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Interlude - Zhang Lifen
🕑 Added 2024-02-06 23:00:03 +0000 UTCZhang Lifen stood with her hands folded in the sleeves of her gown while Master Cai tended to his garden. He’d called her here for a purpose, and he’d speak when he was ready. When he did speak, it was mostly what she’d expected.
“Your reliance on good fortune will be the end of you,” he began.
“What ever do you mean?” she asked with a smile, trying for all the world to sound as innocent as she wasn’t.
“We’ve been over what happened with Disciple Sha enough times that I won’t belabor the point,” Master Cai said. “Same with your student’s friends.”
That was a little unfair. “I’m sure I don’t need to remind you that I was the one who put He Yu and Li Heng into housing together,” she began. It was a good thing Master Cai was so lax when it came to how she spoke to him. None of the other sect elders would have allowed her to talk back like this.
“You’ve reminded me at every conceivable opportunity,” he said, giving her a flat look. “I don’t believe for an instant, however, that you orchestrated him meeting Disciple Chen down in the sect town, nor that you were behind that girl’s friendship with the daughter of Tan Zihao. Then there’s the Yan boy. His association with your student is borne solely from his own nature as a seeker of profit.”
“Fair,” she allowed.
“More importantly,” he continued, “is the fact that you sent those three to their deaths.”
“In my defense, I was confident they would be able to handle Hao Niu at the time.”
Master Cai sighed as he stood and turned to face her fully. “That’s my point. You didn’t properly assess the risk. Where would we be if it hadn’t been for their good fortune in meeting Old Guo?” Before she could answer, he cut her off. “We’d be down three disciples. Five, really. I doubt we’d keep Princess Tan and Disciple Chen without the boys. I know as well as you do that your inroads with the princess haven’t been going as well as you’d like.”
“She’ll come around,” Zhang Lifen said.
“You’re not listening,” Master Cai shot back. She grimaced—he was truly annoyed with her. “At least Hao Niu revealed himself,” he said changing back to the subject at hand. “Old Guo will expect compensation. Make sure you accept his requests once you’ve cleaned up your mess.”
Which meant that whatever the old man wanted, she was going to have to pay for it herself. Well, since according to Master Cai, Old Guo was intent on taking all three of the boys to peak Foundation before setting them after Hao Niu once more, she supposed she could live with that.
“How long?” she asked.
“The Li boy has already taken half a step into the Third Realm. He Yu will join him soon. Yan Shirong is the weakest link, but between his time with the other two and Old Guo’s attention, he’ll be motivated enough for the time being. Whether or not that lasts once he returns to the sect,” Master Cai shrugged. “It will be another week or two, at least, before he sends them on their way. How long will it take you to get to them?”
“Three days, at most,” she said.
Master Cai nodded. “Good. Let them succeed or fail by their own merits, so long as it’s just the bandit and whatever borrowed strength he has.”
She nodded. Although she’d grown fond of He Yu, Master Cai was right. She was confident they’d prevail against a jumped-up bandit who fancied himself a true cultivator, borrowed strength or no. But that wasn’t the real reason Master Cai wanted her near the disciples.
“Do you think he’s fully pacted?” She didn’t bother giving voice to that question’s further implications.
“The Dawn Palace Formation still holds.” Master Cai still sounded troubled, though.
“But my presence is required, regardless,” she said.
“Perhaps I am being overly cautious,” Master Cai answered. “Something you could learn from.”
Zhang Lifen smiled and allowed herself to relax a bit at the jab. She saluted her master and excused herself. There was time yet to prepare, and she wanted to get as much cultivation in as she could before she left. Although the pressure in her dantian was almost to the point where it was too much to bear, she could push herself a little bit further before she broke through into the Fifth Realm. If Master Cai’s unspoken fears proved correct, they would need all the strength they could muster. Hopefully, the children would be up to the task.
Comments
Rehoboth Okorie
high key she is very callous
