61: Dark room, bright eyes, mundane accounts

Outside Cloud Dream County, in a small village by the forest, the sky was just beginning to brighten, and the mist had not yet fully dispersed.

The gate of the small courtyard with green tiles was pushed open, and Qi Xuanfeng stepped inside, bringing with him a gust of cold morning air.

He didn't look toward the main hall, instead turning first into the kitchen.

The fire in the stove had already been lit, and a woman in her fifties was adding firewood. Seeing him enter, she stopped her movements.

Qi Xuanfeng took out several pieces of broken silver from his robe and placed them by the stove.

The woman picked up the silver, weighed it in her hand, looked up at him, and said nothing, merely nodding.

Only then did Qi Xuanfeng walk into the main hall.

Sitting by the stone table, Xiao Xia heard the footsteps and turned her face slightly.

The morning light filtered through the window covered in cotton paper, illuminating half of her cheek.

She was born with delicate features, long slender eyebrows, a straight bridge of the nose, and pale lips, but her features were well-defined.

At this moment, her eyes were turned blankly toward the direction of the sound, her eyelashes casting faint shadows upon her pale skin.

Hearing him approach, the corners of her mouth curved up very slightly.

"Take your medicine on time, and don't mind the bitterness."

Qi Xuanfeng walked to the table, his voice lower than usual.

Xiao Xia moved her hand to her slightly protruding lower abdomen, pressing against it gently.

"Mhm."

She responded, her voice thin, "Brother Feng... you be careful too."

She paused, her voice growing even softer, "Those... thugs who harmed Nanny Li and injured my eyes... is there any news of them?"

Qi Xuanfeng remained silent for a moment.

A piece of firewood crackled in the stove.

"There are some clues."

His voice deepened, "I have wronged you.

In the county... there are always matters where it is inevitable to offend people. Perhaps I have brought this upon you."

As he said this, his gaze fell upon her face before moving away to look at the light of dawn gradually brightening outside the door.

Xiao Xia shook her head with a very slight movement.

"Master, please do not say that.

For a person without roots or background like me to have had Master's care for these three years is already a blessing from the heavens."

"Don't say such things."

Qi Xuanfeng turned his gaze back, looking into those eyes that could not reflect anything,

"Focus on giving birth to the child safely.

Once I... marry a primary wife in the future, I will find a way to give you an official status and bring you into the residence.

It is just..."

His tone hesitated slightly, "I must trouble you to wait a bit longer."

Xiao Xia lowered her head, her fingers aimlessly twisting the corner of her faded coarse cloth garment.

"Master needn't be troubled."

Her voice was clear but low.

"Xiao Xia knows her own background. To have a roof over my head and not suffer from cold or hunger, I am already very grateful in my heart. It is just..."

She held her lower abdomen even more tightly, "It is just this child in my womb.

I have now... become like this, barely able to live myself. How will I raise him in the future?

I only beg Master... for the sake of this bit of Bloodline, to treat him... a little better."

Qi Xuanfeng's gaze moved from her hand protecting her belly to her pale face.

"Don't worry about the child.

Since I... acknowledge it, I will not ignore it.

Take good care of yourself and give birth to the child safely; that is more important than anything else."

"Mhm," Xiao Xia responded softly and said no more, just sitting quietly with her hand constantly protecting her belly.

In truth, darkness was perhaps not all that unfamiliar to her.

Since childhood, the Small World had held a few more colors in her eyes.

Her father despised her eyes for being "unclean," calling them monstrous.

Her mother was originally a servant in the household; she suffered injuries while giving birth to her and passed away a few years later.

When she was six, after a bout of beating and verbal abuse from her brothers, she wandered out of the house in a daze, and from then on, she never knew where home was.

Those two years were rare moments of stability in her short life, with a roof to shield her from the rain and hot food to fill her stomach.

But stability was, after all, an extravagant hope. The woman was mysteriously murdered, and she herself was blinded by thugs in the chaos.

"Rest well and don't overthink."

Qi Xuanfeng took one last look at the slight bulge beneath her robe and turned to walk out.

In the kitchen, Auntie Liu silently handed over a clay jar filled with hot water.

Qi Xuanfeng took it, his fingers feeling a bit of chill as they touched the jar. He gave a slight nod and pushed the door open, his figure quickly vanishing into the morning mist of the village path.

After leaving the village and walking along the dirt road for a while, he turned into a dense cedar forest by the roadside.

When he emerged again, he had changed his face, becoming a traveler with a weathered expression and travel-worn appearance; even his gait had changed.

He remembered his father's words from years ago, "act with extreme caution," very clearly.

The light in the forest was dappled. He raised his hand and lightly touched his eyelids with his fingertips.

These eyes could see far too clearly.

Everything near and far was distinct, and it took little effort to see things at night.

Along with this, his mind seemed to have become clearer as well; those points in martial arts he couldn't understand before often became clear on their own when he calmed his heart now.

He lowered his hand and thought no more, discerning the direction and walking quickly toward Cloud Dream County City... Inside the inner quarters of the Qi Residence in Cloud Dream County City.

Liu Yueer sat behind a rosewood desk, several thick account books spread out before her.

The paper was yellowed and the ink was old; these were the income and expenditure records of several shops and estates in the county over the past three years.

Her fingertips traced over line after line of numbers, reading very slowly.

Before her Breakthrough to the Qi Refining Fourth Layer, she had not checked these accounts so carefully for a long time.

Mundane affairs were almost entirely managed by Ye Yao, and even the account books for the county side were organized monthly and sent periodically for her review—if she did not come, they were sent directly to Xuan Jin for verification.

The accounts were generally balanced.

Ye Yao had not mistreated the old members of the Liu Family; several key positions were still held by Liu Clan descendants or the dowry servants from back then.

Her Fourth Brother now managed the largest grain shop in the county; the accounts were clear, and occasionally there was some surplus offered up as a gesture of respect, which, though not much, was a thoughtful sentiment.

That was enough.

Liu Yueer closed the account book and leaned back against the chair.

The study was very quiet; she could hear the faint sound of an abacus and the murmurs of workers from the front courtyard.

Without the Spiritual Qi of Green Cloud Mountain, staying here for the better part of a day made her feel the flow of spiritual power in her Meridians become slightly sluggish, like a fish out of water.

Cultivators, after all, find it difficult to reside in mundane places for long.

There were indeed some who reported discrepancies to her, but since Xuan Jin had no objections to the gold submitted, she herself saw no need to look into it deeply.

As for Ye Yao's lineage, it remains to be seen how those nine sons turn out; it is still too early to discern their Spiritual Roots.

Since stepping onto the path of immortal cultivation, she had increasingly understood that the divide between immortals and mortals was like that between clouds and mud.

Even if Ye Yao had some schemes and used some methods, as long as she did not cross the line, what did a small amount of wealth matter? She wouldn't be able to stir up much trouble.