Sueño de Jiangshan

Capítulo 7

Startled awake by the second scream, the Empress Dowager hurriedly grabbed the magnet. A sudden stinging pain in her finger surprised and delighted her. She quickly opened her hand and saw that an embroidery needle was stuck in her middle finger.

At this moment, Shui Rong'er, now fully awake, saw herself naked in front of her most respected aunt. The shame of being a new wife immediately triggered a third round of screams.

"Enough! Rong'er, stop screaming. Your aunt is healing you. The needles have been removed from your body. Put your clothes on first, then tell your aunt what happened," the Empress Dowager interrupted Shui Rong'er's screams, speaking authoritatively.

After Shui Rong'er finished dressing, she let Xiao Lian in and recounted everything that had happened at the East Palace that afternoon. At the end, Shui Rong'er said to the Empress Dowager in a coquettish tone:

"Empress Dowager, you must do justice for Rong'er!"

To everyone's surprise, the Empress Dowager flew into a rage upon hearing this, saying, "Rong'er, have you forgotten what I told you before you entered the palace? I forbade you from causing trouble at the Eastern Palace. Did you think I was joking? Did you think you were the only one who hated that fool? Let me tell you, the Emperor hates her a thousand times more than you do, yet she's still alive and well. Do you know why?"

"Why? Why did the late emperor make a fool the empress?" Shui Rong'er asked indignantly.

"Uh! I can't say that, but just remember, you're not allowed to cause trouble at the East Palace again. Take good care of your injuries, I'm going back now." The Empress Dowager left the West Palace as if fleeing.

Shui Rong'er stared blankly at the Empress Dowager's departing figure for a moment, then revealed a disdainful expression and turned to Xiao Lian, saying:

"Little Lian, do you think I'm inferior to a fool?"

"Your Majesty is noble and beautiful, exceptionally intelligent, and favored by the Emperor. How could you possibly condescend to be compared to that fool!"

Shui Rong'er's confidence grew upon hearing Xiao Lian's answer. She pulled out the Empress's token, a sly smile on her face, and ordered:

“You’re right. So, I will not let this humiliation go unpunished. Go and convey my decree now, ordering the Imperial Guards to immediately go to the East Palace and throw that girl named Qing’er into the Heavenly Prison. Once I’ve recovered, I’ll go and treat her properly.”

"Yes, Your Majesty!"

[Chapter Twenty-Two: Will-o'-the-Wisp in the Maple Forest]

As dusk settled, Consort Shui's maid, Lian'er, led a group of about ten imperial guards on their way to the East Palace. As they passed the red maple forest, the leader of the guards suddenly waved his hand and ordered them to halt.

Lian'er, who had been eagerly anticipating avenging her mistress, stopped, utterly bewildered and reluctantly, pouting as she asked:

"Why did you stop? The person we're supposed to kidnap isn't here."

The Imperial Guard leader glared at the talkative Lian'er, saying nothing, but signaled to her with his eyes that something strange was happening around them. Lian'er followed their gaze and looked around at the night scene.

A cold wind rustled the maple leaves, and the red maple forest, bathed in the bright moonlight, appeared dark and mysterious. Suddenly, on the empty palace path ahead, a bright flame hissed and burned fiercely. Most eerily, the flame seemed to have grown legs, rushing straight towards them...

Not only was Lian'er stunned and speechless, but even the Imperial Guards, who were usually ruthless killers, were equally astonished, their faces blank and speechless.

As the flames drew ever closer, their breathing became increasingly rapid, their pupils dilated, and their mouths gaped open wide enough to fit a whole duck egg. However, their tongues seemed tied in knots, unable to utter a sound, and their bodies were frozen in place, unable to move despite their desire to run. Just as they closed their eyes to await death, a sudden gust of wind swept through, and silence returned. When they opened their eyes, there were no flames to be seen. It was as if nothing had ever happened.

