The Shrine Maidens Return Home

Early in the morning, a convoy of seven or eight vehicles and dozens of people drove up outside an inconspicuous village.

After stopping briefly at the village entrance, the convoy did not enter the village entirely, but instead separated a mule cart.

However, even though there was only one vehicle, the robust mule, the brand-new cart, and the four guards following beside it, wearing wide-brimmed straw hats and carrying knives at their waists—all of these were rarely seen in this impoverished little village.

As soon as the car entered the village, it quickly attracted the attention of the villagers.

Rural areas are already relatively quiet with not much to do, and with this terrible year, it's even more unsettling.

Upon seeing this group of outsiders, many villagers, bored out of their minds, braved the scorching sun and followed behind, making a ruckus to see what these strangers were up to.

The commotion caused by these busybodies drew the villagers out to investigate.

And so, with everyone watching...

The mule cart swayed and rattled until it reached a house that was more dilapidated than the average village dwelling.

"Please stop for a moment."

Suddenly, a girl's clear voice came from inside the car.

Just by listening to her gentle voice, one can conjure up the image of a beautiful young girl.

As the driver brought the mule cart to a stop, a young girl dressed in strange red and white clothing quickly emerged from it.

However, as everyone expected, it was indeed a beautiful young girl, the kind you'd never see in such a mountain village.

"My lady, watch out!"

Upon seeing Hu Lü emerge from the carriage, one of the burly men quickly stepped forward and carefully helped the girl off the train.

"Thank you, Brother Zhang!"

After getting off the bus, Hu Lü first thanked the men, then said to them, "Could you please help me carry my things?"

"Yes!"

At the girl's request, four burly men climbed into the carriage, each carrying a bag of grain. In their hands, they also carried ingredients such as oil, salt, vegetables, chicken, duck, fish, and meat.

Sun Qin took the little witches' trip home to visit their families very seriously, not only doubling the amount Yin Yunze had set but also adding a lot more ingredients.

However, due to the weather, there are only enough ingredients to fill one or two tables.

After all, without preservation methods, even a large quantity wouldn't last through the hot summer.

Of course, what Sun Qin considered a small matter was seen by the onlookers as a major event that sparked a lot of discussion.

Leading these people, the beautifully dressed young woman headed directly towards the dilapidated house.

At this moment, the family inside the house also came out to watch the play.

Seeing this young woman, who looked like a wealthy heiress, walking towards them, the family of five seemed somewhat at a loss.

Finally, the oldest man spoke first, "Miss, who are you looking for?"

"Grandpa!" Hu Lü called out, her eyes slightly red, "It's me, Er Ya! I've come back to see you!"

"Er Ya--?"

Looking at Hu Lü, who was dressed in gorgeous clothes, with fair skin, bright eyes and white teeth, and an elegant demeanor in every gesture, one could see that she was a woman of great grace.

The old man could never have imagined that it would be the granddaughter he had sold before.

The old man's lips moved, but he couldn't say anything. Instead, the middle-aged woman behind him quickly stepped forward to examine him closely. However, looking at Hu Lü, the woman still hesitated and said, "Miss—are you joking? Er Ya— "

"Mother, it really is Er Ya!" Ignoring the stares of others, Hu Lü rushed towards the woman, her eyes brimming with tears, and said, "After I was bought, I was sent to serve Lady Qingnü —this time, it was Lady Qing Nu who allowed me to come back to see you—"

Oh, and the Lady Qingnü even gave me a name! My Hu Lü now. I've been doing so well under Lady Qingnü care lately! Not only do I have plenty to eat and drink, but I also get a monthly allowance—look, this is my allowance—I'm telling you, the Lady Qingnü is the best deity in the world!

Listening to her daughter, whom she didn't recognize at all, speaking in words she couldn't quite understand.

The middle-aged woman could only mechanically pat her daughter's back and nod blankly.

However, when they saw the four burly men who came with Hu Lü carrying food into the house, they were surprised.

Upon seeing the gleaming silver in her maid's hand, the middle-aged woman suddenly understood.

"This Lady Qingnü is truly the best deity in the world!"

After all, there are so many gods in the world, but only the Lady Qingnü would send her daughter to her home with food and silver.

Since Hu Lü was able to bring it back once, she can certainly do it a second time.

Putting aside family ties, the financial benefits alone are enough to change the mindset of this large family.

