The woman knocked on a small gate in the wall separating the two residences. After a moment, the sound of unlocking came from the other side, and vaguely, there seemed to be quite a few people standing by the lake, with cheers and delicate laughter, their voices artificially sweet.
The middle-aged woman explained her purpose, and the servant woman who opened the door immediately laughed upon hearing it.
“Our young ladies were just saying how cold the weather has gotten, wondering why the State Preceptor is still practicing his water skills. They were about to send someone to find master’s clothes for him to change into, and here you are delivering them, madam.” As she spoke, her eyes rolled around, sizing up the “madam.”
The “madam” showed no self-awareness of being a concubine who should be cautious with her words and actions, and was currently standing on tiptoes, craning her neck to look toward the lake.
Good heavens, Yelu Qi really has some blessed fortune with women.
One, two, three, four, five, six, seven—there were exactly seven women standing by the lake!
Seven women dressed as mistresses, plus their maids and servant women, filled the entire lakeside with chattering beauties in red robes and green sleeves, all gathered around the lake.
The man who had delivered himself into their midst was still in the lake, not yet ashore, swimming vigorously back and forth under the wolf-like, tiger-like gazes of the crowd of women.
The young ladies giggled and laughed, standing on the shore. Some coquettishly called out, “State Preceptor Yelu has such stamina!” Others shouted, “Lord State Preceptor, what excellent swimming skills!” Some said nothing, their eyes darting sideways, constantly roving over Yelu Qi’s wet body that emerged from the water.
Jing Hengbo’s belly nearly burst from suppressed laughter—this scene was too beautiful for her to dare look directly at.
She was truly moved.
She never would have thought that Yelu Qi would make such a great sacrifice.
Where was this the Minister of Personnel’s residence? This was clearly the Spider Cave!
Yelu Tang Monk had walked into the trap himself, using wet seduction to entice them. Compared to this, her disguise as a concubine really wasn’t much of a loss.
The middle-aged woman whispered emotionlessly in her ear, “These ladies are the sisters of the Minister’s wife. Though the Minister’s wife has a poor reputation in the capital, she has been quite devoted to her sisters. Their parents died early, and these sisters were almost all raised in the residence from childhood. They’re considered the young ladies of this household.”
“Why haven’t any of them married?” Jing Hengbo looked at the group of women’s behavior. This conduct might be nothing special in modern times, but in Dahuang, could they actually find husbands?
“Some have married but were divorced, others are widows,” the woman replied.
Jing Hengbo clicked her tongue, feeling even more that Yelu Qi’s fortune with women ran deep. Having these spider spirits as neighbors, no wonder he often jumped into the wrong water.
Seeing her approach, the women turned their gazes toward her, their expressions slightly hostile, and called out loudly, “Lord State Preceptor, we haven’t heard of you taking a concubine. How did you suddenly acquire a sister?”
Jing Hengbo’s eyes rolled sideways—Sister your ass! What kind of sister is Yelu Qi’s concubine to you? Or do you also want to be Yelu Qi’s concubine?
The family education in this Minister’s residence truly had a unique style.
“Does taking a small concubine require announcing it to the world?” Yelu Qi laughed heartily, not even glancing at Jing Hengbo, waving his hand dismissively. “Go inside and wait to serve me while I change clothes.” Then he said to the red-dressed woman who had spoken, “Third Miss, do you have a suitable guest room where I could borrow space to change clothes?”
“Yes, yes, yes!” The Third Miss couldn’t wait for Jing Hengbo to leave the lakeside, casually pointing, “That way is the guest quarters, Lihua Courtyard. It’s also close to here, so go there.”
Jing Hengbo acknowledged with a sound. Naturally, a servant woman came forward to lead the way. Yelu Qi emerged from the water with a splash, watching her retreating figure. Jing Hengbo suddenly turned back, a smile curving at the corners of her lips. She pointed downward with her finger, then turned and walked away with swaying grace.
Yelu Qi smiled bitterly, knowing this woman wanted him to continue swimming and selling his masculine charms to buy time, so he had to swim another lap.
More and more people gathered by the lake, and the laughter of those flirtatious women rippled far across the water.
“State Preceptor, hurry up…”
“State Preceptor, are you cold?”
…
“State Preceptor, hurry up. State Preceptor, are you cold?” Jing Hengbo mimicked in a strange voice as she quickly entered Lihua Courtyard.
As soon as she entered, she wanted to dismiss the servant woman who had led her, but just as she turned around, fragrant wind swayed behind her, and continuous laughter drifted through the window cracks. Peering through, oh my, several of the spider spirits had actually followed her.
Strange, instead of watching the handsome man’s wet body by the river, why were they here staring at her?
