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Chapter 218 It's all my brother's fault
Ji Bochang cultivated an image for himself in both the inner and outer courtyards as a cold, powerful, unconventional, and eccentric young master with a handsome face. He was sharp-witted, spirited, capable, and mysterious.

That kind of graceful manner of drawing a sword to kill someone, then sheathing it and leaving without uttering a single unnecessary word was something that many people in the academy had secretly imitated.

But a clear and simple happiness is truly rare to see on his face.

And today, many disciples of the Heavenly Academy saw it.

Although Ji You never said it aloud, she was always worried about whether Yan Shuyi could break through her cultivation level, since Yan Shuyi had broken through her cultivation level many times during her seclusion.

Although she broke through the level several times for her own sake, it also indirectly proves that her breakthroughs were not smooth.

Now that I know she has broken through to a higher realm, my long-standing worries have finally been put to rest.

Cao Jingsong arrived at the mountain gate with Ban Yangshu. Seeing Ban Yangshu's slightly upturned lips in the afternoon sunlight, Cao Jingsong was momentarily stunned by his clear and warm smile, and thus became convinced of his previous guess.

Ji You found some silver; otherwise, her smile wouldn't be so innocent and pure.

"My beloved disciple!"

"?"

Ji You turned his head and looked at Cao Jingsong who was coming from this direction. A look of confusion appeared in his eyes. He wondered to himself, "Where did this beloved disciple come from?"

Cao Jingsong walked up to him and lowered his voice: "Tell your master secretly, did you pick up some silver down the mountain?"

"what?"

Cao Jingsong glanced at him as the evening sky rose, thinking to himself that the curve of that smile must be worth a fortune.

How could there still be people in Shengjing City losing silver by the box?
Yes, with so many prominent families coming and going these past few days, it's not surprising that someone might accidentally lose a box of gold.

Cao Jingsong snapped out of his daze and pulled him aside: "The inns in Zhongxing Town keep raising their prices, they're so expensive they're making my scalp tingle. I need money for a place to stay. How much did you collect? Can you give me half?"

Ji You's smile vanished instantly: "Who said I picked up silver?"

"Your smile is practically plastered to the back of your ears. What else could it be but finding some silver?"

"Sorrow is simply pure pleasure."

"?"

Seeing his disbelieving look, Ji You couldn't help but lower her voice: "To tell you the truth, the young appraiser of Lingjian Mountain has broken through to the next realm, and I'm happy."

Upon hearing this, Instructor Cao's mouth twisted in disbelief: "What does the young appraiser of Spirit Sword Mountain breaking through have to do with you? You can't even come up with a more plausible reason!"

Ji You looked at Cao Jingsong and thought to herself, "I'll know when I give birth to Ji Aiyi and bring her back."

He then went up the mountain and returned to the inner courtyard, where he found Wen Siyuan standing at the door. Wen Siyuan handed him a letter, which was sent by Lu Qingqiu, inviting him to a banquet.

He had only met the Lu sisters before noon, and because he was afraid of being attacked by the Chongshi, he didn't go to lunch, making dinner even more dangerous.

However, after opening the invitation, he realized that it was not the Lu sisters who had invited him, but Lu Xiong, the head of the Lu family.

Like other prominent families, the Lu family also planned to attend the Heavenly Dao Assembly. They stopped in Shengjing at noon today to visit their daughter.

After Lu Hanyan finished practicing her sword during the day, she went back to the courtyard to change her silk trousers and saw her parents.

The family of four met in the courtyard and had a long chat.

Lu Hanyan demonstrated what she had learned over the past six months to Lu Xiong, revealing a sword intent that was almost innate, which made Lu Xiong's eyes instantly become somewhat complicated.

In fact, when he first heard that Ji You was teaching his daughter swordsmanship, he was somewhat skeptical.

But after hearing that his daughter had defeated Fang Jincheng with swordsmanship, he had no choice but to believe it.

Lu Xiong was surprised to find that his second daughter had learned so much, and he was also impressed by Ji You's talent in swordsmanship.

Madam Lu looked at her daughter's seemingly larger hips and the way her cheeks would involuntarily flush when Ji You was mentioned, and her expression became more complicated than Lu Xiong's.

