Chapter 54
As she spoke, she closed her mouth, seemingly unwilling to continue.
A flicker of concern crossed the Seventh Young Master’s face. He pressed his lips together, reluctant to argue with his sister at that moment.
The Young Lady, however, changed the subject. “Remember, it’s fine to be close to Zheng Fa, but don’t sacrifice a good opportunity like Sister Zhang’s for the sake of loyalty, do you understand?”
The Seventh Young Master still felt a bit unconvinced. “But Zheng Fa is valued by the Yuanying Zhenren! Learning from him is also a path to Yuanying’s true teachings!”
The Young Lady let out a cold laugh at his rebuttal. “Sister Zhang’s master is the Yuanying Zhenren! She’s a renowned genius in the Hundred Immortals Alliance for her talisman skills. How can she possibly be compared to Zheng Fa? Zheng Fa and Sister Zhang are worlds apart, do you get it?”
Even if the Seventh Young Master thought Zheng Fa had talent, he dared not claim that Zheng Fa could match Sister Zhang.
“And also, while Sister Zhang isn’t bad-tempered, she doesn’t like to waste words. The only reason she came to the Zhao family is because of the old ties between our ancestors and her elders. She…” The Young Lady hesitated, trying to describe her. “She’s solely devoted to talismans and mathematics, uninterested in anything else. She may seem a bit cold, but it’s not personal.”
“Elder Sister…”
“Hmm?”
“Isn’t Sister Zhang fond of wearing a blue Daoist robe?”
“How do you know that?”
“Does she have big eyes and a straight nose?”
The Young Lady was even more puzzled. “Have you seen her?”
“When she smiles, does she have a little dimple on her left cheek?”
The Seventh Young Master didn’t answer but continued to ask.
“I… I really didn’t notice that.” The Young Lady frowned. “She doesn’t smile much; I’ve hardly seen her smile, so I didn’t pay attention to whether she has a dimple.”
“I thought she looked quite happy when she smiled.”
The Seventh Young Master pointed to the left front, and the Young Lady couldn’t help but look in the direction he was indicating.
It was a small courtyard with the door open, directly facing the main hall.
Inside the hall, the usually unsmiling Sister Zhang was holding a brush, her lips curving into a smile, bright as a flower, as she spoke to a man across from her.
Yes, there was a little dimple, and her smile was quite sweet…
---
**Chapter 61: Equality Among All Beings**
Zheng Fa felt a bit of a headache.
He had ample reason to suspect that the girl in the blue attire before him was the reincarnation of a calculator.
She was just too good at calculations!
Beyond basic arithmetic, she had mastered Tianyuan Shu—an advanced form of mathematics in this world, akin to solving polynomials.
What surprised Zheng Fa even more was that the girl demonstrated a technique called Zhuì Shu, which was quite similar to the concept of limits he knew.
No matter how complex the problem was, as long as it fell within the realm of the college entrance examination, she could provide accurate and quick answers.
Her only weakness seemed to be in proofs and reasoning.
She couldn’t even grasp why proofs were necessary.
From her, Zheng Fa caught a glimpse of the mathematical culture of the Xuanwei Realm: practicality over logic.
“Is there anything else?” The girl set down the problem she had just solved, lifting her eyes, her face radiating joy and satisfaction.
Zheng Fa noticed that the harder and more twisted the problem, the more excited she became!
“None left!”
Zheng Fa firmly denied it; otherwise, he felt this insatiable girl could play this twisted game of problem-solving for a year.
“Not a single problem?”
“Not a single one!”
The girl stared at his forehead, her eyes filled with suspicion.
Zheng Fa suspected she wanted to pry open his head to see if there was really nothing inside.
“Sister Zhang? What brings you here?”
A woman’s voice broke the silence between them. Zheng Fa turned his head to see the Seventh Young Master standing behind a girl in red, who was the one speaking.
“Zheng Fa, this is my sister!” the Seventh Young Master introduced.
“Miss!” Zheng Fa stood up to bow, glancing at the girl in blue beside him, realizing her surname was Zhang.
She hadn’t introduced herself when she arrived, nor had she considered whether she should have been allowed inside.
It seemed that apart from those problems, nothing else mattered.
“I asked your family’s servant for directions to find you,” Sister Zhang replied after a moment of thought, glancing at Zheng Fa. “It seems Zheng Fa is quite well-known in your family; I found my way with just one inquiry.”
“I didn’t mean to ask how you got here; I meant, why would a Jindan personally…”
The Young Lady waved her hand, stepping closer to Sister Zhang, her expression puzzled.
