Chapter 21 part 1
Head Steward Shen found himself unable to refute the reason Rong Xie provided. He had no choice but to produce a spare exam paper and sheepishly hand it to Nanny Wang.
Although Nanny Wang itched to ridicule Head Steward Shen, she held back, knowing her family of five still had to make a living under his thumb when they returned. She simply rolled her eyes, took the paper, and shoved it into Wang Mu’s hands, urging him to hurry up and write.
Head Steward Shen, his belly full of stifled anger with nowhere to vent, walked over to the candidate servant boys with a dark expression. He craned his neck to see what they were writing, making the candidates tremble with fear. They all shrank their heads and lay prone on the ground, putting on a show of deep contemplation.
An hour later, it was time to hand in the papers.
Rong Xie collected the papers, reviewed them one by one, graded them into three ranks—A, B, and C—and presented them to Shen Bingsi.
Shen Bingsi sat in the grand armchair in the study, the papers spread out on the large desk. Rong Xie stood by his side, while Head Steward Shen stood at the corner of the table. The floor was covered with candidates waiting for the final result. The Grand Villa Master’s posturing was certainly sufficient.
He never liked wasting time on useless things, so he went straight to the papers of the three Grade A candidates.
“Mm…” Shen Bingsi narrowed his eyes.
Head Steward Shen leaned forward a bit more, Nanny Wang pricked up her ears, and the candidates quietly lifted their heads, stealing glances to see how this legendary Grand Villa Master and Great Sword Saint would judge their papers.
Shen Bingsi glanced over them briefly, then turned sideways to ask Rong Xie, “Only these three are Grade A?”
“Yes.”
“You think they answered well?”
“They can be considered excellent,” Rong Xie replied.
“Good. Then keep these three. The rest can go home.” Shen Bingsi nodded.
Not expecting Shen Bingsi to decide on the candidates so decisively, Head Steward Shen wanted to say something but held his tongue.
The candidates grew even more nervous; the sound of gulping was audible. Before coming, they hadn’t truly felt it, but after seeing the exquisite magnificence of Huanxue Villa with their own eyes, no one wanted to leave. How blissful it would be to live in such a place!
Moreover, that young Steward Rong looked gentle and generous, not like someone who would be harsh to servants. Following him would surely be much more comfortable than following Head Steward Shen.
Once people start calculating gains and losses, time becomes exceptionally hard to endure.
Rong Xie bent down and exchanged a few words with Shen Bingsi in a low voice.
“I will now announce the three Grade A candidates,” Rong Xie said. “First place, Shen Yan. Second place, Long Shaoye. Third place, Fang Renji.”
Hearing the results, the candidates could no longer suppress their childish nature and erupted into commotion. Some covered their faces and sobbed in disappointment, some stomped their feet in annoyance, and others looked enviously at the selected three.
The three selected candidates stood up from the group, all holding their heads high, each more spirited than the last. Thinking that their lives were about to undergo earth-shattering changes, how could they not be excited!
“Everyone quiet down. The Villa Master still has questions. Will the three of you please come forward first,” Rong Xie said.
“Shut your mouths, all of you!” Head Steward Shen scolded.
The candidates quickly quieted down, and the three selected boys walked nervously toward the desk.
Only Nanny Wang was still cursing incessantly; clearly, Wang Mu had not passed.
The goddess of luck did not smile upon Wang Mu a second time. Rong Xie had looked at his paper; indeed, he couldn’t write. His chicken-scratch scrawl barely managed two questions before he completely gave up. Rong Xie hadn’t even given him a Grade C.
“Shen Yan, Long Shaoye, Fang Renji.” Rong Xie called their names, and the three answered in turn.
Rong Xie looked them over one by one. All three were boys, aged between twelve and fifteen. They had a foundation in literacy, were in good health, and looked clever. They were more than qualified to be servant boys.
Among the three, Fang Renji was the youngest, only twelve. Shen Yan and Long Shaoye were about the same age, fourteen and fifteen respectively.
