In the dim, lightless cell, a lithe, graceful girl in a black pleated skirt with a single ponytail was pinned to a straw pile.
Her delicate hands were bound behind her, and someone straddled her hips—a scene that could bring tears to men and anguish to women.
“Scared now?” Ji Yanqing asked.
“Mmph… mmph!” Ji Qingyan whimpered.
No matter how prodigious her talent, Ji Qingyan was still a sixteen- or seventeen-year-old girl, never having been treated so lightly. She was already sobbing, her face streaked with tears, unable to speak.
Perhaps he’d disciplined her enough—or taken enough liberties.
Ji Yanqing stood silently, addressing the girl below him, who looked like a lotus rising from water. “A dog bite, you say? A girl as naive as you, even dogs wouldn’t bother biting!”
“You… why’d you stop?” Ji Qingyan asked, bewildered.
“Does Miss Qingyan want me to continue?” Ji Yanqing raised an eyebrow, smirking playfully at the red-clad girl.
She shook her head frantically, her misty eyes glimmering with tears, stirring a man’s pity.
Satisfied, Ji Yanqing nodded. Only by making the stubborn girl see reality could he “reason with her and move her with sentiment.”
Convincing Ji Qingyan to cooperate with words alone would’ve been near impossible.
He turned, retrieving an intricately carved sandalwood food box from outside, opening it to reveal spring-brewed fruit wine and succulent roasted chicken.
“Hungry? Want some?” he offered.
“I wouldn’t touch your food. I’d rather starve than eat a bite of yours!” Ji Qingyan declared, her gaze resolute, her spirit unyielding.
But as the chicken’s aroma wafted over, Ji Qingyan, huddled in the corner, couldn’t help swallowing hard.
She hadn’t eaten properly in over ten days since entering the Ghost Shadow Mountains, and this scoundrel had brought her favorite—roasted chicken.
Damn it, it smells so good!
After five minutes of inner turmoil, Ji Qingyan’s resolve wavered. She was fish on the chopping block, doomed either way.
Might as well die full.
Convincing herself, she reached for the tempting drumstick, only to find her hands still chained, unable to break free.
Watching her struggle futilely against the chains, Ji Yanqing’s lips curved into a faint, amused smile. “My apologies, I forgot to unbind Heroine Ji first,” he said, feigning guilt.
Ji Qingyan glared at him, her eyes screaming, You did that on purpose to make a fool of me.
Taking a key from his sleeve, Ji Yanqing moved behind her, inserting it into the lock.
Clang—
The heavy black iron shackles fell, kicking up dust and grime.
“The world is treacherous, and hearts are hard to read. Gentlemen like me are rare. Next time you’re caught, Miss Qingyan, you might not just be eaten up,” Ji Yanqing teased.
“Shameless…” Ji Qingyan muttered, shaking her arms, her disdain for him unconcealed.
Who was the bastard taking advantage of her just now? And he dares call himself a gentleman? She’d never seen such brazen gall!
A true侠 seeks to serve the nation and its people. Ji Qingyan’s lifelong dream was to be a heroine who punishes evil. If her life could rid Ye City of Ji Yanqing, it wouldn’t be in vain.
Though her acupoints were sealed, as a Transformation Realm expert capable of facing a thousand foes, her physical training alone could easily overpower twenty Ji Yanqings.
But before she could act, a chilling dread crept up her spine, the pressure suffocating.
From the corner of her eye, she spotted a gaunt, black-robed elder in the shadows, watching her every move.
He appeared frail, but his subtle aura was stronger than Liu Hu’s. Under such a mysterious master’s gaze, she had to postpone her plan to kill Ji Yanqing.
After a whirlwind feast, the two-jin chicken was reduced to bones, the wine jug nearly empty.
Ji Qingyan knelt on the floor, her face stern, like a heartless woman denying responsibility after dressing. “Consider this meal thanks for saving my life. We’re even now. Don’t expect me to do anything for you.”
Ji Qingyan felt clever, freeloading a meal from the Wei King’s Heir without owing favors. Ji Yanqing, meanwhile, thought he’d struck gold—a single meal to repay a life debt was a steal.
Tapping the wooden table, Ji Yanqing smiled, his eyes curving. “Now, let’s talk business.”
“What do you mean?” Ji Qingyan asked warily.
“To clear up the misunderstanding between us, of course.”
With a wave, Wei King’s Mansion guards delivered stacks of case files, placing them before Ji Qingyan.
“Prime Minister Liu holds sway over the court and the Emperor’s favor, harming countless loyalists. Our modest Wei King’s Mansion has only gathered evidence of his sixty-nine crimes. Take a look,” Ji Yanqing said.
Ji Qingyan didn’t glance at them, frowning. “Forged evidence to slander him!”
“You know a man’s face but not his heart. How can you be sure Liu Sili didn’t do these things?” Ji Yanqing countered.
“I… I’m good at reading people,” she stammered.
The words barely left her mouth before she regretted them. At Heart-Devouring Temple, she’d called the vile Ji Yanqing “Young Master” and agreed to fight evil with him.
Her face flushed crimson, like a ripe lychee, her skin so delicate it seemed it could break with a touch, tempting one to take a bite.
“Do you believe that yourself?” Ji Yanqing leaned down, pulling three files from the stack and tossing them to her.
“Silver-Green Glorious Doctor Shen Zhao, Vice-Minister of Rites Lu Sicheng, and Imperial Secretary Wang Baozhi—all close friends of Lord Qiu Chengbo.
Lu and Wang’s families were exterminated, and Shen Zhao, spared for past merits, was exiled at nearly seventy. All Liu’s doing.”
Reading the files, Ji Qingyan’s pupils shrank, her gaze wavering, but she remained still.
She couldn’t—or wouldn’t—believe it.
The enemy she’d hated for a decade was merely a “weapon,” while the true culprit was the gentle Uncle Liu, who always brought her gifts.
“Liu’s framing of Lu and Wang is known to all—even brothel girls know it. Ask them yourself if you don’t believe me,” Ji Yanqing added.
Ji Qingyan stayed silent, her phoenix eyes dazed, sitting motionless.
A belief held for over a decade was like a boulder, hard to shake. But the seed of doubt had taken root, waiting to crack the stone from within.
“Ji Yang’s actions back then were partly to prove loyalty to the new Emperor, so your demand for his life is fair. I can accept that. But before you break the blade, use it to pierce the true culprit’s heart,” Ji Yanqing said.
“What do you mean?”
“The Wei King’s Mansion will aid you fully in your revenge, allying against the Liu clan as belated redemption for past sins.
Afterward, if you’re capable, come for my head and Ji Yang’s,” Ji Yanqing said, standing in the cell’s shadow, leaning down to offer his hand to Ji Qingyan, illuminated by candlelight.
She didn’t take it, only whispering, “Give me time to think.”
Ji Yanqing withdrew his hand knowingly, sighing calmly. “You can’t stay in this dungeon forever, Heroine Ji. Come with me to see the world before deciding.”
Ji Qingyan nearly refused but reconsidered—leaving the dungeon might offer a chance to escape. She agreed.
“Where are we going?”
“Weiyuan Escort Agency.”
“Why an escort agency?” Ji Qingyan asked, puzzled. Even a brothel visit seemed more likely.
Ji Yanqing smiled, saying earnestly, “To uphold justice and rid the people of evil, naturally!”