I am Guhuoniao, not an umbrella demon, please do not disturb me.

Kiyohime shook her head upon hearing this, "No, my brother only mentioned Mother, and he doesn't really like me. He thinks I'm a jinx to the family."

"A jinx?"

"Yes, my brother said that since I was born, things have never gone smoothly for our family, and business has been getting worse year by year."

"You don't need to take these words seriously. There's no such thing as a jinx; it's just a prejudice in people's minds. So what are you planning to do after this year? Your mother has been taken away by your brother; are you going to stay behind by yourself?"

"Yes, I'll stay and wait for him to come back."

Bai Qingyu knew who "he" referred to without Qingji needing to say it explicitly.

"You are alone at home, and being a woman, it's quite inconvenient. What would you do if you encountered any villains or demons?"

"I...I hadn't thought about it."

"Yes, think about it. You're a girl at home, weak and powerless. If you encounter a thug, you won't even be able to run away. You'll just be at their mercy. Also, never trust human nature. The human heart is the most complex and darkest thing in the world. If some lustful old man from your village or a neighboring village hears that you're home alone and sneaks into your yard and room in the middle of the night, what will you do?"

Bai Qingyu's words made Qingji frown.

She knew in her heart that the situation Bai Qingyu described was very likely to happen.

How could a girl like her possibly fight back against those thugs?

Let alone later, in the days immediately following my father's death, while his body was still lying in state at home, a local bully from the next village had already brought his men to cause trouble. If it weren't for the help of the villagers, who knows what those bullies might have done.

As she remained silent, a muffled thud suddenly came from outside the courtyard.

She hurriedly got up and went out, only to find that the door had been kicked open from the outside. Li Dahei, the local bully from the next village, swaggered in carrying a stick. His clothes were tattered and greasy, and he was a fat, tall man with a face full of menacing features. He looked like a butcher.

Li Hei was in his thirties, more than twice the age of Qing Ji.

As Li Hei entered carrying a stick, the first thing he saw when he saw Kiyohime standing at the door was the lewdness in his eyes, which he made no attempt to hide. He licked his lips, wishing he could strip Kiyohime naked on the spot and do some evil things to her.

"Little lady, hehehe, you didn't expect me to come again, did you? Let me tell you, your father came to me to buy meat and owed me fifty taels of silver, which he hasn't paid off yet. Now that he's dead, it's time for the daughter to pay the father's debt. If you obediently submit to me, I'll let you off with those fifty taels of silver."

His eyes swept over Kiyohime from head to toe, and that blatant gaze made Kiyohime feel extremely disgusted.

The way Li Hei looked at Kiyohime wasn't that he was looking at a person, but rather at a plaything, a beautiful plaything.

His ferocity and tyranny made it hard not to suspect that, besides lusting after Kiyohime's body, he might have wanted to do something even more outrageous to her.

Behind her, three henchmen slowly walked towards Kiyohime, all with lewd smiles on their faces.

If the eldest eats meat, the others can at least have some soup, right?

I had long heard that the youngest daughter of the Li family was as beautiful as an angel, but I never thought I would have the chance to taste her in person.

Li Hei weighed the stick in his hand, shaking his head and saying, "Otherwise, I'll have to take things from your house to pay off the debt. Oh, by the way, I heard your mother is also at home. She must be quite pretty to have given birth to you."

"Think about your mother, then think about yourself. Be a good girl and come back with me, and there won't be so many problems."

"Of course, you don't have to go back. I have no objection to staying here."

These words were a threat to Kiyohime. The Li family had someone holding an official position in the capital. Even if Li Hei had ten times the courage, he wouldn't dare to do anything to Kiyohime's mother. But he would dare to lay a hand on Kiyohime, since the eldest son of the Li family didn't even acknowledge her as his sister.

At this moment, Bai Qingyu also came out of the house and shielded Qingji behind him.

She sensed the group of people loitering around, but she never expected them to be so bold.

But it's good that Kiyohime knows that what she said wasn't just to scare her, but that such a situation could really happen, and the probability is almost one hundred percent.

With Kiyohime's beauty, being placed in a small mountain village like this would be a complete disaster.

Most of the village girls had to help with the housework, and even the best of them would eventually be worn down. But Kiyohime came from a wealthy family; she was the daughter of a prominent family, a true lady of high society, and she was also incredibly beautiful.

In this situation, as long as the news of her living alone gets out, someone will definitely take the risk of sneaking in to become a womanizer.

It doesn't matter if I can't win Kiyohime's heart; as long as I can get Kiyohime's body, that's enough.

They think with their lower bodies and enjoy themselves with their lower bodies, so they don't think too much.

So, to get back to the point, Bai Qingyu still can't understand why the boy from the neighboring village rejected Qingji's confession, just as she can't understand where Anzhen, a poor monk, got the money to buy so much paper to send letters to Qingji.

Bai Qingyu came out and stood in front of Qingji. Li Hei stared at her intently, his eyes almost popping out of their sockets.

Kiyohime was the most beautiful woman he had ever seen. He thought there was no woman in the world more beautiful than Kiyohime, but now he saw her. His eyes were fixed on Bai Qingyu, and he swallowed hard.

Happiness comes so suddenly.

One Kiyohime wasn't enough, so they sent him a great beauty instead!

That face, those cherry lips, that delicate nose, those eyes, that flawless skin...

