Zhao Yi turned his head to look at Li Zhiyuan, with a bitter expression on his face: "Are you trying to get me killed?"
Li Zhiyuan: "It's my business, the old lady won't say anything."
Zhao Yi: "Do you really not know what this means?"
Li Zhiyuan: "Do you want it or not?"
"I want it."
Li Zhiyuan went inside, carrying out a tall stack of books, and handed them to Zhao Yi.
Zhao Yi took them, went downstairs, and then to the courtyard. He first placed the books on the ground before jogging over to the old lady.
The old lady was already seated, and Tan Wenbin was making tea for her.
Zhao Yi glanced at Tan Wenbin, thinking: You really are busy, serving both the Qianqing Palace and the Cining Palace.
Liu Yumei picked up her teacup, glanced at Zhao Yi, and Zhao Yi hurriedly prepared to kneel and kowtow.
In terms of seniority and status, Zhao Yi indeed should perform the ritual of a junior, yet he intentionally chose not to perform the gate ceremony, also hoping to bridge their relationship.
Liu Yumei: "That's enough, no need to kowtow, I have nothing to reward you with."
Upon hearing this, Zhao Yi didn't insist on kowtowing, he stood up and bowed: "Meeting you, Madam, is already a great fortune. To expect anything more would be me being inconsiderate."
Liu Yumei: "Is the benefit you just received still not enough?"
From behind, seeing Zhao Yi almost kowtow earlier, Chen Lin felt a shock to her soul.
Her brother once lamented the power of the Dragon King family. But for that old lady to make the young master of the Dragon King family willingly kowtow?
Chen Lin, lost her balance, falling back.
Yin Meng reached out to support her, but was grabbed by Run Sheng.
Lin Shuyou first looked suspiciously at Run Sheng and Yin Meng suddenly holding hands, then, belatedly realizing, reached out to catch Chen Lin.
Chen Lin instinctively snuggled into Lin Shuyou's arms, clutching his clothes with both hands.
This wasn't from ulterior motives, just pure shock-induced instinct.
How long the joy would last was unknown, now she was truly plunged into fear's abyss.
Lin Shuyou could feel the trembling of the girl in his arms.
He wanted to offer comfort but didn't know how, reaching out to pat her head, yet finding it inappropriate halfway through, settled for touching her forehead instead.
To an outsider, it might have seemed like checking if she had a fever.
Zhao Yi: "You wouldn't know, this is the hard-earned money from toiling like a workhorse outside."
Liu Yumei: "What hardship pay? Can it measure up to a complete legacy? If word got out, outsiders might think your Jiujiang Zhao family has become a vassal under the Qin and Liu Families."
Zhao Yi: "Past hardships, that's one thing, but doesn't the future hold promise? Bit by bit, it will surely be repaid."
Liu Yumei said no more; she knew that what was incredibly valuable to outsiders was not much to Xiao Yuan, who once even helped revise the official's book.
Since Xiao Yuan wants to give, then let him give; she just needed to give a slight reprimand.
Liu Yumei waved her hand: "You youngsters can have fun yourselves."
She wasn't comfortable bringing up Jianghu matters; nor could she ask about the other family's elders, as the Jiujiang Zhao was unworthy of such inquiries, nor was their connection that deep.
Zhao Yi: "I brought some tokens of filial piety from home, they're not expensive, just unique and thoughtful."
Liu Yumei closed her eyes.
Zhao Yi: "It's my fault, disturbing your peaceful rest."
The gifts were brought along but not distributed, simply because he hadn't received permission from the true master.
Visiting someone's home, you can't just give gifts to anyone; that's against protocol. Previously giving the jade bracelet to Chen Lin was because Zhao Yi knew Chen Lin didn't count as part of this place yet.
Earlier, when he heard the weight, he knew the hot water bottle was nearly empty, so Zhao Yi reached to take the bottle, intending to fetch a new one.
He instinctively moved towards the East Room, looking at Tan Wenbin to ask if it was there.
Tan Wenbin was about to shake his head, signaling not to go there.
The old lady, eyes closed, gave a faint "hmm."
Recently, having been tricked numerous times, Zhao Yi had developed apprehension, but remembering if the old lady wanted him dead, there was no need for a pitfall; he strode into the East Room.
Soon, Zhao Yi came out carrying a new hot water bottle.
After placing it on the ground, he took a step back, knelt, and kowtowed, his forehead hitting the cement floor creating a dent, blood dripping from his own forehead.
He had just seen the tablets in the East Room, and more so sensed that none of the tablets had spirits.
The decline of the Qin and Liu Families wasn't a secret amongst the powers of Jianghu's top echelons, but apparently, no one knew that the Qin and Liu Families had fallen to the point of having no spirits.
Last time, someone named Li jokingly asked if the Jiujiang Zhao family had any undead in coffins; the answer was yes.
Whereas the two rightful Dragon King's Courts in history, except for the contemporaries, totally lacked any ancestor's blessing.
The old lady shouldering such a household naturally faced immense difficulties.
Thus, it became clear how outrageous and infuriating the conjugal proposal, implied in the letter sent by Zhao Yi's ancestor, must have seemed to the old lady.
The reason he was alive today was because Uncle Qin acknowledged him, sparing him back then; ultimately, it was because the old lady didn't directly order his death. Otherwise, even if he had been riddled with holes that night, it would have meant nothing.
Generations of Dragon Kings were legends suppressing evils in their respective eras. Even if without spirits, the two families' Dragon King Tablets placed together remained awe-inspiring.
Such a family could reach its zenith and decline, or even collapse suddenly, but to fall to the point of annihilation was truly unbearable. Zhao Yi couldn't bear it either.
