Chapter 68.1: Rouge Gu (Part 4)

“What? The treasure isn’t the Soul Lock?” Xu Qianyu stood up abruptly, not even letting the building master finish his words.
“Calm down,” Liu Yian sighed, having grown accustomed to the sisters’ antics. “Sit down first; we’ll discuss this slowly.”
“You truly haven’t taken the Soul Lock?”
Liu Yian replied, “I only retrieved the Sword. As for the Soul Lock, I haven’t even glimpsed its shadow.”

Xu Qianyu was puzzled. Where could the Soul Lock possibly have gone?
“When you took the sword, did you see anyone else tampering with my dowry?”
“I didn’t see anyone. But when I took the sword, dark clouds covered the sun.” Liu Yian fanned himself lightly, smiling. “Whether there were any demons or ghosts, that’s a different story.”
Xu Qianyu frowned. It was frustrating to lose something so close at hand.
The only consolation was that Lu You didn’t get the Soul Lock either.

Liu Yian noticed Zhao Mingtang with her head down, pouting with a hint of girlish frustration, and cleared his throat, saying, “Why the anger? You’ve won; as promised, I’ll let you choose any treasure from our Fanghua Building.”
With a clap, he summoned the young attendants, who filed in carrying five or six trays filled with rare treasures.

Xu Qianyu didn’t even glance at them. “I want the Sword.”
Liu Yian’s smile froze. “What did you say?”
He had attracted customers today just to display the sword. Giving it to her would make all his efforts to secure it futile.
“That’s not possible. Pick something else.”

Xu Qianyu looked up and said, “Didn’t the building master say that Fanghua Building’s treasures are never for sale?”
“Yes.”
“Since this sword isn’t for sale, what harm would it do to give it to me? It wouldn’t affect your profits.”
As the daughter of a wealthy merchant, Xu Qianyu quickly adopted the building master’s perspective, analyzing with poise. “If it’s not for sale, then what’s the point of displaying it? Isn’t it just to attract customers? How does attracting all these people translate into silver? The teaBuilding space is limited; too many people would make it crowded. You’d still need to sell something. Since the sword isn’t for sale, something else must be. Earlier, the building master mentioned making jewelry from phoenix butterfly beaks. Are these jewelry items for sale?”

Liu Yian nodded. “You’re quite right. Go on.”
Xu Qianyu smiled slyly. “If I tell those common folk that Fanghua Building sells items made from demon remnants, would it affect the building master’s customer base?”
Liu Yian was slightly alarmed. Zhao Mingtang was bluffing, but she had guessed correctly: most of the jewelry and ornaments sold at Fanghua Building were indeed crafted from purified demon parts, giving them an unmatched, captivating beauty. This was Fanghua Building’s specialty.

His dealings with the Penglai Immortal Sect were similar, exchanging gold and silver for high-quality autumn-hunted spoils, which he crafted into ornaments. Though these items were harmless to humans due to purging, people had grown increasingly fearful of demons in recent years. Such exposure would bring unwanted trouble.

Liu Yian replied, “That sword has passed through a hundred hands, drinking deeply of enemies’ blood. It’s extremely dangerous and fierce. A young lady like you, fascinated only by its sharpness, wouldn’t be able to subdue it.”
“We’re both in business; I have many ways to attract customers. But if you gift me the sword, that’s different.” Xu Qianyu chose not to continue his line of reasoning.

“…”

“Go ahead and display the sword,” Xu Qianyu said, brushing off her skirt and standing tall. “I have something else to handle. I’ll come back for the sword.”
Liu Yian “hmph”ed, setting his cup on the table heavily.
Meanwhile, Lu You stopped a young attendant, noticing that the “treasure” on the tray was a silver sword, not the Soul Lock, and felt deeply deceived. “How could this be?”
The magical seal indeed indicated that the Soul Lock was no longer in the building.

Since Fanghua Building’s master didn’t have the Soul Lock, could Xie Yuzhen have made a mistake, leaving it in Zhao Mingtang’s dowry?
No, that didn’t make sense. If that were the case, why would Zhao Mingtang pursue her all this way and engage in a fight?
An unsettling thought crossed her mind, sending a cold sweat down her back.
Xie Yuzhen had said he had failed—did he truly fail, or had he obtained the Soul Lock and deceived her? Was his scheme merely to divert her attention so he could escape?
Stumbling, Lu You began searching the building, calling out.

Among the crowd, surrounded by the scent of perfume and ornate clothing, there was no sign of the boy.
The Soul Lock could suppress demonic energy. With it in his possession, no one—not even Penglai or she—could track Xie Yuzhen’s movements once he was revealed in the Flower Realm.
Standing amidst the crowd, Lu You felt lost. She had been following the Demon King’s path all this time, with him always close by. She didn’t even know his preferences when he was alone, his favorite places or activities, making it impossible to find him.

