As soon as Li Qiao spoke, Qiu Ling seemed to recall something. After a moment of careful reflection, he said, "Perhaps there is more. That Ding Miao, who claimed to be from the Academy, likely entered the Qingzhong Mountain Academy as a ‘Qingmen Order’ the following year."
Recalling what Di Mo had said in the Immortal’s Hiding Grotto, Qin Jiuye couldn't help but murmur, "Rumors in the martial world say the former Shadow Envoy of the World’s Greatest Sect died during a joint suppression by both the orthodox and unorthodox paths. Thinking about it now, even if he truly hailed from the Academy and was a scion of a noble clan, there would be no need for the government to intervene, let alone use the hands of the martial world to hunt him down. Unless..."
"Unless he was a suspect in a bloody massacre involving high-ranking court officials at the time," Qiu Ling’s words provided the final hammer blow to their deductions. "And the interest groups behind his family, realizing the stakes, decided to abandon him—or even felt compelled to silence him—to ensure his actions wouldn't implicate them."
His words plunged everyone into a new round of silent contemplation.
If the old Nangong massacre truly marked the beginning of this "Secret Formula" conspiracy, then Gongzi Yan was likely an insider, perhaps even intricately linked to the mysterious Mr. Ding. Since Gongzi Yan himself was afflicted by the Secret Formula, he would inevitably be searching for a solution. The rumored Chuanliu Court was likely born for this purpose, and Old Tang had probably been exposed and killed while helping him gather information.
However, even if Gongzi Yan possessed more information regarding the Secret Formula, judging by how Di Mo had turned the Chuanliu Court into a public target, they would surely go into hiding for a while after the Sword Appreciation Assembly. It would be difficult to initiate contact with them.
As she was thinking this, Xu Qichi reached his own conclusion. "Even if our deductions are correct, given the Chuanliu Court’s conduct over the years, Gongzi Yan might not be willing to trust us or collaborate. Otherwise, he would have approached us directly when he sent men to take Old Tang away."
In truth, it wasn't just Old Tang; Li Qiao had also been in contact with the Chuanliu Court early on.
Qin Jiuye lowered her head, trying her best not to glance at the youth beside her.
Li Qiao had confessed to her: his ability to disguise himself as a Sect disciple and infiltrate the island was thanks to the Chuanliu Court’s assistance. Gongzi Yan had indeed requested that he bring out the Qingwu Blade. Combining this with Qiu Ling’s deductions, she was almost certain that Gongzi Yan likely knew the "Four Gentlemen of the Black Moon" from twenty-two years ago were connected to the origin of the Secret Formula, and he had been investigating clues all these years.
But she could not bring this up in front of the others. Teng Hu could not yet be fully trusted, and she did not want Li Qiao’s affliction with the Secret Formula to be exposed to him.
Yet, as the saying goes, what one fears most is what one meets. The more she tried to avoid the subject, the more Teng Hu pressed on.
"Since this man was once the Sect’s Shadow Envoy, the people of the Sect must have dealt with him. It’s hard to say if there’s still contact."
As he spoke, he cast a scrutinizing gaze toward Li Qiao. Seeing this, Qin Jiuye quickly cleared her throat.
"Setting aside the fact that the Sect has thousands of disciples, who knows who he would look for? Besides, since Gongzi Yan is a renegade, wouldn't contacting Sect members be asking for trouble?" To prevent him from pestering further, she abruptly shifted the topic, asking Li Qiao, "By the way, when your master taught you saber techniques, did she ever mention things from the past?"
As soon as she spoke, Qiu Ling and Xu Qichi also looked over, clearly harboring their own doubts. However, the youth merely gave a brief reply.
"Master rarely spoke of her time being imprisoned in the Sect, and she never mentioned any secrets from the past."
Before his voice could fade, Teng Hu moved like a flash of lightning, his right hand darting straight for the Qingwu Blade.
The hand of a man accustomed to using hidden weapons was like a drawn bowstring or a striking viper; once he moved, he rarely missed. But he was facing the hand of a man who lived by the blade. With a sharp *crack*, the teacup between them was knocked to the floor and shattered. Lethal intent flared instantly.
