Chapter 49: The Mastermind

Zheng Xiao spent most of her time in the “Qin Room” on the estate.

She bluntly told Wang Sandong that she needed to find proof that the Demonic Zither belonged to the Zither Emperor—although she was certain it was his, she had no concrete evidence.

No one, not even the Human Sovereign, would brand the Zither Emperor a demon based solely on her word.

After all, the Zither Emperor was not only one of the Five Emperors, but also the vanguard in the Great Demon Slaying War, and his contributions were absolutely monumental.

So without irrefutable proof, no rash accusations could be made.

After helping Wang Sandong enjoy some sun in the courtyard, Zheng Xiao returned to the Qin Room.

From time to time, one or two notes drifted from the room.

Wang Sandong didn’t understand music, but she still found the sounds quite pleasant.

Basking in the sunlight, she raised her hand to touch the bandage wrapped around her forehead, and her thoughts drifted back to that rainy night.

Someone must have been trying to kill her!

On a rainy night, there were no snakes or insects on the road, so two well-trained horses couldn’t have been spooked at the same time.

And that famous doctor from Xiangcheng had arrived far too conveniently.

Why would Second Uncle Wang Zhongli go to such lengths?

Had he discovered her secret of being a demonic cultivator?

No, that couldn’t be it.

If he had, he could have just done it himself; there was no need for such an elaborate plan.

Or maybe she was overthinking it.

Perhaps the mastermind behind that night wasn’t Second Uncle Wang Zhongli at all.

And besides…

Whoever the mastermind was, was it really necessary to make things so complicated?

Or maybe…

Hongxiu hadn’t actually meant to kill her?

Wang Sandong glanced at Hongxiu standing by her side, and a thought crossed her mind.

She spoke, “Hongxiu.”

“I’m here, Third Young Master,” Hongxiu replied.

“Lying here is so boring,” Wang Sandong said with a smile.

“Wang Tong is also injured and can’t run errands. Arrange for a servant to go to Fengyue Tower and invite Miss Yuan Yuan over. I want to listen to some music.”

Wang Sandong believed that Yuan Di would likely help her find the mastermind.

Because to her, Wang Sandong had immense value—in this world, Yuan Di could never find another person without a Spiritual Root to cultivate the new version of Return to Heaven.

So it could even be said that Yuan Di cared more about her life than Wang Sandong herself did.

Yuan Di would probably take care of anyone who threatened her life.

That was the logic.

However…

Given Yuan Di’s “prior record” of not killing Chen Youde, Wang Sandong wasn’t entirely confident in her own deduction.

So she didn’t dare use “definitely” and instead used “probably.”

They say a woman’s heart is like a needle at the bottom of the sea.

Yuan Di wasn’t a woman, but she…

Her thoughts were still as unfathomable as a needle in the sea.

At this thought, Wang Sandong couldn’t help but laugh out loud.

Regardless of whether Yuan Di was male or female, she still preferred to think of her as a woman—and even planned to tease her as a woman when she arrived.

Because she speculated that Yuan Di’s greatest weakness was her “state of mind.”

This speculation was based on A-Gui’s memories and the knowledge of several others.

Spring-Returning Hand believed that the pinnacle of humanity was the unity and elevation of body and mind; the Life-Taking Sword Manual asserted that to take a life, one must first disrupt the heart; the Noble Spirit Art held that cultivating the heart was paramount, as the heart was the source of noble spirit; and All Demons Return to the Origin itself was a demonic art that disturbed an opponent’s heart.

Adding in the calm and cold demeanor Yuan Di had shown when dealing with A-Gui, Wang Sandong had reason to suspect that Yuan Di cared more about the stability of her mind than ordinary cultivators.

The deduction might be arbitrary, but she had to push forward with it.

Just make bold assumptions and carefully verify.

Even if she was wrong, she wouldn’t lose anything.

Why not?

Wang Sandong squinted her eyes, and a ridiculous scene of her “making love” with Yuan Di even began to appear in her mind.

Since it was a fantasy, it naturally didn’t need to be reasonable.

In her fantasy, she was a man, exceptionally gifted.

Xing Luo, Hongxiu, Tianxiang…

All the women she knew had a “friendly cameo” in it.

Just as she was lost in thought, Yuan Di finally arrived carrying a harp.

She didn’t act coquettishly like ordinary courtesans, nor did she like making eyes at people.

She just walked straight over and gave a graceful bow:

“Greetings, Third Young Master.”

Wang Sandong smiled. “A seat.”

Hongxiu brought a chair.

“Play whatever you know,” Wang Sandong said.

“Start with ‘Gathering of Immortals.'”

Yuan Di hesitated slightly.

“You don’t know it?”

“Then ‘Flying Wing to Wing’?”

“You don’t know that either? Fine, just play any famous courtesan song.”

The zither’s music rose melodiously.

Wang Sandong gently tapped the beat and suddenly lowered her voice.

“Someone wants to kill me, and you won’t save me.”

The music didn’t stop.

Yuan Di replied calmly, “I didn’t know. How could I save you?”

“It wasn’t you who did it, was it?”

Yuan Di gave her a cold look.

Wang Sandong sighed and looked directly into her eyes.

“If it really were you, I’d be heartbroken.”

Yuan Di held her gaze for a moment, but eventually looked away first.

“Clues. Who have you offended recently?”

“No one.”

A discordant note suddenly mixed into the melody.

It came from the Qin Room not far away.

Yuan Di’s eyes narrowed as she looked over.

Wang Sandong said with a smile, “Don’t you want to know why the Zither Emperor wants to destroy the Zheng family?”

Yuan Di snorted coldly.

“Not interested.”

Though she said she wasn’t interested, her gaze flickered for just a moment.

Wang Sandong saw it and chuckled inwardly.

She knew that Yuan Di had already wavered.

But she also knew better—she couldn’t push any further.

This person was Yuan Di, one of the Five Emperors, a being who had lived for nearly two hundred years.

If she let a sixteen-year-old lead her around by the nose mentally, that would be a true failure.

The music ended.

Wang Sandong closed her eyes and said lazily, “Not bad. Play another one.”

Yuan Di expressionlessly continued playing.

Wang Sandong suddenly spoke, “From now on, I’ll take you with me every time I go out.”

Yuan Di said indifferently, “Fine.”

“I’m thinking about whether to ransom you out.”

Yuan Di’s movements paused.

“Do you want me to be a concubine or a singing girl?”

Wang Sandong smiled.

“A singing girl.”

Yuan Di frowned, her gaze turning colder.

“I rarely see a cultivator as despicable as you.”

Wang Sandong said nothing more.

She knew she had reached the limit.

One more push, and it would backfire.

What she wanted was not feelings, but a seed.

A seed that would eventually sprout in Yuan Di’s state of mind.

After a moment, she suddenly steered the topic back on track: “Do you think the mastermind that night… my second uncle Wang Zhongli, is he suspicious?”

Yuan Di pondered for a moment.

“We can investigate together.”

Wang Sandong nodded.

“In two days, I’ll go see him. You’ll accompany me as a singing girl.”

Yuan Di’s gaze turned cold.

“You’re treating me like a maid?”

Wang Sandong only smiled faintly and didn’t answer.

Yuan Di was silent for a moment, but in the end, she didn’t argue further.

She suddenly felt that this kid was more troublesome than she had imagined.