Marrying Wives and Attaining Immortality in a Chaotic World

Chapter 79: The Grand Entrance

After leaving Green Bamboo Town, Xu Lian, Lin Wan, and Qin Liu returned to the Lin family’s house on the third street of Pingyang County.

The Lin family immediately noticed Lin Wan’s hair, now elegantly styled in an updo, and the radiant glow on her face. It was clear that she no longer had the status of a widow, indicating that she was now with a man.

Lin Wan had been a widow for ten years, always wearing her long hair down. But now, with her hair up, it was too noticeable – it was impossible not to attract attention.

The reactions of the Lin family members were different.

Hua Rongjun smiled with happiness and satisfaction. Her daughter, Lin Wan, had not disappointed her. She had progressed so quickly.

Her eyes gleamed as she looked at Xu Lian, the young man, completely filled with the affectionate gaze of a mother-in-law looking at her son-in-law, growing fonder the more she looked.

However, Hua Rongjun did not mention it directly. Instead, she smiled and gently nodded, saying, “It’s nice there in the countryside. The fresh air and clear water are good for your body. In just a few days, my eldest daughter’s complexion has improved so much.”

Lin Wan blushed and glanced at Xu Lian before lowering her head to look at the ground.

Upon seeing his daughter’s hair styled in an updo, Lin Yue paused for a moment. It was clear that he did not know as much about the situation as Hua Rongjun.

But as a father, his intuition was very sharp. His gaze passed over Qin Liu and landed directly on Xu Lian, who smiled faintly and nodded slightly.

Not daring to be neglectful, Xu Lian understood that while Lin Wan did not want to make things public, he still had to show respect to her parents. “Uncle, Aunt, we’re back,” he said.

Not wishing to state anything outright, he kept it subtle.

The old steward, who walked shakily through the house, also noticed Lin Wan’s hair and smiled contentedly. “Now that’s how it should be. When a woman reaches a certain age, she should tie up her hair. It looks much better than having it loose. Having it down is unpleasant and unsettling.”

In this world, there were typically three ways for women to manage their hair:

Young girls, like Xiao Yu, wore their hair in spiral buns.

Women of marriageable age let their hair fall freely to signal that they were waiting to get married.

After marriage, they would tie up their hair.

When their husbands died, they let their hair down again.

This is why the old steward said it was unseemly for a woman of a certain age to wear her hair down – either she couldn’t marry or her husband had passed away. Tying it up was simply more pleasing to the eye.

“Miss, that’s not right, your hair is tied up incorrectly.”

Xiao Yu, who was still naive about such things, didn’t understand.

The old steward scowled and gently tapped her on the head. “Go play somewhere else, you don’t understand.”

Xiao Yu left in a huff.

The other servants couldn’t help but laugh. It was clear to anyone with eyes that the eldest miss had found a man again, and based on how the master and mistress were treating Xu Lian, it was likely him.

“Where is Brother Lin?”

Xu Lian asked, thinking that he should inform Lin Chengyu. While Lin Wan didn’t want to make it public, at the very least, Lin Chengyu should know about it.

Hua Rongjun smiled and replied, “Yu’er went out to train with a few friends, preparing for his breakthrough to the Bone Refining stage. He’s probably going to be away for a while, so you two can talk when he returns.”

Xu Lian didn’t push any further. Cultivation was a personal journey, and there was little he could do to help.

Lin Wan and Xu Lian walked around the Lin family house, their behavior somewhat affectionate. One had a flawless appearance and graceful figure, like a beauty in a painting; the other was a youthful, handsome young man with a perfect face. Although they didn’t seem to be a perfect match due to their age difference, the servants and maids of the house knew and understood their dynamic.

Even though Xu Lian had completed his inspection as the “future son-in-law,” he still returned to the guest room in the west courtyard. On the surface, he was still just a guest staying at the Lin family’s house.

Qin Liu didn’t join him in the guest room because he had left earlier, saying that he was going to find some old companions who had once explored tombs and graveyards with him in preparation for excavating a cultivator’s tomb.

There were two main reasons for this.

First, Qin Liu had been imprisoned in the dungeon for many years, so his skills had gotten a bit rusty. He wasn’t confident in handling the tomb excavation alone and needed the help of his old companions.

Second, there were some special tools for grave digging, as well as protective items to ward off evil spirits. Excavating a tomb was no easy task, especially in such a strange world where one misstep could lead to a zombie outbreak, supernatural changes, or exposure to demonic forces.

Xu Lian was deep in thought about his own situation.

“To reach the second level of Bright Strength, I need two Condensation Pills. To reach the third level, does that mean I need three, or will it double to four? If this continues, I will need a large number of Condensation Pills.”

He pondered this while recalling his current resources.

Condensation Pills.

Condensation Pills.

He only had eight Spirit Stones, not enough to buy a single Condensation Pill, let alone a large quantity.

He would have to find a way to acquire more Spiritual Stones.

“I wonder if there are any spiritual stones buried in cultivators’ graves. But I can’t completely rely on it. If there are, that’s great, but if there aren’t, there’s no need to get upset. After all, it is the property of the dead – it’s all about luck”.

After thinking for a moment, Xu Lian decided that using his official position to “make money” was the most reliable approach.

Where should he start?

The county magistrate?

He shook his head slightly, dismissing the idea. Raking in the rewards wasn’t as simple as catching a sheep and milking it dry. The magistrate would probably retaliate if pushed too hard.

Moreover, while the county magistrate was the official head of Pingyang County’s order, in reality he was just another low-level cultivator without much in the way of spiritual stones.

“The majority of the cultivation resources in Pingyang County are controlled by the Yi Sect. Next are the wealthy families of First Street. After that, there are the moderately powerful families on Second and Third Streets, and the least resources are held by the scattered cultivators.”

Xu Lian thought over the distribution of cultivation resources in Pingyang County, gradually laying out his next steps.

It was time to bring out the White Cat Avatar!

The Pingyang County Inspector was about to make an appearance.

That evening, the White Cat Avatar set out. It emerged from an alley on Third Street and strolled confidently through the streets toward First Street.

First Street was heavily guarded, and only those who lived there or rented apartments were allowed to enter. With the presence of a barrier, it would be impossible for even a cat-or a mosquito-to slip through unnoticed.

However, Xu Lian had no intention of sneaking in. His white cat avatar proudly wore the Pingyang County Inspector’s badge and walked straight up to the gate, ready to openly enter.

In fact, he intended to make a grand entrance. The goal was to openly “make money,” to attract attention, and to make people “pay respectful tribute.”

As expected, when the guards saw the Pingyang County Inspector’s badge, their expressions changed immediately. They realized that a new official had arrived and dared not act carelessly. They hurriedly bowed out of respect.

“Greetings, Inspector!”

The people from the wealthy families passing through the gate also paused and stepped aside in awe. They recognized the arrival of an important figure in the city.

The inspector had great authority and could oversee everything in Pingyang County. Simply put, his role was to inspect and enforce the rules, often seeking out issues to address – commonly referred to as “finding trouble.”