37: Qiu Jinyao's path, she said she didn't want to be a vase (4k)

It was on the schedule for someone from the Jun Family to visit the Qiu Family, and the Qiu Family had also prepared people to receive them.

The Jun Family's Qilin are known to all, symbolizing martial prowess and authority.

But when the reception staff saw two black Qilin, their bodies stained with ink, pulling a Black-Gold Carriage through the air, they finally sensed that something was amiss. The carriage's main body was black with no other decorations, only occasionally inlaid with gold edges. The black and gold perfectly combined, exuding an indescribable nobility.

Even more eye-catching was the character "Jun" carved on both sides of the carriage. This character seemed to flow with Dao charm, ancient and vast. One could easily be drawn into it. It truly seemed to need no other decoration, for this "Jun" itself was a symbol of nobility.

Who in the world does not know the Jun Family?

Since ancient times, Qilin have been fierce by nature, fond of fighting bravely. They are auspicious beasts of heaven and earth, most of which only exist in the Jun Family. But these were not ordinary Qilin; these Ink Qilin were even more special, being the kings among Qilin.

If Ink Qilin are pulling the carriage, the person inside must be extraordinary.

The Qiu Family members thought this, but when they saw the person who stepped out of the carriage, they couldn't help but gasp.

"Your Highness, the Divine Son!"

"I'll go inform the Family Head right away..."

The person in charge of reception was a Qiu Family Steward. Although his status wasn't very high, he knew Jun Lingxiao.

Of course, even if he didn't know, it wouldn't matter, because such a grand display was already beyond his reach.

They had thought it was just an ordinary visit, but they never expected it to be the Divine Son...

One must know that the Divine Son holds the same Rank as the Grand Elders in the Jun Family. The Divine Son's travels, to a certain extent, represent the entire Jun Family.

"No need, where is Qiu Jinyao?"

As Jun Lingxiao stepped out of the carriage, his eyes met the shocked gazes of the Qiu Family members.

This trip was semi-secret; it wasn't announced who from the Jun Family would come. The Qiu Family members guessed at most a Steward might be sent to handle the marriage alliance between the Jun Family and the Qiu Family, but they never expected to see the Jun Family's Divine Son here. To say they weren't shocked would definitely be a lie.

But Jun Lingxiao didn't want to talk much with them and directly stated the purpose of his visit.

"Your Highness, the Divine Son, please follow me..."

The Steward gave a look to a nearby Disciple, then made an inviting gesture towards Jun Lingxiao.

This time, An Luoxin wasn't brought along; Chu Yuxi came instead.

She went to handle relations among the upper echelons, while Jun Lingxiao focused on finding Qiu Jinyao.

Along the way, they passed through shade, walked along main roads, and went past rows of houses, finally arriving before a rather secluded small courtyard.

The Steward waved, summoning the only maid in the courtyard. After whispering some instructions to her, he bowed and withdrew, leaving Jun Lingxiao alone, standing in front of the courtyard, lost in thought.

To be honest, he had heard Qiu Jinyao's story: how she returned home and furiously killed her Elder sister to ascend. He had originally thought she wouldn't be as tattered as when he first met her. But after so many years, even now, she still seemed like that little beggar.

It wasn't a magnificent courtyard; in fact, one glance could take in everything within. There was no lake, no trees, no flowers or plants, just a dead silence, and it was very remote.

"Did she live here after she was crippled?"

Jun Lingxiao asked the maid leading the way.

Upon hearing this, the maid's gaze became complex. After a moment of hesitation, she honestly replied, "My Young Miss was assigned here after the Jun Family announced the dissolution of the marriage alliance."

At the same time, this maid seemed to have countless things to say to Jun Lingxiao, but ultimately she held them back.

She was just a small maid, and the young man before her, as the Elder had just reminded her, was the high and mighty Divine Son of the Jun Family. In front of him, she had no right to speak idly.

Jun Lingxiao nodded, indicating he understood.

That's right, even if she was ambushed and crippled, if she had the Jun Family's backing, she wouldn't have been assigned to such a small courtyard.

From another perspective, if she didn't have the Jun Family behind her, even if Qiu Jinyao hadn't been crippled, she would still just be that illegitimate daughter who couldn't make it to the main stage.

Jun Lingxiao walked through the small courtyard, originally wanting to ask if Qiu Jinyao had been living well these years, but there was no need to ask.

When he saw the girl sitting in the main hall in a daze, everything became clear.

She sat there with white gauze covering her eyes, holding several sheets of white paper, touching them over and over again.

Jun Lingxiao knew those were the letters he had written to her over the years.

Three years had passed. The little beggar, the little mad dog from back then, had grown taller and more beautiful, and at the same time... she had become even thinner.

The first time they met, she was very thin, feeling like a gust of wind could blow her away. After finally getting her to gain some weight, three years later, when they met again, she was thin once more.

It was all for naught.

"Someone from the Jun Family has arrived?"

"Why aren't you going to the main hall, and instead coming here?"

