[{"data":1,"prerenderedAt":-1},["ShallowReactive",2],{"origin-if-you-will-not-reject-me-i-wish-to-bow-and-take":3,"chapter-if-you-will-not-reject-me-i-wish-to-bow-and-take-if-you-will-not-reject-me-i-wish-to-bow-and-take-chapter-46":6},{"origin":4,"title":5},"chinese","If You Will Not Reject Me, I Wish to Bow and Take You as My Adoptive Father",{"chapter":7,"nextChapterSlug":19,"prevChapterSlug":20,"totalChapters":21,"novelImage":22},{"id":8,"novel_id":9,"title":10,"slug":11,"index":12,"content":13,"wordcount":14,"created_at":15,"updated_at":15,"volume":16,"translator":17,"content_hash":18},2276773,4454,"Chapter 46","if-you-will-not-reject-me-i-wish-to-bow-and-take-chapter-46",46,"\u003Cp>“General Zhang, you’re a native of Hengsha Pass—have you heard of ‘Sun Village’?” Xiao Yu suddenly remembered why the name “San Cha Ridge” sounded familiar.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>The night before last, her soul drifted from her body, heard the wails of wandering ghosts, left the Guan family pharmacy, and wandered dazedly into the wilds, where a dead spirit told her he lived at San Cha Ridge.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“Sun Village?” Captain Zhang blinked, his expression odd. “Miss Guan, where exactly is this Sun Village you mention? Which county or direction?”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“Forgive me, Miss, but since childhood, I’ve lived in Sun Village in Lao Ya Tun.”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“Within Hengsha Pass, from here all the way to Feixian Ferry, there’s only one Sun Village—my hometown.”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Xiao Yu was surprised. “How coincidental. I didn’t know where Sun Village was—I only heard there was a Mr. Sun there.”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“Mr. Sun?” Captain Zhang’s expression grew even stranger. “Do you know Mr. Sun’s name? My wife is surnamed Sun, and my father-in-law is also respectfully called ‘Mr. Sun’ by the locals.”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Xiao Yu asked, “Has Mr. Sun’s household built a stage these past two days?”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Captain Zhang looked at her with a strange gaze, then hesitated and nodded. “To honor my mother-in-law’s anniversary in the netherworld, I spent fifty taels of silver to hire the ‘Changchun Troupe’ from Hengsha Pass to perform all night the day before yesterday.”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>That’s the Sun Village!\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Meeting Captain Zhang’s puzzled gaze, Xiao Yu spoke calmly: “I’ve never been to Sun Village, but in town, I heard a man named ‘Brother Wang Er’ say he passed through Sun Village on his way from San Cha Ridge to Hengsha Pass, and heard loud opera playing deep into the night.”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>I found it odd, so I remembered it.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Today, seeing San Cha Ridge, it all came back to me.”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“From San Cha Ridge to Hengsha Pass… the main road doesn’t pass through Sun Village,” Captain Zhang said, frowning.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Miss Guan’s words sounded like a lie—but her expression when mentioning Sun Village and Mr. Sun was unmistakably that of someone repeating hearsay.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>After listening for a while, Hu Chen asked, “Where is Sun Village?”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Captain Zhang pointed northeast. “Over a hundred li from San Cha Ridge.”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Xiao Yu gasped—her soul had traveled that far that night!\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Not just her—Gui Sheng, the cripple at San Cha Ridge, could run too.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>In half a night, he covered over a hundred li—and still got criticized by Brother Wang Er for being too slow.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Do ghosts perceive space differently from the living?\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>After sending Captain Zhang away, Hu Chen asked, “You heard about Sun Village and Mr. Sun from wandering ghosts when your soul left your body the day before yesterday?”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Xiao Yu nodded. “One wandering ghost claimed he lived at San Cha Ridge.”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“You slept well last night,” Hu Chen said.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Xiao Yu shook her head. “Better than the day before—my soul didn’t leave my body.”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Hu Chen fell silent for a moment, then said, “Don’t tell anyone again about encountering ghosts or anything related to spirits.”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>The living and the dead follow separate paths; ghosts are seen by ordinary people as ill omens.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>You’re destined for nobility—associating with spirits will invite gossip.”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“I understand, Master. Thank you for your teaching,” Xiao Yu replied humbly.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Hu Chen said, “Wander around the slope for now. When the camp is set up, I’ll call you back.”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>With that, he spurred Chiyan, galloping up the overgrown slope toward the summit.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Soon, Xiao Yu saw Hu Chen activate his “Immortal’s Gaze,” standing atop the peak, his eyes radiating three-zhang golden light, sweeping the horizon.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>The camp wasn’t ready yet.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Xiao Yu loosened the reins and followed the peach-colored mare as it aimlessly grazed on the slope.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“Huh? This looks like human bone!”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Passing a ditch, Xiao Yu suddenly spotted a flash of white amid the grass.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>She stopped, poked aside the weeds with a stick, and confirmed it was a thick bone, roughly wrist-sized, with fragments of foot bones nearby.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Probably a left leg bone.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Xiao Yu stared at the bone, feeling a faint, strange sensation rise within her.