"I don't know what Ye Ling has forgotten. Maybe she has lost some instincts, or perhaps she has forgotten some kind of suggestion or backdoor that Dong Huazi imposed on her in the demon mist. These are all possible phenomena after enlightenment. Anyway, she doesn't have much in her head. What important thing could she forget? Why are you worried about it?"
Qin Yi was busy setting up a formation, while Liu Su leaned against the doorframe, pointing out how to arrange it and answering his questions. However, the way Liu Su explained things sounded really awkward.
Qin Yi turned his head in surprise and looked at Liu Su. "I see you have a lot of opinions about Ye Ling?"
"I have no opinions about her," Liu Su replied stiffly. "It's just that she's been coming here too often lately, interrupting our quiet time."
"That's still an opinion..." Qin Yi said helplessly. "She comes here because I want her to. It's to gather more information about Dong Huazi."
"Pfft." Liu Su scoffed. "At this point, what useful information has she provided besides knowing that Dong Huazi is an old man and that his cultivation definitely doesn't match up to her musical talent?"
"That’s pretty useful. At least I know Dong Huazi isn’t a woman."
"......" Liu Su was astonished. "You actually thought about that?"
Qin Yi admitted honestly, "I did think about it. If she were a great beauty, would I have to kill my sister to prove my worth?"
Liu Su asked in surprise, "Kill a woman to prove your worth? Where did you hear that?"
"What? Is it not a thing?"
"It does exist," Liu Su paused for a moment and suddenly sneered. "If you want to go down that path, it’s not impossible."
"From the way you're talking, why do I feel like if I go down that path, you'd be the first to knock me out?"
Liu Su was quite pleased. "You're sharp enough to be my disciple."
Qin Yi nodded. "You're silly enough to be my friend."
"Qin Yi! Qin Yi!" A voice called from outside. It was Li Qingjun. "Where have you gone?"
Before Qin Yi could answer, Li Qingjun rushed into the backyard.
"Are you not afraid I have traps set up again? Are you going to get caught again?" Qin Yi said with annoyance.
"If there are traps in the front yard, that's fine. But if I have to set traps on the way from my own room to the backyard, then that's just crazy, right?"
"Uh..." Qin Yi thought for a moment. "Actually, that’s a good idea. No one would expect it, right? Maybe it could catch someone off guard."
Li Qingjun rolled her eyes, quickly noticing the peach wood sword in front of Qin Yi. The sword was stuck in the ground, and it looked like it had been planted like a seed.
"What are you doing? Planting a sword to harvest thousands?"
"You got it right." Qin Yi smiled. "Next year on this day, I’ll come to collect a thousand swords."
"Pfft! So ridiculous." Li Qingjun didn’t dig deeper. Remembering her purpose, she smiled and said, "Do you know you’ve struck it rich?"
"Huh? I haven't done anything since coming to Li Huo City."
"I had someone replicate your toothpaste, toothbrush, and fragrant soap. Now the whole Li Huo is using them. Even my father likes them."
For the princess's business, not many dared to copy it in Li Huo City. This monopoly was quite scary, and Qin Yi could almost see a mountain of gold piling up in front of him. No wonder Li Qingjun seemed happier every day; the shadow of her elder brother's assassination was gradually fading.
Qin Yi smiled. "I see. As long as your father likes it, that's good. As for the sales, there's no need to split the profits. Consider it the cost for bringing me those materials."
Saying that, he turned back to fiddle with the sword.
Li Qingjun watched his back with admiration.
At first, she thought Qin Yi was just a young man pretending to be calm, but after getting to know him better, she realized he was genuinely easygoing. He hardly cared about money or the future. Every day, he was either refining pills or practicing martial arts, and lately, he had been making talismans, hardly stepping out of the house.
Anyone else who had built a good relationship with the crown princess would likely not have Qin Yi's attitude.
In the oppressive and tense atmosphere of the capital, Li Qingjun could always find a feeling that was closest to her understanding of "the way" here.
That's why she liked coming here so much. Besides wanting to hear about the Journey to the West, it also somewhat satisfied her wish to seek out immortals.
Qin Yi's attitude towards her was also different. At least before, he had claimed he had important matters to attend to and wanted to rush her away, but that was no longer the case.
Even Liu Su could see that Qin Yi had an unusual fondness for this reckless princess.
"My brother's funeral is set for tomorrow. The national master will hold a grand ceremony, and it's said that the soul can ascend to the heavenly court," Li Qingjun sighed. "Sometimes... I wish what Dong Huazi said was true."
"That's human nature," Qin Yi finally finished arranging the sword and left the backyard. "Let's go in and have a drink."
