During their time in the World in a Basin, the four girls would always sit together after bathing to brush each other's hair. The Third often brushed Xin Xiu's hair, doing so with great care and attention.
This girl, though young, initially appeared too aloof. But after getting to know her, one realized she had a very soft heart and valued emotions deeply. At times, she was overly sensitive, lost in thought, and lacked confidence, possibly due to her family background.
The younger children, on the other hand, had fewer worries. Xin Xiu would take them out to eat, drink, and play, which was enough to keep them happy. But this wasn't the case for The Third, so Xin Xiu always gave her extra attention, often trying to cheer her up.
It wasn't formal counseling, just casual chatter and jokes, with some improvised wisdom thrown in. Surprisingly, The Third responded well to this informal approach.
Despite not having seen each other for some time, they didn't feel estranged. As Xin Xiu recounted her encounter with the Iron-Eating Spirit Beast on Secluded Bamboo Mountain, joked about The Second and his master being caught, and revealed that her own master had a sweet tooth, The Third laughed behind her.
She spoke of herself: "I haven't encountered anything too interesting in the Western Ridge, but my master and senior brothers have been very kind to me. My master guides me in cultivation, and if there's anything I don't understand, both senior brothers will explain it to me in detail. Even when I struggle, they never scold me and remain very patient."
"When I first arrived, I had trouble adjusting to the ice and snow here. My senior brothers lit a stove to keep me warm, and my master specially found me a fur coat. After adapting, I found it quite nice. The snow scenery here is beautiful, especially during sunrise and sunset. If you have the chance, Big Sister, you must stay here for a couple of days."
Xin Xiu sat in front of the mirror, smiling as she listened. She had noticed as soon as she entered The Third's room how thoughtfully it was decorated. There was a thick fur mat on the bed, a windscreen by the window, a carpet in front of the bed, an incense burner emitting fragrant smoke, and two pots of plants with crystal-clear leaves by the window.
Suddenly, a sound like a small bird or chick came from near her feet. Xin Xiu looked down to see a fluffy little ball nuzzling The Third's foot.
"Little Snow, how did you get out?" The Third picked up the furry bundle and handed it to Xin Xiu to see. "My senior brother found it in the mountains a few days ago. Its mother had died, leaving it with no one to care for it, so he brought it back to keep me company."
The white fur had gray spots, and it had grayish-blue eyes. With its tail curled, it turned out to be a small snow leopard. Xin Xiu held it and stroked it for a while, but the little snow leopard soon struggled to leave her hands, its disdain evident.
Xin Xiu said, "Hey, why are you rejecting me?"
The Third held the snow leopard and laughed, "It's always been like this. Whenever Big Sister touches any furry animal, they all want to run away." Of course, in the end, none of them could escape, either ending up as one pot of meat or several pots of meat.
Xin Xiu raised an eyebrow, "I'm not envious. I now have an Iron-Eating Spirit Beast to cuddle. It's big, soft, and warm, and no matter how I pet it, it won't run away." In fact, she was puzzled. In the past, she was always disliked by other people's cats and dogs, with only her own dog, Big Treasure, willing to let her pet it. Now in this world, other furry creatures were still unwilling to stay in her hands for long, except for Mama Panda.
So, was her technique really that bad, or did she just naturally not get along with other animals? Judging from Mama Panda's calm reaction every time she stroked its fur, Xin Xiu felt it couldn't possibly be a problem with her technique.
Xin Xiu braided her hair and pinned it up at the back of her head. This way, her hair wouldn't fly around while riding the motorcycle, making her look like Mei Chaofeng.
When they went out, The Second had already changed clothes and was chatting idly with The Third's two senior brothers. The two senior brothers jokingly said they wanted to join them for hotpot, which Xin Xiu gladly agreed to.
"In that case, The Second, you go with the two senior brothers. I'll take The Third on my motorcycle," Xin Xiu said.
The Second rolled his eyes, with a "I knew it would be like this" expression on his face. His body was already moving towards the two senior brothers, but he was still muttering, "I haven't had enough rides yet."
Xin Xiu ignored him and pulled The Third, who was equally excited, to ride the motorcycle. The two senior brothers had never seen such a flying spirit tool like Xin Xiu's and gathered around, expressing their admiration.
