Volume 3, Chapter 295 – I Am the Least Valuable Good in This Transaction

Qin Qingfen stormed out of the Chi residence in a fury.

She made no stops along the way, heading straight for the Sin Moon Tower contact point she had memorized.

Anger had a way of making people lose their reason.

When a person was in the grip of rage, both their powers of observation and their judgment took a hit.

Of course, there were rare and exceptional individuals who became sharper the angrier they got.

But quite obviously, Qin Qingfen was not one of those people.

Lu Zhuxin had been provoking her repeatedly precisely to strip away the calm judgment she would have in a cooler state, and send her acting on nothing but the hot fury burning in her chest.

Of course, this was not because Lu Zhuxin had any doubts about the abilities of the foxes under her command. It was simply one more layer of insurance on the plan.

When Qin Qingfen arrived at the small alley again, everything looked exactly as before.

Cold and quiet, moss growing across the ground.

Perhaps no one would ever guess that tucked away in this ordinary, rarely-visited alley was a small assassin outpost.

Following the same steps as before, Qin Qingfen knocked the door ring three times in practiced fashion, then knocked twice on the green brick.

With a creak, the door swung open.

A hunched figure in black robes appeared in the doorway.

She looked Qin Qingfen up and down.

“Oh, it’s you. You’re here early.”

She stepped aside to let Qin Qingfen in.

Qin Qingfen, suspecting nothing, followed the black-robed figure inside.

Once in the room, Qin Qingfen cut straight to the point. “Where is my drug? Have you looked into it?”

“This is very important to me!”

The hunched black-robed figure poured two cups of hot tea at the table without any sense of urgency.

“There’s no rush, no rush. You still have two days.”

She pushed one cup toward Qin Qingfen.

“Everyone who comes here is after something very important to them.”

Qin Qingfen took the tea, a flicker of surprise in her eyes.

This was not her first visit here, but it was the first time she had ever been offered tea by this black-robed figure.

She didn’t think much of it, though.

Her mind was completely consumed by the idea of drugging Yu Lizhi. She was practically itching to see that girl take the drug, be humiliated, and have her reputation destroyed.

Every time she thought of that girl’s insufferable face, Qin Qingfen’s teeth ached with fury.

She asked again. “So, where is my drug? Stop keeping me in suspense. Can I get it or not?”

“Ha ha, what an impatient customer.” The black-robed figure let out a quiet, eerie laugh.

Then she slowly walked to a chest, reached inside, and produced a small medicine vial.

“But this customer’s luck is quite good, it seems.”

“Ordinarily, with the Demon Suppression Bureau and the garrison troops having locked down the commandery, it would be very difficult to bring resources in from outside.”

“But as it happens, our Sin Moon Tower Beihe Commandery branch just so happens to have one vial of the substance this customer needs.”

The black-robed figure set the small vial on her palm and held it out for Qin Qingfen to see.

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“This is the drug used by the second miss of the Chen family, the very one the customer described.”

“It was refined by an ancient alchemist and originates from the ancient evil sect, the Bliss Demon Sect.”

“The Bliss Demon Sect’s magic drug is colorless and odorless. There is no guarding against it.”

“Not just any ordinary alchemist, even the supreme exalted ones of this age cannot resist this drug’s effects, and will be reduced to a puppet of desire.”

Qin Qingfen’s eyes burned with want. She reached out, trying to snatch the vial from the black-robed figure’s hand.

The black-robed figure pulled it back. “Hey! Not so fast, customer!”

“You need to hear all the precautions first.”

“Do you know what the Bliss Demon Sect is? Do you have any idea how dangerous this vial is?”

Qin Qingfen stared at the black-robed figure in blank confusion. “What is the Bliss Demon Sect?”

Qing Niang very nearly laughed out of sheer exasperation at this foolish woman.

“Never mind, it doesn’t matter that you don’t know what the Bliss Demon Sect is.”

“Just remember this: this vial is extraordinarily precious.”

“The Bliss Demon Sect was wiped out long ago. This vial was refined by the sect’s only surviving heir!”

“There is only one person in the entire world who can produce a drug like this! Do you understand?!”

Qin Qingfen gave a dazed nod, her eyes never leaving the vial in the black-robed figure’s hand.

The black-robed figure seemed to lose patience with explaining things further.

After stressing the dosage, usage, and precautions a few more times, she handed the vial over.

Qin Qingfen took it, her expression lit up with excitement as she cradled it against her chest.

The black-robed figure added, “Remember, this drug has no antidote. If you accidentally poison yourself, you will have only yourself to pray to!”

