Chapter 395: Chapter 307: An End to Favors and Grudges
Though one might buy osmanthus wine and sail once more, it can never compare to the travels of youth.
Fang Qingyuan watched Jiang Kui’s lips move nonstop. Several thoughts raced through his mind, and before bitterness could well up, he suppressed it with sheer force of will. He began to analyze Jiang Kui’s true intentions.
When Jiang Kui had sent Jiang Wanqin over back then, it was to take Liu Xun’s place. At the time, Liu Xun’s cultivation prospects were much better than Jiang Wanqin’s.
Jiang Wanqin only had a Middle-grade Water Spirit Root, whereas Liu Xun possessed a Top-grade Gold Spirit Root. Furthermore, given his relationship with Liu Xun, Fang Qingyuan had much preferred for Liu Xun to come and help him at the Qingyuan Sect.
Originally, there had also been Qu Wujie, but he was taken away by the Cyan Lotus Sword Sect. Fang Qingyuan had no choice but to negotiate with Jiang Kui to have Liu Xun bring the mortals over.
But after thinking it over, Jiang Kui decided to keep Liu Xun behind and sent Jiang Wanqin, who had only just reached Late-stage Qi Cultivation back then, to the Qingyuan Sect. Now, twenty years later, who would have thought that Liu Xun would still not have achieved Foundation Establishment, while Jiang Wanqin had successfully entered the Foundation Establishment Realm?
On the path of cultivation, the quality of one’s Spirit Root was important, but even a Top-grade Spirit Root was no guarantee of reaching Foundation Establishment. Liu Xun was burdened with countless trivial duties on Yuanling Mountain, so Fang Qingyuan could understand his failure to break through.
But now, Jiang Kui obviously regretted it and wanted to summon Jiang Wanqin back. This was something Fang Qingyuan would never, ever agree to.
He had already helped Jiang Kui more than enough. When he had followed Lechuan to White Mountain, he had left the entire vast estate of Yuanling Mountain to her. That, plus the shares in the Yuanling Square Marketplace, was worth at least a thousand Top-grade Spirit Stones. That was enough money to buy the lives of three Foundation Establishment Cultivators. In return, he had only taken thirty thousand mortals and a single Qi Cultivation Cultivator, considering the matter settled. But now, Jiang Kui was proving to be insatiably greedy.
Forget the fact that Jiang Wanqin had already reached Foundation Establishment; even if she hadn’t, Fang Qingyuan would not have let Jiang Kui take her. He was the Sect Leader of the Qingyuan Sect. ’If I can’t even protect my own disciple, what kind of Sect Leader am I? How can I even speak of passing down a legacy?’
With these thoughts in mind, Fang Qingyuan cut Jiang Kui’s speech short and stated bluntly,
"Senior Sister Jiang, that is absolutely impossible. Jiang Wanqin is a disciple of the Qingyuan Sect now. Asking her to renounce that status and rejoin the Beast Taming Sect is nothing short of fantasy."
In practice, it would be extremely difficult for Jiang Wanqin to rejoin the Southern Border Beast Taming Sect. Without the approval of its leader, Di Qing, Jiang Wanqin could only serve as a Guest Minister even if she returned to Yuanling Mountain.
What Fang Qingyuan failed to consider, however, was that Jiang Kui wanted Jiang Wanqin to marry Di Yun; she had no intention of ever letting Jiang Wanqin return to Yuanling Mountain.
Jiang Kui was visibly displeased with Fang Qingyuan’s refusal. She rose to her feet, came before him, and complained,
"These past few years have been very hard for me. I thought life would get easier after outlasting Zhao E Lian, but Di Qing is no saint. The shares you gave me for the Yuanling Square Marketplace... I’ve had to sell them all just to keep Yuanling Mountain afloat..."
"Why would you sell the Marketplace shares?" Fang Qingyuan’s voice was cold as he cut her off. "Don’t you know that you’d sooner starve to death than sell something like that?"
Jiang Kui froze for a moment before replying helplessly,
"I didn’t want to sell them, but I had no choice. If you refuse to sell, they have all sorts of methods to deal with you. I hoped the Southern Border Beast Taming Sect would intervene, but after asking everyone, nobody was willing to step in. I had to sell a little at a time just to manage. Now, the shares are all gone, and there’s nothing left. My only plan is to find a powerful backer to help me."
In the end, Jiang Kui had been defeated by reality. Her methods lacked Fang Qingyuan’s cunning. Back then, Fang Qingyuan’s own background had been inferior to hers, yet he had managed to coax Vice Sect Leader Zhao Liangde into backing him and had been willing to concede most of the benefits to others. The crucial difference was that Fang Qingyuan had been a pioneer, and his prestige and popularity were on a level Jiang Kui could never hope to match.
Ever since arriving at Yuanling Mountain, Jiang Kui had focused on her cultivation, leaving most affairs in Fang Qingyuan’s hands. Later, after being poisoned, she spent many years recovering in Qi Yun. She had very little contact with worldly matters, so even with the massive inheritance Fang Qingyuan had left her, she couldn’t protect it.
Looking at Jiang Kui now, Fang Qingyuan simply couldn’t reconcile this woman with the cold, aloof Senior Sister Jiang he once knew. ’People change.’ And Jiang Kui had finally become the very sort of person she despised in her youth.
Seeing Fang Qingyuan’s silence, Jiang Kui began to plead,
"Junior Brother Fang, please, help me one more time. Just this once. You were always willing to help me before, so why not now?"
Hearing her say this, Fang Qingyuan realized with stark clarity that he and Jiang Kui were truly no longer on the same path. They had spent roughly thirty years together, and without them even noticing, their principles had changed drastically.
And so, Fang Qingyuan rose to his feet and spoke, his voice frigid.
"Let’s make a deal, Jiang Kui. You send Jiang Wanqin back, sever your master-disciple relationship with her, and release Liu Xun to come to the Qingyuan Sect. Name your terms."
Jiang Kui heard the finality in his voice. Her eyes grew red as she tremblingly refused,
"What do you mean by that? Do you think I’m some greedy, money-grubbing person? Wanqin is my disciple! What’s wrong with me wanting what’s best for her? Do you want her to end up like you, old and all alone? Or like me, over a hundred, with half my life gone and not even a dao companion to be found?"
Listening to Jiang Kui’s accusations, Fang Qingyuan felt a pang of guilt. ’It’s true, Jiang Wanqin should find a partner. I’m used to being alone, but she can’t go on like this.’
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