"Mei Xi, be careful when riding this 'motorcycle'. Make sure to hold on tight," the chubby senior brother advised, somewhat concerned.
Mei Xi was The Third's name, meaning "plum blossom by the stream," particularly elegant and beautiful. Unfortunately, Xin Xiu and the others had always called her by her rank, so the name only came into use after she became a disciple.
The Third sat on the motorcycle, still a bit nervous. Xin Xiu didn't go too fast, allowing her to adapt gradually. Seeing the scenery below, The Third indeed became less nervous and started to enjoy the thrill of flying. She said expectantly, "I really want to quickly cultivate to the level where I can fly. Then I could roam the world freely, going anywhere I want. How carefree and happy that would be."
Xin Xiu replied, "It's good that none of you are afraid of heights. Otherwise, if you were afraid to fly, you'd miss out on half the fun of cultivation. This motorcycle can fly very high, even above the clouds. How about it? If you're not afraid, I can take you up there for a look?"
The Third, not one to easily admit defeat, immediately pressed her lips together solemnly and accepted the challenge: "Let's fly!"
After circling above the clouds and coming back down, the two senior brothers had already taken The Second to Uncle Master Jingchengzi and The Fifth. They had decided to have their hotpot gathering at Uncle Master Jingchengzi's place, firstly because Uncle Jingchengzi himself loved to eat and had a good personality, enjoying lively atmospheres, and secondly because he had an abundance of ingredients – the main reason being the plentiful ingredients.
Uncle Master Jingchengzi's territory was different from other places. His dwelling was a "thatched cottage." Nearby were water channels and peach and plum trees, along with large fields and vegetable gardens. Outside the fenced yard were clusters of wildflowers, and both inside and outside the yard, wild grass grew lushly. It truly resembled the secluded dwelling of a poet immersed in nature.
Seeing so many visitors, Jing Chengzi was indeed very pleased. Upon hearing that they wanted to have hotpot here, he clapped his hands in delight, exclaiming "Wonderful!" He called over a few of his disciples, asking them to go to various places to bring The Fourth, The Sixth, and the others over.
"Niece Xiu, you can start simmering the soup base here and prepare the ingredients. By the time the rest of the little nieces and nephews arrive, we'll be ready to eat," Jing Chengzi said reasonably. Xin Xiu didn't insist on going to fetch people herself and handed this task over to The Fifth's senior brothers and sisters.
"Disciple Ai Cao, lead Niece Xiu and the others to pick some fruits and vegetables from various places. The ducks raised by your Fu Ling senior brother are quite plump now, you can catch a few to try," Jing Chengzi stroked his beard and said.
Ai Cao was the name Jing Chengzi had given to The Fifth. The Fifth was previously a beggar and had no name. Uncle Jingchengzi liked to give his disciples names with "grass colors," such as Ai Cao (wormwood) or Fei Peng (mugwort), saying these common wild grasses had more vitality.
Most of them were of the wood element, so these names were quite fitting. The Fifth listened with some resignation but still led Xin Xiu and the others to the melon and vegetable gardens around the thatched cottage.
"Master likes to drink, and in the past, he often picked the spirit plants grown by senior brothers and sisters, and caught some of the spirit beasts they raised. Unfortunately, he doesn't know how to cook, so he just wasted good ingredients. The senior brothers and sisters were particularly distressed. Later, they simply started growing ordinary edible vegetables and raising chickens and ducks. But these chickens and ducks often don't grow big before being caught by Master to eat," The Fifth's expression was both amused and helpless, but she seemed to indulge this mischievous master.
She told The Second to catch a couple of fish from the pond where water chestnuts were growing, The Third to pick melons from the vegetable garden, The Fifth to pick fruits from the orchard, while Xin Xiu went to catch chickens and ducks. When she arrived at the spot, she indeed found only half-grown chickens and ducks. She didn't hesitate to catch several, considering there were quite a few people to feed, and one or two wouldn't be enough.
"Why don't we go catch some wild game as well?" The two senior brothers who had come to join the meal felt awkward just watching, so they were persuaded by Uncle Master Jingchengzi to go hunt wild boar.
