fairy family

Chapter 199 Cold Clothes and Cold Food, Repaying the Master with the Gift of True Teachings
The ancestral land of the Huang family was shrouded in mist.

At midday, wisps of smoke rise from the mountainside and drift gently through the forest.

In a village shaped like terraced fields, Huang Guishan, sleeves rolled up, walked barefoot among them, carefully inspecting each rice grain in the field, leaf by leaf.

These rice grains are a special kind of spiritual seed, containing subtle spiritual essence. If immortals consume them regularly, not only will their cultivation speed increase, but their physical body, spirit, and other aspects will also be refined, and even their aptitude can be developed more fully.

Although the Huang family has declined in status since then, it has not fallen into the ranks of the nine families on the mountain. In addition to the legacy of its ancestors, this spiritual valley has also played a significant role.

The cultivation of this creature is complicated and must not be known to outsiders. Therefore, clansmen like Huang Guishan, who have committed crimes and can never leave their ancestral land again, naturally became the best candidates to take care of this creature.

After working for several more hours, Huang Guishan finally straightened his hunched back, trudged out of the mud pit, and walked panting toward the thatched hut beside the terraced fields.

Taking care of such a spirit requires specific requirements for each of the four seasons, as well as for mornings, evenings, and midnights. It requires watching over it every three hours at most, making it even more complicated than caring for a baby less than a month old.

Furthermore, since Huang Guishan became a criminal, his incense offerings have been completely extinguished, and even his household gods have been taken away. Apart from his remaining Yin spirit cultivation, he has essentially become a mortal.

In just one year, he no longer resembled a refined alchemist, but was no different from a farmer in the mountains.

When Huang Guishan arrived at his own thatched hut, he looked at the dilapidated state of the house and his face became even more distressed.

If he were all alone, no matter how difficult the conditions, he could survive as long as he had a sip of water and a little food.

However, at this moment, a person was kneeling on the floor inside the house. The person looked haggard. When he saw Huang Guishan return, he quickly got up and whispered, "The master is back."

With his withered fingers, the other person took out a ceramic pot that was simmering in the extinguished charcoal fire, carefully scooped out a bowl of cold porridge, and placed it in front of Huang Guishan.

Looking at the thin porridge that resembled rice water, Huang Guishan took a deep breath and said with a smile:
"It's alright, go ahead and eat. I am, after all, an immortal, and my physical body is different from yours mortals."

He pushed the rice porridge directly over and assumed a meditation posture:

"Let me demonstrate to you what the art of fasting is."

When the peasant woman saw Huang Guishan's appearance, she covered her face with her sleeve and burst into tears while laughing:

"You're still as unreliable as ever. If I had known this would happen, I should have just watched you starve to death back then."

She held up the bowl of thin porridge in her hand: "If you don't eat it, I'll throw this away."

Upon seeing this, Huang Guishan cried out in pain and quickly got up and crawled over to hold the bowl of porridge securely.

"No, no."

He coaxed the peasant woman for a long time until she stopped crying. He then wanted to get another bowl to share the food with her, but the hut was simple, and even the bowl in his hand had a chip. There was no other complete bowl in the hut.

So Huang Guishan poured the bowl of thin porridge into the empty earthenware jar, and one person held the bowl while the other held the jar, and they ate it all up.

After they finished eating, the two of them stopped moving and curled up on the straw mat on the ground, not moving at all, enduring their even stronger hunger.

They didn't even want to talk.

It was the same peasant woman who spoke in a voice barely audible:
“Honey, why don’t I go and get some rice? It’s only early spring, and we’re really out of rice. If this continues, your health will collapse.”

Upon hearing this, Huang Guishan suddenly opened his eyes, stared at the thatched roof for a long time, and then said with a grin:
"Even if Old Huang is a good-for-nothing, it's not your place to sell meat."

"If you really want to sell, you should wait until someone starves to death before you start selling."

Although the Huang family provides some protection to clansmen who have committed serious crimes, they do not provide them with good food and drink.

Or rather, the Huang family was initially raised like pigs in history, but later they were simply confined to the ancestral peak, left to fend for themselves as wild men, or even starved to death.

In this case, the only one to blame is these criminals for not being able to support themselves, and not the clan for being heartless.

When Huang Guishan was first exiled to the mountains, his family gods were taken away and the incense offerings were exhausted. Even his vital energy was depleted, and he didn't have the strength to walk. He was only wearing a hempen robe and didn't even have saliva.

It was thanks to the "farmer woman" nearby that he was alone. She saw that Huang Guishan was also alone and wanted to find a companion, so she took him home and gave him a new lease on life, preventing him from starving to death in the mountains.

From then on, the two lived in the fields without any official status or identity.

Huang Guishan really didn't expect that after spending most of his life in the county town, living a carefree and romantic life, he had never had a wife, let alone a long-term lover. In the end, he ended up like this and actually got a good wife for free.

