Chen Ye neither knew how to care for horses nor how to ride them, so as soon as he returned to the Capital City, he temporarily left the horse the Cui Family had given him in Su Guang's care, then went back to Osmanthus Lane alone.
After shutting the door, he sat on the edge of the bed and closed his eyes, reviewing the entire sequence of events in his mind. Only after confirming that he had overlooked nothing did he let out a long, heavy breath.
Although he had no idea what arrangements the Cui Family would make next, he had already done everything that needed doing for now.
All that remained was to take things one step at a time.
Chen Ye pushed all his thoughts aside and collapsed into bed.
He had barely slept for two days and two nights over the matter.
After another bout of fighting, if he hadn't undergone Mortal Shedding several times and been full of energy, he reckoned he would have been unable to hold on.
Now that the dust had settled, Chen Ye decided not to think about anything and to get a good night's sleep.
He absolutely wasn't going to sleep only two shichen a day and keep tempering his body.
Chen Ye slept especially deeply.
By the time he woke, night had fallen completely.
He pushed open the window. The alley was pitch-black, and all he heard was the night watchman passing by with a lantern swinging in his hand, knocking his clapper.
It was already the middle of the night.
Chen Ye lit an oil lamp.
A light no bigger than a soybean flame flickered to life, pushing back the darkness and casting a small pool of light.
By its glow, Chen Ye took out the valuables he had sorted earlier and stashed beneath the bed.
A milky-white pearl, about the size of his thumb, landed in his palm.
Su Guang and the others had said it was called an East Sea Relic Pearl.
A single one was worth six taels.
This sort of thing wasn't easy to sell.
Fortunately, the Pawn System wasn't picky. As long as something counted as his wealth, he could redeem his lifespan with it.
These hard-to-sell treasures were just the thing to dispose of through the system, killing two birds with one stone.
Chen Ye stirred his Divine Consciousness, and the familiar interface appeared before his eyes.
[Remaining Redeemable Lifespan: 146 days]
Chen Ye focused his mind. Several treasures he had picked out vanished into thin air, turning into faint wisps of golden light that slipped into the panel.
The numbers on the panel began to change.
[Current Remaining Lifespan: 595 days.] [Pawnbroker-Eligible Lifespan: 594 days] [Total Lifespan Redeemed: 548 days] [Remaining Redeemable Lifespan: 0 days]
Seeing that the number after "Remaining Redeemable Lifespan" had fallen to zero, Chen Ye felt a wave of relief.
It was like finally smoothing out a bed that had been wrinkled for ages. It felt immensely satisfying.
The lifespan problem was temporarily taken care of, giving him plenty of room to breathe.
Now all he needed was a higher-grade cultivation manual.
As a prestigious second-rank family, the Cui Family had a vast collection of books.
There had to be martial arts manuals among them that he could use.
The Cui Family.
Near the northwest corner stood a refined little courtyard.
Daylilies and Chinese toon trees grew in the courtyard, accompanied by sweet osmanthus, angelica dahurica, and orchids, forming a scene of "Chinese toon and daylilies flourishing together, orchids and osmanthus blooming side by side."
Goji berries and chrysanthemums grew in one corner, beside a soapberry tree.
Wherever one looked, the place brimmed with life.
Cui Xijun had just finished handling the Liu Family's affairs and returned from outside. Before she could even sit down, someone pushed open the courtyard gate.
"Third Sister!"
A young lord, barely past the age of wearing his hair in a child's topknot, rushed in and threw himself into Cui Xijun's arms.
The young lord wore a red headband and a purplish-red robe, with a fine jade pendant at his waist. He was dressed from head to toe in wealth and privilege.
Two young women followed behind him.
The one in front wore a lotus-colored jacket and carried herself with the calm composure of still water.
The one behind wore a neat short jacket with narrow sleeves, her belt cinched tight at the waist. When she reached the threshold, she habitually hopped over it, hardly behaving like a proper young lady at all.
They were Cui Xijun's full siblings.
"Cui Kan, don't make a fuss."
The eldest daughter, Cui Lingyi, chided him softly, though there was no reproach in her tone.
She walked up to Cui Xijun and looked her over. Only after seeing that she was unharmed did she breathe a sigh of relief.
"Steward Cheng told us everything. We heard you were free, so we hurried over to see you."
The second daughter, Cui Yingtang, was not as reserved as her eldest sister. She went straight to Cui Xijun, grabbed her by the shoulders, and turned her around to inspect her from head to toe. Only after confirming she hadn't lost an arm or a leg did she let go.
"Hong Ling said the ground was covered in corpses. How many desperate bandits attacked you this time? What was the leader's cultivation, exactly?"
Cui Xijun's shoulders hurt from being squeezed, but she didn't pull away. "Around a dozen. The leader was probably in the Dragon Elephant Realm."
"The Dragon Elephant Realm? Then how did you escape? I heard Guard Yin died."