Qingfeng, who had been observing the entire process from the shadows, was equally bewildered by the mysterious flame. However, he knew perfectly well who was responsible for it. He had been watching her since the afternoon, witnessing her bewitching all the palace servants of the East Palace, watching her skillfully disguise herself as a maid, and watching her steal medicine from the Imperial Pharmacy and prepare it. He assumed she would use those poisons against the people of the West Palace.

Unexpectedly, she came to this maple forest alone, fiddling around here and there. He didn't understand what she was trying to do. However, when he saw the palace maid beside Shui Rong'er leading a troop of imperial guards hurriedly towards them, Qingfeng thought he understood. So, he found the best spot, ready to watch a once-in-a-century spectacle: the Foolish Empress versus the Imperial Guards.

However, Qingfeng never expected that she would actually set herself on fire. He was completely stunned the moment he saw her suddenly burst into flames. When he came to his senses and realized that she intended to perish together with those lowly Imperial Guards, his heart suddenly tightened, followed by a surge of inexplicable rage. He couldn't bear to watch this any longer. He channeled his inner strength, unleashing a palm strike from mid-air, intending to extinguish the flames on her body with the force of his palm. Before the dying men could react, he casually scooped her into his arms and used his lightness skill to carry her away from the maple forest.

After preparing all afternoon, Leng Jie was almost at her destination when, unexpectedly, a troublemaker suddenly appeared. She glared fiercely at the person who was leaping and bounding among the treetops while holding her. From the medicinal scent emanating from him, she recognized him as the fox-like physician she had dealt with before. In her anger, Leng Jie had forgotten her past fear of his soul-piercing eyes. She was only focused on how to make him compensate for her losses while simultaneously achieving her predetermined goal.

Leng Jie allowed him to lead her into the East Palace. The moment their feet touched the ground, Leng Jie suddenly struck, a silver needle already pressed against Physician Hu's vital point. She then shouted:

"Don't move! Otherwise, I can't guarantee what will happen to you after this injection?"

Caught completely off guard, Qingfeng was stunned once again by the sudden attack and threat. But only for a moment, he regained his senses and roared:

"You ungrateful woman! I kindly saved you, but you repay kindness with enmity. If things had turned out this way, I might as well have watched you burn to death."

"Save me? I repay kindness with enmity? Burn me to death? Haha, I thought the fox physician who could resist my hypnosis and trick me silently was so skilled! Turns out he's nothing special!" Leng Jie sneered with disdain.

Since leaving the mountain, when had Qingfeng ever received such "courtesy"? Especially from a foolish woman he had just rescued from the clutches of death. Qingfeng glared at her with eyes that seemed to be spitting fire with anger.

Leng Jie glanced at the unconvinced fox-like physician and said coldly:

"You're really upset, aren't you? If I'm not mistaken, you've been following me all afternoon!"

Qingfeng asked in surprise, "You know?"

"No wonder I felt two strange rays of light following me all afternoon. It really was you, you fox, causing all this trouble! But since you've been following me, you should know that I went to the Imperial Pharmacy to get medicine and have it prepared. So why did you think I would be burned to death?" Leng Jie said with sudden realization.

"Hmph! You tricked me! I only didn't stop you from stealing my medicine because I thought you were going to use it on those annoying people. Who knew you'd think of such a stupid way as taking them all down with you? I..."

"What do you mean, 'you'? You ruined my plans, don't you know that? Open your fox eyes and take a good look. Do I have any burn marks on my body? Now is not the time to talk to you about this. Since you know everything, then hurry up and think of a way to deal with those Imperial Guards from earlier." Leng Jie interrupted Qingfeng and said urgently.

Qingfeng then noticed that she was wearing bright red clothes, and there were no signs of fire damage whatsoever. Qingfeng asked again in surprise, "What happened to that fire? I saw you set your clothes on fire with my own eyes, how could this be? What is your purpose?"

