After Transmigrating, the Female Lead Went Dark (GL) - Chapter 8

Xiao Xinyue didn’t have any maids, but as the Saintess of the Moshan Sect, she wasn’t required to do manual labor. Her meals, bath water, laundry, and other chores were all taken care of by others.

Although Zhou Zhuying was living with her, aside from having her three daily meals delivered, she still had to manage the chores like boiling water, bathing, and washing clothes herself.

In Xiao Xinyue’s words: “You are getting free food and board here, so don’t expect to be waited on. You do these things yourself.”

Zhou Zhuying didn’t have many complaints, but the water was cold in winter. Every time she finished washing clothes, her hands would be red and stiff. It would take a long time warming them in her armpits to restore their temperature.

She realized this couldn’t go on. So, she first drew a blueprint, then asked Xiao Xinyue for some wood and woodcarving tools. Xiao Xinyue didn’t ask what she needed these things for; if she asked, she was given them.

Following the blueprint, Zhou Zhuying figured out a hand-cranked automatic washing machine (a clothes-wringing machine). The principle was similar to the electric dummies outside pharmacies that mechanically repeated the work of grinding medicine. She simply replaced the electric dummy with a manual crank and the mortar/pestle with a washboard.

Although she had to continuously crank the handle, she preferred her arm to get tired rather than enduring the cold water. She figured it might even strengthen her arm muscles.

She basked in the warm sun, humming a tune while cranking the handle. Her clothes were swung by a wooden rod, pressed against the washboard and rubbed back and forth, making a “creak, creak” sound.

Zhuo Zidan came to look for Xiao Xinyue and saw her standing under the veranda, seemingly watching something. Following her gaze, he saw Zhou Zhuying and the wooden machine, the automatic washer. He was immediately astonished. “What is that?”

“A tool she figured out for laziness,” Xiao Xinyue replied.

Zhuo Zidan was incredibly curious. “How does it work? Why does the clothing rub back and forth when you crank the handle?”

“I’m not entirely sure,” Xiao Xinyue said, walking away.

Zhuo Zidan had to follow her. “Xinyue, why aren’t you curious at all?”

Xiao Xinyue seemed to remember something, a slight upward curve to her lips. “I saw her make it with my own eyes. The novelty has passed.”

Zhuo Zidan thought this made sense. If he knew how the Demon Sect Leader made it, he wouldn’t be so curious either. But wait, she said she wasn’t sure how it works, so why did she say she saw her make it?

“Did something happen for Elder Zhuo to come in person?” Xiao Xinyue’s question made Zhuo Zidan abandon his confusion.

He said, “It’s nothing major. We’ve finished counting the spoils of war we seized from the Demon Sect’s main base. After converting the jade, silk, and satin into silver, we have a total of twenty-four thousand eight hundred taels of silver. After compensating the injured and deceased disciples, about eighteen thousand taels remain. The sects that participated in the attack are waiting for their share, but we’re unsure how to divide it fairly.”

“The Moshan Sect takes half, and the remaining sects split the other half. However, given that the Demon Sect remnants are still gathering, I suggest we form an alliance to jointly resist the demon forces for a better and faster response to these changes, and that each sect contributes a portion of their money as start-up funds for this alliance…”

Zhuo Zidan thought this was a brilliant idea. Not only did it prevent the various sects from scattering after eliminating the Demon Sect, but it also allowed the Moshan Sect to continue leading the alliance, implicitly establishing a new order with the Moshan Sect at the head!

“Xinyue, you truly are the strategist of the Moshan Sect. Only you could come up with such a clever plan.”

Xiao Xinyue didn’t become conceited despite his baseless flattery. She shook her head. “I didn’t think of this.”

She didn’t elaborate, and Zhuo Zidan assumed she was being modest.

He changed the subject. “But isn’t it too risky to keep the Sect Leader in your own courtyard? Everyone in the Demon Sect is notoriously deceitful. Even though she’s the Sect Leader and supposedly a puppet of the Demon Venerable, she managed to win so many hearts, which shows her deep cunning and masterful methods. I worry you might fall into her trap.”

Xiao Xinyue suddenly said, “Elder, do you remember that I suspected she was an impostor?”

Zhuo Zidan paused. “I do. After all, for the past four years, the Demon Sect has kept a tight lid on her movements, which is completely opposite to her high-profile style of the previous ten years. Such a drastic change in behavior led everyone to speculate that something happened within the Demon Sect, forcing them to conceal her news.”

Considering there might be internal changes in the Demon Sect, making it their weakest point, the righteous sects decided to strike while the iron was hot.

However, none of them dared to take command of the operation to eliminate the Demon Sect, fearing they would be blamed if anything went wrong. Thus, the powerful and prestigious Saintess, Xiao Xinyue, was pushed to the forefront.

Zhuo Zidan originally expected a fierce battle upon entering the Demon Palace. Yet, the Demon Venerable, Li Dang, never appeared, and the Demon Sect Leader showed little will to fight, readily submitting—even when Xiao Xinyue risked herself to test her, the Demon Sect Leader did not seize the opportunity to attack, thus avoiding a major conflict.

It was precisely because the Demon Sect Leader surrendered so easily that people doubted her authenticity, as few people in the righteous path had ever met the Demon Sect Leader before. The only person who had met her and fought her was Xiao Xinyue.

“Could she be a fake Sect Leader recruited by the Demon Venerable to divert our attention from the real one?” Zhuo Zidan asked.

