CH 15

The Xie House was formerly the General’s residence; because the General collaborated with the enemy and betrayed the country, the former Commander Xie Meng Dong found evidence and promptly sent it to Emperor Ming Ren leading to the extermination of the family in one fell swoop. The court was thoroughly cleansed in such a monstrous way, Xie family’s notoriety was literally frightening. Even though the Commander shouldn’t live in the General’s dwelling according to his official position, Emperor Ming Ren trusted the Xie family and personally issued a decree as reward. Even the most obstinate Imperial historian did not dare to say anything.

Zhou Qing walked on the cobblestone pathway, secretly thinking about how she should speak later. Xie Chong took over the position of Commander from his Uncle; the means of Xie Meng Dong were more ruthless and inhumane. She heard that one couldn’t distinguish the bodies of the people hauled from the Imperial prison. Considering everything, disturbingly, even the parents couldn’t identify the corpse, so they could only choose a matching attire at the mass grave and bury them directly.

The daylight shone through the shade of the trees and dappled on the ground, interspersed with a few cicadas. It was incomparably quiet. But this seemingly peaceful residence, as if hiding a greedy beast, had its mouth wide open, waiting for its prey to fall into the trap of their own accord.

Consciously walking to the front of the study, Zhou Qing’s forehead has seeped out with tiny beads of sweat. The concierge glanced back and wasn’t surprised, as if he expected such a reaction. After all, this was the House of Xie. It was simply more mysterious than the Imperial Palace. The woman not directly fainting in fear was already considered good.

The concierge stood at the bottom of the steps and said in a deep voice, “Commander, the person has been brought.”

“Come in.” Through the wooden door, a low, hoarse voice sounded as it issued a penetrative, gut-wrenching danger.

Zhou Qing’s body swayed gently. Knowing she had no way back, she might as well take the initiative to face it. Holding the heavy Xuande Furnace in her hand, she pushed the door in with a pale face.

The study was much brighter than the outside world. The window fan was open as the breeze rushed in and gently blew over the wick. It was broad daylight, and lighting the lamp was notably strange. However, this was the Xie residence; no one dared to question the decision taken by the sacred heart and also the most vicious means of the commander.

The attractive-looking man was sitting in front of the desk with a light smile. The flying fish embroidery on his robe appeared delicate. If he changed into a green robe, he would look like an ordinary Confucian scholar, and it wouldn’t cause people to feel terrified.

Xie Chong’s thick eyebrows rose, black eyes fixed on Zhou Qing. With an excellent memory, he recognized the woman in front of him as the one he had seen earlier on the second floor of the teahouse. His slender fingers tapped against the table as he contemplated with his insight, “You want to bribe this official?”

Zhou Qing could clearly see the dense blood under the man’s eyes spread like a spider web. She knew that, currently, something was wrong with Xie Chong’s marrow sea; only the people of Zhenfu Division were aware of this condition of their Commander and they would not disclose it.

“This young lady has brought a herb that she would like to offer to Your Excellency.” Zhou Qing tried her best to remain calm.

The Great Zhou Dynasty advocated herb blending; from the royal family to its citizens, all had a fervent love for spices. However, Xie Chong was different. Compared with those rich and fragrant scents, he preferred the stinging, rich, red blood. The rusty scent of the patina could provide a temporary relief to the prickling pain on the back of his head, which was better than the herbs.

Xie Chong’s interest didn’t perk up, so he casually said, “Why don’t you blend the herbs first? If you succeed, this official will accept this gift.”

Zhou Qing didn’t relax because of this sentence. She placed the wooden box on the table, took out the blood-soaked herbs from her pocket sleeves, and slowly crushed them. Because she didn’t bring any herbal ware, her movements were a bit obscured. After a long time, she put the herbs in the Xuande furnace and ignited them. Thin green smoke overflowed from the hole in the stove lid and gradually drifted throughout the study.

Previously, the back of Xie Chong’s head had been throbbing with pain as if someone with a knife was constantly stirring it. At this moment, when he smelled the light aroma, he only felt that the grinding pain was greatly soothing. The phoenix eyes were slightly closed. The smile on the man’s handsome face gradually disappeared, and his surrounding ferocious aura has significantly weakened.

The herb had a calming effect on the heart. Moreover the herb was kindled today with the Xuande furnace. The aroma was far fresher and more exquisite than before. Zhou Qing’s nervousness calmed down. She sat on her knees on the futon, peeking at the fierce reputation of the Commander, and found that the current Xie Chong was incredibly young. The corner of the eye wasn’t like it would be four years later, with an intense, thick deadly Qi.

Placing her hand over her flat abdomen, Zhou Qing licked her dry lips, not daring to breathe heavily for fear of disturbing him.

After the herb burned, Xie Chong finally opened his eyes and asked in a deep voice: “What herb is this?”

Zhou Qing looked respectful, “This is An Shen herb. Its efficacy is close to that of herbal medicine. Please rest assured that it is not harmful to the body.”

No one under the sky dared to hit the Jin Yi Guards; this woman was acting weird but was begging him. At this point, Xie Chong could see it very clearly.

“There must be a reason for your visit, arriving with the An Shen herb?”

At the mention of this, the latter’s eyes lit up as she pushed the Xuande Furnace forward, and said, “To be honest, this furnace is called Xuande Furnace, molded in the Xuande year of the previous dynasty. After the war, all of the Xuande Furnaces were lost at that time. It is the young lady’s family heirloom, but others have heard of this news and wanted to snatch it. I only ask the Commander to keep it for himself.”

With each word, Zhou Qing felt her scalp tingling, but she was anxious to get rid of Liu Zhaoqu and could only resort to this.

“The Xuande Furnace is indeed a rare treasure, so you are planning to exchange it with the recipe of the An Shen herb?” Xie Chong asked with interest.

Zhou Qing shook her head, “The peculiar thing about the An Shen herb is not in the recipe but in the person who makes it. Even if this young lady hands over the recipe, it would not be able to achieve the effect today.”

A bitter coldness surged in those dark eyes, Xie Chong didn’t appear to be angry. Instead, he was smiling, “You mean, this official must rely on you to mix the herb? The lady is already a married woman, often visiting the Xie residence. Will the husband’s family agree?”

“Your Excellency, these are not important. Even if you do not want to keep the furnace, I will not hide the recipe of the An Shen herb from you, only needing the Xuande ginseng —” She didn’t get to finish her sentence when Xie Chong waved his hand, interrupting her, “Just now, you said, only your hand-made herbs are useful. Even if the recipe is handed over, other people cannot prepare it. If I want to have this herb done, I can only agree to this, right?”

Zhou Qing knew long ago that her small calculations couldn’t be concealed from Xie Chong. She knelt on the futon, her body tensed, and tears started to accumulate. With her delicate appearance, it was easy to evoke the men’s pity, but Xie Chong was different from ordinary people. He was the Commander of the Imperial Jin Yi Guards. His hands were drenched in the blood of many, naturally no trick could be hidden from his eyes.

Both hands on the ground, Zhou Qing was just about to kowtow, but the dark scabbard on her neck stopped her movements.

“No need to kowtow. This official agrees.”

Red lips partially opened, the woman was tremendously surprised. She didn’t expect Xie Chong to agree to her request. So the Xuande Furnace was no longer with the Zhou family. Did it mean that her home would no longer be destroyed?