Transmigrated as the Little Concubine of a Paper-Thin Man - Chapter 22

Zhao Feng, still unaware of the huge blunder he had made, cheerfully saw off the inner disciples and then started directing all the maidservants on Moon Bell Peak to prepare for the Dao Companion Ceremony.

The inner disciples, somewhat bewildered, returned and truthfully reported the matter to the Sect Leader Hua Yan.

“You’re saying… Yan Ling is having her subordinates prepare for her Dao Companion Ceremony?” Hua Yan asked, confirming with a hint of disbelief.

The leading inner disciple nodded, “Yes, absolutely true. Zhao Feng wouldn’t joke about such a thing.” He then looked at his Sect Leader with confusion, “But Sect Leader… when is Fairy Hua Shu going to become Dao Companion with Immortal Lord Ling Ling? This news has never been heard before.”

Hua Yan frowned, “Did you say the same thing in front of Zhao Feng?”

The disciple quickly shook his head, “No, no.”

He exchanged glances with his fellow disciples before replying, “We put down the gifts, played along with his words for a bit, and then rushed back.”

Hua Yan nodded in understanding.

Suddenly, he grinned, “Very good, I will handle this matter. You may all leave.”

The disciples were confused but bowed and departed.

After they left, Hua Yan called his precious legitimate daughter, Hua Shu, over. The father and daughter exchanged a few simple greetings, and then Hua Yan spoke frankly, “Hua Shu, what do you think of that Yan Ling?”

Hua Shu was stunned, pouting slightly with a touch of grievance, “What can I think?”

She sighed, walked past Hua Yan, and sat in a nearby chair, “After the whole Zhou’e incident last time, I’m afraid I offended her quite badly. You even had to send an apology gift before she would attend the assembly.”

“Putting that matter aside?” Hua Yan walked over and stood beside her, “Do you want to become Yan Ling’s Dao Companion?”

Hua Shu’s eyes widened in surprise, and she immediately stood up.

She turned to look at her father, her cheeks slightly flushed, “Father, what are you… what are you talking about?”

Hua Yan chuckled, “Just tell me if you want to or not.”

Hua Shu twisted her lips, biting her lower lip, “Immortal Lord Ling Ling is young and accomplished, the foremost figure among the younger generation in the cultivation world today. Not only is her cultivation profound, but she also possesses countless cultivation resources. This, this…”

She gave Hua Yan a playful, angry look, “Who wouldn’t want to become her Dao Companion?”

Hua Yan nodded.

He stroked his beard, “There’s one thing you said incorrectly, she’s not just the foremost figure among the younger generation.” Recalling their previous encounters, he praised, “To be honest, even if I tried, I wouldn’t dare guarantee I could refine a divine artifact like the Myriad Spirit Key. Yet, that young girl Yan Ling can do it effortlessly. Her strength is truly unfathomable.”

Hua Shu was engrossed, “And Yan Ling is also very beautiful…”

Hua Yan smiled, “It seems you’ve already secretly given her your heart?”

Hua Shu’s face suddenly fell, and she sighed, “What I feel doesn’t matter. Immortal Lord Ling Ling won’t even spare a glance for a small fry like me.”

“You are a small fry?” Hua Yan thought she was being overly modest, “You are the pampered pearl of the entire Flying Immortal Sect. I should be the one considering if that Yan Ling is worthy of you.”

Hua Shu suppressed the heat on her face and asked, “Speaking of which… why did you suddenly ask this?”

Hua Yan didn’t keep her in suspense, “I have a way for you to become Yan Ling’s Dao Companion.”

Hua Shu froze, “Really?” She covered her mouth in astonishment, “How is that possible? You, you shouldn’t talk nonsense.”

Hua Yan smiled, “Don’t worry, as long as you agree, this matter can be done.”

He patted Hua Shu’s shoulder, “Don’t worry, leave everything to your old father.” Then, he sent Hua Shu away, called a few trusted aides, and whispered something into their ears.

Upon hearing his words, the aides cupped their fists and then flew away, disappearing into the vast sea of clouds of the Flying Immortal Sect.

Hua Yan saw this and a satisfied smile curled his lips, but he quickly changed his expression and headed to the assembly venue.

“It is our sect’s great honor that everyone can attend the Flying Immortal Sect. Welcome, welcome—”

On the other side, Ling Ling Peak.

Shi Yunjii finished her work and was about to sit down for a rest when she heard Zhao Feng’s voice from outside the palace.

Zhao Feng had been frequenting the mountain to deliver things during this period, so she was used to him calling at the gate occasionally. She put down what was in her hand and rushed to the palace entrance.

