Grace

Grace

In a small building deep within the Zhao Residence, Seventh Young Master stood amid layer upon layer of curtains, head lowered. He did not look at the madam on the couch and stood a full ten feet away from it.

No one spoke.

Even the maid standing beside the couch breathed lightly, while the several young girls in the corner who had been playing a tune had long since slipped away.

Other than the tinkling clatter of the jade rings hanging from the curtains whenever the wind stirred them, there was not a sound.

At last, Madam Xiang broke the silence.

"Fan'er, how long has it been since you came to see me?"

Seventh Young Master remained silent. He neither answered nor raised his head.

"We are mother and son. Why must we be so estranged? You stand so far away—are you unwilling even to look at your mother?"

Seventh Young Master raised his head. His gaze fell upon the madam's face, but there was not a trace of emotion in his eyes.

Though they were said to be mother and son, their faces made them seem like peers.

Madam Xiang looked no older than a woman in her early twenties. Her hair was loosely pinned into a bun, a few strands of dark silk falling beside the corners of her upturned lips. She appeared languid, yet carried an untroubled ease as though no one else existed in her eyes.

"Why did you summon me?"

Seventh Young Master asked.

"I heard that you were quite satisfied with the two new pageboys this time? You kept them both?"

"What does that have to do with you?"

"You are my child, and I am your mother. I keep every matter concerning you close to my heart." Seemingly accustomed to her son's rudeness, the madam's face remained gentle.

Seventh Young Master gave a soft snort through his nose.

"I am very pleased. Since childhood, you have been withdrawn and close to no one. The fact that these two pageboys caught your eye is their good fortune, and it has lifted a burden from my heart," Madam Xiang continued.

"Thank you for your concern, Mother." The mockery on Seventh Young Master's face was nearly impossible to suppress.

"I know you do not believe me." Her gaze remained gentle. "But you are my child. Every blade of grass and every tree around you—I wish I could plant them with my own hands. Every person by your side, I want to examine and choose carefully for you, lest you be deceived."

"So?"

"So I want to ask: why do you value the two of them?"

"They suit my eye," Seventh Young Master explained simply.

"Is that so? One is an utterly ordinary youth raised on a farmstead, and the other is the son of a Guan Family. Yet both happened to suit your eye? Fan'er, your standards are not so low."

Seventh Young Master was silent for a while before he reluctantly said, "Gao Yuan is diligent and honest in his work, and he has read books. Keeping him at my side to do odd jobs is quite suitable; in the future, he can also help me manage the household."

"As for Zheng Fa, he is extremely gifted in the Talisman Dao. Discussing and refining the Talisman Dao with him will also let me improve more quickly in this field."

Madam Xiang nodded, seeming to agree with his explanation. But then she suddenly shook her head. "Zheng Fa's talent is indeed quite good, but keeping Gao Yuan was not your intention, was it?"

"..."

"You are a young master. Why would you listen to a pageboy like Zheng Fa?"

Seventh Young Master's fist clenched sharply. As he looked at Madam Xiang, a faint anger surfaced in his eyes.

"Yes, Zheng Fa reminded you of yourself." Madam Xiang seemed entirely unsurprised. "You still resent that I would not let you enter the Azure Wood Sect, and sent your elder sister instead."

"My sister and I both have Dual-Spirit Roots. According to the Azure Wood Sect's rules, our Zhao Family should have had two spots for those with Dual-Spirit Roots..."

Seventh Young Master's voice was low and heavy.

"But back then, there was only one, just like the dilemma of the two people you gave Zheng Fa."

"Was there truly no second spot, or did... Great-Grandfather take it away?"

"Fan'er! You may resent me—I am your mother, so I can tolerate it!" Madam Xiang rose from the couch. "But your great-grandfather is a Golden Core cultivator. How can a junior like you offend him?"

"I would not dare." Seventh Young Master lowered his head.

Madam Xiang's tone softened somewhat. "I am the least favored grandchild of your great-grandfather. I have little dignity before him to begin with. Fan'er, you must never say such things outside."

