Chapter Ninety-Three: Insight

Not bad. Katerina was still quite pleased with her own taste and eye for things. It seemed he was very suited to this style of clothing.

“Let him wear it like this,” she added. “At least now he looks like a normal child. The outfit he had on before was far too flashy.”

“Mm.” Chang Yu also felt that Katerina’s words were perfectly reasonable.

There was only one thing that made him feel oddly uncomfortable. Chang Yu looked down at the big gourd perched on Yangyang’s head, and no matter how he looked at it, it felt wrong.

Back when Yangyang was wearing the gourd-child costume, Chang Yu had not thought the large gourd on his head looked out of place.

On the contrary, it had even seemed oddly fitting, emphasizing the little fellow’s playful charm.

But now that he was dressed like a proper little gentleman, with that big gourd still sitting on his head, wouldn’t he become a laughingstock?

“The big gourd on your head is a little ugly,” Chang Yu said frankly. “It doesn’t quite suit your noble bearing. Can you take it off?”

“I suppose I can.” Yangyang thought for a moment, then reached up and removed it.

“Smaller, smaller, smaller.” Yangyang pointed at the big gourd and murmured under his breath.

As he chanted, the gourd actually gave off a faint red glow, then slowly shrank.

The sight nearly made Chang Yu’s eyes pop out. He could not help but exclaim in wonder.

That gourd was just like the legendary magic staff that could change size at its master’s whim.

Only when the once-enormous gourd had become no bigger than a Buddhist rosary bead did Yangyang stop.

“That’s better.”

From who knew where, Yangyang took out a red cord, threaded the little gourd onto it, and made it look like an ordinary ornament.

He put the little gourd on his wrist and shook it. The bracelet fit perfectly.

The tiny gourd dangling from the small wrist looked like one of those little trinkets, with no sense of awkwardness at all.

“Your gourd is pretty amazing,” Chang Yu praised sincerely.

That brat Yangyang had been born with such a wondrous companion treasure. His luck was beyond comparison.

Whenever Chang Yu thought about how, since beginning cultivation, he still had not obtained even a single protective treasure of his own, he felt a trace of envy.

Look at this kid—he had been born with everything. Even the human servant responsible for feeding him had been arranged in advance.

And then look at himself. Not only was he penniless, he still had not even cleared the beginner village.

Could it be that Yangyang was the true protagonist, and he himself was merely the meal ticket who ferried the hero around and handled the errands? That dreadful thought suddenly arose in Chang Yu’s mind.

The casual chatter between the three of them passed quickly. Before long, Katerina had driven the car to the bank of the great river.

“Why are we stopping here?” Chang Yu asked in confusion.

“We have to take a boat across the river later. The car can only be parked here for the time being,” Katerina replied.

As she spoke, Katerina had already taken out her phone and placed a call.

“We’ve reached the riverbank. Send someone to pick us up,” she said to the person on the other end.

“Understood!” came a brief, forceful male voice in reply.

Not long after she hung up, Chang Yu saw a speedboat appear on the river in the distance.

It came charging toward the waiting group on the bank with a wild roar, like a fierce beast.

White spray cut across the water, leaving pale streaks in its wake—the distinctive trace of a speedboat racing over the surface.

It looked like the ripples left behind when a jet plane sliced through a blue sky.

“Is that one of ours?” Chang Yu asked uncertainly.

“Correct,” said Katerina, clearly no stranger to such things, and entirely calm.

“Wow!” Yangyang exclaimed. “That boat is so cool! It’s my first time riding a speedboat.”

With its dazzling appearance, astonishing speed, and powerful engine, the speedboat had long enjoyed great fame among humanity.

Especially the surging waves and sprays it kicked up as it sped across the water—those sights deeply stirred everyone who saw them.

This thing was not only handsome and flashy; it was a true artifact of swagger.

“It’s not just you.” Chang Yu swallowed discreetly to hide his excitement. “I’ve never ridden one either.”

“Before, I only ever watched other people play with speedboats from the shore. With our status and standing, all we could do was look.”

“A speedboat is pretty expensive. Ordinary people really can’t afford one. Anyone who can buy a speedboat is definitely rich.”

“Good day, sir!” Before long, the speedboat had come to a steady stop before them.

The young man at the helm wore a military uniform. Upon seeing them, he immediately snapped off a salute without a word, his manner extremely respectful.

“Take us to the shooting range,” Katerina said calmly, accepting the salute without incident.

Watching the opposite bank recede at great speed, and seeing the envious, admiring looks from the men and women sitting on the steps along the riverbank, Chang Yu, riding the speedboat across the river, suddenly felt... buoyant.

“I never thought I, Chang Yu, would one day be riding a speedboat while drawing the envy of others,” he sighed, even after he had boarded.

Once, he too had sat by the riverbank, gazing longingly at those who played with speedboats.

He had imagined that one day he might also ride such a waterborne beast, a tyrant of the river.

And now, that wish had finally come true.

“Grandma, Grandma, I want to ride that kind of boat too!” A little boy of eight or nine on the riverbank tugged at the old woman beside him and shouted.

“Play with what? Go home and do your homework!” the old woman glared sternly at her grandson, scolding him irritably.

“No, no, I want to play!” The boy was scolded so suddenly that tears of grievance welled in his eyes.

“You little fool!” the old woman said in exasperation. “Do you even know what kind of people can afford a boat like that?”

