Cohabitation with Sword Spirit-Chapter 83 - 72: Isn’t This Gift-Giving a Bit Like Hand-Picking an Heir?
August 17, 2017
"Hey, are you asking how high Wang Jiu’s cultivation is? Well, let’s put it this way, you know that pitiful single dog from the Qian Family, right? The one who got scammed out of over ten thousand spirit stones by some idiot, all decked out in the Celestial Fortune Set."
"Ah, yes, I know, I know, it’s that big spender from Cyan Cloud who can’t seem to win a girl’s heart no matter what. It’s said his entire set is worth several thousand spirit stones, truly frightening."
"Yeah, yeah, my monthly stipend is only two spirit stones, and even the magic sword spirit talismans my family provides are cheap stuff. Isn’t the Li Family supposed to be one of the Seven Great Noble Families... Sister Chaolu, how much is the monthly stipend in your main family mansion?"
"Ahem, anyway, even though Qian Yu’s cultivation realm isn’t that high, he did reach the Cloud Surge Realm at fifteen, which is quite decent. His equipment advantage goes without saying, and it’s rare that his Golden Silk Wrapped Jade Sword has reached the fire of the Eighth Heaven—it’s said that his years of single life have honed an agile and powerful arm that makes his swordsmanship rival even mid to late-stage sword cultivators of the Cloud Surge Realm. In any case, he’s quite strong. But a few days ago at the Mountain Shifting Sword Dao Club, he overestimated himself and challenged Mr. Wang Jiu to a swordsmanship duel. He was knocked out with a single strike without even realizing what happened."
"Wow, one strike?!"
"In fact, it might have been less than a single strike, because none of the many people present, including the club’s instructor, saw how Mr. Wang Jiu made his move; they only saw a flash of sword light, and then Qian Yu was unconscious on the ground."
"Wow~"
"Actually, that duel was over before it began. At that time, when they faced each other, Mr. Wang Jiu just gave him a serious look, and he completely lost his fighting spirit."
"Eh, was it a divine sense attack?"
"Of course not, before a match, any form of attack is not allowed. Mr. Wang Jiu merely displayed his momentum and will, and it was Qian Yu who couldn’t bear the pressure and collapsed. It was just like an ant facing an elephant or a cultivator confronting tribulation thunder clouds. That instinctual fear from a living being turns into a heavy burden."
"Wow, defeating an opponent just with momentum, that’s amazing."
"Of course, Mr. Wang Jiu is the top young expert in the entire Qing Cyan Cloud City and even the Xiangzhou Continent!"
At the dining table, Li Chaolu’s vivid recounting left Li Qingshuang and Li Junyi, two little girls from Lingshan City, utterly amazed, their eyes shining with growing fervor.
This shameless boasting, however, made Shen Qingming at the same table feel her stomach churn. The dishes, meticulously prepared by a renowned chef, became hard to swallow.
"Li Chaolu, you weren’t even there at the time, where did you conjure up so many details from?!"
Li Chaolu sniffed disdainfully: "I wasn’t there at the time, but I interviewed everyone who was present afterward and repeatedly verified every single detail, so I know more than you, who are just confused bystanders!"
Shen Qingming also sneered: "In the end, isn’t it just hearsay? I don’t know why you’re so smug!"
Li Chaolu laughed: "Alright, alright, you despise hearsay, then let me ask you, when Mr. Wang Jiu got up and pulled back his hood, with which hand did he do it?"
"Eh?"
"Left hand, right hand, or both hands together?" Li Chaolu asked, "Weren’t you there at the scene? This simple detail shouldn’t be something you can’t answer."
Shen Qingming was left speechless. Although she was there at the time, she was too busy fighting Zhang Zhixi to notice which hand Wang Jiu used to take off his hood!
Li Chaolu said, "The correct answer is the left hand, isn’t that right, Mr. Wang Jiu?"
Standing beside and observing the Wind and Cloud Tower, Wang Jiu nodded: "Yes, the left hand."
Shen Qingming felt aggrieved, thinking, can’t this dull sword spirit just answer the right hand?
Li Chaolu smugly glanced at Shen Qingming and continued, "If you’re still unconvinced, I’ll test you with an easier question. How many kinds of duels are there?"
"What?"
"Back then, Mr. Wang Jiu introduced the classification of duels to everyone in the hall, I won’t ask you to list and explain each type, just say how many types there are in total."
Shen Qingming said, "I was in the middle of a duel then, how could I hear what was being said around? "
"So what good is it to be on the scene? Aren’t there still many things you didn’t see or hear? Although I wasn’t there, I could gather more information through post-event investigation and interviews."
"..."
After this conversation, the winner was clear, and Li Qingshuang and Li Junyi blinked their bright eyes: "Sister Chaolu, you’re amazing."
Li Chaolu said: "Haha, I’m Mr. Wang Jiu’s number one fan."
Shen Qingming sneered: "Number one? That’s quite some confidence, but if I remember correctly, last time your contest with Qian Yue didn’t end too well for you."
"She just has more pocket money than me, there’s nothing special about that. Now I’m Mr. Wang Jiu’s work secretary."
"I’m still his only ride!"
"What?"
