How to Abandon Your Protégé

[Completed] [Cool-faced, soft-hearted, proud, charming, scheming master × sunny, gentle, loyal disciple who grows into her own; one-on-one, switch pairing, both pure] Du Yueqiao knew she was slow-witted and untalented. She had spent three whole years in the sect and still couldn’t master Qi Refining. She worked hard at swordsmanship but always lagged behind everyone else. Nothing ever went her way, and she had terrible luck. The one exception was getting a master. She’d struck it absurdly lucky. Her master was none other than the renowned prodigy sword immortal, Chu Jianyi. The price of becoming her disciple was climbing five thousand steps up Peach Spring Mountain, and nearly being roasted to charcoal by Chu Jianyi’s spirit pet. Chu Jianyi was a master swordswoman whose skill had reached the pinnacle of the Central Plains, but she was cold in face, heart, and spirit. Everyone respected, feared, and revered her, keeping her on a pedestal and at arm’s length. No one dared get close to her. No one, that is, except her foolish disciple, who followed her around every day like a silly dog and couldn’t be shaken off. The girl looked like an obedient puppy, with bright, doglike eyes full of loyalty. Whenever she came home, she would circle Chu Jianyi incessantly, as if she were about to grow a tail. She was gentle and kind, pouring tea for her master, massaging her back and shoulders, and serving her with meticulous care. She always behaved properly, unlike other disciples, who were so often unruly. Any teacher would envy having such a filial disciple. Everyone praised them as a model of mutual care between master and student in the cultivation world. Chu Jianyi, however, wasn’t pleased. She even went out of her way to drive her disciple off. She swept away the divination that said the bond between master and disciple was not yet over, then pointed her sword at Du Yueqiao’s heart and said coldly: “Our bond as master and disciple ends here.” Watching her disciple leave like an abandoned puppy, Chu Jianyi felt an inexplicable ache. It troubled her for years, until she met Du Yueqiao again. Her disciple had grown taller and stronger, and the loyalty and respect in her eyes had never changed. Only her affection had taken on a different flavor. After they had made love, their bodies entwined in a storm of passion, Chu Jianyi’s cheeks were still flushed. Grabbing Du Yueqiao by the collar, she asked through gritted teeth, “When did I ever teach you to defy your master?” Du Yueqiao had a secret. Her master wasn’t the cold-blooded woman everyone else claimed she was. Quite the opposite: her master’s heart was softer than a bodhisattva’s. On the many nights when Du Yueqiao lay unconscious from burns inflicted by divine fire, it was her master who held her tight and soothed her, saying, “Don’t be afraid, don’t be afraid. I’m here with you.” She had seen all of Chu Jianyi’s vulnerability, degradation, and helplessness. She knew how lonely Chu Jianyi was behind her aloof, distant facade, and she knew that when Chu Jianyi was overcome with desire, the name she whispered through her restraint was Du Yueqiao’s. I have to treat my master well. I can’t leave her alone, Du Yueqiao thought. Her master scolded her? It was all right. Her master only wanted what was best for her. Her master hurt her? It was all right. Her master hadn’t meant to. Her master sent her away? It was all right... No, it wasn’t! After years on the road, Du Yueqiao finally stood before Chu Jianyi again. Kneeling by the bed, she bluntly broke the unspoken barrier between them. Then she climbed into her master’s bed and stripped naked. “Master, are you still going to send me away?” Theme: Finding salvation in each other through countless separations.