The Mountain Lord's Daughter

Chapter 10: chapter 10



"The Lord of the Hall Will Surely Be Obedient to You"

The hall was filled with people. Perhaps because they thought the wedding yesterday was truly absurd, with no family or friends present, only cold, grim soldiers. This morning, the old man had issued an order: all of the people from the Yue family who were supposed to come must show up, and they were not to neglect the new wife.

Yue Huai Le furrowed her brows and asked, "Brother, what do you think grandfather means by this?"

"What do you mean?" The youth in purple sneered. "The old man is getting old, blind and deaf. He just handed the Yue family over to that bastard, and now he's thrown himself into the arms of the dynasty. Do you know how the common people have cursed me these years when I've been out?"

Although they didn't dare to say it to his face, his keen hearing still caught some of it. Not only that, even old friends had long since severed ties with him and became strangers.

The youth in purple was called Yue Wu Jiu, the second son of the Yue family, and he was Yue Zhi Heng's cousin. Yue Huai Le, his younger sister, was only four years younger than him.

Hearing the term "bastard," Yue Huai Le's expression changed slightly, and she quickly tugged at his sleeve, saying, "Lower your voice, don't let him hear you."

"So what if he hears?" Yue Wu Jiu retorted.

"Have you forgotten what happened to Master?" Yue Huai Le's words triggered a painful memory in him, and his expression turned sour.

Many years ago, when Yue Zhi Heng had first joined the dynasty, someone in their clan had pointed at him and cursed him, calling him filthy and a beast in human form. The old man, a respected elder in the family, had been a teacher to many of their clan members, and was addressed as "Master" by everyone.

Yue Wu Jiu remembered that day well. It was a snowy winter, and the elder had stood at a path Yue Zhi Heng was sure to pass, berating him for destroying the Yue family's thousand-year-old legacy and their spotless reputation. The elder had removed his boots, taken off his crown, and dressed in worn cotton and hemp clothes to publicly denounce Yue Zhi Heng's crimes.

At that time, no one knew what kind of person Yue Zhi Heng was. Many people came to watch, hoping to see him humiliated. The snow was falling heavily, and Yue Zhi Heng, wrapped in his cloak, looked at the old man and said, "If you have something to say, come into the house."

The old man laughed bitterly. "You shameless thief, and yet you still have a little sense of decency? You're a reckless, heartless bastard, tainted by dirty blood. Now you're committing even more corrupt deeds, and you'll eventually pay the price!"

Yue Zhi Heng merely raised an eyebrow, and the elder spat angrily. "Today, I'll risk my life to denounce your crimes to the world so that future generations of the Yue family will know, even if they learn to act like pigs or dogs, they should never learn from you, Yue Zhi Heng."

Yue Zhi Heng listened quietly, and after the elder finished speaking, he lowered his gaze and smiled coldly. "I heard you were once called 'Master' at the Yue residence?"

"And what about it?"

"Since you're called 'Master,'" Yue Zhi Heng said with a cold tone, "I've never learned propriety, righteousness, or shame. I'm honored to meet you today, so I'll take this opportunity to ask. Since you're willing to risk your life to correct the wrongs…"

He smirked darkly. "Then why don't you try to teach me a lesson?"

That day, almost every member of the younger generation in the Yue family remembered his smile, which, against the backdrop of the cold, falling snow, was even colder than the snow itself. Even the elder, who had spoken so passionately, felt a hint of fear in the air.

Yue Wu Jiu, who was only sixteen at the time, would forever remember the scene three days later when the elder returned. His tongue had been ripped out, and he stumbled through the snow, holding a bloody tablet.

"To receive the 麒麟子 (Qilin Son) will shake the foundations for a century."

How ironic. No one knew what the Chétian Mansion had done to him, but it seemed to have made him willing to hold the blood-soaked tablet and call that villain "Qilin Son." The elder passed by every door of the Yue family, and only then did he die with his eyes open.

Madam Yue II tightly covered her daughter's eyes.

Grandfather Yue shook his head and shut himself in the Refined Weapon Pavilion, never emerging again.

