38: Planning for the future

Morning mist enveloped the entire estate like a veil of light gauze. Su Yunniang stepped through the thin, lingering mist, leading Situ Jun through the winding corridors of the courtyard. The dew condensed on the bluestone tiles dampened the hem of her dress, but it could not hide the overflowing tenderness in her eyes.

Liu Xuaner's residence was quiet and elegant, with a faint scent of ink wafting from behind the gold-threaded bamboo curtains. At this moment, she was busy annotating account books. Hearing Cui Zhu's announcement, she looked up. Her gaze swept lightly over Situ Jun before she looked toward Su Yunniang with a smile. "Why has Sister come to visit me today?" she asked, gesturing for Cui Zhu to serve tea.

"Greetings, Madam," Situ Jun bowed and saluted.

Su Yunniang sat down and smiled gently. "It's about Steward Situ. His cultivation has already reached the fifth level of Qi Refining. I feel he is a talent worth nurturing, so I was thinking it's time to exchange his token for a new one to make it more convenient for him to conduct business in the future."

Liu Xuaner was slightly surprised to hear this. She looked Situ Jun up and down, her fingertips stroking the gilded tea saucer as her eyes flickered. "What Sister says makes sense; Steward Situ should indeed be well-cultivated." She took out a token engraved with cloud patterns and placed it gently on the small table. "This is the token for the estate's shops. From today onwards, in addition to being the steward of the West and North Courtyards, you will inspect the shops on my behalf." She then called for Chun Hua to announce the news within the estate.

"Thank you, Madam," Situ Jun said, accepting the token with a face full of gratitude.

After gaining Liu Xuaner's support, Su Yunniang wrote a letter of recommendation for Situ Jun, sending him to an impoverished Alchemy shop in the city to serve as an apprentice. Of course, this was merely a cover-up; aside from a few Alchemy books, that shop was incapable of actually teaching Alchemy.

That same day, Situ Jun took Su Yunniang's recommendation letter and found the Alchemy shop named "Huichun Hall." Standing beneath the weathered signboard, he couldn't help but wonder if he had come to the wrong place. The shop was old and cramped, completely inconspicuous on the street. Herbs and low-quality Medicinal Pills were scattered sparsely on the shelves. The shopkeeper behind the counter had cloudy eyes and showed no enthusiasm when he saw a customer enter. With no other choice, Situ Jun explained his purpose and produced the letter. After reading it, the shopkeeper reluctantly dug out a few worn Alchemy manuals, assigned him as a casual apprentice, and then ignored him.

Over the next few days, Situ Jun followed the other stewards of the estate to purchase supplies in the morning, visited the Stewards Office upon his return, and spent his afternoons at the Alchemy shop studying the manuals. In his spare time, he would secretly buy Spiritual Plants to attempt Alchemy. Alchemy was truly taxing on both time and spirit; every night after finishing, he was exhausted. At those times, he would always call for Cherry to help massage his shoulders and soothe the fatigue in his brow and temples.

That evening, Situ Jun was lying on the soft couch as usual, resting his head on Cherry's lap with his eyes closed. "Cherry, you smell so good tonight. Did you use some spiritual flowers for your bath again?" Situ Jun half-opened his eyes, his voice sounding somewhat lazy.

Cherry gave a charming giggle. "Master, it's the scent of Mind-Nourishing Flower petals. I heard they can calm the mind and relieve fatigue. Knowing how tired Master is every day, I used them when I bathed." After saying this, a hint of bashfulness flashed across her face.

Situ Jun chuckled. "It seems you've put some heart into this, little girl. From now on, call me Young Master; don't call me Master anymore."

Cherry laughed happily and called out sweetly, "Young Master."

"Continue rubbing my temples; I'm truly exhausted tonight," Situ Jun said.

"Young Master, can I still call you Master in the future?" Cherry asked, looking down, her eyelashes casting small shadows under her eyes.

Situ Jun was startled and looked up at her. "I don't have a strong sense of master-servant hierarchy; there's no need for that. Why call me that out of nowhere? It makes me sound like some kind of bad person."

Cherry's face turned red, and she shook her head quickly. "No, Young Master. In this Servant Girl's heart, you aren't a bad person. Young Master is very good to me."

