Chapter 586: Have You Ever Thought of Cultivating Immortality?

Chapter 586: Have You Ever Thought of Cultivating Immortality?

…

[Simulation complete]

[Detailed information table has been generated for you. Click to view.]

A flicker crossed Chen Huaian’s mind, and he tapped once.

[Southern Dynasty Emperor: Chu Zhao, 32 years old]

[Life summary: He is the second son of the Spirit Emperor. In the Southern Dynasty’s year 267, the Spirit Emperor died, and the crown prince Chu Xun was granted the throne. The second prince Chu Zhao, together with his adviser Lingxiao Daoist, launched a coup. They first colluded with the northern Xiongnu invaders to pressure the crown prince Chu Xun into redeploying his two guardian generals—Li Zhennan and Wang Qingyue—then they killed crown prince Chu Xun and the guardian cultivators around him, successfully seizing the throne.

Guardian generals Li Zhennan and Wang Qingyue were assassinated by killers sent by Lingxiao Daoist and died on the battlefield.

At the same time, three hundred thousand Southern Dynasty soldiers perished.

After Chu Zhao ascended the throne, he was not respected by many ministers, so he launched mass purges: those who submitted prospered, those who resisted perished.

After the Xiongnu retreated, Chu Zhao took all the credit for himself to quell public anger and stabilize his rule.]

[Associated person: Lingxiao Daoist]

[Original name: Li Lixiao, age: 134, identity: national teacher of the Southern Dynasty (formerly national teacher of the Xiongnu)]

[Life summary: When he came to the Southern Dynasty, he was only a Qilian Great Perfection cultivator. He later became Chu Zhao’s adviser and helped launch the coup. After Chu Zhao became emperor, Li Lixiao’s cultivation rose rapidly; in less than ten years he entered the Nascent Soul stage.]

…

Besides the above, there were many other less important details.

For example, the personality traits and behavior patterns of Chu Zhao and Lingxiao Daoist, and what outrageous things they had done—all largely tied to the Southern Dynasty’s suffering.

Chu Zhao was, without a doubt, a thoroughly incompetent and debauched ruler.

He demanded palace maids be completely naked inside the palace so he and his ministers could indulge at any time.

At meals, he required concubines to lie in his arms and be fed mouth-to-mouth; for drinking, he drank only from the mouths of beauties. The palace maid specially responsible for making cups was granted the humiliating title “Beauty’s Vessel.”

These were only the tip of Chu Zhao’s monstrous behavior.

There were too many actions that would raise one’s blood pressure and shame even animals; Chen Huaian no longer wanted to look at them.

Reading made him nauseous.

“Young master, miss, I’ve finished cooking. Come eat together.”

Liu Cui’e’s voice rang from inside the room.

Chen Huaian swallowed his anger and went in, seeing Li Qingran and Liu Cui’e already seated at the table.

A very shabby little round table—a section sawed from a tree trunk—held simple dishes: egg drop soup with mushrooms and eggs, a plate of boiled wild vegetables, two side dishes without a single drop of oil. The staple was two bowls of rice porridge, with the grains so few you could count them at a glance. 𝐑₳𐌽Ȯ₿ЁŠ

“Cui’e, do you usually... eat only this?” Li Qingran looked at the food on the table; an inexplicable pang of sadness rose in her chest.

“You must be joking, miss. How could Cui’e dare eat like this usually...” Liu Cui’e forced a smile, her gaze involuntarily drifting to the food, swallowing quietly: “If I can dig up wild vegetables I boil them, if not I eat some rice porridge. One bowl might have five grains of rice—if I can taste rice a little, I’m satisfied.”

Liu Cui’e’s fingers were knobby with prominent joints; the small hands were covered in cuts and frostbite scars—the marks left from years of digging wild vegetables in the mountains. Her gaunt cheeks hollowed deeply, cheekbones high, she looked so thin a gust of wind might topple her.

Clearly she normally had almost nothing to eat.

As for work... if there were real work, the town’s streets wouldn’t be full of beggars and corpses of the starved.

Although the Southern Dynasty was not in a full famine now, the people’s lives were worse than during a famine.

Chen Huaian didn’t ask what would happen if the rice jar was emptied and there were no more wild vegetables to dig up.

The answer would inevitably be heartbreaking.

“Young master, miss, Cui’e knows you two might dislike this food.” Seeing Chen Huaian and Li Qingran not pick up their chopsticks, Liu Cui’e’s eyes reddened and her voice choked: “But this is all I can provide. Other than this, I don’t know how to repay your kindness.”

She didn’t say she would slave away for Chen Huaian and Li Qingran.

Because in today’s Southern Dynasty, serving the rich and powerful like a beast isn’t repayment—it’s sucking up.

