The autumn sun hung high in the sky, casting its radiant light unreservedly onto everyone’s faces.
Basking in the warm glow of sunlight and feeling the comfort it brought, Mei Qing felt an indescribable sense of ease from the inside out.
The official boots she had worn for several days now felt comfortable as they stepped on the slightly worn blue bricks. The red horse, just handed over by her family, greeted her affectionately by gently nudging its head into her chest, which felt very pleasant. Even the cicadas chirping carelessly among the swaying branches of the tall old locust trees lining the road felt comforting.
As Mei Qing entered the somewhat dim building housing the Fourth Group and saw Zhao Dayou, who was so surprised that he forgot to bring the teapot to his mouth, standing there with his mouth agape and eyes wide, Mei Qing felt an extra sense of warmth.
“Hello, Clerk Zhao!” Mei Qing greeted with a smile, as if the sunlight she had been bathed in had not yet faded away.
“Goo… good… Hello, Madam Mei. You… you’re alright now?” Zhao Dayou hurried forward, carefully examining Mei Qing and stammering.
Yesterday, this Madam Mei had seemed barely able to breathe, looking as if she had contracted some serious illness. How could she have recovered so quickly overnight? Could it be she had taken some kind of elixir?
“I’m fine now. There wasn’t really anything serious to begin with. I’m afraid I’ve troubled you, Clerk Zhao,” Mei Qing replied while speaking with Zhao Dayou, pausing to ask, “By the way, yesterday when I felt unwell, which of the brothers helped me get home? Now that I’m well again, I should really throw a feast to thank them.”
Zhao Dayou looked at Mei Qing. Her complexion indeed appeared much improved, and his doubts vanished. He grinned and said, “Hmph, why be so polite, Madam Mei? It was just me, Old Zhao, and a few others like Qian San. I told everyone yesterday that you were just feeling a bit under the weather, nothing serious. See how accurate my eyes are!”
As he spoke, Zhao Dayou’s small eyes darted around, quickly scanning left and right. Seeing no one nearby, he leaned in close to Mei Qing and whispered, “Madam Mei, yesterday when I found you collapsed in the storeroom, there was a inkstone next to you. I’ve heard you’re an expert in antiques. Were you interested in that inkstone? I didn’t dare to move it without understanding the situation, so I put it back. If you’re really interested…”
“What? You put it back?” Mei Qing was startled, interrupting Zhao Dayou to ask, “Have you felt any discomfort since yesterday? Any strange sensations at all?”
“Strange sensations? No, not at all! Old Zhao here is as strong as an ox. I even ate four big steamed buns last night… What’s wrong? Did I do something inappropriate by putting it back? Madam Mei, you don’t know, Old Zhao secretly checked the records after returning. That inkstone was placed there by the Sixth Master, and not too long ago either. We do this job, we have to figure out what the superiors want. If we start messing with it now, what if the Sixth Master asks about it one day? According to Old Zhao, if you really like that item, you should let those below know first. Then wait a year or two, the Sixth Master will probably have forgotten all about it, and then we can just substitute it with something similar…”
As he spoke, Zhao Dayou let out a low chuckle, shaking the teapot in his hand, the tea inside sloshing around with a rhythmic sound.
Mei Qing’s heart was filled with suspicion. She looked at Zhao Dayou repeatedly, but his fat face showed no signs of anything amiss. Puzzled, she asked again, “Did you put the inkstone back into its box? Did you feel anything unusual when you touched it, Clerk Zhao?”
Zhao Dayou nodded repeatedly. “Old Zhao’s work is always watertight. I put both the box and the inkstone back exactly as they were. As for feeling anything…,” he thought for a moment, stroking the tuft of hair on his cheek, “It just felt a bit cold and uncomfortable to the touch. It’s just a stone, what other feeling could there be? Did you expect it to feel as soft and smooth as the breasts of the courtesans in Fenzihutong?”
At this comparison between the texture of an inkstone and the breasts of a courtesan, Mei Qing was at a loss for words. After a long pause, she said, “Ancient writings on inkstones say that the finest ones have a delicate touch, like a beauty’s face or a baby’s bottom. Now Clerk Zhao has come up with a new theory, which is indeed quite original. Let’s leave the inkstone where it is for now. I thank you for your kind consideration, Clerk Zhao.”
Pleased with Mei Qing’s praise, Zhao Dayou’s mouth stretched into a wide grin, his heart already resolved to visit Fenzihutong more often in the future. That way, he would have more material to impress Madam Mei and perhaps earn her special favor.
After finishing her conversation with Zhao Dayou, Mei Qing returned to her room. Sitting quietly and observing carefully, she realized that this place was indeed as Qian San had described: once a cultivator entered the building, all their cultivation became useless, and they could not use any techniques at all.
The suppression formation here seemed to completely isolate the five elements of heaven and earth. Therefore, although the true energy within her body could still circulate, once it left her body, it could no longer function, making it impossible to use any techniques.
Although Mei Qing’s cultivation had greatly improved, she knew nothing about formations and arrays, so she had no intention of trying to investigate further. Instead, she focused her mind and faintly sensed the location of the inkstone again. Sure enough, it was still in its original place. However, it now felt chaotic and murky, and the previous connection between her mind and the inkstone was gone.
