The Li family estate in Baihe County.
The estate sprawled across a massive fifteen hectares, its size comparable to that of a duke’s or general’s residence in the Wu Dynasty. Within the estate, artificial hills and streams, elegant gardens, and refined architecture abounded. The Li family even modeled a “Thousand Carp Pond” after the fad Xu Manor in the Wu capital.
The estate employed over a hundred maids and servants, not even counting the private guards. It was hard to imagine that such a grand estate belonged to a clan in a remote small town. In cities with stricter oversight, such a property—far exceeding what was permissible—would have drawn imdiate scrutiny.
But this was Baihe County, and for the Li family, one of the “Four Local Tyrants,” such extravagance was untouchable.
In the backyard of the estate, a man sat cross-legged on a large stone. Black spiritual energy surrounded him, flickering like a sinister aura as he practiced his breathing. His skin alternated between light and dark, lending him an eerie, almost demonic appearance.
“Hui’er, are you sure we don’t need to leave? That Yu Ping’an is now an Imperial Scholar!” Li Chade, the head of the Li family, spoke anxiously.
Li Chade had been on edge for months. Ever since the capital’s golden examination roster reached Baihe County and he learned of the crippled scholar who had beco an Imperial Scholar, he’d had a sinking feeling.
After conducting an investigation, he discovered the horrifying truth: this “crippled scholar” was none other than the young man whose leg his family had broken years ago.
Since then, Li Chade had been unable to sleep soundly.
His son had crippled the legs of an Imperial Scholar!
There was no way Yu Ping’an would let this go. A single word to the Emperor, and the entire Li family would be crushed like ants.
Li Chade had long planned to flee the country. Over the years, he had amassed a significant fortune and intended to escape to Wei Kingdom, Wu’s greatest rival. Once there, what could the Wu court do to him?
But his son remained calm and refused to leave, no matter how much he insisted.
“Father, don’t worry. That crippled scholar, now known as Yu Ping’an, won’t co after us,” Li Hui said with a smile.
“How can you be so sure?” Li Chade had heard this countless tis from his son but had never received an explanation.
“I can’t tell you the reason, Father,” Li Hui replied, shaking his head.
“But think about it. If Yu Ping’an wanted revenge, the court would have already sent soone. Why would they wait this long?”
Li Chade: “…”
“Father, what you should worry about isn’t Yu Ping’an. It’s the prefecture sending soone to investigate the disappearance of the boys and girls,” Li Hui said calmly.
“And whose fault is that? Why do you need so many children?” Li Chade snapped.
“That’s not sothing you should ask,” Li Hui replied, shaking his head.
“But now we’re short ten pairs of boys and girls. Father, you’ll need to prepare those quickly. Don’t you also want to cultivate? Once everything is done, that esteed figure will help you achieve your wish.”
Hearing that he too could cultivate, Li Chade’s breathing quickened.
“Alright! I’ll trust you on this.”
Li Chade left the courtyard, while Li Hui resud his ditation and cultivation.
After the ti it took for a stick of incense to burn, a fragrant wind swept through the courtyard. Li Hui’s eyes snapped open, a look of fear flashing across his face.
“Your humble servant greets the esteed one,” he said, bowing toward a tree in the courtyard. He knelt on the ground, prostrating himself completely in an expression of utmost reverence.
“Ding-ling-ling…”
A gust of inky-black wind swept through, carrying with it the crisp, lodious chi of a bell from the tree before Li Hui.
Perched on a branch was a young girl. Her eyes, deep and fluid like water, carried a faint chill that seed to pierce through everything, her arched lips exuding an air of disdain for the world, as if everything was hers to toy with at will.
She yawned, delicately covering her mouth with slender fingers, her skin as smooth as jade, a snowy white tinged with a soft pink, so fair it seed to exude moisture. Her rosy lips parted slightly, a faint smile teasing at their corners. Every movent she made was graceful, as if she were performing a dance. Her long, flowing black hair swayed in the breeze, giving off a subtle fragrance, cascading down to her snow-white ankles, where a silver bell was tied.
The bell’s tallic sheen, the ankle’s pristine whiteness, and the delicate flush of her feet ford a harmonious blend, akin to the most exquisite masterpiece of the heavens.
Following the line of her delicate legs upward, one would find her slender calves, exposed under a scandalously short black skirt that barely reached her knees—an attire considered utterly indecent by conventional standards.
Her figure was not overly voluptuous, but her slender waist accentuated the fullness of her curves. Her forehead was adorned with a luminous butterfly-shaped jewel, faintly glowing, her brows delicately arched. She wore no makeup, yet her natural beauty was breathtaking. Around her neck hung a crystal necklace, emphasizing her graceful collarbone, and her wrists bore white jade bangles that further highlighted her alabaster skin.
Her enchanting eyes glimred, akin to a pale butterfly lost in the shadows, her gaze cold and detached, as though she were an ethereal being untouched by the mortal world. She exuded a dreamlike allure, simultaneously epheral and dazzling.
“How are things progressing?” the girl, who clearly embodied the image of a bewitching fem fatale, asked as she toyed with a strand of her hair, her smile both playful and chilling.
“Your Holiness, we’re just short of ten pairs of boys and girls. I assure you, within ten days, I will deliver them to the Black Lotus Sect’s branch,” Li Hui responded, his voice trembling.
The girl cast him a dispassionate glance, flicking a pill toward him.
Li Hui caught it, his face lighting up in delight as he imdiately knelt to the ground, fearing she might change her mind. He quickly swallowed the pill. “Thank you, Your Holiness!”
“There’s no need to thank ,” she said coldly, her eyes brimming with undisguised disdain.
“This is simply the result of your deal with the branch master of Baihe County. I’m rely delivering what you’re owed. Whatever you do is of no concern to . As for the remaining ten pairs of boys and girls, make haste.”
She yawned again, her expression betraying a hint of boredom.
“However, the reason I’m here today is for sothing else.”
“Please, Your Holiness, speak,” Li Hui said, looking up.
Though her short skirt left her legs exposed, Li Hui dared not gaze upon her improperly.
“I heard three people recently arrived in Baihe County,” the girl said, reclining lazily on the branch like a black cat basking in the sun.
“Yes,” Li Hui quickly replied.
“A new county magistrate, a retired Pri Minister, and a Wu Dynasty Top Scholar—the sa scholar who almost beca the Emperor’s son-in-law.”
“I want two things,” she said.
Li Hui’s tone was sincere. “No matter what you desire, I will do everything in my power to obtain it for you.”
“Is that so?” she replied, her icy smile sending shivers down his spine. She looked at him with an almost predatory amusent.
“I want the heart of that retired Pri Ministet…
And the life of the Emperor’s son-in-law.”
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