Hearing this, Zheng Fa was also surprised. This girl was a Jindan?
Though he didn’t know much about the cultivation world, from the Young Lady’s astonished and somewhat respectful demeanor, it was clear that a Jindan was quite impressive, at least a significant figure in front of the Zhao family.
No wonder the Young Lady was so surprised to see Sister Zhang in his courtyard.
Sister Zhang seemed to understand this time, nodding, but then asked, “If I come in person, will the Jindan shatter?”
“…”
Zheng Fa swore he saw a look of being choked on the Young Lady’s face.
“I… he’s my brother’s attendant. If you want to see him, just have someone summon him. This way, it seems like my Zhao family is neglecting you.”
The Seventh Young Master pouted.
Zheng Fa understood the Young Lady’s meaning; the gap in status between a Jindan and an attendant was vast.
A single word could make him obediently comply.
He didn’t feel offended; this was likely the view of most people in this world.
“Didn’t I come to your house too?”
“?”
A hint of confusion appeared on the Young Lady’s face.
“Where I go, whom I want to see, it’s all up to my whims. What does this person’s status have to do with it?” Sister Zhang glanced at the three of them. “To me, it makes no difference.”
“…”
In the small courtyard, three out of four people fell silent simultaneously.
The Young Lady’s face turned red.
The Seventh Young Master gritted his teeth.
Zheng Fa… was stifling a laugh.
What does it mean for all beings to be equal!
When the Young Lady said Sister Zhang was a Jindan cultivator, Zheng Fa thought she was quite approachable.
But now…
It was as if she was saying that in her eyes, the Zhao family and the Zhao family’s attendant were no different.
There was a kind of pride in her that suggested she made friends without regard for status.
What approachability! No one was more dismissive of the mundane than this woman before him.
The Young Lady’s face shifted between shades of pale and green, unable to find her voice.
“Zhao Shimei,” Sister Zhang suddenly addressed her, “As cultivators, we shouldn’t harbor too many useless things in our hearts. You… have too many things you can’t let go of.”
The Young Lady froze, and as Sister Zhang continued, “With your talent and diligence, you shouldn’t take ten years to establish your foundation. If you don’t awaken soon, you will eventually be dragged down.”
The Young Lady’s expression turned blank, as if she finally understood why Sister Zhang’s words were so blunt.
A mix of bitter laughter and gratitude crossed her face. “Sister Zhang, you’re a true cultivator. You became a Jindan in just a hundred years, and I…”
Sister Zhang seemed to have only intended to offer that one piece of advice. Hearing her say this, she merely nodded, no longer pressing the matter, and turned her attention to the Seventh Young Master.
In front of a Jindan cultivator, the Seventh Young Master couldn’t help but show a bit of nervousness.
“This is my brother, Zhao Jingfan!” The Young Lady hurriedly introduced. “I was planning to take him to find you later to express our gratitude for your teachings in Jingzhou.”
With that, she patted the Seventh Young Master’s back. “Aren’t you going to thank Sister Zhang? It’s a stroke of luck for you that she’s willing to guide you in talisman skills!”
So Sister Zhang was here to teach the Seventh Young Master talisman skills?
“No need, I’m not interested in that,” Sister Zhang pointed at Zheng Fa’s head. “And if we’re talking about thanks, I’m already quite satisfied with the gift of meeting him.”
Zheng Fa rubbed the back of his head, feeling as if Sister Zhang was pointing at the problems in his mind.
If he thought a bit more terrifyingly, she might be pointing at his brain.
Could it be that she was a collector of brains?
The Young Lady and the Seventh Young Master stared at Zheng Fa, their expressions reminiscent of something he found familiar:
That kind of look he received from Wang Chen when he was going downstairs with Tang Lingwu—
Why him?
---
“If you want me to teach you talisman techniques, I need to see your current level first.” Although she told the Seventh Young Master not to thank her, Sister Zhang didn’t refuse to teach him.
On the contrary, she seemed to be the type who acted decisively, starting to teach the Seventh Young Master right there in Zheng Fa’s courtyard, even directly testing him.
Zheng Fa was quite interested; he didn’t mind the Young Lady bringing in another teacher, as he wasn’t sure if the notes from the old man Bai were entirely correct.
The role of modern mathematics, or topology, in talisman techniques had always been a guess of his.
But he also understood that while mathematics could rely purely on theoretical deduction, talisman techniques were real in this world. Without practical experience, it was hard for Zheng Fa to say that what he taught the Seventh Young Master would definitely be useful.
He had many confusions regarding the talisman techniques of this world.
Just like in science, solving problems still needed to be connected to reality.
Table of Contents
