Chapter 81

Since learning the story of Master Yubaiyun's wife, the two young students' attitudes towards Li Yi had changed, especially Xiner, who was no longer as afraid of the teacher. Every time she saw the teacher with a stern face, Xiner would think that the teacher must be thinking about his wife and feeling particularly unhappy. The more she thought about it, the more she felt sorry for the teacher, and several times her eyes had welled up with tears, which left Li Yi puzzled, asking, "Xiner, why are you crying for no reason?"

Li Yi was unaware that he was deeply cared for by his two students. Seeing that Xiner's eyes were not irritated by the wind and she could not give a reason, he straightforwardly used the Jiefang to solve the problem.

At lunchtime, as expected, Le Zhongping was not there. Lu Zheng and Xiner both knew that Mr. Le was indeed afraid of the teacher finding out about the story of his wife. After lunch, the two went to the depths of the flower garden to take care of the young seedling and made a pact that they must not betray or sell out Mr. Le, not even by a slip of the tongue.

Since learning the origin of the seed, although they still did not know what kind of flower it would grow into, the two naturally became more careful. Xiner treated the young seedling as if it were the teacher's wife, and each time she took care of it, she would softly say, "Wife, Xiner is weeding for you!" "Wife, Xiner is loosening the soil for you!" and "Wife, Xiner is watering you."

Seeing her serious expression, Lu Zheng suddenly thought that if Jiu Ge were there, he would definitely add, "Wife, Xiner is fertilizing for you!" Thinking of this, he couldn't help but laugh out loud. Xiner asked, "Little brother, why are you laughing to yourself?"

Lu Zheng dared not tell her the truth and casually said, "Oh, I was just thinking, I wonder if the current Lingzhugong is a good person or a bad person?"

Xiner, displeased, said, "Of course she's a bad person, what's there to say? Hey, little brother, why are you thinking about this?"

Lu Zheng replied, "I don't think she's bad."

Seeing that Lu Zheng was sincere and not joking, Xiner, with a pout, put down her little spade and said, "Everything is her fault, she's definitely a bad person. Little brother, how can you not think she's bad!"

Lu Zheng scratched his head and asked, "What bad things has she done? I can't think of any!"

Xiner blurted out, "Hasn't she done enough bad things? She..." But she was stunned, for after hearing Mr. Le's story, Xiner felt that Lingzai was extremely bad, but when asked to specify what exactly made her bad, she could not recall any facts. She frowned and thought for a moment, then her eyes lit up, "She lies, and liars are bad people."

Seeing her puffed cheeks and the serious look in her dark eyes, Lu Zheng felt that Xiner was far less gentle and smart than when she had comforted him under the Jinbola flower. He became serious and said, "Xiner, you don't understand. Although she lied, it was to protect herself and the Hundred Flowers Valley. That's not too bad, and I don't think even Ling Baixiu is that bad!"

"Ah, you don't think Ling Baixiu is bad either, little brother, did you hit your head on a rock today!" Xiner became even angrier.

Lu Zheng shook his head and said, "Bai Yulong is so bad, and Ling Baixiu is his daughter, so she learned to be bad from a young age. Most of the things she did were what her father told her to do. Do you think it's better for her to listen or not to listen? As for Lingzhugong, although she used some means, her heart is still good. Otherwise, why would she take Ling Baixiu from Bai Yulong and keep her in the Hundred Flowers Valley at the end?"

Xiner, puzzled, asked, "Why is keeping Ling Baixiu in the Hundred Flowers Valley a good thing?"

Lu Zheng smiled and said, "Xiner, guess why Lingzhugong kept Ling Baixiu?"

Xiner pouted and said, "Little brother, you keep calling her Lingzhugong, why are you so respectful to that bad woman? She's such a liar that even the teacher was deceived. How do I know what she wants by keeping Ling Baixiu? I don't have a bad heart like hers, hmpf!"

Lu Zheng said, "Xiner, the teacher isn't deceived. The teacher is clear about everything he does. Let me tell you, Lingzhugong kept Ling Baixiu to save her!"

Xiner, surprised, said, "Save her? She clearly locked Ling Baixiu in the Hundred Flowers Valley. How is that saving her? Little brother, the more you talk, the more confused I get."

Lu Zheng said, "Xiner, think about it. Why is Ling Baixiu so bad? Was she born bad? Was she born to cause trouble in the Hundred Flowers Valley? It must be because her father told her to do it! Didn't Mr. Le say that the people of Bai Lang Mountain are all bad? If Ling Baixiu continues to stay with them, she will only get worse. Compared to staying in the Hundred Flowers Valley, which do you think is better? In this way, isn't Lingzhugong saving her from a fire?"

Xiner was stunned, staring straight at Lu Zheng, lost in thought.

Lu Zheng, feeling strange under her gaze, asked, "What's wrong, Xiner? Why are you looking at me like that? Is there dirt on my face?"

Xiner shook her head and said, "No dirt, I'm just thinking, why is the usually clumsy little brother suddenly so smart? It's so strange! Could it be that he's been influenced by that bad woman's mind, making him so eloquent?"

