Perhaps because the wedding date had already been set, the Seventh Prince no longer had any reservations and frequently sent gifts to his fiancée.
Food, daily necessities, and even medicinal pills—things that made others envious.
The disciples of the Wen family went from initial astonishment to eventual indifference. Especially when stepping outside, hearing people in the streets and alleys talk about how much the Seventh Prince liked the Third Miss of the Wen family. They said he couldn’t even wait for the one-month wedding period and eagerly sent various items imbued with Yuan Spiritual Qi to curry favor with her. They were left with only apathy.
Even they, in fact, believed that the Seventh Prince truly liked their family’s Third Miss. Otherwise, how could he bear to send so many spiritual pills, medicines, and tools?
Although the Seventh Prince, being an ordinary mortal, couldn’t possibly have so many cultivation resources, Emperor Chenghao could.
The Ning royal family was famously wealthy in the Dongling Kingdom, and Emperor Chenghao especially doted on the Seventh Prince. Whatever the Seventh Prince wanted, he would surely get. Mere cultivation resources were naturally at his disposal to gift away.
Suddenly, many people envied Wen Qiao. Even though the Seventh Prince was a mortal who couldn’t cultivate, his sincerity and countless cultivation resources were more than enough to make up for it.
Why couldn’t they find such a generous fiancé?
Lian Yue entered holding a jar of spiritual tea and said to Wen Qiao, who was sitting by the window reading, “Miss, the Seventh Prince sent over a jar of spiritual tea, saying it can dispel coldness. You should drink more of it.”
Wen Qiao’s gaze shifted from the book to the spiritual tea in Lian Yue’s hands. Without saying much, she told her to brew the tea.
When the tea was ready, a faint, elegant fragrance filled the air, and traces of Yuan Spiritual Qi seemed to linger. Just taking a whiff invigorated the spirit.
Taking a sip, Wen Qiao recognized the tea—it was the same as the one she had tasted in the private room of Lingxu Pavilion. The flavor was identical.
After finishing a cup of spiritual tea, her entire body felt warm. Subtle strands of Yuan Spiritual Power flowed through her meridians, making her feel comfortable and at ease.
At this moment, a voice laced with laughter sounded from the Jishui Courtyard.
“What a refined aroma—it seems to be some kind of spiritual tea.”
Wen Qiao looked up and saw a few young ladies from the Wen family walking in. Leading the group were Wen Mei and Wen Xian. These two were known as the “Twin Beauties of the Wen Clan” and were always together, serving as symbols of the younger generation of the Wen family.
Wen Qiao, Fourth Miss Wen Mei, and Fifth Miss Wen Xian were all born in the same year. Wen Mei and Wen Xian were about a month apart in age and would come of age by the end of the year.
Although the three young ladies were of the same age, Wen Qiao rarely spent time with her two clan sisters due to her health issues, so they weren’t particularly close. To be more precise, Wen Qiao was distant from everyone in the Wen family. Most of the time, she was bedridden in the Jishui Courtyard, while the others were busy training at the martial grounds. They rarely interacted, so their bonds remained shallow.
Despite the lack of deep affection, they were still clan sisters. With Wen Qiao about to marry out of the family—and with no certainty about how many more years she might live—Wen Xian suggested they visit her, and the others didn’t object. Thus, they came together.
Wen Qiao sat there and said to her approaching sisters, “Make yourselves comfortable.”
Her expression was so indifferent, and her voice so cold, that the young ladies, inexperienced and thin-skinned, couldn’t help but feel slightly shy and awkward as they quietly found seats.
Lian Yue brewed fresh tea again.
As the fragrance of the tea filled the air, Wen Mei took a sip, her expression freezing momentarily.
“What fine tea.” Wen Xian’s eyes showed surprise as she remarked, “This must be the spiritual tea sent by the Seventh Prince, right?”
The Jishui Courtyard certainly couldn’t produce tea of this quality. Coupled with the Seventh Prince’s recent habit of sending gifts daily, it was clear where the tea had come from.
Wen Qiao glanced at her and gave a faint “mm” in response.
“The Seventh Prince treats you so well,” Wen Xian said with a tone of envy. She then turned to look at Wen Mei and jokingly asked, “Ah Mei, you’ve been engaged to the Third Prince for quite a few years now. Has he ever given you anything?”
Wen Mei’s brow furrowed slightly.
The Third Prince was ten years older than Wen Mei. When they got engaged, he was already a teenager, while she was still a little child. As an engaged couple, they had little to talk about during their rare meetings. After Wen Mei grew older, the Third Prince often went on training journeys or entered seclusion, so their interactions remained sparse, let alone him caring enough to send her any gifts.
That simply hadn’t happened.
In contrast, the Seventh Prince’s attentiveness toward Wen Qiao seemed excessive.
However, it wouldn’t do to say that the Third Prince was focused solely on cultivation and uninterested in romantic matters, as that would imply the Seventh Prince, being a “cultivation failure” with nothing better to do, spent his time fawning over his fiancée instead.
The sharper individuals present quickly realized the implications behind Wen Xian’s words. No matter how Wen Mei responded, it would offend someone.
Wen Xian’s gaze lingered on Wen Mei, as if genuinely curious.
Wen Mei chose not to respond, quietly sipping her tea instead.
