Spoiled Eldest Miss x Two-faced Madman

CHAPTER 86: “I Want Him To Be With Me.”

　　Even though she had mentally prepared herself, the moment An Jiu stepped into that grand hall and saw bodies scattered across the floor, with a woman in red standing at the very front, her heart still skipped a beat in shock.

　　The woman suddenly looked up when she heard the noise, her gaze sharp like a blade.

　　The moment An Jiu saw the woman’s face, she froze.

　　This wasn’t the Saintess of the Demonic Sect mentioned in the original story!

　　The Saintess Hua Qing was described in the book. Although she had studied poisons since childhood, because she had never left the mountains and no one had ever taught her right from wrong, she grew up with a pure and innocent nature.

　　When Hua Qing appeared in the story, she was only sixteen, beautiful and enchanting, which earned her the nickname ‘little demoness.’

　　In the Demonic Sect arc, Hua Qing even had a brief entanglement with the male lead.

　　An Jiu glanced around quickly. At this moment, the scene in the hall was exactly like what the book described, except for one thing — the woman in red standing in the center.

　　Anyone with eyes could see that this woman was not Hua Qing.

　　She was clearly much older. Maybe in her thirties, maybe in her forties or fifties, but definitely not the youthful sixteen-year-old girl from the book.

　　A mess of thoughts flashed through An Jiu’s mind. She gasped and quickly took a step back, retreating out of the hall.

　　Mom, is it still too late for me to turn back?

　　But before she could even let out that breath she was holding, she suddenly realized that the woman was staring at Pei Ji.

　　Once they reached a flat area, Pei Ji had gotten off Ah Qi's back and was now sitting in his wheelchair.

　　He still wore his pristine white clothes, leisurely fanning himself with his folding fan. His black hair and white robes made him look elegant and gentle, his long black eyes carrying a soft, warm smile, completely calm and refined.

　　The woman’s eyes seemed to be glued to Pei Ji’s face. She stared at him, completely motionless, as if she had suddenly fallen into a trance.

　　Her sharp gaze gradually softened, her eyes starting to shimmer, as if the hard ice had slowly melted into the soft spring waters of Jiangnan, rippling gently.

　　An Jiu carefully studied the way the woman was staring at Pei Ji. She couldn’t help but take a few small steps forward and stood right in front of him.

　　Huh? That look on her face totally screamed... she's in heat. An Jiu had no doubt this woman wanted to swallow Pei Ji whole.

　　The moment her view was blocked, the softness in the woman’s expression froze. Her sunken eyelids flipped up, and her eyes instantly turned sharp like two needles, stabbing straight at An Jiu.

　　The second she saw An Jiu’s face, a deep, bone-chilling hatred flared up in her dark, ghostly eyes.

　　“You bitch! How dare you try to steal my Pei Lang¹ from me!”

　　The woman screeched and charged toward them.

　　All of this happened in a matter of seconds. From the moment they stepped through the door to the woman’s sudden attack, there was almost no time to react.

　　An Jiu was completely baffled. She had no idea who this woman was or what kind of relationship she had with Pei Ji.

　　At first, she thought it was just love at first sight. But after hearing the woman call him Pei Lang, did that mean she actually knew Pei Ji?

　　Could it be that this woman had some sort of past with him? Maybe she was dumped?

　　An Jiu had always been the type to assume the worst about villains. Based on what she knew about Pei Ji, he was totally capable of toying with someone’s feelings like that.

　　Hadn’t he been tricking her too?

　　She just didn’t expect Pei Ji’s tastes to be this heavy. This woman was old enough to be his mom.

　　Since the woman didn’t know martial arts, she wasn’t running very fast. An Jiu even had time to glance back at Pei Ji in surprise.

　　Maybe her expression was too obvious, because the white-robed young man behind her suddenly stiffened. The warm, polite mask he usually wore seemed to crack just a little as he asked in a cold voice, “What are you thinking about?”

　　An Jiu let out a soft “Ah” in surprise.

　　Pei Ji shot her a cold glance and said, “I have nothing to do with her.”

