Every inch of time was worth an inch of gold; three inches of time made a Xin.
Three days later.
A few faint sobs drifted from the Chu Family mansion, but Chu Ge soothed the household and quieted them.
Little Spring Flower and the other maids closest to Chu Ge were all weeping, their eyes swollen and red. They begged him to take them along.
But Chu Ge stood firm. The servants could only accept their helplessness: some took their severance pay, packed their belongings, and left reluctantly.
The rest chose to follow Steward Fu to Fulailai Inn and work there.
Steward Fu held out the money in his hands to Chu Ge. "Young Master, I don't need this money. You'll need money to make your way out there.
"You've entrusted the inn to this old frame of mine. Running it will be more than enough to see me through my retirement."
Chu Ge shook his head with a smile and pushed Steward Fu's hand away. "Steward Fu, I've already kept plenty for myself. You can't go without your share. Otherwise, if my parents knew, they'd point fingers at me from beyond the grave."
"Young Master." Steward Fu was so moved that his eyes reddened.
What more could a man ask for in an employer like this? He offered, "Young Master, I'll come over from the inn now and then to stay here and look after the old house. Otherwise, weeds will overrun it in a few years. When you and Eldest Miss return someday, you'll hate to see it."
"Mm. I can trust you to take care of things, Steward Fu. I'll leave the house keys with you."
Chu Ge nodded with a smile, then patted Hei Gouzi's shoulder. The lad was so taciturn he couldn't get a word out; he only stood there with red eyes, holding back tears. Chu Ge laughed.
"Hei Gouzi, Steward Fu is getting on in years. After I leave, stay by his side and take good care of him. Next year, I'll have him find you a wife!"
"Thank you, Young Master! Safe travels, Young Master! Come back and visit often." Hei Gouzi was overcome with gratitude.
Chu Ge waved and went inside. After packing his things, he had several large trunks and bundles, most of them filled with his treasured Shadow Puppets and a great deal of materials.
The servants carried everything out and loaded it onto a whole wagon.
"Chu Ge, you've got quite a lot of stuff. Is it all those paper cuttings and shadow puppets?"
Just then, several carriages rolled up along the opposite side of the street. The door of the first carriage opened, and Wang Xiuyun leaned out with a smile.
"Not all of it. Some are clothes and personal belongings."
Chu Ge laughed. "Your family's merchant ship is ready, right? I'll hitch a ride this time and save myself the fare."
"Hitch a ride?"
Wang Xiuyun laughed at the novel phrase, though she understood what he meant. She waved a hand. "You're a Bone Training Realm expert. Having you along will make the journey safer. If you paid me, I'd just have to spend the money hiring an expert like you."
After exchanging a few more jokes, they didn't linger.
Soon, the coachmen drove the carriages straight to the docks.
The water route to the prefectural city stretched over a thousand li, and the land route still ran more than eight hundred. Given the transportation of the era, the journey would be grueling.
After a simple meal at a Wang Family restaurant near the docks, the porters carried all the luggage onto the Wang Family's merchant ship.
Everyone boarded at once.
Wang Xiuyun had clearly made arrangements in advance. She had given Chu Ge a cabin furnished in elegant style, clean and comfortable.
A thick wool carpet covered the floor, and a guqin stood beside the window.
In each corner of the room sat a toad-shaped incense burner. Wisps of smoke curled from the toads' mouths, filling the cabin with fragrance.
"How is it? Do you like it?" Wang Xiuyun asked with a smile, her lovely eyes curving into crescent moons.
Chu Ge praised it. "A room this fine for the journey is more than enough. Thank you, Xiuyun."
"No need to thank me."
Wang Xiuyun smiled, her pretty face bright. "By the way, I heard you like paper cuttings and shadow puppets. I found some paper cuttings last time. Could you tell me what patterns they are?"
She took a handful of colorful scraps from her clothes and handed them to Chu Ge.
Chu Ge recognized them at a glance. They were his own work.
They must have been scattered when the force of the fight with the corpse-driving master shattered them. Tian Youji and the others had arrived at the scene, and Chu Ge had left in a hurry, without time to gather them.
Still, he'd anticipated this and already had a plan.
He pretended to frown as he took them and looked them over, then laughed. "These are mine. I've made lots of paper-cut door gods and shadow puppets, and given them away for free to children around town. Which household did these come from? They've been torn to shreds."
"These are yours? What a coincidence."
Wang Xiuyun's almond-shaped eyes widened in surprise. She immediately smiled and said she liked them too, then asked Chu Ge to give her some.
Chu Ge didn't refuse.
He opened a cabinet and let Wang Xiuyun choose for herself.
He had sorted his paper puppets and shadow puppets into categories.
The trunks also had false bottoms. The things on top were all ordinary, there to serve as a disguise.
