Chapter 34 Using Money to Slap Someone in the Face: "The entire clan has come to support you..."
Shi Liuying looked at the five people coming against the light and felt her eyes getting warm.
This emotion was unfamiliar to her. Before she could even discern its true nature, Chi Yang rushed towards her like a ball of fire.
She grabbed Shi Liuying's hand and looked her up and down: "Little Liuying! Are you alright?"
"We heard about it on the way! We really shouldn't have let you come back alone..."
"That old demon... cough cough, your mother didn't do anything to you, did she?"
Standing behind Chi Yang, Shen Hanzhou straightened his habitually slightly hunched back.
The little coward tried his best to look more imposing so that he could support his teacher, Liuying.
Jun Lintian stood behind the group, not rushing to ask Shi Liuying what was wrong or if she had been bullied, but his eyes were fixed on her as if they were real.
When Shi Liuying saw Jun Lintian, her nose tingled with emotion.
Why was my senior brother's face even paler than his moon-white robes?
He was already frail, so tired, and so thin. Now he was injured, and he still had to run around dealing with the messy affairs at her home.
"Senior Brother, what brings you here?" Shi Liuying walked up to Jun Lintian in a few steps, her brows furrowing involuntarily.
"You're so badly injured, you should be resting in bed!"
Shi Liuying's tone carried concern and a hint of reproach that she herself was unaware of.
This is a case of being too concerned to think clearly.
Jun Lintian looked at her small, wrinkled face, which resembled a steamed bun.
His pale lips couldn't help but curve upwards, his smile weary yet gentle, and utterly genuine.
He shook his head gently, his voice weak but carrying a strange, comforting power: "It's alright, you know, all these years, your senior brother has never been able to lie down."
He paused, his eyes fixed intently on Shi Liuying, deep as the sea, as if trying to take in all her emotions: "Upon hearing Rong Yan's message, I, your senior brother, thought I had to come and see for myself."
Shi Liuying was not happy because of her senior brother's comfort: "But you got hurt for me and ran around for me. You should rest well and wait for me to bring Tai Sui back."
She was a little frustrated.
Frustrated that he couldn't be as skilled as his senior brothers and sisters and bring back the Tai Sui faster.
As if knowing what Shi Liuying was thinking, Jun Lintian said softly, "Of course I know you can bring back Tai Sui."
Shi Liuying raised her head slightly in frustration.
"Your senior brother came here only because he didn't want you to feel that you were all alone and helpless."
Shi Liuying was slightly taken aback.
Jun Lintian's gaze swept over Chi Yang and Chen Hanzhou beside him, as well as Chong Cang and Rong Yan who were walking over, before finally settling back on Shi Liuying.
He said in a gentle but firm tone: "Junior sister, remember, you are the personal disciple of the Sect Master of the Myriad Manifestations Sect."
“Behind you stands the entire sect. The few of us here today are merely those who went ahead.”
"If you need it, if you want it, we will use the full strength of our sect to support you."
He stepped forward and gently patted the dejected head twice, making the comforting gesture he only made when facing Shi Liuying: "The sect will always be your strongest support. So, you don't need to compromise yourself in front of anything or anyone."
Chi Yang walked over and took Shi Liuying's arm: "Yes, although I am not a member of your sect, the Heavenly Beast Sect is still your strong support."
She smiled and said, "Sister still has a certain amount of influence in the Heavenly Beast Sect."
At this moment, Shen Hanzhou seemed to have finally found his area of expertise, and he squeezed forward in one step.
With a flick of his wrist, he produced a thick stack of brand-new banknotes from somewhere, which he then flicked with his fingertips, making a "snap snap" sound.
That face, which usually carried a hint of timidity within the sect, now radiated a dazzling, extravagant brilliance.
"Exactly! I heard she also said you lost money..." He slammed on the brakes, swallowing the word "goods" back down.
"Pooh!"
A hint of annoyance flashed across Shen Hanzhou's face, then he waved the silver notes even more forcefully. "I told you from the beginning that my money is your money. Shen Hanzhou's money will only ever be spent by Shi Liuying! See?"
