A Piece of Unpolished Jade

A grand event ended in a dismal failure, and the organizers incurred public wrath.

As Jimo Qing and Sang Ying left, they didn't forget to greet the Gong Household father and son, who looked utterly dejected.

However, the Gong Household no longer had the energy to exchange pleasantries with them, because this accident would probably drain half of the Gong Household before they could barely quell the anger of the crowd.

Sang Ying and Jimo Qing were unaware of the bitterness in the hearts of the Gong Household father and son; they simply walked out of the venue with the crowd.

To their surprise, Elder Ten Thousand Daos Born, whose face seemed to say "Keep Out" to strangers, actually came up to say goodbye to the two of them after leaving the venue.

Jimo Qing was quite surprised by this, after all, the other party had always thought that the Jimo Household was very shrewd and rarely paid them any attention.

However, Jimo Qing quickly guessed who the other person had come to say goodbye for, since that person's eyes were fixed on his adopted sister.

"Young lady, your cultivation is extraordinary at such a young age. It would be a disgrace if you stayed in the Jimo Household to cultivate." The elder frowned slightly, his face full of sincerity.

His bluntness amused Jimo Qing, who was standing nearby.

I had long heard that after Ten Thousand Daos Born's downfall, the elders in the sect liked to seduce the talents of aristocratic Aristocratic Clan. Originally, Jimo Qing thought it was just a rumor, but now it seems to be true!

However, what does it mean that "it would be a disgrace for her to stay in the Jimo Household for training"? Doesn't it mean that the Jimo Household is not good at educating Sang Ying?

Although the eldest son usually wears a smile when he meets people, he is not a very magnanimous person.

He immediately stepped in front of Sang Ying and sneered, "My sister's cultivation is naturally a matter for my father and me, her elder brother, to worry about. Elder Xiao, instead of worrying about my sister, you should take better care of your own disciples. Otherwise, you'll end up in last place again in this sect competition!"

Wow~ Sang Ying couldn't help but sigh at these words; Jimo Qing really dared to say that.

Despite being openly mocked by a junior, Elder Xiao showed no anger whatsoever. He simply stated the matter at hand, "My disciples are simply too naive and inflexible, which is why they are repeatedly outmaneuvered by those shameless individuals. My concern for my disciples is the same as my concern for Miss Jimo."

"Your sister is a rough gem! Keeping her cooped up in the mansion like this will only clip her wings!"

Elder Xiao's face was full of heartache at the lack of opportunities to cultivate promising talents, but Jimo Qing became increasingly angry as he listened.

Don't think he can't tell; this guy just wants to trick his sister into becoming his apprentice!

"Ha! We appreciate Elder Xiao's kindness, but how the Jimo Household raises our daughter is none of your concern, Ten Thousand Daos Born's business!" With that, Jimo Qing gave Sang Ying a perfunctory bow and then quickly pulled her away.

But Elder Xiao clearly hadn't given up. Even after Sang Ying had walked quite a distance, she could still hear him shouting, "Miss Ji Mo, if you're interested in joining a sect, you're welcome to try your luck at my Ten Thousand Daos Born sect!"

Sang Ying wanted to turn around and say something, but Jimo Qing forcefully pulled her away.

On their way out, Jimo Qing didn't forget to advise them, "Don't be fooled by Ten Thousand Daos Born and his group's seemingly upright appearance. They're just a bunch of stubborn, uncultured old men! Don't believe their sweet talk. If you join Ten Thousand Daos Born, you'll see how rigid they really are!"

Judging from Jimo Qing's appearance, it seems he also suffered some losses at Ten Thousand Daos Born's hands.

Seeing that he was speaking seriously, Sang Ying did not disturb him, but listened quietly.

Fortunately, Jimo Qing quickly vented his resentment. He glanced at the sky outside and reverted to his gentle demeanor. "Where are you staying now? Why don't you take me back?"

Sang Ying naturally remembered that Cang Lian was still in her courtyard. Even though Jimo Qing had promised to keep her secret, Sang Ying still dared not entrust such an important matter to him completely.

She had no choice but to decline, saying, "Let's leave it for today. I'll invite you over when we're both freeer. So much has happened today, you should go home and rest early."

Jimo Qing didn't insist and readily agreed.

Before leaving, however, he didn't forget to mention the Jimo Household: "Little sister, if you're not too busy later, why don't you come home with me?"

"Go home for a visit?" Sang Ying already had a vague feeling that something was amiss.

Jimo Qing continued, "Yes, nowadays, anyone with a reputation in the Immortal Spirit Realm knows that you are a young lady of the Jimo Household. Naturally, you should come back with me to see Father."

He spoke with absolute certainty, as if Sang Ying were truly his sister.