Seeing the food and money, the old man beamed with joy, his face crinkling like a chrysanthemum. He quickly greeted several villagers he was on good terms with, saying, "Old Li, Old Wang, Old Xing—my granddaughter is back! She's all grown up now! I'm treating everyone tonight, come to my house for a good meal!"

"Thanks, Brother Chen!"

Those who were called by the old man all smiled with joy.

After all, this was truly a good meal.

Not only can you eat dried food, but you can also eat meat!

Those who had a bad relationship with Hu Lü's family were filled with deep regret.

We used to look down on them, but now a golden phoenix has flown out of the chicken coop!

Bringing several hundred kilograms of grain casually is considered a big deal by these ordinary villagers in this year's harvest.

"Grandpa! Don't talk nonsense! What kind of young lady am I! I'm just a servant girl who serves Lady Qingnü!"

Upon hearing the old man speak like that, Hu Lü quickly corrected him.

"Second, your Hu Lü, right? Hu Lü, although you were a servant girl who served the gods, you've gone home!"

"You're our young lady! You little brat! What are you standing there for, you idiot?! Your young lady is back! Aren't you going to come over and say hello?! Look at you, so spineless—"

Seeing his father cowering in fear after being scolded by his grandfather, Hu Lü quickly comforted him, "Grandpa, please stop scolding Dad!"

"Good, good, good! Now you're the boss in this house! You're in charge!" The old man nodded repeatedly, then looked at the woman and smiled, "Daughter-in-law, you've given birth to a wonderful daughter!"

Hearing the old man's praise, the middle-aged woman couldn't help but shed tears. After wiping away her tears, she looked at Hu Lü and smiled with relief.

Even those who arrived a step later, upon seeing Hu Lü and his group's attire, politely approached them to inquire.

And similar scenes keep playing out.

Of course, there are different interpretations of this.

Hu Cheng is the smallest of the Seven-Colored Shrine Maidens, and also the one who seems to have the gentlest temperament.

But this time, when I arrived at my home, I saw the door tightly shut.

After a moment of silence, Hu Cheng politely requested from the four White Fox Corps members guarding her, "Could you please help me kick this door down?"

Upon hearing Hu Cheng's request, the members of the White Fox Corps were all stunned for a moment. "Witch? Do you want us to knock on your door for you?"

"No!" Hu Cheng shook his head and repeated, "Help me kick this door down!"

The four exchanged glances, but since it was Hu Cheng's order and this was Hu Cheng's home, they didn't hesitate to kick it.

The next moment, the already somewhat dilapidated door was kicked and sent flying, splitting into two halves.

It landed on the ground with two rather loud noises.

Such a commotion naturally attracted the attention of the homeowner.

"I'm going to die!" A woman's high-pitched voice rang out from inside the house, the voice preceding her appearance. "Which one of those sons born without an anus is it—?"

However, upon seeing the brightly colored Hu Cheng and the four burly men, the woman's voice immediately lowered. "Who, who are you? Have you got the wrong person—or, has my taste caused trouble again?"

With hands clasped together and fingers tightly interlaced, the owner's excitement was evident.

But on the surface, Hu Cheng smiled and said, "Sister-in-law, it hasn't been that long, and you don't recognize me anymore? I've come back to see you and my brother!"

In the end, Hu Cheng spoke through gritted teeth.

"I... I don't understand what you're saying."

Looking at Hu Cheng, who was dressed in bright clothes, the woman's gaze darted away.

Looking up at the woman who was a head taller than him, Hu Cheng turned to the group of burly men and said, "Brothers, could you please help me beat her up?"

"That's inappropriate!" Upon hearing Hu Cheng's request, one of the burly men quickly replied, "Our Incense Distribution Envoy is to protect the priestesses on their way home, not to help you fight people! This is somewhat—"

"I'm sorry, Hu Cheng spoke recklessly! Please don't take offense, brothers!"

Upon hearing this, Hu Cheng remembered that one of the rules of the White Fox Corps was that they could not bully others.

After quickly apologizing, Hu Cheng said, "Then, brothers, can you help me catch her? I suspect she's trying to harm me!"

--

The burly men fell silent again upon hearing Hu Cheng's statement.

They had witnessed the contest between these young witches after they had enhanced their inner strength.

The commotion was so loud that one hand could easily hold down all four of them.

The four people who came with them were less there to protect them and more there to do the dirty work and prevent the young witches from causing any harm by acting recklessly.

At this moment, Hu Cheng looked determined not to give up.

The guards exchanged glances, then two of them stepped forward, grabbed the woman's arms, and forced her to kneel on the ground.