From that day on, no one in the Yue family dared to speak ill of Yue Zhi Heng or show him any disrespect. All these years later, Yue Wu Jiu often wondered if his grandfather regretted handing the Yue family over to such a cruel person. But the old man was devoted to refining weapons and never saw him. Whenever he barged into the weapon pavilion, he would hear the cold, authoritative voice saying, "Get the second young master out."

All these years, the second order from the old man was to treat Zhan Yunwei kindly.

No matter what others thought, the two younger generation members were conflicted.

Yue Huai Le, gossiping, said, "I never imagined that someone like Yue Zhi Heng would ever get married. And to think, he married Zhan Yunwei, the most beautiful woman in the immortal sect back in the day. She's the number one beauty, how beautiful must she be?"

After saying this, seeing her brother's darkened expression, Yue Huai Le quickly shut up. She knew that this was a sore spot for her brother. He had been obsessed with practicing swordsmanship since childhood and respected the Sword Immortal Pei Yujing above all. Now, Zhan Yunwei, who was Pei Yujing's fiancée, had married their most disliked cousin, Yue Zhi Heng. This was even more painful than when Yue Wu Jiu had his own fiancée stolen away!

Seeing that Yue Zhi Heng and his new wife had not yet gotten up, Yue Wu Jiu was even more furious.

So, this is the "land of softness" now?

He narrowed his eyes. "Fine, mother doesn't want me to mess with that star of calamity, but I can still teach this timid, self-preserving woman a lesson!"

The Yue family had been living quietly in Fénhé County for these years. Aside from Yue Zhi Heng, no one else served in the dynasty, so they didn't know the details of the sealed-off Immortal Sect battle or the fact that some Immortal Sect members had been detained. Recently, rumors had been spreading that Zhan Yunwei, the beautiful woman from the Zhan family, had joined Yue Zhi Heng out of fear after seeing the Immortal Mountain's fall and not wanting to live a hard life.

After all, the common perception of spirit masters was that they were delicate, powerless to protect themselves, and couldn't survive a hard life for long. The rumors only grew, and though Madam Yue II still had her doubts, the two younger ones believed it.

Thus, Yue Huai Le reminded her brother, "Be careful. Don't let Yue Zhi Heng find out it's you."

"Don't worry."

He only wanted to see the cowardly Miss Zhan lose composure in front of everyone, but he didn't actually want her life. The members of the Yue family were generally divided into two groups. One group despised Yue Zhi Heng, but only dared to criticize him behind his back and in their hearts. The other group harbored ulterior motives, seeing that Yue Zhi Heng's influence was rising and hoping to climb the ranks by fawning over him. Yue Wu Jiu briefly cast a cold glance over the sycophants and sneered.

As they passed through the winding corridor and entered the front hall, Zhan Yunwei froze. She had expected there would be many people from the Yue family, but she hadn't anticipated this many. At a glance, the front hall, courtyard, and even the small garden were filled with people, some standing, some sitting.

She asked Yue Zhi Heng, "Your family... has so many people?"

Yue Zhi Heng glanced around and replied, "Probably."

It seemed that most of them were relatives, and the old man clearly felt that Zhan Yunwei's marriage to him was a great injustice; otherwise, he wouldn't have invited even distant relatives to attend.

Zhan Yunwei asked, "How many of them are your enemies?"

"Why ask that?" Yue Zhi Heng replied. "If you want to count, probably all of them."

Zhan Yunwei murmured, "I need to calculate how many people I'll need to argue with..."

For a brief moment, a strange thought flashed through Yue Zhi Heng's mind. He remained silent for a moment before coldly saying, "You can argue with them too."

She asked, "Won't you be angry?"

"Mm." He replied, "As long as I don't hear it, it's fine."

If he didn't hear it, he couldn't be bothered to care.

Zhan Yunwei didn't expect it to be like this. She had heard of the "Blood-Stained Gentleman" incident three years ago. During that year's academic exams at the academy, there were both literary and martial arts categories. She remembered that the essay which won first place was a scathing article that criticized Yue Zhi Heng. The author's eloquence was remarkable, and though the words were full of insults and filth, there wasn't a single one without venom. The article spread to the public, and commoners began mocking Yue Zhi Heng in private. By the fourteenth year of Shengping, the article was even used as evidence of Yue Zhi Heng's crimes.

