Chapter 36 Su Yuyao is imprisoned
"Internal Affairs Department! We're here!" Su Yuyao ran happily into the gate of the Internal Affairs Department. Although there weren't many people in the courtyard, it was still more lively than outside.
Su Yuyao went straight to the east courtyard and immediately saw the room where people received their monthly stipends. She quickly ran over and knelt down to bow to a haughty old woman sitting at the door.
"Greetings, Granny! I come from the Immortal Mountain! I'd like to inquire about the monthly salary!"
"A sacred mountain?" The old woman raised an eyebrow and glanced at Su Yuyao. "How come I've never heard of a little girl on a sacred mountain?!"
Su Yuyao respectfully handed over Xuanfeng's token and said, "I am Su Yuyao, the child adopted by Lord Xuanfeng."
"Adopted by Lord Xuanfeng?" The old woman was startled. She looked Su Yuyao up and down, then said disdainfully, "Let Lord Xuanfeng go ask Lord Qinggan for it. Lord Qinggan has already taken the monthly salary back!"
"Granny, are you sure it was Lord Qinggan who took the monthly salary?"
"Ah, I'm sure, I sent it myself, so what?" the old woman said dismissively.
“Alright,” Su Yuyao put away Xuanfeng’s token and asked, “I’d like to ask you, Granny, what is the basis for distributing monthly salaries? Can anyone come and receive them?”
"Of course not! They need to see the token or identification document!"
"Then let me ask you, when Lord Qinggan came to collect it, did he take Lord Xuanfeng's token or his identity document?"
"This... he used to come and collect it all the time..."
"In the past, Lord Xuanfeng was busy with matters within the Wuji Dao, so it was understandable that Lord Qinggan received the money on his behalf. But now that Lord Xuanfeng has returned to the Immortal Mountain, why are you still giving it to Lord Qinggan? Moreover, Lord Qinggan has neither a token nor an identity document, yet you gave him your entire month's salary just because you know him by name?!"
"This...before..."
"Talking about the past is useless!" Su Yuyao waved her hand and said, "Let's talk about the present. You said that Lord Qinggan received his monthly salary, but he didn't hand it over! Are you implying that Lord Qinggan is embezzling money and deliberately holding onto it instead of giving it to Lord Xuanfeng?!"
"Huh?! I didn't say that!"
"Oh, so it's because Lord Qinggan hasn't received it yet, which is why it hasn't been handed in!"
"No, he took him!"
"Take it? Then why didn't you hand it in?! Does Lord Qinggan really think he would embezzle this money?!"
"No, Lord Qinggan took it. You should ask Lord Qinggan for it!"
"Why should we ask Lord Qinggan for money? Aren't you the one who pays the monthly salary? When did Lord Qinggan become the one who pays Lord Xuanfeng's monthly salary?"
"No, I...this..."
"What's up!"
"Oh my! Ruixin! You've finally arrived! This child has been making a fuss for ages!" The nanny who was distributing the monthly stipends said as she stood up.
Su Yuyao slightly curtsied, "Greetings, Lord Ruixin. I am Su Yuyao, the child adopted by Lord Xuanfeng. I am here to collect Lord Xuanfeng's monthly salary! But the nanny said that the monthly salary has already been collected by Lord Qinggan! However, Lord Qinggan has not handed it over! I do not believe that Lord Qinggan is the kind of person who would deliberately make things difficult for others! So the nanny must be lying!"
"I'm not lying!"
"You didn't lie? Then you're issuing monthly salaries without any basis and in violation of regulations! In the end, it's still your responsibility!"
"No! I always give it to Lord Qinggan!"
"Every time?! Now that Lord Xuanfeng is back, why are you still sending it to Lord Qinggan?!"
"I...I..."
Su Yuyao asked loudly, "Tell me! Did you pay our monthly salary from the Immortal Mountain or not?!"
"I……"
"Alright!" Ruixin understood. Qinggan took her monthly salary but didn't give it to Xuanfeng; she wanted to take a piece of his pie!
"There might be a misunderstanding. I will investigate this matter personally. Su Yuyao, you should go back now." After Ruixin finished speaking, he stepped aside to make way for Su Yuyao to leave.
Su Yuyao didn't recognize Ruixin, so she boldly said, "Ruixin, right? Please make sure you know my salary for this month. Next month, to avoid any trouble, we need to follow the rules. We can't rely on familiarity anymore, or it might cause misunderstandings!"
After saying that, Su Yuyao curtsied and said, "I'm leaving now, farewell!"
Ruixin's face turned extremely ugly after being scolded by Su Yuyao.