"I did set that garment on fire, but I threw it away after it caught fire. Those hissing sounds came from there. However, the moving fire you saw was an illusion because I scattered hallucinogenic drugs in the maple forest. So, when you saw my red robes and the red handkerchief with flames painted on it, you had that kind of hallucination. I originally intended to take advantage of their delirium to give them a good thrashing, so they would never dare to set foot in that maple forest again, let alone cause trouble at the East Palace. Then I would have them take the person they wanted back to report to Consort Shui. However, the person they took back wasn't Qing'er, but Shui Rong'er's maid who came with them. Haha, tell me, what kind of expression would Shui Rong'er have if she knew that she was torturing her own people? Hmph, if you hadn't stopped me just now, I would have already achieved my goal." Leng Jie became angrier as she spoke, and by the end, her sharp, eagle-like gaze pierced Qing Feng's starry eyes like two sharp swords.

The breeze trembled involuntarily from the sting, and he quickly looked away, regaining his composure.

"The hallucinogenic drug you're talking about is the same prescription you gave me last time? How could that be? That's clearly a drug!"

"The world is full of wonders; there's nothing you can't do if you put your mind to it. You've probably never heard that saying before, have you? You added two ingredients to my prescription, and that's what you were talking about. Last time, you almost killed me, and now you're causing trouble again. Do you think we have some kind of grudge from a past life?" With that, Leng Jie gave Qingfeng a disdainful look, and before he could reply, she continued:

You know kung fu, right? Do you know pressure point techniques?

Although Qingfeng didn't understand why she was asking, given his previous experience of being looked down upon by her, he didn't dare to ask again for fear of being looked down upon by her. He simply nodded and replied: "Yes."

Leng Jie hadn't expected him to be so decisive all of a sudden, and looked at him in disbelief. Seeing that he seemed normal, she said with relief:

"Once those people arrive, all you have to do is put them to sleep with your acupressure points, then throw them back into the Maple Forest. All our old and new scores will be wiped clean. Then you can be your imperial physician, and I'll be my foolish empress. We'll have nothing to do with each other. How about it? If you agree, I'll let you go."

"If you just let me go, you'll be no match for me. Aren't you afraid I'll go back on my word?" Qingfeng couldn't help but ask. However, he didn't expect that the idiot wouldn't answer his question immediately, but instead kicked his crotch, scaring Qingfeng so much that his face turned deathly pale. Forgetting the silver needles on his vital points, he pressed his legs tightly together and desperately protected his crotch with his hands. He asked in a trembling voice:

"What...what do you want to do?"

"I don't want to do anything. I just want to see if you're a man. I thought only women and eunuchs could go back on their word. Since you reminded me, of course I have to verify your identity! Otherwise, if you really aren't a man, wouldn't it be very dangerous for me to let you go?" Leng Jie looked at Qingfeng's funny expression, suppressed the urge to burst out laughing, and answered seriously.

"Of course I'm a man, you don't need to worry, I promise you." Qingfeng quickly made his promise.

[Main Text: Chapter Twenty-Three - Honorably Taking in a Younger Brother]

The imperial guards, terrified half to death by the will-o'-the-wisps in the maple forest, dared not advance any further. However, they had no choice but to obey the Empress's orders. So, they huddled together, inching forward. When they reached the spot where the will-o'-the-wisps had appeared, they found a palace maid's dress, half-burnt, lying on the ground, wisps of smoke rising from it. The imperial guards and Xiao Lian, who had been telling themselves the flames were just an illusion, finally realized reality, and their screams echoed throughout the entire palace:

"A ghost!"

"No way? Their reaction is too slow! They're only calling out now." Leng Jie, who had just released Qingfeng and heard the ghostly screams coming from Fenglin, frowned and muttered to herself.

Qingfeng, now free, immediately leaped three feet away from the idiot. She straightened her moon-white satin robe, wrinkled from carrying the idiot, and then smoothed a stray strand of hair from her forehead. She replied smugly, "It's not that they reacted slowly, it's just that my lightness skill is fast, okay!"

