Embers of Sword

Chapter 691 A way to survive
"letter……"

Si Qi looked at his senior sister's outstretched hand, his face full of embarrassment. He scratched his head and said with some confusion, "The letter was burned by Senior Brother Xuan Yi... Senior Sister, how did you know that Senior Brother originally wanted me to deliver the letter?"

This statement came out.

The room fell into a deathly silence.

"What did you say?"

The letter was burned? Jiang Miaoyin was somewhat incredulous.

"Just today, Senior Brother Xuan Yi asked me to meet him in Jiangning..."

Si Qi took a deep breath, sat up straight, and recounted in detail what had happened during the day.

Although my senior brother instructed me not to tell anyone else about this...

But shouldn't Senior Sister Miaoyin be considered one of the others?

"..."

The candlelight inside the room no longer flickered.

After listening quietly to what Si Qi said, Jiang Miaoyin sat at the table in silence for a long time, pondering deeply.

"Besides me, is anyone else aware of this matter?"

Jiang Miaoyin raised her head and looked directly into Si Qi's eyes.

"without……"

Si Qi felt a little guilty: "I was originally going to tell Senior Brother. But after thinking about it carefully, I think I should tell you first. Master has been in seclusion. Should we report this directly to the Head of Discipline?"

"Do not……"

Jiang Miaoyin shook her head and said in a low voice, "Once this matter is reported to the head of law enforcement, Jin'ao Peak will issue a 'Sword Dispatch Order'."

"Wouldn't that be perfect?"

Si Qi paused for a moment: "Senior brother was wronged. Once the sword order is issued, the disciples of the Sword Palace will gather. After killing those evil cultivators from the Southern Frontier... the truth about senior brother's case will be revealed."

"You... you're oversimplifying things."

Jiang Miaoyin's expression became somewhat complicated: "After the Sword Dispatch Order, the Sword Palace... will close its mountain."

"Mountain closure?"

Si Qi stared blankly at his senior sister.

For some reason, he felt that his senior sister was acting strangely today.

It's the look in their eyes, or perhaps their overall demeanor.

Si Qi couldn't quite put his finger on what was wrong... but he had a vague feeling that the current Senior Sister Miaoyin was somewhat similar to the Senior Brother Xuanyi he had seen during the day.
"Just pretend you were never here today."

Jiang Miaoyin sighed softly, stood up, and said gently, "After you go back, don't say anything or ask anything. That way, you can avoid the punishment of facing the wall in confinement."

"???"

Si Qi scratched his head, feeling that the sentence sounded somewhat familiar.

I feel like I just heard it.

"Sister..."

Si Qi watched the figure push open the door and go into the courtyard, and couldn't help but ask, "Where are you going?"

"I'm going out."

Jiang Miaoyin was silent for a moment, then solemnly said, "What happens tonight must be kept a secret."

……

……

Outside the Great Eagle Sword Palace, there is a small, desolate mountain.

The carriage, bearing the banner of the Jiang family, headed towards the Sword Palace, bumping along the way.

Suddenly, a wisp of snow-white sword energy whistled down and landed precisely in front of the carriage.

The groom quickly pulled on the reins.

"Who dares to block our way?!"

A beautiful young woman, her face full of anger, lifted the carriage curtain, only to freeze in shock the next moment.

"Miss……"

The young woman quickly forced a smile, her eyebrows curving into a line: "Why are you leaving the Sword Palace at this time? What a coincidence, I just returned from Qingzhou... Master prepared a lot of good things, custom-made talismans, hairpins, rouge, and Qingzhou pastries. By the way, Young Master mentioned before he left that he wanted to see you."

"..."

Jiang Miaoyin remained silent, simply gazing at the woman before her.

The person before her was none other than Qingzhu, the maid who had grown up with her and accompanied her for many years.

She joined the Sword Palace at a young age. Qingzhu followed her there, and over the years... the two have been inseparable day and night, and their relationship is no longer that of a typical master and servant, but more like that of "sisters" without blood ties.

"Master, please deliver these items to Lotus Peak..."

Jiang Miaoyin spoke gently to the coachman, then looked at the woman: "Qingzhu... I'd like to talk to you alone."

The smile on Qingzhu's face was somewhat stiff.

After a while.

The two arrived at the top of the barren mountain. Standing there, they could clearly see the winding mountain road in the distance.

The carriage was hidden in the fog.

The sound of horses' hooves gradually faded away.

"Miss, what's wrong with you?"

Qingzhu had been observing Jiang Miaoyin the whole way, and she spoke cautiously.

"these years……"

Jiang Miaoyin said, enunciating each word clearly, "I've treated you fairly well, haven't I?"

"nature."

Qingzhu's answer was flawless. She said very seriously, "Miss treats me like family. She always shares her food with me. She always thinks of me when something good happens. Even the Lotus Daoist Scripture of the Sword Palace is shared with me. It is my greatest blessing to have met Miss."

Anyone who hears this response should be pleased.

But no joy appeared on Jiang Miaoyin's face.

She stood with her hands behind her back on the mountaintop, looking down at the gloomy sky below, and continued to ask softly, "If that's the case... why treat me like this?"

The dark cloud that had shrouded the sky was blown away by the wind, revealing a sliver of bright and clear light.

Like a veil, it draped over Jiang Miaoyin's shoulders.

"I……"

Qingzhu froze, lowered her head, and said in a panic, "I...I don't know what you're talking about, Miss..."

"I know everything about you."

Jiang Miaoyin said calmly, "I just want to know one answer, a true answer."

As soon as these words came out.

The mountaintop fell into dead silence.

"..."

After a long silence, Qingzhu raised her head again.

The fear on her face gradually disappeared, replaced by calm and indifference.

"You are more perceptive than I thought."

Qingzhu sneered, "Jiang Miaoyin, what kind of answer do you want? I said I hate the Jiang family... Is that an answer?"

It was beyond her expectation.

Jiang Miaoyin showed no surprise.

"When I first heard it, it was considered an answer, but not anymore."

Jiang Miaoyin calmly said, "You are from Li Kingdom. The Jiang family has a blood feud with you, and you were wiped out. In order to seek revenge, you were sent to Da Chu and then arranged to work as a maid in the Jiang family mansion in Qingzhou... I know all of these things. I am no longer interested in these things. Now I just want to know who is standing behind you."

"!!!"

Jiang Miaoyin's voice echoed on the mountaintop, carried by the wind.

Each one is presented in a segment.

Qingzhu's pupils contracted by three-tenths.

some things……

It is the most secret of all.

She knew she had never confided in anyone.

How did Jiang Miaoyin find out?
Also, what did she mean by "the first time I heard it"?
"You...this is impossible!"

Qingzhu suddenly drew her sword, but the next moment a ray of light was already hovering above her neck.

Jiang Miaoyin, still with her hands behind her back, slowly turned around.

Under the flowing moonlight.

Nothing is impossible in this world.

Jiang Miaoyin was like a celestial being descended to earth, her cold and beautiful face full of indifference: "Don't draw your sword... Believe me, you've died many times already. This time, I want to spare your life."

(End of this chapter)