Chapter 40

As she finished speaking, they arrived at the side quarters where Liu Jiyue was staying.
Liu Jiyue had already washed and dressed, his entire demeanor renewed. Wearing fresh robes, he stood beneath the corridor eaves, refined like unpolished jade cleansed of dust. Every word and smile carried the sensation of a gentle breeze, calm and serene.
“Senior brother,” Shen Qing spoke up, interrupting the conversation beneath the corridor.
Seeing Shen Qing lively and full of energy, the faint crease between Liu Jiyue’s brows finally smoothed out. “You’an, you’re here.”
Shen Qing glanced at the woman standing before him and asked, “This is…?”
Before Liu Jiyue could answer, the woman stepped forward to bow respectfully. “This servant greets Miss Shen.” After a brief pause, she continued, “I am the stewardess of Minister Liu’s household at the Court of Judicial Review. I am here today on behalf of my lady to seek help from Deputy Liu.”
It seemed they had already discussed most matters. Liu Jiyue turned to the woman and said, “I now fully understand your household’s situation. Please return and inform Minister Liu that I must prepare the items needed for the soul-summoning ritual. I will follow shortly after.”
At his words, the stewardess immediately burst into tears.
She had run everywhere seeking help, only to meet closed doors again and again. Disheartened, she had long since stopped hoping for much. Even Minister Liu had prepared himself, if this attempt still failed, he would risk the crime of offending authority and petition the Emperor directly.
Who could have imagined that just as all hope seemed lost, matters would take a sudden turn? Like willows darkening and flowers brightening, they had encountered Deputy Liu willing to take on the case.
The surge of emotion in her heart was like oil poured onto blazing fire, intense beyond measure, so overwhelming it defied words. In that moment, even the bleak, lifeless sky seemed to her a sight of gentle beauty.
“This servant thanks Deputy Liu!” The stewardess bowed deeply.
Liu Jiyue made a light, restraining gesture. “There is no need for such courtesy. You may go.”
In that instant, Liu Jiyue’s tall, slender figure seemed to grow even loftier in her heart. Having received his promise, the stewardess was overwhelmed with excitement. After bidding farewell to the two of them, she hurried out, eager to deliver the good news to her masters, only to be stopped by Shen Qing’s voice.
“Wait.”
The sky was overcast that day, fine rain drifting down as a cool breeze brushed past.
Shen Qing suddenly felt a faint itch rise in her throat. She coughed softly twice, then spoke again at an unhurried pace. “Earlier, when I attempted to summon your lady’s soul, I was interrupted halfway through. That may be one of the reasons why Young Lord Gu failed to retrieve her soul.”
“Later, I will accompany my senior brother to your residence to perform the soul-summoning ritual for your lady.”
After dismissing the stewardess from the Liu residence, Shen Qing sent away the others and recounted, one by one, how she had stumbled upon Bai Shuisha’s lair. Naturally, she deliberately downplayed the parts involving Li Daoxuan, merely saying that Bai Shuisha had not been home, and that she had endured countless dangers before barely escaping from the ruined temple on Mount Li.
As for how Shen Qing had ended up in Bai Shuisha’s den in the first place, it remained a mystery.
After hearing her account, Liu Jiyue’s brows, which had only just relaxed, knitted together once more. He pondered for a moment before making a decision. “For now, do not tell anyone else about this.”
Shen Qing looked at him expectantly.
Liu Jiyue laughed at once, reaching out to rub her head. “Lady Liu’s matter will be handled by me. You just stay put and recover properly. Remember to drink your medicine obediently. When senior brother returns, I’ll bring you some malt candy.”
Shen Qing froze. “Senior brother means…?”
Liu Jiyue said, “Bai Shuisha is an object of extreme yin and evil. Since you ‘just happened’ to enter that underground palace, if that evil thing had not coincidentally been absent, we wouldn’t be seeing you now. You’an, someone is targeting you.”
Shen Qing nodded vigorously. “Yes! Someone is targeting me!”
His eyes softened as his voice gentled. “Don’t worry. Senior brother will protect you. I also promised Master to keep you safe.” Turning away, his tone remained mild yet firm. “For this period of time, you are not to leave the residence. I’ll arrange everything for you. If staying inside becomes stifling, you may send invitations to other young ladies to come visit.”
“If you crave any food or want any little amusements, have someone buy them for you…” He continued giving careful instructions.
Watching him take care of everything for her, Shen Qing suddenly felt a surge of inexplicable anger rise in her chest, with nowhere to vent it.
Suppressing her agitation, she said, “Does senior brother intend to shoulder all of this alone?”
Seeing her expression, Liu Jiyue immediately understood her displeasure. Lowering his stance, he coaxed her softly, “Your body is weak, and the hidden danger has yet to be eliminated. I can’t rest easy letting you go out alone.”
“You’an, be good.”
It was always like this. In the past, and now as well.
Whenever danger appeared, he would unfailingly spread his wings, wrapping her up tightly, sealing her away so completely that not even the slightest threat from the outside could touch her.
Yet Liu Jiyue overlooked one crucial thing.
His wings were too thick, too dense. So much so that once she was enclosed within them, she could hardly breathe, forced to curl up helplessly, unable to move, compelled to accept his protection.
But who could know that she, too, possessed a pair of small wings, not large, yet enough to hold up a small patch of sky of her own, enough to protect those she wished to protect.
