Hua Xianle

Chapter 10:

Nie Huaisang never liked Jiang Wanyin. He was arrogant and loud, acting all high and mighty while believing he was above everybody else. In reality, the Jiangs were the ones below everyone else, but like his mother, Jiang Wanyin was blinded by his pride. Nie Bowen, Huaisang's father, and the Sect Leader, spoke at length about the misfortune the Jiangs had brought upon themselves, and Huaisang vowed to make sure never to repeat their mistakes. The Nies would remain in the grace of the Heavenly Officials.

But that was all Sect politics, a forbidden topic on Huaisang's free days. So, he happily let that sour grape slip from his mind as he took some of the senior disciples to shop for some fans to paint. He wanted to stock up on supplies since he'd be stuck in a room with all the other kids that weren't allowed to be in the discussion conference, and that included the Yunmeng Jiang heir. Hopefully, it would be enough to stop himself from gutting that boy when he inevitably became annoying.

While Huaisang was choosing which of the plain fans was a better quality to paint, his eyes caught on a boy. He didn't look like a sect heir, but he was clearly a Young Master from the fancy clothes he wore. He almost looked like a prince. The boy was with a beautiful woman in an equally expensive dress, who was explaining the fans to the boy.

Not wanting to be seen as rude to someone who could potentially have him punished, Huaisang returned to contemplating what to buy. Just then, he felt a tap on his shoulder, looking behind him to see the lady from earlier smiling down at him.

"If you want the best quality fan to paint, the one you are holding in your left hand is the best choice. It is made of rare, high-quality materials, which makes it sturdy and long-lasting. Though it is expensive, I doubt you can't afford it since, based on the robes you are wearing, you are most likely a young master from a prestigious sect, no?"

Huaisang just nodded at the lady and decided to buy her recommendation. Indeed, after a second glance, he noticed that the one on the left was truly of finer quality than the other one. He beamed at the lady and paid for the fan before turning to look at them again.

"Thank you, Lady..."

"Qingxuan."

"Lady Qingxuan, you've helped me a lot." He bowed to her as he had been taught. "How did you know I was planning to paint the fan though?"

The woman's face became that of a doting mother. "Ah, my dear nephew here loves painting, so I arranged for it to be our bonding time. We just bought some fans to paint ourselves when he saw you struggling to pick a fan. Of course, my nephew immediately asked me to help you, and I just couldn't say no."

So the boy had caught him staring but wasn't upset or offended. That was good. Huaisang could see the boy peeking out shyly from behind Lady Qingxuan, smiling slightly as he waved. Eagerly, Huaisang smiled back, returning the wave while silently celebrating the chance to make a friend who shared his interests.

"Hello! I am Nie Huaisang, the second young master of the Qinghe Nie sect! What's your name?"

The boy pulled a golden scroll from his belt, opened it, and held it in front of him. Words shimmered onto the golden parchment with a soft, shining silver light.

"Hello, I am Hua Ying. It is nice to meet you, Nie-gongzi."

"Ah, no need for such titles. We're going to be friends, so you should call me Nie-Xiong. And then I'll call you Hua-Xiong! How does that sound?"

Hua Ying was beginning to blush hard, his entire face turning red as the words on the scroll changed. "I would like that, Nie-Xiong."

Huaisang was grinning from ear to ear, excited about his shy new friend. The scroll was interesting as well. It was clearly a spiritual tool, but he could tell just by looking at it that it was one of a kind. No doubt his family had gone out of their way to either find it or make it when they found Hua-Xiong to be mute.