Support, Crimson Blood Ginseng

In late June, Ye An went to the Inner Sect Management Office.

Ye An knocked on the door frame.

Lu Yun raised his head, saw that it was him, put down his ledger, and signaled for him to come in.

Without beating around the bush, Ye An placed his medicine field records from the past month on the desk and pushed them forward by an inch.

"Senior Brother Lu, this is the inventory record for my own medicine field." He then placed three other sheets of paper beside them, arranging them in order.

"These are the book data for the two adjacent medicine fields I borrowed from the management office. Their shapes differ, but their trends are similar. The loss rate seems deliberately suppressed within a range that just avoids attracting notice, and the monthly figures are all very clean."

The implication was already clear, and Lu Yun understood.

He finished flipping through the first few pages, turned to the back, and cross-examined the book data of the adjacent medicine fields twice before closing the ledger and placing it on the desk. Remaining silent for a moment, he asked, "Who do you suspect?"

"The garrison disciples of the adjacent medicine fields: one is surnamed Zhao, and the other is surnamed Qian."

Without pressing further, Lu Yun stacked the ledger and the three sheets of paper together and tucked them into a drawer. "Do not make any moves regarding the medicine field for now. Continue your shifts and sign-offs as usual; everything remains as it was."

Ye An nodded, lingering no longer as he stood up and left.

In Cangwu Prefecture City, the Liu Lineage estate.

Liu Ruyan sat in the back courtyard pavilion, facing a stone table set with several plates of pastries, accompanied by a woman wearing a light lotus-colored dress.

A cup of tea sat before each of them. The tea had already been refilled twice, showing they had been seated for a while, yet their conversation remained unhurried.

That woman was an old acquaintance Liu Ruyan had met in the prefecture city, surnamed Zhao, whose family ran a silk business. While not extraordinarily wealthy, she had enjoyed a few years of friendly relations with the Liu Lineage.

Lifting her teacup, she glanced sideways at the newly relocated pot of orchids under the veranda, just as she intended to say something when a servant strode over from the direction of the courtyard gate, came to a halt outside the pavilion, and reported in a low voice, "Mistress, news has arrived from the Four Symbols Sect."

Liu Ruyan set down her teacup and motioned for him to continue. "Ye An has broken through to Meridian Opening and has already entered the inner sect."

Hearing this name, the woman surnamed Zhao paused the teacup in her hand, glanced at Liu Ruyan, and did not interject.

Liu Ruyan did not display a surprised expression; she merely nodded, picked up her teacup, and took a sip, as though confirming a piece of news she had anticipated long ago.

The woman surnamed Zhao waited for her to set down her teacup before asking, "Is that the one you mentioned before?"

Without answering directly, Liu Ruyan simply said, "I took a fancy to a young man, feeling his temperament was decent, and wished to cultivate him."

The woman surnamed Zhao gave a slight smile, refraining from further inquiry as she took a small sip from her teacup. "Your eye has always been sharp. Anyone who catches your eye is truly fortunate." She paused, then added, "Still, breaking through to Meridian Opening and entering the inner sect at this age certainly carries a bit of intrigue."

Liu Ruyan did not pursue the topic, merely lifting her teacup and casting a glance toward the area beyond the courtyard wall.

The woman surnamed Zhao set down her teacup, her tone dropping a notch in warmth from before: "Still, I must remind you that retainers recruited halfway like this rarely prove useful. You give him resources and you grant him prestige; he agrees readily enough at the time, but when trouble genuinely strikes, he may not be willing to stick his neck out. I've seen plenty of this sort! They take the benefits and vanish faster than anyone else when matters come to a head."

After a moment of thought, she continued, "My household had one previously, supported during his body-refining days all the way up to Meridian Opening, only for him to sever his status as a retainer the moment a dispute over market territory arose, claiming, 'My aging mother is gravely ill and I must return home to care for her.' He even made off with three bottles of my medicinal pills as he left. It was utterly infuriating."

The woman surnamed Zhao then chuckled, her tone softening once more. "Of course, your judgment surpasses mine, and the person you've chosen shouldn't prove quite so worthless. Even so, it's wise to keep a backup plan in reserve, lest the person flees and you are left with no recourse whatsoever."

Liu Ruyan took a sip of tea, set her teacup down, and spoke in an even tone: "Regarding this person, I have my own considerations."

Back in that place called Anping County, he had stepped forward on behalf of the Qian Family—that single point sufficed to prove Ye An's loyalty and sense of righteousness.

In this world, martial artists of such temperament were the hardest to find.

The woman surnamed Zhao said no more, acting as though having delivered those words, she had no intention of taking them back.

The news reached Ye An three days later.

A thin letter, its envelope bearing the imprint of the Liu Lineage, contained neat, graceful handwriting—still the hand of Liu Ruyan.

The letter first congratulated him on breaking through to Meridian Opening and then brought up a request, asking him to become her personal retainer—not a retainer of the Liu Lineage, but her own.

Ye An placed the letter on the desk and looked out the window. The breeze in the medicine field remained cool, and the leaves of the Crimson Blood Ginseng swayed gently in the wind.

He did not ponder for long. Liu Ruyan had sponsored him with a Flawless Body Tempering Pill back during his Body Tempering Realm days, and those few pills had aided him significantly.

At that time he had not agreed while in the Body Tempering Realm, but now he had reached Meridian Opening.