Seeing that he seemed to have completely forgotten his disheveled appearance just now, Leng Jie couldn't help but remind him:

"Hey, you fox-like physician, tell me, is your lightness skill better, or is my legwork better?"

Upon being reminded, Qingfeng's face flushed red, and she immediately took three feet back. Her legs unconsciously pressed tightly together again. Her eyes darted away, and she mumbled incoherently, "You, are you even a woman? I've never seen a woman like this before!"

"Whether I'm a woman or not, you can come and check it out! I'm not as timid as you, afraid of being checked by others." Leng Jie, judging from his flushed face and frightened expression, concluded that this little fox must be an innocent young man who had never experienced anything. So, she teased him with ambiguous language.

Upon hearing this, Qingfeng gasped, completely stunned. He thought to himself, "This Empress isn't just a fool, she's insane! Otherwise, how could she say something so outrageous?" With that thought, Qingfeng inwardly sighed. He couldn't help but find an excuse for his rudeness: "How could I, a dignified man, argue with a crazy, foolish woman!"

Seeing the little fox's face change like a chameleon, turning red, purple, blue, and white in an instant, Leng Jie knew he was stunned by her words, so she stopped teasing him. She coughed sharply, "Ahem!" to bring him back to his senses. She then said seriously:

"Fox, remember what I just told you. You just need to knock out those Imperial Guards and throw them back into the Maple Forest, then you can leave. Don't you dare come to the East Palace to spy on us again." After saying that, without waiting for a reply, he turned and headed towards the palace.

Seeing that she was about to leave, Qingfeng quickly leaped in front of her, blocking her path, and solemnly said:

"My surname is Hu, and my given name is Qingfeng. I'm not called Fox. You can call me Qingfeng, or Young Master Hu."

"Hmm, is that all? Get out of the way if you're done." Anyway, we won't be dealing with each other anymore, so what does it matter what we call each other? Leng Jie thought to herself.

"They're all so scared, do you think they'll still come to the East Palace?" Qingfeng asked the serious question only after he agreed to call him by name.

“Since they were ordered to come to the Eastern Palace to arrest people, even if they knew that there were flesh-eating, blood-drinking demons waiting for them there, they still had to come. Because they are soldiers, and a soldier’s duty is to obey.” Leng Jie replied matter-of-factly.

Qingfeng was once again stunned by the answer after being dumbfounded. After a second of hesitation, he asked sharply:

"Who exactly are you? What is your purpose in impersonating the Empress? If you dare to do anything detrimental to the Emperor and the people of Jinghe, I will not let you off!"

Leng Jie rolled her eyes at Qingfeng, and with a disdainful snort, she scoffed at his serious expression, sharp gaze, and incisive words:

"Hmph! You think it's fun to be a stupid empress despised by palace servants, poisoned by her husband, and bullied by concubines? Or is there some advantage to be gained? Why would I pretend to be a fool when I'm full and have indigestion? Calling you stupid is an understatement! You even fooled me once. Calling you smart is an insult to intelligence."

"You, you, I, I..." Qingfeng was once again rendered speechless by Leng Jie's words. But Leng Jie didn't let him off the hook; instead, she interrupted him fiercely:

"What?! It's not impossible for me to know my secret, unless—"

"Unless what?" Qingfeng asked urgently.

Leng Jie smiled and took two steps closer to Qingfeng before lazily saying, "Unless you become my person."

Qingfeng didn't miss the fleeting glint of calculation in Shahou's eyes when she said "unless," coupled with her ambiguous actions and words. Startled, he immediately covered his chest with his hands, backing away while looking away, not daring to meet Shahou's smiling, teasing gaze.

From the moment she discovered her husband's betrayal, all she felt was heartache. Leng Jie, who had been struggling for her life ever since transmigrating into the body of a mentally challenged woman, was amused by Qingfeng's adorable appearance and couldn't help but laugh heartily for the first time:

"Haha, Qingfeng, you're so cute! You're the most fun boy I've ever met. If you'd like to be my little brother, I'll tell you everything you want to know. How about it?"

