I Ran Away with the Scumbag's White Moonlight Chapter 52

"Then..." the young master asked, "When Dad was talking to Sect Leader Shen..."

The Sect Leader reached out, ruffled his hair, and blocked the child's upward gaze.

Being stared at by such pure and clear eyes, even the Sect Leader, who never flinched in the face of a hundred enemies, felt a bit pressured.

"It's just because of the reason I mentioned earlier, he looks good."

The young master's soft black hair was slightly tousled, and after hearing the answer, he just pursed his lips slightly without saying anything.

The Sect Leader cleared his throat and added, "Actually, when I was younger, I had a preconceived liking for people who looked good. But after Tingzhi, there hasn't been anyone else."

"No one else?"

The young master was intrigued by the Sect Leader's words.

The Sect Leader nodded.

The young master pressed on, "So Dad hasn't met anyone good-looking since then?"

"It's not that I haven't met them, but they no longer attract me. Only Tingzhi's appearance affects me." The Sect Leader looked at the curious young master and couldn't help but laugh, "What's up?"

He just didn't expect that his preference for looks could narrow down to a specific person.

The young master thought and said, "I just don't understand why only Sect Leader Shen affects Dad."

What's this... giving up a whole forest for one tree?

The Sect Leader wasn't aware of the young master's thoughts; he was still pondering how to explain this seemingly complex issue to the child.

Not far away, Shen Zhuo was standing with Bai Qinglian, seemingly discussing something. Seeing that they weren't coming over anytime soon, the Sect Leader decided to start from the beginning.

Just like when he previously told the young master about his experiences with Shen Zhuo, this was another opportunity for the child to slowly get to know Shen Zhuo.

"Actually, when we first met, I didn't have much of a good impression of Tingzhi because of his looks. We fought from the east of the city to the west, and my first impression of him was that he was wasting a good face."

The young master blinked.

Although he knew that the Sect Leader and Shen Zhuo had met through a fight, hearing the Sect Leader complain about Sect Leader Shen was still quite novel.

Their first meeting was somewhat similar to the young master's first encounter with Bai Qinglian. However, the latter's misunderstanding was split into two events, one at a candied hawthorn stall and the other years later at the Lingfeng Martial Arts Arena.

But there was no insurmountable barrier between the Sect Leader and Shen Zhuo. As they interacted more, they got to know each other better, and the Sect Leader gradually let go of his prejudice against Shen Zhuo.

Once the prejudice was gone, the Sect Leader began to openly acknowledge Shen Zhuo's good looks. But at that time, he merely considered it one of Shen Zhuo's merits. The real reason he continued to get along with Shen Zhuo was because of his character and way of dealing with things.

Speaking of his attitude back then, the Sect Leader casually gave an example.

While collecting materials to nourish the cold pool, the Sect Leader and Shen Zhuo once killed an old man who intended to practice dark arts. Besides his strange skills, the man also kept a group of human-faced monkeys. These monkeys were controlled by the old man's flute and caused quite a bit of trouble for the two.

After finally dealing with all the human-faced monkeys and burning the old man practicing dark arts to ashes, they both breathed a sigh of relief. They were checking the aftermath in different areas, but the Sect Leader was a bit distracted.

During the intense fight, he didn't feel much, but recalling those creatures with human faces afterward made him increasingly uncomfortable.

He simply called Shen Zhuo, who was checking for dangers in another area, over.

Shen Zhuo, hearing his call, thought the Sect Leader had made a new discovery. But the Sect Leader just seriously stared at his face for a while, then waved it off, saying it was nothing.

Shen Zhuo, puzzled, asked, "What's wrong?"

The Sect Leader crossed his arms, "Nothing, just felt nauseated looking at that old man and those monkeys, wanted to look at something else to cleanse my eyes."

Shen Zhuo chuckled but didn't mind the new role the Sect Leader had assigned him, only asking if the Sect Leader felt better now.

After confirming the Sect Leader was fine, they continued their search.

As the Sect Leader recounted, the young master listened intently. Mentioning these past events, the Sect Leader's expression unknowingly softened.

So many years had passed, and even though their time apart was three times longer than the time they spent together, the Sect Leader could still describe every detail so completely, without a hint of uncertainty.

Hugging the fur ball tightly, the young master couldn't help but rub the soft ears of the little snow rabbit with his chin.

Shen Zhuo had been awake for some time now, and over these days, not only did Shen Zhuo's natural charm make people like him, but having the Sect Leader accompanied by Shen Zhuo also made people feel more at ease.

Just for this second point, the young master couldn't continue to hold any strange feelings towards Shen Zhuo.

