Chapter 3: Reversing the Tide of Fate
1729 Words
On the second morning of her confinement, Su Jinxuan was transcribing The Precepts for Women when a sudden commotion erupted in the courtyard. She set down her brush, her fingertips unconsciously brushing the ancient jade pendant at her chest.
"Miss! It's terrible!" Bai Zhi burst in, her face ashen. "Master is coming with a crowd! Mistress An said... said they found something sinister in your room!"
Su Jinxuan's eyes narrowed. So it begins.
She quickly surveyed the room, her gaze landing on a faint smudge of dust beneath the bed. Last night, she'd noticed someone slipping in while she slept but had chosen to play dumb.
"Don't panic." She retrieved a copper coin from her dressing table, swiftly etching a fúzhòu, talisman onto its surface before pressing it into Bai Zhi's palm. "Hold onto this. No matter what happens, don't let go."
The door crashed open. Su Mingyuan stood grim-faced at the entrance, flanked by a smirking Mistress An and several armed retainers.
"Father, what is this about…?" Su Jinxuan feigned surprise, rising to her feet.
"Search!" Su Mingyuan barked. The retainers swarmed into the room, overturning furniture and rummaging through drawers.
Mistress An sighed dramatically, "Master, I never wanted to believe Xuān'ér, affectionate term for Jinxuan capable of such things, but Old Nanny Li saw her hiding something furtively..."
"Found it!" A retainer dragged out a cloth bundle from beneath the bed. Inside lay a voodoo doll pierced with silver needles, inscribed with a birthdate.
Su Mingyuan's face darkened as he examined it. "This is... my birthdate?!"
"Heavens!" Mistress An clutched her mouth in exaggerated horror. "Xuān'ér, how could you use such dark arts against your own father? This is unfilial! By law, you should be disowned!"
Su Jinxuan watched the spectacle coldly. The birthdate was indeed Su Mingyuan's, but the needlework was clumsy, lacking any true sorcerous foundation—clearly the work of an amateur.
"Father," she said calmly, "have you been experiencing headaches lately, especially worsening at night?"
Su Mingyuan froze. "How did you know?"
"Because this doll wasn't made by me. Someone is trying to frame me." Su Jinxuan pointed at the doll. "The true source of your affliction lies elsewhere."
"Nonsense!" Mistress An screeched. "With evidence like this, you still dare to lie?"
Unruffled, Su Jinxuan produced three copper coins. "If Father doubts me, I can divine the location of the true harmful object right now."
Su Mingyuan nodded warily. Su Jinxuan tossed the coins onto the table, studying their positions before feigning surprise. "The divination shows the harmful object is to the east, hidden in a red wooden box."
Mistress An's face paled. Su Mingyuan immediately led the group toward the main courtyard to the east—Mistress An's quarters.
"Master! You can't believe this girl's wild claims!" Mistress An tried to block him but was shoved aside.
In her room, they found a red wooden box beneath the dressing table. Inside lay a black jade engraved with eerie fúwén, runes and several strands of Su Mingyuan's hair.
"This... this isn't mine!" Mistress An crumpled to the floor, babbling incoherently. "It's a setup!"
Su Jinxuan examined the jade. "Father, this is 'Yin Sha Jade.' Prolonged contact causes headaches, fatigue, and even death!"
Su Mingyuan roared in fury. "Mistress An! What do you have to say for yourself?"
Mistress An collapsed, her protests falling on deaf ears. Su Jinxuan watched coldly, her heart unmoved. She'd detected the jade yesterday using her "touch-and-know" ability, merely turning the tables today.
"Master!" Old Nanny Li suddenly knelt. "I can vouch for the mistress! This jade was clearly..."
"Silence!" Su Mingyuan kicked her aside. "Lock Mistress An in the ancestral hall! No one releases her without my order!"
After the crowd dispersed, Su Mingyuan regarded Su Jinxuan complexly. "Xuān'ér, I wronged you."
"Father needn't apologize." Su Jinxuan curtseyed. "But there's one thing I don't understand. Why would Mistress An wish you harm?"
Su Mingyuan sighed deeply. "It's a long story..." He hesitated, finally saying only, "Rest well. Your confinement is lifted." With that, he hurried away.
Back in her room, Bai Zhi still clutched the copper coin, her fingers white-knuckled.
"It's over now." Su Jinxuan retrieved the coin, noticing a c***k—proof it had shielded them from harm.
Bai Zhi shuddered. "Miss, how did you know Mistress An had that thing?"
"A guess." Su Jinxuan dismissed it lightly. In truth, yesterday, through her "touch-and-know" ability, she'd seen Old Nanny Li's memory of Mistress An hiding the jade.
At dusk, as Su Jinxuan studied xuánmén diǎnjí, mystic texts borrowed from Mistress An's collection, three bird chirps echoed outside—two long, one short. It was the signal agreed upon with Xiao Jinghan yesterday.
She pushed open the window, and a figure in black descended silently, handing her a letter before vanishing.
The note read: Poison flaring early. Come swiftly.
Su Jinxuan's heart tightened. The premature flare-up of the Heart-Devouring Gu meant the poisoner was intensifying its activation. She quickly gathered silver needles and drawn fúzhòu, instructed Bai Zhi, and slipped out the back gate.
An unremarkable carriage awaited in the alley. The driver, a stern-faced youth, drove her in silence toward the north of the city.
