Volume 3, Chapter 294 – What Did the Dog Ever Do to You?

Qin Qingfen left Chi Xiyan’s study.

The more she thought about it, the angrier she got. She lashed out and kicked a roadside stone with full force.

The stone tumbled across the ground and splashed into the pond with a gurgle.

But the fury in Qin Qingfen’s chest did not ease one bit.

She realized she had been wrong. Completely, terribly wrong.

Chi Xiyan had already been entirely bewitched by that vixen, just like that Miss Chen of the Chen family who had since lost her mind.

Qin Qingfen had heard far too many stories like this in the back residences of great families.

***

On the other side of the residence, Bu Lianshuang was strolling through the courtyard with Lu Zhuxin.

Earlier, Lu Zhuxin had suddenly said she was bored of sitting in the courtyard and wanted to come out for a walk.

Being personally invited by Miss Fox, Bu Lianshuang was quietly delighted and agreed to come along without hesitation.

Of course, as the mistress’s personal maidservant, she didn’t really have the right to refuse in the first place.

Every unreasonable demand the mistress made, she was obligated to fulfill.

Even so, Bu Lianshuang had taken Miss Fox’s request as a date invitation and come out for the walk in high spirits.

But once they were out, Bu Lianshuang realized things were not quite what she had imagined.

Miss Fox had been distracted the whole way.

Her mind was not on the walk at all. She showed little interest in anything around her.

She barely even responded when Bu Lianshuang tried to make conversation.

Bu Lianshuang didn’t take offense at Lu Zhuxin’s indifferent attitude.

Miss Fox had always been this way. Being met with a warm face turned against a cold backside was nothing new to Bu Lianshuang. She had grown somewhat accustomed to it.

Getting to walk alongside Miss Fox at all was already a significant improvement, wasn’t it?

Bu Lianshuang was a little crestfallen, but she bounced back quickly.

Having grown up in the cold and harsh north, she found everything in the Chi residence fascinating.

She dragged Lu Zhuxin this way and that, looking at everything with eager eyes, and pretended not to notice Lu Zhuxin’s impatient scowl.

More than once, Lu Zhuxin had grown genuinely annoyed with her.

A mature pet dog should learn to pick up its own leash and walk itself. Not spend all day spinning circles around its owner.

Lu Zhuxin said to Bu Lianshuang in a languid tone, “Perhaps I should work on developing your sense of self-management.”

“Hm?” Bu Lianshuang tilted her head slightly, her expression forming a living question mark.

The harmonious “date,” however, did not last very long.

Bu Lianshuang heard a splash from somewhere in the distance.

It sounded like someone had kicked a stone into the water.

“Someone’s over there.” Bu Lianshuang frowned. “There’s a murky sort of smell. Probably just an ordinary servant.”

“It’s not a pleasant smell, Miss. Let’s not go that way.”

Lu Zhuxin let out a quiet laugh. She already knew exactly who it was.

“It seems someone else is just as bored as us today.”

“Come on, Shuang’er. Let’s go see who’s bored enough to keep us company.”

With that, Lu Zhuxin headed over first.

Bu Lianshuang had no desire to go, but watching Miss Fox walk ahead, she found she couldn’t get the word “no” out.

Miss Fox had said it herself: inside this Chi residence, everything had to go by her word.

Bu Lianshuang resigned herself and followed.

Getting closer, she could now see that the figure was a woman dressed as a servant.

At the moment, that old woman was inexplicably taking her frustrations out on the flowers, shrubbery, and ornamental rocks along the path.

The earlier splash had been her kicking a roadside stone clean into the pond.

“Oh! It’s her!”

Bu Lianshuang remembered who this was.

This was the woman who had been at Miss Fox’s side when they first met.

A cowardly, self-serving sort. To save her own skin, she had abandoned Miss Fox right in front of everyone.

Bu Lianshuang had no favorable impression of this woman.

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She had also never expected that after doing something like that in front of so many people, this woman would still be alive, let alone still allowed to stay in the Chi residence.

