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"Bang!"
The door was kicked open suddenly.
Zhu Rongfei leaned back in his chair, reading a book, and said casually, "What happened? Why hasn't anyone come to report it?"
"Zhu Rongfei, your good days are over." Mu Qinghuai's eyes seemed to be covered with a thin layer of ice.
"It's you two?" Zhu Rong was not surprised. Hadn't these two already reached an agreement with him?
Especially that Zhu Fu, he had people investigate and it turned out that there really was such a person.
"Why do you two harbor such hostility towards our patriarch? The agreement has been reached, is there some misunderstanding between us?" Zhu Rongfei's tone was kind, but the smile did not reach his eyes.
Qi Yuan's anger intensified, and she directly pulled out a recording stone and held it in her hand, her voice echoing throughout the room.
“I am not a member of the Zhu family. I lost my parents when I was young, and I depend on my younger sister, Cui Yulan, for support…”
With each passage he heard, Zhu Rongfei's face darkened, until finally he couldn't even maintain his smile.
After the recording finished playing, the room fell into dead silence.
He tightened his grip on the book, seemingly trying to hide his inner panic and feigning nonchalance.
Zhu Rongfei feigned composure, her smile stiff: "What do you want? Name your price."
"I want justice. The patriarch should know that I am the next sect leader of the Silver Bamboo Sect..." Qi Yuan tapped the table absentmindedly with her fingers.
The knocking sound was more like a countdown to his death.
Even five Zhu families couldn't compare to the Silver Bamboo Sect!
Actually, he really didn't know about this! He didn't pay much attention to outside news, only knowing that Qi Yuan was Yun Xingjun's most beloved eldest disciple.
He broke out in a cold sweat, his sharp eyes turning to fear, and his tone became almost ingratiating: "Now you know, don't you? Tell me, besides justice, you can have anything you want!"
Mu Qinghuai grew impatient, his displeasure evident in his eyes and brows: "Deaf?"
Zhu Rongfei was now truly drenched in sweat: "I'll comply! Am I enough that I voluntarily step down from the position of family head?"
"Not enough," Qi Yuan said coldly.
"So what exactly do you want?!" Zhu Rongfei suddenly stood up and roared, seemingly out of nowhere.
"You can't beat me," Qi Yuan mocked.
Zhu Rongfei chickened out and slumped back into his seat, utterly humiliated.
Mu Qinghuai gestured for Qi Yuan to make the demands, and she understood immediately: "First, roll down from this position. Second, cut off your own arms. Third, castrate you."
Chop off his hand? Castrate him too!
"What does the third point mean?" Zhu Rongfei was furious and stood up again, kicking the table over.
Qi Yuan: "You can't control your lower body."
Zhu Rongfei: "..."
"The next head of the family absolutely cannot be a scumbag like you. I'm in a hurry, quickly list out the candidates for you, then you can have your hand chopped off, be castrated, and get out of here." Qi Yuan didn't even bother to lift her eyelids.
"I have no children," Zhu Rongfei said angrily.
"I know. You don't think it's right. Then get out now, I'll decide on the head of the family." Qi Yuan glanced at him sideways.
Zhu Rongfei suddenly stood up, his fingers trembling, and took a deep breath trying to calm himself down.
No one has ever dared to speak to him like that!
But he became afraid when he met Qi Yuan's disdainful gaze.
That look seemed to answer him: From today onwards, someone will dare to do it.
When Qi Yuan first became the head of this family, she could still treat him with respect. But this head of the family is worse than an animal. If she hadn't been unable to decide Zhu Rongfei's life or death, the punishment would have been much more severe than these three points.
Zhu Rong slammed the door and left.
She then took the seat that Zhu Rong had not originally occupied.
"Zhu Fu, what do you think of democratic election of the head of the family?" Qi Yuan asked him, looking up at him.
“That’s feasible. You’re the acting head of the family now.” The gloom on Mu Qinghuai’s face receded like a tide, replaced by a smile.
After several subordinates knocked on the door and entered, they were stunned when they saw the woman in the seat. It wasn't until Qi Yuan spoke up that they realized, "I am the acting head of the family. Before I decide on the new head of the family, you should report directly to me if anything happens."
One of the subordinates was the first to react and cautiously asked, "Master, what about the former master of the family..."
Qi Yuan interrupted him coldly, saying, "Cut off both of his hands, castrate him, and throw him out."
Seeing that the person was still standing there in a daze, she frowned: "Do I have to repeat myself?"
