True qi surged into her meridians, circulated through her entire body, and gathered in her dantian, over and over again.

Luo Wanqing forced herself to maintain her will, following Liu Xiniang’s guidance to gather and compress this foreign true qi into her dantian.

Pain eroded her concept of time. She felt time stretch infinitely – a word, a sentence, a quarter-hour all became so long.

Several times she felt she couldn’t go on, but then a warm current would surge up from her abdomen, forcing her to continue.

That must be the pill’s effect.

That pill and Liu Xiniang were among the few strokes of good fortune she’d had since entering prison.

She didn’t know how much time had passed when she finally heard Liu Xiniang say, “Alright, rest for a while.”

The moment those words came out, she could no longer hold on. She closed her eyes and fell into darkness.

This time she didn’t dream. She slept deeply for a long time. When she opened her eyes, she saw morning light falling through the skylight onto the black water surface floating with debris.

“You’re awake?”

Liu Xiniang’s voice came. She looked across to see Liu Xiniang leaning against the wall, looking out the skylight. Noticing her gaze, Liu Xiniang turned and smiled: “It’s good weather.”

“How long?”

Luo Wanqing spoke hoarsely. Liu Xiniang explained: “Two days.”

Luo Wanqing closed her eyes to recover, feeling her arms numb and aching from hanging on the iron chains.

Liu Xiniang waded through the water to her, taking her hands down from the chains. Without the chains’ restraint, Luo Wanqing’s legs went soft. Liu Xiniang caught her, asking: “Are you alright?”

“I’m fine.”

Luo Wanqing used Liu Xiniang’s strength to support herself up. Liu Xiniang helped her while explaining her current condition: “Your body has no martial arts foundation – too weak. Last night, your meridians probably reached their limit and could rupture at any time. Without that Nine Fragrance Calming Spirit Pill, you’d be dead. So, although I’ve given you internal energy, don’t rush to use it. Wait until your body recovers.”

“How do I know when it’s recovered?”

Luo Wanqing knew Liu Xiniang wouldn’t just tell her the situation for no reason. Seeing her stand steady, Liu Xiniang assessed her condition: “In the three months before the examination, you need to do two things. First, build up your physical foundation. Even without internal energy, relying on your body’s muscular ability alone, you should be much stronger than ordinary people.”

“What else?”

“Second, you need to meditate every night to repair your meridians, then expand and strengthen them. Your meridians are the channels for internal energy – the wider the channels, the more power you can release in an instant. I’ll teach you the specific practice methods over the next few days. Your sentence came down yesterday – exile in ten days.”

Hearing this, Luo Wanqing was stunned. Liu Xiniang glanced at her and continued: “Our time is tight, so I got some money and bribed the jailers. We’ll stay in this water dungeon until you leave. Over these ten days, I’ll teach you everything about my past, details, and everything I know. After we switch identities, you’ll enter death row – that’s your best training ground. The fastest way to learn martial arts is real combat, fighting with death as the stakes. After entering death row, regardless of winning or losing, fight as many battles as you can. Start by learning to take beatings – only when you’re used to being beaten will you not lose control from bodily pain instinct.”

“Alright.”

Luo Wanqing nodded without hesitation.

Seeing how obedient she was, Liu Xiniang couldn’t help but smile: “You’ll take many beatings. Are you afraid?”

Luo Wanqing shook her head. She looked up seriously: “I’m not afraid.”

Seeing her expression, Liu Xiniang couldn’t help but pinch her face and sigh: “This face is so tender – what a pity.”

Luo Wanqing was startled. Liu Xiniang suddenly struck, sweeping her leg, and said happily: “For this first fight, I’ll accompany you!”

As her words fell, Luo Wanqing crashed into the water. Liu Xiniang’s hand immediately followed, grabbing her hair and pressing her firmly underwater.

Luo Wanqing instinctively struggled, then heard Liu Xiniang shout: “Grab my wrists with both hands, use your body weight to quickly pull down to the bottom.”

Hearing this, Luo Wanqing immediately complied. Though she was light, her movement was quick. Liu Xiniang’s wrist bent to its limit angle, and she immediately let go. Luo Wanqing quickly surfaced, and Liu Xiniang slapped her again!

In the water dungeon, Liu Xiniang beat her one-sidedly while teaching her everything she needed to learn and remember during the beating.

