4th Day of the Fifth Month. Year 735 NCE.
An hour after sunset.
Sitting upright on a plush sofa, Wuzhi calmly sipped on an exquisite cup of tea. His suitcase, containing his spare clothes, firmly rested near his feet while the urn containing his late mother's ashes stood obscured under his heavy overcoat, hanging behind him.
Having spent the entire day working in the Mu Household, Wuzhi had to admit; he was utterly spent. Fortunately for him, the cup of tea in his hand seemed to be worth all his efforts.
'Is this how the legendary 'Water of Creation' from the Life Creation Lake tastes?' Wuzhi wondered. The taste of the tea was so exquisite that Wuzhi dared to compare it with the mythical waters of creation!
However, the reality that this would be the first and last time that he would be tasting this tea soon hit him like a sack of bricks. It was unfortunate, but Wuzhi did not dare hope that he would be able to afford this tea ever again. Heavens, he did not even dare ask for its name or price!
"Are you enjoying the tea?" A female voice, reminiscent of the first showers of monsoon, asked. It was the voice of the Eight Madam.
Flashing a calm smile, Wuzhi replied. "It is the accumulation of dozens of Wuzhi's past lives' fortunes to be able to taste this nectar of immortals. Wuzhi sincerely thanks the grace of all Madams here for allowing me to taste this heavenly nectar."
His long-winded, overly polite response earned him the laughter of the gathered fairies. Having grown used to his method of speaking from the previous hours of conversation, the fairies did not seem to mind it.
Speaking of fairies, gathered in front of Wuzhi were exactly fourteen of them and each of them was an otherworldly beauty who would make the world pale in comparison to their countenance. Much to the envy of the world and all its residents, all fourteen of them gathered here were the wives of Sovereign Mu.
These fourteen immortal fairies, in addition to Eldest Madam, Third Madam, and the mysterious Seventeenth Madam consisted of Sovereign Mu's harem. And even though, each of them were mothers –having given birth to one or multiple children— their appearances had not waned in the slightest. If anything, it had only given them each a mature, motherly aura.
It was precisely this 'motherly compassion' that had found Wuzhi in his current situation. Much to his distress, he had been cornered and pampered with abundant care against his wishes. Truth be told, Wuzhi would have felt more comfortable in the company of horses inside a stable than in his current situation.
Otherworldly beauties with immortal auras and transcendental countenances. Should he have found himself in any other setting, Wuzhi, as a young and healthy youth seeing the world and its sights for the first time, would have freely appreciated their beauties without a care in the world. Perhaps, he might've even flirted with one or two of them, indulging himself in harmless frivolities.
However! The Heavens had seemingly decided to present him with the greatest test since his freedom. Not only did Wuzhi have to maintain appropriate distance and decorum against these clingy, motherly figures, all of whom seemed overly curious about him, but! Wuzhi also had to constantly mind his words, guard against their probing questions, and even engage in conversations that were tailored to the speaker's interest.
Even those long games of strategy and intrigue in which he engaged himself against his great teacher were not as exhausting and tense as now!
Wuzhi could only pray that the subject of his goals, Patriarch Mu, could arrive sooner and rid him of this predicament.
Just when hope seemed bleak, Wuzhi realized that the Heavens hadn't abandoned him after all! In the form of a tall, extremely handsome man dressed in clean white robes with immortal swordlight resplendently glowing around his figure, came his salvation.
"Ho! Ho! Ho! To find fourteen of my dear wives gathered in one room without any quarrel, I must be dreaming." The teasing voice of a mature, older man resounded within the tea room.
Upon his arrival, he instantly became the central attraction inside the room. Even the air itself seemed to be paying respect to this man.
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""""""""""""""Husband!""""""""""""""
All fourteen immortal fairies joyously greeted him in unison. Their attention then immediately turned to the rapidly approaching crowd behind him.
"Father! That wasn't fair! You can't simply lock the space behind you to gain an advantage! That's cheating!" A tall youth, seven points similar to the taller man, immediately complained upon arrival.
"Right, right! Father cheated!"
"Cheater! Cheater! Father is a stinky cheater!"
"Eldest Brother's words are right! Father can't wantonly cheat and then gloat about his unfair victory!"
"We almost had you! This isn't fair, father!"
