Chapter 16 The Little Green Roc Hatches
The ingredients for Yang Yang Dan require a certain amount of time to refine. Since Zhong Cai has five hundred portions of ingredients for Hu Shou Dan, he will try to refine it first.
Although they usually joke and play around, Zhong Cai becomes extremely focused when he actually starts refining elixirs.
The medicinal materials used in the Head Protection Pill are the precious herbs Tianhuangcao and Baiwu, as well as the common herbs Cangpingcao, Xiangjingzi, and Niuxinshi.
Zhong Cai took the lead in processing the Tianhuangcao, peeling off the yellow fibers from all its leaves for medicinal use...
Wu Shaogan sat silently to the side, carefully watching Zhong Cai's methods of processing the medicinal herbs.
He understood perfectly well that it wasn't that Zhong Cai was lazy, but rather that Zhong Cai wanted to give him something to do so that he wouldn't have time to overthink things.
·
Ada returned to the main courtyard and paid her respects to the head of the family, Wu Mingzhao.
Wu Mingzhao asked, "How is it?"
Ada said respectfully, "Master Zhong is young and impetuous, but he values the young master very much."
Then he recounted everything he had experienced in the courtyard, even describing Zhong Cai's expression in detail.
Wu Mingzhao tapped his fingers lightly on the table, lost in thought: "It's only been a short time, and the feelings have deepened so much?"
Ada knew this wasn't a question directed at her, so she didn't reply.
·
Previously, Wu Shaogan was extremely talented and quite independent. In order not to affect the relationship between father and son, Wu Mingzhao also had to focus on cultivation and clan affairs, so he naturally wouldn't monitor him all the time—after all, the strong are arrogant, and the difference in their cultivation levels was not significant, so even his own father couldn't tolerate it.
Therefore, due to Wu Shaogan's cautious actions, Wu Mingzhao was unaware that he and Zhong Cai had actually been friends for many years, which is why he was puzzled.
Of course, even if he knew, he wouldn't have imagined that Zhong Cai's thought process was so bizarre.
·
After thinking for a while, Wu Mingzhao finally said, "Keep an eye on things. It's my son's good fortune if Master Zhong doesn't change his mind. Even if he does, you still need to be careful to win him over."
Ada replied, "Yes."
Wu Mingzhao added, "If Master Zhong needs any medicinal herbs, please ask the clan to make it as convenient as possible once you find them."
Ada agreed again.
·
The matriarch, Yang Jingfei, was focused on raising Wu Dongxiao. After hearing about Wu Mingzhao's arrangements, she felt they were appropriate and did not do anything further.
In her opinion, it was hard to say what Zhong Cai's future would hold, but since her husband had made arrangements, and they were husband and wife after all, it wasn't a big deal, so she decided to leave it at that.
However, when Steward He Zhou learned of this, he was secretly pleased for Wu Shaogan.
·
Wu Shao'an was the most unhappy.
"True feelings witnessed by heaven and earth? What a joke!"
Wu Shao'an's face darkened as he suddenly thought of the day of his wedding.
Wearing her wedding dress and veil, Zhong Cai didn't care what methods were used to provoke him; her only goal was to marry Wu Shaogan. At that time, although he was annoyed by her advances, he still looked down on Zhong Cai. What use was the affection of a low-ranking alchemist? Who knew that Zhong Cai would become an alchemist in the blink of an eye and actually be wholeheartedly devoted to Wu Shaogan!
Wu Shao'an gritted his teeth and smashed another table.
"A dignified alchemist, so willingly degrading himself!"
Xia Jiang lowered his head, his face expressionless.
Although the Death Guard was never one for much thought, he knew that his master's insults were completely unjustified. On the contrary, the men and women in the harems of noble families were too numerous; they either enjoyed beautiful women or desired children with high potential, and pure love was a rare commodity.
The Wu family has fifteen branches. Among all the married members, apart from those who haven't had time to take concubines or servants, only the matriarch of the thirteenth branch, Madam Wu Shuixian, and her husband, Senior Huo Wan, are mutually in love and have no outsiders with them.
Now that there are Young Master Zhong and Master Zhong, especially since Young Master Zhong is crippled, it makes Master Zhong's sincerity even more apparent... Anyone with a conscience should be envious of Young Master Zhong now, and would never look down on Master Zhong.
However, Xia Jiang was used to it. His master was inherently gloomy and jealous, so it was not surprising that he would utter any malicious words.
·
When Ada brought a string of beauties to Zhong Cai, many members of the Wu family saw it. Later, he took another string with him, and the news that Zhong Cai rejected the beauties spread.
The Wu family members, who had been waiting to see the show, were quite surprised and had a long discussion. They never expected that this newly promoted alchemist would actually be so devoted to Wu Shaogan, and they all found it hard to believe.
Out of curiosity, some of the Wu family's children were also considering whether to go over and get closer to them, and also to inquire about their situation.