He unfolded paper, ground ink, and wrote a reply. The content was brief, consisting of a single line: "For Miss Liu's generous regard, Ye accepts."

He folded and sealed the letter, entrusting it the next day to someone heading to Cangwu Prefecture City.

It was already afternoon by the time he returned to the medicine field.

If you feel this book is good, to avoid not finding it next time, please remember to add it to your bookshelf!

He Liu was squatting by the western earth ridge, gripping a small shovel. He wasn't working, merely squatting there and staring fixedly at the patch of Crimson Blood Ginseng ahead.

Ye An drew closer. Hearing footsteps, He Liu turned his head and said in a suppressed voice, "Senior Brother Ye, look at that stalk of Crimson Blood Ginseng."

Ye An followed his gaze.

The leaves of that particular Crimson Blood Ginseng plant in the middle of the ridge were a size larger than those of the surrounding plants, their edges shimmering with a dark red luster. The shapes of several leaves were also narrower and longer than ordinary Crimson Blood Ginseng, making it look as though it were nearing maturity; its roots and stem had absorbed sufficient earthly energy, driving the nutrients all the way up to the leaf surfaces.

"This stalk has been nurtured for nearly three years," He Liu said. "There's no mark for it in the management office's records; it basically grew on its own and isn't on the ledgers."

He did not ask "should we dig it up," but his meaning was already obvious.

Ye An did not take up his remark, merely casting a glance at that stalk of Crimson Blood Ginseng before turning to walk away.

He Liu did not chase after him, nor did he bring up the matter of the ginseng again.

Ye An did not dwell further on that stalk of Crimson Blood Ginseng.

That very evening, however, he heard a brief, sharp commotion from the direction of the medicine field, as though something had crashed against the wooden fence.

He put down the ledger in his hand, pushed open the door, and stepped outside.

Coiled within the patch of low weeds beside the western earth ridge was a snake, slightly thinner than an adult's wrist. Its entire body was a dark grey, marked by a deep brown pattern along its spine, and the edges of its scales flickered with an extremely faint cyan glow, as though it had molted its skin not long ago.

Its forked tongue flickered toward the direction of the Crimson Blood Ginseng, its upper body raised slightly as if identifying a scent. Ye An did not approach, standing a few paces away to watch. The snake's vigilance was not directed at him; its attention was entirely fixed upon that stalk of Crimson Blood Ginseng.

It was an Iron Thread Snake—possessing virtually no venom, but swift of movement and skilled in ambush, with a combat prowess roughly equivalent to the gap between the first and second body tempering. Ordinarily, it would not actively approach spiritual herbs, but the medicinal fragrance of the Crimson Blood Ginseng prior to maturity was a different matter, allowing it to detect from a much greater distance that something within this medicine field had ripened.

Ye An glanced at the snake, making no move and uttering no sound.

By this time He Liu had also arrived, carrying an extra wooden stick, his gaze changed. This was not his first time dealing with such a situation.

Before He Liu could draw close, however, an extremely swift sound of breaking air came from overhead—heavy and urgent, like someone hurling a stone down from a great height.

The sky suddenly darkened as a massive dark shadow swooped down from the air, giving He Liu almost no time to react. Sharp talons landed on the snake's neck, shattering its scales, and the entire snake was pinned to the earth, struggling twice before going still.

The eagle landed atop the snake, refraining from feeding immediately as it raised its head and cast its gaze toward the Crimson Blood Ginseng.

Its build was a size larger than an ordinary eagle, and a cluster of dark golden feathers crowned its head, appearing particularly conspicuous in the twilight.

When its wings spread, the shadow cast upon the ground could cover half an earth ridge.

It stood motionless upon the snake, its talons hooked into the creature's neck while its eyes stared intently at the Crimson Blood Ginseng.

He Liu's legs faltered slightly as he took half a step back. He knew what this eagle had come for.

Suddenly, the eagle moved. With a fierce flap of its wings, it sprang up from the snake's carcass and swooped toward He Liu with a speed resembling a hurtling sheet of iron.

He Liu rolled to the side, barely dodging in time as the rush of wind grazed his back. A tremendous force struck his shoulder, sending him tumbling backward twice before his spine slammed against the wooden fence and brought him to a halt.

Before he could rise, the eagle had already pulled itself back up into the air, carved an arc, and plummeted downward once more.

This time it was even faster, its talons aiming straight for He Liu's throat.

A flash of sword light cut in from the side, faster than he had anticipated.

The tip of the sword grazed the joint connecting the eagle's wing, shearing off a section. Losing its balance, the eagle crashed into the ground, its wing twisted to one side. This flying eagle tumbled backward into the dirt, struggled twice, and failed to take flight again.

Ye An withdrew his sword and stood before He Liu without looking back.

He Liu sat on the ground, sweat beading on his forehead, watching the eagle thrash twice before growing still.

"Senior Brother Ye, many thanks..."

Sheathing his sword, Ye An glanced at the eagle on the ground and then looked back at He Liu.

"Can you stand?"

"I can. No bones are broken."

Ye An nodded, pointing toward the eagle and snake on the ground as he said, "Go process the eagle meat and snake meat; you can make a few dishes with them. Do as you see fit with the rest."

He Liu froze for a fraction of a moment, then nodded, stood up, and walked over.

He then hoisted the eagle from the ground, weighed it in his hands, glanced at the snake as well, and picked it up to drape over his arm.

Without lingering, Ye An turned and walked back inside his room.