What was this person’s background, exactly?

While Bu Lianshuang was puzzling over it, she saw Lu Zhuxin walk straight up to her.

“My oh my oh my!”

“Well, look who it is!”

“Isn’t this Old Nanny Qin? Haven’t seen you in a few days. How did you end up looking like this?”

A flicker of surprise passed through Bu Lianshuang’s eyes.

All this time, Miss Fox in the Chi residence had always presented herself as sweet and well-behaved.

This sarcastic, sharp-tongued version of her, Bu Lianshuang had never seen before.

But once she remembered who Miss Fox was directing it at, she understood completely.

For a wretched woman like this, exactly this kind of treatment was warranted.

By now, Qin Qingfen had heard the voice and spun around. “Who’s there?!”

Then she saw Lu Zhuxin and Bu Lianshuang, and her eyes went wide.

“Why is it you?!”

“My!” Lu Zhuxin said with a cheerful grin. “I’m the Chi family’s second young miss. Everything in this Chi residence will belong to me someday. Is there anywhere in this residence I’m not allowed to go?”

“Now, Old Nanny Qin, you look like you’re in fine form. Truly remarkable for your age.”

“It seems hauling slop buckets in the kitchen really does wonders for one’s constitution!”

Qin Qingfen stared at Lu Zhuxin, her teeth aching with fury.

The state she was in now was entirely thanks to the girl standing in front of her.

And this girl kept calling her “Old Nanny” one after another, clearly doing it on purpose to infuriate her.

Ha! This little vixen acted so arrogant only because Xiyan was backing her. Did she really think she was something?!

With that thought, Qin Qingfen fired back, fury in her voice. “I am Xiyan’s nursemaid. This is the Chi residence, Chi Xiyan’s residence. It’s not your place to throw your weight around here, you little vixen!”

“Ha!” Lu Zhuxin laughed, as though she had heard something genuinely amusing.

“Old Nanny Qin, shouldn’t that be me saying that to you?”

“I am the Chi family’s legitimate young miss. Even without Xiyan, my position would not change in the slightest.”

“If Xiyan were gone, everything in this Chi residence would be mine.”

“And you? What exactly are you?”

“You are Xiyan’s nursemaid. Without Xiyan, you are nothing at all.”

“Nothing but a dog borrowing its master’s power.”

“A foolish, ignorant dog. How dare you yap and bark in front of me?”

Behind Lu Zhuxin, the Wolf Clan princess’s elegant brows twitched involuntarily.

“You!” Qin Qingfen pointed at Lu Zhuxin, so incensed she couldn’t get a word out for a long moment. “You finally show your true face! You little vixen! The Chi family was your target from the very beginning, wasn’t it!”

“Oh.” Lu Zhuxin gave an innocent shrug. “And so what if I have? What are you going to do about it?”

“Even if I really am here to take the Chi family, what can you possibly do?”

“All you can do is stand there and watch. Nothing else!”

“What, are you going to run to Xiyan and tattle on me?”

“Do you think Xiyan would believe you, or believe me?!”

“Aiya, actually, maybe I don’t need to spell that out for you.”

Lu Zhuxin strolled leisurely to Qin Qingfen’s side, narrowing her eyes in mockery.

“Let me think. This spot isn’t far from Xiyan’s study. You must have just come from there.”

“Let me guess. You’re this angry because of Chi Xiyan, aren’t you?”

“She got you this worked up because you were saying bad things about me to her face!”

An expression of disbelief spread across Qin Qingfen’s face.

This girl had guessed it without missing a single detail.

“Aha!” Lu Zhuxin let out a mocking laugh. “Looks like I got it exactly right.”

“But don’t be too upset just yet, because there will be plenty more things to make you angry going forward!”

Lu Zhuxin leaned in close to Qin Qingfen’s ear and said in a slow, quiet voice, “I’ll let you watch, nice and clearly, as I take the Chi family away. As I take everything Chi Xiyan has.”

