Amid all these tangled mysteries, Jun Beiyue’s mind remained unclouded. Ziqing understood clearly that the moment this man returned to the continent of Longyuan, he would inevitably throw himself fully into searching for the Solitary Isle, uncovering the mystery of her origins, and finding a cure for the seductive fragrance’s poison!

Otherwise, he wouldn’t have shown such remarkable patience—allowing himself to be outmaneuvered by Prince Baxian, leaving Prince Baxian to handle state affairs, and leaving Emperor Tianhui as nothing more than a puppet ruler!

Just as Ziqing was still lost in hesitation, Jun Beiyue abruptly changed the subject entirely, saying flatly, “Qing’er, tomorrow we set out to cure the poison you cultivated within yourself. The round trip should take five or six days, which should have us back just in time for Chu Feiyan’s arrival in the capital.”

For a moment, Ziqing couldn’t quite process this, stunned. This matter had been left unresolved after their last discussion—and yet this man had actually remembered it!

Seeing Ziqing’s expression, Jun Beiyue understood exactly what she was thinking, and said flatly once more, “If you truly enjoy the art of poison, once we find the Solitary Isle and the seductive fragrance is cured, you may play with it however you wish, and I won’t interfere. But not now. It’s far too dangerous.”

Ziqing still said nothing, silently putting away her guqin.

Watching her, Jun Beiyue continued, “If you truly love it so much, why not cure the poison first, and once we reach Nanzhao, we can ask the old man at the Poison Den, and discuss it further then? How does that sound?”

Jun Beiyue had already conceded twice on this matter—his patience was so remarkable that even Yingzi and the others would have thought they were dreaming had they witnessed it!

Yet Ziqing still didn’t respond, simply putting away the guqin properly and sitting there in silence.

“There are many different ways to practice the art of poison, aren’t there? Cure the poison first, and once we’re in Nanzhao, I’ll have Prince Nanzhao personally appoint a poison master to teach you—all right?” Jun Beiyue’s tone remained flat, showing no sign of temper at all.

Still, Ziqing offered no response, not even sparing him a glance.

“It’s not that I’m refusing you outright—I’m merely asking you to wait a little. I promise to find the Solitary Isle as quickly as possible. Be good, and listen to me,” Jun Beiyue urged again.

And yet!

Ziqing still showed no reaction whatsoever!

This time, however, Jun Beiyue said nothing further, simply staring at her in silence. The atmosphere in the room grew increasingly tense.

Unable to see Ziqing’s face, there was no way to know what she was truly thinking!

A long, long moment passed, neither of them willing to speak first, time flowing silently between the two of them.

The room fell utterly silent, quiet enough to hear a needle drop, the tension mounting steadily. Jun Beiyue’s expression grew unnervingly blank.

Yet in the end, it was he who spoke first, still in that same flat tone. “Qing’er, be good, and listen to me.”

At that very moment, Ziqing finally, slowly lifted her head, gazing at him for a long while, still saying nothing—only shaking her head.

In that instant, Jun Beiyue’s eyes narrowed sharply, a flicker of dangerous intensity flashing through them. He had to admit—he had never possessed this kind of patience before, had never developed this kind of habit!

A surge of anger welled up within him, but he forced himself to suppress it. “Give me a reason.”

“I simply don’t want to. It’s been so many months already, and nothing’s gone wrong. Don’t worry about it,” Ziqing finally spoke, her tone dismissive of the whole matter.

“Then can you be absolutely certain that the poisoning incident at the Bai estate was caused by that poison, and not by some problem with your own body?” Jun Beiyue’s voice finally carried a hint of anger.

They had no way of knowing the true cause of that poisoning incident—how could he not worry?

But to his surprise, Ziqing said irritably, “I don’t want to. I don’t like you forcing me.”

With that, she picked up her guqin and simply turned and walked away!

“Stop right there!” Jun Beiyue finally spoke coldly.

Ziqing didn’t stop at all, striding out through the doorway and heading toward the East Garden. Jun Beiyue’s fists clenched so tightly they cracked audibly, and only once Ziqing’s retreating figure had vanished from his sight did he slam his fist down hard onto the table, instantly shattering it to pieces.

