Rebirth of an Idle Noblewoman

When Jiang Shuxuan and Gu Xiqiao returned to the house, Shu Chen was sitting on the sofa, seemingly in a daze. She only came back to her senses when the butler spoke.

“Young Master, Miss Gu, you’re home.” The butler’s voice was pitched slightly higher than usual.

Shu Chen stood up immediately. “Qiao Qiao, you’re both back. Have you eaten dinner?”

Jiang Shuxuan handed the umbrella to the butler. Raising his head with a disinterested expression on his face, he glanced at his mother. She was also looking at him, and he paused before saying, “We’ve eaten. We just came by to see if you’d like to watch a movie.”

“A movie?” Shu Chen knew that her son wouldn’t do things that were meaningless, so she pushed aside her thoughts and brightened up. “Ah, that’s right. Today’s the premier of ‘Divergent Paths’ that Qiao Qiao’s’ fanclub president mentioned. Unfortunately, I couldn’t get a ticket!” Shu Chen counted her fingers for a while. “Do you have tickets? I have five friends, so I’ll need six tickets.”

As soon as she finished speaking, Jiang Shuxuan raised his hands, displaying a row of six tickets in front of her.

“Aunt Shu, this…” Gu Xiqiao watched stunned, as Shu Chen sat beside the phone and made calls after calls.

Jiang Shuxuan glanced at Shu Chen. “It’s fine, she likes showing off.”

Gu Xiqiao: “…”

Shu Chen didn’t care about the time of the night, calling the few friends that she mentioned to watch a movie. The few friends were also relatively high in position in the ancient martial arts world. Although they felt it was a bit weird for Shu Chen to call them at this time of night, they still came in the end.

A group of six people walked happily into the movie theater despite the heavy snow. “Madam Jiang, your daughter-in-law’s acting is really great!”

“Look at the barrage of praise that’s in the comments section! It’s all about your daughter-in-law!”

“Miss Gu is beautiful. Look at that robe as well as the white fox fur coat she wore. It’s no wonder you made her a coat from your family heirloom!”

One of them sighed heavily. “If I had such a daughter-in-law, I would also be willing to spoil her.”

Gu Xiqiao had acted as a fox demon on screen, donning a green robe and a white fox fur coat on the outside. On screen, her face resembled a fine piece of jade, and her entire being a flawless painting. Her eyes were narrowed slightly with an absent-minded expression on her face. She gave off the look of a headstrong woman.

She looked indifferent on the outside, but she was the most affectionate person in the entire cast in the movie.

Only, being too emotional shortens your lifespan, and having more wisdom only hurts more.

In the beginning, people watching were discussing Gu Xiqiao’s acting skills. By the end of the movie, everyone was holding tissues and sobbing in low tones.

In the last scene, it was of the mountain top that was covered in snow all year round, and there were bloodstains all over, contrasting against the pure, white color of the snow. Ji Zhang’gui picked up the person in his arms, and walked out of the area, step by step.

There was only one sentence spoken at that scene after he left, “Feng Qiqi, I’m bringing you home.”

After that, the movie was over, and the credits were rolling, but no one stood to leave.

“Feng Qiqi, I’m bringing you home!”

“F*ck off, you self-righteous person! Ji Zhang’gui, how can you bear to let her die!”

“My Beauty Gu has died all over again…Wuwuwuwu….”

“Feng Qiqi, I’m bringing you home!”

“Those who love deep won’t live long. Feng Qiqi, did you already know that you would die early on… wuwuwuwu….”

“Miss, is there still tickets for ‘Divergent Paths’?” The person next to Shu Chen left the cinema, but not to leave, but running directly to the ticket office.

The lady at the counter bowed her head apologetically. “I’m sorry, miss. The tickets have been sold out since earlier.”

The person then ran back to Shu Chen’s side. “Madam Jiang, do you still have tickets?”

Shu Chen herself was deep in thought, and was snapped out of it when her friends spoke to her. She gave a wry smile. “I don’t have anymore, Mrs. Tang.”

