The Spirit Plant Garden assignment hadn't officially begun yet.
My body had relaxed a little, but my mind had stayed completely occupied.
Dusk.
Elder Hui wore a stern expression as he inspected our results once more.
"Not completely stupid, are you? Even a lump of mud can be propped up against a wall."
"Tomorrow, you'll officially begin caring for the spirit plants. My rules are simple: if you do a poor job and damage my spirit plants, pack your things and get out immediately. Don't expect to take even a single spirit stone with you."
His tone softened a little. "Likewise, if you do well, this old man won't begrudge you a reward. At the end of the month, I'll let you take a spirit medicine home."
"You're dismissed."
He kept his stern expression and walked into the void.
Qing Ye and I left the Spirit Plant Garden.
She said to me, "You've only just joined Wuya Sect, so you might not know this, but Elder Hui has always been like that. He's only an ordinary elder, but he's especially skilled at alchemy. Even venerables have to show him some respect."
"Mm, I know." I blinked my crimson eyes.
I didn't dislike serious people who handled things by the book.
On the contrary, I hated petty schemers.
I didn't go straight back. Instead, I made a trip to the market and traded half my Spirit Rice for ordinary rice and flour to store away. That way, even if I couldn't earn any spirit stones later, my daughter and I could still manage for a while.
I hadn't treated Ye Qingxian's child support as something I was guaranteed to receive.
All my countless past experiences had taught me not to treat things I hadn't gotten as if they were already mine.