Teng Hu flexed his five fingers and sneered. "Li Qingdao never let her blade leave her side while she lived. If she truly left a clue, it must be related to this blade. If you insist on not letting us see it, you must have something to hide."
After a brief silence, the sound of a blade being unsheathed rang through the room.
The youth drew the saber and placed it flat on the table with both hands. Those hands, capable of killing, moved with utmost solemnity.
"My master lived an upright life, and so does her blade. If you have the courage, come and see for yourself."
Teng Hu was clearly a man who feared nothing and cared for no one’s feelings. He pulled on his gloves and unceremoniously picked up the blade to inspect it. However, as time ticked by, no matter how he turned it or looked at it, he could find no trace of anything unusual.
Seeing this, Xu Qichi suddenly spoke up. "You were able to distinguish the fake blade and steal the real one on Qionghu Island—do you truly know nothing of the truth? If, as you say, Li Qingdao died shortly after leaving the Sect, did she really never think to leave any final instructions for her only disciple in her last moments?"
Xu Qichi’s questioning was not without reason, but the youth remained silent, staring only at the blade in Teng Hu’s hands until the man placed it back on the table.
"What is so strange about that? If I were Li Qingdao, I wouldn't entrust such an important secret to a killer I’d only known for a short time, especially one from the World’s Greatest Sect." Teng Hu’s voice rang out coldly, carrying a faint, nearly imperceptible mockery. "It’s not surprising she taught you a few moves; after all, you did save her from her plight. On a desperate flight, knowing her time was short, she probably had no other choice but to pass on her skills to someone else, lest they be lost forever. That is why she..."
Before he could finish, a flash of white light flickered, and the three candles on the table were extinguished simultaneously.
In an instant, the Qingwu Blade was back in its sheath. The youth holding the blade had stood up at some point, saying in a low voice to the woman, "I’m going out for some air. Sister, come find me later."
With that, Li Qiao ignored the gazes of the others and left the houseboat.
Qin Jiuye watched his departing figure, a strange feeling rising in her heart. Since they had met, the youth in her memory always wore a well-behaved mask. This was his way of survival; he used his mastery of social graces to camouflage his true nature. Only when his bottom line was touched or he was pushed into a corner would he show his fangs and reveal his aggressive side.
Clearly, Li Qingdao was his bottom line.
He needed space and time, so she didn't follow him immediately. But with one of the "Black Moon descendants" gone, this unpleasant conversation came to an abrupt halt.
Everyone’s heart was filled with suspicion and conspiracy. This dark past was like a stone swallowed into the gut, clearly not something that could be digested or resolved overnight.
When she left the houseboat, Xu Qichi followed right behind her.
He was becoming more and more adept with his crutches. No matter how much she quickened her pace, she couldn't shake him off.
"Did Shopkeeper Qin have a pleasant talk with my elder brother last night?"
Qin Jiuye remained silent, walking faster and faster, her eyes fixed on the shadow at her feet while his haunting voice lingered in her ears.
"I heard Brother already spoke to you about the medical consultation, so I don't have to bring it up myself. Why don't you come with me in a few days when you’re free? I’ll have Steward Liu pick you up..."
Qin Jiuye finally stopped and turned around.
She didn't speak immediately but stared fixedly at him.
This was their first private meeting since recognizing each other. There was none of the expected warmth; instead, there was a strange sense of tension.
The smile on Xu Qichi’s face faded slightly. The wind caught his wide robes, blowing between them.
"Why does Little Ye look at me like that? Surely you aren't still brooding over the fact that I didn't recognize you earlier?"
Qin Jiuye finally spoke, her face devoid of any smile. "These past few days, I’ve been thinking about one question. Why did the Second Young Master give me the invitation for the Su family’s consultation in the first place?"
The silk-clad young master paused, then said with a serious face, "Naturally, because I didn't want you to miss a great opportunity to earn silver."
Qin Jiuye’s expression darkened further. When she spoke again, her voice was cold enough to form ice.
