NOVEL WEB Chapter 4: Birthday and Gifts
Chapter 4: Birthday and Gifts
The most pressing matter now was Li Xi’s tenth birthday tomorrow.
Li Xi woke up early, no longer in pain. After a good night’s sleep, she felt refreshed, and a happy smile reappeared on her round face, her big eyes curving like crescent moons.
Today was her tenth birthday. Not only would she receive many gifts, but according to the Li family rules, she would also get two mu of land of her own. This meant she could finally start planting independently!
Her lifelong dream had been to quickly grow to ten years old and be allocated spiritual fields. She had worked very hard for this dream, and today was her moment of triumph.
A steaming bowl of chicken noodle soup appeared before her eyes. Li Xi happily sniffed the aroma wafting in the air.
“I can tell just by the smell that it’s chicken soup noodles made from second sister-in-law’s chickens. It smells so good!”
“Eat quickly, then make a wish. Be careful not to bite through the noodles.”
Wang Xiuniang’s stern face revealed deep affection, and Li Shan was also happy for his daughter.
After Li Xi finished the noodles, she made a wish under the watchful eyes of her family.
“Happy birthday, Xi’er!”
“Happy birthday, Aunt!”
Everyone offered their blessings at this moment. Li Xi sat amidst a chorus of well-wishes, as happy as she could be.
Liu Qiniang, with her pretty features and bright eyes, smiled and said, “Xi’er, second sister-in-law’s gift needs to be given quickly, or it will lose its special quality. So I’ll give you my gift first!”
She then uncovered the porcelain basin on the table.
An overwhelmingly delicious aroma burst forth, spreading freely.
“What is this?” Li Xi squinted her eyes in enjoyment as she sniffed, her mouth instantly watering.
The others at the table hadn’t expected this dish to smell so amazing, and were stunned by the aroma.
Then, everyone made the same movement in unison: swallowing.
If they didn’t swallow, the saliva in their mouths would have flowed out.
“It’s a high-grade spirit chicken that sister-in-law has been stewing since early morning. I didn’t expect it to smell so good when it was done,” Liu Qiniang was also surprised.
“Second sister-in-law, you actually gave me the high-grade spirit chicken we’re never allowed to touch! I’m so happy!” Li Xi’s joy was about to overflow.
Liu Qiniang was very skilled at raising chickens. The first-grade spirit chickens she raised could consistently reach medium grade, with some high-grade spirit chickens mixed in.
High-grade spirit chickens were in short supply in nearby villages and towns, fetching high prices. They were an important and stable source of income for their family, so they rarely ate high-grade spirit chickens at home.
“Today is your tenth birthday, the most important birthday in our Li family. I knew you’ve always wanted to eat the high-grade spirit chickens I raise, so I decided to make a dish with a high-grade spirit chicken as your birthday gift. I didn’t expect the dish made from this high-grade spirit chicken to be so amazing!” Liu Qiniang said.
“It smells so good!” Song’er couldn’t contain his saliva and it flowed out.
Seeing everyone unable to control themselves, Li Jiang said, “Why don’t we all taste Qiniang’s high-grade spirit chicken together?”
Everyone simultaneously reached for the plate in the center of the table with their chopsticks. Even the youngest, Bai’er, clumsily grabbed his chopsticks and eagerly picked up a piece.
The skin of the spirit chicken held between the chopsticks was an enticing golden color, bright and glossy, making one’s mouth water. The texture of the chicken meat was clearly visible, revealing its tender quality.
The chicken was juicy and tender, with a smooth texture. Every bite was full of rich flavor. The seasoning was just right, neither too greasy nor too bland, perfectly complementing the deliciousness of the chicken.
Only after everyone had finished the plate of spirit chicken did they have time to speak.
“This spirit chicken…” Li Shan and Wang Xiuniang, true to their married status, murmured simultaneously.
“It’s too delicious!” everyone exclaimed in unison.
On this side, Li Xi called out, “Second sister-in-law, you’re so good! The high-grade spirit chicken is too delicious, I’m so happy!”
Liu Qiniang smiled slightly, with a hint of pride.
After the high-grade spirit chicken was finished, Song’er was quick to act.
“We’re next, we’re next,” Song’er eagerly brought out their gift. “This is a gift prepared by me, my little sister Xing’er, and our little brother Bai’er!”
Li Xi happily accepted the small folded handkerchief from Song’er’s hand. It was obvious that some granular items were wrapped inside the handkerchief, causing small bumps on its surface.
“Aunt, open it quickly!” The eyes of Song’er, Xing’er, and Bai’er sparkled as they watched Li Xi.
Li Xi carefully opened the well-wrapped handkerchief. As she unfolded the last piece of fabric, colorful small particles were revealed.
“Aunt, these are seeds we found in autumn!” Song’er exclaimed.
