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墨書 Inktalez
Ruyi Rouge Shop
The daylight of winter seems particularly short; it only takes a few words for night to fall!
A gust of wind before nightfall scattered the clouds that had accumulated for days, allowing people to finally see the long-lost starry sky.
Xing Ruyi turned over, and the coolness within reach instantly awakened her.
The fox was not there.
There were some faint sounds in the courtyard, resembling the crunching footsteps of someone walking on snow.
"Who is still in the courtyard at this late hour?"
Now, the courtyard was quite full. To Xing Ruyi's right lived Yin Yuan, and to her left was the room previously occupied by Brother Chang. Later, because Chang Tai often helped out at Yamen, he stayed there for convenience. The vacant room was temporarily occupied by Luo Fu. The adjacent room was originally for Li Mao. Currently, Li Mao was in Luoyang and it was uncertain when he would return, so that bedroom was temporarily occupied by Old Beggar, also known as Pixiu.
Deer Lady, true to her temperament from her time in Luoyang, chose the bedroom next to the kitchen, which formed a right angle with the house where Old Beggar lived. With Deer Lady around, Xing Ruyi wasn't worried about any incidents occurring in her Rouge shop involving Old Beggar, but since his room was next to Luo Fu's, complete peace of mind was also a stretch.
After listening for a while, the "crunching" footsteps in the courtyard did not cease. So, she got up to check.
What puzzled Xing Ruyi was that the one wandering back and forth in the courtyard was neither the fox nor Yin Yuan, nor was it Deer Lady or Pixiu, but rather Luo Fu, who should have been resting in her bedroom. She saw Luo Fu with her head down, barefoot and pacing back and forth in the courtyard. Each time she reached under the flowering tree in the yard, she would bend down.
Since Luo Fu had her back to Xing Ruyi, she couldn't see her expression while bending over; she only felt that Luo Fu's movements were somewhat stiff, like a puppet being pulled by strings.
"Luo..."
Just as Xing Ruyi was about to call out Luo Fu's name, someone suddenly covered her mouth. Judging by the footsteps of the hand covering her mouth and the breath coming from behind her, this person should be the fox who had slipped away from her bed in the middle of the night.
She opened her mouth and took a bite on the fox's hand, then pulled his hand away and asked, "What are you doing?"
"She's sleepwalking!"
The fox softly uttered these four words, then took Xing Ruyi to the other side of the courtyard. Only then did Xing Ruyi notice that it wasn't just her and the fox who were awake; even Yin Yuan and Deer Lady had gotten up.
Yin Yuan was damp, covered in a heavy chill, clearly just sneaking back inside from outside. His eyes were bright, but when he saw Xing Ruyi, he instinctively pursed his lips, indicating that he had definitely snuck out to hunt for "wild game" in the middle of the night.
The Yun family residence was built halfway up a mountain and connected to Yun Village, which inherently possessed a heavy yin energy. Such a place easily attracted evil spirits, making it quite suitable for Yin Yuan to go "hunting" on his own.
Deer Lady, like Fox Demon, was dressed in an inner garment with only a large cloak draped over her. Upon seeing Xing Ruyi and the fox, her eyes involuntarily darted toward Old Beggar's dwelling, her gaze filled with concern.
"Luofu is probably sleepwalking; it has nothing to do with Lord Pixiu."
Xing Ruyi walked up to Deer Lady and gently held her hand. Although both were similarly dressed, their physical conditions were clearly different; Deer Lady's hand was still warm, while Xing Ruyi felt cold from her fingertips all the way to her shoulders.
"You child, why did you come out like this without wearing an extra layer? If you catch a cold, it will surely worry Lord Yin," Deer Lady said, giving Yin Yuan a look. "Hurry and go to your mother's room to bring back her warming stove and also get another piece of clothing."
Yin Yuan nodded in response and vanished in an instant.
Xing Ruyi stared blankly at him and poked the fox beside her. "What level has Yin Yuan reached? How can he teleport like you in the blink of an eye?"
"He is neither human nor ghost, neither demon nor spirit; he is truly an anomaly of this world. In human terms, we would say he has extraordinary talent. His one year of cultivation is roughly equivalent to a hundred years of training for an ordinary monster."
"Then doesn't that mean even you can't defeat him?"
Xing Ruyi asked, feeling conflicted. It was indeed a rare good thing for her child to be successful, but if he became too accomplished, it would inevitably worry a mother. Especially with Yin Yuan, although he had a good temperament and seemed like a kind child, who could predict the variables of the future? If what the fox said was true—that Yin Yuan's cultivation equaled that of an ordinary monster's training over a year—then decades later, wouldn't his power be overwhelming?
Suddenly, a phrase appeared in Xing Ruyi's mind: "Among all beings in the Six Realms, I alone am supreme; above and below, I alone am the greatest!"
Out of the blue, she shivered. Grabbing the fox's hand tightly, she asked anxiously, "Is there any way to control it?"
