Dao Companion Crippled, Coveters Move

Chapter 313 311: Liyuan: Yueqiu, I'll Leave Ah Han in Your Care~

The snow fell even heavier today in the Cold Palace Sword Mansion.

Ye Liyuan stood by the window, her fingertips trembling slightly as she clutched the Transmission Token she had just connected.

Fairy Ye was overjoyed. Though she had only been separated from her beloved for two days, it felt like she had endless things she wanted to tell Pei Yuhang.

From the other end of the Transmission Token, Pei Yuhang's voice came through, deep and a little hoarse, seemingly accompanied by faint gasps.

His heavy breathing sounded rushed through the token, as if he had just been through an intense battle.

Ye Liyuan could already picture it: Ah Han's face flushed, his eyes glazed over, his bangs soaked with sweat.

She frowned slightly, a flicker of doubt crossing her mind, but it was quickly dispelled by Pei Yuhang's explanation.

"Liyuan, I was just practicing my swordsmanship. I'm a bit tired now."

Pei Yuhang's voice was as gentle as she remembered, but his breathing was still ragged, as if his chest were still heaving violently.

Ye Liyuan sighed softly, a trace of heartache in her eyes.

She knew Pei Yuhang had always been strict with himself, never slacking off during his sword practice.

She said gently, "You always push yourself so hard. You should know when to stop your training. Don't wear yourself out."

"Don't worry, Liyuan, I know my limits... How have you been these past two days?"

Hearing Pei Yuhang's concern for her, a sweet light instantly flashed in Ye Liyuan's eyes, and it felt like a million words were about to burst from her heart.

She leaned gently against the window, her fingers unconsciously stroking the edge of the Transmission Token, her voice light and tender.

"I'm fine, it's just... I just miss you a little."

Her voice trailed off, and the blush on her cheeks deepened, as if even she was a little embarrassed to say such words.

The other end of the Transmission Token went silent for a moment. Just as Ye Liyuan was about to speak again, she heard a very faint scoff.

The sound was quiet, but it pierced her ear like a fine needle—

'That voice... was a woman's?!'

In that instant, Ye Liyuan felt as if a hundred thousand Thunder Fire Talismans had exploded simultaneously in her Sea of Consciousness, shaking her to the very core.

The words her good Senior Sister Lu Ruoxi and her best friend Shang Miaoyan had once told her involuntarily surfaced in her mind, echoing in her ears.

"Sister Liyuan, do you have any idea how much other women crave your man? It's not that Sister Miaoyan thinks you're naive, but you're far too trusting to leave Pei Yuhang out there all by himself~

From now on, you have to pay close attention to what Pei Yuhang is up to outside. If there's any sign of trouble, you must come and talk it over with Sister Miaoyan, okay~!"

"Liyuan, when men are away from home, it's inevitable they'll run into other women.

You can't be too naive. You have to keep a close eye on him when it's needed. And if you can't make up your mind, you must come and discuss it with Senior Sister Lu~!"

Recalling the advice from her two good friends, Ye Liyuan's pupils contracted, and her gaze sharpened in an instant.

Her fingers tightened around the Transmission Token, trembling from the force, but her voice remained calm. Beneath that calm, however, lay a hidden chill.

"Ah Han, is there someone else with you?"

On the other end of the Transmission Token, Pei Yuhang's voice seemed to pause for a second before he answered, still slightly out of breath.

"With me...? It's Yueqiu, Liyuan.

I was practicing my sword, after all... Of course, of course I have to keep my disciple by my side to instruct her."

Immediately after, a clear female voice came through the Transmission Token, carrying a hint of playfulness and respect: "Greetings, Master's Wife~!"

"..."

Hearing this voice, Ye Liyuan froze, then rubbed her forehead, speechless. Her fingertips pressed gently against her temples, as if trying to suppress a sudden wave of embarrassment and helplessness.

Her sharp gaze softened, and her lips twitched into a self-mocking smile.

'Right, what on earth was I thinking?'

A wave of annoyance washed over her, and her cheeks flushed faintly, as if ashamed of her own suspicions.

'Didn't Ah Han leave with Yueqiu? Of course the woman with him is Yueqiu!'

'Yueqiu is his disciple. She's always been so well-behaved, sensible, and polite. How could my mind have wandered to something else?'

Ye Liyuan sighed softly. The chill in her eyes gradually faded, replaced by a sense of helplessness and self-reproach.

She relaxed her grip on the Transmission Token, her fingers gently stroking its edge as her voice softened.

"Yueqiu, your master works hard at his sword practice. You must take good care of him and not let him get too tired."

From the other end of the Transmission Token, Yueqiu's voice was still clear and pleasant, now tinged with an irrepressible joy:

"Don't worry, Master's Wife, I will definitely take good care of Master!"

Pei Yuhang's voice followed, tinged with fatigue but still gentle:

"Liyuan, don't overthink things. Everything's fine on my end. I'll come back to you as soon as I'm done here."

Ye Liyuan murmured a soft, "Mm-hmm."

She looked up at the window. Snowflakes were still drifting down, and the cold wind swirled up flurries of snow, shrouding the distant scenery in a hazy mist.