She felt that her daughter had learned more than just these things.

Madam Lu actually didn't think much of Ji You, because she didn't know much about him, only that he was a rural private scholar from Fengzhou.

In her view, her daughter should be able to marry into a more powerful and prestigious family.

But since the Lu family was ultimately ruled by the husband, she, as a woman, could only obey. So, despite her dislike, she still adopted the haughty demeanor of a mother-in-law choosing a son-in-law, sitting upright in Hongding Tower with an extremely high posture, preparing to consider this rural private cultivator.

To Madam Lu's astonishment, instead of Ji You, she received a message that he was about to depart and was too busy with other matters to come.

Madam Lu thought to herself that this boy was really rude, how could he dare to refuse?

To her surprise, her husband was not angry at all. Instead, he seemed to have known this all along, which left her feeling puzzled.

Looking at my second daughter, her eyes were filled with the exhilaration of knowing I would not let my senior brother down...

In fact, Ji You taught Lu Hanyan swordsmanship because he felt that the Lu sisters were of good character, much better than Fang Jincheng, and he hoped that the two of them would be in power in the Spirit Stone Chamber of Commerce and treat the miners' descendants better. However, this did not mean that he was willing to befriend the Lu family.

Therefore, refusing the Lu family was perfectly normal for him.

This is similar to rejecting He Lingxiu; both involve maintaining distance to avoid being controlled by others.

However, Ji You was still a warm-hearted man and didn't want to offend the young lady, so while politely declining, he left a message for the Lu sisters, saying that it wouldn't be too late to have a small celebration after Lu Hanyan entered the inner courtyard.

In addition to the banquet hosted by the Lu family, he also received a banquet hosted by the Qiu family.

The family that He Lingxiu had previously wanted to matchmake for her also came to Shengjing today.

To his surprise, he also received an invitation to a banquet from the Wen family, where the Fairy of Righteous Heart resides...

Why is even my senior sister's family eyeing me?

Ji Youxin said, "I'm really angry."

However, upon further reflection, it is understandable, because many people believe that he should be able to achieve a ranking in the Heavenly Dao Assembly and perhaps even enter the Yingtian Realm in the future. Moreover, he is the only aristocratic family in the vast Fengzhou, and the Snowfield Demon Stone also entered the country through his hands.

Many established families believe that investments need to be made in advance to yield greater returns.

He returned the invitations from various prominent families that came his way, and then took the one from the Wen family to Wen Zhengxin.

Fairy Zhengxin never expected her family to make such an arrangement, bypassing her. After reading the invitation's description of her as being in her prime, gentle and virtuous, she blushed and kicked him out.

"lecher!"

"?"

Ji said with concern, "What does this have to do with me?"

The next morning, the sun shone brightly.

The news that the Dan Sect had traveled a long way and arrived in Shengjing City at dawn spread, attracting countless cultivation families to stop and watch.

In sight, countless alchemists dressed in crimson robes arrived at the gate of the Heavenly Academy in several massive, lacquered red wooden palanquins.

Sect Leader Yuan Li, accompanied by six elders, his daughter, and son, entered the Heavenly Academy and received a grand welcome.

Before long, the Danzong group was invited into the Heavenly Book Hall by the five hall masters who appeared. Subsequently, mysterious light emanated from Heavenly Book Peak, attracting the attention of countless people in Shengjing.

This mysterious light and aura came from the headmaster of the Heavenly Academy, who had not appeared in the world for over a hundred years.

No one knows what was discussed in the Heavenly Book Hall, only that Dan Zong stayed there for two hours before being arranged to stay at the Heavenly Book Academy, and they would set off together the next day.

Upon witnessing this scene, countless noble families temporarily residing in the city sent their visiting cards to the Heavenly Academy.

It would be difficult to invite the sect leader, and the elders of the Dan Sect rarely went out because they lacked combat power. Therefore, the main targets of the invitation were the current disciples of the Dan Sect and the daughters of the Dan Sect.

However, neither of them accepted any of the offers.

However, He Lingxiu, during the meeting at the Heavenly Book Hall, had tea with Yuan Caiwei and Yuan Chen as arranged by her elders.