“According to this form, you all possess spiritual roots. To work in the villa, you also need to know certain spells. Although you were tested on paper just now, knowing the theory and being able to do it in practice are two different things.” Rong Xie paused, turning slightly toward Shen Bingsi. “Next, you need to demonstrate spells corresponding to your attributes to the Villa Master. Anything will do; let him see your skills.”
The three became even more nervous. The youngest, Fang Renji, even looked a bit cross-eyed from stress.
As everyone knew, the one sitting behind the desk was one of the three Great Adjudicators of the cultivation world, the Master of Huanxue Villa, the Pride of the Shen Family—the Demon-Slaying Sword Saint, Shen Bingsi. To perform magic in front of him was like showing off axe skills before Lu Ban, the master carpenter; there was no possibility of faking it.
Shen Yan took a deep breath, calmed his pounding heart, took a step forward, raised his hands above his head, and bowed to Shen Bingsi. “Grand Villa Master, I am Shen Yan. I have dual spiritual roots of Lightning and Fire. Let me demonstrate one first.”
The other two servant boys and the eliminated candidates behind them all looked at Shen Yan with admiration. To be able to present himself so generously and clearly in such a tense situation, he was indeed worthy of being the first among Grade A.
Who knew that the Grand Villa Master behind the desk wouldn’t appreciate it at all. He said airily, “The three of you, go together.”
The three were stunned. Demonstrate together?
Shen Yan was the first to react, calling out the name of the spell he was about to demonstrate.
Long Shaoye and Fang Renji were about to follow suit and announce their moves, but the Grand Villa Master waved his large hand, interrupting, “No need to recite the menu. Just serve the dish.”
This immediately threw the three of them off balance. Without being allowed to announce their moves, they lost the chance to build momentum psychologically. attacking directly meant their true weight would be clear at a glance. Massive pressure instantly bore down on them.
After Shen Bingsi finished speaking, Rong Xie glanced at him. Head Steward Shen also glanced at Rong Xie.
Rong Xie was thinking: Why is Shen Bingsi getting addicted to playing the arrogant Villa Master? Don’t scare the children so much they can’t even use their spells.
Head Steward Shen, however, was thinking: These little tricks of interrupting people to crush them psychologically… surely Rong Xie didn’t teach the Second Young Master this?
Shen Bingsi, the party at the center of the whirlpool, remained oblivious, leaning back relaxedly in his chair, waiting for the show.
A surge of water spiritual energy overflowed from Long Shaoye’s palms. The water condensed into a column, rising upward. Suddenly, a strong wind moved the water column, sending it flying forward like a water dragon.
Long Shaoye was the oldest of the three. He was quiet and steady, but his opening move showed such skilled water magic that it drew gasps of surprise from the children in the hall.
Shen Yan lagged slightly behind, but his attack unleashed powerful fire spiritual energy. He struck a fierce palm at the water column released by Long Shaoye. The water column sizzled, gradually turning into white smoke, then white mist. The mist shrouded the front of the desk, clouding the area so that the situation in the hall couldn’t be seen clearly.
Within the clouds and mist, tiny currents of electricity darted around like small snakes with whoosh whoosh sounds, quickly vanishing.
The cooperation between the two was truly astonishing. Rong Xie almost couldn’t help applauding them. Long Shaoye’s initial move was to pave the way for Shen Yan. After all, Shen Yan possessed dual Lightning and Fire roots; releasing either alone could easily cause damage. With Long Shaoye’s water root paving the way, they demonstrated their magic while providing a foil for Shen Yan.
Children these days were truly impressive…
📖 Advance Access: Complete Novel
You are purchasing Advance Reader Access to the complete translated compilation for:
"Long Aotian’s Beautiful Butler Has Run Away"
⚡ After Payment, Follow These 2 Steps:
- Option 1: Note your email on PayPal/Ko-fi.
- Option 2: Email proof to beezzzreads@gmail.com.
- Option 3: Comment below.
Notice: Manual approval. Please allow 12–24 hours for access.
Recommended Reads