After half an hour, the carriage halted before a villa nestled in bamboo groves. As soon as Su Jinxuan stepped out, she sensed a powerful línglì bōdòng, spiritual energy fluctuation—an array was in place!
"Miss Su, follow me." A familiar voice sounded. Mo Lao emerged from the bamboo, looking grave. "The prince is in dire condition."
After passing through several courtyards, Su Jinxuan was led to an elegant inner chamber. The moment she entered, a pungent herbal scent assailed her, mingled with a hint of blood.
Xiao Jinghan lay half-reclined on the couch, his face ashen, sweat glistening on his brow. His outer robe hung loose, revealing a soaked inner garment, and a blood-stained handkerchief clutched in his hand.
Most shocking were the wisps of black qi seeping from his body, forming a swirling vortex around him.
"Why so early?" She rushed forward, seizing his wrist without hesitation. His skin was icy, his pulse chaotic.
Xiao Jinghan opened his eyes weakly, his voice hoarse. "Someone... activating the Gu..."
Su Jinxuan immediately unfurled her silver needle pouch. "Lie flat. Remove your upper garment."
Mo Lao hesitated. "Miss, this..."
"Do it, or he dies!" Su Jinxuan snapped.
Xiao Jinghan weakly waved him off, unbuttoning his inner garment himself. His chest was lean and muscular but scarred, with a pulsating qīnghēisè yìnjì, bluish-black mark at his heart—like a living creature.
Su Jinxuan gasped. The Gu was worse than she'd thought, already qīnshí xīnmài, eroding the heart channel)!
Without delay, she inserted seven silver needles into his Tiāntū, Shànzhōng, Jùquè, and other acupoints. With each needle, she chanted an incantation, channeling a thread of línglì, spiritual energy through them.
"Argh!" Xiao Jinghan arched his back with a cry of pain as the fifth needle pierced him. The muscles on his back tensed, revealing a peculiar zhòuwén, curse mark—a chain entwining a dragon.
Su Jinxuan froze. She recognized this zhòuwén,! In the vision she'd seen yesterday when touching Xiao Jinghan's hand, the dying beautiful woman had drawn this pattern on young Xiao Jinghan's back!
"Miss Su?" Mo Lao's anxious call snapped her back.
Steadying herself, Su Jinxuan continued. When the seventh needle descended, Xiao Jinghan spat out a mouthful of black blood, his breathing gradually steadying.
"Temporarily suppressed." She wiped her brow. "But it'll last only three days. If the zhòuyìn, curse seal isn't broken, the next flare-up will be worse."
She placed a fúzhòu she'd prepared earlier on his heart. The paper burst into flame upon contact, merging into his body as a golden light. Xiao Jinghan exhaled deeply, his body relaxing.
"Thank you." His voice was weak but sincere. "Your kindness, Xiao will remember."
Su Jinxuan packed away her needles. "No need. I'll return in three days for another treatment." She hesitated, then asked, "The zhòuwén on your back... where did it come from?"
Xiao Jinghan's eyes turned icy. "What did you see?"
"A chain entwining a dragon." Su Jinxuan met his gaze. "Exactly like in my dream."
Silence descended. Mo Lao watched tensely, hand on his sword hilt.
After a long pause, Xiao Jinghan spoke slowly. "My mother drew it before she died. She said... it was for protection."
Protection? Su Jinxuan frowned. That was clearly a sealing zhòushù, curse technique! But seeing his reluctance to elaborate, she wisely held her tongue.
"The prince should rest now." Mo Lao interjected. "Let me escort Miss Su out."
Su Jinxuan rose to leave, but Xiao Jinghan seized her wrist. His hand was still cold but had regained some strength.
"West City Gambling Den," he murmured. "Chen Mingyuan was indeed stabbed at yǒushí sānkè（5:45 PM）, as you predicted. The assassin killed himself on the spot, but a tàizǐ fǔ (Prince's Mansion) token was found on him."
Su Jinxuan's heart skipped a beat. Xiao Jinghan was confirming her prediction and indicating the Crown Prince's involvement.
"I understand." She gently withdrew her hand. "Rest well, Prince."
On the carriage ride back, Su Jinxuan's mind raced. The zhòuwén on Xiao Jinghan's back, the Crown Prince's assassin, Mistress An's jade... everything seemed interconnected, yet the full picture eluded her.
Her ancient jade pendant suddenly grew warm. Glancing down, she saw faint patterns emerging on its surface—remarkably similar to Xiao Jinghan's zhòuwén!
"What is this..." she murmured, a sense of foreboding washing over her.
The carriage halted at the Su Mansion's back gate. As Su Jinxuan stepped out, she heard a commotion inside. Bai Zhi rushed over, panicked.
"Miss! Where have you been? Master's been searching for you!"
"What happened?"
"Young Master Chen... the one who collided with us the other day, was stabbed at the gambling den today!" Bai Zhi whispered. "Even stranger, upon waking, he accused the Crown Prince of ordering it! Now the whole city's abuzz, and the Crown Prince's men are here, demanding to see you!"
Su Jinxuan's pupils contracted. Why did the Crown Prince want to see her? Had Xiao Jinghan's contact with her already drawn the Crown Prince's attention?
Taking a deep breath, she straightened her attire. "Let's go. Let's meet this Crown Prince."
Her ancient jade pendant burned hotter, as if foretelling an even greater storm approaching.
- Writer
