Happy Hour

Li Qingyang, Lu Qianqian, and the other disciples arrived at Qingyang Village after accepting their Sect Mission and began searching for targets to complete their tasks.

"Disciples of the Iron Bone Unyielding Sect?"

"That dog... that brat Jun Changxiao, when did he recruit so many disciples?"

"The youth under the Big Banyan Tree who looks like a young maiden said he was ordered by the sect leader to write letters for Scholar Zhao on our behalf."

The villagers of Qingyang Village gathered at the village entrance, whispering among themselves.

Sitting under the large tree, Li Qingyang heard the crowd describe him as a young maiden and felt deeply wounded inside.

In truth, he looked quite sunny and masculine; the reason he was mistaken for a girl was entirely due to the bright, vibrant sect uniform.

Before long, an elderly woman with white hair leaning on a cane walked over slowly.

Li Qingyang said, "Grandma, are you here to write a letter?"

The elderly woman tilted her ear and said, "Child, what did you say just now?"

"I said, are you here to write a letter?" Li Qingyang raised his voice significantly.

The elderly woman still couldn't hear clearly. She waved her withered hand and pointed at her ear, saying, "I'm old and hard of hearing; I can't make it out."

Li Qingyang was at a loss, so he picked up a brush and wrote the words 'Are you here to write a letter?' on a piece of paper.

Coincidentally, Xiao Ziji, carrying two buckets of manure, walked down a small path. Seeing his Second Senior Brother holding up paper for the old woman to read, he nearly stumbled and fell to the ground.

Li Qingyang heard the commotion and looked over, asking, "Junior Brother, what's wrong?"

Xiao Ziji forced himself to steady his body to keep the two buckets of manure from spilling, crying out in despair, "Senior Brother, do you really think she can read?"

Li Qingyang slapped his forehead and said, "I forgot. Most of the villagers in Qingyang Village are illiterate; even if I write it down, they won't understand."

He channeled his energy into his Dantian and shouted, "ARE YOU HERE TO WRITE A LETTER?"

The elderly woman heard him this time, but she tapped her cane and said, "Child, can't you be a little quieter? You're about to deafen me with that shouting."

"Thump."

Li Qingyang collapsed directly onto the table.

Inside a courtyard covered in fallen leaves.

Dressed in a white martial outfit, Lu Qianqian stood as gracefully as a lotus flower rising from the water, her delicate hands shimmering with a faint spiritual energy.

"Swish!"

She flicked her wrist gently.

However, the bamboo broom she was holding couldn't withstand the force and shattered instantly.

Lu Qianqian frowned slightly and said, "Why did it break again?"

Looking around, three bamboo brooms already lay shattered at her feet, having met a miserable end.

"M-maiden..." Aunt Wang, who was hiding in the distance and using a dustpan as a shield, said in terror, "Are you... are you here to sweep the floor or to kill someone!"

"Hmph."

Lu Qianqian tossed the broken broom to the ground and said indignantly, "I already said I don't know how to do this, yet the sect leader still made me come."

The sect leader?

Aunt Wang thought of Jun Changxiao.

She cursed inwardly, "That bastard, what is he playing at?"

"Whoosh!"

Suddenly, gusts of wind blew through.

Aunt Wang hurriedly raised her dustpan, but she couldn't help but peek. She saw the fairy-like girl waving her hands in mid-air, causing the leaves covering the ground to swirl and condense into a single mass.

"Much more useful than a broom."

Lu Qianqian cast a cold glance and said, "Hey, where should I dump this trash?"

"O-outside the gate..." Aunt Wang hurriedly pointed toward the courtyard.

"Swish!"

Lu Qianqian shifted her feet as if dancing, her fair, jade-like palms moving through the air, and the gathered pile of leaves flew over the wall.

"Thump."

Su Xiaomo, who was busy searching the village for Little Yellow, happened to be passing by outside and was struck square on the head by the massive pile of leaves and branches, leaving him in a wretched state.

"Pfft, hahaha!"

The disciples who had split up to complete their tasks saw their senior brother covered in leaves and couldn't help but burst into laughter.

"Move, move out of the way!"

Just then, Xiao Ziji came charging down the slope carrying the manure. Because he couldn't control the shoulder pole, the two buckets swayed wildly, splashing a significant amount of manure onto their faces.

"Hahaha!"

Seeing his two junior brothers covered in chicken manure, Su Xiaomo burst into loud laughter.

