Family Cultivation: My entire family are Villains-Chapter 550 - 257. Zhan Taiqing’s Abnormal Reaction_2

"Those four characters?"

"Respect but keep a distance!"

Zhan Taiqing obviously wasn't surprised by his words, and after bowing his head in silence for a long while, he suddenly looked up with a mocking smile and spoke.

"For someone as clever as you, you must have guessed quite a bit about the situation with the Holy Church. Let me ask you, if Yongzhou were to split and govern separately, would the Hou Clan plan to follow me, or would you cast your lot with someone else?"

Faced with such a loaded question, Hou Yuxiao had experience and now, right in front of Zhan Taiqing, he didn't even need to think before he replied, "If that really were the case, the Hou Clan would surely follow Master to suppress the disloyal, please rest assured, Master!"

"It sounds good now, but you'll need to be able to do it when the time comes."

"If Master doesn't trust me, Mr. Hou can swear an oath right now."

"Get lost, get lost, get lost."

Hou Yuxiao had been waiting for that "get lost" for a long time. Seeing Zhan Taiqing wave his hand impatiently, indicating for him to leave, Hou Yuxiao felt a weight lifted off his shoulders and left without even saying goodbye.

If he didn't leave now and stayed here, he guessed he'd probably get beaten up later.

Watching Hou Yuxiao's retreating figure, Zhan Taiqing's eyes betrayed a hint of complexity. He waited until Hou was out of sight before his face gradually turned grim, and a few strands of cold light flickered in his pupils.

"Yue'er, you're not even regarding Aunt Qing. Are your wings truly hardened, thinking that with your father around, you can be fearless?"

...…

Zhan Taiqing also had the skill of Facial Transformation, and though not as adept as Hou Yuxiao, he could still create a convincingly deceptive guise, which is what helped them escape the Saint Heavenly Fist Sect's several rounds of searches in Wangchuan Tao City.

So they continued to hide in Wangchuan Tao City under the identities of Li Tiangao and his wife, with Hou Yuxiao pretending to go out daily to secretly inspect the city gates, looking for an opportunity to escape.

Unfortunately, for more than ten days straight, up until January, the city gates showed no sign of relaxation, and he didn't dare to force his way out, especially since he was unsure if the eight men in black had left. Even if they had, there were still the experts from the Saint Heavenly Fist Sect to worry about – he couldn't escape alone.

Of course, if Zhan Taiqing's injuries healed, that would be a different story.

That's also why Hou Yuxiao was willing to obediently endure her beating—the circumstances were stronger than him. After all, Zhan Taiqing was still a high-level Qiányáng cultivator, and despite being injured now, once her power was restored, if she abandoned him and fled alone, he would be finished.

To ensure Zhan Taiqing wouldn't leave him behind, Hou Yuxiao had been especially submissive lately, taking all the beatings quietly. Even though he hated her in his heart and wished to kill her, he would pay his respects three times a day without fail. Even if Zhan Taiqing was constantly cold-faced, he would tirelessly report the city's situation and inquire about her injuries.

Zhan Taiqing was such an intelligent person, she could see right through Hou Yuxiao's cautious demeanor, and as a result, the tightly clenched days of Hou Yuxiao became even harder.

To prevent their followers from getting suspicious, the two had to make public appearances and even meet with people from other factions from time to time. Hou Yuxiao's compliance coupled with Zhan Taiqing's domineering presence mimicked the previous situation with Li Tiangao and his wife perfectly, deceiving everyone else.

In such a fashion, they posed as a model husband and wife, mixing in Wangchuan Tao City for another ten days. Hou Yuxiao enjoyed daily accolades from Zhan Taiqing addressing him as "husband" outside, but once back in their room, he would endure a beating in private—a bittersweet existence indeed.

But as time passed, Hou Yuxiao noticed something amiss.

Zhan Taiqing seemed not to be in a hurry to leave at all.

You see, her trip was for the sake of attending the Divine Capital's banquet; with only a day or two left until January 20, she obviously wouldn't be able to attend. No matter what, she should've shown some reaction, but despite Hou Yuxiao's repeated hints and probes, she remained utterly unfazed.

New Yu Era year 1325, January 19

Hou Yuxiao hesitated at Zhan Taiqing's door for a long time, gathering his courage to knock several times but always withdrawing. Zhan Taiqing, with her cultivation, would definitely sense someone at her door, and since she hadn't called him in during all this time, she surely didn't want to see him.

But the problem was, he wanted to see Zhan Taiqing.