"Let me ask more clearly. Since you had already seen the contents of that bamboo tube, you must have known from the start how dangerous this matter was. You went to the Su family not because they were marrying into the Qiu family, but because you had already sensed the clues regarding the Secret Formula. Since you knew I was the one who saved you back then, why did you still give me the invitation and drag me into this muddy water?"
Old Dog Du, who loved fortune-telling, had once told her: a person experiences many turning points in life that can change their destiny, and one must handle them with care.
At the time, she thought it was just a typical diviner’s line. It wasn't until today, as the identities of the Black Moon descendants were revealed one after another, that she suddenly realized all her current "suffering" began with that invitation.
If she hadn't received the invitation to the Su manor, she wouldn't have been embroiled in the Kang Renshou case, wouldn't have been trapped in the Listening Wind Hall, wouldn't have repeatedly risked her life to escape her predicament, wouldn't have accidentally discovered a strange disease in this City of Jiugao, and wouldn't have struggled to find the truth behind the so-called Secret Formula, going further and further until she was mired in the swamp, unable to advance or retreat...
"It was precisely because I knew you were the one who saved me that I gave you the invitation." Xu Qichi smiled, but it was more forced than ever, carrying a hint of grievance and helplessness. "Because I knew it was you, I believed in your ability. I believed that you were the only one who could break the Su family’s deadlock, and the only one who could save my father."
So it turned out that being a capable physician was such bad luck. Good things never came your way, but you were the first one remembered when trouble arose.
Qin Jiuye felt a breath stuck in her chest, nearly suffocating her. After a long while, she snapped in a fit of controlled rage, "I saved your life, yet you drag me into a mountain of blades and a sea of fire. What kind of logic is that? If this isn't biting the hand that feeds you, what is?!"
Xu Qichi’s expression was also terrible, his voice sounding as if it were squeezed from the depths of his throat.
"I see Shopkeeper Qin’s unyielding spirit and how you fight through the night; you clearly seem to be enjoying yourself. If you truly wanted to avoid harm, you had countless opportunities to leave this game. Why have you stayed with us until now? In the end, you entered this game yourself. You can't blame others."
At first glance, his words seemed to hold some truth, but Qin Jiuye was not one to be easily swayed. She had already seen through everything.
"Me entering the game myself and someone else leading me into it are two different things. Second Young Master’s ability to confuse the issue and turn black into white is truly impressive. My choice to stay was predicated on the fact that I was already in the game, whereas you led me into it for your own selfish reasons. This is the first time I’ve heard someone describe calculating against others as the victim’s own doing. You can act despicably, but you cannot be shameless."
"I never claimed to be as magnanimous and benevolent as my brother! I am exactly this kind of selfish person! My own father saw through me long ago, which is why he would rather drag his sick body and wait for my brother to return than ever mention a single word to me about the city’s defense. Even though I have done everything for the Qiu family, he is still like this. Not just him, everyone is like this! Why should you be so surprised?!"
People are like this; when emotions flare, they can say any cruel thing, yet the truth remains unspoken.
But this was the first time Qin Jiuye had seen someone stab themselves while arguing. When it came to suffering and grievances, she, the unlucky village girl, hadn't even started complaining yet, while this well-fed young master was already crying out. She couldn't swallow this anger, but in the next moment, her peripheral vision caught his sleeve, which had shifted due to his agitated movements. The anger stuck in her throat.
His hands were fair and delicate, but the skin above his wrists was covered in scratches, pinches, and deep and shallow bite marks. Several spots were still seeping blood, clearly fresh.
Qiu Ling’s words about not letting her perform the consultation rang in her mind. It wasn't hard to guess where he had been during the days he had disappeared. The sharp words Qin Jiuye had prepared could no longer be spoken.
Perhaps because she was silent for too long, Xu Qichi noticed her gaze and quickly pulled down his wide sleeves. After a moment of silence, he spoke in a low voice.
"Who told you to come down the mountain and save me that day? Who told us to meet again after all these years? Perhaps this is what they call a cursed fate."
Qin Jiuye no longer had the energy to be angry. All that remained was a deep exhaustion. "Shouldn't a cursed fate that’s dragged on for over a decade finally end?"