“They’re actually seeds!” Li Xi’s voice and Song’er’s voice rang out simultaneously, but Li Xi’s voice was filled with pleasant surprise, while Song’er’s voice was proud of their treasure.
The Tianyan Sect territory where Peach Blossom Village is located experiences strong winds from the southeastern sea in late autumn. These winds are quite peculiar.
Every year, the winds are strong enough to carry small objects all the way from the southeast to the northwest, but they are relatively gentle for humans, and even the objects carried by the wind rarely cause injuries.
Because Peach Blossom Village is located right in the path of these southeastern monsoon winds, and towards the later part of the route, every autumn is a time for people to search for treasures in the monsoon. People can find many exotic species from other regions during these windy days.
This package of colorful seeds was clearly specially found for Li Xi by the three little ones during the windy days.
“Thank you, Song’er, Xing’er, and Bai’er. Aunt really likes your gift!” Li Xi carefully refolded the handkerchief and put it away.
Next, Wu Jingwan gently brought out her gift.
“Elder sister-in-law knows that although you don’t place much importance on cultivation, you’ve been studying how to improve cultivation efficiency and save time. This pillow made of purifying grass should be of some use.”
Indeed, Li Xi’s lifelong ambition had been to own her own spirit fields, then plant the plants she liked in them and produce the best results. In her spare time, she wanted to eat the fruits of her labor, listen to the village aunties chatting, and live a happy and leisurely life.
However, cultivation was also beneficial for planting spirit fields. Some spirit plants even had cultivation level requirements for the planters. So although Li Xi didn’t place much importance on cultivation, she had set aside a fixed time for cultivation before bed every day.
But Li Xi still felt that this kind of cultivation was a waste of time, so she had been researching methods to cultivate while sleeping.
Wu Jingwan, who had always known what her little sister-in-law was researching, didn’t think her ideas were far-fetched at all. Although children’s ideas might be different from adults’, as long as they weren’t harmful, they could be encouraged.
So even though she had never heard of any cultivation method that allowed people to maintain a cultivation state while sleeping, most people who worked hard on cultivation still used cultivation to compress their sleep time. It was said that people with more advanced cultivation would even completely give up their sleep for cultivation.
Wu Jingwan had carefully selected purifying grass, which had calming and meditation-inducing effects. This grass was quite effective and naturally rare.
Coincidentally, there was a patch of purifying grass growing in a certain area of Peach Mountain. The location was relatively hidden, rarely discovered by others. Wu Jingwan had picked these purifying grasses.
“Elder sister-in-law, you’re so good! I’ve always wanted to cultivate while sleeping. With your gift, I’m sure I’ll succeed soon!” Li Xi’s excitement when receiving the gift was beyond words.
Seeing this, Li Jiang also brought out his gift. It was a very exquisite wooden box with delicate patterns carved on it.
Li Xi received the box with both hands, praising, “Second brother, your craftsmanship has become even more exquisite! This box is so delicate.”
“Of course, I practice my skills daily, so naturally I’m amazing. Little sister, guess what I’ve given you,” Li Jiang said, very pleased upon hearing Li Xi’s words.
“I guess, brother must have given me a mechanism,” Li Xi said as she eagerly opened the box.
As the box lid was lifted, the gift finally revealed its true form. It was a rather exquisite and small bracelet. Li Xi took it out of the wooden box and placed it in her palm. “It’s so dainty!”
Then, Li Jiang gave Li Xi a thorough introduction to the functions of his gift, once again earning a shocked look from his little sister.
Although Li Xi was still young, she knew what a semi-spiritual tool was.
Before Li Xi could continue expressing her thoughts, her eldest brother Li He’s gift was passed over.
Without Li Xi having to guess, Li He gave the answer.
“Elder brother’s gift to little sister is a spatial talisman. Little sister only needs to input spiritual energy to store items.”
Li Xi held the spatial talisman and input a bit of spiritual energy. The spatial inscriptions on the talisman emitted a faint light, and Li Xi immediately understood the size and usage period of this talisman.
This low-grade first-level spatial talisman contained a space of one square meter and could be used for six months. The space inside had no preservation effect, and time passed at the same rate as the outside world.
Li Xi focused her mind on a cup on the table, and the cup was collected by the spatial talisman and disappeared.
She input another bit of spiritual energy into the spatial talisman, and the cup appeared on the table again.
Li Xi was still a child, at the age of loving to play. Seeing this magical scene, she couldn’t help but repeatedly input spiritual energy into the spatial talisman, collecting and taking out household items, until she tried to collect the table and found its volume exceeded the talisman’s limit, only then did she reluctantly stop.
“Elder brother and second brother, you’re actually geniuses!”
Li Xi looked at her two brothers who had always seemed ordinary except for being quite handsome. Today, they looked profound and mysterious, like otherworldly experts.