Chapter 5

Xun Yi spread out his palm, and a light white scratch appeared on the back of his hand. The sword qi, symbolizing decay and withering, firmly attached to his hand and spread deeper.

"Ku Mei Shuying? This guy is already starting to study the Winter Sword?"

The Maolin Sword Technique is a sword skill that all members of the Xun family practice. Among them, there are three Spring Swords, and two each for Summer, Autumn, and Winter. Ku Mei Shuying, symbolizing death and withering, aligns with the essence of winter, and is in direct opposition to the Jiaonong Gaitian of the Summer Swords.

Xun Kun's expression changed slightly, and his right hand transformed into a fist, aiming directly at Xun Yi's face.

Hengzhu Cuimicro!

This is the most powerful strike in the Maolin Sword Technique!

Bamboo shadows filled the sky, and the essence of bamboo from various bamboo-made items in the hall converged into Xun Kun's fist.

"Brother Kun, our family's talent for controlling wood spirits isn't meant to be used like this." Xun Yi, concerned about his furniture, placed his left hand in front of his chest and lightly slapped it out.

The sword intent and techniques were integrated into his palm, like a gentle spring breeze brushing past the willow embankment, dispersing the bamboo spirit essence that Xun Kun had gathered.

Qingfeng Fuliu, the third move of Maolin, a gentle and soft palm strike shattered the force Xun Kun had gathered. Xun Yi's hand grasped Xun Kun's fist, neutralizing most of the force and firmly pressing him into his seat, immobilizing him.

Just a brief exchange, and the superiority between the two was clear.

"Master Kun, please sit properly." Suddenly, a large hand landed on his other shoulder. The heavy and powerful force pressed down on Xun Kun, and Liu Ziming coldly said, "You are a guest, but guests must also follow the rules. Otherwise, I will have to be impolite and throw you out!"

Compared to Xun Yi's gentle palm strike, Liu Ziming clearly held nothing back. The grip on his shoulder even made a creaking sound.

"Cough, cough..." Xun Yi lightly coughed a few times, moistening his throat, and Liu Ziming withdrew his hand and stood beside Xun Yi.

Xun Kun's mind relaxed, thinking to himself, "In terms of sword skills, Xun Yi is indeed stronger than me. Damn! I wonder how many special treatments Grandfather gave him. But if we really fight, he should be no match for me." Xun Kun calculated that Xun Yi had a heart condition, and with proper manipulation, he could force Xun Yi to have a heart attack on the spot, which would be a shortcut to defeating him. He clenched his hand, and the first sword of Maolin, "Yulu Chunya," symbolizing the birth of life, dissolved the bitter plum sword qi.

After a small setback, Xun Kun obediently dissolved the sword qi. Xun Yi quickly flipped through the ledger, and soon his brow furrowed.

"What's wrong? Is there a problem with the ledger?" Xun Kun, relieved, quickly asked.

Xun Yi didn't speak, carefully studying the numbers.

Seeing Xun Yi's expression worsen, Xun Kun became anxious. "This ledger shouldn't have any problems, right? Although my father has designs on the family property, he wouldn't dare to tamper with the sacrificial fields. If he were caught, it would be the end of him in front of the family elders."

Before coming, Xun Kun hadn't thoroughly checked the ledger, and seeing Xun Yi's expression, he couldn't help but regret it. Could there really be a problem?

"This ledger..."

"What?" Xun Kun leaned in, thinking of countless excuses.

"I haven't finished reading it yet."

"Ah?"

"But I'm hungry. Let's eat something first." Xun Yi turned and called to Dai Ping, "Ask the kitchen if breakfast is ready. Oh, and Cousin, do you want to eat something?"

Xun Kun, who had been worried for nothing, said irritably, "No! You eat by yourself!"

Soon, a graceful and beautiful woman placed a plate next to Xun Yi, softly saying, "Young Master, here is the red date and yellow rice zongzi and the lotus leaf green rice porridge you asked for yesterday."

The aroma spread, and Xun Yi took a deep breath, slowly savoring it in front of Xun Kun. He deliberately prolonged the process, slowly wearing down Xun Kun's patience. Seeing Xun Kun's face turn darker, Xun Yi felt satisfied. Watching others squirm was the most delicious side dish!

"Xue Auntie, you and the others go eat first. Just leave Bai Shan and Dai Ping to accompany me."

"What about you, Young Master?" Xue Auntie's beautiful eyes glanced at Xun Kun.

Xun Kun's heart fluttered. Xue Auntie was not a servant of the Xun family but a maid brought by Xun Yi's mother. She was beautiful, virtuous, and skilled in embroidery and cooking. After Grandfather Xun Yu's death, she had taken care of Xun Yi, preventing him from being directly harmed by certain people.

"What a fox spirit! She must be in her forties, but she doesn't look a day older." Xun Kun quickly regained his composure, "I'm not hungry. You go ahead."

Xue Auntie nodded to Liu Ziming, and everyone left, leaving only the two young masters and Bai Shan and Dai Ping.

Xun Yi ate politely, occasionally asking Bai Shan to turn the pages of the ledger. Time passed slowly.

Seeing the sun rise higher, Xun Kun couldn't hold back any longer. He was not a patient person, and being worn down by Xun Yi, he finally said, "You can take your time with the ledger. I'll come back this afternoon to pick it up!" Thinking of his lovers in the flower alley, he stormed out.

After he left, Xun Yi put down his bowl and sighed, "He left too quickly. I haven't finished this bowl of porridge yet! But he stayed longer this time, which must be a new record?"

"Yes, this time he could endure for so long. Master Kun's self-control is indeed getting better," Dai Ping reported, amused. Her young master always enjoyed tormenting people, especially the two cousins from the second branch.