…

Li Qingran said nothing, only took her porridge and sipped the egg drop soup with it.

The wild vegetables were bitter and hard to swallow, the egg smelled fishy since it hadn’t been treated.

Halfway through, tears streamed down her face.

She recalled the days of despair after being expelled from Qingyun Sect, curled up in a broken thatched hut waiting to die.

If Master hadn’t appeared in time, her fate might not have been much better than Liu Cui’e’s.

Seeing Li Qingran and Chen Huaian willing to eat what she made, Liu Cui’e’s cracked lips lifted into a faint smile.

Seeing Li Qingran cry, however, she panicked: “Miss, why are you crying again? Is the food not to your liking?”

“No.” Li Qingran wiped away tears and forced a smile: “Cui’e’s cooking is very good. I haven’t had such tasty food in a long time. It even tastes like home... I just suddenly thought of the past and felt a little sad.”

Chen Huaian ate quickly, finishing his portion in just a few mouthfuls.

He didn’t appear to leave any for Liu Cui’e.

Seeing Liu Cui’e’s expectant, nervous eyes, he had pretty much decided.

He let out a soft breath, put down the wooden spoon, and said gently, “Cui’e, this isn’t enough for us. Look, you barely touched it. Neither Qingran nor I are full.”

Liu Cui’e’s pretty face flushed; she lowered her head, unsure what to do.

Chen Huaian narrowed his eyes and continued, “Or how about this—we also brought some food. Why don’t you eat with us?”

“Young master, this, this is too embarrassing...” Liu Cui’e was at a loss and didn’t know how to solve the problem of the young master and miss not being full.

“There’s nothing embarrassing about it—everyone eats together!” Chen Huaian didn’t waste words. He took some food out of his storage pouch.

The food was not from the Cangyun Realm; it was modern.

All sorts of types—his backup rations for when he craved snacks.

Seeing food appear out of thin air, a flash of surprise crossed Liu Cui’e’s eyes, but she was quickly stunned by what she saw—pure white rice grains poured out like pearls, piling into a small mountain in a white porcelain bowl.

Then came various delicacies she had never seen:

Braised beef glistening with an enticing red, white-cut chicken with tender flesh, silky steamed egg custard, steaming meat buns, and assorted exquisite pastries.

Finally, Chen Huaian produced a pot of warm sweet soup whose rich aroma instantly filled the small room.

Liu Cui’e stood dumbfounded, hands awkwardly rubbing at her clothes, lips trembling and unable to speak.

The aroma of these foods was heaven itself to her, but she couldn’t believe it was real.

“This... this...” big tears fell from her eyes, “Miss, young master, this is too precious. Cui’e can’t accept it!”

“Cui’e, come eat with us. We can’t just let you watch us eat—what sort of manners would that be?” Li Qingran gently stroked Liu Cui’e’s hand and said warmly, “Master and I can’t eat all this. If you don’t help us finish some, won’t it be wasted?”

Liu Cui’e wasn’t stupid—she knew Chen Huaian and Li Qingran were doing this on purpose.

But she couldn’t bear the thought of the food being wasted.

“You promised I could repay the young master and miss...” Liu Cui’e sobbed, trembling hand reaching for a piece of braised beef. The moment it touched her mouth, the exquisite flavor made her eyes widen.

She had never eaten such delicious food in her life; the satisfaction traveled from her tongue down to her heart.

Once, during New Year, her father brought home a bit of pork and they fried a tiny plate—at the time it was the most delicious thing she’d ever tasted.

She thought she would never eat anything tastier.

Only today did she realize how shallow her previous understanding had been...

“So good... it’s really so good...” she cried as she ate, swallowing tears with the food, “Thank you, young master, thank you, miss... Cui’e never imagined she could eat such food.” She ate slowly, savoring every bite as if to commit the goodness to memory forever.

Chen Huaian thought for a moment and felt the time was right.

He had just checked: Liu Cui’e had no lover.

That meant she already met one condition.

So he asked, “Liu Cui’e, have you... ever thought about cultivating immortality?”

“Cult... cultivating immortality?” Liu Cui’e stared blankly at Chen Huaian.

Her small mind couldn’t connect everything before her with the sudden phrase “cultivating immortality.”

“That’s right—cultivation.”

Chen Huaian looked sincere. “I think you have good talent. I’m planning to let you take an apprentice master, so you won’t have to live this hard life anymore.”

Liu Cui’e’s character was without fault.

And Zhang Mengchu was not bad-looking either; he just didn’t use Youth Preservation Pills for the sake of dignity.

Even without them, he was a legitimately handsome older man.

Chen Huaian believed that if Zhang Mengchu wanted it, matters between him and Liu Cui’e would be only a matter of time.

…

Today my head hurts; writing was slow. The next chapter will be posted a bit later.