Guiding Zhang Xiaofan

In the dining hall, Ye Yun stared in terror at the senior brothers and sisters surrounding him. He had just endured a non-human ordeal. His tender little face was already flushed red, and though he couldn't see his backside, the faint throbbing pain indicated it was definitely red. These beasts must be jealous of his talent and were taking the opportunity to retaliate. Yes, that had to be it.

Thinking this, Ye Yun felt much better for a moment. But as soon as he saw the senior brothers and sisters eyeing him menacingly, his heart sank again. He had been bullied by them quite a bit lately. Although it was all done with good intentions, it was still bullying.

"Wh-what do you guys want? Master and Mistress aren't far away. You can't bully me like this," Ye Yun glared intently at the group before him.

Du Bishu smiled gently and said, "You're amazing, little junior brother! You've brought us so much honor. We never expected your talent to be so great. You must cultivate diligently from now on. Our future happiness depends on you, senior brothers."

Ye Yun: "??!"

"You're going to hit me just because I'm amazing? What kind of logic is that?" Ye Yun's heart roared inwardly, but he knew he had to bow his head under the eaves of another's house. He didn't dare to speak his true thoughts aloud.

Song Daren noticed the wariness in Ye Yun's eyes and smiled knowingly. "Forgive us, little junior brother. We were just too excited just now, a bit impulsive. But you can't blame us, senior brothers. After all, it's been a long time since Great Bamboo Peak has had a disciple with such astonishing talent. With your talent, as long as you cultivate diligently, you'll definitely surpass us in a few years and shine brightly in the sect competition. This will bring honor to Master and Mistress, and make things much better for us. So, little junior brother, our future is in your hands."

Among everyone present, except for Tian Ling'er and Zhang Xiaofan, all the other senior brothers were looking at him with "expectant" eyes. After feeling the sincerity of his senior brothers, Ye Yun "happily accepted." Finally, the group left the dining hall in "mutual joy." However, Ye Yun noticed a fleeting look of disappointment in Zhang Xiaofan's eyes as he stood behind the crowd.

After a round of "tormenting" Ye Yun's chubby little face, Tian Ling'er also left, satisfied. Once everyone was gone, Ye Yun walked over to Zhang Xiaofan's side, tugged at his clothes, and said in an adult tone, "Xiaofan, talent doesn't mean everything. Sometimes, opportunities and hard work are more important than talent. After all, even the most talented person will eventually blend in with the crowd if they lack opportunity. Don't be discouraged. You are someone with great destiny. As long as you persevere and are persistent, there will come a day when you soar to the heavens. Believe in yourself."

Zhang Xiaofan's eyes lit up at his words. His dejected face finally broke into a smile. "Xiaoyun, thank you. I will work hard. I definitely won't disappoint Master."

"Okay, then I'll head back. Starting tomorrow, I'm going to chop bamboo too," Ye Yun waved and walked towards his living quarters.

In fact, the main reason for Zhang Xiaofan's disappointment was Ye Yun, or rather, what Tian Buyi had said.

Earlier, Tian Buyi had checked Zhang Xiaofan's cultivation progress and discovered that Zhang Xiaofan hadn't even opened his acupoints. In his frustration, he revealed what had happened on Tongtian Peak. It turned out there were two reasons why Ye Yun and Zhang Xiaofan had both joined Great Bamboo Peak. The first was that Ye Yun was still young and needed a familiar playmate. Lin Jingyu had astonishing talent, and it would be a shame if he was delayed because of it. Furthermore, people from other peaks were unwilling to have two disciples with astonishing talent under the same master. The second reason was that Zhang Xiaofan had dull aptitude, while Ye Yun had decent aptitude. He was a good compensation for taking in Zhang Xiaofan. Moreover, Great Bamboo Peak indeed had few disciples, so they were sent to Great Bamboo Peak together.

Although Tian Buyi's words had indeed hurt Zhang Xiaofan, they had also ignited his competitive spirit, making him cultivate even harder. And now, Ye Yun's words had completely resolved his inner turmoil.

"That's right, my talent is a bit lacking, but as long as I cultivate diligently, I will definitely catch up. Plus, I have two masters and two sets of cultivation techniques, double what others have. As long as I work hard, I will eventually surpass them and earn Master's respect," Zhang Xiaofan silently encouraged himself in his heart.

Ye Yun was unaware that his words had resolved Zhang Xiaofan's inner conflict, transforming his grief into strength and making him cultivate even more diligently. At this moment, he had already returned to his room, sat cross-legged on the bed, and begun a new round of cultivation.

The next morning, Ye Yun was awakened by a crisp birdsong. After a long stretch, he quickly got up and dressed. He had already learned how to put on these ancient-style clothes.

After getting dressed, Ye Yun bit open a willow branch, dipped it in some salt, and cleaned his mouth. He quickly ran to the kitchen before Tian Ling'er arrived. Influenced by Ye Yun, Great Bamboo Peak, which originally only ate two meals a day, now ate three. However, breakfast mostly consisted of porridge, unlike the richer meals at noon and in the evening. Still, it was much better than other peaks where disciples had to do their morning lessons on an empty stomach.

The kitchen was previously managed mostly by Du Bishu. Now, with Ye Yun and Zhang Xiaofan's arrival, there was Zhang Xiaofan as well. When Ye Yun arrived at the kitchen, Zhang Xiaofan was holding a large bowl and drinking steaming hot meat porridge, while Du Bishu was stir-frying side dishes.

There was no rule that breakfast had to be eaten together, so under normal circumstances, Zhang Xiaofan would eat first and then go chop bamboo alone. After that, it would be Tian Ling'er and Ye Yun's turn. This was because Tian Ling'er's greatest hobby during this period was to tease Ye Yun, and because of this, her relationship with Zhang Xiaofan was not as good as in the original story.

Seeing Ye Yun enter, Zhang Xiaofan put down his bowl and chopsticks, took a clean bowl from the side, filled it with porridge for Ye Yun, and handed it to him. Ye Yun didn't stand on ceremony, thanked him, and slowly drank the porridge from his bowl. When Zhang Xiaofan finished eating and went to chop bamboo with his cleaver, there was still half a bowl of porridge left in Ye Yun's bowl. Just as he was about to quickly finish the porridge, he suddenly realized that the bowl in his hand was gone.

He looked up and saw a charming figure smiling as she held his bowl. What made Ye Yun angrier was that this charming figure blew on the porridge in the bowl, tasted it, found the temperature just right, and then finished the porridge in a few gulps before returning the empty bowl to him.

"Junior Sister, why are you bullying Junior Brother again?" Song Daren's gentle voice came from the doorway.

"What do you mean bullying? Xiaoyun gave it to me voluntarily. Ask him if you don't believe me, Xiaoyun?" Tian Ling'er retorted loudly, her beautiful eyes fixed on Ye Yun, the threat in her eyes undisguised.

"Eldest Senior Brother, Senior Sister is right. I specifically cooled this for Senior Sister. Sixth Senior Brother, I want another bowl." Under the coercion of superior force, Ye Yun unhesitatingly caved. There was no other way; he was small and weak, unable to fight back!