Chapter 111

The phonograph finally emitted sound, and Li Banfeng exhaled deeply: “Wife, I thought you were badly injured and couldn’t speak.”

“Badly injured? What kind of talk is that, husband? A virtuous woman can manage the hall and the kitchen; handling a simple dish hardly counts as being injured.”

As she spoke, the phonograph’s voice shifted pitch, rising and falling like crossing a hill, and Li Banfeng grew tense again.

“Husband, today’s ingredients were special—this servant truly ate her fill. Leave the corpse to Honglian; she can refine something valuable from it. Even if you can’t eat it, you can sell it for a good price.”

“You know my nature, husband. Once my belly is full, I just want to sleep longer. If you have matters to attend to, go ahead—don’t trouble yourself with me.”

The phonograph’s voice kept shifting pitch. Li Banfeng stared at the scattered parts on the floor and frowned again.

Hssss~

“Husband, don’t worry about those few trivial bits—they were useless to begin with. Their presence or absence makes no difference. When I wake, I’ll pick a few useful ones and reassemble them.”

Li Banfeng picked up a gear and found its teeth broken and its shaft bent.

Can this even be reassembled?

“Husband, quickly dispose of this insect’s corpse—I find it repulsive.”

Li Banfeng brought over the copper lotus.

The copper lotus sensed the corpse of the Cloak Moth Lady and swiftly unfurled its petals, swallowing her whole.

Hssss~

The phonograph added one more instruction: “Husband, I’m truly exhausted and need a proper rest. Move Honglian to the outer chamber—don’t let her disturb me.”

Afraid she’ll disturb you?

Is she too weak to guard against the copper lotus?

Li Banfeng moved the copper lotus away, then returned to the main chamber to check on the phonograph—it had fallen silent.

He gathered the scattered parts, sat in silence for a moment, then left the Personal Dwelling.

The copper lotus snorted in the outer chamber: “Wicked woman, you’ve come to this. Your body is ruined and you still dare not speak up. You never trusted that madman—but I’ll see how long you can hold on.”

The phonograph replied in a warped tone: “Wretch, do you think I can’t take your life right now?”

“Then do it if you dare!”

“Honglian, don’t grow too arrogant. Once inside this room, the One Above can’t sense you. Without his protection, do you really think I can’t kill you?”

…

Li Banfeng followed the footprints and found Ma Wu, bringing him back to Blue Willow Village.

Having survived the ordeal, Ma Wu remained terrified, constantly asking Li Banfeng how he escaped the Cloak Moth Lady. Li Banfeng said nothing.

Back at the wooden house, Li Banfeng asked: “Brother Ma, do you know where in Blue Willow Village there’s a phonograph?”

He needed to find replacement parts for his wife.

“Phonograph?” Ma Wu thought a moment. “Those are hard to find. I recall the Song family has one.”

“A steam phonograph?”

“Steam phonograph? Made in Amikan?” Ma Wu shook his head. “Those are even rarer. I’ve only seen one—on the Lu family’s private train. I’ve seen it a few times. It’s a nuisance—needs water and oil.”

Only one? Ma Wu had seen only one?

Li Banfeng remembered.

Master Feng had once said these phonographs were handcrafted in Amikan—only two existed in Pulu Province.

One was in Li Banfeng’s possession; the other was on the Lu family’s private train.

Steal the other phonograph from the Lu family’s private train?

Li Banfeng couldn’t even get onto a train—how could he board the Lu family’s private one?

This was clearly impossible.

Ma Wu added: “Brother Li, if you like phonographs, don’t buy anything so fancy. Get a hand-cranked one, or a wind-up—both are fine, and much cheaper.”

“Where can I buy one?”

Ma Wu thought a moment. “The Miao Sound Phonograph Shop in Lüshui City has the widest selection. But given your current situation, you shouldn’t enter the city.”

Li Banfeng unfolded the map he’d bought from Master Feng: “First, tell me where the Miao Sound Phonograph Shop is.”

Ma Wu studied the map and shook his head slightly. “This map isn’t detailed enough—it’s hard to say.”

The map Master Feng gave Li Banfeng was of the entire Lüshui Bay.

But the actual layout of Lüshui Bay was far more complex than the map showed.

The central area of Lüshui Bay was called Lüshui City.

Surrounding Lüshui City were several small towns.

Beyond those towns lay proper villages, where villagers farmed to supply crops to Lüshui City.

