People always live for something, but living for oneself is an illusory thing; those who seek happiness are always on the path of pursuing happiness.
Constantly attributing meaning to achievements, to others.
Yun Ming, Master, Yun Kui Mountain, and everyone else... they replaced revenge, becoming Ye Qingxuan's reason to live.
At first, she liked watching Yun Ming rack his brains to make her happy. What was the point of making her happy?
But Yun Ming was simply stubborn.
Later, as she grew older, she enjoyed the feeling of protecting Yun Ming, or earning some money to taste delicious food from down the mountain with him.
His smile seemed to possess a charm that could heal hearts.
She liked seeing Yun Ming's shy demeanor, which is why she would occasionally tease him.
She liked Yun Ming's obedient and unresisting manner, so she always put on an elder sister's air.
She liked taking care of Yun Ming, so she almost always granted his requests. Even without a request, she couldn't help but wonder, what else does my Junior Brother need? Unconsciously, the name Yun Ming gradually held more weight in her heart than other things.
Ye Qingxuan also gradually realized that she wasn't protecting her Junior Brother; rather, she was relying on him. Among family, this emotional reliance was not inappropriate.
But Junior Brother would eventually grow up. He would have his own thoughts, his own loved ones, and he would leave her. This incident with the Qing Ming Sword and handling the commission made Ye Qingxuan realize this point. There were many things she couldn't stop Yun Ming from doing, nor should she.
After going down the mountain, she also heard about Hongdou and Yun'er's quarrel, plus the duel between the Senior and Junior Brothers of Yun Kui Mountain.
All of these became the talk of the town for miles around.
He was no longer the little fellow who followed her around, freeloading and refusing to leave. He was gradually stepping out, but Ye Qingxuan was still standing in place.
Ye Qingxuan had no objections to this, but she couldn't help but feel a little sentimental, so when she could hug him, she chose to hug him a little longer.
The hug was still a bit suffocating. Ye Qingxuan's figure was truly good and very soft, but this time, Yun Ming, for once, didn't overthink it.
After a moment of daze, he tightly wrapped his arms around Ye Qingxuan's waist, feeling that quiet sadness.
"Who made Senior Sister sad?"
"..."
Ye Qingxuan didn't know how to answer for a moment. She understood Yun'er, but Yun'er also understood her, making it hard to deceive him.
"No one..."
"If Senior Sister doesn't want to say, I'll go investigate myself."
"Don't. Anyway... I, I just saw some people who resembled my former family, so I can't help but feel a bit..."
Ye Qingxuan lied, but this was one of the few reasonable excuses that Yun Ming couldn't find a flaw in and wouldn't question further.
Sure enough.
Hearing this, Yun Ming fell into a brief silence, only tightening the arm around her waist, pressing against her chest uncomfortably, making it a little hard to breathe.
His other hand stroked her back.
"It's okay, Senior Sister still has me. I'll be with Senior Sister..."
"Always..."
A warm current seemed to surge in Ye Qingxuan's chest, and her taut muscles gradually relaxed. She lowered her gaze, thinking to herself.
Little liar, always saying sweet words.
After enjoying the moment, her voice suddenly became a little playful.
"Alright, stop taking advantage of Senior Sister."
"Hugging so tightly, Senior Sister will hurt too..."
These words were rather thought-provoking.
Yun Ming froze, quickly letting go. His eyes, however, seemed to have an auto-aim, uncontrollably drifting, and Senior Sister actually rubbed herself, wincing in pain... His Adam's apple bobbed, and he felt a surge of heat.
A sweet, metallic scent filled his nostrils.
Damn it, he hadn't been that diligent in his cultivation recently, so how could he still be getting 'internal heat'?
"Cough cough, it seems like I've been eating too many tonics recently, with too much vital energy, causing a bit of 'internal heat'."
He wiped his nose, but this excuse was probably worse than no explanation. After all, no one was a fool. If it were a mutually affectionate young couple, they would probably be blushing right now.
But Ye Qingxuan was no ordinary woman. She picked up a tissue and handed it to him, unable to resist teasing.
"Yun'er has really grown up~"
The touching atmosphere of sibling affection was broken. Yun Ming was so embarrassed he wanted to find a hole to crawl into. No... Senior Sister was rubbing herself right in front of him with a 'you little rascal' expression.
Who could resist that?
Fortunately, Ye Qingxuan remained very natural. In her heart, she was secretly curious about what kind of wife her Junior Brother would find in the future to surpass her.
She should be virtuous, gentle, preferably prettier than her, and good at childbearing... Forget it, what a mess, why think about him?
It only adds to the trouble.
Her expression became serious, and she brought up the main topic.
"Oh right, that ten million is a loan from the sect to you. I know you all received fifteen million; Xu Zhimo has confessed everything..."
"You're not allowed to tell Senior Sister these little lies again in the future."
"The money I confiscated from your drawings... cough, those illegal gains, will all be returned to you, but you're not allowed to do this kind of business again in the future, understand?"
"From now on, you'll manage your own money, but you're not allowed to be extravagant... Oh, Senior Sister will be going down the mountain to manage Sui Bian Temple's operations from now on."
"While I'm away, you must cultivate well on the mountain. I'll have Ke Ke keep a close eye on you. Although that girl has already defected, she wouldn't dare lie about these things."
"Remember not to stay up late, and also..."
"..."
Also, remember to miss me.
Ye Qingxuan didn't say that last sentence; it was too cheesy.
"Senior Sister is still so naggy~"
Yun Ming held his nose, speaking muffledly, but even just by his expression, Ye Qingxuan understood his complaint.
"Looking for a beating? You're already starting to dislike me?"
She reached out to hit him, but her hand ultimately landed softly on Yun Ming's face, gently caressing it, "Tomorrow is the weekend. Remember to go down the mountain and explain things clearly to Hongdou..."
"Mm, you don't need to worry about Hongdou and me."
Yun Ming scratched his head. He didn't really want to talk about Hongdou in front of Senior Sister, even though he often talked about Senior Sister in front of Hongdou.
He didn't quite understand this mentality either.
"Then... I'm leaving..."
The woman's hand slipped away, and she sighed softly, seemingly unable to find any further reason to stay, then turned and walked out the door.
Yun Ming opened his mouth, originally wanting to chat with Senior Sister for a while longer, but after much thought, he couldn't think of anything to say.
The scent of food lingered in the bedroom. Hmm, and Senior Sister's scent too... What kind of shower gel does Senior Sister usually use?
No, Senior Sister is so thrifty that she doesn't usually use it.
She just bathes daily, regardless of winter or summer.
So that sweet scent is... Yun Ming's face turned red. He watched Senior Sister's back gradually disappear, then heavily collapsed onto the bed.
He wouldn't be able to sleep tonight. Before seeing Master, he should cultivate well!
Senior Sister, it's not that I deliberately stayed up late to cultivate... you're partly to blame too!!!
Spiritual energy, refine, refine, refine for me—