However, several days passed, and Wu Shaogan's courtyard gate remained tightly closed. Even the servants left and returned quickly, clearly unwilling to be disturbed by outsiders. They hesitated, worried that they might not leave a good impression but instead create a bad one. They pondered whether they should observe first and wait for an opportunity to make a move.
Thus, Zhong Cai and Wu Shaogan were able to maintain their original pace of life, continuing to refine elixirs together every day.
·
Zhong Cai's talent for alchemy is beyond doubt—after all, Qi-replenishing pills are not easy pills to refine. If he can master Qi-replenishing pills, he can certainly master other pills as well.
The Head Protection Pill is relatively difficult to refine among the head-protecting pills, even more difficult than the Qi-replenishing Pill.
The biggest hurdle in the refining process is that the ox heart stone is too hard, so you have to pay extra attention to how fine it is after it is ground into powder. Also, you have to be extremely careful with the amount of ox heart stone powder added, because even a little too much or too little will ruin the other medicinal materials.
The second difficulty lies in the conflicting properties of the two precious herbs, Tianhuangcao and Baiwu. They must be harmonized with Xiangjingzi. The juice of Xiangjingzi must be squeezed out the instant Baiwu and Tianhuangcao are mixed, and the juice must be poured onto the bubbles just as the two precious herbs are boiling and three bubbles are just emerging. Only in this way can the conflict be eliminated and the medicinal liquid in the alchemy furnace be calmed down again.
The order in which the medicinal herbs are added to the alchemy furnace is: first, *Hemiberlesia asiatica*, then *Ulmus pumila* and *Vitex negundo*, then *Oxheart Stone*, and finally *Phyllanthus praecox*.
After successfully overcoming both difficulties, the heat during the refining of the water lily must be kept stable at all times. Otherwise, even a slight change in temperature will cause the grass to scorch and explode the fused liquid mass, making a "sizzling" sound and leaving behind a clump of foul-smelling black ash.
Despite the increased difficulty, Zhong Cai refined the first batch of head-protecting pills in a shorter time.
On the fifth day at noon, he succeeded in becoming an immortal.
Zhong Cai carefully took the pills out of the alchemy furnace and placed them into the small bowl held by Wu Shaogan.
“One, two…” he said with a hint of regret, “…It’s a pity there are only four, and they are all of low grade.”
Wu Shaogan, however, was not disappointed and said, "That's normal. It's even harder. You'll be able to break through after you get used to it a few more times."
Zhong Cai glanced at him: "Old Wu, you have quite a lot of confidence in me."
Wu Shao chuckled dryly, "I'm now dependent on you for food and shelter, so of course I have to try to please you."
Zhong Cai rolled her eyes: "I didn't see that coming."
Amidst their banter, Zhong Cai put all the head-protecting pills into a box and began processing a new batch of medicinal herbs.
Wu Shaogan quickly cleaned the alchemy furnace for him so that he could continue at any time.
As they spent more and more time refining pills, the two not only became more and more in sync, but also more and more comfortable with each other.
For Wu Shaogan, being with Zhong Cai helps him relax; and for Zhong Cai, having Wu Shaogan by her side helps her maintain emotional stability.
·
The successful production of the elixir was a joyous occasion, and while the two were busy with their own tasks, suddenly—
"Click".
Zhong Cai and Wu Shaogan both paused, then suddenly realized what was happening.
Wu Shaogan raised his sleeve.
Zhong Cai carefully stretched out her hand and held it in front of her sleeve.
The next moment, the round, blue rare beast egg was gently placed in Zhong Cai's palm.
Without hesitation, Zhong Cai took out a soft cushion and placed it steadily.
A crack is slowly appearing at the top of the eggshell.
Zhong Cai and Wu Shaogan held their breath.
Before long, the sharp beak of the roc pecked open the eggshell, and a short wing covered with a layer of blue downy feathers emerged with a "whoosh".
The edges of the short wings seemed to become somewhat sharp, and as they stretched out, they moved up and down, widening the cracks until the entire roc egg completely separated, revealing a clump of fuzzy blue feathers.
Then, its fluffy little head tilted, and its bright golden pupils darted over, giving it an endearingly clumsy appearance.
·
Zhong Cai let out a soft breath: "It actually hatched at this time."
Wu Shaogan breathed a sigh of relief almost simultaneously: "This is truly a double celebration."
Ever since they obtained this rare beast egg, the two of them have been sleeping with it close to their bodies. One day, you'd wear it close to your skin, and the next day, I'd wear it close to my skin. However, since Zhong Cai was busy refining pills, during the day, Wu Shaogan would often tuck it into his sleeve and place it against his wrist.
Both of them are very happy that the eggs have hatched successfully.
The little eagle was rapidly pecking at its eggshell, its aura visibly increasing. It hadn't possessed much of a presence when it first hatched, but now its aura already surpassed that of Wu Shaogan.
