The long and wiry dirt road headed to the Shaolin temple seems to stretch on forever beyond the horizon as it parts through a sea of forest green
Ming and his companions had been traveling for days, walking a steady pace, observing the scenery, training and talking among themselves
After leaving Golden Garp Town, Zhu Lian sulked for a full day until Ming could sit her down and explain the situations behind him inviting Xuelan to join them
Although she was sympathetic towards Xuelan's situation and thankful that she went easy on Ming during the Gu arena's finals
Lian couldn't completely shake off her jealousy and displeasure at Xuelan's freeloading attitude, Ming doesn't know it but his personality is a magnet for women
As Zhu Lian have been fending off countless maids their age from vying for Ming's affection all their life
It's only because of her that Ming never had someone flirting with him. But it seems that her over protectiveness had kicked herself in the foot, it very might be exactly why Ming is so dense when it comes to these things
Lian could only curse her younger self for causing such a dilemma
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Life on the road was quite easy for Li Wei, Zhu Lian and Zhou Xuelan
All because of one extremely diligent and highly experienced Ex servant, Mr "World's Best Servant" Ming, himself
Every night, he would expertly set up camp, make a fire, cook them delicious food, pack their things, and wash their clothes
He does this without fail and so effortlessly efficient that the rest found no chance to chime in and help
Li Wei, with all his pride as a Martial Warrior kept on insisting that he does his share. Unfortunately the silver tongued turbo servant that is Ming would refuse with undeniable statements such as:
"It's faster when I do them all at once, wasting your time with menial tasks would only drag down our pace, brother Wei"
His argument was so logical and he himself was so adamant that Li Wei could only step back and allow himself to be taken care of
Xuelan on the other hand was shamelessly enjoying Ming's service, finding traveling with this pack mule- Ehem, Ming was as leisurely as taking a stroll through a flower field, The food? Delicious, the camp? Neat and clean, The fire? Not too bright, and just warm enough for deep sleep
Compared to the months of her grueling solo travel until now, this experience was simply heavenly, so much so that she's afraid that she might get addicted with having Ming around taking care of her
Zhu Lian, on the other hand, was taking it the worst. Before, Ming would solely give her his attention and take care of her tenderly and lovingly (her delusions, don't mind them) while still having time for himself.
But now? he's constantly overworking himself and dividing his attention to Li Wei and that Silver haired vixen, Xuelan, freeloading his kindness and supplies from her family's wealth, hmph, how annoying
Lian could tell that Ming was getting more and more exhausted, her anxiety growing with every fake "I'm doing fine" Ming throws at her
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Things boiled over one night when they were sitting around the camp fire eating the food Ming had just cooked up
It was a hearty stew of beef and root vegetables, seasoned to perfection, tonight was a cold one so Ming purposefully made this dish to warm everyone's bodies
Li Wei, and Zhu Lian finished their bow happily without complaint as Ming was making the last portion for himself
Zhou Xuelan, who had just finished her share, was staring intently at Ming working the fire and the soup he's cooking, her mouth salivating
"Mr Ming…" Xuelan uttered softly, causing Zhu Lian, who was sitting next to Ming, to raise her eyebrows
"Hmm? Do you want something, Miss Xuelan?"
Ming asked as he diligently stirred the soup, his mouth already watering from hunger
"Yeah… I'm still a bit hungry… Can I have some more soup?"
"Hmm? Alright then" Without a second thought, Ming nodded and scooped half his portion into Zhou Xuelan's bow
"Hehe thanks, you're the best" She giggled before spooning into her mouth some warm soup
Seeing this, Zhu Lian clenched her fist, she's pissed pissed
Young mistress of the Crimson Cloud Manor,
snapped.