"It was a bit of a coincidence. A young man happened to pass by and ran into us. Liu Zhao had rigged a mechanism inside the carriage, and I was trapped in the compartment. He was the one who disarmed it for me. When I got out, he was covered in blood. He must have killed the remaining bandits."
Cui Yingtang frowned. "Have you looked into that young man's background?"
"We made some inquiries while investigating the Liu Family. All we know is that he's an outsider who just came to the Capital City to make a living. He happened to be going to Xiangguo Temple to offer incense and bears no ill will toward the Cui Family. We'll have to look into him further."
Cui Yingtang fell silent for a moment, then sat back down and drained a mouthful of cold tea from the table.
"What a pity." She paused, then turned to Cui Xijun. "If those thugs hadn't died, I could have traded a few blows with them. They'd have died a worthwhile death."
Cui Lingyi sighed. "Yingtang, Third Sister has just survived an attempt on her life. Instead of asking whether she's hurt, you ask about the attackers' cultivation—and now you're thinking about fighting them. How will you ever get married?"
She sat beside Cui Xijun and asked, "What are you planning to do about the person who saved you?"
Cui Xijun said, "Here's what I'm thinking: first, I'll see whether he's suitable. If he is, I'll bring him into the household to work. If he isn't, I'll give him some silver and send him on his way. What do you think, Eldest Sister?"
"As long as you know what you're doing. Let me remind you, even if you bring him in, he can't become one of the Cui Family's retainers. The clan had some objections to what you did before."
Cui Xijun paused slightly. "Then if I bring him in, I'll keep him on to work by my side instead of placing him in the household for now. We can decide what to do later, when the time comes."
Cui Lingyi didn't continue the subject.
She studied her younger sister's face. "You've lost some weight these past two days. I had someone make ginseng soup. I'll have it brought to you in a while."
Cui Kan poked his head out of Cui Xijun's arms and looked up at her. "Third Sister, when you ran into those bandits, were you scared?"
Cui Xijun looked down at her little brother. "Of course I was. But being scared alone doesn't help. You still have to find a way to fight your way out."
Cui Kan tilted his head and thought for a moment, then said earnestly, "When I grow up, I'll be your guard. I promise no one will ever bully you."
Cui Yingtang snickered beside them. "You can say that after you can hold the Stance Training I taught you for half an hour."
"Second Sister, you're teasing me again!" Cui Kan's face flushed red. He jumped out of Cui Xijun's arms and charged toward Cui Yingtang, swinging his fists.
Cui Yingtang pressed a hand to the top of his head. His fists flailed helplessly an arm's length away from her, never getting close.
"Second Sister, you're just taking advantage of your long arms!"
Cui Kan's face had gone scarlet, but he wasn't angry. He was simply flustered by his sister's teasing and powerless to do anything about it.
Watching the two of them tussle, Cui Lingyi's lips curved slightly, but she didn't intervene.
She knew Yingtang was only teasing the boy. The two of them were always play-fighting.
Cui Lingyi turned to Cui Xijun. "What are you planning to do about the Liu Family? Are you going to leave things as they are?"
"Yes. We've yielded where we should, and they've already handed over what they should. We should quit while we're ahead," Cui Xijun said calmly. "If we keep this up, neither side will come out looking good."
Cui Lingyi nodded and didn't ask for details.
She took a folded sheet of paper from her sleeve and handed it to Cui Xijun. "This is what you asked for. I had the accountants calculate it overnight. It'll give you a clear picture when you have the stewards take over later."
Cui Xijun unfolded the sheet and glanced over it. It was densely covered with an account of the businesses they had obtained from the Liu Family this time, along with the connections behind them.
She looked up at Cui Lingyi, surprise flashing in her eyes. "Eldest Sister, you investigated the hidden businesses behind all this, too?"
Cui Lingyi smiled faintly. "You're out there blocking blades as the 'sword-bearing talented beauty.' I couldn't very well sit idle at home."
"When you're finished with everything, come by my courtyard and sit with me again."
With that, she rose and headed for the door.
Seeing her eldest sister leave, Cui Yingtang stood up and followed.
Cui Kan clenched his little fists. "Third Sister, just you wait. I'll train hard. Starting tomorrow, I'll take my stance practice seriously."
Cui Xijun reached out and ruffled Cui Kan's hair. "Go find Second Sister. Tell her Third Sister says you're to add half an hour to your Stance Training starting tomorrow—but you're not allowed to slack off."
"I won't slack off!" Cui Kan turned and ran to the door, then looked back and called, "Third Sister, rest well. I'll come visit you again another day!"
With that, he dashed away.
At last, the side hall fell quiet.
After talking with the others, Cui Xijun thought again of Chen Ye.
Now that everything else had been wrapped up, it was the perfect time to investigate his background and see whether he was suitable.
Cui Xijun immediately summoned Steward Cheng and assigned him the task.
Before you continue