Zhan Yunwei had assumed that someone as arrogant as Yue Zhi Heng would be full of self-pride, but she was surprised to learn that he was aware of his own reputation.

She couldn't help but ask, "Is the Blood-Stained Gentleman incident real or fake?"

"What Blood-Stained Gentleman?"

"The one who cursed you in the snowstorm three years ago, and you took him away."

Yue Zhi Heng paused in his steps, turning to glance at Zhan Yunwei with a half-smile. "Miss Zhan, what does it matter whether it's real or fake?"

Were you trying to judge me from the filth of the world, or do you think you can strike me down beneath this ironclad shell?

Zhan Yunwei pursed her lips. "I'm just curious about the truth."

The many truths.

Yue Zhi Heng looked at her coldly and said, "It's all true."

For a moment, Zhan Yunwei felt a chill down her spine, and her heart sank. Was her speculation and hope wrong?

In the silence between them, they had reached the front hall.

Zhan Yunwei wasn't mentally prepared as many people began to approach.

"This must be Young Master Ah Heng's new wife, right? She's as beautiful as the rumors say, with a radiant face like a flower, Ah Heng is truly fortunate. I'm his aunt, so we're family now."

Zhan Yunwei was caught off guard as someone grabbed her hand. She had been mentally preparing for the meeting, but didn't expect it to be like this. A young woman even exclaimed with envy, "Sister-in-law, your lipstick is so beautiful. Is it the new product from Baizhen Pavilion?"

Zhan Yunwei could only admire their ability to speak nonsense with such straight faces. At least the oppressive silence from earlier was dispersed by this lively chatter.

She looked around and noticed that some people were fawning over her and Yue Zhi Heng, but there were also a few who stood at a distance, not approaching, their eyes filled with hatred and disgust towards Yue Zhi Heng.

These must be the righteous ones from the immortal mountain.

Seeing that this group made up the majority, Zhan Yunwei's eyes flickered. It seemed not everyone in the Yue family was loyal to the dynasty.

This morning, after receiving instructions from the old man, the distant branches of the Yue family had arrived, and many people with no shame, hoping to climb onto Yue Zhi Heng's coattails, had prepared presents for Zhan Yunwei.

Now, the aunts and uncles were pulling her aside to chat and eagerly handing her their carefully prepared gifts.

Zhan Yunwei had no choice but to accept them. Fortunately, Bai Rui and Shi Hu behind her helped by accepting the gifts on her behalf.

Finally, a graceful woman stepped forward. Her surname was Zhao, and she was a distant relative of the Yue family. With a glance and a subtle movement, she radiated an indescribable charm.

Madam Zhao, holding a feathered fan, smiled and said, "Young Madam, were you arguing with Lord Zhi Heng earlier? I saw that you both looked unhappy when you arrived."

Zhan Yunwei hadn't expected her to observe so closely. "It wasn't exactly an argument, just a small dispute."

"Don't worry, Young Madam," Madam Zhao said with a reassuring smile. "It's the early days of marriage, and no man truly stays angry."

Zhan Yunwei smiled faintly, not bothering to explain further.

Madam Zhao stepped closer and placed a small box in her palm. "This is a gift I prepared for you. It's exactly what you need right now, and I'm sure you'll love it."

What she needed?

It wasn't surprising that Zhan Yunwei thought the gift might have something to do with the Immortal Mountain after the Bai Rui incident.

Madam Zhao's expression was subtle, and her actions cautious, as though she didn't want anyone to see. Zhan Yunwei's heart skipped a beat—was there a secret message from the Immortal Gate in this gift?

She didn't dare be careless and quickly hid the box.

Madam Zhao gave her an approving glance and whispered with a sly smile, "You'll understand when you open it tonight, quietly. Lord Zhi Heng will surely be... completely obedient to you."

At that moment, Zhan Yunwei and even Bai Rui couldn't help but raise their eyebrows. What could this be? They both thought, could it be even more powerful than the Demon Puppet Pill? Something that could make Yue Zhi Heng obey completely?


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