CHAPTER 222: THE FIRST MISTRESS

The Ling Family estate was quiet that afternoon, wrapped in the serene elegance of ancient architecture fused seamlessly with modern luxury. Blossoming plum trees lined the courtyard, their petals drifting lazily as the wind swept through.

Ling Fei stood alone beside the koi pond, dressed in a soft white hanfu-inspired gown, sipping herbal tea while her gaze remained unfocused. She wasn’t truly admiring the scenery — she was thinking.

Hutton... Jake... Vivian... Veronica... Kenneth...

A part of her chest tightened.

Even though she hid it well, the things she experienced from the U.S. had shaken her deeply. The incident at Blinding Town, the massive media coverage, the military presence... and Hutton suddenly deciding on separating from them.

She pressed her lips together.

’How are they doing now? Did they escape? Did they regroup? Is he—’

"Fei’er."

The calm, deep voice broke her thoughts.

Her father stepped into the courtyard with hands behind his back, dressed in traditional Ling Family robes combined with a sleek modern coat. Ling Tianhua — Patriarch of the Ling Family and one of China’s most influential businessmen and cultivators — moved with a quiet authority that made the koi scatter the moment his shadow approached.

Ling Fei immediately straightened.

"Father."

His expression was unreadable, but the air cooled around him.

"I see you’re restless," he said, stopping beside her. "Your mind is not here."

Ling Fei swallowed softly.

"I... was simply thinking about ongoing matters."

"Matters," he repeated, staring at the water. "Or... someone?"

Ling Fei froze.

Her father turned to her slowly, eyes sharp.

"You’ve been involved with Hutton Maxwell... more than you should be."

He didn’t raise his voice, but each word carried weight.

Ling Fei’s brows knitted. "Father—"

"He’s a fugitive," Ling Tianhua continued. "Wanted by Western governments. Eyed by the American World Class Alliance. Marked by the Dorne Family. And he is a foreigner with a volatile cultivation trajectory."

Ling Fei felt her pulse spike.

"He is my partner in—"

"Business deals?" Tianhua cut in. "Or something else entirely?"

A long, suffocating silence.

Ling Fei’s heartbeat thundered.

Her father sighed and placed a firm hand on her shoulder.

"Fei’er... the Ling Family cannot afford unnecessary entanglements with unstable forces — especially one surrounded by such calamity."

Ling Fei’s eyes hardened.

"So you want me to cut ties with him?"

"Before you end up caught in his fate," Tianhua said quietly. "Yes."

Her jaw tightened. She opened her mouth to respond—

BANG!

The courtyard doors slammed open.

Both Ling Fei and her father snapped toward the sound.

Bob sprinted in — sweat dripping, breath sharp, panic written across his face. His shirt was torn, his hair disheveled, his spiritual aura unstable like he’d been running nonstop.

"Miss Ling!" he shouted, voice cracking. "Something’s happened—something terrible!"

Ling Fei’s heart dropped.

"What happened?! Why are you looking this messed up? Did something happen in Eastridge—?!"

Bob shook his head violently.

"No—Miss Ling... it’s Hutton."

Her body went cold.

Tianhua’s eyes narrowed. "Speak."

Bob swallowed hard, the tremor in his voice unmistakable.

"Miss Ling... Patriarch... Hutton... has been captured!"

The wind stopped.

Ling Fei’s teacup fell from her hand and shattered against the courtyard tiles.

Bob’s voice continued, nearly choking:

"He’s in the hands of the Dorne Family... the World Class Family of Washington. He—he was ambushed. From my sources, they said that they have him surrounded by peak Nascent Soul cultivators."

Ling Fei staggered backward a step, gripping the edge of the koi pond to steady herself.

Her father’s expression turned dark, calculating, unreadable.

Bob’s voice broke.

"He didn’t resist. They took him... and he disappeared into Washington City."

Ling Fei felt her chest clench painfully.

For a moment, she couldn’t breathe.

Tianhua finally spoke, voice low and icy.

"...This is exactly what I feared."

Ling Fei snapped toward him, eyes filled with something fierce — something her father hadn’t seen in years.

"No."

Her voice cracked, but her resolve didn’t.

"I’m not abandoning him."

Bob took a step forward, desperate.

"Miss Ling... what should we do?"

Ling Fei’s eyes glistened.

She inhaled sharply.

"...We’re going to get him back."

Her father’s eyes widened — not from anger, but from the realization that his daughter had already chosen her path.

"Bob, leave at once" Mr. Ling suddenly said with a deep voice. Hearing him, Bob replied right after stealing a glance at Ling Fei. "As you wish, Lord Ling"

After Bob left the courtyard, Mr. Ling exhaled heavily, his brows tightening.

"Fei’er... you are not leaving this compound. I won’t allow you to throw your life away because of that boy."

Ling Fei’s voice came out shaky but sharp.

"That boy? His name is Hutton! And he risked everything—for me, for Bob, for people he barely knew! He doesn’t deserve this!"

"Whether he deserves it or not is irrelevant," Mr. Ling snapped, his voice rising. "What matters is the political storm surrounding him. The World Class Families, the Federal agencies, the Businessman Alliance—they all want him dead or imprisoned. If you step one foot outside this compound, you will never return alive."

"I don’t care!" Ling Fei roared, shocking even herself with her volume. "If Hutton dies out there because we didn’t try to help him, then I’d rather go with him!"

Her father’s hand slammed onto the nearby stone table hard enough to crack its edge.

"LING FEI!"

She flinched, but her resolve did not waver.