Wang Xiuyun chose a Lady Lantern and left with a satisfied smile.
Only after Chu Ge closed the door did she stare at the lantern in her hand, then recall the look on his face a moment ago. She murmured, "Looks like I was overthinking it."
She had suspected that Chu Ge might have some connection to the senior benefactor who had saved her.
After all, why else would she have been rescued shortly after Chu Ge received a warning from Little Qin, the constable?
And in the room where the benefactor, an old man, had fought fiercely with the corpse-driving master, there had also been scraps of paper cuttings that seemed to use the same materials as the Chu Family's.
Taking into account that Chu Ge had reached the Bone Training Realm in just two and a half years, along with his drastic change in temperament and his strange hobbies, she had found her childhood friend mysterious—just as mysterious as the benefactor. Perhaps the two were connected somehow.
But now, it seemed she'd read too much into things.
After pacing around the room, Chu Ge took a Lady Lantern from a trunk and hung it inside, then fed it with supernatural energy.
The lady painted on the lantern smiled sweetly, her eyes sparkling as she signaled that everything was safe.
No one had tampered with the room.
Chu Ge finally relaxed and touched his sleeve. "Come out!"
The sleeve stirred, and a petite, lovely head sprouted two tender-shoot antennae as it poked out.
Little Sprite Qian emerged and landed on the floor. Looking a little sulky, she gave a curtsey.
Over the past two days, Chu Ge had worn her out repeatedly while cultivating. She had grown more familiar with him, and even dared to develop little moods of her own.
Looking at her sulky little face, Chu Ge asked in surprise, "What's wrong?"
Little Sprite Qian remained grumpy, but her eyes drifted toward the trunk across from them.
Chu Ge understood at once. Smiling, he walked over and opened it.
Little Sprite Qian's eyes lit up. She immediately bounded over and leaped into the trunk, grabbing the corner of a lovely-faced paper puppet and refusing to let go, as if she couldn't bear to part with it.
Chu Ge watched as the little thing dragged the paper puppet out. She was less than a twentieth of its size, and her strenuous little heaves were quite amusing.
He lifted the paper puppet and laid down the rules. "You can possess this puppet and come out to move around, but for now, you're limited to this room. Don't let anyone discover you.
"Once we reach the prefectural city and settle in, you can move freely within a certain area. How does that sound?"
At his words, dimples appeared on Little Sprite Qian's cheeks, making her look delectable. She nodded repeatedly, gazing up at Chu Ge and conveying her agreement with her eyes.
"Good. But for now, we'd better focus on what matters. Time is precious, but cultivation is even more so!"
Chu Ge gave her a warm smile.
But to Little Sprite Qian, that smile looked a little frightening.
The thought of having her strength drained again by this hulking fellow made her deeply reluctant.
Still, she owed him. Chu Ge supplied her with supernatural energy every day and gave her all sorts of pretty new "clothes" to wear.
Compared with her old, miserable life—trapped in an ugly iron head, unable to go anywhere and forced to harm people—this was far better.
So when Chu Ge made his daily demands, all she could do was shoot him a resentful little look. Her body still obediently climbed onto his head, extended its cute antennae, and began consuming supernatural energy to charge herself and protect all the meridians and acupoints in Chu Ge's body.
"Whew!"
Feeling the countless threads of protection wrapped around the meridians and acupoints within him, Chu Ge let out a long breath.
He hurried to channel supernatural energy into strengthening his qi and blood, then visualized the Tiger Crouching Technique as he cultivated.
With Little Sprite Qian protecting his meridians and acupoints, two days of cultivation now equaled three days' worth of progress. His efficiency had improved tremendously.
He could now condense one-sixth of a tiger's head and had advanced to the middle stage of the Blood Change Realm.
At this rate, perhaps in two months he could reach the peak of the Blood Change Realm, attempt Three Flowers Gathering at the Top, and uncover the truth about his Spiritual Aptitude.
His cultivation time had been shortened by a month!
The letter I sent to Eldest Sister three days ago should have arrived by now, right?
With that thought, Chu Ge sank into an even deeper state of cultivation.
Hidden Water Sect.
The sect stood amid clouds and mist wrapped around a mountainside, its peaks seeming to be swaddled in soft, white cotton.
The sect's secret chambers were all built inside Hidden Water Cave, a natural cavern in the mountain.
That day, a hawk flew in and landed on the mountainside. Before long, a courier disciple arrived with a letter at an elegant, secluded little pavilion.
A clear pool had been dug in front of the pavilion, and flowers and plants grew on its other three sides. Above the building hung a plaque bearing three characters in running script: "Welcome Snow Pavilion."
"Senior Sister Chu, another letter has arrived from your family. They sent it by express hawk again..."
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