“The dead man was named Wen Han. He was Wen Meijue's illegitimate son, and he indeed inherited a portion of the Yin-Yang constitution, which allowed him to cultivate dark poison.”
“However, due to his background and mediocre talent, he wasn't valued by the family.”
In the room, Xie Zhou put away his transmission talisman. “If the Wen family wants to clear their name, they are bound to put someone forward as a shield. He was the perfect choice.”
The Third Elder clicked his tongue. “But that was her son! Her own flesh and blood! Even a fierce tiger doesn't eat its cubs. To think she actually had the heart to kill him in public!”
Xie Zhou said, “She still has a daughter, who is likely the most suitable person in the Wen family to cultivate dark poison besides Wen Tang. To protect her daughter, sacrificing a son she brought in from the outside is nothing to her.”
The Third Elder sighed. “They say the Wen family is cold-blooded, and it seems to be true. It really wasn't easy for Tangtang to grow up so kind and obedient after being born in a place like this.”
Xie Zhou's lips twitched slightly. “With Song Yao tormenting her every day, if she weren't kind and obedient, she would have been played to death by now.”
Song Yao woke up with a start on the daybed.
Who is spreading rumors?
Who is slandering me?
Who is it?
At the mention of Song Yao, the Third Elder's voice carried a hint of bitterness. “Now that Wen Han is dead, there's no proof left. No matter how aggressive Nine Saints Hall is, it won't do any good. At most, the Wen family will offer an apology. It won't cause them any real damage.”
Song Yao found this absurd. “Just because the poison in Hall Master Ming and Daoist Huachao is more vicious than the Wen family's previous poison, does that prove they didn't do it? What if they just upgraded it?”
The Third Elder: “...”
Hiss.
That actually made a lot of sense.
Song Yao continued, “As long as there are similarities, doesn't that mean it was still done by someone from the Wen family? After all, outsiders wouldn't know how to cultivate dark poison.”
Enlightened, the Third Elder rushed out of the room with swift determination. “Brilliant! I will find a few more poison cultivators. Once Ah Zhao is cured, we will confront the Wen family again.”
In the blink of an eye, only Song Yao and Xie Zhou were left in the room.
Xie Zhou poured a cup of tea and handed it to her. “Once things escalate, it won't be easy to settle. Aren't you afraid?”
Song Yao happened to be thirsty. She gulped it down and handed the empty cup back to him. “Could we settle it even if we didn't make a fuss? If we don't, we'll have to go home.”
Xie Zhou: “Home?”
Song Yao: “Nine Saints Hall, of course.”
Xie Zhou: “...”
For some reason, his mood seemed to improve significantly. The frost surrounding him dissipated slightly, and he asked out of the blue, “Do you want to eat wontons?”
Song Yao: “...Right now?”
“Yes.”
...
Her Fourth Junior Brother was usually a very obedient boy.
Leaving the Third Elder, her Second Senior Sister, and Ming Ran behind in the dangerous Wen family home just to run off to the neighboring town for wontons didn't seem like something he would do.
But well, everyone went through a rebellious phase.
Not to mention her Fourth Junior Brother had gone through a corruption phase.
Though there weren't many obvious signs of corruption left in him now.
Song Yao finished two bowls of mini wontons. As she hesitated over ordering a third, she asked, “Should we bring some back for the Third Elder and the others?”
She had originally wanted to invite Ming Ran along, but her Fourth Junior Brother said Ming Ran needed to stay close and keep an eye on Hall Master Ming and Daoist Huachao, so they left her behind.
Xie Zhou raised his hand to stop a passing vendor who was beating a small iron gong. He bought two pieces of steaming poria cake and handed them to her. “No need. The Wen family will provide food.”
Song Yao accepted the cakes with a couple of nods and went back to eating her wontons.
The wontons here had thin wrappers and generous fillings, and the broth was exceptionally flavorful—definitely much better than other places.
Once she was mostly done with the wontons, Song Yao switched to nibbling on the poria cakes.