He pointed to the thick stack of papers, "This is just a small fraction."
"Our Youdu Chamber of Commerce could bury that money-grubbing mansion with just a small fraction of what we have! Let's see if she still dares to talk about you!"
Looking at Shen Hanzhou, whose cheeks were flushed with excitement, then at Jun Lintian, who was weak but had a firm gaze, and at Senior Sister Chi Yang, who was smiling gently, Shi Liuying felt that the confusion in her heart about "exchange" seemed to be washed away by something larger and more unconditional.
She had a strange feeling of being lifted up.
After her grandfather passed away, she felt disconnected from the world, like a drifting duckweed without any support.
Now she is no longer a duckweed, but a large lotus leaf with strong roots that can penetrate deep. She will grow stronger and stronger, and put everyone on her big leaf.
Shi Liuying pursed her lips, still more worried about Jun Lintian's health: "Senior Brother, your injuries..."
Jun Lintian gently interrupted her: "At least, let me see with my own eyes that your mother will never dare to bully you again, okay?"
He looked at her, his eyes filled with a complex emotion that Shi Liuying couldn't understand.
This feeling flashed through my mind: "My senior always felt that I shouldn't miss any step of your growth."
Shi Liuying looked at him for a moment, then finally nodded: "Okay."
Her eyes regained their clarity and determination. "This time, I will reclaim Tai Sui."
Just as the atmosphere turned to one of shared hatred, Chong Cang, who had been silent all along, suddenly spoke up, his voice low and deep: "There is demonic energy in Master's residence."
Everyone's expression tightened.
Chi Yang's smile vanished: "A demon? Are you sure? What's its background?"
Chong Cang shook his head, his silver-gray fox eyes narrowing slightly: "I can only confirm that there is demonic energy, very weak, not yet fully formed, but not far away."
“This demon must frequently linger in that house. The woman and child are not demons, but they have been tainted by its aura, indicating a close relationship.”
He paused for a moment, then offered his guess: "Given the habits of demons, they wouldn't linger in the human world for so long and so frequently absorb its aura unless there was someone important here."
"An important person?" Rong Yan raised an eyebrow, immediately grasping the key point. "You mean, as long as that mother and child are in danger, that cowardly guy is very likely to show up?"
Everyone's gaze instinctively turned to Shi Liuying, questioning her. After all, those were her blood relatives.
Shi Liuying noticed everyone's gaze, lowered her eyelashes, and finally spoke calmly: "As long as you don't take her life, that's fine."
"Great!" Chi Yang clapped her hands. "Then we can lure the snake out of its hole! I have a 'Hidden Bee' here, which can help conceal our presence." As she spoke, she summoned a tiny, transparent bee the size of a fingernail from her spirit beast pouch. The bee made no sound when its wings vibrated.
Chong Cang: "When demonic energy appears, I will use a powerful tracking technique to conceal my presence and pursue it."
The plan was quickly finalized. Chong Cang and Chi Yang were responsible for tracking the source of the demonic energy, Rong Yan was to protect Shi Liuying, and Shen Hanzhou was mainly responsible for showing off his wealth and taking Jun Lintian back to his sect to rest later.
"I don't need it..." Jun Lintian still wanted to insist.
“Senior brother,” Shi Liuying looked at him earnestly, “Once you get the Tai Sui, you need to use the medicine immediately. Shen Hanzhou will take you back to prepare, which is perfect.”
She prioritized her senior's health.
Looking into Shi Liuying's clear, earnest eyes, Jun Lintian finally smiled helplessly and gave in: "...Alright."
The group then changed direction and headed back towards the master's residence.
This time, the atmosphere was completely different.
Before they even reached the entrance of the master's residence, Rong Yan had already secretly released several tiny puppet figures, each only the size of a finger joint and moving with great agility.
These little puppets silently blended into the growing crowd of onlookers, and began to "explain science" in exaggerated tones:
"Have you heard? This mistress of the house is incredibly ruthless! She treats her own daughter like livestock!"
