Ling Feng squinted slightly, but he didn't care much. Whoever she was, as long as she didn’t bother him, it was fine.
The coquettish woman turned and saw Deng Yongshi hurrying over. She gave Ling Feng a meaningful look and a playful smile appeared on her face. "Little Shi, is this your friend? Hehe, since when are men allowed to stay in your Orchid Pavilion?"
"Hmph! None of your business!" Deng Yongshi seemed to have a poor relationship with the coquettish woman. She quickly stepped between Ling Feng and the woman while glaring at her with anger. "This was my grandfather's decision. If you have a problem, take it up with him!"
"Oh, so this boy is the teacher your grandfather found for you? Haha, this is hilarious. Is he supposed to be your husband or your teacher? He looks way too young!"
Deng Yongshi's face flushed red, her chest heaving with anger. "What does it matter to you? Get lost!"
"Tsk, tsk, truly forsaking friends for love!" The woman turned her gaze to Ling Feng and laughed. "Well, I won't disturb your little romance then. I’m leaving!"
With that, the coquettish woman walked away, still chuckling.
Deng Yongshi watched her leave while gritting her teeth, and muttered under her breath, "That wretched woman!"
Ling Feng crossed his arms over his chest, shrugged, and said, "Sometimes, not caring about others' gossip is also part of cultivating your mindset."
"I know, I know!" Deng Yongshi rolled her eyes at Ling Feng. "There’s no need to always lecture me like a teacher!"
"Uh..." Ling Feng rubbed his nose and changed the topic. "By the way, who is she? You two don’t seem to get along well."
Hearing this, Deng Yongshi immediately started complaining. "She's my cousin, Li Rong. You can tell by looking at her that she’s no good. It’s best to stay away from her."
"No need to tell me that; I already understand." Ling Feng shrugged again. "But why did she come here for no reason?"
"What else!?" Deng Yongshi rolled her eyes. "She came to show me up! That wretched woman heard that Grandpa found me a teacher and wanted to knock me down a peg."
"What does that have to do with anything?"
"Hmph, do you think teachers are casually acknowledged? Her teacher is a vice-director at Hailan Academy, a fifth-tier advanced alchemist! And my teacher..."
Deng Yongshi turned and glanced at Ling Feng. "Bah, you’re not my teacher! You’re nothing to brag about! I’m warning you, even though I’m accepting your training, don’t expect me to call you 'Teacher' in front of others!"
Ling Feng felt a pang of frustration. How am I not to be proud of?
And what's so great about a fifth-tier alchemist?
Even someone like Yan Cangtian, a top-level sixth-tier alchemist, wouldn’t claim to surpass me in alchemy!
Feeling both amused and annoyed, Ling Feng took a deep breath and said calmly, "Alright, alright, I’m embarrassing you. Let's start today's training then!"
"Hmph, bring it on! It’s just rolling in the mud!" Deng Yongshi clenched her fists and gritted her teeth. "How many hours today?"
"We won’t be rolling in the mud today. You did well yesterday." Ling Feng shrugged. "Yesterday, you shattered your pride and conquered yourself. Today, I'll teach you something else: perseverance."
Ling Feng smiled faintly and led Deng Yongshi to the backyard of Tianyi Pavilion. It was filled with hundreds of irregular stones of various sizes, all prepared by Ling Feng the day before.
"All you need to do is stack these stones into six pillars, each as tall as a person, and you will have completed the task," Ling Feng said calmly, standing with his hands behind his back.
Deng Yongshi's eyes widened in disbelief. "Hey, are you kidding me? How am I supposed to stack these stones? And my meridian gate is sealed, so I can't use my palms to smooth them out!"
"With perseverance, you can do it," Ling Feng replied serenely. "As always, you can choose not to do it. The decision is yours."
"Hmph, stack them I will! I'm not afraid!" Deng Yongshi gritted her teeth, rolled up her sleeves, and rushed into the courtyard. She began to haul the stones, attempting to stack them slowly.
Ling Feng smiled faintly. "Willingness to try is already half the success. Keep it up!"
With that, Ling Feng sat down cross-legged, closed his eyes, and began to practice the True Art of Xuanyuan.
Deng Yongshi displayed considerable tenacity. She repeatedly tried and failed, but never gave up.
Eventually, her hands were blistered, her clothes were torn and dirty, and her face was smudged like a kitten’s, yet she continued her attempts.
As the sun set, Deng Yongshi had worked tirelessly in the courtyard all day and finally managed to stack the first pillar as tall as a person.
"Hahaha! I did it! I finally did it!"
Deng Yongshi jumped up excitedly. She wiped her dirty face with an equally dirty sleeve, but her face was still alight with joy.
This was a happiness she had never experienced before. Accomplishing something through her own efforts was exhilarating.
At that moment, Ling Feng opened his eyes, stood up, and walked into the courtyard. He glanced at the pillar and said calmly, "Congratulations on stacking the first pillar. But what about the next one?"
Ling Feng pointed at the remaining stones in the courtyard. "You were smart to choose the most regular and similarly sized stones, showing that you thought things through. That's commendable. But how will you stack the rest of the irregular stones?"
"Uhh..." Deng Yongshi's excitement cooled as she realized she had used up the best stones. What about the oddly shaped ones?
"Maintaining balance between stones and learning how to match and place them is the true test of your perseverance," Ling Feng explained calmly.
"I got it." Deng Yongshi's eyes reddened slightly. She looked at the pillar she had painstakingly built and then, gritting her teeth, pushed it over to start again from scratch.
"You stup—" Deng Yongshi bit her lip and then changed her tone. "Hey, don't think this will discourage me. I will stack all six pillars!"
With that, she resumed her task of hauling stones, busy once more.
"You have the courage to start over after a setback. That's already impressive." Ling Feng nodded while smiling faintly. "Alright, today's training ends here. Continue tomorrow."
"No need. I don't need a rest! I want to finish stacking these pillars as soon as possible!" Deng Yongshi's eyes shone with determination. She picked up the largest stone while gritting her teeth. "This will be the first one!"