Chapter 199 - 198: Seven Families Stick to Old Customs, The Plum Blossom Blooms Twice

The Liu family’s birthday banquet was set to begin at seven in the evening.

As the banquet’s start time approached, more and more guests arrived, making the banquet site increasingly lively.

Thanks to having Jiang Yini by his side, Li Jing was not bothered.

The Seven Great Families were traditionalists and were very strict about one’s status.

When the status was not equal, there was usually no conversation.

Among those present, none matched Jiang Yini’s status.

Besides the Jiang family, the other five families sent quite a few representatives.

However, they were ostensibly here to wish Liu Teng, the head of the Liu family, a happy birthday, at most only brought a few influential family leaders.

Simply put, they couldn’t compare to Jiang Yini.

Among the Seven Great Families, the Jiang family was an exception.

And, Jiang Yini herself was also an exception.

Although she was a daughter and couldn’t be the successor to the headship of the family, she possessed a monstrous talent.

At the very least, they should have sent someone of successor status to match her.

If the other five families really sent several successors, it would be too flattering to Liu Teng.

If they honored him to such an extent, all five families would lose face collectively.

If the birthday star had been Liu Shi today, it would have been alright to have a few successors.

But Liu Teng, he could let it pass.

Showing such honor would be meaningless when it would simply lead to internal suppression within the Seven Great Families.

Inclusive of the Jiang Family, none of them would mind if the count of the Seven Great Families could decrease by one or two, or even just remain one or two.

The capital was only so large.

Wasn’t it too crowded to have seven families entrenched here?

If one or two families could collapse, it would be even better.

Despite each family sending representatives in response to the news, they were all temporarily observing and waiting for a chance.

They were waiting for Jiang Yini to move away from Li Jing, so they could take the opportunity to start a conversation.

Jiang Yini understood this; she stayed close to Li Jing, focused on peeling the Destiny Fruit for him while carrying leisurely conversation.

Just by sitting next to Li Jing, she was making life easier for herself.

This favor was trivial, wasn’t it?

Letting someone serve as a shield and she just needed to show she didn’t mind, right?

As for whether she was devaluing herself in this situation, Jiang Yini didn’t care.

In her view, the old conventions within the Seven Great Families were worthless.

What era was it to still care about such things?

Even though social equality was merely an illusion, looking down upon others was nothing more than self-gratification.

If you must adhere to these insubstantial norms, how could you bear to live?

Of course.

The unspoken rules within the Seven Great Families weren’t completely pointless.

Many times, these unwritten rules saved the sons and daughters of different clans from a lot of trouble.

If status was disregarded, she wouldn’t just be unable to "protect" Li Jing; she herself would be regarded as the favorite by many guests and would get worn out dealing with them.

There was a saying: "don’t slap a smiling person’s face."

If people approached you with kind formalities, you should always respond, shouldn’t you?

...

Before they knew it, it was seven o’clock.

The birthday star, Liu Teng, made an appearance, he gave all the guests and his sons and daughters a speech and announced the start of the banquet.

Then immediately, the younger members of the Liu family started to serve food to each table, bringing exquisite dishes.

Li Jing’s table was quiet.

It was just him, Jiang Yini, and Liu Xiaoya.

Consequently, their table became the focus of attention.

No one knew how many people were hoping that Jiang Yini could get up to go to the bathroom or something, to leave for a moment.

However, sadly, Jiang Yini was from the Fifth Boundary.

Being from the Fifth Boundary, she was quite different from ordinary people on a physiological level.

A question often came up.

Did fairies defecate?

The answer was no.

Upon reaching the level of the Fifth Boundary, the impurities produced in the body due to eating and drinking would be neutralized by Spiritual Qi during the nourishment process, there was no need for excretion.

Even during menstruation, there was no blood loss "buf"...

Setting aside such nonsense.

With the beginning of the banquet, the venue became even livelier.

Guests at the same table were toasting each other, some were wandering around with bottles of wine to mingle with others.

While not everyone present was in high standing, representatives from each of the Seven Great Families were here, and there were also elites from various industries.

So, although it was a birthday banquet, only a few were genuinely there to celebrate.

Even those Liu family members who achieved a degree of success outside were the same.

Looking at the lively banquet, Li Jing sat at his seat as an outsider, leisurely eating various exquisite dishes on the table.

The food served at the banquet was very valuable.

Let alone having eaten it before, he had never even seen it in his daily life.

Among them, quite a few were special edible spiritual objects.

Li Jing ate happily; Liu Xiaoya next to him was enjoying her food so much that her mouth was greasy.

Jiang Yini was rather reserved.

She was sitting here, after all, on behalf of the Jiang family.

Being a woman, it was necessary to appear reserved in public.

After eating for a while, Li Jing suddenly felt something and looked to his side.

Jiang Yini saw him turning, and unconsciously turned her head as well.

