In the days that followed, I was like a little tail, always trailing behind Su Liumeng, sneaking glances at her back from time to time.
I was fixated on figuring out how exactly a tail could grow under her skirt.
Such an utterly bizarre gaze made Su Liumeng somewhat annoyed, but she could only indulge me with a tone of doting tolerance, suppressing her irritation as she patiently asked, “Dear, can you tell me why you’ve been following behind me these days?”
“At least give me a swift end if you must.”
“Your slow knife is truly exasperating.”
Cough—
Was my stare really that obvious already?
I gave a light cough and stepped out from behind a supporting pillar. Though I kept walking forward, my gaze was firmly locked on Su Liumeng’s tailbone area, as if some radar was drawing my eyes there.
Su Liumeng inexplicably felt a chill, wanting to move her feet. Yet, after turning several times, I still managed to angle myself so I could see the spot where her tail was.
“……”
“Speak up, what exactly do you want?”
“I’ve told you several times, this is my tail, not anything else. You really can’t just cut it off.” Su Liumeng was nearly driven insane by my nerves—who else’s postpartum symptom was pestering others rather than being depressed themselves?
She continued explaining endlessly, “You can’t have such dangerous—”
“Where did it grow out from?”
“How does it harmonize so well with the skirt?”
My voice was soft and girlish as ever, bright and clear, paying no heed to whatever Su Liumeng was saying. I instinctively took a step forward, my little hand tentatively feeling her back, exploring up and down in that spot below the waist with childlike curiosity.
What did I care about her words anyway? Babbling on and on—if I didn’t like it, I just pretended not to hear.
Right now, Su Liumeng’s body was stiff as a dead fish on the chopping board, wanting to move, but fearing it would anger her little wife.
Her darting eyes were glued to me, terrified that I might whip out a knife at any second.
“You already looked two nights ago.” Su Liumeng was already resigned, forced to explain bluntly.
My cheeks flushed red; I didn’t dare admit that I hadn’t really looked that night, too busy sensing whether my little hand was getting tired.
“You… you didn’t actually look at all, did you?” Su Liumeng was on the verge of a breakdown, her tone as if she’d just uncovered the truth.
I felt a bit guilty. “I did look! How could I not? That would be disrespectful. You can’t treat your partner like that.”
That time, though—I just widened my eyes for a second and didn’t see anything.
I vaguely remembered Su Liumeng, like me, was perfectly clean.
Su Liumeng’s gaze was suspicious. “If you looked, why are you still asking me where the tail comes from?”
Feeling sheepish, but not wanting to admit it, I planted my hands on my hips, steering the conversation into my domain of expertise. Once I didn’t have to argue logically, my confidence soared. “I’ll do whatever I want. It’s just a tail—why are you making such a fuss? So annoying.”
“Su Liumeng, did you forget who the real boss is here?”
That existential question made Su Liumeng shrink back immediately. No matter how much I caused trouble, she’d always spoiled me. She could only obediently lie on the sofa, allowing her little wife to search for the source of the treasure.
“So that’s how it is.”
I murmured to myself.
I already had some references.
Those beastkin girls—cat-girls, fox-girls, and the like—it was just a matter of similar structure.
“Your tail is soft, but why are your dragon horns hard?”
“If only they were like cat ears, soft to the touch.”
I lost interest in Su Liumeng’s tail and instead stared at her forehead, making her gradually shiver all over.
No way, right?
She’d just managed to squash one dangerous thought of her little wife’s; could another, even more dangerous one be brewing the next second?
Thankfully, I only stared. After carefully studying her for a dozen seconds, I didn’t say anything outlandish or frightening. Su Liumeng watched as I hopped away, hands behind my back, and let out a silent sigh of relief.
When it came to family hierarchy, Su Liumeng would never lift her head again.
She was truly good at reasoning, and once even had the upper hand for a time.
But ever since a certain someone realized she could never win an argument, she stopped reasoning altogether, and simply acted out when things didn’t go her way. This left Su Liumeng feeling like her fist was landing on cotton—utterly powerless.
Right now, Su Liumeng was pondering other ways to slightly rein in Sixinyan.
She had to boost her family standing, at least a bit.
*****
In the room, my daughter had already woken up. After searching her little nest for a while and not finding her mother, she decided to climb out of the crib herself. Just as her tiny hands grabbed the rail, I opened the door and caught her in the act, startling her into a cold sweat.
“Don’t—don’t move!”
*****
Afternoon.
I was pushing Zi Zhiruo downstairs to bask in the sun. Su Liumeng had something urgent come up, so only two maidservants accompanied me.