Being too emotional shortens your lifespan, and having more wisdom only hurts more. Shu Chen was greatly shaken by these words, maybe because Gu Xiqiao was the main star of the movie, or maybe because the image of the important swordsman was similar to Jiang Shuxuan, or maybe because Gu XIqiao had recently been accused of being a calamity. Or maybe it was most probably because of the call she had received tonight.

Either way, the ending of ‘Divergent Paths’ made Shu Chen feel extremely depressed to her core.

***

In the ancient martial arts world, the Tang family residence.

“Elder Young Master, you’re finally back.” The Tang butler opened the door to see Tang Qingqiu in a neat, crisp suit.

Tang Qingqiu brushed off the snow that was on his clothes, taking off his thick coat and handing it to the butler. “Where is my mother?”

“Madam has gone to watch a movie,” The butler said, taking the coat. He then brought a cup of hot tea to Tang Qingqiu. “Have you eaten?”

Tang Qingqiu paused, his hand hovering in mid-air. “A movie?” Now that was a rare sight.

“That’s right.” The butler smiled. “Madam has gone with Madam Jiang and a few others to watch a movie.”

Even Madam Jiang?

A group of distinguished people from the ancient martial arts world, going out to watch a movie in such heavy snowy weather? What had happened during his absence from the ancient martial arts world for the past few days?

“Where is Qinghong?” Tang Qingqiu looked around, not feeling Tang Qinghong’s presence in the vicinity.

“Young Master Qinghong has gone to the Peace Manor.”

“Alright.” Tang Qingqiu took a sip of his tea, before handing the butler the documents that were in his hands. “Have someone deliver this to the Elders Association immediately.”

Having said that, he went out again, his steps hurried. He didn’t even bother to take his coat.

The butler didn’t have a chance to say a word, and could only watch as Tang Qingqiu walked out into the heavy snow.

Peace Manor, which was located in the fifth ring, had lanterns all around that were still brightly lit. The huge pearl shone brightly in the dark, and most of the people were still training.

“Looks like Miss Gu often feeds you some good stuff, you have quite a pool of energy in you.” Yao Jiamu circled Hua Youlin. “Although you don’t have much talent, there’s still something that can be done.”

Hua Youlin had grown used to hearing these words, it was an indisputable fact after all. After arriving at Peace Manor, every single person here could probably beat him with a finger. “Am I still salvageable?”

“Of course.” Yao Jiamu pointed to Xiao Yun, who was studying some secret texts. “Do you see her, she used to be on the same level as you previously.” Now, she’s ranked 11th on the Youth Ranking List!

Hearing herself being used as an example by Yao Jiamu, Xiao Yun shot him a glare.

“Xiao Yun, you’re not going to do anything?” Yin Shaoyuan bounced forward with a smile on his face. “My cousin has been rounding in the formation for about half an hour now. The snow is falling so heavily, and he’s not even wearing a coat.”

XIao Yun turned another page, not responding to his words.

Yin Shaoyuan scratched his nose, and then left not long after. Sigh, he could only help so much as a wingman.

Ten minutes later, Xiao Yun put down her book and strode out the door.

Tang Qingqiu, who wasn’t able to exit the formation, was getting worried and frustrated. Suddenly, a figure appeared in front of him, and he was taken aback for a moment. “Miss Xiao.”

“You better hurry up and leave, otherwise the killing formation will start to activate.” Xiao Yun’s voice was flat. “It’s a formation that Er Qiao personally made, you won’t be able to shake it off.”

Once she was done talking, she disappeared from his sight. Tang Qingqiu was also ejected out of the formation.

He stood outside it for a while, then pulled out his phone. “Shuxuan, the things are at the Elders Association.”

***

Jiang Shuxuan, who was standing by the window in the Jiang residence, looked at the pink plum flower that was beside him. He hung up the call, and looked to Gu Xiqiao who was in bed. He opened the door softly, walking out.

After sending the documents to the Elders Association, the lights came on on the building.

