Chapter 49

Inside the thatched hut, the candlelight was dim, and at first, the clan elders didn’t immediately recognize who had entered.

It wasn’t until Mo Lin spoke that the elders of the Yinshan Clan were able to discern who he was, based on his cold tone and the snake-like, chilling gaze in his eyes. The person before them was none other than Mo Lin, the demon who had set fire to the Colorless City.

Although they had met a few times since then, the impression Mo Lin had left on everyone during the day he burned the city was still vivid and unforgettable.

Surrounded by ghostly flames, the demon leader led thousands of spirits out. He personally decapitated four vice-city lords from the Jiufang, Zhongli, Xianli, and Murong families. His coarse slave clothes were drenched in both the blood of the immortal families and his own.

On that day, the demon’s fury was so intense that it seemed like he could destroy all of Xian Du and Yujing in one fell swoop.

But now, in this moment…

He wore the same rough cloth, but he was entirely different from the bloodthirsty demon lord they remembered.

In his hands was not a severed head, but a basin of footbath water.

A few strands of damp hair clung to his pale face, his black hair was tied back, and the cold, damp air around him had dissipated, leaving only a sharp, youthful demeanor. A bamboo leaf, seemingly stuck to him from nowhere, could even be seen atop his head.

Uncle Seven’s gaze shifted slightly.

Perhaps, it had something to do with the brand-new bamboo chair that Liuyu was sitting on.

Seeing this, Uncle Five’s anger also immediately subsided by a third.

“…In Xian Du and Yujing, there are many young men willing to serve as attendants to the future head of the Yinshan Clan. To have such an honor is truly a stroke of luck for you.”

Uncle Five, skilled in tempering his qi, didn’t show any sign of weakness on the surface, but the two jade beads he was twisting in his left hand nearly sparked from the pressure.

Heaven help them.

Liuyu, this child, had really spoiled them. She wasn’t afraid to order anyone around.

While they definitely didn’t want Liuyu to suffer in the Nine Hells, she couldn’t just leave all the hardship to the Nine Hells’ master, could she?

This demon could kill without blinking an eye. Who knew when he might turn against Dazhao and declare war? If Liuyu continued to order him around like this, if anything changed in the future, he could very well be the first one to kill her to raise the Nine Hells’ battle flag.

Mo Lin glanced at the jade beads in Uncle Five’s hand and gave a half-smile.

“Of course, demons are crude and despicable. How could we possibly compare to the young, talented men of Xian Du, with their grace and elegance? To be allied with me is truly a disgrace to the Yinshan Clan.”

Uncle Seven lowered his head, sipping tea to calm his nerves, while Uncle Five raised his eyes and stared blankly at the beam, no one daring to respond to Mo Lin’s words.

Their clan’s most promising young member was still in the hands of this demon.

Liuyu, however, raised an eyebrow slightly. “It’s rare to hear you speak such sophisticated words. Where did you learn that?”

Mo Lin’s eyes, which held an icy coldness, flickered, and he replied coldly, “Need I learn? People from Xian Du and Yujing always flatter their own young talents with such words, don’t they?”

“…”

Liuyu, as though unbothered, turned her gaze elsewhere.

After setting down the water basin, Mo Lin was about to leave when Liuyu tugged at his robe from behind.

“You’ve already come in, so sit down and rest for a bit,” she said, propping her chin up and looking at him. “After all, we’re all from the same family, and there’s nothing you can’t hear.”

Uncle Five’s eyes widened. “Who’s from the same family with him…”

Before he could stop her, Mo Lin had already swept his robe and sat down, his expression completely at ease.

This kid—

Uncle Five’s face darkened as he stared at Mo Lin.

Back when Mo Lin had burned Colorless City, he had killed all the cruel supervisors from the five great noble families who were extreme in their treatment of demons, sparing no one.

Such a vengeful and ruthless person had shown mercy to the Yinshan Clan members that day.

While it was true that Yinshan Ze had strict rules forbidding his subordinates from casually whipping demons, he always believed this demon had a bigger plan in mind.

For example, he wanted to gain the trust of the Yinshan clan, using this marriage to swallow them up.

So, when Mo Lin came to propose after the peace talks between the two regions, intending to take Liu Yu from Xiandu Yujing with great ceremonies to the Nine Underworlds, he was rejected at the door and even said:

— “A cultivated soil has no pine or cypress, and incense and herbs cannot share the same vessel.”

— “Don’t understand? Let me put it plainly: For someone as illiterate as you, even if you bring mountains of gold and silver, you’ll never step foot in my Yinshan clan’s threshold!”

Although the marriage went ahead with the intervention of Nangong Jing, in the end, Mo Lin was never allowed to step into the Yinshan clan’s doors, let alone send demons or ghosts to Xiandu Yujing for the wedding.

