“It’s not even seven yet, and you’re going back already?”
“Mm, going home!” My steps grew lighter. “What I told you today, don’t let Su Liumeng hear about it, okay?”
“Why not?”
“Telling her won’t help you, either.”
Shangguan Xiyue was finding her little Yan harder and harder to understand.
“No particular reason. I just don’t want her to know.”
“This is… my own business.” I held my daughter, the slanting shadow cast by the sunset stretching out behind us. “Besides, I have my own ideas.”
“Kitty, can you cultivate too?”
Shangguan Xiyue paused for a moment. “I can, but I’m not that strong—just a little better than ordinary people. I might not even be able to beat you.”
I gazed at her seriously. Reflected in her eyes, I could see my current self. “I’m planning to set up an organization. Are you interested in joining?”
“Ah?”
“Just you and me?” Shangguan Xiyue pointed at herself.
I nodded, face dark. “That’s right, just you and me. It’s only the beginning; there will definitely be more people joining later. When the time comes, I’ll make you the big boss, and I’ll be the mastermind behind the scenes—no, the military adviser behind the curtain…”
“So I’m your black slave, and you’re the boss who does nothing?”
“Uh, it does sort of seem like that… Ah, but you can also find a proxy. Outsource things layer by layer, and our organization will get bigger.”
“Whether it’s working for you or being your black slave, I have no complaints. It’s just… Listening to your plan, you don’t intend to reveal your identity, right? Without using the Su Family’s influence, how will you build the initial team?”
I patted Shangguan Xiyue’s shoulder, speaking with gusto, “Thirty years east of the river, thirty years west—don’t bully the young and poor!”
“Who says, in a hundred years, our little organization can’t be famous across the continent?”
“Starting this organization with you is the result of my careful consideration.”
“Literati are poor, warriors are rich. Cultivating requires money. You lack talent, I missed the best time for cultivation. Without a lot of resources, we’ll never surpass others. I’ve thought it through: you’re my best partner, because not only are we best friends, but we also share the same goal.”
“Neither of us is willing to stay ordinary.”
Seeing Shangguan Xiyue tempted, I continued to persuade, “So? Tempting, right? Why don’t the two of us turn the cultivation world upside down.” I struck a chuunibyou pose, raising my fist in encouragement.
“Yiya—!”
The little one, who had been eavesdropping with ears pricked, suddenly raised her tiny hands, squealing in excitement.
“What is she saying?” If you want to know what a one-month-old baby means, you can only ask her mom.
“You’re too young to get involved in this.” I pressed her raised hand back down, not amused. “She’s saying she wants to join the organization too, and be mom’s biggest lackey…”
Shangguan Xiyue: “…….”
“Are you sure her two little cries can express so much meaning?”
“Would I lie to you?”
“It’s mother-daughter telepathy.”
“I could sense her emotions before she was even born. Likewise, she can vaguely sense what I’m thinking.”
“Your baby is not just smart—I’m kind of jealous of you now…” Shangguan Xiyue suddenly said something shocking. “Compared to having a smart Zhizhi, Yan, I think I’d rather give birth to you.”
“You… What are you even saying?”
“You haven’t heard that hot meme online? You’re so cute, I want to give birth to you…”
I looked at Shangguan Xiyue, dying to thump her on the head with a ten-thousand-jin hammer.
But had to give up because of my own height.
“Is it settled then?”
“It is!”
“What are we actually going to do? Have you thought it through?”
“For now, let’s start with a shop—handle commissions, take a cut. Neither of us has resources at the moment, so all we can do is help others sell stuff and take a cut. Later, once we grow, we can even set up an underground assassination business, like in the novels. On the surface we sell things for people, in secret we kill for them—wouldn’t we make all the money?”
“I think starting a shop is the best business model. It’s perfect for people like us, grabbing the wolf’s tail with empty hands. Once we have money, we can buy cultivation resources.”
“For now, I’ll just put my own stuff up for sale. If anyone asks, just say it’s from some big shot, and we’ll act as our own fake customers.”
Shangguan Xiyue fell silent. “But there’s a big problem. We don’t have anyone to keep things in order. What if someone tries to rob us? Your idea is good, but we still need a real powerhouse to keep the riffraff in check. Besides, we have nothing—no reputation, no power. Who would consign their stuff to you? At least you’d need a unique selling channel.”
I thought about it too. “It’s fine, for now let’s just sell everything to Su Liumeng. She has money and can take it all. Once we build credibility, we can set up an auction house or something. There are more ways than problems—we’ll figure it out.”
Shangguan Xiyue was silently mourning for Su Liumeng.
What a number one tool person.
Not only is she not allowed to join the organization, she also has to be the buyer.
I cleared my throat. “I’m not letting Su Liumeng join because I don’t want her to know too much. There’s a plan involved here—if she finds out too early, with her high IQ, she’ll definitely guess what I’m doing, and it’ll be impossible to implement. Plus, if she knows about the organization, she’ll send tons of Su Family people to join. Then will it belong to the Si family or the Su family? That goes against my original intent to stay low-key and be the boss behind the scenes…”
“She’s my Dao companion. If we make money, she won’t lose out. She can still share the profits.”