“Sister, we didn’t get to greet each other properly by the river earlier, which was truly impolite. So we came to check on you, sister. If you need anything, just let us know.” The speaker was still that red-dressed woman, the one others called Third Miss.
Jing Hengbo glanced at this woman. She had some beauty, but her makeup was too heavy. A perfectly good wealthy young lady was trying hard to look like a street courtesan.
“No need,” she also smiled falsely, “Third Miss is too enthusiastic. I’m just arranging clothes for my lord here, then I’ll have to serve him back home.”
She was trying to send them away, but the women wouldn’t leave. The Third Miss approached gracefully, her eyes glancing at the pile of clothes, her gaze lingering on the undergarments on top, then shooting Jing Hengbo a rather dissatisfied look.
Jing Hengbo smiled sweetly—What are you glaring at me for? You, an unmarried ancient young lady, looking at men’s underwear left and right—is that something to be proud of?
The Third Miss leaned against the table, unconsciously reaching out as if wanting to tidy Yelu Qi’s clothes. Halfway through the gesture, meeting Jing Hengbo’s mocking gaze, she quickly withdrew her hand.
“I don’t think I’ve seen sister before. Did sister just marry into the Yelu residence?”
Jing Hengbo smiled. Mm, the interrogation begins?
“Yes,” her eyes sparkled, “just married not long ago.”
“Sister is truly fortunate,” another woman in yellow joined the conversation. “I heard that State Preceptor Yelu was supposed to marry long ago, but for his family’s sake, he vowed not to start a family until the clan prospered. During his family’s most declining period, he successfully became Left State Preceptor, preserving the Yelu family’s hundred-year legacy. He’s truly an extraordinary man. I never expected that this extraordinary man would now have thoughts of family life. Now that he has madam’s companionship, with red sleeves adding fragrance and music harmonizing, it’s quite a romantic tale.”
“Yes, since Lord Yelu now has madam by his side, presumably he’ll formally take a wife soon. I wonder if madam has heard the lord express such intentions?”
Jing Hengbo propped her chin with both hands, smiling. “Naturally there are such intentions.”
“Oh?” Several women’s eyes brightened, unconsciously leaning forward. “I wonder which family’s young lady has caught Lord Yelu’s eye?”
“He hasn’t said specifically,” Jing Hengbo shook her head. Seeing the disappointed looks in the women’s eyes, she suddenly smiled. “He said he likes gentle, virtuous women who are good at managing households. He once mentioned the ladies of the neighboring Zhao residence—”
She drew out her voice long, and the women all leaned forward together. “What did he say?” Their gazes and voices were urgent.
“He said…” Jing Hengbo smiled, snapping her fingers, “he said the young ladies of the Zhao family very much meet his requirements.”
“Really?” The Third Miss’s face lit up with joy.
The others also burst with radiance, their gazes burning.
“I also very much hope my lord will marry soon,” Jing Hengbo mysteriously lowered her voice. “To tell the truth, I’ve been married for half a month, but my lord and I still haven’t… still haven’t…” She lowered her head in extreme shyness, “still haven’t consummated the marriage…”
“Oh? How could that be?” Several women’s faces gleamed with gossip’s light.
“I don’t know.” Jing Hengbo shrugged. “Maybe he’s waiting for his wife to enter the household before… or maybe he has problems… ah…” She covered her mouth in panic.
The women’s faces changed.
“But probably not,” Jing Hengbo turned and smiled again. “I think my lord just wants to give his first time to his future wife. Actually, it’s not that he’s uninterested in women. He told me that the capital’s young ladies are too boring. Those well-bred daughters who want to marry him are all so proper and cautious with their words, looking like wooden dolls—no fun at all. He likes someone like me…” She smiled as she stood up, struck an S-curve pose, thrust out her chest, and gave the staring ladies a soul-stirring backward glance, softly uttering a few words: “Passionate as fire, full of feminine charm.”
The women stared at her curvaceous, fiery figure, at the flowing light in her glancing eyes, at her naturally swaying, graceful posture, and all drew in a breath together, enlightenment blooming in their brows.
“Sigh, I need to find a chance to serve my lord properly, otherwise once the new wife enters the household, I’ll have no chance…” Jing Hengbo rested her chin in her hands, talking to herself. After speaking, she looked up again.
Oh ho, no one was in front of her anymore.
They left so quickly.
Jing Hengbo stood up and stretched lazily.
Hehe, Yelu Qi, just wait for several “passionate as fire, full of feminine charm” young ladies to serve you well!
This lady is off to save someone.