Mr. Ling’s voice lowered to a trembling, emotional growl.

"You are my daughter... my only daughter left in this house. The Harbingers nearly killed you once already while following him. And now you want to run straight into the hands of Aurelian Dorne? That man kills people for coughing in his presence."

Ling Fei shook her head, her eyes wet.

"You don’t understand... you never do. Hutton—he isn’t just someone I partnered with. I owe him my life. And now he’s alone, surrounded, captured, without a single ally—"

"And that is exactly why you should cut ties with him!" Mr. Ling roared again. "He is a walking calamity. The longer you stay attached to him, the more danger you invite to yourself—and to this family!"

Ling Fei’s voice cracked as she answered,

"I won’t abandon him. I won’t. Even if it costs—"

"—your life?" Mr. Ling cut in, eyes flaming with fear and anger.

Ling Fei clenched her jaw.

"...Yes."

For a moment, everything froze.

The courtyard fell into a suffocating silence.

Her father stared at her, as if hearing a stranger speak. His expression twisted—not in anger this time, but despair.

"Fei’er... this obsession—"

"It’s not an obsession!" Ling Fei yelled over him. "It’s loyalty! Something this family lost a long time ago!"

Mr. Ling staggered a step back, hit deeply.

"You... dare..."

"I dare because it’s true!" Ling Fei cried, voice breaking. "All of you only care about reputation, power, and connections. Hutton cares about people. And that’s why I—"

She stopped herself abruptly—but the meaning was clear.

Mr. Ling’s eyes widened slightly.

"Don’t tell me... you’re in love with him."

Ling Fei turned her head away sharply, biting her lip.

"...I didn’t say that."

"You didn’t need to." His voice hardened again. "You will forget about him. Starting tonight."

She snapped her head back toward him.

"You can’t make me!"

"I can," Mr. Ling said coldly. "Because you are still under this family. And as patriarch—"

His next words were cut off by a sudden voice echoing from the entrance of the courtyard.

A calm, authoritative voice.

A woman’s voice.

"—Does that authority extend to forcing your daughter to abandon her convictions?"

Both Ling Fei and her father turned sharply.

A tall, elegant woman walked through the moonlit archway, heels clicking softly against the stone. Her long black hair was tied in a sleek ponytail, and her sharp phoenix-shaped eyes radiated natural dominance.

She wore a dark navy qipao embroidered with silver blossoms—a symbol of high status in the Ling Family.

Ling Xia.

The First Mistress of the Ling Family.

Ling Fei’s elder sister.

The one who rarely returned home unless something serious was happening.

Ling Fei froze.

"S-Sister Xia...?"

Mr. Ling stiffened as if caught doing something wrong.

"You... you’re back early. Your conference in Thailand—"

"—finished ahead of schedule," Ling Xia said flatly. "And the first thing I come home to is you shouting at Fei’er like she committed a crime."

She stepped deeper into the courtyard, her gaze briefly softening as she looked at Ling Fei—then sharpening again when it moved to her father.

Ling Xia folded her arms.

"Now, I heard enough from outside to understand what’s happening. Fei’er wants to leave and help Hutton. And you want to lock her inside the house."

"She wants to throw her life away!" Mr. Ling retorted.

Ling Xia raised an eyebrow.

"And? Since when did the Ling Family become a cage for the weak-willed?"

Mr. Ling sputtered.

"Xia—she’s being reckless!"

Ling Xia’s gaze sharpened like a blade.

"No, Father. She is being brave."

Ling Fei’s eyes widened, overwhelmed.

Her sister... was supporting her?

Mr. Ling stepped forward angrily.

"You’re encouraging her to chase after a trouble magnet? A boy hunted by federal agencies, World Class Families, and the Businessman Alliance?"

Ling Xia sighed, brushing a strand of hair behind her ear.

"I’m asking her a question you should have asked already."

She turned to Ling Fei—her expression serious, piercing.

"Fei’er."

Ling Fei swallowed.

"Yes... sister?"

Ling Xia stared directly into her eyes.

"Is he worth it?"

The world seemed to hold its breath.

Ling Fei didn’t hesitate.

"Yes."

Her voice trembled, but the conviction in it was unshakable.

Ling Xia smiled faintly—not mockingly, but proudly.

"Then that settles it."

Mr. Ling nearly choked.

"Xia! You—!"

Ling Xia raised her hand, silencing him.

"I am First Mistress of this family. Fei’er is my junior. If she says he is worth risking everything for... then I will stand with her."

Ling Fei’s breath hitched, tears gathering in her eyes.

"S-Sister..."

Ling Xia placed a hand on her shoulder, squeezing it lightly.

"You won’t be going alone. Not while I’m here."

Mr. Ling stared at both of them, face pale with worry, anger, and disbelief.

"You two... you’ll bring disaster to this family."

Ling Xia shot him a cold look.

"Father, disaster is coming regardless. Hutton’s capture means the World Class Families are no longer playing from the shadows. They will come knocking on every door connected to him—including ours."

She turned back to Ling Fei.

"And since trouble will arrive whether we move or not... we might as well move first."

Ling Fei felt her knees weaken with relief.

Her sister... her powerful, feared, politically connected, terrifying elder sister... was going to help her.

Ling Xia gave her a confident, knowing stare.

"Come, Fei’er. Pack your things. We’re going to get your boy back."

And with that stunning declaration, the courtyard lights flickered—

as if the Ling Family itself had felt the shift.

A storm was about to erupt.

And the Ling Sisters were going to walk straight into it.