After deceiving the villain, I was forced to love him.

Wang Qingyan smiled brightly, but faint sobs could be heard from the forest. They were so low that one might think it was an illusion, yet they were undeniably chilling.

It's a pity there's no one else here.

Only some—

It's just a "tree".

......

After picking mushrooms and returning home, Baili Ce had already fallen asleep leaning against the table, all limp and looking a little cold.

He glanced sideways at the puppet beside him, "..."

That heartless woman, she didn't even bother to cover herself with a blanket.

They untied the ribbons from her hands and feet, carried her to the bed, and began to cook.

Although Wuming can act according to orders, he is ultimately driven by Gu, so he inevitably does things too methodically.

Therefore, when Baili Ce woke up and ate, Wuming had disappeared again.

"You're not thinking of jumping in for a swim this time, are you?"

Ok?

After a moment's thought, realizing he was arguing with her about how she had criticized his cooking, Bai Li Ce ignored it and ordered a bowl of delicious mushroom soup. "Where did you go this morning?"

"You never ask this, why are you interested today?"

Bai Lize gave a forced smile, "Because you poisoned the soup."

“…” Wang Qingyan’s expression changed.

"It's not something you can tell by smell; I don't have that ability."

"It's just that the same thing has happened to me far too many times."

"Then why do you still want to drink?"

“If you don’t drink it, you’ll only resort to more extreme methods.”

As soon as she finished speaking, Baili Ce felt a wave of dizziness wash over her... Shaking her head to maintain her last bit of clarity, she thought, this person is finally about to close the net.

“A-Zhu…” Supporting the swaying Baili Ce, Wang Qingyan still loved her very much.

At least that's what he thinks.

"what?"

She didn't hear what he said after that, but judging from his expression, it probably wasn't something she wanted to hear.

"You are not allowed... to lay a hand on my sister... or I will... make you wish you were dead..."

Before long, Baili Ce fell into a deep sleep, his breathing becoming barely perceptible.

But Wang Qingyan felt completely relieved.

“If I don’t return in three days, cut off her head and burn her and this house together.”

"Yes," Wuming nodded heavily outside the door.

......

Inside the manor, Lu Jian, who was resting, suddenly woke up from his dream, clutching his chest.

Zhang Shan immediately stepped forward to check, "Your Majesty, is the wound hurting again? Should we summon the army physician?"

"No need, it's just that I suddenly felt a chill."

Are you scared?

Zhang Shan subconsciously thought that Lu Jian was worried about Song Zhaohe. "Your Majesty, rest assured, Lord Song is a man of great principle, and with the treasure left by the young lady in his possession, he should not be so easily discovered."

"Besides, if he had really failed, Wang Qingyan would have already fought back. It seems that he just hasn't found an opportunity to make a move yet."

"..." Lu Jian glanced at Zhang Shan thoughtfully, but he didn't say that he wasn't worried about Song Zhaohe.

As a high-ranking official in the imperial court and the eldest grandson of the Song family, how easy would it be to leave a glimmer of hope for the Song family in the future court?

Even if Song Zhaohe himself was unwilling to take this step, Lu Jian would find a way to make him do it.

Therefore, the person most affected by Song Zhaohe's fate was not Lu Jian, but Song Zhaohe himself.

"How is it in the capital?"

Zhang Shan shook his head, indicating that there was no new information yet.

Lu Jian breathed a sigh of relief. "That means it's still under control."

Judging by the timeline, barring any unforeseen circumstances, they should have already made their move against Xue Fengshi.

After all, although the official positions in the Censorate were not high, they could check and balance the entire court.

Xue Fengshi was the most capable and highest-ranking official in the Censorate.

Next would be Baili Ming, Cui Yuanshu, then the Ministry of War... and even the Imperial Guards might be targeted.

But as long as He Yao doesn't panic, the game won't collapse.

But... touching his chest, he felt like he was suffocating from the pain... Could something have happened to A-Yao?

No, no, no, Lu Jian immediately rejected the idea.

He Yao believed in him, and he believed in He Yao.

At this critical juncture, she would never make a judgment that is not based on reason.