"That's right! At such a young age, he's already chopping wood and carrying goods. Even exchanging them for a bowl of sweet soup would be considered a blessing!"
"Now that their daughter has made something of herself and entered the immortal sect, this mother still wants to seize the life-saving medicinal herbs left by her child's grandfather! She absolutely refuses to give them up!"
"Tsk tsk, what a heartless bastard!"
"So what if they're disciples of the immortal sects? Aren't they flesh of her flesh? Does that mean she can treat them like this?"
The crowd immediately began to discuss the matter.
A pedantic scholar, who felt it was beneath the dignity of the sect members to be so calculating, spoke up: "Even if she is not right, she is still her mother, the one who gave her life, for whom the debt of life is greater than heaven. Such a fuss is unnecessary..."
Before he could finish speaking, a woman carrying a vegetable basket next to him spat at him: "Pah! It's easy for you to say that it's not like you're abusing your child. Once a child enters the celestial realm, they are a child of the immortals! How can she be allowed to treat them like this?"
Another aunt chimed in, "Exactly! If she gave birth to a fairy, wouldn't they be burning incense and worshipping her, instead treating her like a servant or slave to be exploited? I think this woman has lost her mind. Such a shallow-minded thing!"
The commotion grew louder and louder. The master's wife, who was inside the residence, had clearly heard it. She flung open the door, her face ashen, and shouted, "What's all this noise about! What are you all doing in front of my door? Get out of my way!"
When her gaze fell upon Shi Liuying, who had returned, and the group of people behind her who looked extraordinary, she was first taken aback, then her anger intensified.
Seeing the pointing and whispering looks from those around me made me feel utterly humiliated.
She pointed at Shi Liuying and cursed, "You wretched child! You dare bring people back to cause trouble? How could I have given birth to such an unfilial brat! I should have drowned you in a chamber pot!"
Upon hearing the synonyms for "money-losing good," "wicked child," and "unfilial thing," Shen Hanzhou finally found an outlet for the pent-up frustration he had been holding back.
He stepped forward, said nothing, and pulled out a thick wad of large-denomination silver notes from the mustard seed pot. With a flick of his wrist, he elegantly and precisely threw the wad of money at his teacher's wife's face!
"Slap!" The sound of the silver note slapping against the face was crisp and loud.
"Shut up, you brat!"
The teacher's wife was stunned by the impact.
Shen Hanzhou raised his chin and said in what he considered to be his coldest and most domineering tone, "So you're the one who said my junior sister is a money-loser?"
Before his teacher's wife could react, Shen Hanzhou started throwing silver notes at her with both hands, one after another, as if they were free!
"Pay back? Hmm?"
"I'll make you pay!"
"I'll bury you with money, you brat!"
Silver notes fluttered in the air, and the surrounding crowd stared in disbelief, their breaths quickening as they gasped in astonishment.
We've never seen so much money in our lives!
I've never seen such an extravagant way of throwing money around!
In an instant, countless envious, jealous, and excited gazes focused on Shi Liuying, who was firmly protected behind Shen Hanzhou.
"This girl... she's truly an angel descended from heaven!"
"Look! This is the true grandeur of immortals!"
"If my daughter had even half of that good fortune, I'd be laughing in my sleep!"
"That woman is truly blind!"
Some people, blinded by money, tried to bend down to pick up the banknotes that had fallen to the ground.
Just then, Chi Yang snorted coldly and patted the spirit beast pouch.
In an instant, more than a dozen spirit beasts of various shapes and sizes roared out! They quickly shrank to half a person's height in the air and let out a low roar after landing.
There were shadow wolves with sharp teeth and claws, ferocious boars covered in bone armor, and scorpion lions with tail hooks that gleamed coldly... each one looked like a dangerous creature.
These miniature ferocious beasts did not attack ordinary people, but instead had a clear division of labor, quickly picking up the scattered silver notes one by one.
Anyone who tries to sneak a photo will immediately be met with the baring of fangs and a threatening growl from the nearest ferocious beast, causing them to scramble back their hand in terror.