Sensing an unfamiliar aura, Qiu Jinyao slightly turned her body, orienting her ear towards Jun Lingxiao, and asked in a cold voice.

At this moment, the maid wisely withdrew, leaving only Jun Lingxiao and Qiu Jinyao in the room.

Seeing her cold demeanor, Jun Lingxiao suddenly became interested. He didn't want to reveal his identity, wanting to see how she viewed Jun Lingxiao from an outsider's perspective.

So he pinched his throat and temporarily altered his voice using Dao power, a minor trick available once one reaches the Divine Dao Realm.

"My Young Master asked me to come see you."

Jun Lingxiao replied.

He completely pretended to be a servant boy for Jun Lingxiao or some similar role.

At the same time, Jun Lingxiao secretly thought to himself, she's in such a state and he hasn't come to see her, and even dissolved the marriage alliance. In this situation, she should hate him.

Although it was somewhat contradictory, this was also what he hoped to see.

After all, Qiu Jinyao had suffered too much.

He was a villain, destined to contend with the protagonist, the Son of Destiny, in the future. Such a life was not suitable for her. It would be best if the two of them could draw a clear line now.

"Your Young Master...?"

"It's him..."

After hearing this, Qiu Jinyao seemed to fall into reminiscence, even her brows softened a bit.

"Is he doing well?"

"No... he must not be doing well. He is the Divine Son of the Jun Family, with countless people's expectations weighing on him. He must always be working very hard..."

Qiu Jinyao said, answering her own question, then seemed to fall back into memories.

Seeing this scene left Jun Lingxiao a bit speechless. He hadn't expected her to see him that way.

Thinking of this, he said again:

"My Young Master actually isn't that hardworking; he just does what he's supposed to. As for why he hasn't come to see you..."

He was speaking, but before he finished, there was a sudden bang!

Qiu Jinyao suddenly clenched her fist and slammed it heavily on the table, then stood up, facing him directly, her voice filled with uncontrollable rage.

"How dare you speak of him like that?! How dare you!"

"You weren't sent by him at all! He must have many enemies. Tell me! Are you his enemy, specifically here to badmouth him?"

"And what business is it of yours why he doesn't come to see me?"

"If you don't understand him, you have no right to speak of him!"

"Get out!"

Several angry rebukes left Jun Lingxiao bewildered and also drew the maid's attention.

She cast a glance, and Jun Lingxiao waved her away, then looked at the furious, gasping girl in front of him.

Qiu Jinyao was acting as if her tail had been stepped on, as if Jun Lingxiao was her inverse scale, not to be touched or spoken ill of.

Sighing softly, Jun Lingxiao took out a bottle from his embrace.

"Young Miss Qiu, please calm your anger. I am indeed the Divine Son's person. This Medicinal Pill was specially sought out by the Divine Son and specifically ordered me to bring it to Young Miss Qiu."

"One pill can restore you to your original state. As for your eyes... my Young Master said to wait a bit longer; he will find a way."

"As for these, they are Medicinal Pills related to Cultivation."

Jun Lingxiao said, taking out some Medicinal Pills and placing them on the table. He then sat down and opened the bottle, letting her smell the pill's fragrance to prove he wasn't lying.

Qiu Jinyao's nose twitched, her brows slightly furrowed, clearly not wanting to accept them.

But in the end, she didn't refuse.

"You're just a messenger, I won't make things difficult for you."

"Tell me about him; I want to hear."

After speaking, Qiu Jinyao sat down, waiting for Jun Lingxiao to begin.

Then Jun Lingxiao told her some interesting stories that had happened to him over the years.

When he spoke of how he struck the God Tablet Platform three times, causing the God Tablet to resonate and astonishing everyone, she fell into reminiscence.

"I saw the light of the God Tablet Platform. It's a pity I wasn't there; he must have been very handsome at that time."

When he spoke of how he nearly split the Divine Son Hall's grand formation after mastering the Heavenly Sword, she smiled.

"That's very much his style."

When he spoke of inadvertently exposing the Fang Family's spy, she grew anxious.

"He's such a good person, how could anyone want to harm him?"

He paused here. Jun Lingxiao actually wanted to say that he wasn't that good at all, and that when he saved her, he was just bored and treated her like a pet, but he thought she might get angry again, so he didn't say it.

He continued, speaking of how he created the Comeback Ranking, and from then on, the Jun Family's God Tablet Platform was lit up every night.

He also spoke of Jun Hongxuan's hair turning white overnight, and how the First Dao Child was actually his aunt.

Anyway, he talked about many, many things, and Qiu Jinyao listened intently, not wanting to miss a single detail.

Occasionally, she would also show yearning.

She would also show regret, saying it was a pity she didn't see his domineering appearance. At the same time, she would also express concern, wondering if many people were forcing him to Cultivate so quickly, and would get angry at the Fang Family, saying those people truly deserved to die.

But as she listened, perhaps she also noticed something amiss. She tilted her head and looked at him, asking, "Why do you know so much?"