“The Supervision Department is divided into two parts – headquarters in the Eastern Capital and branches everywhere. Together, they number nearly thirty thousand people, all elite. Each local department is divided into three levels: the department head, the Four Chiefs, and the remaining ordinary Supervision Department people. Everyone in the Supervision Department is uniformly called Supervision Department Envoys. Unless there are special circumstances, just mentioning this title will make anyone give you some respect.”

“The strongest people in the Supervision Department are all in the Eastern Capital. At headquarters in the Eastern Capital, Chief Xie Heng – no one has seen him fight, but everyone guesses that since he’s from a great family, he probably has no martial arts. Under him are the four chiefs Zhuque, Baili, Qingya, and Xuanshan. Except for Baili, each is a top expert.”

“Baili isn’t a master?” Luo Wanqing was curious.

Liu Xiniang nodded: “In terms of martial prowess, she’s not first-rate, but not too bad either. They say she’s the Supervision Department’s strongest spy. No one has seen her appearance, and there’s no information in this world she can’t discover.”

Saying this, Liu Xiniang slapped Luo Wanqing’s head and pressed her back underwater: “Listen carefully, don’t interrupt me.”

Liu Xiniang taught while beating. When she got tired of beating, she taught Luo Wanqing horse stance, meditation, breathing exercises, and other fundamentals.

In a daze, ten days passed. Luo Wanqing felt her head was stuffed with countless things.

She repeatedly chewed over this content while Liu Xiniang seemed particularly relaxed.

The night before leaving, Liu Xiniang asked the jailers for some wine. Seeing Liu Xiniang approach with the wine, Luo Wanqing couldn’t help but widen her eyes curiously: “How can you get anything?”

“Building connections is also an ability,” Liu Xiniang said, handing the wine to Luo Wanqing, raising an eyebrow: “Can you drink?”

“Not really.” Luo Wanqing answered honestly: “My family doesn’t let me drink.”

“That’s a pity,” Liu Xiniang sighed helplessly. “I should have taught you to drink, but I don’t have time. After you get out, find an opportunity to build up your alcohol tolerance, to avoid problems at special moments.”

“Alright.”

Hearing this, Luo Wanqing understood that parting was imminent – she and Liu Xiniang didn’t have much time left.

She wanted to say many things to Liu Xiniang, but didn’t know how to begin.

She wanted to say thank you, but it felt too light in weight – better not to say it.

After a long while, she finally said: “You haven’t told me about your past.”

“Wasn’t I about to?” Liu Xiniang smiled: “You’re going to impersonate me for a long time – how could I hide this from you?”

“I’m not doubting you…”

Luo Wanqing quickly explained. Liu Xiniang raised her hand, pressing the wine bottle mouth to Luo Wanqing’s lips, blocking her mouth: “Don’t say all this nonsense – I don’t like hearing it.”

Luo Wanqing was forced to drink several mouthfuls of wine. Unable to bear it, she quickly pushed it away and leaned against the wall, coughing.

Liu Xiniang watched with amusement, took a sip from her wine, and pondered: “Where should I start… Well, I wasn’t called Liu Xiniang before. My surname is Zhang, also known as Zhang Jiuran. I’m the daughter of an escort agency chief in Yangzhou.”

Luo Wanqing looked up blankly, pondering this name: “Zhang Jiuran?”

“That’s right. My father even escorted goods for your father before. When your father first came to Yangzhou, it was my father who provided escort services.”

Luo Wanqing was stunned. Liu Xiniang continued: “I grew up with loving parents who doted on me. I have a brother four years younger than me. We lived in eastern Yangzhou city. Our family wasn’t wealthy, but we had enough food and clothing. When my father was still alive, he most hoped I’d become like you – gentle, weak, pretty, and well-behaved. But I wouldn’t listen – I always wanted to follow him and learn martial arts.”

“Why?”

Luo Wanqing listened, completely unable to understand. Looking at Liu Xiniang before her, she felt learning martial arts was so much better than being weak and helpless, at anyone’s mercy.

“Because bandits were rampant then. My father had to risk his life protecting goods just to earn some money. My father felt that making a living still depended on studying, fighting, and killing, which wouldn’t work. But I didn’t think so. I wanted to become a peerless master so I could protect my father. But my father didn’t understand. Seeing me practice martial arts, he’d beat me. Finally, my mother said, If you don’t stop, how can your daughter stop? So he washed his hands of it and closed our escort agency.”

