Li Yingling propped her cheek with one hand, her gaze casually sweeping over the towering stack of material lists before her while her mind ran through the accounts.
Her master was so slick, with just a casual "I have more important matters to attend to," he'd dumped all of this onto her.
Damn it, if he comes back without a gift, I'll...
Li Yingling thought for a moment, but ultimately couldn't come up with any way to get back at her master.
Oh well, what could she do? He was her master. Considering how well he usually treated her, even if he didn't bring a gift, she could reluctantly welcome him back.
After a moment, Li Yingling raised her hand to jot down a few summary notes before stretching lazily. Then, she couldn't help but think of her master, whom she hadn't seen in several months, and sighed heavily.
Zhang Miaoyu, who was organizing materials nearby, noticed her team leader suddenly sigh and quickly turned to her, asking, "Team Leader, is something the matter?"
Li Yingling looked over, shook her head, and brushed her off with a casual excuse, "It's nothing... I just have a feeling that Cui Hao has gotten into trouble again."
Zhang Miaoyu hesitated. "I don't think so. He's been on his best behavior since the last incident."
Li Yingling teased casually, "Hmph. I bet Cui Hao is planning something big this time."
Zhang Miaoyu smiled in response.
Lately, Zhang Miaoyu had been acting as Li Yingling's personal secretary, helping with various tasks, organizing and sorting documents, and relaying some instructions.
As a result, she had become quite familiar with the people in the sect.
Whether it was Cui Hao or Chen Baiqing, or even the two who just埋头苦干 and weren't very talkative—Lin Luyu and Li Xingtian—she knew them all.
There was no infighting in the sect; everyone was simply dedicated to working together for its benefit.
Even Cui Hao, who had been harshly criticized by the senior sister.
Although he sometimes did things that were laughable, they were all harmless, trivial matters.
Whenever tasks were entrusted to Cui Hao, he always handled them impeccably, often exceeding expectations, yet he never sought credit for it.
So, Zhang Miaoyu wasn't particularly concerned about Cui Hao planning something big.
How big could it be? At worst, it would just be Cui Hao embarrassing himself.
Sometimes, Zhang Miaoyu even found herself vaguely curious about what outrageous scheme Cui Hao would come up with next.
But of course, she couldn't say that to the team leader. Zhang Miaoyu wasn't foolish—she never said a word the team leader didn't want to hear.
Zhang Miaoyu used her spiritual energy to organize the stacks of incoming materials and envelopes. Most of the letters were discussions with material suppliers, but soon, her gaze locked onto one very peculiar envelope.
What made this letter unique was that its material was the most ordinary among them.
Because the material merchants sold immortal goods, their envelopes were not only enchanted but also made of magnificent, high-quality paper.
Only this letter was in the most common envelope, with no enchantments whatsoever.
It looked a bit like junk mail.
Zhang Miaoyu glanced at the envelope, then pulled it out separately and placed it on the table in front of Li Yingling, saying, "Team Leader, there's a letter forwarded from the Xuanwu Kingdom in the Southern Continent."
Li Yingling's gaze shifted to the unremarkable envelope.
Her master had mentioned that he'd left correspondence in Yuzhou City, in case anyone came looking for him but couldn't find him there.
Li Yingling knew exactly who her master meant by "anyone"—the little monk, Yuankong.
She knew that Yuanjing had passed away and that Yuankong had chosen to walk his own path.
Although her master always acted as if he didn't care, he was actually quite sentimental.
Yuankong might not be very useful, but he was just a child at heart, pure and kind.
Besides, he had made an outstanding contribution to her master's decision to completely stop giving the refined elixirs to his disciples.
Without a second thought, Li Yingling reached for the envelope and tore it open.
There were two sheets of paper inside.
Li Yingling's eyes quickly scanned the first, then a hint of suspicion appeared in her gaze as she looked at the second sheet.
Zhang Miaoyu, noticing the subtle changes in Li Yingling's expression, instantly realized this letter wasn't as simple as it seemed.
She wanted to ask, but it was better to wait for the team leader's instructions.
However, the next moment, before Li Yingling could give any orders, Chen Baiqing walked in from the door. Her gaze first fell upon the senior sister, then Zhang Miaoyu. She had been about to report on her progress but, sensing the mood, silently refrained from speaking and walked over to stand quietly to one side.
Li Yingling looked up and saw Chen Baiqing, but this time she didn't greet her first. Instead, she instructed Zhang Miaoyu beside her, "Go to the main hall and fetch my fourth junior sister."
Zhang Miaoyu responded quickly and hurried off in the direction of the main hall.
Li Yingling then turned to Chen Baiqing, forcing a somewhat strained smile. "What is it?"
"The residential area has been topped out. We're preparing for the interior decoration next," Chen Baiqing said, taking out the prepared materials from her spatial ring.
"Here are the material requirements I've calculated. We can start preparing these supplies."
Li Yingling took the papers without looking at them and replied directly, "Alright, I understand."
Chen Baiqing hesitated for a moment but still asked, "Has something happened? Regarding the fourth junior sister?"
Looking at Chen Baiqing's earnest expression, Li Yingling's tone relaxed as usual. "The fourth junior sister's teacher sent her a letter, that's all."
Upon hearing this, Chen Baiqing stood still for a moment, then looked directly at the senior sister and said seriously, "Baiqing is not a child anymore. I am the third junior sister, and the fourth junior sister is also my junior sister. Baiqing can help too."
Li Yingling was taken aback by this and looked at Chen Baiqing.
At that moment, she suddenly realized that Chen Baiqing seemed to have grown taller. The little girl who used to look up to her, wanting to hold her hand and go see the world, was now a young woman.
Perhaps because she had been with Chen Baiqing for so long, she had overlooked her growth.
Li Yingling hadn't assigned Chen Baiqing to oversee the construction of the residential area alone; Chu Xingchen had.
If it had been up to Li Yingling, she would have paired Lin Luyu with Chen Baiqing, not let Chen Baiqing handle it alone.
Because in Li Yingling's eyes, Chen Baiqing was still the little third junior sister who liked to stay by the deep pond, who liked to show sweet smiles, eat preserved fruits while reading books, and say good morning to her.
Subconsciously, Li Yingling only wanted Chen Baiqing to remain carefree, with everything handled by her as the senior sister, her second senior brother, and if all else failed, their master.
But sometimes she forgot that Chen Baiqing also had to grow up.
Li Yingling calmly picked up the letter in her hand and handed it to Chen Baiqing before her.
Time didn't just make her grow; the little girl from the past could now shelter others from the wind and rain, a very reliable person.
Their master had noticed Chen Baiqing's growth and was willing to trust her with a solo responsibility.
But she herself hadn't, still treating Chen Baiqing like a child.
This was probably why her master could unite everyone's hearts.
Li Yingling suddenly said, "Xiao Baiqing, you've grown taller."
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