Though Tie Ci knew this was a concussion aftereffect, she still felt incredibly frustrated.

She desperately rubbed her chest, wanting very much to slap herself.

So all this time’s agonizing, hesitation, and worrying about gains and losses were for nothing?

Not lesbian, not male lovers – the man had become a woman, the woman had become a man.

All that mutual deception, mutual bending of orientations, and efforts at self-persuasion – all for nothing.

All those days of carrying guilt and psychological preparation were wasted!

Then thinking again about all these days when Feiyu, using her female identity, had taken liberties with her, acting coquettish and taking advantage. During her own moments of internal struggle and guilt, openly and secretly, who knew how much advantage she had taken.

She hadn’t shown the slightest bit of guilty conscience either.

That naturally tolerant and patient mindset from thinking herself the deceiver suddenly changed, and angry little flames began blazing up.

Suddenly there seemed to be some commotion in the distance. The poles that had been probing the water were all withdrawn, and chaotic footsteps retreated.

Feiyu immediately reached out to comfort her shoulder.

Tie Ci was at the height of her anger. With a backhanded grab of Feiyu’s hand, she spun around and flung him to the bottom of the water.

She also plunged into the water, ignoring her flowing nosebleed, and caught Feiyu to pummel him, sending water splashing everywhere.

She only targeted areas with thick skin and flesh – though it looked dramatic, it was all thunder with little rain.

Feiyu seemed to be chuckling softly, not fighting back, just covering his head and crying injustice: “You deceived me too!”

“Mine wasn’t deception – I’ve always worn men’s clothing!” Tie Ci said angrily. “I didn’t resort to every possible means to toy with people like certain someone!”

“I did that to get close to you!”

Hearing him still habitually using that affected voice made Tie Ci even angrier: “I didn’t have ulterior motives and take advantage of people like you!”

“That’s called being smitten, unable to control my feelings!” Feiyu grabbed her hand. Tie Ci raised her fist, but seeing his pale face, she hesitated for a moment. He took the opportunity to grip her tightly, tucked her under his arm, and floated toward shore, dripping wet.

Tie Ci turned her dizzy head and saw Feiyu’s hand pressed on her shoulder, his eyes still somewhat dazed, but through the confusion shone tremendous joy.

That joy was like a rainbow light, striking her heart with a shock that scattered much of her anger. She suddenly realized that in that moment of immense shock and complex emotions, perhaps the first instant feeling that had flashed through her heart was actually also joy.

Joy that she was him.

Joy that she didn’t need to bear psychological pressure to bend someone of the same sex.

Joy that half the possibility of finally becoming lovers had been realized.

Her heart was in chaos, momentarily forgetting where they were, when suddenly the water rippled heavily, awakening both their senses.

Heavy footsteps sounded close by – those people had returned, probably having heard the commotion but found nothing, so they came back to search the water area again. Countless long poles probed into the water.

At the same time, the boat above shook as someone leaped aboard, shouting: “Where’s the boat family? Come out!”

Tie Ci instinctively reached out to embrace Feiyu’s waist to avoid those wildly stabbing poles, but suddenly paused.

When she paused, Feiyu reached out and embraced her waist, and both hid deeper in the water.

Above, the soldiers shouted with no response, so they rushed into the cabin and discovered two drunkards inside.

After searching the boat thoroughly with no results, the poles below stabbed densely and frequently. After Feiyu guided Tie Ci underwater to avoid the poles twice, his face grew even paler, and he looked ready to vomit again. Tie Ci suddenly pushed away his hand and gripped his waist instead.

Feiyu’s eyes showed amusement as he limply leaned against her, playing dead.

Unable to roll her eyes underwater, Tie Ci really wanted to roll them at the sky and sincerely ask him if acting coquettish was fun.

But she had no choice now – this wasn’t the time for settling accounts. She could only support this bastard and press tightly against the boat bottom.

While pressing close, she kicked him squarely in the butt.

The two pressed tightly against the boat bottom as those poles crisscrossed and stabbed past below them.

After several rounds of probing, the poles were withdrawn, and the people on the boat seemed to kick the two drunkards before leaving with heavy steps.

Tie Ci breathed a sigh of relief.

But before she could finish exhaling, the boat creaked again as someone else entered the cabin.

Tie Ci heard someone above say: “Old Ancestor, this place has already been searched.”

A hoarse voice said: “Continue your search. I find these two men’s drunkenness rather strange – let me take another look.”

