Chapter 73: The East Wind is Fierce, and It Has Only Just Begun
The fall of the Gao Family sent a shockwave through the capital. It showed the common people the Emperor’s impartiality and justice, and it made the aristocratic families aware of his resolve.
This was especially true for those who had just brought back the mutilated bodies of their kin to prepare for a funeral. Forgetting their grief, they all rushed to arrange for burials.
Who had time to look for the culprit now? Terrified that someone might discover their family members had visited the Chang Chun Building and eaten human flesh, their only thought was to distance themselves from the whole affair.
Even though these were second-tier aristocratic families, none of them dared to stand tall before the Emperor and claim their innocence.
Murder and cannibalism were unforgivable crimes against nature. Not even an aristocratic family would dare to openly defy the repercussions.
They all tucked their heads in like frightened quails. But there was one exception. She was convinced this was all a conspiracy.
Liu Xueyin tried every possible means and finally managed to see Lu Yanzhi. Dressed in plain white mourning clothes, her eyes red and swollen from crying, she was a pitiful sight.
"Brother Yan Zhi, my father was framed! He wasn’t that kind of person, he wasn’t..."
"Brother Yan Zhi, the Princess must have done this! This is her revenge. She said she would kill everyone close to me. This has to be her revenge! Brother Yan Zhi, you have to help me! My father’s death was so tragic!"
Liu Xueyin was crying so hard she was on the verge of fainting. She gazed dependently at her childhood sweetheart, expecting him to comfort her and solve all her problems as he always had.
However, Lu Yanzhi slowly pulled his hand away. He looked at her with a dark, cold expression. "Xue Yin, perhaps you’ve forgotten. Many years ago, your father got drunk and said that the most delicious dish in the world to have with wine was ’Immortal’s flesh.’ He said one bite would make you as happy as an Immortal. After hearing that, you threw a tantrum, crying that you wanted to eat ’Immortal’s flesh,’ and your mother spanked you for it. You came crying to me about it afterward."
’I was too young to understand then, but thinking back on it now... it’s a terrifying thought.’
’A man-eating monster has been by my side all along.’
Liu Xueyin shook her head in disbelief. "Impossible. I never said that. It’s impossible! Why don’t I remember?"
Lu Yanzhi suddenly realized that as he looked at this childhood friend he had always pitied, she seemed like a different person.
"Then how do you want me to help you?"
Liu Xueyin didn’t notice the change in him. Trusting and relying on him as always, she made no effort to hide the hatred in her heart. "I want to kill her to avenge my father."
Lu Yanzhi said, "The case is still under investigation. Your suspicions are baseless."
Liu Xueyin stared incredulously at the man who had just contradicted her. "You don’t believe me?"
"My father is dead, and you still don’t believe me?"
"She said it herself—that she would kill everyone around me! Su Jin! She killed Su Jin right in front of me, did you know that?"
Lu Yanzhi frowned, weary. "I understand you’re grieving for Uncle Liu, but you can’t condemn the Princess based on such reasoning. She is a princess. How can you just kill her on a whim?"
Liu Xueyin shrieked hysterically, "What about my father, then? How could she just kill *him* on a whim?"
Lu Yanzhi had no desire to argue with her. Heartbroken and despairing, Liu Xueyin backed away. "I see now. I was never that important to you."
"Lu Yanzhi, I hate you!"
The next moment, a gust of wind blew past, and raindrops began to fall.
Lu Yanzhi stood under the eaves while Liu Xueyin was instantly soaked by the downpour. But she walked forward stubbornly, never once looking back.
From her carriage around the corner, Xiao Li watched this scene, speechless.
’I’ve already scored first blood, and these two are still here acting out a soap opera.’
In truth, Father Liu’s death wasn’t collateral damage. When Xiao Li discovered that den and began to lay her plans, she had been preparing for a massacre.
Father Liu hadn’t originally planned to go that day, but Xiao Li had the girls use a lure. That night, they managed to gather more than half of the usual ’regulars,’ and Father Liu was one of them.
’He deserved to die!’
It was laughable, really. The original story was all about the angsty romance between Liu Xueyin and Prince Chen, Xiao Jingyu. In that plot, the Liu Family were all just loving figures who doted on their daughter and sister.
Prince Chen was constantly suppressed and targeted by the incompetent Emperor, who tried to have him killed several times. Then, he casually staged a rebellion and became the new Emperor.
After Prince Chen became the Emperor, the aristocratic families remained aristocratic families, and the world went on as before. The only thing he did was embark on a desperate campaign to win back his wife. He used his imperial status, cast aside his dignity and state affairs, and offered the entire world as a bride price, all just to make Liu Xueyin fall in love with him again.
The massive, deeply-rooted aristocratic families that threatened the Imperial Power? Not important. The rot and darkness festering beneath those families? Also not important.
It was as if Prince Chen became Emperor for the sole purpose of using his title to dote on Liu Xueyin and make her the most revered woman in the world.
Then, he would promise her a lifetime of devotion to her and her alone. In the end, they would have children and become a loving couple envied by all.
Xiao Li suspected she was living in a completely different world from them.
---
「Manxi Building」
Ziyue had run out again and again, his face growing paler with each return.
The Shopkeeper, Uncle Jiang, was working his abacus. Seeing the boy’s state, he couldn’t help but advise, "If you can’t bear to see it, then don’t go looking."
Manxi Building and Chang Chun Building were less than two streets apart, a straight-line distance of less than a hundred meters. Ziyue was friendly with many of the local children, and some of the missing kids were acquaintances of his.
He could never have imagined that his playmates had met such a fate after they disappeared—and in a place so close by.
He wanted to go see if he recognized anyone, but the mountain of white bones... he didn’t dare to look too closely.
It wasn’t the bones he was afraid of, but the fear of actually seeing a familiar face among them.
Today, the bones had been collected. Since many were hard to identify, they were all taken outside the city to be buried in a common grave mound. A high-ranking monk had even been invited to chant a funerary Spell for the dead.
Ziyue had just gone to see them off on their final journey.
He was in low spirits and didn’t answer the Shopkeeper. Suddenly, he smelled a rich aroma of wine.
"Uncle Jiang, who’s drinking here?"
This was a teahouse; they didn’t serve wine, and customers weren’t usually allowed to bring their own.
Uncle Jiang pointed upstairs. "The person you’ve been longing to see is here. The Young Master is drinking with her."
Ziyue was surprised. "The beautiful lady? Can the Young Master even drink?"
Xiao Li was wondering the same thing. "If you can’t drink, don’t force yourself."
An otherworldly Immortal who seemed to subsist on nothing but air was now choking and coughing, his face flushed red from a single cup of wine. It made her feel quite guilty.
"COUGH, COUGH..." The Young Master waved his hand. "My apologies. This wretched body of mine has wasted the lady’s fine wine."
Xiao Li refilled her own cup and drained it in one go before replying, "I’m not worried about the wine. It’s just that your body... you look like you’re struggling. What is this illness? Is it incurable?"
The Young Master sipped some tea to soothe his throat. "It’s an old ailment. It’s not fatal—it won’t kill me, but it can’t be cured."
He watched Xiao Li drink cup after cup. "The lady seems to be in high spirits today. Has the eastern wind you were waiting for finally arrived?"
Xiao Li’s hand, raising her cup, paused. Then she downed it in another gulp. "It has. The wind is fierce, and it’s only just begun."