Li Hei swallowed hard again.

"Where did this young lady come from...?"

As soon as he finished speaking, Li Hei felt a terrifyingly powerful force appear out of nowhere and press down on him. It was as if the air suddenly became incredibly heavy, pressing him down like a toad, unable to move. He couldn't even move a finger, let alone get up.

Several of his henchmen were also pinned to the ground.

Bai Qingyu walked up to Li Hei and looked down at him.

With his body suppressed by demonic power, all Li Hei could do was move his eyes. In his line of sight, a pair of small feet in white peony embroidered shoes stopped in front of him, followed by a melodious voice devoid of emotion.

"You said her father owes you fifty taels of silver, do you have any proof?"

A sickening cracking sound rang out as Li Hei's fingers were crushed into a pulp, one by one.

It is said that the ten fingers are connected to the heart, and the pain of having your fingers crushed is something that most people cannot bear.

Li Hei immediately let out a pig-like scream.

"Tell me, where is the receipt?"

puff!

Two more fingers were crushed.

Li Hei wept bitterly, stammering and unable to explain himself.

He has no proof whatsoever; it's all fabricated to give himself an excuse to possess Kiyohime.

Bai Qingyu could imagine what would have happened to Qingji if he hadn't been there.

Knowing full well that Kiyohime was a frail young girl who stayed home to take care of her mother, he still came here on purpose.

This kind of person deserves to die!

Bai Qingyu was too lazy to talk to him about morality and ethics. If he made up an excuse about fifty taels of silver, she would just follow that excuse and keep asking questions.

All ten of Li Hei's fingers were crushed, and he had already lost consciousness. However, every time he lost consciousness, Bai Qingyu would forcibly wake him up and continue to interrogate him.

"You lied. There wasn't actually fifty taels of silver, was there?"

"Yes, yes, no, I made it up. Please spare me, sir, spare me!"

Bai Qingyu raised his hand, and Li Hei and his henchmen were lifted up by demonic power and flew out of the courtyard. As soon as they were outside, several sharp sounds came from behind, and their necks were all snapped by demonic power.

The murders must not be witnessed by Kiyohime; a lesson in front of her is sufficient.

Behind them, Kiyohime was completely stunned.

It wasn't that I was scared, but I felt that Bai Qingyu's back view was really... too cool!

Heroic and heroic.

Bai Qingyu turned around and calmly said, "This is the situation I described. If I weren't here today, think about what your fate would be."

Seeing the change in Qingji's eyes, Bai Qingyu waved her hand, and a wisp of demonic power formed a phantom image of a Guhuoniao flapping its wings and flying in her palm.

"Do you want to learn? Do you want to master this power to protect yourself and your family?"

Kiyohime was taken aback, then nodded vigorously, "I want to learn!"

She didn't know that Li Hei was using her mother to deceive her, and she had already taken it seriously.

When Li Hei threatened her with her mother, she was truly desperate. She didn't want her mother to be hurt, or anyone in her family to be hurt.

If she could also possess such power...

"If you want to learn, I'll teach you."

Bai Qingyu patted her on the shoulder. "I will set up a formation in your house so that no one can break in. As for your mother, spend the last six months with her. During these six months, don't think about anything else, just spend time with her. I will send someone to deliver your food. If you want to go out, just tell the person delivering the food to come with you."

"Six months from now, you will come with me and become my child."

He placed one hand on Kiyohime's head so that Kiyohime could feel his warmth.

"Kiyohime, there are more than just love in this world. Why don't you try to let go of your feelings? Whether it's Anzhen or that young man surnamed Wang, don't think about them. Instead, appreciate the warmth of your family and experience the other kinds of emotions in life."

"I hope you can see through this and understand it, for your own sake and for the sake of your family."

"Your family wants you to be happy, you know? Don't let them down."

“You will always be you, Kiyohime, not an appendage of any man.”

Bai Qingyu spread his arms and made a hugging gesture. Qingji was stunned, and with tears in her eyes, she rushed into Bai Qingyu's arms.

"Yes, I will, thank you, Auntie..."

After a while, Kiyohime finally released Bai Qingyu, and after just a few words, her eyes regained a lot of luster.

Bai Qingyu smiled and told her that he would come to pick her up in six months, then pulled Zhen Tian away and disappeared into the courtyard.

She suddenly understood and advised Kiyohime, "Why bother with all that trouble?"

Let her understand that love isn't everything, and that's enough.

Make yourself someone who is far more important to Kiyohime than Anjin!

Please vote for me, I'm begging you!

Volume 1: Chapter 155 The Red Spider Lily and the Underworld

After leaving Shannan Village, Bai Qingyu and Zhen Tian slowly flew through the sky towards Tongzhou. The events of the day had left both of them somewhat silent. When they came, neither of them expected things to develop this way because of An Zhen's words.

"As expected, these kinds of romantic relationships aren't for me."

Bai Qingyu said with a hint of melancholy, "What is love? I don't even know myself."

"I can't even understand what Anzhen and Kiyohime were feeling at the last moment. I have no idea what they were thinking. Anzhen, he has Kiyohime in his heart and still dares to talk so arrogantly, and Kiyohime believed him so easily."

When Zhen Tian heard Bai Qingyu's complaint, she nodded and said, "I don't understand either, but I can roughly understand it. Neither of them has seen much of the outside world, and they are still very innocent, so things have developed like this."