"Did the teacher say anything else?"
Su Nan probed, "Isn't there any sense of looking down on mountain kids seeking education?"
Ye Shu secretly rolled her eyes at Su Nan.
No one could compare to Su Nan's level of concern, worried his child might be too excellent.
But thinking about their eldest and second eldest, Ye Shu could understand.
Being cautious is fine, as too much talent has proven to not always be a good thing.
"Well, there's no condescension."
Without thinking too much, Su Changqing said somewhat disappointedly,
"The teacher says my talents aren't particularly outstanding, just a bit better than the average person."
"If I don't work extra hard, I'm afraid I won't achieve much in the future."
Hearing this, Su Nan immediately breathed a sigh of relief.
He secretly smiled, thinking Confucian Immortal was indeed reliable.
Even without formally apprenticing three times, it achieved the desired goal.
The aim was to ignite Chang Qing's motivation to study hard, so he'd put in more effort.
As for the claim that Chang Qing's talent is average?
"Heh..."
Su Nan smiled, not at all worried about it.
He had already assessed Chang Qing's aptitude for cultivation. While not as great as the eldest and second eldest, he wasn't ordinary either.
Moreover, he had already paved the way for Chang Qing's future training, finding various teachers.
All those people, without exception, had reached the pinnacle in their respective fields.
As long as Chang Qing trains step-by-step, he'll eventually reach the top and become the strongest.
At this moment, Su Changqing, seeing his parents silent, thought they were discouraged.
So he quickly comforted them with a smile,
"Don't worry, Mom and Dad. Though my aptitude is lacking, the teacher said as long as I work hard, I will achieve something."
Hearing his son's comforting words, Su Nan felt relieved and laughed out loud,
"Hahaha, good, it's great to have such awareness. What's wrong with being average? Don't worry, you still have your father!"
Beside them, Ye Shu also chuckled, "Alright, hurry up and eat, the food's getting cold. We have wild chicken today."
...
As night fell, joyous laughter echoed intermittently from within the slightly shabby house.
After dinner, Su Changqing went to study, Ye Shu went to wash up, while Su Nan lay back in the courtyard chair with a grin.
The beginning is always the hardest; now that Chang Qing has taken the key first step, he should start arranging the next steps.
"I found an enlightenment teacher in the Confucian Immortal, but who should guide his cultivation..."
Su Nan rubbed his chin, showing a thoughtful expression.
But before he could continue thinking, a voice transmission reached his ear.
"Patriarch, is it convenient for you to come over now?"
Su Nan raised an eyebrow, glanced at the room where Chang Qing was studying, then waved his sleeve to cast a barrier.
The next moment, a burly man suddenly appeared in front of Su Nan.
"Wenlin, what's so urgent you couldn't wait until morning?"
Su Nan asked casually.
Su Wenlin, father of Er Niu, was also Su Nan's right-hand man and one of the Su family's top talents.
"Patriarch, something happened in the Su family, and I can't decide on my own."
Su Wenlin smiled bitterly, "Recently, the Taixu Abyss in our southern region has opened, attracting many people from other regions."
"But for some reason, the second young master confronted those monks from Wanhua Temple and suffered a minor defeat..."
Before he could finish, Su Nan's brows furrowed, "Damn, those baldies dare harm my second son? They must be tired of living!"
"Gather some men! Tomorrow, I will personally visit Wanhua Temple to see where they get the nerve to touch my family's people in the southern region!"
Seeing the patriarch already incensed, Su Wenlin felt speechless.
People say the Su family's eldest young master is proud, and the second young master is wild. Isn't that just like you?
They barely started, and you're already thinking of storming Wanhua Temple, much more fanatical than the second young master.
"Patriarch, please calm down."
Su Wenlin smiled bitterly, "The second young master didn't suffer much, just a minor injury."
"Later, he took away one-third of the Su family members and cleaned up those monks from Wanhua Temple."
Su Nan's expression froze, then he shook his head and scolded with a smile, "I was worried this brat might be at a disadvantage. Turns out I was overthinking."
Su Wenlin looked at Su Nan with a wry smile and continued,
"With the second young master's temperament, it's good enough if he doesn't bully others. How could he let others bully him?"
"But now the issue is... the eldest young master found out and took away another third of the Su family members to surround the whole Taixu Abyss."
"The eldest young master's exact words were: 'A bunch of ingrates who don't appreciate free access to the southern region and still dare harm someone?'"
"'If you don't want peace, then nobody will have peace. Today, the Su family takes over the abyss, and the monks' heads from Wanhua Temple are the tickets.'
"Tsk..." Su Nan felt a headache coming.
While the second young master is wild, there's some leeway in his actions, but when the eldest acts, it's all or nothing.
This gave Wanhua Temple no way out.
At the same time, he understood Su Wenlin's intent. Ultimately, the Su family needs more manpower, hence bringing more people back.
"Since the eldest already declared it, there's no point in undermining him."
Su Nan pondered for a moment, then said,
"Chang Qing should leave here in two years, you staying here won't be of much use."
"In the coming days, pick a few people from the village and return directly to the Su family."
This wasn't the first time before, whenever the Su family needed manpower, Cyan Mountain Village would lose a few people.
But this time, quite a few need to go.
"Patriarch, this is what I'm worried about."
Su Wenlin said helplessly, "I need to take more than ten people this time, but the village only has a dozen households with sixty to seventy people. Leaving so many at once would be too conspicuous."
Su Nan frowned; this was indeed a problem.
Previously, one or two could be explained away as being taken by a wild beast, but it wouldn't make sense for a dozen to disappear at once.
"A suitable reason must be found; Chang Qing is just starting his studies and shouldn't be disturbed by these matters."
Su Nan rubbed his chin thoughtfully, while Su Wenlin racked his brains.
"How about... when the young master goes away to study, we say a wild beast came into the village and killed a dozen people?"
"Are you foolish or am I? What wild beast can withstand a whole village's attack?"
"True... then how about saying they died from catching a cold?"
"... Does a cold in your family have enough strength to overpower a dozen strong men?"
Su Nan looked at Su Wenlin speechlessly, wondering why he never noticed this kid being so dumb before.
A cold...
"Eh?"
Suddenly, Su Nan's eyes lit up, and he slapped his thigh, "I've got it!"
Su Wenlin quickly asked, "What's the solution?"
"Heh heh."
Su Nan smiled confidently, "A cold can't kill anyone, but what if the cold worsened?"
"For example... a plague!"