Chapter 416: It is Impolite Not to Reciprocate
Chapter 416: Chapter 416: It is Impolite Not to Reciprocate
A terrible premonition suddenly surfaced in He Awei’s heart.
"M-My lady, I’ve confessed everything. C-Can you please let me go?" He Awei watched Su Qing timidly, his voice thick with pleading.
"What do you think?" Su Qing leaned down to look at He Awei, the corner of her mouth lifting into a chilling smile. "You’ve seen my ability to control plants. Do you really think I’d give you the chance to tell anyone else?"
"You... you..." A chill spread through He Awei’s heart. "M-Murder... Murder is against the law."
"You’ve harmed so many people without an ounce of fear. Do you think I’d be scared?" Su Qing scoffed coldly.
"No, I was wrong! I truly know I was wrong! Let me go, please let me go!" Seeing his situation, He Awei began to wail for mercy.
"Too late." Su Qing stood up and looked down at him. At the same time, the vines binding him began to slowly tighten.
"Ah!" Seeing that begging was useless, the fear of death enveloped He Awei. He roared with resentment, "If you kill me, my master won’t let you get away with it!"
"Hah. Then let him come." With a wave of her hand, Su Qing sent a clump of vines to tightly gag He Awei’s mouth. Then, the vines around his body constricted even further.
"MMMPH..." The pain was so intense He Awei’s eyes looked ready to pop out of their sockets. He stared at Su Qing with despair and hatred, trying to say something but unable to utter a sound. As the vines constricted tighter and tighter, his struggles grew fainter until, with his eyes wide open, he stopped breathing.
Su Qing stared coldly at He Awei’s corpse. With a flick of her finger, the vines coiled around his body, dragging it outside onto the bare earth. They pulled He Awei deep into the ground, then restored the soil to its original state.
Su Qing quietly sensed the area. He Awei’s body had been dragged more than ten meters underground. No one would ever imagine he was buried in the earth right below his own window. As for witnesses, there were none. Within her Domain, if she didn’t want something to be seen, it was impossible for anyone to see it.
This was the unique Domain of a Wood Ability User, a one-of-a-kind power.
In a house some distance away, an old man opened his window and casually glanced toward He Awei’s home. It seemed to be shrouded in a gray fog, hazy and indistinct, obscuring everything from view. The old man muttered to himself in confusion, "Strange. Why is it getting foggy at a time like this?"
He didn’t think much of it and turned to go about his business.
The lingering scent of blood still hung in the air inside He Awei’s house.
Su Qing narrowed her eyes and gently beckoned to the Freesia. A rich fragrance immediately enveloped the entire house, completely eliminating the smell of blood. After stowing the pot of Freesia in her space, Su Qing turned and walked out of the house. Vines slithered across the floor behind her, erasing even her own footprints.
Everything returned to silence.
A long time passed before the villagers noticed that He Awei’s house was empty. However, since he had never really interacted with them, everyone simply assumed he had moved away and paid it no mind. Just like that, He Awei’s death was covered up.
After leaving He Awei’s residence, Su Qing waited for nightfall. Under the cover of darkness, she went to the Fan Family estate and controlled a thin vine to sneak quietly inside.
The Fan Family had just finished dinner. Fan Yuqian was anxious to get back to her room to strategize. Cheng Beize was returning to Xiangcheng the day after tomorrow, and she still hadn’t figured out a good reason to meet with him as soon as possible. She needed to come up with a foolproof excuse that would guarantee he’d agree to see her. Otherwise, wouldn’t all the trouble she went through to get that powder be a waste?
"Qianqian, we still have fruit for dessert," Zhang Meifen called out when she saw Fan Yuqian hurrying upstairs.
"Mom, just have Sister in law Zhang bring it to my room," Fan Yuqian said to Zhang Meifen, waving her hand as she continued up the stairs.
"This child, always in such a rush to get back to her room." Zhang Meifen shook her head with a smile. Then she instructed Sister in law Zhang, "Remember to send a portion of fruit up to the young miss’s room in a bit."
"Yes, Ma’am," Sister in law Zhang quickly replied.
As they were speaking downstairs, no one noticed a thin vine quietly creeping up the stairs after Fan Yuqian. It wrapped around her ankle and gave a sharp tug.
"AH—" Caught completely off guard, Fan Yuqian only felt something pull at her ankle. She lost her balance and went tumbling down the stairs.
"Ah—Qianqian!"
"Little Sis!"
"Young Miss!"
The sudden turn of events stunned everyone. No one could react in time to catch Fan Yuqian. They could only watch in horror as she tumbled all the way from the second-floor landing and crashed beside the bottom step.
Fan Yuqian’s forehead struck the corner of a step. Blood gushed from the wound, and she fainted on the spot.
The entire Fan Family residence erupted into chaos.
"Call an ambulance! Hurry, call an ambulance!"
...
In a small grove not far from the Fan Family estate, Su Qing watched the chaotic scene with a blank expression. ’He Awei said that when the Misfortune Talisman is used on someone, the severity of their injuries is all up to luck,’ she thought, rage burning within her. ’Li Huan must have been lucky that day; her injuries weren’t that serious.’
It’s only right to return the favor. Since that was the case, she would let Fan Yuqian try her luck as well.
And it seemed Fan Yuqian’s luck wasn’t very good.
With the entire Fan Family in disarray over Fan Yuqian’s sudden injury, Su Qing took the opportunity while no one was paying attention. She directed the vine into Fan Yuqian’s room to retrieve the bottle of powder she had brought back, then destroyed it. ’A drug like this,’ she thought, ’should never exist.’
Having punished Fan Yuqian, Su Qing didn’t linger in Xiangcheng. She returned to Guang City that same night and bought a train ticket to Lan City in Gansu Province.
Xiqing Mountain, her destination, was in Maqu County, Gansu Province. The train didn’t go there directly. To get there, she would have to take a bus from Lan City.
In both her lives combined, Su Qing had never been to Lan City, let alone taken a train there.
She watched as the scenery outside the train window grew progressively more desolate. There were bare, red rock mountains and countless tunnels. Su Qing even saw blue sheep leaping and running along the cliff faces.
Everything felt incredibly new and fascinating to Su Qing.
When she got off the train in Lan City, she was hit by the rich atmosphere of the Northwest. The calls of various snack vendors rose and fell in a constant chorus.
"Sour soup noodles! Get your sour soup noodles here!"
"Gray-bean porridge! Delicious gray-bean porridge! How about a bowl?"
"Sweet fermented oats! Sweet fermented oats! A tasty, thirst-quenching drink!"