Back at the residence, the three of them went straight to Ye Ling's room.
Ye Ling was no longer the messy child covered in soot. She had cleaned herself up, wearing a loose outfit that covered her now smaller wings. She looked like a child wearing an adult's clothes, with her small hands tucked inside the sleeves, hugging her knees as she sat on the stone steps waiting for Qin Yi.
When she saw Qin Yi and the Li siblings approaching, her expression brightened for a moment, but then she quickly returned to her usual distant and quiet demeanor.
In front of Li Qinglin, she always acted mature and reserved. If she showed even a hint of childishness, Li Qinglin would remind her that such behavior wouldn’t help her seek revenge or achieve anything significant.
Being a silent and cold creature filled with hatred seemed to be the necessary way to be around him.
But Qin Yi was different. Whether she was sitting on the ground or crawling around, he never scolded her. Instead, his gaze became even kinder, and his voice softened when he told stories.
Li Qinglin didn’t mind her attitude. He looked around the room and frowned at the hole in the ceiling. “Is that outsider really that powerful? To be able to kill from a distance… this is beyond what we expected.”
Qin Yi replied, “Shouldn’t your first concern be Ye Ling’s condition?”
Li Qinglin chuckled, “You’re the pharmacist.”
Implying that it was enough for Qin Yi to worry about that sort of thing.
Qin Yi shook his head helplessly and sighed, “For now, don’t worry about Ming He, but you must not provoke her.”
Li Qinglin smiled, “Actually, I’ve already seen her. This morning, during Wang Xiong’s funeral, she was watching me from a distance on a hill. I felt something and turned to look, and I knew right away that she was the outsider Ye Ling mentioned.”
Qin Yi was curious about their meeting, so he asked, “And then?”
“There was no ‘and then,’” Li Qinglin said. “She might have wanted to say something to me, but when she saw me, she didn’t. I had thought about talking to her too, but once I saw her, I realized there was no need. We just rode past each other, and in an instant, we were far apart.”
“Why?”
“Talking to a star in the sky won’t lead to any results.”
Qin Yi pondered this. Both sides understood that they were on completely different paths, and both were firm in their beliefs, not swayed by words. So, there was no point in even trying to talk.
He, on the other hand, didn’t have any strong beliefs and felt like seaweed swaying in the water, able to connect with anyone.
Li Qingjun asked in surprise, “Are you talking about the Taoist we saw that day?”
Qin Yi felt pleased, “You’re getting smarter.”
Li Qingjun playfully pinched him at the waist, but Qin Yi caught her hand. When she tried to pull away and couldn’t, she hung her head, letting him hold her hand, her cheeks turning red.
This was openly showing affection in front of her brother… Li Qingjun felt a bit uneasy.
Li Qinglin looked at their joined hands and chuckled, “Searching for immortals, yet you brought home a husband. In the end, you only envy the lovebirds, not the immortals.”
This was quite amusing, and Li Qingjun thought it was funny too. Was this what they meant by the unpredictability of life?
“But…” Li Qinglin’s tone turned serious, “Do you really think everything is settled?”
Qin Yi’s heart tightened, “Is there some change with your father?”
“This morning when you entered the palace, we were at the funeral. It seemed unrelated, but almost every word exchanged between you and my father reached my ears, and it certainly reached Dong Huazi’s as well,” Li Qinglin explained. “You might think my father would lean toward you… which isn’t wrong, but you can’t imagine the level of trust he has in Dong Huazi.”
Li Qingjun exclaimed angrily, “What new trouble is he stirring up?”
“He went to the palace to see my father.”
Li Qinglin cleared his throat and mimicked Dong Huazi’s tone, “That Qin Yi’s pill, while miraculous, only treats common ailments. It’s just a small skill, not the grand path of the Yang God. If the king truly appreciates it, he could grant a residence and make him the royal physician to care for him at all times.
The young man is simply infatuated with the princess’s beauty; if high office and wealth were offered, he would know how to choose. At that time, Qin Yi could treat the king’s illness, and the princess could still marry into the Western Wilderness. Wouldn’t that be perfect?”
