I was born a god, the son of the Demon Lord.

Wei Shenglan quickly reached out and stroked her silvery-white tail: "Dad just rubbed it with coral salt yesterday! It smells wonderful!"

Hailey nodded reluctantly: "It's alright. And—"

Wei Shenglan interrupted her, sniffing, "What else? Just say it all at once, and Dad will write it down on some seaweed paper."

Hailey counted them off one by one on her fingers.

"Don't send her deep-sea pearls; the pearls in Mother's bedchamber are piled up to the ceiling. And don't barge in while she's reviewing memorials; her coral pen holder is very expensive—it hit me on the head last time and gave me a bump..."

She paused for a moment, then suddenly became serious: "You must live well."

Wei Shenglan paused.

Hailey wrapped her arms tightly around his neck, buried her face in the crook of his shoulder, and said in a muffled voice, "I've never seen you over there. This time... you have to live well."

Wei Shenglan hugged his daughter tighter. "Okay. Daddy promises you."

The father and daughter hugged for another dozen breaths. Hailey's tears and snot were all smeared on Wei Shenglan's collar. While patting her back, Wei Shenglan was also secretly sniffing. The tip of his silvery-white tail trembled slightly.

Lin Qingyue watched for a full quarter of an hour before she couldn't bear it any longer.

She took two steps forward, grabbed Hailey by the back of her collar, and pulled her out of Wei Shenglan's arms.

"Alright, alright, you've cried enough. We should go now, you can go back."

Hailey was lifted into the air, her little paws reaching towards Wei Shenglan.

"Daddy! Remember to comb your tail! Write poems in vernacular Chinese! No more than three times a day!"

Wei Shenglan stood on the shore, wiping away tears as she waved vigorously at her.

"Understood! Dad remembers! You must eat on time when you're out! No picky eating! If that Shen brat bullies you, use your water blade to slash him—"

"He can't beat me! He wouldn't dare—!"

Shen Xizhou: "...When did I ever bully her?"

Xu Nanyi patted his shoulder: "Don't mind it, everyone's exaggerating at farewells."

Lin Qingyue did not give the father and daughter another chance to continue the performance.

She pulled the jade flying boat from her sleeve, grabbed Hailey with one hand, and pushed Xu Nanyi and Shen Xizhou onto the boat with the other. She herself was the last to climb onto the stern. She channeled her spiritual energy into the boat, and with a "hum," the flying boat lifted off the water and soared into the sky above the sea.

"Wait a minute—! Father—! I forgot to mention—!"

Hailey leaned half her body out of the ship's side and shouted down.

"What--?!"

"My mom loves the grilled conch from that stall on West Street! But she only eats the non-spicy kind! When you're in line, remember to ask the owner if the conch is fresh today! She won't eat it if it's not fresh—!"

"Daddy—remembers—it—!"

The airship rose higher and higher, the sea receding into the distance, until even Wei Shenglan's figure shrank into a tiny silver dot, swaying in the golden sunlight before finally disappearing into the shimmering waves.

Hailey leaned on the gunwale and wiped away her tears again.

Lin Qingyue sat at the stern, maneuvering the flying boat. The noise around her gradually subsided, and she rubbed her temples.

Finally, it's quiet.

She glanced at the gradually shrinking outline of the Temple of Poseidon in the distance, and suddenly smiled slightly.

Before leaving, she had a servant from the Temple of the Sea God deliver a short letter to the Sea Emperor.

I hope my future brother-in-law will like the gift she gave me.

After all, meeting the parents beforehand is a form of matchmaking, isn't it?

……

The flying boat passed through the clouds and slowly landed on the familiar white jade square in the Taiyuan Holy Land.

Xu Nanyi was the first to jump off the boat.

Under the old sycamore tree, Ying Shixue was sitting on a smooth white stone.

Her long, silvery-white hair was casually draped over her shoulders, unbound. She wore a plain white robe with the cuffs slightly rolled up, revealing a section of her wrist. In her hand, she held a slender embroidery needle and was intently embroidering something.

Sunlight filtered through the gaps in the sycamore leaves, scattering like shards of gold across his shoulders and knees.

A small garment, no bigger than the palm of her hand, lay on her lap; half a delicate lotus flower was embroidered on the light blue fabric.

Next to it were several pieces of cut cloth, several rolls of colorful silk thread, and a small pair of scissors, all neatly arranged in a small bamboo basket.

Xu Nanyi's mouth was open for a long time.

Shen Xizhou followed her off the flying boat. "...Is Grandmaster embroidering?"

Hailey climbed out from the stern and peered forward, exclaiming, "Wow! It's so beautiful! That lotus flower looks just like the real thing!"

It was no surprise that Lin Qingyue was the last to jump off the flying boat.

"Get down. Don't just stand there."

Ying Shixue put down the little garment in her hand, gently patted the loose thread on her knee, and said, "Little Yueyue is back? You must have had a long journey."

Lin Qingyue nodded. "Yes. We caught two Ghost Immortals and they're keeping them at the stern of the boat."

Ying Shixue didn't rush to ask about the ghost fairy. Instead, she picked up the little garment embroidered on her knee, then picked up several other folded garments beside her, stood up, and walked towards the three children.

"Here, your grandmaster made you some little outfits. One for each of you, see if you like them?"

Xu Nanyi looked down and saw that Ying Shixue had three small clothes neatly folded in her hands.

The light blue dress had a lifelike white lotus embroidered on it, with a few small lotus leaves next to it; it was clearly meant for Hailey.

The dark green jacket was embroidered with a winding little black dragon, its scales fine and shiny, and a small bead was attached to the tip of its tail.

There was also a red, double-breasted robe with gold phoenix feather patterns embroidered on the collar and cuffs. The stitches were fine and neat, showing that a lot of effort had been put into it.

Xu Nanyi reached out and took it; the fabric was soft and warm. "Grandmaster...did you make this yourself?"

Ying Shixue couldn't hide her pride: "Of course. I made all of Xiaoyueyue's clothes when she was little. The silver-blue jacket she wore when she was three years old had six waves embroidered on the cuffs. She wore it out and showed it off for months, pulling on the sleeves to show everyone she met."

Lin Qingyue, standing to the side, blushed instantly: "Master!"

Ying Shixue smiled and ignored her, then turned to the three children: "Try wearing them first, and if they don't fit, your master will make alterations."

Oh dear, my little apprentice has grown up and is no longer as cute. He used to be so adorable when he was being affectionate.

"Don't rush to talk about the ghostly immortal. Have you been traveling for so long? Aren't you hungry?"

The three children's stomachs rumbled twice in unison.

Ying Shixue's smile deepened, and she turned and walked into the hall.

"Let's go in and get something to eat. There's seaweed and pork rib soup simmering in the kitchen, and some osmanthus cake steamed. We can talk business after we've eaten."

Xu Nanyi, clutching her little red robe, followed her grandmaster into the hall.

She thought to herself, "So this is the virtuous man my mother was talking about?"

She seems really virtuous.