Chapter 287: Rejected at the "Door"
"The five-year period is almost up. After you leave the academy, will you return to Feng Province?"
Lu Qingqiu was thinking about 'making it official' when she heard the question and snapped back to reality. Hearing the words "Feng Province," she paused, biting her red lip lightly.
Go to Feng Province after leaving the academy? It seemed Ji You really wanted her and her sister to eat something else.
In an instant, many images filled the mind of the Lu family's Young Miss.
Ji You saw her face flush and realized he had spoken incorrectly: "These past few days, during disaster relief, I kept mentioning Feng Province's grain, so it slipped out. What I meant was, after you leave the academy, will you return to Yun Province?"
"According to my father's arrangements, after I return home, I should join the Ling Shi Business Association."
The Lu family's cultivation talent wasn't high. The two daughters of the Lu family were the pillars. If there were no accidents, the future Ling Shi Business Association would likely be controlled by them. If they could be persuaded to change the system, the foster care system in Yun Province, which left miners' descendants in debt from birth, might improve.
However, seeing Lu Qingqiu's expression, as if she wanted to 'make the rumors official,' it seemed easier to persuade her with something else than with words.
Kuang Cheng was right, cultivation was nothing. In the end, a good body was more useful.
At this moment, Ji You's mind was filled with inexplicable postures, and he secretly thought that the ancients were right; the human heart was indeed lustful.
Afterward, the two chatted about some miscellaneous things, and then Lu Qingqiu was called away by a maid who hurried into the courtyard, receiving a thick stack of invitations from her.
As New Year approached, the Ling Shi Business Association had many dealings in the capital, mostly handled by this Young Miss Lu.
This year, she visited the same few people as always, but the number of invitations she received had increased.
Lu Qingqiu was actually very clear that the extra invitations were not necessarily for their Lu family. A large reason was that others knew she had lost her virginity to Ji You.
Many people probably wanted to use him to find out what was going on with Ji You and why Tianshu Academy's attitude towards him was so strange.
Then the two waved goodbye. Ji You turned and left the Outer Courtyard, following the mountain path to the Inner Courtyard, where he retrieved the cotton shoes, floral jacket, teacup, and cotton pad he had stored in a camphor wood box last year.
Among them was also a letter from Yuan Caiwei, which had been delivered a few days ago when Ji You went to disaster relief.
Tianshu Academy was the last stop on Dan Sect's pill transportation route. Yuan Caiwei and Yuan Chen were coming to deliver pills and specifically told him the arrival date. This couldn't help but remind Ji You of that winter, three people in one room, and his mouth bitten by the jealous Master Jian.
Heh, it's getting livelier and livelier...
Ji You put the letter away and found the Disciple guarding the mountain gate.
Since he wasn't staying in the academy now, he left the address of Worry-Free Commerce, asking the Disciple guarding the gate to inform him when Dan Sect's people arrived, and then gracefully descended the mountain.
When he returned to Worry-Free Commerce, he saw a beautiful figure from afar.
Yan Shuyi, dressed in a wide-sleeved immortal dress, looked delicate and graceful, leading Ding Yao and Zhuo Wanqiu to stroll in front of the shop.
She wore a veil, with only her beautiful eyes exposed. Seeing Ji You, she nodded calmly, as if they had only met once.
If she wasn't familiar with him, she wouldn't get spanked.
Ji You looked at her at this moment: "Have you eaten lunch?"
"Not yet—"
"What do you want to eat?"
Yan Shuyi was silent for a moment: "I want to eat hot and sour shredded potatoes."
Ding Yao and Zhuo Wanqiu immediately breathed a sigh of relief, thinking it was finally over.
Master Jian had said she would take them out for a stroll after breakfast at Chen Shi. The two thought it was to visit the East and West Markets and even had some faint expectations, only to realize they had thought too much.
For two whole hours, their strolling range did not exceed the small area in front of Worry-Free Commerce's entrance.
They had not accompanied Yan Shuyi to the capital for winter before, but after returning, they often heard her mention it, like how she 'accidentally' met him at Tianshu Academy, or 'accidentally' met him at Kuang Cheng's doorstep.
The two were puzzled at the time, wondering how there could be so many 'accidental' meetings. Now they realized this was how those 'accidental' meetings happened.
Then the four entered Worry-Free Commerce. Ji You set out the teapot and teacups, boiled a pot of clear tea, and then began to roll up his sleeves to cook.
There weren't many green vegetables to stir-fry in winter, but there were plenty of potatoes.
