Chapter 161

The two talked for quite a long time. Aside from matters concerning Wen Xiaoxing, they also spoke about Bai Muqing’s daily life after joining the knight order. When discussing her new environment, even Bai Muqing ended up speaking more than usual. She barely interacted with the others on her team. She preferred taking the initiative to handle aberrant realm missions. Compared to her colleagues, she found far more comfort in facing monsters, as well as seeing the excited and grateful expressions on people’s faces. 

Ye Zheng listened with a faint smile. Whenever Bai Muqing’s throat grew a little dry, she’d promptly hand her some water. However, every time Bai Muqing awkwardly tried to steer the conversation toward Ye Zheng, Ye Zheng would always deflect it lightly.

She even started to wonder if her earlier tone had been too harsh. Ye Zheng probably hadn’t liked that commanding manner.

A strange feeling stirred in Bai Muqing’s heart. The person before her was like a magnificent maze, one that could easily trap others within, yet never allow anyone to find the true entrance to her heart.

But when Bai Muqing rested her head against the soft pillow, that peculiar feeling quickly faded away. This was her first time staying overnight at a friend’s house. The gentle, tender softness brushing against her cheek almost made her lower all her defenses.

Go to sleep, she told herself. Tomorrow, she’d begin working together with Ye Zheng. 　　

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Ye Zheng was awakened by a string of sudden, continuous noises coming from downstairs.

She’d gone to bed late the night before, and being abruptly woken early in the morning while still deep in sleep made even her usually calm temperament stir with a trace of displeased irritation.

Ye Zheng sat on the bed in a daze for a moment, then quickly tidied herself up. She stepped out of her bedroom and saw that Bai Muqing had also come out of the guest room. Her brows were faintly drawn together, and she looked as though she’d been woken up as well.

Ye Zheng and Bai Muqing stood at the top of the second-floor staircase. Looking down, Ye Zheng saw that the hall below was already in complete disarray. Vases, tableware, and chairs lay scattered and overturned in every direction. The man standing amid the wreckage still wasn’t satisfied and kicked the table several more times, yet it refused to move.

Ye Zheng shot Bai Muqing an embarrassed glance. It was genuinely improper to let a guest witness such an awkward family scene.

She asked Bai Muqing to wait upstairs for a moment, then headed down. With a questioning look, she glanced at a maid. The maid only shook her head slightly; she had no idea why Lord Ye had suddenly flown into such a rage either.

Ye Zheng stopped a short distance from Ye Fanjing. She took in his clothes and noticed that he seemed to have just returned home that morning. He had probably run into something unpleasant at work and could only vent his frustration at home.

Her heart suddenly skipped a beat. Ye Zheng recalled that Ye Fanjing had recently been promoted. He was no longer an Upper District judge, but now the chief adjudicator of the Ability Tribunal. The organization of this ability competition also fell under his authority.

“Father, did something go wrong with the competition?”

Hearing a slightly low female voice, Ye Fanjing turned his head and was surprised to find Ye Zheng actually at home.

After that trial, he had intentionally, or perhaps unconsciously, been avoiding this daughter. But today, his anger had overwhelmed him, and he cast all such concerns aside. He let out a cold snort. “You’ve still got the nerve to ask about the competition? I heard from Ye Di that during the second half of the match, no one could even catch a glimpse of you!”

“A few weeks ago, His Highness the Crown Prince worked hard to gather evidence for you and stood up for you in court…”

“It was the Holy Verdict that declared me innocent,” Ye Zheng cut him off coldly.

At the mention of the Holy Verdict, Ye Fanjing’s expression stiffened slightly, as though he had finally remembered that the daughter standing before him was no longer an ordinary noble child who depended on her family’s protection. As the Saintess acknowledged by both the Divine Sword and the Divine Blood, even the Emperor had to treat Ye Zheng with courtesy.

But he was still her father.

Thinking of this, Ye Fanjing straightened his back a little. He rolled his eyes before softening his tone. “The Crown Prince’s defeat in this competition naturally can’t be blamed on you. Who could’ve expected that girl from the Middle District to be so cunning? Her luck was even more unbelievable. I’ve already ordered people to investigate whether there was any foul play.”　

