Changling leaned back against the chair, her hands hanging at her sides, looking spiritless and completely unreliable.

The more Jing Wuwei tried to mobilize his internal energy, the more paralyzed his entire body became. Only now did he realize that this little enchantress’s ability to blind half of Eastern Xia’s martial world with poison by herself was no empty reputation. Regretting was too late now. He struggled to open his mouth. “The Yue family relics… are not at the estate…”

Mingyue Fei leaned forward. “Then where are they?”

Jing Wuwei snorted coldly. “If I tell you, what if you don’t give me the antidote?”

Mingyue Fei couldn’t help but scoff. “Do you think you still have the qualifications to choose?”

Jing Wuwei’s face darkened and he didn’t immediately respond. He noticed his tongue tip was numb and painful. “If I die, you’ll never know the answer…”

“After you die, I’ll still go find Young Master Jing, unless you don’t mind the Jing family line ending with you…” Mingyue Fei propped her chin on both hands. “I don’t really care either way. Whether I find the Yue family relics or not, I won’t lose anything…”

“You…”

Jing Wuwei gritted his teeth and after several struggles said, “Fine, there’s no harm in telling you. The Yue family relics are hidden in the Yue family’s old residence…”

Mingyue Fei was stunned, then sneered coldly. “Do you think you’re fooling a three-year-old child?”

“The Yue family residence isn’t only the one in Danyang Prefecture, Jiangdong. There’s also an old Yue family site in Meizhen, Muzhou. Few people know about it, and moreover…” Jing Wuwei said ominously, “To be frank, without me stepping forward, Princess, even if you wanted to find it, you wouldn’t be able to.”

Mingyue Fei was dismissive. “Oh? How so?”

Jing Wuwei closed his eyes. “I’ve answered what you asked truthfully. Unless you cure our poison, I absolutely won’t say another word.”

Mingyue Fei spun a golden ring on her fingertip, thinking: If he’s deceiving me and I cure his poison, wouldn’t that put him on guard? If he gets to the relics one step ahead of me, tonight’s scheme would all be for nothing.

Thinking this, Mingyue Fei slowly stood and smiled. “Letting you live is no problem. However, if the general’s poison is cured tonight, I’m afraid I can’t stay long in Eastern Xia. How about this… I’ll have you take another poison called Drunken Wanderer. As long as you take the antidote within a year, you’ll be perfectly fine. Otherwise, when the time comes, you’ll explode and die in your drunken dreams. How does that sound?”

Without waiting for Jing Wuwei’s answer, she flicked her finger and forcefully shot the pill into his mouth. The pill dissolved instantly upon entering his mouth, melting into his throat before he could spit it out. Jing Wuwei was immediately horrified. “Enchantress!”

“Being the most beautiful enchantress—I’m happy to be one.” Mingyue Fei shrugged her shoulders, then walked unhurriedly to Changling’s side and smiled. “You’re so beautiful. I can’t bear to kill you. I’ll have you take one too. When you obediently return to Yan Kingdom to become my sister-in-law, I’ll give you the antidote, okay?”

As she spoke, she reached out her hand. A pill lay in her palm. Just as she was about to feed it to Changling, she suddenly froze.

Mingyue Fei’s five fingers and wrist unconsciously trembled—she couldn’t move either?!

The corner of Changling’s mouth curved as she stood up. Mingyue Fei’s expression changed abruptly. “You, you weren’t poisoned?”

Changling made up nonsense. “My blood flows with hundreds of types of poison. How could mere Drunken Slumber affect me?”

Mingyue Fei staggered but managed to steady herself. “You, when did you poison me?”

“Ah, what a ridiculous question. We’ve competed with poisons since childhood. When have you ever beaten me?”

“You, you’re not…” Mingyue Fei tried to struggle forward but her feet gave way and she fell to the ground. Changling crouched down and took the snow-white pill from Mingyue Fei’s hand, asking with a smile, “Where’s the antidote?”

Mingyue Fei narrowed her eyes. “If you really were her, you wouldn’t need…”

“Ah, you don’t have the antidote?” Changling blinked. “Then I’ll feed you one too, okay?”

The more she imitated Mingyue Fei’s tone, the more furious Mingyue Fei became, her head throbbing with anger. Seeing she couldn’t avoid it, she quickly said, “The blue bottle in my pocket is it…”

As soon as she finished speaking, several bottles of different colors clattered out of her chest.

Changling asked with a smile, “Which one is the antidote for Drunken Slumber?”

Mingyue Fei said reluctantly, “White.”

“This green bottle…”

Mingyue Fei said irritably, “That’s Snow Ginseng Pills, a tonic!”

Changling raised an eyebrow. Using the dead angle of the table edge, she swiftly switched the pills in the green and blue bottles, then casually tossed the blue bottle and white bottle, which landed steadily in front of Jing Wuwei.

