Chapter 3. Undercurrents Surge Let me give you some candy.

That night, a gentle breeze opened a window, and closed it again a moment later.

Outside the window, a few scattered stars twinkled.

At this time, there was an additional person in Xin Jiao Zhou’s room.

“This subordinate has failed in her duty to protect the master. Please punish me, master!”

The man respectfully knelt on the ground, his back straight as a rod.

The person on the chair closed her eyes and rubbed her temples.

“Who won?”

She did not respond to the black-clothed man’s request, but instead asked another question.

Ru Feng straightened up, changing to a single-knee kneel, and answered with his head lowered: “Hao Yue Gate.”

He slightly raised his eyes, secretly glancing at the master’s expression.

Seeing that the other party’s face remained unmoved, with a normal expression, Ru Feng then continued to answer: “Gate Master Feng.”

Faced with this answer, the other party seemed unsurprised, as if she had already anticipated it, and only faintly replied with a single word: “Mm.”

“Rest for the night, and set out early tomorrow morning.” Still concise and sparing with words.

“Yes!”

Ru Feng rose smoothly, and was about to leave after reporting as usual, but the other party suddenly called out to stop him: “Wait.”

Ru Feng withdrew his outstretched foot and respectfully replied with his head lowered: “Yes.”

“Do you eat candy?” the person opposite asked.

The question came unexpectedly, and Ru Feng went: “Hm?”

The other party directly tossed something, and Ru Feng hurriedly reached out to catch it.

Feeling a weight in his hand, he then heard the other party say: “Moon Joy candy.”

“?” Ru Feng stood dumbfounded on the spot.

Then Ru Feng reacted, candy? Is there time to think about “Moon Joy candy” now?

Isn’t this person in front of him his master?

He was so worried his head was about to smoke, yet this person was in the mood to buy candy… Wasn’t it him who had just been abandoned by everyone?

Ru Feng’s face stiffened, strongly suppressing the twitching at the corners of his mouth, almost squeezing out this word through his teeth: “Eat.”

…

Ru Feng respectfully closed the door and retreated.

He stood in the corridor, looking at the large package of candy in his hand, calmed down for a while, before walking downstairs.

Faced with the black-clothed man who suddenly came down from upstairs and stood in front of her, yet was asking to check in, the innkeeper was surprised for a moment.

But she quickly regained her composure.

After all, as the innkeeper of a guest house, having experienced many jianghu affairs, she had this much discernment.

“Ask fewer questions, do more work”, a six-character lifesaving mantra.

The innkeeper put on her trademark smile, and asked with crinkled eyes: “Sir, are you stopping for a meal or staying the night?”

Ru Feng had already concealed his expression.

He coldly glanced at the innkeeper.

Just this one glance made the innkeeper uncontrollably shudder, breaking out in a cold sweat.

“Staying the night.”

The innkeeper’s heart dropped, speechless for a moment.

If you’re staying the night, just stay the night, why act like you’re about to kill someone and silence them!

The innkeeper patted her chest, and put on her trademark smile again: “Alright! This way please, sir!”

…

The next morning.

Sunlight shone through the window paper, leaving a patch of soft, warm light.

Xin Jiao Zhou propped herself up, squinting her eyes, raising her hand to shield them, paused for a second, then threw off the covers and got out of bed.

She came to stand by the window.

The window opened with a “whoosh”, and bright sunlight filled the room, bathing her whole body.

The person by the window gained a lazy air, her hair rimmed with a layer of gold, warmly draped over her body.

In the windless space, time seemed to freeze, quiet and beautiful, with only fine sparkling dust floating gently in the sunlight.

Xin Jiao Zhou took a few breaths to regulate her energy, exhaled a breath of turbid air, feeling relaxed in body and mind, and turned to approach the desk.

As soon as her foot touched the ground and she stood still, Ru Feng, who had been hiding in the shadows, walked forward and handed over the clothes from the hanger. She casually took them and put them on.

Xin Jiao Zhou sat by the table, a cup of clear tea wafting its fragrance, its aroma dispelling the turbid air in her body, leaving her refreshed in body and mind.

Just as she put down her cup, “knock knock knock” – three knocks sounded at the door.

Who could it be at this time?

Xin Jiao Zhou looked at Ru Feng, only to see him shaking his head as well.

Xin Jiao Zhou casually raised her hand, and the door “pop” opened. Ru Feng hid in the shadows again.

Opening the door revealed a familiar smiling face: “Guest, breakfast is here.” It was the young attendant who had guided them yesterday.

After the young attendant had set out the meal tray, bowls, and chopsticks, and closed the door on his way out, Xin Jiao Zhou glanced at Ru Feng.

