Chapter 0:25. What Is a Dao Companion?
The next day.
Worriedly, Qin Gou went to Mu Tangchun and Qin Yuan’s room early in the morning. Before he could even enter, he heard a series of melodious and pleasant laughter, clearly filled with a very happy atmosphere.
Inside the room.
“Chun’er, try this!”
“It’s delicious!”
“Look at this Spirit Treasure hairpin.”
“It’s so beautiful.”
“Then I’ll give it to you.”
Qin Gou was surprised to see Qin Yuan gently caressing Mu Tangchun’s soft silver hair, her smile exceptionally doting. The scene was incredibly heartwarming.
Despite being two maidens with almost identical appearances, their roles were clearly defined.
“Sister Yuan, you’re too good to me.” Mu Tangchun’s pretty face overflowed with contentment.
“No choice, who told me I understand you so well? After all, our tastes are practically identical!” Saying that, Yuan Zhao smiled and waved at Qin Gou.
“Yuan, what exactly is going on between you two?” Qin Gou asked curiously, filled with doubt.
Qin Yuan immediately instructed Mu Tangchun a few words, then stood up and walked out of the room with Qin Gou.
Arriving at a secluded spot, Qin Yuan said with great satisfaction, “Father, please rest assured, from today onwards, Chun’er will never again overstep her bounds with you.”
“Is that true?”
“Well, at least on the surface, Chun’er will be very well-behaved!”
Qin Yuan hesitated and said, “However, as for what she truly thinks in her heart, Yuan really can’t control that. We talked for a long time last night, and it turns out that ever since Chun’er gained consciousness, her mind has only remembered you. While Yuan was freely wandering the world all these years, she was constantly being subtly influenced and instructed by Granny Mo and the others at Taiping Tower. She has lived her life as the fiancée of the Master of Arc-Moon Mountain, and even lived for that. It’s not something that can be easily changed by a sudden statement like ‘you are my blood relative from another world’.”
“Moreover, even Yuan cannot truly empathize with Chun’er’s situation. Her circumstances are too unique. It’s most fortunate that Chun’er first encountered a human. If she had been adopted by a Spiritual Beast or a Demon Race… Yuan can’t even imagine what kind of ‘teachings’ she would have received.”
Upon hearing this, Qin Gou’s eyes revealed a hint of pity and heartache. He sighed, “I know that child has suffered a lot all these years. Does Yuan know the origin of Tang N’s current name? According to Granny Mo, it was simply because when she first met Tang N, there happened to be a Mu Tang City nearby. Seeing that her memory was blank like an idiot, she casually called her Mu Tangchi. It was only later, when she discovered her astonishing potential for exploitation, that she changed it to the more pleasant word ‘Chun’.”
Qin Yuan nodded and said softly, “So Yuan was also very conflicted. In the end, she could only tell Chun’er in a way similar to a three-chapter covenant. Even if she had any particularly bold ideas and wanted to act on them, she absolutely couldn’t do it before her sister Yuan, otherwise…”
“Snap.”
Qin Gou suddenly placed his hand on Qin Yuan’s shoulder, and the sadness of the moment instantly turned into shock.
“I must have misheard you?” Qin Gou’s voice trembled, “Who did you just say Tang N couldn’t get ahead of?”
Qin Yuan pointed to her own nose, then, unable to hold back, chuckled, “Father, it’s rare to see you so flustered! However, that was just something said to Chun’er. Otherwise, if Yuan directly blocked all paths and gave her no hope, how would Chun’er be willing?”
Qin Gou breathed a sigh of relief and chuckled, “So that’s how it is.”
“Hehe, Father, don’t worry, Yuan was born to share your worries and will absolutely not cause you trouble!” Qin Yuan’s eyes sparkled, her smile as beautiful as a flower.
“You wench,” Qin Gou said with a gentle smile, “In the future, whoever can marry a smart and capable girl like my Yuan will truly be blessed with great fortune.”
“No one can marry me,” Qin Yuan spread her small hands and said seriously, “Yuan already has Chun’er, why would I need to get married?”
“You…”
Qin Gou’s eyes widened, his expression filled with astonishment, “What did you say?”
“Father, think about it. In this world today, whether male or female, human or ghost, who can understand and cater to each other’s every need as intimately as Yuan and Chun’er? If there must be someone to support each other throughout life, isn’t Chun’er Yuan’s best choice? Yuan now suspects that our lifespans might even be the same. Many devoted lovers cannot even pray for this. It’s a truly inseparable bond, to live and die together!”
As she spoke, Qin Yuan grinned even more proudly, “So what’s a Dao companion? Is Chun’er not good enough? Or is Yuan’s hands not skillful… cough! What Yuan means is, since she learned some handicraft needlework from Mother before, she can naturally take the time to teach Chun’er as well!”
Qin Gou was stunned. This wench was spouting nonsense that deserved a spanking, yet he found her reasoning plausible and couldn’t find a way to refute her.
“By the way,” Qin Yuan’s eyes flickered as she quickly changed the subject, “I almost forgot. You probably don’t know yet? Last night, Yuan was mistaken for Chun’er again. It was infuriating! I also captured a member of the Demon Race who was disguised as a Taiping Tower guard. That fellow is now locked up in the dungeon.”
“Demon Race?”
“That’s right, and that person was yelling about how Chun’er caused him to lose his identity as Supervisor Xi?”
Just then, there was a knock on the door.
Mu Tangchun’s voice sounded a little strange, “Daddy, Sister Yuan, that Liang Tiantian… he’s here again.”
Qin Gou opened the door, feeling baffled, “No, what is this guy trying to do? He comes so diligently every day. Why doesn’t he just live at Taiping Tower and save himself all this commuting?”
Mu Tangchun hesitated, looking at Qin Gou, then looked at Yuan meaningfully, “Liang Tiantian is here for that beauty who resembles Chun’er.”
At this moment, Mu Tangchun and Qin Yuan, who were present, both clearly understood who the so-called ‘beauty’ was. Only Qin Gou, who was directly involved, remained in the dark.
A hint of anger flashed in Qin Yuan’s eyes, and she snorted, “This guy, I was just wondering where to find him, and now I’ll let Yuan go meet him!” With that, she walked towards the main hall without any hesitation.
“You mean, Liang Tiantian is actually here for Yuan this time? When did they have any contact? I had no idea?!”
For a moment, Qin Gou couldn’t help but show a look of anger, gritting his teeth, “This scoundrel Liang Tiantian, he gave up on Tang N before and now he’s coming after Yuan? Is he declaring war on my old Qin family? He’s specifically targeting my precious daughters!”
“No, Daddy, you’ve misunderstood.”
Seeing this, Mu Tangchun’s pretty face turned red. She clasped her small hands behind her back and whispered in a voice even smaller than a mosquito, “On this point alone, Chun’er can guarantee that Liang Tiantian’s true target of entanglement is no longer your daughter…”
