cold clothes

The winter night was as black as ink, and the howling north wind, mixed with hail, pounded against the windows and hanging lanterns.

In the courtesan's bedroom, only a flickering candle remained, and all was quiet except for the sound of the wind outside the window. A gentle breeze stirred in her blankets, and she carefully sat up. After observing for a while and confirming that everyone else was asleep, she tiptoed out of bed, wrapped herself in a blanket, and went outside.

The lights were indeed on in the tea room.

A gentle breeze pushed open the door and entered, where Qin Mama was sitting upright.

Granny Qin's body was hunched over, half-lit and half-shadowed by the candlelight. In the dead of night, her figure frightened her even more than during the day. Wei Feng clutched the blanket around her tightly and whispered, "Granny, what brings you here so late at night?"

"Breeze, come here," Granny Qin said to Breeze in a calm voice.

Wei Feng cautiously moved to sit opposite her, not daring to look directly at her face. Although Granny Qin tried to be kind, it couldn't overcome the deep-rooted image she had cultivated over time.

“You’re a smart kid, you should be able to guess that there’s less than a month until the big exam during the Spring Festival, and there will be a rehearsal in ten days. You need to make sure that Ningbi can’t participate in the competition on that day.”

"Huh? Then what should I do?"

"It's very simple. When Ningbi performs her sword dance, spray this potion on her clothes. The smell will cause her to hallucinate and be unable to continue performing." Granny Qin took out a small porcelain bottle.

"Will this prevent her from participating in the competition?" Breeze looked at the porcelain bottle with a mixture of surprise and doubt.

"Of course not. Actually, the potion in this porcelain bottle is a 'child gu' (a type of poisonous insect), and I'm manipulating the 'mother gu' from behind. The rehearsal space is on the third floor. I'll make the person infected with the 'child gu' jump from the third floor to create the illusion of an accident—"

"Ah..." Breeze stared wide-eyed in horror, as if she could already see Ningbi jumping off the building. Even if she didn't die from jumping from the third floor, she would be seriously injured.

A vine-like joy spread across Granny Qin's face as she continued, "Even if we can't find an opportunity to create an accident, it doesn't matter. The Gu worm has already entered her body, and I can slowly torture her to death."

The breeze was already trembling. "Are we...really going to do this? Isn't this going too far..."

Granny Qin found it amusing: "If you don't kill her, she'll kill you, Breeze. Have you forgotten what I told you before? Look into her eyes—she will kill you one day."

-

He sat down, drenched in sweat, sword in hand, panting heavily.

She was too tired to wield the sword, but seeing Yin Jiu so calm and composed, barely breaking a sweat, she was quite annoyed.

"Are you in such good physical condition?"

"You are too weak."

"..."

Good, good, Yin Jiu, you really are infuriating!

Tonight, Yin Jiu taught her all twelve basic sword moves. I have to say it was much more efficient than yesterday, and the practice was much smoother.

"Let's end it here for today, I have to go back..." Leng Yi said, about to say goodbye, but then felt a pang of reluctance and cautiously asked, "Can you still teach me swordsmanship tomorrow night?"

Yin Jiu picked up his cloak that had been tossed aside, frowned, and brushed off the dust. Because Leng Yi had accidentally stepped on it earlier, he had no desire to wear it anymore. Hearing Leng Yi's words, his expression softened slightly, and he continued brushing off the dust, saying, "Okay, I have time before Laba Festival."

"Oh."

Leng Yi stood up and straightened her clothes. After Yin Jiu finished, the two of them went downstairs together.

Qingyou and Huailou were nowhere to be seen, which relieved Lengyi. She followed Yinjiu into the basement.

The second time they descended underground, they couldn't help but marvel at the sheer amount of manpower and resources required to build the underground labyrinth of Fengxiang Tower. The paths stretched in all directions, and the lights shone brightly throughout the night. Leng Yi felt as if someone might appear in front of her at any moment. But after walking for a while, apart from the faint sound of their feet rubbing against the ground, the sound of underground water flowing, and the faint sound of the wind, they heard no other sounds.

As she walked, Leng Yi felt something was wrong. "Why does this seem like a different road from the one we came on?"

"You only realized it now?" Yin Jiu chuckled. "I can't possibly let you brave the cold wind to go back to Zhuoyu Pavilion. I'll take you directly from underground to the path to Zhuoyu Pavilion."

"The Jade Pavilion also has a tunnel entrance?" Leng Yi asked, suppressing her emotions, but then realized it was quite normal.

Leng Yi soon discovered that the tunnel was not only long but also extremely complicated. Leng Yi followed Yin Jiu, turning left and right. Every time she saw a fork in the road leading in all directions, she felt her scalp tingle. She couldn't help but admire Yin Jiu. It must be very difficult to remember all these routes.

Yin Jiu, however, said it was nothing, explaining that one could determine direction simply by listening to the sound of the wind and the flowing water.

"But it's still pretty impressive," Leng Yi muttered to herself.

Yin Jiu suddenly turned around from the front, and Leng Yi stopped in confusion. Then he turned around and continued walking forward, leaving Leng Yi feeling puzzled.

What Leng Yi didn't notice was that Yin Jiu's lips couldn't help but curl up, a look of wanting to suppress her secret joy.

"arrive."

Yin Jiu led Leng Yi to the end of the stone steps.

Leng Yi closed her eyes and suddenly hugged Yin Jiu.

Leng Yi's cheek was pressed against Yin Jiu's, her body was pressed close to his, and her arms were wrapped around his waist. Yin Jiu was suddenly stunned, and after a few seconds he asked, "What's wrong with you?"

Leng Yi frowned and stared at him, saying, "Weren't you going to press my pressure points and then carry me upstairs?"

"That's a nice thought."

Huh? Leng Yi was furious. "I know, the entrance and exit aren't my responsibility!"

"It's okay if you find out. You're in here now, and you can't get out."

"You—" Leng Yi was furious again! This was blatant disrespect! But thinking about it carefully, it seemed to make sense, so in a fit of anger... she snapped.

"I'll pick you up here tomorrow night," Yin Jiu said, his eyes crinkling slightly. He was smiling more than usual tonight.

"It's better not to see each other," Leng Yi said bitterly.