Glancing at the man rolling on the ground in a bizarre posture, Qin Chang Ge smiled and said, “You have great endurance—even under such excruciating pain, you still remember not to trigger the mechanism hidden in your collar.”

She reached out her hand and with a crisp “crack” dislocated the man’s jaw. Wrapping her hand in her sleeve, she probed his mouth and extracted a black pill from between his teeth. After examining it, she smiled, wrapped it carefully, and tucked it into her bosom.

The sound of footsteps approached—members of the Blazing Flame sect were drawing near.

Qin Chang Ge slowly stood up, casually tossed away the branch as if nothing had happened, and said to the approaching Blazing Flame sect members who were staring at her in stunned silence, “Gentlemen, please take a look and confirm—this person isn’t one of your Blazing Flame sect members, is he?”

An official stepped forward, looked down, and said in surprise, “Who is this? How is he wearing our sect disciple’s clothing?”

After thinking for a moment, his face suddenly turned purple with anger. He turned to several people behind him and raged, “How did you let him infiltrate us!”

Someone immediately responded, “Several of us have been guarding the gate today. Absolutely no outsiders entered.”

Qin Chang Ge said coolly, “He didn’t enter through the gate—gentlemen, look at his feet.”

Many gazes immediately focused on the man’s shoe soles, which showed pale grayish-brown soil that seemed unremarkable.

Seeing everyone’s puzzled looks, Qin Chang Ge said, “Sect Leader Su recently transplanted a type of purple Uzbek chrysanthemum, didn’t he?”

The official nodded. Qin Chang Ge continued, “I noticed earlier that these chrysanthemums, perhaps due to their different variety, required special soil to be transported for cultivation. That soil color differs slightly from the surrounding area, and this man’s shoe soles carry exactly this type of soil.”

She smiled slightly and said, “When he walked ahead of me earlier, he left traces of this soil on the white stone path, mixed with fallen chrysanthemum leaves. This indicates he spent time in the gardens and approached that cluster of chrysanthemums. Those flowers are planted in the center of the garden, not far from Sect Leader Su’s study window, surrounded by stone paths. Unless necessary, no one should deliberately approach them.”

“Since he could approach the flower cluster without arousing suspicion or attention from others, it must be because of,” Qin Chang Ge smiled, “his identity.”

Some showed expressions of understanding, while others remained puzzled. The official turned and asked, “Wasn’t Old Zhang supposed to be the gardener on duty today? How did it become this person?”

Someone immediately called for the garden house staff. The supervisor answered, “Old Zhang fell ill yesterday, suspected dysentery, so he went home to recover. The Uzbek chrysanthemums developed rust spots on their leaves, and Old Zhang didn’t have time to tend to them. Before leaving, he said he’d send his nephew over—someone also skilled with flowers and plants. This man came today with Old Zhang’s handwritten letter and indeed knew how to care for chrysanthemums, so we kept him temporarily—but wait, how did he change into outer hall disciple clothing?”

Qin Chang Ge nodded and smiled, “So I found it strange—the Blazing Flame sect has strict rules and clear divisions of duty. How would a gardener be specifically assigned to guide me?”

“Moreover,” she smiled and pointed to the intersecting sword and halberd pattern on the ground, “if he were a hall disciple, how could he not recognize the sword and halberd design within the red flames of your Blazing Flame sect’s emblem?”

She omitted mentioning that she had noticed the man’s incorrect walking posture and the hidden weapon in his collar. How could a merchant woman with no martial skills detect such things? Speaking of it would only arouse suspicion.

Even so, the way the Blazing Flame sect members looked at her had already changed from before. This woman was calm and composed, unflappable, with sharp eyes and a ruthless hand—even men might not compare.

Qin Chang Ge merely smiled slightly and said softly, “Go search. In your outer hall, there must be a disciple who was knocked unconscious, or perhaps…”

As soon as she spoke, everyone’s expressions changed. Someone immediately ran out, and in the distance, Su Xuan approached hurriedly, having received the report.

His expression showed slight fatigue, clearly indicating that the recent treatment had consumed considerable energy, yet his demeanor remained calm. He first apologized to Qin Chang Ge, then ordered the man to be taken away. His gaze lingered for a moment on the dislocated jaw before turning to look at Qin Chang Ge, who responded with a modest smile.

Helplessly raising an eyebrow with an expression somewhere between amusement and something else, Su Xuan said, “Miss Ming, someone’s lax security allowed scoundrels to infiltrate, nearly costing you your life. In the end, we had to rely on you to capture the spy. I’m truly ashamed. To express my apology and for your safety, let me personally escort you back to Heng Records.”

Qin Chang Ge was about to politely decline on the grounds that it would be too much trouble, but Su Xuan continued, “I met Young Master last time and was quite fond of him. I’d like to see him again and have a small gift I’d like to present personally. I nearly forgot earlier—even if you’re unwilling to let me take your son as a disciple, surely you wouldn’t prevent me from visiting him?”

Qin Chang Ge smiled, thinking to herself: Why are you blocking my words? Don’t you just want to trick my child into becoming your disciple? Bring out some sincere gifts and I’ll have absolutely no objections. She was immediately ready to offer up Xiao Baozi, that hybrid of rabbit and fox.

Since last night, Xiao Baozi had been running to the front gate countless times. First, he loitered by the gate under the pretense of urinating. Qi Fan maliciously reminded him there was a chamber pot indoors. He blinked his big eyes and innocently asked Qi Fan, “You said to urinate facing the clear wind and bright moon. You said chamber pots are for causing mischief at appropriate times. Now you’re telling me to use the chamber pot!”

Qi Fan fell silent. Little ancestor, telling you to urinate facing the clear wind and bright moon was a joke. It’s late autumn now, but would you really bare your chest to the wind in the dead of winter, shivering as you let loose like a waterfall in the snow and cold wind?

You’re just worried about your mother, aren’t you? Yet you refuse to admit it. After just a few days out, you’re already calling “mother this, mother that” incessantly. We raised you for three years, but it doesn’t compare to her three days.

Qi Fan smiled darkly with resentment. Your mother, your mother has been lured away to climb mountains and enjoy scenery—a man and woman alone together… When you find out, you’ll be beside yourself with anxiety.

He didn’t know that within the supposedly impregnable headquarters of the Blazing Flame sect, someone had actually attempted to harm Qin Chang Ge. The Phoenix Alliance guards were waiting outside the Blazing Flame headquarters according to protocol, unaware of what had happened inside. If Qi Fan had known, he would probably be the one jumping with anxiety at this moment.

Xiao Baozi ignored the maliciously grinning Qi Fan, gnawing on his fingers while wandering around the gate. Seeing a single rider approaching in the distance, he happily rushed out to greet them. When he saw there was only one horse, his face darkened by half. Then seeing his mother sitting in front of Su Xuan with Su Xuan’s hand hovering near her waist, Baozi’s face immediately became like a chestnut—just short of growing spines.