Chapter 231 The Guest Turns into the Host, the Evil Servant Deceives His Master (Seeking Subscriptions and Monthly Tickets)

Li Xian was determined to do everything in her power to help Wen Caishang escape danger and repay all past favors. She wanted to settle all grudges quickly. Seeing that Wen Caishang was unreasonable and lacked her usual cunning, behaving like an ordinary young woman, Li Xian decided to leave for a while to allow her to calm down.

Li Xian said, "Alright. I'll leave first. Madam, you should rest well!" He then used his Qingfeng Leg technique to leap over the courtyard wall and leave.

Wen Caishang was stunned and said in disbelief, "You actually dare to leave?!" Seeing Li Xian disappear into the darkness, she was unable to come back to her senses for a long time.

As time passed, night fell and all was quiet. She was completely unable to move, her internal energy was depleted, and she was covered in injuries.

He couldn't help but feel a secret fear, and he secretly hoped for Li Xian's return, so he listened to her every word and action.

"Fine, so saying you can't comply and refuse to kill innocent people is just an excuse to abandon me because you're afraid of dying."

"I deeply regret not letting the ancestral silkworm bite him earlier. With my injuries, I'm probably hopeless here."

Wen Caishang lay in the carriage, her hatred and anger growing with each passing thought. She had always been of high status, and no one dared to defy her. Now, however, her luck had turned sour, and she had suffered a terrible misfortune, falling to the bottom of her life.

No longer possessing formidable strength, a multitude of thoughts surged through her mind. She was no different from any other woman. If Li Xian were to obey her every word, he would naturally win her favor, but that would make her no different from Pang Long or Qiu Yue. Li Xian's strategy of retreating to advance infuriated Wen Caishang, who wanted to kill him in venting her anger, but this was precisely the key to breaking free from the mold.

Wen Caishang was furious and called her an ingrate, hating her for her disrespect. But she no longer held Li Xian in any superiority. She thought and thought, and all she could think about was Li Xian.

The moon is bright and the stars are few; a gentle breeze is blowing.

Time passed. As dawn broke, the sound of horses' hooves suddenly came from afar. Wen Caishang groggily awoke, guessing that pursuers were closing in. She tried to move her body, but could not budge an inch. Despair washed over her; she knew escape was impossible. She thought, "Even if Li Xian were here, what could he do? Could he possibly help me escape this predicament?"

Just then, amidst the gloomy mist, the carriage suddenly trembled slightly, and Li Xian returned, his expression solemn.

Wen Caishang exclaimed happily, "You didn't leave?" Then her face turned cold: "Fine, so you brought that enemy with you!?"

Li Xian said, "Madam, I was just wandering around the area last night and didn't go far. When I saw the pursuers coming early this morning, I rushed back."

Wen Caishang, having regained what she had lost, and seeing the respect in Li Xian's words, inexplicably lost all her annoyance. She thought, "I'll make an exception and forgive you this time." With a cold face, she asked, "Really?"

"Really?" Li Xian laughed. "How hard-hearted must I be to abandon my wife? I was clumsy with words last night, so please forgive me."

"Hmph! What's the use of saying all this now? I've been angry with you all night." Wen Caishang's mood fluctuated, and she suddenly felt cheerful, but she cursed, "You wretched servant."

“If you wish to scold me, Madam, you may do so on the way. Please come with me now.” Li Xian helped Wen Caishang up and carried her on his back. Wen Caishang’s pretty face flushed slightly.

Li Xian had wanted to escape with Wen Caishang last night, but after arguing with her, he feared she would release the ancestral silkworm to bite him. Therefore, he deliberately acted coldly to calm his emotions. However, the pursuers arrived very quickly. After running a few steps, he suddenly realized that this escape was extremely dangerous. A brilliant idea came to his mind, and he muttered to the courtyard, "I'm really sorry for stealing your old horse."

They sneaked into the house and knocked Old Zhang and his children unconscious. They brought over a horse and patted its rump.

The old horse, startled, leaped off and ran westward, creating quite a commotion. Li Xian, carrying Wen Caishang on his back, also galloped towards the horses.

Wen Caishang said, "You've already made a feint to the east, so why are you attacking the east?"

