The capital during the New Year’s Lantern Festival was the liveliest place in the world. People from all walks of life weaved through the brightly lit streets and alleyways, their laughter blending with the shouts of street vendors and the sporadic bursts of fireworks lighting up the sky, turning the city into one that never sleeps. Yet, even under the watchful eyes of strict guards, the idle sons of the wealthy still found ways to stir up trouble right under the emperor’s nose.
“Please, young masters, forgive me. I truly cannot sing,” the flower seller girl clutched her basket tightly, stepping back with a scared look on her face. But behind her was a dead-end alley. Where could she possibly retreat to?
“This young master is not picky; just sing a couple of lines, isn’t that easy enough?” The man in a purple robe removed a jade pendant from his waist and waved it in front of her. “You damaged my jade pendant, and I’m not asking you to pay silver for it—just sing a few lines. What else are you dissatisfied with?”
The flower seller girl quickly shook her head. “I didn’t…”
How could ordinary folk like her, who didn’t even dare to approach the noble personage, possibly have broken such a precious jade pendant?
Before she could finish her sentence, the jade pendant in the man’s hand slipped, hit the hard stone ground, and shattered into pieces.
“Look, didn’t you just break it?” The purple-robed man clicked his tongue and pretended to sigh. “This was a fine piece of jade worth five hundred taels of silver, and now you’ve shattered it.”
He crossed his arms, sizing up the trembling girl with a wide grin on his face as if teasing a stray cat or dog. His companions, a group of idler young masters just like himself, immediately burst into mocking laughter, and even the large black dog they had with them barked at the girl.
The flower seller girl stared at them in despair, terrified tears filling her eyes. Fireworks lit up the distance, briefly illuminating the faces of these young men. She couldn’t make out their features clearly, but in her eyes, their hideous grins were even more frightening than the scary face of the black dog they held.
“Hurry up and sing, or if you’d rather not, compensate me with five hundred taels of silver.”
“If you can’t pay, then we’ll take you to the yamen office…”1
“Ha! The Yamen beats their prisoners. With that little body of hers, how many beatings can she handle?”
The sound of fireworks, the distant laughter from another street, and their wanton jeers blended, like a sharp icy wind, choking the flower seller girl and chilling her to the bone.
‘Who can help me?!’
‘Someone, please help me!’
“I was wondering why, on such a fine Lantern Festival, there was such a racket of pigs and dogs barking. Turns out there are a bunch of beasts here.”
The flower seller girl stared blankly at the red-robed woman who suddenly appeared, riding in on a white horse under the moonlight. For a moment, her mind could not process what was happening.
The purple-robed man heard the voice and had just started to turn his head, but before he could catch a glimpse of the meddler, a sharp pain shot through his waist, sending him flying. His forehead slammed into the shards of broken jade as he crashed to the ground, blood immediately gushing from the wound.
“Brother Wang!” One of his buddies rushed forward to help him but had barely taken two steps before the red-robed woman, having dismounted her horse, kicked him over, leaving him sprawling on the ground like an upturned turtle.
One of the remaining two saw the table had turned and rushed to flee the alley to call for help. Unfortunately for him, the red-robed woman was much faster, darting in front of him in an instant.
“Y-you… do you… do you even know who we are?!” The man took two steps back, glaring at the veiled woman in front of him. His voice trembled as he tried his best to sound menacing. “If you mess with us, it won’t end well for you!”
The red-robed woman sneered, as if she had just heard the biggest joke ever. Seeing her mocking look, the man couldn’t bear the humiliation, clenched his fist, and charged toward her.
But before his fist could even brush the hem of her clothes, he was slapped heavily across the face, sending him flying mercilessly. For a split moment, he swore he saw his great-grandfather, who had passed away years ago, smiling kindly at him from the other side.
“Woof! Woof! Woof!” When the large black dog saw its master being beaten, it bared its teeth and pounced at the red-robed woman, intending to avenge its master.
Smack! The black dog was also slapped away by the woman, its heavy body crashing into its master, letting out pitiful whines. When it saw the red-robed woman walking toward it, the dog tucked its tail in fear, frantically scratching the ground with its paws, as if trying to dig a hole to hide in.
“Like a dog, like a master.” The red-robed woman scoffed at the dog frantically pawing at the dirt, then turned to look at the only person in the group still standing—a man in a blue robe.
Seeing three grown men and a big dog taken down so easily, the blue-robed man was almost frightened to death. He didn’t dare to show any resistance and prayed desperately for his family’s servants to arrive quickly and save them.
“I-I was just strolling with them by coincidence. I didn’t join them harassing the girl!” He stammered.
