Jin Qingqiu put away his jade fan and cupped his hands towards Jiu Hui. “It was I who was inconsiderate and put you in a difficult position.” Seeing that Jiu Hui’s fellow disciples had recovered their vitality, he took the initiative to invite them. “Fellow Daoists, if you don’t mind, why don’t you come up the mountain with me?”
“We shouldn’t decline Young Master Jin’s invitation, but we have some business to attend to later.” Yu Jing fixed her slightly disheveled hair and covered the dirt on her sleeve with her hand, smiling awkwardly at him.
Jin Qingqiu understood at once, so he took the initiative to bid farewell.
“Young Master,” the sword-serving boy asked in confusion, “why are they unwilling to go with us?”
“Foolish child, look at them now, their hair is disheveled, and their robes are dirty. How can they show their faces in public?” Jin Qingqiu played with the fan in his hand, but his eyes fell on the backs of the six people as they left.
“I still don’t understand.” The boy shook his head. “They could have come to our flying tower to change their clothes. Why did they have to go so far?”
“Perhaps, this is what integrity is.” Jin Qingqiu tapped the boy’s forehead. “Little child, don’t ask so many questions. Let’s go.”
Integrity?carpreads.pages.dev
The boy covered his forehead, still not understanding.
-—–
“This bag is the compensation from the Shenji School, this bag is the congratulatory gift from Sect Master Qiu to your master for advancing, and this bag is the meeting gift from Sect Master Qiu to me and Zhi You.”
Three bags were neatly placed on the table, and there was a Heavenly-rank flying boat next to them.
Jiu Hui reached out and hooked back the bag containing the spirit stones for the meeting gift: “I’ll split this with Zhi You.”
“It’s not safe for children to carry so many spirit stones. Why don’t you give them to your master for safekeeping?” Yu Jing reached out to take them, but Jiu Hui hugged the spirit stone bag to her chest and shook her head. “When I was three, the candy I gave to Aunt Jiao to keep disappeared. When I was six, the snacks that Grandpa Long helped me put away also vanished. So after I turned six, I understood one thing…”
“The spirit stones given to elders, how could they be taken back.” Tao Er muttered in a low voice. Back then, if he hadn’t been squatting at the head of his parents’ bed going crazy, he wouldn’t have been able to take back the spirit stones his maternal grandfather had given him.
“Ahem, Immortal Venerable Yu is speaking to her disciple, why are you interrupting!” City Lord Tao glared at his second son, as if only he had a mouth!
“Master was just joking with you.” Yu Jing smiled gently and withdrew her hand, as if she had really just been joking.
She opened the bag of spirit stones that the Shenji School had given her as compensation and generously gave some to the three members of the Tao family. “The Shenji School bullied others with their power, and you three suffered. Take these spirit stones to calm your nerves.”
“How can that be possible…” City Lord Tao quickly declined, but Yu Jing was unexpectedly forceful. “As the saying goes, those who see it get a share. The Tao family and our Wangshu Pavilion jointly guard Taolin City, so we are already as close as a family. We don’t need to be polite with each other.”
“Many thanks, Immortal Venerable Yu.” City Lord Tao stopped declining and accepted the spirit stones with a smile.
Jiu Hui also took out a handful of spirit stones from her own bag and gave them to Tao Er: “Take it, this is your reward.”
“Thank you, Immortal!” Tao Er happily put the spirit stone in his pocket. “Next time you need me to go crazy, just give me a look, and I’ll definitely go crazy to your satisfaction.”
City Lord Tao and the eldest of the Tao family：“……”
The child’s madness seemed to have been cured, but from a certain perspective, it seemed to have become even crazier.
“Good boy.” Jiu Hui patted his head. “Next time something good like this happens, I’ll definitely call you.”
City Lord Tao coughed twice. “Immortal Venerable Yu, I will take the two children to the next room to tidy up again, so as not to be rude later.”
Yu Jing nodded. After the Tao family father and son left, she looked at Jiu Hui with relief. “Jiu Hui, you did a great job today.”
“So, do I get a reward?” Jiu Hui stretched out her hand in front of Yu Jing.
“Why the rush?” Yu Jing smiled gently and extended her index finger to tap Jiu Hui’s palm. “As a disciple of my sect, you must learn to respect your teachers and elders. When we arrive at the Jiutian Sect, I will take you to pay respects to the Jiutian Sect’s elders.”