Wouldn’t you know it, every time Su Liumeng wasn’t around, I would always bump into Su Luo.
I was seriously starting to suspect she’d installed surveillance in my house—how else could it be such a coincidence, time after time?
Thinking back to the help she’d given me last time, if it weren’t for the secret technique she provided, it wouldn’t have just been a matter of heavy bleeding. Zhizhi’s head was a bit too big, and there was no way it would have passed smoothly through the birth canal. In the end, it was thanks to that secret technique that it was forcibly sent through.
The direct result was rather miserable—the birth canal tore in an instant, and the pain made me see my great-grandmother right there and then.
No exaggeration—the agony of tearing, coupled with the severe blood loss, left me hanging by a thread.
That I even survived to wake up later was a surprise.
At that moment, I had truly resigned myself to death.
It was only afterwards I remembered that I was in the cultivation world. For normal people, that would have been an unsolvable dead end, but a treasured pill that I’d kept for years yanked me back from the brink.
“Sister-in-law, it’s been a long time!”
“I couldn’t make it to the Full Moon Banquet to offer my congratulations, so I brought a very special gift this time, making up for it with sincerity.”
I looked at Su Luo’s elegant figure, her hair styled like a princess, her dress as well.
She still carried that familiar fragrant aura, her gentle smile ever-present.
As she spoke, she walked up to me, stopping at a distance of five or six meters—just enough for us both to feel safe.
“Yes, it’s been a long time.”
I still had a hint of wariness in my eyes, though not as much as before.
Unlike Su Luo, who looked every bit the darling of fortune, I was only wearing an ordinary white dress today—not a hand-crafted gown by a master, but a plain, several-thousand-yuan off-the-rack model.
Yet, even such a normal dress seemed to repeatedly draw Su Luo’s gaze, almost making her break her air of mild interest, like feeding a cat or dog.
When Su Luo spoke, her eyes didn’t rest on me, but shifted half a body-width away, yet it still felt as if she were looking right at me—without the discomfort of being stared at directly.
Her manners and words were impeccable.
As before, I didn’t quite understand what Su Luo wanted, until she brought out an elderly man, introducing him solemnly, “This is the famous Li Lao of the cultivation world. He can foresee what kind of spiritual root a child will have, and before the age of one, prescribe a targeted Yao Yu. This will ensure that, by the time the child’s foundation is set at five, their innate talent will be elevated to a whole new level.”
Improve one’s innate talent?
There’s… such a thing?
The former, I wasn’t surprised by.
But the latter—now that was tempting.
Even though Zhizhi was already gifted, who would ever complain about having higher talent?
Previously, Zhizhi’s ghost cultivation talent had nothing to do with her physical body’s cultivation aptitude.
Unless—
Unless the two used the same kind of talent.
That seemed unlikely. I remembered Zhizhi telling me that, after gaining a body, she could retrain all her previous realms anew—that was the real key to going further.
Therefore, the more talent, the better.
“What… do you want in return?”
I looked wary. No matter how tempting, I wouldn’t forget the saying about weasels wishing chickens a Happy New Year.
Su Luo smiled lightly. “I want nothing. Didn’t I say already? It’s a gift for the Full Moon Banquet.”
“Li Lao, take a look for her.”
“As you command.”
I gripped the stroller a bit tighter. A mother’s instinct kept me from refusing outright.
Looking at Su Luo, I suddenly said, “I owe you a favor.”
Su Luo’s mood visibly improved. The first sight of a young girl pushing a stroller had indeed irked her a little, a restless feeling without cause.
Now, all that restlessness faded away in a soft hum.
“It’s nothing.”
“These are small matters.”
She was completely casual. “This method was only just perfected by the main Su family line. The rest of the family don’t even qualify yet. This time… I specially begged my father for this chance.”
My eyes flickered.
Lowering my gaze, I still said, “Thank you.”
“I was prejudiced before, thinking you weren’t a good person.”
Off to the side, Li Lao looked Zhizhi straight in the eye, then suddenly drew in a cold breath.
“Something’s wrong.”
“I can sense her talent is extraordinary, but it’s like there’s a fog—an abyss I can’t see through.”
“Meeting her eyes, I don’t feel like I’m looking at a baby at all, but rather being watched by some terrifying being.”
“Yet, there isn’t a single trace of energy fluctuation in her body.”
“How strange. How could there be such a bizarre phenomenon in this world?”
“I’ve lived one hundred and fifty years, and never encountered this before.”
Li Lao, so experienced, suddenly had a spark in his muddy eyes.
I quietly stepped in front of Zhizhi, blocking his scholar-like gaze. “If you can’t see it, then don’t look.”