It was indeed Zhao Feng at the entrance, but this time he wasn’t alone; he was accompanied by a group of maidservants carrying items.

Shi Yunjii blinked and greeted everyone silently.

“Ah, good thing you’re guarding the Jade Bell Palace,” Zhao Feng ordered the maidservants to put the items down and instructed Shi Yunjii, “Yunjii, please take these items to the side hall for now, and don’t touch them. I will report to the Immortal Lord later, and after she removes the barrier, I will have people come over to help you set up.”

Shi Yunjii looked at the pile of things wrapped in red cloth, guessing their purpose, but still looked at Zhao Feng, wanting further confirmation.

Zhao Feng, of course, understood the meaning in her eyes.

But the astute man now wore a look of pity, “You must understand now that you’ve seen these things.”

Shi Yunjii could understand his words, but she didn’t know why he was looking at her with such an expression, so she continued to look at him with a puzzled gaze.

“Alas, there’s still a chance, there’s still a chance,” Zhao Feng tried to lean closer to her, whispering in what he thought was a “low voice,” “As long as you perform well and continue to win the Immortal Lord’s favor, you still have a chance to gain a title in the future. If you can also please the new madam who is marrying in, this Jade Bell Palace will surely have a place for you.”

New madam? A place for me?

Shi Yunjii was so surprised her mouth slightly opened.

She wanted to say that Zhao Feng might have misunderstood something, but when she raised her hand, she didn’t know where to begin the sign language, so she stood there with an innocent, stunned expression.

To the other maidservants, this look was interpreted differently.

A maidservant who had long been jealous of Shi Yunjii’s ability to serve Yan Ling closely snorted, then spoke, “Still ‘there’s still a chance’? I say, Steward, you have a very big heart.”

She glanced sideways at Shi Yunjii, “If I were you, I’d be behaving meekly right now. Fairy Hua Shu already looks down on you. The first thing she’ll do when she moves into Jade Bell Palace is probably send you back to Moon Bell Peak.”

Another young maidservant nearby chimed in, “Isn’t that good? Then we sister-friends can live together again.”

“Who wants to live with her?” the first maidservant continued to mock, “I don’t have her skill for being a seductress.”

“Silence! All of you, be quiet!” Zhao Feng loudly scolded.

He held considerable authority over the maidservants, and with this shout, everyone indeed quieted down.

After dealing with the maidservants, he looked at Shi Yunjii, “Yunjii, don’t take those words to heart.”

Shi Yunjii shook her head magnanimously.

They were just idle words. Since she suffered the severe trauma in her childhood that rendered her mute, the people around her had often gossiped about her. She considered herself strong-willed, and mere gossip could no longer affect her in the slightest.

Besides, these people hadn’t figured out the truth of the matter, and the content of their ridicule wouldn’t touch her sore spots. On the contrary, listening to their envious tone, Shi Yunjii only felt a little amused.

I am clearly the Dao Companion Yan Ling is about to marry!

She had originally wanted to take this opportunity to explain clearly to Zhao Feng, but seeing the current situation, Shi Yunjii couldn’t bring herself to say it.

She could hardly imagine what expressions these people would have if she revealed in front of everyone that she was the new mistress of Jade Bell Palace, about to stand side-by-side with Yan Ling.

“In short, everyone must work together, and we’ll deal with everything after the Immortal Lord’s Dao Companion Ceremony is over,” Zhao Feng instructed, “Everyone sees how much the Immortal Lord values this Dao Companion Ceremony and how much she values the new mistress who is about to move in, so I don’t need to say more. If anything goes wrong with this ceremony, don’t blame me for being merciless!”

Shi Yunjii’s face felt hot, and she subtly turned her head away.

Subsequently, she and the other maidservants nodded in agreement, which gave Zhao Feng some reassurance.

After everyone put down the items, Zhao Feng gave Shi Yunjii a few more instructions, and just as he was about to lead the others away, a maidservant suddenly pointed to the sky in the distance, “Huh, why is someone coming?”

Everyone looked in that direction and indeed saw several dark spots rapidly approaching.

“Isn’t the Sect Assembly being held these two days?” Zhao Feng mumbled, “Why would anyone come over here?”

A faint bad premonition arose in Shi Yunjii’s heart.

Soon, the premonition came true. The dark spots landed and turned out to be Hua Yan’s trusted confidants.

They walked straight toward the Jade Bell Palace, finally stopping almost right against the barrier.

Zhao Feng went up to greet them, “Gentlemen…” He assessed them, “What is the purpose of your sudden visit?”