Li Xian said, "I suspect there must be a clever person in the Sword Rain Pavilion, otherwise they wouldn't have found us so quickly. A feint to the east and a counterattack to the west might delay things for a while, but it won't be of much use. If I use a feint to the east and a counterattack to the west, thinking one step further, it might have a surprising effect."

Wen Caishang nodded. "You're quite clever." Recalling the argument last night, she spat lightly, "You wretched servant."

Li Xian smiled, thinking to himself, "Madam has quite a temper."

They were still in the city, with many houses along the way. Li Xian and his horse were heading in the same direction, but he slowed down and carefully concealed himself along the way. After traveling about seven or eight li, a figure descended from the sky.

Su Qiuwu stopped the horses, but seeing no one, he realized he had fallen into a trap and said, "What a cunning lad! He deliberately let the horses go to attract attention. He must have run off in another direction. Chase after him!"

They immediately turned back and dispatched disciples of the Sword Rain Pavilion to search in other directions, fearing that any delay would allow the tiger to return to the mountain. Unexpectedly, Li Xian was nearby.

Li Xian watched Su Qiuwu depart into the distance, then breathed a slight sigh of relief. She quickly ran out of the city and plunged into the secret forest. Only after setting Wen Caishang down did she have a moment to rest.

Having regained his strength, he continued on his way. He ventured deep into the forest, using the trees for cover. At midday, the sun was blazing. Li Xian listened intently, hearing no signs of pursuers, before finding a stream to rest.

He laid Wen Caishang down, making her lie flat on the ground. Wen Caishang's white dress was stained with blood, the hem fluttering, her figure captivating. Even in her utterly disheveled state, unable to move, her furrowed brows and parted lips exuded an indescribable charm.

Li Xian exclaimed, "That was close!"

Wen Caishang was quite impressed, thinking to herself that many of her decisions had been plagued by misfortune, leading to failure and a series of wrong steps. If Li Xian were to help her, perhaps she could escape with his intelligence and wisdom? However, she only let out a soft "humph," still feeling resentful.

Li Xian knew he was temporarily out of danger, but still in grave peril, his fate uncertain. Seeing Wen Caishang's sullen face, devoid of her usual majesty, he suddenly thought, "Madam is ruthless. I risked my life to save her to repay a debt of gratitude, but she may not appreciate it. I will have to leave Yihe Manor no matter what. It's rare for Madam to be so distressed, sulking like a little girl. If I don't tease her a bit, I'll leave feeling rather stifled."

Seeing Wen Caishang resting with her eyes closed, Li Xian, surprisingly bold, plucked a blade of grass from the riverbank and gently tickled her nose. Wen Caishang endured it for a moment, then sneezed, exclaiming angrily, "Li Xian! What are you doing!"

Li Xian said, "Let me see if Madam is still angry with me."

"Hmph!" Wen Caishang retorted sarcastically, "Is a peasant like you worth getting angry over?" In reality, she was furious with Li Xian.

She treated Li Xian as if he were a mere object to be used. Yet, her past feelings remained hidden deep within her heart. Now that Li Xian had taken control and showed her no respect, her feelings subtly shifted.

Therefore, she appears more like a petite woman.

Li Xian said, "Then what should I do so that Madam won't be angry with me?"

"You," Wen Caishang said, then whispered, "How presumptuous!"

Li Xian lightly touched the tip of her nose, which annoyed Wen Caishang to no end. She cursed in her heart, "If I had known you were this kind of person, I should have killed you with a sword!" But she was helpless and was sneezed several times by Nengde, making her look extremely embarrassed.

Li Xian chuckled and said, "I used to think you were cold and aloof, without any emotion. But now it seems you're no different from any other woman."

“How can an ordinary woman compare to me?” Wen Caishang said coldly. “I only realize now how deserving you are of a beating. You’ve gotten your way.”

“Indeed, your ability to sulk is even more impressive than that of ordinary women,” Li Xian laughed. “I’m honest and law-abiding, and I don’t deserve a beating. But you, my lady, have beaten me quite a bit in the past.”

Wen Caishang said, "Fine, so you're holding a grudge against me for stabbing you, and you've brought me to this secluded place to take revenge on me, aren't you!"

"You can be smug for now. Watch how I punish you once my inner energy is restored," Wen Caishang said.

Li Xian said, "Madam, you have misunderstood me. I sincerely wanted to save you. You should know my honest nature."

