Chapter 269

The congratulatory gift Yu Lin sent was not gold or silver trinkets, but a pill the size of a longan, with a faint Pure Radiance.

"This pill is called the 'Soul-Nourishing Pill'; it works wonders in stabilizing the soul and nourishing the soul source." Yu Lin explained to Dong Yong, his gaze sweeping over him with a deep meaning: "

Dong Brother, though your soul was promptly recalled after the recent calamity, you inevitably picked up the Yin Cold energy of the Underworld, suffering slight damage. 」

"Taking this pill not only heals hidden wounds but also strengthens the divine soul; with a strong divine soul, essence and qi abound, naturally nourishing the body, prolonging life, and strengthening health."

This pill is of little use to the Seventh Fairy Maiden with her innate celestial body, but for Dong Yong it is nothing less than timely rain.

Upon hearing this, Dong Yong's heart swelled with greater gratitude, and he hastily took it reverently.

He also harbored an unspoken thought: as a mere mortal, while Qimei is an immortal incarnate, in the future marital chambers… he must not let his frail body disappoint her!

This pill is truly a godsend in the snow, vital for future marital harmony!

Thinking of this, he became extremely pleased with the gift.

When the banquet ended, the guests departed in high spirits.

Night had fallen, the stars filling the sky.

Yu Lin sat alone beneath the old tree outside the house, watching the candlelight inside the window adorned with big red happiness characters; it flickered for a moment, then finally went out with a 'puff', plunging into darkness symbolizing completion and beginning.

The corners of his mouth twitched up slightly, forming a smile; he then rose, his silhouette silently merging into the night, as if he had never appeared.

…………

A year later, late summer to early autumn.

Before the same wooden house, Dong Yong no longer had last year's composure, pacing back and forth outside the door like ants on a hot pan, his forehead and tip of his nose beaded with fine sweat, his back clothing soaked through and clinging to his body.

He clenched his fists, occasionally glancing at the tightly shut door, his eyes full of barely concealed anxiety and worry.

The intermittent muffled groans of pain from inside made his heart feel as if cut by a knife.

"May Heaven bless us, may our ancestors bless us, mother and child must be safe, mother and child must be safe!" he repeated in his heart, all his attention fixed on the wife inside who was bearing his child and enduring the pains of labor.

Time passed slowly in the anxious wait.

Suddenly——

"Waaah——! Waaah——!"

A loud, vigorous infant wail, like heavenly music, pierced through from inside the house, instantly breaking the tense atmosphere of the small courtyard!

Dong Yong halted his steps abruptly, his whole body as if frozen, then a tremendous joy surged in his heart!

The door opened with a 'creak', and the experienced midwife stepped out holding a swaddled baby, her face beaming with smiles, announcing loudly:

"It's a little lord! Mother and child are safe!"

"Take a look, this little one is quite sturdy, weighing a full seven catties and eight taels!"

However, contrary to the midwife's expectation,

Although Dong Yong's face instantly broke into an extraordinarily excited and relieved smile, and he let out a long breath of the pent‑up foul air, he did not immediately go to take the swaddled baby.

He didn't even glance at the newborn son, but like an arrow released from a bow, he took a big step, brushed past the midwife, and rushed straight into the house.

Inside, a faint aroma lingered; the Seventh Fairy Maiden's face was pallid, her hair damp with sweat sticking to her cheeks, she lay exhausted on the bed, yet her eyes held tenderness and tranquility.

Dong Yong hurried to the bedside, seized his wife's icy hand in one grip, bent over, his eyes locked on her weakened face, his voice trembling slightly from agitation and lingering fear, filled with undisguised heartache:

"My wife… I've made you suffer……"

The Seventh Fairy Maiden shook her head, forcing a smile: "It's not hardship; rather, it's made you, my lord, worry…………

"My wife, I…………

"My lord…………

The child in the midwife's arms outside the house:

"Waaaaah!!!!

The child is merely an accident; they are the true love.

Just as they were lost in their deep affection.

In heaven.

"............"

"Now that the child is born, may I intervene?"

The Jade Emperor's expression remained composed as he withdrew his gaze from that warm scene in the mortal realm, reached into the cauldron before him—a pot of red‑oil broth that Yu Lin had prepared, gurgling and rolling—and precisely picked up a tender slice of meat with his chopsticks, sending it to his lips.

"This flavor is not bad; at the future Peach Banquet, we could let the immortals sample it as well."

Upon hearing this, Yu Lin happened to shove a large piece of meat coated in sauce into his mouth, swallowed it satisfied, then waved his hand with a relaxed smile:

"Oh dear, Great Heavenly Venerable, no rush, no rush!"

He picked up the Immortal Brew beside him, took a sip, and spoke leisurely:

"As the saying goes, adults may be at fault, but the child is innocent!"

"You see, if we were to seize the Seventh Princess now, the infant in the swaddling clothes would lose his mother at such a tender age—this would be overly cruel, harming heavenly harmony, not the act of a benevolent ruler!"

While speaking, he also pushed a plate of meat sliced as thin as a cicada's wing before the Jade Emperor, warmly greeting,

"Why not wait another three years? Three years in the mortal world are but three snaps of the fingers in the Heavenly Court."

"Come, come, don't stand on ceremony—this meat is fresh, eat more!"

The Jade Emperor watched Yu Lin's role reversal of host and guest, a hint of helplessness appearing on his face as he glanced at him:

"You are here now; everything you eat and use, even this pot's broth, is taken from me—yet you tell me not to stand on ceremony."

He paused, his gaze sweeping once more over the mortal realm below, and finally sighed,

"Very well, the child is indeed innocent; I shall allow him… three more years."

Yu Lin, however, gave a faint smile:

"Where? This fire wasn't brought by me, was it?"

"Come, come, eat more."

He had just wanted to dip a few more slices of meat when he heard a vigorous shout from outside, devoid of anger, approaching from afar:

"Yu——Lin——! You little brat!!"

His voice rang like a great bell, shaking the sea of clouds into turmoil.

Only then did they see Tai Shang Lao Jun riding the clouds swiftly; before he arrived, his voice of reproach had already come first:

"The Samadhi True Fire I use in my furnace to refine Golden Core—what have you done with it?!"

Yu Lin's chopsticks, holding meat, froze mid‑air.

"I was wondering why this fire felt so familiar—it turns out to be Lao Jun's Samadhi True Fire."

The Jade Emperor leisurely picked up another chopstick of vegetables, glanced at the frozen Yu Lin, and the corners of his mouth twitched upward.

Yu Lin: "..........".