She did not want to live her entire life under another’s shelter. She longed, like her senior brother, to be the one who spread her wings, shielding herself and those she cared about from wind and rain.
Dragging her weary voice, she said slowly, “Senior brother, I can investigate these matters as well. I have the ability to protect myself. You going alone is far too dangerous.”
Those earnest words, in Liu Jiyue’s eyes, were merely the naive rebellion of a younger sister. He chose to smile it off calmly. “Don’t you know senior brother’s strength? Rest assured.”
Shen Qing suddenly lost the desire to continue speaking. She forced a well-behaved smile, as if yielding, and gently tugged at Liu Jiyue’s sleeve. “All right. Senior brother must be careful.”
Once she had successfully seen Liu Jiyue off, Shen Qing, who had been keeping track of the time, followed shortly after. However, the moment she stepped one foot over the courtyard threshold, an invisible force pushed her straight back.
It was a soft barrier. Like a piece of supple silk, it absorbed Shen Qing’s force and gently bounced her back, gentle, yet utterly unyielding, just like Liu Jiyue himself.
Shen Qing exhaled slowly and sighed inwardly. I knew it. Sending off a god is never that easy.
Liu Jiyue had practically watched Shen Qing grow up; he understood her temperament inside and out. He had even anticipated that once he left, she certainly would not obediently stay home to recuperate.
What he had not anticipated, however, was that the junior sister he had raised also knew him just as well.
Meeting tricks with tricks, Shen Qing immediately summoned Cuizhi. She had the little maid obediently put on her clothes, then used scissors to cut two strands of her own black hair, wrapping them inside prepared talismans. She dripped them with her own essence blood and tied them to Cuizhi’s waist.
Having grown up together, Cuizhi was undoubtedly the most suitable “substitute.”
She then used the same method to take strands of Cuizhi’s hair and essence blood, hanging the prepared talisman at her own waist.
Once everything was done, Shen Qing clapped her hands in satisfaction. “Cuizhi, go try stepping over the threshold.”
The bewildered little maid ran to the courtyard gate as instructed. Just as she was about to step out, an invisible barrier bounced her straight back.
Cuizhi panicked. “Miss, what’s going on?”
Shen Qing was exceedingly satisfied. Without further explanation, she patted Cuizhi on the shoulder. “Stay obediently in the courtyard. Your miss will be back shortly.”
With that, she crossed the courtyard gate smoothly and headed toward the main residence gate. Halfway there, she was called back by Cuizhi.
Turning around, she saw the little maid clutching a bundle of items, looking at her with wide, pleading eyes. “Miss, you forgot something.”
It turned out Cuizhi had bundled up all the talismans in Shen Qing’s room. Not knowing which were useful and which were not, she simply packed them all, hoping they might come in handy.
Shen Qing accepted the bundle. The gloom that had clogged her heart all day suddenly dissipated. “Wait for me to come back,” she said.
“Mhm!”
Shen Qing did not bring many people with her, only two servant matrons and a driver for the carriage. Naturally, there were also special “guards” hidden in the shadows, watching closely and ready to protect their mistress at any moment.
Inside the carriage, Shen Qing used two talismans to fashion a paper figure. She dotted its brows with cinnabar and supplemented it with “awakening,” commonly known among mortals as the “eye-opening summoning art.” In an instant, golden light burst forth around the paper figure. When the light faded, it seemed as if a soul had been infused into it, the little paper man sprang vividly to life.
Shen Qing instructed, “Go find Liu Jiyue. Do whatever you can to stall him.”
Upon receiving the order, black smoke suddenly poured from the paper figure’s blank face. In the next moment, its entire body was enveloped in the smoke. Wrapped in it, the little paper man slipped out through a crack in the carriage window and flew off into the distance.
Shen Qing lifted the carriage curtain and looked out. From afar, she could see a mass of black smoke, completely invisible to ordinary eyes, rapidly flying toward a certain direction.
It looked quite imposing, but in truth it was nothing more than a bluffing minor spell.
Shen Qing curled her lips faintly and told the driver to speed up.
Having received the order, the driver carefully urged the horses on, his whip cracking with renewed vigor. “Hyah!”
The carriage picked up speed. Shen Qing was jolted slightly dizzy, so she propped her head with one hand and closed her eyes to rest.
Suddenly, in a deep alley somewhere, a child’s sharp cry rang out: “Waaah! Monster! Don’t come over!”
A young man passing by stopped abruptly. Another scream followed, and he no longer hesitated, gripping his blade, he turned into the alley.
At the Cang Prince’s residence, a youth dressed in a soft robe with red edging stood quietly by a low table. On it lay a board of double-six chess, as if it had just witnessed a turbulent and treacherous match. The pieces were scattered in utter disorder. He lowered his gaze indifferently. Fresh from bathing, his hair was still damp, a drop of water slowly trailing down the finely sculpted bridge of his nose.
The faint itch finally stirred him. He shifted his eyes, his gaze falling on the two pale pink silk ribbons in his hand. Tiny, exquisite bells hung from their ends, clearly a girl’s accessory.
The prayer banners he had brought back from the temple rested in one corner of the table.
Old Huang stood to the side, clutching a bath towel and trembling with confusion that nearly reached the heavens: Why had His Highness returned and suddenly seemed normal again? Why had the gu parasite shown no reaction? Whose ribbons were those in his hand? Where had the prayer banners come from?
The man who had been quietly studying the banners gradually drifted into a daze.