Poisoned Tea and Power Plays

“So, that’s all they said?”

Thanks to superior healing elixirs, exceptional recovery arts, and a cultivator’s formidable regenerative power, He Suosi was already able to lean against the headboard and speak quite freely by evening. His voice remained a little hoarse, however, and he couldn’t yet get out of bed.

Little Black preened his feathers with his beak, seemingly displeased that He Suosi would still pose questions. “That’s all they said! Do you think Grandpa here would misremember?” he squawked.

“Indeed, you’re quite skilled at that.”

“That’s… Pfft! What do you mean, Grandpa is skilled at that?! Grandpa is a Great Roc!”

Lying in bed, He Suosi tilted his head slightly, suppressing a laugh. Once the amusement faded, his brows furrowed once more.

‘It doesn’t seem to be Chang Jiaren, after all.’

Yet, reactions could be faked. Who knew if her dropped teacup was all just an act?

He sighed, pouring a cup of tea from the kettle by his bedside, intending merely to moisten his throat. The moment the liquid touched his tongue, however, he spat it out immediately, drenching Little Black’s head.

Little Black shrieked, flapping his wings. “What are you doing?! What are you doing?!”

He Suosi stared in astonishment at the small cup before him. He then lifted the kettle lid to sniff inside, finally dabbing a bit of tea and licking his finger once more.

“It’s poisoned,” he declared, looking at the teapot as if it were an incredible anomaly.

Little Black, mid-hop, instantly froze, then panicked. “What, poisoned?! And you sprayed it on me! It’s over, it’s over, am I going to die?!” As he spoke, he glanced around frantically before diving headfirst into a nearby large vase filled with water.

He Suosi cast a glance at him. “It’s a slow-acting poison. Don’t worry, it’s harmless as long as you don’t ingest it.”

Trapped in the vase, Little Black couldn’t fly out. He struggled, flapping his wet wings. “Why didn’t you say so earlier! I hate you!”

He Suosi chuckled and fished him out.

However, as Little Black shook his body dry, shedding water from his feathers, He Suosi’s smile gradually vanished, replaced by a look of deep suspicion.

‘A flower cannot bloom for a hundred days.’ The tea contained the Hundred Days of Red Flower, a sacred-grade poison refined by Venerable Luo Guanjing.

With a pensive expression, he remarked to Little Black, “I’ve only just realized that danger lurks everywhere here. I merely wished to quietly break the barrier and leave.”

Little Black cackled. “Stay here for a day, and the danger won’t leave. I’m telling you, women are more terrifying than floods or monstrous beasts.”

He Suosi pondered this, recalling the gentle, demure, or shy immortal maidens he had encountered in the past. Ultimately, he shook his head. “Women are still good. It’s just that many here have… gone to extremes.” He swallowed the word “perverted.”

Then he looked at his own hands.

Pei Nishang’s hands were exceptionally beautiful. Her nails were round and lustrous, her fingers slender as jade, and her frame delicate. Her long, graceful fingers, devoid of ornaments, were themselves like exquisite adornments.

How many people had these beautiful hands harmed, directly or indirectly, besides Yu Anlin?

‘Perhaps even comparable to my own tally.’

Lost in thought, He Suosi couldn’t help but laugh. He told Little Black, “But now I know. Those seemingly frail and obedient female cultivators are actually incredibly formidable.”

‘So formidable that I truly don’t want to see this side of them again.’

Approximately half a month later, He Suosi finally felt his body was fully restored, his spiritual energy flowed smoothly, and he was once again a man in prime condition—spiritually speaking.

He had decided to keep a low profile. Thus, he confined himself to his room, behaving like a quiet, studious recluse. He spent his days with Little Black, constructing miniature models of the Guangyu Immortal Sect’s array formations using spirit stones and jade, seeking a way to decipher them.

“…The foundation of wood and water mutually generating each other. Ah, so Lake Heart Sea Sky is one of the array eyes. Then, the idea of destroying the array eye is probably unfeasible…”

“No way, you’re using this as an array eye?” Little Black squawked.

“The wine brewed from Long Serpent Fruit is rich in fire attributes, making it a decent choice for simulating an array eye. However, the Bowl Jade Fruit is a bit of a stretch to replace Lake Heart Sea Sky, given that Lake Heart Sea Sky’s inherent lightning attribute is crucial…” As he spoke, he casually cast a minor lightning spell on Little Black.

“Wait, what are you doing? Are you trying to kill a bird?! Are you trying to kill me!!! Aaaaaaaah!”

After being struck by lightning and placed atop the Bowl Jade Fruit, Little Black, along with various scattered items on the ground, glowed with a faint, icy blue light. Soon, a thin film of light gradually rose around the outer perimeter, upon which tiny, serpentine lightning bolts flickered, perfectly mimicking the activated state of the Guangyu Immortal Sect’s protective array.

“Ah, is it going to succeed?”

Yet, the ethereal glow dissipated on its own just as it reached half a meter high. Little Black, still crackling with tiny residual lightning, sprang from the Bowl Jade Fruit and limped towards He Suosi, attempting to peck him.

“How dare you treat Grandpa like this! I’ll kill you! Kill you!”

He Suosi easily blocked the utterly ineffective attack, blowing away the bird feathers that floated before his eyes.

“Using lightning-charged Little Black doesn’t seem to work. He’s too unstable as an array eye.”

