Long Aotian’s Beautiful Butler Has Run Away chapter 1

Chapter 1: A Deep Bond

In a life where the end was clearly visible, Rong Xie never doubted that his friendship with Shen Bingsi was as solid as the Thousand Ice Cliff and as unshakeable as Mount Lingxiao.

No proof was needed. They had grown up together. He had witnessed Shen Bingsi transform from the stubborn, mad Second Young Master of the Shen Plum Garden into the cultivation world’s youngest Heartless Path Adjudicator. Only Rong Xie knew how many tears Shen Bingsi had shed and how many fits of madness he had endured in secret, holding onto Rong Xie just to temper his state of mind.

This deep bond had not come easily.

After all, the other party was a Heartless Path cultivator required to sever all love and emotion…

“After all, the Second Young Master cultivates that… what’s it called? The Heartless Path. He’s heartless and unfeeling. How would he remember your kindness? He might just forget you one day. You’d best make plans for yourself sooner rather than later, Brother Rong.”

The old woman before him wore a face full of shrewd calculation. As she spoke, she gauged Rong Xie’s expression while gripping the hand of a five-or-six-year-old child. The boy’s eyes darted around like rolling marbles, and he sneakily reached for the sky-blue porcelain cup on the table, only for the old woman to slap his hand away with a sharp smack.

Rong Xie felt his patient smile drying up like a piece of withered orange peel, about to crack and fall off. He lifted his teacup and took a sip of the lukewarm tea.

When he set it down, he had transformed back into the perfect, impeccable Head Butler of Huanxue Villa.

“According to Mother’s wishes, what should I do?”

The old woman smiled with satisfaction.

Of course, she wasn’t his biological mother. She was his foster mother, though the difference was negligible.

Over thirty years ago, on a snowy night, she had picked up a freezing, blue-faced infant under the bridge of the Rongliang River in her hometown. She named him Rong Xie—’Rong’ for the place he was found, and ‘Xie’ for the high hopes she placed on this child.

Why high hopes? Because the old woman worked as a wet nurse for the prestigious Shen family. Between her own children and the ones she nursed, there were over a dozen people, yet not a single one had the heart or ability to truly “thank” (Xie) her.

Fortunately, Rong Xie did not disappoint. He had latched onto the Shen family’s Second Young Master early on. Now, as the steward of Shen Bingsi’s Huanxue Villa, he held great power and, seemingly, hadn’t forgotten her kindness.

“Brother Rong is a smart man; surely you don’t need an old woman to teach you?” The old woman chuckled, yanking the child forward. “Wang Mu, pay your respects to Brother Rong! What did I tell you before we came out?”

The child shrank his neck and glanced at Rong Xie. “Hello, Brother Rong. My name is Wang Mu, I’m eight years old…”

He then performed a routine clearly rehearsed for New Year’s greetings.

Rong Xie’s already thin lips pressed into a faint line.

He didn’t like children.

He had never imagined he would have to coexist with such a creature for any length of time.

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The old woman’s intention was obvious: she wanted to shove this kid into Huanxue Villa, right into his care.

The child was still so young; his attempt at acting like an adult was full of holes, his gaze shifty. He carried a shrewd wildness about him—children raised in the Shen estate servants’ quarters were all like this. If they were shoved in here, Huanxue Villa would be finished. And if the Villa wasn’t finished, Rong Xie certainly would be.

“Heh heh, Brother Rong, look, could we send Wang Mu to stay here with you…”

Here it comes. Rong Xie felt a surge of irritation, but his face maintained a gentle smile, as if he were listening patiently. Inside, however, he was frantically racking his brain for a polite way to refuse.

“Mother, I understand what you mean, but Huanxue Villa isn’t short of hands. The Second Young Master cultivates daily and dislikes being disturbed.” Seizing the moment the old woman paused for breath, Rong Xie smoothly inserted a gentle rejection.