The other young ladies present, who were merely there to accompany the two “Twin Beauties” of the Wen family, naturally refrained from speaking. They had no intention of offending either Wen Mei or Wen Xian.
Wen Xian’s smile gradually became stiff.
She forced a chuckle and continued, “You both have marriage agreements with disciples of the Ning royal family. Ah Chuo is getting married first, unexpectedly surpassing us. What about you, Ah Mei? You’ve been engaged for years now; when will your wedding be?”
Wen Mei replied calmly, “There’s no rush. Father said we’ll wait until I’ve reached the Yuan Bright stage in my cultivation before considering it. The Third Prince will understand.”
A trace of jealousy flickered in Wen Xian’s heart. The Third Prince had already achieved the early Yuan Bright stage in his cultivation. Once he emerged from his current seclusion, he would likely break through even further.
Deciding to ignore Wen Mei, Wen Xian turned to Wen Qiao with a smile. “Ah Chuo, congratulations! I never thought you’d be the first among our generation of sisters to marry. After you’re wed, it’ll be so hard for us to see you.”
Wen Qiao sipped her tea slowly and replied, “Even if I weren’t married, it’d still be hard for you to see me.”
Wen Xian’s smile froze. Was Wen Qiao mocking them for rarely visiting her in the Jishui Courtyard?
She let out an awkward laugh, pretending not to hear the jab, and continued, “I heard that recently, the Seventh Prince has been sending you all sorts of gifts. He’s really devoted to you. Once you’re married, you’ll surely live a blissful life.”
Too bad she’s a short-lived wretch, Wen Xian thought to herself. No matter how many cultivation resources the Seventh Prince had, none of it would actually benefit her.
Wen Qiao nodded again. “Mm, it’s quite good. He has plenty of items imbued with Yuan Spiritual Qi. I can use them whenever I want, without hesitation.”
Wen Xian: “…” There was no way to continue this conversation.
After chatting with Wen Qiao for a while, Wen Xian felt mentally drained. She found the Third Miss Wen as difficult to talk to as ever.
Since Wen Qiao’s birth, she had spent more time bedridden than cultivating. On the rare occasions they crossed paths at the martial grounds, they would exchange greetings and occasionally talk, but Wen Qiao’s bluntness was always sharp and uncomfortable. However, her words were often logical and irrefutable, making it hard to argue with her. Over time, Wen Xian simply avoided interacting with her unless necessary.
By contrast, Wen Mei knew better than to engage unnecessarily. She quietly finished her tea, and when the purpose of their visit was deemed fulfilled, she took the initiative to bid farewell.
Wen Xian had no choice but to rise as well.
“Ah Chuo, if you ever need anything, don’t hesitate to come back. The Wen family will always be your maternal home,” Wen Xian said warmly.
Wen Qiao responded with a simple “Oh,” and said nothing more.
The others present couldn’t shake the feeling that something was off about Wen Xian’s words. Wasn’t that a bit much for a young lady from the third branch to say?
After they left, Lian Yue began cleaning up the teacups and leftover tea while commenting to Wen Qiao, “The Fifth Miss really doesn’t know how to talk, Miss. You were absolutely right to respond the way you did!”
Wen Qiao held her cup of tea and said, “I didn’t refute anything.”
Lian Yue choked for a moment, pretended she hadn’t heard, and continued, “Everyone in the Wen family says the Fifth Miss is a virtuous person. Whenever someone asks for her help, she always lends a hand. But what use is there for someone from the third branch to be so enthusiastic? The Wen family would never let her become the family head, right? Even if she wanted to, she’d need to cultivate to the Yuan Martial stage first…”
Wen Qiao finished her tea, then returned to her room to continue cultivating.
These past few days, she had been diligently channeling Yuan Spiritual Energy into the seed in her flowerpot, but the seed remained completely unresponsive. She had no idea when it might sprout and grow roots.
Every time her Yuan Spiritual Energy was completely drained, her spiritual apertures would ache sharply. However, once she replenished all thirty-six spiritual apertures, the Yuan Spiritual Energy within them would increase slightly. Although the increase was small, it was a gratifying result. Bit by bit, the accumulation would eventually allow her to break through the bottleneck of the Mid Entry Yuan stage and step into the late stage.
In the Sacred Martial Continent, every cultivator had thirty-six spiritual apertures, which were used to store the Yuan Spiritual Energy of heaven and earth.
However, the spiritual apertures in Wen Qiao’s body were like broken jars with holes in them. No matter how much Yuan Spiritual Energy she infused, it would quickly dissipate and fail to fill up completely. This was the reason why, despite her possessing a supreme-grade Yuan Spiritual Root, her cultivation progress was slow.
Recently, Wen Qiao discovered that plant essences not only soothed her fragile meridians but could also enter her spiritual apertures, transforming into pure Yuan Spiritual Energy and storing it within, preventing it from leaking out.
This discovery delighted her.
Although the half-yao bone in her body couldn’t restore her to the condition of a normal person, it at least allowed her to absorb plant essences effectively. It provided her with an alternative path to strength.
She had a feeling that the half-yao bloodline in her body had other purposes beyond what she had realized so far.
Wen Qiao calmed her mind and continued her cultivation diligently.
The day before her wedding, Wen Qiao’s cultivation finally broke through the Mid Entry Yuan stage and advanced to the Late Entry Yuan stage.