Chapter 93

Mo Lin was the first to notice that Jiufang Zhanghua was standing outside the door.

The moment he realized, the good mood he had maintained all night vanished completely.

How long has this person been waiting here?

Could it be that they’ve been waiting here since leaving Lingyong?

Mo Lin’s gaze swept over the falling snow on Jiufang Zhanghua’s shoulder.

Clearly, he could have stepped back half a step and sheltered under the eaves, but instead, he insisted on standing in the snow, letting it soak through, waiting here for others to see, wanting them to witness his pitiful state, to see him as indifferent and not competitive… It was utterly nauseating.

Dark thoughts continued to accumulate in his mind, but Mo Lin still slowly loosened his grip on Liuyu’s fingers.

“The snow makes the road slippery.”

Nangong Jing’s voice, as clear as flowing spring water, suddenly rang out, falling on Mo Lin’s ears.

“Mo Lin, hold Liuyu’s hand tight. Her skirt is too long today. Don’t let her fall.”

Both Mo Lin and Liuyu turned to look at the calm-looking woman, their faces filled with surprise.

Liuyu quickly realized.

A big change was coming tonight.

The entire neighborhood around the Yinshan Clan’s residence was inhabited by Yinshan’s subordinates. Both the inside and outside were under strict surveillance. Her mother couldn’t possibly not know that Jiufang Zhanghua had been waiting here for so long tonight, but she hadn’t mentioned it once along the way.

This meant her mother believed that, given either the identity of Ji Mo Gui or the relationship between the demon Mo Lin and the Yinshan Clan, there was no longer any need for secrecy.

Mo Lin also understood this meaning from Nangong Jing’s words.

The gloomy expression on his face seemed to crack open like a fissure, and beneath it, a surge of intense emotions fought to burst out.

His gaze, rising from the bottom, was like a snake intimidating its prey.

He parted his lips and said, “Understood.”

What was about to be released was his grip on Liuyu’s hand, but instead, he tightened it, interlocking their fingers intimately.

That gaze was almost as though it had been soaked in snake venom.

The sound of clothing rustling echoed from the stairs.

Miaoyi, lying against the stone lion, awoke in the tense atmosphere.

“Liuyu, you’re back! Was the painted boat fun? I overslept and missed tonight’s Xianglong fireworks!”

She quickly wrote down her thoughts, as she always communicated using cardboard.

But when she saw the intertwined hands of Liuyu and the demon Mo Lin, Miaoyi paused for a moment, then furrowed her brows and wrote with a flourish:

“Don’t let your hand touch Liuyu after touching another woman’s hand!!!”

Mo Lin glanced at the words, then turned to look at Liuyu.

How had the Jiufang family raised this little daughter?

Was she a fool?

Liuyu smiled and said, “Why are you sleeping at the door? It’s so cold.”

Miaoyi didn’t understand why she had to wait at the door, but she didn’t want to reveal her brother’s secret, so she simply replied:

“Yeah, it’s so cold, so cold. I really want to eat the golden jade soup made by your family’s chef.”

While she spoke, she took Liuyu’s other hand and led her inside, but Jiufang Zhanghua called out to her from behind:

“Miaoyi, you should go back.”

Miaoyi turned back, confused.

Jiufang Zhanghua looked into the depths of the estate, where the stone lanterns lit the quiet, narrow path. At the farthest point, there were sounds of demons clinking cups and chatting.

The Yinshan Clan’s estate was no longer safe for the Jiufang family; Miaoyi couldn’t go in.

“Yanyin is still waiting for you at home.”

“Mother’s already asleep. She never stays up on New Year’s Eve.”

Her brother had been waiting here for three hours, wasn’t it just to meet the Yinshan Clan? He even brought her along, fearing that Liuyu wouldn’t want to see him. How could he leave her once he’d met her?

Miaoyi didn’t care about all that. After petting the big yellow dog at the door, she directly entered the Yinshan Clan’s gates.

An old servant named Chengbo greeted her with a smile.

“Miaoyi, it’s been a long time since you’ve been here. What would you like to eat?”

Miaoyi lowered her head and quickly began to order.

“…Why is Zhanghua here?” Yinshan Ze, who had been lying on Mo Lin’s back, awoke. After a nap, he was much less drunk. “It’s the New Year, why aren’t you at home with your younger siblings?”

Jiufang Zhanghua looked at the swaying Yinshan Ze as he stood up.

