My Gentle and Pure Sect Leader Husband - Chapter 36

Yan Hongyin always made a habit of keeping her physician identity separate from the Jinyiwei, with no overlap between them.

And in a situation where Lu Gang and others were likely looking for her, she didn’t really want to directly contact the Jinyiwei stronghold—fortunately there was Ji Qing.

But she hadn’t been idle either. Following her years-long habit, she had found a medical clinic that was hiring and started working as a consulting physician.

But honestly…

Yan Hongyin rubbed her temples.

She was a bit tired.

Last night, she and Yu Luocha had shared a room. Knowing that even if they unconsciously attacked each other, neither would die from it, both were relatively able to fall asleep when extremely exhausted.

But whenever one of them turned over or made any other movement, the other would instinctively wake up.

They slept then woke, woke then slept again, tossing and turning in a daze all night. When little Hua came to knock on the door the next morning to wake the two sleep-deprived adults, both buried their faces in their pillows, unwilling to face the morning.

“Aunt Yan? Uncle Yu? Big brother is awake!”

Little Hua only knocked three times before stopping, extremely well-behaved and sensible as he turned and ran off to socialize with little Ximen.

Yan Hongyin exhaled a breath of stale air and said hoarsely, “Get up.”

If she let this person into her room again tonight, she’d be the most forgetful fool under heaven!

Yu Luocha lay motionless in the blankets, even his hair strands screaming “if you want to get up, you get up.”

Yan Hongyin pressed the acupoints around her eyes to force herself awake, then threw back the covers and got out of bed. When she saw the miserable state of the screen between them, her pupils trembled for a moment.

The silk screen that had been placed between them as a witness to last night’s events had become the victim of their unconscious attacks. The fine silk had been repeatedly pierced and torn, and the pear wood frame bore gouged marks, pathetically testifying to the cruel violence of the nominal couple in the room.

Yan Hongyin: “…”

Since she hadn’t removed her undergarments last night, Yan Hongyin silently took an outer robe from the rack and draped it over herself. She walked around the battle-scarred screen and stood by the chaise lounge.

Yu Luocha’s exposed ear twitched.

He certainly knew Yan Hongyin was standing beside him, but he was relying on his thick skin to remain motionless on the chaise lounge.

Yan Hongyin stared at him for a while, then walked away.

Yu Luocha pricked up his ears and heard Yan Hongyin’s footsteps moving farther away. He curled his lips into a smile and hugged the blanket, planning to brazenly take another nap after Yan Hongyin left.

However, as he was thinking about this, just as his mind was becoming foggy, a stimulating and tangy smell shot from his nose straight to the top of his head. The next moment, his face and neck exposed outside the pillow were smeared with something fiery hot and sticky, which after one breath, transformed into bone-chilling cold that crept into Yu Luocha’s clothes.

“What the hell?!”

Yu Luocha practically bounced up from the chaise lounge, standing at its edge and immediately began loosening his clothes, using his undergarments to vigorously wipe his face and neck several times.

Only after rubbing his face and neck red did Yu Luocha rid himself of that strange sensation. He looked at Yan Hongyin standing to the side with a sickly expression.

Yan Hongyin held a small brush in one hand and a porcelain bowl in the other, saying flatly, “Awake now?”

Yu Luocha stood there with disheveled clothes and held his forehead. “Ah Yin…”

Yan Hongyin tossed the small brush back into the porcelain bowl, casually found a place to set it down, and her gaze wandered over Yu Luocha’s half-exposed body lines with appreciation. “Wasp waist, ape back, crane stance, mantis form. Not bad.”

Yu Luocha: “…”

He was a married man, and the woman opposite was his wife with whom he had performed the marriage ceremony and had a marriage certificate, but still…

The pure-hearted Luocha silently gathered his clothes and tied his belt.

If Ah Yin wasn’t embarrassed, he would be, alright?

Yu Luocha raised his eyes about to say something when the tattered screen behind Yan Hongyin caught his eye.

Yan Hongyin also turned around, standing in front of the screen and asked Yu Luocha, “Does it look nice?”

After glancing at the marks on the screen where blades had slashed through, Yu Luocha thoughtfully crouched down and reached under the chaise lounge, feeling around before clattering out a small pile.

“So it wasn’t a dream… You really did throw hidden weapons at me last night?” Yu Luocha looked up at Yan Hongyin accusingly.

Yan Hongyin gave a cold laugh, stepping aside to gesture for Yu Luocha to look up.

