“Carefree Powder?” Song Qingshu was taken aback. “The Three Laughs Carefree Powder?”
But he quickly dismissed the thought—if the princesses in the Laundry Courtyard had truly been poisoned by Ding Chunqiu’s Three Laughs Carefree Powder, few of them would still be alive.
“Three Laughs Carefree Powder?” Zhao Fujin shook her head blankly. “I don’t think I’ve ever heard of it.”
“Fifth Sister, don’t mind him. Just tell us about the poison you were given,” The yellow-robed woman said softly, shaking Zhao Fujin’s arm. Her tone carried clear displeasure toward Song Qingshu. As soone who often road the martial world, she was well aware of Ding Chunqiu’s infamous poison. But the “Carefree Powder” her sister ntioned was clearly sothing else.
“Mm,” Zhao Fujin nodded, then turned back to Song Qingshu. “Young Master Song, back at Autumn Fragrance Pavilion, didn’t you ask why we endured so much humiliation without committing su!cide?”
“What?!” The yellow-robed woman exploded, glaring at Song Qingshu. “How could you be so heartless? Not only do you lack sympathy, but you’re also this cruel?”
Song Qingshu coughed awkwardly. “I was just asking casually at the ti…”
Zhao Fujin quickly pulled her sister back. “It’s not his fault. Anyone would wonder the sa. The truth is, we wanted to k!ll ourselves—but we couldn’t.”
“Couldn’t?” Even the yellow-robed woman was puzzled now.
“Do you rember Sister-in-Law?” Zhao Fujin asked, her eyes reddening.
“Sister-in-Law?” The yellow-robed woman searched her mories. “I think I recall her holding
when I was very young. She was a beautiful and gentle woman.”
Song Qingshu listened silently. It took him a mont to realize they were referring to Empress Renhuai, the wife of Emperor Qinzong of the Song Dynasty.
“During the Jingkang Incident, the Jin troops stord Bianjing and captured Father, the Emperor, and both empresses, along with over three thousand won of the imperial household, nobles, and officials. We were forced north in the fourth lunar month—when the weather was still bitterly cold. We wore thin clothing and often shivered through the nights, huddling around fires made of twigs and straw. The Jin soldiers took advantage, harassing us constantly. Sister-in-Law was twenty-six then, in the pri of her beauty, and they targeted her the most.”
“Though gentle by nature, she was unyielding at heart. She never let those beasts truly violate her. And because of her status, the Jin generals eventually forbade their n from touching her.”
“When we reached Daxing Prefecture, the Jin held a victory ceremony. They forced Father, the Emperor, and their consorts to dress in common Jin clothing, wrap their heads in cloth, and wear sheepskin cloaks—baring their upper bodies—to perform the ‘Sheep Leading Ritual’ at the temple of Jin Taizu, Aguda. Then they ordered the empress dowager and empress to ‘bathe’ in the Jin palace.”
“‘Bathing’ was just a euphemism for the Jin Emperor’s depravity. Sister-in-Law knew she could evade the soldiers but not the emperor himself. Rather than submit, she drowned herself on the way to the palace.”
Song Qingshu’s eyes widened in realization. “So she was the ‘Chaste Lady of Jingkang’—Pure in virtue, steadfast in chastity. Sober amidst drunkenness, unbroken in will?” He had seen those words inscribed on a stone tablet by a pond in the palace, stamped with the Jin Emperor’s seal. He had wondered then who this “Chaste Lady” was—and now it all made sense.
“Yes, that was Sister-in-Law,” Zhao Fujin wiped her tears. “But that monunt was just crocodile tears. After her, a few others tried to follow her example. But when they failed and were ‘saved’ by the Jin, those heartless butchers flayed them alive in front of us. Their agonized screams, drenched in blood yet unable to die… It left us trembling in fear. None of us dared try again.”
“The Jin still didn’t trust us. They forced us to take a drrug called Carefree Powder. After consuming it, we felt as if we were floating in paradise. For won on the brink of despair, that fleeting pleasure was enough to make us abandon ourselves…”
The yellow-robed woman frowned. “Fifth Sister, from what you’re saying, this drrug… doesn’t sound so bad?”
