Gu Yueyue felt increasingly sorry for her. Perhaps she had guessed wrong; Xiao Xiao was nothing like a child from a wealthy family.
In the end, Gu Yueyue insisted on buying all the clothes. She bought any that Xiao had tried on and thought were suitable.
On the way back, Xiao Xiao showed the same pained expression as Xu Yi when she spent money to buy the dress.
Seeing her heartbroken expression, Gu Yueyue couldn't help but laugh.
"What's wrong? Are you unhappy about your new clothes?" Gu Yueyue took her out to eat and poured Xiaoxiao a glass of juice. "Is there something bothering you? Do you want to tell me?"
Thanks to a role she played as a primary school teacher on a film set a few years ago, Gu Yueyue specially learned how to get along with children. When she talks to Xiaoxiao, she always maintains equality and respect for the children, respects every thought of the children, and speaks in a particularly gentle tone.
Xiao Xiao looked at the food on the table. The most expensive thing she had ever eaten at Xu Mutou's place was the 20 yuan takeout that Xu Yi ordered for her. Xu Yi felt sorry for her for more than ten minutes because of this.
The table is now full of delicious food, and the cheapest dish should be enough to make Xu Yi feel bad for two hours.
During the meal, Gu Yueyue noticed that Xiao Xiao was unusually quiet, silently shoveling rice into her mouth as if she were starving.
"Didn't you eat enough this morning?" Gu Yueyue wiped her mouth for her. She clearly ate quite a lot this morning. Could it be that she underestimated the child's appetite?
She swallowed a small mouthful of soup, looked at the table full of food and said with a pained expression, "It's too expensive, we can't waste it." Then she continued eating her rice.
Gu Yueyue's eyes reddened, and her nose tingled. She couldn't imagine what Xiaoxiao had gone through in the past, that she could say such things at such a young age and even put them into practice.
"Sweetie, if you can't eat anymore, then don't. Don't overeat." Gu Yueyue stopped her, worried that the little one might eat herself into a mess. She also heard Xiaoxiao say that it would be a waste if she didn't eat. Gu Yueyue smiled and said, "It's not a waste. We can take the leftovers home."
When we left, at Xiaoxiao's insistence, not a single grain of rice or drop of soup was left. Even the juice that was only one-tenth left was taken away by Xiaoxiao in her arms.
Two waiters huddled together excitedly and said, "Did you see that clearly? Isn't she a goddess!"
"It doesn't seem so."
"How could that be? They look so alike, how could it not be?"
"...I can't explain why, but I'm certain it's not. Can you believe a goddess would take leftovers home?"
"Believe it! The 'Clean Plate Campaign' advocated by the goddess on CCTV is still being broadcast. Why wouldn't you believe it?"
"Can you believe that someone would pack up and take away the watermelon rinds and orange peels from the fruit platter after eating them?"
"!!!"
A note from the author:
Xu Yi: I'm sorry, I'm guilty.
Chapter Forty-Five
Half a month passed quickly, and Gu Yueyue received a notice to join the cast of "Starry Idol".
Xiao Ye was helping Gu Yueyue pack her luggage at her house; they were going to start filming the day after tomorrow.
It was at this time that Gu Yueyue began to worry about what to do with Xiaoxiao.
"How about I send her to my mom's?" Ono suggested. Her mother had been discharged from the hospital a couple of days ago and was currently recuperating in her small apartment, not yet back in her hometown.
Gu Yueyue was a little worried. "Auntie just got discharged from the hospital, it's not really appropriate. The nanny I hired will come tomorrow, so don't worry."
"I was afraid you wouldn't trust me," Ono sighed.
A few years ago, Gu Yueyue hired a caregiver for her mother. The expensive hiring fee was followed by the purchase of a house for the caregiver, along with a car and driver. However, the caregiver turned out to be an ungrateful child, and since then, Gu Yueyue has become less trusting of others.
"No, there are more honest people in this world who work hard and are down-to-earth. Most of them are ordinary people who are just trying to make a living. As long as the money is right, there won't be any problems." Gu Yueyue chuckled, then added self-deprecatingly, "I can't be the only one who encounters all the bad things."
Ono was persuaded by her words, but then added, "Sis, if you trust me, I'll have my mom move in. It'll be easier for her to take care of Xiaoxiao if there's an adult to help out."
Gu Yueyue pondered for a long time. Seeing Xiaoxiao already fast asleep, she thought, "The child is so well-behaved. I wonder what she went through in the past. Xiaoxiao is so well-behaved that it breaks my heart."
"Okay. Thank you, Auntie." Gu Yueyue didn't mention paying Xiaoye's mother a salary. Xiaoye and her mother were honest people, and saying such a thing would be disheartening. However, she still gave Xiaoye a generous red envelope.
In the past two weeks, Xu Yi has used her divine sense to repair her body. Xiao Xiao is also living very well with Miss Gu. She plans to return to Cangshan to try to break through to the Foundation Establishment stage. Going to her own cave will make her feel safer and prevent the Foundation Establishment from being interrupted again.