…
Walking to the doorway, the servant woman who had brought her in was standing in the corridor. Jing Hengbo suddenly exclaimed, “Eh, why do I hear faint crying sounds?”
“There’s no such thing.” The servant woman’s face changed, unconsciously glancing in a certain direction. “Madam, you must have heard wrong.”
“Oh, maybe so.” Jing Hengbo dismissed her with a few words, then said to several of Yelu Qi’s subordinates, “Guard this place well, don’t let anyone enter.”
She walked back into the room, and her figure flashed out of sight.
…
“Ah!” In an elegant room, a pale, sickly young man with a greenish cast to his features fell back onto his pillow, tilting his head skyward, his eyes rolling back as he gasped urgently, “So… so… so scary!”
“Young master! Young master!” A large group of maids and servant women rushed forward, some pouring water, some rubbing his chest, some patting his back. “It’s all right now! It’s all right! Take it easy! Take it easy!”
“Bang.” A servant woman lifted her foot and kicked the coldly sneering purple-dressed woman to the ground. “Shameless wench! How dare you deliberately frighten the young master!”
All the maids were furious—earlier, when the mistress had someone bring this woman for the young master to see if he liked her, planning to keep her if he did. Because this woman wasn’t crying and wailing like the others they’d brought before, and remained silent and obedient after regaining consciousness, everyone assumed she was intimidated by the Minister’s residence’s authority and moved by the household’s wealth, willing to accept her fate. So they weren’t too vigilant and let her approach the young master’s bedside.
Who would have known that this woman’s previous calm and shyness would suddenly disappear the moment she saw the young master. After standing still, she suddenly bit her tongue and sprayed blood at him!
The blood from her tongue tip splattered like scattered plum blossoms, covering the sickly Minister’s son’s face. The fishy, bloody smell filling his eyes, the pampered young man with heart disease let out a horrified scream, his eyes rolled back, and he was literally frightened into unconsciousness.
Xia Zirui lay on the ground without any trace of fear, continuously sneering coldly.
Even in her angry and disheveled state, she kept her back straight and legs together. Years of palace training meant she maintained her posture even in degradation.
Preserving chastity by various means was also a required course for palace ladies, so while the tongue-blood spraying looked terrifying, the wound on her tongue wasn’t too serious—just speaking would be temporarily inconvenient. So she sneered coldly, lifting her chin, determined not to let the dignity of an empress or palace lady fall from her bearing.
Her uncommonly noble bearing actually made those servant women and maids who wanted to continue kicking and beating her feel intimidated. The servants of wealthy households had some discernment, and most felt this woman didn’t seem to be from an ordinary family, so they didn’t want to be the first to act. Someone said hatefully, “This matter must be reported to the mistress, to properly discipline this little hussy!”
Immediately someone hurried off to report. When Mistress Zhao in the back courtyard heard, she smashed the embroidery hoop in her hand with a “crack.”
“Such audacity! If she’s unwilling, then be unwilling—how dare she frighten my son!” The lean-faced Minister’s wife, with a somewhat sharp and sour appearance, raised her eyebrows high, fierce as if emanating killing intent.
“Such a lowly woman doesn’t deserve to be a concubine in my Minister’s residence! Drag her out and send her to the master’s room. Tell him we bought a disobedient maid and trouble the master to discipline her, then sell her off later!”
“Yes!”
…
Jing Hengbo’s body flashed, entering another courtyard. This courtyard was relatively secluded with no one nearby—presumably a place specifically for doing bad deeds.
The moment she materialized, she inwardly cursed—she hadn’t controlled her teleportation well, appearing right in the courtyard just as people were walking out.
Jing Hengbo immediately stepped aside, standing near the gate facing the wall with her head lowered.
The speakers were furious and didn’t notice there was an extra person on the path ahead. They walked and gave orders simultaneously.
“That shameless woman dared frighten my son—she has quite some nerve. Even when sending her to the master, we must be careful. Tie her up tightly!”
“Mistress, rest assured, we’ll make sure she can’t move a single finger,” an old woman followed with lowered head, her expression fawning.
The two passed by as if no one was there. Just as they were about to exit, the mistress suddenly stopped, frowning as she turned to look at Jing Hengbo, who stood with her back to them, sleeves gathered. “Which courtyard’s maid are you? How dare you turn your back when you see me? Turn around! Raise your head!”
Jing Hengbo raised her head, turned around, looked at the Minister’s wife, and blinked.
“Insolent! You see me and still dare not bow!” The Minister’s wife flew into a rage.
“Oh.” Jing Hengbo hurriedly made to bend at the waist. The Minister’s wife raised her head proudly.
“Bang.” A flower pot filled with soil suddenly flew through the air as if someone was swinging it, striking the Minister’s wife hard in the stomach!
