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"Have you heard? The Cloud Recesses of Gusu was attacked in the middle of the night."

"What? By who?"

"The Qishan Wen Sect."

"What does this mean now? Is there going to be war?"

Silver-grey eyes narrowed down at the apple in her hand as the whispering gossips entered in her ears. The ragged hood hovered over her face as she quickly paid for the couple of fruits that she picked before hurriedly leaving the marketplace.

'With how fast the news come by, Uncle Jiang is bound to hear about this' Wei WuHui ventured into a small inn, nodding to the owner before going up to the second floor.

Before she walked into her room, Wei WuHui paused hesitantly in front of the door. Her hand froze in mid air. 'Dajie...'

With a final exhale of air, she pushed open the door and immediately, her eyes went onto the straightened back of her older sworn sister who sat beside the opened window.

"Dajie, I'm back. Are you hungry?" Wei WuHui spoke as she put down the foods on the table.

No response.

Wei WuHui bit the inside of her cheek worriedly before walking over to Lan ChunTao and sat down next to her wordlessly.

The two maidens didn't say a word for a few minutes. Content in basking in the peaceful silence between them and the soft breeze that flew into the room from outside.

"Why...?"

Wei WuHui perked up slightly the moment Lan ChunTao's soft voice was heard. She glanced over and saw wet droplets falling down her face as Lan ChunTao sniffled, leaning over slightly and holding her hands over her face.

"Fuqin, Shufu, Xiongzhang, Dada...I left them." Lan ChunTao sobbed.

Wei WuHui immediately reached over and pulled her sworn sister into a tight embrace. Her own eyes tearing up as she held Lan ChunTao close. "I'm here for you, Dajie. I promise you. The Wen sect will pay for this."

Lan ChunTao hiccuped and whimpered as she clutched onto her sworn sister with her grief weighing over her.

Wei WuHui just continued to hugged her, letting her own body to be the stronghold for Lan ChunTao as she also let her tears fall. Feeling all the withheld emotions that she kept in after their escape from the Wen attack.

Anger

Hatred

Guilt

Sadness

The two maidens stayed in their spots, holding onto each other in the times of their grievance. Their hearts knowing that the future will be covered in darkness.

———

A week had fully passed since their escape from Cloud Recesses, the two maidens fortunately haven't encountered any disciples from the Wen sect during their stay in a small town's inn. However, they knew that they couldn't stay in hiding for long and decided to make their way to Yunmeng via renting a boat. It took them almost the whole day when they finally arrived under the cover of darkness.

"Thank you for your service. We are grateful." Wei WuHui saluted respectfully at an elderly boatman as she and Lan ChunTao stood on the docks of Yunmeng.

The elder man smiled and simply returned the salute before he began to row away.

"Let's go." Lan ChunTao stated and Wei WuHui nodded before they hurriedly goes to the direction of the Lotus Pier.

———

Meanwhile, in the Lotus Pier hall, Wang LingJiao the Wen Sect's second master's lover, sat in front one of the tables. Tapping her fingers on the surface impatiently.

"My tea?" Wang LingJiao demanded with a final slam on the table as she turned to the identical twins, JinZhu and YinZhu, Madame Yu's trusted maids.

"There's no tea. Pour some yourself." YinZhu retorted.

"Jiang sect's servants never do any work?" Wang LingJiao questioned.

"Jiang sect's servants have more important work to do. Serving tea is work that even a slave can do, no need for others to help." JinZhu smirked.

Her powdered-up face contorted with anger as Wang LingJiao glared at the maids. "Your sect is too audacious! I came here under Young Master Wen's order. The hierarchy of cultivation sects needs to be clear."

Just then, Madame Yu appeared in the room with a nonchalant expression as YinZhu and JinZhu saluted to her. "Madame."

Madame Yu glared at Wang LingJiao. "Why did you take my sect's disciple away?"

"Why?" Wang LingJiao smirked as she stood up. "Because he harboured evil intentions and disrespected Qishan Wen Sect. I've sent him for his just deserts."

"How could 6th shidi have evil intentions?" Then, a third speaker spoke as Jiang Cheng and Wei WuXian walked into the halls.