　　Before An Jiu could say anything, she suddenly felt a tight grip around her waist. The man behind her reached out, his slender hand resting firmly on her waist, and gently guided her to his side.

　　“Don't try to act tough when you don't need to. That woman uses poison.”

　　Right as he finished speaking, the woman had already rushed toward them.

　　Only then did An Jiu see that the woman wasn’t wearing shoes. She was barefoot, running across the grand hall with her arms wide open, a bright and youthful smile blooming on her wrinkled face.

　　“Pei Lang, you’ve finally come to see me?”

　　Now that the person blocking her was out of the way, the woman’s eyes were once again completely locked on Pei Ji, as if there was nothing else in this world except for the white-robed man in front of her.

　　If An Jiu still didn’t realize this woman wasn’t right in the head, she might as well go blind.

　　This woman was clearly a lunatic.

　　A crazy woman in her forties or fifties, calling Pei Ji ‘Pei Lang’ and even using poison... As An Jiu pieced all this together, a name suddenly popped into her mind.

　　— Hua Mei!

　　Hua Mei was still alive!

　　An Jiu’s eyes widened, and she almost blurted it out.

　　Thankfully, she remembered that ‘An Jiu’ wasn’t supposed to know about this, so she forced herself to stay calm and didn’t show anything unusual.

　　Even if she did lose her composure a little, Pei Ji probably wouldn’t notice right now.

　　Because he was already in the middle of a fight with that woman.

　　An Jiu had always wondered, how do poison masters even fight? Weren't they supposed to poison people sneakily and backstab them from the shadows?

　　But today really opened her eyes. She finally witnessed how top poison masters battle in this world.

　　The white-robed man was still sitting steadily in his wheelchair, hair neat and clothes as clean as fresh snow. The folding fan in his hand was now slowly opened. His slender fingers gripped it firmly, and a big ‘MEDICINE’ character was displayed on the fan’s surface.

　　The fan seemed different from the one she remembered. The one she usually saw was a white jade fan, but this one had thirty-six black fan ribs, made of some unknown material that shimmered faintly under the sunlight.

　　An Jiu had never dared to touch Pei Ji’s fan because she knew very well it was filled with all kinds of poison. She was not in a hurry to shorten her life.

　　She had never seen Pei Ji use this fan before. At most, she had only seen him casually waving it around to cool off.

　　At this moment, that fan was no longer just for waving.

　　The woman in red lunged toward him. No one knew when, but a strip of red silk had appeared in her hand. It was as light as mist and as crimson as blood, trailing lazily from her fingertips, fluttering in the breeze like a soft red cloud.

　　“Pei Lang, this time I will never let you leave me again!”

　　Her eyes were clouded and unfocused, clearly not in her right mind, but her moves were sharp and precise.

　　The red silk drifted over like mist. For a second, An Jiu even thought the silk really had turned into clouds and fog. It swirled in thin strands, hazy like smoke, dreamlike and ethereal, unbelievably beautiful.

　　As she watched, her gaze became locked in place. She couldn't tear her eyes away until a sharp shout suddenly rang out, “Step back!”

　　It was like a thunderclap exploding in her mind. An Jiu snapped back to her senses in an instant. The next thing she knew, her feet were lifted off the ground and the scenery around her blurred past at lightning speed. When she finally landed, she was already several feet away from the grand hall.

　　“Forgive me, Miss An.” Ah Qi's voice came from behind her as he released his grip on the back of her collar.

　　An Jiu broke out in a cold sweat. She didn’t have the energy to be mad about him grabbing her like that. She quickly shook her head, “It’s fine, it’s fine, I should be thanking you.”

　　She fully understood now that just a moment ago, she had unknowingly fallen under Hua Mei’s poison.

　　Although An Jiu wasn’t some incredibly strong-willed person, she always believed she was calm and clear-headed. How could she suddenly start seeing a piece of red silk as a cloud for no reason? The only explanation was that she had been poisoned and was hallucinating.