A shadow suddenly fell over the table as someone pulled out a chair and sat down, casually warning, “Careful there, don't choke.”
The voice was familiar. Song Yao looked up. “Ji Duchuan?”
Correcting her form of address, she spoke again. “Senior Ji, what are you doing here?”
“You'll have to ask your Fourth Senior Brother,” Ji Duchuan said grumpily. “I had just left Beiyao Sect and was planning to travel around when he summoned me with a single talisman.”
He turned to order a bowl of wontons from the owner, then continued, “Asking me to go to the Wen family to help investigate the poison is really putting me in a tight spot. We in Medicine King Valley have never involved ourselves in conflicts between sects. If I get dragged into this, my master won't let me off easily.”
Xie Zhou slid a jade box across the table. “I found the Golden Crow Bodhi Vine you wanted.”
Ji Duchuan paused mid-wipe with his chopsticks. “Are you bribing me?”
Xie Zhou: “Yes.”
Ji Duchuan's expression shifted instantly. He grabbed the jade box, peered inside, and tucked it away. “Fine, fine. For the sake of this herb, I'll help you this once. But let's get one thing straight: I will only identify the poison. Whatever the consequences are, they have nothing to do with me.”
Xie Zhou: “Deal.”
Ji Duchuan found him rather amusing and clicked his tongue twice. “When I visited you at Nine Saints Hall before, you could still say a few normal sentences to people. How is it that now that Song Yao is gone, you don't even know how to speak anymore?”
Song Yao: “Cough, cough, cough!”
She choked, frantically reaching across the table for some water.
But Xie Zhou had already placed the cup into her hand, his eyelids lifting slightly as he swept a cold gaze over Ji Duchuan.
Ji Duchuan instantly backed down. “Alright, alright, I'll shut up. Seriously, every single one of you has been left with such a massive psychological shadow by her... I'll head to the Wen family as soon as I finish this bowl of wontons.”
Once Song Yao recovered, she asked, “Why did we need to find Senior Ji? Doesn't the Sixth Elder know how to identify poisons as well?”
“Junior Sister Lin, you don't understand,” Ji Duchuan said with a smile. “The Sixth Elder is one of your Nine Saints Hall's own. Even if she identifies it, others won't accept it; they'll just say Nine Saints Hall is lying to itself. I'm different. I'm from Medicine King Valley.”
“Those from Medicine King Valley have no reason to favor either side, so my words will carry more weight.”
Song Yao hadn't thought of that. She nodded in understanding, then asked, “But if you really identify it and find that it is indeed dark poison, won't Beiyao Sect cause trouble for you?”
The Wen family was currently subservient to Taiqing Pavilion, which in turn was on good terms with Beiyao Sect, making them hostile toward Nine Saints Hall.
If Ji Duchuan openly helped them, he would likely be targeted by Beiyao Sect.
“I was only visiting Beiyao Sect as a guest, not joining them,” Ji Duchuan replied. “What trouble could they possibly cause me?”
He smiled and added, “Besides, I'm only speaking the truth without fabricating anything.”
Song Yao: “I see. Then eat faster. Do you need me to feed you?”
Recalling the experience of almost being choked to death by her pastries in the past, Ji Duchuan's eating speed instantly increased. “...No need.”
This kid really was a bit like Song Yao.
No sense of personal boundaries.
A very peculiar train of thought.
No one could ever guess what she would say next.
He glanced at Xie Zhou, wanting to ask if looking at this junior sister made him think of Song Yao. But seeing how inexplicably dark Xie Zhou's expression was, he swallowed his words back down.
Never mind, never mind.
Best not to cross him.
After finishing the wontons, they flew back on their swords.
Song Yao sat, while the other two stood.
Ji Duchuan glanced at her, feeling surprised once again.
Riding a sword while sitting was over a hundred times harder than standing. Even many cultivators with high cultivation wouldn't do it.
Yet at her age, she sat perfectly steady without a single wobble, and she could even lie down for a bit.
Wait...
No.
Why did she just do whatever she pleased?
Rate on N.U.
