ntioning her esteed teacher, Tutor Xie, a trace of a sigh finally appeared on Siya's face. She gulped down a bowl of clear tea eagerly:
"Tutor's health was never good to begin with, and now that he's older, he's grown even weaker."
"Thankfully, there was the painting you left behind at the ti, Second Sister, and the spirit jade you sent earlier... that helped him improve a bit..."
Hearing this, An Ning wasn't surprised.
In fact, her return this ti was partly to prevent the current aging emperor from going mad, but the more important reason was her own master.
Yilan Pavilion
Unlike Siya's flamboyant brightness, Tutor Xie, now over sixty, still possessed that serene and gentle deanor. Draped in a sky-blue water lily shawl, she reclined half-upright on the couch. Even with a sowhat pale complexion, she radiated a beauty like still waters running deep.
When the An Ning sisters arrived, Tutor Yang was by the couch, holding a bowl of dicine that reeked of bitterness.
Seeing An Ning arrive, a flicker of joy quickly appeared in Xie Shuyu's eyes, and a hint of color returned to her originally pale face.
"A-Ning, it's truly wonderful!"
She examined her disciple carefully. Seeing that after all these years, the other's appearance remained largely unchanged, it was clear her Daoist arts had reached great completion.
As long as she hardened her heart a little in the future, there weren't many left in this world who could threaten her.
Only then did Xie Shuyu truly relax.
Unlike Siya and others who hadn't yet experienced true hardship, as a speck of dust crushed under the weight of power, Tutor Xie was undoubtedly sowhat pessimistic at heart.
Especially towards those in high positions.
Thus, when An Ning resolutely left by sword flight that day long ago, Tutor Xie had actually felt a sense of relief.
Now, looking at the dicinal pill her disciple had taken out, clearly exuding the fragrance of an elixir, and under Tutor Yang's expectant gaze, Xie Shuyu gave an almost imperceptible shake of her head. She had no intention of accepting, let alone using it.
Her gaze warm as she looked at her youthful, flourishing little disciple:
"This master's body, to have lived to this age is already a heavenly gift. A-Ning, your days ahead are still long..."
So thods, and even weaknesses, are better not exposed.
Knowing what the other was worried about, An Ning glanced briefly in the direction of the Imperial Capital before smiling and shaking her head. She reached out and grasped the other's pale, slender fingers:
She said with a note of comfort:
"Master, rest assured. As the saying goes, tis have changed. Since I've chosen to return now, I will definitely not be controlled by anyone!"
Hearing the confidence in An Ning's tone, Xie Shuyu on the sickbed stared fixedly at the person before her for a long mont. After a while, she finally reached out and took the pill. Looking at her composed, unflustered disciple, she slowly smiled:
"As long as A-Ning knows what she's doing!"
"Just rember, no matter when, whether it's your master or anyone else, even if it's thousands of mountains or tens of thousands of people... A-Ning, cough... only A-Ning yourself is the most important."
"Cough, cough, cough... precisely because A-Ning you are so special, you must be even more so." Tutor Xie's voice trembled as she spoke.
An Ning naturally smiled and nodded emphatically.
Yes, no matter when, she herself was the most important.
If she didn't have the confidence born of decades of cultivation now, how could she have rashly taken out this pill?
However, looking at the similarly worried Siya beside her and the gentle-faced Tutor Xie on the couch, An Ning couldn't help but think to herself: although the original body lacked much parental affinity, that didn't an she lacked kinship.
If not for that previous incident, with such a perceptive, intelligent master and sister, her life probably wouldn't have been bad either.
As her old profession, the efficacy of An Ning's elixir was naturally extraordinary. After so catching up, by the ti An Ning left, the previously bedridden Tutor Xie had already recovered to normal, her face even looking several years younger.
Like Siya, even though a host of juniors under her were practically green with anticipation, Tutor Xie similarly had no intention of calling the younger generation over, nor any thought of making introductions.
However, although Tutor Xie herself had no intention of publicizing the matter, and hadn't even stepped outside her door more than a few tis, the commotion within the residence still gradually spread outwards.
