Chapter 246: Junior sister, I want to help
Dong Dong—Dong—
“Hey! Be careful! You chipped the corner of this jade couch, and you’ll be sent to the mountains to mine by Immortal Pei if you’re not careful.”
“Sorry, Senior Brother Zhang… We’ll be more careful…”
In the courtyard, dozens of Sword Sect disciples at the Qi Refining Stage, under Zhang Yihe’s direction, systematically moved the furniture from the courtyard into the house, setting up their new residence.
Under a pavilion in the courtyard, Pei Lianxue lay with an expressionless face, twirling an empty teacup with her index finger out of boredom. Her long, dark brown hair cascaded down her back, and the golden feather adornments on her shoulders swayed gently in the breeze. Clad in a set of predominantly gold and white silk fairy clothes, she shimmered in the morning sunlight as if radiating light.
Pei Lianxue now held a higher rank within the Sword Sect hierarchy, even surpassing some of the sect’s elders. While her authority was secondary only to Yun Tianchong according to sect rules, her youth and lower cultivation level restrained the elders from granting her significant power.
Nevertheless, despite her limited authority, she still held a position of esteem. Now, disciples within Xiri Peak would respectfully address her as Immortal Pei.
This grand residence and the jade couch brought in by the Sword Sect disciples were all gifts from the elders of the sect. Moreover, the elders allocated a mountain peak, renowned for its spiritual energy, within the Sword Sect’s domain for her. This would serve as her future base for accepting disciples and establishing her cave.
It was similar to a girl who had lived in poverty for over a decade, suddenly discovering she was the heiress of a wealthy family, free from worries about sustenance. It was a monumental windfall.
Pei Lianxue was well aware that this was an unexpected stroke of luck. Yet, she couldn’t find joy in it. This windfall lacked a certain flavour.
When she was five, Ye Anping took her to the temple fair in the Hundred Lotus Sect’s market, where there was a game similar to drawing. Ye Anping and she each bought a ticket, and she ended up winning a necklace worth thousands of spiritual stones, while Ye Anping lost all his money.
Pei Lianxue still vividly recalled her senior brother’s astonished expression at that moment. It was the first time she had seen the surprise on his face, and it marked her first victory over him in anything.
She was ecstatic for days, unable to sleep, and even sold the necklace to treat her senior brother to a day of candied haws and preserves at the Hundred Lotus Sect market.
Although they both suffered from toothaches for half a month afterwards…
Both instances involved windfalls, but the difference between a mountain peak, a grand house, and thousands of spiritual stones was self-evident.
The latter brought her joy for days on end, while the former only elicited a nonchalant “Oh… I see.”
Pei Lianxue could discern that this windfall was specifically prepared for her by her senior brother. But to her, it was like having a meal. It made no difference whether she had it or not. Skipping a meal wouldn’t starve her anyway.
Compared to the formidable spiritual sword or the priceless house and mountain, she preferred her senior brother giving her more guidance rather than being placed in the safest place to reap the rewards.
Pei Lianxue knew exactly what she wanted. She wanted to impress her senior brother and earn his approval. She wanted him to see that she was no longer the ignorant little girl she once was.
She has grown up! She is independent! She can protect her senior brother!
Senior brother! Rely on me now!
Hurry up! Depends on me!
With these thoughts, Pei Lianxue felt oddly disappointed. She made a frustrated gesture with her hand, flicking it against the teacup on the table.
Boom—
With a sharp sound, the ceramic teacup traced a parabolic arc through the air, landing in the courtyard. At that moment, a Sword Sect disciple carrying a box stepped on the teacup, slipped, and accidentally threw the box out, scattering kitchen and bathroom knives everywhere.
At the same time, cries of pain from Yun Xi also echoed from the courtyard gate.
“Ouch!!”
After being stepped on by the Sword Sect disciples, the teacup rolled to the courtyard entrance, where Yun Xi, who had just crossed the threshold, stepped on it, landing on her back and falling hard.
Yun Xi, seeming accustomed to such mishaps, intended to get up but then noticed dozens of knives flying towards her. She gasped sharply and quickly summoned a large turtle shell from her storage bag to shield herself from the knives.
“Phew,” Yun Xi breathed a sigh of relief, then took another sharp breath and opened her mouth, “Zhang—a—crane!!!”
“Huh!”
Pei Lianxue, witnessing the entire chain of events, blinked in bewilderment. Yun Xi and Xiao Yunluo were both considered good girls in her eyes, neither of whom harboured any intentions towards her senior brother. Thus, she felt quite guilty for a moment. With a slight apology, she muttered, “Sorry,” then pulled out a small notebook from her sleeve and quickly wrote,
“Yun Xi stepped into the courtyard and stepped on a teacup, narrowly avoiding being stabbed by falling kitchen knives. It’s unknown who threw the teacup.”
After finishing writing, Yun Xi finished scolding Zhang Yihe. Just as Pei Lianxue was about to offer Yun Xi a handkerchief, a flying sword suddenly descended from the sky and landed at the courtyard gate.
Yun Xi turned to see Yun Yiyi approaching, furrowing her brow in response, expecting her sister’s sudden visit to bring trouble. So, as Yun Yiyi’s right foot crossed the threshold, Yun Xi ran over and blocked the mansion’s open gate, keeping Yun Yiyi outside.
