Child Bride, Li Caiyi

Nuoding City, a roadside shop.

Yao Yan weaved through the crowd and stopped before a three-story shop. The sign above read: "Jieyou Pharmacy."

As he stepped inside, he found the space exceptionally spacious. Rows of red-lacquered wooden counters were filled with all manner of rare herbs.

More than a dozen maidservants in matching uniforms were carefully explaining things to customers. Their figures were graceful, and their smiles gentle.

Yao Yan gave the place a quick glance and spotted a woman in a pink dress sitting quietly beside a counter not far away.

Her pink dress outlined her alluring curves, and her exquisite face was utterly charming.

She looked both mature and seductive.

Delighted, Yao Yan hurried over. "Sister Caiyi."

Li Caiyi was the manager of this shop and also the largest buyer of herbs from Holy Soul Village.

Hearing the familiar voice, Li Caiyi looked up and saw Yao Yan. A gleam lit her eyes.

She quickly rose to greet him, then affectionately crouched down and pinched his cheek. "So it's you, Little Fellow. Why are you here alone? Where's your grandfather?"

"Grandpa is in the village. I've already enrolled in Nuoding Academy."

"Oh?" The delight in Li Caiyi's eyes deepened. "It seems our Little Fellow is a Lord Soul Master now as well. Come, let's talk upstairs."

As she spoke, she took Yao Yan's hand and led him straight to the office on the second floor.

"Creak—"

After pushing open the office door, the two sat down on a soft sofa.

"Quick, let Sister take a look at your Martial Soul," Li Caiyi said impatiently.

Yao Yan raised his right hand, and Blue Silver Grass appeared in his palm.

Li Caiyi showed not the slightest trace of mockery. She merely stroked the top of his head gently and comforted him in a soft voice. "Xiao Yan, becoming a Soul Master is already a wonderful thing."

Looking at the little fellow before her, his complexion rosy, she could not help recalling the first time they had met.

That day, rain had poured from the heavens, and the shop had been deserted. She had been sitting by the counter, lost in thought.

"Excuse me, do you buy herbs here?"

A timid voice had sounded from the doorway. When she looked up, she saw a little boy wearing a straw raincoat, his clothes and pant legs covered in mud.

At the time, blood had still been flowing from his legs.

She had hurriedly brought him upstairs. While cleaning his wounds, she had asked him whether it hurt.

That stubborn boy had nearly bitten through his lips, yet he had insisted that it did not hurt.

Only after asking further did she learn that when he was two years old, his father had gone into the mountains with the villagers to gather herbs. He had encountered a mudslide and been swept away, and even his body had never been found.

His mother had also fallen ill that year. He had ventured out in the rain to raise money for her treatment and had accidentally fallen, injuring himself.

Later, his mother had passed away as well, leaving him all alone in this world.

"I know." Yao Yan nodded.

At least by becoming a Soul Master, he would no longer have to endure the hardships of the past.

"Right." Li Caiyi seemed to remember something. She stood and walked to the desk, opening a drawer that contained a book on herbs.

"This is something you like." She returned to the sofa and handed the book to him.

Yao Yan took the book and gave it a rough look. Many of the herbs inside were not found in the Library.

He even saw several herbs whose medicinal effects were similar to those of Healing Potions, and joy immediately surged in his heart.

"Thank you, Sister!"

Seeing his delighted expression, the smile in Li Caiyi's eyes grew deeper, and a trace of mischief flashed through them.

She extended a slender finger and lightly tapped the tip of his nose. "Sister has helped you so much. How do you plan to thank me?"

"Ah!" Yao Yan was instantly dumbfounded.

Li Caiyi truly had always looked after him, but he had nothing he could offer her now.

Could it be that I have to...

Seeing his blank expression, Li Caiyi's smile became even more enchanting. "Since you haven't decided yet, let Sister hold you for a while as payment."

Before her words had even faded, she had already reached out and pulled Yao Yan into her embrace.