Su Yuyao was very happy. She hadn't come here to ask for money, but to spread the word about Qinggan's actions, firstly to deter them, and secondly to make them afraid to give Qinggan any more money.
Mission accomplished! I can go home now with peace of mind!
Satisfied, Su Yuyao walked out under everyone's gaze, only to bump into a familiar figure.
“Xuan…Xuanfeng…Lord…” Su Yuyao lowered her head nervously. Oh no! How did I get cornered here?!
Xuan Feng glared at Su Yuyao with a dark expression, suppressing his anger as he said, "Su Yuyao, you wait here for me."
After saying this, he walked towards Ruixin, bowed deeply, and said, "Lord Ruixin, please calm down. Su Yuyao is a young girl who is ignorant and has offended us. Please forgive her."
Ruixin sneered, "This little girl is quite something, indeed different from Feihua!"
Xuanfeng's heart skipped a beat, and he lowered his head without speaking. Ruixin's smile faded, and he left directly. The onlookers also dispersed, and only then did Xuanfeng look up at Su Yuyao.
“Xuanfeng… how did you know I was here… hehe…” Su Yuyao looked at Xuanfeng’s ashen face, smiled awkwardly, and tried her best to hide her inner panic.
Xuanfeng, expressionless, strode forward, grabbed Su Yuyao's arm, and walked away.
"Ouch! That hurts!" Su Yuyao felt Xuan Feng's strength and knew she couldn't avoid this beating.
"I was wrong! I was really wrong! I'll never do it again!" Su Yuyao trotted after Xuanfeng, begging for forgiveness with a forced smile. "Lord Xuanfeng! My lord! Please! Forgive me this time, I promise it won't happen again..."
"Su Yuyao! You're getting bolder and bolder! You dare to steal my token?! And you even dare to break into the Heavenly Palace on your own?!" Xuanfeng said through gritted teeth, his temples bulging.
"Ah, the token!" Su Yuyao quickly pulled out the token and stuffed it into Xuanfeng's arms, saying, "Meng Yu asked me to steal the token! He also stole the crane, saying he would bring me here..."
"That brat is getting a beating right now! Neither of you can escape!" Xuanfeng tightened his grip.
"Ouch! It hurts! My arm is going to break!" Su Yuyao cried as she struggled to break free.
"Behave yourself!" Xuanfeng raised his leg and kicked.
"Ah—! I won't dare again! Ah—!" Even though Xuanfeng didn't use any force, Su Yuyao was still so frightened that she burst into tears, attracting people in the Heavenly Palace to peek and watch.
"Shut your mouth!" Xuanfeng growled in a low voice.
"Ah—!" Su Yuyao covered her bottom and cried even louder.
"Don't cry!" Xuanfeng said again in a low voice.
"Ah—! Ah—!" Su Yuyao raised her voice again.
Xuanfeng looked at Su Yuyao, who had her eyes closed, mouth agape, and face covered in snot and tears. "You brat! You didn't know fear when you ventured into the Heavenly Palace alone, but now you're about to get a beating!"
He took a breath and said, "If I don't hit you, can you just shut up?"
"Hmm..." Su Yuyao stopped wailing and sobbed, "You...you said...you wouldn't...hit me..."
"I won't hit you," Xuanfeng released his grip, his tone softening considerably. "Don't cry anymore, okay?"
Su Yuyao nodded.
Xuanfeng sighed helplessly, took Su Yuyao's hand, and said, "Let's go home."
"Can...can you...carry me?" Su Yuyao asked, wiping away her tears. "I...I can't walk anymore..."
Xuanfeng glanced at Su Yuyao's trembling skirt. "You brat! You're clearly scared, but you're still trying to act tough!"
He squatted down, and Su Yuyao quickly climbed up and obediently lay on Xuanfeng's back.
Xuanfeng then realized that Su Yuyao was trembling all over.
"Little girl, are you scared?" Xuanfeng asked softly.
"Um."
"If you were afraid, why did you still venture into the Heavenly Palace?"
“Breaking into the Heavenly Palace isn’t scary. Anyway, if I cause trouble, you’ll protect me,” Su Yuyao said softly.
"Then what are you afraid of?"
"I'm afraid you'll get angry, and if you get angry, no one will be able to protect me..."
Xuanfeng felt a sharp pain in his heart again. Silly girl!
"Xuanfeng!" A tender voice called out.
Su Yuyao peeked over Xuanfeng's shoulder and saw that slender and charming figure.
"Feihua?" Xuanfeng looked at the woman in front of him with great surprise. "Why are you here?"
“Xuanfeng, I want to… talk to you alone.” Feihua’s eyes were moist, her gaze full of tenderness.