One of the Wen escorts handed Wang LingJiao a white kite with a red circle that has an arrow struck out as she threw it on the table. "The evidence is conclusive, and you're trying to deny it?"

"It's just a usual cyclops kite. And you call it the evidence?" Wei WuXian stated.

"Why must he pick this circular cyclops among all kinds of kites? Too much of a coincidence!" Wang LingJiao proclaimed.

Madame Yu huffed. "So?"

Wang LingJiao scoffed arrogantly. "Madame Yu, are you feigning ignorance? The drawing on the kite represents the sun motif of the Wen Sect. Shooting this kite is metaphor for shooting the sun."

"You can always make excuses to blame one." Wei WuXian retorted.

"Shut up!" Madame Yu commanded before she went and sat down at the front table.

Wei WuXian obeyed but still kept on sending death glares toward Wang LingJiao as the stress of the disappearance of his twin sister and the news of the Cloud Recesses lingered in him.

"Did you come here just for this kite?" Madame Yu questioned.

"Of course not. I'm here to punish someone on behalf of Wen Sect and Young Master Wen." Wang LingJiao smirked before glancing over to the boy in grey and red.

"Punish someone? Who?" Madame Yu asked.

Wang LingJiao gleefully pointed toward Wei WuXian. "Him! He led others to riot on Mt. Muxi and almost let to the failures of our great affairs. Yunmeng Jiang Sect must punish him severely! I hope Madame Yu would set an example."

Wei WuXian felt him becoming nervous as he glanced at Madame Yu, knowing her severe dislike in him and Wei WuHui, and with her recent confrontation with Jiang FengMian before he left is not helping.

"A-Niang!" Jiang Cheng tried to protest.

"Be quiet!" Madame Yu immediately shut him down.

"This Wei Ying, if I remember correctly, is a servant along with his twin Wei Yang of Jiang Sect. Sect Leader Jiang is not here now. I believe the trade-off is clear to you. Otherwise, if Jiang Sect covers up for him, it'll make others doubt if the rumours are true."

"What rumours?" Jiang Cheng exclaimed.

"What else? Just the former love affairs of Sect Leader Jiang." Wang LingJiao replied.

"You!"

Red covered his vision and without hesitation, Wei WuXian charged toward the powdered-up maiden. Angered at the fact that his parents' memories and Jiang FengMian's reputation are being insulted. He was about to throw the first punch at Wang LingJiao when suddenly, a burning pain erupted from his back and he fell to his knees.

Madame Yu slowly walked toward him with her famed spiritual weapon, Zidian.

"A-Niang! No!" Jiang Cheng protested as he stood in between her and Wei WuXian.

"Jiang Cheng, back off." Wei WuXian grunted.

"I've said before that you and your sister are unruly rascals who will get our sect into some big trouble sooner or later!" Madame Yu said through her gritted teeth and was about to swing her whip when a hooded body covered Wei WuXian's.

The former gasped as he felt another weight on him and the familiar scent of magnolia blossoms swept by his nose. Wei WuXian looked up. "M-Mèimei?"

Everyone in the room stood in bewilderment at the sight of newly appeared twin of Wei WuXian's.

"Wei WuHui..." Jiang Cheng breathes out as he felt shock but overly relieved.

Wei WuHui firmly glared up at Madame Yu and Wang LingJiao, not flinching from the purple electrical energy that comes from the spiritual weapon. "Why did you stop? I thought you was going to punish us."

Wei WuXian's eyes widened and he began to struggle under his sister, knowing what she is doing. "Mèimei no! Don't, get off of me!"

"I knows how much you hates us. Our mere existences in the Lotus Pier. But I never hated you back because I knows the reasons why and couldn't hold it against you." Wei WuHui continued. "But I won't stand if our memories of our parents are being misinterpreted. We are children of Wei ChangZe and Cangse Sanren. That will never change!"

Wei WuHui held her glare on Madame Yu. "So go on, punish us! Punish us for being unruly rascals we are! Do it!"

Madame Yu's eyes went wide with pure anger and fiercely swung down her whip. The weapon making contact with Wei WuHui's back.

