A life of leisure is worse than a life of flowers and splendour

After applying the medicine and having lunch, Du Shuangshuang didn't insist on riding back. After all, there was only half a day's journey left, and even if she took the carriage later, she would still be able to return to the General's Mansion during the day. At this point, she was no longer in a hurry.

Even though the pain was gone after applying the medicine, Du Shuangshuang herself didn't want to ride a horse anymore. Who would want to feel pain if they could avoid it? No matter how anxious she was, she couldn't wait for another day. Du Shuangshuang looked relaxed and contented, chatting with Su Yichen casually, as if nothing had happened. Su Yichen's eyes were red, and if you didn't know better, you would think he was the one who was injured.

After spending a few days together, the two gradually became familiar with each other. Du Shuangshuang only regarded Su Yichen as a younger brother. The reason was that her soul was in her twenties after all, and Su Yichen was only sixteen years old. Wasn't he just a younger brother?

However, in ancient times, people could get married at this age. Du Shuangshuang looked like a shining flower in the motherland. She was not yet an adult and was still a child.

Du Shuangshuang was not unaware of his feelings, but little boys are prone to falling in love when they see a pretty girl. It was just a momentary impulse, and soon the two would get to know each other and slowly return to normal. Du Shuangshuang did not take it to heart, mainly because his family background was not within her range of choice, so she just treated him as a friend.

The Su family's roots were in Jiangnan, but their businesses spread across the country, even to various countries. Beyond their business affiliations, the Su family was a family of scholars, leaders of the southern literati, and had deep roots in the government. His older brother, eighteen years old, was primarily a scholar, and he would be responsible for the family business in the future. He didn't enjoy studying, and his family was very open-minded, cultivating him in whatever direction he liked. He also had two younger brothers.

He originally had a childhood sweetheart, but because he chose to pursue business rather than study, the engagement ended two years ago and he married a talented man. Later, he also kept traveling around, so the marriage was delayed.

Of course, he said these things on his own initiative. Du Shuangshuang comes from the modern era and respects personal privacy very much, but he would not take the initiative to ask about other people's privacy.

It was just that he was bored on the road, so he just listened while he was talking.

As night fell and everything was silent, Du Shuangshuang would always look forward to starting her cultivation journey. However, fate always seemed to like playing tricks on her. No matter how hard she tried to concentrate and sit still, she would fall into a deep sleep before she knew it.

This had happened several times, and each failure left Du Shuangshuang feeling incredibly frustrated. She'd asked herself countless times: Why can others easily sense the aura, but I can't? The books say finding the aura is so easy, so why is it so difficult for me? Is it really because I'm so lacking in talent? Just as she was about to be crushed by self-doubt, a soft, tender child's voice echoed again.

"Master, this is not your problem! In fact, the real reason is that the spiritual energy here is too scarce! It can almost be said to be negligible. There is not even a trace of spiritual energy around here! Even if you sit for another ten thousand years, it is impossible to feel their existence." Hearing this, Du Shuangshuang couldn't help but widen his eyes, his face full of astonishment.

What? No spiritual energy? How could she continue her cultivation? She had originally thought that as long as she persevered, she would achieve a breakthrough, but now it seemed that everything was in vain. Du Shuangshuang felt her heart sink to the bottom of the valley, and an unprecedented sense of helplessness washed over her. Was it better for her to stay quietly and honestly in the general's mansion and live a wealthy and idle life? She stared blankly into the distance, her thoughts in a turmoil...

"Master, you forgot that the closer you get to the spiritual spring in the cave, the more spiritual energy you'll get. That's why you felt the spiritual energy when you were at Qianshan Villa. I didn't expect the spiritual energy here to be so scarce. I wish we hadn't left there earlier."

What nonsense are you talking about? If you don't leave, you'll starve to death. Even if you have to go back there to practice, you must prepare enough food.

Take your time, don't rush, go back to the capital first.

By the way, I also have a spiritual spring. Can I use it for cultivation?

"Yes, of course."

Du Shuangshuang finally felt happy again. She'd use the Spiritual Spring to cultivate when she got back, then find another opportunity to go back to the Spiritual Spring to cultivate. But she couldn't hold out too much hope. After all, who knows how many years it took to accumulate that little Spiritual Spring. With just that little Spiritual Spring, she probably wouldn't make much progress. She just had to prepare herself to be a wealthy and idle person. She felt a bit down, but she thought she should be better than the average person.

The next afternoon, Du Shuangshuang finally arrived home. The concierge immediately reported to the old general. When the old general came out, Du Shuangshuang had just carefully gotten out of the car and was walking slowly towards the sedan chair in a strange posture. It was not that Du Shuangshuang could not bear the pain, but the pain made her cry. Moreover, because the wound was scabbed, her walking posture was also affected, and she was afraid of accidentally tearing the wound.