Qin Qingfen gave a solemn nod at that.

Something this dangerous naturally required careful handling. She had no intention of ending up like that Miss Chen.

She produced a small piece of brocade cloth and wrapped the vial in it, winding it around carefully once, twice, again and again.

Only then did she tuck the vial away with the utmost reverence, nestled against her chest.

Then, after paying, Qin Qingfen crept out of the alley like a thief slipping away in the dark.

Qing Niang watched until Qin Qingfen had fully left the alley, then pulled off her black robes.

Beneath them was the bewitching figure of a fox demon.

“Aiya. Hunching over like that is exhausting.”

“Other than that, this task was easier than I expected.”

“That old woman never suspected me for a single moment.”

While Qing Niang was speaking, several little foxes crept out from the back room.

“Sister Qing Niang, what was all that stuff you were telling that human about? What did it mean?”

“That stuff?” Qing Niang thought back and said, “I’m not sure myself. The Fox Monarch told me to say it.”

“Oh!” The little foxes’ eyes lit up. “If the Fox Monarch told Sister Qing Niang to do it, there must be a deeper purpose!”

“Perhaps,” Qing Niang said.

In truth, she wasn’t convinced that telling the woman those things would accomplish anything.

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She even suspected the woman hadn’t retained a word of what she’d said.

“Sister Qing Niang.” One of the little foxes lugged over a small bag. “What do we do with all this garbage?”

Qing Niang glanced over. “Wherever. Just dump it somewhere not too far from here.”

***

Qin Qingfen crept back to the Chi residence like a shadow.

With a vial of poison tucked against her chest, her face was taut with anxiety. She kept to the back paths the whole way, not daring to cross paths with anyone.

She practically sprinted back to her own room before finally letting out a breath.

That night, when work was done and everyone had gone to rest, she dared to bring the drug to Yan Liu.

Yan Liu had not heard of this particular magic drug either.

But the name of the Bliss Demon Sect he had come across before.

“The Bliss Demon Sect was wiped out long ago. To think a disciple was still quietly carrying on its legacy in secret. Truly remarkable.”

Qin Qingfen said, confused, “And the drug?”

Yan Liu said, “If it truly is the Bliss Demon Sect’s inheritance, then the drug should be genuine.”

“Though with something like this, no one can say for certain.”

Qin Qingfen thought for a moment. “Should we test it on something?”

Yan Liu agreed with that idea.

In the Chi residence’s garden, a number of decorative spirit birds were kept.

These spirit birds had been pampered and spoiled in the Chi residence for so long that they were notoriously ill-tempered. They made a perfectly suitable test subject.

Qin Qingfen extracted a small amount of the drug from the vial.

The drug was a salve, colorless and odorless, clear as crystal.

Its beautiful appearance gave absolutely no indication that this was a drug produced by the Bliss Demon Sect.

Qin Qingfen dropped a small amount into the food the spirit birds regularly ate.

What followed was a spectacle she would not soon forget.

Though because it was nighttime, there were few people around to witness it.

She hugged the vial to herself and made her way back to Yan Liu’s room, buzzing with excitement.

“It works. It actually works.”

“Yes.” Yan Liu gave a nod. “This confirms that Sin Moon Tower did not deceive us.”

“With the Bliss Demon Sect’s magic drug in hand, our plan is halfway to success.”

The other half was the question of how to actually get the drug into the right person.

Qin Qingfen was agonizing over this too.

Neither she nor Yan Liu, given their positions, had any way of getting close to Yu Lizhi.

Yu Lizhi was now the Chi family’s second young miss. She would certainly have maidservants and guards watching over her at all times.

Even the food and drink she consumed would likely be tasted by a personal maidservant before it reached her lips.

How to administer the poison was, for now, the most difficult problem of all.

But Yan Liu shook his head. “Don’t worry. We can’t get close to Yu Lizhi, but our allies can.”

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If they needed to poison someone, the Chi family’s young masters and misses could manage it far more easily than two servants who couldn’t even get into the main courtyard.

“Everything else will come together in two days.”

Qin Qingfen nodded eagerly. “At Xiyan’s engagement banquet, everything will fall into place.”

She could hardly wait to see that vixen brought low.

Just like those spirit birds in the garden.

***

Early the next morning.

The servant in charge of tending the spirit birds stood in the garden, staring at the scene before him, eyes full of questions.

The carefully trimmed flower beds had been torn apart by the birds in complete chaos.

Feathers and fallen leaves were scattered everywhere.

Even the birds themselves, usually so lively and bold, were all listless and drooping.