"I've had enough!" She abruptly shouted, unconsciously releasing her Early Second rate Qi, the outburst shocking everyone present
Xuelan's body jumped so hard she spilled half her bowl
"Lian? What's wrong-" Ming, concerned, tried to ask but was cut short by Lian's enraged response
"You vixen! Can't you see Ming is also hungry! Don't you even have it in you to let him fully enjoy a bowl of soup. That. He. Cooked" Lian stood up and confronted Xuelan, pressing her face aggressively near Xuelan's, Xuelan subsequently pulled herself back, intimidated
"I-" Xuelan tried to say something but it was swallowed whole by Lian's righteous anger
"Shut up!" She shouted harshly, immediately shutting Xuelan down and continued
"My Ming has been breaking sweat, working non stop to take care of you people, and he's so tired because of it, I've known him for years, even if he says it's okay to not make any of you feel bad, HE IS NOT!! AND I'M NOT AFRAID TO SPEAK OUT FOR HIM!!" She was so passionate, she accidentally referred to Ming as "My Ming", normally she would've blushed and clumsily retracted her words by now. But not today, she couldn't back down now, not when she had to fight for him, not when her Ming's health was at stake! Lian breathed in deep and continued
"Even after all that, you can't even let him enjoy his bowl of soup in peace, have you been such a freeloader that you forget Ming isn't your servant? That he invited you to travel with us from the goodness of his big dumb heart? Do people from Diancang Sect repay kindness with ingratitude like you?" Lian's words we're pressing, even attacking Xuelan's Sect's identity, but she couldn't stop here
"He's extremely precious to me and I'll be damned if I'd let him be treated like a lowly pack mule just to make your ungrateful lives easier!!" She finished her outburst with a bang, her breath laboured
Xuelan was speechless, her face pale as a ghost, she couldn't refute, what could she even say? Zhu Lian had hit her fault on the nail with expert precision
"Lian, please, Calm down-" Ming stood up and tried to intervene but that too was shut down
"Ming! You don't get a say in this! You and your overwhelming kindness! I hate it! You should just be nice to me! And be nice to yourself for once!"
Not skipping a beat, she continued
"Until I allow you to, don't even dare to take care of us in any capacity, or I'm leaving to travel alone, immediately!!" Lian shouted as she gently cupped Ming's face, intently locking eyes with him
"Only take care of yourself for the time being, okay?" She spoke gently but Ming could hear the frustration and hurt behind her cooed voices
'I made her worry again' Ming thought melancholically as he reflected on his actions
"O-okay, I'll comply" Ming answered timidly, refusing would mean making her more worried, his heart couldn't afford that
"Sit down" Lian commanded with a tone reminiscent of her domineering father, Patriarch of the Crimson Cloud Manor
Ming instinctually sat down on one of the logs he set up to be seats
Zhu Lian grabbed Ming's bowl and a her spoon
She spooned up some hearty soup, blew on it and raised it in front of Ming's mouth
"Say ahhhh" She said gently, her tone warm like a mother's
Ming could only bite down his pride and listen, he opened his mouth and chomped down, savoring the taste of his soup. It tasted vastly different from what he imagined even though it was a recipe he had made for himself countless times, It tasted extremely warm and comforting, like he was eating the food equivalent of sunshines and warm furry blankets
"Good! Let me take care of you like this from now on, okay?" Lian smiled brightly upon seeing Ming cutely (in her perspective) eating from her spoon
Li Wei stood up and went to collect the empty bowls and used spoons
"I'll clean these and keep watch for the night, you guys can rest"
Completely understand Lian's reasons for her outburst, Li Wei started to clean up and taking up long overdue responsibilities immediately
"I-I'll help too…" Xuelan spoke timidly as she as more wood to the fire and started to tend to it
"Thanks, for understanding" Zhu Lian nodded and smiled at Xuelan, but her eyes weren't smiling, this caused shivers to run down Xuelan's spine, no one had scolded her that hard and accurate since her motherly master, back at Diancang Sect
That night, Ming got his first good night's sleep in days, cradled gently in Zhu Lian's arms, her chin resting atop his head as if guarding him from the world itself