“Mother, I’m back!”
Pushing open the door, He Wanying eagerly rushed into the inner room.
“Wanying!”
A gentle voice, one that instantly evoked the image of a soft and kind face, came from inside.
“Wanying, you’re finally back…”
Then, a woman who bore a ninety percent resemblance to the portrait in Lin Guiming’s hand emerged from the inner room.
The remaining ten percent difference was likely due to her appearing older than in the portrait, her skin no longer as smooth and taut as before.
“Greetings, Master’s Wife.”
Lin Guiming stepped forward and bowed respectfully.
“And this is…?”
The woman looked at him with a puzzled expression.
She had been ill with a cold the past few days and had stayed in the inner room, so she hadn’t seen Lin Guiming before.
“Mother, this is my husband… no, my older brother…”
He Wanying seemed to recall the pain on her forehead, pouting as she corrected herself.
The woman blinked, her confusion deepening.
“What’s going on? Tell Mother everything slowly…”
“Mm.”
He Wanying nodded and proceeded to recount everything that had happened.
“You’re his disciple?”
After everything was explained, He Wanying’s mother widened her eyes in surprise, looking at Lin Guiming.
“Yes.”
Lin Guiming nodded.
“He never told me he was a cultivator. If he had, maybe Father wouldn’t have…”
She stopped herself, then turned to Lin Guiming and asked, “Is he doing well now?”
“The old master is doing well. He just misses you and wants to see his daughter.”
“He’s fine, that’s good…”
He Wanying’s mother gave a faint, somewhat forced smile.
“Master’s Wife, why don’t you and Junior Sister come back with me to see him?
A family reunion would be wonderful, wouldn’t it?”
Lin Guiming suggested, thinking that He Wanying’s reluctance to leave stemmed from wanting to fulfill her mother’s wishes.
If her mother wanted to reunite with his master, it would simplify things.
“Well… let’s not.”
To Lin Guiming’s surprise, however, He Wanying’s mother refused.
He frowned. That shouldn’t be right.
From the look of his master’s wife, she clearly had deep feelings for his master, and his master felt the same.
If two people cared so deeply for each other, why…
Suddenly, his pupils constricted, and he clutched his head, crying out in pain.
He could barely stand, nearly collapsing to the ground.
“Hus… Senior Brother, what’s wrong?”
He Wanying hurriedly stepped forward to support him, her voice filled with worry.
Her soft, budding curves pressed against his arm, but Lin Guiming had no time to notice.
“I’m fine.”
A moment later, Lin Guiming waved it off.
It was just a sudden headache that passed quickly.
But…
What was that feeling, like a piece of his mind had gone blank?
“Master’s Wife, why won’t you come back with me?”
He looked at her, puzzled.
“Sigh—”
She sighed, shaking her head.
“He’s a cultivator, but I’m just a mortal.
All these years, I’ve caused my daughter to suffer alongside me.
I’m… too ashamed to face him.”
Lin Guiming took a deep breath and said, “How can you blame yourself?
It’s clearly that old bas… I mean, Master’s fault for not coming to find you both all these years, letting you suffer!”
She smiled and shook her head.
“He must have his own reasons.”
Lin Guiming fell silent.
She was right.
As the Palace Master of Bixiao Palace, one of the ten great immortal sects, his master had many responsibilities.
Moreover, a cultivator’s sense of time differed from that of mortals.
With his master’s lifespan of over ten thousand years, a mere decade or so was just the blink of an eye, the time it took for a single closed-door cultivation session.
By the time he finished his duties and thought of them, so much time had already passed.
But even so, it was undeniably his master’s fault.
Looking at his master’s wife, who smiled so calmly, Lin Guiming couldn’t help but feel a faint twinge of jealousy.
That old bastard must have cultivated blessings for several lifetimes to have such an understanding wife…