“Then what?”

“With the agency closed, we had no money. Then, when I was eighteen, I got a strange illness – most of the time, I was completely weak, bedridden, and couldn’t be cured no matter what. Medical fees were expensive, and medicine was expensive too. We even sold our house, but it couldn’t cure me. To raise money for my treatment, my father returned to his old trade and took a big job, but he ended up dying on the road. That day, I felt better and missed him, so I wanted to go meet him. From far away, I heard something was wrong, so I went to call for help. When we returned, my father was already dead.”

Liu Xiniang’s expression turned cold: “When we found his body, it was still warm. There was a broken blade in his belly. I cut that broken blade from his stomach – that was the first time my hands were stained with human blood. Then my mother came with government officials. Seeing my father’s corpse, she cried until she almost died, and my brother was terrified too.”

“What happened next?” Luo Wanqing was both angry and shocked: “Was the killer found? Arrested?!”

“No.” Liu Xiniang’s tone was flat: “The officials came and were scared too. I overheard them talking – they didn’t want to handle it at all. I secretly kept that broken blade. Later, when they asked if I had any clues, I gave them a fake one. After a while, they issued a notice saying there was no evidence and the killer couldn’t be found. As for the fake broken blade I gave them, they didn’t acknowledge it ever existed. Instead, the merchants who lost their goods came after us, saying that even though the person died, the money had to be compensated. So the officials helped these merchants seize our house and threw me, my mother, and my brother out together.”

“You were still sick then, right?” Luo Wanqing couldn’t believe it: “They just did that?”

“Yes.” Liu Xiniang smiled bitterly: “I was still sick then, so my mother, brother, and I begged on the streets. I thought this wouldn’t work – we’d all die. Since my strange illness couldn’t be cured anyway, I might as well sell myself to get them a way to live. So while my mother went to get relief porridge, I stuck a straw in my hair on the street. Soon, I met a man who said he could buy me and cure my illness – what could I give him? What could I give? I said I could give him this life.”

“That was someone from Fengyu Pavilion?”

“Yes,” Liu Xiniang’s expression grew cold: “Fengyu Pavilion’s leader, Xiang Sizi.”

“That year, he bought me under the name of a Salt Syndicate leader. Officially, he placed me in the Salt Syndicate, but brought me directly to Fengyu Pavilion. After returning, he told me I wasn’t sick at all, because of my exceptional talent, the poor cultivation method I was using didn’t suit my body. He could make me the top assassin, and he’d found my father’s killer. That person had high status and extraordinary ability – only by becoming the top assassin could I kill him.”

“Who was it?”

Luo Wanqing was curious. Liu Xiniang didn’t answer. She thought for a moment and laughed lightly: “Actually, I don’t know either. But whatever the leader said, I believed. If I had to become the top assassin to get revenge, then I would. The leader was very good to me. He told my mother he was taking me to a famous righteous sect to learn skills, but I’d never be able to come down from the mountain or contact them again. My mother believed him and had no choice, so she let me go. Then the leader settled them and personally taught me to become an assassin.”

“Then why do you still want to leave?”

Luo Wanqing didn’t understand. If Xiang Sizi was so good to Liu Xiniang, why did the Liu Xiniang in the dream still desperately want to leave?

“I don’t want to kill people anymore.” Liu Xiniang turned her head, her expression showing some weariness: “Every New Year, I stand outside my family’s door, watching them from afar – eating, talking, laughing – but I can’t go over. My identity is too dangerous and would implicate them. But I want to walk over. I want to have a meal with my mother and brother. I want to walk freely on the streets. I want to sleep peacefully. I want to stop killing people. I want to make amends.”

“He wasn’t wrong to save me, but that doesn’t mean everything he did was right. Wanqing, you’re walking a path very similar to mine, but I hope you won’t follow my old road.”

Liu Xiniang looked up at her seriously: “Hatred will fade with time. Don’t do things against your heart for revenge, or someday you’ll regret it.”

Listening to this, Luo Wanqing felt tightness in her chest. She wanted to do something, say something, but didn’t know how to begin.

Finally, she just nodded and said softly, “I’ll remember.”

Seeing her expression, Liu Xiniang felt the atmosphere was too heavy and quickly said, “Why are we getting more depressed? Let’s cheer up. I’ll tell you some key points so you don’t give yourself away.”

