A top star in the Chinese entertainment industry, but also a Taoist priest.

Chen Yao ran barefoot into the bathroom on the carpet, the door closing softer than usual.

Chen Shouyi lay on the bed, listening to the sound of the faucet being turned on in the bathroom, and smiled.

About ten seconds later.

"ah--!"

Chen Shouyi raised an eyebrow.

The bathroom door was pushed open a crack, and Chen Yao poked half her head out. Her expression was priceless, a mixture of surprise, confusion, and barely concealed excitement.

"I'll be right out!" She closed the door again.

A few minutes later, she finished washing up and ran out, jumped onto the bed, knelt down next to Chen Shouyi, and stared straight at him with her big eyes.

Chen Shouyi looked at her and laughed: "What's wrong?"

Chen Yao asked curiously, "Was it you?"

"Look, look—" She brought her face closer, "The pimples are gone, the dark circles are gone, and my skin isn't dry anymore."

As she spoke, she pointed to several spots on her face that she had repeatedly checked in the mirror: "Look, look, here, here, and here."

"Many of my minor ailments have disappeared." She lowered her hand, her gaze fixed intently on Chen Shouyi. "Is this because of you?"

"What?"

"You're keeping me in suspense again!" Chen Yao pouted, leaning forward once more.

"These changes in me... they can't just have gotten better on their own while I was asleep, can they? Did you do something to me?"

Chen Shouyi reached out and put his arm around her waist, and Chen Yao leaned into his arms, her nose almost hitting his chin.

She gently patted him, but didn't pull away. Instead, she naturally leaned on his shoulder and looked up at him.

"Tell me quickly!"

Chen Shouyi glanced down at her.

She had just washed her face; water droplets still clung to her eyelashes, and her skin glowed with a dewy sheen. Her bright eyes were fixed intently on him, awaiting his answer.

He cleared his throat and began to improvise—no, to give an impromptu explanation.

"I am the head of the Wenshi School, a lineage that has been passed down from Laozi to Guan Yinzi for over two thousand years."

This is the path I've followed since I was a child. It's a kind of spiritual practice; there will always be times when you make progress.

I recently had a small breakthrough in my cultivation, probably because the patriarch saw how hard I've worked all these years and gave me some guidance.

Chen Shouyi spoke casually, but Chen Yao didn't doubt a word he said, after all, she had personally witnessed the ritual and experienced the miraculous formula.

Then Chen Shouyi changed the subject and said very seriously:

"Last night, our yin and yang mingled, and we both benefited. My cultivation has improved somewhat, and these changes—"

Chen Yao blinked: "You mean... this is also a result of cultivation?"

"That's one way to understand it."

Chen Yao was silent for a moment, then suddenly leaned out of his arms, her face full of disbelief:

"Yin and Yang in harmony? You Wen Shi Sect...you're a legitimate sect, aren't you? You're not some kind of heretical sect or some kind of evil cultivator, are you?"

Chen Shouyi flicked her forehead without any hesitation.

"Ouch!" Chen Yao covered her forehead, looking at him with a wronged expression.

"What are you thinking about?" Chen Shouyi said with a serious expression. "Our sect is the most orthodox of all, and the Shaoyang lineage cultivates the balance of Yin and Yang."

As the Taoist patriarch said, all things carry yin and embrace yang, and achieve harmony through the interaction of these energies. The relationship between men and women is a natural principle of heaven and earth, and as long as it is not excessive or indulged in, it is part of cultivating the Tao.

If you were a heretical practitioner, would you still be as lively and energetic as you are now?

Chen Yao thought about the hazy yet real feeling she had last night and realized that what he said seemed to make sense, so she put her hand down and stopped worrying about it.

She chuckled, turned to look at herself again, and reached out to touch her face, becoming happier with each touch.

"But the effect is really amazing!" She looked up. "Look, it's much better than before. It feels like I don't even need to wear much makeup anymore."

Chen Shouyi glanced at her: "You like it that much?"

"I like it."

"So—would you like to come again?"

Chen Yao blinked, pausing for a second before saying reservedly, "That's not a good idea, I still have a scene to film today..."

"Forget it," Chen Shouyi bluntly exposed her, "I've seen your schedule, it's not your turn until this afternoon."

Chen Yao blinked, then laughed out loud: "Oh, right?"

Looking at her smiling face, Chen Shouyi reached out and pulled her close. Chen Yao leaned into his arms, her nose brushing against his chin.

This time, she didn't hold back and reached out to hug his neck.

Outside the window, sparrows were still chirping and having a meeting, the curtains were swaying gently in the wind, and sunlight streamed in through the gaps, falling on the overlapping shadows of people.

-----------------

At noon, Chen Yao squatted down next to Chen Shouyi's suitcase and helped him fold his clothes.

"The material of your shirt is quite nice, but you folded it too carelessly," she muttered as she folded it.

"I'll tidy up your wardrobe later; it must be a mess in your Taoist temple too."

Chen Shouyi leaned against the window, drinking tea, watching her take out the few pieces of clothing she had casually stuffed into her suitcase one by one, and then neatly fold and put them back in.

To be honest, what he originally planned to do in ten minutes, Chen Yao has been struggling with for almost half an hour.

Every piece of clothing had to be folded to the same size, and even the placement of socks was particular.

But seeing that she was having a lot of fun folding them, he didn't bother to urge her.

"Let me tell you, I only spent a few minutes on my makeup today," Chen Yao said, squatting on the ground and stuffing things into her suitcase without looking up.

"And you don't need to apply too much foundation or spend too long drawing your eyebrows."

"Chen Shouyi," she looked up at him, her eyes shining, "it looks like I can sleep a little longer every day from now on!"

Chen Shouyi leaned against the table: "You're fine without makeup in your current state."

Chen Yao paused in her work, looked up at him, and said, "You've become quite the talker."

"To tell the truth."

Chen Yao lowered her head again to continue folding clothes, but she was clearly very happy.

"Oh, right," Chen Shouyi remembered something.

"Please stop drinking the herbal tea for now. Your body has just reached a new balance point, so give it some time to adapt. It will be more effective when you drink it again after it has adapted."

He wasn't making this up.

A spiritual cleansing is like resetting the body's factory settings, putting all systems in optimal condition. At this point, using medicinal tea would be superfluous.

Once your body has fully adapted to the new state, you can use the prescription to help regulate it, and the effect will be maximized.

"When do you consider yourself ready?" Chen Yao asked.

"It should take about one or two weeks. You'll feel it yourself then. For example, your sleep quality will start to stabilize, and your morning mood will no longer fluctuate wildly. That's about the right time. Then I'll make adjustments for you."

"Okay." Chen Yao nodded. She no longer doubted what he said and continued to work on the shirt in her hand.

After folding the last piece of clothing, she closed her suitcase, clapped her hands, stood up, and sat down on the edge of the bed: "I'm almost done filming too."

She counted on her fingers, "Your scenes are all finished. I only have a few scenes left, all with Ah Xiu. There aren't many."

"What happens next?"

"The Legend of Sword and Fairy 5, but that show won't start filming for a while."

Her eyes lit up as she spoke, and she moved closer to Chen Shouyi: "I can take a break in the middle, I'll come to the capital to find you."