Ding Yao and Zhuo Wanqiu went to help Ji You, while Yan Shuyi narrowed her eyes slightly at the teacup on the table.
The unfamiliar Young Master had brought all her wintering things from last year, which meant he had anticipated that she wouldn't be able to resist coming to find him.
This also felt like a part of dismantling her persona, and being anticipated made her a little displeased.
Ji You, at this moment, was waving the spatula with his sleeves rolled up, lowering his voice to Ding Yao and Zhuo Wanqiu: "How long have you two been strolling at the entrance?"
Ding Yao coughed: "From Chen Shi until now, about two hours."
"I thought she could at least last a day without coming to see me after going back."
"Master Jian couldn't sleep at all last night. She kept us around the stove and wouldn't let us sleep."
"Then after you finish eating, you two tell her to leave and see her reaction."
"Yes, Young Master."
After a while, the food was served, and the four enjoyed lunch on a leisurely winter afternoon.
Ding Yao and Zhuo Wanqiu waited until their Master Jian stopped her chopsticks and began to stare blankly before speaking: "Master Jian, we promised Miss Rui'er that we would stroll for a while and then go back. It's about time to leave now."
Yan Shuyi didn't even turn her head, but her eyes gradually sharpened.
The two exchanged glances, thinking, "She's reacting, and the reaction is to pretend not to hear."
After a moment of silence, a soft laugh came from the hall, instantly making Yan Shuyi narrow her eyes. She understood that her two maids were deliberately speaking at Ji You's behest, so she stood up and walked towards the hall.
Before long, a clattering sound came from the hall.
The two waited motionlessly, silently counting down. Soon, the sound from the room suddenly stopped, and they pursed their lips.
Alright, Master Jian had her way again. She was probably already sitting in his arms now.
At this moment, in the hall, Yan Shuyi's fragrant tongue was ensnared, and she struggled with a frosty face, her eyes fixed on Ji You, full of caution, her breathing growing heavier.
Ji You reached out and smacked her rounded bottom, then gently released her: "Stop messing around, let's get to business."
Yan Shuyi endured the burning sensation on her bottom without rubbing it, pointing at the letter on the table: "The snowy region demon stone is going to resume supply?"
He had just finished writing it when she entered, a whole page of flowing script, the ink still not dry.
"This time, to aid in disaster relief, Feng Province's grain reserves are almost depleted. Although Great Xia provided a portion from the national treasury, and the rest were signed as work contracts with the disaster victims, Feng Province's silver reserves are now almost gone. Ji Village's money has all been emptied."
Yan Shuyi's eyes showed a hint of solemnity when she heard that her family's money was gone.
Ji You blew the letter dry and put it into an envelope: "The snow in Feng Province has been gradually lessening these past few days, reducing the risk of Spirit Stone transportation. I need to recover some, and those Sect and immortal sects are supported by the common people, so they should bear some of the burden for the common people."
Yan Shuyi looked up at him: "Inconvenient winter transportation is a good excuse. With the qingyun immortal rules in place, it's hard for anyone to attack you. But if you raise prices by relying on having the transportation route, you will accumulate resentment. That's a bad strategy."
"No need to raise prices. First, secretly transport a batch out and store it in a warehouse to be sold by other trading companies under the guise of inventory."
"You want to distance yourself? That's a good idea, but I'm afraid it will be easily exposed."
"Just deny it. What they need is Spirit Stones; what I want is only money."
Ji You looked at Yan Shuyi at this moment: "Master Jian has come a long way. As a friend of Wei Rui's lover, I absolutely cannot neglect you. What do you want to eat tonight?"
Yan Shuyi's small mouth was pecked, and she looked at him coldly for a long time: "Eat hot and sour shredded potatoes."
In the following days, Shengjing City remained peaceful, with occasional fresh news breaking the calm.
An Elder of Asked the Dao Sect, three hundred years old, returned his soul to Heavenly Dao, and countless Disciples who traveled outside the mountains returned to the mountain for the funeral.
The Elder's name had been absent from Qingyun World for a long time, so it didn't cause too much of a stir. What did cause a stir was another matter: the Mountain and Sea Pavilion Head Teacher decided to let his personal Disciple attempt to control a Sacred Artifact.
Controlling a Sacred Artifact was not an overnight matter. According to past records, it could take as quickly as five to eight years, or as slowly as ten to twenty years.
But even so, it was enough to cause countless discussions.
Because when a personal Disciple controlled a Sacred Artifact, it also meant that the Mountain and Sea Pavilion Head Teacher had decided to enter seclusion for Ascension. What they would witness was another era's change, which couldn't help but evoke sighs of emotion.
