Huang Yan couldn’t help but snicker, secretly sighing that Qin Muyue, this little wretch, usually appeared quite calculating and clever, but whenever it came to matters concerning Mu Yunjin, why did she become so agitated?
Last time she had nearly lost her life at Mu Yunjin’s hands, and now she had forgotten the pain once the wound had healed…
She deserved it, she truly deserved it!
“Go ahead and remove it,” Qin Muyue said with a cold smile, seeing Huang Yan’s hesitation.
Huang Yan sighed, then turned to look at the imperial guards behind Qin Muyue. He pointed at them and said, “You all heard the bet, right? Bear witness in a moment.”
With those words, Huang Yan slowly removed the veil from his face—
Qin Muyue held her breath, feeling somewhat nervous. When she glimpsed the face beneath the veil, she widened her eyes in disbelief and froze on the spot.
The face Huang Yan revealed was exactly Mu Yunjin’s stunningly beautiful countenance, without the slightest difference.
“No, impossible.” Qin Muyue stepped forward, extending both hands to grab Huang Yan’s cheeks. “Are you wearing a human skin mask?”
…
…
“Don’t accuse others of wearing human skin masks just because you’re ugly and jealous of beautiful faces. Have you no shame?” Huang Yan said, actually moving his face closer. “Here, examine it carefully and see if there’s any human skin mask!”
Qin Muyue moved closer and scrutinized Huang Yan’s face for a long time, but couldn’t find any trace of a mask.
Immediately, Qin Muyue’s eyes filled with shock, and she retreated several steps.
How could this be possible?
Huang Yan watched Qin Muyue’s astonished expression with satisfaction, rising from the bed to stand before her, towering a full head taller.
“Honor your bet. I’ll watch you crawl out,” Huang Yan said mockingly, arms crossed.
“You’re shameless!” Qin Muyue looked up at the person before her, trembling with anger. The person in front of her was a man, but somehow, through some evil technique, he had taken on Mu Yunjin’s appearance.
Huang Yan glared at her. “Who’s shameless? Look, is this face the one you recognize?”
“Quickly! Crawl out!” Huang Yan had lost his patience.
After speaking, Huang Yan lifted his eyelids and said coolly, “My martial arts could level this Water Cloud Temple. Don’t try anything else. If you don’t want another bloody hole in your waist, crawl out obediently!”
Qin Muyue was truly intimidated. She bit her lip, her heart full of unwillingness. Where did Mu Yunjin get such great abilities to always make connections with such capable people?
This was truly frustrating!
But now there were so many imperial guards outside, all confidants she had cultivated for many years. If she crawled out like this, how could she ever show her face again?
“The joke has gone far enough. After all, our Qin family is not to be trifled with. Sister-in-law Yunjin should leave herself some room to maneuver!” Qin Muyue said, hands behind her back, chin raised.
“Ha!” Huang Yan felt he had heard the biggest joke ever. Qin Muyue truly was a top-tier wretch, with skin thicker than a pig’s.
“Are you sure you won’t crawl out?” Huang Yan warned for the last time.
Qin Muyue didn’t move.
Huang Yan narrowed his eyes and suddenly swept his sleeve toward Qin Muyue’s face. Qin Muyue only felt a cold wind on her face but nothing else.
“Get out now!” Huang Yan shouted angrily.
Seeing that Huang Yan had compromised, Qin Muyue raised her eyebrows triumphantly. “Goodbye, Sister-in-law Yunjin.”
With that, she turned and ordered the imperial guards behind her, “Withdraw!”
After Qin Muyue turned around, the imperial guards suddenly revealed shock and fear in their eyes. The leader among them tremblingly extended his hand, “Deputy Commander Qin, your face…”
“What’s wrong with my face?” Qin Muyue asked in confusion, touching her face. At this moment, someone handed her a bronze mirror.
Qin Muyue took the mirror, and when she glimpsed the reflection in it, she screamed in terror and dropped the mirror—
Her face had turned into that of her grandfather, Old General Qin.
“With an old man’s face, let’s see how proud you can be now!” Huang Yan raised his eyebrows triumphantly, sitting down and wiping his hands with a silk handkerchief.
In his years wandering the jianghu, he had acquired some impressive skills—the Thousand Faces technique was one of his specialties.
“Change my face back quickly!” Qin Muyue exclaimed in anger. How could she face anyone in the future like this?
“Earlier, I thought making you crawl out would be fun. Now I think letting you wear this face is even more interesting.”
“Get lost, little wretch!” Huang Yan felt extremely satisfied, thinking that afterward he would ask Chu Li for more rewards. Nothing less than tens of thousands in gold would suffice.
This time, Qin Muyue was truly a bit frightened. She hesitated, “Change my face back, and I’ll agree to any demand.”
“What if I tell you to go die?” Huang Yan replied directly.
“You…”
“Get lost!”
Qin Muyue stamped her foot, pulled out a silk handkerchief she carried, covered her face, and hurriedly ran out of Anxin Hall, intending to find Daoist Qiuye to resolve this matter.
After Qin Muyue left, Huang Yan sighed contentedly, waved his hand in front of his eyes, and returned to his original appearance.
……
Ning Prince’s Mansion.
“Hahaha, is that true?” Mu Yunjin sat in the garden, laughing heartily as she listened to Ding Xian report to Chu Li about what had just happened at Water Cloud Temple.
Ding Xian nodded, “Of course it’s true. I was hiding in a corner watching the whole time.”
