5 take the initiative

She took the longsword that rested at the head of her bed and with a "ching" sound, pulled it from its sheath, then thrust it at full strength into the floor. Looking at the shallow white mark it left on the floorboards, her lips began to twitch. She was dismayingly weak. The strength she possessed before being reborn could crush her current self with a flick of a little finger, even if there were a hundred of her present selves. How tragic.

Returning to life, of course, was a reason for wild joy, but the huge disparity in her power compared to her previous life not only depressed her but also solidified an unprecedented determination in her heart.

She had to become stronger, she must become stronger quickly!

But before she could become powerful again, she had to face her current circumstances. Mu Hanyan was all too aware that while there were many who disliked her, there were none who bore her deep grudges or hatred. However, it was exactly those who disliked her that seemed to enjoy causing her trouble. Her strength was feeble, and her father paid her little regard, while Han Feng was powerful and highly favored by her father. Naturally, people tended to pick on the weaker one.

I refuse to be that easy target! Mu Hanyan's lips twitched slightly. Before gaining the formidable power she desired, what she needed, even if only minor, was her own faction—to conveniently act according to her will, such as dealing with Fourth Miss Zhao.

Just as Mu Hanyan's thoughts reached this point, Yue Fanling came in, holding her hand and showing tender affectionate concern. Mu Hanyan knew it was guilt. Having been raised disguised as a boy since childhood, the family always measured and demanded of her by the standards of raising a son — needless in the eyes of Yue Fanling — moreover, they had willfully indulged the child, turning her into a playboy. How could she not feel pained and guilty?

Mu Hanyan touched the unremarkable ring on the little finger of her right hand—it was this ring that perfectly disguised her as a man. In her past life, even when she encountered extremely powerful individuals, none discovered that she was a woman disguised as a man; such was the extraordinariness of this ring. But its uses were limited to this alone—it had no other functions. From an early age, she had been instructed never to remove this ring in front of others. Only later did she understand that it was also a way to protect her.

"Mother, I would like two guards," Mu Hanyan said quietly.

Upon hearing this, Yue Fanling first paused, then nodded vigorously, "Right, right, you should have personal guards. You, my silly child, are too trusting. I should've assigned someone to follow you sooner. You should not have listened to your father saying that Mu Family's disciples must foster independence. That is for other families, not for us. Your father is the City Lord; you don't need to work as hard as those from the Branch Family."

"Yes, mother, I would like to choose them myself, if that's okay?" Mu Hanyan continued. Her mother's doting was always this direct—it was short of outright saying "Your father is wealthy and powerful, you might as well live off him without a care or effort."

"Okay, okay, no problem." Yue Fanling was still nodding. "I will call all the guards from the City Lord's Mansion, and you can pick whoever you want. There are some new guards who have just joined today; feel free to choose any." Yue Fanling was completely accommodating to Mu Hanyan's requests, doing whatever she asked immediately.

As Mu Hanyan watched Yue Fanling quickly leave to arrange this matter, she thought of two people among the guards of the City Lord's Mansion. Those two, one named Huayue and the other Zirong. From the outset, they were of the type so ordinary they would be undetectable in a crowd, and their strength was nothing to speak of either. However, both of them possessed good talent. Their cultivation progressed by leaps and bounds later on. Among the two, Huayue was the kind who grew stronger when facing powerful opponents, capable of fighting beyond his level. Zirong, on the other hand, was too clever by half. He was the type who could sell someone down the river and have them help him count the money, while still making them feel grateful. A certain kind of deceitfully cunning!