The seven elders sat at the long table, all silent. At last, when Yi Bing and his team walked in, the great elder stood up. “Mr. Yi Bing.”

Yi Bing nodded. “Elders, how do you do.”

They gathered together, but didn’t speak. Only the silence hung in the air, and the atmosphere was chilly.

The door was pushed open once again, a tall, imposing figure walking through it with the wind and snow blowing behind him. The coldness that exuded from him was even colder than the weather outside, and his cold, proud face seemed to be carved from marble under the white light that shone on him.

“Big boss,” Yi Bing and the others stood, greeting Jiang Shuxuan.

Jiang Shuxuan took the documents from the elders and flipped through it. “I’ll be leaving the ancient martial arts world after this. During this period, she’ll be taking care of the matters here. Yi Bing, are you clear?”

Yi Bing and the others were stunned for a moment, before straightening up at the cold look on Jiang Shuxuan’s face. “Crystal clear, Big Boss!”

The great elder looked at Jiang Shuxuan, a hint of terror in his eyes. “Where are you going? Could it be that… you’ve reached the realm of Enlightenment?”

Among the elders, only the great elder knew what Jiang Shuxaun was headed off to do. It was because he knew, that was the precise reason he was mystified, and even his throat was abnormally dry.

The moment the great elder said this, everyone else present was shocked, especially Yi Bing and his men. They knew that Jiang Shuxuan was strong, but they never had the chance to see him at his true strength. Whenever they thought he was at his limit, he would produce an even more impossible feat than the last the next time they saw him!

Because Jiang Shuxuan had always been able to challenge the levels above him, they weren’t sure which realm he really was at.

But they didn’t expect the great elder’s words!

The realm of Enlightenment!

No one in the ancient martial arts world had been able to reach this level in the past thousand years!

Yi Bing and his team couldn’t help but glance at Jiang Shuxuan with a sort of urgency in their eyes. They too wanted to know if what the great elder said was true!

“Previously, in Grandpa Tang’s banquet, I just broke through into the realm of Enlightenment.” Jiang Shuxuan’s voice was low and flat, his eyes on the papers in his hands. “So I need to go there.”

“Big boss.” Yi Tong suddenly snapped back to his senses when he saw Jiang Shuxuan turning to leave. “Are you not going to inform Miss Gu?”

Jiang Shuxuan halted in his steps, and he stood in the spot for a while, his eyes closed slightly. “No need.”

She should have already known a long time ago.

The figure melted into the night, and the great elder watched Jiang Shuxuan’s vanishing figure. “No one has broken into the realm of Enlightenment in the past thousand years. This day, it’s about to change…”

The next morning, when Butler Jiang opened the door to see Yi Tong, he greeted him with a nod. “Mr. Yi Tong, the young master is not at home.”

“I know, I’m not here to see him. I’m here to see Miss Gu today.” Yi Tong looked at Butler Jiang. “Also, Mr. Butler, can’t you just call me Mr. Yi?”

The butler smiled. “Mr. Yi Tong, you’re saying the same things that Mr. Jiu Tong once said.”

Yi Tong: “…” You! You big dummy!

“Madam Jiang, Miss Gu.” Yi Tong greeted once he went in. Gu Xiqiao and Shu Chen were having their breakfast.

Although the two of them were wearing normal expressions, and there was nothing to show what they were feeling, Yi Tong still lowered his head subconsciously. He thought about how the big boss had just left without a word of goodbye, would Miss Gu come after them because of that?

“What’s the average strength of your Mahjong teams?” Yi Tong was deep in his own mind, and was startled when Gu Xiqiao suddenly spoke.

Mahjong teams? What the heck was that?

Yi Tong was stunned for a moment, before realizing that Miss Gu was talking about their teams. “Miss Gu, the average strength of our Mahjong corps is above the 45th floor.”

Gu Xiqiao eyed him for a moment, before spitting out a single word, “Weak.” The strength of the ancient martial arts world needed to be greatly improved indeed.

