After Lu Shui saw that person, he stopped worrying.
Instead, he stood where he was and watched the person slowly approach.
Although Zhen Wu and Zhen Ling were puzzled, they also stayed where they were, with a hint of wariness in their eyes.
The person approaching was a girl of about ten. She wore a white coat, her hands tucked into its pockets, her expression calm and unruffled.
Her gaze remained fixed on Lu Shui, as if she had come specifically for him.
Before long, she arrived in front of Lu Shui. Looking up at him, she said:
"Young Master of the Lu Family?"
Lu Shui looked at the girl and nodded.
"Just call me Lu Shui. What's your name?"
As he spoke, Lu Shui reached out and patted her head.
Smack!
The moment Lu Shui touched her, she slapped his hand away.
"Don't touch my head. Didn't your parents teach you to respect your elders and care for the young? I'm much older than you," the girl said.
Lu Shui didn't take it to heart. Instead, he held up his hand to compare their heights.
"Are you even 1.3 meters tall?"
The girl looked at Lu Shui and fell silent.
After a pause, she said:
"Come help me with something."
As she spoke, she headed toward a large tree nearby without waiting for an answer.
She didn't seem at all worried that Lu Shui might refuse.
Naturally, Lu Shui didn't refuse. He followed her over. He didn't know what she wanted, but there was no one in the Lu Family Territory he had to fear.
Zhen Wu and Zhen Ling didn't understand, and they had no idea who this girl was.
But they naturally wouldn't stop Lu Shui.
Soon, Lu Shui followed the little girl to the tree. As soon as they arrived, he saw her crouching on the ground, fiddling with some spirit herbs.
The little girl glanced at Lu Shui, then gestured for him to crouch beside her.
Lu Shui did as she asked.
"Are you making medicine?" Lu Shui asked.
The little girl nodded.
"You know what's happening in Qiuyun Town, right?"
Lu Shui nodded to show that he did.
"I saw it when I came back just now. It seems pretty serious."
"It is pretty serious. This Pollution is unusual, almost like an ancient evil spirit has been revived. Ordinary medicine can't stop it from spreading.
"Luckily, it was discovered early. Otherwise, Qiuyun Town would have been tormented by this Pollution for months," the little girl said.
"Even if there's an antidote, there isn't enough?" Lu Shui asked.
He knew there wouldn't be. There were many ordinary people in Qiuyun Town. Once the Pollution took root, it would be very difficult to get rid of. Forcing it out would place a great deal of strain on the body.
Ordinary people couldn't withstand it.
The little girl's answer was more or less what Lu Shui had expected.
"Even when it's deeply rooted, there is medicine that can help someone recover quickly. It's just too precious. The Lu Family won't spare it for them, and they don't have time to make it," the little girl added.
Lu Shui thought that was only natural. If ordinary medicine could cure the illness over time, why would the Lu Family bother making something that worked quickly?
Unless it was for someone in the Lu Family.
His mother had also been ill for a long time in his previous life. He still didn't know why.
And he couldn't bring himself to ask.
There was nothing he could do about it. He'd been young and foolish back then, and hadn't known to show his mother more care.
"Have they found the source of the Pollution?" Lu Shui asked, moving on from the previous question.
The little girl shook her head.
"No. I heard they might have a lead, but it doesn't mean anything to me.
"Here, hold out your hand."
The little girl now had a clump of medicine in her hand, as if she were about to inject it into Lu Shui.
Lu Shui didn't hesitate and held out his hand.
Then the little girl really did inject the unknown medicine into his arm.
After that, she went back to fiddling with her spirit herbs.
Zhen Wu and Zhen Ling looked worried, but didn't sense any danger. For a moment, they didn't know whether they should speak up and stop her.
"I heard you just came back after trying to Break Off Engagement?" The little girl asked without looking up.
Lu Shui watched his arm turn black and nodded.
"Mm. I just got back."
"Did you succeed?" the little girl asked.
Lu Shui shook his head.
"I failed."
"Why did you fail?" The little girl's tone never changed. She kept her head down, fiddling with the spirit herbs.
At the question, Lu Shui thought for a long time. He couldn't exactly say that Mu Xue had scared him, could he?
So he gave her a reason that was easier to understand.
"Because Mu Xue is so beautiful, I couldn't bear to Break Off Engagement."
At those words, the little girl paused.
Zhen Wu and Zhen Ling were also stunned. That was the reason?
If that was really the case, wasn't their young master being a little too willful?
Well, now that they thought about it, he wouldn't be their young master if he weren't willful.
But Zhen Wu and Zhen Ling still didn't understand. Miss Mu Xue was certainly pretty, but she couldn't be called the most beautiful woman in the Human World, could she?
Could she really make their young master change his mind on the spot?
They had no way of knowing.
The little girl soon returned to normal and said:
"But the Lu Family doesn't marry ordinary people."
"Why doesn't the Lu Family marry ordinary people?" Lu Shui asked in return.
"For the next generation's Cultivation Talent."
"How's my talent?"
"Very ordinary."
"What about my parents?"
"Your father is special, but his talent is still considered above average. Your mother goes without saying—your father's Cultivation Talent is nowhere near hers."
"So even two people with good talent can have a useless kid like me." Lu Shui touched his already-numb arm as he spoke.
He didn't seem to feel much as he said it, as though there were nothing shameful about calling himself useless.
The little girl shook her head.
"But the odds of having a talented child are higher.
"You've been exposed to the outside world. Do you understand what people mean when they say you can get ahead in life without studying?
"It's a misconception, and an excuse. When there's a choice, giving up the better option is foolish.
"After all, most people who get ahead in life are the ones who study.
"The proportions between the two groups aren't even comparable.
"So finding you someone with high talent is the best choice."
Lu Shui shook his head to show that he disagreed.
"Studying isn't the same as marriage. Liking someone and not liking them are two different things.
"And the gap between someone with good talent and someone with poor talent might be impossible to cross.
"To put it simply, the Lu Family wants me to marry so I can have children.
"But if I marry someone talented, she might only have a child because it's part of her duty.
"After all, someone talented will also want to cultivate. Once she has a child, she'll naturally work even harder at cultivation.
"Mu Xue is different. She's an ordinary person and can't cultivate. My talent is poor too, so the two of us would live for at most a few hundred years with the help of medicine.
"Since we'd be equals, we might come to like each other. And two people who like each other, but can't cultivate, would naturally have more time together.
"Wouldn't that make it easier to have children?
"I looked into it. For many years, the Lu Family has had only one heir in each generation.
"But if you let me marry someone like Mu Xue, that might change. The odds of having a talented child might be lower, but if we had more children, those odds would naturally go up.
"The Lu Family might even prosper as a result."
Lu Shui finished speaking. The little girl listened, stunned.
Then she said:
"That's an unusual point of view, but it makes some sense."
Lu Shui smiled. He couldn't tell her that in his previous life, after he married Mu Xue, the Lu Family hadn't even had a single heir in each generation anymore.
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