Immortal Travel of Longevity

Early the next morning, Tang Shijing left the estate with several shopkeepers.

They were all veteran shopkeepers of the Tang family, some having already risen to the rank of steward. Though Tang Mingjing was unusually strict with him, he never skimped on matters like this. Everything Tang Shijing needed was fully prepared, including his escort, which boasted a good number of Seventh- and even Eighth-Rank martial artists.

This trip was a matter of life and death.

Tang Mingjing felt gratified, but more than that, he was worried.

That night, Tang Shijing's mother—a concubine Tang Mingjing had taken later in life—threw a fit. She absolutely refused to let Tang Shijing go to that place. It was in such chaos; who knew if he would ever come back once he left? What if he threw his life away for nothing?

Tang Mingjing merely replied calmly, "He isn't young anymore. He has caused plenty of trouble growing up. Are you hoping he causes some world-shaking disaster I can't save him from before you finally teach him how to behave? Besides, I didn't force him to go this time. He begged me for it."

Faced with these words, Tang Shijing's mother let out a helpless sigh. "Alas..."

She said nothing more.

"Get some rest," Tang Mingjing said.

Later, Yunxiang stepped in to mediate, which finally eased the tension between Second Sister-in-law and Eldest Brother.

Watching all this, Yunxiang felt a bit discontented.

The household had simply grown too large. Its unspoken, convoluted rules were becoming more obvious by the day. Things were no longer as relaxed as they used to be.

But what could she say?

At the end of the day, she was only an adopted sister. There were some things she simply had no right to say.

Having been a maid since she was young, she naturally understood certain boundaries. She was Tang Mingjing's sister, but strictly an adopted one.

This massive Tang Manor had long since become a place devoid of human warmth.

There was no perfect solution in the world; the good always came with the bad.

She had seen it, she understood it, and that was that.

Lihua's days at Tang Manor were fairly comfortable. In truth, it was mostly because the estate was so large that the cat could never finish exploring it.

It often looked toward the south.

This was all because of something it had asked a child a few days ago.

"Cat, cat, what are you looking at?"

Tang Zheng was very fond of this cat, mostly because he thought it was fun to play with, being chubby and easy to catch.

In reality, however, he had never actually managed to catch it.

He only knew that this cat could talk, making it different from all the others.

Lihua looked toward the northwest and said, "Lihua is looking at a place very far away."

Tang Zheng clasped his hands behind his back and imitated the cat, looking toward the northwest. "Why are you looking northwest?"

"Lihua's good friend is there."

"Good friend?"

"Yes, her name is Ruyi."

"Oh, oh."

Tang Zheng asked, "Where is she?"

"According to Chen the Good Man, she went to the Fiend Blood Path, a very dangerous place."

"Fiend Blood Path?"

Tang Zheng thought for a moment. He looked up at the cat and said, "Are you looking in the wrong direction?"

"Ah?" Lihua froze for a second.

"The Fiend Blood Path is to the south."

"..."

Lihua paused, then turned in another direction, muttering to itself, "No wonder I couldn't see it."

"That's west."

"..."

Lihua felt a little embarrassed. It turned one more time and finally found the right direction.

Tang Zheng smiled helplessly. "You're probably the type who would get lost and never find their way back."

"Lihua knows the way," Lihua retorted.

"Where's northeast?"

"..."

After a brief silence, the cat said, "You're making things difficult for me."

Tang Zheng burst out laughing, clutching his stomach; the cat cracked him up.

Lihua turned its head away, ignoring him.

But in truth, it silently committed this to memory. Who had laughed at Lihua, on what year, month, and day, and where—it kept a strict mental ledger of it all.

Probably because so many people had laughed at it, it had to keep track.

Tang Zheng sat down and enjoyed the gentle breeze. After a long while, seeing the cat still staring off, he asked, "Can you really see things that are far away?"

Lihua paused and said, "No."

"Then why are you looking?"

"I heard Ruyi say that when you wait for someone, you have to keep looking in their direction. Because one day, they'll come walking from over there."

Tang Zheng froze, seemingly surprised. "You can actually say such profound things."

He stood up and reached out to pet the cat's head.

Lihua dodged and looked at him warily.

Tang Zheng smiled awkwardly and lowered his hand. "Then I won't pet you."

Only then did the cat withdraw its guarded gaze.

"But just staring like this won't solve anything," Tang Zheng said. "A talking cat like you must be really powerful, right? Why don't you go find your friend?"

Lihua paused and said, "Cats aren't supposed to run around on their own."

"It's actually because you don't know the way, isn't it?"

Lihua didn't argue. Obviously, Tang Zheng had hit the mark.

Whether it was Chen the Good Man or Ruyi, they always said it was like a clueless little child. And in fact, this was entirely true. The cat didn't know the way, nor did it ever know where it wanted to go. All along, wherever Mo Yu went, it followed; wherever Chen the Good Man went, it followed; wherever Ruyi went...

The cat was very easygoing and had absolutely no mind of its own.

It had seen many things, but what it actually understood was still very, very little.

Seeing that it wasn't speaking, Tang Zheng said, "Though I actually think it's better for you to stay here. Look how great our house is. You don't have to worry about food or shelter."

Lihua shook its head. "It's not good here."

"Why isn't it good?" Tang Zheng asked.

Lihua thought for a moment and said, "It lacks warmth."

"Warmth?"

"Yes."

Lihua explained, "Chen the Good Man likes places with a human touch and the lively warmth of daily life. Lihua didn't understand before, but after seeing many things, Lihua finally gets it. It's not good here. The people here are all afraid of something. They keep their heads down and speak in very quiet voices."

Hearing this, Tang Zheng felt a slight jolt in his heart. For a moment, he couldn't come up with a reply.

His gaze shifted past the estate walls. He let out a soft sigh and finally answered, "You're right."

Even a cat could see it.

This place had nowhere near the human warmth they used to have back in Yan County.

Tang Zheng looked at the cat and asked, "Let's go out, shall we?"

Lihua looked over.

Tang Zheng thought about it, then shook his head. "I don't know where to. Didn't you say you wanted to find your friend? Then let's go find your friend first."

Lihua looked at him, hesitating for a moment before asking, "Do you know the way?"

Tang Zheng smiled and said, "I don't know the way, but there's always someone who does."

After a brief silence, Lihua answered, "I'll go with you!"

That very night.

Tang Zheng stole some money from the estate. Under the cover of darkness, he climbed over the compound wall and slipped away with a cat in tow, without alerting a single soul.

It was worth noting that the countless Seventh- and Eighth-Rank martial artists stationed around Tang Manor failed to notice anything amiss.

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