WTF? Yi Tong almost couldn’t hold back his thoughts. Gu Xiqiao actually said that they were weak?! Their average strength was already probably enough to flatten the ancient martial arts world, and this was called weak?!

Of course, if you were to compare them to Gu Xiqiao or even Jiang Shuxuan, they were obviously weak. Only, were the two of them even considered to be normal in the first place?

Compared to the ordinary people in the secular world, they were already very powerful, okay!

It was obvious that Yi Tong wasn’t satisfied with the word that Gu Xiqiao had just said.

She gave him a glance, and said, “Bring it over.”

“What?” Yi Tong really couldn’t keep up with Gu Xiqiao’s line of thoughts.

“The thing that you wanted to give me.” Gu Xiqiao raised an eyebrow, looking at him indifferently.

Hearing her words, Yi Tong looked at her in surprise and suspicion. How did she know that he had something to give her?

He walked towards her as he pulled out a piece of paper from his pocket, handing it over to her.

It was a snow-white paper, and the corners were all folded. Once you open it however, there were no signs of the creases, and on it were a few words written, ‘Outsider, calamity, turning point.’

These words seemed to have some charm on it, and regular people would fall into the trap once they read it. However, Gu Xiqiao’s mental powers were strong, and though she was swayed a little, she regained her senses soon enough, and looked thoughtfully at the words.

Little did she know that her expression was seen by Yi Tong, and he was instantly jaw slacked.

This piece of paper was given to them by Dubhe, and it’s said to have been written by his master. Dubhe’s master was a true god, and every word written on the paper contained the power of Taoism in them. Most people would fall prey in the trap, and even Yi Tong had been unable to control himself when he read it under supervision of the others.

He didn’t expect that Gu Xiqiao would be able to shake it off so quickly and back to her senses in such a short period of time. Yi Tong took a deep breath to calm his deeply shaken heart.

“Calamity? Turning point?” Tracing her finger across the words, Gu Xiqiao pondered on the meaning of the words.

Yi Tong calmed down, and a serious look crossed his face again. “Yes, Miss Gu. Master Dubhe is scouring the entire world for the turning point. Before he left, he said that if the turning point isn’t found or has been killed, then it’s over for the world.”

Although Dubhe was unreliable as a person, his position was at stake here, he obviously wouldn’t make a joke about such things.

At the same time, the cold, mechanical voice that Gu Xiqiao had not heard in a long while finally sounded again.

[Ding! Final chain mission activated: Solve the dilemma of the power world! Penalty for incomplete mission: Obliteration!]

The cold, red words ‘Obliteration’ echoed in her mind. Although Gu Xiqiao had broken into the realm of Houtian, she was still confused about the system in her mind. She was silent for a long while, before narrowing her eyes and said, “Calamity and turning point, it’s impossible to find them just like that. If someone could scry it out, that would be great.”

Gu Xiqiap tapped her fingers on the table, her mind a blank.

She pursed her lips and didn’t say another word.

“You mean those fortune-telling?” Yi Tong said after thinking for a while. “Speaking of which, there really is someone who can do that.”

“Oh?” Gu Xiqiao looked towards Yi Tong, gesturing for him to continue.

Yi Tong took a few seconds to organize his thoughts before he continued, “The ancient martial arts world originally had a line of descendants from the Zhuge clan. They were able to obtain the secrets of the heavens and seize the fates. They were once a great tribe in the ancient martial arts world. However, you know that the ancient martial arts world isn’t the same as in the past thousand years, Miss Gu. Back then, countless great families either disappeared from the face of Earth, or declined slowly. Only the Jiang family endured till the present. The Zhuge clan was one of them that disappeared, as well as the Baili clan. Their ancestors deployed a formation that could be called Cyberspace that year, and now…”

There were countless families in the ancient martial arts world that ended up in that state, and there was nothing else better to be said there.

“The Zhuge clan vanished?” Gu Xiqiao sighed. It wasn’t looking good then.

Being able to glimpse into secrets only known to heaven, but you still wouldn’t be able to do fortune telling if you yourself were involved. Gu Xiqiao had known that she wouldn’t be able to read her own fortune, as she was accounted for as one of the roles, ‘outsider’.