“I don’t know, which is why I need to keep her somewhere I can observe her. If she’s an impostor, she’ll reveal her true nature sooner or later. The Demon Sect disciples confined in the water dungeon are still useful, though. Don’t let them die.”

Zhuo Zidan nodded. “They aren’t even aware of the Demon Venerable’s whereabouts or even his existence, which shows how secretive and cautious he is. But if the Demon Venerable can control the Demon Sect, he must have spies besides the Sect Leader. Regardless, we need to find at least one spy to track down the Demon Venerable’s location.”

With their serious talk concluded, Zhuo Zidan looked at Xiao Xinyue, stuttering, wanting to say something else.

Xiao Xinyue’s gaze, however, went past him, revealing a faint smile. “Is the Sect Leader eavesdropping?”

“Xinyue, I wanted—”

Their voices came out simultaneously, but Zhuo Zidan froze. He turned back and saw Zhou Zhuying by the waterside pavilion, peering at them over the railing.

Xiao Xinyue turned slightly and asked Zhuo Zidan, “What did Elder Zhuo say just now?”

“Nothing,” Zhuo Zidan quickly denied. After a moment, he felt his reaction was suspicious and quickly offered an excuse. “I wanted to say, you should go attend to your tasks. No need to see me out.”

“Oh, alright. Elder Zhuo, please take care.”

Zhuo Zidan: “…”

Seeing that Xiao Xinyue genuinely didn’t ask him to stay, he left with a heavy heart.

Just as he reached the bottom of the steps, he looked back and saw Xiao Xinyue leap lightly, crossing the waterfall and landing right in front of Zhou Zhuying.

Zhou Zhuying was dumbfounded. Holy cow, is that the legendary Qinggong (lightness skill)?

How did she do that without any momentum?

That’s already in the realm of cultivation, isn’t it?

Newton would roll over in his grave!

Her stunned expression made Xiao Xinyue’s hand itch. She raised it and flicked her on the forehead.

“Ow—” Zhou Zhuying cried out in pain, clutching her forehead and glaring at her.

“Why are you glaring? According to the rules of the Jianghu (martial arts world), an eavesdropper should have their ears cut off as punishment,” Xiao Xinyue threatened.

Zhou Zhuying didn’t doubt the female lead’s words. After all, this was a wuxia world, and the logic revolved around the two words “martial arts.” She even suspected there were no states or laws in this world; the sects were just competing warlords.

She covered her ears and chuckled sheepishly. “Saintess sister is kind and beautiful. You wouldn’t do that to me.”

Xiao Xinyue entertained her. “What if I told you I killed dozens of your Demon Sect disciples? Would you still think I was kind?”

“That, that depends on whether they deserved to die,” Zhou Zhuying pondered, tilting her head. “But I believe Saintess sister would never kill the innocent.”

“I am your enemy. Do you trust me that much?” Xiao Xinyue asked with suspicion.

Zhou Zhuying thought: You’re the “great and righteous” female lead, of course, I trust you!

Out loud, she offered extreme flattery. “If there’s one person in this world I trust the most, it’s Saintess sister. Even though I’m a prisoner, Saintess sister has never made things difficult for me and has treated me so well. I’m afraid I might fall in love with Saintess sister.”

Xiao Xinyue pursed her lips, her mouth slightly pulled down. “If you don’t stop talking, I’ll sew your mouth shut.”

Her threats were usually highly effective on Zhou Zhuying. At the very least, Zhou Zhuying knew that the identity of the “Demon Sect Leader” was fraught with sin, and she dared not cross the line with her jokes, lest the female lead take her seriously and chop her to pieces.

Perhaps sensing her tone was too cold and frightening, or perhaps because Zhou Zhuying’s cautious behavior touched Xiao Xinyue’s heart, her expression softened. She asked, “Are your clothes washed?”

“No. I can’t wring them dry by myself. I wanted to ask Saintess sister for help. But I wasn’t sure if I’d be disturbing Saintess sister and that big brother, so I just peeked. Oh, Saintess sister, don’t worry, I couldn’t hear anything from that distance.”

Zhou Zhuying pointed to Zhuo Zidan, who was still in the same spot, not having left.

Xiao Xinyue looked back and saw him looking their way. She projected her voice. “Elder Zhuo, is there anything else?”

“No, I’m fine,” Zhuo Zidan replied, waving his hand. This time, he truly left.

Zhou Zhuying was surprised to find that their voices weren’t loud, yet they carried a great distance.

She wondered: What’s the principle behind this? An echo through the empty valley?

Xiao Xinyue saw her staring intently in the direction where Zhuo Zidan had been and said plainly, “The person is gone. What are you still looking at?”

Zhou Zhuying snapped out of it and felt the female lead’s attitude wasn’t quite right.

According to Meng Xiaoxiao’s account, a typical romance novel trope is for the female lead to be extremely sensitive to other women looking at the male lead. So, the female lead likely thought she was coveting the male lead, felt a sense of crisis, and was jealous.

Zhou Zhuying would have to be suicidal to let the female lead continue this misunderstanding. She quickly explained, “I wasn’t looking at him. I was just curious how such a long-distance conversation was easily achieved.”

“Using internal energy.”

Zhou Zhuying: “…”

Forget it. This world has too many things that defy my common sense. I shouldn’t try to explain them scientifically.

Xiao Xinyue gazed at her for a moment, her eyes churning with emotion. After a long pause, she asked, “Are you Zhou Zhuying?”

Zhou Zhuying’s heart thumped. She stared blankly at Xiao Xinyue.