Such a thod, almost like raising the dead and even reversing aging... how could it not make people flock towards it...
She truly was an immortal!
When the news spread, the one most filled with regret was undoubtedly the current emperor.
Yet now, he was utterly powerless.
Looking at his still young and vigorous son before him, Emperor Xuanwu barely suppressed the murky jealousy swirling in his heart.
Little did he know, at this mont, the Sima Rui before him was also deeply unsettled.
Facing his Imperial Father, whether it was temptation with benefits or emotional appeals, all sounds seed to have faded away from him now.
"Imperial Father, rest assured, your son has not the slightest covetous desire for your throne."
Hurriedly leaving these words, Sima Rui practically flew back to the mountain, almost gasping for breath as he said:
"Master, Master! Do you... do you have plans to ascend to immortality soon?"
Oh? This little disciple is quite sharp!
In the highest Star Observation Pavilion within the temple, An Ning was currently fiddling with a jade plate in her hand. Hearing this, she gave him a rare, curious look.
But...
A mont later, under her little disciple's expression that was on the verge of tears, An Ning finally couldn't help but laugh: "Rest assured, there is such a plan. However, your master's cultivation is still insufficient for now. That day is still far off!"
Yet, as soon as the words fell, Sima Rui's expression grew even more miserable.
Insufficient cultivation? How was that possible? He knew his master's abilities best. The only reason she hadn't ascended yet was because there were still things she couldn't let go of.
Clutching tightly to his master's waist, Sima Rui suddenly let out a loud wail and cried.
"Master, others still have family, but your disciple... your disciple only has you!"
Staring at the little disciple crying so pitifully and miserably before her.
An Ning: "..."
Well, but... no family? Then what is that huge bunch in the Imperial Capital?
***
The Sima Rui before her used his actions to show that they were nothing.
Anyway, since that day, the already clingy little disciple beca even more attached. Not exactly following her every step, but not far from it.
With a face gradually developing into a crybaby's, he was daily aggrieved and full of unspoken words, to the point where even An Ning could barely stand to look directly.
"Master, do you know? Recently, Imperial Father has been constantly trying to tempt with the throne in various ways. Your disciple actually knows that to the current Imperial Father, a son like is just a tool to obtain benefits."
"And Master, do you know why I never trusted that person in the Imperial Capital from the very beginning?"
In the darkness, Sima Rui's voice unconsciously lowered, carrying a hint of hoarseness:
"Actually, on the day of the military coup back then, what those people most wanted to capture was us, the sons. It was the Empress Dowager, it was she who disregarded her own safety and led them away, barely preserving our lives until that person arrived."
"But Master, I saw with my own eyes back then... when Mother threw herself upon the sword, that person... he actually sighed in relief..."
Though it was just a fleeting glimpse from the corner of his eye, it had been etched into the mory of the four-year-old child, unforgettable for a lifeti.
No wonder! Looking at the disciple sobbing before her, An Ning couldn't help but think to herself.
Thinking about how her little disciple was only seven at the ti, yet could so keenly perceive his own situation and muster such imnse willpower.
And since entering the mountain to cultivate, this disciple had never ntioned outside matters again, and when ntioning his Imperial Father, it was mostly with a tone of wariness.
At the ti, she had thought it was just innate precociousness, or perhaps a contrast with his birth mother.
She never imagined that the emperor's deep affection and doting care were sothing the person before her had never believed in from the start.
Of course, An Ning knew that her little disciple saying all this now wasn't without an elent of playing pitiful in front of her.
But thirty-so years of diligent companionship, thoughtful in every matter... she was human, not a block of wood!
Besides... she could still tell whether soone's feelings were genuine or fake.
Looking at the disciple before her, crying until his eyes were red and his face a ss, An Ning let out a rare, soft sigh:
"What your master said earlier about being temporarily unable to ascend is true..."
However, several days later, after Emperor Xuanwu's excited attendant received the dicine bottle from his hands, before he could even feel joy, the next second, a dazzling cyan light shot straight into the sky from within the temple.
This!!! This is!
For a mont, whether it was high officials and nobles or common folk in the capital, everyone's gaze converged there!
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