"Help! Murder!"

Seeing that these men were actually going to attack, the woman let out a bloodcurdling scream like a pig being slaughtered.

Amid the woman's screams, Hu Cheng stepped forward and raised his hand.

However, after thinking about it, Hu Cheng put her hand down.

He then grabbed one of the woman's fingers and twisted it forcefully.

Immediately, the woman let out an even more piercing scream.

After snapping three of the woman's fingers in one go, Hu Cheng finally let out a long sigh of relief, "Sister-in-law, do you know why I had my brothers capture you? Because, my dear sister-in-law! If I had really laid a hand on you, I was afraid I would have slapped you to death! How could I let you taint the inner strength bestowed upon me by the Empress?"

"I was wrong, little sister, dear little sister, please forgive me this time!" Feeling the excruciating pain in her fingers, the woman was truly terrified. "I shouldn't have bullied you before! And I especially shouldn't have let your brother sell you to buy me jewelry—ah!"

"You're wrong." Removing the woman's fourth severed finger, Hu Cheng laughed, "Selling me was the only good thing you ever did for me! If you hadn't sold me to become the Empress's servant, how would I have known what it's like to be human!"

"Who are you people!" Just then, a man rushed over. "You bunch of villains!"

Let go of my wife!

"Isn't this my dear brother?"

Turning to look at the man, Hu Cheng gave a somewhat twisted smile, "Brother! Your little sister has missed you so much!"

After delivering the last little witch to her home, the morning had passed.

After instructing the remaining guards to send Qi Rongrong back, Zhang Yufei used her light-footed skills to leave the convoy, which now consisted of only one mule cart, all by herself.

As a master of the Innate Realm, Zhang Yufei's full speed is much faster than these mules.

With all her might, Zhang Yufei quickly arrived in Qingling County.

Navigating the streets with practiced ease, Zhang Yufei quickly arrived at a secluded courtyard.

"Master, I've come to see you!"

Zhang Yufei casually pushed open the door and entered. As soon as she entered, she smelled a strong odor of alcohol.

Frowning, Zhang Yufei complained, "Master, you've been drinking again!"

"Oh, it's Fei'er!"

As Zhang Yufei called out, a humanoid figure emitting a strange odor rose from among the scattered wine jars in the room. "Sure enough, it's you, my precious little darling, who cares about your master! Unlike your senior brother, who hasn't come to see me since he tricked me out of my martial arts and you!"

"If it weren't for your senior brother, where would you get the money to drink!" Hearing this person's accusations against Peng Shulan, Zhang Yufei quickly retorted, "Besides, if you weren't like this every day, why wouldn't your senior brother come to see you—"

"Alright, let's not talk about that heartless bastard! If it weren't for him saving my life, I would have—"

Muttering complaints about Peng Shulan, the man's gaze fell on Zhang Yufei, and he immediately teased, "It's been a while since I've seen Master's sweet little darling, and she's grown even more beautiful! What, are you back now to settle down as my concubine?"

In the past, Zhang Yufei would have panicked upon hearing these words.

But at this moment, Zhang Yufei, now much stronger, was full of confidence. "Master, don't even think about it! Everything else is fine; I'd even remain unmarried and serve you for life! But we're both girls, and girls can't marry each other!"

"Prejudice! I've taught you for so long, how come you can't shake this prejudice!" The woman scoffed at Zhang Yufei's words. "If it's mutual, what does gender matter! Back in the day, your master captivated countless chivalrous women of the martial arts world!"

As they were talking, the woman emerged from the shadows, walking with a limp.

The light illuminated the left side of her face, revealing her natural beauty even without makeup.

But when the light illuminated the other half, it was covered with dense, old wounds. And the right eye socket was empty, just a hollow.

She truly is half beauty and half skeleton.

Furthermore, not only was the woman's right eye empty, but her right sleeve was also empty.

The right leg was still there, but it appeared somewhat twisted and shorter than the left leg.

It seems like he suffered a very serious bone injury that wasn't properly treated, resulting in these aftereffects.

She picked up the wine jug on the table with her left hand, shook it, and found it was empty. She casually tossed it into the corner.

"Yes, yes, yes, you are Zhang Liuyun, the famous Jade-Stealing Lady from twenty years ago!"

Seeing Zhang Liuyun like this, Zhang Yufei was both angry and helpless. "My senior brother said you're a notorious womanizer! It's only because we're both women that I haven't ended up like one! But—"