Beyond the proper villages were improper villages—Blue Willow Village was one of them.

These improper villages rarely farmed, yet still supplied Lüshui City with special resources.

“So it’s quite far.”

Ma Wu gestured on the map: “About a hundred and twenty li. Brother Li, if you insist on entering the city, let’s pick a good day—I’ll send someone to scout first…”

“No picking days. Today.”

“Today?” Ma Wu froze. “Just to buy a phonograph?”

“Yes. Just to buy a phonograph,” Li Banfeng nodded. “I need to hear music. One day without it, I feel unbearable.”

“You have this habit?” Ma Wu almost laughed—but Li Banfeng wasn’t joking.

Ma Wu hurriedly packed supplies. “I’ll bring some food—we’ll go together.”

“You don’t need to come. Just tell me the location.” Li Banfeng had no intention of taking Ma Wu—he moved too slowly.

Ma Wu didn’t know what to say: “Brother Li, what exactly are you going to Lüshui City for?”

“Didn’t I just say? I need to buy a phonograph—I can’t wait a moment longer.”

…

In the Lu family mansion, Lu Dongliang summoned a fifth-layer Literary Cultivator to test Lu Chunying’s knowledge.

In Pulu Province, Literary and Martial Cultivators were both considered orthodox, and the Four Great Families were no exception.

But the Lu family wasn’t as conservative as the Ma family—they didn’t oppose other Dao sects. Still, as a noble lady, Literary Cultivation was the more suitable path.

The fifth-layer Literary Cultivator posed over a dozen questions. Lu Chunying answered fluently, thanks to Xiao Ye Ci’s regular tutoring. Though Xiao Ye Ci was only a first-layer cultivator, she had laid a solid foundation for Lu Chunying.

Lu Dongliang nodded, offering two words of praise.

“Good. Very good.”

Hearing these faint compliments, Lu Chunying carefully weighed Lu Dongliang’s thoughts.

She hadn’t started judging him only now—since stepping through the Lu family’s gates, she’d been constantly assessing him.

Lu Dongliang was a high-ranking Traveling Cultivator; his exact realm was unknown.

Yet none of his children had chosen Traveling Cultivation.

Was it because Lu Dongliang didn’t want them to?

Of course not.

Traveling Cultivation meant constant movement. Lu Dongliang had spent years traveling, managing the family business—cultivation had never been a burden to him.

But his children didn’t need to live so harshly.

Xiao Ye Ci once told Lu Chunying a story: of a wealthy merchant’s daughter who eloped with her beloved lover three times.

All three attempts failed—because the daughter couldn’t endure the hardships of the journey.

On the road, enduring wind, rain, and sleeping and eating outdoors was no easy matter.

Xiao Ye Ci had warned Lu Chunying: if a wealthy young master claims he’s tired of confinement, craves freedom, and wants to travel, don’t believe him—he just wants to go out and play, not to suffer alongside you.

Traveling Cultivation and tourism were entirely different things.

Lu Chunying studied Lu Dongliang’s expression and asked carefully: “Father, may I see Mother?”

She hadn’t seen Xiao Ye Ci in a long time.

“We’ll talk later,” Lu Dongliang’s face darkened, brushing her off.

Lu Chunying whispered: “Father, do you think she’s not really my mother?”

Lu Dongliang frowned and countered: “Do you think she is?”

Lu Dongliang expected Lu Chunying to insist she recognized this mother, recount their hardships together, and beg him to keep Xiao Ye Ci.

He despised such worthless sentimentality.

But Lu Chunying simply replied calmly: “I think she isn’t.”

Lu Dongliang narrowed his eyes. “How did you figure that out?”

“She’s young enough to be my sister—how could she be my mother? It’s obvious.”

Lu Dongliang smiled. “Then why do you want to see her?”

“I just want to make things clear. I’ve returned home. I’ve recognized my family. The past is over. She isn’t my mother, nor my kin. Her origins don’t matter. I need to make her give up her delusions.”

“But I can’t let her go around talking and make others call me heartless. Give her money, and send her away.”

Lu Dongliang was satisfied with this answer.

It aligned almost perfectly with his own thoughts—except he hadn’t planned to merely send Xiao Ye Ci away. He wanted her to vanish completely.

But the two outcomes weren’t contradictory.

Someone else might think Lu Chunying was cruel.

But Lu Dongliang didn’t. He thought this was exactly how his daughter should be.

He nodded slightly. “Fine. In a couple of days, go see her.”

