On one side was wealth and luxury, peace and enjoyment, but with less than a hundred years of life.
On the other side was soaring through the sky and tunneling through the earth, the pursuit of longevity, but it required giving up everything she currently possessed to face the most brutal slaughter.
One could not have both; she possessed vast wealth in the mortal realm and an extraordinary bone structure for cultivation.
Which one would she choose?
The sound of the opera became clear again. Her posture on the reclining chair remained unchanged, and the soothing sensation of her shoulders and legs being massaged returned.
Only the coldness of the jade token beneath her sleeve reminded her that everything just now had not been a dream.
The lead actress on stage was highly skilled, and the performance was magnificent.
Yet she could no longer focus on a single scene or hear a single line; her mind was filled with what she had just seen and heard.
For some reason, her heart raced at the mere thought of cultivation.
Comfort, luxury, a life of wealth and peace—all of it paled like fallen leaves in the South Garden.
Only the jade token in her hand shone brightly beneath her sleeve.
Her only concern was whether that fairy truly had no ulterior motives and was simply leading her to the immortal gate because of her talent.
She thought about it through the entire play. Even Mu Guiying putting aside personal grudges to lead the army for the greater good and defend the country failed to capture her attention.
After the play ended, she dismissed her servants and walked in silence from the South Garden back to her bedroom.
Having never seen her so distracted, the servants whispered among themselves.
“The Family Head seems off.”
“Perhaps she was so engrossed in the play that she wants to follow Mu Guiying's example and abandon business for the military.”
“Impossible. Although the Family Head has practiced martial arts since childhood and is quite skilled, she has always preferred using her wits, employing strategies to win battles from a thousand miles away.”
“Recently, the Eldest Princess and the Second Prince have been fighting fiercely for the position of Crown Prince. The Family Head opened another restaurant in the capital this year. Do you think she wants to get involved and take the Gu family to new heights?”
“Watch your words! The Family Head is generous to us; speaking like this is biting the hand that feeds you and could bring trouble upon her!”
Every word of the discussion reached Caiwei’s ears in the study. She pushed open the window and leaned out, her voice unusually sharp.
No one expected the head steward to still be on duty even after the moon had risen.
The servants hurriedly complied, lowering their heads and not daring to say more, their expressions filled with guilt.
“One month's salary will be docked. If there is a next time, leave the Gu Manor of your own accord.”
The study was located between the South Garden and the bedroom, not far from the latter.
Gu Ningyun, however, paid no attention to the commotion.
She laid out paper and ground ink, swiftly writing two letters. She stamped them with the Family Head’s seal and secured them with envelopes and sealing wax.
Then she wrote a small note and sent it off with a carrier pigeon.
The day after the pigeon flew away, a breeze passed through the window, and a middle-aged man carrying a blade appeared in the bedroom.
Gu Ningyun’s mother was a wealthy merchant, but her father was a martial artist who had retired to the city.
Since she was to inherit her mother’s vast fortune, Gu Ningyun had taken her mother’s surname, Gu, from a young age.
The man with the blade was her father’s sworn brother from his days in the martial world. Before her father passed away, he had entrusted her care to him.
Gu Ningyun handed a letter to the man. “I ask that you do not open this letter until next March, Uncle.”
“You’ve been full of schemes since you were a child. What are you up to now, acting all mysterious?”
The middle-aged man asked, but Gu Ningyun said no more, repeating only her previous request.
After seeing him off, she took the other letter to the study.
As expected, Caiwei was still working by lamplight. She truly was the capable assistant her mother had chosen for her.
Waving off Caiwei’s salute, Gu Ningyun handed her the second letter.
“The Gu family’s business is on the right track. I plan to follow in my father’s footsteps and go out to see the world. Remember to open this letter next March.”
Though Caiwei was surprised, she found it reasonable when she remembered how Gu Ningyun’s father had often told stories of his adventures as bedtime stories.
She took the letter. “When do you plan to depart, Family Head? Shall I arrange for servants to accompany you?”
“I leave tomorrow morning. Just prepare a horse, travel expenses, and clothes and hairbands suitable for traveling the martial world.”
Caiwei turned to make the arrangements without asking further questions.
She was not worried about the Family Head’s safety.
First, given the Family Head’s skills, bringing servants would be a burden rather than a help.
Second, Gu family shops existed in every city in Great Yong.
If the Family Head encountered trouble, any shop manager who saw her face would recognize her and rush to assist.
Even if the Family Head wanted to go beyond Great Yong, it didn’t matter; wherever she went, Caiwei would simply open a shop there.
Wherever the Family Head wandered, Caiwei would establish her support system.
Early the next morning, Gu Ningyun left the Gu Manor on horseback.
With insufficient information, no amount of thinking could yield a definitive conclusion.
The Qingyun Sect sounded like a righteous organization, and she planned to investigate the situation in advance.
If what the fairy said was true, she would leave the mortal world behind and give her all to the trial to enter the immortal gate.
If there was more to the story and the fairy was plotting something against her, arriving early to catch her off guard might provide a way to escape.
Since the fairy had not struck her directly but had given her a jade token instead, she must have some reservations.
As long as there were reservations, Gu Ningyun could exploit them to save her life or even flee back to the Gu Manor.
As for ignoring the jade token and staying in the Gu Manor as before, Gu Ningyun never even considered it.
Now that she knew immortal methods existed and she had the talent for cultivation, how could she stay?
If she didn't even dare to try because she was afraid of being schemed against...
Then how could she have expanded the Gu family business across Great Yong, and how could she ever hope to step onto the path of cultivation?
The fairy had given her two choices, but she had already made her decision before the choice was even offered.
Her long deliberation had merely been about the fairy’s motives and how to arrange matters for the Gu Manor.
In the letter to Caiwei, she wrote that she was going out to see the world; if she did not return within three years, the Gu family estate would be hers to do with as she pleased, and she wouldn't even need to keep the Gu name.
If the managers or servants had questions, the letter would serve as proof to convince them.
In the letter to her uncle, she wrote about her solo journey and her decision to leave the family estate to Caiwei if she didn't return in three years.
She hoped her uncle would occasionally keep an eye on the Gu Manor for her.
If Caiwei began making treacherous moves against the Gu family within those three years, she asked her uncle to use the letter as authorization to donate the entire estate to the soldiers at the border.
The Gu family business had reached its current scale through the combined efforts of her mother, Caiwei, and herself.
Leaving the estate to Caiwei was an act of friendship and trust.
Leaving a restrictive letter with her uncle was merely a precaution, for one must always be wary of others.
After all, wealth can stir the heart.
Omitting any mention of the fairy or cultivation was a way to protect Caiwei and her uncle.
Immortal mountains had been legends in Great Yong and its neighbors for generations; there had to be a reason they remained only legends.
Given the unknown circumstances, she was unwilling to recklessly break the rules.
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