She was scared, time was running out.

“Not to say that they just vanished.” Yi Tong scratched his head. “The Zhuge clan had a great relationship with the Baili clan back then. This sort of powerful family wouldn’t just up and vanish without a trace. You could head over to the Baili family and ask to see, they’d probably know something.”

***

At the same time, in the Baili family, Baili Bin was holding up a black chess piece. He stared at the chess pieces on the board, and finally dropped the piece after a long silence.

Shi Haizhe sat opposite him, holding a white chess piece. “They say that small things don’t have fangs, but you’ve forced me into a difficult situation here. Baili, your chest skills have risen a little too fast, hasn’t it?”

“Before our Baili family delved into formations, we were all tacticians at one point.” Baili Bin smiled faintly. “Formations and chess have a lot in common, and I’ve recently had greater understanding in the game.”

After three more moves, he was finally forced into a dead end by Baili Bin. Shi Haizhe placed down the chess piece, shaking his head. “As expected, I’m more confident if I played against Wanqi Jue instead.”

“You’re still playing chess with such a relaxed attitude.” Murong Feiye, who had been reading a book by the window, finally jumped down when he saw them done with the game. He sat down at the table, glancing at Shi Haizhe. “The Shi family is walking down a dead end, and you’re not bothered a single bit, and just watching them walk to their death.”

“How can I do anything about it?” Shi Haizhe poured himself a cup of hot tea. “If I interfere, Miss Gu might lump me together with them.”

Murong Feiye thought about it, and felt that it was quite a reasonable logic. “The patriarch of the Shi family is quite blind too, isn’t he? Forget the fact that he kicked you out of the house, it was hard enough to get out a talent like Shiqin, but to send him personally to the Peace Manor! There are still a lot of people out to get the Peace Manor, right?”

“There are quite a few indeed.” Baili Bin waved his hand, calling someone to take the chessboard away. A hint of mockery flashed in his eyes. “In the ancient martial arts world, who doesn’t yearn for the things in the Peace Manor?”

“If they were to find out that Peace Manor belongs to her, they’d probably want to kill themselves!” Murong Feiye snatched the cup out of Shi Haizhe’s hand, drinking the contents in one go. “And those people from the Peace Manor, why haven’t they made any moves at all?”

If it wasn’t for the fact that he knew what sort of people were in the Peace Manor, Murong Feiye would have thought them to be afraid.

A middle-aged man came then, knocking on the door lightly. “Young Master, Miss Gu is here.”

“Hm.” Baili Bin replied indifferently, holding the teacup casually in his hand. It took him two seconds to react, turning his head in shock. “Who did you say was here again?”

“Miss Gu.” The man repeated slowly. “Miss Gu is here, she’s in the living room. The patriarch is entertaining her at the moment.”

As soon as he finished saying that, he looked up to see that Baili Bin had vanished from the room.

***

Gu Xiqiao looked at Baili Qu. Although she didn’t like Baili Wenxi, Baili Qu and Baili Bin were different. The two of them had always treated her well, and they held a great amount of affection for her.

“Big Brother Baili,” Seeing Baili Bin coming in from the outside, Gu Xiqiao stood up immediately and greeted him.

There was a smile on Baili Bin’s face when he caught sight of her. Although they saw each other frequently, it was different this time. This was the first time Gu Xiqiao had come to the Baili residence. “Qiao Qiao, what has brought you here today?”

His gaze turned to Yi Tong, who was standing beside her. He was slightly surprised, why was Yi Tong following her?

“Something came up.” Seeing Baili Bin, Gu Xiqiao could feel the tension melting away from her body, and she proceeded to explain about the Zhuge clan and the situation.

Baili Bin nodded his head. “Grandpa, how about you have the kitchen prepare the food first. I’ll bring Qiao Qiao to the ancestral hall.”

“The Zhuge clan has disappeared for a long time, I rarely hear the name being brought up anymore. If there’s any news on them, it would be among the family history.” Baili Bin explained as they walked, pulling out the key to open the doors.