Dozens of younger youths, male and female, each differing in age, size, figure, and appearance, arrived in tandem. While each different greatly or subtly from the others, common amongst them all was their handsome/beautiful appearances and their status as cultivators!
Seeing their children arrive, the motherly instincts of the otherworldly fairies kicked in causing them to rush up to them to check up on them. Their faces held blissful smiles as they listened to their children complain about their husband(father). It was a sight of an extremely affectionate family in harmony.
Wuzhi, who watched this scene from a distance, had an odd smile on his face.
"Bah! So what if I cheated? The world isn't fair, kids. The sooner you all realise that the softer will reality's slap to your faces be." Patriarch Mu shamelessly defended his ill-gained victory.
His shameless words caused the children to grow speechless. They then immediately turned to their respective mothers and exclaimed. "Mom!"
The mothers chuckled before simultaneously turning towards their husband(father) and giving him the stink eye. Their small mouths and beautiful lips moved and seemingly said, 'if you don't own up to your loss, forget sleeping with any of us!'
Patriarch Mu grew speechless. He then showed a look of betrayal as he alternated his gaze between his wives and children. With a reddened face, he shouted, "To think all of you would belong to the same heartless lot!"
The tall youth, who was the oldest amongst his siblings, scoffed at his father's rants and repeated, "The world isn't fair, Father. The sooner you all realise that the softer will reality's slap to your faces be."
"You too, Yuelong?" Patriarch Mu revealed a heartbroken expression. However, seeing as to how none of the children, not even his youngest and cutest daughters, seemingly fell for his act, he resentfully hissed and declared. "Alright, fine! I cheated! You win! I hope you find solace in the fact that you all bullied your poor father into earning this victory!"
The children, however, cared not for their father's rants and were busy celebrating amongst themselves. Seeing his own flesh and blood so heartlessly ignore him, Patriarch Mu's lips twitched. "I should teach these brats the height of Mt. Tai next time."
He decided that he would never again go easy on his own children during their bets starting next time.
Shaking his head while wearing a helpless yet proud smile, Patriarch Mu's attention finally landed on the foreigner within the room. A curious expression overcame his handsome features as he stared at Wuzhi.
"Who does this happen to be?"
At his question, Second Sister, Patriarch Mu's second wife, coolly answered. "That... is Wuzhi. A mortal scholar hailing from the Isilda Continent. He has visited our household today with the intention of meeting with you and has done our household a great favour."
"A great favour?" Patriarch Mu's interest was immediately invoked. Of all his wives, his second wife had the coldest and most rational temper. She was always straight with her words and never spoke too much or too little.
For such a woman to praise Wuzhi's contributions with the word 'great' meant that the young scholar's contributions were nothing short of astronomical.
Seeing her husband's interest being invoked, the azure-haired fairy wore a smile and explained Wuzhi's actions during the day. Inwardly, she was hoping for her husband to recognise Wuzhi's worth and recruit him for their household. To have such a great talent in their service would be invaluable to their household.
As the azure-haired fairy continued to speak, the other fairies also chipped in every now and then and added their own words and praises to the mixture. Soon, the entire main household's attention was cast upon Wuzhi, causing the young scholar to feel a prickling sensation on his skin as dozens of eyes gazed at him with curiosity.
Throughout the process, Wuzhi did not speak and patiently waited. His back stood straight and his eyes were trained upon the floor. His every breath and movement adhered to his impeccable manners.
Nearly ten minutes later, the explanation finally came to an end. Patriarch Mu gazed at the young scholar with a much warmer gaze than before. He then sincerely praised, "To have come across such a talented scholar is the fortune of my household. This Sovereign is greatly appreciative of all your efforts today."
"But I must ask," Patriarch Mu's words suddenly headed in a different direction. "Why are you hiding your face underneath that hat?"
With a leisurely smile occupying his face, Patriarch Mu pointed to the bamboo hat casting a dark shadow on the young scholar's face.
A sudden silence descended upon the scene.
Only after their husband had spoken those words did the immortal fairies, who had accompanied Wuzhi for more than a few hours, suddenly realise; they hadn't caught a glimpse of Wuzhi's face yet! Worse yet, they hadn't even realised the strangeness of this reality!
The shocking realisation caused their expressions to collectively change. They now stared at Wuzhi as if they were staring at some unknown monster.