His master had a gentle disposition, always smiling at everyone, from commoners to nobles, but today, the smile in his eyes seemed dimmer than the moonlight.

“I stayed too long in Lingyong, and I couldn’t deliver the New Year’s gifts on time, so I thought I’d come personally.”

Yinshan Ze’s steps were unsteady. His jewels clinked together, and the sound echoed all the way to Jiufang Zhanghua.

“Qionglu brew?”

Jiufang Zhanghua handed a wine jar to a servant and smiled.

“I heard that master has been unwell recently and has abstained from alcohol for months. So, I dug up the Qionglu brew I buried under the pear tree at home. It has the fragrance of wine but isn’t alcoholic. If master is really craving it, he can try this brew.”

Amber-colored eyes, like flowing wine, reflected the jar of Qionglu brew, stirring a few ripples.

“Ten years buried, it’s indeed time to take it out.”

“Back then, when I stumbled upon the recipe for this brew in ancient texts with master, I studied it for days until I succeeded. For this, I was even scolded by my father, who thought I was losing focus… If not for master’s protection, there would be no Qionglu brew, and no Zhanghua today.”

A hand, well-kept and pampered under a black fox fur, reached out and opened the wine jar. Yinshan Ze indeed smelled the rich scent of alcohol.

Flakes of snow fell into the brew, melting away instantly.

“These events are too long ago; I almost forgot about them.”

Jiufang Zhanghua, with proper etiquette, greeted him.

“It may not be worth mentioning to master, but I can never forget.”

Really?

Yinshan Ze’s deep gaze fixed on this disciple he had watched grow up.

If he truly couldn’t forget, then why, even if he had to strike him due to their positions, had he sought to exterminate Liuyu in the past life? Why had he disregarded Tan Ning’s wishes and insisted on marrying her to solidify his power?

Even now.

He was still using Miaoyi, still using this jar of Qionglu brew as a bargaining chip to achieve his goal of infiltrating the Yinshan Clan.

He had once thought Zhanghua truly liked this family.

But now, it seems, he had been mistaken.

“Boil another pot of green plum wine—not for me, for Xiao Miao Yi. She’s been outside in the cold for so long, she needs a warm cup of wine to thaw out…”

Yinshan Ze smiled faintly and stepped over the threshold, seemingly tacitly allowing Jiufang Zhanghua to enter.

Following Yinshan Ze, a group of servants and guards streamed in. As Liuyu passed by his side, Jiufang Zhanghua suddenly spoke:

“Liuyu.”

The girl, who had crossed in front of him, stopped.

“Did he force you into this?”

Liuyu suddenly found it a bit funny.

Jiufang Zhanghua wasn’t a fool, but at this point, he still asked such a question, and still wanted to deceive himself—what kind of answer was he hoping to hear?

Liuyu was about to speak when the demon beside her suddenly spoke:

“Even if I forced her, what would you do?”

Liuyu looked at him in surprise.

“Would you save her? Do you want to take her from me?”

Jiufang Zhanghua thought he was being provoked and shown off. However, the handsome demon with shoulder-length black hair had a stern look on his face, and the flames of anger burning in his eyes were even fiercer.

Anger?

What was he angry about?

Jiufang Zhanghua was slightly taken aback.

Losing patience, Mo Lin spoke in a deep voice, “Speak.”

The tall, elegant young master snapped back to reality. Due to his rude tone, his brows furrowed slightly, and the polite smile at the corner of his lips faded a little.

“Liuyu is not an object to be fought over. Lord of the Jiuyou, what do you think Liuyu is to you?”

It was as if the abyss-like pupils of Mo Lin were narrowing, staring at Jiufang Zhanghua’s face as if he were tearing apart his mask and seeing through his hypocrisy.

“You won’t save her, are you afraid of me?”

Jiufang Zhanghua lost all traces of a smile, his eyes coldly staring at the demon in front of him.

The rage of a common man would not achieve anything.

He was no fool to lose his temper after being ridiculed by a few words.

“The world is vast, and you are merely at the peak of the Ninth Realm. There are always people stronger than you, and realms beyond yours. Today, you are so rude and reckless. How do you know that my Jiufang family doesn’t have ways to deal with you?”

Liuyu instantly guessed what he was referring to.

Tianjia Thirty-One.

He didn’t know that was Mo Lin in his past life, and he was using it as a threat.

