"Brother Su, our journey has been smooth so far, hasn't it?"

After they had finished their hotpot in the banquet hall, the Third Elder and Su Xuan moved into the accommodations Fu Yong had arranged for them. The residence could be described as luxurious, with hand-embroidered carpets spread across the floor, landscape paintings and calligraphy by famous artists adorning the walls, and bedding of exquisite comfort and quality. They each had their own room and were not staying together.

"Third Elder, you..."

Su Xuan certainly didn't feel the trip had been smooth. Although Fu Yong had agreed to lend them the furnace, he had only said it would be arranged "soon." Exactly when "soon" might be was worth pondering. He furrowed his brow and asked the Third Elder, "What exactly is the issue between you and Fu Yong?"

It's more than just a critique of his Dan Art. Su Xuan thought, not believing the simple explanation.

"You really want me to tell you?" Perhaps having drunk a few too many pots of the strong liquor even Ancestor Meng enjoyed, the Third Elder felt inclined to unburden himself.

"Go ahead." Su Xuan spread his hands. At this point, the two weren't doing anything else. They were just sitting across from each other sipping tea, long having lost interest and feeling quite bored.

"Then I'll tell you." With a flushed old face, the Third Elder haltingly told Su Xuan about his secret love for A-Lian. At the end, he even said, "A-Lian obviously prefers assertive men, not a silent brooder like me. That's why I lost to Fu Yong. Otherwise, A-Lian and I might already have had children..."

The Third Elder chuckled to himself but said no more.

Su Xuan curled his lip. "So, you came this time with a luxurious carriage and even wore a grand red robe, making such a grand spectacle? All to be impulsive for an old flame?"

The Third Elder's face grew even redder as he whispered, "I can't let A-Lian think I'm shabby, can I?"

Su Xuan could understand the Third Elder's sentiments but still teased him. "I have to admire Fu Yong's restraint. If I were him, I would have beaten you up first!"

The Third Elder lifted his head. "Surely not?"

"If you were Fu Yong, could you endure it?" Su Xuan asked.

The Third Elder fell silent again.

Su Xuan cradled his head in his hands, leaning back in his chair. "With this old love affair of yours, I'm afraid borrowing that Huo Yun Furnace won't be easy. And we'll probably encounter a lot more..."

KNOCK, KNOCK, KNOCK!

Suddenly, there was a knock at the door. Su Xuan glanced at the Third Elder, then stood up to open it.

CREAK.

The door swung open. Seeing the no-longer-young woman standing outside, Su Xuan was taken aback.

"A-Lian?!"

It was the Third Elder who was truly shocked. He leaped to his feet and nearly flew across the floor to the doorway. His lips trembling, he asked the woman, "What brings you here?"

The visitor was indeed A-Lian, the wife of Sect Leader Fu Yong of the Ten Cauldrons Sect.

"My apologies for disturbing your rest." A-Lian offered a graceful salutation to Su Xuan and the Third Elder. Then, with a calm expression, she looked at the Third Elder and said, "Senior Brother Xie, I'd like to have a word with you."

The Third Elder's surname was Xie, and they were once fellow sect members, so she addressed him as Senior Brother Xie. Her intention was quite clear: she wished to speak with him in private, away from Su Xuan.

"I'd like to have a word with you..."

That single phrase nearly brought the Third Elder to tears. How many years had passed? In all those days and nights, how he had longed to say those very words to her! "I'd like to have a word with you..."

"Junior Sister, let's talk in my room." The Third Elder glanced at Su Xuan, then left Su Xuan's room, leading A-Lian toward his own.

Using True Qi to project his voice, Su Xuan called to the Third Elder's departing back, "Don't say too much. She's not your wife."

The Third Elder didn't reply, simply waving a hand at Su Xuan without turning around.

"A-Lian, what did you want to talk to me about?" After bringing A-Lian into his room, the Third Elder had intended to leave the door open, but a cold wind kept gusting in, so he had no choice but to close it. He then eagerly asked his question.

In his mind, he couldn't help but imagine all the things she might want to say. For instance, "Senior Brother, I've missed you." Or perhaps, "Senior Brother, do you miss me?" Or even, "Senior Brother, why didn't we end up together back then?"

But A-Lian simply said, "Senior Brother, was your journey here smooth?"

"Smooth... smooth..." the Third Elder replied, his heart filled with a profound sense of loss.

Suddenly, A-Lian also used True Qi to project her voice. "Senior Brother, you're a fool. Truly, how can you be so foolish? You know Fu Yong's temperament, so why did you still come to visit the Ten Cauldrons Sect? Aren't you afraid of bringing humiliation upon yourself?"

The Third Elder was stunned into silence. It took him a long while before he murmured a response, also using True Qi, "I'm not foolish. I just couldn't let go of an old friend and wanted to come see her."

Hearing this, A-Lian was also taken aback. A moment later, she looked at the Third Elder with a tender gaze and asked, "Are you doing alright?"

Hearing this very ordinary greeting, the Third Elder, who had never married, felt his lips tremble. "I'm fine."

A-Lian nodded, her expression unreadable—somewhere between relieved and incredulous.

The Third Elder felt a bit awkward. He rubbed his hands together and asked, "And you, Junior Sister?"

A-Lian lowered her head, staring at the floor. "I'm... also fine."

The Third Elder scratched his head. "That's good. That's good."

After that, neither of them spoke. The room was deathly quiet.

Actually, the Third Elder desperately wanted to hear A-Lian say she wasn't doing well, that she would have been better off married to him. It was a very selfish thought, yet it was incredibly real.

And A-Lian, in fact, knew that the Third Elder was not doing well. Who didn't know that the famous Third Elder, renowned for his Dan Art, was still single?

This was a knot in Fu Yong's heart that he could never forget. That old bastard is still pining for my wife!

After a period of silence, they simultaneously looked up, caught each other's eye, and then quickly looked away, each noticing the bitter smile on the other's lips.

"The reason I came this time..." To break the awkward silence, the Third Elder began to explain. "I came to accompany the young brother from next door to borrow the Huo Yun Furnace. An old acquaintance of his has a strange illness and needs a certain pill. And this young brother of mine is no small fry, you know. He's a Heavenly-ranked Alchemist, and not an ordinary one at that! He said he received guidance from an immortal in a dream, which allowed him to step directly into the Heavenly-ranked Alchemist realm. He can even refine supreme-quality pills! As for my old furnace... he blew it up! Good heavens, when it exploded, the smoke blackened my face and sent my poor little pill apprentice flying! Hahaha!"

The Third Elder laughed so hard he bent double, his performance a bit exaggerated.

A-Lian laughed along with him. "So you think so highly of your young brother. I actually thought he was your coachman. When I saw him, I wondered how an old man like you could have such a handsome coachman. Such grandeur! It turns out you were putting on a show."

The Third Elder suddenly became very solemn. "It was a performance for you." He then shamelessly pointed at the grand red robe he was wearing. "I wore this for you." After a moment's thought, he added, "The carriage was borrowed."

A-Lian lowered her head, tears unexpectedly welling in her eyes. But she immediately pinched the palm of her hand, admonishing herself.

It's alright to reminisce. But that's all it can be. We can't cross that line.

The Third Elder, who had indeed had quite a bit to drink that evening, desperately wanted to pour out the emotions that had been festering in his heart for years. He said, "A-Lian. There's something I've wanted to tell you..."

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