Li Guanqi led Meng Wanshu toward the sect's grand hall.
Rather than taking the high seat of honor, Lu Kangnian sat to one side alongside Li Guanqi and the others.
Once spiritual wine, melons, and fruit were served, Lu Kangnian began discussing the formal marriage proposal with Li Guanqi.
Listening to them, Meng Wanshu felt deeply touched and gratified; Lu Kangnian had truly taken every single detail into consideration.
Having nothing else to attend to, Meng Wanshu decided to go look for Li Guilan.
Li Guanqi nodded with a smile. "Alright. Once we wrap things up here, we'll set out this afternoon."
Meng Wanshu nodded, flickered out of the grand hall, and departed the Great Xia Sword Sect.
Arriving amid a verdant mountain range teeming with spiritual energy, she let her divine sense ripple outward.
In an instant, every rare and exotic flower within a hundred li of the forest lay revealed to her sight.
Flickering from place to place, Meng Wanshu plucked one fresh, vibrant blossom after another.
Unsure of what else to bring, she figured she would use this spare time to put together a bouquet.
***
At the Ye family estate within the territory of the Great Xia Sword Sect...
Spanning nearly a thousand zhang, the vast manor was completely transformed from what it once was.
Standing before the main gates of his own home with Li Qingchan and Xiao Chen, Ye Feng couldn't help muttering, "Is this really my house...?"
Xiao Chen rubbed his chin, equally perplexed. "It wasn't changed this much when I came by last time, was it?"
Li Qingchan couldn't help but chuckle. "Do you not even know what your own home looks like?"
Ye Feng rubbed his nose and curled his lip. "It's been too long since I was back, so my memory's a bit hazy... Looks like it's been renovated and expanded."
Yet as soon as the three arrived, the attendants at the gate spotted them and dashed into the courtyard in delight.
"The youngest young master is back! The youngest young master is back!"
Hearing the servants' shouts, Li Qingchan frowned slightly. "'Youngest young master'? Do you have older brothers?"
Xiao Chen shrugged, blunt and disgruntled. "Yeah, two of them. But both are total fools. Last time I came to see Qing'er, they actually approached me trying to squeeze out some benefits, and I chewed them out and drove them off."
Ye Feng was hardly fazed to hear this.
Those two older brothers of his... Heh.
As long as they didn't scheme or vie for power, he could let it slide.
But if they harbored any ill intent, Ye Feng wouldn't hesitate to cripple the two of them.
The Ye family could more than afford to keep two useless loafers fed nowadays.
Li Qingchan's eyes flickered, but she said nothing more.
Ye Feng smiled faintly, taking her hand as he said gently, "Come on. Let me take you to meet my mother and father."
The three crossed the threshold into the Ye manor.
"Hahahaha! Is Feng'er back?"
Beaming with joy, Ye Tianying strode out from the inner courtyard.
Behind him came a gentle, graceful middle-aged woman.
Tears brimming in her eyes, the woman stood on tiptoe, peering ahead, and instantly recognized Ye Feng's resolute, chiseled face.
"Feng'er—"
It was none other than Ye Feng's mother, Su Xi.
A young woman in an emerald-green gown craned her neck to look outside as well.
The moment Ye Qing'er caught sight of Xiao Chen, a radiant smile burst across her face, and she stood on tiptoe, waving her arms vigorously.
"Brother Xiao!!"
Xiao Chen beamed and bounded into the air, waving back with equal fervor.
"Qing'er!!"
A large crowd emerged from the courtyard, composed of men and women alike.
Ye Feng frowned slightly, though he kept his thoughts to himself.
Once everyone came to a halt, Ye Feng bowed respectfully and said softly, "Mother, Father."
Ye Tianying took Ye Feng's hand, slapping his shoulder heartily with a laugh. "Hahaha! Good, good, good! It's great to have you back! ...Wait, and this is...?"
Ye Feng stepped to Li Qingchan's side and introduced her solemnly, "This is my Dao companion, Li Qingchan."
Li Qingchan's cheeks flushed crimson. Curtsying gracefully, she murmured, "This junior, Li Qingchan, greets Uncle... and Auntie..."