Qin Yi scoffed, “Then he must be blind.”
Li Qingjun smiled sweetly, knowing Qin Yi wasn’t that kind of person.
Li Qinglin said coldly, “The key isn’t whether his proposal is useful, but that my father would choose to do this. It means that my father and Qin Yi will end up in a stalemate, and this matter won’t be resolved in the short term. Changes will come sooner or later.”
Both of them understood. Li Qingjun fumed, “Why does Dong Huazi have to stir up trouble and push me toward the Western Wilderness?”
“From their behavior, it doesn’t seem like they want you to marry right now; they just want to arrange an engagement first,” Li Qinglin said with a slight smile. “Because there’s no precedent for a collateral line to inherit the throne in our country. If I were to have an accident one day, you would be the only legitimate heir of Nan Li.”
Li Qingjun’s eyes widened.
Qin Yi’s heart skipped a beat.
None of them had considered this issue…
“So your good fortune has now become the core of all these events,” Li Qinglin said with a laugh. “Qin brother, step it up.”
Qin Yi rubbed his head, thinking that these politicians were really something else. Can’t they just let people date in peace?
Liu Su suddenly encouraged, “Fool, just push her down. Once it’s done, it’s done.”
Qin Yi silently pressed his weapon deeper into the mud.
It wasn’t that he wasn’t tempted; it just wouldn’t help. What the other side was planning didn’t depend on that. Even if he did push her down, it wouldn’t change their strategy.
Li Qingjun suddenly turned and walked away.
Qin Yi hurriedly grabbed her, “What are you doing?”
Li Qingjun replied expressionlessly, “I’m going to kill Mang Zhan.”
“You can’t kill him unless I gather troops to surround the residence,” Li Qinglin said. “If I openly gather troops in the capital, it would be the same as rebelling.”
Li Qingjun shouted angrily, “Then let’s elope!”
Elope? Qin Yi had been wanting to do that. He really didn’t want to stay in this awful place anymore. Dong Huazi could do whatever he wanted; he didn’t care anymore. Look at him, he must be suffering from lead poisoning and mercury; he wouldn’t have many years left to live…
Li Qinglin said, “Things aren’t at their worst yet, so there’s no need for that. Do you know what I just went to do?”
Li Qingjun looked at him expectantly.
“I can’t guarantee raising Qin Yi’s status, but I do have a way to lower Mang Zhan’s,” Li Qinglin said slowly.
“Maybe my father doesn’t care who the real culprit is, but as long as it’s established in public opinion, it’s enough. The princess absolutely cannot marry the enemy who killed her brother. So I just led a group to shout at Mang Zhan’s door, calling for the killer of my brother to come out and fight to the death. This is probably already spreading throughout the capital, and it won’t be easy for Dong Huazi to wash his hands of it.”
Li Qingjun was delighted, “As expected of my brother.”
Li Qinglin looked at her for a moment and said slowly, “Qingjun, I have some matters to discuss with Qin Yi. Could you please return to the residence for now? There’s no need for you to be here for the lovey-dovey stuff.”
Li Qingjun said, “Since you’ve brought it up to this extent, what is there that I can’t hear?”
“If I wanted Qin Yi to drug you, would you still listen?” Li Qinglin blinked. “That wouldn’t be good.”
Li Qingjun’s face turned bright red, and she huffed, “That’s not proper!” But she didn’t insist on staying anymore, just warning Qin Yi, “Don’t let him do anything bad.”
After saying that, she ran off like she was escaping.
Watching her figure disappear, Qin Yi sighed softly, “You shouting at Mang Zhan is just for show; it’s really useless. And tricking her away isn’t about how to drug her. So, who do you really want to turn against… let’s be clear.”
Li Qinglin’s gaze deepened, and the two of them silently looked at each other. The autumn wind swept by, and the dry leaves danced like a whirlpool. Ye Ling, who had been sitting quietly beside them, suddenly shivered as she watched their expressions.
(End of Chapter)