Well, to be precise, he was picked up by the other party.

Originally, his wife was raising silkworms in the house and living a decent life. After taking Huang Guishan back, she even thought that the two of them could have a son or daughter so that she could take care of them in their old age in the mountains.

However, some time ago, before the silkworm eggs were even ready to hatch, they were taken away by the clan's steward, who then accused the woman of stealing spiritual energy and took away all the wealth she had left behind.

Fortunately, Huang Guishan joined the family, otherwise this woman would probably have committed suicide that very night.

The silkworm girl sobbed softly again, not daring to sob too loudly, lest she waste the thin porridge she had painstakingly eaten.
"My dear husband, if you die, I will go with you."

Anyway, the tribe is hoping we're dead.

Upon hearing this, Huang Guishan laughed and said:
"What are you talking about, dying or not? Just wait for my disciple to come and pick up your mistress, and take you out of this quagmire so you can eat and drink well."

My disciple is quite remarkable; he comes from the Heavenly Temple.

Huang Guishan's eyes lit up when he said this.

The silkworm girl, teased by Huang Guishan, stopped sobbing and even laughed a few times shyly.

"What, you don't believe me either?" Huang Guishan asked.

The silkworm girl whispered:

"I'll believe whatever you say."

She hunched over, touching her belly, and said again:
"I just don't want to live a life of luxury; all I want is to be able to give you a son or daughter after I leave."

If it's a boy first, we'll name him Can Can; if it's a girl, we'll name her Can Can…

As she spoke, a glimmer of light appeared in the peasant woman's withered eyes. She raised her head and looked at Huang Guishan with a mixture of shyness and hope.

Huang Guishan smiled and readily agreed, then hugged the silkworm girl's head to his chest and nestled against her.

However, there was a hint of melancholy in his eyes.

He had not lied to the woman about Yu Que, and he was confident that he would not abandon her after Yu Que arrived.

However, life in the mountains is harsh, and there are also reasons why the clan has done this on purpose.

If you just have to endure a few more years here, even if you can eat and drink your fill every day, it will still be difficult for you to have children.

For example, Huang Guishan himself, after only a year in this place and taking care of those spirit grains, felt that his vital energy was depleted. If he were to spend another three or four years, he would definitely suffer from kidney depletion and be unable to recover.

The woman stayed there much longer than him, so she must have been exhausted and unable to have children anymore.

…………

At the foot of Aoyu Peak.

Yu Que arrived in the imperial carriage of the true lineage to pay homage to the mountain. Regardless of which peak in the mountain it is, it is only right to prepare proper etiquette, open the mountain gate wide to welcome him, and not refuse or avoid him.

Of course, true disciples would only ride in the imperial carriage when they received the true ordination certificate, as this was a matter of bringing glory to the sect, and no sect would refuse such an opportunity.

Furthermore, each time a true disciple made a pilgrimage to the mountain, they would leave a plaque on the mountain gate as a sign of their heritage. The Huang family's mountain gate was ancient and simple, and there were many plaques along the way to the mountain, but in the last sixty years, not a single plaque has been found.

Therefore, the sudden arrival of Yu Que's imperial carriage brought both surprise and joy to everyone at Huangjiazu Peak.

Some of the leading immortals of the Huang family were still uneasy, suspecting that the disciples of the Wang and Xie families wanted to take advantage of the opportunity to advance to the True Disciple level to humiliate the Huang family and completely kick them out of the ranks of the top nine families.

It wasn't until the current head of the Huang family hurriedly emerged from seclusion that everyone breathed a sigh of relief upon seeing Yu Que on the imperial carriage and realizing he wasn't a member of the Wang or Xie families.

The head of the Huang family also gave an order that the clansmen did not need to invite the ancestral god of the Gang.

However, the Huang family head was still bewildered by the sudden arrival of Yu Que.

Especially when Yu Que greeted this person and directly stated:
"I am a junior student and have troubled your noble family. I have come today hoping to perform a sacrifice on behalf of my master. I hope the head of the Huang family will allow me to do so."

"Ancestor worship?!"

Not only the head of the Huang family, but all the members of the large Huang family who heard this question doubted whether they had misheard or whether Yu Que was playing a trick on the Huang family.

However, when they saw Yu Que's expression, they realized that he was serious and not joking.

At this moment, some members of the Huang family suddenly remembered Yu Que's background in the Heavenly Temple and quickly relayed the relevant information to the Huang family head.

When the Huang family patriarch and others learned that Yu Que had actually become a disciple of a branch of the Huang family at the foot of the mountain, their expressions became incredibly varied, a mixture of excitement and pride.

However, when they learned that the clansman was currently being treated as a criminal and imprisoned for life within the ancestral peak, the Huang family head and others looked sullen and were speechless for a moment.

Whispering discussions filled the large Huang family home.

Some members of the Huang family who were lingering in the ancestral peak for quiet meditation looked at Yu Que with either admiration or envy, and they kept buzzing with discussion.