The Patrol Office people acknowledged and moved forward with the troops.

Tie Ci frowned, hearing that the person on the boat seemed to be the Poison Maniac, but the voice wasn’t quite right. Moreover, when this person boarded, his steps were light and uneven, more like someone with poor martial arts.

Staying pressed against the boat bottom was disgusting and inconvenient. Tie Ci and Feiyu slowly swam down. In the rippling light and shadows, Feiyu’s face grew even paler.

Tie Ci felt anxious – he needed to lie flat, yet was forced to bob about underwater.

The old monster on the boat seemed to be dawdling about something. Tie Ci vaguely heard puffing sounds, then the sound of dragging a body, followed by faint hissing noises. The dark qi around this boat grew denser.

She suddenly realized this monster seemed to be practicing poison techniques on the spot?

She should wait a bit longer until the troops moved farther away, in case this old monster had some means of notifying them.

However, seeing the dark qi grow increasingly dense with faint iridescent colors beginning to appear, silently attacking beneath the boat, and looking at Feiyu’s condition, she suddenly raised her hand and struck.

Bang! The boat bottom was pierced, a crack flashing like lightning to the stern, instantly splitting the vessel apart.

Countless bloody things fell into the water as someone screamed.

With a splash, waves rose ten feet high as a figure shot out like a cannonball.

Tie Ci burst up from underwater, pushing Feiyu flat toward shore with one hand while grabbing the neck of the black-robed figure who had just leaped up.

She was covered in blood from head to toe – not her own, but from being drenched when the boat broke. She glanced at the water and nearly vomited like Feiyu.

The bloody stench made her rage surge. Gripping the thin neck in her hand, she performed a midair somersault, forcibly dragging that person back through the water surface and pinning the black-robed figure deep underwater in the spreading red.

The black-robed person’s face was painted in iridescent colors, making features unrecognizable. Struggling desperately in Tie Ci’s grip, both hands waved frantically, sending something sharp shooting out, bursting through the water surface into the air with a shrill sound.

The troops that had just moved away on the distant plain turned back.

Another splash as Tie Ci gripped that person’s neck and burst out again. In the struggle, the black-robed figure had released countless poisons, turning that entire water area an indescribable color. Yet from beginning to end, Tie Ci never loosened her grip.

The black-robed person’s struggles were weakening.

The distant troops began rushing back frantically. Someone drew a bow and nocked arrows. Arrows fell like rain as Tie Ci spun with the black-robed figure, using him as a shield while her hand remained firm.

Suddenly she vaguely heard sounds. Turning her head, she saw a group emerging from the side-rear, silently rushing toward Feiyu lying on the ground.

Tie Ci’s heart jolted. Her hand loosened, and the black-robed figure escaped death, desperately rolling aside and plunging back into the water.

Tie Ci couldn’t spare attention for him, rushing toward where that group had appeared.

On the other side, Feiyu had been covering his head lying there in dizzying disorientation. Vaguely hearing someone approach, he then heard a familiar one-long-three-short signal. He raised his head, and as someone approached to help him, he grabbed the person’s knee and said urgently: “Kidnap me!”

Embroidered Guard subordinate: “?”

Feiyu grabbed his hand and placed it around his own neck.

Subordinate: “…??”

But he caught on, going with the motion to grip Feiyu’s neck, pulling him into his arms and retreating three zhang with him.

The other arriving subordinates surged forward to block pursuing Tie Ci.

Feiyu played dead in his subordinate’s arms. That poor fellow was sweating profusely, not knowing what his master meant or what to say, but knowing he must cooperate. He simply tightened his grip on Feiyu, placed a blade at his throat, pointed at Tie Ci’s feet indicating she shouldn’t move, then made a vicious throat-slitting gesture.

Tie Ci had to stop, watching as those people retreated step by step with Feiyu, who kept his eyes closed – whether unconscious or not was unclear.

Her mind raced: Who were these latecomers? Which faction did they belong to? Were they Xiao family experts?

Seeing them retreat step by step, she was considering whether to use teleportation to snatch him back when she saw Feiyu’s finger make a circle and wave at her.

She froze.

What did Feiyu mean? Was he telling her not to act rashly?

In that moment of hesitation, they had already retreated far away, turned and ran like untethered wild horses, disappearing into the depths of the plain.

Tie Ci instinctively chased a few steps, but arrows fell like rain behind her as the returning Patrol Office soldiers arrived.

