Li Yuanjiao fell silent for several breaths, staring fixedly at Xiao Guiluan. The woman kept her eyes lowered without a word, staring at the stone tabletop as though willing flowers to bloom from it. Only after a long while did Li Yuanjiao let out a sigh and reply:
"Since you already knew, why did you have to say it aloud?"
Xiao Guiluan looked up, took his hand, and answered gently, "I only hope you will treat me as your own family. When I was young, my father cast me aside on the mountain, leaving me to endure cold looks and indifference. I have never had any fond attachment to the Xiao family. All I care about in this life are you and Xizhi. Yet you kept something this momentous from me."
Li Yuanjiao was deeply moved by her words. Clasping her hand tenderly, he said softly, "I know you have always been clever, sharp, and perceptive, yet you still manage to catch me off guard. Merely from the Clan Rectory's silence and inaction, you were able to deduce this much."
"It was only a guess."
Xiao Guiluan showed no smugness for having unraveled the truth; rather, she looked faintly aggrieved as she mumbled, "The Ancestor has always kept a low profile and held himself in reserve. He has never made such an ostentatious display before. It could only be that he needed to deter someone. But what manner of deterrence could ever compare to the Ancestor himself? We have been husband and wife for eight years, and Xizhi is already seven. Did you really think you could keep it from me?"
"That wasn't my intent."
Li Yuanjiao shook his head with some embarrassment, then sobered and answered, "This matter is simply too critical. Every additional person who knows brings that much more danger..."
Xiao Guiluan nodded gently, her expression turning somber as she asked in a low voice, "How bad is it?"
Li Yuanjiao paused, then transmitted his voice through dharmic power: "His five viscera are completely shattered. I fear he has only a few years left."
"What?!"
Xiao Guiluan had assumed that at worst, his cultivation would be halted and his lifespan drastically shortened. She had never imagined the injury would be this catastrophic. Shaking her head in mild panic, she whispered, "Of course... the reincarnation of a Maha... how could such an opponent be easily slain..."
Then she snapped her head up, her phoenix eyes filled with lingering terror. "We must never let Xiao Guitu learn of this!"
Clutching Li Yuanjiao's hand, her eyes gleamed sharply as she said in a heavy voice, "My brother is far-sighted and fiercely ambitious. He holds the backing of many branches within the clan, and his stance toward our family has always been ambiguous. The Perfected One has been unaccounted for over long periods and previously bade that all clan affairs be placed in his hands. If he finds out about this, he will definitely make a move! When I was still at home, I read our clan history. Back when our family rose to prominence, they mostly used such methods, swallowing up the prominent families of Lixia Commandery one by one..."
Xiao Guiluan looked anxious. In those records, none of the married-out daughters and their offspring had ever met a good end. How could she not be terrified?
"How could he?!"
Li Yuanjiao was struck with shock. Yet when he thought it through carefully, all of his family's reliances were either paper-thin lies before the Xiao family or stemmed from the Xiao family itself.
The relationship of mutual interest between the Xiao family and the Li family amounted to nothing more than bargains over Lake Wangyue, alongside Xiao Chuting's personal regard for Li Tongya. Relations between clans could never rely on fragile ties of old sentiment to endure. Calamities where bonds dissolved the moment a person died occurred every single day...
Weighing it in his heart, Li Yuanjiao suddenly realized that the Xiao family was not only the Li family's backer, but also a crouching tiger lying right beside them. He murmured, "Indeed. Even though the Xiao family has broken away from Qingchi and cannot invade openly, exerting influence and quietly turning us into a vassal is well within their power..."
Xiao Guiluan nodded slowly and lowered her voice. "When I was with the Xiao family, I also heard of something: the Xiao family originally intended to make the Yu family a vassal, but Yu Muxian's backing was too formidable, and the Qingchi Sect had no desire to see such an outcome, so they had to abandon the plan..."
Hearing this revelation, Li Yuanjiao felt secretly fortunate yet wryly amused. He replied, "So that was it. Then our family ought to thank Yu Muxian. Otherwise, had the Xiao family quietly vassalized the Yu family decades earlier, what room would there have been for ours!"
Xiao Guiluan simply refilled his teacup. Having formed a resolve in her mind, she said, "Husband, put your mind at ease. I only wanted to know the truth. I will deal with the Xiao family. Unless that brother of mine comes in person, nothing will go amiss."