"No need, no need!" The group practically ran out.
This woman is terrifying. What kind of background does she have? We definitely shouldn't mess with her.
They grabbed Zhu Rongfei, who was trying to escape and whose face was filled with fear, and tied him up: "My apologies!"
"Damn you heartless bunch! I'm the head of the family! And you all let some woman without a man be the head of the family? My surname is Zhu, hers isn't!" Zhu Rongfei glared angrily.
He was gagged and forced to watch helplessly as his former subordinate rolled his eyes and chopped off his arm...
*
"Fairy Qi, you've actually become the new head of the family! That's wonderful! I've disliked that man for a long time, and now he's finally gone!"
"These two immortals are truly our lucky stars!"
"My benefactor is now the head of the household! Holy crap, am I dreaming...?"
The crowd was noisy, all of them people who had come to watch the drama unfold after hearing the news of the change of head of the family.
Li Mei, squeezed in the crowd, rubbed her eyes and cried until snot bubbled from her nose.
Qi Yuan gestured downwards, and the crowd gradually quieted down. She spoke loudly, "As the current head of the family, I have two announcements. The first is to clarify that you all heard the negative rumors about Miss Xu Yufan a year ago. Now, let me clarify that these were all false rumors maliciously spread by the former head of the family. On the contrary, Zhu Rongfei had affairs with multiple women, forced himself on others, and molested his wife's sister—his behavior was that of a scumbag. Xu Yufan and Cui Yulan were killed by him back then, and Cui Yulan is not, as the rumors say, that she is the sister."
The crowd erupted in discussion.
"Tsk tsk tsk, there's even a twist. This Zhu Rong is really despicable."
"Xu Yufan and Cui Yulan are so pitiful. They suffered such harm in life and were misunderstood and criticized even after death."
"I feel so guilty, I even scolded them back then..."
Qi Yuan cleared her throat: "I hope everyone will stop easily believing public opinion and jumping to conclusions based on hearsay."
Her voice suddenly grew louder: "The second thing! We will use a democratic election to select the next head of the family. You have two days to choose the person you think is qualified to be the head of the family. The person with the most votes will be officially the new head of the family after passing the evaluation!"
This made things even more lively, with the noise almost deafening.
"What? The fairy isn't going to be the head of the family?!"
"Does that mean I also have a chance to become the head of the family?"
"You wish! Haven't you heard there's an evaluation process? Besides, who would vote for you!"
"..."
Qi Yuan was a little tired, so she took advantage of the chaos to escape from the crowd with Mu Qinghuai.
When they arrived at the courtyard, they found that the gate was open.
Upon entering, Xu Yufan was no longer there.
It seems that she has let go of her obsession and it has dissipated.
The portrait appeared on the table, this time not covered up. Two words were written in blood on the white paper: Thank you.
Xu Yufan must have bitten his finger to write it; it's truly amazing that his soul could leave a trace.
Qi Yuan picked up the portrait, and a piece of painting fell off the back of the portrait. It had been torn to pieces, but you could still vaguely make out which three people were in it: Zhu Rongfei and Xu Yufan, and the one in the middle with the brightest smile was Cui Yulan.
No wonder they used a red cloth to cover it up at first.
A bitter feeling welled up in her heart: Xu Yufan hadn't listened to her and had still secretly run away. But it was for the best; at least he could rest in peace after death.
Qi Yuan hopes that she will be reborn into a happier and more fulfilling life in her next life.
*
"Have you finished compiling the statistics?" Mu Qinghuai asked the servant.
Two days have passed, and most people have participated in the vote.
Qi Yuan was resting on the table, and he didn't want to disturb her.
"The statistics are complete." The subordinate handed over the list.
First place in votes: Zhu Cheming
Second place in the vote: Zhu Yu
Third place in the vote: Li Mei
Mu Qinghuai noticed that among the group of people with the surname Zhu, there was a Li surname, and coincidentally, it was Li Mei.
He put the list on the table and sat down next to Qi Yuan.
The girl's sleeping face was peaceful and beautiful. Her eyebrows and eyes were relaxed, less sharp and more gentle. Her red lips were slightly parted, and her breathing was even and shallow.
Mu Qinghuai suddenly felt like teasing her. He looked up and brushed away the stray hairs that were blocking her eyes, tucking them behind her ear, and reached out to touch her long eyelashes.
Just as his hand approached, Qi Yuan opened her eyes.
The two locked eyes.
