In the quick transmigration story, the most popular female supporting character is both delicate and

Gu Yichen drew his sword and left in the direction she pointed.

Pei Liyun also breathed a sigh of relief.

It doesn't matter, as long as Yun Yao is dead, no one will know that she pushed the person down.

Even if she could climb out of the water, with her initial Foundation Establishment level strength, she wouldn't be able to leave this secret realm without protection.

In the water... Yun Yao, caught in the whirlpool, was unable to escape.

She could only hold her breath and search her storage ring for a magical artifact that would allow her to escape.

I originally intended to take the teleportation artifact, but I accidentally bumped into something else...

In an instant, she was teleported to another place.

She found an old man and asked him what place this was.

The old man first looked at her warily, and seeing that she didn't seem like a bad person, he whispered, "This is Jinling City, it's very dangerous. Young lady, you should leave as soon as possible if you're alright."

"...Jinling City?"

Why does that sound so familiar...?

[Host, you've traveled back twenty years. This Jinling City is a place the villainous second male lead, Ling Ye, has long looked forward to.]

[Twenty years ago?!]

[Ling Ye is a demon who crawled out of a mountain of corpses. In his early years, he was an assassin kept by the tyrant of Jinling City. After massacring Jinling City, he eventually joined the Yuling Sect.]

[...], I really can't believe that someone as refined and gentle as Ling Ye was once an assassin... and even massacred an entire city... [Then I'd better leave here quickly.]

[Hey, host, why don't you check if the magical artifact that teleported you here is still there?]

[……What's the meaning?]

[The same thing cannot exist simultaneously in different times and spaces. Since that magical artifact is not with you now, it must be with someone else. If you want to go back, you must find the person who currently possesses that magical artifact.]

Don't tell me that the magical artifact is now in Ling Ye's hands...

[System check, yes.]

[...But how should I find him?]

[Or, host, you could cause trouble everywhere, attracting the city tyrant to send assassins to hunt you down?]

[...]

[When they come to kill you, you can just pull out spirit stones and turn them against you.]

[...Will I live long enough to produce the spirit stones?] I'm afraid I'll be slit in the throat before I can even make a move!

[...Or, how about bribing a servant in the city lord's mansion to sneak in as a maid or something?]

[This is acceptable.]

Yun Yao used spirit stones to bribe maids and servants, eventually finding a high-ranking deputy steward, who then led her to the steward...

Yun Yao originally thought she might be questioned about her background.

But the servant who had led her in took out a few spirit stones from his pocket and placed them in the steward's hand...

The person in charge immediately beamed with joy and said he would arrange a good job for her.

It was somewhat perfunctory.

Are they really not afraid of someone sneaking in from outside?

The person in charge said that she had been given a good job, which was to serve a concubine.

That concubine was sickly, but she was very pretty and looked quite young.

Because he lay in bed all day, neither dressing up nor going out, he didn't need many servants to take care of him.

When Yun Yao had free time, she would take the opportunity to inquire about the situation in the mansion with the other maids.

Everything was fine when we talked about other things, but when we got to the concubine and the assassins kept by the city lord's mansion...

Then they all fell silent.

Or they would stammer and say, "This is not something we little maids should concern ourselves with."

Everyone else knew that this concubine was not favored, so they were unwilling to put in the effort to serve her.

Sometimes, when this concubine asked about the weather outside or other trivial matters, the maids would always give a lazy, casual reply, and if asked again, some would simply not answer.

The concubine didn't say anything, but just looked out the window forlornly, or closed her eyes to rest.

Yunyao specially found a few handkerchiefs and asked this aunt how to embroider certain parts to make them look better.

Sometimes I would brew tea with freshly picked and dried flowers from the yard and let her try it to see if it tasted good.

Sometimes when the sun was out, this aunt wanted someone to help her go for a walk, but she was afraid of troubling them.

Yun Yao saw through her thoughts, so she took the initiative to say that it would be a pity not to go for a stroll in the garden in this weather, and begged the concubine to take her, the little maid, out for a walk.

The other maids spoke to her privately. Unlike the other mistresses, this concubine was different. If she had tried to please the other mistresses, she might have been promoted to a head maid or received some money or benefits.

But serving this master, no matter how much effort you put in, is always a thankless task.

But Yun Yao wasn't a maid, so why would she want any benefits? She was just doing this for the sake of it.

However... she couldn't get information about Ling Ye from the maid, but perhaps she could get it from this concubine.

Before going to bed that night, all the other maids left...

Yun Yao cautiously asked the concubine, "Do you know where the assassins kept in this mansion live?"

After saying that, she quickly added, "I was just curious and asking casually."

The aunt's gentle expression turned cold. "Little girl, is this something you should be asking?"

"!"

Yun Yao immediately knelt on the ground and admitted her mistake.

"You must have another purpose for entering this mansion."

Yun Yao explained her thoughts, "...I'm looking for someone."

"who?"

"I'm looking for the assassin kept by the city lord's mansion. His name is Ling Ye."

At that moment, the door was pushed open, making a creaking sound.

A light, indifferent voice followed, "Looking for me?"

Yun Yao stared blankly at the young version of Ling Ye in front of her.

He was dressed in black, leaning against the door, his posture relaxed and casual yet subtly wary.

She had a sword slung across her waist, and her hair was tied up high with a black ribbon.

His sharply sculpted features exuded a cold aura; his lips were beautifully pursed, and his eyes were so deep they seemed bottomless.

His face had sharp, angular features, giving off a sense of aloofness and coldness.

Compared to his later appearance, he now appears thinner and more youthful.

His expression was not relaxed, and he had a strong sense of hostility.

Yun Yao explained to him that she came from twenty years in the future, and that she needed to use the magical artifact in his possession that could reverse time to return to twenty years in the future.

Ling Ye glanced at her disdainfully, "I don't have that. You've got the wrong person."

"..."

[Host, the system's detection is accurate; that thing is in his possession, but he doesn't want you to use it.]

Yun Yao had a headache. "Master, actually, this magic artifact was given to me by you twenty years later."

Ling Ye looked at her with an expression that suggested she was making something up.

Yun Yao: ...

The aunt spoke well of Yunyao.

"Ye'er, I don't think this little girl is lying. At most, she just has a little mental problem."

Yun Yao: "..."

Ling Ye stepped forward, bent down, and lifted Yun Yao's chin. "She's quite good-looking."

Her skin was as white as ice and as smooth as jade; such beauty could not be achieved by a poor family.

The concubine stopped him, "Ye'er, you mustn't be rude to other girls."

Ling Ye released her chin and lazily took a step back. "Come out with me."

"……Oh."

Yun Yao followed him to the outer corridor.

Through the candlelight shining through the carved window lattices, the slender, dark shadows of swaying bamboo are reflected, moving with the wind and dazzling the eye.

Ling Ye remained hidden in the shadows, his features obscured, making him appear both mysterious and dangerous. "Tell me then, where will I be twenty years from now?"

"You became a master at a very young age in the Yuling Sect, and you have four disciples. I am the one you recently took in."

Before I went to the secret realm, you gave me a storage ring so I could protect myself. The artifact that could rewind time was also inside that storage ring.

I originally intended to use the teleportation artifact, but I accidentally touched it and ended up back in the present..."