Chapter 126: Sharing the Danger Together

A flash of embarrassment crossed Li Zhi'an's face, but he quickly returned to normal. He walked softly to Cheng Xi's side, sat on the stone stool, and looked at her with gentle eyes: "I wanted to let you sleep a while longer, but I didn't want to wake you."

Cheng Xi opened her eyes and lazily stretched. Baohua was woken by the movement, hummed a few times in a daze, and then crawled back onto her shoulder.

"Is there some important matter for this return?" Cheng Xi looked at Li Zhi'an, keenly sensing a hint of gravity in his expression.

Li Zhi'an nodded slightly, took a secret letter from his sleeve, and handed it to Cheng Xi: "Just received news; there are undercurrents in Jindu. After I left, several ministers in the court began to stir. I must go back."

Cheng Xi took the secret letter, unfolded it to read carefully, and her brows gradually furrowed. She sneered and said, "These people really don't want to live a good life; they insist on pressing their own heads into the dirt to be trampled."

"Ji Tang has escaped, and the remnants of the Ji Family are lurking in the shadows. This Wanxing City looks stable, but it is actually full of hidden dangers," Li Zhi'an added. "I am worried they will collude with those in Jindu who harbor evil intentions. Once they coordinate from inside and out, the situation will be difficult to manage."

Cheng Xi pondered for a moment and said, "Since Ji Tang is hiding in the shadows, we still need to lure her out. I think your return to Jindu is the perfect opportunity."

Li Zhi'an nodded, "That is what I thought, too. Will you come back with me?"

Cheng Xi was immediately amused, "Why is everyone asking me this question today?"

Li Zhi'an was stunned, then immediately understood. He looked at Cheng Xi and said, "Coming back with me is different from them."

Cheng Xi glanced at him; how could she not know his thoughts? She smiled, "I can't be bothered with the hassle. If you go back, just check if Mulan and the others are doing well for me. I'll wait for you to return."

Li Zhi'an knew that Cheng Xi was a person with a very firm mind. Since she said this, she had made up her mind not to go back.

He did not try to persuade her further, only saying: "Fine, I will go take a look."

Baohua jumped off Cheng Xi's shoulder and quickly brought a cup of Spirit Tea to Li Zhi'an. Li Zhi'an reached out to take it, and Baohua hopped away again.

He looked at Cheng Xi and said: "Baohua is becoming more and more like a human."

Cheng Xi:...

That was a creepy thing to say.

"I am leaving early tomorrow morning."

Cheng Xi heard this and looked at him, "Then have a safe journey."

Li Zhi'an:...

Fine then.

Li Zhi'an had wanted to stay with Cheng Xi a while longer, but a Transmission Talisman from Jiang Zhongqiao flew in, urging him to go over immediately. Li Zhi'an left with a dark face.

Cheng Xi was delighted; one shouldn't be too capable, otherwise, like Li Zhi'an, one would run their legs off.

Look at how good she had it, so leisurely and carefree.

The next day, there were far fewer people at the Academy. Most took this opportunity to take the Regent's Spirit Boat back to Jindu to visit relatives.

Cheng Fenglan came to bring food to Cheng Xi. Seeing her alone in the courtyard sunning herself, she walked over and said, "Time to eat."

Cheng Xi tilted her head to look at her, quite surprised: "You came to bring me food?"

"Otherwise?"

Cheng Xi said slowly: "Missing one meal won't starve anyone to death."

Cheng Fenglan had cultivated an excellent temper now; she ignored Cheng Xi entirely, placed her meal on the table, and picked up her own portion to eat with her head down.

Cheng Xi felt it was boring; Cheng Fenglan was no longer fun to tease. In the past, she would have jumped up to argue with her.

Still, it was something someone had gone to the trouble of bringing, so one should respect the fruits of others' labor. Although she wasn't hungry, Cheng Xi ate the meal anyway.

