Chapter 67

Chapter 67

The lotus flower had left, but the room was still filled with its fragrance. Qinchi released the fire dragon once again.

The fire dragon shrank to over three meters long, coiled itself twice in the lotus pond, and faced the wall shared with the master bedroom. It closed its eyes, inhaling the floral scent as it slowly fell asleep.

Qinchi also abandoned his plan to read for an hour, turned off the light, and lay down on the bed.

At six in the morning, Xu Qiao was awakened by the alarm clock. While changing clothes, she received a message from Qinchi: "Good morning, I'll go make breakfast first. I'll call you when it's ready."

Xu Qiao replied with a smiley face.

After finishing her morning routine, Xu Qiao, as usual, went to water the plants inside and outside the house. Passing by the guest bedroom, she glanced inside and noticed the bed neatly made, with an empty lotus pond awkwardly placed beside the desk. The pure gold birdcage stand was gone.

A sticky note was attached to the door, and Xu Qiao curiously approached it.

"Because I need to open the window for ventilation, I've temporarily put away the birdcage stand."

Xu Qiao looked towards the south-facing window, where the glass pane was opened inward, allowing a gentle breeze to blow through the security screen. On the opposite street, residents were jogging for their morning exercise.

Xu Qiao smiled, grateful that Qinchi had thought things through; otherwise, someone might have caught a glimpse of such valuable gold items...

After tending to her small courtyard, Xu Qiao went to the Lu family's courtyard across the way.

Qin Jiuzhou, dressed in a loose and comfortable set of morning exercise clothes, walked out of the unit door and greeted Xu Qiao through the fence.

Xu Qiao: "Are you going for a morning jog?"

Qin Jiuzhou: "Yes, a half-hour run. When I get back, I'll tidy up and have breakfast. Would you like to join me?"

Xu Qiao: "Sure, just wait a moment."

The old man jogged at a leisurely pace, allowing them to chat while running.

Qin Jiuzhou: "When I'm at home, I usually ask Little Chi's older brother's children to accompany me. My great-granddaughter is twelve this year."

Xu Qiao, curious about the Qin family, asked: "I heard from Qinchi about his training methods growing up. Do you apply such strict training methods to all the children in your family?"

Qin Jiuzhou, surprised, said: "He told you that? I thought he wouldn't complain to anyone."

Xu Qiao: "...It wasn't complaining, just something we happened to talk about."

Qin Jiuzhou sighed: "I'm not as heartless as his father. His father heard that pushing the body to its limits could increase the probability of awakening a higher-level mental body, so he applied this theory to Little Chi after his two previous children didn't meet his standards."

"Little Chi was only three years old then, too young to resist his stern father and had to accept it. His older brother and sister managed to avoid it. His brother delayed marriage until he was thirty to avoid being called for devilish training, and his sister moved to the Northwest Base right after graduating from military school, returning home only every two or three years."

S-class ability users should shoulder the responsibility of protecting the base, but the public shouldn't demand that they produce S-class offspring for the base.

His eldest granddaughter-in-law planned to conceive after her younger brother awakened to an S-level mental body, to avoid the immediate pressure of giving birth to an S-level dragon.

His second granddaughter has a fiery temper and insisted on moving to another base. She said that even if she gave birth to an S-level dragon or a golden crow in the future, her family would remain in the Northwest Base. If the residents there continued to meddle in their family planning, she would move to the Southwest Base or the Southeast Base. If there was no place that respected their privacy, she would build a new base. No one would interfere with her private life.

Xu Qiao felt increasingly sympathetic towards Qinchi, who had no choice in the matter.

Seeing the young girl's somewhat heavy expression, Qin Jiuzhou quickly said, "Are you worried about Little Chi's future children? Don't worry, Little Chi won't obediently follow his father's arrangements anymore. After learning about the issues with Little Chi's mental body, his father wouldn't dare to train other children so intensely. Little Chi's mother hopes he can find a girl he likes and live a happy life. As long as Little Chi is happy, his mother won't interfere with anything."

"Not just his mother, my wife and I feel the same. Little Chi suffered too much in the first twenty years of his life. As long as he finds a girl he likes, regardless of her family's wealth, appearance, or mental body level, we have no objections. There won't be any of those cliché TV drama scenarios."

The old man, almost walking, looked at Xu Qiao seriously as he spoke these words.

Xu Qiao: "..."

