Chapter 17: Outrageous Statement - The life and death of a nation's crown prince rest entirely on a barbarian tribe...

Qin Yuqi felt a tightness in his chest.

It felt like giving someone a gift, only to have them throw it away in front of him and wipe their hands in disgust. No one would ever refuse his kindness, especially since this was the first time he had ever acted out of pure goodwill without any ulterior motive, yet she completely ignored it all.

He couldn't even blame her, because her father had indeed disappeared in the mine... and might even have perished there, but that was a natural disaster, not his responsibility. He could only make her understand that they had no reason to harm the village's high priest.

"The mine is now taking shape, and it will surely yield results in time. The High Priest has always been in favor of mining. Don't you think we should go to the trouble of making him disappear at this time? What good would it do for the Qin family to lose such a significant supporter?"

Qin Yuqi tried to push away Xiao Jiang's hand from his neck, but failed, which made him even more irritable.

Why can't you believe him? Why do you always treat him like a bad guy? Is he some kind of vicious person?

People become sharp when they break down. For example, right now, Qin Yuqi's tone unconsciously carried a hint of contempt, "If you really think his disappearance was caused by someone, instead of wasting your time investigating here, you should use your brain to think about who the direct beneficiary of his disappearance really is. Do the people in this village really respect him that much? I think I heard that you're not very popular here."

Xiao Jiang was led astray by these words, but quickly returned to the core of the problem, avoiding falling into their trap. He stubbornly stuck to his simple dialectic: "Stop making baseless accusations. The village has been peaceful for so many years. How come something happened as soon as you arrived?"

Although she was never liked by the villagers, one thing was certain: Jiang Liuyun had no enemies in the village. He was the high priest of the temple, and no villager would harm the messenger of the gods on earth. Those who weren't from Liyue Village wouldn't understand the significance of the Feather God here.

Qin Yuqi snorted coldly, "Peaceful coexistence? Ha, yes, how harmonious you all are. Before outsiders came, did they even know what conflict, scheming, and resentment were? All the bad things are brought by outsiders. Not just the rain, but also thunder and lightning, and the heat and humidity—are you going to blame all of that on us?"

"Still trying to argue?" Xiao Jiang simply pulled out a small knife made of animal bone from his sleeve and held it to Qin Yuqi's throat.

Qin Yuqi was completely enraged by her action, and felt that his previous good intentions had been wasted. He immediately became so angry that his eyes turned red.

Anger overwhelmed the young man's rational mind. His first thought wasn't his own safety, but rather to challenge Jiang Yuhuo, angrily saying, "Fine, Jiang Yuhuo, if you dare lay a finger on me, I guarantee you, not only will you never leave this room, but everyone in this village, those supposedly harmonious clansmen, will all die without a burial place! I will make you pay a price you can't bear!"

The young man's reddened eyes were filled with rage, and his handsome face was contorted. He had forgotten that the guards outside had already been driven away. If she were to slit his throat, he wouldn't even have time to cry for help. If she escaped, his men might not even be able to find the killer. This was the most dangerous moment of his life. The life and death of a crown prince rested entirely in the hands of a barbarian girl.

Thump, thump, thump—the sound of someone's rapid heartbeat could be heard in the quiet air.

Seeing his expression, Xiao Jiang calmed down instead.

She had never killed anyone. From the beginning, she never intended to hurt him. The reason she pulled out the knife was purely because of his sharp tongue.

She frowned as she looked at the man beneath her, finding him suddenly repulsive—a face that betrayed his contempt for human life and his disregard for rules, the face of someone in a superior position. He had been annoying before, but now he evoked her loathing, making her instinctively want to attack. So she slapped him across the cheek, her eyes flashing with coldness. "You look cruel and ugly right now."

The slap was neither too hard nor too soft, just enough to bring Qin Yuqi back to his senses from his frenzied and violent emotions, restoring clarity to his previously muddled and red eyes.

He touched the side of his face that had been hit.

Is he ugly?

His rapid heartbeat gradually subsided. Qin Yuqi turned his face away, not wanting her to continue looking at him, but he felt a heat rising from his face, unsure if it was from the slap. He had no time to think, because the pressure on him suddenly eased. She stood up.

Qin Yuqi immediately sat up and saw her peeking out the window. He almost blurted out, "Where are you going?"

Xiao Jiang silently put the bone knife back into her sleeve. She was unlucky to have run into him today. Now that he had dismissed the guards, there was no need for her to continue entangled with him here. She couldn't search the room today; next time she climbed through the window, she would remember to avoid this room.

She glanced at Qin Yuqi. Where else could they go?

"Get out of here." Xiao Jiang put one hand on the window frame and was about to climb out.

"Wait!" Qin Yuqi hurriedly got off the bed, forgetting even to put on his shoes. "Weren't you looking for your father?"

"I can take you here to find it."

Xiao Jiang looked at Qin Yuqi with a complicated expression. Often, she truly couldn't understand these outsiders.