Yun Xi looked disdainful as she looked up at Yun Yiyi,
“What do you want?”
Yun Yiyi also frowned but softened her tone,
“Just to talk to you.”
“What’s there to talk about here? I’m not in the mood to serve you tea.”
“It could be more convenient here. As sisters, can’t we have a chat? Even if there’s no tea, can’t we exchange a few words?”
Yun Xi rolled her eyes and replied impatiently,
“I wonder who tried so hard to kill me when I was a child? Are you surprised that I’ve managed to live for over twenty years?”
Yun Yiyi felt somewhat helpless, remaining silent for a moment before defending herself,
“I may have been a little cruel to you before, but I’ve said many times that those attempts on your life were orchestrated by my mother’s hand. I never participated in any of them.”
“You’re not on the same side as your mother?”
Yun Yiyi pursed her lips, remained silent for a moment, then said,
“What do you want then? Should I kneel and kowtow to you?”
“Then go ahead and do it.”
“…”
The two sisters looked at each other. Zhang Yihe, who was standing nearby, sensed the tension between them and quickly took two or three steps back, hesitant to intervene.
Observing from the pavilion, Pei Lianxue frowned and contemplated for a moment. The task her senior brother assigned her was to accompany Yun Xi, protect her, and keep track of her whereabouts.
However, when she was in the Hundred Lotus Sect, she had secretly glanced at the plan her senior brother had written. It was messy and incomplete, so that she needed help to grasp the full details of the plan. But she understood the basic goal—to improve the relationship between Yun Xi, Yun Yiyi, and Yun Jiujiu.
Though she hesitated, Pei Lianxue ultimately decided to take action beyond her brother’s instructions. She wondered how she could help reconcile the two.
Recalling her senior brother’s actions, Pei Lianxue had an idea and quickly retrieved the Snow Qiong Spiritual Sword from her storage bag. Due to its previous consumption of spiritual veins, a chilling aura enveloped the courtyard as soon as she grasped the sword.
The Sword Sect disciples carrying furniture trembled, and the two individuals standing at the door, sensing the disturbance, looked towards Pei Lianxue with fear.
In the next moment, Pei Lianxue approached the two of them and inserted the sword into the doorstone.
Swish——
Yun Xi and Yun Yiyi both shivered involuntarily from the cold aura, wondering why Pei Lianxue was upset. To their surprise, Pei Lianxue weakly uttered a sentence,
“Don’t argue.”
“…”
Seeing the two of them remaining silent, Pei Lianxue pursed her lips and added, “If you argue again, I’ll spank your bottoms.”
“?”
Pei Lianxue frowned and clarified, “I’ll make them swell!”
Yun Xi and Yun Yiyi were puzzled by this, but Pei Lianxue’s expression seemed serious, so they didn’t dare to act up again.
Zhang Yihe, who had stepped aside, quickly approached to mediate the situation, rubbing his hands together, and said, “Miss, Third Miss, you see, Immortal Pei has spoken. Let’s sit down and talk things out. How about I serve you some tea?”
Upon hearing this, Yun Xi and Yun Yiyi glared at Zhang Yihe.
Yun Xi angrily scolded, “Zhang Yihe, it’s none of your business! Get lost!”
Zhang Yihe quickly gestured to Pei Lianxue, winked at the two of them, and diverted their attention back to Pei Lianxue’s face.
Although Yun Xi didn’t understand why Pei Lianxue suddenly became angry, she reluctantly agreed and stepped aside, saying, “For the sake of Sister Pei, please come in.”
“Thank you.”
Yun Yiyi glanced at the Black Ice Spirit Sword stuck in the ground and then at Pei Lianxue’s face. With something on her mind, she walked past her and entered the threshold, following Yun Xi inside.
However, Yun Xi was so preoccupied with Pei Lianxue’s strange behaviour that she didn’t notice the ceramic cup she had just stepped on. As a result, she tripped over it and bumped her head into Yun Yiyi’s face. Both of them fell to the ground.
Yun Yiyi couldn’t help but curse, “Are you blind while walking?”
“Who allowed you to get so close… ouch-”
As they were about to stand up…
Bang bang—
Two crisp sounds of spanking echoed throughout the yard. Pei Lianxue held a branch she picked up from the ground and gave each of them a firm slap on the buttocks. The speed was so fast that it took Yun Yiyi and Yun Xi a moment to feel the pain. They gritted their teeth and touched their sore bottoms, hopping a little.
“Sister Pei, are you really going to spank us?” Yun Xi turned to look at Pei Lianxue behind her in disbelief.
Yun Yiyi even suspected that Pei Lianxue was seeking revenge because she had taken her senior brother away, hence the forceful spanking. But for now, she dared not say anything more.
Pei Lianxue reminded them once again, “No quarrelling.”
After hearing this, the two of them pouted and glanced at the Sword Sect disciples who had stopped working in the yard. Enduring the pain, they walked towards the back room with small steps.
Zhang Yihe saw Pei Lianxue actually spanking them and hurried over to give her a thumbs up, saying, “Immortal Pei, you’re really something! From now on, this little brother will follow you!”
“…”