Mo Lin suddenly sneered, the cold fury silently scorching:

“Whether my Jiufang family deals with you or not, seems not to be for you to decide. If I were to tell Jiufang Qian now that I agree to join forces with the Jiufang family, whether it’s the Zhongli family, the Jimo family, or even the Yinshan family, once we swallow them, the spoils can be divided between our two families—Jiufang Zhanghua, will you stop me? Will you bet your life to save her?”

The oppressive gaze came with sharp, pressing words.

Jiufang Zhanghua hadn’t expected him to use such a method to provoke him and Liuyu. His fingers clenched tightly in his sleeves.

“I…”

“You won’t.”

After stating this with certainty, the demon’s expression in front of him seemed even angrier.

“Don’t you like her? Why not save her? You and she have been childhood sweethearts, and everyone in Xiandu Yujing knows you two are a perfect match. Why are you treating her like this?”

He had seen Liuyu’s helplessness during the blood-soaked past.

In the previous life, Liu Niang was captured by Zhongli Yi, and Tan Ning begged her to send a secret message to Jiufang Zhanghua, hoping that he would save Liu Niang for the sake of their past friendship. Liuyu had no choice but to try.

At that time, Jiufang Zhanghua, after a century of efforts, had already established an equal footing with Jiufang Qian and held enough power in the family.

He could have saved the insignificant Liu Niang, but instead, he replied to Liuyu with a condition.

He wanted Liuyu to abandon her Qi Sea, marry into the Jiufang family, and hand over the remaining troops of the Yinshan family. Only then would he agree to save Liu Niang’s life.

Liuyu didn’t agree, and even if she had, the Yinshan family’s retainers and even Tan Ning wouldn’t allow her to give up the deep hatred of the Yinshan family.

But Jiufang Zhanghua had placed this choice in front of Liuyu as if she had a say in it.

He made Liuyu watch Liu Niang die in front of her because she rejected this proposal. He deceived Tan Ning to self-sabotage behind everyone’s back, leaving Liuyu to bear the guilt, wishing to save Tan Ning until her death in the previous life to atone for it.

Mo Lin never denied his jealousy toward Jiufang Zhanghua.

The noble young master from a prestigious family had a refined upbringing that Mo Lin could never attain in this life.

He could walk openly by Liuyu’s side without being her stain.

Yinshan Ze saw him as a foster son, and the marks of Jiufang Zhanghua growing up were carved on the edges of the study door.

Mo Lin wanted what he didn’t want, and Jiufang Zhanghua could easily take it, yet he seemed to show no appreciation.

Things Mo Lin could only dream of were easily trampled underfoot by Jiufang Zhanghua, and now, at this point, he still had the audacity to act as if he cared deeply and was trying to make amends.

Dark, sticky emotions churned in Mo Lin’s heart, and hatred almost consumed his reason.

Jiufang Zhanghua didn’t understand his baseless questioning.

But Liuyu understood.

She slowly reached out and took Mo Lin’s hand.

“…You really don’t know what you’re talking about.”

Jiufang Zhanghua’s cold, porcelain-like face showed no expression. He looked at Liuyu and said:

“Liuyu, is that what you think too? In your eyes, am I the kind of person blinded by power and status? You and I grew up together. My hatred for my father is no less than yours for yours. Don’t you truly understand what I’ve done over these years, for you, and for the Yinshan family?”

Liuyu stared at him for a while, her smile faint.

“I know.”

The cold frost in Jiufang Zhanghua’s eyes seemed to melt slightly.

She raised her hand and gently brushed the snow from his shoulder.

“I’m waiting for you to save me… I’m waiting to see.”

Gripping the hand of the demon beside her, Liuyu stood shoulder to shoulder with him, crossing the threshold of the Yinshan family on the first day of the New Year.

The group outside the door dispersed.

Jiufang Zhanghua did not follow them in. He raised his head and saw Tanning, who should have been carried in by Chaoyuan, quietly appearing behind the door.

There was no one around, only servants stationed at a distance.

Jiufang Zhanghua lowered his head, looking at the flickering jade slip in his hand, with messages coming one after another in this otherwise tranquil night.

It was a battle report.

A report from the area where the Zhongli family was located.

After a long while, he looked at Tanning.

“Did you already know?”

Tanning looked at the layer of cold frost covering the face that usually seemed as gentle as a breeze and moonlight, and slowly shook her head.