“I’ll leave her with no way out. Drive her to despair. Drive her to madness.”

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“And in the end, with nowhere left to run, she’ll have no choice but to kneel at my feet and serve as my washroom maid.”

“And you won’t be able to do a single thing to stop it. You’ll just have to watch.”

“Ha ha ha.”

“Old Nanny Qin, you may be an old hand at the inner residence, but when it comes to playing with people’s hearts, you are far, far beneath me.”

Qin Qingfen’s pupils shook violently. She stared at Lu Zhuxin, unable to believe what she was seeing.

This vixen with her mask removed was terrifying.

The words she had just spoken planted an involuntary seed of dread in Qin Qingfen’s chest.

“Ha!” Lu Zhuxin let out a light laugh and swept away.

She came to Bu Lianshuang’s side. “All right, that was satisfying. Let’s go.”

Bu Lianshuang was stunned.

So Miss Fox had come all the way over here just to berate that wretched woman?

That was it?

Of course, what Bu Lianshuang was also preoccupied with was the content of what Miss Fox had said.

She would take the Chi family, take everything Chi Xiyan had?

Was that true? Or was it purely said for that wretched woman’s benefit?

Full of unspoken questions, Bu Lianshuang fell into step beside Lu Zhuxin.

She thought it over, and in the end, she did not ask any of them. If Miss Fox didn’t want to say, asking would do no good.

Bu Lianshuang only said, with a note of concern, “Miss, if word of what just happened gets out, I’m afraid it won’t be good for your reputation.”

“It’s fine.” Lu Zhuxin said. “My little conflict with Qin Qingfen being known is actually better for me.”

“But what I said quietly in her ear just now, no one will ever know about that.”

“Miss did it on purpose?” Bu Lianshuang said, surprised.

Lu Zhuxin shrugged. “What else? Did you think I had nothing better to do?”

Bu Lianshuang shook her head. “I didn’t think that, Miss. I’m just a little curious what your deeper intention was.”

“Asking about that?” Lu Zhuxin gave a quiet laugh.

She was in a good mood right now, and quite willing to explain it to this little wolf.

“I’m just adding a bit of motivation for our dear old friend, and putting one more layer of insurance on my plan. That’s all.”

And truly, it was just insurance.

When she had spotted Qin Qingfen kicking stones out of frustration, Lu Zhuxin had not actually needed to show herself.

But she had been unable to resist the impulse, and had gone over to unload on Qin Qingfen thoroughly.

Not going to lie, it felt good.

And there was another benefit to doing it this way.

“Now that Qin Qingfen and I have had it out openly, it stands to reason she might do something reckless out of spite, doesn’t it?”

“Ha ha.”

Lu Zhuxin cupped her own face in her hands, laughing freely.

***

On the other side of the residence, Qin Qingfen watched Lu Zhuxin’s retreating figure, her eyes practically blazing.

“Yu Lizhi! Yu Lizhi! You little vixen! I will not let you have your way!”

“Don’t even think about taking the Chi family from Xiyan!”

“I will stop you! I will!”

The veins on Qin Qingfen’s face stood out in sharp relief.

There was only one way to stop Yu Lizhi.

Send her to ruin. Cut off her future entirely.

The resolution hardened in Qin Qingfen’s chest.

The drug from Sin Moon Tower. She had to get it.

She had to use it.

But this would take more planning. Relying on herself alone was not reliable enough.

“I need to find Yan Liu!”

Qin Qingfen strode off briskly, making straight for the servants’ quarters where Yan Liu stayed.

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“Yan Liu! Yan Liu!”

“I need to discuss something with you urgently.”

Qin Qingfen walked into Yan Liu’s room and spoke without preamble. “That Yu Lizhi. She needs to be eliminated.”

Yan Liu was sitting cross-legged on his bed in meditation. He opened his eyes and gave Qin Qingfen a cold, sweeping glance.

