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Chapter 437: Leading the Way

Nie Qingqing led Ling\'er ahead. Four men followed behind them, along with a little girl named Bingbing.

Walking at the back, Zhong Shan happened to overhear the conversation between the two.

"Bingbing, why are you clinging to me today?" Shao Feihou whispered.

"Nothing really, just wanted to come out and play with Dad. It\'s so boring at the mansion," Bingbing said, pouting.

"Bingbing, you\'re being naughty!"

"Really, Dad, I just wanted to see what kind of woman you\'re pursuing."

"Uh? How did you know I came to pursue a woman today? Who told you?" Shao Feihou\'s face turned stern.

Seeing Shao Feihou\'s serious expression, Bingbing shrank back a little and said, "Mom did!"

"Her?" Shao Feihou\'s expression became much more complicated. He sighed deeply and stopped troubling the little girl.

They arrived at the Fishing Pavilion, the long pavilion where Zhong Shan and Ling\'er had previously sat.

Tian Ling\'er was arranged to sit on the far right, with Nie Qingqing next to her. After all, the emperor had instructed that there should be no overstepping boundaries before the civil and martial tests.

People could present treasures, flowers, or speak sweet words, but they couldn\'t overstep, hence Nie Qingqing sat between them and Tian Ling\'er.

Next to Nie Qingqing was Zhao Tiansha! Because of Tian Ling\'er\'s request, Zhao Tiansha sat closest to her, followed by Xiaoyao Hou, then Shao Feihou and his daughter, with Zhong Shan sitting at the end.

"Alright, accompany Ling\'er fishing. No magic allowed, use your own skills!" Nie Qingqing said.

Xiaoyao Hou grabbed a fishing rod and looked at it. What is this thing? Fishing?

Tiansha and Shao Feihou were also puzzled, looking at the rods. But since their intentions were not really about fishing, they didn\'t mind. The key was the conversation during fishing.

Ling\'er quickly baited her hook. Tiansha, feeling a bit awkward, soon understood and baited his hook too. Xiaoyao Hou and Shao Feihou, not quite getting it, were still figuring it out.

Shao Feihou\'s daughter was the quickest to understand. While Shao Feihou was examining the rod, she had already baited his hook.

"Whoosh~~~~~~"

Ling\'er cast her line.

Tiansha quickly imitated and cast his line. Xiaoyao Hou, without baiting his hook, also hurriedly cast his line.

Just as Shao Feihou was about to cast his line.

"Dad, you\'re doing it wrong!" The little girl said, sounding like a small adult.

Shao Feihou, reprimanded by his daughter, touched his nose with a wry smile. Who told him to spoil his daughter so much?

With Bingbing\'s guidance, Shao Feihou finally cast his line.

"Tsk tsk, Shao Feihou is really fighting alongside his daughter! I wish I had such a daughter," Xiaoyao Hou mocked from the side.

Shao Feihou was about to retort, but the little girl beat him to it.

"Dad, ignore him. He didn\'t even bait his hook. He won\'t catch anything even by tomorrow unless a blind fish bites!" The little girl said disdainfully.

Xiaoyao Hou, left speechless, glared at the little girl.

The fishing began. Now was the time to impress Ling\'er.

Fishing and fishing!

"Plop~~~~~~"

Tian Ling\'er was the first to pull a fish out of the water.

"Caught it, caught it!" Tian Ling\'er excitedly pulled the fish to the shore. A group of guards quickly removed the fish from the hook.

"Ling\'er, you\'re amazing!" Zhao Tiansha promptly praised her.

With Zhao Tiansha\'s compliment, Tian Ling\'er felt overjoyed.

"It\'s nothing, just luck," Ling\'er modestly replied, clearly pleased.

"Yes, Ling\'er, you really are a great fisher. We haven\'t caught anything yet, and you\'ve already caught one. It\'s quite impressive," Xiaoyao Hou added in praise.

Hearing Xiaoyao Hou\'s awkward compliment, everyone couldn\'t help but laugh. Tian Ling\'er gave a somewhat forced smile in response.

"Princess Ling\'er, you must have fished a lot before to be this skilled and catch one so quickly, right?" Shao Feihou asked, full of admiration.

Shao Feihou\'s words were tactful, posing a question while also expressing amazement at Tian Ling\'er\'s skills.

At this moment, Tian Ling\'er glanced at Zhong Shan, who was sitting quietly at the edge. Had she fished a lot before? No, she had never caught one until now. It was Zhong Shan who had just taught her how to fish. Without him, she wouldn\'t have caught a fish, let alone been the first to catch one.

"Impressive!" Zhong Shan simply gave a thumbs up.

To Ling\'er, that thumbs up felt inexplicably heartwarming.

"Dad, a fish is biting! Pull it up, quick!" Bingbing exclaimed, clapping her hands excitedly.

"Plop~~~~~"

The second fish emerged from the water, caught by Shao Feihou.

The fishing continued.

Soon, Ling\'er caught her fourth fish, Tiansha caught two, Shao Feihou caught three, and Nie Qingqing caught two.

Only Xiaoyao Hou and Zhong Shan hadn\'t caught any fish yet. Xiaoyao Hou kept pulling up his hook, finding nothing, putting it back in, pulling it up again, and finding nothing. He was becoming increasingly anxious and restless, though he found some comfort in Zhong Shan\'s similar lack of success.