“That many?” Murong Feiye looked at the room filled to the brim with books, and was taken aback. “Baili, are you sure you’re not pulling our leg here?”

“Here it is, the records of the entire family history.” Baili Bin ignored Murong Feiye’s words, turning to look at Gu Xiqiao instead. “It used to be arranged properly, but it’s probably messed up now.”

The Baili family had been around for god knows how long, and they had many years of history. It looks like it would be difficult to find anything among such a large amount of records.

And that was ignoring the fact that the records were currently in a mess.

There wasn’t any expression on Gu Xiqiao’s face. “Can I read them?”

“Of course.” Baili Bin came over with a stack of books. “It might take quite a while.”

Receiving Baili Bin’s confirmation, Gu Xiqiao nodded. She sat on the desk and raised her hand, then dozens of books moved to her hands. She started flipping through it, and she only took a few minutes to read through a single book, before taking the next one, while the other book floated back to its original place.

The other three people in the room were stunned speechless at the scene in front of them. “She finished reading the book?” Shi Haizhe was in a state of disbelief.

“It looks like it.” Murong Feiye said, nodding his head blankly.

Baili Bin quietly placed down the book in his hand that he was reading.

By the time evening came around, Gu Xiqiao had already finished half of the books, and only two were taken by her while the others were thrown to the far back. Baili Bin moved a bench to sit beside her, flipping through the two books. He didn’t see anything special in the books, and it was only a record of trivial matters in it.

“Miss Gu, the great elder is looking for you.” Yi Tong suddenly came in.

“The great elder?” Baili Bin turned to Yi Tong, a doubtful look on his face. “What happened?”

Gu Xiqiao put down the book she was reading, standing up, her clear eyes looking straight. “Let’s go.”

She followed Yi Tong out the door after that, with Baili Bin immediately following behind her.

After the group left, Murong Feiye rubbed his chin thoughtfully. He and Shi Haizhe had been in the yard chatting when the group left. “Let’s go, we should also follow and see what’s happening.”

***

At the Elders Association, a group of people from the ancient martial arts world were standing outside.

Luo Wenlang handed them over to the great elder as he said, “These people were behaving sneakily, sneaking into our Peace Manor and even hurting our people!”

The great elder looked towards the bunch of people on the ground who were tied up, his face flushed red.

Going in and stealing people’s things, and even caught red-handed and apprehended… He was embarrassed on their behalf!

One of the people who was tied up yelled out, “What do you mean harming your people? That person is our own Shi family person! Forget about crippling her hand, even if we wanted her life you wouldn’t be able to do anything!”

The main reason for them sneaking into the place was to get their hands on those miracle pills that the Peace Manor had. Any single one of these pills could change a person’s life. The Tang family had some in their possession, and they watched the strength of every Tang family member climb one by one, who wouldn’t be jealous?

And Gu Xiqiao, she definitely also had some in her hand. Her strength was impossible!

But they knew that the Tang family and Gu Xiqiao were people who they couldn’t afford to provoke, you had to pick your fights wisely after all, so they chose to go after the Peace Manor instead.

They had unexpectedly harmed Shi Qin’s mother, and that was the reason Luo Wenlang had dragged them to the Elders Association.

However, these people didn’t give a single thought to it. Shi Qin’s mother was just a regular person after all, and she originally belonged to the Shi family. They didn’t care about hurting such a person.

As soon as he said that, Shi Qin saw red. Just as he was about to move, he caught sight of a figure slowly approaching them.

“Since when did someone from our Peace Manor become someone from your Shi family? Why didn’t I know of this?” The figure that approached them was dressed in a white fox fur coat, and her delicate, sharp features made it obvious who she was.

The look of the people gathered around changed immediately, and they looked towards Luo Wenlang in disbelief and shock, before turning to Gu Xiqiao again, the alarming feeling increasing in their hearts!

They had always wondered where Gu Xiqiao was from, but they never expected her to be part of the Peace Manor!