She tucked the green bottle into her own pocket, her eyes still fixed on Mingyue Fei, but said aloud, “Father, the little princess said the white bottle is the antidote for Drunken Slumber, and the blue one is for Drunken Wanderer.”

Jing Wuwei reached out with difficulty to grab the blue bottle and couldn’t wait to pop the lid.

Mingyue Fei’s heart tightened as she immediately realized—this elder sister had no intention of letting Jing Wuwei take the real antidote. She was determined to have him die!

“You—”

Changling made a silencing gesture, then pointed at the eaves above and asked softly, “Is that Tianhun or Tianpo up there?”

Mingyue Fei’s pupils couldn’t help but contract: She had known someone was on the roof all along!

At this moment, Changling stood up and slowly said to Jing Wuwei, “How should we deal with this little princess of Yan Kingdom?”

After three attempts, Jing Wuwei finally managed to swallow the antidote. He still couldn’t stand, but his limbs barely regained some strength. He flexed his numb wrist slightly and said sinisterly, “Kill!”

“Apo!”

Mingyue Fei finally gave the order. Suddenly there was a loud bang. Jing Wuwei instinctively looked up to see a large hole opened in the roof. Someone descended from above, falling like the wind beside the little princess. The wind stirred up by their landing shattered the tables and chairs. Where his feet landed, the ground actually sank slightly.

Changling kicked off and stabilized herself a zhang away. Tianpo helped Mingyue Fei to her feet and asked, “Princess, how are you?”

“I’m fine.”

Tianpo surveyed the hall in a circle and met Changling’s gaze. “Not taking her away?”

“Apo, you alone can’t take her.” She glanced at Changling meaningfully. “Elder sister, we lost this round today. Until we meet again by fate.”

After Mingyue Fei finished speaking, Tianpo carried her up from the ground, and in a blink they disappeared from the great hall.

Changling watched the direction they disappeared in. “I’ll go chase them!”

With that, pretending not to hear Jing Wuwei’s attempts to stop her, she leaped up onto the roof, watching as Tianpo and Mingyue Fei gradually vanished into the night, but she didn’t pursue them.

Changling’s form floated off in another direction. After darting several steps, she stopped atop a city wall.

Below the wall, one person and one horse had been waiting for some time. Ye Qi extended an arm with a smile. “If you didn’t come out, I was about to kill my way in.”

Changling smiled slightly, leaped down, and sat on the horse. “Let’s go.”

Ye Qi coughed lightly. “You need to hold on tight. This horse isn’t very cooperative…”

Before he finished speaking, two arms unexpectedly wrapped around his waist. Ye Qi’s body unnaturally stiffened. He could barely hold the reins properly. “Are, are you seated properly?”

“Nonsense. Are we leaving or not?”

The distance from the Jing Estate to the He Estate wasn’t close—one east, one west. Even riding at a gallop would take the better part of an hour.

Upon reaching the marquis estate, Young Marquis He, who normally felt tired walking even one extra step, couldn’t help thinking: We got here so quickly? This Jinling City is really too small.

After Seventh Uncle opened the back door for them, Changling wasn’t polite. She made her way directly to the young marquis’s bedroom as if she knew the place by heart. Pushing open the door and smelling the familiar sulfur spring water scent, her brows relaxed. “You’re quite thoughtful.”

Seventh Uncle, knowing and tactful, closed the door, leaving only their marquis and the great beauty alone in the room. Ye Qi coughed lightly. “Last time I saw you soaking your feet, I figured you must like hot springs. Knowing you were coming, I had someone prepare the water in advance.”

Changling kicked off her shoes and socks, stepped both feet into the hot spring, and said to Ye Qi, “You were considerate. If it weren’t for you tonight, passing Mingyue Fei’s test wouldn’t have been so easy.”

Three hours earlier, in Seventh Aunt’s shop, Seventh Uncle opened a carrier pigeon’s bamboo tube and handed it to Ye Qi. “Someone saw Mingyue Fei enter the Jing Estate. The poisoning at Qingcheng Academy was probably also Mingyue Fei’s handiwork.”

Changling was startled. “Why isn’t Mingyue Fei staying properly in Yan Kingdom? What’s she doing stirring up trouble in Jinling?”

“If she were only coming to Jinling, that would be one thing, but she went to the Jing Estate.” Ye Qi stuffed the paper back into the bamboo tube. “I’m afraid she’s come to cause trouble for you.”

“For me?”

“The Five Poison Sect was exterminated. Mingyue Fei couldn’t possibly be unaware. The sect’s disciples scattered. Given Mingyue Fei’s temperament, she might take the opportunity to gather them under her own control. Naturally, she would become suspicious about Nanxu’s life or death.” Ye Qi paced forward two steps. “Today when the Qingcheng Academy students were poisoned, if you were the real Nanxu, you wouldn’t help them, let alone use the Nanhua Needle Technique to cure their poison… Based on this alone, Mingyue Fei should have concluded you’re not Nanxu.”