“Seeing your friends committing vile acts but failing to stop them makes you just as guilty.” The red-robed woman gave him his share of a good slap. Seeing him clutch his cheek in indignation, she raised an eyebrow, “Not satisfied?”
The blue-robed man, still clutching his stinging cheek, felt aggrieved but dared not express it. Looking at the miserable state of his buddies, he tried to console himself—at least she hadn’t sent him flying, which meant she had shown him some leniency.
“Well, even if you’re not satisfied, you can keep it to yourself.” The red-robed woman didn’t bother with him anymore and walked over to the flower seller girl, taking her cold hands in her own. “You don’t need to be afraid; the broken jade has nothing to do with you. Let me take you home.”
“Miss.” The tears she had been holding back finally burst out at this moment. She had never felt such warmth in her life. Glancing at the bodies sprawling on the ground, she shivered in fear but still whispered, “Miss, you should leave quickly, don’t get dragged into this because of me.”
“What are you afraid of?” The red-robed woman chuckled, taking off her cloak and draping it over the girl. “These good-for-nothing idlers need a good beating to shed their crooked habits and learn how to behave like proper human beings.”
The purple-robed man, still groaning in pain from his forehead wound, shouted when he heard this, “My grandfather is Duke Chengzhong! You’ve offended me today, and I’ll make sure your whole family pays for this!”
The red-robed woman treated his shouts like a passing dog barking. She calmly fastened the cloak around the flower seller girl, then walked over to the purple-robed man, stepping hard on his back. Ignoring his cries of pain, she scoffed, “Just you?”
“Your older brother passed the provincial exam and became a respected Juren2, while your younger sister’s fame has spread far and wide. Meanwhile, you, this good-for-nothing, made a name for yourself by ruining the reputation of Chengzhong Duke Manor.” She lifted her foot from his back and said with disgust. “Is your face so broad that horses could run on it, or so thick that it could fend off foreign invaders for you to threaten my family?”
The purple-robed man, who had been struggling to free himself, froze at her words. He cautiously looked into the eyes peeking out from behind the veil. “Who… who exactly are you?”
It was impossible for ordinary folks to know so much about his family’s affairs, but in the entire capital, which noble woman would dare to attack the four of them?
The only person still standing among the group, the blue-robed young man, quickly realized that something was amiss when he saw the usually arrogant Wang Yanhe suddenly turn so meek. Sensing the danger, he clutched his swollen face and took several steps back.
But the red-robed woman noticed his movements and casually glanced at him, causing him to freeze in place.
Boom! From the direction of the palace, a massive firework suddenly burst in the sky.
“How beautiful.” The red-robed woman looked up. “The fireworks in the capital are indeed unmatched.”
A gust of night wind lifted her veil. The purple-robed man lying on the ground stared at her, and after a long moment, he began to tremble, “I-I heard that the Marquis Wenyong, the Crown Prince’s tutor, re-returned to the capital today?”
The red-robed woman glanced down at him.
“Y-you… are you…” The purple-robed man’s face turned deathly pale, his voice shaking like a leaf in the wind. “Yun… Fuyi?”
Upon hearing the name ‘Yun Fuyi,’ the two other men abruptly stopped groaning and fell silent, like frightened toads.
The alleyway became terrifyingly quiet.
“Yes, it’s me, Yun Fuyi.” Yun Fuyi removed her veil and lowered her face to flash a gentle smile at the cowering ‘dandies.’ “It’s been three years, and it seems you’ve grown even more arrogant.”
The three men frantically shook their heads in unison.
The blue-robed man was utterly confused and glanced at his frightened companions in puzzlement—‘What exactly are they so afraid of?’
“Harassing a commoner girl?”
The purple-robed man shook his head desperately. “I was wrong, I was wrong! I was only teasing her, I swear! I didn’t dare do anything else.”
Yun Fuyi turned to the other two. “Aiding and abetting?”
They quickly followed suit, shaking their heads. “We had nothing to do with it! This was all Wang Yanhe’s idea!”
“The capital is right under the emperor’s nose. Your nerve is quite impressive, huh?” Yun Fuyi’s smile faded. “If there’s a next time, I’ll break your worthless legs.”
The three nodded repeatedly. “We wouldn’t dare, we wouldn’t dare!”
“Hand it over.” Yun Fuyi extended her hand toward the purple-robed man.
Without hesitation, he untied the pouch at his waist and reverently placed it into her palm with both hands. “This is compensation for the young lady.”
Seeing this, the other two hurriedly followed suit, untying their pouches and handing them over as well. One of them noticed their blue-robed buddy still standing there frozen and desperately signaled at him with his eyes—‘What are you standing around for? Do you want to die? Hurry up and hand over your money pouch!’