She wasn't actually worried about Qinchi's children's education. Why did the old man feel the need to explain the elders' views on Qinchi's marriage in such detail?

Could it be that the old man misunderstood her relationship with Qinchi?

Xu Qiao quickly changed the subject: "Do you still enjoy watching TV?"

Qin Jiuzhou: "Yes, I have plenty of time now that I'm retired. As long as I'm at home, the TV is always on."

After a lifetime of fighting, he wanted to enjoy his retirement!

After the old and young man finished their run and washed up, Qinchi had already laid out a hearty breakfast on the table.

At the four-person square dining table, Qin Jiuzhou deliberately sat opposite Qinchi and placed the bowls and chopsticks he had prepared for Xu Qiao on Qinchi's side.

Xu Qiao's heart skipped a beat as the old man said, "Our mental bodies clash when we sit together. His mental body likes you, like a kindergartener. If it sees you sitting next to me, it will throw a tantrum."

Xu Qiao laughed at the "kindergartener" comment.

Qinchi sat down and looked at the old man, saying, "It can hear everything."

Qin Jiuzhou: "So what if it hears? I'm leaving in a few days, can't I say a few more words?"

Qinchi didn't respond further and invited Xu Qiao to eat.

To prevent the old man from overthinking, Xu Qiao avoided looking at Qinchi.

Qinchi glanced at her a few times.

When Xu Qiao arrived at the clinic, Qinchi sent a message asking, "You seemed a bit uncomfortable this morning. Did Grandpa say something?"

The more she talked about it, the more awkward it would become, so Xu Qiao denied it: "No, I just felt a bit embarrassed about coming over for meals."

Qinchi: "In that case, I'll prepare a separate portion for you next time and bring it to you when you return."

Xu Qiao: "No need to trouble yourself. If Grandpa finds out, he might think I'm unhappy with him."

With that, the conversation ended. Qinchi glanced at the old man, who refused to tell the truth, before heading to the military academy.

By evening, Qinchi was cooking in the kitchen, while Qin Jiuzhou sat in the living room entertaining Xu Qiao, telling her about the situation at Northeast Base.

The beast threat to Southeast Base mainly came from the vast inland and eastern sea. The inland beasts were partly handled by the other three bases, but the sea posed the greatest danger.

Northeast Base was located directly north of Southeast Base. Though it was also near the sea, it was a bay enclosed by two peninsulas, so the scale of the sea beasts it faced was relatively smaller. However, Northeast Base and Northwest Base shared the burden of the beasts coming from the vast northern continent, making the survival crisis at Northeast Base as severe as that at Southeast Base.

Qin Jiuzhou sighed, "Humans have technology, but the reproduction rate of these beasts is too fast, especially the sea beasts; they're just endless. We can only build armies of psychics to defend the bases while accelerating technological development, hoping to hold on for another one or two hundred years. One day, we might change our defensive strategy and start a real counterattack."

Xu Qiao: "You think far ahead."

Qin Jiuzhou: "...I'm retired, so I can't help but think deeply about any news I see."

Xu Qiao smiled, "I don't know much about technology, but I can help save more people when battles happen."

Qin Jiuzhou: "People mean hope. You healers are a precious asset to the four bases; never underestimate yourselves because of your lower combat power."

Qinchi carried the dishes over.

Qin Jiuzhou pointed at his grandson, "Take Little Chi, for example. Without healers, he would have been crippled by his father long ago and wouldn't have grown into the excellent person he is today."

Qinchi: "..."

At nine o'clock in the evening, when Qinchi brought the golden birdcage into Room 101 again, Xu Qiao didn't specially entertain him; she simply released her spirit body.

The lotus flower comfortably landed in its large tank.

Since there was no need for experiments, the lotus extended a leaf through the cage's gap to touch the golden ball inside.

The fire dragon excitedly raised its head, and the wind wrote, "Are you looking for me?"

Lotus: "How did you sleep last night?"

The fire dragon couldn't see outside, but it could sense the water flow formed by the lotus. It felt each word with the wind and replied, [I slept well, but I was put away before I fell into a deep sleep. I woke up quickly after not smelling the flower scent. Can you stay with me longer tonight?]

The lotus glanced at Qinchi, who was focused on reading, and asked, "Did Grandfather hit you? Why?"

The fire dragon was about to answer when it suddenly received Qinchi's mental command, forbidding it from telling the truth.

The fire dragon thought for a moment and replied, "Sometimes I feel very uncomfortable, and when I do, I can't control myself and cause destruction. When I make mistakes, I get punished by Grandfather."