“And I want to see if we can pull off something big without a third person knowing. That’d be exciting.”
“This matter—heaven knows, earth knows, you know, I know!”
At this moment.
The little one raised her tiny hand again.
“Fine, you’re a person too, so you know. Then it’s just not letting a fourth person know.” I glanced down, nearly forgetting about this little ancestor.
Come to think of it—
How many times have I openly plotted right in front of Zhizhi now?
“The plan is perfect, but who’s going to hold down the fort?” Shangguan Xiyue poured cold water on my excitement again.
My gaze dropped to little Zhizhi, eyes filled only with curiosity and excitement. “Did you just say… you wanted to join?”
“Yiya—!”
“Okay, now we’re not missing anything.”
“What do you mean, not missing anything?”
“You’ll see. Anyway, we don’t lack a powerhouse now. If anyone dares cause trouble, they’ll just be giving me gold coins. I’m actually looking forward to someone causing a scene.”
“Fine, I trust you… Have you thought of a name for the organization?”
“A name? Let’s just pick a badass one—if we’re going to do this, do it big. Let’s call it Heavenly Realm Trading Company. Let’s see who dares look down on us.”
“Yiya.”
I poked the baby’s cheek. “You agree with this name too, don’t you?”
“Yiya—”
A smile touched Shangguan Xiyue’s eyes. “I suspect, even if you named it something totally nonsensical, your daughter would still raise all her hands and feet to support you and say her mommy picks great names.”
“Nonsense! My daughter is not a mommy’s girl.”
“Yiya!!!”
“Okay, okay, stop grabbing mommy’s clothes. Fine, you’re a mommy’s girl, happy now…”
Laughter and joy beneath the setting sun.
Shangguan Xiyue hadn’t experienced this kind of happiness in a long time.
In a society growing ever colder, where people wore fake masks with each other, it made her sick.
Si Xinyan’s vivid presence was deeply imprinted on her heart.
“Yan, see you.”
“Mm, come find me whenever you have time.”
“When baby can walk, I should have more free time.”
“As for the organization, let’s wait a bit longer. Maybe in a month or two we can start, but I’ll need your help when the time comes.”
Shangguan Xiyue smiled. “I won’t get tired. I also have a few reliable people here. I’ll pull them in, and we can all be hands-off bosses together.”
I was stunned, then said blankly, “Kitty, I knew you were the best.”
“That’s why we’re like brothers.”
“Bye-bye.”
With light steps, my slender silhouette didn’t reveal at all that I’d already given birth—still girlish, delicate. Shangguan Xiyue finally looked away, as the car engine roared into the bustling crowd.
The neighborhood.
A large flat.
Night.
The baby was already asleep. Su Liumeng watched the girl meditating cross-legged on the bed, sulking a little at her side.
“What is it?” I slowly opened my eyes. “Don’t disturb me. I’ve decided, from today on I’m going to cultivate seriously. Otherwise, by the time you’re still alive, I’ll have died of old age. How can I keep living happily with you and our daughter?”
Su Liumeng stopped making a fuss, a trace of worry in her eyes.
“Alright, go ahead and cultivate.”
She’d just wanted to ask why, when June was almost over, the promise I made at the start of the month still wasn’t fulfilled.
Her cycle had long passed, and the things I never mentioned anymore—all reminders of the truth Su Liumeng saw in the delivery room.
In her heart, Su Liumeng thought:
The baby didn’t break her promise.
It’s because she remembered that, that she doesn’t want me to know the truth.
She’s afraid I’d overthink it.
She just loves me too much and fears losing me—is that really wrong?
Su Liumeng comforted herself once again, and a radiant smile appeared on her face.
She already had a baby who loved her most in the world. Even if it wasn’t the first time, did it matter?
Heartache and sorrow were buried in her forced smile.
Gradually clenching her fist, the lingering pain in her eyes turned into powerless acceptance.
I opened my eyes, gazing at the girl’s face, light flickering in my eyes.
The primordial yin of the Extreme Yin Physique is the best tonic in this world.
Whoever obtains it will have their cultivation soar.
Moreover, the higher the Extreme Yin owner’s cultivation, the greater the benefit to the other.
I looked at the final barrier to my realm—ready to make a last-ditch effort for the next level.
Su Liumeng had made herself into a @# cauldron for me.
This was something I’d decided long ago.
I understood better than anyone the grievances and pain she endured in this marriage.
She never called herself a “stepmother,” but that didn’t mean others didn’t know. The child wasn’t hers by blood.
They weren’t even slightly related—not even the surname.
What kind of person am I?
No one knows better than me.
All her bottomless tolerance concealed repeated compromises and forced changes in herself.
She used to be a willful, unrestrained heiress.
And now…?
I’ve wronged her.
I’ve always remembered that.
So long ago, I decided to make myself the best tonic to repay Su Liumeng.
This decision had nothing to do with my resentment of being weak.
It’s just a few realms—if I lose them, so be it. I can always cultivate again later.
That’s also another reason for founding the trading company.
I hate my own weakness, but I hate even more how I’ve ignored Su Liumeng’s sacrifice, pretending not to see it.
Su Liumeng.
This time.
Let me be the one to help you.
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