Did this woman really have to keep pushing him to his absolute limit like this?

When had he ever shown such patience with anyone, spoken so gently and persuasively to anyone before? And this was supposed to be him “forcing” her?

“Yingzi, go fetch that damned poison master!” Jun Beiyue said coldly.

Yingzi appeared timidly. “My lord, that… the poison she cultivated is different from ordinary poisons. It would really be better if Her Highness went herself…”

“Can’t you see she won’t go?” Jun Beiyue retorted coldly.

“Yes…” Yingzi didn’t dare say another word, hastily withdrawing. Jun Beiyue’s face darkened as he sat down, and despite how precious the map beside him was, he swept it aside violently, fury rising within him like a tidal wave!

He had never treated any woman this way before—he didn’t understand it, and he was furious!

Meanwhile, Ziqing was walking with considerable urgency. She knew perfectly well that letting him plead with her while she remained stubbornly silent had been rather excessive—but she’d had no choice!

If she hadn’t done that, she’d never have been able to break away from him without a proper falling-out.

Her poison craving had struck again!

She’d spent the entire afternoon in the kitchen and had forgotten to take her dose. Now she couldn’t wait to rush straight to the East Garden to get her fix.

But just as Ziqing stepped through the gate of the East Garden, she suddenly stopped short—she’d sensed someone following her from behind!

Was it Jun Beiyue?

If he caught her at this moment, how could she possibly bear it? How could she possibly get rid of him?

Just as she wondered what to do, the figure behind her suddenly flipped through the air, landing in the courtyard—and it was none other than Baili Weisheng, exuding that same clean, scholarly air as always!

Ziqing’s brow furrowed sharply, and she immediately shouted, “Someone—”

Unfortunately, Baili Weisheng had already closed the distance, clamping a hand over her mouth. Ziqing reacted instantly, driving her knee upward, but Baili Weisheng’s other hand caught her knee with unerring precision, a brilliant smile spreading across his face. “Shh… if you make a sound, I won’t give you the poison.”

As he spoke, unafraid of her crying out again, he released her mouth, dangling a large vial of poison right in front of her face!

Ziqing truly didn’t dare cry out now, for this was precisely the poison she’d cultivated within her body—Withering Poison.

“So you really do know everything about everything,” Ziqing said through gritted teeth. There was no need to ask further—this fellow clearly already knew about her addiction, and seemed remarkably well-versed in poison himself.

“Ha, I just happened to overhear the two of you arguing, that’s all,” Baili Weisheng said with a smile.

“That’s strange,” Ziqing said suddenly, her expression turning serious.

“What’s strange about it?” Baili Weisheng asked, baffled.

Ziqing crooked her finger, beckoning him closer. Baili Weisheng leaned in immediately, only for Ziqing to suddenly roar furiously, “Eavesdropping on people all day long—have you no shame at all?”

As she shouted, she lunged with one hand, grabbing for the poison vial, but no matter how hard she pulled, she couldn’t wrest it free.

Baili Weisheng clearly wasn’t the least bit intimidated by her outburst, saying with mock seriousness, “Little Qingqing, look how pale your face has gotten—paler than my own robes. Be good and let go, and I’ll give you the medicine right away.”

The turmoil within Ziqing’s body had already reached a boiling point; she’d only barely managed to exchange a couple of moves with him through sheer willpower. Hearing this, she had no choice but to release her grip, gritting her teeth so hard she couldn’t stop herself from sinking down onto one knee.

Baili Weisheng sat down beside her, sniffing carefully at the vial. “Withering Poison?”

Ziqing nodded honestly, saying nothing, but her pale, pained expression made her plea unmistakable to Baili Weisheng.

Yet Baili Weisheng said unhurriedly, “You really are something else, aren’t you—drinking down such a terrifying poison without hesitation?”

Could it be that he didn’t actually know about her special constitution? Ziqing wondered suspiciously, but had no time to dwell on it further, suddenly grabbing Baili Weisheng’s shoulder. “Give it to me, or I’ll poison you to death!”