"But, it's a fair exchange. You have to promise me one thing." Qin Yuqi felt he had a clear conscience, and taking her to look for it wouldn't hurt. He didn't believe she could actually find any clues; on the contrary, it would make her owe him a favor.

"What is it?" Xiao Jiang immediately asked.

"I haven't decided yet. I'll let you know when I do."

The word "later" improved Qin Yuqi's mood considerably, making him unconsciously want to look forward to it. A slight smile played on Qin Yuqi's lips; knowing her stubborn nature, he believed she would definitely keep her word. For him, this was absolutely a sure-fire deal.

Xiao Jiang followed silently behind Qin Yuqi.

The guesthouses in Liyue Village are not large, and there aren't many rooms. From the outside, they even appear somewhat dilapidated due to years of neglect and lack of visitors.

This was the kind of guesthouse Xiao Jiang was familiar with; the room Qin Yuqi stayed in was completely beyond her comprehension. However, not all rooms were furnished like that; as she walked around, only a few individual rooms were somewhat comfortable and tidy.

The guards, under Qin Yuqi's orders, were not to disturb them. Xiao Jiang followed Qin Yuqi unimpeded, searching room by room, even the storage room. But everything was normal; there was no place to hide, and no trace of Jiang Liuyun. Her nose was always very sensitive; if Jiang Liuyun had stayed here, she would have smelled it. Finding nothing could only mean that this place was unrelated to Jiang Liuyun's disappearance.

As the room came to an end, Xiao Jiang couldn't help but feel discouraged and slowed down.

Qin Yuqi occasionally stole glances at the person beside him, his inner pleasure unconsciously growing larger and larger. He raised an eyebrow triumphantly and deliberately asked Xiao Jiang, "Did you find something?"

"No." The only answer he received was a brief two-word reply. The speaker's gaze was focused, scanning every corner, not even giving him a glance.

Qin Yuqi walked up to her with dissatisfaction, "I told you it has nothing to do with us, now you finally believe me, right?"

But the person in front of him ignored him and went straight to the next room after checking. Qin Yuqi immediately followed, and almost bumped into her because he wasn't paying attention.

Why did you suddenly stop when you were walking along so peacefully?

Qin Yuqi rubbed his nose and looked up at her.

Xiao Jiang stood in front of a tightly closed door.

This is the last room at the end of the guesthouse. Because of its remote location, it is very inconspicuous in the guesthouse. There are two half-dead plants under the window, making it look like an uninhabited room.

There was no padlock on the door, and Xiao Jiang pushed it, but it wouldn't open.

"Whose room is this? Is it locked?" Xiao Jiang asked.

"It's Mr. Jia's. He doesn't like to be disturbed, so he locks it when he's not home during the day. What's so strange about that?" Qin Yuqi replied casually. He also tried to open it, but it still wouldn't open. Although he was defending Jia Qianyang, he was still somewhat dissatisfied. The guesthouse was full of guards from the Great Yong Dynasty. Who was he guarding against?

"So, there's no one inside?" Xiao Jiang said calmly.

Qin Yuqi immediately realized what was happening, turned to look at Xiao Jiang, and then immediately looked at the door.

The fact that the door couldn't be pushed meant it was locked from the inside, since there was no lock on the outside. But this was strange, because he was quite certain that Jia Qianyang had gone out that morning and hadn't returned, so it was impossible for him to have locked the door from the inside.

Qin Yuqi knocked on the door and called out, "Mr. Jia, are you in there?"

No one answered.

Qin Yuqi peered through the crack in the door, trying to see what was happening inside.

A hand pulled him away.

Xiao Jiang kicked the door crack hard.

Qin Yuqi stared in shock at the slender girl. She would occasionally make him question his own existence—was this the kind of behavior a woman should exhibit? And was this the kind of strength a young man could muster?

Just now, the walls of this room clearly shook, right? It couldn't be that he was dizzy.

The door frame creaked as it struggled to stay afloat, echoing Qin Yuqi's realization, but the two doors remained stubbornly closed.

Xiao Jiang crossed her arms, stroked her chin, and looked utterly puzzled. A normal door, kicked like that, should have collapsed, even if it didn't open. Strange.

She stood at the door for a while, looking around to see if there were any other entrances, but found only two equally closed windows.

But it wasn't all for naught; for example, there was a simple flowerpot under each of the two windows.

Flowerpots themselves aren't unusual, but Xiao Jiang examined them closely and tapped them, discovering that they were actually made of metal. The soil inside looked fertile and moist, but the plant was wilted and looked like it was about to die. In the village, metal is used for tools; he'd never seen anyone use it for planting flowers. Why use a metal pot when there are readily available ceramic ones? Was it a lack of common sense, or was it intentional?

Xiao Jiang picked up one of the metal flowerpots, preparing to examine it closely to see what was different. But the moment she moved the flowerpot, a burst of spiritual energy suddenly dissipated from the pot, and the door panel on the side where the flowerpot was located finally gave way and fell down with a "bang".

The door opened.

A note from the author:

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