With that, Liu Xiniang perked up again. She and Luo Wanqing drank wine intermittently while carefully recounting details of her past.

They talked until the next morning.

At the fifth watch, the night watchman’s call sounded.

Liu Xiniang finished the wine, shook the bottle, and threw it into the water.

“Time to go.” Liu Xiniang sighed: “These days passed so quickly.”

“Mm.”

Luo Wanqing responded softly, then asked: “In a moment when I go out, I’ll find a chance to burn my face. Jiang Shaoyan instructed that the jailers don’t dare let me die – they’ll send me to the medical office for bandaging immediately.”

“After talking with you, I’ll call the jailers and voluntarily confess, revealing people in the Salt Syndicate to earn a chance to go to the medical office.”

Liu Xiniang swayed the wine bottle in her hand: “The case has been dragging on because I refused to reveal my superiors. Originally, I wanted to be an iron-willed sub-chief, but didn’t expect to go too far and have these corrupt officials burn my face,” Liu Xiniang sighed. “If it were before, I’d have killed that corrupt official. Now I don’t want to kill people – I’ll kill him later.”

“When we meet at the medical office,” Luo Wanqing pondered, “When I crash into the fire basin, they’ll probably panic a bit, but these jailers will quickly realize that if I die in prison, it’s the prison’s responsibility. If I die on the exile road, that’s the exile guards’ responsibility, nothing to do with them. So they’ll diagnose me with minor injuries and force me to set out.”

“After I switch identities with you, I’ll leave Yangzhou directly.” Liu Xiniang clapped, quite happy: “Once I’m gone, the jailers will never find me again.”

“By then, even if the jailers discover I’m not Liu Xiniang, they won’t dare say anything, because they can’t find you. If it becomes a big issue, they’re the ones who’ll lose their positions.” Luo Wanqing smiled.

Liu Xiniang thought through the entire plan and couldn’t help but praise: “Perfect.”

“There’s only one regret,” Luo Wanqing looked at the seemingly carefree woman before her, her expression showing uncontrollable sadness. When the other party looked at her questioningly, she finally couldn’t help saying: “The time knowing you was too short.”

Liu Xiniang was stunned. After a moment, she smiled awkwardly: “Meeting each other is fate – our fate is already quite deep.”

Luo Wanqing didn’t move. She looked at Liu Xiniang and only asked: “Will you come back to see me in the future?”

Liu Xiniang remained silent. After a moment, she smiled: “No. The last time my father saw me, he told me he wanted to take me to see the poplar trees in the northwest.”

Luo Wanqing was stunned. Liu Xiniang turned to look northwest, saying happily, “I plan to go to the northwest – I won’t come back.”

The northwest – in that dream, the place where Liu Xiniang was buried.

So this was why she ultimately chose to die under the poplar tree.

Luo Wanqing stared speechlessly, feeling somewhat uneasy.

Liu Xiniang thought for a moment and finally instructed: “You’ll have to walk the rest of the road yourself. Let me give you two final reminders. First, Qin Jue didn’t die this time. If the information is correct, he’ll also go north to the Eastern Capital for the Supervision Department examination. Fengyu Pavilion will organize another assassination – perhaps the leader will come personally. But he won’t contact you. Before entering the Supervision Department, Fengyu Pavilion won’t look for you. So the only thing you need to do is stay away from Qin Jue.”

“I understand.” Luo Wanqing listened and nodded: “What’s the second thing?”

“If my information is correct, Supervision Department examinations always start with team examinations,” Liu Xiniang pondered. “This time, there’s a master in Yangzhou’s death row named Jiushuang. I heard he was severely injured when imprisoned. You can find a chance to approach him. If you can team up with him, your chances of passing the examination will be much greater.”

“Alright.”

“Then,” Liu Xiniang hesitated, looking up at Luo Wanqing with a smile, “Should I set off first?”

Luo Wanqing didn’t speak. This time, she couldn’t say the word “alright” for a long time.

Seeing this, Liu Xiniang sighed and scolded: “Your will still isn’t firm enough.”

With that, Liu Xiniang turned and began banging on the iron door, shouting: “I can’t take it anymore! My lord! I confess! I’ll confess everything! Let me stay in death row – I can’t stay in this water dungeon!”

“I’m dying – let me see a doctor at the medical office! As long as you let me see a doctor, I’ll confess everything.”

“Help! Help! Save me! My lord – ah! Save this common person!!”