“Huanhuan, is that you?”
Seeing that it was already dark and his daughter still hadn’t returned, Yu Huan’s father had gone to wait for her at the village entrance.
“Dad, it’s me!”
“Why are you so late? Did anything happen on the way?” her father asked worriedly.
Yu Huan didn’t want her parents to worry, so she reassured him. “Nothing happened. Look, I’m perfectly fine, aren’t I?”
“Let’s hurry home, Dad. I’m starving.”
“Alright, I’ll ride the bicycle.”
The moment he heard his daughter say she was hungry, Yu Huan’s father completely forgot about asking anything else.
As soon as they entered their courtyard, Yu Huan’s mother came out to greet them.
“You’re finally back! Why did you get home so late?”
She noticed that her husband was carrying two cloth bags as he walked inside.
“What’s all this?” she asked.
“Your daughter brought it back. Ask her.”
Her husband could tell from the weight that the bags contained food.
Yu Huan handed her mother the sugar she had bought, then took out the braised pork and placed it on the dining table.
“Rice,” she answered casually.
“Huanhuan, you… You went to the black market?”
Yu Huan’s mother was so shocked that she could barely get the words out.
Her father wore a serious expression as he sat down on the long bench beside the dining table.
“Alright, tell us what happened.”
Yu Huan had already thought of an explanation when she took out the rice.
She reached into her pocket and pulled out five hundred yuan, along with a bicycle purchase coupon and a sewing machine purchase coupon.
After thinking it over, she had decided that this was an amount she could reasonably produce without frightening her parents too much.
“Oh my goodness! Where did you get so much money?”
Her mother was utterly stunned.
Her father was equally shocked. This amount was nearly half of their family’s entire savings!
“Dad, Mom, I got this money from selling ginseng. I dug some up on the back mountain yesterday but didn’t have time to tell you. Since I happened to be going to the county town today, I sold it while I was there.”
Yu Huan said it so casually, as though she had merely sold a radish.
Her parents exchanged glances, unsure what expression to make. Their daughter’s nonchalant attitude made it seem as though they were the ones making a fuss over nothing.
“Ahem. You went to the black market to sell it, didn’t you? You mustn’t go there again. It’s too dangerous.”
Her father cleared his throat before continuing.
“Your mother and I will keep this money for you. It’ll be your dowry when you get married.”
“Dad, you and Mom can decide what to do with it.”
Yu Huan figured that as long as her parents were happy, that was all that mattered. Besides, she would have even more money in the future.
“Then Mom will put it away for now.”
Yu Huan’s mother finally recovered from her shock. After hearing what they had discussed, she took the money into their room for safekeeping.
When she came back out, she picked up the braised pork from the table.
“I’ll heat this up before we eat.”
The family enjoyed a delicious dinner together before returning to their rooms for the night.
The night was quiet, with only a sparse scattering of stars in the sky.
Yet the person who should have been fast asleep was nowhere to be found in her room.
Inside her space, Yu Huan’s face was flushed crimson. She had just finished cultivating the dual cultivation technique, the Hehuan Art, but her body had begun experiencing an unbearable sensation, as though she were being consumed by flames.
The Hehuan Art had eight levels in total. With the assistance of her dreams, she had already reached the second level.
The first level focused on physical cultivation. Her combat abilities had now reached the point where she could take on a hundred opponents by herself.
However, beginning with the second level, cultivation required a man and a woman to practice together.
The preface on the first page of the technique clearly stated that every two levels constituted one major cultivation realm. Within each realm, cultivation could not be interrupted. Otherwise, the practitioner would either die or suffer severe injuries.
At this point, even if she wanted to stop cultivating, she had no choice.
It seemed she needed to find the person destined to be her partner as soon as possible.
With that thought, she finally couldn’t endure the pain any longer and fainted.
There was no change between day and night inside her space. It was always bright, as though it were daytime.
After an unknown amount of time, Yu Huan finally regained consciousness.
Dragging her weakened body, she drew some spiritual spring water and soaked herself in it.
After a short while, all the fatigue in her body disappeared.
Yu Huan left her space, tidied herself up, and opened her bedroom door.
As expected, she had overslept again. Everyone else in the family had already left, leaving her alone at home.
