Her small act of defiance was like an ant trying to stop a cart in front of Chen Ye.
"Hold on tight!"
Chen Ye laughed aloud, ignoring his apprentice’s struggle in his arms. With a thought, the Iron-Horned Demon Bull shot out like an arrow, carrying the mentor and student out of the cave!
Moonlight, like water, shimmered on the man, the child, and the bull.
"Wahhhh! Master! Slow down! Slow down!"
At first, Qing Jun cried out in fear, her small hands clutching the bull’s horns, eyes shut tight, not daring to look around.
But gradually, she realized that the big bull beneath her, though fast, was exceptionally steady.
The rushing wind at her ears was a refreshing mountain breeze; the soothing scent around her nose was the fragrance of grass and trees.
And...
The broad chest she leaned against was her master’s.
She secretly opened one eye.
She saw the trees beside her swiftly receding.
The moon overhead was big and round, seemingly within reach.
She couldn’t quite describe this feeling, only that suddenly, she was no longer scared.
...
When Chen Ye brought back the girl who had played wildly, riding on the majestic Iron-Horned Dragon Bull to the courtyard in the Inner Valley, dawn was already breaking.
Chen Ye had just dismounted from the bull, stored the puppet in the Storage Bag, and led the little girl into the Inner Courtyard.
Suddenly, another apprentice dashed out like an arrow and hugged Chen Ye’s leg tightly:
"Master! Where did you go! Do you know... do you know how worried we were!"
Seeing Zhiwei’s haggard look,
The joyfully playful Qing Jun and Chen Ye instantly felt guilty.
However,
after the older girl took a deep breath from her master’s leg, her expression quickly calmed down.
She tilted her small face up, quietly looking at her master:
"Master, please don’t run off like that again, okay?"
That look was not like a little girl’s, but more like an overburdened mother, advising her disobedient child.
Chen Ye was at a loss for words.
It was truly exhausting...
A grown man, being watched so closely by two apprentices.
He sighed, lifting the older apprentice’s petite body and stroking her smooth black hair:
"Alright, alright... Master is destined to be managed by you all forever..."
No way around it,
Refusing his apprentices was really too difficult for Chen Ye.
...
After the commotion, life in Lisong Valley resumed its routine.
Chen Ye led fifteen Spirit Plant Cultivators, systematically restoring the vitality of the Medicinal Garden.
With his exceptional Spirit Plant Technique, the withered Spirit Plants revived at a speed visible to the naked eye.
Additionally, another group led by Lin Jinghua also began cultivating Silver Scale Flowers for Chen Ye.
Meanwhile, in the independent courtyard surrounded by bamboo in the Inner Valley,
Lin Qiongyu also commenced her life as a maid.
This was a kind of life she never imagined.
Humiliating, unsettling, yet also carrying a hint of an unfamiliar feeling called "stability."
She no longer had to cater to those deceitful male cultivators for a few Spirit Stones, speaking words she didn’t mean;
Nor did she have to live in constant fear that the Zhang family’s three sisters would suddenly come and drag her poor sister to the black market.
Here, she had a clean room, plenty of Spiritual Qi, and her sister’s illness seemed to show hope of improvement in the hands of that man.
But all this came at a cost.
The cost was her freedom and what remained of her dignity.
Every morning, she got up early to prepare hot water and a delicate breakfast for the two little masters similar in age to her sister, yet worlds apart in status.
"Sister Qiongyu."
Qing Jun was always the first to wake up.
Not because the little girl was diligent; every time after having breakfast, she would go back to sleep for a while.
Nor was it because she was greedy.
She got up early each time just to secretly sneak into her master’s room.
At this time, her master was still sleeping.
So the little girl would sit puffed-up on her master’s body, tugging at his beard: "Master is such a lazybones! Won’t get up so early!"
After waking her master and having breakfast together, she would then quietly slip back to sleep.
Sometimes Lin Qiongyu would ask her why she did this.
The little girl thought for a while, seemingly having an epiphany: "Yes, why do I do this?"
Lin Qiongyu: "..."
But later,
She realized that the little girl simply wanted to have breakfast with her master.
After all...
Chen Ye was really too busy, busy every day after leaving home, only returning when it was late at night, exhausted.
Only in the morning, master and apprentice could have a meal together.
To be honest,
Lin Qiongyu liked Xu Qingjun very much,
She was like a cheerful little sparrow, always chirping around Lin Qiongyu, "What’s for breakfast this morning? Are there any meat buns?"
For this innocent and bright little girl who still held a bit of past friendship towards her, Lin Qiongyu was always patient, gently responding.
But when facing the other little master, Lu Zhiwei, the situation was completely different.
"The water is hot."
Zhiwei wouldn’t fuss like Qing Jun; she just stood quietly by, watching Lin Qiongyu with those clear black eyes.
That gaze carried no malice, yet it pressed down on Lin Qiongyu with more weight than any criticism.
"The pastries are too sweet."
When Lin Qiongyu brought out the osmanthus cake she had carefully prepared, learned from Granny Li, Zhiwei only took a small bite before putting down her chopsticks, commenting lightly.