"Congratulations."
"My junior brother."
As soon as Shi Xi stepped out of the study, she heard Ji Ruwen's voice.
Perhaps because she was considering that the two of them would be from the same school in the future, Shi Xi felt that Ji Ruwen's tone was not as aggressive as it had been the night before, but rather carried a hint of goodwill.
"Mr. Qin, it wasn't your suggestion that you take me as your apprentice, was it?"
Shi Xi looked at Ji Ruwen with suspicion.
What do you think?
Ji Ruwen asked in return.
He reached out and patted Shi Xi on the shoulder, saying softly, "No one can influence Mr. Qin's choice."
He was merely offering suggestions; the final decision rested with Qin Budu.
The assistant, who was listening nearby, also felt that what Ji Ruwen said made sense, so he nodded.
Shi Xi: "..." That's true.
He stopped worrying about it, waved his hand, and prepared to go find Qi Tingsong.
When she raised her hand, her sleeve slipped down, inevitably revealing her wrist.
"Did Mr. Qin give this to you?" Ji Ruwen asked.
"Mm," Shi Xi said.
Ji Ruwen seemed curious and reached out to fiddle with the lotus flower on it.
The jade stones clinked together, producing a crisp sound. Even though he knew it was just a ceremony to formally become an apprentice, Ji Ruwen still felt a slight displeasure.
He remembered when he last saw this jade.
Ji Ruwen frowned, recalling how two months ago Qin Budu had exorcised a vengeful ghost for a renowned jade expert, who then gifted him a priceless piece of jade.
Although Qin Budu was a celestial master, he was only twenty-seven years old. He was exceptionally gifted in the field of metaphysics and truly had outstanding talent.
In his spare time, Qin Budu loved to tend to the flower garden in the manor.
It is said that the roses in the garden were planted by Qin Budu himself. From the entrance gate to the manor, it looks like a sea of flowers. In addition to the roses, Qin Budu also planted a small patch of purple, unidentified flowers in the greenhouse.
He also remembered completing a mission to visit Qin Budu.
The other person, holding a carving knife, sat in the center of the garden, sculpting jade in the shape of a lotus flower.
Seemingly noticing his gaze, Qin Budu strung the lotus flower onto the bracelet with a rope. "Perfect." He was referring to the bracelet, which was made of Bodhi jade and could calm the mind and focus the spirit.
Ji Ruwen did not know why he wanted to make this bracelet, and only said: "Sir, you have a wonderful hand in painting."
But unexpectedly, it was given to Shi Xi.
The assistant standing to the side didn't think as much as Ji Ruwen; he had no right to interfere with what Mr. Qin did.
"Have you finished reading?" Shi Xi asked Ji Ruwen.
I don't understand why Ji Ruwen is so curious about a bracelet; it's not like he's never seen anything good before.
Ji Ruwen paused for a second before withdrawing her hand.
"What are you going to do?" he asked again.
"Let's go see Qi Tingsong." Shi Xi looked at Ji Ruwen. "Are you going too?"
"Mm." Ji Ruwen nodded.
So the two of them went downstairs together.
...
By this time, most of the people who had participated in the assessment had left, and there were hardly any people on the first floor.
When Shi Xi was almost at Qi Tingsong's room, she saw the baby-faced Taoist priest.
Seeing that Shi Xi was about to knock on the door, he couldn't help but step forward to stop her, "Are you looking for Qi Tingsong?"
"What?" Shi Xi asked, puzzled. "Qi Tingsong isn't here?"
The baby-faced Taoist hesitated for a moment, glanced at Ji Ruwen, and carefully spoke, "...He probably isn't in very good condition right now."
They all thought Qin Budu should choose Qi Tingsong, since he was indeed the most likely candidate, but unexpectedly Qin Budu chose Shi Xi in the end.
Although Qi Tingsong didn't say anything, judging from his own experience, if he were in that situation, he would inevitably have some feelings about it.
That's why he stopped Shi Xi.
Shi Xi understood what he meant and smiled, "Then I'll go in and see him."
After saying that, he pushed open the door and went directly into Qi Tingsong's room, with Ji Ruwen following him in.
The baby-faced Taoist priest stood there, stunned: "..."
Why does it seem like Shi Xi and Qi Tingsong have a pretty good relationship?
They went in without knocking.
...
I came to see you.
Shi Xi closed the door and saw Qi Tingsong sitting on the sofa with his head down, seemingly reading a book.
Compared to last night, Qi Tingsong's mental state is much better now, and Shi Xi guesses that Qin Budu must have helped last night.
Does the wound still hurt?
The Qi family has always kept Qi Tingsong's physical condition a secret, so he shouldn't know about it now.
Shi Xi thought he would answer that everything was fine.
But then he saw Qi Tingsong touch his lower back, and then look at himself—
"……pain."
Shi Xi frowned.
No way? It's been a whole night and it still hurts.
Could it be that I was in too much of a rush last night and didn't bandage it properly?
"How about we go to the hospital?" Shi Xi suggested.
Qi Tingsong simply shook his head and said softly, "It's alright, I can endure it."
“…?” Ji Ruwen frowned.
What is Qi Tingsong doing?
Last night, Mr. Qin didn't utter a sound while suppressing the seal, but he started crying out in pain from his wounds.
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