Chapter 404

Chapter 404: The Ultimate Weapon Delivered to My Door

Yu Jiao Jiao suddenly shivered and dropped her wild thoughts. She lifted her eyes carefully and saw Yu Zhi Yi staring at her without any expression. Yu Jiao Jiao stammered, fear rising: “W-what are you trying to do?”

Yu Zhi Yi raised her hand, and an unseen force yanked Yu Jiao Jiao’s neck straight into her grip. As the choking feeling crashed over her, Yu Jiao Jiao finally panicked. She struggled hard and begged: “You can’t kill me! You can’t! If you kill me, my father will never let you go! My brother and my other brothers won’t forgive you either!”

Yu Zhi Yi sneered: “Who cares.”

Her fingers tightened. Yu Jiao Jiao’s face turned uglier by the second. Her pupils shrank. A desperate idea flashed through her, and she blurted a threat: “You can’t hide what you do-this is the Eldest Princess’s banquet. If you dare lay a hand on me, the Eldest Princess will notice something wrong. You just hurt the Eldest Princess, so she definitely holds a grudge. If I disappear, whether there’s proof or not, she’ll suspect you.”

Yu Zhi Yi’s brows drew tight. After a breath, she released her hand and said coolly: “You’re lucky today. Too many people saw you. Next time, you won’t be so lucky.”

Clutching her aching throat, Yu Jiao Jiao almost spat a few harsh words like she used to. But when she met Yu Zhi Yi’s cold eyes, she swallowed her comeback, spun around, and dashed out of Plum Grove Villa like wolves were on her tail.

She ran far before stopping. After a careful glance back, she saw no sign of Yu Zhi Yi following and patted her chest in relief. Then she snorted under her breath: “Idiot.”

She mocked in a low voice as she hurried away: “And she calls herself some great master of the mystic arts, acting like she’s unmatched, but her brain is as dumb as a pig.”

She had snuck into the Eldest Princess’s flower-viewing banquet. Besides herself and Yu Zhi Yi, no one knew she’d been there. If you think about it for even a moment, it’s obvious: she’d been locked up by Duke’s Manor-how could she openly show up in public?

Still, her brief smug look faded fast. Even the talisman that expert gave her couldn’t kill that hateful woman. What else could she use?

As for the “pig-brained” Yu Zhi Yi, she casually formed a dust-cleaning spell and scrubbed herself inside and out, then strolled toward the gathered crowd, unhurried.

She’d been worrying about how to deal with Immortal Qing Feng, and then Yu Jiao Jiao delivered herself to her door. Immortal Qing Feng was even “generous,” handing her a nice gift.

She had never seen that talisman before, so it had to be high grade. Lately her sixth sense had become razor-sharp. The instant she saw it, she felt sure: this talisman was so strong that even Immortal Qing Feng couldn’t withstand it.

The only problem was that someone had tampered with it. Once it showed up, it would auto-lock onto her.

She walked and thought through the reason. Her memory was already good, and after her strength rose, she gained total recall. That split second earlier was enough for her to memorize every detail of the talisman.

Suddenly she stopped and murmured: “So that’s it.” [It’s stained with my aura.]

After Yu Jiao Jiao’s distraction that lasted less than a quarter of an hour, Yu Zhi Yi never strayed far from the crowd again.

The Eldest Princess had been injured, so the plum-blossom banquet ended. With so many eyes watching, everyone saw that Yu Zhi Yi never made a move. The Eldest Princess had hooked her sleeve on the coral-tree ornament, which toppled, smashed into a teacup, and sent shards flying. The shards and broken coral tree cut her. None of it could be pinned on Yu Zhi Yi.

No one could stop her. Yu Zhi Yi left Plum Grove Villa with the noble ladies, calm and confident.

Back in Capital City, she did something rare-she even worked a little overtime in the afternoon. At the Ministry of Justice, she reviewed ten more case files and offered clues, earning herself three extra days of leave.

Speaking of leave, Yu Zhi Yi had planned to save up all her time off for later, when she set out for her sect. But now she could only save a little and spend a little. [Plans never keep up with change.]

The Minister of Justice looked at her with a wounded gaze. They were all serving His Majesty-so why could she loaf around, working three days and resting two, while he had to keep to a strict schedule every day? Only because His Majesty had fallen ill these days could he steal a sliver of rest. Of course, only a sliver. He was the Minister of Justice, in charge of the whole ministry. The daily work he had to handle wasn’t less than the memorials His Majesty faced. So, a tiny bit of slacking was all he dared.

Yu Zhi Yi asked in surprise: “Minister, did you say His Majesty is ill?”

In truth, she had already heard from the guards that the emperor was sick. But she hadn’t seen him and didn’t know how serious it was. Normally, unless the emperor was near death, he wouldn’t turn away court officials. What if there was an urgent matter? He wasn’t a muddle-headed ruler; he wouldn’t harm his own rule like that.

It felt like a big unseen hand was blocking Yu Zhi Yi, keeping her from meeting the emperor-more exactly, from seeing his fate.

Just then the Minister of Justice lowered his voice and said: “His Majesty’s spirit is poor lately. He often drifts off during court. Two days ago, he even missed a step and fell.”

His whisper was careful. With most people, this might be a joke. With the emperor, it wasn’t. He warned: “Official Yu, hear it and keep it to yourself. Don’t spread it.”

If Yu Zhi Yi weren’t the emperor’s favorite, he wouldn’t have risked sharing this.

Yu Zhi Yi nodded thoughtfully: “Thank you, Minister. Don’t worry, I’ll keep my mouth shut.”

Leaving the Ministry of Justice, she went back to Peach Garden while it was still early. Zhang Xiang had already set the meal. Yu Zhi Yi ate a few quick bites, then headed straight to her room.

She closed her eyes and carefully replayed every detail of the talisman. After a long time, she opened her eyes. She didn’t start drawing right away. Instead, she washed her hands and lit incense.

When everything was ready, she went to the incense room where the ancestor tablet stood. She set talisman paper and cinnabar on the table, then bowed and spoke with respect: “Ancestor above, your disciple Yu Zhi Yi faces danger and needs great fortune to pass safely. I’ve found a chance, but my strength is low, and I’m afraid I can’t draw such a high-level talisman.”

She promised softly: “Please bless me so my wish comes true and disaster turns to safety. If I escape, I’ll build you a golden-body idol at once.”

After offering a stick of incense, Yu Zhi Yi returned to the table, picked up her brush, held her breath, and began to write.