Wu Shaogan exclaimed, "As expected, he was born at the second rank."
Zhong Cai stared at the little green roc, witnessing its changes firsthand.
The little green roc's downy feathers quickly hardened, transforming into thin, seemingly soft but actually highly defensive feathers. The edges of each feather shimmered with a cold light, clearly indicating that if it were even slightly on guard, the feathers would act like sharp weapons, easily capable of injuring people.
In the blink of an eye, a ball of blue light came straight at Zhong Cai and landed on his face.
Zhong Cai: "..."
Wu Shaogan couldn't help but chuckle and quickly went over to pick the little green roc off.
The little eagle rolled around in Wu Shaogan's palm, then flapped its wings and flew away, wobbling.
This time, it rubbed against Zhong Cai's cheek.
Zhong Cai and Wu Shaogan exchanged a glance, both finding Xiao Qingpeng quite adorable.
In the end, Wu Shaogan held the little green roc in his arms and told it to stop bothering Zhong Cai.
Zhong Cai scratched her face, feeling quite cheerful.
"I'll continue refining the pills."
Wu Shaogan rubbed the little green roc's head with his fingers and laughed, "This guy and I are both watching."
Zhong Cai suddenly remembered something and quickly reminded her, "Don't forget to give it a name."
Wu Shaogan agreed, "Okay."
·
Zhong Cai continued refining the product with a relaxed and methodical approach.
The second batch also went smoothly, yielding four low-grade head-protecting pills.
The next batch was also successful, producing four inferior-grade kernels.
The fourth and fifth furnaces both failed, the sixth furnace succeeded, the seventh furnace succeeded...
In this way, Zhong Cai refined more than a dozen batches in a row, and the success rate of pills actually reached 70%! Moreover, the technique was quite stable, and each batch produced four low-grade pills.
Zhong Cai turned and stared at Wu Shaogan.
Wu Shaogan gave him a thumbs up knowingly and praised, "You're the best."
Zhong Cai withdrew his gaze with satisfaction and said modestly, "There is still much room for improvement in both the grade and quantity of the pills."
Wu Shaogan continued to praise, "Your progress must be the fastest."
Zhong Cai then became radiant.
Wu Shaogan suppressed a laugh and continued tidying up the alchemy furnace.
The little green roc was in his sleeve, chirping incessantly whenever this happened.
Zhong Cai first counted and put away the pills, then organized the medicinal herbs... and couldn't help but pinch the ball on Wu Shao's sleeve.
The two were still discussing it with each other.
"There are thirty-six Head Protection Pills in total. Should we sell them to the Pill Hall first?"
"You can produce pills in just five days, which is quite outstanding. Whether you sell them or not depends on how much you want to reveal."
"Then forget it, let's wait another ten days. We still need to leave two... five for my cheap father, and the Zhong family's fourth branch also has a few illegitimate younger brothers and sisters who can use them."
"Whatever makes you happy."
·
The pleasant days flew by, and in the blink of an eye, another ten days had passed.
Zhong Cai would open the furnace about twenty times a day, and could successfully make fourteen to fifteen furnaces each day. For the first few days, he consistently produced four low-grade head-protecting pills. Then, one day, he suddenly had an epiphany and not only jumped to eight pills per furnace, but also produced three to five mid-grade pills per furnace.
That day, Zhong Cai counted all the head-protecting pills and found that there were a total of 612 low-grade pills and 240 mid-grade pills.
Zhong Cai was a little excited: "Old Wu, quickly calculate how much money we can make from this!"
Wu Shaogan readily replied, "Seven thousand seven hundred and seventy-six taels of gold."
Zhong Cai continued excitedly: "Tell me again how much Dan Yun I can get this time?"
Wu Shaogan remained cooperative: "One thousand and ninety-two strands of cinnabar fragrance."
Looking at the two boxes full of pills, Zhong Cai felt as if she could conquer mountains and rivers.
"Old Wu, look! This is the empire I've built for you!"
Wu Shaogan didn't understand what this had to do with the landscape, but after years of getting to know each other, he could grasp the meaning behind it. He smiled and replied, "The landscape is picturesque and magnificent!"
Zhong Cai was delighted. She affixed labels to the boxes and put them into her mustard bag.
"This time it was a bit more difficult. I spent more than ten days successfully producing pills. I succeeded in four batches, with a success rate of 10%... That's a total of 15 pills. After deducting the ones I gave to my cheap dad, there were 10 left, which I had Zhong Da sell to the Pill Hall."
Wu Shaogan nodded. "That makes sense, that's acceptable."
·
The two walked out of the training room together.
A small, palm-sized blue fledgling fluttered down from a large tree in the inner courtyard, its tiny wings, barely covered with a thin layer of feathers, and landed swiftly on Wu Shaogan's right shoulder.
