Fairy Keqing was horrified. "How could this happen?"
But then she remembered how the Lin family and Rongguo Mansion had changed while she was still Qin Keqing.
Apart from Ningguo Mansion, the other families had all changed drastically from what their plans had intended.
Lin Ruhai and Jia Min were alive and well, and their son was growing up healthy.
Lin Daiyu was no longer an orphan. She had someone to rely on and wouldn't die young.
Jia Hu, the eldest legitimate grandson of Rongguo Mansion, was alive and well. He had married a princess, earned the emperor's favor, and was protected by dragon aura. No evil could harm him, and using magic against him was utterly impossible.
With such an outstanding third-generation leader as Jia Hu, Rongguo Mansion would never end up being confiscated.
The fates of the young ladies in Rongguo Mansion would also change as a result.
When Qin Keqing died, Rongguo Mansion had already begun looking for a suitable husband for Jia Yingchun.
As for the Xue family, Xue Baochai had entered the palace, and her future was uncertain. Xue Pan hadn't killed anyone, and Jia Hu had kept him in check, preventing him from acting recklessly. It seemed he wouldn't be thrown in jail and sentenced to execution after the autumn, either.
It seemed that apart from Ningguo Mansion, where Qin Keqing had lived, every other family was doing better and better.
Most of Fairy Jinghuan's plans had been ruined. No wonder the backlash had struck her.
Fairy Keqing was panicking, too.
Fairy Jinghuan had failed. What would become of the demons and spirits who followed her?
Would Heaven tolerate them?
Though they called themselves fairies, they were nothing more than a group of spirits.
They weren't demons who cultivated through orthodox means. They were spirits who followed an evil path.
With Fairy Jinghuan's plans in ruins, Heaven's will would discover them. When that happened, could they escape Heaven's punishment?
The spirits in the Taixu Illusion Realm were in a state of panic.
Those who had committed many sins, such as Fairy Keqing, Yinchou Jinnu, and Fairy Jinghuan's other confidantes, feared heavenly tribulation and were all in a state of dread.
As a result, they didn't notice some of the lesser fairies exchanging glances in secret.
This was their chance!
That was the thought shining in the eyes of the fairies.
In truth, not all the fairies in the Taixu Illusion Realm were there willingly.
Quite a few had been tricked into coming by Fairy Jinghuan, just like Fairy Jiangzhu, who had only recently taken human form.
Fairy Jinghuan had tricked Fairy Jiangzhu into descending to the mortal world to repay a debt of gratitude. Under the pretext of looking after her true body, she had brought it back to the Taixu Illusion Realm.
This made it easy for her to tamper with Fairy Jiangzhu's true body.
Once Fairy Jiangzhu's source had been drained and her true body withered, she herself died.
Fairy Jinghuan had easily eliminated a powerful rival who might one day have threatened her position.
She used the same methods against other fairies. Although she didn't use the evil spell she had used on Fairy Jiangzhu's true body, she still found ways to keep their true bodies in her possession.
That was the main reason the fairies didn't dare defy Fairy Jinghuan.
Now their chance had come.
Fairy Jinghuan was gravely wounded and in seclusion, while her lackeys were too terrified to pay attention to the fairies' true bodies.
This was their best chance to steal back their true bodies.
As for the restrictions placed on them, they could remove one another's.
None of them could match Fairy Jinghuan alone, but they could cooperate, combine their strength, and break the restrictions.
So Fairy Keqing didn't receive news that Fairy Jinghuan had emerged from seclusion. Instead, she heard that several fairies had broken Fairy Jinghuan's restrictions, reclaimed their true bodies, and left the Taixu Illusion Realm.
In an instant, half the fairies were gone from the Taixu Illusion Realm.
Those who remained were even more terrified.
The once-paradisiacal Taixu Illusion Realm now seemed desolate and dilapidated.
Jia Hu knew that Jia Zhen was as good as dead.
The emperor might not care about Qin Keqing, an illegitimate daughter.
But she still had royal blood. How could an old lecher like Jia Zhen be allowed to toy with her as he pleased?
Qin Keqing wasn't a good person either, but once she was dead, all the emperor's hatred and fury were directed at Jia Zhen.
Jia Hu wasn't going to plead for Jia Zhen. He only pitied Jia Rong, poor fellow, whose own father had cuckolded him.
In this world, Jia Rong had studied alongside Jia Lian, Jia Zhu, and the others at Rongguo Mansion since childhood. With Jia Daishan looking after him, he hadn't turned into another Jia Zhen like in the original story.
Jia Rong had even passed the provincial-level exam in this world. Though he couldn't pass the metropolitan exam, he at least had some ability.
Jia Hu spoke up to plead for Jia Rong.
The emperor also felt sorry for a man whose own father had cuckolded him, so he agreed to spare Jia Rong.
However, Ningguo Mansion had to be eliminated, and Jia Rong couldn't remain in the capital.
Jia Hu agreed.
After Qin Keqing's funeral, Jia Hu went to speak with Jia Zhen.
Using the matter of Qin Keqing to threaten him—without mentioning Qin Keqing's identity, since the emperor wasn't going to move against the Four Kings and Eight Dukes just yet, and Jia Hu pretended not to know about Jia Zhen and Lady Jia Shi's scheme—Jia Hu forced Jia Zhen to agree to let Jia Rong and Jia Qiang divide the household and leave the capital.
Because of what had happened with Qin Keqing, Jia Zhen already found Jia Rong an eyesore.
In his eyes, his son was worth less than a woman.
So he agreed to Jia Hu's demand without much hesitation.
He took only a third of Ningguo Mansion's property and gave the rest to Jia Rong and Jia Qiang, then sent them back to their hometown in Jinling.
Jia Rong had long resented the old man, but filial piety had kept him from showing it.
Now that he could get away from such a rotten person, it suited him perfectly.
He didn't care how much property he received.
Jia Zhen had no other sons. Once he died, wouldn't all of Ningguo Mansion's property belong to Jia Rong?
But he had no idea that he would never get his hands on Ningguo Mansion's wealth.
Before they left, Jia Hu called the two of them over and gave them a long list of instructions.
He showed them far more concern than Jia Zhen ever had.
The two men thought, Now this is what a true elder should be!
After finishing his instructions, Jia Hu asked Jia Rong to stay behind and told him, "Don't count on inheriting Ningguo Mansion's title or property."
Jia Rong's eyes widened as he stared at Jia Hu, puzzled.
Jia Hu lowered his voice. "Your father has offended His Majesty with his actions. Sooner or later, His Majesty will confiscate Ningguo Mansion's property. You can leave the capital this time because I pleaded with His Majesty for you. But the condition is that you can never return to the capital."
Jia Rong was horrified.
Could things really be so dire?
He asked in a trembling voice, "Is it because of Qin Shi?"
Jia Hu asked, "You know Qin Shi's identity?"
Jia Rong shook his head. "I don't know who she is, but I suspect she's no ordinary person. A family of some minor fifth- or sixth-rank official couldn't afford dowry items like hers. Father pushed me into marrying Qin Shi because he wanted to secure a future for himself, didn't he? Too bad he failed."
Jia Hu nodded. "Qin Shi was the Deposed Crown Prince's illegitimate child."
Jia Rong was stunned. "He's asking for death, and dragging the whole family down with him. The Deposed Crown Prince has been dead for more than a decade, and the emperor has been on the throne for years. His rule is secure. Helping Commandery Prince Yizhong rebel is a fool's errand."
Jia Hu gave a mocking smile. "Exactly. Even you can see the truth, yet your father naively thinks he can succeed. Does he really think he's the only clever person in the world?"
Before you continue