Their normally glossy, brilliant plumage had been ravaged overnight into a sorry mess.

“What is going on with these birds? It’s not mating season yet, is it?”

A later inspection found nothing wrong with the birds beyond general physical exhaustion.

The incident eventually became one of the Chi residence’s eight great mysteries, passed down by word of mouth among the servants.

***

Two days passed in the blink of an eye.

Chi Xiyan and Song Shixuan’s engagement banquet was held as planned.

The guests who had attended Chi Muxue’s recognition ceremony received invitations once again, and came as called.

The Chi residence had held two grand banquets in rapid succession with very little time in between, a fact that left many tongues wagging.

But since the host was the Chi family of Beihe Commandery, the guests had no room to voice complaints. They arrived punctually for the eldest miss’s engagement banquet all the same.

Moreover, the other central figure of this engagement banquet was the prodigy of the Nanhe Song Clan and the young sect master of Lingxiao Sword Sect.

The occasion was of no small significance, and could not be compared in the same breath as Chi Muxue’s recognition ceremony.

Even though the banquet had been put together in haste, its scale far exceeded the recognition ceremony.

There was a simple reason for that: the influence of Lingxiao Sword Sect was simply too great.

Measured against a sword sect, the Chi family of Beihe Commandery’s power looked quite insignificant indeed.

Chi Xiyan sat in her own chambers, looking at her elaborately dressed reflection in the mirror, her face utterly without expression.

Since this was only an engagement and not an official wedding ceremony, she was not wearing bridal attire.

Even so, what she wore was still very formal. Her hair was pinned up with strings of red jade hairpins, dignified and resplendent.

And yet, for her own engagement banquet, Chi Xiyan could not feel anything at all.

The joy of a bride-to-be? Anticipation for the future?

None of it was there.

To her, tonight’s banquet felt no different from an ordinary dinner.

No different from the quiet family meals she shared with her little sister.

The only difference was that there were more guests, and the clothes were more formal.

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Chi Xiyan lowered her eyes slightly. She had long since grown accustomed to measuring everything around her in terms of gains and losses.

Her marriage, the defining event of her life, was also simply an item to be traded. Clearly priced.

Offer enough, and anyone could purchase it.

So she would not have feelings about such things.

Her feelings could not be exchanged for anything of value.

Listening to the noise drifting in from outside, Chi Xiyan paused, then turned to the maidservant Luluo beside her. “What time is it now?”

Luluo straightened Chi Xiyan’s robes.

“Miss, it should be nearly the auspicious hour.”

The Chi residence’s engagement banquet was not elaborate in its proceedings. Since it was not a formal wedding, the ceremony was simple.

All she needed to do was appear at the banquet alongside Song Shixuan.

Then the family elders would exchange tokens on their behalf and announce to the assembled guests the date of their formal wedding.

On the surface, an engagement banquet was merely a declaration of the two families’ intentions.

For the couple being betrothed, it carried little personal meaning. But for the two families entering an alliance, it was significant.

“I heard that Sect Master Jiang of Lingxiao Sword Sect was called away on urgent business and could not attend. In his place came one of his senior disciples, someone by the surname of Lu.”

Chi Xiyan’s eyes lowered slightly. “Called away on urgent business?”

“I heard it was an urgent summons from Lingxu Sword Sect involving all the major sect masters. That’s what kept Sect Master Jiang away.”

“I see…” Chi Xiyan’s voice remained entirely without feeling.

He was only a sect master. If he couldn’t come, he couldn’t come.

“And the Nanhe Song Clan?”

Luluo thought for a moment. “The Song family head did not come either. The one who came is Young Master Song’s clan uncle.”

“…” Chi Xiyan was quiet for a moment.

Then a small, self-mocking smile appeared on her face.

“By that measure, I really am not worth very much.”

Luluo looked at Chi Xiyan’s expression and felt a pang of sadness.

“Miss, please don’t say that.”

“You are the Chi family’s eldest miss. Exceptional in both alchemy and sword, the Fairy Xiyan. You are the pride of our Beihe Commandery.”

“No.” Chi Xiyan shook her head. “Those are all empty titles. They mean nothing.”

“Though it is a bit absurd…”

“I really am the least valuable goods in this transaction.”

“Miss…” Luluo hung her head, crestfallen.

Chi Xiyan saw her expression and let out a quiet laugh. “I’m not even upset about it, so why are you upset on my behalf?”

“Alliance marriages among great families are exactly like this. I have long since prepared myself for it.”

“Rather than feeling sorry for me, you might as well tell me. What is Muxue doing right now?”