Love & Redemption
Chapter 234: Volume 5 Phoenix Flower Blooms, - 41: Reviving Majesty (Part 4)

Chapter 234: Volume 5 Phoenix Flower Blooms, Chapter 41: Reviving Majesty (Part 4)

Second update.

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Before ascending the Danyat Platform, Yu Sifeng handed the reform plan that he had revised throughout the night to Elder Luo. Everyone saw the new Jade Paper densely packed with neatly written points, all important aspects highlighted with a vermillion pen, each one meticulously considered. Only then did they truly believe, knowing he had poured his heart into Lize Palace’s affairs.

Yu Sifeng looked down at the countless young disciples below the Danyat Platform, all of whom had followed the Elder’s instructions and taken off their masks. Under the sunlight, their faces were so pale and frail, expressions rigid and withdrawn—each one a product of Lize Palace’s ironclad rules. The former Yu Sifeng was no exception.

"Palace Master, would you like to say something to the disciples?" the Elders asked him with a smile.

Yu Sifeng nodded, then took a step forward. The sea breeze rustled his wide sleeves. Taking a deep breath, he spoke loudly, "First, I want to ask everyone a question. Please answer me truthfully, with no concerns whatsoever! Have any of you ever resented the old Lize Palace?"

A commotion arose from below the platform, but Elder Luo whispered, "Palace Master, these matters should not be publicly discussed..." Before he could finish, Yu Sifeng silenced him with a gesture. He said, "Don’t worry about anything, just speak your mind! Or shall I go first? I have resented Lize Palace, especially that rule about wearing masks all day long. Sometimes, I even felt the urge to stomp the mask underfoot and shatter it. I want to build an entirely different Lize Palace, so the first thing to do is to abolish the ironclad rule of wearing masks. How sad is it that people cannot grow close in heart, and we even have to cover our faces with masks! So today, I want everyone to take off their masks and face the truth. Whatever doubts or resentments you have in your heart, speak them out loud! We are all members of Lize Palace, this is our home. Should we hesitate to speak our minds at home?"

After he finished speaking, the venue fell into silence, and for a long time there was not a sound. Elder Luo, fearing Yu Sifeng would be embarrassed, was about to intervene to relieve the awkwardness when suddenly a timid voice from among the disciples said, "I... I’ve resented it. After coming here, it’s like being locked in a big cage. They say you can go back to your hometown once a year, but it’s all empty promises! I... haven’t seen my family for almost five years!"

Once one person broke the ice, the others immediately opened up. Some complained about not being allowed to leave the palace, others about the prohibition on marriage, and still others expressed their ignorance about the Juntian Ring and its significance, yet were subjected to servitude for this very reason. Ultimately, a disciple about twenty years old stepped forward and said respectfully, "Please forgive me for my transgression, Palace Master. It is just my humble opinion, but the existence of the Dark Hall has always been taboo. Whether one is leaving the palace or within it, everyone feels threatened, setting them on a pedestal, afraid to offend them, lest one be imprisoned by the Precepts Hall without cause. I had a brother who, for merely slighting a member of the Dark Hall, was falsely accused of inappropriate relations with a mortal woman within less than a month, and was thrown into the prison by the Precepts Hall without evidence. Within a month, he was dead. Although the Palace Master is young like us, and we respect and admire you greatly, dare not showing the slightest disrespect, if the reform of Lize Palace is just empty talk, and those ironclad rules and the Dark Hall remain, then even if the Palace Master wants to kill me today, I would not stay!"

The crowd, initially timid, were emboldened by his forthright and fearless manner. They cheered loudly, and the commotion at the Danyat Platform was so intense that Xuanji, who was asleep in the deepest part of Xidou Palace, awoke.

After the crowd had been voicing their thoughts for a while, Yu Sifeng finally raised his hand to signal for silence. When everyone gradually calmed down, he said, "I have heard your answers." He paused for a moment, sweeping his gaze over the crowd. The expressions on everyone’s faces were very complex, all staring at him with a mixture of fear and hope.

"The Dark Hall has already been disbanded." This statement excited everyone. Yu Sifeng smiled and then said, "Lize Palace is a very special place. Although each of us harbors more or less some grudge against it, in the end, we chose to stay, full of hope for it. As a disciple, I want to say, everyone has done well! As the Palace Master, though, I must admit that I am young and lack experience, so I will look forward to your guidance in the future."

He brought his sleeves together, bowed, and everyone present knelt down in unison, loudly saying, "Greetings to the new Palace Master!"

From this moment on, Yu Sifeng’s position as the new Palace Master of Lize Palace had been secured.

After becoming the Palace Master, it was said that a lucky day should be chosen to hold the ceremony for his heavenly enthronement, but Yu Sifeng, the new Palace Master, was so driven that he was busy every day and hardly seen, which resulted in the ceremony being postponed time and again. Before anyone realized it, ten days had passed.

Once he shouldered such a heavy burden, it was hard to cast it aside. Amidst his busyness, Yu Sifeng sometimes thought of Heaven. Wuzhiqi and the others were still waiting for them in a distant place, but this was just a fleeting thought, as his duties were too numerous. The affairs of Heaven now seemed as if they happened in a past life, so unreal.

Xuanji, on the other hand, had no complaints about his busyness. Si Feng had finally found his place. He would not call himself a person of duckweed anymore, followed by a look of desolation. Now, although he was so exhausted every day that his eyes turned blood-red, he was spirited. The immature and impulsive temperament of his youth was vanishing more and more, and he was gradually becoming steady and reserved.