"I understand, Mother. A Golden Core cultivator... why would he still seize my Zhao Residence's spot for taking a master?" Seventh Young Master's tone softened, but the resentment in his words did not lessen in the slightest.

"Regarding this matter, I only know the general outline." For the first time, bitterness appeared on Madam Xiang's face. "According to what your great-grandfather said, the Spiritual Opportunity of the Xuanwei Realm has been gradually diminishing over these past ten thousand years. The great figures of the Immortal Sect have calculated that spiritual energy will grow thinner and thinner, no longer enough to support the cultivation of more cultivators."

"Ten thousand years ago, someone with Dual-Spirit Roots like you, Fan'er, would certainly have been able to enter the Azure Wood Sect. You could even have been considered exceptionally gifted within the sect." Madam Xiang looked at Seventh Young Master with some heartache. "But now, those with Dual-Spirit Roots must see whether there are available spots if they wish to join the Azure Wood Sect. Only those with Single-Spirit Roots or even better aptitude are regarded as geniuses who must be admitted."

"So over these past thousand years, fewer and fewer people from our Zhao Family have entered the Azure Wood Sect?"

"Precisely so. Even though your great-grandfather is a Golden Core cultivator, he cannot ensure that every descendant gets what he wishes for."

"So I was the one who had to be sacrificed?" At those words, Seventh Young Master's tone turned indignant again.

"..." Madam Xiang merely looked at him and said nothing more.

Seventh Young Master took two deep breaths before finally forcing down the emotions in his heart. "Mother, you could not keep two spots for entry into the sect, but I want to keep these two people."

"Fine."

"Mother?"

"Since that matter, what have I ever refused you? Even when you caused trouble, did I not tolerate it? Even if you are useless, this Zhao Residence will still be yours someday..."

Seventh Young Master lowered his eyes. "It is simply that I am unwilling to accept it."

Madam Xiang stood and reached out, intending to touch the son who was now almost taller than she was.

Seventh Young Master stepped back. Her hand hung in the air. After a moment of silence, she said, "Both of them may remain by your side, but Zheng Fa..."

"What about Zheng Fa?"

"I know you like his spirit. Since he has talent, having some spirit is nothing." Beneath Madam Xiang's calm tone lay a thread of coldness. "But spirit alone is not enough. We must see whether he truly has the brains for it."

"Mother!" Seventh Young Master grew somewhat anxious.

"Rest assured, Mother will not harm him. Since the Spiritual Opportunity has grown sparse, the hundred arts of cultivation have instead become more valued. Otherwise, why would I have had you study the Talisman Dao? If you truly achieve something, you may even be able to enter the Azure Wood Sect. Since he has such talent, it will also benefit our Zhao Family. I will grant him greater favor."

"Go bring out the Spirit Crane Body and give it to Instructor Xu. He knows what to do." Madam Xiang turned to the maid beside her.

"Spirit Crane Body? You are giving that to Zheng Fa as well?" Seventh Young Master was somewhat startled.

"His mother and younger sister are both at the farmstead?" Instead of answering, Madam Xiang thought for a moment and said, "Find a time in the next few days to bring them both here and settle them in the residence."

Seventh Young Master was speechless.

This was truly a favor as vast as the heavens.

"Fan'er, remember this: for true geniuses, binding them with gratitude and obligation is the finest shackle."

"What if... he is not someone who repays kindness?"

"That is why I have prepared one final favor for him. Your elder sister has already entered the inner sect successfully and will return for a short stay after the new year."

"My sister?"

"Your sister has become an inner-sect disciple and may bring two attendants into the Azure Wood Sect. If Zheng Fa truly has the talent to become a Talisman Master and can cultivate the Spirit Crane Body, I will give him one of those attendant spots."

"Mother, he is my man!" Seventh Young Master protested.

"So, will he be able to understand that?" Madam Xiang smiled faintly.

"...When faced with the temptation of entering an Immortal Sect, who would refuse it?"

"By then, you should have grown up..."

She stroked the top of Seventh Young Master's head. This time, her usually distant son did not dodge away.

(End of chapter)