“Ah…” The Minister’s wife was in such pain she couldn’t even scream, clutching her stomach as her whole body bent like a shrimp.
“Mm. That’s a proper enough bow.” Jing Hengbo nodded, then turned her head. “Don’t run!”
The quick-reacting servant woman had already run three steps and was stretching her neck to call for help.
“Bang.” The flower pot that had struck the Minister’s wife flew back up like lightning, smashing into the servant woman’s head.
The low cracking sound of flower pot meeting skull was chilling to hear. The servant woman didn’t even have time to scream before she crashed to the ground.
“You… who are you…” The Minister’s wife, having gotten through one wave of pain, struggled to straighten up.
Jing Hengbo kicked her in the stomach, the exact same spot the flower pot had hit. The kick sent the Minister’s wife’s thin body rolling, crashing into the wall behind her.
Jing Hengbo casually barred the gate, turned around, rolled up her sleeves—time to beat someone up!
“You’re courting death! Sending any random woman to the master! Don’t you know Third Miss likes the master? You jealous shrew, instead of helping them get together, you keep sabotaging! Today I’ll kick you to death on behalf of my Third Miss!” Jing Hengbo kicked her repeatedly, every kick aimed at the spot where the flower pot had hit.
“You… you’re Yueyan’s…” The Minister’s wife could barely open her eyes, covering her stomach as she rolled around, murmuring in disbelief.
“Third Miss loves the master! Don’t you know? Or do you know but pretend not to? You just won’t help Third Miss because she’s your sister, right? Poor Third Miss cries in her room every day, then has to force smiles when facing you, watching you find woman after woman for the master! You’ve found so many women—why can’t you help Third Miss? What’s wrong with sisters serving the same husband? Huh? What’s wrong with it? Today I’ll risk my life to make you understand—Third Miss isn’t so easily bullied! Put away your fake sisterly act!” Jing Hengbo improvised this melodramatic story of “sister loves brother-in-law and resents sister for not helping,” her feet unleashing a storm of kicks, chasing the Minister’s wife from one wall to the other while roaring righteously, “Today I’ll risk my life to vent Third Miss’s anger, and that woman too! That woman dared to seduce the master! The master clearly said he was about to make Third Miss his concubine! Where do these random women get off serving the master! Tell me! Where is she?”
“Back… back… behind…” The Minister’s wife just wanted her to stop, quickly pointing the way while cowering in the corner, trembling as she threatened, “You… you dare hit me… my husband will be here soon…”
“Great, let’s all meet and see what’s what.” Jing Hengbo’s smile was ferocious.
She was truly angry today!
This rotten family was sending first the son, then the father!
The Minister’s wife rolled her eyes and fainted. Jing Hengbo casually dragged both women into a side room and rushed into the main house.
…
On the wall, a group of clay and wooden sculptures.
After a long moment.
“Yi Qi, quickly pinch me and tell me I’m still alive… Ow, why did you pinch so hard?”
“You’re very much alive, with fresh color, thin skin and tender flesh, bleeding at a pinch. Don’t worry, you’ll live longer than that old undying master of ours.”
“But I feel like the longer I follow Her Majesty the Queen, the shorter my life becomes… Was that Her Majesty the Queen just now? The same Her Majesty from the coronation ceremony?”
“Yes, my wife is so mighty! So dashing, so good at lying! So good at beating people!”
…
Jing Hengbo immediately saw Zirui tied spread-eagle to the bed with cloth stuffed in her mouth. She was struggling to move her body toward the edge of the bed—obviously not trying to escape, as the cloth strips were tied very tightly. The more she pulled, the tighter the strips binding her to the bed frame became, already leaving a purple mark on her neck.
Jing Hengbo was shocked to her core—Zirui was trying to commit suicide!
She rushed over in one leap, first supporting Zirui’s body and pushing her back onto the bed, then found scissors and quickly cut the cloth strips. Seeing the blue-purple marks on Zirui’s neck, she felt both heartbroken and furious.
What kind of determination would it take to choose such a method of death?
Only now did Zirui finally have tears, but she stubbornly refused to let them fall. Her eyes glistening with unshed tears as she looked at her. Jing Hengbo removed the cloth gag from her mouth. She quickly covered her mouth with an “ah,” and only then did Jing Hengbo see the bloodstains on the cloth and the blood around Zirui’s lips.
This time Jing Hengbo wasn’t just heartbroken—she was furious.
Did they even consider her human?
Originally, she hadn’t wanted to cause trouble or disturb anyone, not wanting to bring problems to Gong Yin. But without punishing people like this, how could she have the face to be queen?