The ferocious beasts were ruthless towards the common people, and they were even more unfriendly to the dumbfounded master's wife. When they picked up the silver notes beside her, they deliberately pawed at her or swept her with their tails, making her look miserable.
The ferocious beasts picked up the silver notes from the ground one by one, scurried over to Shi Liuying's side, carefully put away their sharp claws, and handed all the money to her.
A snow-white, round spirit beast, resembling both a snow leopard and a cat, noticed that Shi Liuying's hands were empty and she couldn't carry it all. Its bright eyes darted around, and it turned its head to pull a spare mustard seed pouch with bell patterns from Chi Yang's waist. It rubbed its furry head against Shi Liuying's hand, indicating that she should hang it up, and then continued to stuff the silver notes that it couldn't fit into the mustard seed pouch.
The contrast between fierceness and adorable foolishness left everyone stunned.
After confirming that these ferocious beasts were not attacking people but were just picking up money, everyone put aside their greed and obediently watched the show.
Shen Hanzhou shielded Shi Liuying behind him, having successfully humiliated her, and was so excited that his whole body trembled slightly.
Within the sect, he was always protected by Shi Liuying. Over the past twenty-odd years of having a system, he had become accustomed to being a coward.
At this moment, he was finally able to stand in front of her and support her, relying on his own strength, and mainly his family's financial resources!
This feeling of triumph made his chest heave violently, and his eyes even turned a little red.
The little coward secretly wiped his nose with his sleeve, cherishing this opportunity to protect Shi Liuying.
The teacher's wife was dizzy and disoriented by the sight of the silver mountain and the sea of beasts before her, as well as the accusations from the crowd. Her face burned with shame and anger, and she didn't know whether it was from embarrassment or anger.
But then she noticed the endless stream of silver notes being stuffed into Shi Liuying's mustard seed pouch, and greed finally overcame her anger.
She forced a distorted smile and tried to reach out and take Shi Liuying's hand: "Liuying, my child! Look, we're all family, why make such a scene?"
"Now that you've met such a person in the sect, you should have told your mother sooner!"
Shi Liuying looked at the outstretched hand. The hand had neatly trimmed nails and smooth, delicate skin from being pampered.
She was momentarily dazed, then silently clenched her calloused hands.
Her mother's hands never gently touched her during her childhood. Only when she didn't chop enough firewood, cooked too salty or bland food, or didn't earn enough money from collecting and selling herbs would her hands fall heavily on her, leaving red marks and pain.
Having never been treated intimately before, Shi Liuying felt no joy at her mother's belated affection, only an extremely uncomfortable and awkward feeling.
The contrast between her memory of her mother and her current mother is so great that the two images are so disconnected that she finds the scene before her utterly absurd.
Shi Liuying instinctively shrank back, breaking free from the hand that was about to touch her.
Shen Hanzhou had been keeping a close eye on Shi Liuying. When he saw the fleeting, almost forlorn expression on her face, his anger flared up again.
"You dare touch her?!" Shen Hanzhou roared. This time, instead of throwing silver notes, he took out a heavy gold ingot, didn't even look at it, and used a wisp of spiritual power to smash it hard against the hand that his master's wife had just reached out!
"Ah!" the teacher's wife screamed, her hand instantly turning red and swollen.
But when she saw the gold ingots on the ground, greed overcame the pain, and she bent down to pick them up and put them in her pocket.
However, the moment her hand touched the gold ingot, a chilling aura suddenly burst forth from it!
The master's wife's hand visibly frosted over, causing her to scream in agony as she pulled her hand back as if electrocuted, staring in horror at the frost-covered gold ingot on the ground.
Shen Hanzhou snorted coldly, clapped his hands as if they were dirty: "Hmph, you dare to touch Shi Liuying's money?"
The master's wife was in pain, angry, and scared. She plopped down on the ground and began to throw a tantrum, her voice so shrill it could pierce the sky: "This is outrageous! Cultivators are bullying mortals!"
"Your daughter is bringing outsiders to beat her own mother to death! You wretched child! You unfilial daughter!"
"Are you trying to kill your mother? Aren't you afraid of being struck by lightning?!"