— Wu Shaogan has already named it "Qingyu".
Zhong Cai turned to the side and rubbed the baby bird's head twice with her fingers.
The blue fledgling shook its head, but did not resist.
Except for the day the little green roc hatched, Wu Shaogan would leave it in the courtyard every time Zhong Cai refined elixirs.
Perhaps due to its exceptional bloodline, the little azure roc was already flying very well just a few days after it was born. When it darted around quickly, it was like a small azure lightning bolt, leaving almost no afterimage.
Xiao Qingpeng is very close to Wu Shaogan and Zhong Cai. Every day, besides flying around, whenever he sees the two of them, he will pick one of them to step on and stick close to. He is very enthusiastic.
Zhong Cai likes it very much. She often holds it in her hands and rubs it when she has nothing to do, which is quite relaxing.
Because of Zhong Cai's sincere intentions, Wu Shaogan cherished the little green roc. After gently touching it, he called out to Zhou Lin and asked, "Is today's blood offering ready?"
Zhou Lin rushed over and respectfully replied, "They've already been fed."
Wu Shaogan nodded slightly.
Zhong Cai smiled happily when she saw how much he cared.
But watching the little green roc fly away again after a short while of affection, he seemed to recall something, and his expression became somewhat melancholy.
Before long, Little Green Roc will be able to carry people...
Looking back now, even without the revenge involved, he still wanted to give it to his friend.
There's nothing else to it, it's just perfect for me.
·
Those who cultivate in secret realms can fly when they reach the peak of the ninth level of the Palace Opening Realm.
At that time, the Dao Palace was opened to its limit, and profound energy filled it. Because the cultivators had already opened their meridians, the internal and external circulation was smooth, and they were as light as swallows and could fly into the air.
Wu Shaogan had once reached the Enlightenment Realm, so he could naturally fly. Moreover, as soon as he learned to fly, he found an opportunity to meet Zhong Cai and show him this ability.
The Zhong family has quite a few cultivators at the Palace Opening Realm. Zhong Cai has seen many cultivators fly through the air, but none of them can compare to Wu Shaogan's spiritedness, ease, and awe-inspiring presence.
While feeling envious, Zhong Cai also felt a sense of longing.
...So he kept nagging Wu Shaogan until he had no choice but to compromise and take him along.
At the bottom of a secluded valley, Wu Shaogan carried Zhong Cai and darted about in the air, as agile as a fish in water.
The two had a wonderful time, laughing non-stop and enjoying themselves immensely, never stopping until Wu Shaogan had exhausted his profound energy.
Not just once or twice, but many times, whenever Zhong Cai wanted to go to the sky to play, Wu Shaogan never refused.
Zhong Cai still remembers Wu Shaogan's high spirits in the air, but now... Wu Shaogan, whose realm has fallen, can no longer fly.
Wu Shaogan seemed magnanimous and never minded, but Zhong Cai minded a lot. He wanted his friend to take off again as soon as possible.
·
A smile returned to Zhong Cai's face.
The Azure Roc is fast and agile, able to fly freely in the air with its master, thus minimizing the differences between its buddy and its former self.
Moreover, being able to ride such a magnificent and rare bird, his friend would be even more dashing than many cultivators at the Enlightenment Realm.
Thinking of this, Zhong Cai raised her arm and hooked it around Wu Shaogan's neck, speaking in a similar tone as before, "Take me flying with you in a few months?"
Wu Shaogan was taken aback, then suddenly understood Zhong Cai's thoughts. A smile appeared on his face as he agreed, "Okay."
The two of them were grinning foolishly, both looking forward to that day.
Suddenly, Zhong Cai slapped his forehead.
Wu Shaogan was startled: "What's wrong?"
Zhong Cai said with a long face, "We're doomed, it looks like Xiao Qingyu is going to eat us out of house and home."
·
The little green roc reached the fifth stage of the second tier as soon as it hatched, which was even more outstanding than the two had expected. Although its appetite was not very big at the moment, it still needed to eat a second-tier savage beast every three days to meet its basic growth needs, which cost at least 500 gold. Fortunately, Wu Shaogan had stored some savage beast meat, which could sustain it for a few more months.
As the little green roc grows into a large roc, it needs to be fed by a second-tier savage beast every day, which may cost up to 20,000 gold per month, or more than 200,000 gold per year.
Even if Zhong Cai only refines the expensive Head Protection Pill, the money he can earn in a day is just enough to cover Xiao Qingpeng's food expenses.
Don't be fooled by the fact that the two of them have more than three million gold coins in savings. Even if they used three million of those gold coins to raise the little green roc, it would only last for twelve or thirteen years. Besides, wouldn't the little green roc break through in those years? With its aptitude, it should be able to reach the third rank in a few years. At that time, if they feed it a third-rank one every day, the daily cost will be more than fifty thousand gold coins!
