Chapter 15: Everyone has their thoughts
At this moment, Ye Anping leaned against a locust tree, his face flushed and panted heavily. The sweatshirt he wore seemed drenched in sweat. He could squeeze out a few large bowls of liquid if he took it off and wrung it.
In contrast to his exhaustion, Pei Lianxue, his sparring partner, only had a few droplets of sweat on her forehead, and her cheeks showed only a hint of red. She hadn’t exerted more than seventy or eighty percent of her strength.
Ye Anping had long considered that he couldn’t serve as Pei Lianxue’s sparring partner for much longer. However, he hadn’t anticipated this day to arrive so quickly.
Genius and cannon fodder running side by side on the same path would only result in an increasing gap between the two.
Nevertheless, he didn’t feel disheartened. Instead, he felt a sense of accomplishment, similar to watching his daughter grow up — Look, I’ve taught her well, and she’s so formidable! He thought.
Unfortunately, that sense of accomplishment was fleeting. Everyone knew about Wang Anshi’s “Shang Zhongyong.”
Whether it was the current Hundred Lotus Sect or Ye Anping himself, there were no longer any resources to supply Pei Lianxue.
Her rare “Single Water Spiritual Root” had stringent requirements for both techniques and the cultivation environment.
Moreover, she had already reached the peak of Qi Refinement and was on the verge of Foundation Establishment. After the Foundation Establishment, the demand for spiritual stones and the bitterly cold spiritual energy of the land would multiply.
Unless Ye Anping could persuade his father to allocate all of Hundred Lotus Sect’s cultivation resources to Pei Lianxue, her future would be fraught with challenges.
Contemplating this, Ye Anping couldn’t help but recall the mobile games he used to play.
“The rarer the character, the more expensive the materials for training.”
“If the protagonist, Feng Yudie, were an SSR character, Pei Lianxue would probably be a UR.”
“Ah, I can’t afford it, can’t afford it…”
“What can’t you afford?” Pei Lianxue sheathed her sword, knelt beside him, and gently massaged his shoulders, helping him relax. “Senior brother, do you want to keep a little monster as a pet? How about we go window shopping in the market? Last time, I saw some birds for sale, and they looked so cute.”
“Heh, I’m not interested in those little things,” Ye Anping shook his head and replied, “I mean, I can’t afford to support you anymore.”
Pei Lianxue puffed her cheeks, thinking her senior brother considered her a pet. However, the idea didn’t sound bad. Thus, she playfully said, “Why can’t you afford it? I’m easy to take care of. Just a place to sleep, three meals a day, and a little petting now and then – much easier than those monsters and potted plants.”
Ye Anping sighed again, jesting, “Junior sister, you’ve spent so much of my spiritual stones. What should we do about it?”
“Ah… How much did Senior Brother spend on me? I’ll pay it back. I’ve saved quite a few spiritual stones.”
“Come on, with your little savings? If we calculate, I’ve spent over fifty thousand spiritual stones on you.”
“What? Fifty thousand?”
“The medicine you drink contains ‘Extreme Cold Lotus,’ and one plant costs five or six hundred spirit stones in the market. You’ve been taking it since you were seven, needing twelve plants yearly. Add various other expenses, and fifty thousand might not be enough.”
Pei Lianxue was surprised. She knew her senior brother provided her with some pills, but she never thought it would amount to this much.
Seeing her expression, Ye Anping smiled and teased, “Junior sister, you’ve spent so many spiritual stones on senior brother. What should you do?”
“Ah…” Pei Lianxue pursed her lips, then suddenly brightened up and asked, “Senior brother, how much do you think I’m worth? Can I write you a deed of sale to pay off your debt?”
Ye Anping rolled his eyes and waved his hand, “Who wants your renunciation contract?”
“Don’t you want it, senior brother?” Pei Lianxue lowered her eyes, pretending to be disappointed.
Ye Anping raised an eyebrow at Pei Lianxue’s words and responded smoothly, “What? Are you delighted to sell yourself to me?”
If marrying Senior Brother was the best option, selling myself wasn’t out of the question…
Pei Lianxue pouted, raised her index finger, and said, “Well, it’s only fair to repay debts. Since I can’t afford so many spiritual stones, I might as well sell myself to Senior Brother, right?”
“How much do you weigh now?”
“About eighty-five pounds?”
“Spiritual pork is priced at two spiritual stones per pound, so you’re worth a hundred…”
“Brother!!” Pei Lianxue grabbed Ye Anping’s face, turning it into a big pie, and exclaimed, “You’re the pig!!”
Ye Anping chuckled, grabbing her hand and saying, “Alright, alright, no more jokes.”
“Hmph!”
“I’m serious. If you stay in the Hundred Lotus Sect, your cultivation won’t advance. I was thinking yesterday that I should send you to the Xuanxing Sect.
“The Xuanxing Sect?”
