"Did you find these lying around again?" Zuo Xiaoduo asked as he swallowed.
"Of course." Zuo Xiaonian blinked, looking mischievous. "Someone walking in front of me dropped a bottle of pills. No matter how much I called after him, he wouldn't come back... so I had to bring it home."
"..." Zuo Xiaoduo was speechless.
"You're so lucky, sis." Zuo Xiaoduo rolled his eyes, his tone dripping with sarcasm. "Poor me. I've never even found a coin in all my life, while you can find anything. I'm impressed, truly impressed."
Ever since she was thirteen, fourteen, or fifteen, Zuo Xiaonian had found pills like these countless times: Star Soul Pills, Star Transformation Pills, Spirit-Awakening Pills, Marrow-Washing Pills...
All of them were for building foundations, awakening the Star Soul, strengthening the Star Soul, supporting the Star Soul...
"Your suitors must have dropped these on purpose... don't you owe them a favor if you take them?" Zuo Xiaoduo sighed.
"What favor?"
Zuo Xiaonian widened her round eyes. "I found them through my own luck."
Zuo Xiaoduo was speechless. "If they weren't trying to court you, would they deliberately drop them in front of you for you to find? Who doesn't know these are exactly what you want?"
She wrinkled her nose and snorted. "If they dare drop them, I dare pick them up. What does that have to do with wanting to court me? Am I supposed to accept someone's advances just because I found his pills? What kind of absurd logic is that!"
Looking at the beautiful woman before him, whose skin was as thick as the corner of a city wall, Zuo Xiaoduo couldn't help sighing inwardly. If her suitors knew how shameless and brazen the goddess they saw as perfect, gentle, virtuous (omitting a hundred and thirty-six other bootlicking compliments)... could be, would their entire worldview come crashing down?
"Then why don't you pick up other pills? Those are worth even more."
"What would I pick those up for if they're no use to you?" Zuo Xiaonian replied with perfect confidence.
Zuo Xiaoduo: "..."
You're beautiful, so whatever you say goes!
I have no answer to that, all right!
After a long while, feeling that the Marrow-Washing Pill's medicinal power had dissolved inside him, producing only a faint warmth before vanishing without a trace as usual, Zuo Xiaoduo sighed. "Don't pick up any more. Over these past few years, I've eaten a whole cartload of pills you've found, and they really haven't helped at all. Didn't you hear Dad say this is the aptitude I was born with? Even immortals couldn't do anything about it. Stop..."
Before he could finish, Zuo Xiaonian sneered. "Well, well, haven't you gotten capable? Now you're even trying to boss your big sister around?"
Zuo Xiaoduo instantly retreated in defeat.
There was nothing he could do. His standing in the family was too low, and so was his fighting strength. Any one of them could pin him down and beat him black and blue. Especially Zuo Xiaonian. By now, taking on an entire division of people like him should have been child's play for her...
The last time he had annoyed her, she had thrown him a hundred meters into the air, caught him as he fell, then tossed him up again seven or eight times. He had nearly been scared out of his wits... violent woman!
Chewing the pills Zuo Xiaonian had given him, Zuo Xiaoduo felt a little conflicted.
Over the years, his parents had grown increasingly tender toward him, while being much more easygoing with Zuo Xiaonian. Although Zuo Xiaoduo cried favoritism every day, he understood in his heart.
The one his parents actually favored was him.
Just as the books said, what mattered most in a family was being comfortable and at ease. The more freely people behaved around one another, the more they were truly family. There was a good saying: people saved their good tempers for outsiders and their bad tempers for their families.
Why? Not because they were dissatisfied with their families, but because only family could truly tolerate their bad tempers.
People always needed to vent their negative emotions, but what outsider would let them?
And over these years, Zuo Xiaonian had worried herself sick over him too. There was no telling how much effort she had put into helping him cultivate and changing his aptitude.
His parents too. In truth, they had never believed his dream was reliable, yet they had still clung to that one-in-ten-thousand hope and put up large sums of money several times to let him experiment-what if it was real?
Only, the repeated failures had beaten even that last sliver of hope out of existence...
Zuo Xiaoduo had always understood.
But he said nothing.
They were his family. There was no need to say it.
But if anything happened to his sister, Zuo Xiaoduo was certain he would be the one to fight the hardest, heedless of his life!
"How much money do you need?"
At Zuo Xiaonian's words, Zuo Xiaoduo perked up. "Not much..."
"Is ten thousand enough?" Zuo Xiaonian touched her pure white jade ring, and a thick stack of banknotes appeared.
"Yes! That's enough!" Zuo Xiaoduo was overjoyed, his eyes instantly shining brilliantly.
Money!
With this money, I'll be able to smoothly...
"Hmph... this is a whole year's salary and bonuses..." Zuo Xiaonian's eyes shifted, and she suddenly tucked the banknotes behind her back and thrust out her chest.
Zuo Xiaoduo, who had been reaching for the money, nearly planted his paw on her. He hastily pulled his hand back and growled, "Zuo Xiaonian! What are you doing?!"
Zuo Xiaonian chuckled, tilted her head, and asked, "Am I pretty?"
Zuo Xiaoduo snapped, "Pretty! Beautiful! Happy now?"
Zuo Xiaonian's giggles drifted out of the room, followed by a large bundle of money being tossed out. "Take it! Hmph!"
"And don't let Mom and Dad know about this money."
Chapter 3: Everything was ready
Zuo Xiaoduo looked at the large, neatly arranged bundle of banknotes on the floor, yet felt no joy at all. Instead, he scarcely knew what to think.
After a long while, he bent down, picked up the money, and put it in his pocket.
Zuo Xiaoduo understood Zuo Xiaonian's thoughts perfectly clearly.
Before Zuo Xiaoduo was born, Zuo Changlu and Wu Yuting had already adopted Zuo Xiaonian.
A young couple who had not yet had a child of their own had already adopted a baby girl.
Zuo Xiaoduo felt there had to be a story behind this, but he did not know the reason.
When Zuo Xiaonian was three, after her Star Soul talent had already been detected, Wu Yuting unexpectedly became pregnant with Zuo Xiaoduo.
It truly had been unexpected.