In the afternoon, we arrived at the foot of Cangshan Mountain and booked the same guesthouse we had stayed at before. However, the owner looked very unhappy and kept sighing.
Xu Yi was a little curious, but didn't ask any further questions.
The next morning, when she was about to head into the mountains, the owner stopped her and asked, "Are you planning to go to Cangshan Mountain?"
"Um."
"Oh, we can't go." The boss told her with regret, "A ruthless developer bought Cangshan Mountain, and now the roads leading into the mountain are all blocked."
"Buy Cangshan?" Xu Yi looked at the Cangshan Mountain standing there in the distance. Ever since their ancestor chose Cangshan Mountain to establish the Cangyun Sect, Cangshan Mountain had always belonged to the disciples of the Cangyun Sect. Now, it had actually been bought by someone else.
The owner nodded repeatedly, "Yes. Now that the mountain is closed, we ordinary folks can't get in. The construction team will be here soon to turn it into a tourist attraction. It's going to be tough for our small guesthouses."
Xu Yi understood. Cangshan was closed and would be transformed into a tourist attraction. Soon, she would have to buy tickets to enter when she returned to her sect.
"Why the sudden decision to renovate Cangshan?" Xu Yi had thought that the terrain was good many years ago because the area was rich in spiritual energy and connected to the Four Celestial Master Pillars. Therefore, his ancestors chose to establish their sect here. However, from a modern business perspective, Cangshan is just an ordinary mountain among China's famous mountains. Why would the developers choose this place?
Xu Yi asked out of curiosity, but unexpectedly, she asked the right person.
The shop owner leaned closer to her and said mysteriously, "Do you know about the nine bolts of lightning that struck the top of Cangshan Mountain a month ago?"
"Um."
Xu Yi knew, of course, that she was the one who had attracted those nine bolts of lightning.
"Later, a team of experts came to study those nine lightning bolts. Guess what they discovered?"
The boss clearly needed a straight man to help him finish his sentence, but unfortunately, Xu Yi didn't know how to cooperate. She looked at him calmly and coldly, and was an excellent listener.
The boss found it a bit boring, but he was still happy to share his information with Xu Yi.
"Actually, I felt something was wrong that day. It's normal for it to rain and thunder, but those nine bolts of lightning were particularly strange. They only struck one spot. Moreover, there was a strong wind at the time, and the thunderclouds were on the top of Cangshan Mountain. The nine bolts of lightning struck at the same time every seven minutes, as if they were set to an alarm clock. All nine bolts of lightning struck Cangshan Mountain, but not a single tree was damaged."
"Later, a professional team came to study it and found a natural cave halfway up the mountain. Inside, there were stone tables and chairs. Later, some artifacts were also found next to it."
"Some experts say that it may have been a place where ancient people lived in seclusion."
"Hmm?" Xu Yi looked at Cangshan Mountain, puzzled. She had lived there for tens of thousands of years and didn't know anyone had ever gone there to live in seclusion.
Seeing Xu Yi looking at Cangshan with curiosity, the boss pointed in that direction and said, "See that? That small hill, up there, next to a big mountain, is where experts suspect there is an ancient residence."
"Since it's a former residence, why would a developer buy it and turn it into a tourist attraction?" Xu Yi didn't understand.
The shop owner was also puzzled. He shrugged and said, "How would I know? I just heard it from others. Anyway, Cangshan is about to become a tourist attraction, so whether it's really an ancient residence or not, we'll only know in the future."
Upon hearing the boss's words, Xu Yi recalled something. About a thousand years ago, she couldn't remember which dynasty in China it was, but there was indeed a prince who fled to Cangshan while being pursued by rebels. He accidentally stumbled upon an illusion. At that time, spiritual energy had long since disappeared from the world, but a trace of spiritual energy left by the formation trapped him for several years.
The prince, by a stroke of luck, escaped a calamity and then stayed in the Cangshan Illusionary Realm. Later, he contacted his old subordinates, suppressed the rebels, avenged his father, and reclaimed the throne. After that, he would come to Cangshan every year to worship the immortals.
Perhaps that's why it's mistakenly thought to be the former residence of an ancient person who sought refuge from the world.
Xu Yi frowned, and it was obvious to anyone with eyes that she was in a bad mood.
Anyone would be unhappy if they went out and came home to find their house had been bought and turned into an amusement park, and they had to buy a ticket to get back.
The key point is that she didn't receive a single penny of the money from buying her products.
Xu Yi was determined to advance to the Foundation Establishment stage in Cangshan, so after resting at the guesthouse for a day, he still ventured into the mountain in the dark that night.
They found the entrance to the secret realm and entered, finding themselves in the same cave they had entered before, where her body lay on the white jade bed.
Xu Yi didn't linger. After sitting down to meditate, he began to channel spiritual energy to advance to the Foundation Establishment stage.