“How can Grandpa be an array eye! How can I be an array eye?!”

“Hmm, I’ll have to carve a lightning array myself then. But is the Bowl Jade Fruit a bit too soft?”

Knock, knock, knock.

The door suddenly rattled.

He Suosi decisively put away all the items, grabbed Little Black by the wing, stuffed him into the spirit beast pouch, plucked off the stray bird feathers clinging to his clothes, and burned them with a small flame. Then, he opened the door.

Standing at the doorway was Zhuyu, her expression timid. She hesitated before saying, “Mistress, there are a few Jiaren… requesting an audience.”

The moment the words “requesting an audience” left her lips, her gaze flickered, betraying a lie.

“They forced their way in? Tell them I’m still sick and haven’t recovered.”

He waved Zhuyu away, but she instantly knelt, tears welling in her eyes. “Mistress, they are using their power to bully others… They said you must come out, no matter what.”

He Suosi frowned. Though kneeling, the young girl held herself with a straight posture, like a resilient bamboo shoot. Her dark hair was meticulously tied into twin buns, pink pearl flowers adorned her temples, and her pink gauze skirt fanned out like petals. Her cheeks were flushed, and tears clung to her eyelashes, presenting a truly pitiable sight.

He Suosi placed his hand on Zhuyu’s forehead. The fine baby hairs brushed against his palm like feathers.

‘Why… would you betray me?’

This question, he ultimately did not voice.

Three Jiaren sat in the main hall. Besides Chang Jiaren, the others were familiar faces that He Suosi couldn’t quite place.

Despite the rather pointless pleasantries, He Suosi still managed to extract the information. The most beautiful one was Liu Mi, Liu Jiaren. The next was named Wang Hanyan, but because she shared a surname with Wang Zhongge, others called her Han Jiaren. The remaining one was Chang Jiaren, who seemed to have been reluctantly dragged along as an accompanying guest, her face currently filled with awkward apology.

He Suosi sat calmly in the main seat, took a leisurely sip of tea, and then, a smile playing on his lips, asked, “Have you all come to visit a patient today? My health is still not ideal, so I apologize for my neglect.”

Liu Jiaren wore a pristine white silk dress draped with light gauze, making her appear like an immortal maiden from the clouds. Her delicate features made her seem like a trembling white flower in the wind, evoking pity. Now, she frowned slightly and spoke, “Pei Jiaren, your complexion looks quite good.”

This was a direct denial of his illness.

He Suosi frowned. He had been severely injured, and by now, everyone likely knew. For Liu Jiaren to immediately dismiss this fact suggested her intentions were far from benevolent.

‘What could it be about? I’ve already been keeping a low profile. Is it truly a case of the kind being bullied?’

He reined in his smile, his expression cool. “Then, what brings you all here?”

This time, Han Jiaren stood up and said, “Sister, don’t be angry. Actually, we’re not here for anything major. It wouldn’t be good to damage our camaraderie.”

‘Right, so one plays the bad cop, and one plays the good cop.’

He Suosi sneered inwardly. In his eyes, these three were no longer delicate maidens. His gaze swept over them, and all he saw were names floating above their heads: ‘Pei Nishang No. 1,’ ‘Pei Nishang No. 2,’ ‘Pei Nishang No. 3,’ playing good cop, bad cop, like emissaries of death.

He said coldly, “Hurry up and speak. My head is quite dizzy.” His tone was no longer polite.

Liu Jiaren immediately slammed the table and rose. “Pei Nishang, stop pretending to be frail! All the cultivation resources issued by the sect are being hoarded by you! You take the lion’s share, and then you give the rest to whoever you please. Isn’t it just because you have high cultivation and the Immortal Monarch dotes on you?!”

Liu Jiaren’s directness startled even He Suosi. She was a delicate beauty with eyes full of watery charm, yet when she slammed the table and erupted in anger, her aura was imposing. To then accuse someone else of being frail seemed to create an amusing contrast. He Suosi was caught off guard, dumbfounded, and could only reply, “Eh? Is that so?”

Han Jiaren stepped in to smooth things over. “Sister Liu is too agitated. Pei Jiaren, please don’t take offense. You know she’s always had such a personality. Besides, our lives truly aren’t easy. We have no family backing us, and usually, we wish we could split a single spirit stone into two. Now, we truly can’t go on like this. We humbly ask that you distribute the resources more… fairly in the future.”

Liu Jiaren, however, gave no quarter. Her almond-shaped eyes widened as she stated directly, “I want you to hand over the authority to manage the inner residence.”

He Suosi smiled. He found this development of a ‘harem fight’ quite excellent. His body was currently frail, so it was best to avoid physical confrontation if possible. If he were to immediately unleash powerful spells like the real Pei Nishang, he would truly have a headache. Besides, the pile of bewildering management documents in the study had already given him a massive migraine; they had stacked into a small mountain, and he wanted to throw them all out like trash.

He nodded repeatedly, saying, “That sounds wonderful!”

The turn of events was somewhat unexpected, leaving all three Jiaren stunned, exchanging bewildered glances.

He Suosi stood up, moving closer with feigned warmth. While they weren’t paying attention, he shook each of their hands. “So, it was about this! I thought you were here to kick me while I was down, seeing how miserable I am. This is nothing! Go on, take it, take it! There’s quite a lot of stuff, do you need servants to help?”

The three Jiaren were speechless.