　The greatest instance of foul play was standing right in front of him. Ye Zheng lifted her eyebrows slightly and asked:

“So you wrecked the entire living room just because of this?”

Ye Fanjing ran a hand through his hair in irritation. “There was another monster that showed up in Amber Lake, which caused a small accident.”

“…How could that even be possible?”

“Did something happen to one of the contestants?”

All traces of sleepiness vanished from Ye Zheng. Based on the information she had gathered and her on-site observations, the only monster in Amber Lake should’ve been the deep-blue giant eel. Why would other monsters suddenly appear?

“The contestants are fine. It was some of the workers who hadn’t been relocated yet that got into trouble. That monster suddenly showed up in the workers’ residential area. Who could’ve predicted something like that?”

Ye Zheng frowned slightly. Her dark eyes fixed heavily on Ye Fanjing. “According to the rules, all workers must be evacuated from Amber Lake before the competition begins.”

The day before the competition, the organizers had already released the deep-blue giant eel for the event. Although it was an aquatic monster, its level of danger couldn’t be underestimated. Therefore, aside from the contestants, no one else was permitted to remain inside the Amber Lake Aberrant Realm, especially ordinary people without abilities.

“This is your negligence of duty. How many people were injured?”

“…23 people. That’s not too many. Luckily, a contestant named Pei Xi happened to be passing by that area and managed to save the remaining 30 people.”

Pei Xi?

The moment Pei Xi was involved, this matter could no longer be considered an accident. Had Pei Xi merely happened to pass by, or had someone deliberately arranged for him to be there?

Ye Zheng observed Ye Fanjing’s hesitant expression with cold eyes and immediately understood what he was thinking. He had only just taken office, and now such an incident had occurred. He probably wanted to use her status as the Saintess to help smooth things over.

“First, tell me why not all the workers were evacuated.”

Ye Fanjing answered vaguely, “It was those people who refused to leave. It wasn’t that our staff didn’t try to evacuate them. That group insisted on staying behind to protest over a small compensation issue. But if we set a precedent like that, what if others follow their example and start bargaining too?”

“It was just an unexpected disaster. Who could’ve anticipated a monster appearing out of nowhere?”

This wasn’t an unexpected disaster. None of this could possibly be mere coincidence. Ye Zheng’s mind raced rapidly. Although Ye Fanjing was detestable, the likelihood of a monster appearing out of thin air was far too low. Someone might’ve taken advantage of Ye Fanjing’s inaction and deliberately engineered this incident.　

Ye Zheng could only piece together the cause of the incident by working backward from its outcome. It was unlikely that any of the workers held a personal grudge, because ordinary people simply didn’t have the means to control monsters. Anyone capable of such a thing wouldn’t bother targeting ordinary civilians.

Was it aimed at Ye Fanjing? That wasn’t impossible. After all, plenty of people coveted the position he currently held.

But thinking more deeply, Ye Fanjing’s most prominent identity right now wasn’t as the chief adjudicator of the Ability Tribunal, but… the father of Saintess Ye Zheng.

Once this matter blew up, it would turn into yet another explosive event, one that could easily ignite public outrage in the Lower District. If someone deliberately guided the narrative, public opinion could very well shift and burn straight toward her!

This whole incident was directed at her!

Ye Zheng’s breathing grew heavier and heavier. Just to tarnish her reputation, someone had actually been willing to sacrifice dozens of human lives.

Damn it. Ye Fanjing deserved to die. The person orchestrating everything behind the scenes deserved to die… Ye Zheng’s fingernails dug so deeply into her palm that they nearly broke the skin.

The ones who stood to benefit from this incident were, first, Wen Jian, who had always set his sights on her. But Ye Zheng found it unlikely that this was his doing. He had already sent Wen Xiaoxing and had been confident that the monster would kill her. At the same time, he’d uncovered evidence of her ability falsification. This incident didn’t seem to match his methods.

The other beneficiary was Pei Xi.

He had lost the competition, yet he had saved thirty innocent people. The larger this incident became, the more he’d be praised and elevated as a hero.

