Donghe's Worries

The flagstone path on Mount Lijing had been laid decades ago, its surface now veined with pale green patterns. Li Qinghong had heard it had been built back when her Third Grand-Uncle Li Xiangping managed the household affairs. Few of the craftsmen who paved this path remained among the living. Li Qinghong stepped along this flagstone path up the mountain, glancing all around. She had not seen her younger brother, Li Yuanyun, for several days. After searching across the mountain, she finally found him in the side courtyard belonging to their aunt, Li Jingtian. The boy was sitting upright in the courtyard, holding wooden slips and reading attentively. Stepping inside, Li Qinghong looked at him, feeling a slight unease in her heart. "Brother Yun..." It had been nearly a year since Li Qinghong received the talisman seed atop the mountain peak. Over these days, she had been preoccupied with cultivating and practicing spear craft, while Li Yuanyun rarely visited the main compound. As a result, Li Qinghong had seen him only a handful of times. Because her brother could not cultivate, an inexplicable sense of guilt always weighed on her whenever she stood before him. "Sister, you're here." Li Yuanyun's eyes brightened. Setting aside the wooden slips, he smiled. "We haven't seen each other in quite a while." Li Qinghong gave a sweet smile. Glancing at the wooden slips resting on the table, she saw the inscription: *Two Hundred Years of Customs and Chronicles of Linghai Commandery: Annotated by Li Jingtian*. Intrigued, she chuckled. "Didn't you always hate these long, dull history books in the past? Why are you reading this now?" Li Yuanyun gave a self-deprecating chuckle and explained, "I cannot cultivate, and I know I can't compare to Brother Xiu when it comes to managing the family. I could only look for something within my reach. Coming here to read with Aunt might allow me to be of help to her someday." These words felt as though they pounced upon Li Qinghong with bared fangs and claws, delivering a sharp sting that made her avert her eyes and take a couple of steps back. Hurriedly changing the subject, she forced a smile. "Having read this book, did you gain any insights?" Li Yuanyun sighed softly. Picking up the wooden slips again, he said in a boyish voice, "Having finished reading it, all I feel is... fear." "Fear? What is there to fear?" Having composed her emotions, Li Qinghong asked in bewilderment. "Our clan is united in harmony, the Shanyue submitted long ago, and our parents love each other deeply. I had never heard of anything brutal or vicious, so I thought this was a peaceful and stable world." Li Yuanyun gripped the wooden slips tightly, an anxious dread surfacing on his face as he gritted his teeth. "Only after reading this book did I realize that the surrounding lands are actually plagued by turmoil and rivers of blood. Schemes and treachery follow one another endlessly, back and forth, wiping out whole families at every turn... Our Li family appears peaceful right now, but who knows how many conspiracies, schemes, and rivalries are churning in secret? This world is truly filthy. "Sister, although being born into our Li family means fine clothes and rich food, and even a mortal without a spirit aperture can live a life of comfort and pleasure, I am truly terrified. I'm afraid that one night I'll wake up to find our clan's grand formation shattered with a deafening crash, glistening immortal swords raining down from the sky, dying in my sleep without even knowing why." Li Qinghong was left speechless. After several moments of silence, looking at Li Yuanyun's reddened eyes, she whispered, "Father once said that the rules of this world were established by immortals from the very start. Would immortals ever concern themselves with mortal morals? Naturally, they resort to any and all means..." "Sister," Li Yuanyun looked up at her and said in a low voice, "I read the Clan History. Mount Huaqian was seized by our family from the Lu family. The Lu family was also Mother's maiden clan, and now it has been destroyed... I once saw Mother weeping in secret; perhaps it was because of this." Li Qinghong fell silent for a long while before speaking: "If our Li family hadn't taken it, the An family would have seized it overnight. The Li family wasn't wrong, nor did the Lu family do anything wrong. Matters reached that stage because it was the only remaining way forward when there was no other path. Had that Patriarch Lu known what was good for him, the matter could have ended with dignity. If anyone was to blame, it could only be him." "Sister speaks the truth." Li Yuanyun set the wooden slips down, his expression relaxing considerably, and chuckled. "It's a pity I cannot see that far. Otherwise, I would definitely write a volume of *Two Hundred Years of Customs and Chronicles of Lake Wangyue*. Its twists and turns would surely be no less compelling than those of Linghai Commandery." Li Qinghong chuckled softly. Nodding, she was just about to speak when the courtyard gate creaked open. A young woman of twenty-five or twenty-six walked in, her waterfall of hair pinned up behind her head. Setting down the paper umbrella in her hand, she said with a bright smile, "Qinghong, you've come." "Aunt." Li Qinghong giggled and hurried forward to embrace Li Jingtian. To her surprise, a refined, middle-aged man followed in from outside the courtyard, greeting her courteously. Li Qinghong promptly greeted him, "Uncle is here as well." Chen Donghe nodded slightly. The two children followed them back into the courtyard, but felt restless and awkward. Rarely seeing this uncle who possessed a Qi Refinement cultivation, they found him stern and unfamiliar, so they quickly made an excuse and took their leave. Li Jingtian nodded and saw the two children off with a smile. Only then did she return to the courtyard. Seeing Chen Donghe gazing at the rows of wooden slips on the desk, she asked softly, "What are you looking at?" Chen Donghe stroked his chin and marveled, "The Li family bloodline is truly extraordinary. The speed at which Qinghong and Yuanjiao broke through to the Xuan Scenery was downright astonishing, and back then, Xuanxuan and Xuanling were remarkable as well. It seems to be a bloodline naturally born to step onto the Dao." Li Jingtian lowered her brow slightly to conceal the strange gleam in her eyes. Turning her head, she smiled and said, "After all, it is the bloodline of Foundation Establishment immortal cultivators." Chen Donghe nodded without thinking deeper into it. Sweeping his spiritual sense around to confirm no one was nearby, he lowered his voice. "To tell you the truth, my wife, I have made some discoveries lately that leave me feeling uneasy. I've been wondering whether I should go up the mountain to speak with Second Uncle or Xuanling, but I wanted your advice first." "What is it?" Li Jingtian sat down beside him at the table, only to see Chen Donghe adopt a grave expression as he said, "Presently, there are several dozen cultivators of other surnames in our household. Although most are minor cultivators at the first or second layer of Embryonic Breathing, they are not to be underestimated. These people have been assigned across the territory to cultivate spirit fields or serve as wardens of various towns, tasked with critical duties like slaying demons and curing ailments. "These people represent the voices of various factions outside the Li clan. Cliques and factions run rampant among them, led by three cultivators at the fourth and fifth layers of Embryonic Breathing, with no shortage of petty squabbles and underhanded friction. The clan's Clan Rectorate exercises little restraint over them, and I fear trouble will brew as time goes on..." Li Jingtian pondered for several moments. Her fair, slender hand picked up the wooden slips from the desk, neatly arranging them one by one. Only then did she say softly, "The Clan Rectorate has ears and eyes everywhere. Could they truly be oblivious to what you've noticed? It has likely been sitting on Xiu'er's desk for some time, and perhaps it has already reached the cave dwelling on Meichi Peak. If the clan has delayed dealing with it, they probably have other considerations. "These people do not merely represent themselves; they also represent the interests of the matrilocal branches and lesser branches behind them... Infighting is inevitable. Perhaps..." Seeing Chen Donghe look up at her, Li Jingtian leaned closer against his ear. Parting her vermilion lips, she whispered softly, "Perhaps the one making them fight each other is our Xiu'er."