He nodded slightly and said, "Alright, in a couple days, go see her."

Now let’s talk about your initiation. The Wu Xiu who just left—I plan to make him your Master. What do you think?

Lu Chunying blinked her fluttering eyes and said, “Dad, do you really want to hear the truth?”

“Do you even have to ask?” Lu Dongliang glared. “You think you can lie to me?”

“Dad, if I’m being honest, I don’t want to become a Wu Xiu.”

“Why?” Lu Dongliang froze.

“Xiao Ye Ci is a Wu Xiu. I’ve been with her all these years, and I’ve always thought she’s a no-good person.”

Lu Dongliang smiled. “Then what kind of person do you think has potential?”

“Reading ten thousand books is not as good as traveling ten thousand miles. Only after seeing the whole country can you truly gain insight. Dad, I want to learn Liuxiu from you.”

“You want to cultivate Liuxiu?” Lu Dongliang was both shocked and delighted, yet worried the girl couldn’t handle the hardship. “Have you thought this through? Liuxiu is brutal—you’ll never get a moment’s rest.”

“Dad, I’m still so young. If I spend every day trying to avoid effort, how long will I keep running?”

Lu Dongliang grew increasingly pleased. “Yingying, since you’ve made up your mind, when do you want to begin your initiation?”

Lu Chunying thought for a moment. “Today.”

Lu Dongliang blinked. “Today? Why so urgent?”

“If I hadn’t feared you’d refuse, I would’ve started days ago. I’ve been waiting too long.”

Lu Dongliang smiled.

Why did this child have his temperament?

Even this impatience was just like him.

This isn’t impatience. Knowing when to act and when to wait—that’s called having discipline.

“Yingying, we’re agreed then. I’ll call the Yaoshi right away to prepare you. Initiation is painful—he’ll give you anesthetic first.”

Lu Chunying shook her head. “No anesthetic. It’s just a moment of pain. Dad, did you use anesthetic when you were initiated?”

Lu Dongliang shook his head. “Your grandfather refused to let me learn Liuxiu. I found a peddler to initiate me—there was no anesthetic. I just slapped the initiation powder straight onto my belly and gritted my teeth through it.”

“If you didn’t need it, I won’t either!”

Lu Dongliang shook his head. “No. That was my only option—I suffered because I had to. I won’t let you endure that pain.”

…

That night, Lu Chunying successfully completed her Liuxiu initiation. Lu Dongliang arranged for Xiao Ye Ci to meet her.

Seeing Lu Chunying, Xiao Ye Ci was deeply moved. “My little girl, you’ve suffered so much. Initiation is so painful—are you still hurting? Have you eaten…?”

Lu Chunying stared coldly at Xiao Ye Ci and said impatiently, “I called you here to tell you our time is over. From now on, we each live our own life. Thank you for taking care of me all these years. Just leave.”

Xiao Ye Ci stared at Lu Chunying, speechless for a long while.

Lu Chunying pulled out a box containing a hundred silver dollars and handed it to Xiao Ye Ci. “This is my token of gratitude. My father will give you more money later. We won’t see each other again.”

Xiao Ye Ci’s eyes turned red. “My little girl…”

“Take the money. You need travel expenses.” Lu Chunying turned her face away, refusing to look at her again.

Xiao Ye Ci took the box and left Lu Chunying’s bedroom.

She didn’t know how she made it back.

When she returned to her room, she stared at the box of silver dollars for a long time.

She wanted to throw the box away and sneak out of this mansion.

Eating with a forced smile, walking with a forced smile—even going to the toilet required a forced smile.

She could endure all that. But Xiao Ye Ci could not endure Lu Chunying’s attitude.

She felt she had lost all dignity.

As a Wu Xiu on the first floor, she could find any job and live more decently than this.

Yet in the end, she opened the box.

Because she didn’t even have enough for travel expenses.

Inside were a hundred silver dollars—not a small sum. More than enough for her to live on for a while.

Beneath the silver dollars, something seemed to be there.

A piece of paper.

Xiao Ye Ci unfolded it and read: “Mom, I’ve been initiated. Rest one day. Tomorrow night, we’ll escape.”

…

In the bedroom, Lu Chunying gripped her sheets tightly.

Choosing Liuxiu was to run faster.

Mom, please, please open the box.

PS: Undercurrents run deep—great events loom. Dear readers, please vote for Salad.

(End of Chapter)