Looking at the beautiful woman with a graceful figure and exquisite makeup in front of her, Su Yuyao couldn't help but feel inferior.
No wonder that stinky bastard kept thinking about her, she's really beautiful!
Xuanfeng turned his head and whispered, "Girl, wait for me a moment."
"No!" Su Yuyao hugged Xuanfeng's neck tightly.
She stared into Fei Hua's eyes. Although Fei Hua looked weak and pitiful now, Su Yuyao always felt that Fei Hua had come with ill intentions!
"Listen to me! I'll be back in a bit." Xuanfeng squatted down and put Su Yuyao down.
"I don't want to!" Su Yuyao said, stamping her foot.
"Girl, don't go anywhere else, just wait for me here!"
Xuanfeng gave a brief instruction and then hurriedly went to Feihua, "Feihua, are you... alright?"
Feihua, with tears in her eyes, threw herself into Xuanfeng's arms, sobbing uncontrollably.
Xuanfeng couldn't bear it and hugged Feihua, who was covered in fragrance, tightly. This woman, who had once sworn eternal love to him, was now about to marry another.
Feihua cried for a while, then raised her head and said softly, "Come with me, let's talk alone."
After saying that, she took Xuanfeng's arm and walked towards the flower bushes on the side.
"Xuanfeng! Come back!" Su Yuyao jumped up and down anxiously, "She's up to no good!"
Xuanfeng stopped, turned around to look at Su Yuyao, and said with a smile, "Girl, don't worry, wait for me to come back."
Fei Hua glanced at Su Yuyao, who was jumping up and down, smiled coldly, and pulled Xuan Feng into the flower bushes by the arm of her hand.
The lush flowers concealed the two figures. Fei Hua swayed her waist, her alluring glances leading Xuan Feng to a clearing in the flowerbed.
"Xuanfeng, this marriage arrangement was not my wish; it was forced upon me by my mother," Feihua said, choking back tears. "Now, I am still a virgin, so take it; it will help me put my mind at ease."
Xuanfeng stroked Feihua's cheek, "Feihua, why are you doing this to yourself?"
"Why should I do this?" Fei Hua's tears were filled with despair. "I don't want Ze Yuan to tarnish my purity. I'd rather be a despicable woman that everyone scorns! Xuan Feng, please help me!"
“Feihua…” Xuanfeng looked at the pitiful person in front of him.
Feihua nestled in Xuanfeng's arms, cupped his face in her hands, stood on tiptoe, and gently touched his rough lips with her red lips...
Su Yuyao watched as Xuanfeng was taken away by Feihua, feeling both angry and anxious, but she dared not disobey Xuanfeng's orders, so she could only sit on the ground and sulk.
That bastard still has his eye on her, even though he knows she has other intentions, he still followed her there!
Su Yuyao waited for a while, but couldn't sit still any longer, so she ran to the edge of the flower bushes and peered inside. "You stinking bastards! What are you doing!"
"Hey! You're the troublemaking little girl, aren't you?" That voice... I feel like I've heard it somewhere before.
Su Yuyao slowly turned around, her heart leaping into her throat. Not far away was Ze Yuan, whom she had met at the Heavenly Gate of the Dui Palace! Behind him was a troop of heavenly soldiers.
“Zeyuan… Lord…” Su Yuyao quickly lowered her head and slightly bent her knees.
Ze Yuan beckoned with a mischievous grin, "Come here! Let me see!"
Su Yuyao lowered her head and slowly moved over.
Ze Yuan bent down, looked left and right, and suddenly pinched Su Yuyao's chin with his hand, lifting her head up.
Su Yuyao was so frightened that she closed her eyes tightly.
"What's your name?" Ze Yuan stared at the familiar face in his hand, his heart filled with surprise and doubt.
Su Yuyao pursed her lips and slowly opened her eyes, whispering, "Su... Su Yuyao..."
Ze Yuan narrowed his eyes, curled the corners of his mouth, and slid his hand toward Su Yuyao's neck, squeezing it tightly as he asked in a chilling tone, "Are you Su Yuyao... or Sa Ningbao?"
The feeling of suffocation grew stronger. Su Yuyao struggled to grasp Ze Yuan's wrist and gasped for breath, "My lord... my name is Su Yuyao... later I was... adopted by the wolf clan... and renamed... Sa Ningbao..."
"Oh? Why were you adopted by the wolf clan?" Ze Yuan asked with a gloomy face.
"I...I don't remember..." Su Yuyao's vision began to darken, her body went weak, and her hand slipped down...
Ze Yuan released his grip and scooped the unconscious Su Yuyao into his arms. "Back to the palace!"
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