At that moment, Hai Dali saw two graceful figures approaching.
The girl walking in front was ethereal and refined, dressed in a snow-white long dress. Her graceful figure moved as if she had stepped straight out of a painting.
The girl following behind her was also bright and charming, delicate and lovely, no less pleasing than Qingzhi.
Hai Dali’s heart wavered at the sight. He could not help but marvel that the Chen Family truly was his blessed land.
When the crowd saw who had arrived, they all bowed in unison and said, “Greetings, Eldest Miss.”
Chen Muyue nodded slightly and said gently, “Due to special circumstances, I made a temporary decision to leave some of you here. I apologize for the inconvenience.”
After speaking, she bowed to everyone.
Seeing this, Hai Dali thought to himself, “This Eldest Miss is actually quite kind.”
The crowd was flattered to see their Eldest Miss bow to them. They hurriedly responded, “We wouldn’t dare, we wouldn’t dare.”
With that gesture, most of the resentment in their hearts dissipated, and the selection process proceeded smoothly.
Chen Muyue personally selected those who would stay. When she reached Hai Dali, her gaze flickered slightly upon seeing the sword in his hand.
As a result, Hai Dali was chosen to remain.
Hai Dali noticed her glance at the sword, and inside, it felt as though ten thousand horses were galloping wildly.
He had obtained the sword for self-defense. Before he could even use it, it had caused him to be selected to stay. He did not know whether to laugh or cry.
Soon, the medicinal materials that needed to be transported were ready. Chen Er led the guards who had not been selected back to the Chen Residence.
Hai Dali watched Chen Er’s retreating figure, wishing he could follow him. He had no idea how long he would have to stay here. If it was too long, without Qingzhi warming his bed at night, he did not know how he would endure it.
“Uncle Zhong, arrange them,” Chen Muyue said before leaving with her maid.
The “Uncle Zhong” she referred to was the middle-aged man, Chen Zhong, a collateral branch member of the Chen Family.
“Follow me,” Chen Zhong said, leading the group. “You don’t need to worry too much. You won’t be assigned particularly dangerous tasks.”
“You will simply follow the patrols as usual. If demonic beasts attack, there will be people to handle it. You lack experience, so unless absolutely necessary, you won’t be made to face them directly.”
The crowd let out a sigh of relief. In his heart, Hai Dali sneered. It sounded nice, but there was still danger.
Soon, everyone was assigned. Due to the terrain of the Spiritual Herb Fields, they were divided into three groups. The north side bordered a cliff, so no one was stationed there. Follow the newest chapters on novelping dot com.
The east side was closest to the Lianyun Mountain Range and suffered the most frequent demonic beast attacks, so six people were assigned there.
The remaining west and south sides each had two people assigned. Hai Dali and a man named Xu Peng were assigned to the west, under the supervision of an old man.
The old man led them to his residence. The conditions were extremely simple, with only two isolated houses.
Looking at the two of them, the old man said, “You two are quite fortunate to be assigned here.”
Hai Dali and Xu Peng asked in confusion, “Why is that?”
The old man slowly explained, “Because there’s a large river nearby. Demonic beasts rarely attack from this side, so the chance of encountering one is lower.”
“Are there no demonic beasts in the river?” Hai Dali asked curiously.
“Of course there are, and quite a few,” the old man replied. “But river beasts rarely come ashore. Unless something unusual happens, they won’t approach the land. I’ve been here for over a decade and haven’t encountered one once.”
Hearing this, the two of them felt relieved.
“My name is Chen Ping, a collateral branch member of the Chen Family. You can call me Uncle Ping or Old Ping,” the old man introduced himself.
“Uncle Ping, my name is Hai Dali. Just call me Dali,” Hai Dali said respectfully. This man had been here for so long, and for the foreseeable future, he would have to rely on him. Courtesy was necessary.
Xu Peng followed suit and introduced himself as well.
Chen Ping nodded and continued, “Usually only two people stay here. The other person was transferred away, so his house is vacant. There’s only that one empty house. If you don’t mind, you can share it. If not, you can build another one yourselves.”
The two exchanged a glance and both saw a hint of reluctance in the other’s eyes. Hai Dali said, “I’ll build one myself.”
Seeing him voluntarily give up the house, Xu Peng’s impression of him improved slightly. After a moment’s thought, he said, “I won’t take advantage of you. I’ll help you build it.”
Hai Dali readily agreed.
After they settled the lodging matter, Chen Ping added, “Food and water will be delivered daily. If you detect any demonic beasts or if the formation around the Spiritual Herb Fields is triggered, report it immediately.”
“How will we know if the formation has been triggered?” Hai Dali asked.
“The formation around the fields is only an alert formation. If triggered, it will emit strong spiritual energy fluctuations. It’s easy to distinguish,” Chen Ping explained.
The two nodded.
With nothing more to add, Chen Ping told them to finish building the house first.
They found a bamboo grove nearby and cut down some bamboo. Looking at the sword in his hand, Hai Dali sighed, “I didn’t expect the first time I use this sword would be to cut bamboo.”
Xu Peng had long noticed the sword and could only look on with envy.
Before long, they finished building a bamboo hut. Hai Dali looked at it with satisfaction and said to Xu Peng, “Thank you for your help. Otherwise, I would have taken much longer alone.” Get faster updates on NovelPing.
Xu Peng waved his hand and said, “You gave up the house first. I can’t just take advantage of you.”
From this brief interaction, Hai Dali had formed a good impression of him. Xu Peng seemed straightforward. Working with someone like that would likely avoid major conflicts and make things easier.
At that moment, Chen Muyue’s maid approached and said to Hai Dali, “The Eldest Miss wants to see you.”
“See me?” Hai Dali asked in confusion.
Xu Peng immediately assumed Hai Dali had caught the Eldest Miss’s attention and looked at him with envy.
The girl nodded lightly and turned to leave.
Hai Dali quickly followed.
“May I know your name?” he asked.
“Hongtao,” the girl replied. She knew Hai Dali and was aware of his amnesia, so she answered plainly.
“Last year on this day within this gate, peach blossoms reflected in rosy faces. Miss Hongtao, that is truly a beautiful name,” Hai Dali said, recalling the poem and adopting an appreciative tone.
“It was named by the First Madam. Hongtao is a name bestowed by her,” Hongtao said softly, her face turning red. She had never encountered such flattery before and had not expected him to have some literary flair.
“A name bestowed by the First Madam must be good, but your beauty is just as worthy,” Hai Dali said earnestly, looking at her.
Hongtao could not withstand his teasing words and turned her head away, refusing to respond further.
Hai Dali immediately regretted overdoing it and quickly changed the subject. “Miss Hongtao, do you know why the Eldest Miss wishes to see this subordinate?”
“I don’t know. After returning, the Eldest Miss simply said she wanted to see you,” Hongtao replied, equally puzzled.
Since even Hongtao did not know, Hai Dali guessed it might be because of the sword. Chen Muyue had chosen to leave him behind only after seeing it.
But then he felt that a sword alone should not matter so much. Could it be that she had noticed Chen Muxue valued him and wanted to see him out of curiosity?
They eventually arrived at a pavilion. Two guards stood at the entrance. They paid no attention as Hongtao brought Hai Dali over.
“This is where the Eldest Miss refines pills and cultivates. Unauthorized persons are not allowed inside,” Hongtao whispered to him before calling out, “Miss, he has arrived.”
Hai Dali suddenly understood and said, “No wonder I smelled medicinal fragrance.”