“Xiao Tan, why are you back?”
A middle-aged man walked into the house with a delighted expression. Upon closer look, he noticed Lin Cui standing beside Jiaying, and his expression turned puzzled.
“Who is this young lady?” Lin Cui noticed the man’s difficulty in straightening his legs and slightly bowed her body respectfully.
“Lin Cui greets Uncle No.2.”
“Why has Miss Lin come here? Surely it’s not because Tan has caused trouble again?”
Uncle No.2 Li, knowing Lin Cui’s identity, showed surprise, then became somewhat anxious.
“You haven’t even said anything yet, Uncle, why do you immediately think of something bad?”
Li Tan recalled his past self, who, due to his inability to cultivate, indulged himself and caused trouble every few days. To be honest, his terrible reputation in Linjiang was partially self-inflicted, as he had even done disgraceful things like bullying innocent young girls with his shady friends.
Therefore, Uncle Li’s face immediately darkened.
“When have you ever behaved properly? I’m always worrying about you. Quickly, what bad things have you done this time?”
Li Tan pouted slightly, feeling wronged.
“It’s them who came looking for trouble with me, okay?”
“Cough cough!”
Lin Cui nearly choked upon hearing this, but after carefully recalling the past incidents, she realized that Li Tan’s words held truth. Indeed, both the butler and Lin Yuan had actively approached and attempted to harm Li Tan, only to end up in miserable situations due to their inferior skills.
“What he said is true.”
Thus, Lin Cui spoke the words that seemed to be facts.
Uncle Li immediately relaxed, his brows unfurrowed, and a joyful smile appeared on his face.
“Excellent, excellent. Miss, please sit down first. I’ll go make some tea.”
“Jiaying has already prepared it.”
Jiaying cheerfully pointed at the tea set on the table.
“My dear Jiaying, you’re so great!”
Uncle Li happily hugged his daughter, hesitated slightly, scratched his head awkwardly, and said,
“Look at my bad memory, I haven’t even introduced myself. My name is Li Yang, Tan’s second uncle.”
“Okay, I remember now.”
While speaking, Li Yang pulled up a stool and sat down, placing his hands on his knees and gently rubbing them.
Seeing this, Lin Cui felt a sense of regret.
She recalled that Li Tan’s second uncle was a mid-level Xiantian expert, highly esteemed in Linjiang. However, during the sudden assault by the demon race, his right leg was severely injured, leaving him barely able to walk. He could no longer withstand the impact brought by martial arts techniques and qi circulation, rendering him practically half-crippled.
She gently shook her head, not wanting to expose others’ wounds, and changed the subject.
“Uncle Li has a good nephew.”
“Ah, what do you mean, Miss Lin?”
“Uncle Li, don’t pretend with me. I already know. Li Tan is completely different from the rumors in the city.”
Li Yang looked at Li Tan with confusion, his face fully expressing the word “incredible.”
“Don’t be fooled by the girl, this brat is very cunning. He never reports trouble he causes.”
Lin Cui was momentarily stunned, her expression puzzled.
“Then what is Li Tan’s true nature like?”
Li Yang poured some peanuts for Jiaying and without hesitation said,
“A trouble magnet. He’s done every bad thing you can imagine.”
Jiaying pouted unhappily.
“Brother is a good person!”
Lin Cui looked at Jiaying and showed a gentle smile.
“Then tell me, Jiaying, what good things has Li Tan done?”
Little Jiaying thought with her finger in her mouth and then answered uncertainly.
“There were too many trees at the back mountain, so brother burned them all down. Isn’t that a good thing?”
Lin Cui almost spat out her tea, while Li Yang slammed the table and glared fiercely at Li Tan.
“You brat! So it was you who set the fire at the back mountain!?”
“What back mountain?”
Li Tan was puzzled.
“Don’t play dumb. The place where the Liu family stored their grain.”
Li Yang’s eyes were almost glued to Li Tan’s forehead.
“Uh… cough cough… that was an accident!”
Li Tan recalled his youthful days. At that time, someone from the Liu family insulted him by saying he had a father but no mother. He was so angry that he decided to set fire to their granary after failing to confront them directly.
“Accident, my foot!”
Li Yang kicked Li Tan’s side leg, though the force was very light.
“For that matter, I almost got into a fight with the Liu family. You had it easy, just walked away like nothing happened.”
“Uncle, please calm down and listen to my explanation. It was really an accident!”
Li Tan moved his stool sideways.
“Isn’t this a good thing?”
Jiaying asked timidly.
“How did you know about this, Jiaying?”
Li Yang asked.
“Brother told me. He said he was upholding justice!”
Jiaying answered earnestly, while Li Yang’s face immediately darkened. He slapped a fan onto Li Tan’s forehead.
“You being a bastard is one thing, but now you’re trying to corrupt my Jiaying. Watch me not beat you today.”
Li Tan scooted his stool further sideways, feeling both wronged and amused.
“Jiaying, why did you sell me out? Didn’t we agree not to tell anyone?”
Jiaying stuck out her tongue.
“I forgot, okay?”
