Chapter 36 She Was the One Who Seduced Me

Chapter 36: She Was the One Who Seduced Me

In the afternoon, A Chan went to the Hunting Shop and bought three stalks of feverblood herb. This herb was typically used to refine blood-stimulating pills, which were consumed by low-ranking cultivators to quickly stimulate their latent potential.

The effect of feverblood herb was to rapidly integrate the medicinal properties of the pill into the human body.

Aside from the feverblood herb, she also bought a piece of odorless root, the root of a flower, yellowish-brown in color and about as big as a baby’s fist. Just a bit of its juice could neutralize the distinct smell of feverblood herb, making it impossible to discern the ingredients while preserving the medicinal effects.

These two special materials weren’t particularly expensive, costing only twenty silver taels in total, and she was able to take them immediately without waiting.

The transaction went more smoothly than expected, putting A Chan in a good mood. As she left the West Market, she even bought five sugar cakes at the entrance.

After her purchases, seeing that it was still early, she decided to make a trip to Heavenly Street to pick up the clothes she had ordered earlier.

Among Ji Chan’s mother’s dowry was a shop on Heavenly Street, which had been leased out to a dressmaker’s atelier. Over the years, this workshop had grown increasingly famous in the capital. A few days ago, when A Chan signed the new lease agreement with the workshop’s manager, she had also ordered several new outfits.

The manager had given her a significant discount, and A Chan hadn’t been stingy with her silver, ordering five new outfits.

The distance from the West Market to the dressmaker’s workshop on Heavenly Street wasn’t too far, so A Chan walked there.

As she crossed Heavenly Street, she suddenly saw a group of Bright Mirror Bureau Guards riding dragon-blood horses galloping toward her.

Pedestrians on the street quickly moved aside, and though A Chan reacted a bit slower, she still managed to step back to the roadside in time.

Unexpectedly, the leader of the group reined in his horse and stopped beside her: "Miss Ji?"

A Chan looked up at the man on horseback—it was Jiang Qianhu, whom she had met a few times before.

"Good day, Lord Jiang," A Chan greeted him, then asked curiously, "Are you heading out of the city on official business, Lord Jiang?"

"Yes, someone spotted a tiger demon near the mountains outside the capital. I’m going to take a look," Jiang Kai replied casually.

A Chan pretended to be alarmed: "Was the person who discovered the tiger demon unharmed?"

"They’re fine. It was a group of idle noble youths who found it," Jiang Kai said, then added as if remembering something, "Oh, right—Xue Zhao was among them."

His superior had severed ties with the Marquis of Jinyang’s household over this Miss Ji, so of course, his subordinates had to investigate who exactly was in the marquis’s household—information that would surely come in handy sooner or later.

Thus, when those panic-stricken noble youths came to the Bright Mirror Bureau to report the incident, he had immediately recognized Xue Zhao.

A Chan’s attitude instantly shifted: "Ah, what a pity they escaped unharmed."

Jiang Kai burst into laughter, then saluted with clasped hands toward A Chan: "Take care on your way, Miss Ji. I’ll be off now."

"Wait a moment," A Chan called out to Jiang Kai as he was about to leave, handing him a package of sugar cakes she had been carrying. "Freshly bought sugar cakes—consider them provisions for your journey, Qianhu Jiang."

Jiang Kai didn’t decline, grabbing the oil-paper package with his large, fan-like hand: "Then I thank you, Miss Ji. Next time I run into that brat, I’ll beat him up twice for you."

"It’s a deal," A Chan said with a smile, watching as Jiang Kai rode off.

When A Chan arrived outside the dressmaker’s workshop, before even entering, she heard a man’s voice inside: "Bring out a few sets of your ready-made clothes."

This workshop catered to both men and women, though it had separate eastern and western chambers for selecting fabrics and taking measurements, ensuring no one felt offended.

A Chan didn’t pay much attention to the matter and stepped inside.

Once inside, she realized the hall was filled with a group of young noblemen. They looked utterly disheveled, their expensive clothes stained and torn as if they had just fled from some disaster.

She wondered if it could really be such a coincidence—had she just heard from Jiang Kai about noble youths encountering a tiger demon and now run into them here?

With just a glance, A Chan spotted Xue Zhao standing among them.

It really was them.

As she looked over, Xue Zhao’s slightly gloomy gaze also turned toward her.

At that moment, the manager happened to walk over, blocking Xue Zhao’s line of sight.

"Gentlemen, please wait a moment. I’ll fetch the new clothes right away," the manager serving the male guests said with a professional smile, leading them to the western chamber.

A Chan didn’t look at them again, turning instead to the female manager and saying, "Manager, I’m here to pick up my new clothes."

