Chapter 31 Don't you even remember what happened that night?

Jing Qianheng took a step forward. "You'll protect me?"

Jiang Zhishui stepped forward and smiled, "From the day Your Highness rescued me, my heart has been with you. I said I would take responsibility for you to the end, so naturally I must protect your safety at all times."

Jing Qianheng glanced at Su You, frowned, and said, "I... I don't need you to take responsibility."

Jiang Zhishui suddenly leaned forward, "No need? Why not? Don't you think about what happened that night? If I don't take responsibility, what will you do if you regret it and want to hold me accountable later?"

"You..." Jing Qianheng took a step back, "Shut up!"

Jiang Zhishui looked at Su You beside her and said, "Su You, Your Highness and I have something to say to each other privately. Please excuse us for a moment."

Su You was also a little embarrassed at this moment. She glanced at Jing Qianheng and quickly retreated.

Jing Qianheng turned his face away and said coldly, "Don't try anything funny or say things that could be misunderstood."

Jiang Zhishui said, "I am telling the truth."

Jing Qianheng asked impatiently, "What exactly are you here for?"

At the Rain Inn, Lin Ye went up to the second floor, walked to the last guest room in the corridor, and pushed open the door to go inside.

After closing the door, two people were sitting inside. Liu Chuxi glanced at Lin Ye, then turned her gaze to the person directly opposite her. "Senior Shen, we will stay in Jin Kingdom. Please feel free to ask if there is anything we can do for you."

"Did Elder Bai Zang send you?" Shen Minghuai put down his teacup. "What a coincidence. I was also looking for an opportunity to visit the Ziyang Immortal Abode."

"Senior Shen, have you made any discoveries in Jin?" Lin Ye sat down. "Three months ago, our Ziyang Immortal Mansion also sent a disciple here, but we suddenly lost contact. Our primary mission this time is to find her."

Shen Minghuai said, "Besides you, I haven't encountered any other disciples from other immortal sects. I'll help look for them, but how much do you know about the situation here?"

Liu Chuxi said in a low voice, "Jing Qianheng, the seventh prince of Jin Kingdom, once studied at Ziyang Immortal Mansion. Several of our senior uncles and the sect leader already know about the demon dragon Li Mo's attempt to revive. In order not to alert the enemy, they sent the two of us to investigate secretly."

“It seems this matter is no longer a secret.” Shen Minghuai said solemnly. “I think the Demon Clan has also received the news and is making moves within the Jin Kingdom.”

Liu Chuxi's grip on the sword hilt tightened slightly.

“I have a pretty good relationship with Zhou Linyuan now. He is Jing Qianheng’s uncle and is currently vying for power with the Crown Prince. Jin Kingdom is not very peaceful right now.” Shen Minghuai looked at Lin Ye, pondered for a moment, and said, “You two had better disguise yourselves and try not to go out during the day, otherwise you will be watched sooner or later. Zhou Linyuan is not a simple person. He has many capable people under him and he is not easy to deal with. You… can go to the Crown Prince’s side and try to gain his trust, and then act according to the situation.”

Lin Ye asked, puzzled, "Does Senior mean we should help the Crown Prince deal with Jing Qianheng? Master only instructed us to investigate secretly. We cannot interfere in their struggle without clarifying the details."

“Senior, although Jing Qianheng inherited the bloodline of the demon dragon, he has never done anything wrong in the Ziyang Immortal Mansion.” Liu Chuxi couldn’t help but say, “Just because he couldn’t choose his birth, should we put him to death?”

“He left without saying goodbye or there might be some hidden reason…” Liu Chuxi paused and said, “Could you let us find out before we talk about it?”

Shen Minghuai paused for a moment, then said, "So you two have some connection with Jing Qianheng."

“Yes, he is a disciple of Uncle-Master Song An, and he came here on Uncle-Master Song An’s behalf.” Liu Chuxi said in a low voice, “His safety is also within our consideration.”

Shen Minghuai lowered his head, "Let me think about it..."

"Senior, right now we need to find our Ziyang Immortal Mansion's disciples as soon as possible." After a long silence in the room, Lin Ye spoke up: "There's no need to rush to decide on Jing Qianheng's matter."

