Zhanxing Tower—

The eunuch head Lord Hu anxiously watched in a daze when Emperor Jingxiao and Jieyu Sun went away in the imperial carriage.

What a big joke tonight!

Jieyu Jin, who had been chosen by the Emperor himself, was still lying nakedly on the dragon bed at Tailuan Palace. A fire caused His Majesty to turn his affection to Jieyu Sun at Hanxiang Residence.

After this mishap, the only people who would get in trouble were the servants.

Lord Hu turned around with a bitter face to whisper to a little eunuch, who then hurried away after the Emperor.

On the top of a corner at the west side of Zhanxing Tower, Gu Yunxi wore all black and hid behind the jade fence on the terrace, closely watching the happenings under Zhanxing Tower with her flickering eyes.

When the fire was completely put down, the crowd dispersed. Only then did she stand up and smile behind her black mask.

Gu Yunjin wished to compete for the Emperor's favor and successfully climbed onto the dragon bed under the eyes of the whole imperial harem. But Gu Yunxi had made her lie nakedly there for no purpose. Tomorrow morning, she would be a joke for all concubines to gossip about.

Gu Yunxi squinted and deflected her cold gaze in the direction of Tailuan Palace. When she was so proud of herself, she felt her right wrist grasped by a powerful iron hand.

By her ears, a cold voice rose melodiously, causing her to tremble.

"The arsonist for the fire at Zhanxing Tower. I shall see where you will escape now!"

Gu Yunxi's heart throbbed. When she looked sideways, she saw a man in the red and golden lotus robe by her side. His complexion was pale like snow and his face was exquisite. Ruthless coldness darted out of his dark eyes, sharp as blades.

Yu Xuanji!

Gu Yunxi naturally recognized him.

Back when she still worked for the Eastern Depot, she had made acquaintance with the beautiful yet crazy priest at the Pengxian Temple in her attempt to obtain Liyu.

She then remembered that she knew him, but he did not know her. This relaxed her palpitating heart a bit.

What surprised her was that Yu Xuanji had approached her silently without her noticing. Even though she knew Kungfu now, he could catch her in one move, which meant that her skills were not parallel to his.

Gu Yunxi narrowed her eyes, struggling to free her right wrist. However, it stayed clasped and could not move as if it had been under a heavy rock.

Sneering, Yu Xuanji fixed his gloomy gaze on Gu Yunxi's glistening eyes that were uncovered by the black mask.

"Want to run? You wish! You set fire to my Zhanxing Tower. Now come with me to Elixir Chamber..."

Before he could finish his sentence, Gu Yunxi raised her left palm and tried to claw Yu Xuanji's throat.

Yu Xuanji parried her attack with one hand and dodged easily. His other hand quickly punched Gu Yunxi's chest as soon as it let go of her.

The hit was heavy. Pushed by the internal strength, Gu Yunxi was forced to back up until her back touched the vermilion pillar.

In the next moment, his palm followed and slid across Gu Yunxi's face. It was so fast that she was unable to breathe, let alone dodge it.

The cold swipe passed by. She was not hurt, but her mask was ripped off in an instant.

Gu Yunxi glared, pulling away and ready to fight with her palms as the weapon.

"Huh! The maid from Chuxiu Palace. I knew it was you!"

Seeing her face, Yu Xuanji revealed no surprise on his face. Instead, he let out confident chuckles. His voice was limpid, much like the sound of a pearl falling on a jade plate.

"The Honour Guards downstairs have not retreated yet. Do you want to continue fighting and draw their attention? Or sit down with me in a room here for a chat?"

Gu Yunxi frowned with eyes full of vigilance. Staring at Yu Xuanji, she questioned coldly,

"What can we possibly talk about?"

Yu Xuanji's eyes were frozen and his answer was concise.

"I have some questions for you!"

"In that case, I shall go with you."

Gu Yunxi's face appeared calm, but her mental activity never stopped.

From the previous confrontation with Yu Xuanji, she could tell that the priest was a very cunning character. Before him, obedience was the best disguise.

Followed by Yu Xuanji, Gu Yunxi submissively took off guard and led the way. They left the terrace and entered a room opposite the jade fence.

Pushing open the beautiful jade door, they entered a pitch-black room with a strong musty smell. Tables and chairs were discernable under the dim moonlight. Draperies and antique furnishings were all dusty, revealing no clues about the location.

Perturbed, Gu Yunxi secretly took out the jade flute without much thinking. She suddenly turned around after two steps into the room and blew the flute at Yu Xuanji.

Yu Xuanji's pupils enlarged. He saw a silver needle shot at his face in the darkness.

Gu Yunxi conducted a desperate struggle.

Tonight, she deliberately set Zhanxing Tower on fire because it was the closest to Sun Shengsheng's residence. Moreover, Emperor Jingxiao was a Taoist. He would surely check it in person.

In this way, Sun Shengsheng could act the bitter drama to the necessary audience.

Everything went smoothly. In the end, Sun Shengsheng got what she wanted. Yet, caught and recognized by Yu Xuanji, she was unable to escape.