“Master, my hands are itching.” Jiu Hui held Yu Jing’s index finger and rubbed it against her body. “Rest assured, Master, I will definitely live up to your teachings.”
Zhi You watched the intimate master and disciple, and reached out to straighten his crooked hair crown.
What did it mean to respect teachers and elders? Why wasn’t it about respecting teachers and the Dao?
“Let’s go to the other room, and I’ll dress you up nicely.” Yu Jing pinched Jiu Hui’s little face. “A little girl should be dressed up beautifully.”
“Thank you, Master. You’re my favorite,” Jiu Hui said, hugging Yu Jing’s arm. The master and disciple walked out of the room, arm in arm, and the room gradually grew quiet.
Zhi You held his teacup, watching the sunlight that slipped through the cracks of the window. He recalled how Jiu Hui had forcefully slapped him out of the flying boat that day, how she had shaken his shoulders and not let him open his eyes, and the half bag of spirit stones that she had wanted to share with him…
No, what about the spirit stones that were supposed to be given to him?
Taking a sip of tea, Zhi You turned his head to see himself in the bronze mirror, and he was actually——smiling.
-—–
“Master, Master, it hurts, it hurts, it hurts…”
In the room next door, Jiu Hui clutched her head. “My disciple’s hair is about to break.”
“The Flying Phoenix Ascending to the Clouds Hairstyle requires the hair to be tied up high and tight to look good.” Yu Jing pressed down on Jiu Hui’s head. “Don’t move, don’t move, it’ll be done soon.”
After securing the last hairpin, Yu Jing handed the mirror at her waist to Jiu Hui: “Look, isn’t it beautiful?”
“Master, your mirror is too small.” Jiu Hui took out a standing mirror from her storage ring that was bigger than her head and placed it on the table, holding her face in her hands as she looked at it from left to right.
Her eyebrows were like willow leaves, and her eyes had a faint blush at the corners, making her look innocent and kind.
With such a face, even if she were to smash a vase in public, others would only worry about whether she would be frightened, and would not speculate whether she did it on purpose.
“Is it pretty?” Yu Jing used a brush to draw a small flower mark on Jiu Hui’s forehead, adding a touch of pitiful charm to her already innocent-looking face.
“Master, you’re amazing.” Jiu Hui was very satisfied with her makeup.
“Well, it seems that my craftsmanship has not declined.” Yu Jing was also very satisfied: “A gentleman hides his weapon in his body and waits for the right time to act. He appears dull to others, while sharpening himself.”
“Your disciple will keep your teachings in mind.” Jiu Hui grabbed Yu Jing’s hand. “Master, don’t worry. Your disciple will protect herself.”
“With those words from you, I can rest assured.” Yu Jing opened the window. “Among the myriad beings, there are many with outstanding abilities. Your teacher is a mediocre person. I don’t expect you to be famous in the world, nor do I expect you to strengthen the sect. I only hope that you will be safe.”
Jiu Hui looked up at Yu Jing.
Yu Jing chuckled softly, “These were the words your grandmaster told me when he first took me out with him. Now, I pass them on to you.”
“Grandmaster must care about master a lot.” Jiu Hui said with certainty, “Someone who doesn’t love you enough only cares about whether you’re successful or not, but someone who truly loves you cares about whether you’re living well and whether you’re safe and sound. So…”
She drawled as she looked at Yu Jing.
“So what?” Yu Jing asked with a smile.
“So Master must love me very much too.” Jiu Hui proudly raised her little head, smiling with curved eyebrows: “Am I right, Master?”
Yu Jing walked up to her and flicked her on the forehead. “Let’s go to Jiutian Sect.”
Jiu Hui skipped and hopped behind her. She understood that the elders were just being awkward. As long as they didn’t refute it, it meant they had acknowledged it.
-—–
The Shenji School members arrived at the Jiutian Sect in a sorry state, only to find the atmosphere there somewhat strange. The Shenji School Sect Master felt a secret twinge of guilt. Could it be that news of their bullying of the small sect had already spread to all the guests?
“Sect Master Pao,” Nan Feng came out to greet the Sect Master of the Shenji School. “My apologies for not welcoming you sooner. Please come this way, Sect Master Pao.”