Rong Yan had been holding back for a long time. She rolled up her sleeves, pointed her slender finger at her teacher's wife's nose, and cursed, "Old hag! Stop spouting nonsense. What kind of big accusation are you making?"
"Look carefully, it's us who want to deal with you, it has nothing to do with our junior sister. If it weren't for the fact that you're her birth mother, I would have sent you to meet the King of Hell with a single sword stroke just now, based on what you just said!"
"You've only survived this long because you've been riding on our junior sister's coattails, don't you understand?"
Just then, the chubby boy who had been protected by his teacher's wife suddenly broke free from the maid's hand, rushed forward, and stared intently at Shi Liuying with a venomous look that belied his age, shrieking, "You good-for-nothing! You jinx! You deserve it!"
"My mother loves me, but she doesn't love you! Every night, she tells me how disgusting you are, that you're a girl and born lowly!"
His chubby face was full of a meanness and smugness that didn't suit his age, and he continued to shout, "Mom also said that you worked so hard when you were little because you were a reincarnated glutton! Just to get that little bit of sugar water! Pretending to be hardworking to please her! Ugh! Disgusting!"
These malicious words came at Shi Liuying like stones, but instead of showing any pain from being hurt, her face showed a faint, almost bewildered expression.
She didn't look at the malicious, childlike face, but instead looked at her mother.
"mother."
Shi Liuying's voice remained flat, but carried a serious, stubborn determination to clarify the facts: "You probably don't remember it yourself."
She tried hard to recall, organizing her thoughts: "When I was little, my family was poor, and we could only afford to live in a drafty wooden house. You were always complaining of being tired when you did chores, and you couldn't even straighten your back. Back then..."
She paused for a moment, as if searching for the right words, and finally simply said, "I hadn't thought about sweet soup."
"I just feel that if I can do more, Mom can do less and won't be so tired."
"But my mother would give me a bowl of sweet soup after I finished my work, and I was still very happy."
When she said this, her eyes were clear, without accusation or an urgent desire to be understood. She was simply stating a simple fact from her memory—she saw that her mother was tired, so she wanted to help.
As for the sugar water being a "trade" of hard work, that was something her mother taught her later when she was older.
But now it seems that it wasn't an "exchange." The exchange that the mother was talking about made no sense, just like the fact that the mother didn't love her didn't need to be analyzed.
Shi Liuying did not resent or grieve excessively because of her past, but her confused appearance really tormented Rong Yan and Chi Yang on the side.
They whimpered and hugged Shi Liuying tightly, the baby calling out sweetly incessantly.
The general public has never seen such a lively and intense drama.
With things having developed to this point, what is there left to be confused about?
Shi Liuying's simple, almost clumsy explanation was like a mirror, revealing the scheming and meanness in the hearts of the mother and son.
Even those who initially felt that Shi Liuying's side was too aggressive have now completely switched sides, pointing fingers and cursing at the mother and son.
The teacher's wife turned pale as everyone pointed and whispered among themselves, and she wanted to continue her tirade.
Sudden--
A chilling, foul-smelling gust of wind suddenly rose from nowhere!
"They're here!" Chong Cang shouted, a glint of light flashing in his fox eyes. His figure blurred instantly, as if merging into the wind, and he silently chased after the source of the demonic energy.
Chi Yang patted the Hidden Bee, and the transparent little bee immediately attached itself to the almost disappeared corner of Chong Cang's clothes, thus concealing its tracks.
At the same time, the demonic wind precisely swept up the teacher's wife, who was still throwing a tantrum on the ground, and the fat boy who was yelling and cursing.
Under the horrified gazes of the crowd, the two suddenly transformed into a gray-black shadow and fled rapidly towards the outskirts of the city!
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Author's Note: I updated very early today and it's quite substantial, so please praise me! [Rabbit head with upright ears]
I've had to get up very early lately, so I've changed my update time to noon. If I finish writing before noon, I'll post it earlier; if I can't post it by noon, I'll let you know in the comments. Just check back at noon!
A random red envelope will drop as a reward for commenting! [pat on the head]
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