Tianji Hall had been open for some time now. While it had earned some money, what remained after expanding the branch halls was not much.

In truth, Feng Jiu’er had long entertained the idea of building her own power base — but the prerequisite for all of it was money.

Money was an indispensable thing. Not that money could accomplish everything, but with money, one could indeed accomplish a great deal.

Take the simplest example: if you were to recruit soldiers, at the very least you had to guarantee your men had a place to sleep, clothes to wear, and food to eat.

Ten thousand taels of gold was not an enormous sum, but for the stage they were currently at, it was enough to begin developing a portion of their power.

Once a foundation was laid, everything after would grow swiftly.

Watching Xing Zizhou’s elated figure depart, Feng Jiu’er felt a thread of wistfulness pass through her heart.

She had never originally harbored such strong resolve to walk this kind of path.

But now, knowing the Long Family members were still alive, knowing her uncle and grandfather were so close at hand — she could no longer continue as she had before, guarding her little plot of ground and living a small life.

She had to grow strong, so she could properly protect her family.

Never again could she allow them to be cornered, driven to the brink as they had been more than a decade ago.

Never again.

“Where do you think you’re going?” Feng Qingyin had known all along — take her eyes off this person for even a moment and something would happen.

Sure enough — only two days without checking on him, and he was already acting on his own initiative.

“Are you still thinking about that Kill Order?” Half a year ago, he had come to the imperial capital for the Kill Order, only to be wounded by the Ninth Prince, and had ended up being rescued by her through sheer chance.

Over these past months, she had been constantly telling him about her own helplessness, and he had long since cast the Kill Order from his mind. So why had it been so clear these past two days that something was again wrong with him?

“Last night — you went to the Crown Prince’s sleeping quarters, didn’t you?” Had her people not spotted it in time and come to report to her, tonight — would he have gone to assassinate Crown Prince Brother?

“Jian Yi, I need you to speak! What is it you intend to do?”

He remained silent, offering no response whatsoever, and Feng Qingyin’s unease gradually deepened.

He wouldn’t — he wasn’t planning to stop listening to her entirely, was he?

With his martial skill, assassinating Zhan Yuheng was within the realm of possibility. Even though this was the imperial palace — he had grown very familiar with it by now.

Jian Yi looked down at the woman blocking his path, his expression blank. “As you see, and as you suspect.”

“No — I won’t allow you to harm Crown Prince!”

“Why not?” He simply could not bear to watch her go to serve the emperor’s bed again.

“This Kill Order — since it was issued, it has never been rescinded. The person who issued it in the first place may well no longer be in this world.”

Feng Qingyin had looked into the Kill Order’s details, but hadn’t learned everything clearly yet.

Still, even she had serious doubts about whether the one who issued the order was still alive.

Hadn’t she heard that if a Kill Order went unclaimed for three months, the original issuer had the option to rescind it?

After all this time with no one acting on it, and no one rescinding it either — who knew whether the issuer was still living?

“Even if the patron is gone, as long as Tianxia Manor still stands, the Kill Order remains valid.”

Jian Yi had no desire to explain too much to her. She only needed to know: once he killed Zhan Yuheng, that money would be his to claim.

“Trust me — once I have the money, I’ll come back for you.” He made to leave.

Feng Qingyin rushed forward and threw her arms around him. “Jian Yi, no — I won’t let you take this risk!”

“I won’t be in danger.” Jian Yi’s heart warmed. He had finally made up his mind; this time, he absolutely could not delay again.

Every time he saw her being forced to go serve the emperor’s bed, an ache seized his chest. It was his failing — his lack of ability — that kept her trapped in this cycle.

“Once I get the money and have everything prepared, I’ll take your father, and your grandfather, and your family — I’ll bring them out of the imperial capital. For the rest of your life, I can provide for them all.”

“It won’t work — they won’t go!” What sort of people were her Feng family? Would her father abandon everything for money and follow him away?

Granted, the Kill Order’s reward was said to be truly extraordinary — an amount beyond imagination.

But her father wanted more than just money. He wanted power.

Moreover — how could she possibly allow him to assassinate Crown Prince Brother? Crown Prince Brother was the man who would belong to her in the future; once that old man died, she and Crown Prince Brother would live together in bliss.

She believed — as long as she worked for it — that day would come.

Though Jian Yi also had a certain appeal, and she seemed to feel some fondness for him, it was no comparison. How could a mere assassin be spoken of in the same breath as the exalted Crown Prince?

The only man worthy of being with her, Feng Qingyin, was Crown Prince Brother. If Jian Yi was willing to stay, she didn’t mind keeping him by her side for a lifetime.

But they could only be together in secret. That relationship could never be made public — otherwise, it would ruin her greater plans.

Feng Qingyin reined in her thoughts and clung to Jian Yi tightly, her voice urgent. “Don’t do this. If you act rashly, my entire family will be dragged down with you.”

“I won’t let any of you fall into danger. If I fail, I won’t breathe a word of our relationship to anyone.”

“That’s not good enough!” Feng Qingyin held him tighter still, her soft body pressing insistently against his chest.

She was no match for Jian Yi in a fight. If he truly resolved to go assassinate Crown Prince Brother, she couldn’t stop him.

So the only option was to use her charms — keep him here first, and sort out the rest later.

“Jian Yi, please — don’t take this risk. Aren’t things good as they are now? I can see you every day. But if something happens to you, where would I even look for you?”

As she spoke, tears were already gathering at the corners of her eyes.

“Jian Yi, please. Don’t abandon me. Don’t make me worry. Don’t take risks. Don’t make things difficult for me. I’m already living such a hard life — why can’t you have some understanding for me?”

“Everything I’m doing is for you.” Feeling her body pressed so close against his, Jian Yi’s face flushed crimson. He wanted to push her away, but she kept her hold firm — if he used force, he was afraid of hurting her.

Yet at the distance they were now, it was already far beyond what he could bear.

Unmarried man, unmarried woman — before they were wed, he did not wish to act in a way that would dishonour her.

“Qingyin, your days in the palace have not been happy ones. How about we leave this palace together? Let me go kill Zhan Yuheng. We won’t want for food or clothing in the future — I can give you a good life.”

“No — if we had to leave our homeland and go wandering, that’s a life I have no desire to live!”

Feng Qingyin shook her head vigorously, lifted her face to look at him — touching and pitiable, yet with a thread of stubborn resolve running through it.

“The reason I’m unhappy is because I know that the person who has been harming me is still alive in this world. Every day I think of her, I’m gripped by dread. Jian Yi — if you truly want me to be happy, then help me kill her!”