Volume 1, Chapter 54 – Deception Through Disguise

“Why?”

The impatient Shen Yuan pressed for an answer.

Beside her, Ruan Lingyu curled her lips in disdain. This man, though a trusted aide of the local magistrate, was utterly shameless. How dare he play coy in front of her? Did he have no sense of decency left?

“Because the man she wants to marry is already twenty-eight. If he doesn’t find a wife by the end of this month, according to the dynasty’s laws, he’ll be conscripted into the army. So all you need to do is wait here—she’ll come to you.”

Secretary Yuan offered his suggestion enthusiastically.

“Thank you for the reminder, Secretary Yuan.”

Ruan Lingyu gave a perfunctory thanks before leading her junior sisters away. She couldn’t stand looking at that pretentious face any longer.

“Senior Sisters, where should we search for that impostor? The prefectural office? Or should we just wait here at the county office as Secretary Yuan suggested?”

Shen Yuan, ever impatient, asked the question on everyone’s mind.

“Of course we wait here. Going to the prefectural office won’t help.”

Ruan Lingyu answered without hesitation.

“Why?”

Miao Xiang, timid as ever, voiced her confusion.

“Are you stupid? Our junior sister’s home is in the prefectural capital. If there was a girl who looked exactly like her there, rumors would’ve spread long ago. How could we have never heard of it? So her identity must be fake.”

Yun Fei rolled her eyes at Miao Xiang.

“Second Senior Sister makes sense.”

Miao Xiang nibbled on her little finger, conceding the point.

“Alright, from now on, our main surveillance target is the county office. Five of us will split into two shifts—three during the day, two at night. Ensure someone is watching at all times, understood?”

Ruan Lingyu issued her orders.

Reаԁ οո ΚαtReαdіnɡСаfе

“Understood!”

The group of sisters acknowledged the command.

As night fell, Huang Qi arrived in a small county town, finally seeing signs of human habitation again.

He extended his spiritual sense toward a passerby, probing carefully. His master had once told him that spiritual sense could penetrate the body and directly observe the soul—thus, whether someone was possessed by vengeful spirits or evil ghosts could be discerned “at a glance.”

Sure enough, his spiritual sense passed effortlessly through the person’s body, revealing their “naked” soul in full clarity.

Of course, this method wasn’t foolproof. If the target’s spiritual sense surpassed his own, they could easily block the intrusion.

Having learned from past mistakes, Huang Qi no longer dared to travel at night. He found an inn and settled in.

“Innkeeper, what’s the date today?”

Huang Qi couldn’t help but ask the moment he stepped inside.

“Today is the 25th day of the sixth lunar month.”

The innkeeper gave him a strange look, wondering how such a pretty girl could be so ignorant of the date.

“What? The 25th?!”

Cold sweat broke out on Huang Qi’s back. He had thought he’d only spent two or three days in that cave—but in reality, six days had passed. It seemed nothing in that illusion could be trusted.

“There are only four days left until the end of the month. I must hurry back.”

Anxiety gnawed at him, but with so much time having passed, the Honghua Sect’s disciples had likely spread throughout Huangtian Prefecture. The roads ahead would undoubtedly be crawling with obstacles.

“From now on, every step must be taken with extreme caution.”

Rеαd oո KαtRеаⅾіոɡСαfе

With this thought in mind, Huang Qi entered his room. Fearful of being discovered, he immediately released his spiritual sense to monitor the entire inn.

Before long, his eyes snapped open—the worst-case scenario had unfolded.

Two young men dressed in Honghua Sect disciple robes entered the inn and began speaking with the innkeeper.

“Innkeeper, have you seen a woman—taller than me, with a face identical to the Honghua Sect’s Fairy Hongling?”

One of the disciples inquired.

“Uh… Fairy Hongling? I’ve heard of her, but never seen her in person.”

The innkeeper replied awkwardly.

“You’ve never even seen Fairy Hongling? What a country bumpkin.”

The disciple sneered dismissively.

