The higher someone sits, the easier they are to bring down.
Because they lack experience in being courted, yet possess an excessive defensive mentality.
Wang Sandong, seasoned veteran of the pleasure quarters, believed: the more aloof, the easier to overdo it.
The tighter the defense, the more it reveals inner weakness.
Yuan Di was exactly like that.
When Wang Sandong removed his hand from Yuan Di’s chin, he took the opportunity to lightly brush his middle and ring fingers across her face.
This demon lord who claimed to be a man had cheeks so supple they seemed ready to drip water.
Her bright, clear eyes held panic and shameful anger, utterly irresistible.
Paired with her slightly pursed lips, they stirred Wang Sandong’s conquering desire, making him want to kiss her again until her crimson lips parted slightly and her body went soft…
However, Wang Sandong held back.
Though courting death was thrilling, knowing when to stop was especially important.
Turning to look at Zheng Xiao standing not far away, Wang Sandong laughed and said, “Xiao Xiao, come enjoy the sun.”
Zheng Xiao had intended to return to her room.
Hearing Wang Sandong’s greeting, she hesitated for a moment, then walked over.
“I’m not interrupting you two, am I?”
As she spoke, she glanced at Yuan Di.
Seeing her head bowed and face completely flushed, she couldn’t help but say, “In broad daylight, with so many people around, try to restrain yourself a little.”
Wang Sandong smiled.
“I just couldn’t help myself.”
Hearing this, Yuan Di’s fists clenched tighter inside her sleeves.
Couldn’t help yourself?
Before, when you seized the chance to kill me while I was injured—that was ‘couldn’t help yourself,’ right?
This time, it’s definitely deliberate, trying to disturb my state of mind!
Perhaps you even plan to strike a killing blow while I’m distracted…
At that thought, Yuan Di’s heart suddenly jolted with alarm.
Recalling Wang Sandong’s ruthlessness and decisiveness when he attacked her, Yuan Di’s burning cheeks swiftly cooled, her heartbeat returned to calm, and her breathing steadied.
Lifting her head to look at Wang Sandong’s handsome face, which was now chatting idly with Zheng Xiao, Yuan Di thought of a term:
A venomous beauty.
Just then, Wang Jinghong arrived.
Seeing this, Zheng Xiao smiled.
“I won’t disturb you brothers talking.”
“Not at all, not at all,” Wang Jinghong quickly said.
But given Zheng Xiao’s special status, Wang Jinghong felt somewhat constrained.
Even as a child of heaven, facing the long-renowned Righteous Butcher, he was extremely reserved.
Zheng Xiao smiled and nodded, then looked at Yuan Di.
“Yuan Yuan, let’s go.”
Yuan Di had wanted to leave for a while.
Hearing Zheng Xiao’s words, she quickly agreed and followed her away—wherever Zheng Xiao went, it was better than sitting here.
Zheng Xiao led Yuan Di out of Anzhi Courtyard, heading toward the back garden.
“You were a clean courtesan in Fengyue Tower, weren’t you?”
Zheng Xiao suddenly asked.
Yuan Di was puzzled why she asked that.
After a brief hesitation, she replied, “Yes.”
“That’s good.”
Zheng Xiao smiled.
“Wang Fa has a thing about purity. If you’re not clean, even if Sandong takes you as a concubine, you won’t be allowed to stay in the Wang family in the future.”
The “future” naturally referred to after Wang Sandong’s death.
“Sandong is frail. You must not fool around recklessly,” Zheng Xiao added another warning.
Yuan Di cursed inwardly.
You think I want to fool around?
It’s that little beast who took the initiative!
She never used such vulgar self-reference.
But today, feeling irritable, she muttered it in her mind.
Then, regarding Zheng Xiao, she savored her words full of concern for Wang Sandong and recalled the faint bloody smell she had sensed in Wang Sandong’s room.
It seemed Zheng Xiao had certainly been deflowered by Wang Sandong.
Was this talk meant for the mistress to “establish authority” over the concubine?
Hmph!
A mere eighth rank dares to establish authority before me?
At my peak, I had early ninth-rank cultivation…
Forget it.
A good man doesn’t brag about past glories.
Even this self-reference felt vulgar to Yuan Di.
She silently said to Zheng Xiao: Today, let you establish your authority.
When I return to my peak, I’ll make you kneel and beg for mercy!
“If possible…”
Zheng Xiao said, “give Sandong a child.”
