When Qin Yi arrived at the small courtyard of Night Ling, Li Qingjun had already come with her spear to the entrance of the prince's mansion. A group of people was gathered outside, and their leader was speaking to the steward, saying, "There is demonic energy here, which could be harmful to the prince. Let us enter and eliminate the threat for him."
The steward hesitated. Normally, he wouldn’t allow anyone to enter, but he was worried about the dark energy inside. Moreover, this leader was a trusted confidant of the prince, often coming to the mansion, so he didn’t feel too alert. He replied, "The prince is strict about his household. Since he is not here, I cannot allow anyone to enter without permission. I hope General Liu can understand."
General Liu then said, "It is precisely the prince who instructed me to come and check the situation."
The steward, not suspecting anything, nodded and said, "Then I will have to trouble General Liu."
General Liu looked pleased and was about to enter when a cold glint suddenly appeared, aimed straight at his throat. He was startled and stepped back, only to see Li Qingjun with a stern face and her spear pointed at him.
"Princess, this..."
Li Qingjun coldly replied, "You say there is a threat to the prince, yet you also claim the prince sent you here. Don’t you find that contradictory and ridiculous?"
The steward's expression changed, and he looked at General Liu with a wary gaze. He waved his hand, and numerous guards appeared to block the entrance.
General Liu was taken aback. This Princess Zhaoyang had always been reckless, but today she was surprisingly sharp, catching a flaw in the old steward's words that he hadn’t even noticed. He could only argue, "Princess, you are overthinking this. I am only worried about the prince's safety, which is why I said that. It is indeed the prince's order for me to come..."
In truth, Li Qingjun wasn’t being sharp; she had come looking for trouble. Qin Yi had told her to stop any outsiders until her brother returned, and she was good at causing a scene.
With one hand holding the spear aimed at him, she extended her other hand, "Your token."
"I came in a hurry, and the prince didn’t give me a token..." General Liu said, "But it’s a small matter; the prince wouldn’t require a token for everything..."
Li Qingjun narrowed her eyes, finally understanding why Qin Yi had asked her to stop any outsiders.
This person definitely had issues. While he was a trusted aide of her brother, he might not need a token to enter the mansion personally, but how could he bring an entire army into their home without one? That was not how things worked!
General Liu was about to say more when Li Qingjun's expression darkened, "Get lost!"
With a thrust of her spear, her fierce aura pushed back several people standing at the entrance, leaving them pale and shaken.
This was a problem.
What terrible luck to run into this princess here! Were they really going to force their way into the prince's mansion?
While they were at a standstill, not far away, Qin Yi and Ming He were watching the scene from under a tree.
"The prince's confidant is trying to force his way into the prince's mansion while he’s away," Qin Yi said with a smile. "Isn’t that interesting?"
Ming He watched quietly, showing no reaction or expression. She looked as if she was saying, "What does that have to do with me?"
Qin Yi continued, "Do you think it has nothing to do with you?"
Ming He turned to glance at him.
"If you entered the mansion to eliminate the demon and brought the corpse to Dong Huazi, this scene wouldn’t be happening."
Ming He seemed to understand and quickly grasped the situation. It was clear that someone had seen the demonic energy rising and had sent people in to collect the demon's corpse.
General Liu could have come in to do this himself, but he brought a whole team because...
Qin Yi seemed to know what she was thinking and said directly, "This morning, I entered the palace to meet the prince. Someone sneaked into my courtyard and died under your wooden sword. The body hasn’t even been buried yet. How could this Liu have the guts to come in alone without knowing the details?"
Ming He nodded.
"So this matter, regardless of cause and effect, is related to you," Qin Yi added. "In fact, you might think you’re just slaying demons and not involved in power struggles, but you’ve unintentionally provided ammunition for Dong Huazi’s power struggle and become a pawn without realizing it."
Ming He suddenly spoke, "So you’re saying that I am also a character in this play?"
Qin Yi replied, "Once you enter the mortal world, you’re part of it. To say you’re just watching the play is not so easy."
Ming He countered, "So you are also a pawn of Li Qinglin?"
Qin Yi thought for a moment and shook his head, "At least I have feelings for his sister. Saying I’m a friend of his isn’t an exaggeration. Besides, I share many goals with him. What about you and Dong Huazi?"
Ming He fell silent, and after a moment, she sighed softly, "Yes, once you enter the mortal world, you are part of it. Thinking you are an observer, yet you are already entangled in cause and effect, and you must bear the consequences. You are right."