Su Luo’s brows furrowed. “Step aside. This isn’t someone you can study. Don’t anger my sister-in-law.”
Li Lao respectfully retreated at once, eyes glued to the floor, not daring another glance.
I looked at the girl gradually drawing closer.
In all our encounters, this was the first time she’d ever gotten within five meters of me.
I was curious—what did she want?
Then, she suddenly took out a sheepskin scroll and stuffed it into my hands. “If you can’t see the spiritual root, it doesn’t matter. Inside are other Yao Yu formulas. Even without knowing the root, you can still improve a baby’s aptitude.”
“After all, before the spiritual root is fully formed, anything can happen.”
Clutching the thin sheepskin scroll, I felt an inexplicable heaviness.
After finishing her task, Su Luo left directly, not even giving me a chance to thank her. She just waved with her maid and Li Lao, backs turned to me. “Sister-in-law, see you next time!”
“See? I told you, I’m not a bad person.”
“Yiya—”
After a long time, my daughter’s call snapped me back.
I looked at the sheepskin scroll in my hand, then slowly lifted my eyes. “Let’s go home.”
Chunqiao chased after me. “Miss, should we tell Eldest Miss about what happened today?”
I fixed my gaze on the little maid, making her squirm.
“Why wouldn’t I tell her?”
I knew what she wanted to say.
She only meant that, as my maid, she’d help cover for me if I ever got into trouble outside.
“My heart has always been open and honest. Even if I compete with Su Liumeng for affection, I do it aboveboard. What’s there that can’t be said?”
The setting sun stretched my shadow long. Listening to my words, Zi Zhiruo tilted her cute little head, unable to speak yet, but already pondering the ways of the adult world.
*****
At night.
Su Liumeng studied the sheepskin scroll in front of her, her gaze flickering. “The Yao Yu formulas are real—this is the latest Su family research. The results are tightly controlled by the main branch, but Su Luo handed them straight to you.”
“Is Su Luo really that influential?” I blurted out. “Logically, it shouldn’t be this early for the results to leak to the elder branch, right? If she gave it to me, doesn’t that mean the whole Su family could benefit now?” I wasn’t slow—I’d already figured out the implications behind Su Luo’s actions.
Su Liumeng looked at me and replied, “Of course.”
“Because, she’s the family head’s only child, and her mother is also from the top-tier Mo family. She’s the current family head’s only daughter.”
“……”
I fell silent.
No wonder Su Luo always acted so cheerfully, dressed like a little princess.
Turns out, she really was a little princess.
It was my first time learning about Su Luo’s mother. With the support of two first-class families, no wonder everyone gave her face.
“You’re my little princess, too.” Su Liumeng hugged me tight, pressing her face to mine.
“Ugh, why are you always saying such mushy things.” I fiddled with my hands, saying one thing, but my heart felt as sweet as a jar of spilled sugar.
“Baby, do you really think Su Luo likes me?” Su Liumeng stole a kiss, her question making my eyes go blank, to the point I forgot I’d just been nibbled.
“I think… she probably doesn’t like me?” My voice grew weaker and weaker. “She wouldn’t really like me, right…?”
“How strange. I’m already married, and I even have a daughter…”
“Is that still not enough to stop others?”
Su Liumeng cupped my disbelieving little face, and while I pondered the question, she used both hands to squish my baby-chubby cheeks into a pudgy ball.
“Baby doesn’t realize at all just how attractive she is.”
“……”
I really didn’t know.
After all, cuteness is worthless compared to being sexy.
Wait—
Maybe…
Could I actually have both?
Thinking of this, a description I’d never considered, I went completely blank.
Before, I always thought of myself as just a little cute.
But now that I gave it serious thought, it seemed that ever since I gave birth to Zhizhi, I’d developed a charm completely opposite to cuteness. With that angelic baby face, it really was quite visually striking.
*****
June 15th.
It had been nearly four full months since Zi Zhiruo was born.
On Longhushan, a true Celestial Master was observing the stars at night.
Suddenly, he spat out a mouthful of blood, then laughed wildly at the sky, “I’ve finally calculated it—the monster rejected by Heaven did not die under that day’s Heavenly Retribution. Instead, it clings to its last breath, lingering in the mortal world, so feeble its consciousness hasn’t even awakened.”
“Hahaha! This is truly a gift from Heaven.”
“If I can find the monster’s true body, and eliminate its mother as well, the feedback from Heaven’s Dao will surely allow me to rise even higher.”
“After all, correcting chaos and defending the Dao, exorcising evil and upholding righteousness, is our lifelong mission.”
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