Chapter 115: His name is Gu Qishao Original and most updated translations are from volare. If read elsewhere, this chapter has been stolen. Please stop supporting theft.
The skies outside gradually darkened as Han Yunxi huddled in a corner. Qingyi hadn’t looked at her for an entire afternoon, much less spoken to her. This made Han Yunxi even more certain that she was waiting, perhaps for something to happen or for someone to come. Han Yunxi didn’t know how long she stayed in a daze. She could only rely on the the colors of the sky outside to tell the passing of time.
She and Mu Qingwu had gone to the Celestial Fragrance Teashop when there were still 12 days left to her bet. Assuming that she’d passed out for two or three days and add to that today, wouldn’t that be three or four days lost? Then that meant she only had seven to eight days remaining, neither long nor short!
As for now, she’d only ascertained a suspect for the Ten-Thousand Snake Poison, but had no concrete evidence as proof. Who knew if Long Feiye found anything in his investigations of the Han Family’s Third Household? If she couldn’t find the culprit by the deadline, wouldn’t she lose to Mu Liuyue?
The loser had to take off their outer robes and run around the street!
Han Yunxi couldn’t help but feel pent up at these thoughts. Losing was one thing, but having all her efforts go to waste really made her stifled. The more she thought, the more her eyebrows wrinkled. But soon enough they relaxed again as she expelled a helpless breath. All right, whether or not she could even leave was another matter, yet she was still worrying over the bet. At this, her head hung as she sighed with emotion. It’d be better if she knew martial arts, because then she’d at least have a chance to act instead of being so passive.
Han Yunxi wasn’t aware of the myriad of expressions that flitted across her face at these thoughts. Nevertheless, the figure hiding in a hole by the cliffside saw each one with relish.
“Hey…hey…”
“Poison lass…Poison lass…”
Han Yunxi was in the middle of thinking when she heard this voice. She immediately focused on the sound and realized someone was speaking to her indistinctly.
“Over here…on the right, hehe!”
“The right side.”
Suddenly, the voice grew much louder. Han Yunxi looked towards the right, but saw nothing there besides a rock wall.
“Stupid girl.” The voice was filled with playful amusement, as if coming from the rock itself.
Strange!
Han Yunxi searched the surface of the rock before spotting a tiny peephole. Beyond it was a seductively bewitching eye that was staring at her! She was so shocked that she nearly gave a scream. Luckily, she held it back! That eye blinked a few times, filled with mirth as it gave her a friendly gaze.
Someone she knew?
Han Yunxi’s memories didn’t have anyone with such enchanting, almond-shaped eyes. Although the hole was tiny and made it impossible for her to see both eyes, she was still certain of this fact.
Who is it?
She calmed herself and looked guardedly towards the entrance of the cave. The rest of the assassins had already gone outside, leaving only Qingyi sitting by the door. They had quite some distance between them so she hadn’t noticed her movements here.
“Don’t worry, she can’t hear us,” the low male voice that spoke was filled with traces of a smile, as if its owner was in an excellent mood.
Han Yunxi turned back and looked cautiously at the eye as she asked, “I don’t think I know you?”
“Conveniently enough, I know you,” the man laughed.
“Then who are you?” Han Yunxi asked, wondering if there was another cave behind this cliff. That man must be right next door.
“Someone here to rescue you,” the man said, and backed up so Han Yunxi could catch a glimpse of his nose. It was tall and quite good-looking. Those narrow almond eyes and high nose, if they were paired with some seductive lips, would definitely make him a handsome man, right? Of course, the current Han Yunxi didn’t have the heart to consider such things. She was certain that she’d never seen this guy before.
“Brother[1], it doesn’t seem appropriate right now to keep your listener in suspense,” Han Yunxi said mildly, shifting her position so that she was leaning against the wall.
“Things aren’t that bad. I’m not planning to rescue you right now, so we might as well chat since there’s nothing to do,” the man had a charming laugh, leisurely and indolent. He didn’t sound like this was a dangerous situation at all.
This was obviously provoking her! Han Yunxi couldn’t help by roll her eyes and ignore him. She thought, this guy must be a passerby buying soy sauce, right[1]? She waited a long time, but the man didn’t say anything else. Her head hastily turned to look at the hole and saw nothing. No way, was he really just passing by?
“Hey…hey…”
“Are you still there?”
Han Yunxi hastened to ask. She’d finally found someone so no matter what, it was still a chance to escape.
“Hey…are you still there?” She had no choice but to keep asking, but there was no reaction whatsoever. Han Yunxi grew agitated and glanced towards the cave entrance. Seeing that Qingyi woman hadn’t stirred, she carefully shifted her position until she was right by the peephole and looked in. There really was a cave on the other side, but no side of any person.
“Are you there? Make a zhiii[3] if you are.” Han Yunxi was almost out of strength, but her words had hardly finished when she heard a zhii sound from next door.
Surprised, she was nevertheless thrilled. “Hey, so you’re still here?”
“I’m not ‘Hey,’ but Gu Qishao…”
The voice was very low, so Han Yunxi didn’t hear clearly. “Hey, what did you say?”
“I’m not ‘Hey,’ but Gu Qishao,” the man repeated. He seemed to be lowering his voice on purpose. This time, Han Yunxi did hear, but she was even more surprised.
“What, Gu Qi Sha[4]?”
The person next door laughed lightly. It wasn’t clear if he heard Han Yunxi’s words, but he only repeated what he said before, except much clearer. “I’m not ‘Hey,’ but Gu Qishao.”
This time, Han Yunxi finally got it. Gu Qishao, these three words were very similar to Gu Qi Sha, no wonder she heard incorrectly. But Gu Qishao should be an alias instead of a real name, right?
