Chapter 191: Master-Servant Game

"Ma Xingkong, what on earth are you doing!"

An angry shout came from far to near, bringing the somewhat dazed Ma Xingkong back to his senses; his expression turned to shock, for this was his sister's voice.

But wasn't his sister at home?

Before he could figure out what was going on, Ma Qiushui had already used a family Secret Technique to glide on the wind into the Bell Tower, staring fiercely at the bewildered Ma Xingkong.

Immediately, she noticed Li Heng and the unconscious Kong Que.

"And who are you people? Friends of Ma Xingkong?"

Ma Qiushui furrowed her brows and asked suspiciously.

"Sister, why are you here?"

"Why am I here? You don't even think about the mess you've made! How did Grandfather teach you? A Bell Ringer can only ring the bell twice a day, once in the morning and once in the evening; how did you manage to ring it twice in a row?"

Ma Xingkong was stunned upon hearing this and hurriedly waved his hands in denial.

"Sister, I really didn't do this."

"You actually dare to quibble? Today, you are the Bell Ringer; besides you, who else could ring this Jinhua Ancient Bell? Could it be an Evil Demon or something Weird?" Ma Qiushui was so angry she laughed.

"Mmm, hmph..."

Kong Que, who had been unconscious, opened her eyes and looked at everything before her; she felt somewhat lost and panicked in her heart, but the moment she saw Li Heng, her heart immediately settled, and her Reason returned.

"Master, was I unconscious just now?"

Li Heng smiled and nodded; Kong Que's willpower was quite good, as she was able to wake up in such a short time even after being unconscious, and the Peacock Bloodline within her body had already begun to evolve.

Master, unconscious?

The two did not hide their exchange in the slightest. This caused Ma Qiushui, who had originally intended to lecture her younger brother Ma Xingkong, to freeze, suddenly realizing that this matter was not simple.

Ma Xingkong was dumbfounded again at the sight.

What is going on?

How did this woman wake up from her unconsciousness again?

He had previously thought that this woman had ignored his advice and been shaken to death by the bell sound after forcefully ringing it, or perhaps she had been severely injured and left unconscious; yet, she had woken up so quickly?

And the aura radiating from her whole body was even more vigorous than before?

He opened his mouth wide, feeling it was unbelievable.

That a woman who was not a Bell Ringer could ring the Jinhua Ancient Bell was within the realm of understanding; after all, as long as the force was great enough, it was theoretically possible to ring it. But the backlash force brought by the bell sound—not only did it not leave her severely injured, but it actually allowed her to advance further?

What kind of joke is this?

If it were that simple, then what are they, these Bell Ringers, supposed to be?

Could it be that this woman is the true Bell Ringer?

"What on earth happened here?"

Hearing his sister's question, Ma Xingkong hurriedly spoke up, "Sister, I tell you, you must not be afraid of what happens next."

Ma Qiushui rolled her eyes at Ma Xingkong.

"Look at you saying that; I am your sister, I have undergone professional training! You brat, speak if you have something to say, and spit it out if you have to, don't waste time."

"Alright then."

"Actually, the one who rang the Jinhua Ancient Bell just now was not me, but this lady in front of you."

Ma Xingkong pointed at Kong Que and said with a serious expression.

Ma Qiushui was stunned upon hearing this; she looked at Kong Que, sizing her up from head to toe, and suddenly felt a bit jealous. Because the young woman before her was indeed prettier than her, and her figure was also better than hers.

Damn it, even though she practiced martial arts day and night.

Yet she was not as well-endowed as her!

She clenched her fists in her heart, feeling somewhat indignant.

But the next moment, she hurriedly shook her head, casting these distracting thoughts out of her mind, and spoke with a serious expression, "You rang the Jinhua Ancient Bell just now; are you also a Bell Ringer?"

"But there should only be one Bell Ringer per day."

Ma Qiushui's face showed suspicion; was this brat lying to her?

Seeing this, Ma Xingkong hurriedly shook his head, "Sister, I am absolutely not lying to you; that woman does not have the Bell Ringer Mark on her body; if you don't believe me, you can try sensing it carefully."

"Or why don't you let her ring the bell again and see?"

These words were spoken with conviction, but Ma Qiushui was still somewhat skeptical.

From Kong Que's words just now, she could roughly guess the relationship between Kong Que and Li Heng, thinking they were some playboy and his personal maid; could such a combination, by joining forces, ring the Jinhua Bell?

What kind of joke is this?

Kong Que received a signal from Li Heng, smiled, and spoke softly.

"This young lady, please don't make things difficult for this little fellow; the Jinhua Bell sound just now was indeed rung by me."

"Oh? How am I to believe it was you who rang it? And not that my good-for-nothing brother caused trouble and then called someone nearby to take the blame in order to escape punishment?"

Ma Xingkong cried out that he was wronged upon hearing this.

"Sister, can't you use your brain and think? With my cultivation, ringing the Jinhua Bell twice in a row would cost me my life; how would I have the ability to still stand here and argue with you?"

Ma Qiushui felt that this seemed to be the case upon hearing it.

This brat's cultivation really couldn't manage to ring the Jinhua Bell twice in a row.

Could it really have been this woman who rang it?

After all, besides her own good-for-nothing brother, there was only a playboy and his personal maid on the Bell Tower. A playboy, after all, neglects his training and has low cultivation; on the contrary, his personal maid has higher cultivation and can serve as a guard.