Thinking of her own difficulty in bearing children, Zheng Xiao’s heart filled with sorrow.
In her youth, she had focused entirely on cultivation, never considering marriage or children.
Now that her cultivation was high, her body had been affected by pure yang energy, making childbirth difficult…
Or perhaps more than just “difficult.”
“When the child is born… whether boy or girl, I will treat them as my own,” Zheng Xiao said.
Yuan Di found it both laughable and exasperated.
Give birth to a child?
With what?
But even so, she had to go along: “Alright.”
Speaking of which, when Wang Sandong eventually turns into a woman…
If she wants a child…
I could help.
Maybe then I’ll show some mercy and let her have the child before sacrificing her to the Demon Abyss.
Zheng Xiao looked at Yuan Di and smiled.
“You and Sandong are both unparalleled beauties. The child you bear will surely be an unprecedented beauty.”
Perhaps because she was getting older, or because half of the Zheng clan had been wiped out, Zheng Xiao increasingly regretted not having a child earlier.
Having been caught in the rain herself, she wanted to remind others to bring an umbrella.
“If you don’t have children, you may face loneliness in old age.”
Yuan Di, however, didn’t care.
Loneliness in old age?
Maybe that’s a kind of luck.
Because many people don’t live that long.
Take Wang Sandong, for example.
Without cultivating “Return to Heaven,” even with divine elixirs, he would die young.
Even if he successfully cultivated “Return to Heaven,” the moment it’s perfected, it would be his death!
So Wang Sandong need not worry about “loneliness in old age.”
As for Yuan Di herself…
She enjoyed solitude.
She accompanied Zheng Xiao for half a turn around the garden until Zheng Xiao began playing chess with Wang Fa, then she left.
At a fork in the path, she didn’t return to Anzhi Courtyard but instead detoured to the kitchen area.
The new cook was preparing ingredients.
Seeing Yuan Di, the cook smiled and asked, “How is it? My cooking, still good?”
“As good as ever,” Yuan Di said.
“That’s what His Majesty said too,” the cook said.
Yuan Di frowned slightly but didn’t reply. She knew the cook referred to the Demon Sovereign as “Your Majesty” rather than “Master,” certainly with intention.
“Thank you for your contributions to the demonic cultivators back then,” the cook said.
Yuan Di snorted coldly.
“I naturally understand the principle: ‘Without the skin, where would the hair attach?’ It’s just that… in the end, I couldn’t turn the tide.”
Recalling the tragic “Spiritual Invasion War,” Yuan Di was dejected.
The Spiritual Invasion War was the Great Demon Slaying War.
Demonic cultivators called it the “Spiritual Cultivator Invasion War.”
The cook sighed.
“There is still hope.”
“Has the Demon Sovereign agreed?”
Yuan Di asked.
“Ten years,” the cook said.
“His Majesty said that once the demon capital is reclaimed, he is willing to share the world with the Emperor Lord.”
As he spoke, the cook grabbed a piece of meat and began slicing it.
Yuan Di chuckled softly and shook her head.
“The world? I’ve never been interested.”
Looking at the cleaver in the cook’s hand, at the uniformly thick slices of meat, Yuan Di asked, “Are you lurking here because you don’t trust me?”
“The Emperor Lord’s credibility is excellent,” the cook smiled.
“I am not A-Gui. I mean no harm. I hope the Emperor Lord will be lenient.”
Yuan Di’s gaze shifted upward, scrutinizing the cook’s eyes.
After a moment, she coldly warned, “Don’t cause trouble.”
With that, she turned and left.
Ten years.
Since the Demon Sovereign agreed to wait ten years, he likely wouldn’t break his word.
As for the cook lurking in the Wang family to keep an eye on things…
It was reasonable as well.
As long as the cook stayed quiet and didn’t cause trouble that would implicate her, it was fine.
Yuan Di thought this as she returned to Anzhi Courtyard.
The courtyard of Anzhi was lively.
At some point, Wang Yunteng had also arrived.
On the table was a hind leg of some unknown beast, likely brought by Wang Yunteng.
The three brothers were discussing it—one said to barbecue it, another to stir-fry it, another to stew it.
Yuan Di had no interest in food and was even more worried that Wang Sandong would pull her into playing music to liven things up, so she deliberately detoured and sneaked back to her room.
“Let’s go with Sandong’s suggestion: barbecue it,” Wang Jinghong decided.