“Thank you, thank you.” He dared to be arrogant in front of the small sect, but he didn’t dare to be the least bit disrespectful to the head disciple of the Jiutian Sect.
Following behind Nan Feng, Sect Master Pao stepped into the inner hall and found that many sect masters turned their heads to look at him, which scared him into taking a step back.
What was going on here?
In fact, everyone didn’t really want to look at the old orange-peel face of the Sect Master Pao, but the atmosphere in the inner hall was too oppressive, and they wanted to find a reason to distract themselves.
If they had known that the Qinglan School would come, they would have… they would have come a little later.
After Sect Master Pao arrived, everyone greeted each other and exchanged pleasantries, all that was missing was asking if the dog raised by the Shenji School was doing well.
The flattered Sect Master Pao was secretly delighted. Had the status of their Shenji School become so high that even the sect masters of the Ten Great Sects had come to show concern for him?
Qiu Hua sat lazily against the carved chair, her gaze drifting to a white cloud floating slowly outside the window, as if the excitement within the hall had nothing to do with her.
As more and more sects arrived, she slowly frowned and glanced at the entrance.
After the arrival of Changshou Palace and Yuzhen Sect, everyone abandoned Sect Master Pao and began to chat with these two sects.
“Young Master Jin, why didn’t your father come?”
“Thank you for your concern, Uncle. My father is currently in seclusion, so I have come on his behalf to congratulate Daoist Master Yin Ji.”
“Your father has a high cultivation, and he also has a good son like you. It’s really enviable.”
“Uncle, you jest.”
Sect Master Pao, who had been briefly noticed by the sect masters but was quickly ignored again: “…”
Was there no one to talk to him?
“Sect Master Pao, why are you sitting alone without saying a word?” Jin Qingqiu seemed to have heard his inner cry and took the initiative to talk to him: “Could it be that you’re not feeling well because you crashed someone else’s flying boat and lost spirit stones?”
Sect Master Pao’s face twitched. This was even worse than being ignored.
“Crash the flying boat?” Sect Master Bu Ting of the Jiutian Sect looked over.
Sect Master Pao looked at Jin Qingqiu with pleading eyes, “Young Master, can you please say a few less words?”
As if the heavens had heard his plea, it was Luo Kui from Changshou Palace who spoke next, not Jin Qingqiu.
Luo Kui’s good reputation was known throughout the world, so when she said this, it had a greater impact than if Jin Qingqiu had said it.
After hearing the cause and effect, everyone frowned.
“Crack.”
Everyone turned their heads to look in the direction of the voice. The teacup in the hands of the Qinglan School’s Sect Master cracked and tea dripped onto the floor.
“Who gave you the guts to bully others at the foot of the Jiutian Sect’s mountain?” Qiu Hua lifted her eyelids, her tone full of disdain. “The Jiutian Sect?”
The disciples of the Jiutian Sect were speechless.
We know that you, old man, have a grudge against our Sect Master, but don’t try to pin this broken pot on us.
Jiu Hui and her two disciples had just reached the entrance to the main hall when they saw something flying towards them.
“Huh?” Jiu Hui squatted down and looked at him. “Why are you, Sect Master Pao, bowing so deeply to this junior?” She reached out to help him up. “This is improper. It’s absolutely improper.”
Sect Master Pao glared at her, spat out a few mouthfuls of blood, and fainted.
Jiu Hui quickly took two steps back, using her actions to prove that the unconsciousness of the Sect Master had nothing to do with her.
She leaned close to Yu Jing’s ear and whispered, “Master, I forgot to ask on the way here, what kind of congratulatory gift have we prepared?”
“Peach.”
“Ah… ah, that’s right!” Jiu Hui’s eyes darted around. “I remember now, this is the fruit of the oldest peach tree in our sect. It blooms every ten years, bears fruit every ten years, and ripens every ten years. By giving this fruit as a gift, we can show our sect’s sincerity.”
“When did we…” Zhi You wondered, when did our sect get this peach tree?
“Yes,” Jiu Hui interrupted his unspoken question. “It happened when Master picked the peach.”
Author’s Note:
Little Garlic Chive: This is not an ordinary peach, this is the legendary peach that can only be picked once every thirty years!
Yu Jing: Ah, yes, yes, yes, yes, my disciple is right!
Zhi You: Oh…