Qin Qingfen felt a chill. Goosebumps rose on her skin immediately.

She felt a flash of indignation.

Why did everyone look at her that way?

“On this matter, I agree,” Yan Liu said. “That girl called Yu Lizhi is dangerous. If she isn’t removed, she will become a serious thorn in the eldest miss’s side sooner or later.”

Qin Qingfen let out a quiet breath of relief.

At least this Yan Liu was on her side.

If not, she would have had to handle everything herself.

“But now that she has become the Chi family’s second young miss, her position is not what it was before. To get rid of her, we need a foolproof method.”

Yan Liu nodded. “Sin Moon Tower’s killers have already failed twice. And now Beihe Commandery has been locked down by the Demon Suppression Bureau and the garrison troops.”

“Sin Moon Tower won’t be sending any more killers into Beihe Commandery in the short term. And if we forced Sin Moon Tower to act and pit them against the Demon Suppression Bureau and the garrison troops… that’s a price we cannot pay.”

Qin Qingfen pursed her lips. “I’ve lost all faith in Sin Moon Tower’s killers. What I want to discuss with you now is something entirely different.”

She then laid out everything she had seen and planned to Yan Liu from the beginning.

Yan Liu listened with a furrowed brow.

He was a fighter, not someone versed in the twists and turns of noble family inner politics. If he were, he wouldn’t have spent all this time hiding away in the Chi family’s back residence.

This sort of scheme was also far beyond what someone like him could have thought up.

But a basic read of the situation was still within his ability.

“This won’t be easy,” Yan Liu said. “By your account, the second miss of the Chen family only managed it because she had already pushed aside every last one of the eldest miss’s trusted people.”

“Our situation is exactly the opposite.”

“So just the two of us trying to pull this off would be very, very difficult.”

Qin Qingfen’s eyes lit up with understanding. “So what you’re saying is, we need allies.”

Yan Liu nodded. “The enemy of our enemy is our ally.”

“Yesterday’s foe can become today’s friend.”

Inside the Chi residence, there were others besides the two of them who found Yu Lizhi objectionable.

Take, for instance, the Chi family branch member who had stepped forward to challenge Yu Lizhi at the blood recognition ceremony not long ago.

Their position was clear. They could be used.

Qin Qingfen frowned again. “But how do we go about convincing them?”

“Leave that to me,” Yan Liu said. “I’ll find a way.”

“But the foundation of every plan we make is that Sin Moon Tower can actually produce the drug you’re talking about.”

Qin Qingfen fell silent. She knew Yan Liu was right.

No matter how airtight a plan they worked out here, if the drug from Sin Moon Tower never materialized, everything would be empty talk.

Qin Qingfen drew a slow breath. “I understand.”

“Tomorrow I’ll go find Sin Moon Tower again.”

“Whether or not the drug can be obtained, I need a definite answer.”

The two of them talked through the details a while longer.

It was a long time before Qin Qingfen finally left Yan Liu’s room.

She looked up at the full moon overhead and breathed in deeply.

“The drug from Sin Moon Tower. Everything rises and falls on this.”

Chi Xiyan’s engagement banquet, with guests converging on the Chi residence from all directions, would be their best opportunity.

Only in front of everyone, under countless eyes, could she drag that little vixen down into the deepest pit.

“Just you wait, little vixen. In a few more days, you won’t be smiling.”

“By then, even if you come crying and begging, it’ll be too late!”

***

The next morning, Qin Qingfen was up before dawn.

In truth, after everything that had happened the day before, she had barely slept at all.

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Her mind had been full of images of pinning that vixen under her heel with Sin Moon Tower’s drug.

Before the sky had even lightened, she was already itching to fly straight to Sin Moon Tower’s doorstep.

In the early morning, just as she was getting ready to head out, she passed by Lu Zhuxin’s courtyard and heard movement inside.

Qin Qingfen stopped at the courtyard gate and looked.

Chi Xiyan was inside, running through sword forms for Lu Zhuxin.