In any case, she’d never heard it before, nor did she recognize it. Now that she knew the other was there, Han Yunxi moved her position again with difficulty. Her back faced the wall as she tried to make herself look more natural. Not long after she settled down, Qingyi shot a glance back. Han Yunxi didn’t move a muscle, but didn’t avoid her gaze either. She locked stares with her from far away.
Qingyi only stared for a second before turning back in silence. Han Yunxi released a breath. She didn’t speak immediately, but waited awhile to make sure the woman wouldn’t look back again. Only then did she lower her voice. “Hey, why do you want to save me?”
“I’m not called ‘Hey.’ If you don’t mind, you can call me Little Qi.” the playful voice carried over, suddenly making Han Yunxi feel cold. A grown man asking to be called ‘Little Qi’ made her wonder if he was the flashy and ostentatious type.
Next door, Gu Qishao was leaning against the rock wall, much like Han Yunxi. He wasn’t sitting upright like she was, but sprawled lazily against the rock like a sunbathing cat in winter. The lethargy sank straight down to his bones. He was wearing a set of fiery red robes with large red sleeves, the luxurious color spread sumptuously across the ground. A hand dangled easily over one leg, the five fingers long, slender, and white. That skin was far paler than any typical person, as if a single puff of wind would split it apart. His soft laughter was as delicate as a woman’s, his face handsome enough to outshine the Heavens and the Earth; those eyes, seductive and bewitching enough to vanish one’s soul!
“Why do you want to save me?” Han Yunxi asked again from next door.
“Because I like you, of course,” Gu Qishao replied so naturally that it sounded like a joke.
Han Yunxi seemed to have gotten used to his jests and ignored them to ask, “Then when do you plan to rescue me?”
“After a few days, probably,” Gu Qishao said again. It wasn’t clear whether he was just going through the motions or had really set a time.
Han Yunxi wasn’t reconciled with that and asked, “How many days will it be?”
But this time, Gu Qishao didn’t answer. Instead he changed the topic. “Does your neck still hurt?”
“How many days will it be?” Han Yunxi persisted..
“Poison lass, where did you learn your skills from to be so formidable? Is your master still around?” Gu Qishao continued to ask.
“How many days will it be?” Han Yunxi was still being stubborn.
“I remember you weren’t this skilled before, right?” Gu Qishao asked again. Though it was a question, this was more like him talking to himself. His face was lifted upwards, the eyebrows wrinkling faintly as he sat unmoving like a painting of a beauty in thought.
Next door, Han Yunxi stared at the ceiling with both eyes, having given up. This mysterious fellow, just who was he? Why would he show up here? Did he chase after them, or did he meet them by chance? He said he knew her, but there should be plenty of people who did. How was she to guess?
The circumstances of the man next door were vague, and the motives of the woman on guard by the exit were unclear. Han Yunxi gave a long sigh. The only thing she could do was wait!
—
It was now late night.
The Celestial Fragrance Teashop was filled with mournful wails. Long Feiye’s interrogation had started from noon and he’d yet to stop. Once again, he was using the dreaded rat cage against his victims. But instead of killing one as a warning to the others, he was putting every single person through the torture. The giant rat cage was placed in the center of the dim prison cells, where everyone except for Long Feiye was standing up.
It was Guard Shangguan in charge of the interrogation while Mu Qingwu oversaw the torture. From the start, Long Feiye hadn’t spoken a single word, but the icy aura emanating from his being grew more and more horrifying. Leaving aside the torture victims, just the people waiting on the side felt their hair standing on end and their hearts trembling with fear at the sight of that fiendish god.
“Ahhhh!” a prisoner cried out wretchedly, his screams reverberating throughout the prisons.
Another victim had died from torture.
Guard Shangguan was both slow and meticulous in interrogating his prisoners. Though he’d been at it from noon until night, not many people had been questioned. Soon enough, many of the onlookers found themselves throwing up again at the sight. Some were so frightened that they fainted away. But even that brought no relief. They were quickly woken up and put back in line to wait their turn for the cruel torture.
There were only about 20 people present. Long Feiye had steeled his heart to get results from the interrogation and resolved himself to a massacre. From beginning to end, his cold, unfeeling self hadn’t even knitted his eyebrows once. In the silent prisons, there was only the indistinct sounds of chattering teeth amongst the prisoners. Heaven knows how terrified they were. Long Feiye remained expressionless, waving his hand elegantly to signal Guard Shangguan to bring in the next person. Seeing this, a young guard that was first in line quickly kneeled down, crawling on the floor as he broke out into sobs.
“I don’t know anything! I really don’t know…Guard Shangguan, I’m going to get married at the end of the month, just spare me! I’m begging you!”
Guard Shangguan hesitated. After all, if they kept interrogating like this, many more innocents would die instead. He looked towards His Highness Duke of Qin who showed no reaction whatsoever. Without a choice, Guard Shangguan could only forcefully drag the man over. Yet right at this time, a voice suddenly called out from the very back of the crowd.
“Enough, stop with the interrogation! I confess! I confess!”
-o-
[1] Brother (兄台) – xiongtai, a polite appellation for a friend one’s own age. It has no familial relation whatsoever to the speaker.
[2] passerby buying soy sauce (打酱油) – da jiangyou, a saying meaning an onlooker who stops by but then moves on because “it’s none of my business.”
[3] zhiii (吱) – onomatopoeia for a creaking sound.
[4] Gu Qi Sha (古七刹) – this is the name of Pill Fiend from Pill Fiend Valley. In comparison, Gu Qishao is written as 顾七少, or “Little Seventh Gu.”