Ji Feng nodded. "That"s right. Not only me, even my father did not see such a unique footwork. He had agreed for Jing to invite Qiyue for lunch but did not ask during the meal itself."
"That"s because dad knew that there is definitely a supreme master is behind Hua Qiyue. With her intellect, she will not reveal who he is." Ji Jing spoke, full of delight in her eyes. "I had said before that Sister Qiyue could not be a l.u.s.tful and stupid woman! They were the ones who could not decipher her true ident.i.ty, haha. I loved Sister Qiyue from the first glance. Unfortunately, I am not a man, or I would definitely marry her!"
Ji Jing"s eyes were full of happiness. "However, brother you can marry Sister Qiyue! Hehe, I do like her a lot!"
Ji Feng"s face reddened as he softly chided, "Jing, don"t say such nonsense! After all... Marriage is not just a personal affair! Qiyue might not like me..."
Such a sentence revealed all Ji Feng was thinking about. Yun Shimo"s eyes dimmed as he sipped on wine. The sweet and delicious wine now tasted a bit bitter.
"What are you afraid of, Brother, I"m sure that Sister Qiyue will like you!" Ji Jing smiled and spoke without restraint as she grabbed the chicken feet crudely.
Ji Feng smiled faintly as a blush rose on his face. Yun Shimo called his servant here and said, "Come and check for me... the origin of Master Xuanji."
The servant nodded and left. Ji Feng"s eyes were full of appreciation. "Such meticulousness of Brother Yun. Qiyue had explained that Master Xuanji prompted her to partic.i.p.ate in the compet.i.tion and thus her footwork might be linked to Xuanji."
Yun Shimo nodded as he remembered the woman"s laughter. However, a mystery still lingered in his heart. "Why did Master Xuanji teach her? Hua Qiyue... why is she called a stupid and l.u.s.tful woman? Don"t you all find this hard to understand?"
Ji Jing was stunned and confused. "Yes, as the disciple of a supreme master, why is there a need for Sister Qiyue to ruin her reputation? Could it be that she was hiding something and thus do not want to have enemies? After all, no one will care about an idiot!"
"That"s right, Jing. You are right, perhaps Qiyue wanted to hide something, but partic.i.p.ating in the compet.i.tion now..."
Ji Feng was confused but Yun Shimo explained calmly. "It could be because of her adopted son, Tianci. His throat had been poisoned and she had brought Tianci to me for treatment. However, to obtain the elixir that can fully heal his throat, one needs Purple Lotus Phoenix Ice."
"Thus... she partic.i.p.ated in the tournament!" Ji Jing was not stupid, understanding what Hua Qiyue had said at once.
Yun Shimo nodded, full of complex emotions in his eyes.
"In that case, Qiyue is risking her life for her adopted son. In the end, she is really a loyal and kind woman!" Ji Feng"s affection for Hua Qiyue increased.
"Yes, such a kind and loyal woman should be my sister-in-law? Haha!" The straightforward Ji Jing blinked at Ji Feng mischievously.
Ji Feng did not want to engage her and thus toasted Yun Shimo instead before discussing the main purpose of the tournament— gathering disciples. That was Ji Zhong"s idea, for it would be a lot of pressure on Ji Feng if he were to manage the whole family business all by himself.
Furthermore, Ji Zhong"s uncle seemed to have rebellious thoughts. If conflict did arise, the family would be split into half, and support from the disciples would be needed.
Even though it was announced that there would be two disciples selected, ten would be recruited. Of course, two of would be trained on the surface while the other eight would be cultivated in secret.
Yu Shimo understood the difficulties of large families and recommended eight excellent young men and women to Ji Feng. Ji Feng would naturally keep that in mind while examining their performance in the compet.i.tion.
After Ji Jing and Ji Feng had left, Yun Shimo returned to the dining room and sat on the wooden chair by the pond. The fragrance of the lotus came with the wind, surrounding him.
Stars and the moon shone brightly in the sky while Yun Shimo sat there silently. Someone knocked on the door outside at midnight.
Yun Shimo"s servant Bingyi had come back. He pa.s.sed a pile of paper to Yun Shimo. "Prince, when Xuanji first appeared, he had caught the attention of our Golden Door. However, strangely, his origins are well concealed, as if his past records were deliberately destroyed by someone... Thus, we can"t find out a single thing about the origin of this person."
Bingyi"s words made Yun Shimo squint his eyes, focusing on the lotus flowers swaying in the wind.
"Prince, do you want us to use special methods..."
"No need, Xuanji is not an ordinary man. Observe him first." Yun Shimo waved his hands as he decided that he should not alert Xuanji of his investigation.
Bingyi kept quiet. She thought, "Hua Qiyue made my master interested in a monk?"
"She looked like a useless idiot, and it"s no wonder that Huangfu Xuan does not want to marry her. Even though she did seem normal when she came to Prince Nan"s residence, she still pushed my handsome master on the floor!"
