One More Weight of Pressure
The sun shines brightly today, the water ripples on the lake, and willow branches sway gently.
Two flying boats drifted down from the sky. A gentle-looking woman in a white dress gazed at the scenery and said, "This is truly a paradise on earth."
Beside him stood the tall and upright Lin Qing, who was fanning himself and looking down at the sky with a dejected expression.
"Yes, I stayed here for several years back then. I miss it so much--"
The two landed on the flying boat and saw Wang Guanhe and Chen Long swimming, covered in mud and having a great time.
Wang Guanhe was stunned for a moment, then recognized him and said, "You're Lin Qing? What brings you here?"
Lin Qing was also stunned. What was going on?
After a moment of surprise, Lin Qing said, "Old Wang, it's been a long time. I've come to pay my respects to my late wife—"
Chen Long, standing to the side, looked impatient. They were having a great time playing around, and now you're here to pay for your mother's mischief!
"Go quickly and come back quickly, don't waste time!" Chen Long urged.
Lin Qing's smile froze, and she subconsciously looked at Wang Guanhe, but Wang Guanhe was swimming and pretended not to see her.
He said no more and boarded the flying boat, heading towards the center of the island.
He closed his folding fan and said, "I don't understand why they treat me like this. I came to this place not long after I embarked on the path of cultivation. I remember that Old Wang was quite kind back then and took good care of me."
C
"However, over the years, things have become so indifferent; it seems people grow cold once they've left."
"No one in this world can match my unwavering sincerity, passion, and youthful spirit when it comes to relationships!"
The Pharmacist Lan, with her serene demeanor, offered words of comfort, "Alas, don't be sad; it's only human nature."
"Enough. I came here only to pay my respects to Yingying— "
Lin Qing stood outside the courtyard and called out, "Is that Alchemist Zhou?"
He didn't actually plan to come to Little Willow Marsh.
It was Su Junsong, upon learning that his mission was to go to the Heavenly Ridge Mountain Range, asked him to come along and inquire about Alchemist Zhou's recent situation.
As soon as he finished speaking, the clouds parted, revealing the scenery inside the courtyard, especially the loquat tree with its graceful canopy.
Lin Qing glanced at Zhou Ning, Seventh Layer of Qi Refining of Qi Refining, and smiled calmly, "I am Lin Qing, a guest elder of the Su Household's Luyou Island!"
"This is Pharmacist Lan from Luyou Island."
Zhou Ning nodded slightly. "Fellow Daoist, is there something you need?"
He used to live on Bamboo Creek Island and was unfamiliar with the Su Household's circle of retainers, so he had no connection with them.
For a moment, I couldn't figure out what he was thinking.
Lin Qing said, "It's just to commemorate my deceased wife!"
Having said that, he stepped into the courtyard, lit incense before the loquat tree, and bowed three times—
Zhou Ning relieved that he hadn't kicked the tree away that day, otherwise he might have offended someone.
He deliberately praised, "Brother Lin is truly a man of character; he is truly admirable!"
As for the woman in the white dress beside him, Zhou Ning didn't care about her relationship with him.
Judging by the distance, they are definitely not dao companion.
Lin Qing's eyes reddened slightly, and he squeezed out large tears—alas, if Yingying had died later, he wouldn't have needed to travel around learning Puppet Technique—
Seeing this, Zhou Ning silently withdrew. He prepared some tea and planned to inquire about the current situation of Cuiwei Lake.
For more than a year, he had not received any letters from Scholar Xu or Old Jia, because Little Willow Marsh was indeed quite remote.
Inside the pavilion.
Lin Qing thought for a moment and said, "Speaking of Jia Tingwan, I do have some impression of her. I think she was assisting an Alchemist on the island."
The Pharmacist Lan beside him clearly knew better. "It's Alchemist Tang. She was bragging to me the other day that she'd taken on two apprentice pharmacists to help with preparing medicine."
As for what she didn't say, it was what Alchemist Tang remarked to her: that the female cultivator named Wan'er was hired by her at almost the lowest possible salary, yet she did a lot of work and her methods of processing medicinal herbs were quite exquisite.
As for whether he will receive a raise?
Based on Pharmacist Lan's understanding of her, that's definitely not the case. Alchemist Tang said that Jia Tingwan is Spirit Planting lotus root, and they should be grateful to the point of tears to be able to send her to Luyou Island.
However, she would not share these private conversations with Zhou Ning.
Zhou Ning only heard the surface-level news, but he thought it was pretty good. He quite liked the innocent and cute little girl, Wan'er.
Unfortunately, without reaching the Foundation Establishment, one's life is precarious.
He's barely able to take care of himself.
As for Xu Qinghou and Old Jia, Lin Qing knew nothing about them, only that all the retainers of Bamboo Creek Island had been transferred to the front lines.
Old Jia is cunning and shrewd, so he should be fine. It's just that Scholar Xu— "Zhou Ning was slightly worried.
