Chapter Fifteen: New Year's Gift

In the past few days, Tang Wei’s life had been more fulfilling than ever, for she had discovered a new toy. Whenever she had a moment to spare, she would shut her door, slip into the space, and instruct her nominal husband. Indeed, she found such days endlessly fascinating. Observe—Tang Wei was once again executing her plan.

“Now you know what a wife means, don’t you?”

“Yes, it’s the woman who stays with me for my whole life.”

“Correct. And I am the wife your father found for you, so my words represent your father’s intentions. Do you understand?”

Like a cunning grandmother, Tang Wei was carefully guiding Zi Xuan toward the noble path of a perfect wife’s servant.

“I understand. I’ll always listen to you, Sister,” Zi Xuan said earnestly, propping his chin on his hands.

“Of course you should listen. Everything I do is for your own good. Do you know that? I’m the one who’ll spend my life with you—I would never harm you, right?”

“Yes! Sister would never harm me—everything is for my sake!” Zi Xuan nodded in agreement.

“Giving birth is very painful, so painful it’s like being torn in two. Isn’t that arduous?”

“It must be very painful, very hard.”

“During the day, I have to earn money to support the family and look after the children. At night, I come in here to teach you. All you need to do is meditate and practice. What should you do?”

Zi Xuan paused thoughtfully before responding, “From now on, before Sister comes in, I’ll prepare everything needed here—like the spiritual spring and fruit. I’ll also work hard to cultivate, so I can go out earlier to help Sister earn a living and take care of the children.”

Tang Wei nodded with satisfaction. “Little Bai, you’re really clever!”

“Sister, call me Zi Xuan—I’m not Little Bai.”

“That’s because Zi Xuan is so beautiful, with fair skin. That’s why I like to call you Little Bai!”

“Oh! Then I’ll go look after the children.”

Such things happened once every day in the space. Xiao Ling watched from the side, frequently exasperated. Eventually, she simply hid whenever Tang Wei entered, claiming to be cultivating. This method of education—some people would surely reap bitter fruit one day. Even Xiao Ling saw it coming, but Tang Wei remained blissfully unaware.

Soon, it was Lunar New Year's Eve. Since yesterday, snow had been falling steadily, covering the ground in a blanket of white. The world was wrapped in pure silence and light.

The eldest sister’s family arrived early in the morning. Their car couldn’t make it up the drive, so their belongings had to be carried in baskets, several trips in all. Fortunately, their younger brother had returned from his business trip the day before and could help as a porter. Just as they finished moving everything inside, the second sister's family arrived, prompting another round of labor.

Only after everyone enjoyed a cheerful reunion dinner did the festivities settle. No one cared much for the New Year Gala—everyone hurried to pacify their children, then produced a mountain of snacks for the second-floor lounge. The three little ones watched television amid boisterous laughter, accompanied by Grandma Tang.

The adults, full of anticipation, entered Tang Wei's room, eager for a surprise. Tang Wei’s parents were equally curious and joined in the fun.

Seeing their eager faces, Tang Wei was at a loss for words. She had them close the door, then stammered, “What…do you all think about cultivating immortality?”

“Cultivating immortality? What’s that?” Second brother-in-law Fu Zhongming spoke first—it was clear he was not much of a reader. The old saying goes, “Even if you haven’t eaten pork, you’ve seen pigs walk,” but it seemed Fu Zhongming hadn’t even seen that.

“Just spit it out. Don’t keep us in suspense,” urged the eldest sister, Tang Feng.

“Alright, I’ll tell you straight. Don’t doubt my words—they’re all true. And don’t take me for a lunatic!” Tang Wei had to make her disclaimer first.

“Come on, come on! Even if you were the Buddha himself, I’d believe you. Get on with it!” The eldest sister pressed impatiently.

“If I have a way for you all to cultivate and become immortals or gods, would you want to try? To be honest, I have cultivation methods. Do you want to learn them with me?” Tang Wei asked directly.

As expected, the younger ones caught on fastest. Tang Jun quickly grasped what his third sister was suggesting—such things had appeared in many books. Still, he wasn’t sure if she was telling the truth, so he hurriedly asked, “Sis, you’re not joking, right? Does this really exist?” Seeing his parents watching him, he explained, “Put simply, it’s like Jiang Ziya—you all know him, right? If you cultivate, you might become as powerful as those legendary figures!” He turned to Tang Wei for confirmation, “Sis, am I right?”

Tang Wei nodded. “Jun’s got it exactly. Besides Earth and the Milky Way, there are other worlds…” She briefly explained what she knew of the world of cultivation, regardless of whether they accepted it, and continued, “If you agree to cultivate, I’ll test your spiritual roots first, then give you the appropriate manuals. Think it over—do you want to try?”

“Sis, there’s nothing to consider. With such a good opportunity, I won’t miss it. Test me first—I believe you!” Clearly, every boy harbors a martial arts dream, and reality proved it.

Tang Wei smiled, stretched out her hand, and a spirit-testing orb appeared as if by magic. Tang Jun’s excitement was palpable—he ran over, holding Tang Wei’s hand, looking left and right, babbling, “Is this a storage pouch? Sis, I want a storage pouch too! Is it really a storage pouch? Is it real?”

“Alright, you’ll get one in due time. Calm down—if you’re this excited, you won’t test well. Settle yourself first. Dad, Mom, Sis, and brother-in-law, do you want to try?” Tang Wei asked seriously.

Her parents were the calmest—perhaps age had tempered their desires. He Jianjun and Fu Zhongming weren’t as excited as Tang Jun, but their eyes were wide, their hearts surely racing.

The most indifferent, surprisingly, was Tang Feng. Her face showed utter disinterest; perhaps she truly cared little for such matters.

Even Tang Jing was more enthusiastic, gripping her hands tightly—she clearly wanted to try.

Tang Wei tossed out a remark, especially for Tang Feng, “If you cultivate to a certain level, you can live forever and retain your youthful appearance.” She refused to believe Tang Feng wouldn’t be tempted by that.

In the end, everyone agreed to cultivate, and the spiritual root testing began. The results were excellent. Among them, Tang Jun had the best talent.

Tang Jun: dual earth and wood spiritual roots, earth aptitude seven, wood aptitude four; main cultivation: “Post-Earth Technique,” earth attribute.
Tang Feng: dual fire and wood spiritual roots, fire aptitude six, wood aptitude four; main cultivation: “Blazing Flame Mystical Fire Technique,” fire attribute.
Tang Father: triple gold, fire, earth spiritual roots, gold aptitude five, fire aptitude five, earth aptitude three; main cultivation: “Nine Heavens Secret Method,” gold and fire dual attributes.
Tang Mother: triple water, earth, wood spiritual roots, water aptitude six, earth aptitude three, wood aptitude two; main cultivation: “Mystical Water Sutra,” water attribute.
Tang Jing: triple water, earth, wood spiritual roots, water aptitude five, earth aptitude three, wood aptitude three; main cultivation: “Mystical Water Sutra,” water attribute.
He Jianjun: triple gold, earth, water spiritual roots, gold aptitude seven, earth aptitude two, water aptitude two; main cultivation: “Nine Transformations Golden Body Technique,” gold attribute.

Eighty percent of people lack spiritual roots. Among those who have them, ten percent possess five spiritual roots. Without extraordinary fortune, such roots make successful foundation-building virtually impossible. The Tang family was exceedingly lucky—so many people, only Fu Zhongming lacked spiritual roots.

It was easy to imagine his disappointment. Still, Tang Wei didn’t let him stay discouraged long. She soon told him he could pursue the martial path and gave him the top-tier “Thunder Battle Method.”