The woman recognized A Chan and softened her tone: "Miss Ji’s new clothes are all ready. Please step into the inner chamber to try them on. If anything doesn’t fit, we’ll make adjustments for you."

A Chan agreed cheerfully.

In the eastern chamber, she tried on all five sets of clothes, finding no issues with any of them. The manager praised her with each change, never repeating a single compliment. A Chan couldn’t help but think that the woman’s success was well-deserved.

After changing back into her own clothes, the manager carefully wrapped the new outfits and thoughtfully asked if A Chan needed help hiring a carriage. A Chan naturally accepted.

By the time the carriage arrived, she stepped out of the inner chamber and saw that Xue Zhao and his group had also changed into new clothes and emerged—though among them was now Xue Mingtang.

A Chan glanced at them and thought, *The Xue family really is inescapable.*

Xue Mingtang also noticed A Chan but showed no reaction.

He had come to pick up Xue Zhao after receiving word of the incident. Xue Zhao had chosen this shop to buy clothes simply because it had once nominally belonged to his mother—their entire family had their clothes tailored here.

Yet not long after, the shop had fallen into Ji Chan’s hands.

Xue Zhao was naturally displeased about this, but after being disciplined by Bai Xiuming last time, he had at least learned to restrain himself. He didn’t say anything unpleasant to A Chan, merely deliberately ignored her.

After watching A Chan leave in the carriage, Xue Zhao approached Xue Mingtang and whispered, "Uncle, Mother has been ill for days because of her. Are we really going to let her keep gloating like this?"

Xue Mingtang narrowed his eyes slightly. Recently, he had been having people monitor Ji Chan and discovered that she and Bai Xiuming hadn’t interacted in nearly a month.

Though he didn’t know how Ji Chan had initially won Bai Xiuming’s favor, their relationship clearly wasn’t as deep as his sister had assumed.

Ji Chan had to be dealt with—and it had to be done before her ties with Bai Xiuming grew any stronger.

Originally, Xue Mingtang had been hesitant, but now he had the perfect excuse.

It seemed he needed to find a way to drive that wandering living corpse back to Changping Ward—that would make it easier to stage an "accident."

A Chan, of course, had no idea someone was watching her so intently.

After returning home, she dried the boiling blood grass over the fire in the stove while grinding the scentless root and repeatedly dripping its juice onto the grass.

After processing them for over an hour, the boiling blood grass was thoroughly dried, and its faint bloody scent had completely dissipated.

A Chan checked the dryness of the grass, satisfied, then removed it and ground it into powder with a mortar.

Next, she selected various spices for making calming incense from her cabinet, ground them into powder, and mixed them together before finally stirring in the dragon bone powder.

The blended powders emitted a faint wintersweet fragrance—subtle yet refreshing and pleasant.

This incense powder was best used for making incense seals. Though it was a bit wasteful, the effect would undoubtedly be excellent. A Chan wrapped the powder carefully, waiting for Zhao Wenyue to collect it the day after tomorrow.

On the agreed-upon day, Zhao Wenyue didn’t arrive at A Chan’s shop until after noon.

She had just quarreled with that old battle-axe from the Xue family before leaving home and wasn't in the best mood. Upon arriving at the shop, she intended to grab the incense powder and leave immediately, but A Chan stopped her.

“Cousin, do you know how to make incense seals?” A Chan asked.

Zhao Wenyue nodded. “I’ve learned a little.”

“That’s good.” A Chan handed her the wrapped incense powder. “This powder can be used five times. Light it every night before bed. However, this incense is specially mixed to help Lord Xue's condition. If you don’t suffer from insomnia, it’s best to sleep in separate rooms from him for the time being.”

Zhao Wenyue’s face flushed slightly—she didn’t share a room with Xue Mingtang to begin with.

That old hag from the Xue family had called her just a concubine, unworthy of living with her son, and forced her to move to a separate wing.

Naturally, Zhao Wenyue was displeased. When she first entered the Xue household, she had several shouting matches with the old woman over this matter.

But of course, she couldn’t tell A Chan any of this. After taking the incense powder, she handed over the payment she'd prepared and hurriedly left.

Instead of returning to the Xue residence right away, Zhao Wenyue went to a well-known spice shop nearby. Once inside, she directly asked the shop assistant to get the owner.

“Miss, are you here to buy incense powder?” The owner of the spice shop asked politely.

“Can you test if this incense powder's ingredients are safe?” Zhao Wenyue inquired.

The owner paused just for a moment before nodding. “Of course, we can.”

“Then, could you examine this bag of incense powder for any issues?”

Given that it concerned Xue Mingtang’s well-being, Zhao Wenyue was being extra careful. Though Ji Chan had claimed she only made the deal for the money, Zhao Wenyue still had to be careful—after all, Xue Lang was family to her.