Yan Hongyin’s inner chamber originally had an old pear wood bed with carved flowers and four corners inlaid with mica pearls. But now it looked completely bare, as if someone had violently smoothed it down.

Clearly, after destroying the screen last night, the innocent old pear wood bed had become the next victim of the clash between their internal energies.

Yu Luocha gathered the small pile of hidden weapons in his outer robe and walked toward the door, pretending nothing had happened.

After this person left, Yan Hongyin closed the door with a flick of her sleeve, then rubbed her forehead and went to change her clothes.

****

“Doctor Yan? Doctor Yan? You don’t look well. Did you not rest properly last night?” The kindly voice of the elderly doctor sounded beside her.

“Thank you for your concern, Doctor An.” Pushing the morning’s mess out of her mind, Yan Hongyin bowed to the elderly doctor. “Last night an untamed cat at home caused a disturbance all night, truly bothersome.”

“Doctor Yan has a cat too?” With no patients at the clinic at the moment, Doctor An showed interest in chatting with Yan Hongyin. “I have one at home as well. My wife is extremely fond of it and insists I bring home a bag of fresh small fish every day.”

“What kind of cat does Doctor Yan have? Male or female?”

Yan Hongyin paused, her expression peculiar. “A male cat, a breed from the Western Regions beyond the border. His fur is smooth and glossy, his eyes are amber with green flecks, and he’s somewhat larger than ordinary cats.”

“He’s a black cloud, very beautiful, just a bit fierce. If not properly restrained, he’ll scratch people.”

“A breed from beyond the border? No wonder he’s somewhat aggressive! But it seems Doctor Yan is quite fond of this cat at home.”

Yan Hongyin lowered her eyes without responding to this remark.

“But a cat that’s too fierce is problematic. If it runs away someday, you might not be able to find it.”

Yan Hongyin slowly said, “You’re right. If it runs away, it becomes a stray cat, not easy to keep, and not worth keeping.”

“Exactly right!” Doctor An exclaimed repeatedly, then offered advice. “If Doctor Yan is truly troubled, why not try the method our ancestors used after bringing cats into the home? It’s very effective.”

Yan Hongyin was curious. “What method?”

“Castrate the male cat to kill its masculine energy, transforming fierceness into gentleness, completely eliminating its aggression.” Doctor An made a gesture. “Doctor Yan needn’t worry about hurting the cat. It’s just a small incision to squeeze out the testicles, followed by proper bandaging.”

“My cat at home became much more docile and plump after being neutered. During spring, it has less irritability and wandering tendencies, and is much more affectionate.”

“Ah…” Yan Hongyin opened and closed her mouth. “This…”

Doctor An seemed very familiar with cats, and having finally met a physician who had a cat at home, he began imparting cat-raising tips volubly.

“Doctor Yan, the castration must be done outdoors. After feeling the pain, the cat will run indoors, and afterward will become increasingly attached to home…”

Yan Hongyin: “…”

Her cat, although indeed brought in through marriage, probably….hmm, couldn’t be castrated.

****

In the pastry shop that shared a back wall with Yan Hongyin’s clinic, Yu Luocha was studying recipes with a solemn expression behind the stove.

Ah Lou had been given assignments by Yan Hongyin, and Ah Xue needed more rest due to his weakened condition. Since the materials needed to teach the two children weren’t fully prepared yet, they decided to let the two spend some time together to become better acquainted.

Yu Luocha stared at the characters in the recipe. He recognized them individually and when grouped together, but when connected in sentences, he couldn’t understand at all.

“Achoo——!”

Yu Luocha rubbed his itchy nose, muttering “who’s thinking about or plotting against this Lord.”

Then he tossed the recipe aside, leaned back against the wall, and said in a deep voice, “Bring this Lord a cook who knows Jiangnan cuisine.”

The secret guard waiting outside acknowledged the order and left. Shortly after, he returned knocking softly at the door while holding a trembling cook.

“A cook?” Yu Luocha crouched in front of the cook who had collapsed into a puddle, smiling. “How’s your cooking skill?”

“Re-replying to your lordship, I-I am f-from P-P-Pingci Restaurant…”

Pingci Restaurant was a famous establishment in Jinling City.

The more Yu Luocha smiled kindly and gently, the more the cook trembled, his teeth now beginning to chatter.

Finding it boring, Yu Luocha dropped his smile, stood up straight, and ordered coldly,  “Go, make a dish for this Lord to see.”

“…Ah, ah?”