Thinking about it, she couldn’t help but smile. Just a few days ago, she had felt a connection with the inkstone similar to the empathic link she shared with Bzhen. Although she didn’t know exactly what was inside the inkstone, she had somehow developed a telepathic connection with a stone, which was quite amusing.
With nothing to do during the day, Mei Qing returned home in the evening, tidied up early, and sat on her bed in meditation, waiting for Bzhen’s message. Under a sky full of moonlight, Mei Qing practiced the Divine Thunder Technique of the Shenxiao Sect, absorbing the moonlight into her body. The energy flowed continuously, bringing a profound sense of peace. Before she realized it, it was already the hour of midnight.
Just as the previous night, Mei Qing extended her spiritual awareness and used the visualization method. Soon, she felt her awareness stir, and Bzhen’s spiritual presence intertwined with hers. This time, unlike the previous night, there was no excitement, just a harmonious merging, as if they were embracing under the flowers and moonlight, silently understanding each other’s feelings.
After a long while, Mei Qing sent out her thoughts, “Bzhen, are you alright?”
“I’m fine, just… I miss you. How about you?”
“I’m okay now. Where are you now?”
Bzhen’s spiritual presence hesitated for a moment before a faint sigh followed.
After Bzhen was taken away by Lu Bing that day, she was sent to where she now lived. According to Bzhen, it seemed to be a very large place, but she couldn’t determine its exact location. There appeared to be some kind of formation within, and although Bzhen was free to move around, she couldn’t leave.
“Don’t worry, my grandmother came to stay with me yesterday. She loves me the most. If I just pester her for a few days, she’ll definitely let me out,” Bzhen added at the end.
Their communication was brief before Bzhen had to leave again.
From then on, every night at midnight became their time for spiritual meetings. According to Bzhen, the formation where she was kept was very powerful, making it difficult even for her spirit to travel. Fortunately, the formation required energy from the universe and the moon and sun, so every night at midnight, when the formation opened slightly to absorb spiritual energy and the internal defenses loosened a bit, she could sneak out for a brief moment.
When Bzhen learned that Mei Qing’s golden elixir had been sealed by Lu Bing, she was furious. She denounced Lu Bing repeatedly for bullying the young and sealing someone’s cultivation, calling him a disgrace to his age. She even declared she would never speak to him again unless he acknowledged Mei Qing as his son-in-law and apologized.
“Tomorrow I’ll tell my grandmother! That old man is most afraid of her. Let my grandmother scold him severely!” Bzhen said decisively.
Hearing that her relationship with her father had become even more strained because of him, Mei Qing felt somewhat embarrassed. Besides, no matter what, Lu Bing was her father-in-law, and eventually, their relationship would have to be approved by him. Prolonged conflict would not be good in the end.
Mei Qing tried to reason with Bzhen, saying, “Your father is still our senior, so you shouldn’t always act like this. The other day, I heard him calling you ‘Abi’ affectionately. It seemed he really cared about you.”
“Hmph! Why should I care if he cares?” Bzhen was still fuming. “Abi is my childhood name. You can call me that too, Mei Qing.”
“Uh…” Mei Qing hesitated for a moment. For some reason, she didn’t really like the name “Abi.”
“What’s wrong? Don’t you want to?” Since their minds were connected, Bzhen naturally sensed Mei Qing’s reluctance to call her “Abi.”
“Since your father calls you Abi, I don’t want to be the same as him. How about I call you ‘Zhen’er’ instead?” Mei Qing suggested.
“You think just because my name is Bi Zhen and not Abi, I should be called Zhen’er?” Bzhen laughed. “Bi is my given name, and ‘Zhen’ is a common name for female cultivators. Are you going to call every female cultivator you meet ‘Zhen’er’?”
“I don’t care how many female cultivators there are in the world,” Mei Qing said. “Only you are truly my ‘Zhen’er.’ That’s settled!”
Hearing Mei Qing’s words, Bzhen felt very happy. As Mei Qing kept calling her “Zhen’er,” she responded sweetly.
“But I also know that the golden elixir is sealed. Unless someone with equivalent cultivation power uses external force to break the seal, there’s no way to unseal it. Mei Qing, how did you manage to break free?” Bzhen, caught up in her happiness, only thought to ask this question after a long time.
Mei Qing then explained how she had practiced the Divine Thunder Technique of the Shenxiao Sect to dissolve the seal and briefly told Bzhen about the strange events involving the inkstone.
Bzhen was silent for a long time after hearing this. Finally, she said with concern, “This matter seems strange. Mei Qing, have you noticed anything unusual in your cultivation lately?”
Mei Qing thought carefully but couldn’t recall anything wrong. However, when Bzhen asked about her cultivation progress and learned that Mei Qing’s elixir was already surrounded by purple energy, she was greatly shocked.
“How could it progress so quickly?” Bzhen exclaimed. “I only dare to gently nurture my elixir every day. How come you already have the sign of purple energy rising? Could there be something wrong with the Divine Thunder Technique of the Shenxiao Sect?”
“I was also a bit worried at first, but after repeatedly checking, there was no abnormality, so I continued practicing,” Mei Qing replied casually.
“I still feel that practicing like this isn’t very good. You should be careful. I’ll ask my grandmother tomorrow when I get the chance to see if she has any suggestions,” Bzhen was still worried.
“I also feel that practicing like this isn’t very good—practicing together would be better.” Mei Qing sighed deeply.
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