“I’m already twenty, and you’re only sixteen. If you’re going to call me an older brother, then I should be your older brother too,” Qingfeng retorted, pouting unconvinced.

Once her mischievous nature was fully unleashed, Leng Jie continued her teasing relentlessly:

"Really? You're twenty? But you don't look even as old as Qing'er."

"Hmph! You actually compared me to that little brat?" Qingfeng was completely enraged by Leng Jie's words because he didn't see her expression.

Just then, chaotic footsteps sounded outside the palace gates. The two who were arguing immediately composed themselves and resumed their indifferent demeanor. Leng Jie mouthed "do as planned" and quickly found a secluded spot with a good view to hide.

In a flash, Qingfeng appeared atop the palace gate. His elegant posture and lightning-fast speed drew admiration from Leng Jie. Qingfeng's movements, utilizing his light-footed skills, were far more handsome than the lover of Eunuch Fu and Shui Rong'er that she had seen earlier. It seemed that besides being innocent and playful, Qingfeng was also quite capable. If she could make him a retainer of the Eastern Palace…

Several panicked imperial guards, their steps faltering, rushed into the East Palace. Once inside, they all seemed to breathe a sigh of relief, collapsing to the ground. They completely lost their military bearing—no, they lost all human dignity. Leng Jie had achieved the expected result, but she wasn't happy. She was deeply disappointed in the guards' performance. This made her, also a soldier, feel incredibly frustrated. However, she forgot that this was ancient times, and she was no longer a soldier. Besides, the quality of these imperial guards was worlds apart from that of modern special agents.

Qingfeng stood on the palace wall, his figure completely hidden, and with just a dozen or so leaves, he dispatched the already routed, spineless Imperial Guards. The last to arrive was the palace maid Xiaolian, who stumbled in. Upon entering, she saw the Imperial Guards lying on the ground, her mouth agape in shock. Before she could even scream, her eyes rolled back and she fainted. Seeing this, Qingfeng gestured towards Leng Jie's hiding place, then waved the last leaf in his hand, indicating that he had fulfilled his mission and completed everything.

Leng Jie nodded to Qingfeng, indicating that he had done a good job. Then she pointed to the people on the ground, telling him to take them back to the maple forest first. Then, she quickly leaped to Xiaolian's side, grabbed her legs, and dragged her backwards towards the palace.

Qingfeng picked up one Imperial Guard in each hand, preparing to use his lightness skill to leave, but seeing the way the stunned man was forcefully dragging Lian'er backwards, he couldn't help but shake his head and sigh:

"Sigh! You really are too weak to even kill a chicken!" With that, she tossed aside the two men she was holding, snatched a leg from Leng Jie's grasp, and carried it upside down into the bedchamber, slamming it heavily to the ground. After slapping her hands, she addressed Leng Jie, who had followed her in:

"What do you want to do with her?"

"What? Are you worried about her?" Leng Jie asked, deliberately misinterpreting his meaning.

Qingfeng rolled his eyes at Leng Jie, said nothing, and turned to leave.

Leng Jie got up and closed the door, then began practicing her teleportation technique...

There were ten Imperial Guards in total. Qingfeng led two at a time, making five trips before finally getting them all into the maple forest. Although he didn't understand what the Foolish Empress wanted to do, he considered himself a man of integrity, so he had to follow the agreement and obey the Foolish Empress's orders, abandoning them before leaving and being able to return to the Eastern Palace.

“I knew you weren’t a man. Now that you’re back, come and take this ‘Qing’er’ to Maple Forest.”

The sudden, familiar voice startled Qingfeng. She immediately looked around, wondering to herself, "I was clearly heading towards the Imperial Pharmacy, so how did I end up back at the East Palace?"

Seeing Qingfeng staring blankly and ignoring her, Leng Jie assumed he was embarrassed because she had said he wasn't a man. So she said again, "Alright, you're a man, a real man, come and help."