Liu Yu didn’t know these twists and turns.

She had been very busy at that time, busy with debating with the elders of her family, and didn’t even know that Mo Lin had proposed.

She casually broke off a piece of dry grass used for kindling and continued the conversation.

“As for the Jimo clan, I have made up my mind, and my parents also agree. No one can stop me. I will push forward with it. By the way, I’m currently inside the Xiangli clan. If things go smoothly, before long, you all in Xiandu Yujing will hear the name of the Jimo clan through secret reports.”

“And if later, any aristocratic family checks the records of the Xian Dao Bureau and finds that the Jimo clan is just a hollow shell, and that they are determined to get rid of me, with Chaoyuan and Chaoming not by my side—then you all can handle it however you want.”

The five elders of the clan had previously been somewhat confident in persuading Liu Yu, but now that they knew she had infiltrated the tiger’s den and only had Mo Lin—who was neither an enemy nor a friend—by her side, their faces changed drastically.

“Absurd!”

“Such a big matter, how can you act on your own!”

“Living too comfortably in Lingyong, you’ve lost all sense of caution!”

“We’ve told you, these matters are none of your concern, and you can’t help—what you should focus on is your cultivation. If you can break through to the eighth realm soon, that would be a real help.”

Liu Yu was a bit annoyed by the voices around her and rested her cheek on her hand, responding perfunctorily, “The eighth realm? It’s almost done.”

Almost done?

The elders were somewhat surprised.

Before her marriage, Liu Yu had just reached the peak of the seventh realm. Based on their calculations, breaking through to the eighth realm would take at least five to six years, or even more than ten years. It had been less than three months, so how could it be almost done?

But Liu Yu wouldn’t joke about such matters.

Thinking about how smoothly everything had gone for her since she entered the path of cultivation, as if the Yinshan clan’s ancestral tombs were emitting smoke, the elders thought she had experienced another breakthrough, and they all looked at Liu Yu with kindly gazes.

“It’s good that it hasn’t delayed your cultivation. Is there anything you need? Recently, our family got a few sandalwood cherry fruits and a thousand-year-old blood lotus. We’ll send them to you in the Nine Underworlds soon…”

Liu Yu smiled thinly, “No need. You don’t need to worry about this matter. You can’t help.”

The five elders were stunned.

“They’re all rare treasures. How can you say we can’t help?”

Only the fourth uncle knew that this was Liu Yu’s playful expression before pulling a trick. Just as he was about to interrupt, he saw Liu Yu raise an enchanting smile and say:

“You don’t need to worry about the dual cultivation.”

… Dual cultivation?

Just a moment ago, the communication array had been chattering incessantly, but now it fell into a deathly silence.

While dual cultivation was indeed a legitimate Daoist practice, it was related to private matters of the bedchamber, and for these elderly men, it was somewhat awkward to discuss openly.

Mo Lin could feel sharp gazes piercing him like needles.

In such an awkward atmosphere, Liu Yu alone remained calm and composed.

If they wouldn’t let her have things her way…

Then they could all be awkward together.

“—Liu Yu.” The fourth uncle spoke in a neutral tone, “Let’s talk properly. If there’s something, we can discuss it. Don’t always pull these tricks.”

Liu Yu’s expression remained unchanged as she replied:

“Then give me a clear answer.”

Having reached this point in the conversation, the elders knew that Liu Yu was resolute, and there was no chance of changing her mind.

Naturally, they couldn’t just watch their precious child go off alone into danger.

After a long silence, the fourth uncle slowly spoke:

“Let’s talk about your plan first. If I’m not mistaken, the key step of this plan requires our cooperation.”

Mo Lin, who had excused himself to wash up, gently closed the door.

This small courtyard was some distance from the fields, inconvenient to travel back and forth, but for the mountain demon arriving under the cover of night, it saved the trouble of avoiding ordinary people.

When the mountain demon arrived, Mo Lin was drawing water from the well.

After throwing the water-gathering bead into the well and filling it, Mo Lin returned it to his hand. He had partly removed his clothes and continued washing while asking:

“How’s the investigation?”

The mountain demon silently landed and looked up, replying:

“The information matches with what the ghost butterfly brought back. I saw people from the Jiufang and Zhongli families at the Xiangli clan’s main residence. It should be Jiufang Shaogeng, the third young master of the Jiufang family, and Zhongli Lingzhao, the fourth young miss of the Zhongli family.”

“Are you sure?”

The mountain demon hesitated slightly.

“There are too many experts at the main residence. I could sense the pressure of three eighth-realm experts. I didn’t dare to get too close to confirm, but the ghost butterfly’s intel is usually reliable, and there will likely be more people, not fewer.”