　　Her heart was still pounding hard. Hua Mei hadn’t even done anything, just waved a piece of red silk, and she was already silently poisoned. That was terrifying.

　　Honestly, if you ever got on a poison master’s bad side, you probably wouldn’t even know how you died.

　　As she thought about this, her gaze uncontrollably drifted toward Pei Ji again.

　　In front of the wide-open hall doors, only the white-robed man remained sitting there.

　　She couldn’t see his face from where she stood, only the inky black strands of his hair falling neatly in the dazzling sunlight, gleaming like silk.

　　She could also see the folding fan in his hand. The fan surface was snowy white, with the large ‘MEDICINE’ character faintly visible. His slender, pale fingers threaded through the center of the fan ribs as he spun it between his fingers, stirring up gusts of wind.

　　Every now and then, he would flick his fingers against the fan bones, making soft clacking sounds.

　　An Jiu suddenly remembered that just before she snapped out of her daze, she had felt a breeze brush past her face.

　　There was no way that was just an ordinary breeze. There must have been something hidden in that wind.

　　She didn’t even know how she was poisoned, and now she didn’t know how she was cured.

　　It was like she had been dancing back and forth at the gates of hell.

　　“Don’t worry about Young Master. He’s immune to all poisons. That woman won’t be able to touch him.”

　　Maybe because he saw how seriously she was staring, Ah Qi suddenly spoke up beside her.

　　An Jiu didn’t bother to explain. She just kept watching.

　　Just like Ah Qi said, that woman really couldn’t do anything to Pei Ji.

　　They were both using poison, but Pei Ji was immune to all poisons, while the woman couldn’t stop her own poison from affecting her.

　　Simply put, it was like two top-tier mages going at each other, but one of them had a natural magic immunity. Of course, he had the upper hand.

　　The moment Pei Ji made his move, the woman flew into a rage. Her sharp voice pierced the air, “Pei Lang, why are you fighting me! I’ve waited for you for so long. Are you still thinking about that filthy woman?”

　　As she shouted, the red silk in her hand fluttered and rolled through the air. In her grip, that light, floating fabric twisted like a red python, snapping toward the white-robed man.

　　The red silk itself wasn’t deadly. The woman didn’t have any inner strength; she was using external techniques. Each time the silk got close, it was blocked by Pei Ji’s black-boned white fan, failing to reach him.

　　Even if she had lost her mind and couldn’t recognize people, she still had her wits. It didn’t take her long to realize that the poison on the red silk was completely useless against Pei Zhou. 

　　He would not be poisoned.

　　She made the same conclusion she had made twenty years ago.

　　If she couldn’t hurt Pei Zhou, she could go after the woman he cared about.

　　“Pei Lang, you’ve forced me into this. I’ve loved you with all my heart, but you always ignored me. I know that woman is carrying your child, but I’ve also given birth to your child! You only have eyes for her, so I’ll just get rid of her!”

　　With a furious roar, she suddenly turned around, not bothering to tangle with Pei Ji anymore, and charged straight toward An Jiu.

　　An Jiu had been quietly sitting on the sidelines, just watching the drama unfold. She didn’t expect to be dragged into it the next second. She quickly jumped up and bolted.

　　Ah Qi instinctively reached out to grab the back of her collar, ready to drag her away.

　　He couldn’t do anything about the woman’s poison, but the woman had no inner strength and could never outrun him.

　　But the one who acted first was Pei Ji.

　　Pei Ji lightly gripped the wheelchair’s wheel, spinning himself to face a new direction. His fingers tapped on the armrest, and a faint sound clicked from inside. There were two sharp whizzing sounds as something shot out toward the woman.

　　She wasn’t far from him, and she hadn’t been on guard against him. After all, she loved him too much to suspect him.

　　She was immediately struck by the two hidden projectiles and staggered back a few steps from the force.

　　She clutched her chest, bent over, and suddenly coughed up a mouthful of blood.

　　When she raised her head again, her already pale face had turned ghostly white, completely drained of color.

