Fang Jing held Qin Ling's hand and walked back into the room. Qin Ling handed the medicinal ointment to Qingyue, glanced around the room with a sigh, and prepared to leave, knowing she was powerless to stop her mother's arrangements. Just then, she heard a voice: "Thank you, fairy sister."
Qin Ling turned around and looked at Fang Jing with a smile. "Were you talking to me just now?"
Fang Jing nodded, and Qin Ling smiled even more happily. "I'm not a fairy. Your mother is my aunt, so you can just call me sister."
Fang Jing readily complied and called out, "Sister."
Qin Ling looked at Fang Jing closely. Fang Jing's eyes and mouth looked exactly like her aunt's; the almond-shaped eyes, once dull and lifeless like still water, had shed their blankness and gained a touch of spiritual clarity. Qin Ling looked at Jiang Yuejing, then at Qingyue, and asked tactfully, "Has my little cousin's condition improved?"
Qingyue answered happily, "Yes, Eldest Miss. Young Miss has been doing much better lately."
Qin Ling gently stroked Fang Jing's head. "That's wonderful. When Aunt and Uncle return and see the little one like this, they will surely be very happy." She then asked Qingyue, "I heard that my cousin's Soul-Guiding Bell rang earlier. What happened?"
Qingyue replied, "This servant was on duty in the kitchen at the time and was not present. However, I heard that when the Second Young Master was bullying the Young Miss, he accidentally bumped into the Soul-Guiding Bell, and it rang. The Second Young Master was sent flying by the shockwave, and the Young Miss fainted as a result."
Qin Ling looked closely at the Soul-Guiding Bell hanging around Fang Jing's neck and said happily, "It seems the magical artifact that Aunt and Uncle went to such great lengths to find has finally taken effect."
Fang Jing listened quietly from the side the entire time, absorbing useful information. Qin Ling chatted with Fang Jing a bit longer before leaving happily.
As she stepped out the door, Qin Ling's eyes grew slightly moist. Back when her mother gave birth to her and her older brother as twins, her parents had poured almost all their love and resources into her twin brother. Fortunately, the Qin Family was a prominent clan in this city, so she never lacked for food or clothing. When she was little, Qin Ling often caused trouble, hoping to gain her parents' attention, but invariably, all she received were reprimands and nothing more.
It wasn't until later, when her paternal aunt stayed with the Qin Family for over a year... Qin Ling had climbed up a high tree, and the little maidservant following her panicked, constantly shouting for the young miss to come down. Having enjoyed the view from the tree for only a short while, Qin Ling accidentally missed her footing and fell. Before she hit the ground, she was caught by her aunt, who flew over in a rush. Her aunt took her back to her room, brought out medicinal ointment, and cleaned her wounds one by one. "Don't do such dangerous things next time. It worries people," her aunt had said to her gently.Later, Qin Ling would frequently visit her paternal aunt, peeking at her through the window, and every time, her aunt would smile and call her inside. Afterwards, her aunt guided her in cultivation and cleared up her doubts. It was also under her aunt's meticulous guidance and help that Qin Ling's cultivation speed quickly caught up with her twin brother.
Later, her aunt was injured and gave birth to a child. Meanwhile, because Qin Ling had entered the Biyun Sect to study, as a new disciple she did not have much freedom to go out, and she only learned the news from home very late.
However, this time when she was out on a mission and happened to pass by home, she dropped by for a visit. Learning that her aunt's daughter was no longer foolish like before was already a huge gain. Unfortunately, she did not know how to contact her aunt far away to tell her this good news.
After both Qin Ling and Qingyue left, Fang Jing lay on the bed, gently rubbing her right hand. When she counterattacked that Second Young Master, she hadn't expected his body to be so tough, which ended up numbing Fang Jing's hand from the shock.
While rubbing her arm, Fang Jing recalled the scene and muttered, "Are these cultivators?" It seemed she also had to work hard at cultivation so she wouldn't be bullied, but how does one even begin cultivating?
The next day, when Qingyue came to deliver breakfast as usual, Fang Jing asked, "Do you know where Sister Ling lives?"