"I owe you today. When the time comes, I will settle this debt myself."
After Xu Qichi whispered those words, Qin Jiuye turned and left.
She didn't think this debt could ever be settled clearly, but she believed Heaven would have its own judgment.
The woman’s small figure headed out of the shipyard. The youth was no longer visible by the river, but she continued to linger. The hazy morning light stretched her shadow long, its end dissipating in the wind like a faint stroke of ink running out.
"It seems she isn't very delighted by her reunion with you."
Qiu Ling’s voice suddenly sounded from behind. Xu Qichi didn't turn around; he had already regained his usual lazy demeanor.
"Brother, your talk with our Shopkeeper Qin wasn't very pleasant either, was it?" His voice was languid, sounding like a sigh or perhaps a joke. "Little Ye seems honest and enduring, but in truth, she cannot stand a grain of sand in her eye. Both of us have used her. She saw through it, and the fact that she didn't lash out or walk away immediately is already a sign of her tolerance toward us."
Qiu Ling paused, rarely refraining from commenting further on the topic. Instead, he handed the bamboo tube back to him.
"You certainly chose a good time, bringing this out today when so many people were present. What exactly are you plotting?"
Xu Qichi didn't look at the bamboo tube, only staring fixedly at the man before him. "Does Brother think I was in league with Teng Hu, knowing beforehand that he would come knocking, so I carried this on me to make it public?"
Though he was questioning him, his tone carried a strange familiarity reserved for family, and perhaps a hint of grievance that would make anyone’s heart soften involuntarily.
But the man before him knew his tricks well and would not be led by the nose. "If you didn't have other thoughts, you wouldn't have waited until today to bring it out."
"If it truly could have been evidence to turn the tide, it would have been presented to the Emperor back then. Why would Father have hidden it?" Xu Qichi curled his lips, the last trace of emotion vanishing from his voice. "Have you ever wondered under what circumstances I discovered this? And why Father didn't stop me after he found out? After all, he kept the events of those years so deeply hidden that even when we asked, we never got an answer. Now that you and I are standing before the same path, shouldn't we be open and honest, and finally say the words we couldn't say before?"
Xu Qichi’s questioning did not receive an answer. Perhaps that was because Qiu Ling already had the answer in his heart.
Their father was gravely ill and unable to hold things together. Stationed far away in the army, Qiu Ling’s reach was limited. As the only descendant of the Qiu family remaining in Jiugao, his "good-for-nothing" younger brother had to do everything possible to prop up the Qiu manor. Unknowingly, the heavy burden of protecting Jiugao had already shifted onto the shoulders of the second young master, who always presented himself as a profligate. But he didn't like any of it, and all of it should have been borne by his elder brother.
"Then tell me, when did you find out I was also investigating this?" Qiu Ling asked in a low voice.
Xu Qichi pondered for a moment, seemingly recalling events from a month ago. "When you first returned to Jiugao to help Su Muhe find a physician, I already sensed something was wrong. Based on my understanding of you, you would never involve Fan Tong for the sake of so-called personal feelings. You already suspected the Su family back then; you just wanted to use Fan Tong’s connections to scout them out for your investigation. In the end, you did indeed find the lead to Prince Xiaoning. From then on, I knew you realized the Su family case wasn't an isolated incident."
After a long silence, the young supervisor finally spoke. "You have always been sharp in these matters. Now that you know the whole story, it doesn't matter whether I speak of it or not."
He wanted to end the conversation abruptly, but the other was unwilling.
Xu Qichi took a step forward and spoke urgently. "Of course it matters. I want to know—did Brother never tell me because you don't trust me and think I might get in the way, or is there some other reason?"
If only the man before him would speak, saying it was all a misunderstanding, that all his anxieties were just illusions, he would reveal everything right then—all he knew, along with the grievances he’d suffered and the loneliness he’d endured all these years.
If only he would speak.
Xu Qichi’s voice changed. His clever tongue actually faltered at the end.
At some point, he had become that child again, clutching his brother’s hem and refusing to let go. Or perhaps he had always been that way, and his attempts to make him stay had always been ignored.
