Who is spreading rumors that my filial piety towards them has changed?

Shen Xuejun was unaware of this matter and turned her gaze to her daughter. Ruyu, not wanting her mother to know about this embarrassing incident, quickly said:

"It seems you really are Chu Mingkong. Step aside for a moment, I need to discuss something with you."

After finding a secluded corner in the courtyard, Chu Mingkong stopped and said:

"Is this alright? What's the matter that needs to be discussed so mysteriously?"

"Do you have any antidote? Name your price, I've got plenty of money!"

Chapter 231 Ruyu: I'll have my mother fetch the medicine herself!

Antidote...? If this word has appeared recently, it should refer to the antidote for the Hehuan pill, but Princess Ruyu brought it up as soon as she arrived, and she contacted Chu Mingkong every time, so he was not so sure.

"Princess Ruyu, would you mind telling me what kind of antidote you require?"

Upon hearing Chu Mingkong's words, Princess Ruyu frowned and sat down, adopting an imposing posture and habitually displaying military mannerisms, with her legs crossed. However, she was wearing a skirt, and with her long, white legs crossed, her flesh was exposed. Realizing that her attire was inappropriate, she quickly put her feet down.

"Look at you, you're starting to act stingy and pretend you don't know anything now. I don't expect much from you as a man, but when you saw I was in trouble, you wouldn't give me the antidote, making me suffer for nothing because of the drug's effects. That's too much of you, you're too stingy. We can talk about the price, it's not like I took it for free!"

"Are you talking about the antidote to the effects of the aphrodisiac?" Chu Mingkong felt it was pretty much the case, but he still had to ask, "Why would you want this antidote from me?"

"Let's be frank and open with each other. Don't ask questions you already know the answers to. I won't take advantage of you by telling you."

Princess Ruyu immediately stated her maternal grandfather's intentions, not forgetting to add her own:

"There's one more thing I need to discuss with you. Could you dilute the antidote a bit? I know the medicine is good, but it's really hard to swallow!"

Chu Mingkong felt that this topic was really going on... He really wanted to explain to Princess Ruyu that this thing wasn't so "convenient," and that it was too strange for him to carry his private parts with him as an antidote.

"Don't you know what the antidote really is?"

"The antidote? It's medicine, of course," Princess Ruyu said matter-of-factly.

"..." Chu Mingkong.

It seems that when Shen Xuejun spat it out and gave it to Ruyu to eat, she didn't explain it clearly. If Princess Ruyu ever finds out what it was, then it's really over.

Princess Ruyu continued to patiently persuade the other party to make the deal, as his current height was just right. She patted Chu Mingkong's head and said:

"Although my mother said that this stuff is inexhaustible, I know how precious it is. Relieving the effects of the aphrodisiac is probably just one of its insignificant uses."

After I finished eating it, I felt a warm sensation in my lower abdomen, but not the kind of warmth from the aphrodisiac. It felt like my internal organs were being restored. Then I went to the training ground and practiced for a while, and I noticed a strange power within my body, but it disappeared quickly.

Chu Mingkong pondered for a moment. Ru Yu was probably referring to the effects of the *Su Nu Jing* and the *Xuan Nu Jing*. The former primarily focused on healing, while the latter focused on killing. He had always thought that these two effects could only be triggered by circulating internal energy; it turned out that these two cultivation methods were also subtly influencing his kidney essence.

"Let me put it this way, giving you this kind of thing back then was really a temporary measure, a last resort. Under normal circumstances, you would ask your husband or someone like that for it; it's not appropriate to ask an outsider."

"Why are you being so stubborn? If you don't want to give it to me, then don't. Why ask my husband for it? Do you think I don't know what's good for me? Do you think any man can have such a unique medicine?"

"When I came, I told my mother that you're incredibly stingy, and it wouldn't be appropriate for me to intervene. Don't blame me for being despicable; I'll have my mother, who is now your master, ask you for it and see if you really won't give me even a tiny bit. Remember to dilute it a bit when you give it to me!"

Princess Ruyu is quite a fun girl; she doesn't hide anything and says whatever comes to mind, even complaining to your face without making you feel uncomfortable. It's fortunate she didn't grow up in the Xiao family's atmosphere, otherwise her bright future would have been ruined.

"Princess Ruyu, do you like milk? Princess Jinyu likes it very much." Chu Mingkong thought he could give Ruyu some milk so she could get used to the taste.

Not every drop of milk is called "Special".

"Milk? That stuff tastes awful. Has Jinyu's palate become so strange lately?"

Chu Mingkong briefly inquired about Princess Ruyu's dietary preferences. Upon learning that she liked smooth and slippery foods, he immediately presented her with double-skin milk pudding, jelly, and herbal jelly. Ruyu mustered her courage and tried these new treats, quite surprised. Seeing that she had adapted to them, Chu Mingkong then offered her thick yogurt, which she could barely tolerate this time.

