Two Impossible Choices! (Please Read On)

In front of the Southern Pacification Mansion.

Qin Muye looked at Bai Yuji on the carriage with a plaintive expression. "You're really going to leave me home all by myself?"

"Can't be helped. You're the patient, after all."

Bai Yuji smiled at him. "Stay home and take care of yourself. Once you're better, I'll go wherever you want with you!"

Qin Muye waved a hand helplessly. "Sure, sure. You're all talk. I'm going back to bed. Come back early."

"Get some rest!"

Bai Yuji gave him a few more reminders, then lowered the curtain.

The instant the curtain fell, the smile on her face faded like fireworks after they bloomed, dimming until it vanished and left only the desolation of the night sky.

For a fleeting moment, she was filled with melancholy.

She sighed softly. "Let's go."

The carriage then headed toward the encampment under Qin Yanying's command.

At the gates of the Southern Pacification Mansion.

Qin Muye watched the carriage recede, his expression growing grave.

For the past few days, he had sensed that something was off with Bai Yuji's mood.

But he couldn't put his finger on what.

The one thing he was sure of was that when Bai Yuji met with the Nanzhao Remnants that night, they had discussed some kind of plan. That plan had raised Qin Yanying's fate-rank.

Yet, strangely, the notes on her fate hadn't changed much.

That left him completely baffled.

And the plan might not have been aimed only at Qin Yanying. He might be caught up in it too, but he couldn't inspect his own fate, which only made him more frustrated.

Still.

His instincts told him that something major might happen on this trip to Anjin.

To be honest.

He was angry.

He was an outsider in this world, but that didn't mean he felt no connection to his identity.

He might not care for the rest of the Qin Family, but he at least considered Qin Yanying his aunt.

He knew Qin Yanying had taken part in the war that destroyed Nanzhao, so he could understand why Bai Yuji might wish her harm.

But these past few days, Qin Yanying had doted on Bai Yuji as if she were her own daughter.

On a personal level, he still couldn't accept it.

Qin Muye shook his head and returned to his room.

He lay down.

He closed his eyes.

Before long, he sensed another body.

The next moment.

Inside an inn.

A figure sat up in bed.

He was a tall, broad-shouldered man, wrapped from head to toe, with only his stern face exposed.

He got up and stood before the mirror for a while, admiring the eyes in their sockets, a blend of gemstone and metallic luster. Satisfied, he nodded.

Then he put on a bamboo hat and walked out.

This was Qin Muye's proudest creation of the past few days.

His own body might be weak, but that didn't affect the strength of a puppet.

The materials were all above the required standard, his puppet-making skills nearly flawless, and with his fifth-grade spiritual cultivation, plus a spirit core inscribed with combat techniques through the Gongshu Clan's connections—

This puppet could easily wield strength above the fourth grade.

After leaving the inn, he went straight out of the city and followed the Imperial Guard led by Qin Yanying at a discreet distance.

In the faint light before dawn, they headed toward Anjin County.

His gaze passed through the dense crowd.

In the distance, he could make out Qin Yanying and Bai Yuji from behind.

Qin Yanying rode the Spirit Rhinoceros Dragon Steed that had been with her for years. Bai Yuji rode a white horse bought at the official market. The two chatted and laughed, looking closer than ever.

But they were too far away, and the surrounding noise was too loud.

Qin Muye couldn't hear what they were saying.

Anjin County was bustling today.

As the closest of the three counties directly administered by the Capital City, Anjin was home to a large portion of the capital's non-core officials and wealthy households.

With so much spare money, commerce naturally thrived. Anjin County was no less prosperous than the Capital City, and its atmosphere was more relaxed, too.

Every year on the tenth day of the tenth month, the county held a seven-day temple fair to commemorate the ancestors of the various families who had followed the Grand Ancestor in founding the dynasty.

The fair fell close to the triennial Ten Thousand Races Imperial Examination, so this year's festivities were especially lively.

Qin Yanying pointed toward the city gates. "Yuji, you can go in and look around if you like. We'll mainly be patrolling the southern wall, so we won't be going inside."

Bai Yuji glanced into the city gates, thought for a moment, then smiled. "It looks even more crowded than the Capital City. We'd spend the whole time looking at people. Why don't we wander around outside instead? It looks lively out here, too."

Qin Yanying thought so too. The city might be bustling, but it wasn't fundamentally different from the Capital City.

By contrast, many traveling merchants who couldn't find stalls inside had gathered beyond the city walls, making for a different sort of charm.

Still.

She eyed the purse at Bai Yuji's waist. "If all we do is browse the stalls out here, you might not be able to spend a penny!"

Bai Yuji smiled. "There's nothing much worth buying inside the city, either."

Qin Yanying puffed out her chest, then glanced at the young men behind her. "See that? That's what a good woman who knows how to live a quiet life looks like. Look at you lot—every day, you're fighting over women with nothing but money on their minds. Why not put that energy into cultivating and breaking through to the sixth grade?"

The men hunched their shoulders under the scolding.

One of them smiled apologetically. "It's not like we have the young general's luck. If we could meet a woman as understanding as the young madam—even if she weren't that pretty—we'd beg for her with our lives!"

"Exactly!"