Chi Xiyan cultivated both alchemy and the sword, and her sword talent was no small thing. The wooden sword in her hand moved with fierce, sweeping power.

Bu Lianshuang, meanwhile, was patiently carrying out the actual duties of a sweeping maidservant, expressionlessly clearing away the leaves that Chi Xiyan’s sword wind kept sending flying.

If she could, she would honestly have liked to sweep that overgrown piece of trash flailing around with a wooden sword right out along with them.

Lu Zhuxin sat on a meditation cushion in the courtyard like a child delighting in everything new, tiny hands propped against her cheeks, watching Chi Xiyan’s sword dance with devoted attention.

Those beautiful eyes of hers shimmered with wonder.

Of course, though she appeared to be watching Chi Xiyan’s sword forms, her attention was in fact entirely fixed on the system notifications in her mind.

As Chi Xiyan’s sword movement came to a pause, a soft ding sounded in Lu Zhuxin’s head.

Learning progress had reached one hundred percent. She had mastered another new skill.

A pity, though, that Chi Xiyan’s sword repertoire was rather scattered.

She was not a disciple of any sword sect. The techniques she had learned were without a unified system, making her no different from an independent cultivator.

Still, with the Chi family’s backing and its formidable purchasing power, she had been able to acquire many rare and precious sword manuals. That was a background most ordinary independent cultivators could not begin to rival.

Even so, if she could choose, Lu Zhuxin had her eye on the complete, unified sword systems of the Seven Sword Sects.

She only had to flip through Song Shiyuan’s skill list to see it: every sword art, every inner method, every movement technique she possessed was part of an integrated set, each piece complementing the others. That was how you got the most out of your cultivation.

The true strength of the Seven Sword Sects lay precisely in that.

But she had to take things one step at a time. She couldn’t be eating from one bowl while eyeing the pot.

The bread would come eventually.

“Sister’s sword technique is wonderful!” Lu Zhuxin said admiringly.

Chi Xiyan dabbed at the faint perspiration on her forehead with a handkerchief. “This may only be an entry-level sword technique, but it was created by an Eighth Realm expert from one of the sword sects. Its depths are subtle and profound.”

“When I was going through sword cultivation texts yesterday, I came across this manual. I thought it would suit you well.”

“Its finer intricacies are something you’ll have to discover for yourself through practice.”

Lu Zhuxin beamed sweetly. “I will, Sister!”

Even as she said it, Lu Zhuxin’s gaze slid subtly toward the courtyard gate.

She had spotted Qin Qingfen standing there long ago.

But she had needed to keep her full attention on Chi Xiyan’s sword forms, eyes never leaving her, so she hadn’t had the chance to acknowledge her.

Now that the technique had been learned, Lu Zhuxin threw Qin Qingfen a triumphant, mocking glance.

Qin Qingfen’s whole body trembled with fury at the sight.

Yesterday when she had gone to find Chi Xiyan, she had seen her flipping through texts in her study.

Qin Qingfen had thought at the time, what a diligent and hardworking child Xiyan was.

Only now did she realize. Chi Xiyan had been in her study picking out sword manuals for that little vixen Yu Lizhi?!

And that was why Chi Xiyan had snapped at her?!

The realization made Qin Qingfen even angrier than before.

She turned away, face dark with fury, and marched quickly toward the gate.

Her resolve to drug Yu Lizhi hardened several degrees more.

“Just you wait, little vixen. A few more days, and you won’t be laughing.”

“By then, even if you come crying and begging, it won’t do you any good!”

After Qin Qingfen left, Chi Xiyan turned around with a puzzled look.

But there was nothing to see.

She furrowed her brow. “Little Xue’er, what were you just looking at?”

Lu Zhuxin smiled sweetly. “Sister. Just now… I thought I saw a dog!”

Bu Lianshuang swept her section of the ground in silence.

Crack. A split ran down the wooden handle of her broom.

What did the dog ever do to you?!