Before long, The Sixth, The Seventh, Old Eighth, and Little Ninth all arrived, leaving only The Fourth missing. Senior Brother Fu Ling was the one who went to Senior Uncle Tian Gong's place to fetch The Fourth, but he couldn't bring him back.
"Senior Uncle Tian Gong was very busy and sent me back before I could finish explaining," he said.
Xin Xiu put the prepared chicken into the pot to stew, snorting slightly, feeling a bit unhappy: "The Fourth indeed hasn't had any news these days, but this is our first gathering since becoming disciples. Not one should be missing."
With a clap of her hands, she swung her leg over the motorcycle and tossed back a parting remark: "The Third, keep an eye on the chicken soup and wash the ingredients. I'm off to pick up The Fourth."
As they watched her ride off in a cloud of dust, the onlookers wore varied expressions. Jing Chengzi was the first to burst into laughter, calling out, "I admire my niece Xiu's spirit! I'm in a good mood today. Fei Peng, my disciple, go fetch all the wine we've got stashed away!"
Xin Xiu rode her motorcycle at breakneck speed, screeching to a halt with a sharp turn at the Tian Gong Workshop. This was a grand palace built in the courtyard style, perched on the mountainside. It was both tall and expansive, with intricate details throughout. Several senior disciples bustled about inside, all wearing expressions of utter exhaustion, looking like programmers who had pulled three all-nighters in a row. When they saw her storm in, they were too dazed to react, staring blankly as she passed by.
Xin Xiu, feeling right at home, searched the place thoroughly and finally dug out The Fourth from a corner.
The Fourth, once a proud young master always dressed in splendid attire, was barely recognizable to Xin Xiu this time. He sat there, alternating between carving stone tablets according to a musical score and sniffling. Stone dust covered him from head to toe, leaving him grimy and disheveled. While he didn't quite resemble the "walking dead" like the other senior disciples there, he did look rather worn out.
"Well, well, who do we have here crying? Your face is all dusty, and now you've got two streaks running down it," Xin Xiu said teasingly from behind him.
Hearing her voice, The Fourth whirled around, his eyes immediately welling up. He looked as pitiful as a child seeing their parent for the first time after leaving home. "Big Sis... I wanted to come earlier, but Master wouldn't allow it."
Xin Xiu replied, "I know you wanted to see us, that's why I came to get you myself. The chicken soup isn't even ready yet, and I'm not sure if they can manage the heat properly. We need to hurry back. Come on."
The Fourth hesitated, "But Master..."
Xin Xiu, well aware that beneath his proud exterior he was easily swayed and a bit timid, reached out to pull him along. "Let's go. I'll take responsibility for anything that happens." This was her little brother, after all. Seeing how exhausted he'd become over this period, didn't he deserve a break?
She couldn't care less whether Senior Uncle Tian Gong approved or not. That Tian Gong was clearly a modeling fanatic, obsessed with his work – a complete tech geek, unlike her own master. Such a person wouldn't even take care of himself, let alone show consideration for his disciples.
"Senior brothers, I'm borrowing my little brother for a while. I'll bring him back later," Xin Xiu announced as she brazenly dragged The Fourth away. She pushed him onto the back of her motorcycle and said, "Hold on tight!"
The Fourth: "Aah—"
Xin Xiu: "Hahaha, Fourth, don't tell me you're afraid of heights? How come I never noticed before?"
The Fourth: "Aaah! I'm not afraid of heights!"
"Well, you said it, not me," Xin Xiu chuckled and accelerated.
By the time they returned to Uncle Master Jingchengzi's thatched cottage, the place was already bustling with people. There were familiar and unfamiliar senior brothers and sisters, including Senior Brother Cai Xing and Senior Sister Gui Xin, who often used to freeload meals in the World in a Basin. A large table had been set up in the courtyard, with the simmering chicken soup base already in place. Plates of fresh, vibrant green vegetables, translucent fish slices, meat slices, and meatballs were laid out. The Second and The Third were busy setting up a grill for barbecue.
The Fifth emerged from the house, cradling a clay jar, and Xin Xiu caught the fragrant scent of wine.