Ru Feng understood: “This subordinate has already eaten.”

Xin Jiao Zhou picked up her spoon and began eating breakfast.

The morning light gently enveloped her body, so comfortable that even her bones felt soft.

With a crisp “tack” sound, Ru Feng looked towards the source of the noise, only to see that the person opposite had already put down her bowl and chopsticks.

She wiped her lips with a silk handkerchief, elegantly folded it to one side, then turned to face him.

Her expression calm, she asked naturally: “Did you eat that candy?”

This time, Ru Feng maintained his calm brow: “I did.”

She asked again: “How was it?”

Ru Feng frowned, pondered for a long while, then tentatively replied: “Very… sweet?”

After hearing his words, as was her usual style, she responded with a single word: “Mm.”

Ru Feng felt uneasy.

— Did this mean the master thought he had answered correctly, or incorrectly?

Ru Feng snapped out of it.

— No, at a time like this, why was the master so concerned about that Moon Joy candy?

Was this really alright?

Yet the other party’s manner was as serious as usual.

Ru Feng inwardly held his head.

A quarter of an hour later, the meal was finished.

Once Xin Jiao Zhou had tidied her appearance and was seated properly on the stool, Ru Feng then walked in front of Xin Jiao Zhou to await orders.

“Go to Poison Spirit Sect,” the person in front said.

Poison Spirit Sect, a place greatly feared in the martial arts world, for it was the source of all poisons. But as time passed, people only knew to avoid it, forgetting that it was also the birthplace of all kinds of antidotes, a place of vitality.

Going there indeed had the highest possibility of finding the answers they wanted. Brilliant!

Yes, this was still his wise master.

“Understood,” Ru Feng replied.

The master and subordinate were both people of few words. Having set their target, they directly set off, leaving Guanyin Town together on this quiet and peaceful morning…

At this time, in a place unknown to all, a conspiracy was quietly brewing.

“Smack–!”

A woman flew out from behind a vermilion door.

Behind the door it was brightly lit, as bright as day, with singing and dancing, full of life and color; but outside the door, it was a cold and clear night, with only a few pedestrians on the road, accompanied only by the moon.

“Get lost! You dare come to Spring Fragrance House without money!”

The woman speaking had a scar on her face and looked fierce. She was the bouncer of Spring Fragrance House, known as Sister Hu.

“Do you think the gentlemen of Spring Fragrance House are easy to bully?”

A delicately made-up, alluring young male courtesan stood between the two, lifting his dainty pointed chin and holding a handkerchief, coquettishly said to the woman: “Sister Hu, let her see how formidable our Spring Fragrance House is!” He was the top-ranked courtesan of Spring Fragrance House, Xing’er.

Xing’er puffed out his chest and declared: “We may be courtesans, but we’re not pieces of dough that anyone can pinch and knead as they please! Hmph!”

These words were not only directed at the person who had been kicked out, but also a veiled warning to those who harbored similar unsavory thoughts but hadn’t yet dared to act on them openly.

Having said this, he lifted his skirt and walked back inside.

If what that young courtesan said was true, this woman had actually tried to enjoy services at Spring Fragrance House without paying!

Afterwards, Sister Hu followed the usual procedure, grabbing one foot of the woman on the ground, ignoring any of her pleas for mercy, and dragged her all the way to a nearby alley. There, she gave her a simple and brutal beating, and finally spat on her before leaving.

In the dark alley, creatures of the corner were quietly growing, eroding…

“Hahahahaha…” A burst of laughter echoed in the alley, the atmosphere eerie.

In the alley, the beaten person lay on the ground, not angry at all, but instead laughing, with a hint of madness in the laughter.

As Bo Jia Zi laughed, her eyes unexpectedly became a little moist.

She lay on her back, motionless, allowing the moisture at the corners of her eyes to flow freely, falling to the ground, mixing with dust and blood.

Looking up at the narrow night sky between the alleys, after a while, she couldn’t help but laugh bitterly in her heart, “Haha… the night sky is clear… the night sky is clear…” Even the stars had bypassed this cramped darkness, bypassed her.

One month ago.

Bo Jia Zi was still the second young lady of the Bo family, a great medical family in the imperial capital. Her family was a famous medicine merchant in the capital, and her elder sister was an imperial physician highly valued by the then favored gentleman – Gentleman De – in the palace.

At that time, Gentleman De was still in high favor, and not long after, it was announced that he was with child.

As the attending physician for the favored gentleman’s pregnancy, her elder sister became unrivaled in the Imperial Medical Academy for a time, and their family also enjoyed unlimited glory because of this, with many officials and nobles coming to curry favor and associate with them.