After an unknown amount of time, the silence settled like a speck of dust hitting the ground. The soul longing for a response was completely disappointed and retreated back into those magnificent clothes, becoming the Second Young Master of the Qiu family once more.
"Brother has always been like this. Making decisions alone, setting out alone, finishing what needs to be done alone, never looking back. I clearly understood this long ago; asking again was redundant."
Xu Qichi’s words dissipated in the wind. The brothers’ intersecting shadows separated in an instant, heading in two different directions.
Not long after the sun rose, the sky turned gloomy again.
The light between heaven and earth was ambiguous, making even the outlines of shadows blurry.
The long conversation and heavy thoughts made it hard to sleep. Qin Jiuye wandered outside for a while but didn't see Li Qiao. Taking advantage of her remaining energy, she checked on the shipyard workers one by one to ensure no one was poisoned. Only then did she feel at ease. By the time she stretched and walked out of the shipyard, it was fully light.
A cool breeze blew from the river, carrying the scent of rain and grass, instantly washing away the fatigue of a night spent in bitter debate and deduction.
She took a deep breath and downed a cup of overnight tea. Her stomach growled. Just as she was worrying about where to find food, she heard footsteps behind her.
She turned and met Song Tuo’s weathered face.
"I thank the lady for her previous assistance," he said, handing over a bamboo basket. Inside were several stacked steamed cakes. They were covered with a coarse cloth and were still warm to the touch.
Qin Jiuye rubbed her hands sheepishly but took them anyway, devouring the cakes hungrily.
This River Embankment Envoy might be stiff, but he wasn't truly dull. He had seen that Teng Hu was not to be trifled with and realized Qin Jiuye had "stolen" his task of delivering tea to help him out of a bind.
With her mouth full of cake, she eventually turned to Song Tuo and said, "Actually, there’s no need for such formality, sir. The consultation fee for my Guoran Clinic might not even be worth this basket of cakes. It was just a small favor."
"When the lady was helping earlier, you didn't mention anything about a consultation fee."
Qin Jiuye paused, then gave a faint smile. "When you decided to vacate this shipyard to help the Supervisor, you probably didn't think about negotiating terms either, did you?"
Song Tuo froze for a moment, then his dry, cracked lips curled into a smile.
Neither said anything more. They stood side by side in the wind, looking together at the eastern sky as it grew brighter.
She wasn't sure if it was her imagination, but Qin Jiuye felt that when she had arrived here by donkey cart last night, the river’s edge seemed much further away.
Noticing her gaze, Song Tuo sighed. "Is the lady curious why the Huan River bend looks different from last night?"
Qin Jiuye nodded. "Though it was dark when I arrived, perhaps I didn't see clearly."
"You didn't see wrong. It’s just that the spot you saw last night has already been submerged."
Qin Jiuye was stunned and couldn't help but look into the distance again.
"In all my years stationed here in Xiuting, I haven't improved much in other skills, but I’ve learned to read the moods of the Heavens and the River God." Song Tuo pointed into the distance. "It’s not just that one spot. If this rain doesn't stop, within a month, the water will submerge half the docks."
***
**Glossary**
Chinese | English | Notes/Explanation
--- | --- | ---
丁渺 | Ding Miao | A person claiming to be from the Academy; later revealed as a "Qingmen Order."
公子琰 | Gongzi Yan | Former Shadow Envoy of the Sect; current Master of Chuanliu Court.
川流院 | Chuanliu Court | An organization founded by Gongzi Yan, rumored to be searching for a cure for the Secret Formula.
青门令 | Qingmen Order | A specific rank or title within the Qingzhong Mountain Academy.
河堤使 | River Embankment Envoy | The official title of Song Tuo, responsible for river management and dikes.
水磨蒸饼 | Water-milled steamed cakes | A type of traditional steamed bread or cake.
秀亭 | Xiuting | The specific location/district where the shipyard and docks are located.
洹河 | Huan River | The name of the river currently threatening to flood the area.
Enjoying the story? Rate this novel:
Secret Recipe | Chapter 191 | Words Left Unsaid | Novela.app | Novela.app