"Tell me in detail about the missing disciple of the Purple Sun Immortal Abode," Shen Minghuai said, raising his eyes. "Is this person trustworthy? Did he just get distracted by playing and neglect his mission?"

The window shadows were deep, and the candlelight flickered.

Upon hearing the name uttered by Liu Chuxi, Shen Minghuai exclaimed in surprise, "Jiang Zhishui?!"

Seeing his strange expression, Liu Chuxi asked, "Senior, do you know my junior sister?"

"It's hard to say." Shen Minghuai looked surprised and frowned. "There's someone with the same name. I wonder if that's the person you're looking for?"

Lin Ye had been worried about Jiang Zhishui's safety, and upon hearing about the clues concerning her, he hurriedly asked, "Where is this person now?"

Shen Minghuai hesitated for a moment, then said, "The Marquis of Chengyi's residence."

Lin Ye immediately picked up his sword and stood up. He looked at Liu Chuxi and said, "Chuxi, I'll go take a look first. You stay with the senior."

Shen Minghuai said in a deep voice, "Don't rush, sit down first."

“Senior, my junior sister has been missing for three months. We are all very worried about her.” Lin Ye stood there and said anxiously, “I have to go and see for myself to make sure she is safe and sound before I can feel at ease.”

Liu Chuxi said, "Lin Ye, it won't make a difference if you wait a little longer. Listen to what the senior has to say first."

Lin Ye looked at Liu Chuxi, hesitated for a moment, and then slowly sat down.

Shen Minghuai absentmindedly picked up the teacup, brought it to his lips, and then realized it was empty. Seeing this, Liu Chuxi picked up the teapot and poured him a cup.

He spoke eloquently.

From the injured and unconscious daughter of the Marquis of Chengyi to the recent Crown Prince's wedding, where the bride was abducted, the instigators were Zhou Linyuan and the Seventh Prince Jing Qianheng. Tell the two of them about this series of events.

Lin Ye was completely confused. "Then...this person isn't my junior sister?"

Liu Chuxi said, "We'll have to go see him to know."

“If that person really is your junior sister, then things will be much easier.” Shen Minghuai knew a lot from Zhou Linyuan. This daughter of the Marquis of Chengyi was also a pawn that Zhou Linyuan had placed next to Jing Qianheng.

"However, what exactly does your junior sister want to do? And how did she get into the Marquis's mansion? Jiang Hanfeng does have a daughter, and many people in the capital have seen her face. Could it be that she used a disguise technique?"

Liu Chuxi lowered her eyes, her expression thoughtful. Infiltrating the Marquis's residence was not difficult, but why had there been no news of her since arriving in Jin?

Elder Bai Zang's communication talisman had not received a reply for a long time.

Shen Minghuai pondered for a moment, then suddenly said, "Oh, right, Zhou Linyuan has erased some of Jing Qianheng's memories, so he probably doesn't recognize you anymore."

Lin Ye asked in confusion, "Has he lost his memory?"

“He just lost his memories of Ziyang Immortal Abode.” Shen Minghuai looked at Liu Chuxi, a guess in his mind. “Zhou Linyuan said that Jing Qianheng had a sweetheart in Ziyang Immortal Abode. He was afraid that he would be troubled by love and miss important matters, so he simply erased his memories.”

Lin Ye was stunned: "Your sweetheart? You just erased her memory for such a simple reason?"

“That’s right.” Shen Minghuai chuckled. “Zhou Linyuan is a very cold-blooded and ruthless person. Even if Jing Qianheng is his only relative now, as long as Jing Qianheng is in his way, he can still discard him like trash.”

Lin Ye glanced at Liu Chuxi, his fingers curling slightly, and asked in a hoarse voice, "Who...does he like?"

"Hmm..." Shen Minghuai thought for a moment and said, "You are familiar with him, but can you guess who it is? Who is he close to in the Ziyang Immortal Mansion?"

After he finished speaking, his gaze fell subtly on Liu Chuxi.

Liu Chuxi paused, frowned in thought, and said seriously, "I've never heard him mention it."

