Chapter 180 – Protagonist (18)

This… doesn’t seem like candy?

The thought had barely flashed through Gongxi Yue’s mind when Wen Xunzhen let out a panicked cry.

She turned her head sharply toward Wen Xunzhen. Though her eyes were still blind, the oppressive, dangerous aura she exuded did not diminish in the slightest.

Qian, still curled up against her mother’s lap, also turned to look.

Now with both mother and daughter staring at her, Wen Xunzhen averted her gaze, her face turning ashen.

“What exactly did she just feed me?”

Gongxi Yue quickly pieced it together—whatever she had just eaten, it was definitely related to Wen Xunzhen, and clearly not some harmless candy pill.

After a brief internal struggle, Wen Xunzhen chose to tell the truth. If Gongxi Yue later discovered she’d been poisoned and Wen Xunzhen still refused to confess… she had no doubt Gongxi Yue would cut her down on the spot.

“It’s my Medicine Worm,” Wen Xunzhen finally said.

Still clueless about the situation, Qian raised her hand and shouted, “It’s the not-sweet candy ball!”

Gongxi Yue reached out and grabbed her troublesome daughter’s arm, pulling it down. She already guessed that this Medicine Worm was some sort of secret weapon Wen Xunzhen had been hiding. Her voice remained steady as she asked, “What happens if someone eats your Medicine Worm?”

“…I don’t know,” Wen Xunzhen answered after a long pause. “That’s not a lie. I really don’t know.”

She’d raised this Medicine Worm for years. It had started as a way to pass the time, but over the years she’d developed a technique for refining it with medicine, pouring countless resources and care into it.

She had fed it every kind of spirit herb—poisonous, non-poisonous, and even some rather special concoctions.

Even when she used the Medicine Worm herself, she was always extremely cautious. Who could have predicted someone would just straight-up swallow it? This was an outrageous waste!

Feeling the spiritual sword at Gongxi Yue’s side beginning to hum with dangerous energy, as though it was about to fly from its sheath at any moment, Wen Xunzhen hurriedly added, “But… if you can digest this Medicine Worm, no poison will ever be able to harm you again!”

Wen Xunzhen and the troublemaking Qian sat side by side. Qian finally realized things weren’t looking good and stopped swinging her legs, nervously picking at her fingers.

Wen Xunzhen’s slender hands twitched as well, but she quickly stilled them, curling her fingers into tight fists as she lowered her gaze to stare at her knees.

Gongxi Yue sat opposite them, her sword resting across her lap. Without warning, she raised a foot and slammed it down between the two of them, making both jerk back with a start.

She said nothing, yet her very presence screamed: I’m sitting right here. If anything happens to me in the next moment, the two of you are dead.

The child couldn’t handle the pressure. Before long, her eyes turned red, and she threw herself onto Gongxi Yue’s leg, crying and wailing, “Mother!”

Gongxi Yue’s anger hadn’t abated. Her face remained stern as she shook her leg, trying to shake the child off.

The girl clung tighter, sticking to her like a giant bug, whining and playing pitiful.

Wen Xunzhen scoffed inwardly. Causing such a disaster, and now trying to cry her way out of it? This cold-blooded Sword Cultivator won’t fall for that. What’s the point?

If it were her own father, any mistake would’ve been met with punishments worse than death. Crying was useless.

Yet barely a moment later, Wen Xunzhen noticed Gongxi Yue’s eyebrow twitch.

When she spoke again, her voice had thawed, if only slightly.

“Useless brat, go play somewhere else! I’ll deal with you later!”

Wen Xunzhen watched in disbelief as Qian instantly stopped crying, beamed with joy, and happily scampered off to play.

In that instant, Wen Xunzhen understood: Gongxi Yue was a cold-faced, soft-hearted mother.

No wonder the kid acted like she feared nothing and no one.

Now that the child had escaped punishment, the unlucky Wen Xunzhen remained, anxiously awaiting her own judgment.

As night fell, Gongxi Yue, who had swallowed the Medicine Worm, still showed no adverse effects.

Wen Xunzhen checked her pulse every so often, only sensing a faint trickle of medicinal qi slowly seeping from her dantian, subtle and elusive.

“So far… it seems like there’s no problem,” Wen Xunzhen cautiously reported.

Gongxi Yue finally withdrew her leg and stood up.

Only then did Wen Xunzhen dare to breathe easier—only to feel her wrist seized, and in the next instant, she was yanked to her feet.

The two women were of similar height. Wen Xunzhen was dragged into a spin and stumbled backward into a chair.

A hand came down on the back of her neck, pressing her firmly against the chair.

Before she could react, something cold and metallic snapped around her throat.

A chilling silver ring lay snug against her skin.

“I didn’t want to do this,” Gongxi Yue said coldly, “but you’re simply too unruly.”

Wen Xunzhen instantly felt her spiritual power sealed off entirely.

