The heavy snow continued to fall, blanketing the vast wilderness in white.
Jiang Ci followed behind Wei Zhao and Uncle Ping, trudging through knee-deep snow. Despite her decent qinggong (lightness skill), her insufficient inner power and depleted true qi soon left her more than ten zhang behind the other two.
For days, she had been serving Wei Zhao, constantly on edge and unable to sleep soundly. Her strength was waning. Seeing Wei Zhao and Uncle Ping’s figures growing distant, she looked around and called out, “Third Young Master, wait for me!”
The biting wind instantly swallowed her cry, and the two figures ahead disappeared into the white expanse. Jiang Ci hesitated for a moment before pushing on with all her might. She hadn’t gone far when her foot gave way, and she fell into the snow.
As the cold seeped into her body through her palms, Jiang Ci sat on the ground, tears bursting forth. As she wept, someone suddenly hoisted her onto their shoulder. The wind whistled past her ears as Wei Zhao’s voice, cold as ice, said, “I’d like to leave you here in the snow to feed the wild leopards, but I’m afraid the Young Lord wouldn’t approve.”
Jiang Ci mumbled, “I can walk on my own. Let me down.”
Wei Zhao, carrying a person on his shoulder, still moved effortlessly through the snow. A mocking smile played on his lips. “If we wait for you to walk on your own, we won’t reach Xing Yue Valley even by next year.”
Jiang Ci struggled a bit, adjusting herself to lie more comfortably on his shoulder, and said with a smile, “If that’s the case, then I’ll trouble Third Young Master.”
Wei Zhao suddenly exerted his strength, his form leaping like a snow deer bounding through the wilderness. Jiang Ci jostled uncomfortably, and cried out in distress, eventually unable to hold back her tears.
Wei Zhao stopped at the edge of a pine forest, laughing as he tossed Jiang Ci into the snow. Pale-faced and covered in cold sweat, she lay in the snow, retching continuously.
Wei Zhao shook his head, clicking his tongue. “How could the Young Lord take a fancy to such a useless girl!”
Uncle Ping caught up and glanced at the sky. “Young Master, we need to reach Hong Hua Ridge before nightfall. In this heavy snow, you and I can endure, but this girl won’t make it.”
“We’ll take turns carrying her. What a burden.”
“It’s just that the snow is unusually heavy this year, even carriages can’t pass.” Uncle Ping bent down and hoisted Jiang Ci onto his shoulder, striding forward. Despite carrying a large pack on his back and a person on his shoulder, his breathing remained steady and his inner energy unperturbed. Jiang Ci silently admired his strength.
Before nightfall, the three finally reached Hong Hua Ridge, a small town that was a necessary passage for entering the Yue Luo Mountain Range from Hua Dynasty. With the heavy snow blocking the roads and darkness approaching, not a soul was visible in the town.
Jiang Ci, having been carried alternately by the two men, was nearly unconscious. She struggled to follow Wei Zhao into the inn, collapsing onto the kang bed in the room, her stomach churning as she vomited until there was nothing left.
Wei Zhao’s voice, sinister behind his mask, said, “Uncle Ping and I are going to eat. If you haven’t cleaned this up by the time we return, you’ll sleep in the snow tonight!”
Jiang Ci weakly replied, “Yes, Third Young Master.”
Wei Zhao turned and left the room with Uncle Ping. Jiang Ci lay still for a moment before getting up to clean the mess. After sitting dazed for a while, she went out and asked a servant for directions to the latrine. There, she slowly took out a paper package from her bosom. After a brief hesitation, she closed her eyes and swallowed the powder inside.
Jiang Ci returned to the inn’s main hall, where only some cold leftovers remained. She ate hastily, and by then, night had fallen completely.
In the mountain town during the harsh winter, even lying on the kang bed indoors, the cold seeped into one’s bones. Around the third watch of the night, Jiang Ci shivered violently, her stomach growling loudly, and finally let out a groan.
Wei Zhao, sleeping on the large kang, said coldly, “What is it now?”
