Threads Chapter 401-Recovery 9

Ling Qi dipped her head in acknowledgment. “What are you thinking?” she asked Yu Nuan.

“I have my Savage Storms Sonata. It would let someone get started on a path like mine. I’ve integrated it already, like I think you did with that mist art of yours. It calls the lightning and the thunder to your strings. Mostly for battering people around, but you can empower yourself a bit too. Or, I could gift the Lightning God’s Ladder, my cultivation art. Lady Dianmu’s showed me the higher class version, but the one I cultivated before also lets you use natural thunderstorms to cultivate. You don’t want to get struck directly like a crazy person, at least not till you’ve completed the one I’m on now, but…”

Ling Qi shifted in her seat, thinking of Gu Xiulan.

“… it really let me get by on not as many stones. I’m sure that’s not a problem for you…”

“Being able to save on spirit stones is always a benefit,” Ling Qi replied, considering.

Of course, Yu Nuan could teach as she liked, but entering a person’s art into the general clan archive was more of a commitment. It was essentially making it a part of the clan’s overall identity, rather than something personal to Yu Nuan.

“The cultivation art is more important to have in the general archive,” Ling Qi decided. “I’m sure you’ll find people you want to pass your music down to individually.”

Yu Nuan gave a firm nod. “Got it.”

“Although, if Biyu decides she wants to stab bits of metal through her nose and lips for power, I am referring Mother to you.” Ling Qi laughed behind her hand.

Yu Nuan’s expression screwed up in a scowl, and Yun Long bit down on his own laughter when her glare turned on him, pointedly becoming very interested in the clouded gray sky.

“Kid doesn’t have the temperament for it. I kinda doubt she has the temperament for yours either,” Yu Nuan shot back.

Ling Qi’s smile faded. “Obviously. There’s no need to be so serious about the possibility. Mother might be put out, but I had to be lit on fire from my dantian out to get her truly angry with me.”

Yu Nuan snorted. “That’s ‘cause you’re her actual daughter. She’s always keeping me on my toes when I’m here.”

“Yu Nuan, are you saying you feel bullied by my first realm mother?”

Hanyi desperately covered her mouth with her hands. Ling Qi shot her an unimpressed look, and she straightened up, looking innocent.

“I didn’t say that,” Yu Nuan complained. “She just… I dunno… makes me feel weird. It’s that disappointed look she makes when I try to blow something off, you know? It makes me feel like I’m the worst.”

“Ah, I can understand that,” Ling Qi replied.

That was probably worse than being shouted at. Mother was very reticent with her, still so reserved with her feelings. Her injury had cracked that shell, but still, she felt some envy for Yu Nuan.

“Mother is not too different from me in some ways. She won’t accept you simply being a business attachment. You’ll just have to endure her efforts.”

“When you say it like that, you make me feel like I’m an asshole,” Yu Nuan griped. “Guess you are kinda similar. Hey, Yun Long, not gonna support me here?”

“No. I feel like I might be inviting my own Lady Mother’s wrath if I did. You know her eyes see very far and clear,” he replied candidly.

A borf from nearby interrupted the conversation.

“Treat-giver should take pets and treats too!”

“Even you, huh?” Yu Nuan asked sourly. “Fine. Suppose I should go get my fitting done.”

***

There was no clear sky when the day of the ceremony came. The fading sunlight was masked behind a dense layer of clouds that hung heavy in the sky. The bellies of the clouds were black with thunder, and they poured down rain in sheets. Throughout White Cloud Town, streets were empty and windows bright, as all who had a choice chose to spend the day and night warm before their fires.

But at their manor, things were a little different. Fires burned, bright and merry, collected in braziers set throughout the gardens, radiating warm, dry heat. A wide, dark blue pavilion had been set out over one side of the garden, and the great tables had been pulled out and lined with seats. Flower arrangements serving as the centerpiece of the tables had been placed to catch the light between the braziers.

Between Yu Nuan, Yun Long, and Qiu, it wasn’t difficult to maintain and arrange for the garden to remain dry throughout the ceremony. Only the faintest patter of rain fell at the edges of the garden as if the garden had been enclosed in glass. Rain that spattered on the air above the garden ran down to drip into the gutters that lined the garden walls. Ling Qi refused to let Mother’s hard work go to waste.

As before, the tables were arranged with one horizontally placed at the head for her and her family and two others set out for the household, groaning with the dishes laid out. They had not hired chefs from outside this time, but Ling Qi had opened her coffers to purchase a great deal of ingredients and had added a bonus to the pay of their kitchen staff. It made sense to her to keep matters in-house for a ceremony like this.

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The difference from last time lay behind the family table. Over a section of the garden, Zhengui had grown roots from the earth, intertwining them in a light, raised stage. The flowers beneath were intact, but for tonight, at least, this would be a place of performance too.