Lu Zheng, realizing she was praising him, but feeling a bit angry, chuckled and said, "Really? I just think Lingzhugong isn't a bad person, so I thought about her in a good way. Since she can forgive her two sisters who tried to kill her, she will probably forgive her younger sister too. But someone like Ling Baixiu might not easily repent. I've seen many such bad people in the human world, and I didn't expect to see them in the cultivation world too. It's really strange!" As he said this, he thought of Wu Zhenggong of the Shanshui Sword Sect, whom he had seen with the ascetic monk at the Two Worlds Mountain.

Lu Zheng was a bit proud, not noticing that Xiner's face had turned dark. She huffed and said, "No matter what you say, Xiner still hates that lying bad woman! That bad woman is bad, and little brother is bad too, the worst person in the world!" With that, she ran off in a huff.

Lu Zheng was stunned by this sudden outburst, watching Xiner run out of the flower garden, unsure whether to chase after her. He stood there, muttering to himself, "Strange, how did I become the bad one too?"

"Cough!" A cough, and Lu Zheng turned to see that the teacher had somehow appeared under the Jinbola flower. Lu Zheng, not reacting quickly, nodded at Li Yi and said, "Oh, you're here too. I don't know what's wrong with Xiner, she suddenly ran off, it's really strange... Ah! Teacher! Good afternoon, Teacher!" Lu Zheng suddenly realized who he was talking to and hurriedly bowed, thinking, "Oh no, I can't escape the Jiefang this time."

But Li Yi did not get angry or use the Jiefang. He just stood by the Jinbola flower, looking at the young seedling, the tiny bit of green, with a gentle expression, and said, "What kind of flower will it bloom?"

This was said very softly, and it was unclear whether he was asking Lu Zheng or himself. It was rare to see the teacher show such an expression. Lu Zheng's heart skipped a beat, realizing that the teacher must have known that he and Xiner had heard the story of the wife. He immediately said, "Teacher, we begged Mr. Le to tell us, please don't blame Mr. Le. If you want to punish someone, punish me."

Lu Zheng couldn't imagine how angry the teacher would get, but he was determined to take the blame. However, unexpectedly, Li Yi did not pick up on this, but asked again, "What kind of flower will it bloom?"

Lu Zheng understood this time that the teacher was really asking him this question. But how could he answer? Mr. Le had said that not only they, but even Lingzhugong, who grew up in the Hundred Flowers Valley, did not recognize it. How could he know what kind of flower this little green sprout would grow into? But the teacher must know this too, so there must be another meaning behind the question.

After following the teacher for these days, Lu Zheng had learned to listen carefully. When facing the teacher, don't let your mind run too fast; think carefully about why the teacher is saying this before answering. But this question was about the teacher's wife, so no matter how he answered, it might be wrong. Lu Zheng thought for a moment and decided to tell the truth, saying, "Student doesn't know."

Li Yi said, "Oh," as if not very satisfied with this answer, and asked again, "If you knew, would you tell me?" His voice was still gentle.

The teacher was acting strange today! Lu Zheng noticed this and thought the teacher must be thinking about his wife. The answer should be related to this, and maybe the teacher wouldn't be so strange. Compared to the current somewhat dazed teacher, Lu Zheng felt he was more used to the stone-faced one. He thought for a moment and tentatively answered, "If the student knew, the student wouldn't tell the teacher."

Li Yi turned to look at him, interested, and asked, "Why not?"

Lu Zheng thought for a moment and said, "Because I saw it, not the teacher. Even if I told the teacher, the teacher still wouldn't see it."

Li Yi nodded, approving this answer, and his face returned to its usual serious expression. He said, "Zhiyi, you said that Lingzai kept Ling Baixiu for her own good. Seeing this, you've done well!"

The teacher actually praised him! Lu Zheng suspected he had heard wrong. Since becoming a disciple, no matter how well he did in his studies or how well he recited, the teacher at most just nodded, never using words like "very well." Excited, Lu Zheng felt that today's teacher was indeed strange.

While Lu Zheng was still lost in thought, Li Yi continued, "Your archery lessons are over, so from tomorrow, you will start learning the ritual of riding!"

Ritual of riding? Lu Zheng respectfully replied, "Student understands," and began to ponder what kind of ritual it was. Just as he was about to ask the teacher, he noticed that the teacher had already disappeared under the Jinbola flower, leaving only the sound of the wind rustling the leaves.

The teacher had left without a word, and Lu Zheng still bowed to the empty space to see him off. The teacher was gone, but who knew if the Jiefang had left too? If he dared to be lazy and skip it, the Jiefang might suddenly appear. Several times before, the teacher had left without a word, and Lu Zheng had forgotten to bow, resulting in a beating from the Jiefang. Lu Zheng felt lucky that he hadn't fallen for the teacher's trick this time.

"By the way, when you saw the teacher just now, you didn't immediately react and bow. You even dared to call him 'you,' which is a violation of the ritual!" At this moment, the teacher's voice came from somewhere.

Lu Zheng's vision went dark, and the Jiefang predictably appeared before him, flying towards his bottom. Lu Zheng shouted in his heart, "Teacher, you're cheating!"

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