She leaped up to dodge the arrow shower. Her internal injuries backlashed, and she stumbled upon landing.

The Patrol Office soldiers formed a circle from far away, slowly tightening around her.

Suddenly someone shouted behind her: “Master!” Hoofbeats thundered.

The Imperial Guard Nine had arrived.

Tie Ci breathed a sigh of relief, both grateful and regretful.

If they had arrived a moment earlier, they could have rescued Feiyu too.

However…

She harbored doubts but said nothing, directly retreating into the formation and letting Xiahou take over dealing with the local Patrol Office. She also had Xiahou dispatch a team to track Feiyu.

Xiahou could have first identified himself to the local troops, but he didn’t. Instead, he led his men in a fierce attack. The Imperial Guard Nine were well-equipped and well-trained under Xiahou’s drilling. These local rabble were no match, and after being beaten to pieces and begging for mercy, Xiahou finally produced the Imperial Guard Nine’s insignia, ordering the leaders bound and charging them with treason.

Tie Ci retreated into the formation where Dan Shuang changed her clothes and bandaged her, treating the contamination and poison on her body. Only then did she notice Dan Shuang was also injured. Upon detailed questioning, she learned so much had happened at the orphanage. If not for several people joining forces to desperately block that black-robed poison user, she might have faced that poison user directly on the embankment earlier.

Dan Shuang said: “…That guy and I were injured and resting in place waiting. Chi Xue and another shorty went chasing that old monster. Later they sent a signal, the Nine Guards followed the signal to rendezvous with us, meeting up with Chi Xue and that short guy. Chi Xue’s poisoning was troublesome, so Leader Xiahou directly sent people to escort her to find Master Rong. We intercepted and pursued that old monster along the way, chasing him all the way here.”

Tie Ci: “…Could you be more specific with your references? What ‘that guy,’ ‘this guy,’ what ‘shorty’?”

Dan Shuang fell silent for a long moment before saying: “I don’t know them either. Earlier I mistook them for enemies. They were lurking in the orphanage with us, seemingly also wanting to catch the orphanage’s weaknesses. We were all set up and framed together. Two people of unknown names and origins – because one was tall and one short, we called them that… But now that I think about it, why do those two seem familiar, like I’ve seen them before?”

Tie Ci asked: “Where are they?”

Dan Shuang said irritably: “When we found the shorty, he was carrying Chi Xue on his back, looking quite concerned about Sister Chi Xue. Then in the blink of an eye, he vanished. That tall one too – as soon as our people arrived, he disappeared. I even thought he’d fallen in a pit and searched for ages…”

Listening, Tie Ci asked what they looked like. Dan Shuang irritably gestured for a while, saying: “Tall, long arms and legs, a bit thin, broad shoulders. I suspect he wore a mask on his face, spoke rather quickly…”

Tie Ci listened to her lengthy description, then stopped.

Tie Ci: “…What about the short one?”

Dan Shuang: “…Just short. Not really that short, but that guy was too tall – a whole head taller than me!”

Tie Ci: “…What else?”

Dan Shuang: “…I forgot.”

Tie Ci: “…”

So you described the tall one for hundreds of words but can’t remember what the short one looked like at all.

She looked Dan Shuang up and down, recalling her frequent mentions of “lecher,” “being harassed,” and “peeping.”

When girls grow up, you can’t keep them close.

But hearing this description, she thought of two people.

When Feiyu had rescued her from Ziyang County’s jail, hadn’t his attendants been exactly one tall and one short?

That day when Feiyu went to the orphanage with her, he must have later sent these two to infiltrate and investigate there.

She just didn’t know what Feiyu was investigating.

Tie Ci frowned slightly.

If Feiyu was male, then many things needed reinterpretation.

He had mysterious origins, ruthless and cunning methods, outstanding followers, and unclear movements and purposes.

Tie Ci had originally wanted to have a good talk with him – the account between them was muddled and needed slow settling. But now this elusive person had so coincidentally “disappeared” again, making her anxious and worried once more.

Author’s Note: Really getting old, problems everywhere. When setting the update schedule in the backend, I accidentally clicked immediate publish and posted the day after tomorrow’s chapter.

I’ve replaced it with tomorrow’s content.

Tomorrow will be a shorter update. It’s not that I’m stingy – I really can’t afford to waste my drafts.

Feeling very frustrated – this isn’t the first time. Maybe I really am old and shouldn’t be writing anymore.