Every time he faced this situation, Hou Yuxiao had to pay a price to enter, which was bearable before as each visit cost him only a slap. Lately, it had been different; Zhan Taiqing's mood was more unstable than before, and each visit would mean three slaps, which was why he had hesitated for so long.

"Gang Leader, why are you standing here and not going in?"

Suddenly, a female voice came from behind him. Hou Yuxiao turned to see a maid, previously serving the Lady of the Yunding Gang. To avoid blowing their cover, she had been serving Zhan Taiqing recently.

The maid was holding a tray with sour preserved fruits on it. Hou Yuxiao's expression turned strange at the sight and, pointing at the tray, he asked, "The Lady wants to eat these?"

Women who crave these things usually are pregnant. Zhan Taiqing always has that aloof demeanor, yet she actually fancies these?

"Gang Leader, you have forgotten. The lady's pregnancy is already in its second month, during this time, she cannot be without these things."

...

Hou Yuxiao was first taken aback, then suddenly realized what the maid meant by "lady", and his eyes lit up instantly. Many things he couldn't understand before now made sense all at once.

No wonder, no wonder Zhan Taiqing has been emotionally unstable recently, and even frequently hitting me. It was all a pretense, that's right, that's right. The lady was previously pregnant, which would definitely make her mood unstable. Zhan Taiqing's impersonation makes sense, no wonder it didn't raise any suspicion amongst us Yunding Gang members.

Brilliant!

Hou Yuxiao suddenly understood Zhan Taiqing's actions during this period, feeling a sense of admiration in his heart while also regretting not having realized it earlier.

Luckily, I didn't blow up, or I might have given the game away!

"You can go now, I'll take these to the lady myself."

"Yes, Gang Leader."

Hou Yuxiao took the plate, composed himself slightly, stepped forward, and knocked lightly on the door, whispering, "My lady, I am coming in!"

"Come in, and close the door behind you."

Zhan Taiqing's tone was much lighter this time, which surprised Hou Yuxiao a bit. After entering and closing the door, he turned his head to see Zhan Taiqing sitting in the chair, not looking aloof at all this time, but instead with an indescribable gentleness...

Gentleness?

Hou Yuxiao thought he was seeing things, steadied his expression, and looked again, finding truly a trace of gentleness on Zhan Taiqing's face, which made him even more surprised.

New novel chapt𝒆rs are published on ƒгeewebnovёl.com.

"What is it?"

...

Hou Yuxiao was completely dumbfounded. Every time he had come in before, Zhan Taiqing would start with the same sentence, but always after giving him a solid slap. This time not only was there no slap, but Zhan Taiqing's tone was also far from the previous coldness, and it even sounded somewhat charming; he could even detect a hint of tenderness.

A hint of tenderness?

This Old Devout Woman could be associated with the word "tender"?

Could it be she's harboring some ill-intention inside her?

Definitely, she must be trying to lull me into a false sense of security, to then give me a thrashing later on. Has this woman's psychology become so twisted?

After much thought, seeing a flash of impatience on Zhan Taiqing's face, Hou Yuxiao mustered the courage and placed the fruit plate in front of Zhan Taiqing, his voice tinged with a hint of apology as he tentatively said, "Previously, Mr. Hou was wrong to doubt the Master, I ask for the Master's forgiveness."

Zhan Taiqing looked surprised and said, "Forgive what?"

"Li Yungao's wife is three months pregnant. Master disguised herself as her to deceive others, intentionally acting so emotionally unstable, hence the reason you hit me repeatedly. I thought the Master was dissatisfied with me and harbored resentment towards you. Now it seems, I was indeed small-minded!"

...

Upon hearing Hou Yuxiao's words, Zhan Taiqing's face instantly stiffened, piecing together the earlier conversation at the door, and immediately understood Hou Yuxiao's meaning. Then, with a look of astonishment in her eyes, and as she faced Hou Yuxiao, her expression turned grave.

Thump...

Hou Yuxiao found himself flying toward the wall, and despite feeling a pang of pain in his chest, a sense of relief spread across his face.

That's more like it, get the hitting done early, so we can get down to business. If I had really been fooled by this Old Devout Woman into thinking her attitude had changed, the beating later would have been even worse, and the mental letdown ever greater...

"Don't overthink it, I just have a problem with you, that's why I deliberately hit you. I had no idea about the lady's pregnancy!"

Upon hearing Zhan Taiqing's words, Hou Yuxiao showed no sign of reaction, just stood up, brushed the dust off himself, and asked, "Master, the capital's banquet is tomorrow, shouldn't we be leaving soon?"