She really, really, really wanted to give this whole family something serious right now.
However, after taking three deep breaths, she still decided to send Zirui back first. Staying here just to vent her anger and possibly dragging Zirui into more trouble would be too foolish.
Just as she took Zirui’s hand to leave, the door suddenly banged loudly—someone was pounding on it.
It was probably that old lecher arriving.
Jing Hengbo hesitated for a moment. In her previous life in the modern world, she hadn’t been very good at teleporting with others, but after coming to Dahuang, her abilities had changed and she could now teleport with people. However, the distance was usually limited. If she teleported out and ran right into the old lecher, that would be trouble. Judging by the pounding on the door, there were quite a few people outside.
“You go hide in the side room.” Jing Hengbo pointed to the side room where the Minister’s wife and her servant were imprisoned.
“Your Majesty…” Zirui grabbed her hand with slurred speech, her expression uneasy.
“I didn’t say I would sacrifice my life for you.” Jing Hengbo said, “There are two hostages there. You go figure out a way—whether to protect yourself or to protect me through them, it’s up to you. We women can’t match men physically, so we can only work on schemes and tricks, understand?”
Zirui seemed to have never heard such reasoning before. After thinking it over, she released her hand and went to the side room. Jing Hengbo clapped her hands—that was the right attitude. Crying and pushing each other around, desperately trying to show willingness to sacrifice for the other? How long would that take? Did they think this was some third-rate melodramatic romance? They were all in danger, all had their own responsibilities. No one should become another’s burden, and no one should try to slack off.
…
Several people lay sprawled in various positions on the roof.
One nudged another, “Hey, why aren’t you going down to help?”
“No need, I want to watch my wife’s heroic bearing.”
“I think her next step will be to seduce Zhao Shizhi. Don’t lose both your wife and your soldiers.”
“That won’t happen. My wife will definitely marry me perfectly intact.”
“Her Majesty the Queen will definitely marry perfectly intact, but the prerequisite is that the other party must be human.”
…
After Zirui hid, Jing Hengbo tidied up the room, smoothed her hair, walked to the door, and opened it.
The moment the door opened, Minister Zhao Shizhi standing at the doorway suddenly squinted his eyes.
He was struck by her radiant beauty.
His eyes blazed with sudden brightness. He never would have imagined that the woman his wife had sent for him to sample today would be so beautiful and alluring.
He stared at her red lips, feeling they blazed like fire, nearly burning his eyes. When he turned to look at the normally gorgeous deep red noon flowers on the wall, they immediately seemed dull and gray.
Jing Hengbo was also sizing up the man before her. She hadn’t expected that the head of this rotten family would actually be quite handsome. He was tall with clear, handsome features. The slight frost at his temples only added to his mature charm, giving him quite the bearing of an elegant minister and great scholar. No wonder he could become the core of the civil official faction—this appearance was very seductive. However, upon closer inspection, one could notice that his eyes were slightly murky, and when he looked at people, his gaze flickered, especially when looking at women. His eyes were like a light, floating feather, drifting here and there without settling anywhere.
At this moment, his gaze held both surprise and doubt. Zhao Shizhi asked tentatively, “Miss, you look unfamiliar…”
“Master,” Jing Hengbo leaned against the doorframe and threw him a seductive glance, “Madam sent me to serve you…”
She wasn’t used to saying “this slave” or “this concubine,” but fortunately Zhao Shizhi was completely enchanted at this moment, his gaze racing up and down her curvaceous figure. How could he pay attention to anything else? Even if she had called herself “master,” he wouldn’t have heard it.
“Good, good, good…” Zhao Shizhi smiled slightly, extending his hand as if wanting her to help him, but Jing Hengbo twisted her body at this moment and gracefully walked ahead. Zhao Shizhi frowned, about to say something, when his gaze suddenly fell on her swaying waist. Following that waistline, his eyes automatically slid around a few times, and he immediately forgot his dissatisfaction.
“Good, good, good, I’ll follow you.” He chuckled as he stepped through the door, with several guards crowding in behind him.
Jing Hengbo suddenly turned around, pointing at those guards with her finger, giggling, “Master, in this wonderful time and beautiful scenery, do you really want these fools to stay here and eavesdrop?”
“Uh…” Zhao Shizhi hadn’t expected Jing Hengbo to be so shameless in her speech. He was stunned for a moment, then suddenly found it fresh and exciting. He waved his hand, “You all stay outside the courtyard and await orders.”
The guards withdrew, and Zhao Shizhi personally closed the door before turning to quickly catch up.