Situ Jun's curiosity was piqued. "Then why is that? Why insist on calling me Master instead of a perfectly good 'Young Master'?"

Cherry's face grew even redder as she stammered, "This..."

"Never mind, as you wish. Use a bit more strength with your hands," Situ Jun instructed.

Cherry hesitated for a moment, then said softly, "Young Master, I know some ways to relax the body and mind that can ease your fatigue..." Her eyes were shy, but her tone was sincere.

Situ Jun was taken aback. He opened his eyes to glance at her, then slowly closed them again. He understood Cherry's intentions, but since she had been someone else's personal maid before, he still had some reservations in his heart.

Seeing that Situ Jun didn't respond, Cherry's eyes grew red. "Young Master, I..."

Situ Jun squeezed her hand and said softly, "Go and rest. You don't need to serve me anymore."

Cherry's eyes welled with tears, but she obediently stood up and walked out of the room. At the moment she reached the door, she turned back and whispered, "This servant didn't have much contact with that person. I... I only have Young Master in my heart."

"Young Master knows. Go back and rest," Situ Jun comforted her helplessly. He knew the young girl had deep feelings for him, and the current situation filled his heart with a sense of powerlessness.

The night was deep, and Situ Jun tossed and turned, unable to sleep. Led by some inexplicable impulse, he arrived at Nangong Xue's door. He pushed at the door and found it locked from the inside, so he had to knock gently.

"Who is it?"

"It's me."

The moment Nangong Xue opened the door, a flash of surprise and joy appeared in her eyes. "Why are you here? Aunt Xu isn't with me."

Situ Jun stepped forward and pulled her into a gentle embrace, whispering, "I came specifically for you. Have you missed me?"

Nangong Xue's cheeks flushed as she leaned into his arms, full of bashfulness. "I did. This concubine misses you every day."

Situ Jun smiled tenderly and began to talk with her softly, sharing his recent experiences and thoughts. The two talked happily until the night grew very late.

The next morning, when Situ Jun woke up, the System's notification sounded in his mind: [Ding! Congratulations to the Host. Dual Cultivation Dao Companion Nangong Xue's favorability has reached 75. Reward: 10 Elementary Lucky Draws.]

"A reward is a reward. System, draw!"

[Ding! Congratulations to the Host for obtaining 10 First-Grade Invisibility Talismans. Note: Each talisman provides invisibility for half an hour.]

[Ding! Congratulations to the Host for obtaining 200 Low-Grade Spirit Stones.]

[Ding! Congratulations to the Host for obtaining 100 Low-Grade Spirit Stones.]

[Ding! Congratulations to the Host for obtaining one Sour Date.]

[...]

After using all ten Elementary Lucky Draws, the harvest was mediocre. This time he had even drawn two sets of women's dresses; he thought he could give them to Cherry, since she was his personal maid anyway.

Nangong Xue was still fast asleep, and Situ Jun dressed quietly. So as not to disturb her rest and to avoid unnecessary trouble, he decided to leave quickly before Xu Lian arrived.

Returning to his own courtyard, he found that Cherry was already up and making breakfast for him. Ever since Cherry became his maid, she cooked in their own courtyard and no longer had to go to the servants' quarters to eat from the communal pot.

"This is for you." Situ Jun took out the clothes he had drawn from his Storage Pouch and handed them to Cherry.

Cherry took them, her pretty face turning slightly red. "Thank you, Young Master!"

Situ Jun nodded. "Don't call me for breakfast; I'm going to sleep. You can head to the Stewards Office yourself later." After saying that, he yawned and turned back to his room.

Cherry looked over the exquisite dresses in her hands, her face flushing as she thought, "It seems Young Master does care about me; otherwise, he wouldn't have given me such beautiful clothes."

...When Situ Jun woke up, it was already noon. He stretched and felt refreshed, as if his previous fatigue and anxiety had been swept away.

After leaving his room, he first went to Su Yunniang's place to chat with her for a while, then went to the North Courtyard to check on affairs before returning to the Stewards Office to carefully review the account books.

As the days passed, Situ Jun spent his days traveling between shops to investigate various factions. At night, he focused on practicing Alchemy and would also find time to interact with Xu Lian, Su Yunniang, and the others to deepen their bonds and improve his own Cultivation. His days were fulfilling and meaningful.

(Edited and revised, please make do with this.)