Chapter 8: The First Step in Trash‑Bashing!

"Where did this nobody come from, daring to impersonate someone from our glorious Ye Family!"

Ye Qingran turned her head to look, a graceful figure ascended the steps, with maids and attendants following, calling out front and back, the scene extremely grand!

That girl looked about fifteen or sixteen, dressed in gold and silver, fine silks and satins, her face full of willfulness and arrogance.

Ye Sisi, the younger sister of Ye Huanhuan.

Five years ago, Ye Sisi was just over ten, yet already vicious to an extreme degree; bullying the original host was merely everyday fare.

Now grown up, the viciousness in her brows and eyes seems even greater than before.

Ye Sisi looked at that back view, already feeling jealousy; upon seeing Ye Qingran's full appearance, her jealousy turned into frenzy.

Originally I thought Ye Qingran had died suddenly and Lin Xueyan had left Xiliang City, so her looks could rank in the top three; I never expected this woman to be even more beautiful than Lin Xueyan.

Where did this lowly person come from?

"Who are you?" Ye Sisi demanded in a low voice.

"What, you don't remember me?" Ye Qingran stood lazily, her smile like a poppy.

Ye Sisi froze; a face suddenly surfaced in her mind, and her face instantly turned pale.

"It's you, Ye Qingran?! You, you wretch, you're not dead?!"

Back then, Ye Qingran mysteriously disappeared, and everyone thought she had died.

This matter caused a great uproar, known throughout the city.

This was merely an outward explanation.

But the truth is, her sister Ye Huanhuan and Lin Xueyan set a trap, throwing Ye Qingran's corpse into the wilderness; she was also an accomplice.

"How could I die before you?" She still had many things left undone.

Ye Sisi accepted this fact; the shock on her face gradually turned into mockery: "You shameless wretch, death would have been a perfect end for you, yet you still have the nerve to come back!"

Ye Qingran curled her lips into a smile: "Of course I have the face to come back; look at this face, isn't it more beautiful than before?"

Ye Qingran's voice was not low; the surrounding guards and servants heard it clearly.

Only seeing the woman in white robes purer than snow, her figure slender and tall, black hair like a waterfall, skin like jade, features exquisitely perfect, standing there, graceful and elegant, like a snow lotus on Tianshan, her bearing transcendent, ethereally beautiful.

Astonishingly, she seemed like a heavenly being.

The guards and servants present, regardless of any prior bias toward Ye Qingran, were now shocked by her ultimate beauty.

The First Beauty of Xiliang City, truly deserving of the title!

Especially Ye Sisi, still oblivious to life or death, standing opposite her.

Ye Sisi was actually quite beautiful herself, but compared to Ye Qingran, she simply wasn't worthy of a glance.

Just like an ugly duckling!

Magnifying her flaws endlessly only further highlights Ye Qingran's beauty and grace!

Ye Sisi naturally also felt the gap, and the servants' strange gazes.

She felt uncomfortable all over!

Her heart filled with extreme shame and annoyance, the fire of jealousy blazing fiercely.

Didn't Ye Huanhuan say, first ruin this wretch's appearance then push her off the cliff?

Originally having Ye Huanhuan press down on her within the Ye Family already made her displeased; now Ye Qingran has returned, a hundred times more beautiful than Ye Huanhuan, making her furious beyond measure.

"You wretch, slut, watch me not claw your face!" Ye Sisi shouted coquettishly, her hands turned into claws, grabbing toward Ye Qingran's face, her momentum fierce, seeming determined not to rest until that face was destroyed.

Ye Qingran sidestepped to dodge; Ye Sisi stumbled, turned her head, and a slap struck her delicate cheek like lightning, producing a crisp sound.

"Wretch! You dare hit me! I'll fight you to the end!"

Ye Qingran responded calmly, raising and lowering her jade hand; before anyone knew it, Ye Sisi's face was swollen and red, and she collapsed straight to the ground.

"Do you think I'm still the same as before? These few slaps are merely a greeting; we have a long future ahead."

Ye Qingran stepped on Ye Sisi's face with one foot.

Arrogant as an empress!

Everyone was shocked beyond belief.

Is this person still the timid, obedient eldest miss of the Ye Family from back then?

At this moment, who would dare block Ye Qingran's path?

Only after Ye Qingran entered the Ye Residence did Ye Sisi come to her senses.

"Ye Qingran, you damned wretch, stop right there…"

"Sir, the young miss has returned!"

"Huanhuan is back? How so fast?" Ye Yu instinctively thought it was Ye Huanhuan returning early from her examination at the Xuan Yuan Sword Sect.

The servant who came to report shook his head: "No, it's, it's… Ye Qingran!"

"What did you say?" Ye Yu jumped to his feet, his face filled with shock.

Wasn't Ye Qingran supposed to have died five years ago?

Back then, Ye Huanhuan told him about that incident; he was already dissatisfied with this daughter, so he turned a blind eye.

Ye Qingran was timid and obedient, like a fool; although she possessed a holy spiritual root, her cultivation speed was extremely slow—she was good for nothing except her beauty.

Originally he worried that Ye Qingran's death would be disadvantageous to him; he never expected Ye Huanhuan to have done it so secretly that even if Yun Sui Feng's followers suspected their Ye Family members, they lacked sufficient evidence.

Originally it would have been perfect if Ye Qingran died, contributing her once-in-a-millennium holy spiritual root to Ye Huanhuan and their Ye Family, giving them another illustrious genius to bring honor to the gate.

But five years later, Ye Qingran has returned?

What has she come back to do?

Ye Yu furrowed his brows, wearing an expression of annoyance.

"Qingran, is it really you?" Ye Yu walked out of the hall, came onto the stone steps, looking down at Ye Qingran walking slowly toward him, his face showing a mix of sorrow and joy.

Ye Qingran smirked coldly in her heart.

Sure enough, it's an old fox.

No wonder, even her dashing mother was fooled by him!

"It's me." Ye Qingran stood at the bottom of the stone steps, curling her lips into a faint smile.

I never thought, but I really believed this was a beautiful picture of paternal kindness and filial devotion.

"You're not dead—that's wonderful! These past years, how… have you gotten by?"

Ye Yu's eyes flickered as he asked probing questions.

Ye Qingran survived a fall from a ten‑thousand‑zhang cliff; it's hardly accidental—she must have had some extraordinary encounter. Looking at her appearance, she seems different from before.

Could there be some powerful backing behind her?

If so, he could make good use of it!

Thinking of this, he became all the more sincere.

How could Ye Qingran not know what Ye Yu is thinking?

"Perhaps I'm lucky; back then I fell into a deep ravine, was saved by an old pharmacist, and these years I've been recuperating in the village…"

She deliberately emphasized 'the village,' so it's no surprise to see Ye Yu's brows slightly furrowed.

"The village?"

"With such serious injuries, what village conditions could possibly cure you?"

Could it be a village where reclusive masters gather?

"Taohua Village—although the villagers don't practice cultivation, they have ancient prescriptions for healing injuries." Ye Qingran's eyes were clear, and she didn't look like she was lying at all.

In her arms, the little milk tiger she held lifted its head to look at Ye Qingran, its blue eyes blinking innocently.

The master tells lies without even drafting them.

He was fooled exactly like that back then.

Upon hearing Ye Qingran say that, Ye Yu instantly felt utterly disappointed.

He even thought that Ye Qingran had survived a great calamity, perhaps it was related to that Ghost Doctor who had become famous in the Central Region in recent years; who would have thought that these past few years she merely kept company with a bunch of villagers who had never seen the world, truly disappointing him to the extreme!