Su Kang smiled warmly at her earnestness. He gently shook his head. “Xi’er,” he began, his voice soft, “the seal engraving is tied to one’s lineage. You don’t have a direct connection to any totem beast. You can’t bear such a seal on your body.” His eyes met hers, soft yet unwavering. “You’re my wife. You don’t need a mark to prove that.”
“It’s not about proving anything,” she murmured, her voice low but firm as a stubborn light entered her gaze. “I just want a mark that matches yours. Something that reflects our connection. When your family sees it, they’ll know I belong with my husband. Can’t I have one too?” Her eyes shimmered with a quiet plea. Su Kang’s resolve faltered under her persistent stare.
“Well… alright,” he relented, letting out a soft sigh. “Since you can’t have a beast totem like mine, how about a phoenix mark? It would symbolize grace and rebirth, which is very fitting for your journey.”
Bai Yunxi contemplated his suggestion for a moment. She tilted her head thoughtfully. “A phoenix… I think that is too grand. It’s not quite suitable for me. I would prefer something simpler, more personal.”
Her eyes then lit with an idea. “Could I have a lotus mark?” she asked, her voice filled with a hopeful lilt. She remembered the lotus hairpin her mother-in-law had given her. A lotus remains unstained in the mud. It rises pure, just as she had to rise from her tragic past. It was also a perfect symbol of how their love had bloomed despite their hardships.
“A lotus mark,” Su Kang mused. He then nodded, an indulgent smile spreading across his face. “As you wish, Xi’er. But it will be a simple mark, alright?”
She nodded eagerly. A radiant smile graced her lips. “Yes, I’m perfectly fine with a small one.” She added, a touch of firmness in her voice, “But it must be a pink lotus mark.” The thought of a stark black ink mark on her fair skin was still unappealing to her.
A mischievous glint sparked in Su Kang’s eyes. He let out a dramatic sigh. He was feigning disappointment. “I didn’t think my wife would still be demanding marks on her body, especially when I used to give her so many… love-marks. It seems I have been a negligent husband.”
“You—!” Bai Yunxi’s cheeks flushed a becoming crimson. Her gentle demeanor vanished in a flash of indignation. “Shameless! I don’t want to talk to you anymore!”
Su Kang chuckled. He was thoroughly amused by her flustered reaction, which only seemed to stoke her indignation further. She pouted. She then straightened her back and crossed her arms with a mock seriousness.
“That’s it. You are forbidden from visiting my courtyard at night for one week. I will punish you,” she declared, trying to sound stern. “These kinds of jokes should be reserved for the bedroom. If I don’t discipline you now, you will just grow even more shameless.”
Finding her display of authority utterly endearing, Su Kang immediately softened his tone. “Xi’er, there’s no one else here. No one heard. Can’t you forgive me this once? You were so insistent on getting a mark that I couldn’t help but tease you. I promise I won’t make such jokes outside our bedroom again. My big wife, forgive your little husband?”
“Hmph. I will not forgive you this time,” she insisted. She turned her head away with a stubborn flick of her hair, though the corner of her lip twitched with a suppressed smile.
Su Kang raised his hands in surrender. He was still grinning. “Alright, alright. I will accept my wife’s punishment.”
She maintained her stern facade throughout their meal. After their breakfast concluded, Su Kang was playfully shown the way out of the courtyard. He returned to his own courtyard with a self-deprecating smile on his face. Bai Yunxi went into her cultivation chamber, a quiet sense of satisfaction settling over her.
Su Ting had, until recently, made a habit of having breakfast with Yue Mei. But since the banquet, he’d started visiting her courtyard less frequently, not wanting his overly inquisitive cousins prying into Yue Mei’s affairs if they heard about her. Besides, he was now busy defending his long-held position as “Favorite Uncle” in Su Meying’s heart. With Su Kang suddenly pampering her with daily sweets, Su Ting felt his title was under serious threat. He had resorted to taking the children on shopping trips outside the manor.
Inside one of the more lavish courtyards, Su Meying sat amidst a small circle of other clan children. Dressed in pristine white, she was showing off new toys and clothes. Her cheeks, already naturally puffy, seemed to have grown even rounder from the recent influx of sweets.