“It’s not that simple,” Zhao Fujin said bitterly. “The euphoria is real, but the drrug has one fatal trait: you must take it regularly. If you go too long without it, the withdrawal is like being dragged into hell. No one can endure that pain!” She shuddered violently, as if reliving the nightmare.
Song Qingshu imdiately understood. This “Carefree Powder” was essentially an op!oid—akin to op!um or her0in in his past life. No wonder the Jin had such absolute control over the won in the Laundry Courtyard.
Even the strongest wills crumble before addiction. He clenched his fists. And these won were raised in luxury—how could they resist?
‘This is bad. In a way, drrugs like this have no cure.’ Song Qingshu kept his thoughts to himself, not wanting to shatter their hope.
Even if we rescue them, without the drrug, they’d beg to return. His mood darkened.
“Then our first step is to obtain the antidote,” The yellow-robed woman said urgently. “Fifth Sister, do you know where to find it?”
Zhao Fujin shook her head. “In all these years, I’ve never heard the Jin ntion an antidote.”
Distraught by her sister’s story, the yellow-robed woman turned to Song Qingshu instinctively. “Well? Do you have any ideas?”
eting her desperate gaze, Song Qingshu softened. “I know what the antidote is. Leave this to .”
The antidote? It’s the drrug itself.
He had already formulated a plan. To save these won, he’d have to feed their add!ction temporarily—then seek help from experts like the dicine King or Cheng Lingsu to analyze the drrug’s composition.
In this world of miracles, where qinggong defies gravity and sword Qi cuts through steel, perhaps even the incurable can be cured.
“They say the Golden Serpent Camp’s leader never fails at what he sets out to do,” The yellow-robed woman said, her voice steadier now. “If you say you’ll handle it, I’ll trust you.”
Zhao Fujin looked at Song Qingshu in surprise. “So young, yet so capable?”
“Don’t believe the rumors, Fifth Princess,” Song Qingshu chuckled. “If I could really do anything I wanted, I’d ask to k!ss your sister again right now—see if she’d agree.”
Instead of flying into a rage, the yellow-robed woman smirked. “If you truly save my sisters, you can k!ss
however you like.”
“Really?” Song Qingshu’s eyes lit up.
Blushing, she added, “After you succeed.”
“Then I’d better hurry.” He grinned.
Zhao Fujin watched them, a pang of bitterness rising in her chest. ‘We’re both princesses, both beautiful—so why is she worshipped like a goddess while I’m seen as ruined goods? If I’d been the one rescued back then, I’d still be pure…’
Shaking her head, she forced the thought away. ‘How could I resent my sister? She’s risking everything to save us.’
“Do you have a plan yet?” The yellow-robed woman pressed, oblivious to her sister’s turmoil.
Song Qingshu shook his head. “A few rough ideas. I’ll need a few days to refine them.”
She huffed. “The simplest way would be to take the Jin Empress hostage. With your access and my skills, it’d be effortless.”
“That won’t work,” Song Qingshu said imdiately.
“Why not?” she sneered. “Afraid to harm your precious benefactress?”
“Miss Yang, you look like an immortal fairy—why is your mind so filthy?” Song Qingshu rolled his eyes. “What do you think my relationship with the Empress is?”
Flushing, she muttered, “A man and a woman alone together—what else could it be?”
“Hello, she thinks I’m a eunuch!” Song Qingshu groaned. “Besides, if we’re talking about ‘alone together,’ you and I have spent far more ti in private. Does that an we’re like that too?”
“O-Of course not!” she stamred.
“What’s the difference?” He smirked. “And for the record, I’ve never undressed the Empress.”
“Stop talking about that!” She turned crimson, rembering how she’d let him remove an arrow from her back—back when she’d believed he was a eunuch. The mory made her want to vanish.
Just then, a eunuch’s voice called from outside: “Is Eunuch Xing present? Her Majesty the Empress summons you.”
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