"You even lied to me, where were you being honest?" Wen Caishang said angrily, "If you keep talking about being honest, I...I..." She really wanted to kick him.

"Alright, alright, I won't mention it anymore." Li Xian said somewhat aggrievedly, then smiled and said, "If I'm not mistaken, Madam, you've been bewitched, haven't you?"

Wen Caishang was taken aback. "How did you know?"

“I guessed it,” Li Xian said. “Ever since you met Ma Zhongguang that day, you have been acting strangely. Ma Zhongguang is a master of Gu poison, so I guessed that you had been poisoned. But I didn’t expect that the Gu worm could completely destroy your internal energy.”

"It has come to this... dragging both of us into danger."

"Hmph!" Wen Caishang turned her head away. "If you find it dangerous, you can leave. What can I do to you right now? I just hate my bad luck. I've been schemed against, betrayed, eaten by tigers, and bitten by wolves. It's all fate."

Li Xian held the herb in his hand and gently tickled the tip of her nose.

Wen Caishang sneezed, her chest heaving with anger, her face flushed red, and she said, "Are you ever going to stop?!"

Li Xian said, "Madam is actually quite cute when she's angry." Wen Caishang said, "You're quite something. You're the first person in the world to dare say that I, Madam Zhejian, am cute when I'm angry."

Li Xian said frankly, "I'm just stating the facts. If something is cute, it's cute; if something is good-looking, it's good-looking. What's wrong with saying it?"

Wen Caishang was unsure whether to be angry or not, and rolled her eyes at Li Xian.

Li Xian solemnly said, "Madam, the current situation endangers both of us. We must be honest with each other in order to find a way to survive."

"What do you want?" Wen Caishang asked.

Li Xian said, "I've already said we should be honest with each other. You need to tell me your backup plan." Wen Caishang was furious and aggrieved, feeling that Li Xian was taking advantage of her: "What backup plan do I have? If I did, would I be bullied like this by you, you little brat?"

“Yes, your silkworm is an extremely powerful backup plan,” Li Xian said.

Wen Caishang asked nervously, "What do you want?!"

Li Xian said, "I know that you have a poisonous silkworm hidden under your clothes, Madam. You must also have a treasure box containing the secrets of heaven and earth. Please open the box and let the poisonous silkworm crawl inside."

Wen Caishang looked directly at Li Xian and said coldly, "Are you afraid I'll kill you with the poisonous silkworm?"

Li Xian remained silent. Wen Caishang narrowed her eyes slightly and sighed, "Li Xian, I truly underestimated you. Your wisdom and thoughtfulness are quite thorough. Perhaps you were just putting on a show for me before?"

Li Xian sat beside Wen Caishang and had her summon the poisonous silkworm, which crawled onto his palm, as if entrusting her life to it. He said, "The poisonous silkworm is now in my hand. If you wish to take my life, my lady, with a single thought, the poisonous insect will bite me and I will die instantly."

"Everything I have said is from the bottom of my heart."

“My treatment of you, Madam, is never feigned. Yet I know that your treatment of me is mostly calculated. My conscience is clear, and my affection for you is evident. But Madam… how have you treated me?”

Wen Caishang was taken aback. She had always demanded how Li Xian would treat her, completely neglecting how she should treat Li Xian. If calculated from a purely self-interested perspective, Li Xian owed her nothing. Although she had saved Li Xian several times, in other words… wasn't it Li Xian who risked his life to secure benefits for her?

She met Li Xian's eyes and was suddenly overcome with guilt. She had always looked down on Li Xian, taking it all for granted. But now, in this perilous situation, that superiority vanished. Many questions surfaced.

Wen Caishang said, "You..." She felt inexplicably moved. Seeing Li Xian's calm and composed demeanor, she realized that she was not as composed as him.

My first impression.

Li Xian was neither her subordinate nor her servant.

He stood upright before her, his gaze piercing, compelling her to look him in the eye.

“Alright…” Wen Caishang said, “There is a treasure box of heaven and earth three inches below my sleeve. Open it.”

Li Xian opened the box. The ancestral silkworm crawled into the box, an act that... signified that Wen Caishang's last trump card had been stored inside.

Under various circumstances, he revealed everything about Li Xian. Her temperament, thoughts, and schemes were laid bare before him like silkworms entering a box.

Li Xian closed the treasure box and put it into his chest.

(End of this chapter)