“How can you not be short of hands? I see no one here…” The old woman’s eyes widened in feigned surprise as she pressed on. “With such a large estate outside, plowing the earth, turning the soil, watering, and fertilizing… surely you can’t be doing all that yourself with such delicate hands? These farm chores are best done quickly by us country folk. Oh, right, Wang Mu has two older brothers. How about I send word tomorrow and call them over too…”

He had only rejected her once, and now she wanted to move a family of five in. Rong Xie’s impeccable smile was on the verge of collapsing. “Outside is a garden, we don’t grow crops. As for other tasks in the Villa, I don’t need to do them personally; we have talismans and spells. Mother, that isn’t the point. The point is that Shen Bingsi cannot be disturbed.”

“Disturbed? How would he be disturbed? He won’t be. Our Wang Mu is always obedient. If you say go east, he won’t go west. And those talismans and spells—you can teach him. He’s very good at that. Just before the New Year, which sect was it? They tested his spiritual roots and said he has four kinds of roots! He can use spells from four elements! Wang Mu, which four roots were they?” The old woman nudged the child again.

“Gold, Wood, Water, Earth!” the child shouted.

Rong Xie: …

Rong Xie rubbed his forehead.

He had overestimated himself. When he received his foster mother’s letter, he felt obligated by sentiment and reason to meet her. After all these years, he was no longer a spineless youth; if she made unreasonable demands, he thought he could simply refuse them with principle.

He hadn’t expected that “reason” didn’t exist in her world. Her way of speaking was exactly the same as in the past: you talk about your things, and I’ll talk about mine.

“Mother…”

The moment he said the word “Mother,” he lost.

“Rong Xie, I don’t think you understand me.” The foster mother’s face hardened. “You call me Mother, so we are family. Wang Mu is your own brother! How can a brother perch on a high branch, eating and drinking well, without pulling his little brother up? Besides, your brother isn’t just anyone; he’s a genius with four spiritual roots! If we leave him as a servant in the Shen family, he’ll be a slave forever!”

Rong Xie fell silent. At this point, anything he said would be wrong.

“Furthermore, you aren’t getting any younger. You should think about yourself. You aren’t married, and you have no children at your knee. Who will look after you when you’re old? Are you counting on the Second Young Master? He’s a Great Villa Master, a Great Sword Saint, out there slaying demons and devils all day doing big things. Where would he find the time to care about you?” The old woman pushed Wang Mu forward again. “It’s better to keep your brother by your side. You two can bond. We are family; even if you break the bones, the tendons are still connected. When your brother manages this great Huanxue Villa in the future, do you think he would treat you poorly?”

Listening to this speech, Rong Xie wasn’t even angry anymore. He actually wanted to laugh, maybe even applaud. As expected, ginger gets spicier with age. If this old woman’s eloquence were put to use in the Lingjing Sect’s inner circle, she could easily hustle her way into being a chaotic Foreign Affairs Elder.

With the conversation at this stage, Rong Xie knew he couldn’t shake off this burden alone.

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There was no other way. He had to bring out the Great Deity and let him solve it.

“Mother, what you say makes perfect sense. However, I cannot make this decision alone; I must ask the Second Young Master for instructions.”

Hearing this, the old woman’s anger instantly turned to joy, and she hooked her arm through Rong Xie’s. “That’s the right attitude, Brother Rong. You must put in a good word for him in front of the Second Young Master. He has always relied on you. Of all the people in the Shen estate, he only took you with him. After all these years…”

Rong Xie chuckled internally. Just a moment ago you were saying Shen Bingsi would forget me any day now.

“I will contact him right now,” Rong Xie said, standing up.

“No rush, no rush…” The old woman’s eyes darted around nervously. “Is the Second Young Master perhaps at the Villa? If so, maybe I should take Wang Mu and avoid… go back and prepare. Those spells and talismans, he hasn’t practiced them enough yet…”

Rong Xie’s smile sweetened. Indeed, everyone was terrified of Shen Bingsi. This Great Deity was very useful, it was just a pity he couldn’t be displayed in the front hall as a ward against evil.

“Mother need not worry. The Second Young Master is not at the Villa. He recently came out of seclusion and is away on official business. I don’t know when he will return. I will use the Transmission Jade to contact him, explain the situation, and ask for his decision.”

The old woman let out a massive sigh of relief. “That is good, that is good.”

“Mother, please wait a moment.” Rong Xie bowed slightly, took a jade pendant from his robe, clasped it between his palms, and moved his slender fingers in a fluid, rapid incantation.