As for Tianshu Academy, no student was able to sense the Heavenly Book this year either.
This was already the third year; the third year without any Heavenly Book sensing, which gave rise to constant rumors such as "Celestial Book Institute Head Teacher is unwell" and "There's a problem with the Heavenly Book."
However, because those students who had previously sensed the Heavenly Book could still comprehend the Dao through it, not many people believed these rumors.
As for Ji You, he had been busy restoring the Spirit Stone supply during this period, sending multiple messages to Qiu Zhong and He Zhang in Feng Province.
The first batch of Spirit Stones in the plan appeared at Qionghua Pavilion's stall, not many in number, and were quickly bought at a high price by a nearby family.
Subsequently, the third and fourth batches also followed, all bought up by the nearby Sect who had caught wind of the news.
Self-collection was actually a very troublesome matter, coupled with the increased road tolls in Feng Province and the difficulty in gathering goods for the Yao Race, buying them out at a high price like this was actually more convenient.
The subsequent sales of Spirit Stones became more dispersed, but the quantity increased significantly, said to have been in storage for a long time, attracting many cultivators to bid for them.
During this period, Ji You went to the Agriculture Department to inquire about the cultivation of spiritual seedlings, then purchased various seedlings at a high price from the Sun family in Liang Province and sent them to Feng Province.
Besides these matters, he had not forgotten his cultivation.
Every morning, he would set aside time for Body Refining, igniting the spiritual fire to burn his body as before.
Shengjing occasionally had snowfall, and each time it fell on him, it would be melted into Qi by the heat, so much so that many people saw rolling white mist nearby.
Then, after each Body Refining session, he would rush to sit by the door by Chen Shi San Ke (7:45 AM).
Yan Shuyi would stroll there at this time every day, and then be "reluctantly" invited home for a meal by "Rui'er's younger sister's lover's friend."
Ding Yao and Zhuo Wanqiu would also follow along, their faces visibly plumping up.
They found that their Young Master was truly doting on Master Jian; even though Master Jian was so stubborn, the Young Master didn't expose her and let her do as she pleased.
If she wanted to be the Master Jian who looked down on the world, she could be the Master Jian who looked down on the world; if she wanted to be greedy, she could be greedy; if she wanted to be stubborn, she could be stubborn.
However, Yan Shuyi still maintained her persona, believing that if she wasn't familiar, she wouldn't get hit.
It's just that every time she returned from the "Rui'er's younger sister's lover's friend" with a cold and indifferent demeanor, she had to personally wash her pants in her room, living up to Ji You's original remark, "Little Water Tiger."
However, some people were immersed in their own world, full of worry.
"Fairy Ding."
"Rui'er, it's so late, aren't you sleeping yet?"
"I'm about to sleep. Where's my Master Jian sister?"
In the connecting corridor under the cold night, Wei Rui gracefully walked into the connecting corridor and couldn't help but ask when she met Ding Yao.
Ding Yao heard her and replied, "Master Jian has gone back to her room to rest. Is there anything?"
"Well, I ran into Young Master Ji when I was out on the street today. Young Master Ji said he missed sister."
"What?"
Ding Yao looked at Wei Rui, a hint of confusion in her expression.
Because they had been with the Young Master all day today, Wei Rui shouldn't have had any time to see him.
Wei Rui was not good at lying, so her gaze darted around: "Well, Sister Ding, please just help me convey the message. I'm going to sleep now. There's tremella soup in the room. If sister is hungry, you can ask Zhu'er to get some."
"Okay, thank you, Young Miss Rui'er."
"You're welcome—"
Wei Rui returned to her room along the connecting corridor and sat on the bed, filled with worry.
Her Master Jian sister-in-law had a cold expression every day. Besides cultivating and meeting the Disciples who sent messages, she would gracefully stroll out like an immortal, truly showing her the appearance of Lingjian Mountain's Young Master Jian who looked down on the world.
That overwhelming sense of pressure was just like how Wei Rui felt when she first saw her at the Tiandao Conference.
And in these past few days, she had never mentioned Ji You. That state truly seemed like she had cut off all emotions and love, giving Wei Rui a sense of shattered dreams that she might not be able to marry into Feng Province with Sister Yan.
After a night of contemplation, Wei Rui got up from the bed.
From morning to noon, she had been observing her Master Jian sister.
The Disciple from Lingjian Mountain came to send another message. After reading the message, her sister's cold and arrogant gaze made her heart pound until Yan Shuyi dismissed the Disciple, called Ding Yao and Zhuo Wanqiu to go out, and Wei Rui finally made up her mind, feeling that things couldn't go on like this anymore.
