Lin Ye and Xue Qinghe walked side by side along Heaven Dou City's commercial avenue.
Xue Qinghe's gaze swept quickly over the stalls on either side of the street before settling on a colorful pastry shop.
Several young girls stood outside, excitedly choosing delicate pastries.
At the sight, a trace of loneliness flashed through Xue Qinghe's eyes.
"Heaven Dou City... is always so bustling," Xue Qinghe sighed.
"Yes, it certainly is lively," Lin Ye replied, though his keen gaze caught that fleeting emotion.
Recalling Qian Renxue's childhood in the original story, Lin Ye sighed inwardly as well.
Perhaps, from her perspective, these past years truly had been painful enough.
As a girl, she could not do what she wanted or buy what she liked the way other girls could...
From childhood onward, she had scarcely had any time to herself, all for the sake of Spirit Hall's grand plan to overthrow the empire.
"Lin Ye."
Xue Qinghe suddenly asked, "What do you think of Spirit Hall... as an organization?"
Lin Ye's steps faltered.
Here it comes?
Is she... trying to recruit me? Is that why she's testing my attitude toward Spirit Hall?
Lin Ye considered for a moment, then smiled.
Since you want my assessment, I'll make it a little sharper.
"Spirit Hall?"
"A vast organization, and a rotten one."
At those words, the probing look in Xue Qinghe's eyes deepened.
"Oh? Why do you say that? Spirit Hall is indeed vast, but what do you mean by 'rotten'?"
"It's rotten at the roots."
Lin Ye spoke without reservation. "Its highest leadership-the Pope, and the Revered Elders of the Elder Hall."
When Lin Ye mentioned the Revered Elders, Xue Qinghe immediately frowned.
She had no objection to his speaking of the Pope that way, but could the grandfatherly Revered Elders