Horrible, horrible.
Zhong Cai originally wanted to try his best to draw a high-grade rare beast egg for himself, but now he has no such idea—if he gets another one, he really won't be able to afford to raise it!
·
Zhong Cai naturally wouldn't hide her family's financial situation, and continued to worry, "High-level rare beasts are really difficult to raise."
Wu Shaogan couldn't help but laugh out loud. He cleared his throat before saying, "Who said we have to buy blood food for the little green roc?"
Zhong Cai was taken aback.
Wu Shaogan pointed to himself and said first, "Although I can only use the peak of the Heavenly Guidance Realm, I still have experience. With the Qi-replenishing pills you gave me, it's still possible to kill a few savage beasts at the early stage of the second tier. Even if I can't, Xiang Lin can go hunting. The little green roc is fierce by nature and can find food on its own."
Zhong Cai suddenly realized that it made sense; there was no need to buy everything.
Wu Shaogan continued, "If we nurture Xiang Lin properly, he has a good chance of breaking through to the Enlightenment Realm in more than ten years, and then he can hunt third-tier savage beasts. Even if Xiang Lin can't do it alone, he can cooperate with Xiao Qingpeng. We just need to provide them with more defensive measures. In addition, you can collect Xuan Pearls and Xuan Stones when you draw cards. I also have channels to sell any resources that we don't need, which is enough for our expenses."
Zhong Cai's brows relaxed.
A smile appeared in Wu Shaogan's eyes.
If Zhong Cai weren't still worried about him, he would really like to go hunting in the forest—each time he takes a high-grade Qi-replenishing pill, the Xuan power he replenishes is enough for him to hunt at least one or two Rank 2 early-stage savage beasts, which could earn him over a thousand gold.
He couldn't possibly let Zhong Cai refine pills day and night to support him, so once Zhong Cai had learned to make several kinds of pills and the little roc had grown out of its fledgling form, he would take Zhong Cai out for "play" from time to time, just like before.
·
Zhong Da obeyed Zhong Cai's orders and delivered five head-protecting pills to the Zhong family. Since they had enough medicinal herbs recently, Zhong Cai was too lazy to go out, so he simply gave them to his cheap father, Cheng Guo, instead of trying to take advantage of him.
Zhong Guanlin played with one of the stones, his expression still showing lingering shock.
At that moment, the door was pushed open, and a beautifully dressed woman walked in carrying a small tray.
On the tray was a bowl of soup. With a gentle movement of her slender hand, she placed the soup in front of Zhong Guanlin.
"Husband, where did this head-protecting pill come from?" The beautiful woman smiled, her eyes sparkling with charm.
Zhong Guanlin never disappointed the beauty's affection. He scooped up a spoonful of soup, ate it, and teased, "Guess?"
The beautiful woman smiled gently, leaned against Zhong Guanlin, and said softly, "I can't guess it. Please enlighten me, my husband."
Zhong Guanlin kissed her cheek and, no longer keeping her in suspense, told her the answer.
"It was made by our son, Xiao Liu'er."
The beautiful woman was taken aback: "Little Six? He actually became an alchemist?" She suddenly realized, and said with some annoyance, "Little Six has come back a few times, it turns out he was delivering pills to my husband. If I had known that this child had such abilities, I shouldn't have married him off. Although the daughter of the third wife is talented, she may not be as promising as our Little Six... Husband, our fourth wife has really lost out this time."
Zhong Guanlin sighed, "Isn't that right? What a huge loss." With that, he took out two head-protecting pills and handed them to the beautiful woman, "Take these two and give them to Xiao Ba and Lan'er when the time is right."
·
This beautiful woman was none other than Luo Fengxian, Zhong Guanlin's third wife. She possessed top-tier Huangpin aptitude and was only in her early thirties, a year younger than Zhong Guanlin's eldest son, Zhong Han.
When she married into the family, Zhong Cai had only been born a short time, so she naturally took care of her. However, within two years, she had her own son, Zhong Yun, and the following year, she gave birth to a daughter, Zhong Lan'er, and gradually became indifferent to Zhong Cai. In addition, Zhong Cai was not particularly talented, so she didn't need to deliberately win her over, and her relationship with Zhong Cai was merely a matter of appearances.
Since Luo Fengxian is the head mistress of the fourth branch, she couldn't hide the fact that Zhong Cai had returned twice recently. However, she wouldn't go against Zhong Guanlin—after all, the original wife was of low-grade Xuan rank, and the concubines she brought back back then were top-grade Huang rank. She couldn't completely suppress them, so she naturally had to pay more attention to her husband, who was of average Xuan rank.
Moreover, compared to her other sons, Luo Fengxian had raised Zhong Cai for several years, and Zhong Cai's marriage to the fourth wife brought benefits. Zhong Guanlin was willing to give him more face, and she did not object in her heart.
