Du Xiaolin looked at the lotus in her hand, then at the little boat receding into the distance, and could not help frowning.
Before coming down the mountain, Du Xiaolin had been a cultivator, but she had entered Taiyin Palace as a child and spent all her years studying the Dao in the mountains, ignorant of the complexities of the mortal world.
After descending the mountain, however, especially as memories of her past life began to awaken, she was no longer merely an innocent little girl in terms of experience, even if there were many things she could not feel as deeply as the figure in those memories.
Human hearts were complicated, and the mortal world held many helpless predicaments. The man rowing away was certainly reprehensible, but he was already caught in a grave calamity.
With that thought, Du Xiaolin looked down at what she held. For the sake of this flower, I'll let you off this once.
"Hey-"
Du Xiaolin called out to the little boat, which was already more than a dozen yards from the pier, making the man aboard turn back toward her.
He saw the little girl wave the flower bud in her hand and call to him in a clear, sweet voice.
"Thank you for the flower-"
The man smiled, his spirits inexplicably lifting. Compared with the He family's repeated praise of him as their benefactor, the little girl's thanks were more heartfelt and pleasing. Even some of the gloom in his heart dispersed.
He cupped his hands and bowed toward the pier. Du Xiaolin found that rather baffling, but she called out once more.
"Don't really go getting yourself killed picking lotuses-"
Though they were already some distance apart, Du Xiaolin still saw the smiling man's face stiffen. She said nothing more, chuckling