Jiang Ci, her forehead beaded with sweat, spoke weakly, “Third Young Master, I’m afraid I’ve caught a chill and eaten something bad. I really—”
Wei Zhao impatiently said, “Go, then.”
Jiang Ci, as if granted a great pardon, struggled off the kang and fumbled her way out of the room to the latrine. She relieved herself until her legs were weak, then supported herself against the wall to return to the room. But within a quarter of an hour, she was groaning in pain and rushing out again.
After several such trips, Wei Zhao finally lost his temper. When she returned, he got up and kicked Jiang Ci. “Go sleep in the outer room!”
Jiang Ci, drenched in cold sweat, slowly made her way to the outer room and curled up in a corner.
The bone-chilling cold made her whole body shiver, while the stomach cramps left her drenched in sweat. After two more trips to the latrine, she was pale as a sheet, lying in the corner with tears streaming down her face.
The night deepened, and outside, the heavy snow continued to fall.
Jiang Ci groaned softly once more, clutching her stomach as she left the room and rushed to the latrine. There, she clasped her hands in prayer, silently pleading, “Heaven above, earth below, may the Bodhisattva bless me. If I, Jiang Ci can escape this demon’s clutches tonight, I vow to burn incense and pray daily, offering oil in reverence!”
She listened intently, still wearing a pained expression, and left the latrine clutching her stomach. In the courtyard, only a single lantern flickered in the biting wind. Jiang Ci walked along the wall for over ten paces before finally spotting a dog hole. She crawled through it, heedless of the snow covering her, and summoned all her true qi to sprint across the snowy ground.
Earlier, while eating in the inn’s main hall, she had overheard the servants talking about a small river to the west of Hong Hua Ridge that had frozen over. Using the dim light of the snowy night, she used her qinggong to race to the riverbank. She tossed a few dry branches she had broken off along the way onto the ice and stood by the river for a moment before carefully retracing her footsteps back to a grove she had passed.
She climbed a large tree, grasped a branch, and using the momentum, leaped to an adjacent tree. She repeated this several times until she finally concealed herself among the branches of a distant tree, holding her breath.
The snow continued to fall heavily, and in the distance, the small river reflected a cold light due to the ice. Jiang Ci narrowed her eyes to slits, silently watching two tall figures race to the riverbank. She could faintly see Wei Zhao and Uncle Ping seemingly conversing for a few moments before descending to the frozen river to investigate. Wei Zhao appeared to be furious, shouting as he struck out with his right palm. A loud “boom” echoed, causing Jiang Ci to close her eyes involuntarily.
In the vast landscape, all was silent except for the soft sound of falling snow. Two hours passed before Jiang Ci dared to move her numbed body, climbing down from the tree.
She guessed that Wei Zhao might try to intercept her on the road back to Changle City, so she determined her direction and headed north. She knew that northward lay the territory of the Huan Kingdom. Although the people of the Hua Dynasty viewed the Huan cavalry as a flood of fierce beasts and mortal enemies, to Jiang Ci at this moment, the Hua Dynasty seemed full of traps and dangers at every turn, while the Huan Kingdom appeared somewhat cleaner by comparison.
As she raced through the snow, Jiang Ci suddenly thought of her senior sister who had gone to Huan Kingdom, and felt a surge of energy. Yes, her senior sister was still in the Huan Kingdom. If she could escape there and find her, they could return to Deng Family Village together, never having to come out and suffer bullying again.
The cold wind whipped at her clothes, and she felt somewhat grateful for being dressed so warmly. She touched the silver notes in her chest and let out a “Ha!” of laughter, her mood greatly improved. The days of endurance and struggle seemed to find their best release. She looked back and said with a smile, “Faceless Cat, thank you for taking me away from that ‘big crab’ and rewarding me with so many silver notes. This young lady won’t play along with you heartless bunch anymore. My little life is more important, so let’s part ways for good!”
The snow continued to fall endlessly.
The sky, however, gradually brightened.
Jiang Ci’s body was completely drained, her pace slowing more and more. Gritting her teeth, she walked several more li before finally collapsing behind a large rock.