Yuan Caiwei was dressed exquisitely today. She wore a white gauze inner garment over a sky-blue silk jacket, with a silver butterfly hairpin wrapped around her in cascading blue silk. She wore a jade bracelet on her fair wrist, and two silver beads hung from her earlobes. Her lips were red and her face was pink. She had a refined and knowledgeable air, but also a captivating beauty.

He Lingxiu remembered that Yuan Caiwei wasn't like this before; she loved wearing the Danzong's robes.

According to Yuan Caiwei, the cinnabar robe is the most suitable for alchemy. Those light gauze dresses are restrictive and only look nice, but they are not very useful.

But Yuan Caiwei changed later; she always dressed up exceptionally well whenever she came.

He Lingxiu spoke a few words to her, and then noticed that this woman from the Dan Sect kept glancing towards the direction of the inner courtyard's immortal abode, her eyes filled with the desire to leave, as if she couldn't wait any longer.

"Miss Yuan, are you going to see Junior Brother Ji later?"

Yuan Caiwei snapped out of her daze and looked at Yuan Chen with a sparkling gaze: "It was my younger brother who insisted on going."

Yuan Chen: "..."

He Lingxiu chuckled softly: "Those who are in love with each other are always the envy of others. Seeing how devoted Miss Yuan is, I understand why Junior Brother Ji is so devoted to her."

Yuan Caiwei glanced at her: "Completely devoted?"

"You do not know?"

"What makes you say such a thing, Fairy He?"

“Previously, the young lady from the Qiu family in Zhongzhou wanted to get to know him, but my junior brother refused. Yesterday, the Lu family also seemed to want to host a banquet for him. They have two daughters… In short, my junior brother Ji didn’t go either. I’m afraid he only has eyes for you, his legal wife, and he’s afraid you’ll get jealous if you find out.”

As He Lingxiu was talking to herself, a splash was heard, and a spray of water rose from the horizon.

Yuan Chen choked on his tea and was patting his chest, coughing uncontrollably.

My brother-in-law is not that kind of person. Don't talk nonsense. He's just afraid of my little appraiser sister. Otherwise, my sister would be giving birth by now!
Yuan Caiwei couldn't help but bite her thin lips, thinking to herself, "You haven't seen the truly jealous one yet, otherwise I would have already..."

Pleasant words cost nothing, and both cultivators and mortals love to hear them. He Lingxiu was trying to please her, but she didn't expect Yuan Caiwei's reaction to be different from what she had anticipated, which made her a little puzzled.

There are quite a few jealous women in this world; the difference lies in whether they are well-educated and reasonable or willful and reckless.

A well-educated and reasonable person wouldn't show jealousy on their face, but if they heard that their husband only cared for them, they would be happy. However, for some reason, Miss Yuan didn't seem to feel that way; instead, her expression was somewhat reproachful. Afterward, the two chatted for a long time. He Lingxiu felt that Yuan Caiwei was really restless. It seemed that all she could think about was seeing her lover, seeing her lover, seeing her lover. When she looked at her, she kept complaining, "You talk so much, you talk so much, you talk so much."

During the preliminary selection at the Heavenly Academy, someone said that Ji You personally admitted that he was a child prodigy.

He Lingxiu was initially skeptical, but now she was completely convinced. She thought to herself that it was strange that Junior Brother Ji was still a virgin if the daughter of the Dan Sect was so eager to pursue him.

At this moment, she couldn't help but think of Ji You's fiery physique and felt somewhat envious of Yuan Caiwei's excellent diet.

"Miss Yuan, how about we stop here for today's tea?"

"it is good."

"Let's reschedule for another day. There's plenty of time."

Yuan Caiwei nodded, then got up to say goodbye to He Lingxiu, called Yuan Chen, and walked slowly and leisurely down the mountain.

He Lingxiu wasn't used to being alone and preferred chatting while drinking tea. So, after seeing Yuan Caiwei leave, she lost interest in drinking tea, drank the last cup, and got up to leave.

However, she stopped just as she reached the exit.