That night, thunderclouds gathered again atop Cangshan Mountain, and a bolt of heavenly lightning struck down before quickly dissipating.
Xu Yi felt the abundant spiritual energy within this body and smiled with relief. He had finally achieved Foundation Establishment. With his cultivation level increasing, his sense of security as a cultivator also improved.
To be honest, Xu Yi didn't want to leave this place. Her daily routine was to stay in seclusion and cultivate for many years. Suddenly returning to her comfort zone made her reluctant to leave the mountain.
But she still had important matters to attend to. She needed to transcend her tribulation and ascend to immortality as soon as possible. She had lingered in the mortal realm for too long. The path of cultivation is such that delays can lead to unforeseen changes, so she couldn't afford to delay any longer.
Xu Yi descended the mountain as dawn was breaking.
Xu Yi left in a hurry and did not pay close attention to the changes in Cangshan Mountain. Naturally, she did not know that in the cave next to her cave, two women had been awakened by her Foundation Establishment Tribulation.
The first to regain consciousness was a woman with a gentle and easygoing demeanor. She stared blankly at the dark cave, guessing that she might sleep for a long time after entering the secret realm. But after she released her divine sense to examine every plant and tree in Cangshan Mountain, she exclaimed in amazement: "Ten thousand years have passed in the world."
Lying beside her was a woman in red and black robes, with alluring features and a slightly arrogant air. She had also woken up groggily, slowly sat up, looked at the dark cave, and with a wave of her hand, channeled her spiritual energy into the stone walls of the cave. Soon, the cave was filled with starlight and glow.
She was still a little dazed when she first woke up, and it took her a while to fully wake up. Now, the woman in red and black robes was full of anger. She reached out and shook the arm of the woman next to her, "Second Senior Sister, wake up! Wake up!"
"Junior Sister Shang'er, I'm already awake, please stop shaking me." The woman called Second Senior Sister slowly sat up. She moved her arms and neck, and said to her Third Senior Sister in a resentful tone, "I've been lying here for tens of thousands of years, my old arms and legs can't take your tossing."
"..." Xu Shang released her grip on her senior sister's hand, summoned her natal sword, flipped off the stone bed, and drew the sword from its sheath. "My sword has sensed it!"
"Hmm?" Second Senior Sister Xu Liang slowly got off the stone bed, took out a table and chairs from her storage ring and placed them in the cave. She straightened her robes and sat down on the small stone chair. "What did you sense?"
"Xu Yi! My sword tells me she's back."
Xu Liang had just sat down when he heard this and happily patted the table. "That's right, it must be Senior Sister who's back. The Foundation Establishment Tribulation contains the spiritual power of the Heavenly Dao, so Senior Sister must have specially returned to Cangshan to establish her foundation so that we could absorb the spiritual power of the Heavenly Dao and awaken as soon as possible. Otherwise, how could we have woken up so early? Senior Sister is so good to us."
"Heh. You're easily bought off with a little favor. You're really useless." Xu Shang sneered, twirling his sword in his hand. "Her real purpose is nothing more than to come back and show off to us! She wants us to know that she was the first to awaken, and that she used her alien body to rebuild her foundation ten thousand years later, while we are just trash who can only awaken by relying on her heavenly lightning spiritual power."
"Shang'er, you can just say you're useless, you don't need to drag me into it."
"Furthermore, Senior Sister is definitely not what you say. You have a very deep misunderstanding about Senior Sister."
"Misunderstanding? She was the one who treated me unfairly, so no wonder I treated her unfairly! If I hadn't been tricked and seriously injured that day, would that blockhead Xu Yi have become the senior sister of Cangyun Sect? I, Xu Shang, am the first to object!"
Xu Liang sighed softly, "Tens of thousands of years have passed, will my third junior sister ever stop?"
"Why are you always eyeing our senior sister's position? Putting aside the fact that she is our master's first disciple, with her strength as the number one swordswoman in the Tianyan Continent, she truly deserves to be our senior sister. Little San'er, don't be so unconvinced."
"Don't call me a mistress!"
Perhaps he was so angry that the sword blade was already slashing right in front of Xu Liang.
Xu Liang was terrified by her sword aura. He covered his mouth with both hands and nodded repeatedly, stammering, "Mmm!"
“Now that her body is restricted and her consciousness is chaotic, she can only start cultivating from scratch. This is a golden opportunity.” Xu Shang’s lips curled up, his murderous intent obvious.
Xu Shang sheathed his sword and prepared to descend the mountain.
"Three, where are you going?"
Xu Liang followed behind her. Xu Shang had a cold expression and was full of the killing intent of a sword cultivator.
Xu Shang parted her red lips slightly and coldly uttered a sentence, "Go find Xu Yi. Let's settle this once and for all!"
"Third! Don't go! You can't even beat me, don't be so reckless as to challenge Senior Sister who's above your level! Third, come back!"
Xu Liang followed her out of the cave and chased her all the way to the foot of the mountain until he lost her.