The main reason is that the ingredients are novel and the taste is indeed not bad, which is enough to overcome my aversion to the sticky texture.

"Afterwards, you can ask your master's wife to chill it for you, it will taste even better, or you can wait for Yunhan to come back and let her use her internal energy to chill it for you."

"Is that so? I'll ask my mother to try it later. Where did you get these snacks? Do you have a recipe?"

"These are local delicacies from the Crescent Moon Kingdom, not available in the Celestial Empire." Chu Mingkong was already very familiar with this excuse, making it come naturally to him. "I still have some, would you like more?"

"You got it from such a far place?"

Princess Ruyu felt something was off as she ate; why was this stingy fellow suddenly becoming so generous and enthusiastic?

"Wait! You don't mean... you're trying to give me this snack so I'll be too embarrassed to ask my mother for the antidote, do you?"

"......I did not mean that."

Feeling guilty, Chu Mingkong brought out extra snacks to treat them. If Ruyu hadn't told Shen Xuejun, Chu Mingkong would have felt even more sad and upset.

Ru Yu looked at him warily. Something was definitely amiss. She put all the new gadgets Chu Mingkong had given her into her storage ring, ignored him, and hurried off to find Shen Xuejun.

When Shen Xuejun saw her daughter rushing over, she asked:

"Why are you so flustered? Have you already asked Mingkong for pointers on spear techniques?"

"Shooting skills...? I forgot to ask him. It turns out this guy was trying to distract me and didn't want to teach me shooting skills!" Princess Ruyu quickly reported Chu Mingkong, that despicable "villain," to her mother, saying that he kept diverting her attention, didn't want to give her medicine, and wouldn't even teach her shooting skills, only caring about giving her food.

Ru Yu's explanation was rather disorganized, and Shen Xuejun didn't quite understand it. She confirmed:

"Ruyu, are you trying to tell me to go and ask you for the antidote?"

“That’s right, otherwise this guy won’t give it to you. You can also scold him, glare at him a few times, and stomp on his feet a few times… There’s one more thing, Mother, could you please put these boxes of snacks in the refrigerator for me?”

Helplessly, Shen Xuejun used her internal energy to freeze the snacks for her. Princess Ruyu didn't enjoy them alone; she took a spoon and fed them to Shen Xuejun, one spoonful at a time, marveling at how delicious they were!

However, after finishing her meal, she remembered that the spear she had asked the blacksmith in Xiling to forge was almost delivered, so she went back first and did not linger at Qingxin Mansion.

After sending her daughter away, Shen Xuejun found Chu Mingkong.

Chapter 232 The Master's Wife's Path

When Chu Mingkong heard the news that Princess Ruyu had left, he didn't know why she left. Could it be that she was pretending to be upset with Shen Xuejun and left in anger?

If it really escalates to that level, it's no laughing matter. We need to quickly explain the situation to the teacher's wife.

At this moment, Chu Mingkong was able to transform back, so he quickly returned to his normal form and changed into ordinary clothes.

He had only pulled up halfway through his underpants when Shen Xuejun appeared in his room. Her beautiful eyes were calm, as if she hadn't expected Chu Mingkong to revert back to his original state. She looked Chu Mingkong up and down, but didn't comment on his actions. She then sat down in the chair as if nothing had happened.

"Mingkong, didn't you promise to give Ruyu some pointers? Why did you go back on your word at the last minute?"

"I didn't mean I didn't give you guidance. It's just that Ruyu misunderstood and thought I didn't give her any guidance. She just ran away while we were talking."

She said you were using snacks to stall for time and kept giving her new things to eat.

This Ruyu looks like a tall, slender young woman, so why is she tattling on things that involve children...? Chu Mingkong thought she would at most talk about medicine, but why is she even talking about marksmanship?

Chu Mingkong, feeling embarrassed, quickly pulled up his pants, put on his clothes, sat down next to Shen Xuejun, stole a glance at his mature, beautiful, and aloof master's wife, and explained:

"That's not true either. Last time, when you gave Ruyu my thing as an antidote, I felt guilty. But I know you don't think it's a big deal. If I gave her a formal and grand apology gift, you might have a problem with it. So I gave her some fresh food to try."

This way, I can at least soothe my guilt and avoid putting you, my teacher's wife, in a difficult position.

Shen Xuejun said:

“If you are truly guilty and ashamed, you should tell Ruyu directly what she ate and how to take it out. Right now, Ruyu doesn’t even know that you are expressing your apology. She thinks you are just being perfunctory. You feel that she doesn’t deserve your guidance and come to me to complain. Are you trying to soothe your own guilt by making her feel bad?”

“…Uh.” Chu Mingkong was speechless; he really couldn’t answer Shen Xuejun’s question.