Lotus: "Why do you feel uncomfortable?"

Qinchi warned again.

Fire dragon: "Because Qinchi feels uncomfortable, and when he feels bad, I feel bad too."

The lotus asked Qinchi the same question.

Qinchi whispered, "Training is too hard, and it hurts a lot when I get injured."

The lotus looked at his lowered eyelashes, remembering how Xu Qiao looked when she was sad.

The lotus then sent a petal over, gently pressing it against his hand.

Qinchi: "Thank you."

The golden ball shook, and the fire dragon asked curiously, "What are you doing?"

Qinchi: "It's time to sleep; don't waste their time."

Lotus: "Right, go to sleep. Xu Qiao has worked hard all day. Go to sleep early so I can return sooner."

Due to Qinchi's "early departure and late arrival," Xu Qiao, apart from letting the lotus spirit body visit him at night, didn't feel that Qinchi's presence disrupted her daily routine.

Before she knew it, it was Friday.

After her night shift, Xu Qiao took a few hours of rest and continued to have lunch at the Qin family's place in the afternoon.

Qinchi had classes in the afternoon, so he saw Xu Qiao out and left.

Xu Qiao hadn't even started changing into slippers when Qin Jiuzhou messaged her, "Xiao Qiao, I want to buy some local specialties to take back. Do you have time to accompany me around town?"

Xu Qiao: "Sure."

Qin Jiuzhou, carrying a spatial crystal core, released a low-key vehicle and drove off with Xu Qiao.

The old man wasn't short of points and bought whatever caught his interest—food, clothes, toys. Having a car made it convenient to move between different stores.

As they passed a small villa, Qin Jiuzhou slowed down and backed up, pointing to a lotus flower in the courtyard, "Little Chi told me you are a lotus spirit body?"

Xu Qiao looked at the flower, "Yes."

No wonder the old man was drawn to it; the lotus was indeed well-cultivated.

Qin Jiuzhou: "Then I'll grow a lotus when I get back. Seeing the flower will be like seeing you. At over a hundred years old, I've made a young friend like you, and I should commemorate it properly. By the way, what are the tips for growing a lotus? What size of a tank should I buy?"

Xu Qiao: "I'll send you a note tonight. As for the tank, the one you bought last time is fine."

Qin Jiuzhou: "The one I bought last time?"

Xu Qiao: "The blue porcelain lotus tank you placed with Qinchi."

Qin Jiuzhou, puzzled, said, "Blue porcelain tank? I didn't buy one. Did he show it to you?"

Suddenly, the old man seemed to understand something and laughed, "Right, right, I did buy one. My memory is getting worse; I almost bought another one."

Xu Qiao: "..."

She played along, but the explanation Qinchi gave that night echoed uncontrollably in her ears, stopping her thoughts before the lotus could ask more questions.

The next morning, Qin Jiuzhou changed into his ordinary jeans and a windbreaker, following the two young people to the aircraft.

Qin Jiuzhou had also temporarily hired an A-class mercenary squad, instructing them to take him to a B-class danger zone north of Southeast Base.

Xu Qiao didn't know the exact location of this mission. Seeing those high-level mercenaries follow the old man's arrangements to the A-class cabin, she had no reason to question anything.

Soon, Qin Jiuzhou met his grandson's other two teammates. Meng Li disliked socializing, and Sun Fushan was unable to speak, but they both admired the old man's courage.

At the moment of parting, Qin Jiuzhou gave his grandson a tight hug and said to Xu Qiao, "I entrust Little Chi to your care. If I have time during the New Year, I'll come to visit you."

The A-class mercenary squad arrived in a luxury off-road vehicle, and Qin Jiuzhou got in, looking back every few steps.

Sun Fushan's eyes welled up with tears, moved.

That night, when he returned home, Sun Fushan shared this event with his own grandfather: "It's still the grandpa who loves his grandchildren; Qinchi's dad didn't even come."

Sun Dagui raised his eyebrows sharply.

After dinner, back in the room, Sun Dagui slammed the table in anger.

An S-class turtle spirit emerged, slowly forming the character for earth on the floor: "He comes and goes as he pleases, why are you so angry?"

Sun Dagui: "How can I not be angry? Over a thousand kilometers, it's so easy for him to come and go, but I don't have that ability!"

Turtle: "… When you retire, I'll carry you there slowly."