When Li Xun awoke, his vision was blurry. As he finally came to his senses, he heard a courtesan asking concernedly beside him: “Sir, what’s wrong?”

Turning his head in panic, he saw it was a normal courtesan. Li Xun let out a long breath and asked, “Were you all here earlier?”

“Yes,” Jin Ling said. “We were playing so nicely when you suddenly fainted!”

Had he seen a ghost? Li Xun frowned, his head splitting with pain. Looking around, he saw three courtesans surrounding the bed. Without looking carefully, he asked, “What are your names?”

“I am Wei Yun.”

“I am Jin Ling.”

The last courtesan kept her head down without speaking. Li Xun looked at her strangely: “Why aren’t you speaking?”

Slowly raising her head, Duanxian smiled eerily and said softly: “I am Little Qin.”

The relief he had just felt instantly transformed into ghostly claws clutching his throat. Li Xun’s eyes bulged as he scrambled backward on the bed, grabbing pillows and hurling them frantically at Duanxian: “Ghost!!!”

Dodging to the side, Duanxian looked wronged: “How am I a ghost?”

Jin Ling and Wei Yun shielded her as Li Xun burrowed into the bedding like a madman, his eyes wide open with protruding whites and contracted pupils. Like one possessed, he trembled uncontrollably.

The door opened and Fengyue entered wearing an apricot-colored robe, asking with concern: “Oh my, what’s happened? Sir, are you alright?”

She then scolded the three courtesans: “How are you serving our guest?”

Upon seeing her, Li Xun inexplicably felt safer and grabbed Fengyue’s wrist, stammering: “Quick, make them leave! Make them leave!”

“Sir, don’t be nervous. If they’ve served you poorly, I will discipline them properly.” Blinking, Fengyue temporarily assumed Madam Jin’s role, smiling warmly at him before giving Duanxian a meaningful look.

Duanxian nodded and left with the other two women, head bowed.

Though the room was now empty of others, Li Xun remained deeply unsettled, extremely agitated as he gripped Fengyue’s wrist until it bruised: “There are ghosts here… ghosts!”

“Sir jests,” Fengyue consoled him softly. “Our house is always full of people, how could there be ghosts? You must have seen wrong.”

“That Little Qin… Little Qin…” Shaking his head stiffly, Li Xun said, “Little Qin died long ago, how could she be here!”

“Little Qin?” Looking at him in apparent confusion, Fengyue said innocently: “Just now it was Wei Yun, Jin Ling, and Duanxian, where was there any Little Qin? You must have heard wrong?”

Heard wrong? Li Xun froze, scanning the room while breathing rapidly. It took him a long while to collect himself.

Had he heard and seen wrong? That must be it – how could there be ghosts in this world? Little Qin died so long ago, how could she only come looking for him now?

After calming himself under the covers for quite a while, Li Xun recovered and said with a pale face: “Then… I must have heard wrong.”

“Sir should rest a bit. Let me pour you some tea.” Fengyue rose and walked to the round table in front, picked up a teacup, and set it down gently.

“Creeak,” the door was pushed open, but no one entered.

Li Xun was startled and looked over to see a white figure with disheveled hair crawling in.

“Ahhhhh!!!”

His screams pierced the heavens, making Fengyue cover her ears as she turned back curiously with the tea: “What’s wrong with sir now?”

“Ghost! Ghost! It is a ghost! Look!” With Fengyue present, Li Xun could still speak. He jumped off the bed and pulled her in front of him to hide behind.

Looking in the direction he pointed, Fengyue appeared bewildered: “Where’s the ghost? I don’t see anything?”

She couldn’t see it? His heart plummeted violently. Li Xun was so frightened he could barely breathe, gesturing wildly: “On the floor… crawling on the floor! Coming this way!”

Looking down, Fengyue reached out to pat the white figure’s head, still looking confused: “There’s nothing here.”

The ghost raised its head – a deathly pale face that suddenly opened a bloody maw toward Li Xun. Fengyue crouched beside it, looking in his direction with a confused expression, though a flash of something sinister passed through her eyes as her lips curved slightly.

This scene was even more terrifying than encountering a ghost alone! Li Xun tried to breathe but couldn’t catch his breath. After staring at them for a long moment, his eyes rolled back and he fainted again.

“He really can’t handle being scared.” Fengyue shook her head, reaching out to tuck Duanxian’s loose hair behind her ear, asking softly: “Do you know how to use a knife?”

“I didn’t before,” Duanxian said coldly. “But seeing him, I’ll learn even if I don’t know how.”

“Very good.” Clapping her hands, Fengyue went to close the door, then looked up at the rafters: “Master Guanzhi, could you help?”

Yin Gezhi said he was too busy for such small matters, so he lent her Guanzhi for protection. It was fortunate Guanzhi came – otherwise, she might not have overcome Li Xun earlier.

As she was thinking this, there was a flutter of robes from the rafters as the Crown Prince Yin landed before her, expressionless.