Leaning against the rock, she gasped for air, feeling her heart pounding fiercely. She knew she had overexerted herself, and having taken laxatives the night before to deceive and numb Wei Zhao, she was now at the point of complete exhaustion. But knowing she would only be truly safe once she reached Huan Kingdom territory, she clenched her teeth and stood up once more.
With her hands on her waist, she trudged forward step by step. As daylight broke, she finally saw the vast snowy plain at the foot of the mountain slope.
She moved her increasingly numb legs, leaning against a pine tree, gazing at the snow-covered landscape and the distant thousand-li snow plain. She let out a long breath, but at the same time heard a cold laugh from behind her.
This laugh, like the drums of doom from hell or the yellow talisman of death from the Hall of Asura, made Jiang Ci’s legs give way, and she sat down in the snow.
Wei Zhao stood with his arms folded across his chest, his gaze sharp as needles, staring at Jiang Ci like a predator watching its prey struggle helplessly under its claws. He said leisurely, “Why are you so slow? I’ve been waiting here for a long time.”
Jiang Ci, instead, calmed down and slowly raised her head, her gaze serene: “You… you really won’t let me go?”
Wei Zhao’s heart trembled. This calm and fearless gaze seemed to exist in a distant memory. Many years ago, when his master was about to take him away from “Jade Jia Mountain Villa,” his sister held him tightly in her arms as the master’s long sword, carrying a chilling killing intent, was placed at her neck.
She, with a serene gaze, looked up at the master: “Can’t you let him go?”
The master’s expression was as firm as iron: “No, this is the mission he was born to bear. The hope of our entire clan rests on him alone. He cannot escape, cannot be a coward!”
“But he’s still a child, and you want to send him to that hell. How can you face my parents, your senior brother, and your sister?”
There was deep sorrow in the master’s eyes, but his tone remained as cold as iron: “If I don’t send him to that hell, how can I face the thousands of wrongfully dead clansmen, your tragically killed parents, my senior brother and sister?!”
“Why… why must it be him—” Her gaze fixed on Wei Zhao.
“I’ve gone to great lengths to erase his Yue Luo mark, making him a true Hua Dynasty person, and taught him all the skills. All this was to plant the most viable seed in the Hua Dynasty. Yu Jia, our time is running out. He can’t stay with us forever. Do you want him to watch us die in agony, to see our clansmen continue to suffer?” The master’s gaze was filled with deep pain and distant sorrow.
His sister remained silent for a long time, her gaze sad but calm. She held him tightly and whispered in his ear: “Wu Xia, sister can no longer be with you. You must take care of yourself. Remember, no matter what happens, you must live on. Don’t hate Master, and don’t hate sister. Both sister and you are ill-fated. Sister will watch over you from there, see how you avenge the deep blood feud for father, mother, and thousands of clansmen—”
His sister released him and suddenly lunged forward. Wei Zhao watched with his own eyes as the master’s long sword, flashing with a cold light, silently pierced his sister’s body—
The cold light flashed, and Wei Zhao suddenly came to his senses. Instinctively, he drew the sword from his back, only to see Jiang Ci slowly standing up, a dagger in her hand pressed against her chest.
Wei Zhao took a step forward, and Jiang Ci’s gaze was sad but calm: “If you take another step forward, I’ll die right in front of you.”
Wei Zhao coldly looked at her, and Jiang Ci smiled desolately: “Tell Uncle Ping to step back too.”
Wei Zhao waved his hand, and Uncle Ping, who had been quietly approaching from the other side, retreated.
“You think you can take your own life?” Wei Zhao’s words were full of mockery. “With your skills, it would be easy for me to knock the dagger out of your hand.”
Jiang Ci shook her head slightly: “Yes, it might not be difficult for you to stop me from killing myself now, but what about next time? And the time after that? You can’t watch me all the time. You still want to keep me to restrain Pei Yan, but there’s a long road ahead. If I want to die, I’m in no hurry to do it right this moment.”
Wei Zhao remained silent, and a faint smile appeared on Jiang Ci’s lips: “The matter of Yao Dingbang, I’m afraid it’s not as simple as taking the blame for you. You led Pei Yan to kill him, but you must have had other motives.”
