang was a natural clothes hanger, looking outstanding no matter how she was dressed.

“But… I don’t have that many spirit stones…”

“It’s fine, all I have are spirit stones.”

Besides, this Heavenly Garment Workshop was her own family’s business. Even if they picked out a lot, what did it matter?

Hua Yan, caught up in the excitement of shopping, waved her hand dismissively.

When she was a man, perhaps having grown up in the Hundred Flowers Valley surrounded by beauty-loving female cultivators, Hua Yan had always enjoyed dressing herself up.

This preference remained unchanged even after becoming a woman.

Although she initially resisted wearing women’s clothing, she gradually grew accustomed to it, and lately, she had even become somewhat fascinated by the myriad styles of feminine attire.

However, while both were women, Hua Yan found a different kind of joy in dressing Yun Xueshang compared to dressing herself.

Their two personalities were distinctly different: one as vibrant as a flower, the other as pure as snow. Naturally, the clothes and accessories chosen for them would differ.

And for another reason…

She secretly glanced at her own ample chest, then at Yun Xueshang’s flat chest.

‘Pfft, how is it that Yun Xueshang, a woman, is almost as flat as I was when I was a man…’

She couldn’t help but cover her mouth, stifling a laugh.

“Yan’er, what’s wrong?” Yun Xueshang didn’t notice her ‘offending’ gaze; she simply thought Hua Yan suddenly bent over and covered her mouth because she felt unwell.

“Nothing, nothing, I just thought of something amusing.” Hua Yan suppressed her laughter and held up a plain white cross-collared robe with ink-wash embroidery, which had a slightly masculine feel.

“I think this one would suit you too. Let’s buy it as well, what do you say?”

“Mm, alright.”

Yun Xueshang nodded. In truth, she had long been dazzled by all the silks and satins, and being unskilled at choosing clothes, she would wear whatever Hua Yan said was good.

“Come on, let’s pick out a couple of outfits for Rongrong to take back too.”

Hua Yan, still in high spirits, took her hand and headed towards the children’s clothing section.

***

“With all these clothes we bought, which one do you think is the prettiest?”

Back at Slumbering Cloud Peak, Hua Yan was organizing the day’s haul, carefully arranging Yun Xueshang’s clothes by season—spring, summer, autumn, winter—and then by color, from light to dark, into the wardrobe. She asked casually.

“I don’t know,” Yun Xueshang answered truthfully.

“How can you not know? Can’t you tell if something is pretty or not?”

Hua Yan poked her head out of the wardrobe, holding up a light pink silk dress. “How about this one?”

“Beautiful.”

She then held up a light green pomegranate skirt. “And this one?”

“Beautiful.”

“This blue one?”

“Beautiful.”

“Can you only say ‘beautiful’?”

Hua Yan raised an eyebrow, utterly at a loss with this dullard.

“Then what about me?” A thought suddenly flashed through her mind, and she blurted out, spinning in place. “How do I look in this outfit?”

Yun Xueshang gazed at the red-haired maiden before her—Hua Yan was dressed in a crimson brocade robe embroidered with gold and vibrant threads, adorned with a pure gold headpiece, pearl tassel earrings, and a sweet smile on her lips, dazzlingly radiant. She pondered for a moment.

Just as Hua Yan expected her to say “beautiful” again, Yun Xueshang softly spoke, “A beauty that could topple kingdoms, unparalleled in grace.”

“Cough, cough!”

Hua Yan first froze, stiff for an instant, then abruptly raised a hand to cover her burning cheeks, quickly turning her back.

‘This dullard…’

The maiden tightly clasped her continuously warming cheeks, her earlobes flushed crimson, and her pair of pale golden eyes were unconsciously brimming with shy moisture.

‘How could such a dullard not make one like them even more…’

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