Of course, Luo Fengxian also understood Zhong Guanlin. The fact that he frequently entertained Zhong Cai meant that Zhong Cai had found other value. So when she learned that Zhong Cai had sent someone back to her parents' home, she prepared soup to connect with Zhong Guanlin and find out the reason.
Luo Fengxian never expected that Zhong Cai, who was judged to be of the lowest grade, would suddenly become a pill refiner!
For a moment, she began to regret it.
If only she had taken care of Zhong Cai for a few more years, he would have truly valued her as his legal mother, which would have greatly benefited her two children. Unfortunately, it's now difficult to contact Zhong Cai, and there's no way to coax him back.
·
Luo Fengxian took the pill and examined it carefully. She felt that it was fuller and rounder than the ones she had used before. Although it had not yet reached the middle grade, it was not the kind of inferior pill that barely reached the low grade.
Yun'er and Lan'er are just right for her.
Luo Fengxian smiled and said gratefully, "I thank you on behalf of Xiao Liu'er's younger brother and sister." She then said in a gentle voice, "Xiao Liu'er is still close to our family. It wasn't easy for him to marry into the Wu family, so his husband should help him out as much as possible."
Zhong Guanlin was always pleased with his wife's knowledge and tact. Hearing this, he smiled and said, "Of course. I sent him a lot of medicinal herbs before, and he did not disappoint me. He has already refined two kinds of pills so quickly."
Luo Fengxian naturally followed up with praise: "Little Liu must have given both kinds of pills to her husband. She is such a filial child."
Zhong Guanlin was even more satisfied.
Although he knew that the bond between father and son was limited, who wouldn't want to hear nice words? Moreover, with his wife's cooperation, it would be easier to cultivate the father-son relationship—there were always a few ignorant concubines in the backyard, and if they had any misunderstandings, they could be handed over to his wife to handle.
Luo Fengxian smiled again: "Little Liu is a thoughtful person. The amount of pills is just enough for several children. Look, even two-year-old Wan'er has a share. He has such a kind heart. Husband, don't forget to tell the children and let them remember the brother's affection. Brothers and sisters should all live in harmony."
Zhong Guanlin thought it made sense, but he didn't have time to deal with the little brats, so he simply handed the remaining three to Luo Fengxian and said, "You are their legal mother, so I'll leave this matter to you."
Luo Fengxian naturally wouldn't disappoint Zhong Guanlin's high regard, and said softly, "Husband, rest assured, I will entrust them to the children afterward. As for Xihua's one, let Sister Tang keep it for him."
Zhong Guanlin nodded and also said to Luo Fengxian, "Thank you for your hard work."
·
Luo Fengxian was the principal wife, and she lived in Linfeng Courtyard, which was closest to the main courtyard.
The courtyard is second only to the main courtyard in size. It is where the mistress and her children live, and there is a small maple grove inside, which is very beautiful.
In front of the maple forest, a young boy and girl were sparring. In the midst of the punches and kicks, the boy had the upper hand.
The two are of similar talent, but the younger one is older and stronger, and is currently mostly training his younger sister.
Upon noticing Luo Fengxian's arrival, the two siblings quickly crossed paths and steadied themselves in a flash.
"Mother!" They ran over happily.
With loving eyes, Luo Fengxian smiled and embraced her children, then sat down together on the stone bench beside her.
Zhong Yun is fifteen years old and Zhong Lan'er is thirteen years old. They both inherited their mother's beauty and are very good-looking. They are also very lively.
The brother and sister have a very good relationship.
Luo Fengxian took out two small jade bottles and handed them to the two men respectively.
Zhong Yun and Zhong Lan'er each took it, opened it, and were both surprised, exclaiming, "A head-protecting pill!"
Luo Fengxian smiled and nodded, then told them the origin of the elixir.
The brother and sister listened intently, their eyes widening in surprise.
Is it true? Their unremarkable sixth brother, Zhong Cai, has undergone a complete transformation after getting married?
·
Luo Fengxian's main purpose was to remind the two of their chances to cultivate a relationship with Zhong Cai when they had the opportunity to meet in the future.
“You two have never had any disagreements before, and I have taken care of him before. Although we weren’t particularly close, I didn’t mistreat him. Now that you want to associate with him, it’s because of his abilities. But people are inherently profit-driven. He’s married and living away from home. You and he are from the same father, so there’s no conflict of interest between you. You are more trustworthy than ordinary people.”
At this point, Luo Fengxian's eyes flickered slightly: "Your father is already trying to win him over, and you're right to follow in his footsteps. I didn't pay much attention to Xiao Liu'er's personality before, but now I see that he's a smart man and most likely won't refuse your overtures."
Zhong Yun seemed to be deep in thought, then a look of doubt appeared on his face.
“But Mother, Father’s goodwill towards Sixth Brother must be for his own benefit. What can we offer him? If we can’t help him, why should he care about us?”