Qingyue replied, "The Eldest Miss left yesterday. She was on a mission this time and only dropped by the family estate on her way."Fang Jing felt a little disappointed, but watching Qingyue's nimble movements, she asked tentatively, "Qingyue, do you have any cultivation?"
With a cheerful chuckle, Qingyue replied, "I'm just a maid in the kitchen. I'm only at the third tier of Body Tempering, which doesn't really count as true cultivation. Only after drawing spiritual energy into the body does one truly have cultivation."
Curious, Fang Jing asked, "What is Body Tempering?"
Qingyue was naturally a talkative person. Seeing how curious the young lady was, she eagerly started explaining: "Body Tempering is something that people with exceptionally poor Spiritual Roots like us, or even ordinary people, can practice to make our bones and muscles strong. Qi Condensation, on the other hand, requires a Spiritual Root capable of drawing the spiritual energy of heaven and earth into the body's meridians. Furthermore, those in the Qi Refining stage live slightly longer than those who practice Body Tempering. Qi Condensation has nine levels, followed by Foundation Establishment, Golden Core, and the Nascent Soul Stage. What lies beyond that, I don't know. I've heard there is an ancestor in our family who is in the Nascent Soul Stage and has been in secluded cultivation all this time. I used to hear that our great-aunt's cultivation was also very high, but how high, I have no idea. I only hope to be able to draw spiritual energy into my body one day."
As she spoke, Qingyue stretched her arm out in front of Fang Jing, telling her to punch it a few times to test it. Fang Jing tried striking it with various amounts of force, then rubbed her hand and said, "It's so hard."
Qingyue giggled and said, "It gets like that after Body Tempering. Since the young lady doesn't have any cultivation right now, naturally it feels hard to you."
Fang Jing thought to herself: *No wonder when I crashed into that Second Young Master's head yesterday, my own hand went numb for ages. I suppose that Second Young Master must have already practiced Body Tempering as well.*
"Then do you know what the Second Young Master's cultivation is like?" Fang Jing continued to ask.Qingyue said, "The Second Young Master has already reached the first layer of Qi Condensation." Then, suddenly lowering her voice, she whispered into Fang Jing's ear, "I heard the Second Young Master has three Spiritual Roots, and none of them are robust. First Madam wants him to enter a major sect just like the Eldest Young Miss, but it's very difficult for someone with three Spiritual Roots to enter a major sect."
Fang Jing played along at the right moment to keep Qingyue talking, "Are three Spiritual Roots bad?"
Qingyue shook her head and said, "When it comes to Spiritual Roots, fewer is better. A single Spiritual Root is top-tier. Spiritual Roots are divided into the five elements, and the more roots you have, the harder it is to balance the elements. Furthermore, the quality of the Spiritual Root matters immensely; differences in length, thickness, and the speed at which they absorb spiritual power vastly affect the quality of the root. Do you know what kind of Spiritual Root the Eldest Young Miss has?" Catching Fang Jing's puzzled look, Qingyue continued with satisfaction, "The Eldest Young Miss has a dual Water-Wood Generating Spiritual Root, and the Eldest Young Master also has a dual Water-Wood Spiritual Root."
"The Eldest Young Master?"
Qingyue replied instantly, "The Eldest Young Master and the Eldest Young Miss are twins. The Eldest Young Master is at Liuxi Sect, and the Eldest Young Miss is at Biyun Sect. In our Eastern Continent, Liuxi Sect is a second-tier sect, while Biyun Sect is a first-tier sect!" Qingyue wore a look of pride.
Fang Jing sighed in admiration, "Sister Ling is truly amazing!" Then she took Qingyue's hand and asked sincerely, "Qingyue, can you teach me how to do Body Tempering?"
Qingyue looked somewhat embarrassed. "I suppose I can, but this servant is only at the Body Tempering stage myself, so I can't teach the Young Miss much." Then, as if remembering something, she said, "Perhaps the Young Miss can go to the martial arts arena to learn; many of the young people in the clan practice there."
Fang Jing asked casually, "Is the Second Young Master there too?"
