"Sister, sister, look, there are red snails here! Let me catch more, and we can roast them to eat."
"Si Qing, slow down... be careful you don't fall."
The Divine Witch Clan.
In the jungle.
Beside a clear stream, a young girl in a white dress, with hair falling to her waist and small braids on either side of her forehead, stood under a tree, looking up and cautioning the boy above.
"Don't worry, I won't," Si Qing said, picking the red snails from the tree trunk and stuffing them into his pocket. He jumped down from the large tree and pulled the girl along as they ran.
The two of them arrived at a clearing near the stream, built a small bonfire with dry branches, and threw the red snails in.
The girl took out a handful of chili peppers from her pocket and threw them into the fire to roast together.
The red snail meat slowly tightened, sizzling and emitting a barbecue aroma.
The girl looked on with anticipation.
Si Qing, roasting the snail meat, sniffed and said, "It smells so good. I didn't eat enough this morning. Sister, you ate even less than me, why aren't you hungry? My stomach was rumbling earlier."
"Mm..." the girl whispered something.
Si Qing didn't hear clearly and didn't press further. Instead, he used a stick to pick out the roasted snail meat and offered it to the girl.
"It's delicious!" The girl smiled and lowered her head to dig out the snail meat with the stick. "Si Qing, I heard there's going to be a meteor shower in the North Sea in a few days. It's supposed to be very beautiful. Shall we go see it?"
"Okay, but will Mother agree?" Si Qing hesitated. "I'm afraid Mother won't agree."
His mother had always been very strict with his sister.
"It should be fine. We can go with Mother," the girl said, cupping her hands to rinse her mouth with stream water.
Si Qing nodded.
Just then, footsteps were heard from not far away, and a man in elegant white robes walked over. "Si Qing, Ling Ruo, you two have been playing until this hour. Your mother has probably made dinner. Let's go back together."
The man carried a bamboo basket of potatoes and vegetables on his shoulder, which seemed quite heavy.
As he spoke, he naturally handed the basket to the girl and then bent down to pick up Si Qing.
Ling Ruo struggled to hold the basket tightly and walked behind them.
"Father, the things are too heavy. Sister can't carry them," Si Qing struggled in the man's arms. "You carry them yourself, don't let Sister carry them."
"Si Qing is so concerned about his sister," the man smiled down at Si Qing in his arms. "But your sister likes to carry things. That's what a good sister should do, right? Ling Ruo, you like it, don't you?"
The man said this while looking back at the girl.
"...Yes, I can carry it," Ling Ruo hesitated for a moment, then still struggled to hold the basket and nodded.
"Then I'll carry it, Father, you go carry Sister," Si Qing struggled again.
A trace of impatience flashed in the man's eyes, and he gently patted Si Qing's back.
Si Qing unconsciously fell asleep.
The man placed the sleeping Si Qing aside, then turned to Ling Ruo. "How was your cultivation today?"
"Um... it was okay, it's just..." Ling Ruo lowered her head, her voice weak. "Si Qing and I were a bit tired, so we came out to play on the way back..."
*Slap—*
The man raised his hand and slapped her. "What were you thinking? Si Qing can go out to play, why aren't you, as the older sister, more sensible?"
"Are you someone who can just go out and play?"
"Father, I was wrong," Ling Ruo lowered her head, her voice trembling. "I won't play anymore. I'll cultivate properly."
"You're not eating dinner today. I saw you and Si Qing eating red snails. How many times have I told you, girls shouldn't eat so much? You always eat so much, like a pig." The man looked at her with disgust. "Why would the Yang energy appear in someone like you? It's so annoying."
"I'm sorry..." Ling Ruo lowered her eyes.
"If you want to be loved, you have to give more. You have to think more about others," the man reprimanded sternly. "Your meal intake has reached a bowl recently. You and Si Qing are both born with immortal bodies, you don't need to eat so much, do you understand?"
"Yes, it's just that I'm too tired every time I transfer my spiritual power to Si Qing," Ling Ruo looked up. "So I want to eat more..."
"When you speak, you should kneel on the ground and speak properly. Who allowed you to speak in such a willful tone?" The man's tone became more impatient. "Have you learned the rules or not?! Hold the basket and kneel properly yourself!"
Ling Ruo lowered her head and did as she was told.
Under the scorching sun, her forehead was covered in sweat.
The man walked to the shade of the tree, used his spiritual power to conjure some tea, and sat on a nearby stone stool, taking a sip.
After an unknown amount of time.
The sun set in the west.
The man finally stood up, walked to Ling Ruo's side, took the basket, embraced Ling Ruo, whose tear stains had dried, and said softly, "Father slapped you and punished you by making you kneel to teach you manners, not to harm you. Ling Ruo should know that Father loves you the most, right?"
Ling Ruo lowered her head and said softly, "But you never hit Si Qing..."
"You are a good-for-nothing, do you know that?" The man looked into Ling Ruo's eyes. "You're so stupid, your talent isn't great, you're not as good as Si Qing in anything. I get anxious and angry, so I can't help but lay a hand on you. But in reality, Father loves you. You understand this, right?"
"...My precious Ling Ruo, Father also knows you've suffered. It's all because of the Yang energy in your body that you're so foolish. When Father finds a way to remove your Yang energy, you won't have to suffer so much..."
Ling Ruo nodded.
"Alright, let's go home now." The man carried the bamboo basket on his back, picked up Si Qing, and strode forward.
Ling Ruo limped behind him, following them all the way home.
That night, Si Qing woke up from his sleep after it was already dark. Ling Ruo, feigning a stomachache, hadn't eaten and had been hiding in the room the siblings shared.
While Si Qing was pestering Li Yu about fainting, Yu Zhen knocked on Ling Ruo's door and walked in, holding a candlestick. "Ling Ruo, I've heard everything. You let your younger brother climb trees again today, and you even ate secretly, didn't you?"
"How many times do I have to tell you? Si Qing is precious. You just need to serve him well. He cannot have any mishaps. As for eating, didn't I tell you not to eat so much?"
Ling Ruo lowered her head and mumbled an apology.
Yu Zhen sighed. "It's all because of that Yang energy. We are all trying to find a way to remove that energy from you. Who are we doing this for? Isn't it for you?"
"Why are you so disobedient, always preening and causing trouble?"
Ling Ruo remained silent.
The scolding could be heard through the closed door.
That night.
Si Qing secretly brought two rice cakes to Ling Ruo.
Ling Ruo ate them in small bites, huddled in a corner of the room, shrouded in darkness.
Si Qing sat outside, looking at the moonlight. He suddenly asked, "Sister, do you really think Father and Mother love you?"
Ling Ruo lowered her head, holding the rice cakes, and didn't speak. After a long while, she mumbled indistinctly, "They... probably do love me."
Si Qing pursed his lips. "Your voice sounds strange. Let me see. Did Father hit you again?"
Ling Ruo nibbled on the rice cakes. "I was beaten because I did something wrong."
"But what exactly did you do wrong?" Si Qing suddenly grabbed Ling Ruo's arm. "Sister, have you ever thought that you shouldn't be living this kind of life at all? You haven't done anything wrong. It's this environment that's wrong, it's Father and Mother who are wrong."
Ling Ruo lowered her head and remained silent.
She didn't know what to say.
It had always been like this since she was little. The girls around her were also like this, so she didn't know if Father and Mother were wrong.
"Forget it, Sister," Si Qing took Ling Ruo's hand. "Let's run away from home."