　　“Pei Lang, how cruel you are. You hit me again for that woman…”

　　Dark blood stained her lips, a clear sign that she had been deeply poisoned.

　　It was a poison so lethal it killed on contact. A normal person would have dropped dead immediately, yet this woman was still standing. She swayed, looking as if she would fall, but under their shocked gazes, she slowly straightened her back.

　　She gently wiped the blood from her lips, glanced curiously at the crimson stain on her fingertip, then calmly put it in her mouth. Like a child tasting candy, she licked all the dirty blood clean from her finger.

　　An Jiu was horrified. Wasn’t that disgusting?

　　After licking her fingers clean, Hua Mei’s face gradually regained some color.

　　It was bizarre, as if the blood she just swallowed had somehow replenished her.

　　An Jiu shivered, realizing this was just another round of their fight.

　　Pei Ji had shot her with two poisoned needles, but somehow Hua Mei had already neutralized the poison.

　　No wonder this woman had once defeated the Medicine King, Pei Zhou. Her mastery of poison was practically at a divine level, maybe even better than Pei Ji’s.

　　An Jiu was just thinking this when she noticed a hint of coldness appear in the eyes and at the brow of the white-robed young man. It was obvious he also found this troublesome.

　　Although Hua Mei couldn’t poison him, Pei Ji was still restricted by his ‘disabled’ legs. He couldn’t reveal his true identity yet, so he could only stay seated and keep facing her like this.

　　Pei Ji’s gaze shifted slightly and he noticed that a few people inside the hall were starting to sit up, watching the fight.

　　Some of the people in the hall were dead, but there were even more still alive. They just couldn’t move because of the poison.

　　These people were all skilled martial artists. Even though they were poisoned, they had managed to temporarily seal their vital meridians, slow their metabolism and blood flow, and delay the spread of the poison.

　　This was the usual way martial artists defended themselves against poison masters.

　　As long as they could take down the poison master before the poison fully kicked in, they could find a way to get the antidote.

　　Of course, top-tier poison masters would never let their victims have time to act. Their poisons usually killed the moment they entered the bloodstream.

　　That’s why, in the end, there weren’t many poison masters in the martial world. They were like sewer rats. Most of them got killed before they even mastered their craft. Only the strongest survived.

　　Even those who survived were hunted by everyone. It was an incredibly high-risk profession.

　　Pei Ji didn’t want to expose his poison skills in front of others. When he was reborn, he had already decided he would spend his life as a divine healer, admired by all. He would never fall into the same fate as in his past life.

　　That put him in a really tight spot right now.

　　Just then, someone in the hall called out to him, “Young Divine Doctor Pei, that woman is a demon from the Demonic Sect! She poisoned us with the rainbow-colored flowers poison. Be careful!”

　　Only a few people in the hall had woken up. As they struggled to sit up, all they saw was Pei Ji facing off against Hua Mei. They didn’t really know what had happened, but their instinct was to warn him.

　　The moment those words rang out, Hua Mei seemed to snap out of something. Her clouded eyes suddenly regained a bit of clarity.

　　She had actually been conscious in the beginning, but when she saw Pei Ji’s face, which looked so much like Pei Zhou, she completely lost control.

　　Now that someone had called out Pei Ji’s name, it was like the fog in her mind had suddenly cleared. It was as if she’d fallen straight out of a dream and crashed back into reality.

　　Her dazed gaze landed on Pei Ji’s face. She stared at him for a long time before murmuring in a dreamy voice, “So you’re Xia Yan’s son…”

　　“That’s right. I came here for you. You caused my mother’s death back then and crippled me with poison. Today, I’ve come to settle the score.”

　　Throughout the fight, Pei Ji hadn’t spoken a word. Now that his identity was exposed, he finally spoke.

　　“You want to settle the score? Settle what?” Hua Mei stared at him with a strange expression. Her face switched between a cold sneer and a soft smile, as if she were putting on a magic show. It was incredibly eerie.

　　“Xia Yan is dead, right? You really do look like Pei Lang… Is Pei Lang really gone?”