"Good!"
Li Yuanjiao agreed with a smile. After pondering for several breaths, he said softly, "The rumors at home have served their purpose. I shall instruct Yuanping to suppress the matter for now."
"Mm."
Husband and wife exchanged a glance and shared a smile. A thousand words remained unspoken between them.
***
Lijing Town.
Li Yuanping finished counting the boxes large and small upon the table one by one, marking them on the silk cloth with a vermilion brush. Suddenly, a commotion broke out outside. Dou Yi hurried in and whispered, "Young Master, Lady Ren has arrived."
Li Yuanping's eyes instantly brightened. Hurriedly putting down his brush, he saw a young woman walking into the courtyard leading a child just over a year old by the hand. The toddler was robust, spirited, and delightfully adorable.
"Ming'er—"
Rare warmth and cheer filled Li Yuanping's pale face. Looking at the child his wife brought over, he could not help but chuckle. Rushing forward, he swept the boy into his arms, teasing Li Ximing until the child burst into merry giggles.
Li Yuanping had married years earlier. His wife was a woman of suitable age possessing a spirit aperture, selected from the Ren clan. Because neither of them had high cultivation, they had quickly conceived a child. After much deliberation, Li Yuanping had chosen the name Ming for him.
Li Yuanping had worried for quite some time, but fortunately, Li Ximing was unaffected by his own frail constitution. The boy was healthy, sound, and honest. Looking into the child's bright, clear eyes, Li Yuanping thought to himself:
'Brother Jiao's child, Xizhi, is already seven. He possesses a spirit aperture, but having only just begun cultivating, his innate talent isn't evident yet. Ximing is barely over a year old. In a few more years, he too will be able to pay homage to the Immortal Mirror...'
Holding little Ximing in his arms, Li Yuanping played with him for a while. Li Ximing giggled happily, then lay obediently across the desk, pushing and sliding a jade box back and forth. He brought it to a precise halt right at the table's edge, turning his head back to look at his father.
Li Yuanping was looking down at his son when a sudden clamor erupted outside the courtyard. With a loud clatter, a clan guardsman burst inside, knocking Dou Yi—who had been standing quietly by the doorway with his head bowed—clean off his feet, throwing the entrance into chaotic disarray.
"What is the matter?!"
Li Yuanping governed the household with strict discipline, and such a thing had never occurred before. Rather than scolding the guardsman, his heart skipped a beat, and he asked in a heavy voice, "What happened?!"
The guardsman was stricken with panic. He did not even pause to apologize for bowling over the young master of the Dou clan, crying out in haste, "Young Master! A monster has appeared in town! It has a cultivation of the seventh layer of Qi Refinement! Baring fangs and brandishing claws, it has already revealed its true form, and they are facing off right in the middle of the street!"
"The seventh layer of Qi Refinement!"
Hearing this, Li Yuanping actually breathed a sigh of relief. Frowning slightly, he asked, "Where are Uncle-in-law, An Zheyan, and the others?"
The Li family had been an established cultivator clan for over a decade after all and had accumulated plenty of resources and methods. An Zheyan was at the seventh layer of Qi Refinement, Chen Donghe was at the fourth layer, and there were two or three other early-stage Qi Refinement cultivators. Relying on their home ground advantage, they were confident in handling a seventh-layer beast.
'If worse comes to worst... the Ancestor still left methods behind.'
Li Yuanping knew that Li Yuanjiao carried a Foundation Establishment talisman, which Li Tongya had specifically bought from the Xiao family years ago after sensing impending troubles. Confident in their standing, he spoke with steady composure, which helped the guardsman calm down as well. The soldier replied:
"Guest Elder An and Uncle Donghe are facing off against the fox demon. The creature doesn't appear ferocious. It was merely attacked by the town's warning array, which broke its illusion and forced it to reveal its true form. From the sound of it, they haven't come to blows yet."
"A fox demon?!"
Li Yuanping was taken aback. Hearing that it was a fox demon and noting that it bore no malice, the truth dawned on him at once. He quickly handed Li Ximing back to his wife.
Torn between tears and laughter, Li Yuanping hurried down the steps from the dais and rushed frantically out of the courtyard, calling out in haste:
"It's one of our own... It's one of our own!"
Chapter 306