Jingyi was feeling much better by the time the second month came along and he was very happy about it. He was definitely aware of his power being sucked out of him minute by minute but his physical condition improved so he didn’t mind it. As long as his body could still move he didn’t mind losing his power.

He stayed quiet about that effect though. Only Xia Qianfan and the sect leader knew.

“I was worried I wasn’t going to make it to the new year.” Jingyi chuckled and watched Zhixin and Yingjie decorate. They were doing it together out of their own volition but they didn’t seem very happy.

“Shizun! Don’t say that!” Meiling exclaimed and frowned.

Meiling had originally been helping as well but she was too short to help so she ended up just sitting beside Jingyi who was covered up in blankets and watching from the windows. It was a very cold day but he wanted to watch the disciples decorate so their resolution was for him to be very well covered.

Jingyi just laughed at the scolding that Meiling was giving him.

“Ah, my dear disciples are getting old.” Jingyi chuckled. 

None of the three seemed very upset by the joke. They all desperately wanted to grow up.

“How old do I have to be to call you by your name, Shizun?” Yingjie joked and earned a stern glare from Zhixin.

“Hmm? You can do it now if you wish?” Jingyi said and smiled.

“Really?” Yingjie looked a little confused, he couldn’t tell if Jingyi was being serious.

Jingyi nodded, he honestly didn't mind at all.

“Han Jing—“

“Zhao Yingjie.” Zhixin glared.

“Han Jingyi,” Yingjie repeated, glancing at Zhixin.

“You can say it too A-Xin. I really don’t mind.” Jingyi chuckled.

“…Jingyi.”

“W-Woah! That’s too much!” Yingjie exclaimed with shock.

“It’s fine.” Jingyi laughed.

‘I won’t be able to call myself their shizun for much longer…it’d be best if they stopped being so formal.’ Jingyi thought and smiled silently.

“…oh? Will today be the day we finally meet?” 

Jingyi turned his head and saw two young ladies in the hallway near Yingjie and Zhixin. He immediately recognized them. 

One had brown hair and green eyes, she wore dark green robes and held a fan to her face. She was Luo Qinyang of LuoHua. She was the princess of her sect and it showed in her dainty and elegant mannerism.

The young lady next to her was similar but rather than dainty, she seemed strong and confident. She wore purple clothes and had a Hua Dian painted on her forehead. She had been the one to speak. She was very clearly Fan Xiaoli.

Zhixin was going to speak to them but he then turned to Jingyi and looked at him.

Jingyi had been worrying about how this encounter was going to end but he just nodded at Zhixin when he noticed him looking at him.

“It’s a pleasure to finally meet you,” Jingyi said. He was going to stand to greet them but Meiling stopped him.

She didn’t state her reasoning but Jingyi could imagine what it was.

“It's a pleasure to meet you, Han-Zongshi.” They both bowed and greeted him properly.

“I am Fan Xiaoli of the green cove sect.” She didn’t smile, she was simply expressionless. She glanced from Jingyi to Meiling and then to Zhixin and Jingyi.

“I am Luo Qinyang of LuoHua…Has our medicine been helping?”

“I’m still not feeling the best but I’ve been getting better thanks to the medicine.”  Jingyi glanced at Yingjie, who was looking at the two ladies, and then at Zhixin who was staring at Yingjie with a pointed glare.

Yingjie might’ve revealed a bit too much to them about his condition. It was okay though, they wouldn’t cause trouble. Though Zhixin seemed to disagree.

“Shizun, the wind has gotten colder, you should go fully inside now.” Zhixin insisted.  Jingyi did feel a little cold despite his layers so he quickly agreed. Everyone else planned on following though so it didn’t help Zhixin’s point.

“Will you two be returning to your sects for the new year?” Jingyi asked and silently nodded at Meiling who seemed to be silently asking if he needed help standing.

“No, we will stay here for the time being.” Fan Xiaoli murmured.

“I hope it will be enjoyable for you then…A-Xi—” Jingyi responded, reaching out to grab Zhixin’s arm as he noticed him becoming more upset.

A cough suddenly bubbled up in him and stopped him from speaking for a bit. It seemed to work in his favor though, Zhixin was more worried about him than he was annoyed at Yingjie, Fan Xiaoli, and Luo Qinyang.

Zhixin completely took over Meiling’s self-imposed job of helping Jingyi walk and quickly brought him to his room.

The four who were left behind just watched them for a while.

“…” Meiling turned to look at Yingjie who looked back at her with a confused expression, “I’m going to make Shizun some tea, keep track of your guests so they don’t cause trouble for Shizun,” Meiling said and huffed before walking off.

“Your fellow disciples don’t seem very fond of us.” Fan Xiaoli said and crossed her arms.

“It’s just because Shizun is sick, they don’t want people getting too close because of the recent incidents,” Yingjie said with an apologetic look and led them off.

Luo Qinyang’s gaze stuck to the direction where Zhixin and Jingyi had gone but she quickly snapped out of it and began walking again.

—

Jingyi was very upset once he realized what the author planned but he couldn’t do much about it. He was bedridden once again after his encounter with Fan Xiaoli and Luo Qinyang and couldn’t attend the New Years' festivities. He had shooed Yingjie away easily and Meiling after a bit more convincing but Zhixin was stubbornly stuck to his side.

The author was using the holiday as the perfect ‘date night’ for Yingjie and his harem and as fuel to Zhixin’s dislike of him.

Anger had been present on Wang Zhixin’s face from the moment Yingjie got up to leave and even more so when Meiling left.

“It-It’s okay—cough—you can go too, Shixiong will come to take your place in a bit,” Jingyi murmured.

“No…I’m not gonna leave like Yingjie—“

“A-Xin.”

Zhixin stopped speaking when Jingyi called out for him.

“Yingjie can do what he wants. And so can you. You’re still young, you shouldn’t spend your life caring for a patient like me.” Jingyi murmured.

“I would be more than happy to spend my life caring for you, Shizun.”

Jingyi stared at him for a while in silence before turning away.

“Don’t say that A-Xin. That doesn’t make me happy.” Jingyi murmured and sighed.

Zhixin immediately went to apologize but Jingyi cut him off. 

“I’m not going to be your Shizun forever, A-Xin…” 

“I will never have another Shizun other than you. Even when you are no longer teaching me you will always be my Shizun.”

Jingyi sighed once more, Zhixin was missing his point completely. He gave up on trying to speak to him about it, he was exhausted.

“Shizun. I’ll make sure your power doesn’t disappear, please trust me.” Zhixin said with lots of determination. Jingyi just continued to face away from him, he already figured that Zhixin knew about his fading powers. That was probably why he was so fixated on him.

—

Luo Qinyang quietly followed behind Yingjie and Fan Xiaoli.

“Is Han-Zongshi alright now?” She asked. Yingjie looked fine but there was an odd sense of stiffness in his actions.

“He told us to just go enjoy the festivities so I’m sure he’s fine,” Yingjie murmured.

“…It seems you’re still worried though?” Luo Qinyang murmured with a slight smile.

“…yeah,” Yingjie muttered and glanced toward the building where Jingyi’s room was.