“This Huang Yan has some skills. Qin Muyue’s face must have turned green with anger!” Mu Yunjin couldn’t stop laughing just imagining the scene.
It seemed that from now on, the task of dealing with Qin Muyue should be assigned to Huang Yan.
Seeing Mu Yunjin laugh happily, Chu Li’s mood was naturally good as well. He looked up at Ding Xian and said, “Let Huang Yan take whatever he wants from this month’s profits from Zhangzhou City.”
“Yes, sir!” Ding Xian nodded, then added, “Then for me running back and forth…”
“Divide it among yourselves,” Chu Li chuckled.
“Thank you, Your Highness!” Ding Xian ran off, content.
Only Chu Li and Mu Yunjin remained in the garden pavilion. Mu Yunjin looked at Chu Li with a smile, “What should I do? Originally I thought I would return to Water Cloud Temple when I’ve been here long enough, but now knowing Huang Yan has such an impressive skill, I don’t want to go back…”
Chu Li looked at her with a smile, “Then stay here. I don’t mind.”
Mu Yunjin cupped her cheeks with both hands, pretending to be afraid, “I’m worried that little Huang Yan might turn my face into a pig’s head…”
“He doesn’t have that much ability,” Chu Li smiled faintly, reaching out to touch Mu Yunjin’s face, gently rubbing it.
Mu Yunjin smiled and lowered her eyes, somewhat embarrassed.
“By the way…” Mu Yunjin suddenly remembered something and looked up, “The day after tomorrow will be the fifth day. Has she escaped?”
Chu Li naturally understood who she was referring to. “Not yet known.”
Mu Yunjin nodded and didn’t ask anything more.
“Your cloak, why did it have ink on it that day?” Chu Li raised an eyebrow, his expression somewhat dark.
Hearing Chu Li suddenly bring this up, Mu Yunjin was first stunned, then bit her lip. After thinking for a moment, she answered honestly, “Last time I drew the illustrations from the Xuanling True Scripture inside it…”
Chu Li was silent for a while.
Mu Yunjin thought Chu Li was angry. She moved closer to him, observing his expression, “You told me not to touch that scripture at that time, but I was a bit curious, so I secretly drew the illustrations. Who knew Zixiang would wash it, but anyway, the drawings are gone now…”
“I underestimated you before. It turns out you not only can write but also can draw,” Chu Li said with a slight smile, though his tone carried some helplessness.
Mu Yunjin pouted, “I’ve always been proficient in poetry and literature. It was others who spread those messy rumors.”
Chu Li laughed, looking completely defeated by her.
Just then, they saw Ding Xian, who had just left, running back toward them with hurried steps—
“Your Highness, something terrible has happened! Secret intelligence from outside reports that Jiang Qingxue has been trapped in a formation by a master in South Court Nation’s imperial prison, and that formation is identical to the one that imprisoned Consort Rong!”
Both Chu Li and Mu Yunjin changed expressions simultaneously.
“Are you certain it’s the same?” Mu Yunjin asked incredulously. That formation had infrared technology, exclusive to modern times. How could it appear in South Court Nation?
“Confirmed. Jiang Qingxue’s subordinates secretly approached and heard the strange sounds,” Ding Xian answered.
Mu Yunjin frowned, turning to look at Chu Li’s tense face, and voiced a possibility, “Either someone is deliberately setting a trap, or Master Kong Shi is still alive…”
After speaking, Mu Yunjin took a deep breath, feeling that someone was luring her step by step to South Court Nation.
Chu Li sat to the side, head lowered in thought, silent.
Mu Yunjin bit her lip, knowing that if Jiang Qingxue was truly trapped in that formation, there would be no way for her to escape.
After a while, Chu Li raised his head, his brow slightly furrowed, “Prepare to depart for South Court Nation.”
“You’re going to South Court Nation?” Mu Yunjin was surprised and somewhat conflicted. “Do you want to verify whether Master Kong Shi is still alive?”
Chu Li nodded slightly, “Although Kong Shi publicly announced his nirvana, he is still manipulating everything from the shadows. I want to see what kind of master he is!”
“I’m coming too!” Mu Yunjin wouldn’t miss an opportunity to possibly meet Master Kong Shi. This old man seemed to have anticipated her soul’s transmigration to this world, so how could she not go to confront him face to face?
Chu Li lowered his eyes to look at Mu Yunjin, hesitated for a moment, then nodded in agreement.
“Is South Court Nation far from here? The execution is the day after tomorrow. Can we make it in time?” Mu Yunjin was more worried about this.
“We can’t take a carriage. We need to travel by fast horses,” Chu Li said, rising and walking toward Liquan Pavilion with brisk steps.
Mu Yunjin, following beside Chu Li, nodded and instructed, “Riding is fine. Give me a fast horse, but don’t try to fob me off with that Chifeng horse!”
“Alright,” Chu Li smiled faintly.
After returning to the room, Mu Yunjin originally wanted to pack a few clothes, but her movements suddenly stopped. Traveling to South Court Nation, even by the fastest route, would probably take at least a day. Moreover, riding out would be too conspicuous.
Suddenly, Mu Yunjin’s gaze fell on her wrist.
She suddenly remembered that the Fengyu Pavilion was established in Zhangzhou City, and whenever she activated the spirit beacon, Qiqi always appeared here quickly. Could there be some unique technique?
If Qiqi could take them to South Court Nation, wouldn’t that save a lot of effort?
With this thought, Mu Yunjin immediately activated the Fengyu Pavilion spirit beacon on her wrist…