　　A clear-headed Hua Mei was even stranger than the crazy one. Her words were jumbled, her expression bizarre. Sometimes she looked at Pei Ji like she wanted to kill him, and sometimes she looked at him with infatuation, like he was her beloved.

　　Pei Ji said, “My father has been dead for ten years.”

　　Before he finished speaking, Hua Mei shook her head wildly. She grabbed her messy hair with both hands and screamed, “Impossible! Pei Lang can’t be dead! There’s no way he’s dead! I don’t believe it!”

　　An Jiu, watching from the side, didn’t dare make a sound. She was sure Pei Ji was deliberately provoking this woman.

　　A crazed Hua Mei was easier to handle than a sober one. After all, a lunatic doesn’t think.

　　Unfortunately, just as Hua Mei was about to lose control again, a shadow suddenly appeared from the back of the hall.

　　The newcomer wore a fierce Demon Mask. He moved swiftly, landed beside Hua Mei, and gently held her shoulder. “Mother, you forgot again. He is my brother, the son of Pei Zhou and Xia Yan. Weren’t you going to kill him?”

　　Hua Mei’s mind seemed to stabilize a little. She mumbled, “Right. I need to kill him.”

　　Her bloodshot eyes locked onto Pei Ji. But as soon as her gaze met his handsome face, her hatred once again melted into obsessive affection.

　　She stared at Pei Ji for a long time, then suddenly pointed at him and said to Hua Xuan, “Son, I want him. Pei Lang is dead, but his son is still here. I want him to be with me.”

　　Hua Xuan: “…”

　　Pei Ji: “…”

　　An Jiu: “…” Huh? Did she just try to steal someone right in front of me?

　　An Jiu was completely stunned, almost dropping her melon seeds.

　　All the martial artists lying around the hall were just as confused. No one could figure out why things had suddenly developed like this. Everyone looked utterly baffled.

　　Only Hua Mei thought her idea was absolutely brilliant. Her mind was surprisingly clear now, and she seemed to be getting even more lucid by the second.

　　Pei Zhou was dead, and the dead couldn’t come back.

　　Before, she had gone mad because she couldn’t accept that. But now, she could.

　　Pei Zhou was gone, but there was still Pei Ji, who looked just like him.

　　Pei Ji was even younger and more handsome than his father. Pei Zhou had been a wandering physician with a rugged, travel-worn look, while Pei Ji was a refined young noble with sharp features and an effortlessly charming presence. They looked alike, but their vibes were completely different. Hua Mei was quite satisfied.

　　She suddenly felt like she didn’t miss Pei Zhou that much anymore.

　　The more she thought about it, the more it seemed like a good idea. Hua Mei beamed at the young man in white standing by the entrance and said sweetly, “These people came with you, didn’t they? If you won’t come with me, I’ll kill them all, and you won’t be able to get away either. But if you agree to come with me, I’ll let them go. What do you say?”

　　Hua Mei really knew how to threaten people. She had used the same move on Pei Zhou back in the day. She figured Pei Zhou’s son would be just like him, with that heroic heart that wouldn’t allow innocent people to die.

　　When she smiled this time, there was a softness in her expression, and her eyes sparkled like a young girl looking at her crush.

　　An Jiu stared at the two of them, completely dumbfounded. Her whole body went stiff.

　　What the hell? Isn’t this way too messed up? You couldn’t get the dad, so you’re going for the son? Why did Hua Mei have it out for the men of the Pei family?

　　This woman was practically begging to die.

　　Pei Ji wasn’t just a miracle doctor. An Jiu didn’t even need to think about it to know he would never agree to such terms. If he was pushed too far, he might even drop the act and just kill everyone.

　　After all, he was the big villain. He would probably love to see these martial artists die. There was no way he actually cared about their lives.

　　An Jiu’s mind was spinning fast as her gaze landed on Pei Ji again, nervously watching his every move.

　　If he really stopped pretending now, the consequences would be serious.

　　Not just her—at this point, everyone in the hall was staring at the elegant young man in white, waiting for his answer.