"Control what?"
"The cultivation of Yin Yuan! He’s just a tiny child, yet he has become so powerful. What will happen when he grows up? If he wants to dominate the Six Realms, what then? Wouldn't that lead to destruction on Earth and chaos in the Six Realms?"
As soon as Xing Ruyi finished speaking, she noticed a strange expression on the fox's face. Just then, Yin Yuan's voice came from behind: "To dominate the Six Realms? So Mother has such high hopes for Child. Destruction on Earth and chaos in the Six Realms sounds quite fun."
"No, no, no! It's not fun at all!" Xing Ruyi quickly turned around, crouched down to look into Yin Yuan's eyes, and held his chubby shoulders: "Listen to Consort Ruyi, it's lonely at the top. Look at your Father Fox. Once upon a time, he was a renowned Azure Fox Emperor, but what happened? He was still overthrown."
"That's because Father Fox wasn't strong enough," Yin Yuan suppressed a laugh but maintained a serious expression: "Child is working harder in cultivation now to avoid repeating Father Fox's mistakes. Don't worry, Mother, I will definitely meet your expectations and possess the strength to dominate the Six Realms!"
With that, Yin Yuan stuffed a warm stove and cloak into Xing Ruyi's arms.
Looking at this child, while feeling comforted, Xing Ruyi also grew more worried. She took a deep breath and once again held onto Yin Yuan's chubby shoulders: "Yin Yuan, listen to Consort Ruyi. What I said earlier might not have been clear. The reason your Father Fox was overthrown and couldn't become the Fox Emperor is not that he lacked strength; it's that being the Fox Emperor is not as happy as people imagine."
"You are a smart child and also one who enjoys adventure. I don't believe that while at the Rouge Shop, you didn't sneak into the palace or wander around the residences of those nobles. You’ve seen it too; whether it’s the Empress in the royal city or those princes, lords, princesses, and prime ministers—they seem high above, revered by many, even living lives that many aspire to. But are they happy? They are not! At least not as happy as people imagine or as they themselves envision."
"Some among them were born lucky, some had good fortune, and others were simply good at scheming. But regardless of how they got there, once they possess those things, they are plagued by anxiety. The more they have, the more they fear losing; the more they fear losing, the more they want to gain. This cycle leads to poor eating and sleepless nights; every person they see becomes someone to be wary of and guard against. Even with their closest ones—spouses and children—they cannot speak honestly or truthfully. Such a life is exhausting!"
"Your Father Fox doesn't want to be that kind of person and doesn't like being that way either. So when others wanted to overthrow him, he leaned back with their wishes; when others didn’t want him as the Fox Emperor, he came down to Earth and relinquished the throne willingly. Yin Yuan, your Mother doesn’t want you to be that kind of person either; she doesn’t want you to be high above, looking coldly at the world’s splendor and changes without feeling a trace of warmth. All your Mother wishes is for you to live happily without worries for your entire life."
"Yin Yuan, your Mother hopes you can become strong—stronger than your Father Fox, even stronger than anyone else in this world—gods or demons—because your life will be much longer than your Mother’s. Your Mother hopes that during those days when she cannot see you, you can still be happy and joyful, living the life you desire without being disturbed by others."
Looking at Xing Ruyi, Yin Yuan’s beautiful eyes were filled with various emotions that he desperately tried to conceal, even wanting to hide them in the night.
“Mother said, Child took note.”
For the first time in his life, Yin Yuan stood on tiptoe, reached out, and hugged Xing Ruyi's neck like any ordinary child would.
He felt it was time for him to grow up!
Xing Ruyi naturally had no idea what Yin Yuan was thinking. She was still lost in her own imagination, almost moved to tears by her recent words of encouragement. When she felt the shadow in front of her draw closer, even being tightly pressed against her by a soft, warm body and embraced around the neck by a pair of affectionate arms, she was still pondering whether Yin Yuan had truly listened to her words and if he understood them at his age.
“Fox Demon.”
The fox looked at the bracelet on Yin Yuan's wrist and then at Xing Ruyi's neck, her eyes darkening. After a moment of silence, she stepped forward, lifted Fox Demon, wrapped her in another layer of warmth, and pulled her into her embrace.
“Boy, with a mother like you who is so content and easygoing, how could you possibly raise a Son who is determined to dominate the Six Realms? Don’t worry, Yin Yuan, at most… he’ll just become an Azure Fox Emperor.”
“Cut it out!” Yin Yuan shot a glance at the fox: “Who cares? You can keep that Fox Emperor title for your own kind!”
“Really?” The fox raised her eyes and looked back at Yin Yuan: “After all, you are the legitimate grandson of our Qingqiu Yin Family. How can you bear to let your future younger siblings suffer? Considering how much your Mother cares for you and thinks about you, just endure it for a few hundred years.”
Yin Yuan narrowed his eyes and asked the fox: “Younger siblings? So, Father Fox, are you planning to be dealt with by my Mother right here?”
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