Mo Lin lowered his gaze, his long eyelashes wet with water droplets.

Jiufang Shaogeng.

The younger brother of Jiufang Zhanghua, and the true heir carefully nurtured and entrusted with important responsibilities by the family head.

And Zhongli Lingzhao, before Liu Yu left Lingyong, had been overshadowed by her during the four-year trials, only coming into prominence after Liu Yu’s marriage.

If the person with her now was indeed Jiufang Shaogeng, it indicated that her position in the Zhongli family had greatly improved.

In any case, their sudden appearance at this time was not good news for them.

“What other intel do you have?”

The mountain demon felt the letter tube in his hand was somewhat burning.

He scratched his face,

“Other than that, it’s all just worthless rumors. Time is running out, so if the master doesn’t want to…”

A cold, damp finger pulled the communication tube from his hand.

Inside was the second scroll of intelligence, which Mo Lin had instructed the ghost butterflies scattered across the Immortal Capital to collect.

[April 3rd: The ninth son of the Gong Sun clan had an argument with his friend at a restaurant west of Yujing City. He mentioned the name of the respected consort, saying, “When have I ever shown courtesy to the Yinshan Liuyu? Don’t compare me to the wife of a demon ghost.”]

—–

[April 15th: The first songhouse in Yujing City changed the name of the pipa player to Liuli, dressing her in golden garments and jade hairpins. She was said to resemble the respected consort. Many from Yujing’s noble families visited, and rumors spread. The second son of the Chishui family tried to take her as a concubine, but the respected consort’s younger sister, Tan Ning, paid a large sum to take her away and beat the second son of the Chishui family.]

—-

[May 9th: A servant of the Jiufang family, who worked in the golden-threaded jade garden, suddenly fell ill and died. His old mother went to collect the body but failed. She hanged herself at home.]

—–

[May 27th: The fourth young lady of the Zhongli family won the sword contest at Sword Pavilion, smashing the sword stone left by the respected consort a year ago. Palace official Ji Yu questioned her, but she claimed it was an accident.]

—-

[June 5th: The third son of the Jiufang family encountered the daughter of the Shentu family at a banquet. Upon seeing her resemblance to the respected consort, he ordered his men to strip her outer robe and burn it. This incident spread, and no woman in Yujing dared to wear golden garments.]

—–

Each piece of information was related to Liuyu.

But none of them were good.

After reading the news, the Mountain Demon couldn’t help but feel enraged, almost wanting to immediately act on this list and start punishing those involved.

If he was this angry, how much more so the master?

However, as the Mountain Demon secretly observed the master’s expression, he noticed no clear signs of emotional fluctuation on his face.

The moonlight cast shadows beneath his eyes, like a hazy reflection in a cold, deep pool.

“If the secret agents are useless, then make it an open investigation. Find a way to infiltrate the main residence, but be careful. The respected consort’s curse seal—do you know how to use it?”

Before they split up, Liuyu had written a curse seal on a talisman to block her Qi Sea, preventing outsiders from probing.

However, if she manipulated her Qi Sea herself, the seal would lose its effect and be easily noticed by the experts in the main residence.

“I know, I know,” the Mountain Demon patted the talisman in his chest and sighed. “The respected consort really knows a lot of sneaky tricks.”

Disguises, illusions, and curse seals.

She didn’t seem like the proud young lady; more like some fugitive trying to hide.

Hearing the words “sneaky tricks,” Mo Lin’s mind stirred.

He raised his eyes toward the thatched hut where a candle flickered.

The Mountain Demon said, “I’ll go now. Master, be careful.”

Mo Lin nodded.

After a quick wash, Mo Lin changed clothes and moved toward the door.

“…By the way, Uncle Five, from now on, whether in public or private, don’t say those things like ‘all the young nobles of the world are under my skirt.’ It’s just funny when I hear it.”

The main topic had been discussed, and as the communication formation was about to be cut off, Liuyu suddenly added this remark.

“Heroes of the people, shame of the noble families—such is the evaluation given by the monthly review. How can the current Yinshan Liuyu compare to the glorious Lingyong leader? In Yujing City, there are probably countless people trying to sever ties with me, not to mention stepping on me while they’re at it.”

The elders fell silent.

Finally, the fourth uncle spoke.

“This matter originated with the Ji clan. After the Lantern Festival’s monthly review, the Yinshan clan informed the Lingyong Academy that the 10,000 volumes of books and a library that were supposed to be gifted after the spring exams have been canceled.”

Liuyu seemed helpless: “One thing is one thing. There are so many Ji clan members, and Ji Yu, the palace official, can’t control everyone. Why take it out on me?”

“It’s not taking it out on you.”

