"Lady Xiao, there's a letter for you."
Xiao Qiaoniang took the letter, which had been folded twice, from the hand of a man who looked like a shop assistant, her brow furrowing slightly.
'It's already late at night. Who would be sending a letter?'
Though puzzled, she unfolded the paper.
"Sister-in-law, I won't be coming home tonight. Signed, Yuan."
The short sentence was scrawled crookedly, a clear sign he was drunk.
Xiao Qiaoniang smiled knowingly, a picture of Bai Yuan writing the note appearing in her mind.
Even when drunk, her man still remembered to send a letter home.
This kind of life was truly reassuring.
...
The next day.
Bai Yuan woke up with a groggy, heavy head.
Hot sunlight streamed through the window lattice of the Drunken Immortal Pavilion, shining on his face. It was already late in the morning.
Liu Qingshan and the others were still sleeping soundly, sprawled out in awkward positions.
The brewing techniques of this era couldn't compare to his previous life. Although the alcohol content wasn't high, it was incredibly easy to get drunk.
The group had already asked Zhou Qian for leave when they came out yesterday.
With Bai Yuan, a new and outstanding Outer Disciple, making the request, Zhou Qian naturally wouldn't make things difficult.
Liu Qingshan was the second to wake up after Bai Yuan.
"You really can hold your liquor."
Seeing that Bai Yuan was already wide awake, Liu Qingshan smiled. He had witnessed Bai Yuan's incredible tolerance for alcohol many times before.
Zhuang Zhao, Li Ting, and the others showed no signs of waking, so the two leaned against the railing and started chatting.
Liu Qingshan gazed at the Qinghe River outside the window.
"Junior Brother Bai, don't worry too much about that affiliation matter I mentioned before. It was just a routine proposal. Whether you affiliate with my family or not, we're still brothers."
He showed no hint of trying to force the recruitment.
Before, he had entertained the thought of bringing Bai Yuan under his wing.
But now that Bai Yuan was beginning to distinguish himself, he was clearly not someone that he or the Liu Family of Baisha Town could control. Rather than risk Bai Yuan's displeasure, it was better to maintain a good relationship.
Liu Qingshan was well aware of his own Martial Dao foundation. It was propped up by medicinal herbs and was, frankly, a complete mess.
His future in the Martial Dao was simply incomparable to Bai Yuan's.
Liu Qingshan's frankness greatly increased Bai Yuan's favorable impression of him.
"I'll consider it."
Bai Yuan answered earnestly.
The Liu Family in Baisha Town was wealthy enough, and their remote location meant they were unlikely to attract major trouble. Compared to the factions in the city, it was a much less worrisome option.
Another hour passed.
Zhuang Zhao, Li Ting, and the others woke up one after another.
When Li Ting thought about how she had spent the night at the Drunken Immortal Pavilion with several men, her pretty face flushed red with shame.
Fortunately, they had stayed in a private room at the Drunken Immortal Pavilion the whole time, so no one could have seen them.
In this era, it was a major taboo for a woman not to return home at night. Even a great family like the Li Family was not exempt from this custom.
A hint of panic appeared on Li Ting's face.
"Senior Brother Bai, Senior Brother Liu, everyone, this little lady will take her leave now."
After a hasty farewell, she fled the Drunken Immortal Pavilion as if escaping.
Liu Qingshan smiled faintly. He was crystal clear on the rules of those great families; Li Ting would surely face a scolding when she got back.
However, given Li Ting's status in the Li Family, the punishment would certainly not be too severe.
The rules were always different depending on the person.
If a woman from Baisha Town dared to do something as outrageous as staying out all night, she would be drowned in a pig cage that very day.
Such things happened often enough.
Although Liu Qingshan didn't return to town often, nothing that happened there escaped his notice.
...
"You drank quite a bit last night, brother-in-law?"
Xiao Qiaoniang said, looking at Bai Yuan, who hadn't come home all night and only returned at noon.
He hadn't hidden the fact that he'd become an Outer Disciple, so she already knew. A celebration was naturally unavoidable.
"I did drink a bit too much. It won't happen again."