Pale green light spilled from the gaps between his fingers, making his hands look even more translucent and delicate than the jade itself. Rong Xie’s expression was indifferent as he slowly pulled his hands apart. The jade pendant floated between his palms, suspended in the air.

“Whoa—” The child’s scattered attention instantly locked onto Rong Xie’s hands.

The old woman also stared wide-eyed at this magical scene.

In her distant memories, she vaguely recalled that Rong Xie seemed to have passed the entrance exams for the Lingjing Sect’s inner disciples alongside Shen Bingsi. It wasn’t a case of one “bringing” the other along.

Buzz—

The jade pendant began to vibrate, maintaining a steady frequency like the lingering resonance of a temple bell.

This went on for some time. The old woman’s eyelids began to grow heavy, and the child started picking at the patterns on a decorative walnut.

The light gradually dimmed, and the jade pendant dropped from the air. Rong Xie caught it in his palm and said, “I have sent the notification. He is likely busy right now, but he will return the call when he has time.”

The old woman nodded. “These gadgets of you immortals are really…”

Suddenly, a violent hum shook the entire room. Vast golden light bloomed from Rong Xie’s palm, engulfing his entire figure in a golden mist.

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The old woman leaned back in fright, and the child fell off his small stool with a loud clatter, his finger still stuck in the walnut.

“Rest assured, Mother. He is contacting me,” Rong Xie reassured them. He thought to himself, I really turned the effects up too high. But he had no choice; he often wandered around the courtyard and forgot his jade, causing Shen Bingsi to be unable to find him. In a fit of anger, Shen had cranked the jade’s one-way notification effects to the maximum. Even if Rong Xie were outside, he would be able to see his windows suddenly exploding with golden light.

From the jade pendant came the sounds of fabric rustling and heavy breathing.

Rong Xie leaned in to listen. After waiting a long time without hearing Shen Bingsi speak, he couldn’t help but worry. “Hello? Is it convenient for you to talk? if not, we can connect later. It’s nothing urgent…”

A magnetic voice, sounding as if it were pressed right against the microphone, came through in a breathy whisper: “…It’s fine. Speak.”

“It’s just that my mother from my hometown has brought my younger brother…” Rong Xie chose his opening carefully. He was about to continue when he was cut off by a piercing shriek.

“Ahhh!”

It came from Shen Bingsi’s side. Rong Xie frowned.

“Where did you get a mother and brother from? Did they crawl out of the Rongliang River?” Shen Bingsi laughed.

The foster mother looked awkward.

“It doesn’t sound like ‘nothing’ is happening over there.” Rong Xie gripped the jade tighter.

“Don’t worry, minor issue.” Shen Bingsi seemed to shift his stance, his breathing skipping a couple of beats. “Just a tiny Demon Dragon… Go!“

Whoosh, whoosh, crackle! Sounds of rushing air came from the jade, followed by several dull impacts.

“Focus! I’m hanging up.” Rong Xie was a little annoyed. Shen Bingsi wasn’t a child anymore, yet he still lacked a sense of gravity. Fighting a Demon Dragon while chatting on the Transmission Jade—he really thought he was capable of anything.

“Wait!” Shen Bingsi hissed, suppressing his voice. Then he went silent. A burst of intense fighting sounds erupted from the other end—Bang! Bang! Bang! Boom! Boom! It sounded like the mountains were collapsing and the earth was splitting. The old woman and the child were petrified, sitting rigidly in their chairs, afraid to move a muscle.

Finally, the noise on the other end subsided, and Shen Bingsi’s breathing calmed significantly. “I’ve run into a bit of trouble. This door won’t open. There are some ghostly scribbles on it. Can you read them?”

Rong Xie didn’t know whether to laugh or cry. He wasn’t a god. “What door? What ghostly scribbles?”

“It’s hard to explain. The scribbles twist east, then west, and there’s a fish blowing bubbles in the middle…” Shen Bingsi tried his best to describe it.

Rong Xie raised an eyebrow, a realization dawning on him. “It might be the Tura Paradox Script, but I can’t be sure. It would be best if I could see it with my own eyes.”

Shen Bingsi was silent for a moment. “No other choice then. Let’s use ‘that’.”

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