Changling nodded. “And she’s also seen me…”

Ye Qi: “Right. She recognized you, which is why she went to the Jing Estate… Jing Wuwei’s urgency to have you return was undoubtedly to verify whether you’re actually Nanxu.”

Hearing this, Seventh Uncle couldn’t help but frown. “Then doesn’t that mean it’s very dangerous for Miss Changting to go back now?”

Ye Qi looked at Changling with considerable worry and said in a low voice, “It is indeed dangerous. Either way you’ll be exposed. Better not to go back. Don’t worry—if you stay at the He Estate, even if we have a falling out, Jing Wuwei won’t dare act rashly.”

The implication was that he didn’t approve of her returning to the Jing Estate.

Changling thought briefly and shook her head. “If you insist on protecting me, wouldn’t that more easily arouse Shen Yao’s suspicion? Then what identity would I use to participate in the Martial Assembly?”

Seventh Uncle said, “Miss Changting needn’t worry. The young master has connections with many sects. Changing to a different identity to participate in the Martial Assembly isn’t difficult…”

“If I just leave Jinling like this, wouldn’t I be unable to find out where Jing Wuwei put my eldest brother’s relics?”

Seventh Uncle was momentarily speechless. Indeed, once her identity was exposed, she absolutely couldn’t stay in Jinling City.

Ye Qi pondered silently for a while with his head lowered. Hearing Changling mention the word “relics,” his downcast eyes brightened slightly. “That’s right, the Yue family relics—this might be a good opportunity…”

Changling: “What do you mean?”

Ye Qi stood up. “Since Mingyue Fei knew how to use half a folding fan to lure the eight sect masters into a trap that day, she presumably knows something about the legends of Wu Run. If you let her learn about the Yue family relics, she’ll definitely find ways to extract information from Jing Wuwei.”

Seventh Uncle nodded slightly, understanding the implication. “But how do we let Mingyue Fei know about this?”

“Write an anonymous letter and have it delivered to her through our contacts in the Jing Estate. Mingyue Fei is suspicious and ruthless. She’d rather believe it exists and will probe and test Jing Wuwei…” Ye Qi glanced at Changling. “Moreover, tonight Jing Wuwei will be completely focused on identifying your identity. Being careless is only natural. How could someone as sharp as Mingyue Fei pass up such an opportunity?”

Seventh Uncle still had some concerns. “But if this Eighth Princess also poisons Miss Changting…”

Ye Qi considered briefly and asked, “Is the Universal Poison Suppressant that Elder Yin prepared for me still at the estate?”

Seventh Uncle suddenly understood and couldn’t help but smile. “Young master, this move is truly brilliant.”

Author’s Note:

Because some people have asked:

About the main storyline:

This story doesn’t take revenge as its absolute main storyline—just as Guo Jing wanted to kill Wanyan Honglie, but clearly the theme of Legend of the Condor Heroes isn’t revenge; just as Wuji’s parents were driven to death by the six major sects, but that story also isn’t centered on revenge; just as Xiao Feng constantly pursued the killer of his master and adoptive parents, but Demi-Gods and Semi-Devils also isn’t a story revolving around revenge as its thread…

There’s no denying that Changling wants revenge, and Ye Qi will help her get revenge. Even though this is an important thread, it’s definitely not a female version of the Count of Monte Cristo, not the kind where villains one, two, and three are predetermined and the story revolves around killing off one, two, and three. From the beginning, I wanted to write a wuxia ensemble, to write about the grudges of the martial world, to write about a character like Changling—and my thinking hasn’t changed to this day.

About revenge:

In the early stages, Changling can’t fight an entire dynasty by herself—she knows this very clearly. Many things can’t be solved just with superior martial arts and killing with a sword. Hypothetically, if she killed Jing Wuwei with one blow, his military authority would be consolidated by Shen Yao, making his throne more secure. Of course, infiltrating the imperial palace to assassinate Shen Yao wouldn’t be particularly difficult for Changling in essence—but what would be the result after killing him? Various forces would fight for the throne, the Rebellion of the Eight Princes would repeat itself, Yan Kingdom and Western Xia would inevitably take the opportunity to invade Eastern Xia, resulting in the world plunging back into chaos and war. The He family wouldn’t stand by idly—they’d fight back with all their might, and the one to reap the benefits would definitely be Fu. Then would Changling go kill Fu? After killing everyone, would she be happy? If she did this, the first person she’d wrong would be her own brother and the Yue Family Army.

I’ve always felt that an author shouldn’t have to explain their story. Before I typed out the above paragraph today, my original author’s note was just one sentence: “Writing this story is purely for the love of it. Please support and be tolerant.”

But thinking about it, just as every author has expectations when writing, readers also have reading expectations. Perhaps being clear is good for everyone.

I will continue according to my vision and do my best to write this story well. Once again, I bow in deep thanks to all the readers who have read to this point.