Zhong Shan, however, kept pulling his line back and forth without lifting it from the water.

After her initial excitement, Tian Ling\'er began observing everyone\'s progress. Seeing Zhong Shan hadn\'t caught any fish puzzled her. Zhong Shan had taught her how to fish, so how could he be this bad?

As everyone gradually improved, they began catching more fish.

"Dad, look, he hasn\'t caught a single fish!" Bingbing pointed at Xiaoyao Hou, laughing.

Obviously, it was time for revenge. Children remember slights well.

Xiaoyao Hou felt frustrated. Just moments ago, he had mocked Shao Feihou, but now Shao Feihou had caught his eighth fish.

"Don\'t worry, just take your time," Princess Qingqing said with a smile.

Tian Ling\'er also giggled from the side, further irritating Xiaoyao Hou.

"Look, Zhong Shan hasn\'t caught any fish either!" Xiaoyao Hou retorted, annoyed.

"Him? He\'s caught plenty," Bingbing said with the confidence of a fishing expert.

Everyone was stunned by Bingbing\'s claim.

"Really!" Bingbing stamped her foot when she saw their disbelief.

Seeing the cute little girl, Zhong Shan smiled and said, "Bingbing is right. Let me prove it to you."

With that, Zhong Shan lifted his fishing rod.

"Plop~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~"

What everyone saw was a truly astonishing sight.

Zhong Shan\'s fishing rod had an exceptionally long line, with over a dozen branch lines and hooks attached. When he lifted the rod, twelve fish dangled from it, wriggling energetically.

"Wow!" Tian Ling\'er exclaimed with delight.

The sight of twelve lively fish flopping onto the shore made Xiaoyao Hou\'s face flush with embarrassment. The guards quickly removed the fish from the hooks for Zhong Shan. In an instant, Zhong Shan had caught the most fish.

"What kind of fishing line is that?" Xiaoyao Hou complained, attributing Zhong Shan\'s success to the special line.

"There are similar fishing lines in the tackle box next to you," Nie Qingqing remarked disdainfully.

"With so many hooks, of course it\'s easier to catch fish!" Xiaoyao Hou protested.

The little girl Bingbing chimed in, "It\'s not like that. Those lines are actually harder to use! My mom never caught so many at once! You didn\'t catch any fish because you were too impatient. My mom always says, \'An impatient fisherman never catches anything!\'"

Xiaoyao Hou, scolded by the little girl\'s rhyming wisdom, grew furious and threw his rod to the ground.

"Being cultivators, we\'re imitating mortal fishing—what\'s the point of this?" Xiaoyao Hou ranted irrationally.

"Xiaoyao Hou!" Nie Qingqing raised an eyebrow.

"I\'m done fishing too!" Zhao Tiansha shook his head.

Apart from Xiaoyao Hou, Zhao Tiansha had caught the fewest fish, so he stood by Xiaoyao Hou, despite his poor conduct. Zhao Tiansha showed his disdain for fishing, knowing that if Xiaoyao Hou was excluded, Zhong Shan would stand out alone.

Seeing Zhao Tiansha give up, Tian Ling\'er pouted, feeling slightly disappointed. Fishing had been so enjoyable, and she had never caught so many fish before. This feeling was hard for others to understand.

But with Zhao Tiansha quitting, Tian Ling\'er reluctantly put her rod down, saying, "Alright, I\'ll stop too."

"Why stop?" Bingbing asked curiously.

The atmosphere grew awkward.

Nie Qingqing, skilled at handling such moments, looked up at the sky and said, "It\'s almost noon. How about this: each of you use your magic to catch one fish, then, along with your subordinates, prepare a dish for Ling\'er to taste?"

"Using magic?" Zhao Tiansha questioned.

"Yes, each person is allowed only one move to catch a fish. Then, prepare a fish banquet for Ling\'er to judge," Nie Qingqing explained with a smile.

Zhao Tiansha looked at his longsword and nodded confidently, "Alright."

"Good idea, Princess Qingqing always has the best ideas," Xiaoyao Hou quickly agreed.

"You couldn\'t out-fish us, so now you want to use magic," Bingbing muttered disdainfully.

"Fine by me," Zhong Shan nodded.

"Ling\'er, let\'s watch," Nie Qingqing said, taking Ling\'er\'s hand.

With a wave of Nie Qingqing\'s hand, the long pavilion they were sitting in moved back, clearing a space by the shore.

"Who goes first?" Nie Qingqing asked.

"I\'ll go!" Xiaoyao Hou stepped forward.

"I brought some osmanthus cakes, everyone, have a taste!" Zhong Shan said with a smile, taking out several large boxes.

Osmanthus cakes? Everyone was slightly taken aback. Was he really here for a picnic?

Only Tian Ling\'er and Nie Qingqing understood the significance of the cakes. It was Zhong Shan\'s way of subtly expressing his feelings for Ling\'er. From teaching her how to fish, Zhong Shan had always been ahead. No matter how perfectly others praised her, it always turned into a tribute to Zhong Shan. Now, by bringing out the symbolic cakes, Zhong Shan once again led the way.

Seemingly doing nothing ostentatious, Zhong Shan\'s gentle, unobtrusive actions deeply moved Ling\'er.