Wei Zhao tossed the sword in his hand back into its scabbard and smiled: “The little girl is not stupid, quite interesting. Go on.”
Jiang Ci looked towards the south and said softly: “Your plan must be grand, requiring Pei Yan’s cooperation. So when you saw him injured while saving me, you kidnapped me, intending to use me as leverage against him. But is he the kind of person who would be constrained by you for my sake?”
Wei Zhao raised his eyebrows slightly, his phoenix eyes smiling: “Didn’t you hear that night? ‘Ice and water do not harm each other, spring chases the fragrance along the flowing stream.’ He has agreed to cooperate with me.”
“Is that so?” Jiang Ci smiled faintly: “Then you really can’t let me die.”
She slowly pressed the dagger into her thick outer robe, and Wei Zhao said coldly: “What do you want?”
Jiang Ci said calmly: “Since I can’t escape from your grasp, I’m willing to continue staying by your side, but on one condition. If you don’t agree, I may not seek death today, but I will someday. You know that the most terrifying people are those who do not fear death.”
“What condition? Let’s hear it.” Wei Zhao said casually, but his gaze was sharp, fixed on the dagger in Jiang Ci’s hand.
Jiang Ci looked directly at Wei Zhao and said loudly, word by word: “I want you to treat me as a real person, a person just like you, not as a captive or hostage for you to bully at will!”
Wei Zhao gazed at the resolute and indifferent expression on Jiang Ci’s face and said calmly: “What does it mean to treat you as a real person? I don’t quite understand.”
Jiang Ci said calmly: “I am a commoner girl with low martial arts skills, but you cannot arbitrarily drive or enslave me, nor can you randomly seal my acupoints or beat and scold me. I am your hostage, and whether Pei Yan will listen to you because of me, I can’t control. That’s between him and you. But I will not do anything for you. I will only stay by your side, watching how you two play out this drama, how you stir up that great storm next spring, but I will not participate in it.”
Snow and wind cut at their faces like blades. Jiang Ci steadied her trembling hands and looked at Wei Zhao with unwavering resolve. “I may not be able to defeat you. To you, I am merely an insignificant girl, a captive and a hostage. But if you cannot agree to my condition, I would rather die.”
Wei Zhao was silent for a long time. A voice within him roared to be heard: A true person?! Do you want me to treat you like a true person? Then who treats me as a real person? Who has ever treated my people as real human beings?! To the world, we of the Moonfall Clan are forever seen as tragic songstresses and courtesans, and I, Wei Sanlang, will always be—
He gazed at Jiang Ci, whose pale face bore a tender yet resolute expression, much like his own when he was sent to the Jade House by his master many years ago. When his master had released his hand, he had been just as tender and resolute. How could he have known that the years of humiliation to follow would be so unbearable, like being constantly roasted over a fiery furnace or frozen in an ice cellar?
Xiao Wuxia, who had been as beautiful as moonlight and as gentle as moss, wishing only to stay forever by her sister’s side, had died at that moment. What remained was Wei Sanlang, who found no joy even in revenge.
Wei Zhao suddenly burst into laughter, his voice echoing across the snowy plains like a lone wolf howling in the vast wilderness.
As his laughter faded, he walked over to Jiang Ci, gently pulled the dagger from her hand, weighed it in his palm, whistled, and then turned to leave.
Jiang Ci stood frozen in place. Wei Zhao looked back and said, “Let’s go. This place is deserted and there are wild beasts around.”
Jiang Ci shivered, lifted her heavy steps, and struggled to follow Wei Zhao. Seeing her plight, Wei Zhao extended his right arm, lifting her effortlessly onto his shoulder. Jiang Ci, indignant, exclaimed, “You again—”
Wei Zhao chuckled softly, holding Jiang Ci by the waist, and with a powerful throw, she tumbled through the air and landed on his right shoulder. Wei Zhao grinned, “Hold on tight!” With a burst of energy, he moved through the snow like a wisp of black smoke, gliding forward. Jiang Ci, perched on his shoulder, felt an unexpected steadiness. Amused and relieved that he had agreed to her condition, her mood gradually lightened.