"Dao friend..." This was the first time Ming He referred to Qin Yi in this way.
Everyone has their own desires. Ming He came down from the mountain primarily to experience the mortal world; slaying demons was just a side task. Qin Yi inviting her to watch the play and saying these words hit the nail on the head.
Someone who understands me is naturally a dao friend.
Liu Su was secretly amazed. It had never discussed with Qin Yi why Ming He had come to South Li. All signs indicated that she was mostly wandering the world to slay demons, with only a small part possibly related to Dong Huazi. Yet Qin Yi could assert she was here to experience the mortal world.
It suddenly realized that while Qin Yi might not be particularly clever, he seemed to have a kind of talent; his instincts were sharp. For example, he had sensed her intentions of seizing a body, and his unease about Li Qinglin’s delay was related to this sensitivity.
That kind of insight couldn’t be gained through cultivation.
It wondered what the current cultivation world looked like... If it were back in its day, someone like Qin Yi would have done quite well.
While Liu Su was lost in thought, Qin Yi was still talking to Ming He, "Actually, you were right about the argument regarding the demon."
Ming He was somewhat surprised; Qin Yi hadn’t seemed like that earlier...
Qin Yi sighed, "You said that cultivators slay demons to protect the world, allowing for its prosperity. I enjoy these benefits without realizing it, as if I’m sitting in a city enjoying the peace while blaming the soldiers at the borders for killing. That seems quite foolish... But my cultivation isn’t enough, and I feel it can’t be explained like that. I just haven’t managed to see through it. In any case, I can’t bear to watch Night Ling die."
Ming He seemed to smile a bit, "Night Ling?"
"Uh, that name was just nonsense. I know I can’t fool a dao friend, so I won’t make a joke out of it," Qin Yi said frankly. "But since you’ve started watching the play, why not watch it more thoroughly?"
Ming He nodded and didn’t reply.
Qin Yi’s attitude of admitting his mistakes impressed her. Many people stubbornly hold onto their views, but few can calmly admit their inability to see through things.
So she decided to wait until this matter was resolved before making a decision. She knew Qin Yi was right; she had unintentionally provided ammunition for others’ struggles. She didn’t want to continue insisting and foolishly get involved in cause and effect.
Meanwhile, at the entrance, General Liu could no longer hold his ground.
Since entering the prince’s mansion was not by order, and the princess had already noticed, retreating now would be useless. He would inevitably face the prince’s wrath later, so it was better to go all out!
"Since the princess doesn’t trust me, to avoid disobeying orders, I can only offend you!" General Liu drew his long knife and led his team to attack.
Li Qingjun raised her spear, and soon the two sides clashed.
Qin Yi had wanted to say something to Ming He, but seeing Li Qingjun and General Liu fighting, he could no longer hold back. He grabbed his wolf-toothed club and rushed over, swinging it at General Liu’s head.
With a loud clang, General Liu felt a numbness in his hand and quickly retreated in shock.
Li Qingjun exclaimed, "You’re here? Is everything okay inside?"
Qin Yi smiled slightly, "It’s fine."
Li Qingjun swept her spear to knock away a soldier and said, "Perfect timing for us to fight side by side."
Seeing the affectionate looks between the two, the atmosphere of battle turned somewhat sour, and Ming He shook her head from a distance.
No wonder they said he was already part of the play; Qin Yi was truly immersed in it. This was no longer just entering the mortal world but getting tangled up in it, lost in a dream. What was the point of cultivating now? She wondered who his master was; seeing this would surely infuriate them!
At the end of the long street, the sound of hooves thundered as Li Qinglin led his team back to the mansion, charging straight into the battle. General Liu's expression changed drastically, and he wanted to retreat, but Li Qinglin didn’t give him the chance. With a flash of his silver spear, blood splattered, and General Liu clutched his throat, gasping for breath.
This seasoned warrior, charging into battle on horseback, brought a fierce aura that was certainly beyond what Qin Yi and Li Qingjun could compare to. The moment he appeared, the soldiers who had dared to surround the princess turned pale and lost all fighting spirit, dropping their weapons and surrendering.
In an instant, the battle was quelled, but Li Qinglin didn’t look pleased. Instead, he looked seriously at Qin Yi, "Brother Qin, the situation has changed. We need to discuss this inside the mansion."
When Qin Yi turned to look, Ming He had already vanished from the shade of the trees in the courtyard.
(End of Chapter)