“Those are all billionaires with unimaginable wealth. You want to ride one too, with that little face of yours? Wait until you stop wetting the bed!”

From that day on, a shadow that could never be dispelled took root in the boy’s heart, and for the first time in his life he felt so small compared with others.

I must work hard!

The boy swore that when he had money in the future, he would definitely buy a speedboat like that and have a try.

...

Out on the broad river, Chang Yu truly and deeply felt his own insignificance.

Compared with the majestic grandeur of nature, he was nothing more than a speck of dust. The might of nature was never something mankind could shake.

Feeling the fierce river wind blowing straight toward him, looking out at the high-rise buildings and lush green trees along the banks, and hearing the roar of the speedboat’s engine in his ears, Chang Yu suddenly felt his spirit soar.

He had the lofty pride of one who had ascended Mount Dong and seen Lu as small, or climbed Mount Tai and found the world beneath him.

Especially when the speedboat shot past at high speed, the white lines it carved across the water and the splashing waves always drew the attention of the tourists along the bank.

They whistled loudly, waved vigorously in his direction, and even burst into heartfelt cries.

Chang Yu could not make out what they were shouting. After all, they were a bit too far from the shore, and even if he wanted to hear, he could not.

Still, that did nothing to stop a natural feeling from rising in his heart—that he was being respected and welcomed.

It was much like those great stars walking down the street and being surrounded by fans and passersby who had rushed over after hearing the news, immensely satisfying his vanity.

“Look, they’re all cheering for me. I never imagined I’d be this popular!”

Chang Yu slowly spread his arms, half-closed his eyes, stood up alone to face the fierce river wind, and said in a blissful tone to the others on the speedboat.

Katerina: ...

The young soldier driving the speedboat: ...

Yangyang: “Wake up already, stop dreaming. They’re not shouting at you. They’re shouting at another boat.”

Chang Yu was instantly stunned. His expression changed at once to one of astonishment, and even his outstretched arms trembled awkwardly twice.

At last he had time to open his eyes and, following the direction Yangyang pointed, look toward a tourist boat not far away, already nearing the center of the river.

It was a typical sightseeing boat. The roof of its cabin was decorated with carved beams and painted rafters, splendid and ornate, with especially lavish colors and embellishments.

Both sides of the hull were open, fitted only with waist-high railings, so that visitors could admire the scenery on both banks.

It was the kind of sightseeing boat often seen on the great river, always packed with tourists taking a cruise.

Here, every half hour or so, one or two such boats would depart from the riverbank and circle the great river once.

Chang Yu stared for quite a while, but could not make sense of it. No matter how he looked, it was just an ordinary sightseeing boat, nothing strange about it at all.

He did not understand why the people on the bank were pointing and shouting at that boat.

Though he still did not know what was going on, he quickly understood that he had been flattering himself.

So the cheering had been for the tourist boat beside him, not for his speedboat.

That was rather embarrassing.

“Someone on that boat is being interviewed,” Katerina said softly, seeing the stiff look on Chang Yu’s face.

At her words, Chang Yu immediately focused his gaze on the cabin of the earlier tourist boat.

Thanks to the strengthening effects of the Green-Root Heart Scripture, his eyesight was much better than before.

After a moment of staring, Chang Yu quickly made out what was happening inside the cabin.

A group of people were surrounding one person with microphones, cameras, and lights, talking about something.

From the way they were carrying on, it seemed to be an interview program.

Because the person was tightly surrounded, Chang Yu could not tell whether the one being interviewed was male or female.

“Probably some big celebrity from somewhere,” Chang Yu said, withdrawing his gaze and turning his head back.

There were too many celebrities being interviewed by the media these days; it was nothing new.

In any case, it had nothing to do with him. Chang Yu quickly lost interest.

He or she would go on to the big screen, become a star in the limelight, and entertain the masses.

As for Chang Yu, he would be the hero behind the scenes, silently guarding the peace of the land.

Barring accidents, the two of them would never have any connection in their whole lives.

He took a cigarette from his pocket, flicked it alight with a sharp snap, and leaned back in the speedboat’s leather seat, exhaling smoke with lonely grandeur.

“What are you doing?” Yangyang asked curiously, looking at the little smoking stick between Chang Yu’s fingers.

“Lighting the spark of life,” Chang Yu answered as if it were only natural.

“Give me a spark of life too. I’ve never seen this thing before!” Yangyang looked eager to try.

As a ginseng spirit who had spent the first half of his life growing in the earth, Yangyang had never seen a human cigarette and had instantly become interested.

“That won’t do. Children can’t smoke.” Chang Yu slapped away the little hand Yangyang had伸ed out without even thinking.

“Tch, stingy!” Yangyang wrinkled his nose, looking a little displeased. “If you’re so stingy, you’ll never get a wife.”

Chang Yu grinned, not taking the little fellow’s mockery to heart. “Smoking is harmful to your health.”

“Then why can you smoke?” Yangyang pressed on.

“Because I’m an adult!” Chang Yu said proudly, thumping his chest.

“You’re only twenty. How dare you call yourself an adult?”

“I’ve lived for over a thousand years. By age alone, I could be your grandmaster. What are you so smug about?” Yangyang said contemptuously, giving Chang Yu a look of utter disdain.

Hearing that, Chang Yu immediately could no longer remain calm.

It seemed this little fellow had a point...