After breakfast, she took a military-green water bottle, filled it with spiritual spring water, and headed toward the fields.
The Yu family’s home was near the end of the village, so she had to walk through more than half of the village to reach the farmland.
Almost everyone in the village had already gone to work. Only a few elderly women with poor mobility remained at home, looking after the young children in their courtyards.
Most of the villagers in Yushui Village had the surname Yu. As Yu Huan walked past the fields and farmland, nearly everyone who spotted her greeted her.
All she could do was put on her trademark polite smile, nod, and return their greetings.
Over the past two years, she had rarely spent time in the village because she had been attending school in the county town. Even the girls she had been close friends with as a child had gradually drifted away from her. As for the village elders, she maintained only polite and distant relationships.
When she passed the farmland assigned to the educated youths, she noticed a tall figure in a white shirt working in the fields.
His back was damp with sweat, leaving a large patch of fabric clinging to his skin. Every time he bent down, the broad lines of his back and his lean waist became visible. His exposed arms looked fair, yet were clearly strong and powerful.
Yu Huan was so absorbed in watching him that she didn’t notice when Ling Yuan suddenly turned around and met her gaze.
His eyes were dark and deep. His short hair, damp with sweat against his forehead, added a hint of wild, untamed charm to his naturally cold and restrained demeanor.
Yu Huan was captivated all over again.
This man truly made her heart flutter no matter which side of him she saw.
She admitted it. She had fallen for his looks at first sight.
Rather than looking away, Yu Huan met Ling Yuan’s gaze and gave him a faint smile. Her expression was innocent and pure, yet carried an irresistible charm.
Ling Yuan felt as though something had suddenly burned his heart.
The sunlight wasn’t particularly harsh at that hour, yet he felt a faint warmth spreading through his body.
Looking slightly flustered, he quickly withdrew his gaze and continued with his work.
Yu Huan watched Ling Yuan turn away with his usual indifference. If she hadn’t caught the faint redness at the tips of his ears, she might have thought he was completely unaffected by her.
It was good that he had reacted at least a little.
After all, he was so cold and aloof. If he hadn’t shown even the slightest response, she wouldn’t have had the courage to approach him.
Since she needed to find the person destined to be her cultivation partner, she naturally wanted someone handsome. And wherever Ling Yuan went, he would undoubtedly be the most handsome man around.
After delivering the water, Yu Huan walked home beneath the bright sun.
She had just finished washing her hands and face when she heard someone knocking at the gate.
When she opened it, she discovered that it was her paternal aunt, accompanied by a woman who looked to be in her fifties.
“Huanhuan, you’re home? Are your parents here?” her aunt asked.
“They’re working in the fields.”
“Then hurry and call them back. Tell them we have visitors.”
Turning to the older woman behind her, she smiled.
“Sister Zhao, let’s go inside and wait for them.”
However, Sister Zhao remained where she was, looking Yu Huan up and down.
“Is this your niece?”
Her aunt immediately sounded proud.
“Yes, that’s her! Isn’t she beautiful? She’s the prettiest girl for miles around!”
Sister Zhao frowned.
“She’s too pretty. She looks like a little vixen.”
Yu Huan already disliked the way this woman was looking at her. Hearing such a remark, she didn’t bother showing her aunt any courtesy.
“Auntie, what exactly have you come here for? You come to my house just to make nasty comments about me. That doesn’t sound much like a guest paying a visit.”
Yu Huan’s aunt immediately became flustered.
“Yu Huan! Is that any way to speak? Is this how your mother taught you to treat guests?”
Sister Zhao’s brows furrowed even more.
“Just as I thought. No matter how pretty she is, she’s still an uneducated country girl. She doesn’t have the slightest manners. How dare she speak to her elders like that?”
“Auntie, I don’t even know you. What makes you think you can claim to be my elder?”
“Yu Chunmei, your niece certainly has a sharp tongue!” Sister Zhao said, turning toward Yu Huan’s aunt.
“Sister Zhao, please don’t be angry. She’s young and doesn’t know any better. We can teach her gradually,” Yu Chunmei said with an apologetic smile.
“Enough, Yu Huan! Hurry up and go call your parents back!”
Her aunt’s tone was now thoroughly impatient.