After walking out the door, Chunyu Lin wandered through the garden of the Spring Splendor Hall, where he found Zhuang Shaoqin truly engaged in examining the snake eggs.

The winter sun was seldom seen. The sky was a sullen grey — a harbinger of coming snow. The snake eggs seemed considerably larger than when they had first been collected. Chunyu Lin stood watching for a moment, when Zhuang Shaoqin remarked without looking up, “Your Sea Emperor really does have a lovely pair of feet.”

Chunyu Lin paused, then turned and walked away, leaving behind a single word of assessment: “Shameless.”

Zhuang Shaoqin was unbothered. Men who become National Advisors are not easily embarrassed.

Heading east out of the garden was a stretch of decorative rocks, with a paddock beyond. Senior Official Liu, though a civil official, was a man who appreciated fine horses. Chunyu Lin stood by the paddock, let the wind blow over him for a while, and gradually his anger cooled. He turned and headed for the kitchen — fried rice cakes took time to prepare; he would need to start early.

The kitchen was bustling with cooks making lunch. Chunyu Lin had no desire to crowd in with them, and he was frowning when a small maidservant called out to him from outside, beckoning. “Great Sacrificial Priest, Miss asks that I bring you to the small kitchen at the Returning Garden.”

Chunyu Lin hesitated briefly, then glanced at the smoke-covered cooks inside, and finally turned to follow the maidservant.

The small kitchen of the Returning Garden was where the young ladies and mistresses of the Liu Mansion practiced their cooking. The room was spacious and bright, well-supplied with utensils — incomparable to the main kitchen.

When Chunyu Lin walked in, Liu Qinfang was already waiting. At the sight of him, something ignited in her eyes — bright and ardent. “What would Her Majesty like for lunch?”

Chunyu Lin approached the stove and first took his time surveying the placement of all the seasonings and utensils, then said slowly, “Thank you. Allow me.”

Liu Qinfang turned pink. “A gentleman stays far from the kitchen — let me do it.”

A maidservant brought a tiger-skin chair. Liu Qinfang busied herself at the stove. Chunyu Lin found no way to help and could only settle into the chair. Liu Qinfang’s spirits were buoyant as a fresh breeze. “What do you like to eat?”

Chunyu Lin was mildly taken aback, then smiled faintly. “I don’t mind. Whatever she eats, I eat.”

Liu Qinfang chirped back like a little magpie. “How can you not have preferences? Everyone has their own taste. Do you eat spicy food? Or do you prefer sweets?”

Chunyu Lin shook his head. “Either is fine.”

Liu Qinfang picked up a crab — winter crabs were already scarce, especially in a small town like Lingxia. “Let me make you a crab roe congee. You’ll love it.”

A glow of happiness seemed to settle over her face. Chunyu Lin could only nod. “Thank you.”

He Bang was woken by Qingxuan. Rong Chen Zi and the group had located traces of a Three-Eyed Snake. He Bang was still languidly putting on her clothes. Qingxuan finally lost patience. “Your Majesty, could you please hurry? By the time you’re done dressing and grooming, forget the Three-Eyed Snake — it’ll practically be the New Year.”

He Bang shot him a withering glare. “Your master still owes me fifty-one liang of meat!!”

Qingxuan immediately shut his mouth and dared not say another word.

There was no time to call for Chunyu Lin. She followed Qingxuan in haste toward the cave where the Three-Eyed Snake was lurking.

The place was close to the deep sea. The snake impersonating Liu Qinfang was nowhere to be seen — only four villagers from Lingxia Town, one of them a small child. He Bang craned her neck to look. “Are these snakes?”

Xingzhi Zhenren was certain. “Traces of Three-Eyed Snakes lead all the way here — these people are definitely Three-Eyed Snakes.”

The great He Bang looked at Rong Chen Zi. He nodded as well. “This humble Daoist and Xingzhi just killed one — it was a snake.”

The great He Bang was satisfied. She rolled up her sleeves with a casual air, counted heads: “Five!” Then glanced at Rong Chen Zi. Rong Chen Zi gave a dry cough. “Focus on the task.”

Xingzhi Zhenren and his disciples herded the four villagers and the small child out of the cave. The hide of a Three-Eyed Snake was exceptionally tough — ordinary blades could not scratch it in the least. He and Rong Chen Zi working together had taken until after He Bang had eaten breakfast and slept a full nap before managing to sever just one.

In desperate need, there was nothing left but to summon this He Bang.

The great He Bang stood on a small earthen mound. In winter the vegetation was sparse and withered, a bleak backdrop. Frost from the ground had not yet melted, and the cold wind lifted the hem of her robes, her beauty radiant and overwhelming — a celestial maiden of the Nine Heavens could not have surpassed her. Rong Chen Zi let his gaze pass over and did not dare linger for a single moment.

The moment the five figures exited the cave, He Bang raised her pale hand, and a ring of water ripples encircled all five, sealing them inside as effectively as a wall of ice. The people within stumbled and lurched but could not break through.

Five ice lances, each set with a pink pearl, appeared in midair, glinting with the cold brilliance of immortal weapons. Inside the ice wall, four figures were in front. The child stood behind one of the women, eyes wide with terror.

As the ice lances flew like loosed arrows, the several villagers all opened their mouths wide and spat out jets of venom. He Bang’s expression shifted. Everyone present felt a rush of water-light sweep past, the image of her still hanging before their eyes when she had already thrown herself inside the ice wall.

A sharp, thin sound rang out. The ice lances exploded. Blood and flesh splattered across He Bang’s head and face. Rong Chen Zi and Xingzhi Zhenren had no idea what had happened. They rushed to her. They found her right hand clenched around a shattered ice lance, entirely soaked in blood, with broken ice fragments and shards of pearl visible through the blood. Before her stood the small child, face frozen with terror.