Cheng Fenglan tidied up the bowls and chopsticks and turned to leave. After a few steps, she turned back to look at Cheng Xi and said: "My brother and the others are all at the back mountain. Do you want to go see?"

Cheng Xi shook her head, "Not going."

Cheng Fenglan then left.

Cheng Xi knew that a mineral deposit had been discovered on Wanxing Mountain. After refining, it could be made into Talisman Beads. Although the quantity wasn't large, it was enough to be exciting.

The Academy had cordoned off one area for itself, and the rest was left open for anyone to dig. However, these ores still needed an Artifact Master to help refine them, so Xuanyin Peak had been very lively these days.

Jiang Miao had come to find her, asking if she wanted to go earn some money, but she had refused.

Although Jiang Miao looked down on her for being lazy, she still brought her a large piece of ore. The quality was decent, though Talisman Beads refined from this type of ore were only of low grade.

To purify them, one would have to spend more Talisman Beads to fuse them.

In short, it was labor-intensive and didn't earn much money.

Just as she was about to fall asleep, Jiang Weiran came again. He held a shell as white as jade, placed it on the table, and looked at Cheng Xi saying: "The latest snack from the market, try it."

Cheng Xi took a look; purple liquid swirled inside the jade-white shell. "What is this?"

"It's called Purple Spirit Juice. They say it's made from Purple Star Fruit and has a bit of Spirit Essence. Try it, it's sweet and sour," Jiang Weiran laughed.

Cheng Xi actually picked it up and took a sip. The taste was indeed good, a bit like the sour plum soup of later generations, but the flavor was even richer.

"Cheng Xi, what do you think if I go pick Purple Star Fruit to make Purple Spirit Juice to sell?"

Cheng Xi almost spat out the liquid, "Are you that short of money now?"

Jiang Weiran said righteously: "Idle is idle. If we go over there in the future, there will be plenty of places to spend money."

"That works too," Cheng Xi nodded. "I'll write you a recipe. How about we split the money if we make a profit?"

Jiang Weiran's mouth twitched, "Is your recipe any good?"

"Naturally it is. If it doesn't sell, I won't take your money."

"That's acceptable."

Cheng Xi looked at him and said: "There is a white Jade Pulp Fruit on Wanxing Mountain. It tastes even better when mixed with Purple Star Fruit."

She handed the finished recipe to Jiang Weiran.

"Really?" Jiang Weiran had seen Jade Pulp Fruit before. "That fruit is bitter and hard to swallow; how can it be eaten?"

"After neutralizing it with Purple Star Fruit, it will have a special flavor. You'll know once you try it."

"What kind of flavor?"

"An indescribable flavor."

Jiang Weiran always felt that Cheng Xi was trying to trick him, but remembering that Cheng Xi never did anything useless, he couldn't help but feel tempted.

To share the risk, he called Cheng Yunjian and his sister along. Earn money together, share the danger together.

Later, Jiang Weiran deeply regretted today's decision; he should not have doubted Cheng Xi's fastidious taste. Originally it was to be split between two people, but in the end, it was split between four, which pained him to death.

Jiang Weiran brought the first portion he made to Cheng Xi to taste. After Cheng Xi ate it, he adjusted the recipe slightly. Once the Jade Pulp Fruit and Purple Star Fruit neutralized each other, they would solidify into a sandy texture, and serving them in the Jade Pulp Fruit shells looked extremely beautiful.

Moreover, no one could have imagined that putting Jade Pulp Fruit and Purple Star Fruit together was not only delicious but could also increase spiritual power; once it went on sale, it became an instant hit.

Who wouldn't be happy to make money? Cheng Fenglan and Cheng Yunjian ran to the back mountain every day. Seeing this, Cheng Xi simply refined large-capacity Storage Bags for them, which contained a touch of Space Law and, with the addition of Ice Crystal Stone, also had an ice-chilling and freshness-preserving effect.