"Hmm..." Feng Feng reached out to pinch her cheek, rubbing his face against her, "Niu Niu! Ee... wuwu..." A Shui held Feng Feng tightly. If not for the warmth in her arms, she might have truly been heartbroken by Yu Tuan'er's questions... She couldn't love someone like Tang Lici. He was merely playing a game that pleased him—bestowing favors upon her, making her devotedly love him, live and die for him. Yet what he enjoyed wasn't her affection but the pleasure of winning the game, proving his omnipotence.
She didn't love men like Tang Lici, never had. She would be grateful for his kindness, understand that a hero without a confidant needed a way to amuse his soul. She would try to convince herself not to fear or avoid him, but she wouldn't love him.
Yet... what made her tremble was... why did she always feel disappointed?
Tang Lici was just that kind of person; he wouldn't change. She knew this perfectly well, so why did she keep feeling disappointed over and over again? It made her shiver, as if her soul harbored a consciousness not her own, silently betraying her body, and she didn't know where it would go.
As dawn broke, the Central Plains Sword Association party had left Jiaoyu Town and arrived at Wang County. The group stopped at an inn to rest. A Shui, Yu Tuan'er, and Lin Bu sat at one table. The dishes Tang Lici ordered for everyone were the same, except for an extra serving of Ginger Duck at their table. The southern winter was bitterly cold, and Ginger Duck helped dispel dampness and chill, especially beneficial for those without martial skills. A Shui ate slowly with her chopsticks, her heart a turmoil of emotions, while Yu Tuan'er and Lin Bu chatted animatedly, full of vigor.
After the meal, Cheng Yunpao and Dong Hubi bid farewell to Tang Lici, leading their group back to Good Cloud Mountain. Tang Lici, seemingly unaware of their conversation, remained seated, resting his chin on his hand as he gazed at the dishes, his expression serene. Yu Tuan'er tugged at A Shui's sleeve and whispered, "What's he doing?" A Shui shook her head. Suddenly, Feng Feng burst into loud sobs, crying out, "Niu Niu... Niu Niu Niu Niu... hug hug hug..." He waved his little hands at Tang Lici, his tender face streaked with tears. Throughout the journey, he had babbled endlessly at Tang Lici's back without receiving any response, and his tiny heart was filled with grievances, unable to understand why Tang Lici ignored him.
A Shui softly comforted him as Feng Feng sobbed between hiccups, "Cough cough cough..." Tang Lici remained motionless, chin in hand, staring at the dishes. Feng Feng cried until his whole face was buried in A Shui's chest, refusing to come out. A Shui held him tightly while Yu Tuan'er glared at Tang Lici. "Hey! Are you deaf? Why are you ignoring him?" Tang Lici lifted his eyes to look at her and smiled faintly. "Have the three of you eaten your fill?" Yu Tuan'er snorted. "Don't think just because you're treating us, you're so great. We have our own money. You're horrible, ignoring a child crying like that! Horrible! Very..." She paused, then emphasized heavily, "Very, very horrible!"A Shui didn't say a word. Tang Lici was always unpredictable—you couldn't say he treated people poorly, but... his "kindness" was never what one imagined. Feng Feng missed him, yet he turned a blind eye, and she wasn't surprised. A vague thought crossed her mind in that moment, almost absurdly—perhaps his ignoring someone didn't mean he didn't care, just as his kindness toward someone didn't necessarily mean he did.
He enjoyed being enigmatic. He enjoyed making others grieve for him.
That was just how he was. No one could change him, no one had the power to, because he was too strong.
"Master Lin," Tang Lici paid no mind to Yu Tuan'er's claims of him being "very, very bad," speaking in a gentle tone, "where did you encounter the man with the Face-tattooed Red Serpent?" Lin Bu stood up and walked over to sit at the same table as Tang Lici. "In a white carriage—inside was a massive iron cage." Tang Lici's eyes flickered. "Was there anything unusual about that carriage?" Lin Bu pondered for a moment. "The carriage was draped in white curtains. Inside, there were no seats, only a huge iron cage holding naked men. Aside from the cage, there was a strange odor in the carriage, as if some kind of animal had been kept there before."