Following their gaze, two stunning figures quietly appeared there.

Liu Sisi and Liu Shi.

Meeting their gaze, Liu Shi looked surprised. She looked at Li Jing, then lightly smiled, nodded, and left Liu Sisi behind with teary eyes and quietly left.

Seeing Liu Shi bring Liu Sisi but then immediately leave, Li Jing frowned and beckoned her over.

"Sisi?"

"I’m fine, don’t worry."

Liu Sisi sniffed.

Hearing their exchange, Liu Xiaoya, who was eating at the table, turned around.

Seeing Liu Sisi standing there, she blinked twice, and quietly moved to the side to make room.

Liu Sisi slides in beside Li Jing and whispers,

"I couldn’t get our household registration book. Mom wants to meet you alone later."

"Eh?"

Li Jing was startled and seemed a little nervous.

Well, nothing else mattered much.

Although he also called Liu Shi ’mother,’ being compared to Jiang Jingxian, Liu Shi was different.

This one was a bona fide mother-in-law.

Perceiving Li Jing’s hesitant demeanor, and clearly shying away, Liu Sisi whispered,

"Or... should I accompany you?"

"No need, just tell me where to find Aunt later."

Li Jing waved his hand.

However nervous he was,

He still had to go meet his mother-in-law alone.

This hurdle, he must surpass.

Jiang Yini heard their whispers, her eyebrows raised slightly.

It wasn’t surprising that Liu Shi wanted to meet Li Jing alone.

The head of the family and the protector were two different concepts.

The family’s protector shouldn’t show up in public places.

To have a private conversation with Li Jing, they could only arrange to meet somewhere else afterwards.

The term "household registration book" caught her attention.

Why would Liu Sisi need a household registration book?

That would certainly mean she and Li Jing were going to get a marriage certificate!

Their efficiency was quite high.

Looking at the two with curiosity, Jiang Yini unveiled an aunty smile.

"Well, should I congratulate you two on your marital union in advance?"

Liu Sisi reddened at her words and didn’t respond.

Li Jing, on the other hand, had a face as thick as a wall and casually said,

"What’s the use of just congratulating? Shouldn’t you be giving us a wedding gift?"

"Alright, I’ll think about it later."

Jiang Yini said with a smile, then asked,

"Are you two planning to get married in the imperial capital?"

"That’s not the case."

Li Jing shook his head, speaking truthfully.

"We only got a license to make it easier to move Sisi’s household registration to Jianghai. We don’t plan to hold a wedding yet."

Who is Jiang Yini?

Hearing such remarks, she immediately understood that Liu Sisi was trying to break away from the Liu family.

This somewhat surprised her.

At the same time, she couldn’t help but feel envious.

She, too, wanted to leave her family behind.

Alas, her parents would never agree.

Unless, she met a man who had the ability to take her away from the Jiang family, and was willing to offend the Jiang family to death.

Li Jing in front of her, was not qualified enough.

So far, there was only one man who dared to elope with the daughter of the Jiang family.

Upon hearing that Li Jing and Liu Sisi were about to get their marriage license, Liu Xiaoya’s eyes widened in surprise.

And when Liu Sisi said she was planning to move her household registration to Jianghai, Liu Xiaoya was instantly unsettled.

She was of a spoiled nature, but she knew what she should.

Liu Sisi moving her household registration meant cutting ties with the Liu family.

This seemed a bit extreme.

Why would she do this?

With Li Jing around, wouldn’t the Liu family take care of her?

Not to mention, she herself was no longer stuck in One Realm and had quickly advanced to the Third Realm of cultivation, showing extraordinary talent.

Liu Xiaoya wanted to say something but ultimately remained silent.

Living in the Liu family, she knew better than anyone how chilling the world of the wealthy families could be.

Leaving might not be a bad thing after all.

And someone as talented as Li Jing, if he had direct ties with the Liu family, would inevitably be used in the future.

...

Liu Sisi’s presence brought greetings from many Liu family elders.

When it was just Li Jing present, they didn’t feel comfortable coming over.

As "family," they didn’t need to worry too much about Jiang Yini.

But they didn’t know Li Jing.

If they casually started a conversation and he ignored them, it could be awkward.

To think, these elders of the Liu family were thick-skinned, each showing extreme concern for Liu Sisi, with all sorts of concerned and caring inquiries.

Li Jing, of course, wouldn’t be fooled by this facade.

If these elders of the Liu family really cared about Liu Sisi, would she leave the Liu family?

For Liu Shi’s sake, Li Jing reluctantly went through the motions.

Liu Sisi herself didn’t show any signs of displeasure and dealt with everything smoothly.

After the elders of the Liu family had their turn, the remaining guests who were waiting for the "opportunity" became restless.

For them, Liu Sisi was also a breakthrough.