Only after hearing this did Sang Ying finally understand that from beginning to end, this person had been planning to completely incorporate her into the Jimo Household!

In reality, being incorporated into the Jimo Household, and thus becoming a direct descendant of the Jimo Household, clearly puts Sang Ying in a more advantageous position.

But Sang Ying felt it was inappropriate to agree so readily.

Before she could refuse, Jimo Qing's brows furrowed with resentment again. "You don't know, my father has always hoped for a daughter, but the higher a cultivator's cultivation level, the more difficult it becomes to have offspring. So for so many years, my father and mother have carried this regret every day."

"Now that I finally have you, but you refuse to come back with me, how heartbroken they will be if they find out!"

Although it was a bit of an exaggeration, what Jimo Qing said wasn't entirely a lie. After all, after recovering from her injuries, Madam Jimo did mention wanting to meet the person who had delivered the medicine to her.

Previously, Jimo Qing hadn't had this idea; he simply felt that he could help the other party when necessary.

However, after witnessing the other party's actions in saving the ice dragon, Jimo Qing had other ideas.

Few can resist the allure of an existence like the Ice Dragon and not want a piece of its spoils. His resistance stems from his awareness of past mistakes and the terrible consequences of slaying a dragon.

Not only did the other party remain unmoved, but they also dared to rescue the ice dragon single-handedly. Such a person cannot be a villain.

He possesses the tenacity to attract divine soldiers, the decisiveness to venture alone, and the compassion to others... Such a promising individual deserves to be recruited into our household.

For Jimo Qing, exchanging the identity of a young lady from the Jimo Household for a virtuous and capable member of her clan was a very easy deal to make.

His lies were really poorly crafted, but Sang Ying was the type who responded better to gentle persuasion than force.

Jimo Qing was extremely adept at reading people's minds and immediately saw her hesitation. He then pressed on, "Even if you don't believe me, as a young lady of the Jimo Household, you should still pay a visit to my father."

Since they've already gone this far, it would be really pretentious for Sang Ying to refuse again.

She could only sigh and say, "Then I'll have to trouble your father. May I ask when you plan to depart, brother?"

Jimo Qing shook his fan. "No rush, about ten days from now. You have plenty of time to take care of your own affairs during this period."

The implication was that Sang Ying was given ten days to hide Cang Lian.

Sang Ying nodded, feeling somewhat grateful for Jimo Qing's thoughtfulness.

After the two settled the matter, they went their separate ways.

However, while they were discussing returning to Spirit Prefecture, the Gong Household's dragon-slaying Dragon-Slaying Grand Assembly, which had become a laughing stock, had already been spread far and wide.

As the Holy Maiden of the Mara Gate, Su Fuyun was naturally among the first to learn of this matter.

Upon hearing this news, she nearly dropped the Jade Slip in her hand that was engraved with advanced Cultivation Method.

"What did you say? The Gong Household colluded with the dragon to seize the Immortal Spirit Realm?!" Su Fuyun looked at the maid kneeling at her feet, hardly believing what she had heard.

The maid dared not lie and repeated the story again, finally conveying the sect leader's message: "After learning of this, the sect leader specifically instructed me to tell the Holy Maiden that regardless of whether this is true or not, the Gong Household is doomed, and our Mara Gate Gong Household absolutely not have any further involvement with them!"

The current intention is to make Su Fuyun sever all ties with the Third Young Master Gong.

Su Fuyun was naturally happy about this, since she had long seen through that so-called Third Young Master and he was of no real ability and of no help to her.

Just then, another maid came to report that the third young master of the Gong Household was waiting for her outside again, but this time he looked very anxious, probably because he had encountered some trouble.

Su Fuyun smiled dismissively upon hearing this. It wasn't that he had encountered a difficult situation, after all, the future enemies of the Gong Household could very well be all the major forces in the entire Immortal Spirit Realm!

"Send him away. He's worthless. How could he be worthy of my door?" Facing his own people, Su Fuyun didn't bother with pretense anymore, and his personality became much more flamboyant than before.

The maid obeyed and turned around to rudely drive the person away. It was unknown how the third young master would react to those hurtful words.

The farce in Yao Zhou's main city quickly spread to Spirit Prefecture, but along with the Gong Household's affairs, the news that Jimo Household head had suddenly gained a daughter also reached his ears.

Before the head of the Jimo Household could even react to the news, someone outside announced loudly, "Master, the madam heard that you have a new daughter and is on her way to congratulate you!"

The head of the Jimo Household trembled slightly, and looked at the steward beside him with a serious expression. "Do you remember which road is closest to the house?"

The butler stood silently, hands clasped:... Isn't it a bit too late to escape now?

A note from the author:

The head of the Jimo Household: A cold and serious man to outsiders, but a loving and devoted husband and father to his wife!