CHAPTER 500: CHAPTER 500 AO QIAN ENJOYS SHU TOO MUCH TO LEAVE

"Where does Qian Bao’Er live?" Lu Zheng asked.

"She can stay with me," Liu Qingyan said, "together with Qingquan and me."

"Qian Bao’Er?"

"Mm-hmm, Sister Fox?" Ao Qian responded to Liu Qingyan.

"You can call me Sister Liu or Sister Qingyan from now on," Liu Qingyan said. "We will live among mortals in hiding, they won’t know our true identities."

Ao Qian’s eyes lit up, nodding repeatedly, "This is great! This is great!"

"So, there’s another issue." Liu Qingyan pointed to the two short Dragon Horns on Ao Qian’s head, "Can you retract those Dragon Horns?"

"Yes, I can!" Ao Qian touched her short horns and with a firm swipe, the two short horns disappeared.

Now, Ao Qian looked just like an ordinary, adorable little girl. With her ability to deceive even Lu Zheng with her spells, no average person in the mortal world could discern her true nature.

"Alright!" Liu Qingyan laughed, "From now on, you’re my distant cousin. Moreover, the Ao surname is too conspicuous. Since you can transform into a goldfish, let’s use the surname Li, and call you Li Qian. We’ll also call you Qian Bao’Er, is that okay?"

"Yes, yes," Ao Qian squinted in delight, nodding repeatedly, "From now on, I’ll be called Li Qian."

...

Flying over Ling Mountain, returning to Tonglin County, Lu Zheng descended on a cloud, landing in the Liu Family Courtyard.

It was precisely 5 p.m., Elder Liu had just returned from Renxin Hall, clinking glasses with Fan Boyu for a small drink, while Du Yueyao was chatting with Madam Liu, accompanied by Liu Qingquan.

The cloud merely avoided the sight of ordinary people outside but didn’t hide from their own people. So, upon seeing the white cloud descending, Liu Qingquan leapt from the main hall, landing in the courtyard.

"Sister and Brother-in-law are back, we’re having dinner, join us... Hey? Who’s this little girl?"

"Heehee, hello Sister, my name is Li Qian, I’m Sister Qingyan’s distant cousin."

Elder Liu and Madam Liu exchanged a glance; how come they don’t remember having such a sweet little distant relative?

Liu Qingquan blinked, a bit puzzled.

Just too cute, Lu Zheng couldn’t resist, and gave Liu Qingquan a gentle flick on the forehead, Liu Qingquan held her head, looking pitiful, "Brother-in-law?"

Liu Qingyan took Ao Qian’s hand with one hand and Liu Qingquan’s with the other, heading to the main hall, "She is the child of a senior’s family, living with us temporarily, her name is Li Qian, nickname Qian Bao’Er."

Regarding Ao Qian’s true identity, Lu Zheng decided not to tell anyone except Shen Ying. This way, it would be safer for everyone, including Ao Qian.

Not knowing would prevent exposure.

"Oh dear, come here, let Auntie take a look, awfully pretty," Madam Liu pulled Ao Qian over, laughing merrily, "Have you eaten? Auntie’s cooked some roast chicken, let’s get to the table."

To be honest, Ao Qian had not eaten for over ten days. Although she wasn’t hungry, the aroma of the entire table made her swallow a gulp.

"Alright! Thank you, Auntie!"

...

So, Ao Qian started living with the Liu Family. On normal days when Liu Qingyan went out to see patients, Ao Qian would read and play with Liu Qingquan.

"Yes, yes, not with Magical Power, but with skill, just like that."

Ao Qian was playing shuttlecock under Liu Qingquan’s guidance; besides the basic techniques, there were various fancy ones, the difficulty and beauty of which would amaze students nowadays to tears.

"So fun! So fun!"

"Is it fun? And it’s a shuttlecock made personally by Brother-in-law, using feathers from a rooster that had attained essence!" Liu Qingquan said proudly.

"Really, really? Is it the one we ate yesterday?" Ao Qian asked.

"No, it was given to us by Mr. Wang from the northern part of the city. The one that had attained essence had long been eaten by us," Liu Qingquan said.

These days, Ao Qian lived so joyously with the Liu Family that she forgot about missing Shu.

In addition to playing shuttlecock, she also played jump rope with other children in the alley, and after sealing her magical power, played the game of dodgeball.

Besides those, she also played Gobang and Chinese Checkers with Liu Qingquan, and had fun engaging in various other games like carving wooden or stone pieces into balls and playing marbles.

There were also modular wooden blocks to build various structures like city walls, houses, carriages, animals, etc.

A big wooden board was also there, with beautiful paintings on it, yet it was deliberately cut into hundreds of pieces to be scrambled and reassembled.

These were toys, and at the head of her bed, Ao Qian found over ten fluffy stuffed animals. They all were not real but especially cute, her favorite being the oversized yet not bulky dragon-shaped plush, hugging it to sleep every night.

However, what Ao Qian anticipated the most was the Dekadal Rest occurring once every ten days, which she happened to experience on the fourth day after her arrival.

This time, the theme of the Dekadal Rest was the Midsummer Sports Meet. Participants included, besides the Liu family, sisters from Five Beauties Manor and Peach Blossom Plain. The meet comprised individual events such as running, high jump, long jump, javelin throw, archery, and badminton, alongside team sports like volleyball, tug of war, and relay race.

Playing from morning till night, the first place in each event received a piece of cream cake personally made by Lu Zheng. Ao Qian nearly melted upon winning a piece for the team event of tug of war.

This led her to be exceptionally eager for the next Dekadal Rest activity.

If not for Ao Qian’s mother frequently reaching out, Ao Qian might even have forgotten to contact home, and the contents of her communication frequently involved her showing her mother various novel items.

Remarkably, these things were unfamiliar even to Ao Qian’s mother, who was also amazed upon hearing that they were inventions of Brother Scholar, making Ao Qian feel prouder.

Oh dear, hopefully, Father won’t pull out that Demon Dragon so soon?

Ao Qian: ♪(^∇^*)

...

With Ao Qian living so comfortably, it was natural that Lu Zheng lived even more carefreely.

In the past, he listened to books and drank tea, then in the present, he ate food and strolled through shops, embracing an early retirement lifestyle.

He couldn’t help it, a wave from Wild Wolf Mountain, followed by Ao Qian, had brought him over seven hundred strands of the Light of Fortune, making Lu Zheng extravagantly content.

"Jade Seal, upgrade!"

Apart from cultivation, his fundamental abilities like Constitution and Spirit, and skills like Cloud Technique, Thunder Technique, and Sword Technique had all seen considerable growth.

Even miscellaneous arts like painting, music, medical skill, and information technology had been significantly enhanced.

What? Information technology, you say?

Of course, it was for safely procuring funds from Grant, as Lu Zheng had no intention of being tracked by some inexplicable individuals.

Apart from that...

"Lu Lang, how come I feel you’ve become even more formidable?"

"My cultivation has improved, it’s normal."

"Is that so? Hmm~~~"

Red and White Shadow Flying Divine Sword, Peach Blossoms in Bloom at Taohua Village.