After reaching the Flat Slope, Xiao Ziji finally steadied the two buckets of manure and turned back, looking quite embarrassed: "Senior brother, my apologies..."

"Whoosh! Whoosh!"

The two disciples with manure on their faces approached with red glints in their eyes.

Seeing this, Xiao Ziji hurriedly shouldered his carrying pole and made a run for it.

"Don't let him get away!"

The two disciples chased after him quickly, not caring about the filth of the chicken manure, and reached directly into the buckets, smearing a handful onto his face with a splash before grinning: "We're even now."

"Hahaha."

Su Xiaomo was laughing so hard that tears were almost coming out.

"Bang!"

A pile of leaves flew over the wall again, hitting him on the head, and he immediately rolled his eyes and collapsed.

There were not many people in Qingyang Village, only a few hundred. Most of the able-bodied men had gone out to work, leaving behind the elderly, the weak, the women, and the children, making life a bit dull on ordinary days.

After the disciples of the Iron Bone Unyielding Sect arrived and went door-to-door doing tasks, the village became quite lively.

Gradually, the villagers understood that the disciples of Gousheng's sect were there to do volunteer labor for them, so they gladly accepted it.

"Mr. Li, I would like to write a letter."

Under the banyan tree, an old man in his seventies smiled: "Send it to Erwa in town, and tell him to focus more on his studies and stop just playing around all the time."

Li Qingyang picked up his brush and began to write.

Over the past few hours, he had already written letters for five villagers.

Some were written to sons, others to relatives in distant lands; the content was mostly small talk, and although simple, it was precious in its sincerity.

After finishing a letter, Li Qingyang said thoughtfully: "I understand now. The sect leader wants me to listen to their hearts so that I might realize something from it."

"Clap! Clap!"

In the courtyard, Lu Qianqian clapped her hands and said: "That should be about enough."

The ground was free of a single fallen leaf or speck of dust, cleaner than if it had been swept with a bamboo broom.

Aunt Wang slumped at the doorway of the main room, her face a mask of misery.

The courtyard was clean and dust-free, but the several large trees that had been in full, lush foliage were now bare, with even the branches snapped off, leaving only the trunks.

That wasn't the main point; the point was... all the various vegetables planted in the courtyard's garden had been uprooted and tossed out.

"The rooms still need to be cleaned, right?"

"Whoosh!"

Aunt Wang leaped up, guarding the doorway: "Young lady, I'll take care of the rooms myself; there's no need to trouble you."

"That won't do."

Lu Qianqian said: "The sect leader said I must help you with your chores."

With a wave of her hand, she pulled Aunt Wang aside and stepped into the main room, immediately followed by the sounds of teacups and iron basins clattering.

"Ahhh!"

Aunt Wang clutched her head and cursed at the sky: "You bastard, you sent these people here on purpose to torture me, didn't you!"

Dusk arrived.

In the main hall, the smell of chicken manure hung in the air, and Jun Changxiao pinched his nose: "Everyone, go take a bath!"

"Whoosh! Whoosh!"

Xiao Ziji and the others vanished in an instant.

Li Qingyang said: "Sect leader, the junior brothers completed their tasks excellently today."

Jun Changxiao was startled: "Why is your voice so hoarse?"

Upon hearing this, Li Qingyang almost shed tears: "The clients were all elderly grandpas and grandmas, and every single one of them was hard of hearing."

"Sigh."

Jun Changxiao patted him on the shoulder: "You've worked hard."

"Hm?"

He scanned the disciples and asked: "Where is Qianqian? Why didn't she come back with you all?"

"Boom! Boom!"

Suddenly, the ground began to shake.

Jun Changxiao looked up, watching dust fall from the rafters, and said, "An earthquake?"

"You brat, get out here!"

Suddenly, a loud roar came from outside the main hall.

"Aunt Wang?"

Jun Changxiao hurried outside, but he recoiled sharply, his hand gripping the doorframe in fright.

On the Training Ground, Aunt Wang was charging over, murderous aura swirling around her, holding a kitchen knife in one hand and a rolling pin in the other. Every step she took made the earth tremble.

"Sect Leader."

Lu Qianqian stood on the corner of the main hall's roof and said indifferently, "She insisted on coming to thank you; I couldn't stop her."

"Gulp."

Jun Changxiao swallowed hard and hurriedly said, "Aunt Wang, let's talk... ahhh, Aunt Wang is trying to kill someone!"