Chapter 23: 23

23 "Listen to your sister-in-law."

Returning to the bedroom, Tushan Jiu opened the box.

Inside, the jewelry sets were neatly arranged one by one.

Around the edges were five large wooden boxes, which should contain whole pieces of jade.

Even before opening it she could feel the abundant spiritual energy; once opened, the spiritual energy overflowed directly.

Tushan Jiu twitched her nose and instantly felt refreshed in body and mind.

She was reluctant to close it—what should she do?

Then leave it open; being surrounded by spiritual energy will surely bring a good dream.

Little did she know, someone downstairs was waiting for her to hurry up and sleep.

After washing up and drying her hair, Tushan Jiu got into bed; the moment her head touched the pillow, she was pulled away.

Caught off guard, several old faces appeared before her eyes.

Startled, she shrank her shoulders back: "Grandpa! Grandma! Second Uncle! You scared me!"

Tushan Tu reached out and tapped her head: "You finally aren't lazy, huh? I've been telling you to collect debts, collect debts—you really don't move until the last minute!"

Tushan Jiu clutched her head: "Grandpa! That really hurts!"

Tushan Jiu's grandmother Luan Yunhua, seeing Tushan Tu strike her without restraint, gave him a flick on the forehead in return: "You still have the nerve to say that! It's all because of your wretched fate—otherwise our family wouldn't have been so impoverished for three generations!"

Tushan Tu rubbed his head, feeling wronged, and muttered: "It's not like I get to decide!"

Tushan Jiu's dark eyes rolled around; she couldn't help smiling. Tushan Tu noticed, pointed at her and complained to his wife: "Look, this little brat is teasing us—she's putting on an act!"

Tushan Jiu's second uncle, stroking his thin beard, smiled broadly: "Your family is lively, interesting, interesting—I love it. Little Jiu, Second Uncle supports you—go ahead and act like that old fool!"

Tushan Jiu sighed helplessly; these few old fogeys together could really star in a family ethics drama.

But she could only relax like this in front of family, acting like a child.

"Getting back to the point, you came to find me about this, didn't you?"

Tushan Tu snorted: "You still have the nerve to say that? We came up just to give you a heads‑up—you got three points deducted, but—"

"Nicely done!" Tushan Jiu's second uncle interjected.

Tushan Jiu raised her eyebrows slightly, not at all surprised.

The Cheng Xiujuan matter; the people at the Nan Cheng Office should have been docked even more points than her.

Yin‑yang order must be observed by humans and ghosts alike.

But Tushan Jiu has always followed her own whims.

It's just three points—catch a few malicious ghosts and it's made up, no effect.

She has always held to the belief that nothing should be overdone, so for a perfect‑score test she only needs to keep sixty to pass; the civil servant assessment will then be steady—why bother working so hard?

But the next second, Tushan Tu dropped a bombshell, and she snapped!

Starting next year, the Underworld's examination system will change!

Previously, one could register early at eighteen and take the official exam at twenty‑two.

During that period they were assessed, with a perfect score of one hundred and a passing grade of sixty.

This assessment is equivalent to the qualification for taking the official Underworld Civil Servant exam; if you fail, you cannot take the exam.

But now the exam rules have changed.

From next year onward, the passing line will be raised to ninety‑five points to be eligible for the official exam.

Moreover, only the top thirty will be admitted.

That means she must stand out among the several hundred each year—so the higher her score, the safer she is.

Otherwise, she'll have to wait another year to retake it.

Tushan Jiu lifted her head, weariness on her face: "Doesn't that mean I can't be a salted fish anymore?"

Tushan Tu clenched his fist: "Come on, Xiao Jiu!"

Xiao Jiu: "……"

She is a "Score Control Master"—once she passes the cutoff she stops trying.

The Cheng Xiujuan incident cost her three points, leaving her with only fifty‑seven.

She is still thirty‑eight points short of the ninety‑five‑point passing line.

And that's just the passing line.

Tushan Jiu jolted awake from the nightmare, sitting up with a start.

"Posture's wrong—get up and sleep again!"

The three Tushan Tu who were forcibly sent back to the Underworld: "???"

Possibly upset by the sudden news, Tushan Jiu didn't sleep well all night.

The next morning she got up, skipped meditation, and went straight to practicing tai chi in the garden.

Old Master Xie watched from the side for a while, then clapped and praised.

"Xiao Jiu, your tai chi is too standard; I've studied it for years, but I still haven't gotten many poses right."

Tushan Jiu wiped the light sweat from her forehead with a handkerchief, saying, "It's quite normal, Grandfather; ordinary people take ten years just to get started, but once you grasp the technique, you can quickly understand the essentials, and regular practice can prolong life—if you want to learn, I can teach you."

Old Master Xie's face lit up: "Really?"

Tushan Jiu nodded: "Starting tomorrow, if I practice tai chi, I'll call you to join."

After thinking, she added, "Let Er Di and San Di come too; I've checked their physiques." Tushan Jiu shook her head: "They're really too weak; future girlfriends won't be satisfied."

"Cough, cough..." Old Master Xie was choked by Tushan Jiu's blunt words.

But Tushan Jiu didn't think she'd said anything wrong.

"Their deficiency isn't the ordinary kind; it's qi deficiency. Even though they exercise every day, their training method is wrong, so it's all for naught."

If you practice with her a bit, in less than half a year you could make them have the same... physique as the male lead in the novel!

Old Master Xie seemed to half-understand, saying, "Practice, we must practice; starting tomorrow, everyone in the Xie family will practice together with you, Xiao Jiu!"

So, before breakfast today, Old Master Xie held a family meeting at the dining table.

Everyone, including Xie Shiyu, must get up early together to practice tai chi.

And Xie Wenmo, who is far away on a business trip overseas, can't escape either; Old Master Xie will watch him practice via video call before bed!

When the news came out, Xie Shiyu didn't really react; anyway, whatever he does for his morning practice is still practice.

But Xie Jingzhou and Xie Jingting, who have trouble getting out of bed, just put on bitter melon faces.

Tushan Jiu could see that both of them were somewhat reluctant.

Thus she advised: "Second brother, you're fine—you're the abstinent type—but third brother, you really must persevere; you don't want to wrong the girl you've secretly loved for years, do you?"

Xie Jingting: "Let me say thank you."

Xie Jingzhou: "I also thank my sister-in-law."

Tushan Jiu curled her lips and waved her hand, saying, "No need to be polite; this is what I should do as your sister-in-law."

Xie Jingting: "Big brother, look at her!"

Xie Shiyu, who had been laughing while watching the show, was suddenly cued.

Tushan Jiu paused mid-sip of her porridge, turned her head to look at him, then solemnly explained: "I'm doing this for their own good."

Xie Shiyu couldn't help but let out a laugh, then turned to his two younger brothers and spoke slowly:

"Listen to your sister-in-law."

Tushan Jiu looked at Xie Shiyu's smile, found it rather nice, and gave him another glance.

Xie Shiyu felt her gaze, turned his head and asked her: "What's up?"

Tushan Jiu shook her head and said frankly: "Nothing, you just look a bit handsome."

Xie Shiyu froze for a moment, then let out a low chuckle.

No rush; there's plenty of time ahead—they have no emotional foundation yet, so naturally they need to cultivate it slowly.