"Who could disagree?"

"The young madam is a blessing the young general earned through good deeds. How could we have that kind of luck?"

Qin Yanying folded her arms and leaned back, clearly enjoying the praise.

Who didn't like hearing people compliment their own child?

Bai Yuji didn't know what to say. She just smiled awkwardly, then dismounted with Qin Yanying and began patrolling the road along the city wall.

Others were assigned to check people at the city gates.

Their task was to inspect suspicious individuals in the surrounding area.

Especially along both banks of the Anjin River.

The river ran across the entire county and served as Anjin's commercial artery. A checkpoint had been set up in the water at the entrance to the city to inspect passing boats, but that couldn't stop ill-intentioned people from diving underwater. So, at critical times, the Imperial Guard was dispatched to patrol the river's upper and lower reaches.

The embankments along the Anjin River were a key part of the patrol.

As they patrolled, many Imperial Guardsmen gazed at the estates in the distance, their eyes full of envy.

Qin Yanying glanced at them and grumbled, "Quit staring! Cultivate properly, break through to the fifth grade, and make it to a thousand-man commander. When you're old, you'll be able to buy a place here too."

Then she tugged Bai Yuji's sleeve and whispered, "Yuji! That old rascal Chen Sui is planning to buy a place here. If you and Muye ever want a change of scenery and feel like living by the river, you can come stay anytime."

"Uncle's living here?"

"With his paltry salary, he can't afford a house in the Capital City. This is all he can manage. He brings me here all the time on his days off..."

Qin Yanying realized she'd said too much and quickly changed the subject. "That's the one those boys were eyeing just now. Let's hurry along before he spots us. Otherwise, he'll cling to us for ages. So annoying."

"Okay!"

Bai Yuji nodded, her nerves tightening.

They were almost at the place from the plan.

Right by the river embankment.

Yayu had a dragon's head and a tiger's body. It had existed since the ancient wilderness and was a great demon at its peak, half a step from becoming a demon emperor—roughly between a third-grade human grandmaster and a second-grade martial god.

Because of its complex bloodline, Yayu had never been very fertile. As far as anyone knew, it had only three sons.

Its youngest son's human name was Hu Huan. He was born of Yayu and a viper demon, and his true form was a Silver-Ringed Tiger Python.

His mother's lowly bloodline meant Hu Huan had a limited cultivation ceiling. He had only barely reached the fourth grade by adulthood, but Yayu doted on him because he was the youngest.

After reaching adulthood, Hu Huan fell in love with a snake demon. Her bloodline was even lower, but Yayu didn't stop him.

Three nights ago, the snake demon shed her skin. Since the Silver-Ringed Tiger Python bloodline was too rich in yang energy, she had to find a shady place by the river to shed it.

Afterward, they took the shed skin with them and cleaned up the scene.

But for experts with sensitive noses or exceptional spiritual senses, their cleanup wasn't foolproof.

Clearly.

Bai Yuji, a genius among Gu cultivators, had a keen sense of smell.

Still, a chill crept over her. Li Runyue was supposedly under house arrest, yet she'd gathered such detailed information. She'd even arranged a place for Hu Huan and his wife—and figured out that they would shed their skin by the river.

So...

Was she really going to lead Qin Yanying there?

If she did, Qin Yanying would surely be imprisoned. If Qin Muye found out, would he never forgive her?

But if she didn't, the young boys, young girls, and pregnant women were already at Hu Huan's residence.

If Qin Yanying didn't go, those poor people would die.

The best way to save both Qin Yanying and those innocent people was to turn back at once and alert Chen Sui. As Commander of the Brocade Guard, he could prevent anything from happening as long as he stopped Qin Yanying.

But then the plan would fall apart.

How could she face the Nanzhao Remnants?

A faint, sweet, metallic smell slipped into her nostrils.

Bai Yuji's thoughts were in chaos.

"Yuji?"

"Huh?"

"What are you standing there for? Why do you look so distracted?"

"Aunt, I..."

Bai Yuji faltered, at a loss for words.

But then—

Qin Yanying's expression changed abruptly. She leaped down the embankment and ran toward the riverbed.

The Imperial Guardsmen hurried after her.

Qin Yanying picked up a pinch of dirt and held it to her nose. Her voice turned sharp and shrill. "Great demon bloodline—the descendant of Yayu!"

Bai Yuji: "???"

The centurion's expression changed dramatically. "Instructor, wasn't Hu Huan supposed to report in ten days? Why has he arrived early?"

Qin Yanying cursed. "That beast's wife is pregnant. Pregnant snake demons love to eat young boys and girls! Men, search everywhere!"

With that, she immediately signaled the hundred-man squad to split up into ten groups and cross the river.

Bai Yuji was startled. "Aunt, you can smell that? Are you sure you're not mistaken?"

Qin Yanying's expression darkened. "I've seen Yayu and beaten Hu Huan. My instincts are never wrong! Yuji, this isn't within our jurisdiction, but lives are at stake. We'll go save them. Go find Chen Sui at once!"

"Aunt, don't—"

"Go!"

Qin Yanying leaped onto the Spirit Rhinoceros Dragon Steed and sped away through the air.

Bai Yuji: "!!!"