"Shut up!"
Lin Tang once again displayed the declaration severing their relationship.
"It's here in black and white, written in your own hands. Since you've severed ties, you're no longer Youling's parents or sister, so stop using blood relations to blackmail her!"
"Uh..." Dong Mingfeng and the other two stared at the declaration, suddenly at a loss for words.
That's right. They had already severed ties. It was their own signatures, their own fingerprints...
Damn it! We regret this so much! If we had known it was a scam, we never would have signed it, not even if they beat us to death.
"Youling, I truly know I was wrong! I shouldn't have signed it. I was blinded by greed..."
"Spare us, save us, Youling!!"
"That's enough!" Shen Youling, who had been looking down with her face hidden in shadow, suddenly lifted her head as if waking from a dream.
She tugged at the corners of her mouth, revealing a bitter smile. "Lin Tang, I know what you're doing. You want to see their true colors, to be disappointed in them, to stop caring whether they live or die... But no matter what, they gave life and raised . I truly can't just stand by and watch soone kill them... Please, you and the boss, just let them go!"
Zhu Yingning glanced at Lin Tang.
Lin Tang curled his lip and shot her a aningful look.
Zhu Yingning then ordered her subordinates to release Dong Mingfeng and Shen Xin.
"What about ? What about ?" Shen Jiayue stretched her neck out, her eyes wide with desperation.
Zhu Yingning sneered, "Unlike them, you didn't give her life or raise her. Instead, you've bullied her countless tis since you were children. I heard you once tried to drug her and give her to so trashy n just to curry favor with them. A mont ago, you were trying to kill her. People like you deserve to die!"
She tossed a knife over. "If you have any sense, do it yourself! If I have to do it, it'll be death by a thousand cuts!"
"WAAAH!!" Shen Jiayue cried hysterically, snot and tears flying everywhere. She didn't want to die, let alone by a thousand cuts...
"Let her go too," Shen Youling said, her expression blank. "I'm a little tired. I don't want to see her."
"She wanted to kill you, and you're still letting her go?"
"Yes."
"...Alright. Just this once. There won't be a next ti! Shen Jiayue, if I ever find out you're plotting against Youling again, I promise you this: Youling will never know the exact day you breathe your last!" Zhu Yingning warned coldly.
As if granted amnesty, Shen Jiayue imdiately swore an oath, proclaiming she would never harbor any ill intentions toward Youling again. She then scrambled away in a panicked, undignified haste.
Dong Mingfeng and Shen Xin also fled without a backward glance. They fled as if they would never dare to return—though only heaven knew how long that attitude would last.
Seeing that the spectacle was over, the crowd began to disperse.
"Grandpa, shall we go upstairs?" Lin Tang asked, supporting Shen Qiushi.
Although all his descendants were safe, Shen Qiushi was still dejected. He couldn't understand it. Other families were so harmonious and peaceful, so why had the Shen family ended up like this?
"It's my fault. Bla for not teaching them well... Ah, Youling, my poor child, you've suffered so much!"
"Grandpa, I'm fine! I'm really fine, I'm not just putting on a brave face!" Shen Youling shook her head gently. "In the past, I would have been heartbroken. But now, I've co to terms with it..."
Beside the imminent invasion of the Underworld and the great catastrophe on the horizon, beside the return of the gods, beside the Cultivator's path to immortality and the endless cycles of Reincarnation... what was all this family conflict and chaotic drama? It felt so trivial now. Even though I haven't rged with all the mories from my past life, I... I've still changed. I'm not the person I used to be... Shen Youling sighed inwardly.
「In the evening.」
After dinner, Shen Qiushi went out for his usual walk. Seeing his low spirits, Shen Youling dutifully accompanied him and offered many words of comfort.
Yet Shen Qiushi remained gloomy.
"I'm tired. I'm going to sleep," he said, rubbing his wrinkled old face.
Shen Youling shot Lin Tang a glare. "This is all your fault! If you wanted to ss with my parents and sister, you shouldn't have done it in front of Grandpa!"
Lin Tang imdiately passed the buck. "Zhu Yingning did it! What does it have to do with ?"
Zhu Yingning, who had just finished cleaning the room, was speechless.
Co on! I've already condescended to be a nanny, and now I have to be the scapegoat too?
"Hmph, you two are obviously in cahoots," Shen Youling fud.
"Alright, Youling, don't bla Lin Tang and the others," Shen Qiushi said, patting the back of Shen Youling's hand. "Shen Xin and those other scoundrels showed their true colors today after just a little test. If they t a real villain, they'd surrender and betray everyone in a heartbeat. That's just their nature. Discovering it now is actually a good thing, as it allows us to see through them early. Grandpa's fine. I'm tough! A good night's sleep is all I need!"
"Grandpa, I just thought of an excellent Health Cultivation Technique," Lin Tang said, walking over to massage Shen Qiushi's shoulders. "It can strengthen your body and help you sleep. The movents are very simple. How about I teach you now?"
"Oh? If my good grandson-in-law is teaching, then of course I'll learn!" Shen Qiushi said with renewed spirit, being very obliging.
After Lin Tang carefully taught him the movents, he had him practice the sequence. As he did, Lin Tang secretly infused a stream of True Qi into a major acupoint on his upper back.
POP! POP! POP!
It felt as if nurous blockages were cleared in an instant. A feeling of invigorating comfort spread through Shen Qiushi's entire body.
"Hey, it really works! I feel so much more comfortable!" His eyes lit up. "Lin Tang, my wonderful grandson-in-law, you're truly talented!"
"Of course, Grandpa! If you practice for half an hour every day, the effects will only get better. In a few months, you might look several years younger. You could even go out and find us a new grandma in her fifties or sixties and enjoy a second spring!"
"Get out of here with that nonsense!" Shen Qiushi scolded with a laugh, his mood significantly improved.
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