"Could this person be Miss Liu?" Shen Minghuai felt that she was a bit dull, so he said bluntly, "Isn't Miss Liu very concerned about him? I haven't even said anything yet, and you've been speaking up for him non-stop."

"Me?" Liu Chuxi was surprised and laughed, "Senior misunderstands. I cultivate the Path of Ruthlessness, which is most averse to love. I spoke up for Junior Brother Jing simply because that is the truth."

Shen Minghuai sneered, "If you're going to cultivate the Path of Ruthlessness, how exactly do you do it? Is it enough to simply avoid love and affection like a raging flood?"

Liu Chuxi was stunned, her mouth opened and closed, but she didn't know how to refute it for a moment. Lin Ye didn't want to hear this and interrupted, "Senior, let's wait until we've met the daughter of the Marquis of Chengyi before making any plans."

Muziyuan in the eastern suburbs.

Jiang Zhishui walked down the street in a light blue dress, with Jing Qianheng following not far behind, walking at a leisurely pace. A few people were scattered on the street, their heads wrapped in scarves, their faces completely covered, leaving only their eyes peeking out.

Jiang Zhishui tried to stop one of them to ask what was going on, but as soon as she approached, the people screamed and ran away as if they had seen a ghost. A few people who were still walking on the street were startled by the noise and either ran into the alley or hid in the nearest house, slamming the doors and windows shut.

Only she and Jing Qianheng remained on the street. A gust of wind blew across the empty, chilly street.

Muzi Garden was a place where high-ranking officials and nobles in the capital watched plays and listened to music. There was a puppet god festival here, and in the past, the whole garden was packed with people and extremely lively.

Artisans from all over the world gather here for the Puppet God Festival. During the competition, various puppet crafts are displayed with incredible skill, and you can often see many novelties.

Several months ago, someone demonstrated a puppet at an event that could be controlled without human strings. This puppet was like a living person; it could serve people, fight, laugh, cry, and do everything. When dressed and painted with special paint, it was indistinguishable from a human unless you looked closely.

The murder case involving the evil spirit that Su You mentioned occurred in Mu Zi Garden. The garden has been sealed off by the imperial court, and no one inside is allowed to leave until the incident is investigated.

Jiang Zhishui was ordered by Jiang Hanfeng to find a way to bring Jing Qianheng to the Ancient Porcelain Cave outside the capital.

She had been so arrogant before, thinking she could use her beauty to seduce him, but when she arrived at the Ling Prince's mansion and met Jing Qianheng, she immediately lost her nerve.

That cold face was exactly the same as it had been back in the Purple Sun Immortal Abode, even colder than before.

Even without that incident standing between them, Jing Qianheng, now suffering from amnesia, still instinctively dislikes her.

When Jiang Zhishui was in the Marquis's mansion, she studied the "beauty trap" strategy. Several maids around her helped her come up with ideas, and she kept several suggestions in mind. Halfway through her conversation with Jing Qianheng, she tried it out, and it worked quite well.

She originally thought it would take a lot of persuasion to convince him, but to her surprise, he immediately agreed after she had just said it in a coquettish tone.

Jiang Zhishui really didn't expect that Jing Qianheng would fall for this.

Jiang Zhishui lied to Jing Qianheng, claiming that she had overheard her father and the Crown Prince's conversation and that the Imperial Preceptor Li Si, on the Crown Prince's orders, had stolen a magical artifact from the immortal sect and was preparing to use it to extract the magic power of a demon to increase his cultivation in a certain place in the suburbs.

On the way, Jiang Zhishui led the way west of the city. Jing Qianheng was following along just fine, but suddenly he had a sudden urge to go and see Muzi Garden in the eastern suburbs. Jiang Zhishui tried to persuade him a few times, but he wouldn't listen and insisted on going. She had gone to great lengths to get him out of the city and didn't want to upset him, so she had no choice but to go along with his wishes.

Now that she was here, Jiang Zhishui wanted to find out what kind of monsters were hiding in the much-discussed Muzi Garden.

As night deepened, Jiang Zhishui kept her eyes peeled for her surroundings as she walked slowly. Suddenly, Jing Qianheng behind her lowered his voice and asked, "Jiang Zhishui—what's that on your shoulder?"