Spoiled Eldest Miss x Two-faced Madman

CHAPTER 12: Let Her Live A Little While Longer.

　

　　“These people don't seem to be ordinary individuals; their inner energy is substantial, ranking them as second-rate masters.” He Ziqing withdrew his hand from one of the guards, his expression grave. 

　　Lin Qingyan surveyed the haphazardly sprawled guards in the cave, also sensing something amiss. She asked An Jiu, “You say they were all incapacitated by your drugs?” 

　　An Jiu pondered for a moment, then nodded. “That's correct.” 

　　The way these people had collapsed was almost identical to the flower thief, so she guessed Pei Ji had used the same Soul-Bewitching Powder.

　　He Ziqing, however, disagreed. “Their expressions seem quite pained. It doesn't look like the effect of a Soul-Bewitching Powder; it's more like they lost consciousness from unbearable pain.” 

　　Lin Qingyan said, “I have an antidote for the Soul-Bewitching Powder here. Let's wake them up and see.” With that, she produced a small vial from her clothing. 

　　An Jiu stared at her. “How did you get that?”

　　Lin Qingyan replied, “It was in the pouch Pei Ji gave me.” 

　　An Jiu: “!!!” 

　　She didn't get any!

　　Is the preferential treatment that severe?! Last life, he was killed by the female lead, and this life, he still has to be her lapdog?

　　Pei Ji, I never imagined you were such a lovesick fool!! I was wrong about you!!

　　He Ziqing scratched his head, voicing An Jiu's inner thoughts. “Ah? I didn't get any.” 

　　Lin Qingyan's cheeks flushed slightly, and she smiled apologetically. “He's probably worried about me. Pei Ji often does this; he's always so worried about me.” 

　　Lin Qingyan vaguely sensed her childhood friend's feelings. However, since he hadn't explicitly stated them, only showing constant care in his daily actions, she felt embarrassed to bring it up.

　　Besides...she wasn't sure who she actually liked... 

　　Thinking this, the girl in green glanced at He Ziqing. 

　　He Ziqing, oblivious, chuckled foolishly. “That's right, Pei Ji is really good to you.” 

　　Lin Qingyan pursed her lips. “We grew up together, like siblings, so naturally, our feelings are close.” 

　　An Jiu watched the interaction between the male and female leads from the side, her gaze filled with pity. 

　　In his past life, Pei Ji was already difficult to deal with. This time around, with Pei Ji's head start from being reborn, it's uncertain whether the main couple will still end up together. 

　　Especially with He Ziqing, this lovable oaf. As Pei Ji's sworn enemy and romantic rival in the last life, could he still overcome Pei Ji with the protagonist's halo this time?

　　An Jiu felt the chances were slim.

　　He Ziqing, such a pitiful male lead!

　　Lin Qingyan placed the antidote for the Soul-Bewitching Powder in front of one of the men. He woke up after a short while, but his eyes were vacant. No matter what they asked, the guard didn't react at all.

　　The others were the same, seemingly transformed into fools overnight.

　　“It wasn't the Soul-Bewitching Powder; it seems to be some kind of potent poison,” He Ziqing said, his face grim. 

　　Lin Qingyan said, “Let's call Pei Ji in to take a look.”

　　During this time, An Jiu remained silent, as if frightened. 

　　Her heart was filled with terror; she knew the truth perfectly well. Even if Pei Ji came, she wouldn't be able to discover anything. 

　　These guards had become this way because of him. 

　　She had thought he only incapacitated them, but unexpectedly, he had completely destroyed these men! 

　　Lin Qingyan went out. After a while, the sound of rolling wheels echoed from the corridor, and Ah Qi pushed Pei Ji into the cave.

　　The young master, in white robes and with ink-black hair, wore a gentle, faint smile, seemingly unchanged from when they had left. 

　　Seeing that same unchanging smile on his face, An Jiu felt a chill rise from her head to her toes, enveloping her entirely. 

　　Only now did she finally experience the true nature of Pei Ji's villainous identity.

　　He really did kill them, cold-blooded and merciless, a mass murderer without a shred of remorse. 

　　Pei Ji approached one of the guards, examined him carefully, and his smile faded slightly. “They're all dead.” 

　　“Dead? But they're still alive.” 

　　Pei Ji shook his head, his long lashes drooping slightly, a hint of reluctance in his eyes. He said in a low voice, “Their consciousness is gone; they're just empty shells now. As for the method used, I can't tell.” 

　　Lin Qingyan frowned. “That's cruel.” 

　　He Ziqing turned to An Jiu. “Miss An, why did these people become like this?” 

　　An Jiu looked at Pei Ji. The young man in white had a gentle expression, compassion in his eyes and eyebrows, as merciful as a child serving before a Buddha. 