“Yes, after all, Xuanxing Sect is one of the five major sects with more resources than the Hundred Lotus Sect.”
“Great, then let’s go together.” Pei Lianxue nodded eagerly, “Didn’t you mention the Xuanxing Sect disciple conference in two months? You’ll surely excel, Senior Brother.”
“Whew.” Ye Anping tapped her forehead, saying, “I can’t participate, though.”
“Why?”
“The Xuanxing Sect has strict requirements for disciples’ aptitude. With my dual spiritual roots, I don’t even qualify for the Disciple Conference.”
“Oh… If you don’t go, I won’t be able to get in either. It’s okay to slow down cultivation. I’d rather stay with you in the Hundred Lotus Sect.”
Ye Anping hadn’t revealed Pei Lianxue’s true spiritual roots yet. She believed she had three. However, letting Pei Lianxue stay in the Hundred Lotus Sect seemed a good solution.
The main plot accelerated with Wu You’s death and Feng Yudie about to entering the Xuanxing Sect. Not only Pei Lianxue, but he also needed abundant resources.
Collecting resources from the Xuanxing Sect would be the easiest way. But the problem was neither he nor Pei Lianxue could enter.
Pei Lianxue’s unique single-water spiritual root might go unnoticed, but his dual spiritual roots wouldn’t meet the requirements. However, he remembered that entry-level disciples could bring an accompanying student. So, having him or Pei Lianxue accompany Feng Yudie could work. But he didn’t want to get too close to Feng Yudie.
Getting close to the protagonist as cannon fodder was like asking for trouble. And if Pei Lianxue accompanied her, he feared Feng Yudie might lead his carefully nurtured junior sister astray.
Pei Lianxue was his junior sister, cultivated with over ten years of effort. How could he let Feng Yudie sway her?
As Ye Anping contemplated this, Pei Lianxue’s voice suddenly interrupted his thoughts.
“Miss Pei… and Young Master Ye.”
“…”
Ye Anping turned to look while Pei Lianxue instinctively tightened her grip on her sword.
Feng Yudie, now supported by Xiaodie, limped towards them from the edge of the martial arts training ground.
Reaching them, she nodded to Ye Anping, thanking him for the medicinal porridge. “After drinking it, I feel much better,” She added.
Pei Lianxue, hearing this, widened her eyes and unconsciously tightened her grip on her sword.
Ye Anping felt a bit puzzled. He hadn’t prepared any medicinal porridge for Feng Yudie. He also noticed Feng Yudie was wearing his mother’s old clothes. Glancing at Xiaodie, he realized that probably her mother had prepared the porridge, and Kong Yulan had misunderstood his actions of bringing Feng Yudie back.
“Sure, you’re welcome. Why are you here in the training ground instead of resting in your room?” Ye Anping inquired.
“I heard that Young Master Ye and Miss Pei are practicing swordplay here, so…” Feng Yudie glanced at Pei Lianxue and smiled, “Can I watch from the sidelines?”
“We just finished our practice. However, I was planning to talk to you about something,” Ye Anping replied.
“To talk to me?” Feng Yudie blushed and quickly added, “I only admire Miss Pei. You’ve misunderstood.”
Ignoring her, Ye Anping asked Xiaodie to make tea, but she suggested that he assist Feng Yudie, who was having difficulty walking alone.
“No need, Miss Feng. I’ll help you,” Ye Anping said, grabbing her arm and leading her to a nearby pavilion.
Feng Yudie, feeling uncomfortable, tried to resist, but Ye Anping held her even tighter. Leaning close, he warned, “Miss Feng, I have no romantic interest in you, but I can see…”
Feng Yudie’s eyes widened as she looked at Ye Anping’s face, which now bore a slightly villainous smile. She nervously asked, “See what?”
“The difference between men and women is for others, but for you, it should be the difference between women and girls,” Ye Anping said sternly. “If you dare to harm my junior sister, you will regret it.”
Embarrassed, Feng Yudie laughed nervously, but Ye Anping remained serious. “Miss Feng, don’t think your silly smile can fool me. I’m serious.”
Feng Yudie, feeling terrified, stammered, “Young Master Ye, I really admire Miss Pei. It’s just a misunderstanding.”
“If it’s a misunderstanding, then good,” Ye Anping smiled. “I saved your life, don’t repay kindness with enmity.”
Feng Yudie, still unnerved, managed a forced laugh. After noticing her fear, Ye Anping said, “Miss Feng, don’t think your silly smile is effective. I am serious.”
Feeling scared, Feng Yudie mumbled, “No, no, of course not.”
However, Ye Anping, paying attention to her laughter, became even more serious. Meanwhile, Pei Lianxue, standing there silently, had bloodshot eyes, staring at Feng Yudie’s back.
Her sword made a clicking sound as she tightly gripped it.
“Tsk, this vixen…”
…