As soon as she said this, Jun Lingxiao thought he was about to be exposed, but he didn't expect her next sentence to smooth things over.

"You must be the closest person to him, right?"

"That he would send you also shows he cares about me. I'll tell you a secret, don't tell him."

"I won't eat these Medicinal Pills."

"He is the Divine Son, standing very high. Taking his things would make me his subordinate, but I don't want that. I want to stand with him and see the scenery through his eyes."

Now it was Qiu Jinyao's turn to speak.

She said that meeting Jun Lingxiao was the greatest fortune of her life. At that time, she had been chased for half a month, tattered and sent out, then hid in his backyard, eating grass. After a few days, just when she felt she couldn't hold on any longer, Jun Lingxiao appeared.

He stood there upright, watching her dart out from the side and hold a crude stone knife to his neck. His eyes showed certainty that she wouldn't strike.

She had suffered discrimination in her clan; everyone treated her not as a person, but as a burden, a bastard. Over time, she herself came to believe it.

But Jun Lingxiao was different. His eyes were unlike everyone else's, bright and sunny, looking at her as if she were a person.

From that moment, she seemed to rediscover herself and saw him as her salvation.

She said, Jun Lingxiao should just be himself, he must always move forward.

And then, one day, she would catch up to him.

Jun Lingxiao listened and reminded her that she was walking very slowly alone, and with these Medicinal Pills, she could catch up to him faster.

But Qiu Jinyao still shook her head and refused.

"I don't want to be a vase in his hands. He can take my things, but I cannot take his, because we are inherently different."

Yes, one was the Qiu Family's illegitimate daughter, who killed her sister and seized the marriage, but still, she was that illegitimate daughter, and he was...

The high and mighty Divine Son of the Jun Family.

The two simply weren't in the same world.

Unless she had power, power that came not through anyone else.

At the same time, she also revealed part of her plan. She said that the Qiu Family would have a trial for heirs in the future, and she would participate, relying on her own efforts to climb to a status equal to Jun Lingxiao's.

Jun Lingxiao looked at this strong girl, unsure what to say.

Finally, when he left, the maid led him to a place, directly facing a room's window.

As he wondered, he saw Qiu Jinyao appear in the room in the distance. Unlike her composed demeanor during their meeting, she was now collapsing, sweeping the items on her dressing table to the floor, shouting in despair.

"Why?!"

"Why must I go through such things!"

"I finally met him, finally got my revenge, finally gained recognition from the family, but now it's like this again..."

She had always thought she could endure anything, of course, that was before she met Jun Lingxiao.

After all, how could someone who has seen light endure days of utter darkness?

Along with that unwilling cry, countless letters scattered.

It was also from the maid's words that he learned.

The letters he gave Qiu Jinyao were written casually, but the letters Qiu Jinyao gave him were only delivered to him after countless sheets of paper were wasted and countless versions were copied...

Although the girl never spoke of love, her love was overflowing, coming without order, causing her pain.

She wanted to see him, yet she didn't want him to see her in her current state.

Since that was the case, it could be considered fulfilling her wish.

In the days to come, Jun Lingxiao would also visit from time to time, but always very discreetly. He remained that servant boy.

Qiu Jinyao still lived in that small courtyard, still so remote, making her seem out of place with everyone else in the Qiu Family. If there was a difference...

It was that the people who usually came to cause trouble were gone, and those who would deliberately stand by her wall and speak ill of her loudly had also disappeared.

Although the Jun Family and the Qiu Family were far apart, because of the little servant boy's messages, Qiu Jinyao inexplicably felt much closer to Jun Lingxiao.

Days passed like this, and two years flew by.

In these two years, Qiu Jinyao recovered well; except for her eyes, she was basically back to normal, and her Physique was not simple either.

However, she deliberately concealed it, all for the sake of regaining everything that belonged to her in the Qiu Family's trial.

The invitation to the Jun Family Divine Son's tenth birthday banquet arrived at the Qiu Family as scheduled.

Seeing Qiu Jinyao walking steadily on her path.

Jun Lingxiao's leisurely days had also come to an end; he was the Jun Family Divine Son, and he also had his own path to walk.

After waiting so long, it was finally time to settle the score with the Fang Family.

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Medicinal Pill Rank:

Ranks 1-9. Identical Medicinal Pills can be refined, at a ratio of 1:10.

For example, if a Heaven-Breaking Pill is originally Rank Seven, 10 Heaven-Breaking Pills refined into one pill become a First-Turn, then this Heaven-Breaking Pill becomes a First-Turn Rank Seven.

A Second-Turn requires 10 First-Turn pills, which means 100 ordinary Rank Seven pills.

A Third-Turn requires 10 Second-Turn pills, meaning 1000 ordinary Rank Seven pills are needed to refine one Third-Turn Rank Seven Medicinal Pill.

The same principle applies to Fourth-Turn and so on, by analogy.

This has a certain depth, you can bookmark it. The higher the turn count, the better the medicinal effect, and the more consumed.