"Didn’t catch that? No worries, you can wait until the birthday banquet is over and interview the guests on-site to gather intel!"
——
The squabble between Li Chaolu and Shen Qingming seemed as endless as the sun rising and setting.
Nearby, a petite woman in elaborate attire was on the verge of exploding from impatience.
Ever since Shen Qingming sat down, Lu Xin had been eager to find an opportunity, under the cover of the banquet atmosphere, to have a private chat with her.
This was also the most crucial part of today’s birthday banquet; whether they could resolve past misunderstandings and grievances during this conversation and bring her back to the Li Family Mansion was the key factor keeping Lu Xin awake for days!
For today’s meeting and talk, Lu Xin had prepared over a hundred versions of a conversation script, rehearsing every situation she could think of.
But she really didn’t anticipate that this girl would start an endless quarrel with Li Chaolu from the moment she sat down!
After waiting a bit longer, the argument showed no sign of ceasing and was intensifying. The two girls seemed ready to break into a public fight at any moment. Lu Xin, clenched fists, desperately sought a solution, stealthily using the Secret Language Book to call for help from someone.
"Mr. Wang Jiu, Sword Spirit senior, it’s me, Lu Xin."
Hearing Lu Xin’s voice in his ear, Wang Jiu raised an eyebrow, turned his head with a smile, and said, "Oh, it’s you. What do you need from me?"
Lu Xin quickly gestured for Wang Jiu to keep his movements small to avoid drawing attention, while saying, "I have something I want to say to Qingming..."
Before she could finish, Wang Jiu promptly reached out and patted Shen Qingming on the shoulder—since Wang Jiu was still revealing the Sword Spirit True Form through Illusion Sword Technique without a physical form, he actually poked the blade tip into Shen Qingming’s lower back, causing her to scream and turn with a glare, "What the heck!?"
Wang Jiu replied matter-of-factly, "Your mom has something to tell you."
On the other side, Lu Xin was dumbfounded, the latter half of her sentence "please keep it quiet..." was left unsaid as Shen Qingming looked over with suspicion.
Even more troublesome was that it wasn’t just Shen Qingming who heard this exchange! In an instant, Li Chaolu, Li Qingshuang, and even the people at their table like Li Jing and Li Kongcheng all curiously turned to look.
The strained relationship between Shen Qingming and Lu Xin was well-known even in Lingshan City; what on earth was Lu Xin planning to say to her daughter now?
With all eyes on her, Lu Xin wished she could be struck by a divine thunder to obliterate her. The lines she had prepared failed her entirely; those sincere confessions, intended for private ears, were unspeakable in public, and if she had to voice them out loud, she’d rather just resign from life entirely.
But at this moment, she couldn’t stay silent, so Lu Xin braced herself and said, "Congratulations on receiving the Tier 3 evaluation."
Shen Qingming was increasingly suspicious, "Didn’t you congratulate me a few days ago?"
Of course, Lu Xin knew she already did and remembered that conversation ended with "Why are you being so unreasonable!"
But she could find nothing else to say now, so she bit the bullet and continued, "I forgot to give you a gift back then, so I’m making it up today."
While speaking, Lu Xin’s eyes darted around for something suitable to give.
Exquisite Dragon Tooth Chopsticks? A Glazed Bowl imported from Golden Jade City? Or perhaps this new Celestial Silkworm Silk underwear, comforting and warm, and the size should just barely fit... Wait, what am I thinking!
In a panic, Lu Xin turned her attention to her husband, swiftly grabbed the sword from his waist—Li Fengyun never fussed over the swords he wore; the tier often around White-Green Tier, perfect as a gift for Qingming.
"I’ll give you this sword."
As soon as she spoke, all eyes turned their way, each with a different expression: solemnity, surprise, confusion... 𝑓𝓇𝘦ℯ𝘸𝘦𝑏𝓃𝑜𝘷ℯ𝑙.𝑐𝑜𝓂
"What? What’s wrong?" After a moment of bewilderment, Lu Xin looked down at the sword in her hand and nearly fainted.
That fellow Li Fengyun actually brought the Wind and Cloud Immortal Sword, symbolizing the Patriarch’s authority! And without even securing it with a Primordial Spirit Lock, letting it hang loosely on his waist for anyone to take!
Bestowing the symbol of the Patriarch’s authority, the Wind and Cloud Immortal Sword, in front of everyone was akin to passing an imperial edict!
The scene fell into a deathly silence.
The next moment, Li Fengyun lifted his head from the delicious food in front of him, glanced around, then looked at Lu Xin, who was in utter despair, and chuckled, "Oh, is it finally my shift done? Wonderful, I’ve been saying for ages that I’m solely focused on Sword Dao and know nothing about family affairs. Now that Qingming can take over, that’s just perfect. Besides, this sword never felt right in my hand; if it weren’t for you insisting I attend in full attire today, I wouldn’t have bothered getting it from the sword library."
Lu Xin jabbed him forcefully with Golden Crow Sword Qi, muttering in a low voice, "You didn’t have to bring it!"
Li Fengyun, mystified, lowered his voice to ask, "Did I do something wrong?"
Lu Xin, in self-abandonment, said, "You were wrong to marry me in the first place! Now I’m young and about to die from overwhelming shame..."
"!?"