“Beauty, you speak so refreshingly direct. I like women like you the most…”
Jing Hengbo turned with a smile, beckoning, “Come on—”
On the roof, Yi Qi clutched his heart and closed his eyes, “Oh… my bones are melting…”
“Oh… so exciting…” Six junior disciples spoke in sweet, coquettish voices, “Come on… we miss you so much…”
…
The door closed, and the room darkened.
Jing Hengbo sat on the bed in a graceful posture, “Master…”
Zhao Shizhi joyfully rushed forward.
The next instant, he stared wide-eyed as the porcelain pillow on the bed suddenly flew up, rushing toward his face.
“Bang.” Golden stars splattered brilliantly in large patches, and the whole world became black and white.
Zhao Shizhi staggered back to the door, grabbed the door frame, and looked up in shock at Jing Hengbo.
Jing Hengbo hadn’t expected that one blow wouldn’t knock him unconscious. She jumped up suddenly, looking around for something handy to strike again. From the corner of her eye, she suddenly saw Zhao Shizhi’s hand reaching up for something. Her heart alarmed, she was about to stop him when Zhao Shizhi had already yanked a hidden rope by the door.
Clang, clang, clang, clang, clang, clang—almost immediately, urgent bells rang throughout the courtyard. Then they rang outside the door, then farther away in the trees, and even in the front courtyards. The bell sounds transmitted one after another, spreading throughout the entire residence in moments.
“Holy crap.” Jing Hengbo hadn’t expected this guy to have such a trick. She rushed toward Zhao Shizhi, when suddenly there was a tremendous bang—the guards outside had broken down the door. In the distance, footsteps clattered as countless people seemed to be running over. Someone shouted from afar, “There are people on the roof! Shoot them down!” followed by the rapid sound of bowstrings being drawn.
Zhao Shizhi was also ruthless. Despite being hit like that, he hadn’t fainted and reacted extremely quickly. Gritting his teeth, he turned and ran, shouting, “Throw torches! No need to capture them alive! Burn them to death!”
Jing Hengbo chased out the door. With a wave of her hand, there was a thunderous crash as a wooden frame in the courtyard fell down, landing right in front of Zhao Shizhi. Smoke and dust filled the air, wood chips flew everywhere, and Zhao Shizhi let out a great howl, hugging his foot and hopping—he had injured his toe.
When this clothes-drying frame fell, it also blocked the guards who were rushing into the courtyard to assist Zhao Shizhi. Jing Hengbo shouted sternly, “Come here!” and grabbed with one hand!
Everyone cried out “Ah!” in shock, watching as the fallen Zhao Shizhi was actually grabbed through the air by Jing Hengbo’s single hand!
What kind of martial art was this?
Jing Hengbo was overjoyed—she hadn’t expected her grab to have such an effect. It had never been this powerful before.
Suddenly a rope flew from ahead, wrapping around Zhao Shizhi’s waist with a whoosh. Jing Hengbo immediately felt a tremendous pulling force attacking her. Her aerial grab was already an extraordinary performance—how could it withstand such powerful counter-pulling? Her breath caught and her hand loosened. Zhao Shizhi’s body flew up and was immediately pulled back by the other side.
With the smoke and dust still unsettled, Jing Hengbo couldn’t see clearly who had pulled Zhao Shizhi back. She immediately shouted loudly, “Zirui!”
With a snap, the side room window opened. The guards turned their heads and cried out again, “Madam!”
At the window, one on the left and one on the right, Madam Zhao and her servant woman were tied up, both bound to chairs sitting at the window. A sharp double-pointed stick was pressed against their necks, aimed right at their carotid arteries. Zirui stood between them, gripping the stick, saying coldly, “Whichever of you two moves first, the stick goes into that person’s neck. If any of you people outside move rashly, the stick goes into Madam first!”
Jing Hengbo called out loudly, “Very good, thumbs up!”
She could have teleported away alone long ago, but taking Zirui along wouldn’t get them far. Without confidence in that, it was better to take hostages first and fight their way out.
Zhao Shizhi landed outside the door. He first hurriedly bowed to the person who had saved him, “Thank you, Young Master Tie.”
The man smiled, “You and I are neighbors. Since you’re in trouble, I should naturally help.”
Zhao Shizhi said coldly, “I don’t know what assassins these are, but they dare to break into my residence and cause chaos. I must ensure they can come but cannot leave!”
As soon as he steadied himself, he turned and shouted sternly at the guards, “Shoot fire arrows! Force them out!”
“Sir!” The guards were shocked, “Madam is still inside!”
“Can’t worry about that now!” Zhao Shizhi stamped his foot, tears coming immediately, “Aim your fire arrows toward the sides as much as possible. If they want to live, they must come out with Madam as a shield first. Madam will be fine!”