The fourth uncle stroked his beard and said calmly, “In recent years, the Jiufang and Zhongli families have made many moves, subtly challenging the Yinshan clan’s position. The Lingyong Academy, being a gathering place for noble families, should take this opportunity to strike a blow.”

That much was true.

Liuyu didn’t try to stop him, but smiled brightly and said, “In that case, instead of canceling the 10,000 books, why not donate them to the Nine Hells? Uncle Four, you don’t know, but the demons and ghosts here are all illiterate. Can you bear to see my new demon subordinates embarrass me…”

The fourth and fifth uncles exchanged glances.

“Huh? Is this communication formation broken?”

“It seems so, I can’t hear anything.”

“We’d better find someone to fix it, or how can we cooperate with Liuyu in a few days?”

“Then we’ll end it here for today. Remember to practice well. We’re waiting for you to break through the eighth level.”

Liuyu widened her eyes in disbelief, watching the old men shamelessly play dumb and cut off the communication formation.

“—Still playing dumb! This is too much!”

When Mo Lin entered, Liuyu was lying on the bed, still muttering angrily.

“They didn’t even give me the 10,000 books to donate to Lingyong! This is too much!”

“They didn’t not want to give them to you, they just didn’t want to give them to me.”

A low voice came from behind, and Liuyu felt someone catch her restless ankle.

Then something soft gently touched her toes.

“Just as expected, used as material for making incense, I can still smell the scent of sandalwood after all this time.”

Liuyu turned around and saw him lowering his head, kissing her toes. She was so shocked she instinctively shrank back.

“…No wonder it smells so good,” Liuyu glanced at the wooden basin of water by the bed, “Did you put sandalwood flower juice in here? Where did you get it?”

“Stole it.”

He climbed onto the bed, his large hand gently squeezing her foot, as if trying to relieve the fatigue of the day.

“The fields east of Xiangli have plenty of it. I was worried this place was too dirty for you, so I used the flower scent to cover it.”

The small candlelight illuminated half of his face. His fingers were rough, and as he massaged her foot, it felt both itchy and strangely soothing, making Liuyu feel a subtle sensation.

Liuyu watched him seriously massaging her feet, and in her peripheral vision, she saw the thatched cottage he had spent an hour tidying up tonight.

Compared to when she first entered, with rotting wood piled up and the smell of mildew in the air, it had undergone a dramatic transformation.

He had even used a leftover piece of bamboo to draw well water, placed a flower—one she wasn’t sure where he had gotten—from somewhere, and set it in a spot where she could easily see it.

Liuyu’s heart suddenly softened.

“Morning light clears the overgrown weeds, and at night, she returns with a hoe under the moon.”

She sat with her knees hugged to her chest, her silky black hair cascading softly from her shoulders.

“With this feeling, it really does seem like an ordinary farming couple.”

Mo Lin’s fingertips paused for a moment.

He didn’t fully understand the first part of the sentence, but the last part was perfectly clear to him.

Liuyu’s originally tender gaze changed when she noticed his lower abdomen.

“Why again…”

“Your tone when reciting poetry sounds beautiful.”

His palm rested against Liuyu’s back as he leaned in and kissed her.

“Say it again.”

Liuyu turned her face away.

“I won’t.”

“Say it again.” His voice was low and gentle, completely different from the coldness he had shown earlier when facing the elders. It was soft, almost imploring. “The line you just said… Could you say it again, please?”

Liuyu had never heard him ask for something like this.

But the way he said it, it almost sounded like a plea.

“…Which line?”

She remembered the question she had asked her Fifth Uncle earlier.

— “Don’t try to fool me, you just said, ‘I gave him a harsh warning at the time,’ what was that about?”

Through further questioning, Liuyu learned that Mo Lin had once been turned away when he proposed.

If she hadn’t had prior experience and remembered to ask about these small details, she probably would have been completely kept in the dark this time, just as she was in her past life.

Liuyu felt a bit angry.

But she couldn’t help but feel sympathy as well.

Liuyu moved her feet, which were resting between them.

Her feet, pale and soft without a single callus, gently brushed against him. Her movements were restrained, as light as a cloud, since this was a new experience for her.

She felt his breath quicken against her neck.

“Was it that line of poetry… or the one about us seeming like ordinary married couples?”

His breathing became heavier, more urgent, his warm breath hitting her neck and ear, accompanied by soft, delicate kisses.

Liuyu lightly pressed her foot, gently rubbing against him, more cautious with each movement as she had never tried this before.

She wanted to be kinder to him.

Suddenly, a hand, long and bony, gripped her ankle. Mo Lin almost whispered into her ear:

“Not hard enough, Liuyu… a bit more pressure.”

More pressure, enough to make him feel the pain.

Only pain could make him remember her love for him more deeply at this moment.