"That would be Bai Suche's carriage," Tang Lici said. "It once housed many of the venomous snakes Pu Kui Sheng controlled." A Shui's lashes lifted slightly, and she suddenly raised her head. "Miss Bai's carriage is drawn by two fine steeds, both prized horses from the Western Regions. Miss Bai treasures them—their horseshoes bear a special mark, leaving a row of delicate patterns at the front when they tread the ground. Now that the heavy rain has passed, if we follow the hoofprints, we might be able to track down that carriage."
"You are always so observant," Tang Lici said softly. "If that carriage transported Master Lin to the valley below, then when the fire broke out last night, it must have left. We need only search the fire site for hoofprints to trace its path... Hm..." He paused mid-sentence, covering his mouth with his hand, his brow furrowing as he endured something for a long moment. "There's only one road leading out of He County's valley..."
Yu Tuan'er watched his expression curiously. "Are you hurt?" A Shui's gaze finally settled on him. Tang Lici's complexion was always flawless, his cheeks perpetually flushed, but today, beneath the rosy hue, there was a faint tinge of sallowness. "You..." She managed a small smile at last. "What's wrong?"
"There's only one road out of He County, and few take it. A carriage can't traverse mountains—we'll surely catch up." Tang Lici smiled back at her. "Let's go." He rose from his chair, steadying himself with his left hand on the table, his right still pressed to his mouth. He bent slightly, enduring another moment before straightening up and gliding out the door.Yu Tuan'er pointed at his retreating figure, gaping, "Hey! Are you really sick? How are you going to save anyone if you're ill? Hey!" She chased after him and grabbed Tang Lici's hand, pulling him to a stop. "A Shui-jie is really worried about you. If you're sick, why won't you tell anyone?" Tang Lici didn't shake her off. He looked her up and down with an indifferent gaze, though his expression remained gentle and smiling. "I'm not sick." Yu Tuan'er hadn't expected him to be so amiable and was even more surprised. She let go of his hand. "Were you about to throw up just now?" Tang Lici smiled faintly. "Mmm..." Yu Tuan'er suddenly laughed. "My mother told me only women who are pregnant keep feeling nauseous... You're so weird. Are you really not sick?" Tang Lici gave a light cough. "I think I'm just a little tired."
A Shui watched intently. Tang Lici was very gentle with Yu Tuan'er, as if handling a naive little white rabbit. She exhaled softly. "Young Master Tang, where is Peach Girl? You..." She paused. "You..." After two hesitations, she still couldn't finish. Tang Lici, however, smiled. His slender right index finger brushed past his lips, as if making a gesture for silence. He said softly, "Peach Girl isn't feeling well. She's resting." A Shui looked at him. "I think Peach Girl..." She spoke very quietly, trailing off mid-sentence. Having spent months at the Dissolute Shop, she knew Xifang Tao well. Xifang Tao had rebelled against the Dissolute Shop and was now an indispensable member of the righteous martial world. To others, it seemed like Xifang Tao had endured humiliation for a greater cause, but A Shui knew she wasn't that kind of person. Tang Lici's eyes curved up, the corners blooming like peach blossoms in an instant of dazzling beauty. "What do you think of Peach Girl?"
A Shui hesitated for a moment before speaking slowly, "I think Peach Girl... is very scheming..." Tang Lici said gently, "Then what do you think of me?" A Shui sighed faintly. "You're even more scheming than Peach Girl." Tang Lici burst into laughter, his demeanor shifting from refined elegance to unrestrained wildness in an instant. His laughter shook the room, sending dust cascading down. By the time the dust settled, he had already returned to his usual gentle and elegant smile, as if the raucous laughter had been nothing but a figment of someone's disordered imagination. "She fell off a cliff because of me—what a pity. But she won't die."
A Shui's expression changed. "You pushed Peach Girl off a cliff? Could it be... she really... is still with the Dissolute Shop?" Tang Lici's voice turned icy. "She manipulated Liu Yan to make poison, used the Gu Bead Poison to kill Chi Yun, and set up a trap in Bianjing to kill me. Liu Yan is crippled, Chi Yun is dead—doesn't she deserve to die?" A Shui shuddered. "But she's now part of the Central Plains Sword Association. If you pushed her off a cliff, aren't you afraid the entire world will turn against you? Did... did anyone see it happen?" Tang Lici's piercing gaze bore into her, the murderous and demonic aura in his eyes eclipsing the sun and moon. His lips grew even redder as he pressed them together, his voice soft. "When I kill... I never care what others say...""You... did you push Xifang Tao off the cliff as soon as you returned to Good Cloud Mountain? Have you never considered the consequences? If... if she recovers, the Central Plains Sword Association will surely split into two factions because of your discord, leading to its collapse..." A Shui whispered, "Young Master Tang, aren't you afraid the martial world will fall into chaos, the Poison Affliction will spread, and countless people will suffer..." Tang Lici smiled faintly, "I'm not a woman. I have no interest in compromising for the sake of peace." A Shui fell silent. He never listened to anyone's advice—this had always been the case.
