Leaving the Song Family villa district, Guan Xuxu didn't return to the Jiang residence. Instead, she hailed a taxi and headed to her previously rented apartment.
It was a two-bedroom, one-living-room unit of about eighty square meters that Guan Xuxu had leased two years ago.
The living room was partitioned by a screen, serving as Hu Piaoliang's activity area. In one corner sat a small tent piled high with various toys.
The rest of the space consisted of a master bedroom and a study. Two long tables were set up in the study; one was covered in various carving materials and tools, while the other was neatly organized with yellow paper, cinnabar, and various ancient dharma tools. The two sides were clearly demarcated, each possessing its own distinct style.
Guan Xuxu stepped forward and began a simple packing of her things.
When she had moved to the Jiang residence, she hadn't brought any luggage. Her supply of Ward Talismans was completely exhausted. Since she intended to restore Song Yuli's One Wit, she had to prepare in advance.
As she was tidying up, her phone suddenly rang. Casting a sidelong glance, she saw the caller ID: [Master of Qingfeng Temple]. After a moment's thought, she answered.
An elderly voice crackled from the other end.
"Little Friend Guan, have you considered my proposal? We need a guest lecturer at the Jing City Taoist Academy. Don't you want to apply for Jing University? They have a partnership with the academy even if your scores aren't high enough,
they could guarantee your admission. But if you ask me, going to university is a waste of time. Two years as a guest lecturer would make you an honorary mentor, which is equivalent to a master's degree..."
The old man babbled on with heartfelt persistence. Guan Xuxu didn't find him annoying; she simply listened through to the end before speaking.
"My scores should be high enough on their own," she said. "However, I haven't decided whether to go to Jing City or stay in Hai City."
Previously, her desire to attend Jing University was entirely driven by the need to get as far away from the Guan family as possible. But now that she had left them, she wasn't particularly eager to leave Hai City.
Hearing that she might stay, the old man forgot his previous attempt to persuade her to Jing City. He chuckled heartily.
"Hai City is excellent! It's a place of great spirit and talented people. I have some influence at Hai University as well, so I'll decline the academy on your behalf. Oh, by the way, Little Friend Guan, would you consider joining my Qingfeng Temple directly? With your aptitude..."
Seeing that the old man was about to start another round of rambling, Guan Xuxu cut him off. "No. I want to go to university."
The old man sighed with regret, but quickly transitioned back to business. "The temple's supply of Safety Talismans has run out. When can you send some more over? Same old rules, three thousand per card..."
At the mention of "business," Guan Xuxu's spirits lifted slightly. She checked the stock in her drawer and nodded. "Fine. I'll send twenty over first."
Twenty cards meant sixty thousand.
After donating half, she would be left with thirty thousand.
If she wanted to pay back the upbringing debt she owed the Guan family, selling talismans clearly wouldn't be enough.
Guan Xuxu was a Talisman Master.
In the world of Xuanmen, there were the Five Arts of Metaphysics: Mountain, Medicine, Destiny, Physiognomy, and Divination.
Talismans fell under the category of the Mountain Art, which was the most mysterious and difficult to master.
Although Guan Xuxu dabbled in all five arts, her greatest talent and focus lay in talismanic techniques.
Aside from specialized charms, general talismans were written on yellow paper. Drawing on paper was the most basic skill. Beyond that lay carved talismans such as the jade plaque she had given Chu Beihe and Void Talisman Drawing. The mental effort required for the latter two was incomparable to the former.
Spreading out the yellow paper and cinnabar on the desk, Guan Xuxu took up her brush and concentrated her qi. Then, she set brush to paper. Her strokes moved like a dancing dragon, finishing the charm in a single fluid motion. As she pulled the brush away, a faint glimmer of spiritual light flickered at the tip. Thus, a Safety Talisman was complete.
Guan Xuxu drew twenty cards in one go, taking less than fifteen minutes in total.
After finishing the temple's order, she thought of how her father and brother had protected her. She pulled out a high-quality piece of raw stone and began carving a Ward Talisman.
She stayed in the rental house the entire afternoon. It wasn't until the sky began to darken that she finished packing her things and took Hu Piaoliang back to the Jiang residence by taxi.
Entering the house and heading upstairs, Guan Xuxu had just opened her door to put her things down when a small figure suddenly came charging toward her.
She turned to see her six-year-old cousin, Jiang Ying, suddenly darting past her into the room. The girl shoved Xuxu with an angry expression and screamed, "This is my room! You're not allowed in my room!!"
Guan Xuxu was momentarily stunned. She looked behind Jiang Ying; it was definitely her assigned room.
At that moment, Yao Lin rushed over. Seeing Jiang Ying's outburst, she hissed a low reprimand, "Yingying, don't be so rude! Apologize to your cousin right now."
Jiang Ying ignored her mother. Pointing at the room behind her, she began shouting at Yao Lin instead, "Mom, you clearly said this room was going to be for me! Why did you let her stay here? You broke your word! I don't care! This is my room!"
Jiang Ying's shouting was loud enough that Jiang Su and the other brothers emerged from their own rooms to see what was happening.
The moment Guan Xuxu heard those words, she understood everything.
No wonder her second aunt had initially prepared a different room for her.
It turned out she had intended to save this dream-like princess room for her own daughter.
Yao Lin looked mortified. She hadn't expected her daughter to blurt out the truth so bluntly. She could only offer a strained, placating smile.
"It's not like that... Yingying just likes this room. I didn't know Xuxu was coming back before, so I was just humoring her..."
"Whether Xuxu came back or not, this was always her room."
Jiang Huai's voice drifted from the other end of the hallway. He had clearly heard the commotion and walked over.
His face wore its usual gentle and warm expression, but his almond-shaped eyes carried a hint of frost as they swept over the group.
He looked at Yao Lin and asked coolly, "Is Second Aunt not clear on that fact?"
Leave aside the fact that Xuxu had been officially recognized and brought home even if she hadn't been, no one was permitted to seize this room.
Yao Lin's face stiffened. Her lips moved as if to speak, looking utterly distressed.
Jiang Han, from the second branch of the family, felt dissatisfied with the way the eldest brother was treating his mother. He took a step forward.
"Brother Huai, it's not like my mom did it on purpose. It's just a room. This style was originally meant for a child anyway. If Yingying likes it, why can't she have it?"
As he spoke, his gaze drifted toward Guan Xuxu with a look of resentment. "You're an adult, after all. Are you really going to fight a child for a bedroom?"
The way he framed it, it was as if she was the one being the bully.
Guan Xuxu raised an eyebrow slightly.
She didn't enjoy arguing with people, but if someone called her out, she wasn't about to play deaf.
"So, your meaning is that because she's young, I should give it up just because she likes it? And if I don't, then I'm 'stealing' it from her?"
"Isn't that obviously the case?" Jiang Han replied as if it were common sense.
Guan Xuxu nodded in understanding. "In that case, I really like that 'A Thousand Li of Rivers and Mountains' painting in the National Museum of China. If you can convince the museum to give the painting to me, then I'll give this room to her. How about it?"
She threw her hands up and emphasized with a deadpan expression, "After all, I'm quite young too. I just want a national treasure."
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