Panic surged in her chest.

This was a Spirit-Locking Ring!

Her spiritual energy was now completely unusable. Her belongings were confiscated. Even her Medicine Worm was gone.

At this point, she was worse than an ordinary person—any random child like Qian could easily capture her.

“Ah!”

A startled scream came from the courtyard gate.

Gongxi Yue released Wen Xunzhen and turned toward the door. “What are you screaming for?”

Standing there was her younger sister, Gongxi Wenxing, face pale with shock.

“I—Nothing! I was just passing by to check on Qian! I’ll go now!” she stammered, fleeing in a flustered rush.

Her mind was still filled with the scene she had just witnessed: her usually cold, distant elder sister pinning someone down in a chair, looking like something very intimate was about to happen.

Her brain nearly short-circuited.

She turned tail and ran, stumbling as she went.

Gongxi Yue frowned, perplexed. Ever since Wenxing had gotten tangled up with Xiao Shou, she’d been acting increasingly foolish.

Expression darkening, she turned back to Wen Xunzhen.

“Xiao Shou once seduced Wenxing,” she said bluntly. “Almost made her elope with him. Though her illness has been cured and she’s no longer fixated on him, it’s clear her mind hasn’t fully recovered.

“If you don’t figure things out soon, this will be your future too.”

This was the first time Gongxi Yue had voluntarily mentioned Xiao Shou since capturing Wen Xunzhen.

To protect her beloved and prevent Gongxi Yue from remembering Xiao Shou and hunting him down, Wen Xunzhen had never so much as uttered his name in her presence.

Now, though still furious about the Spirit-Locking Ring, she froze in astonishment at Gongxi Yue’s words.

She jerked her head up.

“You mean to say… your sister and Xiao Shou… had a past?”

Wen Xunzhen had long suspected Xiao Shou harbored a grudge against the Gongxi family for some hidden reason, but she hadn’t imagined this.

Her gaze drifted toward the now-empty courtyard gate, recalling her brief encounters with Gongxi Wenxing—bright, charming, with a curvaceous figure and a playful, coquettish demeanor.

A girl who seemed like she’d catch the eye of any man.

Gongxi Yue’s voice was ice-cold.

“Xiao Shou is a vile parasite. He attaches himself to different women to get what he wants. Whatever love or affection you think you feel… it’s all a lie.”

“If you don’t tear him out of your heart, one day… he’ll devour you whole.”

“And when that day comes, you’ll regret every last breath you spent protecting him.”

At that moment, Wen Xunzhen sensed that the anger burning in Gongxi Yue’s eyes wasn’t just for her sister. The words “I believe him” caught in her throat and never made it out.

After three days at the Gongxi Family estate, Wen Xunzhen woke from a restless dream only to be greeted by Gongxi Yue’s cold, expressionless face.

She instinctively shrank back. “What… what’s wrong?”

“What’s wrong,” Gongxi Yue echoed flatly, “You said I’d be able to see in three days. Clearly, you were wrong.”

“That’s impossible!” Wen Xunzhen blurted.

But after checking carefully, she had no choice but to accept the truth: the Medicine Worm she’d given Gongxi Yue was producing strange effects inside her body.

Gongxi Yue, who should’ve regained her sight by last night, was still blind. And worse, Wen Xunzhen wasn’t even sure she could fix it.

“Tell me you can solve this,” Gongxi Yue said.

Wen Xunzhen fell silent.

“I see.” Gongxi Yue’s voice remained calm, but there was a weight to her words. “I keep my promises.”

As she spoke, her hand slowly drew her sword.

A jolt of terror ran through Wen Xunzhen. The memory of Gongxi Yue threatening to cut off her… well, that flashed through her mind, and she immediately clutched her clothes and bolted for the door.

Gongxi Yue raised her sword and gave chase.

Qian ran into the courtyard, saw them running—one chasing, one fleeing—and thought they were playing some new game. She cheered and joined in, “I wanna play too!”

Wen Xunzhen nearly coughed up blood. Dodging to the side in a panic, she barely escaped being tripped up by the child. The flash of a sword passed behind her—cutting off a lock of her hair.

“Give me a little more time! I’ll cure you, I swear!” Wen Xunzhen tumbled to the ground, eyes squeezed shut, shouting at the top of her lungs.

The cold blade grazed her cheek and embedded itself in the dirt beside her, then slowly withdrew, sliding back into its sheath.

“Remember this fear,” Gongxi Yue said coldly. “And don’t play games with me again.”

Even though she knew, rationally, that Gongxi Yue was only delivering a warning and wouldn’t actually kill her, Wen Xunzhen’s heart pounded uncontrollably, taking ages to settle.

Qian squatted down beside her, innocent and bright-eyed, asking sweetly, “You’re done playing? Then it’s my turn to chase you!”