Fengyue: “…”

Hadn’t he said he wouldn’t come? What was this? A surprise?

“What do you want to do?” he asked impatiently.

Coming himself yet with such an attitude? Fengyue pouted, thinking this lord was getting harder and harder to serve. But since she needed his help now, she smiled and said: “Help keep watch. If he wakes from the pain, could you raise your noble hand and knock him out again?”

Looking at her, Yin Gezhi asked: “You want to torture him slowly?”

Covering her smile coyly, Fengyue shook her head: “Am I such a bloodthirsty person? How could we weak women do such cruel things?”

“At most we’ll just cut his tendons so he can’t move, then let Duanxian take good care of him.”

Duanxian gripped her dagger, looking at Yin Gezhi with some concern.

Though she didn’t know his background, he was still an outsider. Seeing them do such things, wouldn’t he think them venomous? Look, he’s not even speaking.

After hesitating a moment, Duanxian tugged at Fengyue’s sleeve, saying softly: “Miss…”

Before she could finish, Crown Prince Yin spoke: “Be careful when cutting. Don’t let him bleed out and die. I have medicine that can keep him alive. After it’s done, don’t send him back yet – keep him at Menghuai House, he’ll still be useful.”

Duanxian: “…”

“Good.” Fengyue nodded seriously, then turned to ask her: “What did you want to say?”

“…Suddenly I have nothing to say.” Swallowing, Duanxian said: “Let’s begin.”

Thinking of her sister’s tragic death and her half-lifetime of drifting, Duanxian’s grip on the dagger was especially firm. As soon as Fengyue pointed out the spots, her blade fell without hesitation.

“Ah—”

Li Xun woke from the pain, struggling violently. However, as soon as he opened his eyes before he could make out his surroundings, Yin Gezhi’s palm sent him back into darkness.

“Excellent!” Fengyue smiled at Yin Gezhi: “Young master truly has world-shaking divine powers!”

With a light snort, Crown Prince Yin said disdainfully: “Such a small matter.”

People do like praise! Fengyue hugged his leg – if she had a tail, it would surely be wagging joyfully: “No matter how small the matter, when you do it, I find it especially stunning!”

Giving her a sidelong glance, Yin Gezhi said: “Hurry and finish.”

“Mm,” Duanxian answered, her dagger slowly severing the tendons in the man’s hands and feet. The satisfying sensation of blade meeting flesh finally brought her some relief.

This beast deserving of death by a thousand cuts! She very much wanted to plunge the knife straight into his chest. But thinking of Fengyue’s words, that would be too easy for him!

Let him repay tenfold for every evil deed he’s done!

Li Xun’s pain was heart-rending, but whenever he woke from it, Yin Gezhi’s hard palm awaited him. By the time the last tendon was cut, Duanxian felt the man on the bed was nearly dead.

“How pitiful,” Fengyue pretended to wipe tears, then looked seriously at Duanxian: “This guest is so pitiful, you should take good care of him for a few days? The wheelchair is in the back courtyard. It’s all prepared.”

Duanxian smiled, taking Yin Gezhi’s medicine to keep him alive, then bandaging his wounds with white cloth, saying with exquisite gentleness: “I will serve him well.”

Making sure Little Qin is the first thing he sees when he opens his eyes, giving him no peace even in dreams!

The bed was covered in blood. Looking at it, Yin Gezhi said: “If you help me with something, not only will today’s favor be written off, I can let you stay at the envoy’s mansion temporarily.”

“What help?” Fengyue asked.

“This man was also Zhou Zhenshan’s confidant.” Leaning down to her ear, Yin Gezhi said softly: “Zhao Lin’s case is settled and Zhou Zhenshan lost his life, but many who deserve death still live freely. Think of a way to use him to send a letter to Leng Yan.”

Her eyes dancing, Fengyue smiled and pointed a finger at his chest coyly: “You’re the worst!”

Then she immediately went to get paper and brush.

In his pain-filled stupor, Li Xun had a moment of clarity. He thought of who had invited him today, and of that Crown Prince Yin’s recent actions, filling him with terror.

He needed to find someone to save him, find someone to rescue him!

Struggling awake, his limbs were in unbearable pain and completely immobile. The sharp pain made him cry out in agony again!

“Don’t be nervous, sir. Once the wounds heal it won’t hurt anymore.” A soft voice came from behind. Li Xun was startled, only now realizing he was sitting in a wooden wheelchair, with someone pushing him, heading who knows where.

“What… what do you want to do?” he panted, looking back at the person.

Duanxian smiled, beautiful yet sinister: “I don’t want to do anything, just want to send you home.”

Send him home? Li Xun’s mind wasn’t very clear, he only felt utterly miserable – death would be better than this!

The pain…

A light rain fell on Buyin City as Duanxian, without an umbrella, slowly pushed him step by step back to the Li family compound.

Fengyue stood on the terrace spitting melon seeds, watching the distant figures slowly swallowed by the misty rain, her mood delightful.