When QingWu returned to the Anping courtyard, the way people looked at her had completely changed.
The Duchess of Dingguo had red-rimmed eyes, repeatedly apologizing.
QingWu hadn't been genuinely angry to begin with, but the moment the Taoist Baimei caught sight of her, his expression shifted drastically.
QingWu eyed him with a faint smile. "That little brat inside—are you sure you can't get rid of him?"
"If you really say you can't, I might as well end him directly!"
The old Baimei Taoist's eyes flashed with malice, completely shedding his earlier cowardly demeanor.
"Girl, do you even understand the rules? Disrupting the affairs of the immortals—aren't you afraid of retribution?"
QingWu sneered, her sharp eyes narrowing dangerously. "Are you threatening me?"
With an air of confidence, QingWu strode into the room, her smile calm yet chilling.
Her composure made the old Taoist Baimei completely panic. This girl had seen through him at a glance earlier—did she possess some extraordinary abilities?
The others quickly followed her inside.
At that moment, 'Xie Ling' was tied to the bed with his mouth gagged. Just as QingWu approached to untie him, Xie Ziyuan warned, "Be careful, my lady!"
"It's fine." QingWu smiled, pulling out the cloth gag. Before 'Xie Ling' could scream, she swiftly grabbed his throat.
Her ruthless grip made the Duchess of Dingguo go weak in the knees.
Xie Ziyuan, recalling his uncle's traumatic bath experience under QingWu's heavy-handed care, was oddly unsurprised by her direct methods.
"If you dare to bark again, I'll yank out all your teeth!"
QingWu's smile turned feral. "Now, are you going to crawl out yourself, or shall I drag you out?"
Fear flashed in 'Xie Ling's' eyes. The moment she grabbed his throat, he realized he was utterly doomed.
This ferocious woman wasn't ordinary. The aura surrounding her was terrifying, like she could devour him in just one bite!
Seeing his pleading eyes, QingWu released him. In that instant, 'Xie Ling' passed out, and a shadow shot out from his body. Before anyone could react, QingWu stomped down hard.
Amid a chaotic screech, everyone saw a red-furred little fox pinned under QingWu's foot.
Gasps filled the room. The Duchess of Dingguo almost fainted, and her husband had to catch her. His face darkened as he asked, "So it was this fox that possessed my son?"
The Duke's wife, barely able to speak, stammered, "No wonder... no wonder Ling'er kept demanding meat when he woke up…just now..... it was because...of the fox..."
QingWu bent down, grabbed the fox by its tail, and lifted it. Smiling sweetly, she remarked, "Its fur isn't bad. Could make a decent pair of gloves!"
The fox squeaked in terror, tears brimming in its eyes. Then, to everyone's shock, it spoke in human tongue: "Please don't kill me! I just wanted to eat meat… I didn't mean to hurt anyone… sob…"
A talking fox pleading for mercy—this sight sent chills down everyone's spine.
Outside, the old Taoist Baimei shouted, "Don't kill it! It's not evil!"
The Duchess of Dingguo , now livid, snapped, "You let a fox possess my son and dare claim it's not evil?"
"Madam, please calm down! I only wanted to swindle some silver, truly! The little fox is just gluttonous; it wouldn't hurt anyone!"
The Duchess of Dingguo clutched her chest, seething with rage. Clearly, she no longer believed the old Taoist's nonsense.
"He's not lying this time," QingWu said suddenly. "The fraud is real, but he probably wouldn't dare kill anyone."
"However," she continued, "Xie Ling's issue stems from an unstable soul. His three souls are disordered and incomplete. With the fox's possession, his soul grew even more chaotic. Had the fox fed on his body much longer, his life would've been forfeit!"
The Duchess of Dingguo turned pale, deeply regretful for having trusted the Taoist and driven QingWu away earlier.
The Duke of Dingguo recalled Xiao Chenyuan's earlier words and urgently pleaded, "Niece-in-law, please save my son!"
QingWu didn't respond immediately. Instead, she tied the fox's tail with a red string and casually secured it to a table leg.
"I'll help, but with one condition."
"Please name it!" Duchess of Dingguo was desperate. "Whatever it is, we'll agree!"
QingWu smiled mischievously. "I find your second young master quite amusing. When I'm in a bad mood, I like to vent a little. Would you be willing to sacrifice your brother-in-law to satisfy this small indulgence of mine?"
The room fell silent.
Outside, Xiao Chenyuan overheard and paused. For some reason, his earlier irritation dissipated slightly. Was she taking a stand for him?
Seeing no response, QingWu frowned. "Is my request that difficult?"
"Not at all!" The Duchess of Dingguo blurted, throwing propriety and familial bonds aside. "We agree!"
The Duke could only nod in resignation. Throwing the second young master under the bus wasn't particularly burdensome, though the exhilarating absurdity of it was a first for him.
Xie Ziyuan, however, smiled faintly, his eyes softening as QingWu winked at him. His smile deepened.
Meanwhile, Xiao Chenyuan observed their exchange from the doorway, his own feelings inexplicably turbulent.
"Perfect timing," QingWu called to him, extending her hand. "The talisman I gave you earlier—return it to me."
Xie Ling's missing soul was stored within that talisman.
Expressionless, Xiao Chenyuan handed it over. The Duke cautiously asked, "So my son's soul is in that talisman?"
Both he and his wife looked puzzled, while the Duke thanked Xiao Chenyuan solemnly.
Xiao Chenyuan replied, "I didn't do much."
Xie Ziyuan chuckled, turning to QingWu. "We're relying on you, my lady."
"You're too kind," QingWu said with a sweet smile.
Xiao Chenyuan frowned. Rationally, QingWu's behavior toward others shouldn't bother him, yet her attitude toward Xie Ziyuan felt... different.
She had always been bold, often teasing him with ambiguous words and gestures, but he'd never taken them seriously. He knew they weren't genuine. Despite her apparent closeness, she maintained a deliberate distance, often more playful than sincere.
But when she looked at Xie Ziyuan... there was a glimmer of something real.
An inexplicable sense of imbalance stirred within him. For the first time, Xiao Chenyuan felt like an outsider in a room where QingWu seemed to belong perfectly.
To a stranger, she might appear to be the Duke of Dingguo's daughter-in-law, not the Dread King's wife.