"In the end, what you did only made yourself feel at ease, but it had no meaning for Ruyu. How is comforting your own guilt any different from self-deception? You even made yourself go through unnecessary trouble to comfort yourself, so why didn't you just let go of this emotion from the beginning?"

Is the master's wife here to "convert" him to let go of his feelings?

Chu Mingkong thought this would be a discussion about the antidote, so how did it veer off to this? He suddenly felt that Shen Xuejun was a lot like an old Buddhist monk who would persuade people to have a complete awakening, let go of all their attachments, and enter the monastic life. But it was definitely inappropriate to describe Shen Xuejun as an old bald Buddhist monk. Perhaps she should be called a female bodhisattva? And Chu Mingkong was actually quite receptive to her kind of guidance.

His thoughts followed Shen Xuejun's words, and he briefly explored his own thoughts. Rationally speaking, Shen Xuejun's words made sense; he seemed to have been dominated by his emotions, even needing to soothe his own guilt. But emotionally, something felt off. He said:

“Master’s wife, I think this can be understood as the good and bad influence of emotions on me. The good thing is that it allows me to enjoy those beautiful things more, while the bad thing is that while enjoying them, it brings me an extra emotional burden, such as ‘guilt,’ ‘self-blame,’ ‘feeling guilty,’ and ‘immorality.’ But if there were no such emotional burden, the world would be in chaos, and everyone would do evil without feeling anything.”

"That's why there are rules to define what should and shouldn't be done," Shen Xuejun said.

Chu Mingkong thought for a moment and realized he couldn't articulate a reason; his cultivation level was ultimately inferior to his master's wife's. He could only say:

“It sounds like what Master’s wife said is right, but I can’t give up the enjoyment of feelings. If I like someone, I will try to possess them, regardless of whether it is suitable or not. Perhaps this is what is called ‘true nature’? If I lose this ‘true nature’, then I am not Chu Mingkong. Moreover, if I lose this emotion, I probably will not be close to Master’s wife.”

"My physical appearance and voice all stem from my ruthlessness. Doesn't the affection you feel for me right now mean that your heart is pursuing my ruthlessness? Because you are burdened by your emotions and exhausted, you yearn to find a transcendent state of mind?"

I can't argue with that...

Chu Mingkong didn't think of himself as such a profound person. To put it bluntly, he was just a shallow lecher who longed to delve into all sorts of extreme Yin paths. He couldn't help but want to get close to Shen Xuejun, not because she spoke to him when they first met, but because she left such a deep impression on him. At that time, he didn't have any concerns.

"Perhaps not. It's probably because I don't understand my master's wife's ruthless way very deeply. I haven't experienced how good or wonderful her way is, so it's hard for me to comprehend her way and reason."

"Alright, let's get back to the antidote. Why won't you prepare a few doses for Ruyu? She's willing to pay for it. If you're not willing to, at least tell her why."

"Well, how should I put it..." Chu Mingkong found it difficult to speak.

"Or do you want your master's wife to take you out with her mouth again, hmm?"

After saying that, Shen Xuejun stared at him expressionlessly, her gaze like clear spring water reflecting his image, but after a while, it was as if she were cold, hard ice reflecting his appearance, as if she were telling him with contempt and disdain—look at the shameful state you are in now.

Chu Mingkong pondered his answer. If he answered yes, would it be too blunt? But if he didn't say it that way, wouldn't he be denying his previous arguments and negating his own true feelings?

Before he could answer, Shen Xuejun sighed:

"Look, you're entangled in too many emotions, and you can't answer questions with a clear conscience. How can you truly know yourself like this? Even joy, closeness, and love—these seemingly beautiful emotions can actually become your burdens, ropes that control you. Do you believe it?"

"I don't really believe it." Chu Mingkong's expression was strange.

"Alright, so you're happy that your teacher helped you get the medicine, right?"

Chu Mingkong's expression turned solemn. "How could that be? I'm not that kind of person!"

"Then I'll take this as a reward for you. If you listen to me and obey my orders, I'll give you this reward. I'll also give the antidote to Ruyu. Is that alright?" As soon as she finished asking, Shen Xuejun said in a commanding tone, "Be obedient. You'll say yes!"

"...?!"

Chu Mingkong stared incredulously at his cold, beautiful, and mature female teacher.

Cheer up! How can you let a woman who looks at you with such cold indifference and disdain lead you by the nose? Are you the kind of person who has no backbone?!

Be tough, say no to those self-righteous women, and slap them in the face!

—No, I'm a filial son. If I say no at a time like this, wouldn't that hurt my teacher's feelings...?

Moreover, one cannot disobey the orders of one's elders; in the words of the master's wife, this is the rule!

"Okay," Chu Mingkong said, showing his ability to adapt to changing circumstances.

"The first command is to change back."