“Cook.” Yu Luocha was beginning to lose patience. “You can’t?”

His tone strongly implied that if the cook couldn’t, he’d be replaced.

“I can, I can, I can——I can!” The cook scrambled up from the ground. The desire to survive drove him to quickly ladle water from the vat to wash his hands, then glance at the ingredients in the winnowing basket beside the chopping board, carefully asking, “Shall I make salt-water shrimp for you?”

Yu Luocha recalled the dishes that Yan Hongyin had taken several extra bites of when they ate out together, and asked, “Do you know how to make that fish that blooms, the sour and sweet one?”

Blooms…?

The cook was bewildered for a moment, then as Yu Luocha’s brow furrowed, a flash of inspiration struck, “It’s squirrel fish, squirrel fish! I can make it, I can!”

“Oh.”

Yu Luocha strolled to another water vat a few steps away from the kitchen, lifted the lid to look, then effortlessly carried the vat full of water and fish back, placing it with a thud beside the stove.

“Good then.”

The cook swallowed and tremblingly wiped the sweat from his brow.

“What else can you make?”

The cook rattled off a string of dish names without catching his breath.

“You know quite a lot. Not bad.” Yu Luocha leisurely rolled up his sleeves and stood beside the cook, beginning to order dishes. “Then let’s have stir-fried double-crisp, blanched bamboo shoots, drunken ribs, hmm…also stew a chicken soup, and this fish.”

Hearing that these were all dishes he knew how to make, the cook immediately felt relieved.

But before he could even exhale that relieved breath, he heard the grim reaper beside him say, “Before the evening meal, teach this Lord how to make them.”

Cook: “!!!”

Help, help me!

….

Yu Luocha ignored the cook’s suggestion to start with the bamboo shoots, lifting the fish out of the water and preparing to cut it.

The cook could only tremble as he also took a fish out onto his cutting board. Trying to calm himself, he relied on years of skill to scale and debone the fish, splitting it open, and cutting the fish meat into beautiful decorative slices.

Yu Luocha watched with interest as the cook lifted the flower-cut fish meat, noting how the fish meat and tail were still connected to the skin. He raised an eyebrow. “Interesting.”

“Th-this dish requires s-some skill with the knife, m-many cooks can’t do it…”

The cook desperately tried to explain, then watched in disbelief as the grim reaper beside him raised his knife and brought it down. In almost the blink of an eye, he had replicated a squirrel fish identical to the one on the cook’s cutting board. His movements were fluid and the cut surfaces of the fish were even cleaner than those made by the cook who had been doing this his entire life.

The cleaver twirled once in Yu Luocha’s hand as he nodded with satisfaction. “Simple.”

He really did have a natural talent for cooking!

Tonight’s dinner would surely amaze Ah Yin and the two hungry children!

However, soon after, Sect Leader Yu, who hadn’t been stopped by the knife skills that had stumped countless others, got stuck on the final step of simmering the sauce.

After pouring out several pots of sauce, the pride in Yu Luocha’s eyes froze.

He asked somewhat irritably, “What does ‘a little bit’ and ‘appropriate amount’ mean? With so many miscellaneous ingredients, isn’t there an exact measure?”

The cook didn’t dare show anger or speak his mind. After hesitating for a long time, he finally whispered, “The size of the fish and the ladle vary, so naturally the amount used also varies…”

The cook couldn’t understand why this was difficult to comprehend. This was a step that wouldn’t stump even an apprentice!

Yu Luocha: “…”

After a while, Sect Leader Yu slightly pressed the knife in his hand down on the cutting board. The cold blade hummed.

The cook closed his eyes in despair, crying out in his heart that his life was over.

“Go, bring this Lord a vat of fish of exactly the same size, and prepare a set of porcelain bowls and ladles identical to these, wrapped up.”

The secret guard acknowledged the order from outside the door. Yu Luocha turned to look at the cook, saying in a gentle tone, “Now can we establish exact measurements?”

Realizing he might not have to die after all, the cook opened his eyes and stammered, “…Y-yes… yes…”

TN:

蜂腰 (Fēng yāo) – “Wasp waist,” meaning a slender, narrow waist.

猿背 (Yuán bèi) – “Ape-like back,” referring to a strong, broad back.

鹤势 (Hè shì) – “Crane stance/posture,” implying an elegant or poised stance.

螂形 (Láng xíng) – “Mantis form,” often referencing agility, sharp movements, or a martial arts stance inspired by the praying mantis.