So she changed her clothes, put on her cotton robe, and opened an oiled paper umbrella to leave, walking along the cold, misty long street to Worry-Free Commerce.
She felt that matters of the heart should be like those written in storybooks, impossible to sever.
She thought she should start by persuading Ji You to win back Sister Yan; perhaps there would be a glimmer of hope.
Wei Rui stepped into the backyard of Worry-Free Commerce, took a deep breath, and then reached out to push open the cold wooden door. As soon as she crossed the threshold, her eyes widened.
Her Master Jian sister, who had cut off all emotions and love, was currently in the backyard of Worry-Free Commerce, making paper lanterns with Fairy Ding and Fairy Zhuo. Hanging paper lanterns was a New Year custom, and Wei Rui had also done it with Kuang Cheng before.
At this moment, Yan Shuyi had already skillfully made one of them. After looking at it for a long time, she chuckled, then with an arrogant expression, handed it to Ji You's front. When she saw him give a thumbs-up, a hint of pride appeared.
Seeing this scene, Wei Rui narrowed her eyes.
She suddenly understood why Sister Yan's lips had become redder these past few days.
Ding Yao saw Wei Rui at this moment: "Young Miss Rui'er, why are you here?"
"To worry unnecessarily."
"What?"
Wei Rui sat down in front of them and quietly spoke to the Young Master Jian of Lingjian Mountain, who hadn't fully recovered yet: "So I'm the only outsider."
Ding Yao looked at her: "What outsider?"
"Devoted to the Immortal Dao, without emotion or love."
"You believed it?!"
Ding Yao looked at Wei Rui with a stunned expression, thinking to herself, how could anyone believe my Master Jian's terrible acting?
Wei Rui felt foolish, and a hint of grievance appeared in her eyes: "You all ganged up just to trick me?"
Ding Yao couldn't help but shake her head: "Master Jian wanted to trick everyone, even herself, but no one believed her, not even herself. Only you believed her."
"So Sister Yan went out for walks every day these past few days, actually just to find Young Master Ji?"
"Otherwise? Haven't you noticed that Master Jian can't sit still as soon as she hears the Young Master's name, and she's been coming back later and later these past few days."
Yan Shuyi had just come back to her senses and turned to look at Wei Rui: "Younger sister Rui'er is here?"
Wei Rui looked at her with a scrutinizing gaze: "Sister isn't familiar with Young Master Ji, are you? How come you secretly came to play with my lover's friend?"
"I happened to run into him on the street while strolling around."
"What?"
Ding Yao and Zhuo Wanqiu looked at the puzzled Wei Rui and quietly told Wei Rui that this was another one of their Master Jian's tricks.
Wei Rui was full of confusion after hearing this, finding Master Jian sister's constant acting so strange.
If Young Master Ji had a personality like her Kuang Lang, he might really think he had been rejected and they would part ways forever.
So Zhuo Wanqiu leaned close to her ear and whispered for a long time, making Wei Rui's face instantly turn red to her earlobes.
She understood. So Master Jian sister really wanted to keep Young Master Ji out of the "door."
Yan Shuyi was staring at them at this moment, and even without using Divine Sense to eavesdrop, she knew what they were doing.
Too big, definitely not okay. This was something she confirmed last time in Anyuan City when Ji You was asleep. Just thinking about it made her feel scared.
Furthermore, after thoroughly studying the Secret Manual she bought from down the mountain, she found that many positions required her to be on the bottom, which she didn't accept.
Moreover, if she really became pregnant, a woman's maternal instincts would definitely affect her Dao Heart.
The Young Master Jian of Lingjian Mountain pondered, but didn't realize that she never resisted giving birth to one for Ji You.
Just as the few of them were each lost in thought, the sound of a carriage rumbling came from the back door of Worry-Free Commerce.
Before long, a cry of "Brother-in-law" came from outside the door.
Ji You looked at Yan Shuyi at this moment, and saw the Young Master Jian narrowing her eyes in advance, already knowing that her lifelong good sister was here.
Ding Yao and Zhuo Wanqiu also couldn't help but straighten their backs, thinking, Master Jian, you're scared, aren't you? Now someone who isn't scared is here.
And with that cry of "Brother-in-law" falling, the back door opened, and Yuan Chen and Yuan Caiwei walked in.
"Little Master Jian sister, Brother-in-law, long time no see!"
"Caiwei greets Young Master, greets sister."