　　Pei Ji stayed silent. His dark eyes held no clear emotion as he looked at Hua Mei. After a moment, he suddenly curved his lips into a smile. The gentle arch of his brows and his soft, graceful features made him look like a beautiful crescent moon.

　　He parted his thin lips, just about to speak.

　　Right then, the sound of footsteps suddenly echoed in the hall, slowly getting closer.

　　An Jiu instinctively turned her head toward the sound.

　　A moment later, a hunched figure appeared in her sight. It was the strange old man they had met on the road earlier.

　　The old man walked stiffly, step by step toward the hall.

　　He seemed to see no one else. His head was lowered the entire time, his eyes fixed on the ground beneath his feet. He didn’t glance at anyone.

　　From his slow, clumsy steps, it was obvious he didn’t know martial arts.

　　He looked like nothing more than an ordinary, unremarkable old man. But his appearance here meant he was anything but ordinary.

　　“Huh? The mute servant? What are you doing here?” Hua Xuan stared at him.

　　Hua Xuan clearly recognized the mute servant. That old man had come here ten years ago, but no one knew where he was from since he couldn’t speak.

　　Hua Qing had picked him up outside and brought him back. That little girl had been kind-hearted when she wasn’t using people to test poison, so she kept him in Medicine Valley to tend the herbs and poisons.

　　After Hua Qing's death, all the medicinal herbs and poisons she had planted in Medicine Valley were pulled out and replaced with the Five-Colored Starflowers cultivated by Hua Mei. But unlike those herbs, the mute servant wasn’t destroyed. He stayed behind in Medicine Valley, quietly watering the fields.

　　The old man didn’t say a word and kept walking forward.

　　He passed by Pei Ji, brushing right past the refined young man in white without even slowing down.

　　His unsteady steps carried him into the hall as if no one else existed. Hua Xuan's brows were already furrowed, and the short blade hidden in his sleeve silently slipped into his palm.

　　The tension in the hall rose quietly, thick like a brewing storm.

　　Looking at this scene that was completely different from the original novel, An Jiu couldn’t help feeling both curious and anxious. She poked the system. “Hey, system, who is this guy? Don’t tell me he’s some hidden master like those legendary janitors who secretly sweep the temple but can destroy everyone? Is he good or bad? Please don’t let him be here to help the Demonic Sect!”

　　Before the system could reply, the hunched old man, who had been walking with his head down, slowly started to lift his head.

　　His face was plain and unremarkable, covered in deep wrinkles and creases, like the endless barren mountains of the desert.

　　But his appearance didn’t really matter. No one cared about how he looked.

　　Everyone was watching him, but the old man had his eyes on only one person.

　　Those aged, lifeless eyes were so calm they almost felt desolate. When calmness reaches such an extreme, it becomes dead silence.

　　At this moment, those abyss-like eyes were fixed straight on Hua Mei’s face.

　　“Hua Mei, all these years, and you’re still the same. You haven’t changed one bit…”

　　His deep sigh echoed in the empty hall. Maybe his voice was so heavy it even seemed to create a lingering echo.

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Glossary: 

¹Pei Lang (裴郎) is a somewhat old-fashioned, affectionate way for a woman to refer to a man she loves or is romantically attached to.

‘Pei’ (裴) is a surname.

‘Lang’ (郎) is a term that can mean ‘young man’ or ‘husband’ in classical Chinese. In romantic contexts, it’s often used to sweetly refer to one’s lover, husband, or crush.

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Author’s Note:

Pei Zhou’s dark side is way more ruthless than his son’s, so this fight will wrap up quickly~ (I’m terrible at writing fight scenes, just read it for fun, okay? QAQ)

…..

T/N: Hellooo, lovely readers! If you’re having fun with this novel, can you do me a tiny favor and drop a star rating on NovelUpdates? No need to write anything if you’re shy or busy—just a little click and we’re good! I know yandere boys and messy protagonists aren’t everyone’s cup of tea, but let’s show Pei Ji some love, okay? He’s a little unhinged but still deserves some hugs! 🥺💕

　　

　

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