Consequently, he would threaten Chuxiu Palace as long as he lived.

Untouched by the hidden weapon, Yu Xuanji stood tall. His handsome face was as freezing as a foggy pond, and his towering silhouette was perfectly outlined by the hazy moonlight shining through the hollow window.

His fiery robe fluttered, stirring the air. Between his two slender fingers, the poisonous silver needle was firmly pinched.

Silently, he dashed to her and slammed his empty hand onto Gu Yunxi.

Without any cover, Gu Yunxi had to take the blow with her bare elbows, and thus she was locked on the floor by the force.

The dust was floating everywhere. She could only watch furious Yu Xuanji clasping her arms. He raised the other hand high, ready to pierce the needle between her eyebrows.

"So young yet so vicious. See how I will destroy you today—"

Gu Yunxi couldn't help but scream. But Yu Xuanji's wrist suddenly went soft as if numbed by invisible internal strength. His face twitched under the moonlight.

The poisonous needle dropped quietly on the ground.

Yu Xuanji's eyes opened wide, staring at the shadow standing before the door.

The cold fragrance arrived with a magnetic voice.

"Xuanji, let her go."

Yu Xuanji sneered, but he did as the man requested.

Gu Yunxi painfully moved her arm that had been clutched sorely by the priest. Leng Qingtang was dressed in black and had his long hair tied up. Regrettably, she looked at him standing between her and Yu Xuanji.

"Master..."

Gu Yunxi whispered, pressing down the corners of her mouth with shame.

Yu Xuanji gave a sly glance to Leng Qingtang.

He ignored the priest and looked directly at Gu Yunxi disappointedly. Dusting her clothes with both hands, he then spoke adoringly,

"Are you sent from heaven to torture me? Why must you make trouble in the Palace so often?"

Leng Qingtang bent over to pick up the black mask and put it back on Gu Yunxi's face.

Yu Xuanji snorted unhappily.

"Show your love right after you showed up. Aren't you afraid that I will be jealous?"

Noticing Gu Yunxi's confused gaze, Yu Xuanji rolled his eyes in disdain and explained,

"Don't get me wrong. I'm not interested in you! Tu Muxue, I know who you are. The cat with nine lives. To be honest, when I learned that you had escaped Ming Lan's carriage alive, I wanted to kill you myself right away!"

Gu Yunxi was shocked, unexpecting his knowledge of her identity.

Leng Qingtang glared back and scolded,

"Yu Xuanji, shut up!"

Yu Xuanji squinted. His eyes were even colder when he angrily replied,

"You are still unprincipled for her. How could you exchange her life with the handle of the Wans?!"

Astounded, Gu Yunxi grabbed Leng Qingtang's narrow sleeve and asked urgently,

"Master, what did you give to the Imperial Noble Concubine?"

She should have thought that the reason why her visit to Yongning Palace had been unpunished was a deal between the Master and Wan Yuyao.

The bargaining chip was not light.

Across her, Yu Xuanji snorted bitterly.

"It's the evidence that we have been collecting for a long time to bring down the Wans!"

Speechless, Gu Yunxi punched Leng Qingtang beside her.

"If you won't shut up, let me help you—"

In the blink of an eye, his attack was launched. Startled, Yu Xuanji dodged it. The blow went past his shoulder and shook the wall behind him.

"You go first."

Leng Qingtang said to Gu Yunxi without turning his head. His angry eyes were watching Yu Xuanji's next move.

He perceived her hesitation, and his curled lips let out gentle words.

"I have something to say to the High Priest. Now go back and be careful not to be found."

Helplessly, Gu Yunxi looked past Yu Xuanji and curtsied to Leng Qingtang. Then she walked out of the room and jumped down the turret, light like a swallow.

In the moonlit room, Yu Xuanji's eyes were icy like blades, fixated on Leng Qingtang's face in the dark night.

The other party held his hands behind his back and looked over him. His tone was flat without a trace of emotion.

"Jiang Huaian told me that you used Tu Muxue's life to force the truth out of him!"

His black eyes turned to meet Yu Xuanji's brown ones.

"Do you know? Yu Xuanji, I can't wait to kill you immediately as well?"

Yu Xuanji was not provoked. Instead, he smiled mockingly at the palm print engraved in the wall.

"Didn't you just do that? It's a pity that you owed my father Zheng Ran, so you deliberately missed."

Leng Qingtang frowned. He closed his eyes for a second and then opened them again to stare at him, tearfully.

"I was more softhearted than afraid. You are the only heir of the Zheng family. I will not end your bloodline. Yu Xuanji, you are not worthy of being the son of the late Duke."

Under Yu Xuanji's resentful gaze, Leng Qingtang walked towards the door, bathing in the moonlight.

"Wait!"

Yu Xuanji raised his voice.

"Huanan He, you owe me a favor. Now it's time to repay me. I want you to deploy the Eastern Depot to help me find a person."

Solemnly and resolutely, Leng Qingtang asked, "Who?"

"Lei Huan!"