Chapter 8: Close the Door, Let Little White Out

"Go back and tell your senile master that if he wants this young lady to move, a mere servant isn't enough weight. I haven't forgotten the order he personally issued six years ago. Since I have always been a filial person, and the Prime Minister has already spoken, I can only wait here in this backward town until I die in loneliness." These words, dripping with sarcasm, flowed softly from her rosy lips like a dull blade, stabbing at the servant until his face turned a shade of green and white—a truly spectacular sight.

As the sunset cast mottled shadows and dark streaks across the ground, Ling Xiaobai looked with sympathy at the coachman, who was practically petrified by his mother’s verbal assault. *Amitabha*, he thought, better to die early and be reincarnated; he hoped that if the man met his mother in his next life, he would remember to take a detour.

"Gr—"

"Close the gate, release Xiaobai." Ling Ruoxi didn't wait for him to finish. With a flick of her wide sleeves, she vanished from the spot, leaving the servant alone to stare pitifully at the empty courtyard, unable to collect his thoughts.

"Yes, Mother." Ling Xiaobai gave a crisp military salute, stuck his tongue out apologetically at the servant, and slammed the door shut with all his might.

The night was cool as water, and thick clouds obscured the sky. In Sunset City, the lights of ten thousand homes flickered in unison, looking like moonlight scattered upon the earth, mottled and brilliant.

In the desolate courtyard, Ling Ruoxi leaned against the branch of a pear tree, her hem trailing in the air as her dark hair danced in the breeze. She held a bottle of premium *Nü'er Hong* wine, drinking alone while propped against the tree.

Not far away, Ling Xiaobai, holding a dagger, was hacking away at a plum blossom stake. The *thud-thud-thud* sounds drifted on the wind. One could faintly see the beads of sweat rolling down his face; his fair, rosy-cheeked face was now filled with a chilling, murderous intent.

Her son, Ling Xiaobai, could be cute and shameless, but he could never be a good-for-nothing!

"Mother, the thousand strikes are finished." Ling Xiaobai finally completed his daily task and ran over from the training ground, his face flushed and adorable. As he approached, he caught the scent of the wine. His brows furrowed instantly. "Mother, didn't you say you wouldn't drink anymore? Last month alone, we spent nearly a hundred taels on wine. If we keep going like this, we’ll eat through all our savings!"

Ling Ruoxi’s eyes shifted. "Aren't you here?"

"Baby is not a money tree! Don't you dare eye my life savings!" Ling Xiaobai instinctively covered the coin purse at his waist. Whenever money was mentioned, he became defensive, losing all his usual affection.

Ling Ruoxi couldn't be bothered to waste words on him. With a flash, she drifted down from the tree, accompanied by falling pear blossoms.

"Xiaobai, do you want to go to the capital with Mother and earn some silver?" She crouched down, leaned close to him, and asked in a low voice. The curve of her lips held a hint of wickedness, like a bewitching demon, enough to stir anyone’s soul.

"Mother, this young master sells his smiles, not his body. Even if you smile at me so enchantingly, I will never give in." Ling Xiaobai swiped his hands across his chest, striking a classic pose of a young master being harassed.

*Smack!* A sharp flick to the forehead sent him reeling. Ling Ruoxi’s eyes turned cold. "I’m talking to you about something serious."

Sensing her rare seriousness, Ling Xiaobai dropped his playful act. He blinked his large, spirited eyes with a feigned maturity, staring steadily at the mother he loved more than anything.

"Baby doesn't know who came today, but no matter where Mother wants to go, Baby will follow."

Even though he gritted his teeth daily, hating how she stripped him of his silver, this woman was the person he cared about most in this life—no exceptions! He was still small and didn't understand many things, but he knew that wherever she went, he was going with her.

His firm words caused Ling Ruoxi’s gaze to soften. "Very well, we set off tomorrow. But before that, Xiaobai, double your training for tonight."

"Why!" Ling Xiaobai’s eyes widened in disbelief. *Damn it*, a thousand strikes had already left his limbs feeling like jelly, and she wanted more?

A demon. This woman was definitely a demon reincarnated!

Ling Ruoxi stood up straight and smiled with effortless charm, her fingers toying with a lock of hair by her ear. "Because I feel like it."

"…Mother…" When the hard approach failed, Ling Xiaobai immediately turned on the waterworks. His small hands tugged pitifully at her sleeve, his teary-eyed expression enough to make anyone’s maternal instincts overflow.

Ling Ruoxi ruthlessly pulled her sleeve from his grasp and walked toward the bedroom, leaving only one sentence drifting on the wind: "One strike less, one tael of silver."

The words left Ling Xiaobai completely frozen. He glared at her graceful back with eyes spitting fire. "You’re ruthless!"

"How could I be your mother if I weren't?" As the words fell, the bedroom door slammed shut, blocking out those resentful, pitiful eyes.

That night, Ling Xiaobai stood alone in the courtyard. The sound of his blade-swinging echoed through the night like a lullaby, and Ling Ruoxi slept soundly until dawn.