Qingyue's expression darkened instantly. "The Second Young Master is there, and all of those lackeys of his are there, too. Oh, right, the library pavilion has books on cultivation techniques; the Young Miss could try going over there to take a look."
Fang Jing chose not to go to the martial arts arena. It wasn't actually because she was afraid of the Second Young Master and those lackeys, but rather because she was just an ordinary person right now. Perhaps her actions yesterday could intimidate that bullying Second Young Master for a while, but if she went to learn at the martial arts arena, that spoiled brat would undoubtedly want to stir up trouble again within a few days. First things first, she needed to learn Body Tempering. In her past life, Fang Jing had been very hands-on—she knew how to fix light bulbs, assemble bed frames, and all sorts of things—so she was certain she could manage to learn Body Tempering.
After finishing the meal, Qingyue began teaching. Fang Jing learned step by step, practicing for over two hours. Seeing the time, Qingyue apologized and said to Fang Jing, "Young Miss, this servant needs to go help in the kitchen." Fang Jing nodded to show she understood. "It's fine, go ahead. I'll practice on my own for a bit."
By the time the noon meal rolled around, Fang Jing had worked up a sweat and went back to her room to grab a towel and wipe herself down. Looking at her clothes, she decided she needed to change into a lighter outfit. Rummaging through the wardrobe, she found two sets that barely met her standards—clothes with narrow cuffs and skirts that didn't drag on the floor.
Out of the corner of her eye, she noticed several wooden chests in the corner of the room. Driven by curiosity, she walked over to open them. Opening the first chest, she found it filled with various clothes and shoes. Opening the second chest, she still found clothes and shoes, along with a small wooden box. Opening the small wooden box, she found some jewelry. However, the clothes in the second chest were noticeably much smaller. Fang Jing pulled out a few garments from both chests to compare; there were both small and large ones.
At that moment, Qingyue walked in carrying a food box. Seeing Fang Jing comparing the clothes in her hands, she said, "These are the garments the Great-Aunt prepared for the Young Miss, ranging from childhood all the way up."
Fang Jing was stunned upon hearing this. "My mother prepared these for me?"
Qingyue set out the dishes as she spoke. "Yes. The Great-Aunt was afraid that if she wasn't around, the First Madam would treat the Young Miss poorly, so she prepared these clothes for the Young Miss and put them in the chests. She was also afraid the First Madam would snatch them away; after all, since they were kept in ordinary chests rather than a storage pouch, the First Madam wouldn't stoop to stealing ordinary chests and ordinary clothes, would she?" Then Qingyue lowered her voice to a whisper, "The Great-Aunt was truly visionary; this whole room of things has been whittled down to just a few chests."
Fang Jing quietly gripped the clothes in her hands, a flurry of emotions washing over her. These were prepared by the original owner's mother. Everything the mother did was for the original owner—was this a mother's love? The original owner was gone, but Fang Jing wanted to hold onto this love.
Gently stroking the garments in her hands, she asked, "How do you know about this so clearly?"
Qingyue finished setting out the food and came over to pull Fang Jing to the table. "Everyone says so. This servant helps in the kitchen, so I hear all sorts of news. Young Miss, eat your meal first; you must be starving after working hard all morning."
After Qingyue cleared away the meal and left, Fang Jing walked back over to the wooden chests. She carefully organized the clothes piece by piece, feeling the love a mother had passed down through these garments. Once she finished packing away the clothes and moved the two clothing chests down, she opened the third chest. It was packed entirely with books.
Fang Jing casually flipped through a few of the books on top, only to discover a serious problem: the written language of this world was still different from the simplified Chinese characters of her original world! Fortunately, however, the few books she flipped through seemed to be primers. The characters here still resembled a form of pictographic writing, and Fang Jing could barely guess at some of their meanings.
When the final chest was opened, it was filled with toys. Fang Jing felt her eyes grow moist. She had grown up in an orphanage, where there hadn't been many toys to speak of, and the few they did have were shared by everyone. Fang Jing had never imagined that one day she would have so many toys that belonged exclusively to her. Although she was no longer a child, and although the contents of these four chests might not be considered precious in this world, they happened to make up for the regrets of her childhood—and perhaps even made her wish for a bit more maternal love.