Especially as the guarded daughter of the Liu family, she’d always been shielded. Hardly anyone present had seen her. It was only reasonable to pay a visit, wasn’t it?

Liu Sisi, having been shielded from a young age, didn’t understand these subtleties.

Jiang Yini, on the other hand, did.

Spotting the eager guests, she turned to look at Li Jing.

"Liu Shi asked to see you, I suggest you go now. Otherwise, it might be hard to get away later."

Li Jing smiled at her words.

He could see that the guests were getting restless.

Getting away now would indeed save a lot of trouble.

But if he left, people would still come forward.

After all, Liu Sisi was still here.

If he wasn’t present, Liu Sisi would have to deal with everything on her own.

As if knowing what he was thinking, Jiang Yini smiled.

"Don’t worry, I’m here. I won’t let Sisi suffer any loss."

Hearing this, Liu Sisi seemed to understand what was being said and looked at Li Jing.

"Why don’t you go see my mom first, Li Jing? I can handle things here. This way, when you come back we can leave right away. Otherwise, we’ll be delayed until late today."

Seeing Liu Sisi speaking up, Li Jing considered his options and looked around the room.

"The banquet is almost over, it’s been a good while since anyone served food, and all that’s left is a lot of meaningless chatter."

As he said this, Li Jing looked towards the sky, then back at the three of them.

"The weather tonight is nice, so cover your ears. "

?

Liu Sisi.

If the weather is nice, why cover our ears?

Liu Sisi was confused, but obediently complied.

Jiang Yini, too, full of doubt, still followed suit and covered her ears.

Liu Xiaoya, who was feasting next to them, also covered her ears.

Although they weren’t sure what was happening, they listened intently when their brother-in-law spoke.

The next second.

"Boom!"

With a loud noise, Li Jing transforms into a pale flash of lightning and disappears into the high sky in a flash.

The abrupt thunderclap scared the attendees and members of the Liu family, their faces instantly turned pale.

The surrounding temperature dropped several degrees as Li Jing vanished.

At the same time, the thin clouds in the night sky turned into heavy clouds, nearly covering the entire capital city.

There was a constant rumbling of thunder, and the dense clouds were filled with pale flashes of lightning, as if a storm was approaching.

Along with the constant appearance and disappearance of lightning in the cloud layer, the temperature sharply dropped.

Jiang Yini looked up to the sky covering her ears, her eyes full of astonishment.

Li Jing, she was beginning to find him increasingly unfathomable.

This...

What kind of escape skill is this?

There is only one special thunder escape skill that would affect the heavenly phenomenon, Cloud Thunder Movement.

But the Cloud Thunder Movement is not an instantaneous spell. It requires the construction of a prearranged spell formula, and it’s not that fast.

Additionally, the lightning that Li Jing transformed into was not ordinary lightning, but the extremely cold Water Thunder from the Five Thunder.

The dazzling lightning alternating in the clouds at this moment also seemed to be Water Thunder...

Withdrawing her gaze, Jiang Yini looked at Liu Sisi, who was also looking up at the sky.

"Li Jing is willing to do anything for you. The patrol will come soon, we can slip away in the chaos."

"..."

Liu Sisi.

She did not doubt the possibility of escaping swiftly.

But causing such a large scene and inviting the patrol’s attention, is that really appropriate?

With Li Jing doing this for the "second time", Liu Teng’s birthday banquet is probably over!

During a birthday celebration, if the reception phone of the patrol office gets called twice, this could already be considered as disturbing the peace. How can they continue the celebration?

Yes.

It is Li Jing’s own actions.

But given the previous attitudes of the two patrollers, would they trouble Li Jing?

No.

Not causing trouble for Li Jing doesn’t mean they can’t trouble the Liu family, right?

After all.

The reason was with the Liu family.

The patrollers are not fools, they could easily discern that Li Jing has a grudge against the Liu family.

If they can’t deal with Li Jing, they would naturally target the source of the problem.

The Patrol Office wouldn’t give a damn about the Liu family.

In front of the office, among The Seven Great Families, only the Jiang family had some clout...

...

A bit far from the banquet venue, in a courtyard, Liu Shi stood gazing at the horizon, her beautiful eyes narrowed.

"Boom!"

A flash of lightning fell from the sky, landing near her, revealing the form of Li Jing.

Liu Shi turned her head.

"You, You’ve gone too far."

"Compared to the hardship Sisi endured over the years outside, I don’t think I’ve gone too far at all."

Li Jing said with a casual smile.

"..."

Liu Shi fell silent.

Upon seeing this, Li Jing continued.

"Auntie, I understand that you want to protect the Liu family. But honestly, I can’t understand why you allow those people to do as they like. You have your thoughts, and I shouldn’t say too much. However, I should be clear about certain things. I personally do not wish to have too much association with the Liu family, nor do I like being used. "