Zhong Lan'er nodded, clearly sharing the same thought as Zhong Yun.
Luo Fengxian smiled gently and said, "That's right. Showing goodwill isn't just about words; it's about actions. Xiao Liu'er isn't with the Zhong family anymore, so he doesn't have any conflicts with you, but he doesn't need the Zhong family's power, nor does he need his brothers and sisters' support."
She paused, then continued, "The most talented in the fourth branch is Han'er. My original plan was for you all to cultivate diligently and then work for Han'er, thus building up the status of the entire fourth branch. Naturally, you would have more resources to break through your cultivation levels and go further. But now it's different. Your sixth brother has become an alchemist. If you can work for him, it will certainly be more promising than helping your eldest brother."
"Although the Luo family I belong to is small, we still have a few experts who have reached the Enlightenment Realm. Your sixth brother doesn't have any powerful figures to serve him right now. The Wu family will certainly treat him well, but he should still have some people of his own. However, although your maternal grandfather is the head of the family, he doesn't only have one daughter. If your aunts want to scheme for their own children, they will also have to rely on their maternal families' power. Whether it's trying to curry favor with little sixth brother or trying to gain your maternal grandfather's help, it all depends on your own abilities."
Zhong Yun and Zhong Lan'er understood, and both replied solemnly, "We understand."
After a moment's thought, Luo Fengxian said, "Be careful, even if Xiao Liu accepts your kindness, don't push your luck. Although the alchemist has many pills, if he doesn't give them to you on his own initiative, don't take advantage of your kinship to ask for them."
Zhong Yun and Zhong Lan'er agreed again.
Zhong Lan'er giggled and said, "Mother, do you think my brother and I are stupid?"
Luo Fengxian couldn't help but laugh, and said meaningfully, "You're not stupid, but there are always some fools."
The brother and sister thought about it and realized they had indeed seen quite a few fools.
Zhong Lan'er suddenly remembered something and couldn't help but say, "Speaking of which, before Sixth Brother got married, he asked the Third Branch of the family for some gold to protect himself. Cousin Qian and Cousin Lin were happy to do so without any guilt. Only Cousin Qiao was short-sighted and kept teasing him, as if she was afraid that Sixth Brother would be too willing. Now that Sixth Brother has become successful, Cousin Qian and Cousin Lin have actually gotten on good terms with him because of that incident. It will be easier for them to ask for any pills they want in the future. But what about Cousin Qiao?"
Zhong Yun chimed in, "Sister Qiao is indeed being a bit stingy. We're all family, why make things so awkward?" He frowned and added, "But what we did wasn't right either. When Sixth Brother gets married, we should have given him some dowry. Even if it's not much, it's the thought that counts."
Zhong Lan'er also regretted it a little: "Looking at it this way, I shouldn't have said that my cousin Qiao was short-sighted. I wasn't that much better myself."
After the brother and sister discussed and reflected on their relationship, Luo Fengxian felt gratified. She secretly thought to herself that she couldn't rely on her children for everything, and she should also find some time to go back to her parents' home.
Luo Fengxian then instructed her children, saying, "Since it's inappropriate, we should make up for it. The two of you should chip in and give them two thousand taels of silver. Have you thought about what to say?"
Zhong Lan'er said crisply, "Things happened too suddenly, there was no time to prepare."
Zhong Yun also said, "After all this time, we've finally raised the required amount."
The two then said in unison, "Please don't mind that we've taken too long, Sixth Brother!"
After listening, Luo Fengxian nodded in satisfaction.
·
Luo Fengxian was always efficient in her work, and she turned around to distribute the head-protecting pills to her illegitimate sons and daughters.
In Zhong Guanlin's backyard, there were at least eight women who had given birth to children and were granted the title of concubine, not to mention many more women who did not have such titles.
Besides Zhong Lan'er and Zhong Yun, the other three who can obtain the pills are Zhong Jinchuan, born from Xu Qing'er; Zhong Ziming, born from Qiu Ke; and Zhong Wan'er, born from Tang Xiaoyi.
Luo Fengxian arrived at Xu Qing'er's courtyard first and knocked on the door.
A maid opened the door, and Luo Fengxian went in, where she was greeted by a mother and son sitting opposite each other, drinking tea.
Xu Qing'er quickly came over to greet her and said with a smile, "Madam, what brings you here today? You didn't even mention it beforehand, so I could have asked Jin Chuan to get some good food so we sisters could eat and chat, right?"
Zhong Jinchuan also quickly stood up, bowed, and greeted the lady.
Luo Fengxian smiled at Zhong Jinchuan, then waved her hand at Xu Qing'er and tossed the small bottle she was holding over.
"You should have had Jinchuan buy this. Look what I brought you!"