She kept her head lowered, feeling embarrassed to speak the words aloud.
After all, she was far older than Ye Feng's parents, making the address feel distinctly awkward.
Hearing this, Ye Tianying burst into hearty laughter and hurried to say, "Good, good! Please don't be so formal, young lady. Just make yourself at home—we don't stand on ceremony here in the Ye family! Come, come, let's talk inside. Why are we lingering out here?"
With that, Ye Tianying did not forget to look back at Xiao Chen with a grin. "Young Xiao is back too? Your big brother is about to get married—when are you coming to propose to our Qing'er?"
Xiao Chen grinned ear to ear, looking over at Ye Qing'er as he chuckled, "Soon, soon!"
Ye Qing'er had heard those exact words from Xiao Chen countless times and assumed he was brushing it off again...
Yet Xiao Chen locked eyes with her, his gaze burning with earnest affection as he smiled. "I was always waiting for Big Brother to get married first. Now that his wedding date is set, the day my Xiao clan comes knocking with a marriage proposal isn't far off!"
Watching Xiao Chen, Ye Feng felt a surge of warmth in his chest.
In truth, he had understood Xiao Chen's thoughts long ago.
Whenever they had gotten drunk in the past, he had asked Xiao Chen what he intended to do.
Xiao Chen had always replied that there was no rush.
Now it was clear that he had simply been waiting for their eldest brother to marry first.
Ye Qing'er pouted, her eyes welling with tears, but seeing Xiao Chen's grinning face, she burst into a wet giggle.
Su Xi looked at the somewhat uneasy Li Qingchan with gentle eyes.
Smiling softly, she found herself liking the woman more and more the longer she looked.
Just then, a young man clad in a sumptuous brocade robe, his features bearing a slight resemblance to Ye Feng's, chimed in with a chuckle:
"Little Chen, if you want to marry Qing'er, you'd better make sure the betrothal gifts are up to snuff."
The speaker held one hand behind his back. Handsome though he was, his gaze was dripping with mockery and arrogance as he looked down at Xiao Chen from atop the steps.
This was none other than Ye Feng's eldest brother and the legitimate firstborn son, Ye Wenshan.
Who could have guessed that the good-for-nothing of years past had now cultivated all the way to the Soul Formation Realm?
Back in the earliest days, when Li Guanqi had come to help resolve the incident at Qiongtai Mountain Villa, Ye Wenshan had been nothing more than a Qi Refinement cultivator who hadn't even achieved Foundation Establishment.
A barely discernible glint of cold sharpness flickered in Xiao Chen's eyes as he looked at Ye Wenshan, yet he maintained his breezy grin. "Naturally. The Xiao clan's betrothal gifts will certainly show our utmost sincerity—after all, I truly love Qing'er."
No sooner had he spoken than another young man stepped out from the side, somewhat thin of build and with an unsteady aura.
Dressed in a pale gold robe, he wore a jade pendant at his waist and carried a gem-encrusted sword at his hip. Two long locks of hair draped past his temples, giving him a rakish, dashing air.
Yet as he spoke to Xiao Chen, his eyes inadvertently drifted toward Li Qingchan.
"Little Chen, don't take it that way. It's not like we're demanding an exorbitant betrothal gift from you.
"However... the Ye family is considered a prominent clan in the Great Xia Domain now, so the betrothal gifts can't be shabby.
"Besides, the first few times you visited, you were sensible enough to prepare gifts for all the elders.
"Now that your cultivation has risen, on the other hand... well, heh, we don't know what happened there.
"Of course, your Second Brother isn't trying to find fault; I'm just offering a friendly reminder."
The one speaking was Ye Tianying's son by a concubine—the only son of Ye Feng's second mother—Ye Hongguang.
Since childhood, Ye Hongguang had been Ye Wenshan's lapdog.
Xiao Chen's mouth twitched, and his relaxed posture slowly straightened.
Though his anger had reached a boiling point, he still kept a pleasant smile on his face.
With a wave of his hand, dozens of purple-gold jade boxes flew out.
"Then I was remiss in my manners. These are rank six medicinal pills—please accept them, elders."
Chapter 1508