Although the blue-robed man didn’t quite understand why they were so practiced at this, he nonetheless clumsily untied his pouch and cautiously approached Yun Fuyi, offering her the pouch full of silver.
Yun Fuyi raised an eyebrow, then pointed her chin to the bewildered girl standing in the corner.
Reading her gesture, the purple-robed man crawled over to the flower seller girl, wiping the blood from his forehead with his sleeve and bowing repeatedly in apology, a stark contrast to his earlier arrogant tyranny.
The girl, too terrified to accept his apology, hid behind Yun Fuyi, her face pale.
“If anything happens to this girl or her family, I will hold you accountable,” Yun Fuyi warned, stuffing all the pouches into the flower seller girl’s hands. But the girl tried to refuse, too frightened to accept.
“Take them. These bastards may be filthy and foul, but their silver is good.” Yun Fuyi firmly pressed the pouches into her hands, then pulled her up onto the horse. With a smile, she said, “Come, I’ll take you home.”
The flower seller girl tugged on the warm cloak draped over her shoulders. From the elevated high on the horse’s back, she looked down at the nobles who had just harassed her. They now stood with their heads bowed, and even their black dog lying motionless with its ears drooped and tail tucked between its legs, looking no different from the stone pillars on the roadside.
‘Turns out… these people can also look this small and insignificant.’—she muttered silently, still feeling unreal.
“Let’s go, I’ll take you home.”
Hearing the soft, reassuring voice, the flower seller girl blushed. It was her first time meeting a person who saved others so gallantly, like a descending noble deity.
“Is she gone?” Only after the sound of hooves had faded did the purple-robed man collapse onto the ground, utterly spent.
“Gone, gone.” The other two sat down beside him.
“Why are you all so afraid of her?” Their blue-robed companion, still nursing his swollen face, crouched in front of the three. “Who is she, really?”
“You’ve only been in the capital for two years, so you don’t know her well. She’s Yun Fuyi.”
“Yes, that Yun Fuyi—’She who kills one with her every step and buries all with a brush of her robes.’”3
“Huh?!” The blue-robed man was even more bewildered. Though his academic achievement was far from satisfactory, he at least knew that the poem was supposed to say: ‘He who kills one with every ten steps; leaving no trace after a thousand li. Once the deeds done, with a brush of his robes, he buries all and leaves no name, no trace.’4
‘Well,’—he thought—‘These guys are even less studious than I am. It’s understandable they’d misquote it!’
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Translator’s note:
Hello everyone, I’m happy to introduce you to my newest project: Three Years After Falling Off a Cliff (TYCF). This is the replacement novel for Daughter of the Dao and Devil Venerables which will enter an indefinite hiatus (by the author) soon along with The Healer Demands Payment!
TYCF will follow my regular, twice-per-week schedule starting next week (Monday & Wednesday).
For new readers, you may also want to check my other titles:
My Son is a Reborn Villain (Modern, finished)
Greetings, Ninth Uncle (Historical, finished. My most read title)
My Whole Family Are Villains (Modern, finished)
Transmigrating into the Genius Cannon Fodder’s Aunt (Modern, ongoing)
Daughter of the Dao and Devil Venerables (Cultivation, ongoing)
The Healer Demands Payment! (Cultivation, ongoing)
After Transmigrating into a Cannon Fodder Real Daughter, the Plot Changes (Modern, ongoing)
Wake Up Male Lead, You Belong With The Female Lead! (Cultivation, ongoing)
Enjoy!
Wants more chapters?
Click this page for the status of sponsored chapters.
Click this page for advanced chapters TOC.
- Yamen: A designation of bottom-level units of administration, mostly on the district level. Is in charge of grassroots police duty and administrative affairs.
- Juren: a rank achieved by people who passed the provincial level of imperial examination. It is a rank higher than the shengyuan rank but lower than the jinshi rank, which is the highest degree (source: Wikipedia).
- The name Yun Fuyi (云拂衣): Yun means cloud and Fuyi means brushing one’s robe. Her name was taken from a poem, which then became part of her ‘legend’.
- ’Ode to Gallantry’ by poet Li Bai. Translation randomly found on Google (poems are beyond me…), modified slightly to fit the narrative.
Thank you. I’m so sad to hear about the indefinite haitus of DDVV. It was so good, but I guess the author got writer’s block???? This seems like a good novel. Love strong FL.
At least it’s still being updated (around once every two or three months), unlike THDP… glad you like it! The author is one of my favorites, and almost all their novels have been availaible in NovelUpdates
I really like this author too!!
This is my favorite author so thank you for translating it.