Yuan Caiwei, who had been descending the mountain at a leisurely pace, was now running, leaving her younger brother behind.

My younger brother insisted on going.

Yuan Chen and Yuan Caiwei bypassed the mountain path and arrived at the inner courtyard of the immortal abode.

As they drew closer, Yuan Chen couldn't help but say to Yuan Caiwei, "Sister, why don't you knock on the door this time?"

"You're the one who came looking for Young Master Ji, why should I open the door?"

Yuan Chen was too exhausted to refute, and said as he walked, "I'm afraid that if I open the door, I'll see the young appraiser again."

After thinking for a moment, Yuan Caiwei asked, "Brother, would you like to go to Shengjing City to listen to storytelling?"

"?"

Yuan Chen was stunned for a moment, then his eyes became wary, wondering who this person on my sister's body was.

Yuan Caiwei blinked slightly, and said somewhat awkwardly, "You've been trying to master the sacred artifact for the past six months. I'll grant you a few days of relaxation. Here's some silver..."

Yuan Chen opened his mouth, thinking to himself, "Back on the mountain, you kept scolding me for not working hard enough, and now it's me working too hard?"

Yuan Caiwei gently nudged him: "Go ahead."

Yuan Chen swallowed hard: "But I miss my brother-in-law."

Do you want to see your older sister get angry with you?

"?"

Yuan Chen held his breath, feeling a kind of bloodline suppression. He immediately took the silver and went down the mountain. He then went straight to the teahouse he had visited earlier, and was bewildered by the sight of the fat man singing a drum in the teahouse.

Ji You was packing his bags when he heard about the arrival of the Dan Sect at the Heavenly Academy.

However, he figured Yuan Chen would definitely come looking for him, so he didn't join in the fun.

Just then, a knock on the door made Ji You stop what she was doing.

He then put on his shoes, walked into the courtyard, opened the gate, and saw a beautiful woman with bright, sparkling eyes.

Yuan Caiwei was standing in front of the door, but she didn't look at him at first. Instead, she glanced lightly into the yard, with a look that suggested she wanted to see her sister's man but was a little worried about her sister being at home.

Ji You knew Yuan Caiwei was coming, so she wasn't particularly surprised. She just noticed Yuan Caiwei's exquisite makeup and couldn't help but glance at her a few more times.

Oh no, it's kind of interesting.

Now that the proud fairy is not here, I'm helpless if Yuan Caiwei tries to bully me.

Yuan Caiwei breathed a sigh of relief and looked at him with glistening eyes: "Young Master Ji, it's been a long time."

Ji You snapped out of her daze: "Long time no see, where's Yuan Chen?"

"He went down the mountain to listen to storytelling."

"There's only one storyteller in Shengjing City, and he was forced to change careers by Yuan Chen last time. What kind of storytelling is that?"

Upon hearing this, Yuan Caiwei looked to the side and said, "I don't know where he went to listen to storytelling. No matter how I tried to persuade him, I couldn't stop him. But he did say he would come back tonight..."

Seeing the slightly guilty expression on the face of the Pill Sect's daughter, Ji You knew that this matter was not so simple.

Yuan Chen must have been driven away.

After thinking for a while, Ji You opened the door: "Come in and sit down first. I'm tidying up. I'll make you some tea later."

Yuan Caiwei nodded and obediently followed him into the house.

There was a mat in the room, on which were the clothes that Ji You had prepared to take away, but they were not yet folded.

Ji You walked onto the mat and continued folding the paper, then said, "I heard a commotion in the courtyard just now, so I guessed it was you."

"It's mainly because the Heavenly Book Hall has opened to guests. Father said that we are the only people besides the five hall masters who are qualified to enter the mysterious and unpredictable Nishan Heavenly Book Hall in the past three years."

Ji You chuckled upon hearing this, thinking to himself that the place was completely empty, without even a gatekeeper, so he could just go up whenever he wanted, what was so mysterious about it?

Yuan Caiwei watched for a while, then took off her shoes and socks, walked up with her bare, delicate white feet, and knelt down to help him tidy up, acting as virtuous as if she were serving her husband when he went out.

