Translator: 549690339
This meal, Huang Qingling ate with utter delight.
Even Little Sparrow was stuffed with two large chunks of roasted meat, which was its favorite.
Given that Little         had suffered some grievances, Lin Jing naturally couldnât neglect it.
Seeing how well treated Little Sparrow, Huang Qinglingâs eyes twinkled, and she spoke up:
âLin Jing, I see you and Little Sparrow have a quite good relationship,â
âHow about thisâ¦â
Lin Jing lifted his head, looking towards Huang Qingling, a face full of confusion.
âHow so?â
âFrom now on, youâll make food for Little Sparrow, so it wonât run out again.â
âOtherwise, if it gets caught by someone again and sent back to me, Iâd have no face to meet them.â
Lin Jing couldnât help but laugh and cry:
âQing Ling, my friend, itâs not that I donât want to, but I have to practice alchemy daily, and I really donât have that much time to spend in the kitchen.â
âI know that,â she said, âyou only need to set aside a little time each month, just preparing four or five meals will do.â
After saying this, Huang Qingling quickly added:
âAnd, Iâll provide the ingredients.â
âQing Ling, my friend, to tell you the truth, is it that you want to eat?â Lin Jing asked suspiciously, gazing at Huang Qingling.
âHmm⦠â
Huang Qinglingâs face turned red, and she hummed in a low voice.
The reason Huang Qingling did this was because she used to often visit Lin Jing for a free meal, and Elder Bai had found out and lectured her.
Since then, she realized it was inappropriate and felt embarrassed to come and disturb Lin Jing so casually.
âAlright⦠â
Seeing Huang Qinglingâs demeanor, Lin Jing couldnât bear to refuse and said helplessly.
Huang Qingling smiled very happily:
âHehe⦠I knew it, Lin Jing, youâre the best.â
âDonât worry, if you cook for me, Iâll have your back in Fang Market, nobody will dare to mess with you.â
âHmm⦠â
Lin Jing responded with a hum and didnât really take it to heart.
After the two had finished eating, Huang Qingling had to find Elder Bai to deal with the issue of Little Sparrow stealing food, so she left first.
And Lin Jing packed everything up and continued with his alchemy.
Lin Jing seldom practiced alchemy in the outside world, and even the alchemy room behind his house was used only a few times by him.
Fortunately, his System Space had been upgraded to level 3, allowing him to enter for six hours a day, and with the time flow speed tripled, he had 18 hours a day.
Now, he didnât have to worry about not having enough time.
In the afternoon, Huang Qingling returned.
From her account, Lin Jing learned.
It turned out that Little Sparrow had previously been caught stealing at Drunken Immortal Pavilion, but the person who caught it recognized it as Elder Baiâs gift to Huang Qingling, scolded it, and then let it go.
Elder Bai also knew about this incident, but to them, such matters were trivial; Elder Bai didnât even tell Huang Qingling.
Regarding the later incident of Little Sparrow stealing food again, Elder Baiâs response was very direct.
âIf Little Sparrow gets caught, we admit it; if it doesnât get caught, whatâs there to admit?â
After hearing what Elder Bai said, Huang Qingling was speechless and didnât know what to say.
After all, except for the Drunken Immortal Pavilion which had a Golden Core Cultivator stationed there capable of capturing Little Sparrow, it was unlikely that any other tavern or restaurant could catch it.
So, the matter was laid to rest, but still, Little Sparrow was warned by Huang Qingling and was forbidden to go out and steal food at night again.
After all, she didnât want to find herself having to personally apologize one day if Little Sparrow were to be caught.
Although Little Sparrow was very fast, as the saying goes, better safe than sorryâ¦
Having told Lin Jing about the incident, Huang Qingling took Little Sparrow and left.
And so, another two days passed.
Today, Lin Jing had just finished his cultivation practice and opened his eyes.
Calculating the time, it was just about right.