Where could Xie Yuzhen go? Could something else have become more important than her?
The Holy Maiden wandered like a ghost back to the second floor, where she came upon two young attendants tugging at each other, each pushing the other as a crowd gathered around. One of the attendants, upon seeing her, covered his face and ran over, complaining, “Holy Maiden, you’re finally here!”
Before Lu You could respond, she saw someone she had no desire to meet.
In bright red, Zhao Mingtang pulled the other young attendant to her side, pressing down on his shoulder with a slight smile and a subtle glint in her eyes. “Holy Maiden, let’s settle the account, shall we?”
“What are you talking about?”
Xu Qianyu said, “Before our competition, didn’t you entrust this young attendant to place a bet on your behalf?”
The Holy Maiden’s expression darkened.
This was something the system had informed Xu Qianyu about. Lu You, as the heroine of Shuangwen, would always place bets on gambling events to earn some extra money.

Lu You knew she had a system that would ensure her victory, so she had a young attendant place a bet on herself to win. For someone fulfilling the role of a character in a book, this was setting up for a satisfying payoff. When the time came, not only would she reward those who bet on her, but she could also make a profit.

People around them exclaimed, “Is there really such a thing?”
Lu You responded weakly, “What of it?”
Coincidentally, Xu Qianyu laughed and said, “I also entrusted this child to place a bet, but I wagered on myself to win.”

An onlooker asked curiously, “How much did the holy maiden bet?”
“Ten bets,” Lu You replied.
“And Miss Zhao?” 
“One thousand bets,” she answered.
“One thousand bets?!” Everyone looked at Xu Qianyu with mixed expressions, unsure how anyone could be so confident in herself. If she lost, the payout would be enormous!
Xu Qianyu’s expression remained unchanged. She hadn’t been certain she’d win before the match, but placing a thousand bets was a way to boost her own morale. Even if she lost, she could afford it; she had previously buried a chest of gold and silver from her family nearby.

Lu You’s face turned pale. She had indeed told the young attendant to find someone with a large opposing bet to increase her own payout, but he had gone and found Zhao Mingtang’s attendant with one thousand bets!
Each bet was worth ten taels of silver, totaling ten thousand taels. How could she afford to pay that?
The holy maiden bit her lower lip until it turned a deep red, her eyes reddening. Someone in the crowd then remarked, “Miss Zhao, the holy maiden saves lives at the medical hall without charging excessive fees and often provides free consultations. She doesn’t have much money, unlike your family, who profits from their business. Show mercy and don’t press her too hard.”
It seemed merchants were looked down upon throughout the Kyushu.

“Fine, since the holy maiden has lost fair and square, I won’t take the ten thousand taels,” Xu Qianyu said, folding her arms and lifting her chin. “But, give me the little attendant by your side as a maid instead.”

It was well-known that when the holy maiden spoke, there was always a young boy scattering petals and a girl holding a lotus flower nearby. For the first time, all eyes were on the girl standing at the holy maiden’s right side.
This girl, dressed in lotus-patterned robes with a double-bun hairstyle and a small tuft of hair sticking up, looked round-eyed and adorable.
At that moment, she widened her eyes, staring at Xu Qianyu’s raised twin buns in astonishment, then suddenly turned, knelt before the holy maiden, knocked her head to the ground twice, then picked up her lotus flower and ran to Xu Qianyu’s side.
The crowd thought, You betrayed her way too quickly!
As she ran over, they suddenly heard her soft, childish voice: “h-holy maiden, I’m sorry. From now on, I’m young lady’s maid.”

The holy maiden: “…”

Before now, no one had ever heard the holy maiden’s attendants speak, which caused an audible stir of surprise.
The girl turned her face, and the boy remaining at the holy maiden’s side looked at her longingly, eyes showing envy: he wanted to go too.

Lu You forced back her tears. This pair of spiritual attendants were her right and left hands; now that Zhao Mingtang had taken half of her support, how could she bear it? She took a deep breath and, with the remaining boy attendant, said, “Let’s go.”

Xu Qianyu gave the child who placed her bets a couple of handfuls of candy, then, hugging her Chisu (ruler) sword, left Fanghua Building with her newly won maid trailing behind her with short little steps.

The maid—Yu Chu—held her lotus flower, inhaling the fresh air of freedom as she walked. Perhaps it was because her aura was so weak that when she entered the floral realm, she had turned into a spiritual attendant for the holy maiden, tasked with holding a lotus flower when she spoke.

At the wedding, she had first met Zhao Mingtang, and the imperious way she carried herself reminded her of her mistress. Today, the hairstyle confirmed it—this was indeed her lady. Thankfully, her lady had recognized her too and even helped her escape from servitude.
Qianyu truly was the best!
Yet as they walked on, Xu Qianyu suddenly looked down and asked, “After all this time, how many pastries have you eaten?”
Yu Chu shuddered; this was their secret code established before entering the floral realm. “How many pastries?” was a question of how many points she’d accumulated.