Watching from a window, a beautiful woman in a teal-green robe knit her brows in quiet concern. Her long black hair was braided neatly down her back. She observed her daughter. She then turned to her husband, who was engrossed in a stack of documents. “Husband, don’t you think Su Meying is being badly influenced, living like this?” she asked, her voice laced with maternal concern.
“Yin’er, she is just six years old. Let her enjoy her childhood. It won’t harm her in the long run,” Su Liang replied. His voice was flat and distracted. His eyes never left the papers.
Lin Shuyin sighed softly. She walked over to sit beside him. After a moment of hesitation, she spoke again, her voice more serious this time. “Su Ting is already eighteen. At his age, other members of the family had all started to take on some responsibilities, even before they turned eighteen. Be it Su Jiao, Su Lang, or Su Cheng. Yet Su Ting receives favorable treatment, even from Father-in-law. He does little more than frequent taverns and explore some realms for adventure.”
She glanced at Su Liang’s expression, trying to gauge his mood. She pressed on when she saw no sign of irritation. “I don’t mean to sow discord,” she said slowly, “but I can’t help but wonder. Is it because Su Ting’s father and brother are both Core Formation cultivators that he’s allowed more leniency than others?”
Her words struck Su Liang like a thunderclap. He stopped reading. He looked at her directly, his gaze turning colder. Lin Shuyin felt a knot of fear tighten in her stomach. Her hands clenched within her sleeves. She had wanted to ask this question for a long time but had always been afraid of offending her husband. Seeing Su Ting’s carefree lifestyle influencing her own children had finally pushed her to voice her concerns.
“Shuyin, do you understand what you are saying?” Su Liang asked. His use of her full name was a clear sign of his displeasure.
“Husband, I have no ill intentions,” she said quickly, shaking her head. “I know how the Su clan operates. I would never seek to suppress anyone.” She met his hardened gaze, her own voice sincere. “I am just genuinely curious. It is the only conclusion I could reach.”
Su Liang’s expression softened as he looked at her earnest, worried face. He sighed. “Yin’er, I am their father too. Su Ren has started asking more questions about cultivation. He is planning to use the pills Su Kang gave him. It’s an improvement, even if he is not working as hard as I’d like.” He then gestured towards the garden. “And look. Meying is sharing her toys with the other children. She is not being badly influenced.”
Lin Shuyin followed his gaze to where her daughter was handing sweets and a toy rabbit to another girl her age. Despite her lingering worries, a maternal smile tugged at her lips.
“As for Su Ting’s privileges…” Su Liang leaned back, his tone shifting as a shadow of memory passed over his features. “Well, you’re not wrong. He is the most pampered member of the clan. But it has nothing to do with Uncle Su Chen or Su Kang’s cultivation.” He paused, his eyes distant, as if recalling something long buried. “There’s another reason entirely.”
Lin Shuyin frowned. Her brows knit tighter. She genuinely couldn’t think of any other reason. “Then what is the reason behind it?” she asked. Her voice was quiet but firm, a mixture of confusion and curiosity in her gaze.
Su Liang let out a heavy sigh. He closed his eyes for a long moment, as if weighing his words. He looked troubled. “Yin’er, it’s an old matter.” He shook his head slowly. “Before I say anything, I need your promise. You will keep this a secret. It’s not a secret that endangers the clan, but it is one that others could use to harm Su Ting.”
The shift in his tone instantly wiped the curiosity from her face. It was replaced with a quiet seriousness. She understood immediately that this was not a simple matter of favoritism. “Husband, I promise I will not speak of this to anyone,” she affirmed, her voice low and steady. “But if you feel it’s a secret too dangerous to share, then please, do not feel obligated. I will be fine. I will not bring this up again.”
He shook his head. He appreciated her discretion. “It’s not that dangerous. Just… something that could affect his reputation if the wrong people twisted it.” He took a steadying breath, his gaze meeting hers. “And since you are part of the family… you should know a little bit of it as well.”