Xu Qing'er quickly opened it and her face lit up with surprise: "Head Protection Pill! My good wife, it's actually this pill! Thank you so much. We've been trying to buy some these past few days, but they all say they're sold out. The next few months' worth are all reserved, and we don't know how long we'll have to wait to find some!"
Before Zhong Jinchuan, Xu Qing'er had a child at a young age, but he died in a fight while traveling when he was only a teenager. Xu Qing'er was heartbroken. Later, she finally had Zhong Jinchuan, and she recovered. She cherished Zhong Jinchuan like the apple of her eye, and even though he was seventeen years old and at the fourth level of the Heavenly Guidance Realm, she refused to let him go out.
Zhong Jinchuan was overjoyed and immediately bowed to Luo Fengxian again.
Luo Fengxian smiled and said, "I took on this errand, so it's only right that I thank you. But I also want you to know that these pills are actually a token of their sixth brother's goodwill."
Xu Qing'er was taken aback: "Cai'er?"
Luo Fengxian immediately said, "Isn't that Xiao Liu'er? After he married into the family, he summoned a pill furnace. He has great talent and a good relationship with the young master. He's already a first-level pill master. He's filial and loves his family. Knowing that some of our younger siblings needed this, he specially sent it back!"
This was truly unexpected. Xu Qing'er's mind was filled with many thoughts, and for a moment she couldn't think of anything nice to say. She could only stammer, "So it was Cai'er's idea. Thank you so much."
Zhong Jinchuan could only blankly agree, "Exactly, thank you, Sixth Brother."
Luo Fengxian knew that the mother and son still had things to discuss, so she waved her hand decisively: "My children also owe me this favor. Look at me, don't I still have to go to Qiu Ke and Xiao Yi's place now? So that all of his younger siblings can have one."
Xu Qing'er and Zhong Jinchuan acted awkwardly, but upon hearing this, they quickly saw the person off.
After Luo Fengxian left, the mother and son looked at each other in bewilderment.
Zhong Jinchuan asked in bewilderment, "Does Sixth Brother have such a good relationship with his stepmother that he even gave her pills?"
Xu Qing'er, now that she had come to her senses, said to Zhong Jinchuan, "I'm afraid it wasn't sent to Madam, but to your father. However, your father has always trusted Madam, and Madam is fair in her dealings, so it's appropriate for her to distribute the pills."
Zhong Jinchuan added, "Sixth Brother is truly amazing. He's only a year older than me, yet he's already a pill refiner. Now that I think about it, no wonder his strength has improved so quickly; he's nothing like an ordinary low-grade pill refiner."
Xu Qing'er smiled and said, "I originally thought you would have to suppress your strength again, but now that you have this head-protecting pill, you should focus on adjusting your body and preparing for your breakthrough." She then reminded him, "You should first send a letter to your sixth brother to express your gratitude. Also, tell him that once you successfully break through, you should personally hunt a savage beast for him to enjoy."
Zhong Jinchuan readily agreed.
·
Meanwhile, Luo Fengxian delivered the pills to Qiu Ke and Tang Xiaoyi respectively.
Zhong Ziming was only thirteen years old, far from being old enough to use elixirs, but that didn't stop Qiu Ke from being happy.
Qiu Ke's eldest son, Zhong Huoshan, had already married and taken concubines, and had several children. He had long since moved out of the garden. Because he was only a low-grade cultivator, he had only attempted to break through to the fifth level of the Heavenly Guidance Realm a few years ago, using the precious medicine that Qiu Ke had painstakingly acquired over many years. Now, his youngest son was still a low-grade cultivator, and Qiu Ke, being an elder in the garden, no longer received much favor, so naturally, she couldn't get many rewards from her husband. Her monthly allowance was only enough for cultivation, and she simply couldn't save enough money to buy more precious medicines, let alone pills.
But now, good news has come from heaven!
After seeing Luo Fengxian off, Qiu Ke hugged Zhong Ziming happily and put the pill at the bottom of the box.
At the same time, she also had to tell Zhong Ziming to remember Zhong Cai's kindness and to write a letter as soon as possible, sending some food that she had made herself to express his gratitude.
As for Tang Xiaoyi, she was only in her early twenties, had only been married for a few years, and had a daughter who was only two years old. They didn't even know what her aptitude was yet.
Even if Zhong Wan'er has exceptional talent, it would be great to have elixirs to assist her, wouldn't it? She was also a thoughtful person, so she quickly kept Luo Fengxian around a little longer, wrote a thank-you letter in front of Luo Fengxian, and even had Zhong Wan'er press her palm print on it.
Luo Fengxian glared at her and said she was overthinking things.
Then, he walked away leisurely.
·
Although the events at Yuehe Garden weren't high-profile, all eight branches of the Zhong family had people keeping an eye on the movements of all parties.
It wasn't long before the other families found out.
So why did Zhong Cai, who was originally unknown, suddenly become so successful after getting married?
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