Fan Wubing walked out of the restriction feeling refreshed, marking the end of his more than half a month’s seclusion.
He went down to the first floor and stood at the stairway. Xianchan just happened to run past him, followed closely by Fu Manman giving chase.
"Are you guys playing house?" Fan Wubing asked.
Fu Manman was still thinking about Xianchan bumping her chin when she heard Fan Wubing’s voice, imdiately froze, then reacted with surprise, "You’re out of seclusion!"
She was about to hug Fan Wubing, but Xianchan beat her to it, leaping onto Fan Wubing and wrapping her arms around his neck, hanging on him.
Fu Manman glared at Xianchan, gritting her teeth, "You little brat!"
Fan Wubing took out a box of pastries to placate Xianchan, then opened his arms, raising an eyebrow to signal Fu Manman to co and hug him.
But Fu Manman beca bashful, cautiously approaching as if making a tough decision, and finally relaxed her brow, embracing him.
Feeling the softness and assertiveness against his chest, Fan Wubing mused, this girl grows a size every day, almost catching up with Sister’s size. Maybe Sister has grown over the years too?
"What were you hesitating about just now?" he asked.
Fu Manman, like a wronged child, murmured, "It feels unreal."
"Unreal?" Fan Wubing asked in confusion.
Fu Manman released his embrace and walked to the eaves, catching rainwater in her hands, "Ti flies so fast... Unknowingly, three years have passed. You’ve beco an adult, and I’ve beco an adult. But thinking of the Immortal Path with spans of hundreds or thousands of years, I feel bewildered. Now it’s great, but will it still be like this hundreds or thousands of years later?"
In Fan Wubing’s impression, she wasn’t a lancholic person. He rolled his eyes and asked with a smile, "Did soone say sothing to you?"
Fu Manman said, "Sister Ying told the story of Venerable Chengming and Jiang Nianshu."
"No wonder..." He stepped past Fu Manman and stood in the rain, without shielding himself, letting the rain fall on him, "People are beings of the present. Even if you plan for millennia, you only live in the now. If you worry about the future, there will be too much to worry about. Enjoy today, worry about tomorrow when it cos. Don’t think too much about it." He walked out into the rain.
"Where are you going?"
"To Li Palace. I’ll be back tonight, I want to have braised lion’s head, sweet and sour ribs, and simred fine bone dragon fish..." Fan Wubing’s voice faded away as he listed the dishes.
Fu Manman stood and watched, smiling faintly. Xianchan approached in the anti. She picked up the little girl happily, spun around a few tis, and said, "Chan’Er, he’s still the sa, hasn’t changed at all!"
Xianchan curiously looked at her sister, thinking, he is who he is! Why think he would change?
So strange.
...
Ye Yixian’s coronation ceremony was scheduled after the Imperial Dynasty’s grand ceremony. Although he hadn’t officially ascended, he was indeed the rightful emperor. The position of the master of the Little Li Palace was vacant, still unassigned. However, he favored his sister Ye Wuyue quite a bit.
Ye Wuyue used to be a muddleheaded troublemaker. But ever since coming to her senses, she exhibited remarkable ability in handling affairs. Many tasks involving external interactions were managed by her, where she perford excellently and received many praises.
Yet she was quite young, still needing more experience.
On the day of knocking on the Imperial Gate, Chengming was seriously injured. His Dao shattered, his cultivation lost, and now he has beco a mortal. Although Ye Yixian still wanted to appoint him as his advisor, he refused. After all, a mortal, no matter how well-inford or experienced, would find it hard to govern an Imperial Dynasty.
The drizzle persisted.
Li Ying stood under the eaves of the Anshen Hall in Li Palace with Chengming. After more than three centuries, this brother and sister were able to et again.
Their bond was deep and tranquil.
"What are your plans afterward?" Chengming looked at Li Ying and asked.
Li Ying said, "I’m leaving Great Li."
"Where to?"
"Not sure. I’ll wander and see. As a perforr, I can’t live too truthfully." Li Ying’s gaze was distant, her serene, lake-like pupils reflecting the lines of rain.
Chengming didn’t try to persuade her, nodding and falling silent.
"What about you?" After a while, Li Ying asked him.
Chengming said, "I’ll head back ho. Once I’ve passed, I’ll be buried alongside Nian Shu." The word "death" was spoken as naturally as taking a breath.
"You can still cultivate again."
Chengming shook his head, "Let’s not."
Li Ying didn’t know what to say. She could sense that her brother lacked motivation and had lost his guidance on the path of the Dao. For any cultivator, this was an indescribably painful situation.
Through the rain, a silhouette appeared, growing clearer from blurry.
Once they recognized who it was, Li Ying and Chengming widened their eyes.
Until Fan Wubing stood before them, they both rembered to breathe, taking a deep breath and slowly exhaling.
Fan Wubing smiled and said, "Hey, good afternoon, you two."
It was so commonplace, so natural, that both siblings were montarily taken aback, as if awakening from a dream.
Fan Wubing first glanced at Li Ying, then smiled, "Sister Ying has made a breakthrough, Divine Power Theravada integration, not bad at all."
Li Ying curiously circled Fan Wubing, looking him up and down, left and right, clicking her tongue, "I can’t even tell what realm my little brother is in. Ah, truly, my millennium is like your day." In her heart, she added, still the sa bratty brother, hasn’t changed a bit.
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