"Your Majesty, please rest assured. Daoist Yichen said that Wang Qingyan does not fully understand the layout here, and it is also concealed by mysterious techniques, so he cannot discover it."

Some were comforted, saying, "Yes, who would have thought that the real Zhaixing Temple was actually a huge Eight Gates Formation?"

......

Out of caution, Wang Qingyan used silver needles to seal half of Baili Ce's acupoints before leaving the island satisfied.

However, as soon as he left the island, a thick fog rolled in.

One by one, the lights along the paths went out, and soon the entire island was pitch black. Only the thatched hut where Baili Ce was located had candlelight burning because Wuming was guarding it.

But as the surrounding fog thickened, the light emanating from the thatched hut resembled a monster shrouded in mist.

"..." A moment later, whispers began to rise from the surroundings.

what?

Wuming slowly began to react, but only glanced unconsciously into the dim distance before continuing to stare at Baili Ce.

"Giggle giggle..." The sound of children's laughter came from the thick fog.

His dull eyes narrowed, and for the first time, Wuming, a Gu Guard, felt a sense of unease.

It's so noisy...it's really noisy.

The laughter grew clearer.

It wasn't as noisy as before, and it even had a long-lost sense of warmth...

"Brother, come quick!"

It was as if a group of "children" were hiding and waiting for Wuming to find them, wanting to play hide-and-seek with him.

Before he knew it, Wuming had started reciting "hide, hide, catch" in his head.

"Hide and seek!"

"Hide and seek!"

"Hide and seek!"

A response gradually came from the thick fog—the sounds of a group of children playing and laughing, interspersed with the cries of a few toddlers.

"Waaaaah... Wait for me, wait for me..."

"Click," the last light went out.

Suddenly, Wuming's eyes lit up!

The word "Brother" was shouted out from his throat as if it were bursting out of his chest, "Brother is here!"

"Brother is here!"

BOOM! The sound of shattering exploded in Wuming's mind. He looked up abruptly and ran into the thick fog, desperately pulling at something, "Come back! Come back!"

"Don't go! Don't go!"

Don't listen to him!

Don't listen to him!

......

In a daze, a clear, cold voice came, "Don't listen to anyone?"

"Wang Qingyan!"

"Don't listen to Wang Qingyan!"

"He's a monster!"

"He will bring ruin to the Wang family! He will kill my father! He will kill all of us!"

As soon as he finished speaking, his mind cleared.

Looking around again, Wuming's eyes regained their color.

Song Zhaohe arrived carrying a lantern. "Wang Qingfang, it's been a long time."

“…” After a moment of stunned silence, Wang Qingfang collapsed to his knees, burying his face in his hands and weeping bitterly.

The immense pressure and pain overwhelmed him, and for a moment he was so confused that he wished he had never woken up.

"What...what have I been doing all these years?!"

Wang Qingfang was originally a handsome and talented young man, but he was manipulated by Wang Qingyan for many years and killed countless people. Among them were his relatives, friends and loved ones. How could he not break down?

But Song Zhaohe didn't have much time for him to grieve, "She doesn't have much time left."

He practically dragged Wang Qingfang into the room and threw her onto the bed. "Only if she lives can Wang Qingyan die."

"..." It was probably the word "death" that spurred Wang Qingfang, who had been on the verge of death just moments before, to force himself to calm down in the most cruel way.

"Thud!" He stabbed himself hard with the knife.

Song Zhaohe's fist clenched involuntarily in his sleeve... but in the end he did not stop it.

Not satisfied with just a few sharp stabs, Wang Qingfang stabbed himself twice more.

Consider these few cuts as interest.

Amidst the excruciating pain, many things began to surface in his mind... He immediately began to remove the needles from Baili Ce.

The process was so difficult that even Song Zhaohe was afraid the two of them wouldn't make it through.

Fortunately, Wang Qingfang, being a Wuming, had been by Wang Qingyan's side for too long and knew many of his secrets and methods, so the whole process was ultimately safe and sound.

But how could someone as cunning and ruthless as Wang Qingyan truly trust others?

"Patriarch Wang, have you seen enough?"

Turn around—

Wang Qingyan watched them with great interest from outside the door.