Chapter 681: Unexpected Turns in Life

One week later.

The sunlight was just right.

There was not a breath of wind in the sky.

It had been overcast for half a month, but today it suddenly cleared up.

Many people were busy in the Square; those doing the labor were all women, while the ones supervising were men!

The women knelt on the ground, using rags to scrub the marble tiles bit by bit; if they were even a little slow, they would be brutally beaten by the supervisors.

"Hurry up! You can't do anything right, dawdling like that—you're not even as good as pigs!" The man used a whip soaked in cold water to lash the woman again and again, showing no tenderness or pity, only the joy of having turned the tables to become the master!

The men of the Ji Family had been enslaved by women for thousands of years, but now everything was reversed, and they were even more vicious than those women had been.

A classic case of a petty person drunk on success.

The subordinates of Feiying watched the spectacle from the sidelines, not participating.

This kind of scene seemed quite amusing at first, but after seeing it too many times, it was just more of the same.

It was nothing more than the east wind prevailing over the west wind.

The strong ruling the weak.

The women were angry but dared not speak; those who dared to speak had already been arrested. If they wanted to survive, they had no choice but to swallow their pride!

The Square was scrubbed spotless, then covered with a long red carpet, and a massive, imposing Golden Dragon Throne was carried onto the high platform.

Zhu Yiwen prepared to hold a grand ceremony.

An Abdication Ceremony.

When his wings were not yet fully grown, he had held the sovereign hostage to command the vassals, controlling the women of high status and power to do his bidding.

But now that those women had been dealt with one by one, he no longer needed Ji Yingjie, the "living dead," to act as his puppet.

Zhu Yiwen had written an "Abdication Document" himself and made the Clan Leader "press" her thumbprint onto it.

After today's ceremony, he planned to take over the Ji Family "legitimately."

Once the Ji Family was completely in his grasp, he could finish off that eyesore of a woman.

Ji Yingjie was Zhu Yiwen's nightmare.

He hated women, but this was the first time he had loathed one to such a degree!

The commoners had all arrived.

They surrounded the Square, packed tight.

But the people were not convinced, and many suspected the truth of the matter.

Feiying was ruthless and cruel; everyone had seen his methods, so no one dared to oppose him openly, and they only muttered in low voices below.

"Hey, do you think the Clan Leader would really abdicate her position to that man?"

"Hmph, 'abdication' my foot. It's just a treacherous villain plotting to usurp the throne."

"Our Ji Family is finished. Years of foundation have actually been handed over to an outsider for nothing..."

The people were filled with righteous indignation, yet they could only mutter to vent their dissatisfaction.

If those in high positions of power could not stop him, what could they, the lowly commoners, do?

The auspicious hour arrived.

The Wizard appeared in full regalia.

The Wizard held a high status in the Ji Family; without her at the Abdication Ceremony, it would not be legitimate.

The Wizard was not truly willing to preside for Zhu Yiwen, but she had no choice.

Feiying had captured her favorite granddaughter to threaten her; if she did not agree to preside over the Abdication Ceremony, he would sell her favorite granddaughter away.

There was no other way; she had to agree.

The Wizard recited a very long speech, the gist of which was that Zhu Yiwen becoming Clan Leader was the will of heaven, that the old Clan Leader had consented, and that all commoners must listen to the new Clan Leader and obey unconditionally...

Once these words were finished, it would be the authorization ceremony.

The Wizard was to hand the Golden Staff, which symbolized the power of the Clan Leader, to the new Clan Leader; the new Clan Leader would ascend the throne, accept the kneeling of the entire clan, and the ceremony would be over!

Zhu Yiwen stood at the other end of the red carpet, wearing a smile, though he was actually quite impatient inside.

He wanted to finish quickly, always feeling that if the time dragged on, there would be complications.

But this was the rule passed down by the Ji Family for thousands of years, and it had always been done this way, so he could not appear too eager!

It felt as long as a century to him, but finally, the reading was finished.

The Wizard held the Golden Staff, which symbolized power, and walked slowly toward Zhu Yiwen; his smile now was from the heart—he was very proud and very happy.

The power of the Clan Leader was finally about to be his!

The Wizard finally stood before him and extended the Golden Staff— "Stop!"

The very moment Zhu Yiwen was about to reach out his hand, he heard the voice he least wanted to hear!

Nianyin appeared in the Square suddenly, as if she had fallen from the sky.

She pointed at Zhu Yiwen and said to the watching commoners: "Do not be deceived by him! It was he who harmed the Clan Leader. If he ascends to the position of Clan Leader, our entire Ji Family will be wiped out by outsiders..."

"Seize her! She is a traitor to the Ji Family!" Zhu Yiwen ordered Feiying to capture Nianyin immediately.

But this time, Feiying did not listen to him.

Feiying approached Nianyin, his expression pleasant: "You've got guts, little girl. Do you know that coming back here is just throwing your life away? But if you agree to be with me and become my woman, I can spare your life."

Feiying had taken a fancy to Nianyin.

Not just because of her beauty, but also her courage and ability.

A few days ago, they had searched almost the entire clan, knowing Nianyin was there, yet they could not catch her.

Not only did they fail to catch her, they hadn't even seen her Yingzi.

Now that I finally see the real person, she is truly beautiful!

"Get lost!"

Nianyin was disdainful, not even sparing him a glance.

Seeing this, Zhu Yiwen immediately signaled his own man, meaning for him to fire a sneak shot and kill Nianyin.

Feiying was already hard enough to manage, which was a headache in itself.

Now that he had taken a fancy to Nianyin, it would be even more troublesome if the two joined forces, so Zhu Yiwen was moved to kill.

The subordinate hesitated and dared not act.

If he killed a woman that Feiying had taken a fancy to, he would not be far from death himself.

One comes out into this life to enjoy wealth and glory, not to throw their life away.

Feiying was not angry at being rejected; instead, his interest in Nianyin grew even stronger.

He blocked Nianyin's path and asked her, "Are you Nianyin? We have searched every inch of this place for you these past few days; where have you been hiding?"

Nianyin was anxious to expose Zhu Yiwen's true colors and could not let the so-called "Abdication Ceremony" proceed smoothly, so how could she be in the mood to make small talk with him?

"Get out of the way, a good dog doesn't block the path."

Feiying said, "You must be Nianyin." No one else would have such great courage to speak to him in such a tone.

He had been at the Ji Family for some time and had seen with his own eyes that the women here, while fierce in appearance, would be terrified and immediately beg for mercy the moment there was any danger.

The weaknesses of human nature were displayed vividly in these women.

But the woman before him was different.

She was fearless in the face of danger, neither servile nor overbearing.

Even a fool could see that the current situation was very unfavorable for her, yet she could still maintain the arrogance that radiated from her very bones and remain aloof, making Feiying hold Nianyin in even higher regard.

Seeing his subordinate hesitate to act, Zhu Yiwen drew his gun, prepared to do it himself.

"Duck."

Feiying discovered Zhu Yiwen firing a sneak shot and pulled Nianyin into his arms; the bullet grazed her scalp as it flew past.

It didn't hit; it missed by just a hair's breadth.

The bullet struck a pillar in the middle of the Square, sparks flew, and the bullet fell to the ground.

"Ah!"

"Ahhhhh!"

Although no one was injured at the scene, the people were terrified and began to flee in all directions!

Zhu Yiwen was furious and ordered his men, "Stop them! The ceremony hasn't finished yet, no one is allowed to leave!"

Heaven knows how long he had been planning for this day?

How much preparation he had made?

Now that it was easily ruined because of this woman Nianyin, he was not reconciled.

The people were blocked and herded back.