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>After hesitating a few seconds, she leapt into the three-meter-deep ditch and picked up the bone and fragments.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Letting the peach mare graze leisurely, she carried the bone and followed the faint, elusive pull in her heart, walking down the slope about a hundred meters.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Finally, in a sparse grove of bamboo, she found a second white bone, then quickly located a skull, ribs, thigh bones, pelvis…\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Two corpses.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>One skull lay fully exposed, its flesh long rotted away; the other was half-buried under dry leaves, still clinging with black, rotting flesh that emitted a strong stench.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“Interesting…”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Xiao Yu knelt before one skeleton, studying it closely, a thoughtful smile slowly forming on her face.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>The skeleton should have been lying face-down.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Or rather, the corpse had rotted slowly while lying prone.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Now, it looked as if a palm strike had struck its spine—invisible yet tangible force pressing down, snapping six or seven ribs.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Logically, if the body had still had flesh when struck, the ribs and sternum might have broken under pressure, but the broken fragments should’ve remained connected.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Yet here, the bone shards were scattered like shattered porcelain.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>If you placed the skeleton on a stone slab and struck its back hard, the ribs and sternum could indeed shatter and fly apart.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>But this was muddy earth, covered in thick, damp, rotting leaves.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“You’re Gui Sheng, aren’t you? Boy, I’ve brought your leg bone back. Now you won’t be late for the ghost festival again.”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Xiao Yu had followed the mysterious pull to this spot—the source of the strange sensation was this skeleton.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>The other corpse nearby gave her no feeling at all.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>The night before last, she’d encountered three wandering ghosts. In soul-form, she’d used the Tiger Roar Blade—Gui Sheng had been shattered on impact, dissolving into black mist, while Old Man Qin and Brother Wang Er had scrambled away in terror.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Gui Sheng probably hadn’t died completely.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>After all, the Tiger Roar Blade’s core lies in gathering momentum—its first level is “Gathering Power,” while “Slashing Ghosts and Gods” is the fifth level.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Gui Sheng survived the Tiger Roar Blade’s strike, his body tainted with its “essence.” Since Xiao Yu had wielded it in soul-form, touching his remains now triggered a faint, strange resonance.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“Alas, you died young and lay exposed in the wilds—how pitiful.”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Xiao Yu drew her Dragon Kiss short sword, glanced around, and tried to dig a grave in the bamboo grove’s edge.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Then she saw the camp nearing completion.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“I don’t have time to dig a grave. You’ll have to make do with a stone house—it’s not bad.”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>She piled Gui Sheng’s broken bones together, about to find stones to bury them, when she noticed the other skull beside them.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“You’re lucky too—you’ll have a stone house to shelter you… Huh!”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Xiao Yu pried at the skull still clinging to rotting flesh—but it wouldn’t budge.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>She cut another bamboo stalk, cleared away the dry leaves and black mud, and discovered a thin bamboo root, thick as a thumb, grown through the skull’s eye socket, anchoring it in place.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Now the Dragon Kiss proved useful.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>One slash severed the root; with the stick, she lifted the skull, shook out the rot, weeds, and bamboo fibers, then tossed it beside Gui Sheng’s bones.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>After piling both corpses together, Xiao Yu gathered several large stones, encircled the bones, then covered them with more stones and earth, clapped her hands, and walked away.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“Where have you been?” Hu Chen shouted loudly at the camp entrance.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Xiao Yu jumped, startled by the sudden roar.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“Master, I was letting the horse graze on the slope and saw white bones in a ditch. I felt sorry for them, so I picked them up and buried them—that’s why I’m late.”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Although she didn’t understand why Hu Chen was shouting so loudly, she knew he had the Thousand-Mile Eye—and burying bones wasn’t a serious matter—so she answered honestly.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Guan Zhong was just stepping out of the camp, ready to guide the two masters to their tents.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Hearing Xiao Yu’s words, he too looked stunned, his voice loud with surprise: “Miss Xiao, you found white bones on the road and buried them?”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Xiao Yu was baffled.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Is burying bones something that invites gossip?\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>—Then why are you all shouting so loudly, as if afraid no one will notice?\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Xiao Yu hesitated, preparing to apologize to Hu Chen and vow never to do it again.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Then a chorus of praise erupted from the camp.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“No wonder she’s a Guan daughter—so young, yet such virtue!”