“What happened?” Xingzhi Zhenren was bewildered. He Bang retrieved her hand as if it were nothing. She had cast a protective technique, and had deliberately crushed the ice lance before it exploded — so though the lance shattered, the injury to her right hand was not serious. She drew out the keel silk and wrapped her right hand, her tone even. “He’s not a snake. Confirm his address, and send him home.”

Xingzhi Zhenren was at a loss. “How did you know?”

He Bang winced, hissing through her teeth. “Because every snake reacts when the ice lances approach — either dodging, or spitting venom. Only he didn’t know what to do. He stood there, dumb, just waiting to be a target.”

Xingzhi Zhenren considered. “Perhaps he was particularly cunning?”

He Bang looked him over. “Is he as cunning as you are, Zhenren?”

Xingzhi Zhenren’s expression shifted. He looked at her again — but she seemed to have meant nothing specific by it, and was already looking down at the wound on her right hand.

Rong Chen Zi brought the dazed, hemp-clad child out of the ice wall, his voice low and heavy. “Why would it want us to kill this child?”

He Bang unwound the keel silk. The bleeding from her right hand had stopped. But her skin was so pale that the wound looked all the more raw. “Because a child’s sins are the lightest. In the workings of Heaven’s law, to senselessly kill a true divine being may bring divine retribution. To needlessly harm one who is without guilt is also a grave transgression.” She glanced at Rong Chen Zi and gave a cold snort. “Besides, if this child simply died like that, someone here would certainly feel tremendous guilt — and then it would have another opening to exploit.”

Rong Chen Zi said nothing. It was Qingxuan who spoke, uncertain and unsettled. “She really doesn’t seem like that sort of person.”

Qingsu was equally skeptical. “Could it be she’s been replaced by a Three-Eyed Snake impersonation?”

The two debated without resolution. But the great He Bang had already used a water-travel technique and disappeared. Rong Chen Zi stood where he was, lost in thought, not knowing what occupied his mind.

The moment the great He Bang returned to the Liu Mansion, she went everywhere looking for Chunyu Lin. She asked servants all along the way — no one had seen him. She traced her way to the decorative rockery of the Spring Splendor Hall. The rocks had a stone hollow, overgrown outside with evergreen vines — a sheltered, windless spot.

“The truth is, I’m not really what you’d call a proper young lady. My birth mother was one of my father’s concubines. My father’s first wife comes from a powerful family, and Father dotes on her deeply. From the moment I was born… I was taken to the First Lady’s room. I hardly saw my mother even once a year. The First Lady doesn’t like my mother, and treats me with indifference. In this household… very few people take notice of me.”

“So Senior Official Liu sent you to Zhiguan as a furnace vessel, in hopes of advancing his own cultivation of the immortal path.”

“Mm. Father may hold high office, but I’m still a secondary-born child. A truly good family wouldn’t take a secondary daughter as a legitimate wife. And I refused to be taken in as a concubine, so… so I’ve never been betrothed.”

“What are your plans now?”

“I don’t know. Taking it one step at a time. I genuinely want to kill that snake and avenge my mother, but I am helpless — I can’t even bind a chicken…”

The great He Bang had heard enough. She turned and left the rockery, and went to see what there was to eat in the kitchen.

The cooks had actually set aside dishes for her, along with many pastries. But her hand hurt. She wandered through the kitchen with no appetite, and went back to her own room to sleep. She was drifting in a hazy doze when Chunyu Lin came in from outside, carrying a few snacks — naturally including the fried rice cakes she liked. “Come on, sit up and eat a little.”

His voice was gentle, as always. He Bang turned over. “Not eating.”

Chunyu Lin pulled her upright by force. He had always been acutely perceptive, and immediately noticed her right hand. “Your hand —” His brow furrowed tightly. “What were Rong Chen Zi and Xingzhi thinking! Letting you get injured without even treating it!!”

He found a muscle-regenerating salve and applied it with care. “Does it hurt?”

He Bang immediately became teary-eyed. “It hurts!”

Chunyu Lin sighed softly, brought the snacks to the bed and arranged them on the low cabinet at the headboard, then drew the keel silk out from her arms. The keel silk was soaked with blood — he would need to wash it clean for her.

He had barely stepped out when he found Liu Qinfang standing at the door. She took the bloodstained keel silk from his hands, as quiet and capable as a wife. “Let me wash this. These aren’t things a man should be doing.”

She had barely finished speaking when a voice rang out. “Don’t let anyone else touch my things. If you don’t want to wash it, there are plenty of people who’d be happy to!”

Chunyu Lin quickly took the keel silk back from Liu Qinfang’s hands. “I’ll do it myself.”

He Bang stood in the doorway, narrowing her eyes, her tone both pampered and haughty. “Don’t bother. I don’t want it anymore!”

Chunyu Lin gave a soft sigh. “All right.”

He Bang went back to her room to sleep. Liu Qinfang stood where she was. When she looked up again, she had reined in the tears in her eyes and was wearing a tearful, smiling expression. “I’m sorry.”

Chunyu Lin held the keel silk against his chest, his voice low and soothing. “It’s nothing. She’s been meaning to replace this keel silk for a while. It has nothing to do with you. Don’t take it to heart.”

Liu Qinfang bit her lip, and after a long moment nodded. Chunyu Lin turned and walked out of the Liu Mansion. He needed to make a trip back to the sea — to find the merfolk and see whether the keel silk he had ordered last time was ready.

Keel silk had a remarkable ability to stop bleeding. The material was supple yet resilient — best suited for He Bang.