　　She gritted her teeth silently, still unable to reveal the truth. She stammered, “I don't know. When I arrived, I saw them lying on the ground, looking like they were affected by a Soul-Bewitching Powder, so I said that.” 

　【Pei Ji's favorability towards you +5, current: -69】 

　　Lin Qingyan's eyes were sharp, and she asked coldly, “You really don't know?”

　　Ignoring the prompt in her mind, An Jiu stamped her foot in displeasure, and said impatiently, “What else could it be? Look at me; what could I have done to them?”

　　Hearing this, Lin Qingyan's expression softened. It was true; Miss An, though arrogant, was just a sheltered young lady and couldn't have done anything like this. 

　　“We weren't suspecting you; we just didn't want to let any murderer go free,” Lin Qingyan explained, then turned to He Ziqing. “This secret mansion still holds many secrets; let's search it again.” 

　　He Ziqing nodded. “Good.” 

　　The two entered the Black Mansion to search, leaving An Jiu and Pei Ji behind.

　　An Jiu turned and stared intensely at Pei Ji. 

　　Pei Ji naturally noticed the intense gaze. He turned his head slightly to look back at her, smiling slightly. “Miss An, why are you looking at me like that?” 

　　Because you're sick in the head. 

　　Of course, she couldn't say that. She remained silent, only staring at him with a strange, intense look.

　　She stared until the system began to prompt a drop of 5 points in favorability, then slowly said, “I just think, Doctor Pei, your eyes are very beautiful. Um… they resemble someone.”

　　The young man in white blinked lightly. “Resemble someone?”

　【Pei Ji's favorability towards you -10, current: -79】

　　This favorability is so hard to accumulate! It takes so much effort to increase it, but it drops so easily. 

　　He must be a little nervous now, right? 

　　People like Pei Ji, with his personality, often have extreme obsessions and a desire for control. Anything that is about to escape his control will greatly offend him. 

　　An Jiu, however, was not alarmed. She continued, “Yes, someone I know. Your eyes are almost exactly alike, but…” 

　　“But what?” The young man in white slowly opened his folding fan, his eyelids drooping slightly, obscuring the expression in his eyes.

　　If this woman recognized him… there would be no need to continue.

　　At this moment, he was considering whether to turn her into a living puppet, or plant a Yin-Yang talisman on her, erasing her will and turning her into a servant who only obeyed his commands. 

　　In fact, this method was the safest. An Jiu's life was important; imprisoning her and keeping her close until he found the Twin-soul Gu was the best option. 

　　However, the next moment, he heard the girl's clear voice. 

　　“But now it seems, you're not alike at all.” 

　　The girl in red raised her chin, as if showing off something, and lightly hummed, saying, “How can you compare to Fei Yi ¹Gongzi? You call yourself a divine doctor, yet you can't even figure out why these people became like this? You're not even as good as Fei Yi Gongzi's little finger.” 

　　Her expression was calm, her eyes revealing a naive cruelty.

　　Pei Ji's fingers, which had been moving the folding fan, paused. After a moment, he laughed. “The Fei Yi Gongzi Miss An speaks of, could he figure it out?” 

　　“Of course!” An Jiu blurted out.

　　“Why are you so certain, Miss An?” 

　　An Jiu instinctively opened her mouth to say something, but the next moment she suddenly covered her mouth, glaring fiercely at him. “I'm not telling you!” 

　　Pei Ji silently narrowed his eyes, smiled good-naturedly, and said nothing more.

　　What a foolish woman. 

　　What he hadn't expected was that she hadn't revealed the existence of ‘Fei Yi.’ Whether she revealed it or not didn't really matter, but…

　　He would let her live a little while longer, for now.

　　Pei Ji felt a mixture of complex emotions.

　　Pei Ji was him, and Fei Yi was also him, yet the treatment he received from An Jiu in both forms was completely different. 

　　Indeed, once this woman falls in love with someone, she foolishly gives everything for them. 

　　Just like in her previous life with He Ziqing, her undisguised preference, even to the point of sacrificing her life for him.

　【Pei Ji's favorability towards you +20, current: -59】 

　　…..  

　　Just as the original book described, the Dark Village incident was resolved quickly, with all the criminals caught red-handed. And better than in the plot, this time they caught the mastermind. 

　　The owner of the Dark Village was actually the City Lord of Jiufang City. He was colluding with the governor of Qingyang County, where Jiufang City was located. Together, they established the Dark Village. Over the years, the City Lord had profited immensely from the Dark Village, while the governor rose from the original county magistrate of Jiufang City all the way to become a governor of a county. 

　　As for that governor, he's still serving in Qingyang City because of his promotion.

　　The owner of the mansion was captured, and He Ziqing notified the constables to escort him to the magistrate's office. The women who had been abducted were also rescued and were currently being reunited with their respective families. 

