Ye Ai Xia

Ye Xiao and Ye Jiao continue walking inside the small forest. Before long, they could see a small house in the middle of the small forest. The house itself looked far better than their own hut in the forest outside the city. There were some cracks on the wooden wall. The window was partially broken. The area was clean, but this was the only clean place.

In front of the house, a young woman was sitting on a chair. She has brown hair and green eyes. Her facial expression didn't resemble Ye Xiao, but one could definitely tell that she was a really beautiful lady. Her body was thin because of lack of nutrition, yet it didn't diminish her beauty in the slightest.

"Aunt Ai Xia!" Ye Jiao yelled as she waved her hand excitedly.

The young woman, Ye Ai Xia, smiled brightly when she saw the two of them. "Xiao Ge*, Jiao'er, you have come."

Despite wearing a long dress, Ye Ai Xia ran to the two of them and hugged Ye Xiao tightly. Ye Xiao was also smiling brightly as he caressed his sister's hair. By the side, Ye Jiao waited patiently for her aunt to release her father.

"Ai Xia, you have become thinner," Ye Xiao frowned.

Ye Ai Xia released her grip and frowned. "What are you talking about? I'm still the same as before. Moreover, the one become thinner is this little girl."

She crouched down and hugged Ye Jiao before lifting the girl. Despite having a petite frame, she didn't have any problem to carry Ye Jiao in her embrace.

Ye Xiao rolled his eyes. "Stop showing off your strength, you lass."

"What?" Ye Ai Xia smiled cheekily. "You're not the only one who can grow stronger. It seems that you have become far stronger, Xiao Ge. I can't gauge your strength anymore."

Seeing the frown on Ye Ai Xia's face, Ye Xiao grinned. Ye Ai Xia has slightly lower talent than him, so this woman had reached rank 3 a few years ago. Although it didn't seem that Ye Ai Xia would be able to reach rank 4 with her lazy personality, she was already quite strong.

"Guess."

Ye Ai Xia furrowed her brows. A thought crossed her mind as she saw the smug smile on her brother's face. It was the same smile full of confidence that her brother never showed again for the past few years. "Xiao Ge, don't tell me that you have reached rank 4?"

Seeing that Ye Xiao only smiled, Ye Ai Xia was filled with happiness. She used her other arm to hug her brother, nearly squishing Ye Jiao who still stay in her embrace.

"I can't believe that you manage to reach rank 4! This is really amazing," Ye Ai Xia genuinely felt happy. The gap between rank 3 and 4 were not something that could be crossed with only hard work. They have to reach realization of their path in martial arts before they could make a breakthrough.

With the pain Ye Xiao had suffered, it has almost closed all chance for him to get promoted.

"Yes, I have found my path," Ye Xiao nodded his head. He patted Ye Jiao's head. "It's all thanks to you and her. Without you two, I wouldn't have been able to find my path again."

Ye Ai Xia was stunned before a beautiful smile made its way to her face. "That's really great. I'm glad that I can be of help."

"Dad is amazing!" Ye Jiao added.

"Yes, Dad is awesome," Ye Xiao praised himself.

Ye Jiao nodded her head in agreement. "Dad is the best!"

Ye Ai Xia rolled her eyes when she saw the smug smile on her brother's face. These shameless pairs. She could not believe that her brother would praise himself to the high sky.

"What are you teaching her to make her praise you like that?"

"It's the truth," Ye Xiao replied with a grin on his face.

Ye Ai Xia shook her head. She could guess that her brother must be showing off in front of Ye Jiao not long ago. Well, she didn't mind this side of her brother, though. It was far better to see him full of confidence and energy rather than depressed all day because of the misfortune.

"Aunt Ai Xia, this is for you," Ye Jiao raised the pot that she has been holding all these times. Thankfully, her father sealed the cup with his Eon Energy. If he did not, the content would have been spilled all over because of the bumpy road.

"Ah, you cook soup for me. Jiao'er is really the best!" Ye Ai Xia smiled happily. "Let's go, Aunty has prepared dishes for you to eat."

"Hey, what about me?"

"You should reflect first," Ye Ai Xia harrumphed. "Before you learn your mistake, you will not get any of them."

"Ack, you're really ruthless Ai Xia," Ye Xiao scratched his head. He watched as Ye Ai Xia put Ye Jiao down and set up the table for them. There were only a few small dishes such as stir-fry vegetables and some fruits. In this residence, Ye Ai Xia didn't really get preferential treatment, which made her unable to eat too much.

"They look good, Aunty," Ye Jiao's eyes sparkled when she saw them all. "Aunt is a better cook than Dad."

"Of course, your Aunt is the best," Ye Ai Xia replied unashamedly.

Hearing his sister copied him, Ye Xiao rolled his eyes. Even though Ye Ai Xia teased him of his shameless praise of himself, she herself always did that in front of Ye Jiao. In the end, the two of them were really similar to each other.

"Ai Xia, you can praise yourself but I can't?"

"I have special privilege," Ye Ai Xia smiled brightly. "While you don't, Ge ge*."

Ye Xiao sighed. "Fine, I won't praise myself in front of you again. Now, can I eat?"

"Hmph! You only promise because you want to eat."

"Aww, come on Ai Xia, don't be childish."

Ye Jiao giggled as she watched the two of them bantered with one another. This was how they spent their time most of the time because Ye Ai Xia loved to tease her big brother.

"Dad, let's eat."

"My good daughter," Ye Xiao sprinted closer. "Let me taste the cabbage that your aunt makes."

"Okay, here's for you, Dad."

Ye Ai Xia clicked her tongue. "You're cheating! You make use of your daughter to eat the food!"

Ye Xiao grinned as he munched on the vegetables. "This is my privilege, so I can bypass your rule with the help of my daughter."

"Hmph! I won't cook again for you, then."

"Ack, Ai Xia, don't be like that, I won't do it again!"

Ye Jiao laughed as she watched her father and aunt joked around. The two of them looked like a pair of children when they bantered with one another. If one didn't know better, they wouldn't think that the two of them were 24 and 23 years old.

While the two of them were busy arguing, her hand picked up another piece of cabbage.

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*Ge is the way to call an older brother in Chinese (ge ge means older brother, but if added name, it could just use one like Xiao Ge = Big Brother Xiao)