Ji You took the clothes she had folded and packed them away, then remembered something and asked, "You said in your letter that the opening of the Holy Land of the Sages requires the Pill Sect, why?"

"The sacred land of the sages is a broken world. Every time it is opened, it will cause turmoil and cracks. It needs the alchemy sect to repair and stabilize it before it can be entered."

How to repair it?

"Just release the elixir energy."

"So that's how it is, mending the sky? Interesting..."

Yuan Caiwei folded Ji You's trousers and placed them aside, then winked at him gently: "Little Master Sister broke through to a higher realm yesterday. Many people down the mountain are talking about it. Have you heard about this, Young Master?"

Ji You nodded: "The news has already reached Shengjing."

"We haven't seen each other for a long time. I wonder if she will attend the Heavenly Way Assembly this time."

"It will come."

"She communicated with the young master?"

Ji You shook her head: "No, but I will definitely go."

After Yan Shuyi broke through to the next realm, she did not send any message. Ji You originally wanted to go to Void Mountain to see if he could meet her, but then he thought better of it.

She has many things to deal with after she comes out of seclusion, and she may even need to demonstrate her cultivation to Tianjian Peak.

Anyway, we're setting off tomorrow, so it's not too late to meet in Zhongxing County.

Ji You was certain that Yan Shuyi would go, because the proud fairy was jealous and would definitely be afraid that Yuan Caiwei would get pregnant before her. It was supposed to be a movie for three people, and she couldn't allow herself to be left out.

Yuan Caiwei was kneeling on the mat, her smooth, white feet pressed under her plump buttocks, making her look cute and petite in comparison.

Seeing that Ji You seemed lost in thought, she couldn't help but speak softly, "I was in the inner courtyard just now, and I heard Fairy He say that you're quite popular lately, young master?"

"popular?"

"Many prominent families want to form marriage alliances with you."

Ji You nodded after hearing this: "That's true."

Yuan Caiwei pondered for a moment: "Actually, all men in this world take concubines. Does the young master really only want to stay with one woman?"

Upon hearing this, Ji You turned to stare at her, wondering whether she was speaking on behalf of someone else or on behalf of herself.

Yuan Caiwei flinched at his gaze, feeling that she might have been somewhat impolite. She wanted to change her words, but before she could speak, she heard Ji You's voice beside her.

“Those women from noble families may not have feelings for me, but sometimes I can’t be truly heartless. I’m just afraid that if we were to get married, I might be held back by them in the future. So I simply don’t let myself have too much contact with them, so that I won’t be able to be ruthless in the future and can only lower my standards and do things that I would feel guilty about.”

Ji You sat on the mat: "I like to talk to people about a clean transaction, that's what it means."

Yuan Caiwei realized that he was explaining seriously, so she nodded gently and looked at his hands after a long silence: "I just looked at them for a while, and it seems that your hands are completely healed."

Ji You was standing very close to her, and upon hearing this, she waved her arm in front of her: "This arm will be fine after the New Year. I have to thank you, otherwise I wouldn't have been able to get into the Heavenly Academy's preliminary selection."

"Young master, the bite wound on your lip has healed too."

"?"

"The one that was 'accidentally' bitten by Shuyi last time."

Ji You stared at her for a long time, thinking to herself, "How come you've become just like Yan Shuyi, speaking in such a sarcastic and unsettling way?"

Yuan Caiwei spoke casually, when she suddenly noticed that Ji You seemed to have moved behind her...

Yuan Chen had no interest in the big drum at the teahouse and had already returned to the Heavenly Academy, standing at Ji You's door, but he didn't dare to go in, afraid of disturbing his sister's plan to steal a husband.

After waiting for a long time, he finally saw his older sister come out. At that time, she was rubbing her buttocks with a blush on her face. She was completely different from the cold-hearted older sister on the mountain who bullied her brother. He couldn't help but be stunned for a moment.

Everyone knows that Dan Zong has come to the Heavenly Academy, so she certainly can't stay here for too long without considering her reputation.

Yuan Caiwei walked out of the door, glanced at her younger brother, and then looked back at the direction of the palace.

I got spanked for talking nonsense earlier...

For some reason, the young master's skills were quite proficient.

(End of this chapter)