Staring at the adorable little face in front of her, Wen Xunzhen thought bitterly: How can someone with such a pretty face—both the big one and the small one—be so hateful?

“Pack up. We’re leaving the Gongxi Family today,” Gongxi Yue announced to the two panting figures in the courtyard.

“You… given your current condition, shouldn’t you stay here to recover?” Wen Xunzhen asked cautiously.

“You guaranteed you could heal me. Since that’s the case, there’s no reason to stay.” Gongxi Yue was well aware that hiding her blindness for three days had already been difficult enough. If she stayed any longer, someone in the family would notice.

Just thinking about what would happen if her uncle found out made her want to leave immediately.

She couldn’t stand the idea of a hundred medical cultivators swarming her. Nor did she want dozens of maidservants fussing over her—from feeding her to bathing her.

Worst of all, her uncle would definitely force her to stop sword training and cultivation altogether until she agreed to obediently lie in bed for her “recovery.” Just thinking about it was enough to make her want to cry.

Taking advantage of her uncle’s absence—he was out inspecting family properties—Gongxi Yue left the estate with her daughter and one very unfortunate “prize.”

Her younger siblings came to see her off, reluctant to let her go, trying to persuade her to stay a few more days.

While Gongxi Yue was busy grabbing her brother for a last-minute lecture, Wen Xunzhen hesitated, then quietly approached Gongxi Wenxing.

The woman who by all logic should’ve been her love rival gave her a strange look. Wen Xunzhen’s own feelings were equally complicated.

They stared at each other for a moment. Before Wen Xunzhen could bring up Xiao Shou, Gongxi Wenxing suddenly stamped her foot and snapped, “Even if you and my sister… I’m still not calling you sister-in-law! Never!”

Then she spun on her heel and stormed off.

Wen Xunzhen stood frozen. “…What?”

Sister-in-law?

As they stepped out of the Gongxi estate and boarded the flying vessel, speeding along their journey, Wen Xunzhen still hadn’t recovered from the shock.

Gongxi Yue had to call her twice before she snapped back to reality.

She wanted to ask why her love rival had suddenly started calling her “sister-in-law”… or rather, refusing to call her that. But facing Gongxi Yue’s cold, unreadable face, she lost her nerve.

“I’ll try something first… refine a batch of Medicinal Dissolution Pills, to clear the lingering Medicinal Qi from your eyes.”

“Most of the ingredients are manageable. But there’s one—freshly picked pepper-blossoms. They only grow in Le’er City. We’ll have to make a trip.”

Le’er City wasn’t far from West Ridge. A city where cultivators and ordinary people lived side by side. It was spring all year round, flowers blooming endlessly.

Gongxi Yue had visited a few times in her younger years, and never found it particularly special.

But for Qian, it was her first time, and she was thrilled. The moment she saw the flower pastries sold on the street, she ran over with her hands pressed to her cheeks.

Wen Xunzhen was no better. She’d only ever read descriptions of various regions in books. Seeing it all firsthand felt completely different. Before she knew it, she too had drifted over to a vendor’s stall, eyes full of curiosity at the exotic flower treats.

In the blink of an eye, both of them had run off in different directions.

Gongxi Yue scowled, grabbed the flower-pastry-munching Qian back, and called out sternly, “Wen Xunzhen.”

Wen Xunzhen returned obediently, only to watch as Gongxi Yue took out the same spirit-binding cord she’d once used on her… and tied it firmly around Qian’s waist.

“No more running off.”

Qian tugged at the red cord around her waist, protesting loudly, “I’m not a puppy! I don’t want a leash!”

“Then you can share it with her,” Gongxi Yue said.

Qian glanced at Wen Xunzhen, thought for a second, then chirped, “Mm, okay!”

Wen Xunzhen, suddenly dragged into this: “?”

What does this have to do with me?!

Gongxi Yue walked in front, holding two red cords in one hand—one tied around Qian’s waist, the other around Wen Xunzhen’s arm.

The mother and child duo strolled through the city streets under the curious stares of passersby, completely unfazed. Only Wen Xunzhen kept lifting her sleeve, desperately trying to hide her face.

Qian tugged on her sleeve, holding up her half-eaten flower pastry. “Zhenzhen, wanna bite?”

“No,” Wen Xunzhen said sulkily.

“Aiya!” Qian lost her grip. The pastry fell right onto Wen Xunzhen’s skirt, leaving an oily stain before tumbling to the ground.

Qian quickly picked it up, patted it off, and carefully pinched away the dirt, turning the pastry into a crumbling mess.

Before long, she ran over to Gongxi Yue, waved the mangled pastry under her nose, and jumped up and down, insisting she eat it.

Gongxi Yue, growing annoyed, bent down and ate the whole thing in two bites.

Wen Xunzhen, watching all this unfold: “…”

Lonely Moon Sword Monarch, have you truly never heard the saying “once bitten, twice shy”?