Lin Jing got out of bed, opened the door of his room.
Even though it was nighttime, outside was still a brightly-lit expanse of white.
âSighâ¦â
A bone-chilling cold wind, mixed with white snowflakes, blew against Lin Jingâs body. The cold invaded in an instant, piercing through his clothes and worming its way inside.
Lin Jing quickly circulated his cultivation technique, and only then did he dispel the chill.
The agreed deadline of one year with another person was about to arrive.
And the Elixir Medicine needed by the cultivator selling the Hidden Dragon Pendant of the Azure Moon had been fully gathered by Lin Jing.
Tonight, he was ready to head to the black market to fulfill the transaction set one year ago.
However, before Lin Jing could even step out of the house, a shadow flew in.
Lin Jing turned his head to look; the shadow was Little Sparrow.
In Little Sparrowâs beak was a lively big fish, still jumping around, but there was no telling where it had come from.
âLittle Sparrowâ¦â
âDidnât Qing Ling tell you not to steal anymore? How come you went stealing again?â
Little Sparrow opened its beak and shook its head.
The fish fell to the ground, flopping incessantly.
Lin Jing looked at the live fish on the ground and said, âDo you want me to cook it for you?â
Little Sparrowâs eyes lit up, and it bobbed its head vigorously.
Just then, a crisp and clear voice came.
âLittle Sparrowâ¦ân/ô/vel/b//in dot c//om
Before the voice had finished, a beautiful figure flew over, directly blocking Little Sparrow inside the house.
âQing Ling, did you follow it here?â Lin Jing asked, looking at the beautiful figure.
The person who had just flown in was Huang Qingling.
âLin Jing, Iâm really sorry to trouble you.â âThis late at night, right after my meditation, I discovered it was gone.â
Then Huang Qingling glared at Little Sparrow:
âThankfully, I was clever enough to place a tracking mark on it from before, otherwise, with my speed, I would have lost it long ago.â
Seeing Huang Qingling arrive, Little Sparrowâs head drooped down on the spot.
âArenât you coming with me?â Huang Qingling bellowed, and Little Sparrow could only obediently fly to her side.
Even the fish on the ground was left behind without a second thought.
Seeing this, Lin Jing also felt somewhat sympathetic.
âForget it, seeing it so pitiful, with food already brought here, letâs just cook it for it,â he said.
Upon hearing this, Little Sparrowâs eyes brightened, and it chirped.
âTweetâ¦â
It then began flying around Huang Qingling.
âLin Jingâ¦â Huang Qingling was a bit embarrassed. âYou really are troubling yourself for us.â
âItâs okayâ¦â Lin Jing said with a smile.
Then he suddenly asked, âBy the way, where did this fish come from?â
âAfter I reprimanded it last time, it didnât dare to steal food anymore. This fish was caught from the river inside Fang Market,â she explained.
âItâs learned to catch fish now?â Lin Jing said in surprise.
âI just found out today too,â Huang Qingling responded, looking at Little Sparrow helplessly.
âQing Ling, please take a seat. Iâll just deal with this quickly. Fish doesnât take long to cook, unlike other dishes,â Lin Jing said, then picked up the fish and headed for the kitchen.
Before long, a delicious-looking grilled fish was served.
Lin Jing placed the grilled fish on the table.
Just as Little Sparrow was about to pounce on it, Lin Jing stopped it.
âLittle Sparrow, letâs get one thing straight: you canât come bothering me at night anymore. If you want me to cook for you, it has to be in the daytime, when Iâm not busy,â he stated.
âAnd another thingâ¦â
âIf you want me to cook something for you in the future, you need to bring something else in exchange. You must understand the principle that benefit comes from effort.â
âMoreover, you canât just steal from others as you please. It might cause trouble for Qing Ling,â Lin Jing continued.
âDo you understand?â
Lin Jing said sternly, looking at Little Sparrow, who cocked its head as if deep in thought..