Ming Yi held the gold nugget, feeling dazed.
“My… current Yuan Power is so weak, I can’t even beat Ji Qing.”
“I know,” Master She replied.
“There’s little chance of repairing my meridians.”
“I know.”
“The poison in my body… might only let me live for less than a year.”
Taking a deep breath, Tianlin’s throat tightened: “I know that too.”
She stared at him, uncomprehending: “Then why did you take me back? I’m just useless.”
She Tianlin slapped the back of her head: “Who taught you such nonsense?”
Ming Yi yelped in pain, holding her head: “The Rear Imperial Consort of Chaoyang and the instructors all say so.”
“You listen to their nonsense! People are born to be people, not tools!” She Tianlin glared. “Even without Yuan Power, you’re still a person. You still have your master and friends.”
The pain in her head brought tears to her eyes. Ming Yi sniffled and turned away.
“I’ll find a way to deal with your poison. For now, stay at the Situ mansion. When there’s a chance to return to Chaoyang City with me, I’ll pick out some gentle, sweet-talking men who’ll treat you well. Several of them, even. Better than the one you chose.”
Ming Yi was silent for a moment, thinking that the man she chose was also gentle and sweet-talking at first.
Men were simply unreliable, of course, except for old She and Twenty-seven.
Sighing deeply, she finally spoke: “Master.”
She Tianlin’s fingertips trembled. He pressed his lips together, trying to sound stern as he grunted an “Mm,” momentarily teary-eyed.
But the next thing this brat said was: “I don’t want to go back to Chaoyang City.”
His palm itched to slap her again: “That’s your homeland. If you don’t go back there, where do you plan to go?”
“In Chaoyang City, apart from you, there are only people waiting to silence me,” she looked out the window. “I was raised as a boy from childhood, and I thought that’s what I was. Who knew it was all just a scheme by the Rear Imperial Consort of Chaoyang to gain favor and profit.”
“Now that the Meng clan has discovered my identity, the Rear Imperial Consort wants me dead without evidence, not even leaving my bones. So I can’t go back. But I don’t want to go back either. After seeing the starry sky of Muxing City, I want to see the flowery splendor of Feihua City, the June frost of Cangxue City, and the silver sun of Zhuyue City.”
She Tianlin listened with emotion, but felt something was missing: “Why not visit Xincao City?”
“To see what?” Ming Yi thought for a moment. “To see their lush trees toppling their newly built palaces?”
She Tianlin was silent for a moment, then tactfully changed the subject for Zuo Ping’s sake: “So how do you plan to go to Feihua City?”
“Once I can leave here, I’ll buy a beast carriage to go,” Ming Yi weighed the gold nugget in her hand, smiling. “Thank you for the support, Master.”
His disciple had grown up and had her ideas. She Tianlin didn’t intend to force her, but asked: “Don’t you want to investigate who poisoned you?”
Who else could it be?
Ming Yi shook her head.
In Chaoyang City, she had been under constant surveillance since childhood. All food and drink were checked multiple times by the court physician before she could consume them—except for the snacks in the Rear Consort’s quarters.
The poison had been administered years ago. Only the Rear Consort could have done it.
The Rear Consort of Chaoyang probably didn’t intentionally withhold the antidote. Maybe she simply didn’t have it or for other reasons. After all, when Ming Yi was poisoned, she seemed panicked too, though mostly for her position and life. At least it proved she wasn’t the one who did it.
She Tianlin saw through her thoughts and patted her shoulder: “You should be more careful of Shan Er.”
“Shan Er?”
“He breeds too many beasts. If you want to buy a high-quality beast carriage that can cross cities, he’ll likely know your whereabouts. And he’s always been close to the Meng clan, with thoughts of supporting Prince Yong as the heir.”
“But when I saw him last time, he didn’t take my life.”
“Shan Er is a man of deep schemes. Keeping you alive must serve a purpose, but if he wants to kill you, he’ll do his utmost,” She Tianlin said. “If it weren’t for news of you, I wouldn’t have been willing to travel with him.”
Remembering the fire at Ji’s mansion, Ming Yi suddenly sat up straight: “Master, if you meet Ji Bozai at future Six Cities Conferences, please don’t give him too hard a time.”
She Tianlin got angry at the mere mention of this name: “I’m an examiner from the Divine Weapon Hall. Why shouldn’t I give him a hard time?”
Ming Yi waved her hand: “It’s not for any romantic reason. It’s simply… I owe him something. Consider it repaying on my behalf, Master.”
What was there to owe? Such a beautiful daughter of his, traveling so far to be his concubine, only to be abandoned. How did she end up owing him?
“Just listen to me,” she shrugged. “If necessary, keep him in Chaoyang City. There might be unexpected benefits.”
What unexpected benefits? He’s just a bit stronger in Yuan Power, on par with Ming Xian back then. But he’s still from Muxing City, what use is there in keeping him in Chaoyang City? This child is just naive, still thinking about Chaoyang City’s glory even in this state.
She Tianlin didn’t take it to heart, only saying: “I’ll stay in Muxing City for a while longer, try to make some suitable divine weapons for you to carry.”
“Thank you, Master.”
She Tianlin left, leaving a flying feather more suitable for Situ Ling as a thank-you gift.
Situ Ling played with the flying feather, sighing to Fu Yue: “In Chaoyang City, I only liked Sister Ming. I didn’t expect Master She to be such a good person too. But why are these two good people’s fates so uneven? Maybe it’s better to be a bad person, like Ji Bozai, everything going smoothly.”
He pressed the mechanism, and the light but sharp golden flying feather shot out, embedding itself an inch deep into the courtyard wall ten zhang away.
Fu Yue was quite satisfied with this divine weapon. He nodded, but said: “How do you know Ji Bozai is a bad person?”
“He kills people and frames others, schemes against the Grand Minister. Isn’t that bad?” Situ Ling raised an eyebrow.
“Everyone has their stance. There’s no law stating the Grand Minister must be a good person,” Fu Yue raised the kaleidoscope, using Yuan Power to press the mechanism.
With a loud bang, the opposite courtyard wall completely collapsed.
Situ Ling: “…”
So frustrating, these Yuan Power monsters.
However, this is a world where having Yuan Power means everything. Even knowing Ji Bozai had some issues, the first thing the Grand Minister did after recovering was to personally visit the Yan residence to see him.
Ji Bozai’s injuries were healing quickly, but since the Grand Minister had come, he still wrapped his wounds and lay in bed, appearing weak.
“It was the incompetence of the city patrol that caused you such suffering,” the Grand Minister said angrily. “I’ve already dismissed and investigated the patrol captain, and I’ve chosen a new official residence to bestow upon you.”
Ji Bozai nodded: “Thank you for your kindness, but I still prefer the old residence.”
Ji’s mansion had burned severely. Except for half of a blue-tiled courtyard that somehow remained, everything else had turned to ashes.
The Grand Minister thought for a moment, troubled: “Move to the new official residence first. I’ll have people rebuild one for you on the old site.”
Only then did he smile: “Thank you, Your Excellency.”