It was only natural for people to praise Pei Xi for saving innocent lives, as long as his act of saving them wasn’t itself part of the mastermind’s design.

Ye Zheng rubbed her temples. Maybe it was because she hadn’t gotten enough sleep that she was overthinking everything. It was also possible that the author had deliberately arranged for Pei Xi to pass by at just the right moment and save those people.

The protagonist always seemed to trigger some kind of lucky encounter. He might’ve unintentionally disrupted the original plan. After all, the greater the number of casualties in this accident, the more severe the blow to her reputation would’ve been. There was no real need for the mastermind behind the scenes to deliberately arrange for Pei Xi to step in and save people midway through.

Suddenly, Ye Zheng’s expression stiffened. This ruthless yet calculated style, she felt like she had seen it not too long ago.

They had arranged for someone to provide false testimony to sue her in court, while secretly guiding Sykes to arrive and play the hero.

Her enemies were truly endless, and every single one of them was a powerful figure. Did they really have to be so wary of her? Ye Zheng felt she hadn’t done anything particularly earth-shattering.

A cold presence drew near. Ye Zheng turned her head and saw Bai Muqing, who had been waiting upstairs on the second floor, quietly walk over to her side.

She seemed to sense Ye Zheng’s gaze. Her head tilted slightly, and her pale white pupils shifted stiffly in Ye Zheng’s direction in response.

Eyes were nothing more than decoration for her. To blend in with ordinary people, Bai Muqing would occasionally imitate the way normal people moved their eyes. What she didn’t realize was that, to others, this only made them want to keep an even greater distance from her.

A faint trace of amusement flickered through the depths of Ye Zheng’s dark eyes, like ice slowly melting, before her expression returned to its usual cold indifference.

“Ye Fanjing.” Ye Zheng called him directly by name. “You’ll handle this matter immediately. Don’t pretend nothing’s happened. Prepare a proper compensation plan, then accept punishment in accordance with the regulations.”

Hearing his daughter’s commanding tone, Ye Fanjing’s eyes widened. His lips moved slightly as if he still wanted to say something, but Ye Zheng had already left the living room with the suddenly appeared strange girl, not sparing him another glance.

Ye Fanjing stared after that eerily pale girl, deep in thought, before suddenly opening his mouth wide in shock. He had finally remembered who she was.

Ye Zheng truly had promise. Ye Fanjing clicked his tongue, and more than half of his anger faded in an instant. He decided to follow Ye Zheng’s suggestion for the time being. As for punishment, his daughter was Saintess Ye Zheng, so who would even dare to punish him?

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On the spotless street, two girls dressed in understated clothing walked side by side.

“This matter has nothing to do with you. It’s your father’s responsibility.”

“And what if I say it does involve me?”

Bai Muqing’s expression remained unchanged beneath the brim of her hat. “The one pulling the strings killed innocent people and even tried to harm you. That only adds another layer to their crimes.”

Ye Zheng let out a quiet laugh. “Muqing, I think you’d be far more suited than Ye Fanjing to serve as the chief adjudicator of the Ability Tribunal.”

“Your father…” Bai Muqing had originally intended to say something comforting, but then she realized there was nothing about Ye Zheng’s father that deserved praise, so she awkwardly fell silent.

“Don’t worry. I don’t care about him, so naturally I won’t feel sad because of him.”

Bai Muqing still couldn’t help but feel concerned. Even someone as emotionally detached as she was would find it hard to stay completely unaffected upon discovering that her own father was such a despicable person.

She quietly activated 【Divine Domain】 to scan Ye Zheng and found that her soul was utterly calm, so calm that it felt unnatural.

Ye Zheng gently squeezed Bai Muqing’s hand and said, “Let’s head there first, just as we planned.”

As far as Ye Zheng was concerned, she’d already understood what kind of person Ye Fanjing was long ago. If this incident had any impact on her, it was that she had finally made her decision.

To achieve her goals, she would completely cut off all ties with her father Ye Fanjing and his family.

She was only Ye Zheng, Saintess Ye Zheng.