"Does Young Master know how the ledger is doing while focusing on Master Kun?" Bai Shan collected the bowls and asked in a low voice.

"We need to find another accountant."

"What? Young Master can't tell if there's a problem with the ledger?"

"I can tell. The accounts for the past half month are fine, but it's a headache to read. It's better to find someone trustworthy." Xun Yi looked at Bai Shan and Dai Ping, dissatisfied, "You two are so stupid. I've been so meticulous in teaching you, and you still can't read the ledger. Especially Mingge, I was counting on him to help manage the household!"

Bai Shan smiled foolishly, not saying a word, just scratching his head.

Dai Ping smiled, "Young Master, you don't manage the household. You just go to the academy to study and play. But Liu Manager has a lot of work. He not only deals with household matters but also needs to pay attention to the sacrificial fields, the ancestral home, and our family's shops and bookstores. Who handles all these things?"

"True, it's spring, but some people still have spring fever," Xun Yi joked with those around him.

Dai Ping blushed and retorted a few times.

"Wang wang—" A white puppy trotted into the yard, followed by a green-clad girl. "Danshen, Danshen, slow down!"

The girl was in her prime, another personal maid of Xun Yi. She had helped Xun Yi feed his pet dog early in the morning.

Danshen lay at Xun Yi's feet, and Li Lan hurriedly held out a few meat bones, "Young Master is eating. Let's go back first." Danshen glanced at the bones in Li Lan's hand, looked at them, and disdainfully turned his nose, continuing to bite Xun Yi's boot.

"It's fine. Let him stay with me." Xun Yi took the bones from Li Lan and fed them to Danshen.

The name "Danshen" was chosen to fit the Xun family's aesthetic. Initially, Xun Yi named him "Dansheng," claiming the white dog was born from an egg, but only Xun Yi saw it, and no one else believed it. So, his father named him "Danshen." Strangely, this dog named Danshen had no interest in meat bones but was fascinated by the ginseng tea and tonics Xun Yi drank. So, Xun Yi gave the leftover dregs from his medicine to Danshen, and over the years, Danshen didn't die from the dregs, which was a miracle.

Danshen sniffed the meat bones Xun Yi gave him and finally gave his owner some face, taking a few bites.

"Only Young Master, Xue Auntie, and Liu Manager can feed Danshen. He's so picky," Dai Ping indicated for Li Lan to leave and watched Xun Yi play with Danshen.

...

On the other side, Xun Kun left in a huff. Just as he reached the gate, a foot blocked his way.

Liu Ziming leaned against the gate, "Master Kun, you're leaving?"

Seeing Liu Ziming, Xun Kun felt a bit intimidated. Liu Ziming was not a member of the Xun family, unlike the family-born servants. It was said that when Xun Yi was eight, Liu Ziming was pawned to the Xun family's pawnshop by his grandfather. Xun Yu accepted this "living pawn" and had Liu Ziming take care of Xun Yi. Since he was not a family-born servant, Liu Ziming was not treated as a slave. Xun Yu even hired a special tutor for him. In terms of treatment, he was only below the few direct-line young masters of the Xun family. More importantly, he had practiced martial arts since childhood and had helped Xun Yi deal with Xun Kun and his brother many times.

Thinking of his childhood trauma, Xun Kun's face turned cold, and he swung his sword at Liu Ziming's leg, "Dog slave, get lost!"

"Hengzhu Cuimicro." Using the sword, this was even more powerful than the earlier exchange with Xun Yi. If an ordinary person were hit by this sword, they would at least suffer broken bones, and there was even a risk of limb loss.

Liu Ziming crossed his arms, and as the sword approached, he suddenly moved. Before Xun Kun could react, a large hand like an iron clamp grabbed his neck.

Bang—

In just one exchange, Liu Ziming pinned Xun Kun to the ground, kicking away his sword. "Master Kun can't even beat our Young Master, and you want to fight me?" He looked down at Xun Kun like a worm. "Young Master is kind and doesn't want to bother with you. But if you don't learn your lesson, it won't be as lenient as a beating in childhood!"

Xun Kun's blood rushed to his head, his face turning red. How could this guy be so strong? One move and he had me pinned? My father's martial arts skills are probably no better than this.

Splash—

A basin of water splashed from a distance, and Liu Ziming dodged, but Xun Yi was drenched.

"Oh, is Master Kun alright?" Xue Auntie walked to the gate, slightly apologetic, "I was just cleaning Young Master's face water and didn't see anyone at the door. Young Master, do you need to change clothes?"

"No!" Xun Kun, looking disheveled, kicked open the gate and left.

Watching his back, Liu Ziming frowned, "Why help him? Given his temper, he won't let Young Master off."

"You came late and don't understand. Do you think a simple warning will make him give up?" The beautiful woman turned to the heroic man beside her, "Do you know how the second lady, Xun Kun's mother, died?"

Liu Ziming came to the Xun family when Xun Yi was eight and only knew that Xun Kun's mother, Xun Yi's second aunt, had died of illness not long ago, but he didn't know the details.

"How did she die?" Liu Ziming was about to ask but suddenly looked at the hall.

Xun Yi was running with the ledger, still talking to Dai Ping in the hall, "It's getting late. Dai Ping, take Danshen to Xue Auntie. I need to go to the academy and get some work done."

Seeing Xue Auntie and Liu Ziming at the gate, Xun Yi greeted them and picked up his book box.

Liu Ziming saw him take the ledger to the academy and immediately understood, "Is Young Master planning to have Liu's son help with the calculations or Li's son do the work?"

"Why make it sound so bad? It's just friends helping each other! I'll give them a bun each, and it's done. What a cost-effective labor force!" Xun Yi sighed as he carried his book box to the Lingfeng Academy.

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