She looked at Li Heng, who had remained silent, and felt a bit of regret in her heart; this man was quite good-looking, yet he was playing a master-servant game with his own maid—he was nine-tenths likely a playboy.

And doing it so openly? Could he be a bit more discreet?

"So that is to say, the young lady was unconscious just now because she rang the Jinhua Bell and was backlashed by the sound of the Jinhua Bell?" Ma Qiushui seemed to have thought of something, her eyes lighting up as she spoke.

"That could be considered so, or perhaps not."

Kong Que pondered for a moment and said with some uncertainty.

She could not tell if her fainting just now was caused by the shock of the bell or by the beginning of her own bloodline evolution.

Ma Qiushui fell into deep thought upon hearing this.

The woman before her was about the same age as herself, and presumably, her cultivation had not yet broken through to the Innate realm; yet, she had been able to ring the Jinhua Bell without the Bell Ringer Mark and ended up only briefly unconscious.

After waking up, she was actually without any major ailments.

It was as if the counter-shock force of the Jinhua Bell were fake.

To achieve this at such an age, there could only be one possibility: this playboy's maid was a heaven-sent talent, and now that she had become a maid, her natural gifts were truly buried.

She wondered if she could poach her.

Even if it didn't work, she had to be on good terms with her...

It was just that she didn't know what the playboy's character was like.

Ma Qiushui shifted her gaze back to Li Heng, feeling more and more regret in her heart; the more she looked at this playboy, the more handsome she found him, but it was a pity he was a playboy, and she didn't know which family he belonged to.

He looked quite unfamiliar, not like someone from Jinhua City.

"For what reason did you ring the Jinhua Bell?"

She calmed some of her thoughts and asked.

Although the origin of the Jinhua Bell could be traced back a thousand years to when Jinhua City was first built, it did not have much representative significance; at most, ringing it in the morning symbolized the opening of the market, and ringing it in the evening symbolized the closing of the market.

Could it be that these two wanted to make Jinhua City close the market early?

What kind of childish behavior was this?

And it was of no use either.

The sound of the bell was merely symbolic and had no mandatory effect; the opening and closing of the market were already regulated, and even if you rang it early, people wouldn't close the market early—the common folk were not fools.

Could it be just for the benefits given for ringing the Jinhua Bell?

But ringing the bell without the Bell Ringer Mark was a violation of the rules; these two must be people from noble families, so was it worth going to such great lengths and risking being shocked to death by the Jinhua Bell?

"The purpose of ringing the Jinhua Bell?"

At this moment, Li Heng suddenly spoke up and laughed.

"Actually, there are two purposes: one is to help this girl of mine get rid of the fear in her heart and the weakness in her body; the second is to seek justice, as I just feel that ringing the Jinhua Bell is quite good."

Ma Qiushui was taken aback upon hearing this, feeling somewhat puzzled.

Although she did not understand what Li Heng's first purpose was, the second purpose—seeking justice? What a joke. The Jinhua Bell was not the long-neglected grievance drum at the Prefecture Governor's Mansion; ringing it would not make a righteous official hold court to preside over justice for you.

And weren't you a scion of a noble family? Even if not a noble family, you should be from a well-known clan. If there was something wrong, you could just tell your elders and pull some strings; why seek justice?

Seeking justice? Ma Xingkong was stunned upon hearing this.

He suddenly thought of something, his eyes lit up, and he spoke.

"Sister, they are here for Aunt's matter."

Aunt?

Ma Qiushui was astonished upon hearing this, "Are you talking about Aunt Ma Suxuan?"

"Yes, that's right, they are old friends of Aunt Ma Suxuan!"

Ma Xingkong said excitedly.

He had originally thought that although this man and woman were old friends of his aunt, they were ultimately not those profound, high-level elderly masters, which was why he had desperately tried to stop Kong Que from ringing the bell to avoid injury.

But he hadn't expected that Kong Que could really ring the Jinhua Bell and only be briefly unconscious, waking up safe and sound. That was enough to show that these two old friends of his aunt seemed to have some real skills.

Now they even mentioned the words "seek justice."

Perhaps they could really save his aunt?

"You say they are old friends of Aunt?"

Ma Qiushui was shocked upon hearing this and asked again, emphasizing her tone. What was this? A man and a woman, one a playboy, one a personal maid, and they were actually old friends of her Aunt Ma Suxuan?

What kind of joke was this? It was clearly impossible.

Although she did not discriminate against the existence of playboys.

As long as these playboys did not bully men or women and did not run rampant in the countryside, there was nothing to say about them spending their own money on debauchery. Playing master-servant games with their own maids was better than forcibly seizing women.

But she did not believe that her aunt would have any connection with such people.

"Yes, that's right, they have a token given by Aunt."

Ma Xingkong said with certainty.

Li Heng once again revealed the token given by Ma Suxuan; Ma Qiushui took a close look and was stunned on the spot—it really was her aunt's token. And anyone who could be given this token showed that their relationship with her aunt was not shallow!

Were this man and woman really old friends of her aunt?

Could it be that she had thought wrong just now?

Was this man not a playboy?

She had always believed that people like playboys would absolutely never have any connection with her aunt, as her aunt did not visit brothels.

"Alright, since everything has been explained."

"Then let me seek some justice."

Li Heng looked at the Jinhua Bell, having already roughly grasped the details of this Bronze Ancient Bell, and smiled slightly.