Everyone glanced sideways at Zhao Shizhi. The old fellow looked like he was sacrificing family for righteousness, but who didn’t know he was thinking about the dowry and private savings his wife held tightly? If she were accidentally shot dead, it would be perfect—promoted with a dead wife, rich with a new one.
Young Master Tie had already retreated far away, standing with his hands behind his back looking at the scenery, clearly not intending to get involved in other people’s family affairs.
Jing Hengbo had just met up with Zirui when she suddenly heard a “whoosh.” Looking up, she saw a fire arrow flying like a red dragon, heading straight for Madam Zhao in front of her.
“What the hell, that’s your own wife!” Jing Hengbo was dumbstruck, cursing loudly. With a wave of her hand, the fire arrow flew sideways, landing on a clump of dry grass, immediately starting a fire.
A large volley of fire arrows flew over Jing Hengbo’s head like a flock of fire crows attacking the roof. Jing Hengbo looked up—good heavens, there were seven idiots dancing around on the roof!
“Oh wow, this is fun!” Some of the idiots were doing handstands, catching a fire arrow with each somersault; some were dancing, rolling up a bunch with a sleeve wave; some were practicing finger-flicking skills, snapping arrows in half one by one. There was even one following the fire arrows around, deliberately putting his head near the flames. Each time there was a “sizzle” as a strand of hair burned off, but the scalp was never harmed. While running around the whole field burning his hair, creating rows of furrows on his head, he cheerfully called out, “Look at my new hairstyle! Isn’t it beautiful? Isn’t it beautiful?”
Jing Hengbo covered her head. Oh, you idiots, can you do your job properly?
Unfortunately, the Seven Kills had always treated play as life’s highest spiritual pursuit. While playing with the fire arrows, someone shouted, “Let’s compete to see who can knock down the most arrows! Whoever loses has to drop his pants and fart!” Immediately six figures hugging large bundles of arrows flashed away, probably going to compete with arrows. Only Yi Qi remained, loyally lying on the roof tiles shouting down, “Wife, come up where it’s cool—”
Jing Hengbo rolled her eyes in exasperation.
Seeing that the people on the roof had martial arts that were too advanced, the Zhao residence guards again aimed at Jing Hengbo. Fire arrows shot in continuously, and the courtyard quickly caught fire. Seeing that Jing Hengbo wouldn’t come up, Yi Qi had to jump down. Finding a fan from somewhere, he fanned continuously at Jing Hengbo, helping her block the smoke, while smiling, “Wife, wife, am I good? You take hostages and I fan, you kill and I keep watch. Aren’t we a perfect match?”
Jing Hengbo coughed continuously, “Idiot! Can you get the direction right and not fan all the smoke toward me!”
…
As flames rose, Madam Zhao screamed shrilly. Jing Hengbo chuckled and called out loudly, “Stop screaming! Your husband wants to burn you to death! Want to live? Quickly hand over your private savings!”
Her voice was extremely penetrating, and everyone outside the courtyard could hear. Zhao Shizhi’s secret thoughts were directly exposed. His old face reddened. Originally he had only wanted to take the opportunity to scare his wife and the beautiful female assassin, forcing them to come out. Now he was truly developing some murderous intent.
“Hey,” Jing Hengbo approached Madam Zhao, smiling, “your husband doesn’t seem to care much about you. What do you think—if I push you out, will he simply shoot you first and then shoot me? But I don’t really want to kill you. I just want to use you as a shield. Why don’t you persuade your husband not to be so ruthless?”
This was like pouring fire on rolling oil. Madam Zhao was already coughing continuously from the smoke and fire. Hearing this provocative tone and seeing her husband’s cold demeanor through the smoke and flames, her heart filled with rage. She shrieked, “Zhao Shizhi! You ungrateful old turtle! How did I treat you when you were destitute on the streets? Have you counted how many years of hardship I endured with you? Now that you’ve made it, your wife from the hard times should be divorced, is that it? Who are you planning to replace me with? The little widow from West Market, or my third sister who keeps refusing to marry?”
With a sharp cry, the red-dressed Third Miss was running over from afar. Hearing this, she stamped her feet, let out a great shout, and ran away.
Zhao Shizhi’s face turned completely red. Looking around awkwardly, he angrily shouted, “Madam! You’ve gone mad! Shut up!”
“You don’t care if I live or die, so why should I care about your face? Zhao Shizhi, if you don’t spare me today, I’ll expose all your secrets, you old turtle. You and that…”
“Whoosh.”
A low sound.
The sound was drowned in the crackling flames, and no one heard it except Jing Hengbo.
Madam Zhao’s body shuddered.