Lin Qing then asked Zhou Ning if he was getting used to the place.
Zhou Ning wasn't sure if he was asking for himself or on behalf of the Su Household.
However, for this type of answer, all you need to do is play the victim.
He sighed, "To be honest, I regret not a single day that this place is so Spiritual Qi barren and resource-scarce, making cultivation incredibly difficult. I envy you all being able to stay on Luyou Island."
Lin Qing remained noncommittal.
He said meaningfully, "No matter what you choose, you'll always regret it. Cats are free, but they have no home; dogs have a home, but they'll live with their heads bowed for life."
Having said that, he picked up his teacup and drank it all in one gulp. "Brother Zhou, may we meet again someday!"
Thirty miles away from Little Willow Marsh.
The Pharmacist Lan, her dress fluttering, opened her mouth and said, "Alchemist Zhou is doing quite well. She has a wide variety of dried fruits and snacks, and there's even a barbecue grill in the courtyard. She seems quite content."
Lin Qing asked in surprise, "You are quite observant, but you can't make a judgment based on that alone, can you?"
He said, "Perhaps he's just killing time?"
Pharmacist Lan suddenly smiled, her face kind and gentle, her eyes clear. "Of course I can't determine that, but—have you forgotten what I do?"
"As for Zhou Ning, I observe that his brows are bright, his eyes are calm, concealing a sharp edge, and his Spiritual Qi is smooth and unhindered—"
At this point, she merely glanced at him quietly.
Lin Qing was horrified, feeling as if his thoughts had been completely seen through.
He concealed his worry and put on his familiar smile again, "As expected of a pharmacist, you possess such abilities, I've never heard of such a thing before!"
Seven days later, Lin Qing returned to Luyou Island.
A short while later, Su Wen arrived and cut to the chase. "Puppet Master Lin, may I ask you, how is Alchemist Zhou doing?"
Lin Qing, looking slightly tired after several days of travel, was paying respects to his two deceased wives as was his custom.
His tone was slightly displeased. "You're all being a bit too hasty."
--
He actually disliked Su Wen a bit.
About six months ago, an elder from the Su Household came to him and asked if he was willing to marry Su Wen and become a son-in-law of the Su Household, in exchange for a Foundation Establishment material.
Is Lin Qing really that kind of person?
Despite his dislike for Su Wen, the main ingredient for Foundation Establishment was incredibly appealing. He pondered for two days how to obtain the medicinal herbs, deal with Su Wen, and inherit her fortune.
I'm incredibly conflicted.
Then came the news that Su Wen hadn't taken a liking to him.
That's great, a huge weight has been lifted off my shoulders.
How dare you, a freckled woman, refuse a genius middle-aged puppeteer like me!
Lin Qing thought of Alchemist Zhou, whose demotion must be because he had offended the Su Household.
He had heard a little about this person's deeds, which seemed to involve the Foundation Establishment cultivators of the Su Household.
The Su Household certainly doesn't want Zhou Ning to have an easy time, so it's best not to let them know that Zhou Ning is doing well.
So Lin Qing deliberately tried to disgust the Su Household, saying, "Zhou Ning is sullen in Little Willow Marsh, drinking and having fun every day. He's very decadent. I see he looks full of remorse, so he must have been severely punished."
After hearing this, Su Wen could breathe easily!
Sure enough, after all, Zhou Ning was once just a fish hunter under her command, but now he's risen so high and his status has multiplied. How could she be comfortable with that?
Now that she heard that he had lost her care and his life had plummeted, Su Wen felt a sense of triumphant satisfaction!
She went straight to Su Junsong's residence and reported the matter.
Su Junsong was handling some business. He tapped his knuckles lightly on the cutting board, thinking to himself, "Not enough. They're still not dead. When did the Chen Household cultivators become so clumsy?"
Aunt Lixia from the clan was in favor of killing Zhou Ning.
In the past, Su Junsong had always been quite polite to Zhou Ning, treating him with courtesy, humility and kindness.
However, their positions have changed now. Since the clan has already taken action, he will take the lead.
"I remember he owed a loan of Spirit Stone, thirty-six of them. It's about time he paid it back."
He took out the spirit contract. "Wenwen, go and give this to Uncle Su Ru, and tell him to talk to the Sun Household and then make a detour."
After accepting the money, Su Wen estimated, "Zhou Ning probably can't pay it back; he must have expended a lot of energy cultivating over the years."
She couldn't even come up with such a large sum of Spirit Stone.
Su Junsong chuckled, "Then let's follow the clan's rules: nine days out, thirteen days back."
"What if he can't pay it back and just runs away?" Su Wen thought of this. Her Su Household, a Foundation Establishment Aristocratic Clan, couldn't possibly hunt them down all over the world, could they?
"Paying back debts is a matter of course. Where can a Qi Refining cultivator run off to?"
If you dare to run away, then you'll be hiding your true colors for the rest of your life. Anyone can use the guise of righteousness to hold you accountable.