The owner took the bag of incense powder, took several sniffs of it, then took a pinch of it and tested its scent on an incense burner. Finally, he smiled and said to Zhao Wenyue, “Miss, there’s no need to worry. This is just a calming incense with an elegant fragrance. The person who blended it has excellent taste.”

“So, there’s nothing wrong with the powder?”

“Well, I wouldn’t say there’s nothing wrong. The dosage is rather strong—it might be very effective for someone with insomnia, but ordinary people should avoid using it.”

The owner’s words matched Ji Chan’s earlier instructions. Hearing this, Zhao Wenyue was finally put at ease.

That evening, when Xue Mingtang returned to his room after visiting his mother, he noticed a faint fragrance. Zhao Wenyue, dressed in a thin gown, sat by the window at a low table, arranging an incense seal.

Xue Mingtang approached and glanced at it. “What’s this?”

Zhao Wenyue said softly, “This is a calming incense I specially bought for you. You haven’t been sleeping well lately, and I heard this powder is very effective.”

Xue Mingtang didn’t object, only asking, “Where did you buy this incense?”

Zhao Wenyue replied immediately, “At a spice shop nearby. Does it smell nice?”

She had indeed bought two types of incense powder from that shop earlier, but neither was calming incense.

Though her husband never spoke to her about Ji Chan, she got the sense the Xue family resented her. It was better not to mention that the incense came from Ji Chan in front of him.

Xue Mingtang leaned in to smell it better—he did like the scent—and nodded. “It smells nice.”

Zhao Wenyue completed the incense seal, lit the powder with an incense stick, and covered the burner.

Wisps of smoke rose from the burner, soon filling the room with a faint plum blossom fragrance.

After Zhao Wenyue left, Xue Mingtang leaned back against the headboard, thinking over his recent plans.

He needed to capture that rogue corpse (that still moved) as soon as possible. The case had gone on too long. Though his superiors hadn’t pressed him since no lives had been lost, further delays might make him look incompetent in Yan Liru’s eyes.

Recently, he had already traced the movements of that animated corpse, but to lure it to Changping Lane, he would need someone's help. Perhaps he could ask Lord Yan to send someone to assist him?

Usually, the thought of this case would keep him awake all night, but today, he felt his eyelids growing heavy.

Xue Mingtang lay back on the bed, closed his eyes, and soon fell asleep.

The incense powder in the burner slowly burned, and the dragon bone powder's fumes, catalyzed by the boiling blood herb, gradually spread through Xue Mingtang's body—yet he remained completely unaware.

The next day, Xue Mingtang had slept soundly and woke up feeling refreshed.

After getting up, he inspected the incense burner on the low table and saw that all the powder had burned away.

He couldn't help but think that the incense worked so well—perhaps he could burn some more tonight.

At the Ministry of Justice, Xue Mingtang went to ask Yan Liru for assistance, only to be told that Lord Yan had called in sick that day. He was surprised—when had Lord Yan gotten sick?

The previous evening, at the Yan residence.

After Fang Yu's funeral, Old Wu, who had been sent by the Marquis of the North to protect her, had vanished.

No one knew whether he had gone to report his failure to the Marquis or had fled in fear of punishment.

Yan Liru didn’t care much about it. Fang Yu’s case had already been wrapped up airtight—even if his father-in-law returned, there was little he could say.

Besides, his father-in-law cared less about Fang Yu herself and more about his own bloodline. Now that Cheng'er was here to continue the bloodline, Fang Yu was no longer irreplaceable.

Without Fang Yu’s presence in the mansion, the household had become much more comfortable.

For the past few days, Yan Liru had been exhausted from putting on a show of grief in public. Before supper, he took a short nap on the couch and woke to find the room unnaturally silent.

"Someone!" Yan Liru called out.

"How may I serve, master?" a maid waiting outside immediately responded.

"Where is Ru Hui?"

"Miss Ru Hui went to the main kitchen half an hour ago to prepare snacks for the master. By now, she should have returned."

The maid also found it strange—the main kitchen wasn’t far from the master’s courtyard, just through the garden. Could she have gotten lost? he thought.

Yan Liru waited in his room for another quarter of an hour, but when Ru Hui still hadn’t returned, he left the courtyard and headed toward the main kitchen.

With Fang Yu gone, no one in the mansion would dare say a word even if he showed concern for Ru Hui.

The sky hadn’t fully darkened yet. As Yan Liru passed between two ornamental rocks in the garden, he suddenly heard fabric rustling.

Frowning, he stopped in his tracks.

When the footsteps ceased, the sounds behind the ornamental rocks became even more shameless—even the tearing of clothes could be heard.