"I made you worry, Sister-in-law."
Bai Yuan added.
Xiao Qiaoniang thought of the letter from last night and smiled faintly.
"Brother-in-law, let me make you some congee to sober you up."
"There's no need."
"?"
"Pack your things. We're moving."
Hearing the word "moving," Xiao Qiaoniang was even more stunned.
Bai Yuan had ultimately accepted Liu Qingshan's offer to affiliate with the Liu Family of Baisha Town.
Liu Qingshan, having already thoroughly investigated Bai Yuan's family background, directly gifted him a two-courtyard residence—the Bai Family's ancestral home.
There wasn't much in the small wooden cabin to begin with.
The two of them quickly packed up and, carrying all their worldly possessions, arrived at the Bai Family's ancestral home.
Ever since his predecessor had sold the ancestral home to the Liu Family for a pittance, the place had been left vacant for four years.
Xiao Qiaoniang stared at the familiar green bricks and tiles, feeling as if it wasn't real.
She never would have dreamed that she would one day be able to return here.
Bai Yuan took out the Copper Key that Liu Qingshan had given him.
With a CLICK, the lock turned.
The heavy wooden door let out a long CREAK.
A spirit screen was visible as soon as they stepped through the door.
In his predecessor's memories, it seemed the Bai family's parents had carved it themselves. They had poured so much of their heart and soul into this courtyard home.
'What a filial son he was.'
Bai Yuan couldn't help but shake his head at the thought of his predecessor selling the ancestral home to the Liu Family for a mere ten taels of silver just to go watch cockfighting at the edge of town.
The residence hadn't been lived in for a long time and was covered in a thick layer of dust.
Fortunately, the Bai family's parents had been willing to spend money when building the house, so there were no signs of collapse or serious damage.
Bai Yuan and Xiao Qiaoniang worked until sunset, barely managing to clean the courtyard and side rooms.
No longer having to smell the stench of rotting wood, Bai Yuan felt refreshed and invigorated.
Bai Yuan and Xiao Qiaoniang finally had their own separate rooms.
After a long day of work, the two made a simple meal and then went to their respective rooms to sleep.
On his first night not sleeping separated from his sister-in-law only by a curtain, Bai Yuan found himself tossing and turning, unable to sleep.
...
「Early morning.」
The door to the west wing where his sister-in-law was staying was tightly shut. She probably wasn't up yet.
No longer needing to worry about waking his sister-in-law, Bai Yuan leaped out of bed, washed his face, left a note, and headed out.
Now that the Liu Family was watching over things in Baisha Town, nothing major was likely to happen.
He first went to the Huwei Arts Hall.
One of the benefits of becoming an Outer Disciple was the ability to choose one Bone Forging Technique.
Although he already had the Tiger Form Crane Style Saber Technique, when it came to Cultivation Techniques, the more the merrier.
Following Zhang Yang's instructions from yesterday, he went to a pavilion on the east side of the Martial Arts Hall.
Celestial One Pavilion.
'Heaven gives birth to water, and Earth completes it with the number six.'
'In both his past life and this one, libraries always seemed to love this name. It implied a blessing from heavenly water to prevent fires.'
Just as Bai Yuan crossed the threshold of the Celestial One Pavilion, he was stopped by an old man with white hair and a white beard.
"What is your purpose here?"
The white-haired elder said slowly, stroking his beard.
Bai Yuan immediately stated his identity and purpose.
Upon hearing that Bai Yuan was a newly promoted Outer Disciple, the white-haired elder led him to a row of bookshelves.
The shelves were filled with all sorts of Cultivation Techniques: for saber, spear, sword, axe, hook, and battle-axe—every kind was there.
The Huwei Arts Hall had clearly put in a great deal of effort to collect all these Cultivation Techniques.
The Five Animals Fist was just a basic, entry-level style. No matter how high your martial skill, you still had to fear a kitchen knife. In a real fight, weapons were still more practical.
Of course, a master of fist techniques was another matter entirely.
Without hesitation, Bai Yuan pulled a manual titled > from the shelf.
He wasn't afraid of having choices; he was afraid of having none.
'Time for a combo.'