"Furthermore... keep a lookout for Hua Qiyue. Report any news of her to me." Yun Shimo thought for a while before making this decision. He initially did not want to be involved with Hua Qiyue. However, unknowingly, he had an unsuppressible impulse in his heart to know her.
Bingyi agreed obediently before ordering another guard to follow Hua Qiyue.
The guards of Yun Shimo were all extremely loyal, with high skills and Qi Art. Thus, even when the princes dislike Yun Shimo, they would not dare to hire an a.s.sa.s.sin to eliminate him.
Because that was almost impossible.
Legend had it that Yun Shimo"s Qi Art had reached the completion of Moon Erosion stage, a stage that very few can achieve. Usually, those who dared to attack him would suffer a bitter end.
The warm and indifferent Yun Shimo was a cold devil in the hearts of many.
At this time when the stars and the moon shone bright, the streets were bustling with activities.
Ji Feng and Ji Jing found Ji Zhong as they returned to Dong Hai Restaurant. They then told them all they had known.
Ji Zhong sat by his table, pondering. "In that case, Hua Qiyue came for the medicine and not for Ji family?"
Seeing that his father"s expression had changed, Ji Feng defended Hua Qiyue, "Dad, Hua Qiyue is an unmarried woman. It"s hard for her to even adopt a son. Now she is risking her life for her adopted son, which shows her loyalty and kindness. If she won, she would definitely not reject us. Furthermore, shouldn"t father be happy to have such a brilliant apprentice?"
Ji Zhong"s face returned to its usual calmness as he heard this. He nodded profusely before continuing, "Feng is right, Hua Qiyue has too many mysteries. Let"s slowly find out what they are."
Ji Feng heaved a sigh of relief while Ji Jing smiled mischievously beside him. "Dad, what if brother marries Sister Qiyue? Even though the Ji family has a huge business, we belong to the outside world, do we care about the family reputation?"
Ji Zhong nodded slightly. "As long as your brother is happy. We are not a royal family and need not worry about status."
Ji Feng relaxed further after listening to Ji Zhong. His mood brightened and drank a lot with his father before returning to his room.
After returning to her residence, Hua Qiyue received a huge sum of money from Butler w.a.n.g. Those are the bets she had won from the wealthy families. Of course, some were gifted by the imperial family.
Hua Qiyue was certain that they would return her money as they need to pay the correct amount for their written proof to be returned to them. If they do not return or delay the process, rumors will spread that would damage their reputation.
"First Miss, there is a total of 15,000 pounds here in total. You won 11,000 pounds through betting while there are 4,900 pounds given by princes." Butler w.a.n.g smiled as he explained the finances to Qiyue, pa.s.sing an accountancy book to her. "This is the accounts. You can take a good look at them, Madame."
"No need, Butler w.a.n.g. I believe in you. These 500 pounds are for you. After all, we earned money together and we should share them!" Hua Qiyue smiled as she took out 500 pounds worth of cash to give to Butler w.a.n.g.
Butler w.a.n.g was shocked at this gracious act. "No, no... First Miss, you"ve given me a lot of money last time, how can you..."
"Butler w.a.n.g, I know you have parents and children to feed, and that your son"s marriage is coming soon. All these require money. Just take these as a little gift from me and please don"t reject it." Hua Qiyue spoke coldly and Butler w.a.n.g dared not interrupt her again. He would not have a good outcome if he did not listen to his master.
After Butler w.a.n.g retreated, Hua Qiyue gave Lv Xin and Youshui 500 pounds each. The two kids were red with excitement. This had been the happiest part of their lives as servants.
Not only were they not bullied, but they also punished those who bullied them. Furthermore, money came like water, making the two poor girls even happier.
"Right, where is Qiuyun?" Hua Qiyue looked around but did not see Qiuyun at all.
Tianci was too tired and had fallen asleep early. Hua Qiyue went in to check if anything was amiss before finally feeling relieved.
Youshui sneezed and replied unhappily, "Qiuyun excused herself for being unwell."
"I will find her over here now if you want to see her!" Lv Xin was delighted and wanted to teach Qiuyun a lesson. "Miss, why did you drink the soup even when you know there are laxatives inside? You still want to pamper that little girl?"
Hua Qiyue pursed her lips as she chewed on a piece of watermelon. "Lv Xin, Qiuyun is only 12 years old, how dare he disobey that devious master? I don"t blame her. Furthermore, there is Long Red inside the soup that cured all types of poison. I dare to drink any medicine."
The corner of Lv Xin"s mouth twitched. "Alright, my master do have a big heart and a tolerant personality. I should stop persuading her since she is indeed very powerful."
"Miss, did you become powerful because Master Xuanji taught you skills?" Youshui whispered. Hua Qiyue poked her forehead, "As a kid, you shouldn"t talk so much!"
Youshui covered her forehead and pursed her lips, pretending to cry.
After bathing, Hua Qiyue lay down on her bed. She did not want to enter that other world today as she felt guilty looking at the cute chubby face of her son.
He still could not talk. It was painful for a normal child.