The leader was reasonably polite, first introducing himself, “We are here by the Sect Leader’s order. Here is the Sect Leader’s token.”

Zhao Feng confirmed it and nodded, “Oh, oh, so what is the matter?”

The black-clad man at the head smiled at Zhao Feng, “Immortal Lord Ling Ling’s Dao Companion Ceremony is imminent, and there’s no room for delay. The Sect Leader has sent us to take over the affairs here, naturally.”

He looked around, his gaze sweeping over every maidservant, finally stopping on the most unique one, Shi Yunjii. After all, among everyone present, only she was inside the barrier.

Then, the man spoke again, “From this moment, Ling Ling Peak will temporarily be under my command, and the arrangements for the Dao Companion Ceremony will also be taken over by us. Everyone return to their courtyards; no one is allowed to leave without permission.”

The maidservants were stunned.

They could accept it when the other party mentioned taking over the Dao Companion Ceremony arrangements, but this order, which was essentially a house arrest, left everyone puzzled.

Anger also surged in Zhao Feng’s heart.

He resisted the pressure from the other party and stepped forward, saying, “I’m afraid that’s inappropriate.”

The other party countered, “What’s inappropriate?”

Zhao Feng, “The task of arranging the Dao Companion Ceremony was specifically assigned by Immortal Lord Ling Ling. The Immortal Lord has not expressed a change, yet the Sect Leader wishes to take over the affairs completely…” He frowned, “I wonder if the Immortal Lord is aware of this?”

The black-clad man smirked, “The Immortal Lord is currently discussing the Dao with Fairy Hua Shu. Does Steward Zhao want to go to the assembly and ask clearly?” His eyes were full of scorn, “Or, perhaps, wait for me to report to the Immortal Lord and have her personally return to give you an explanation.”

Zhao Feng was startled, and his momentum quickly weakened.

It wasn’t his fault; primarily, no matter how hard he thought, he couldn’t imagine anyone daring to make such small moves behind the back of a powerful figure like Yan Ling. So, he gritted his teeth and forced a smile, “Since that’s the case, then we…”

Before he could finish, he felt his sleeve being pulled. He turned around to see Shi Yunjii shaking her head vigorously at him.

Zhao Feng was surprised, “Yunjii? Wh- what do you mean?”

Shi Yunjii faced the black-clad men.

She mouthed the words: [Yan Ling absolutely does not know about this.]

Everyone’s attention was on her, and they understood her lip-reading.

“How could that be?” Zhao Feng awkwardly shook his sleeve.

He signaled with his eyes for Shi Yunjii to quickly go back and not draw attention, “Yunjii, what’s wrong with you today? Isn’t it good that these people are taking over the ceremony arrangements? You can relax a lot and won’t have to work. Let’s go back quickly and not bother them.”

Shi Yunjii took a deep breath.

[The person who is going to become Dao Companion with Yan Ling is not Hua Shu at all.]

The black-clad men frowned tightly.

Zhao Feng and the other maidservants were also confused. After recovering, probably thinking the statement was too absurd, Zhao Feng laughed awkwardly again, “You, what are you saying? If the Immortal Lord isn’t becoming Dao Companion with Fairy Hua Shu, then who is it with? Could it be with you?”

Everyone could tell it was a joke, but Shi Yunjii nodded under everyone’s astonished gaze.

Zhao Feng’s eyes widened, and he wished he could rush up and press her head down.

“Yunjii, Yunjii, you must be clear-headed, don’t talk nonsense… The Sect Leader’s people are still here.”

Shi Yunjii, ignoring the astonished looks of everyone present, nodded again.

She communicated with Yan Ling mentally: [Yan Ling, are you there?]

Yan Ling, who was dealing with Hua Shu’s small talk, immediately withdrew her attention and replied: [I am.]

She sensed the barrier, confirmed that the Ling Ling Peak barrier was intact, and then casually asked: [What’s wrong?]

Shi Yunjii simply replied: [Nothing.]

The black-clad man stepped forward, but was constrained by the barrier between them and couldn’t do anything to Shi Yunjii.

He asked, “Where did this maidservant come from, daring to say such things?” He scrutinized Shi Yunjii, “The Immortal Lord wouldn’t marry a sect’s daughter, yet she would favor a powerless maidservant like you?”

Even if Shi Yunjii could speak now, she would be too lazy to open her mouth and argue with the other party.

She simply raised her hand, allowing her sleeve to fall due to gravity, revealing a small section of her fair wrist.

On that fair wrist, a string of silver bells was tied.

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