The old general was only one step behind the sedan chair. When he saw his granddaughter getting out of the car and walking with an awkward posture, his heart skipped a beat. "Shuang'er, what's wrong with you?"

"Ah? I'm fine. I just rubbed my leg against the horse a couple of days ago because I was in a hurry to get on the road."

The old man breathed a sigh of relief after hearing this.

"Who is this?" The old man gripped his granddaughter's hand tightly, sizing up and down the unfamiliar yet impressive man before him. Although he was certain his granddaughter was safe, he still had no idea what had happened. As his gaze fell on the man beside him, the old man couldn't help but marvel: This man possessed a refined demeanor, one not of the kind you could expect from an ordinary family! Though he wasn't an expert in fabrics, his years of experience allowed him to discern at a glance that the clothing the man wore was of exquisite quality and meticulously tailored, clearly priceless. Even his granddaughter's attire was meticulously crafted and made of premium materials, surely worth a fortune.

"Oh, she is the second son of the Su family, grandpa. At that time, I was stranded in the Pingyao City area, and fortunately he and Doctor Zhong came to the rescue." Du Shuangshuang hurriedly introduced her to the old man.

"Oh, it's my benefactor!" The old man was so excited when he heard this that he quickly bowed to express his gratitude. However, before he could bend down, Su Yichen quickly reached out and held him up.

"Grandpa, you can't do this! It's just a trivial matter, not worth mentioning. I am just doing my best to help, and I really can't deserve such a great gift from you." Su Yichen spoke sincerely, his face full of humility.

He is said to be an old man. If it were in ancient times, a granddaughter of his age would probably be in her forties. However, the old general got married relatively late. Because he was stationed at the border for a long time, his wife divorced him. Later, he met my grandmother. At that time, he was almost thirty years old before he had my father and second uncle. Then my father also had a difficult marriage. It was not until he was in his twenties that he met my mother and later had me. So the old man is now in his sixties. In ancient times, he was already very old. To put it bluntly, he was buried in the ground. Although the powerful and wealthy took good care of themselves, living to seventy was considered a long life. Moreover, the old general had been galloping on the battlefield for half his life. He didn't have many good days. He only returned to the general's mansion to live a retirement life after about ten years. However, the old man was probably in very good health because he practiced martial arts since he was young. There were not even a few white hairs on his head. His face did not look old. He looked about forty years old.

What surprised Du Shuangshuang was that her second uncle and second aunt actually brought their two children out to greet her. Such a warm gesture made Du Shuangshuang deeply unexpected. She thought that returning home would mean she would go back quietly and then pay her respects to the old man. She didn't expect such a big scene, which made Du Shuangshuang a little at a loss.

"Oh, Shuang'er, I'm glad you're okay! You don't know, ever since you got lost, your grandfather and your second uncle have been looking for you at the hunting ground, and they didn't come back until they got the news." Second Aunt muttered while looking at Du Shuangshuang with a smile on her face.

"Thank you, Grandpa, Second Uncle, and Second Aunt, for your concern for Shuang'er. Shuang'er has troubled you." Du Shuangshuang responded quickly and saluted to them as a sign of respect.

"Oh, stop it. You are still injured. Get in the sedan quickly and let the servants carry you back to the courtyard to rest." Aunt Du grabbed Du Shuangshuang before she could salute and helped her get into the sedan.

When Second Uncle and Second Aunt first saw Du Shuangshuang, they couldn't help but feel a sense of surprise. After all, they hadn't had a chance to examine their niece closely since she'd accidentally fallen into the water. The sight before them this time truly astonished them. Gone was the niece who'd previously favored heavy makeup, flamboyant clothing, and flamboyant manners. In her place was a woman with a plain face and simple, elegant attire. Du Shuangshuang now looked not only more pleasing to the eye, but also one of the most beautiful in the entire capital. She was polite and well-mannered, and the way she spoke was hard to believe coming from the once-spoiled niece. The gentle grace in her eyes was truly astonishing.

In their memories, this niece had always been arrogant and domineering. As for so-called manners and good manners, it seemed like they didn't even exist in her vocabulary. But now, the scene before them was completely different—she was like a daughter of a prominent family! This dramatic transformation was beyond the expectations of the second uncle and second aunt.

"Oh, kid, we are all family, there is no need to be so polite. Shufang, please go back with your niece. I'm afraid she has suffered a lot this time." Uncle Du also said, and the latter sentence was said to Aunt Du, Shen Shufang.

"Don't stay outside. Let's go to the mansion and sit down to chat. Young Master Su, please follow us." The second uncle turned around and said to Su Yichen, and quickly led him in.

Du Shuangshuang got on the sedan chair, and her second aunt took her directly back to her courtyard.