"Miss, I was also worried about your safety. I heard that the old house in the county town had been sold, and I thought that's why you came here in such a hurry to make sure you were safe."

This Mr. Li, with his temples streaked with gray, was a master of words, leaving half spoken and letting the listener fill in the rest.

The ripples had settled, but Li Guanxi showed no intention of letting the other person sit down. Holding a handkerchief in his hand, his eyes were red-rimmed as he spoke:

The old house in the county town was sold by me, under instructions from my steward. After my father's passing, rumors spread through the city that he had left a fortune for me. At only twelve years old, I was terrified. Having finished my father's funeral arrangements, I could only seek refuge on our estate.

If there were truly so much money in our family, even if we could afford ginseng every day to prolong my father's life, why would he leave me behind and depart so early?

I still had someone specifically go to Li Mansion in Beijing to report the news of my father's passing. I thought my uncle would come to support me, but three months after my father's funeral was complete, only you came to visit. You immediately said that the steward of our Wu family is incompetent, yet you also want to add fuel to the rumors and bully a lonely woman like me? What kind of ability is that?

After that, she started to wipe her tears with a handkerchief.

Li Guan, upon hearing this, changed color and immediately knelt down to plead guilty.

"Little one, I didn't see Miss. I wonder if you are well? My words were out of line and caused Miss to be unhappy. I will take the punishment when I return home."

Miss Bai has wrongly accused her Master. Upon learning of your father's passing, the Master dispatched Young Master Ji to Jiangnan for the funeral.

"Really?"

Ripple stopped her tears, asked in surprise, then frowned and said:

Where is the other person? I didn't see them.

After finishing, he turned his head to look at Wu Guanjia.

"Miss, if Master had come to mourn, how could I possibly conceal it? Moreover, you were at the mourning hall, and you saw all those who came to pay their respects."

"Yes! I haven't seen my cousin."

The ripples once again threw the problem back onto Li Guan.

"This is also the reason for my visit. The young master disappeared on his way to pay respects here, and we have already reported it to the authorities."

"Could this be true?"

"Are you serious? You're not kidding me, are you? Did my cousin go somewhere else?"

Li Guan immediately cursed and swore, saying that everything he said was true, but unfortunately both Lianyi and Wu Guan were skeptical.

Ripple didn't want to hear Li Guan continue talking nonsense, so she coughed directly. Luo Ying raised her eyebrows and said somewhat unpleasantly:

"Mr. Li, you've already met my young mistress. She was already unwell, and now she's been exhausted from personally coming out. What if her cold worsens?"

"

It's mine.

"

Li Guan shi could only say that much.

"Luo Ying, help me go back to rest!"

Yes, Miss!

The ripples made a gesture with his hand to Li Guanjia, and was escorted away by two maidservants. This left Wu Guanjia and Li Guanjia staring at each other in disbelief.

Li Guan also knew his place. It was obvious that people didn't like him, and they didn't even mention staying overnight. He could only take the initiative to resign and leave.

I wanted to ask the people in Zhuangzi about some things, but although they were very respectful to me, they didn't ask anything useful. They just said that Miss Wu was kind and treated them well.

Back in her own room, Lianyi immediately returned to her usual self. This made Minmin, who had been following her, curiously ask:

"Miss, why are you so polite to that Li Guanxi?"

He represented the Li family of the capital city. Although the Li family was in decline in the capital, they still held some sway in this small county town in Jiangnan. They could intimidate some petty criminals. Though Miss didn't want to get too close to them, she wasn't at odds with them either.

Luo Ying patiently explained.

"As Luo Ying said, maybe after the three-year mourning period ends, they will come to take me to Beijing's Li Residence."

Ripple wiped the white powder off her lips and smiled.

If you know the other party has ill intentions, why go there?

Zhou Minmin frowned and asked.

"Your young lady will be coming of age in three years. This is something that elders should oversee, and it's a perfect opportunity for me to leave here properly and take you all to the capital to broaden your horizons."

Ripple smiled sweetly.

Luo Ying shook her head, but she also knew what her young mistress had in mind, so she didn't say more.

The next day when Li Guanjia came again, Wu Guanjia's face was long and drawn. Before the other man could speak, he jumped in and said:

"Li Guan, you can say anything. Yesterday you insisted on seeing the young mistress, and she came to see you despite being ill. As a result, she caught a cold and developed a fever this morning."

Li Guan shi, with a black line on his forehead, could only pretend to be concerned and ask:

But did you ask a doctor to come?

"I requested it earlier this morning. The young lady just took her fever-reducing and calming medicine and fell asleep. It's not convenient to disturb her now."

Wu Guantang said lightly.

"Very well, then. There's nothing else to discuss. On behalf of the Li Manor, I invite Miss to reside in the capital city. That way, you won't be lonely here, and you won't have to worry about being targeted."

"That's not necessary, miss. She said this place is close to her husband and wife, so she can visit their graves anytime. Besides, it wouldn't be appropriate for her to observe filial piety without being near her family members."

Li Guanshi knew that the proposal had been rejected, so he didn't pursue it further. He came mainly to see the young master this time, so he soon took his leave.

Li Guan went away, and Zhuangzi regained its usual tranquility. Lian was busy practicing martial arts while also diligently learning other skills, never having a moment to rest.

Wen Lu, however, became more and more excited. She discovered that her young mistress was incredibly talented. When Wen Lu taught her a sword move once, the young mistress could remember it perfectly. By the second lesson, she could even imitate it, though without any internal energy powering it. Even without the power of internal energy, just watching her sword moves was quite impressive.

Mimin taught her young mistress how to practice kung fu, but she encountered the same situation. She even doubted that Miss Lianyi's boxing style was the authentic Vajra Subduing Demon Fist, except that it lacked some power.

Of course, this is why ripples keep some things to herself; she wouldn't let everyone know all her cards.

In the second month after moving to Zhuangzi, she had already used the spiritual essence of space to guide qi into her body. Originally, she was also taking a trial-and-error approach, after all, this place wasn't the cultivation world. But when it came to dealing with evil spirits that popped up from nowhere, she felt it was still necessary to have some means of control.

After inhaling Qi, Ripples felt the oppression of Heaven's Dao, but it also seemed as if Heaven was showing her mercy.

"Nineteen, the heavens here allow me to cultivate."

“This is the agreement made between our Temporal Management Agency and this plane's Celestial Dao. We send people to eliminate threats that enter this plane through spatial rifts, and in return, he turns a blind eye and allows you to possess corresponding strength.”

It's like you've entered an ancient world, but the enemies possess firearms. To eliminate them, you need matching weaponry. However, to avoid disrupting the entire realm, you can only possess weapons that surpass its level of development.

The explanation given by the millstone is very clear.

"Understood!"

Since she was recognized by Heaven, she devoted herself wholeheartedly to cultivation. Three years later, she successfully cultivated to the late stage of Qi Refining, but there was no tribulation thunder to help her break through to the Foundation Establishment stage.

At this time, the people sent by the Li family in the capital had also arrived at the mountain villa.