Sen Jia the Beauty~~~
They traveled merrily, eating when the mood struck, trying regional delights. Walking some, traveling by carriage some and even joining along with other travelers from time to time.
Stopping in the evenings, Sen Jia often played music or sang while they ate and drank. He generally had all the fun he could find.
[Administrator, no progress has been made in any tasks lately.]
There was a week before the encounter with the maiden. It would only take three days to arrive at the destined meeting location. This would be a perfect chance to let little Shuai experience some fun. Taking a week to get to a destination three days away allowed for a lot of distractions.
{There is an important encounter coming up. We mustn't arrive too early or too late. In the meantime, why not enjoy a little. This is also for little Shuai's benefit. My most important task is saving Sen Shuai. I already saved his life, but now he needs quality of life and a broadening of experiences.}
Basically, he hauled Sen Shuai around by the hand gobbling snacks and seeking out amusements for a week straight. All in the name of letting his little Shuai experience fun and play.
My poor little Shuai, so suppressed by your sect. You'll have a good life from now on.
Sen Jia felt impressed that Shuai had as good of a personality as he does, considering his low quality of life until now.
Such a good child, how could anyone mistreat him?
[That "good child" began killing at the age of nine.]
{Seventh! You're so judgemental. He can't be blamed for his sect forcing him. He was only a child after all.}
[He'd killed people just a few hours before you found him.]
{Little Shuai is so fierce! He was probably fighting, people die when cultivators fight.} Sen Jia dismissed Seventh's argument with a wave of his hand.
The trip south continued peacefully enough. Sen Jia set the pace and picked the road they took to ensure they would arrive with the best timing.
This is a good chance to see if Sen Shuai has any interest in girls.
To the side of the road was a rushing river with many boulders, fast rapids and a small drop to a large pool with strong undercurrents.
A turned over boat could be seen with two people near the opposite shore and one person flailing and being washed downstream.
Ah, here it is, just in time.
"Little Shuai, do a good deed, lend a hand." Sen Jia nonchalantly waved his sleeve in the direction of the bobbing mass in the river.
"Better not, no good deed goes unpunished."
"....little Shuai..this..." Hurry, go save the girl. Impress her and win her heart.
"I can't swim," Sen Shuai confessed quietly.
WTF! All my careful plans destroyed so easily.
"...then you'll have to catch."
He dropped his outer robes and jumped nimbly from the bank to a boulder then jumped again to another. A third leap brought him in front of the struggling wet mass of thrashing arms. He leaped low, grabbed the person up and tossed them toward the bank for Sen Shuai to catch. Sen Jia then fell into the water with a big splash and tumbled over the drop.
Sen Shuai didn't catch the wet mass.
He never even looked at what Sen Jia had fished out. He only had eyes for Sen Jia leaping gracefully over the river. When he fell into the water, Sen Shuai moved in a blur to reach the lower pool.
Wading into the water up to his chest, he grabbed Sen Jia's hand and pulled him out of the current. He held SenJia in his strong embrace and walked them out of the pool.
"The girl?" Sen Jia asked looking up at Sen Shuai, dripping wet and shivering in the larger man's arms.
Sen Shuai shrugged and glanced in the direction of the bank upstream.
".... Little Shuai, did you even catch her?"
"Didn't."