Night fell like a curtain!
In a secluded courtyard behind the Demon Snow Palace.
"Wooo, wooo... meow!"
The cries of a cat in heat rang out again and again.
They sounded like grievances and sobs, like pleas and longing.
They carried a desolate, mournful air.
"Little Snow, stop crying."
A girl in a bright yellow dress, her face still carrying a little baby fat, was crouched on the ground washing clothes.
Beside her, the White Snow Lion Cat's mournful wailing made her set down the clothes in frustration.
She tapped her head, feeling rather puzzled.
She was the princess consort's maid.
Ling'er!
She had served the Princess Consort of the Southern Pacifying King since childhood. Three years ago, the fiend had captured her along with her mistress.
Ever since, the two women and their cat had depended on one another to survive.
Although the White Snow Lion Cat, also known as Little Snow, usually liked to make a racket, the cat had never sounded as aggrieved as today.
It was as though the cat had suffered some colossal injustice...
She had asked the Princess Consort about it, too. Her mistress had answered evasively, saying she did not know, then hurried off to bathe in the Back Mountain Hot Spring, her cheeks crimson and a change of underclothes in her arms.
Indeed, for the past three years, she had washed almost all the princess consort's clothes. The only things she was not allowed to wash were her mistress's underclothes.
The princess consort was usually gentle, but she never let Ling'er touch her underclothes-or even look at them.
She always washed them herself.
And she did it secretively, away from prying eyes.
There was nothing unusual about the princess consort washing her underclothes, but doing so at this hour was unusual.
After all, although the Princess Consort often bathed in the Back Mountain Hot Spring, she generally went late at night or after waking in the morning, rarely in broad daylight.
And she certainly never rushed there as impatiently as she had today.
Out of concern, Ling'er had stolen a glance.
She had discovered that the princess consort's skirt was disheveled, with damp patches even deep inside its folds!
It looked as though someone had deliberately splashed water on her.
That had infuriated Ling'er.
Who could be so wicked as to bully even the princess consort?
They had actually sprayed dirty water on the Princess Consort on purpose.
If I find out who did it...
I'll climb on top of them and give them a proper beating!
Ling'er fumed inwardly, her little face puffing up like a steamed bun.
Just then...
Knock, knock, knock. Someone knocked on the door.
Chapter 7: The Princess Consort's Scheme
"Princess Consort, you're back?"
Ling'er opened the door.
Han Lingxuan was just coming in from outside.
Her cheeks were flushed.
Two pairs of underpants lay in her wooden basin.
She had covered them tightly, but a corner still showed, and Ling'er happened to spot it.
"Princess Consort, didn't you just wash them this morning? How did both pairs get dirty?"
Ling'er asked in confusion.
The princess consort clenched her fists, longing to find that fiend and sink her teeth into him a couple of times.
It was all that fiend's fault that she had gone to the Back Mountain Hot Spring to wash her underclothes in broad daylight.
She had finally finished washing them, only to recall what he had done to her halfway back, leaving her teeth itching with rage.
And then...
Her underclothes had gotten dirty again.
She had no choice but to go back and wash another pair.
Including her usual bath that evening, she might end up washing them three times in a single day.
All of it was thanks to that fiend.
"Princess Consort?"
"Princess Consort?!"
"Are you all right?"
The little maid grew worried, thinking the Princess Consort had fallen ill.
"I'm fine. Some clothes fell into the water while I was bathing, so I washed two pairs."
"Oh, so that's what happened."
Understanding dawned on the little maid, and she picked up the White Snow Lion Cat.
"By the way, Little Snow has been crying all day, as though someone bullied the poor thing. Princess Consort, do you know what happened?"
At those words, Han Lingxuan instinctively looked at her cat.
She found the cat staring forlornly at her lips, those glasslike feline eyes even brimming with resentment. Guilt immediately stirred within her.
"I... I'm not really sure either. This cat has always been petty. Who knows what might have caused offense? Ling'er, come inside and help me choose some clothes."
"Yes!"
Soon, inside the room.
The little maid stared at the sheer silk undergarment the princess consort had selected.
Her almond-shaped eyes went round.
Her steamed-bun face was filled with shock.
"Y-Your Highness, didn't you hate this one most of all? You said it was far too revealing, that only a vixen would wear something like this, and that you wanted to burn it!"
For the past three years, the Princess Consort of the Southern Pacifying King's clothes, jewelry, and other daily necessities had all been made by tailors the fiend had captured.
There was something in practically every style.
The Princess Consort of the Southern Pacifying King had loathed this garment ever since it arrived.
Why would she choose to wear it today?
"..."
The Princess Consort of the Southern Pacifying King was at a loss for words.
She could hardly say that she was deliberately wearing something revealing to seduce the fiend, could she?
Once the bow was drawn, there was no calling the arrow back.
She had already had enough of living like a caged canary.
She would assassinate the fiend, no matter what.
Today, to maintain his lecherous image before the Demon Cult disciples, the fiend had forced down his disgust and kissed her.
He was probably already on the verge of cultivation deviation.
Tonight, she would add another handful of fuel to the fire.
She would take the initiative and seduce him.
He was impotent, after all. Not only would he fail to take any liberties with her, but he would also become agitated and distracted.
She had heard that those who cultivated all had a Heart Demon. Once it flared up, their true qi could even reverse its flow, leaving them gravely injured.
This fiend's Heart Demon was his inability to perform as a man. She would dress like a seductive vixen and make a few equally enticing moves.
That would surely infuriate him half to death.
Then, when he suffered cultivation deviation, she could take out her hairpin and plunge it into his neck.
The fiend would die a wretched death on the spot.
Perfect! A perfect scheme!
As seamless as a heavenly robe.
It exploited both the fiend's weakness and human nature.
For a moment, the Princess Consort of the Southern Pacifying King even felt that she was a strategist seldom seen throughout history.
And the kind whose equal appeared only once in an age.
"Hmph, this sort of clothing is meant for vixens in the first place. Just looking at it makes me sick. Ling'er, you must never wear anything like this. It'll lead you astray."
"Yes, yes!"
The little maid nodded repeatedly.
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