“Alright.”
Wang Yunteng smiled and picked up the hind leg.
“I’ll take it to the kitchen and have the cook prepare it.”
“I’ll go with you.”
Wang Sandong was worried the cook wouldn’t understand barbecue techniques and would ruin the ingredients.
The task of carrying the leg naturally fell to Wang Yunteng.
Before barbecuing, it needed to be deodorized and marinated.
Wang Sandong wondered if the new cook knew how.
The three brothers chatted and laughed as they left Anzhi Courtyard, heading for the kitchen.
It wasn’t mealtime, so the kitchen was mostly empty, with only the new cook slicing meat.
Wang Sandong listened to Wang Yunteng recounting the hunt with a smile on his face.
But when he saw the cook’s appearance, his smile momentarily stiffened before becoming even brighter.
It was actually the Demon Sovereign’s imperial chef…
If he could “learn” that culinary skill, it wouldn’t be bad.
If the Wang family ever fell on hard times, he could work as a cook to make a living.
Wang Sandong didn’t know the purpose of this man lurking in the Wang family, but one thing was certain:
He who comes is ill-intentioned!
So, if the opportunity arose, it would be best to strike first.
How about…
fixing him up with someone?
Like using Yuan Di to kill A-Gui?
Using the same scheme twice…
Wasn’t that a bit inappropriate?
Moreover, Liu Family’s daughter had already been killed.
No one left to cooperate.
Just then, Wang Yunteng handed the beast hind leg to the cook and asked if he knew how to deodorize and marinate it.
The cook smiled.
“Naturally, I do.”
As an imperial chef, he certainly understood this basic kitchen technique.
Wang Jinghong roughly inquired about the process, and after hearing the cook’s detailed explanation, he felt reassured and left with his two brothers.
After walking a short distance, sensing that Wang Sandong seemed distracted, Wang Jinghong asked, “Third brother, what’s wrong?”
Wang Sandong thought to himself: Nothing, I’m just thinking about how to kill someone.
But he smiled and said, “I was just thinking about the last time we ate barbecue together, which year it was.”
“Seven years ago,” Wang Jinghong replied; he had apparently thought about it before too.
Hearing this, Wang Yunteng gave an awkward smile.
Last time, Yunteng was kneeling in punishment from his third uncle and didn’t participate.
Wang Sandong glanced at Wang Yunteng and comforted him, “Third uncle also had high hopes for you.”
Wang Yunteng looked a bit embarrassed.
“I’m not a genius like Brother Hong. My talent is very ordinary. Even if I try my hardest…”
He smiled bitterly.
“Honestly, Brother Hong, sometimes I find you annoying. Especially when my father compares me to you.”
Wang Jinghong smiled wryly.
“Spiritual root talent is just an innate limit. With hard work, you can still achieve something. Yunteng, do your best and leave the rest to fate.”
“That’s what my parents think,” Wang Yunteng laughed heartily.
“Otherwise, they wouldn’t ‘motivate’ me every day. I thought after getting married and setting up my own household, things would be better. But the one at home also has sky-high ambitions.”
As he spoke, he kept smiling, as if telling a joke unrelated to himself.
He let out a long breath, looked at Wang Sandong, and said, “I really envy you, Sandong. If only I had been born without a spiritual root too.”
Wang Sandong recalled the drunken words Wang Yunteng had once said to Cui Jinnian and smiled mischievously.
“If it were possible, we could swap bodies. That way, even wives would be swapped.”
“Having no spiritual root, no hope, might be a good thing.”
Wang Yunteng laughed loudly.
“If your sister-in-law heard you say that, she’d definitely give you a hard time.”
Then his eyes carried an extra hint of sympathy.
“Being a couple with a Nine-Surname King… must be oppressive, right?”
Wang Yunteng understood this deeply.
A loveless marriage, bending over backwards and compromising, was very painful.
Wang Yunteng felt that Wang Sandong was putting on a brave front, just like he usually did.
“It’s not that bad,” Wang Sandong said.
Wang Jinghong changed the subject.
“You two go back to Anzhi Courtyard first. I’ll go to Grandfather’s and get two jars of good wine. We should drink heartily tonight.”
Tomorrow morning, Wang Jinghong had to return to the New Capital.
Originally, he had planned to stay a while longer, but suddenly received a letter from the New Capital demanding his immediate return.
The letter was vague; even Wang Jinghong himself didn’t know what the situation was.
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