Trembling, she lowered her head and held up the lotus flower, revealing five dew drops on the petals.
Xu Qianyu sighed, frustrated, “Useless thing.”
She herself already had three hundred points, while Yu Chu had only earned five!
Yu Chu was aggrieved; she had done her best. Serving beside the holy maiden, she wasn’t even allowed to speak. She had earned those five points by sneaking out a window while the holy maiden slept to hunt some monsters.

A carriage stopped outside the Building, and Zhao Qinghe’s slender fingers lifted the curtain. The two got on together. Shen Suwei, seeing the characters for Yu Chu on the girl’s head, knew she was close with Xu Qianyu and surmised that she had recognized her, keeping her nearby without revealing it.
Xu Qianyu and Shen Suwei sat on one side, Yu Chu on the other.

Once on board, Xu Qianyu leaned against the wall, appearing completely exhausted. “Sister, take me back to the Guo family. I need to check on Guo Yi.”
Shen Suwei hadn’t expected this to be her first request and, after a pause, said quietly, “Alright.”
The carriage started moving, but he didn’t yet relay the instructions to the driver.

Always quiet, Shen Suwei sat in silence as Yu Chu tugged at the lotus petals, too afraid to speak; Xu Qianyu remained with her eyes closed, saying nothing, creating a tense silence broken only by the squeak of the wheels.
The system then spoke up, “Xiao Qian, congratulations on breaking the Koi curse and defeating Lu You for the first time!”
Unusually, Xu Qianyu didn’t respond.
The system continued, “By the way, how did you disable the system’s influence?”
Xu Qianyu replied, “I didn’t. I just brute-forced my way through.”

Just then, the carriage jolted slightly, and Xu Qianyu frowned. Shen Suwei, sensing it, turned around to find her leaning weakly against him, her arm wrapped around his and her head resting on his shoulder. “Sister, the carriage is rocking so much.”
It had only hesitated slightly, nothing more. He turned his head slightly, letting her lean on him.
Xu Qianyu’s brows remained furrowed, her complexion paling further. “Sister, I feel carsick.”

“Hmm.”

Shen Suwei abruptly grabbed her shoulders, preventing her from falling. She was trembling, clutching the sword tightly to her chest.

What she spat out was blood.
Shen Suwei caught a whiff of the metallic scent of blood and froze in place, staring for a moment at a small patch of crimson on the back of his hand. He couldn’t tell if his hand was trembling or if it was just an illusion; the sight of that little spot of blood hit him hard, flooding his vision with red and leaving him somewhat dazed.

Today, during the advancement ceremony, he had already felt weak, yet he had forced himself to fight. Xu Qianyu had exerted too much energy during the fight, likely injuring her spiritual pool.
“Miss, Miss!” Yu Chu jumped down from her seat, calling out in worry.
Xu Qianyu tasted blood in her mouth, and then she felt her senior sister gripping her shoulder with such force that it felt as if her bones might crush. Overwhelmed, she fainted and lost consciousness.

*

In a small room of the inn, four people were crammed together.
A girl holding a lotus flower sat in a chair with her feet dangling, her eyes filled with worry as she looked toward the gauze curtain.
Ruan Zhuqing, holding a dog cage, leaned her head forward, her expression complicated as she peered in the direction of the curtain. The evil spirit had not eaten for days and was barking, shaking the cage. Ruan Zhuqing slapped a talisman on the cage: “Shh, quiet down.”

Xu Qianyu lay under the covers, half-awake from the noise. Shen Suwei sat by her bed, looking down at her. He took out a box from his robe and placed a pill in her mouth.
After Xu Qianyu swallowed the pill, she felt a significant calming of the turmoil inside her, a warm spiritual energy flowing around her body. Unfortunately, it was just a little, and she murmured, “I need more.”

In her dazed state, the cold and domineering aura around her faded, and her voice became soft, almost spoiled.
Shen Suwei looked down and took out another pill to feed her.
Xu Qianyu swallowed it again but still felt it was not enough, smacking her lips. “I need more.”
Seeing Shen Suwei reach for another, Ruan Zhuqing couldn’t help but say, “That’s enough! Are you treating those elexir like candy?”

He felt a surge of jealousy, a strong feeling that pierced through his temples. His sister looked like a celestial being, not only carrying Zhao Mingtang back herself but also staying close to her without shedding her clothing. Why hadn’t he received such treatment when he had bled?

Especially with the elexir—among the disciples, only medical and alchemical practitioners could bring three elexir into the Flower Realm. They were not combat cultivators and did not possess magical weapon, so these three elexir were their only means of gaining points, generally used to assist others in critical moments.