After some commotion, Li Yang eventually didn’t pursue the matter of setting the fire. After all, the two families were already on bad terms. To be honest, he probably wished the fire had been bigger, ideally burning down the entire Liu family residence.
Lin Cui, who had been watching all this for a while, coughed twice to remind them of her presence.
“Haha, Miss Lin, please forgive us. My nephew is indeed quite undisciplined.”
Lin Cui had already specifically sealed the news about Lin Yuan, so she didn’t bring up that topic. She merely mentioned that Li Tan had changed a lot. Li Yang then said it was because he had reformed himself, and proceeded to chat about some family matters. Finally, Li Tan said he wanted to visit the clan.
“I’ll wait for you outside. Hurry up and come out. Uncle Li, goodbye.”
“Goodbye, Miss Lin. Tan, I leave him to you.”
“Lin Sister, come play again!”
After saying goodbye to Li Yang, Lin Cui left first, while Jiaying waved behind her.
“Jiaying, go into the house and bring your dad’s pipe.”
“Okay.”
Li Yang called out, and Jiaying happily skipped away. Soon, only Li Tan and Li Yang remained in the shop.
“Brat, what exactly happened at the Lin family these past few days?
Why is Lin Cui being so polite to you? Why did she specially accompany you back?”
Li Yang’s expression turned serious.
“This…” Li Tan reckoned that the matter concerning Lin Yuan and Lin Jingwu would eventually come to light, so he had no intention of concealing anything. He straightforwardly revealed the truth, naturally omitting the secret about the Desolate Tower. However, without mentioning those specifics, how he managed to defeat Lin Yuan remained an unresolved question.
Li Yang placed his large hand on Li Tan’s abdomen, sending out a stream of warm energy, which was him injecting his own qi into Li Tan’s body.
Li Tan instinctively wanted to resist, but after a slight movement, he allowed the action, knowing that Li Yang was only trying to check his cultivation level.
Sure enough, Li Yang furrowed his brows.
“Still the same as ever. How did you manage to defeat Lin Yuan, who’s at the mid-stage of Houtian realm? What are you keeping from your uncle?”
Li Tan sipped his tea for a few seconds and said helplessly.
“Uncle, please forgive my impoliteness, but there are some things I cannot tell you.”
Li Yang took a breath, slightly angered.
“What kind of matter can’t you tell me?
Did you offend the mayor’s daughter?” Li Tan asked with an awkward expression while holding his teacup.
“The mayor only has one son. Where is there a daughter?”
“Don’t change the subject. Speak quickly. Your uncle is not an outsider, I won’t let it slip.”
While speaking, Li Yang glanced outside the shop door, which was empty.
“I naturally know that, but some things are not good to know. It might bring trouble upon oneself.”
Li Tan smiled bitterly and shook his head slightly.
Li Yang stared at Li Tan for a while, then snorted unhappily.
“If you can’t even tell your uncle, then it must be something serious. You will soon hold your coming-of-age ceremony. If you don’t want to speak about it, your uncle won’t force you. Remember, no matter what, never do anything evil for temporary gain. You may go now. Lin Cui is waiting outside.”
Li Tan looked at Li Yang and unintentionally noticed the frost on his temples, his heart aching. He said “Understood” and slowly retreated. When he reached the door, he suddenly turned back.
“Is there anything else?”
Li Yang, tidying the tea set, asked impatiently.
“Please, Uncle, believe me.”
Li Tan said solemnly.
“Believe you in what? You brat, you seem a bit strange, as if you’re somewhat different from before.”
“People always grow. Isn’t it normal to change as one grows up?
Uncle, believe me just once. The future of the Li family will be in my hands!”
“Hmph, what good is talking? To hold the future of the Li family, words alone won’t do.”
Li Yang originally wanted to scold a bit more, but he changed his mind when he suddenly recalled the recent events.
Li Tan smiled slightly.
“Just wait and see.”
Li Yang had already tidied up the tea set and walked to Li Tan’s side, patting his shoulder. His cloudy eyes revealed a gleam of satisfaction.
“No matter what happens in the future, remember, your uncle will always be on your side.”
Li Tan felt as if he were holding a pool of warm spring water, his heart filled with warmth.
“There’s one more thing I need to say before I leave.”
“What is it?”
“I have a way to cure your leg injury.”
Li Yang was instantly stunned.
“What are you talking about?
Even the alchemists from the Pill Tower said there was no medicine for it.”
Li Tan snorted disdainfully.
“What do those half-baked good-for-nothings know?
Some things can’t be explained now, but I won’t deceive you.”
Li Yang tried to detect any sign of lying on Li Tan’s face but failed. After a brief silence, he nodded.
“Daring to call the elders of the Pill Tower good-for-nothings, your mouth is indeed big. I don’t know whether your abilities are as big as your words.”
Li Tan knew that Li Yang didn’t believe him. He said this merely as comfort and didn’t bother to explain further. He smiled lightly and left.
Once the Nine-turning Azure Spirit Pill is refined, with the help of the auction house’s resources, there are plenty of ways to gather the means to cure so-called incurable diseases.
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