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“Indeed! As the saying goes, the greatest merit lies in saving lives; the next greatest is in comforting spirits. When bones lie exposed, burying them brings peace—that is great virtue!”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“Ah, the Guan family’s generations of glory aren’t without reason—descendants accumulate virtue, and fortune lingers in the household!”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Hearing their praise, and meeting their admiring gazes, Xiao Yu suddenly understood.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Yet those praising her “virtue” were all the Western Sand Garrison soldiers in brown leather armor.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>The Lu Ye Guard’s iron-clad cavalry stood nearby, silent.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Some wore strange expressions, their eyes suspiciously shifting between Xiao Yu and “Old Duck Guan.”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>They suspected this was a performance by the Guan father and daughter to gain fame.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“Xiao Yu, you’ve done well—you haven’t forgotten my teachings,” Hu Chen said, stroking his beard with a smile, then walking ahead into the camp.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Xiao Yu followed silently behind him.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“In the civilized realm of the Celestial Empire, building bridges, paving roads, giving alms, burying roadside bones, and providing coffins for the poor are the most admired acts of virtue.”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Inside the tent, Hu Chen’s warm smile faded, his tone growing solemn.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“Master, I truly had no ulterior motive—I just happened upon the bones and felt moved.”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>She paused, then added, “Even on the sand dunes, if conditions allowed, I’d have had others gather the remains of my clan.”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>She paused, then added, “Even when we were at the Sand Dunes, if conditions allowed, I would have someone gather the remains of our clan members.”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Leaving aside the civilization of her past life, she understood one thing clearly: in a world of gods, demons, and spirits, burying corpses to grant the dead peace brings only benefit—never harm.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Hu Chen sighed. “I never blamed you, nor doubted you sought fame… in fact, I meant to promote your reputation.”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Huchen sighed and said, “Your father has not blamed you, nor suspected you of seeking fame... in fact, I intended to promote your reputation.”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>But then, your father thought of something, and his heart began to hesitate again.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“Adoptive father, no matter what it is, please speak freely,” Xiao Yu said.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Huchen remained deeply uncertain.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>For what he was about to say was a secret, one the Old Ancestor had specifically instructed him to remember and handle with care.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Since it was a secret, it must not be leaked casually—otherwise, it would bring trouble to the Old Ancestor.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“I had thought of bringing you fame, but fame can also invite disaster.”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Xiao Yu looked puzzled. “What kind of disaster? Jealousy from others?”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“No! To escape envy is to be mediocre.”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Huchen waved his hand, then spoke slowly: “If you remained within Shu’s borders, under the Old Ancestor’s protection, the greater your reputation in the mortal world, the better.”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>The Old Ancestor can protect you.”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>But I overlooked something crucial.”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>You will soon travel east into Xianyang.”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Your current reputation in the mortal world is unknown to the distant Central Kingdom—but the spirits and ghosts of the Netherworld are the same ones.”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“What’s the problem?” Xiao Yu still didn’t understand.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Huchen said: “Reputation comes in many forms. Some reputations matter only in the mortal world—such as talent or beauty.”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>No matter how extraordinary your talent, how breathtaking your beauty, how much the world admires you, the spirits and ghosts of the Netherworld will not add or subtract a single point of merit for you on their ledger.”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Some reputations, however, are praised not only by mortals but will also stir the Netherworld’s courts.”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>As I mentioned before—building bridges, paving roads, giving alms to the poor, burying roadside bones, providing coffins for the destitute.”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Because the Netherworld must record your hidden merit.”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>If you quietly perform good deeds, unknown to all, and the spirits happen not to notice—this is merely a hypothetical, with near-zero likelihood—then your hidden merit may not be recorded at all.”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>After all, if even the spirits don’t know, who will record it?”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>But once your good deeds become known, when all people speak of them, the spirits will surely know.”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>When the spirits know, they will watch you, test you.”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>If your goodness is genuine, and your hidden merit accumulates, even rebirth into the Central Kingdom as a ‘Qin person’ is not impossible.”\u003C\u002Fp>",2150,"2026-06-20T00:29:13.334Z",1,"Qwen3-Next 80B","ffc44dcf47480e34410f4e526544152e881354624090443159fd8391b664aeb8","if-you-will-not-reject-me-i-wish-to-bow-and-take-chapter-47","if-you-will-not-reject-me-i-wish-to-bow-and-take-chapter-45",840,"https:\u002F\u002Fnovelzhen.com\u002Fimages\u002Fcovers\u002Fif-you-will-not-reject-me-i-wish-to-bow-and-take-cover.jpg"]