Chapter 12: The Mother-in-Law’s Schemes, Awakening from Poison

Tan Xiyin clutched at Qin Wang Xiangyu's sleeve, pleading, "Mother-in-law..."

"Madam, we really can't keep Feng Linglong in the residence. She dared to threaten you so openly—what if she gets angry one day and slips poison into your food? What then?" Xiaocui, whether truly afraid or simply fanning the flames, kept darting her restless gaze around, looking every bit the troublemaker.

Qin Wang Xiangyu's eyes flickered with fear at these words. She hesitated for a moment before stammering, "She wouldn't dare!"

"Don't forget, Mother-in-law, she poisoned my parents and my younger sister, and even killed the child in her own womb." At the mention of her lost family, Tan Xiyin broke down in tears.

The child Linglong lost was not only her own pain, but also a wound in the heart of this old lady who longed for a grandchild.

Qin Wang Xiangyu cast a cold, dark look at Tan Xiyin. "Leave me. I can't stand the sight of you. All you do is cry, day after day."

Tan Xiyin could not fathom what her mother-in-law was thinking, but she had never dared to defy her. Since Qin Wang Xiangyu told her to go, she left with her maid, humiliated and subdued.

After they had gone, Qin Wang Xiangyu leaned toward her old attendant and whispered, "Xiahe, come here..."

"But Madam, what if the Master holds us responsible?" Xiahe had served at Qin Wang Xiangyu's side for many years and understood Qin Daofei's temperament well. She was truly afraid.

Qin Wang Xiangyu narrowed her eyes, her voice chilling. "Whatever happens, I will bear it. Go quickly."

With that, Xiahe had no choice but to don her cloak, slip through the courtyard, and make her way toward the secluded back gate.

Linglong Pavilion.

After tending to Linglong's wounds, the physician took his leave.

Tang Li hesitated for a moment before speaking softly, "Master, the poison in your body has not yet cleared. Should I call a maid to keep the lady company?"

"There's no need. She isn't used to being cared for by strangers. Find her old maid, Hua'er, from the past. Bring her back to look after Linglong," Qin Daofei replied, then sat at the edge of the bed, his gaze as deep as the sea, fixed on Linglong.

His eyes lingered on her chest.

"Jifeng, find out who, two years ago, authorized the jailers to torture her," Qin Daofei said in a mild tone.

Soon, a handsome young man in black emerged from the shadows, leaning against the wall with a roll of his eyes. "If I'm not mistaken, those jailers were all burned to death two years ago. Isn't it a bit late to investigate now?"

"The jailers are dead, but the prefect of Jingzhao at the time survived, as did those who bribed him," Qin Daofei replied evenly, not even glancing at Jifeng.

Though Qin Daofei showed no anger, Jifeng felt a chill envelop him. He shrank back and muttered, "You're the master, so you have the final say."

With that, he vanished.

That night, Linglong was restless in her sleep, tormented by nightmares. Her lips murmured incoherently, "Such a great fire... save me... someone help me..."

From Linglong's fevered words, Qin Daofei gathered a faint thread of truth: the great fire in the prison that year was not started by her.

But if she wasn't the one who set the fire, why was she the only one left alive?

Qin Daofei gently placed his hand on Linglong's stomach. This place had once nurtured his child, but before his very eyes, it had become a pool of blood and loss.

All he could do was watch, powerless.

His eyes, usually vast and cold, now burned crimson as he gazed at Linglong, some unfamiliar emotion flickering in their depths at last.

The next morning.

Linglong awoke, sticky and uncomfortable in her damp clothes, and turned her head to see Qin Daofei dozing on a low stool beside her bed. The morning sunlight slanted across his face, making the soft down on his skin clearly visible.

Such a sharp, forbidding man—yet in sleep he resembled a stubborn child, stirring in one an urge to protect him.

But Linglong, well-acquainted with his nature, knew full well that a man like Qin Daofei would never need anyone's protection. With a mere turn of his hand, he could upend her entire world.

"They say the wicked live a thousand years, and you truly prove the truth of that saying," she murmured.

Sure enough, even without opening his eyes, Qin Daofei was already exerting his overwhelming presence, crushing all resistance.