Anger flashed across the innkeeper’s face, but he dared not voice his displeasure.

“The woman wears a green Feathered Dress and might be veiled,”

the other disciple added.

“Damn it, just announce my identity outright!”

Huang Qi cursed inwardly.

“Oh! I saw her! She just checked in—second room on the right, upstairs.”

Without hesitation, the innkeeper gave Huang Qi away. After all, offending the Honghua Sect was unthinkable.

The two disciples immediately perked up, charging toward the stairs like a pair of bloodthirsty hounds.

Huang Qi berated himself for his stupidity—how could he have paraded around in Fairy Hongling’s robes? That was practically suicide! But regrets were useless now. Grabbing his belongings, he leaped out the window.

Reαԁ оո КαtRеаⅾіոgСαfе

The back of the inn opened into a quiet alley, so his escape went unnoticed. Without wasting time to check the situation inside, he fled toward the outskirts.

Huang Qi soon reached the main street, forcing himself to slow his pace. If not for the risk of drawing attention, he would’ve sprinted at full speed.

As he walked, his eyes caught a large clothing store by the roadside. After a moment’s hesitation, he decided to pay the shop a visit—his current attire made him far too conspicuous. A change of clothes was urgent.

The moment he stepped inside, the shopkeeper—a middle-aged woman—rushed over, chattering away with sales pitches. In these times, pretty young girls never lacked admirers willing to spend on them. Who could be short on money?

But Huang Qi ignored her, scanning the store for a simple dress to change into. Then his gaze froze.

A blue high-waisted ruqun—identical to the one Fairy Hongling wore—hung prominently on display.

“This… is exactly the same as hers!”

The sheer coincidence left him momentarily stunned.

“Hah! Heaven helps me after all!”

Recovering quickly, a bold plan formed in his mind. Without blinking, he paid two taels of silver for the dress and changed into it right there in the shop.

Once dressed, however, he felt an unfamiliar chill on his chest. Glancing down, his face flushed—the ruqun’s design featured a low-cut bodice, exposing a generous amount of pale skin. From his own vantage point, he could even glimpse the deep “valley” between his breasts.

Though he’d worn women’s clothing before, nothing this revealing. The discomfort was immediate, but survival took precedence. Steeling himself, he walked out—without even bothering with a veil.

Yes, Huang Qi’s plan was simple: deception through disguise. If escape was difficult, why not walk openly in plain sight?

The shopkeeper gaped. In her thirty or forty years of life, she’d never seen such a breathtaking beauty.

Ignoring her, Huang Qi strode out, adopting the graceful, measured steps he remembered Fairy Hongling using—back straight, face impassive.

Before long, he approached the city gates.

“Wait!”

A voice called from behind.

Reаԁ οո ΚаtRеαdіոɡCafе

Taking a deep breath, Huang Qi turned calmly. As expected, it was the two Honghua Sect disciples.

“What do you want?”

He feigned icy aloofness.

“You… are you Junior Sister Hongling?”

The two disciples scrutinized him for a long moment before hesitantly asking. After all, their only reference was clothing—blue ruqun for Cheng Hongling, green Feathered Dress for the impostor. That was the intel they’d been given.

“It’s me. State your business.”

Huang Qi kept his words curt, perfectly mimicking her demeanor.

“Junior Sister, it’s good we found you! We just spotted the impostor at an inn and chased her out.”

One disciple eagerly reported, hoping for praise.

“Is that so? What a coincidence—I was tracking her too.”

Huang Qi lied without batting an eye. His newfound strength bolstered his confidence. Even if exposed, he could flee—these ordinary disciples were no match for him.

“That’s perfect! Junior Sister, we saw her run from the inn. She couldn’t have gone far.”

The other disciple chimed in competitively.

“Good. Split up and search!”

Huang Qi immediately took command.

“Yes!”

The two male disciples obeyed, vanishing into the crowd.

Little did they know, the green Feathered Dress they were searching for was currently folded inside Huang Qi’s bag.