But besides that, the Sect Leader's words reminded the young master of another event—when the nine major sects were clearing out the Demon Sect, the righteous path was defeated. To meet Xuanyuan Nan and the three princes, the young master and Xuanyuan Nan descended the mountain at the same time. At that time, he was disgusted by Xuanyuan Nan, and later, on the way back, he used Sect Leader Bai, who was holding him, to cleanse his eyes.

Compared to Xuanyuan Nan, who had long fallen below the scum line, Sect Leader Bai, in his snowy clothes and silver sword, who didn't mind the blood on him, was like an immortal descending to the mortal world.

The Sect Leader's detailed account continued. Although he noticed Shen Zhuo's appearance early on, it wasn't until much later that he realized only Shen Zhuo's looks could move him. By then, the appearance of others no longer affected the Sect Leader, while Shen Zhuo's appearance had an increasingly significant impact.

"When did this change happen?" the young master asked, "Was it because of some special story?"

The Sect Leader thought for a moment and said, "Actually, there wasn't any obvious change; it was a gradual process. If there was a turning point, it was probably during Tingzhi's succession ceremony as Sect Leader."

More accurately, the change had long occurred, but it was during that succession ceremony, when he was informed about the sword tassel as a token of love, that the Sect Leader noticed his change.

"Since then, I found that whatever he did would attract me," the Sect Leader said, sighing softly.

"Sometimes the influence is too much, causing trouble... just like the question you asked me earlier."

Blushing while talking was one of those troubles.

The young master's question was finally answered, but he seemed a bit distracted, not even noticing that his chin was pressing down on the little snow rabbit's ears.

It wasn't until the little snow rabbit pawed at his scarf that the young master snapped back to reality and quickly rubbed the little snow rabbit's ears.

He hesitated for a moment and asked the Sect Leader, "Then did Dad realize he liked Sect Leader Shen?"

Hearing this, a smile appeared on the Sect Leader's lips.

He looked up, gazing at Shen Zhuo in the distance.

The young master followed his gaze, but when his eyes landed on Bai Qinglian beside him, he quickly averted his gaze as if he had crossed a boundary.

"Yes."

The Sect Leader added another sentence.

"Actually, saying only Tingzhi's appearance affects me isn't entirely accurate."

More precisely, since confirming his relationship with Shen Zhuo, appearances no longer stirred the Sect Leader's emotions.

What truly affected him, making him blush unconsciously when talking to people, was only Shen Zhuo.

After explaining this, the Sect Leader withdrew his gaze and looked at the young master beside him, "But these are just my own thoughts, not much for you to take as a reference. You're still young, it's normal if you don't understand. There are plenty of opportunities to meet people in the future, just go with the flow. Liking to look at beautiful people isn't a big deal."

The Sect Leader said this with the intention of comforting the child not to worry about leaving Xuanyuan Nan behind. But after hearing it, the young master became even more distracted.

His expression even showed obvious unease.

The Sect Leader's words made sense to him, but it wasn't that he didn't understand; he understood too much.

When the Sect Leader was reminiscing, the young master had twice unconsciously compared his own experiences with Bai Qinglian. At the time, he didn't think much of it, assuming it was just a coincidence. But after the Sect Leader's final words, the young master truly realized something was off.

Not only did he unconsciously recall, but he found that the three processes the Sect Leader described could almost perfectly align with his own feelings for the same person.

He thought of the Martial Arts Arena at the foot of Lingfeng Mountain, where looking at people was an eyesore, the sweet and delicious osmanthus honey under the bright moonlight, the mesmerizing smile under the snow-covered hawthorn tree, and the breathtaking white clothes during the sword dance...

And the Sect Leader had given him a definite answer—after the change in attitude, the Sect Leader confirmed he liked Shen Zhuo.

To the young master, this was like a bolt from the blue.

If that's the case, doesn't that mean he...

His rational mind didn't agree with this thought, but the layers of memories actively sought out their corresponding similarities. Even the sword tassel as a token of love, which the Sect Leader learned about during the succession ceremony, had already played out early in the Demon Sect.

The more the young master thought about it, the more incredulous he felt, as if his entire worldview had been overturned.

...Could it be that he had such feelings for Sect Leader Bai?!

This, how could this be...

The young master's unease grew stronger, so obvious that the Sect Leader noticed something was wrong. Seeing the child, who was fine just a moment ago, suddenly panic as if frightened, the Sect Leader asked, "What's wrong, little one?"

The young master's lips moved a few times, his face almost paler than the snow-white scarf around his neck.

The Sect Leader grew more puzzled, but before he could get an answer, Shen Zhuo and Bai Qinglian, who had just finished their conversation, walked over to the tree.

As soon as Bai Qinglian approached, the already uneasy young master became even more flustered. The Sect Leader glanced at Shen Zhuo, and when he turned back, the young master was gone.

Without even saying goodbye, the young master ran off in a panic, as if being chased by something.

He didn't even have time to put down the little snow rabbit in his arms.