Chapter 93: Returning to the Ye Family

Upon hearing this, Liu Yuesong's face instantly turned deathly pale,

His lips trembled as he tried to say something,

But in the end he still couldn't speak.

She knew that any further explanation at this point would be futile, so she could only silently accept the punishment.

She knew that the days in prison would surely be harsh and difficult to endure,

but merely spending ten years would regain her freedom,

compared to that, it was already a great fortune.

After all, she had previously even worried that she might lose an arm,

now she could escape unharmed,

all thanks to Ruyan just now,

but thinking of how Ruyan actually had a death wish just earlier,

Liu Yuesong's heart felt another pang of anguish.

At the same time, Ye Qingping's gaze gradually fell upon Ye Ruyan's petite figure.

Facing this child, he indeed felt it was a bit tricky,

not knowing how to punish her properly.

In his view, Ye Ruyan is still young,

many of her thoughts and actions are merely imitations of others,

and the most crucial influencing factor among them

is that Liu Yuesong has led her astray from the proper path.

After a moment of silence, Ye Qingping finally spoke:

"From now on, all affairs of the two of you in the Ye Family must prioritize Xiuxiu."

"Whatever the matter, Xiuxiu shall have the priority of choice. Furthermore, I will also favor and protect Xiuxiu more in the future."

"Take this as your punishment."

Ye Ruyan hearing this couldn't help but be slightly startled,

obviously she had not expected things to develop this way.

Recalling her days at home in her previous life,

she seemed to have gained nothing of value from them.

In that light, this so-called punishment for her

is practically like scratching an itch through a boot,

basically unable to have any substantive effect.

Moreover, the alleged favoritism toward Xiuxiu

has never been lacking before?

it's merely making this favoritism overt instead of covert.

Thinking of this, Ye Ruyan's heart involuntarily rose a hint of helplessness,

but she quickly regained her composure.

She nodded without hesitation and said softly:

"Everything will be as Father arranges."

She then added, "Whatever punishment Father gives, the daughter will willingly accept."

Seeing Ye Ruyan's attitude of admitting fault so sincere and good,

Ye Qingping's originally tense expression finally eased a little,

He gave a slight nod, indicating approval,

and the corners of his mouth also revealed a relieved smile.

Afterwards, he turned his head to look at Bai Qingxia and Ye Xiuxiu beside him,

and asked gently, "Xiuxiu, Qingxia, are you still satisfied with the punishment outcome for them?"

Bai Qingxia, upon hearing this, still felt very satisfied; this was enough, even more than she had thought.

She hurriedly nodded and replied:

"Everything is up to my husband."

Meanwhile, Ye Xiuxiu followed suit,

chiming in cutely, "Everything is as Father says!"

This little girl's mind is simple,

she never even considered the pros and cons,

she only knows that after this incident,

she herself has suffered no loss at all.

Seeing both mother and daughter express satisfaction with this,

Ye Qingping's hanging heart finally let go completely.

He raised his head to gaze at the sky and sighed slowly:

"We have lingered long enough in this ancestral land; it's time to set off for home."

After spending another two days in peace at the Ye Family Ancestral Land,

Ye Qingping decisively decided to set out and return to the Ye Family.

All that was seen was him lightly sweeping his sleeve.

An ancient, mysterious red palanquin appeared out of thin air before their eyes.

This ancient palanquin radiated a faint spiritual glow,

and the members of the Ye Family filed in one after another, boarding the ancient palanquin.

However, unlike when they had come,

the returning party now had an additional figure — Ye Xiuxiu's second uncle, Ye Qingming.

Ye Qingming intended to follow Ye Qingping and devote himself to cultivation, in order to raise his own cultivation level.

Not only that, he was also eagerly looking forward to consulting Ye Xiuxiu about the art of artifact refining in the future.

At the same time, a flash of light appeared in Ye Qingping's hand,

and a spatial Magic Treasure quietly materialized.

He opened this spatial Magic Treasure,

and inside it was filled with clear spring water from Jinhua Spring and fresh, juicy Jinhua Peaches.

These were not specially prepared for Ye Xiuxiu,

but for that adorable little creature who clung to Ye Xiuxiu all day long — the Jinhua Cat.

Ye Qingping knew well the Jinhua Cat's dependence on Ye Xiuxiu,

so he had specially prepared these treats for it,

as the saying goes — love me, love my dog!

At this moment, Ye Xiuxiu was sitting by the window with the Jinhua Cat in her arms,

her gaze passing through the window toward the vast, boundless earth below.

Suddenly, as if she had remembered something,

she murmured to herself:

"I wonder how Brother Guan Dong's study of the sage's words has been coming along?"

"He's nearly seven now — time passes so fast. He must have started cultivating already, but I wonder what level his cultivation has reached."

As her thoughts drifted, the figure of Chen Gong Dong surfaced in her mind. Recalling the previous Ascension Festival,

after the event ended, Chen Gong Dong had returned home with his parents.

So much time had passed since then,

and she did not know whether he had already returned.

Moreover, Ye Xiuxiu could not help but feel curious about how large the Confucian Sage Association, which she had founded, had grown by now.

Just how vast was the scale of the Confucian Sage Association?

Only when everyone gathered together again next time would she be able to see the full picture.

Originally, Ye Xiuxiu had stated that everyone would meet again the following year,

but since the Ascension Gathering was held only once every three years,

the next time they met would be three years later.

By then, every person present would have turned seven years old.

Fortunately, she had set foot on the path of cultivation early on,

for if she had started a bit later, facing so many people,

should they riot, she might truly have found it difficult to control the situation.

Two days later, Ye Qingping led everyone to a specially built enormous prison located within the borders of Great Xia.

As for what matters were discussed during this time,

Ye Xiuxiu had no knowledge.

In any case, when she returned home, she found that her second mother, Liu Yuesong, was no longer aboard the ancient palanquin.

After another half a day or so had passed,

the ancient palanquin finally reappeared in the sky above the Ye Family estate.

He Pingsheng, together with Chen Gong Dong, hurried forward to greet them.

Chen Gong Dong fixed his eyes unblinking on Ye Xiuxiu as she gracefully stepped out of the ancient palanquin,

and said urgently:

"Sister Xiuxiu, you've finally come back!"

His face full of grievance, he continued:

"I was worried all along that you wouldn't need me as your Left Protector anymore."

Chen Gong Dong's face was filled with anxiety, his eyes reddening,

as if tears were about to burst forth at any second.

His voice trembling, he said:

"It's been nearly three years!"

"Do you know how I've gotten through these three years?"

That tone was filled with endless resentment and bitterness.

Beside them, Ye Xiuxiu turned to look at Chen Gong Dong,

gently patted his shoulder, and consoled him:

"Don't be anxious, Left Protector."

(End of this chapter)