　　Of course, there were some who had no one to claim them, which highlighted the limitations of this era. After all, in ancient times, societal views were not as open. Even in modern times, there are still many underdeveloped areas with strong concepts of chastity, let alone in the feudal and backward society of the past. 

　　The first to come for someone was the old master of the Zhou family. 

　　When the Zhou father and daughter met, they immediately embraced and wept together. After they finished crying, Old Master Zhou wanted to take Zhou Yuru home, but Zhou Yuru hesitated. “Father, can I really go back now?” 

　　Old Master Zhou's face turned serious. “Why can't you go back? Who dares to speak ill of my Zhou Shihai’s daughter? I guarantee, if anyone dares to slander you, I'll make sure to tear their mouths apart!” 

　　Zhou Yuru was deeply moved by his words, but having always been cautious, she couldn't help but feel uncertain. 

　　“But what about my younger brother and sister? Their futures…”

　　Zhou Shihao said, “My dear daughter, what are you worried about? Since I've issued a reward notice, I've already discussed it with the family. These years I've traveled far and wide doing business, and your mother passed away early. You've taken care of everything at home, and your younger brother and sister won't blame you. If they dare to blame you, I will throw them out of the house! Such ungrateful brats are a disaster to have in my Zhou family.” 

　　Hearing this, Zhou Yuru finally let go of her worries. Tears streaming down her face, she said, “Okay, Father, I'll go home with you.” 

　　Zhou Shihao patted his round belly and laughed. “Silly daughter, where else would you go if not home? Come on, let's go home. Today, Father will throw a welcoming feast for you!” 

　　Zhou Yuru looked at the group of women standing nearby, their faces filled with fear and helplessness. Biting her lip, remembering what the girl in red had said to her, she said to Zhou Shihao, “Father, those women have no homes. Let's take them to our family's embroidery workshop. Becoming embroiderers is not a bad life for them.” 

　　Zhou Shihao was stunned for a moment. Seeing the pleading in his daughter's eyes, he sighed deeply. “Alright! Let's do as you say.”

　　Not long after returning to the surface, Zhou Yuru, wearing a sun hat, arrived at a teahouse with her maidservant. 

　　A girl in red was already waiting there. She had changed her clothes; it was still a vibrant red, but the fabric was precious Yun brocade. The embroidery on the dress was exquisite and luxurious, and her wrists, neck, and hair were adorned with glittering jewels. 

　　This kind of attire would look vulgar on most people, but the girl's beauty was striking, and her demeanor was natural and graceful, making her appear dazzling and stunning. 

　　The girl handed over a pouch. “This is your reward.” 

　　Zhou Yuru touched it; it was a thick stack of paper-like objects, and she immediately realized they were silver notes. 

　　She quickly shook her head and pushed the pouch back. “Miss An, you don't have to. Your promise is enough.” 

　　In the Dark Village, Miss An had privately told her that after the Dark Village was destroyed, she hoped Zhou Yuru would take the unclaimed girls with her. 

　　In exchange, Miss An would have her father recommend Zhou Yuru's brother for official service. Of course, the condition was that her brother would have to pass the imperial examinations.

　　Zhou Yuru agreed; a single word from Minister An was worth a fortune. 

　　“Miss An, you were the one who saved them. Why do you want me to take the lead?” 

　　An Jiu picked up her teacup and took a sip, her tone calm. “I won't be staying here for too long, and I can't take care of them. I'll have to trouble you with this.” 

　　Zhou Yuru's eyes were complex; she felt that Miss An was a completely different person in private than in public. Though surprised, since she had already agreed, she naturally wouldn't go back on her word.

　　“It's only right that I should do this. I will take good care of them.”

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Glossary:

¹Gongzi (公子): A term of address for a young man of noble birth, similar to ‘master’ or ‘young master.’ It implies a level of respect and social standing.

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Author's Note:

The comments are dwindling day by day. My little darlings who are still reading, is there anything wrong with the writing in this book? (Pulling hair) I can't figure out the problem; does anyone have any suggestions?

My little treasures, please feel free to speak up! I'll be giving out red envelopes in the comments section of this chapter!

….

T/N: To be honest, I don't know if I should add the author's note. Some, like the one above, don't apply to us at all; that note is for JJWXC readers. But I still put it up because it shows that the author likes to communicate with her readers. 

Oops, my apologies for the translation hiatus! My old nemesis, sickness, struck again. 😂 If uploads go dark for a bit, don't worry – I'll catch up on all the missing chapters as soon as this plague departs. I translate each day before uploading, so there's no backlog; it's all ‘fresh from the oven,’ except instead of bread, it's translations...and I'm perpetually out of ingredients! 😅

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