“I only just found out… I don’t know what Liu Yu thinks. I don’t believe she doesn’t know what happened at Qingyun Platform today. Even if she likes that demon, she’s someone who can’t tolerate any sand in her eyes. How could she allow her husband to be so close to another woman? And… he personally killed Nangong Yao. What kind of poison did that demon put on Liu Yu?”

The youth’s dark, glossy pupils flickered with a cold light.

“So you didn’t know.”

Tanning blinked in confusion, but she didn’t dwell on it. She said, “Zhanghua, you can still go back to the Yushan family. It’s not too late. My father has a soft heart. My mother may seem indifferent, but as long as my father is happy, she’ll turn a blind eye. If you stop helping your father against the Yushan family, everything can return to how it was before.”

“Before?”

When those two words were mentioned, Jiufang Zhanghua’s calm and indifferent mask seemed to crack. He sneered.

“Ningning, do you really think everything can go back to how it was before? And do you really think the past was so good?”

Tanning slightly furrowed her brows.

Jiufang Zhanghua took a few steps forward and lowered his head to smooth the hair that had been messed up by the wind.

“Before, I thought that Master and Mistress would definitely betroth Liu Yu to me. But for the Yushan family, they personally raised Mo Lin and were even willing to send their precious daughter to his hands. I thought they saw me as a son, but it wasn’t the case. In their eyes, I was still a member of the Jiufang family, even though I betrayed my own family for the Yushan family’s interests.”

Tanning suddenly widened her eyes. “What do you mean ‘personally raised’? What are you talking about?”

“I’m saying that Wuse City was created by Master himself, and Mo Lin was personally selected by him. It was all to help those demons with no ties to us escape the constraints of the aristocratic families.”

A silent qi flow spread, isolating their conversation.

Jiufang Zhanghua’s eyes were darker than the night, but his voice unexpectedly softened.

“You didn’t know these things, which isn’t surprising. I once disregarded these rumors too, until today when I dared to be certain—Master wouldn’t tell us these things. Do you know why?”

Jiufang Zhanghua stared at Tanning’s trembling lashes, his tone almost sighing.

“Because, like you, we are outsiders in the Yushan family.”

Tanning suddenly raised her eyes. “You’re lying!”

After being adopted by the Yushan family, Yinshi and Nangong Jing treated her like their own daughter. Anything Liu Yu had, she would have a share of. Even though she knew she couldn’t compare to Liu Yu emotionally, that was only natural.

How could he say this!

“Do you know that Jimo Gui is actually Liu Yu?”

Jiufang Zhanghua casually dropped this bombshell.

“Do you know that Nangong Yao is not dead? Tonight, he’s leading a raid on the Zhongli family with Tanning Wen and the Yushan family’s troops.”

Tanning’s breath momentarily halted.

“Given that, perhaps Yushan Qi isn’t dead either. Tanning, while you’re grieving over the deaths of Yushan Qi and Nangong Yao, while you can’t eat due to Yushan family’s downfall, while you’re standing up for Liu Yu over the ambiguous relationship between the demon Mo Lin and Jimo Gui, do you know what they are doing?”

Jiufang Zhanghua looked at her stunned expression, his eyes misting over. He gently wiped away her tears with his finger.

“They’re laughing at you.”

“Only you see yourself as one of the Yushan family, Tanning. They never saw you as one of them.”

His gaze grew filled with pity, gentle like the shimmering surface of a lake under the moonlight.

“There’s one more thing I’ve never told you, but Ningning, you should know, because it’s related to your late father. You shouldn’t have had to live under someone else’s roof, being laughed at as a fake adopted young lady. You should have, like Liu Yu, had a real father who truly loved you.”

“It was Master.”

“Your father, the general of the Tanning family’s troops, did not die in the rebellion case involving the Xiangli family’s general. He was personally executed by Master.”

Tanning’s tears fell like pearls from her eyes as she stared at him in disbelief, frozen in place, silent for a long time.

Jiufang Zhanghua quietly stayed by her side, wordlessly brushing away her tears.

In this night, he seemed more patient with her than ever before.

After a long time, Tanning’s voice broke the silence.

“…What are you trying to get me to do by telling me all this? Betray the Yushan family?”

He shook his head, leaning in a little closer. His dark pupils seemed to be mesmerizing her.

“I don’t want to harm anyone in the Yushan family, and I believe you don’t either.”

“This is just… a small retaliation from two outsiders who aren’t accepted by the Yushan family.”