"Wei Yang! Mèimei no! Madame Yu, please stop! Punish me, not Mèimei!" Wei WuXian pleaded desperately as he tried to switched their positions but Wei WuHui held on strongly as she bit her lip, causing her to bleed as she held back her pains.

Purple light illuminates the room as the only sound emitted was the whipping and Wei WuXian's pleas.

"A-Niang! Stop it!" Jiang Cheng also joined in as he struggled against JinZhu and YinZhu. "A-Niang! A-Niang!"

A line of blood slip from Wei WuHui's lip as the blows became more forceful and painful as Madame Yu continued with her punishment, blocking out all the pleas and begs.

Meanwhile, Wang LingJiao watched from the side with a sadistic satisfaction on her face.

Eventually, the whipping came to a stop and Wei WuHui shakily collapsed on top of her brother as Wei WuXian immediately held her in his arms and tends to her wounds with tear streaks on his face. "Mèimei." He called out softly.

Wei WuHui smiled, reaching up to caress Wei WuXian's cheek. "I missed you, Gege. Sorry that it took me so long."

"Wei WuHui! Wei WuXian!" Jiang Cheng called out.

The twins glanced up at Madame Yu as she continued to stare down at them.

Wang LingJiao scoffed. "Is that all?"

"What else do you want?!" Jiang Cheng snapped.

"Madame Yu, it's great that we have the other half of the twins here but since this is a punishment, both of them has to keep this lesson in mind forever." Wang LingJiao said.

Madame Yu glanced over to her. "What do you want?"

"Young Master Wen is so merciful that he'll let it pass if you cut off a hand of Wei WuXian." Wang LingJiao smirked gleefully.

"Wretched woman!" Jiang Cheng shouted furiously. "You're just paying off private grudges." And with that, he finally yanked himself out of his mother's servants.

"Back off!" Madame Yu ordered, freezing Jiang Cheng from charging in. She then stepped closer to the twins.

Wei WuHui gripped her brother's hand tightly as she returned Madame Yu's glare with her own. While Wei WuXian stared up with fear.

"A-Niang! No!" Jiang Cheng fell on his knees as he pleaded. "I'm begging you! If A-Die knows-."

That sentence fuels her anger more."Shut up! So what if he knows? He'll kill me?"

Wang LingJiao began clapping. "Madame Yu, I'm impressed with you. Looks like we will agree on the Supervisory Office definitely."

"Supervisory Office?"

"Gege." Wei WuHui softly called as she reached into her robes, slightly pulling out the familiar crimson sheath as Wei WuXian gasped quietly.

Wang LingJiao continued. "Right, the Supervisory Office. This is the 2nd reason I'm here. Wen Sect just issued a Surveillance Decree. From now on, a Supervisory Office will be set up at every city that is commanded by the Qishan Wen Sect. Due to several rebels from Yunmeng Jiang Sect, Young Master Wen doubted if Lotus Pier is qualified to be responsible for the Office. Now that you've obeyed my orders faithfully, you will be the most loyal subordinate of Wen."

Madame Yu clenched her fists tightly as displeasure continued to grow at every word said.

"Now I announce that Lotus Pier will be Wen Sect's Supervisory Office in Yunmeng!" Wang LingJiao proudly declared.

Suddenly, Madame Yu delivered a painful slap.

"You!" Wang LingJiao was so stunned at the sudden attack that she didn't avoid the backhand slap that came right after on her other cheek.

Madame Yu glared down at the fallen maiden with sheer rage. "How dare you bitch!"

Wang LingJiao whimpered as she tried to crawl away but failed as she was pulled up by her hair. "Mind the master behind the dog you're trying to mess with. Who do you think you are?"

The twins and Jiang Cheng, who joined their sides, watched in awe at Madame Yu's dominant presence.

"Trying to punish someone from MY sect? Do you want to talk about the hierarchy with me? Let me teach you what the hierarchy is! I am the superior! You are the inferior!"

TRANSLATION NOTE:

— Shīdì: young disciple of the same master

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(Please correct my translation if I'm wrong and the GIFs and pictures used in this chapter does not belong to me, but their rightful owners)