Often, when Yu Sifeng read by lamplight into the night, she would sit beside him, chin propped up, staring blankly at him, searching for every tiny difference from before on his person. The disciples of Lize Palace were very respectful to this future "Palace Master’s Wife." Of course, their respect was also mixed with other feelings. After all, she had created a stir during her two visits to Lize Palace, leaving an impression. For a time, the disciples debated heatedly over the nature of their relationship.

Some insisted it was Yu Sifeng who pursued Xuanji first, while others argued that it was Xuanji who always came to find Yu Sifeng, so she was the pursuer. In the end, no consensus was reached on who was right or wrong. It is said that the matter was put to rest by an Elder, who forbade them from discussing it any further.

Before anyone knew it, another ten days had gone by. Yu Sifeng was still as busy as ever, spinning like a top. Even with a constitution as strong as iron, he couldn’t endure such toil. One evening, while reviewing various expense plans submitted by the Elders, he actually fell asleep, chin propped on his hand.

In a daze, he felt light and shadow moving in front of him. He suddenly woke up with a start and opened his eyes to meet Xuanji’s distinct black and white pupils.

"Tired? Want me to help you?" She pushed back the hair from his forehead for him and asked softly.

Yu Sifeng sighed, stretched his arms, and said lightly, "You surely wouldn’t enjoy these trifling matters."

Xuanji picked up the piece of Jade Paper in front of him, glanced at it, and laughed, "Do you really have to add such a long string of your own thoughts to everyone’s opinions? Some things can be said with just words. Let me tell you, my father once said that those in high positions should not try to control everything. Doing so not only wears you out, but also makes your subordinates lazy. You should choose capable people, try to delegate authority, and let everyone play their role. Otherwise, with you being so capable, what are the elders and disciples there for? My father would never be as busy as you are."

Yu Sifeng stroked his chin, pondered for a moment, and nodded, "Sect Leader Chu is right. I always worry that they won’t do well and end up having to do many things myself to feel at ease. But that probably makes them more lax. It seems being a Sect Leader also requires learning."

Xuanji gave a faint smile and whispered, "You... you still call him Sect Leader Chu?"

Yu Sifeng felt moved and took her hand gently, "Last time I left Shaoyang Sect in a hurry and didn’t get the chance to ask your father for your hand in marriage. How could I dare to utter the words ’father-in-law’?"

"What’s there to be embarrassed about..." Xuanji muttered to herself, "This time, dad no longer has any reason to give you a hard time, like saying you’re neglecting your proper duties or anything like that..."

Yu Sifeng asked with a smile, "What are you mumbling to yourself about?"

"Nothing," Xuanji yawned, "I’m sleepy and want to go to bed. You should rest early too, don’t work yourself sick."

Yu Sifeng quickly grabbed her sleeve, smiling and asked, "Xuanji, do you want to go out for a walk? There is a Silver Spring behind Lize Palace that glows at night. I used to play there a lot."

Xuanji’s eyes widened, "But... you still have so much work to do..."

"I’ll leave it to the elders to worry about. It’s not bad to sneak in a bit of laziness once in a while."

"Aren’t you tired?"

"I’m not tired anymore."

But I am very tired... Xuanji complained inwardly, unable to resist him, and could only go out with a sullen face as he dragged her. The two of them sneaked past the guards like thieves and didn’t stop running until they reached the small grove behind, where they burst into laughter.

"When I was little, I often did this kind of thing, sneaking out to play when I couldn’t sleep at night. Once, my master found out and gave me a good spanking, but the more he spanked me, the more I wanted to come out. Back then, coming here to Silver Spring to play was already the happiest thing in the world."

Yu Sifeng took her hand, and they slowly walked through the forest. Xuanji laughed and said, "I did too. I hated practicing martial arts when I was little. Every time dad sent someone to catch me, I would hide. The senior brothers couldn’t find me and had to go back to be scolded by dad. They all really hated me, but I was secretly thrilled when I saw them get scolded."

"You’ve been a naughty child since you were little," Yu Sifeng tapped her on the head gently. Xuanji shook her head, "No... it’s because they usually ignored me. They only talked to me after getting scolded by dad. Isn’t it a happy thing to have someone talk to you?"

Loneliness is always the most terrifying thing in the world.

Yu Sifeng didn’t speak, just squeezed her hand a little tighter.

Clear days are rare at Lize Palace. At this moment, the moon rose from the sea, like a wheel of ice, casting a pale silver glow over the entire grove. In the distance, there was the sound of gurgling water. As they walked closer, the forest ahead seemed to hide a second moon, with silver-white rays shining up from below, illuminating the treetops brightly.

That must be the glowing Silver Spring. As Yu Sifeng pulled her hand, ready to leap over a large stone blocking the path, suddenly there was a rustling sound ahead, as if something had been disturbed, darting out of the bushes. They initially thought it was one of the small creatures on the island, but because of the light at Silver Spring and following the sound, a dark figure quickly disappeared into the forest—you could tell from the silhouette that it was a person.

Yu Sifeng immediately followed, and now with the fragments of the Juntian Ring enhancing his demon power, he nearly leaped in front of that person with a single bound. The person, seeing how quickly they were catching up, gave up running and stood still. Bathed in moonlight, it was revealed that they were wearing a Shura mask—since the reforms at Lize Palace, no one there wore masks anymore, making this mask’s appearance all the more jarring.

"You are..." Yu Sifeng looked at the figure with a hint of confusion, then suddenly a name came to his lips, "Ruo Yu!" (To be continued, if you wish to know what happens next, please visit www.qidian.com. More Chapters, support the author, support official reading!)