In the past hundred years, Zufeng Peak has never been as lively as it is today. Perhaps the only time it will be this bustling again is when our ancestor passes away.

Finally, the Huang family head straightened his expression, stepped forward, and, with a slight gesture of support, said with composure:

"Although Yu Zhenchuan is a disciple of my Huang family, he is ultimately not a member of my Huang family. The matter of ancestor worship is indeed somewhat abrupt. Our clan is not the kind of clan that curries favor with the powerful."

Having assessed the Huang family's identity, the man changed the subject, saying:

"However, if Yu Zhenchuan is willing to form a marriage alliance with our clan and become a member of our clan, then that's another matter."

I have a daughter who is currently in the palace as an inner disciple, apprenticed to the Immortal Absolute Apricot. She is exceptionally beautiful and only three years older than you…”

Upon hearing this, the Huang family members buzzed with discussion.

Some people looked on with envy, while others looked excited.

However, Yu Que looked at the other party with a half-smile, and there was a hint of coldness in his eyes.

The eighty-one warriors standing beside him suddenly opened their eyes wide, each one spitting fire as they stared directly at the head of the Huang family.

A true disciple of the Huang family, a family in decline, actually wants to take him into their clan as a son-in-law! It's utterly delusional!

Such a proposal was, to the strongmen who had been granted the spare, a blasphemous act that made them feel as if their ruler had disgraced them and they would die for their country.

If only one word is missing, even if their cultivation is inferior to the opponent's, the strongmen carrying the palanquin will dare to cause a ruckus on the spot and directly demolish the Huang family's mountain gate.

Yu Que pondered for a moment. He did not turn against the other party, but chuckled inwardly, somewhat understanding why the Huang family had fallen into such a state of decline.

He chuckled softly:

"Your immortal career is not yet complete, so how can you have a home? Do not mention this matter again."

The Huang family patriarch was still unwilling to give up and continued, "Then let's not get married yet. You only need to become Daoist partners first."

Yu Que didn't give the other party a chance to make another suggestion and said directly:

“Since the nobles are in a difficult position, I will abandon the matter of offering sacrifices to the ancestors on behalf of my master.”

Now, the Huang family patriarch and the rest of the group were getting anxious.

Fortunately, Yu Que then added:

"I have another suggestion: why don't we have Yu Que join Master Huang in the ancestral worship ceremony? What do you all think?"

The head of the Huang family frowned slightly upon hearing this.

Making Huang Guishan, a criminal, perform ancestral rites is still a rare occurrence in the history of the Huang family.

In particular, he still harbored the idea of ​​a forced marriage, wanting to bring Yu Que, this true disciple, into his own possession.

Just then, an aged voice suddenly came from the top of Aoyu Peak:

"Okay. I'll agree."

The Huang family members' expressions changed slightly. They quickly turned around, bowed towards the top of Aoyu Peak, and called out, "Ancestor."

"It is the ancestor who has spoken."

Upon hearing this, Yu Que also looked up and nodded slightly as he gazed at the summit.

Upon hearing this, the Huang family patriarch could only exhale and nod to Yu Dian:

"Since the ancestor has spoken, this matter is certainly permissible."

However, we request that Yu Zhenchuan stay in the clan for a few more days so that we can take Huang Guishan out, restore his name from the register, and report to the ancestors. After that, we will choose an auspicious day to worship the ancestors together with Yu Zhenchuan.”

Upon hearing this, Yu Que couldn't help but chuckle.

Even though the other side's ancestor has already spoken, the Huang family head is still so unwilling.

However, upon closer reflection, he realized that besides wanting to restore Huang Guishan's status, the Huang family probably also wanted to prevent the two from meeting immediately, lest they lose face for the Huang family, as Huang Guishan was in dire straits in the mountains.

He thought to himself, "Perhaps Master Huang wouldn't want me to see him like this either."

But Yu Que really didn't want to stay here any longer, and he didn't want to pretend to be friendly with this group of Huang family members.

Furthermore, although he has now suddenly ascended to the position of a true disciple and holds a high status, his cultivation level is still too low. He is truly afraid that after moving into the Huang family, they might force him into becoming a member of the Huang family.

With a thought, Yu Que said loudly:
"I am sorry, I am new to the palace and there are many things to do. It is not convenient for me to stay any longer."

He said firmly:
"Just let Master Huang ride in my true disciple's carriage and go up the mountain to worship our ancestors!"

These words made the Huang family patriarch pause, but after a few moments of contemplation, he finally nodded.

Immediately, Yu Que instructed the accompanying strongmen and others, and told them everything about Huang Guishan's appearance, so that they would treat him as their master.

Then he left the grand display of his true teachings entirely on Aoyu Peak.

He himself only carried that seventh-rank strongman, letting the other party lead the way, and rushed straight towards Lotus Peak.

(End of this chapter)