The guest room door creaked open, releasing a puff of dust—clearly unused for a long time, yet now assigned to her.
Mingyi said nothing, pretending to examine the carvings on the beams as she stepped inside.
Sun Liao immediately summoned several guards with formidable Essence Power and pointed at the room. "Keep a tight watch. Give her food and water, but don’t let her leave."
"Yes, sir!"
Divine Tools were expensive, and constantly buying them would drain his resources. It was far better to keep her in his mansion to craft them for him.
If she complied, fine. If she resisted or rebelled, he wouldn’t even spare her life. After all, with the Qian family ruined, his goal was achieved. Leaving the Academicians' Court wouldn’t matter.
Eyes filled with malice, Sun Liao strode back to his own courtyard to continue feigning illness.
With an Artifact Smith now in his household, Sun Liao naturally canceled all pending orders for ordinary Divine Tools, reneging on the agreed double payment. He even sent men to ransack the workshop, determined to erase any trace of Master Ming’s existence outside.
Xiuyun stood by the wall of the Situ residence, listening to the commotion next door, her eyes wide. "He’s truly shameless."
Situ Ling hadn’t initially grasped Mingyi’s intentions, but Sun Liao’s reaction made it clear. Blinking, he sighed in admiration. "Ming-jiejie is brilliant—she secures both Shell Coins and justice."
Xiuyun looked puzzled. "What do you mean?"
"Never mind." Situ Ling waved a hand. "Just stay here quietly and don’t cause trouble for Ming-jiejie."
Xiuyun puffed her cheeks indignantly. "I’m not trouble! I’m just worried—what if she’s captured by the Sun family?"
The current chaos was proof she already had been.
Situ Ling hesitated, then waved dismissively. "She’ll be fine."
Sun Liao’s Essence Power wasn’t even a match for Liang Xiuyuan.
Mingyi must be staying in the Sun residence to gather evidence. He couldn’t afford to idle either, quickly instructing Fu Yue to accompany him to the inner court to delay Da Si’s actions against Qian Li.
As everyone around her hurried off, Xiuyun stood bewildered by the wall, listening to the violent sounds of destruction. Anxiety gnawed at her until she decided to wait by the main gate for Mingyi’s return.
But instead of Mingyi, she saw Ji Bozhai.
Cloaked in gloom, Ji Bozhai slowly descended from the beast-drawn carriage, ignoring the rows of lantern-bearing maidens at the gate, his expression icy as he moved to enter.
"My lord!" she called out.
His steps halted. He glanced sideways and saw Xiuyun’s conflicted, desperate expression.
Likely something to do with Mingyi. Ji Bozhai scoffed inwardly. She was so capable—she could manage perfectly well without him. What trouble could she possibly face that she couldn’t solve?
He wouldn’t lift a finger for her. She refused to return when called; any trouble was her own fault.
With a dramatic flick of his sleeve, he turned away—
—toward the Situ residence, striding over.
"My lord!" Hope lit Xiuyun’s eyes as she hurriedly explained, "Ming Guniang was taken by the Sun family! She can craft Divine Tools—I fear Sun Liao means to harm her!"
Divine Tools? Sun Liao?
Ji Bozhai frowned. "Those 'The Moment I Arrived' and 'Thundering Force' he had before… weren’t they—"
"Crafted by Ming Guniang!"
"…"
She was full of surprises. No wonder those Divine Tools carried a familiar essence—it was hers.
With such skill, why didn’t she just join the Academicians' Court? Why let Sun Liao exploit her?Was it because of him that she didn't want to go to the Academicians' Court?
Her heart sank and rose repeatedly. Ji Bozhai had never realized before that his emotions could fluctuate so unpredictably, like the weather—unstable even to himself.
Irritated, he waved his hand and said in a deep voice, "What do you want me to do?"
Xiuyun was dumbfounded, staring at him blankly. "What to do... Naturally, save Mingyi."
"Bring her back to my residence, right?" He nodded. "As you wish."
Xiuyun: ?
Though she didn't understand what was happening, this probably wasn't her wish.
Ji Bozhai strode back to the beast-drawn carriage, his tone noticeably lighter than before. "To the Sun residence."
Buxiu hesitated for a moment. "Headmaster Qin specifically warned you not to provoke Sun Liao."
"Provoke?" Ji Bozhai raised an eyebrow. "I'm fulfilling the wish of a poor, helpless commoner. As Fighters, we must never forget our roots while wielding our strength. Matters of the capital are important, but so are the concerns of the common people. Let's go."
Buxiu: "..." He had never seen his master take the world's burdens as his own before.
Mingyi easily escaped the guarded room and began searching the residence.
Compared to the Ji residence, the security here was so lax that she moved around as freely as if it were her own home. In no time, she found the Sun family's account books.
Due to buying official positions and social expenses, the Sun family had been pouring large sums of capital into these endeavors, leaving them in a state of deficit for years. The Shell Coin Notes given to her weren't reflected in the accounts, but such a large sum—with no origin or destination—was undoubtedly suspicious.
Her heart sank with bitterness. If he dared to give her counterfeit Shell Coin Notes, she would surely deliver divine justice.
However, apart from these, there was no other evidence in the residence to incriminate Sun Liao. Proving his guilt wouldn't be easy.
Just as she was thinking this, voices approached from outside: "What's so great about Ji Bozhai? If pushed, you can fake your death and pin it on him. Even if he's at the height of his glory now, being blamed for the death of the only Artifact Smith would be enough to ruin him."
Mingyi froze and quickly hid behind a bookshelf.
The door opened, and the master of the house—whom she had seen earlier—entered with Sun Liao, speaking earnestly. "Our family's finances are severely strained. If you keep idling in the capital, we'll collapse sooner or later."
Sun Liao was resentful. "If I hadn't run into Ji Bozhai so early in the selection, I wouldn't have been eliminated so quickly. He did it on purpose! I need a way not only to ruin him but also to turn everyone against him."
Mingyi frowned.
Winning and losing were common in selections—what did it matter if it was intentional or not? Ji Bozhai probably didn't even remember his face.
"Is that Artifact Smith you captured obedient?"
"Very. He hasn't made a sound after being locked up for so long. When I sent someone to ask, he just said to assign him work if needed." Sun Liao smirked. "A penniless nobody—I have him under control."
"Then there's no rush. You can stay in the Academicians' Court a while longer." The elder Sun pondered. "I'll go greet Ji Bozhai. I doubt he can do much anyway."
"Fine." Sun Liao nodded, stepping aside to let him pass before casually grabbing a few Shell Coin Notes from a lacquered wooden box and stuffing them into his pocket as he followed.After they had gone some distance, Mingyi emerged, patted the wrinkled account book he had been lying on, and took it with him as he climbed over walls and tiles back to the guest room.
"Ah, Lord Ji's esteemed presence truly brings radiance to our humble abode," Old Master Sun greeted him at the door with a beaming smile, cupping his hands in salute. "We've kept you waiting. May I ask what brings you here?"
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