Chapter 186

Chapter 186: Not Worth Staining My Path to Ascension

You Bing Yue stared toward the doorway in shock: “You… why are you here?” Her face showed the awkward look of someone caught red-handed.

She glanced at Du Zi Heng and saw him looking at her with deep disappointment, and the lump in her throat hardened. In an instant her embarrassment vanished. She lifted her chin and spoke with boldness: “What is that look supposed to mean?”

She pointed at him with hurt rising in her voice: “You really changed your heart, didn’t you? The way you used to be, no matter what happened, you stood by me without question. But now, just because of her, you dare look at me like that!”

She had planned to push the blame onto someone else, yet the more she talked, the more aggrieved she felt. Thinking about what she had gone through these days, she wanted to grind her back molars to dust.

She told herself who she was: in modern times she had been a powerful woman, the Queen of the Night. Many high officials and nobles lost their lives by her hand, and many so-called elites were played in her palm. After she entered this book’s world, she took it for granted that she was the heroine, the child of fate. She deserved the best man in this world, which meant the male lead.

So when it came to winning the male lead, she felt no doubt and no pressure at all. She was a traveler between worlds, a child of fortune, and in her past life she had handled countless mission targets. How could she fail to capture one simple and pure ancient man?

Yet she never expected to be blocked again and again by his old-fashioned, feudal ex-wife. What she could not accept even more was this: facing that woman’s constant troublemaking, he kept failing and losing ground. [Except for dying in her previous life, everything had always gone her way. How could she accept losing now?]

Seeing the always-strong You Bing Yue look so wronged, Du Zi Heng softened at once: “Bing Yue, I didn’t mean it that way.”

“You did,” she seized the opening and pressed on: “This mission means everything to me. You knew that. Why did you let her go? And this is my place. Why did you bring her here?”

At an ordinary time she might have swallowed it, but right now the couple, Vice Minister Fan and Madam Fan, were both present. On top of that, Madam Fan had scolded her like someone who swallowed gunpowder, spraying her without knowing the truth. If Yu Zhi Yi said a few random things, Madam Fan would hate her even more. She wanted to build a connection with Vice Minister Fan and start her own network.

She suddenly turned her aim and glared at Yu Zhi Yi: “Besides, did I say anything wrong? I’ve always been strong. Even when I get hurt, I heal fast. I have never fainted for this long.”

She narrowed her eyes at Yu Zhi Yi and spoke coldly: “You know mystic arts. If you wanted to deal with me without lifting a finger, you could do it with a single thought.”

Her face burned with anger, and her heart told the same story. But inside she was not as angry as she seemed. More than anger, she felt excited. [This time, I will crush that woman.] [She is just a feudal relic. How could she ever compare to me?]

Vice Minister Fan, Madam Fan, and Du Zi Heng all looked at Yu Zhi Yi, as if waiting for her explanation. Du Zi Heng also felt that You Bing Yue’s sudden coma was not normal. Vice Minister Fan knew well that Yu Zhi Yi was outstanding at mystic arts and had been specially granted a title by Your Majesty. As for Madam Fan, she believed You Bing Yue was no good, but she also did not see Yu Zhi Yi as innocent. [A shameless woman who seduces my husband, if they do it and no one exposes it, then so what?]

Yu Zhi Yi nodded lightly and said: “Mm. What you said is not wrong.”

Everyone froze. Even if they suspected Yu Zhi Yi, they still thought she would deny it. No one expected her to admit it.

Ignoring their shock, Yu Zhi Yi smiled with crescent eyes at You Bing Yue: “You say I could take you down without force. That part is true.”

She snapped her fingers.

You Bing Yue suddenly lifted both hands and slapped herself hard across the face.

Smack. Smack. Smack.

In the quiet room, the sharp sound of left-right slaps rang out again and again. You Bing Yue’s heart jumped, and her eyes widened in disbelief. She tried to stop, but her hands did not obey. They still grew from her arms, yet they acted against her will.

Smack. Smack. Smack.

In the blink of an eye, she had slapped herself more than twenty times. The blows landed with no restraint, and her cheeks puffed up high at once.

Du Zi Heng’s face changed and he rushed forward: “Stop hitting!”

His first instinct was to grab You Bing Yue’s hands. But her strength was shocking. When he caught hold, she did not stop. Because both sides were strong and pulling in opposite directions, an accident happened. With a loud crack, You Bing Yue’s forearm broke.

Du Zi Heng stared in horror, and You Bing Yue let out a scream.

Even with a broken arm, her slapping motion did not stop. Because the bone had snapped, the hand against her face carried little force now. But that did not mean there was no pain. It hurt less on the cheek and much more at the break.

Du Zi Heng stared at his own hands, then at You Bing Yue trying to hit herself while sobbing with pain, and he did not dare step in again.

Suddenly he looked at Yu Zhi Yi and blurted out: “Zhi Yi, stop!”

Yu Zhi Yi looked at him coldly and asked: “In what role are you speaking to me?” She let out a small laugh and said: “She said I used mystic arts to attack her. If I do not make that crime come true, wouldn’t that waste the hard work she put into framing me?”

Du Zi Heng was choked by the words and knew he was in the wrong. After forcing himself to calm down, he understood that Yu Zhi Yi would never truly attack like that. If she had wanted to kill, she had many ways to do it earlier, clean and silent. Why would she act only now, after everyone knew You Bing Yue had stolen her credit? That would leave a handle for others to use against her.

He took a deep breath and said: “I am sorry, Zhi Yi. I apologize on her behalf. Please forgive her.”

Yu Zhi Yi’s voice was cool: “I want to hear her say it herself.”

As soon as she finished, the force controlling You Bing Yue vanished. You Bing Yue’s cheeks were swollen like a pig’s head. They stung, burned, and tingled all at once. Even her ears and mind buzzed. But Yu Zhi Yi’s voice still reached her clearly: “I used mystic arts and paid you back, didn’t I?”

That voice was as airy and annoying as before. In the past, You Bing Yue only felt disgust. Now she could not help but shiver. [This woman is too hateful. I don’t know what trick she used, but I cannot fight back.] [I am the child of fate, yet I lost face in front of all these people.]

Her hate surged up like fire. [Vile woman.]

She lowered her eyes, hid the hatred, and said in a muffled voice: “No. I am sorry. I misunderstood you.”

Yu Zhi Yi’s smile did not reach her eyes. She saw the hatred clearly. But she would not dirty her hands with killing. People like this were not worth staining her path to ascension. In any case, even if she did nothing, someone else would deal with You Bing Yue soon. All Yu Zhi Yi needed to do was watch the show.