However, news suddenly came from the palace recently that Gentleman De had an affair with a guard. The evidence was conclusive, and the Empress was furious. Gentleman De was shocked and miscarried on the spot, falling unconscious.

As Gentleman De’s attending physician for the pregnancy, yet unable to protect the imperial daughter in Gentleman De’s belly, her elder sister immediately confessed her guilt to the Empress and asked for death.

No matter how suspicious the matter was, or what the truth really was, it was not something a mere imperial physician could argue about or influence. All her sister could do was to take the initiative to admit guilt and take responsibility before the Empress, using her life to appease the Empress’s anger, so that her family could obtain the greatest protection in this storm.

Originally still riding high on success, suddenly hearing the news of her sister’s death, their mother fell ill, unable to bear the shock. Their father attended to her illness, weeping daily.

The entire Bo mansion suddenly suffered a blow, with a depressing and oppressive atmosphere permeating from top to bottom, everyone fearing for themselves.

Following this came the decline of the medicinal herb business, with the previous crowd of flatterers scattering like birds and beasts. Competitors took advantage of the weakness, and many people kicked the Bo family while they were down, either out of personal grudges or to curry favor with the powerful.

Originally, her mother had always managed the family’s medicinal herb business, while she only cared about enjoying herself. Her family, out of love for her, and relying on their vast wealth and the protection of the imperial family, indulged her to play around for a few more years.

None of them had ever anticipated that such a day would come.

Everything happened too suddenly.

When it came to business matters, Bo Jia Zi was completely at a loss.

The result was predictable; the family business was squandered in her hands.

In just a few short days, the entire Bo family was in a precarious situation, living off their dwindling resources.

Before long, the once illustrious and renowned Bo family would completely disappear from the imperial city.

Bo Jia Zi had tried her best, and had even gone to beg those “friends.” However, as if they had all agreed beforehand, everyone said that they only knew that in the current imperial harem, the eldest young master of the Hua family, Gentleman Yan, was currently in high favor. As for other matters, they knew nothing and wouldn’t inquire about them.

Indeed, if it were her, she would also choose to protect herself.

This matter, ultimately, was due to the Empress’s fury. The incident with Gentleman De had greatly angered the Empress, and now everyone was relieved that Gentleman Yan was there, making the Empress dote on him and be happy, distracting her thoughts. Who would dare to provoke the Empress’s wrath and go against her at this juncture?

Moreover, not only did their Bo family have an elder sister connected to Gentleman De and that “questionable” “bastard” in Gentleman De’s belly, which could be said to be deeply implicated, but their family’s business also had conflicting interests with the Hua family, the birth family of the currently favored Gentleman Yan.

Either of these two was not someone ordinary people could afford to offend, let alone those lurking in the shadows, always waiting for an opportunity to curry favor with these two.

Those who had been friendly with their family before now feared that others would learn of this past association, afraid that one day it might bring trouble upon themselves.

Everyone was already rushing to protect themselves, so how could they maintain any connection with their family? Let alone help them. Now, even if one wasn’t particularly clever, they knew what was best to do.

She felt guilty, but her mother and father had never said a word blaming her, which made her feel even worse.

Thinking of some “interesting stories” she had heard about Spring Fragrance House when she used to frequent the pleasure quarters with those fair-weather friends, she had a plan, which led to that scene just now.

For no other reason than to receive punishment. Whether it was verbal abuse or physical beating, as long as she was punished, anything done to her was fine.

Even though it wasn’t her intention, ultimately, it was she who had led this family step by step towards decline.

Although she also knew that she was only engaging in a useless act of catharsis.

Suddenly, a pair of boots appeared before Bo Jia Zi’s eyes, coming to a stop. A shadow fell, blocking the light above Bo Jia Zi’s head, unexpectedly darkening her vision and interrupting her scattered thoughts.

“Do you want to reverse your current predicament?”

A low, husky voice came from above, sexy and bewitching. The lingering “hiss” echoed in the alley, like a slippery venomous snake, dangerous and deadly.

The person said, “I can help you.”

“Who are you?” Bo Jia Zi asked.

She looked up, but because of the backlighting, she couldn’t see the person’s appearance clearly.

“Who I am, you don’t need to know,” the other party stood quietly in the night, yet seemed more like lying in wait for prey than standing in darkness. “You only need to know that I can help you.”

After saying this, as if thinking of something interesting, they laughed sinisterly twice, then continued, “And only I can help you.”

Most people hearing these words would probably think the other party was being presumptuous, but Bo Jia Zi was not most people.

She needed the hope the other party was offering, even if it was a deception, she would grasp it without hesitation.

Because she had no other choice left.