Jing Hengbo also shuddered. She had been listening intently, preparing to focus on Minister Zhao’s gossip, when she suddenly felt Madam Zhao’s body go limp in her hands.
Startled, she looked down and saw Madam Zhao softly collapsing, with a slight gleam on her chest. Looking carefully, it was a double-pointed triangular spike.
Jing Hengbo looked up in shock, but thick smoke rolled before her, with shadowy figures everywhere. Who knew who had thrown that hidden weapon?
“Yi Qi!” she called quietly.
Yi Qi had already thrown away his fan and swept over, rarely frowning as he looked at the wound on Madam Zhao’s chest. His hands moved like wind, rapidly pressing acupoints on Madam Zhao to try to stop the bleeding. However, it was too late. The blood flowing from Madam Zhao’s chest had already turned blackish-purple. After just a few drops, it congealed. The two watched as that line of blackish-purple spread like a snake up from her neck, instantly covering Madam Zhao’s forehead with blackish-purple. Madam Zhao convulsed, then her neck went limp.
She was dead.
Jing Hengbo stumbled, suddenly feeling the dead body was too heavy to support. Yi Qi reached out to steady her, taking Madam Zhao’s corpse from her.
Nearby, Xia Zirui’s face was pale as she looked at Jing Hengbo. Jing Hengbo raised her head, feeling her mind in complete chaos.
This was the first time someone had died in her arms, and it was someone whose crime didn’t warrant death. I didn’t kill Boren, but Boren died because of me.
A faint fishy stench came over, making her feel nauseous. Yi Qi suddenly reached out and patted her back, his gesture surprisingly gentle.
Jing Hengbo was grateful that he wasn’t being silly at this time. She asked quietly, “Did you… see anything?”
“No.” Yi Qi looked rather embarrassed. For a master like himself to let someone commit murder right under his nose without knowing was very humiliating.
Jing Hengbo nodded understandingly. It was normal that Yi Qi couldn’t see—he had been some distance away from her just now, fanning and helping her guard, and with thick smoke rolling through the courtyard, he couldn’t easily see the murderer from his angle either.
“Very troublesome.” Yi Qi said, “A double-pointed weapon, piercing front and back. In other words, it could be said to have come from the front, or inserted from behind.”
Jing Hengbo smiled bitterly.
She suddenly had a strange feeling, as if everything today wasn’t coincidental.
As if everything was waiting for this moment.
Who had calculated step by step, accounting for everyone’s reactions?
If only she had known earlier—when Yi Qi came down, she should have entrusted Zirui to him first and teleported away herself. It was all because she wanted to clean up as inconspicuously as possible, and worried that Yi Qi wasn’t reliable. As a result, things became even worse later.
“With the person dead, negotiation is useless. Let’s go out directly.” Yi Qi supported her with one hand and pulled Xia Zirui with the other.
At this moment, the smoke had cleared somewhat, and the people at the courtyard gate could finally see the situation inside clearly.
“Shengyan!” At a glance, Zhao Shizhi saw the fallen Madam Zhao and was shocked, “What happened to you? Shengyan!”
Looking at his shocked and surprised face, Jing Hengbo felt disgusted—wasn’t it he himself who had someone assassinate his wife in the thick smoke to seize her private property and replace her with someone new?
“You killed Shengyan!” Zhao Shizhi raised his head, a flash of killing intent crossing his face, “If I let you go, how can I establish myself in Dahuang!”
“I still needed her to help me leave. Why would I kill her?” Jing Hengbo sneered.
“You can’t escape!” Zhao Shizhi flicked his sleeve, “Mobilize all the residence guards. Also, take my name card to the Capital Administration Office and say my wife was assassinated—request deployment of officers to eliminate the assassins! Go find Kang Long, the Capital Guards Commander, and request deployment of Capital Guards to seal off my residence and surrounding roads!”
Guards received orders and hurried away. Jing Hengbo shrugged, “Things got big.”
Yi Qi stroked his chin, his eyes rolling around, seeming to find it very entertaining.
“Let’s go.” Jing Hengbo sighed. Originally she had wanted to play the role of an assassin and maneuver with Zhao Shizhi, directing suspicion elsewhere to avoid leaving behind trouble. After all, if she teleported in front of Zhao Shizhi, with a little investigation, he might very well think of the Queen.
The Queen breaking into the Minister’s residence and killing the Minister’s wife?
Once this news got out, the capital would be in an uproar.
Unfortunately, she couldn’t worry about that now.
“Kill her!” Zhao Shizhi pointed through the air, and the guards rushed forward wildly.
“Go!” Just as Jing Hengbo was about to teleport, suddenly a figure flashed, rushing in front of the guards, “Wait!”