A hint of panic flickered in Mu Qinghuai's indifferent eyes. He abruptly withdrew his gaze, and his slightly pale fingers retracted.
Qi Yuan's gaze held a hint of hesitation, as if she wanted to say something but stopped herself.
He quickly tried to cover it up: "I saw something in your hair, so I removed it for you! Here's a list, take a look!"
She took the paper and circled the top three names with a pen.
She paused for a moment when her gaze swept over Li Mei's name.
"Let's choose one head of the family and one deputy head of the family from the top three. I'd like to hear everyone's opinions." Qi Yuan carefully examined the list.
"I'll do whatever you say."
*
"Grandma, who did you choose?" Qi Yuan asked, bending down.
"That little girl Li Mei always helps me with farm work, and she's kind-hearted, so I chose her!" the old lady said lovingly.
Mu Qinghuai asked, "Whom did you choose, young master? What are your reasons?"
The man blurted out, "Zhu Cheming! He's an old man! When robbers came here to snatch things from a young girl, he went straight up and beat them up. He's my role model!"
It's strange, I asked so many people, but I didn't hear many people vote for Zhu Yu, who came in second place.
Qi Yuan sensed something was amiss and approached Li Mei: "Miss Li, who did you choose, and why?"
She felt that Li Mei didn't seem like the type to vote for her.
Li Mei lowered her voice, sounding aggrieved: "I originally wanted to vote for Zhu Cheming; he helped me before. But that little tyrant Zhu Yu came to me and threatened me to choose him. He's a bully who picks on the weak and fears the strong, and he always uses his power to bully others!"
If that's the case, then everything makes sense.
She made a decisive move and announced the results at the Zhu family home.
Qi Yuan stood at the highest point, with Mu Qinghuai beside her.
"After voting and deliberation, the new head of the family and the newly added deputy head of the family have been decided! Zhu Cheming has been chosen as the head of the family. He is righteous, brave, and helpful, and is capable of shouldering heavy responsibilities! From this moment forward, Zhu Cheming will be the new head of the Zhu family!"
The applause from below continued, and Zhu Cheming, standing in the crowd, was still stunned, feeling a bit smug.
The eighteen-year-old boy's face turned bright red, thinking he had misheard.
Qi Yuan glanced around and fixed her gaze on the young man, then smiled and said, "New patriarch, aren't you coming up?"
Zhu Cheming was pushed onto the stage by the crowd.
He stood beside Qi Yuan, his heart pounding and his cheeks burning, as if he couldn't believe what had happened.
Zhu Cheming stammered, "Thank you everyone for voting for me! I never imagined I would one day become the head of the family! I will be a good head of the family and restore the Zhu family to its former glory!"
Thunderous applause erupted.
Zhu Yu hid in the crowd, biting his nails, thinking: It doesn't matter if I don't become the head of the family, I'll definitely be the deputy head of the family later!
Qi Yuan's voice was clear and loud enough for everyone present to hear: "It is now decided that Li Mei will be the deputy head of the family. She is kind, persistent, upright and selfless, and will assist the head of the family, Zhu Cheming, in managing the Zhu family in the future!"
Li Mei thought she was dreaming and couldn't hear anything. People pushed and shoved her onto the stage.
Some people were surprised, as the deputy head of the family was a little girl they had never heard of.
Many of those she helped were happy for her.
Li Mei stood on the stage and gladly accepted the invitation: "I really didn't expect to be standing here, but since everyone has chosen me, I will prove with my performance that I will not let everyone down! Thank you!"
Her eyes were firm, and her cheeks flushed.
Qi Yuan's eyes revealed a hint of tenderness as she quietly looked at her.
A slight commotion suddenly arose below. She withdrew her gaze and stared coldly at the culprit who had caused the disturbance—Zhu Yu.
She announced loudly, "That concludes the announcement of the results. Everyone, please go back. There are some handover tasks to complete."
The crowd gradually thinned out, until only one man remained, his eyes bloodshot with rage as he stared at the three people above.
As he stared at the three of them, Mu Qinghuai walked up from behind, placed his fingertips on the top of Zhu Yu's head, and whispered, "If you don't get out of here, this place of yours will explode."
Zhu Yu felt a sudden, inexplicable panic. He slowly turned around and met the boy's gaze.
Mu Qinghuai's eyes, as deep as a still pool, narrowed slightly, his gaze unusually cold, bringing a strong sense of oppression.
Zhu Yu felt that this young man wasn't just talking; he really meant to kill him!
His eyes were filled with fear, and he ran away tremblingly.
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