Yan Liru was still wondering who could be so bold when he suddenly heard a man’s sharp cry, followed by a woman's scream cutting through the silence.

"Help—!"

At the sound, servants nearby came running, but Yan Liru was the first to react.

Striding around the ornamental rocks, Yan Liru saw Yan Cheng in the grotto the gardeners had built, choking a woman while pinning her down, trying to rape her.

"Yan Cheng, what are you doing?" Yan Liru’s face turned livid.

Yan Cheng turned his head and was shocked to see his father standing there, his face turning ashen.

He hastily released the woman whose neck he had been gripping and turned around, his voice trembling slightly. "Father, why are you here?"

Yan Liru did not answer, only barked, "Come out."

Yan Cheng stood frozen in place until the woman behind him—her upper garment torn, revealing much of her pale shoulder—lifted her face.

To his shock, it was Ru Hui.

Ru Hui's dull eyes seemed to regain a glimmer of light upon seeing Yan Liru. Trembling violently, she broke into hysterical weeping. "Master, please save me... The young master, he... he... wuu..."

Her cries were heart-wrenching, her body swaying unsteadily until she collapsed to the ground.

Yan Liru's heart seethed with equal parts compassion and rage, his face contorted with rage.

His gaze toward Yan Cheng burned with barely restrained violence.

Yan Cheng sensed his father's wrath and stammered as he backed away, "Father, let me explain—it was her! She seduced me! It wasn't my fault—"

He pointed at Ru Hui, shrinking into the corner, trying to shift all blame onto her.

He thought Yan Liru was angry because he had fooled around with a servant girl before his mother’s seven-day mourning rites were complete, unaware that Yan Liru’s fury stemmed from his attachment to Ru Hui herself.

"You dare lie to me?!" Yan Liru’s rage erupted. He dragged Yan Cheng out of the artificial cave and, before the latter could utter another word, kicked him hard in the stomach.

Yan Cheng was sent flying several feet, but Yan Liru's fury unabated. Glancing around, he spotted a stout wooden rod on the ground, picked it up, and swung it at his son.

Unaware of the gravity of the situation, Yan Cheng kept pleading, "Stop, Father! I was wrong! I’ll never do it again! It really was this maid who seduced me!"

By the time the servants arrived at the commotion, they found their young master lying bloody and broken, his lower body a ruined mess, while the master stood nearby, clutching the blood-stained cudgel.

Yan Cheng curled up on the ground, clutching his legs and howling in agony, "My legs are broken! Call a doctor!"

The steward arrived late, unaware of what had transpired, only knowing the young master had angered the master and had his legs broken.

It wasn’t until he saw Ru Hui emerge disheveled from behind the artificial hill that his expression shifted, his gaze turning toward Yan Liru’s impassive mask.

The steward suppressed a sigh and instructed someone to fetch the doctor.

Yan Cheng was carried away by two servants, whimpering pitifully. Yan Liru approached Ru Hui, reaching for her hand, only for her to flinch violently backward, as if terrified.

The remaining household staff cast strange looks at Ru Hui—some sympathetic, others as malicious as Yan Cheng’s had been.

In their minds, Ru Hui might have been innocent, but now that the incident had escalated, she had become the one who turned father against son.

Perhaps she would even bear the stigma of seducing her master.

With such a reputation in the household, how could she ever show her face in the household again?

In the past, they might have thought the master would make her his concubine, but now that the young master had seen her body, how could the master still want her?

The maids who had once been close to Ru Hui exchanged pitying looks, none daring to step forward to comfort her.

That night, the Yan residence was unnaturally still.

Yan Cheng’s legs were treated by the doctor, set in splints and tightly wrapped, but the pain kept him restless.

In the dead of night, he just caught the faint creak of his door, as if someone had entered.

He opened his eyes and in the darkness, vaguely made out the willowy figure of a woman.

"Who’s there?" Yan Cheng called out.

Only when the woman approached his bedside did he recognize her face—the same wretch who had led him on with her eyes in the garden that day, only to get his legs broken by his father!

"It’s you," Yan Cheng hissed through clenched teeth. "You dare show your face here?"

Ru Hui looked down at him. "Young Master Yan, we meet again."

"What?" Yan Cheng was baffled by her strange phrasing. What did she mean by "again"?

"I’ve always admired Madam Yan. She raised such a filial son," Ru Hui said slowly. "So I thought, now that Madam Yan is gone, such a dutiful son like you would surely want to be reunited with her."

Only then did Yan Cheng realize the danger. He opened his mouth to scream, but a hand clamped over it—cold as death and unyielding as iron, rendering him powerless to resist.

Ru Hui stared down at him, pressing a finger to her lips. "Shh—"