"That so-called Peach Girl is utterly wicked," Yu Tuan'er chimed in. "Bad people deserve to die. How did you push her off the cliff? Will she die?" Tang Lici smiled gently at her and replied softly, "Late at night, while she was changing clothes in her room, I barged in and struck her back with a palm strike. She was in a hurry to put on her dress, distracted by it. By the time she finished dressing, I delivered another strike and sent her flying out the window down the cliff." Yu Tuan'er asked curiously, "She was too busy putting on clothes to fight back at full strength?" Tang Lici chuckled. "Mhm."
"If someone's about to be beaten to death, why care about clothes? Besides, she must have been wearing undergarments to sleep—does she sleep naked or something?" Yu Tuan'er pressed on bluntly. "What kind of strange woman is she?" Tang Lici replied gently, "She wasn’t afraid of being seen naked. She was afraid of something else being seen—something that should have been seen." Yu Tuan'er frowned. "What 'something else'?" Tang Lici coughed lightly, his expression feigning subtlety. "She isn’t a woman. He’s a man. He wasn’t undressed—he was wearing men’s clothes." Yu Tuan'er burst into laughter. "Ah! So he wasn’t afraid of being seen without clothes—he was afraid of being seen without women’s clothes! That’s why he was in such a hurry to put on a dress, and that’s how you managed to push him off the cliff!" Tang Lici smiled. "You’re incredibly clever."
"So 'Peach Girl' was actually a man!" Yu Tuan'er turned to A Shui. "Sister A Shui, didn’t you know he was a man?" A Shui shook her head and murmured, "Peach Girl was so stunningly beautiful—few would ever think he was a man." Tang Lici gave a soft laugh, his right hand lowering as his snow-white sleeve draped over his wrist. "In terms of beauty, no one compares to you, Sister A Shui." Yu Tuan'er, however, remarked, "I think if you dressed as a woman, you might be breathtakingly beautiful too."
"Young Master Tang, after pushing Peach Girl off the cliff, she won’t let this go," A Shui said, not engaging in their discussion about Xifang Tao’s clothing. After a moment of contemplation, she asked, "Will she really not die?" Tang Lici shook his head. "She’s taken the Ape-Demon Nine Hearts Pill. Even if she fell off the cliff, her injuries won’t be severe." A Shui whispered, "Then she’ll surely claim you tried to kill her and rally her supporters against you." Tang Lici replied gently, "If I were her, I’d definitely frame myself for some incident." A Shui bit her lip and said nothing, only to hear Tang Lici continue softly, "But before leaving Good Cloud Mountain, I framed her for an incident first."Tang Lici said that whoever he framed would find it difficult to clear their name. A Shui listened, unsure whether to feel relieved at Tang Lici's extraordinary intellect or chilled and fearful of his ruthless scheming. The world seemed vast and indistinct, where right and wrong, truth and falsehood, blurred together. Life was profoundly bewildering. At times, she couldn’t comprehend how Tang Lici found his direction—how he could move forward without doubt, even resorting to unscrupulous means. Where did his conviction and strength come from? Had he himself become lost in these evils and conspiracies?
To unwaveringly believe oneself to be right requires an immensely strong heart.
Young Master Tang...
Her gaze drifted toward Tang Lici, though her focus seemed to land nowhere. To steadfastly believe oneself to be right demands an immensely strong heart, but... but the reason Tang Lici spoke of "elegant debauchery," ignored Feng Feng, and sent Xifang Tao tumbling off the cliff—it was all because... he wasn’t strong.
He ought to be calmer, deeper, more enduring, more ruthless, more terrifying—yet he couldn’t achieve it...
"I’m starting not to dislike you anymore," Yu Tuan'er said to Tang Lici. "You're a bad person, but you're different from other bad people." Tang Lici smiled. "How so?" Yu Tuan'er replied, "Because you're going to save Big Brother Shen." She hadn’t forgotten that Tang Lici had stayed behind precisely to rescue Shen Langhun.
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