But her heart was no longer filled with the earlier doubt; in its place was a sense of peace.

"Ah Han, take care of yourself. Don't get too tired."

Ye Liyuan said softly, her voice filled with tenderness and affection.

"Mm... Liyuan, you take care of yourself too. As for the Celestial Tribulation, it's best we wait until I get back to talk about it... I have to pilot the Spiritual Ship now, so I can't talk anymore."

Pei Yuhang's voice came through the Transmission Token, still gentle, but his breathing seemed even heavier now.

"Okay. Goodbye, Ah Han."

...

"Yueqiu! You wicked girl! Aren't you afraid your Master's Wife will find out?"

This time, Pei Yuhang was truly angry. He shoved Qing Yueqiu away from him and reprimanded her harshly.

"What was the point of that? You're humiliating Liyuan!"

Shoved away by Pei Yuhang, Qing Yueqiu stumbled. She looked up and saw the icy glare in her master's eyes, and her heart trembled.

Realizing her master was genuinely furious, she wrung her hands so tightly her knuckles turned white. Her lips trembled as she spoke in a voice as faint as a mosquito's buzz, "Master... Yueqiu knows she was wrong."

"I'm sorry, Master... Yueqiu won't do it again."

Pei Yuhang saw that his beloved disciple seemed to have realized her mistake, but an offense like this required a lesson.

'Yueqiu is getting bolder and bolder. If I don't discipline her now, this girl will probably run completely wild!'

"Yueqiu, as punishment, you will go outside and copy the sect rules one thousand times!"

Pei Yuhang said, his face stern as he put on a strict act.

He also pulled up his loosened pants.

"...Yes."

Qing Yueqiu kept her head down, her voice as faint as a gnat's buzz. She fidgeted with the hem of her clothes, not daring to talk back, only hoping her master's anger would subside quickly.

Dejected, she walked out of the room with a long face, looking like a small bird drenched by a storm. She hunched her shoulders and even breathed softly, afraid of upsetting her master any further.

'Maybe I have been too brazen lately...'

'Master's Wife is still the apple of Master's eye. I can't challenge her place in his heart just yet.'

Qing Yueqiu sighed, mentally reviewing her recent mistake.

But soon, she took a deep breath, and her crimson eyes lit up again.

'Master and I are the ones who are meant to be! Master's Wife not only holds him back in his cultivation, but she can't even satisfy his most basic needs!

Only I can satisfy Master... Sooner or later, I will take her place.'

A burning ambition blazed in Qing Yueqiu's beautiful eyes. She cupped her face with her hands, a cherry-pink blush spreading across her cheeks as her lips curled into an infatuated smile.

It was as if she could already see herself having her master all to herself, living happily ever after with him.

The discontent that had been brewing ever since Ye Liyuan's grievous injuries forced her to start her cultivation over, causing Pei Yuhang's realm to fall and the Cold Palace Sword Mansion to fall into poverty, had finally taken root and sprouted.

Qing Yueqiu was now firmly convinced that her master was surrounded by bad women, and only she could give him true happiness!

...

...

In the dim boudoir, the candlelight was faint, casting flickering shadows. The air was filled with the unique, sweet fragrance of a young woman, mixed with a faint, salty tang.

The window was covered by a thick curtain, allowing only a few weak rays of light to filter in and fall upon the messy floor.

Stain-soiled balls of paper were scattered all over the ground, like discarded, chaotic thoughts.

In the center of the room, a dignified and elegant Goddess Statue stood quietly. The statue's face was serene and peaceful, seemingly at odds with the room's oppressive atmosphere.

The Goddess Statue's gaze seemed to pierce through the gloom, staring directly at the bed in the depths of the room, from where soft moans of suppressed anguish and sorrow could be heard.

Ji Xichan was curled up on the bed, her face as pale as paper, her lips dull and colorless.

Dark circles were prominent around her beautiful eyes, as if she hadn't slept soundly for days, and her gaze was filled with exhaustion and confusion.

She looked at the crumpled tissue in her hand with a clear flicker of disgust in her eyes. Her lips twitched, as if in self-mockery, or perhaps anger.

She violently threw the tissue away. The wad of paper traced an arc through the air before landing limply on the floor, joining the mess of other paper balls.

'So pathetic. Just because that huge scumbag is ignoring you... to think you'd debase yourself like this.'

Ji Xichan's breathing was a bit ragged. She picked up a bottle of precious Centennial Spirit Liquid and took a small sip, and only then did some color return to her face.

Ever since being rejected by Pei Yuhang last night, Ji Xichan couldn't believe that she had been utterly defeated by Qing Yueqiu—a loser who previously wasn't even qualified to get the scraps.

Steeling her heart, she once again paid the immense price of overdrawing her Spiritual Qi to have the Goddess Statue perform a divination.

In the divinatory dream,

she had tried threatening him with her life and blackmailing him with Ye Liyuan.

She had succeeded, and yet, you could say she had completely failed.

Because when Pei Yuhang lay on her bed, he was as still as a Buddhist statue, not even opening his eyes to look at her.

She had used every trick in the book, wanting to see Pei Yuhang's cute, shy look as he gritted his teeth and endured it, but the final verdict she received was:

Not as good as Yueqiu.