An almost suffocating softness and warmth enveloped him. His face instantly flushed red, and he instinctively tried to struggle.

"Don't move. Let Sister hold you for a while," Li Caiyi scolded playfully, though her arms tightened around him.

Yao Yan could only give up resisting. Her faint, delicate fragrance lingered at the tip of his nose, and he unconsciously closed his eyes.

Seeing this, Li Caiyi placed a soft cushion behind her waist, lowered her head slightly, and nestled against him.

For a time, the office fell silent.

At dusk, the horizon burned crimson. Golden sunlight streamed through the window, bathing the room in warm colors.

Yao Yan groggily opened his eyes. The sensation beneath him was unusually soft, and when he looked up, he met a pair of smiling eyes.

"Awake?" Li Caiyi's voice carried the lazy huskiness of someone who had just woken up.

Only then did Yao Yan realize that he had fallen asleep in her arms. He hurriedly broke free and scooted more than a meter away, lowering his head with flushed cheeks.

In his previous life, he had been single to the bone—he had never even held a girl's hand.

Now that he had transmigrated here and met a woman as gentle and considerate as Li Caiyi, claiming that his heart remained completely unmoved would have been a lie.

Seeing his embarrassed look, Li Caiyi curled her lips into a faint, satisfied smile. "Little Fellow, do you want to move in with your sister from now on?"

At her words, Yao Yan hurriedly shook his head like a rattle drum.

He then took nine bottles of Healing Potion from his Backpack. "Sister Caiyi, these are what I made this month. Grandpa asked me to give them to you."

"Old Jack can't even read a single word. He knows how to make potions?"

Li Caiyi rolled her eyes at him, but did not expose the lie. She took out a specially commissioned treasure box and placed them inside.

The nobles loved these potions dearly; the only problem was that the output was far too low.

Yao Yan took another note from his Backpack. It listed the medicinal ingredients needed for body tempering. "Sister Caiyi, please help me get some medicine according to this prescription. Just deduct the cost directly from the money earned from selling the potions."

Li Caiyi accepted it and looked it over. Lingzhi, Crimson Sun Seed... all of them had effects that somewhat nourished the kidneys.

Her gaze shifted slightly as she shot him a teasing, half-smiling glance. "Who would've thought that this little guy, at such a young age, already knows so much about maintaining his health?"

Then, swaying her willow-like waist, she went out to instruct the maidservant to gather the medicinal ingredients. When she returned, she held out a Gold Soul Coin to him.

Yao Yan was instantly dumbfounded. Were these medicinal ingredients really that expensive? They shouldn't have been!

"You don't want it? Then your sister will take it back."

As Li Caiyi made to withdraw her hand, Yao Yan quickly grabbed it and pocketed the Gold Soul Coin.

Li Caiyi sat back down on the sofa and lazily stretched her waist. As her slender waist tightened, the fullness of her chest became even more pronounced.

"What does a child need so much money for? Your sister has saved the extra for you."

Yao Yan felt helpless. She had surely guessed long ago that the potions were made by him, so he could only nod in agreement.

Still, it was nothing much. He would be buying medicinal ingredients from here in the future anyway.

Li Caiyi glanced out the window. Dusk had already faded, and the shops along both sides of the long street had lit their lamps one after another. The crowds had also grown denser.

The place looked exceptionally prosperous.

"It's getting late. Your sister will take you to dinner." Li Caiyi stood up, forcibly took Yao Yan's hand, and led him out of the shop.

Along the way, Yao Yan came up with all sorts of excuses to shake free of her hand, but none of them worked. In the end, he could only accept reality.

When Li Caiyi glanced sideways and saw his helpless expression, she could not help but smile.

I'm his child bride. Isn't holding hands only natural?

PS: This little author didn't write this part for no reason. Li Caiyi is a very important character to the protagonist.

First, she can help manage the protagonist's pill empire.

Second, there's no need to explain the value of a child bride, right?