Li Qingjun followed behind and said, "I feel like you are the real national master. Once we get rid of Dong Huazi, you should take his place."
She had said similar things before, but her tone was entirely different now.
"Me? I'm not cut out for that." Qin Yi laughed. "Who would recognize a national master who hides in his room and sleeps all day?"
Li Qingjun replied, "Whether people recognize you or not, you don't need to do anything."
"Huh? Then what do I need?"
"All you need is... for us to say you have the ability."
Qin Yi paused for a moment, letting out a sigh. "I'm not the real national master; you are the real support."
Li Qingjun pulled her legs closer. "Why do you sometimes say things that suddenly sound so vulgar?"
As they joked around, they returned to the house. Qin Yi snapped his fingers, and a wine gourd floated over.
Upon closer inspection, there was a talisman paper at the bottom of the gourd. It was just a simple levitation spell that didn’t even require magic power, just internal energy to control it...
But this trick was perfect for showing off in front of mortals. Dong Huazi had mastered it well, and after learning about it, Qin Yi had specially practiced it.
Once he learned it, he fell in love with it. He increasingly realized that Taoist techniques were not just for fighting; they could replace manual labor and provide countless conveniences.
It was simply a must-have skill for lazy people at home and while traveling. He really wanted to cultivate immortality...
Li Qingjun wasn’t surprised by the floating wine gourd. She easily grabbed it, poured some wine, and urged, "Continue with the Journey to the West."
Qin Yi thought that if he really told the story, Ye Ling would probably cry, so he changed the subject. "I haven't seen your brother in three days. What is he doing?"
"Every day, he faces the attacks from the national master’s faction in court, and they keep trying to frame him," Li Qingjun said, her expression unwavering, angrily adding, "What’s frustrating is that my father is actually hesitating because of what they said."
Qin Yi widened his eyes in shock. This was too exaggerated, right? Was the king really that foolish? He only had one son left, and he was hesitating about who to pass the throne to?
"But there are still many officials supporting my brother. He has officially been named the crown prince today."
"Can you not speak so breathlessly?"
"Is there a difference?" Li Qingjun whispered. "In the end... my father trusts the national master more than he trusts my brother."
Qin Yi fell silent.
Suddenly, footsteps were heard outside, and someone hurriedly entered, calling through the door, "Princess..."
It was the voice of Li Qingjun's own attendant. Li Qingjun was puzzled. "What’s the matter?"
"We just received news that Prince Mang Zhan from the Western Wilderness has come to pay his respects to the crown prince. He has just arrived outside the west city gate."
Li Qingjun stood up abruptly, her eyes wide with anger. "They dare to come!"
Before Qin Yi could react, he saw Li Qingjun rush out like a gust of wind, grabbing a spear from her attendant's hands and charging out of the royal palace.
"Dammit..." Qin Yi realized how serious this was. Was she really going to confront the Western Wilderness envoy directly? He was speechless and could only grab Liu Su and quickly follow her.
How could he have thought this reckless girl was pretty and cute before? What was he thinking?
His speed couldn’t match Li Qingjun’s, but he finally caught up to the west city gate. The first thing he saw was a flash of silver, like a falcon diving down, aimed at a very strong man with a thick beard on a horse at the front of the envoy.
Qin Yi could even see Li Qinglun beside the bearded man, looking shocked.
The next moment, arrows rained down. It was the Southern Li army shooting... They didn’t have time to identify who the assassin was; they just knew they couldn’t let the envoy be attacked at their own city gate, especially since the assassin was likely targeting Li Qinglun!
The only princess of Southern Li, at her own city gate, was being showered with arrows from her own army... Then the new crown prince of Southern Li, caught in a ridiculous situation, leaped up, shouting at his men to stop, while trying hard to shield his sister from the arrows raining down. Qin Yi really didn’t know how to describe this absurd scene. This reckless girl probably hadn’t thought about this beforehand, right?
Prince Mang Zhan of the Western Wilderness was equally stunned by the scene. He reacted quickly, grabbing the spear hanging by his horse and blocking Li Qingjun's silver spear.
With a loud clang, the spear and the polearm clashed, creating a huge noise. Li Qingjun was already weakened by the arrows shot by her own men, and it was clear that Mang Zhan was not an easy opponent. Li Qingjun didn’t gain any advantage and was instead pushed back.
In mid-air, she had nowhere to brace herself and had to flip backward. The spear came at her waist like a shadow, aiming to stab her as she spun.
He was an experienced warrior. While in the air, she could dodge in other directions, but her waist was the only point of leverage that she couldn’t avoid.
At that moment, Qin Yi’s wolf fang club smashed down fiercely onto the spear.
(End of this chapter)