Chapter 140: You Fool

That Shen Tong, after entering the valley, once spent a moment alone with you.

Later, he said he would bestow blessings, and you readily agreed; he said the Sacred Medicine Valley should obey him, and you kept urging me to consent! Was it then that you already knew?

Ji Wanrun's eyes flickered, the Longevity Lock in her hand scorching like a branding iron, making her hand tremble slightly: "Husband, how could you doubt me?"

"How did I learn it? I, like you, thought it was the Shen Tong's blessing arriving!"

Xue Jin snatched the two items in one motion, "Such evil objects, what use do they have for you?" He then tossed them back into the furnace inside the room.

Snort—!

The two exquisite ornaments emitted a low, weak wail, then cracked with a "snap", and two thick, ink‑black plumes of smoke burst out, twisting and struggling inside the furnace as if trying to escape.

But they were ultimately devoured by the leaping tongues of flame, turning to nothingness.

At that moment, Gong Sun Zhi, who was riding his horse, suddenly clutched his chest, a gush of fresh blood spewing wildly, and he fell from the horse onto the ground.

"Your Highness!" Jiang Xin hurriedly dismounted, helping him to his feet.

Gong Sun Zhi's face was a blank sheet: "Return, return! Find the National Preceptor!"

Ji Wanrun knelt before Xue Jin, tears streaming: "Husband, you must believe me!"

"Think about how I usually treat Zhiyou? Everyone in the valley can see it."

"I treat him as my own! How could I knowingly agree to a harmful evil technique?"

"I truly know nothing at all!"

"That Shen Tong deceives the world and steals fame; what does that have to do with me? Husband, didn't you also believe him?"

"I am a small woman who never leaves the house; how could I compare with your insight?"

Xue Jin hesitated, looking at her delicate face and frail figure, and couldn't help extending his hand to help her up.

Ji Wanrun turned pitifully toward Tuan Tuan, her voice choked: "Little benefactor, thanks to you today, otherwise my mother and I would still have been deceived by that Shen Tong! We thought she was a lifesaving benefactor, but she turned out to be a death‑bringing Yama."

Her words were sincere and heartfelt, causing Mo Zhanggeng to nod slightly: "Madam, please…"

Before the word could be spoken, Tuan Tuan had already walked up to Xue Zhiyou: "Little brother, did you know that the Longevity Lock you wear will send your life, like handing out snacks, to someone else?"

Xue Zhiyou blinked blankly, shook his head: "Life belongs to oneself. How can it be given to others?"

Tuan Tuan immediately turned, lifted a little finger and pointed at the pallid Ji Wanrun: "This kind of bad sorcery, to succeed, one of the two must know it, and both must be willing."

"Since little brother knows nothing, the one who knows and is willing can only be you!"

Ji Wanrun's complexion drained clean in an instant with a "swoosh."

She opened her mouth, and her tear‑filled eyes instantly became sharp, surprised, fearful, ruthless… flashing by.

Everyone saw it clearly.

All arguments and sophistries seemed pale and powerless at that moment.

"Heh… heh heh…" Xue Jin let out a series of laughs worse than crying, looking at Ji Wanrun, his voice trembling uncontrollably, "Three years ago, you fainted outside the valley, barely alive. I rescued you back to the valley, treating your wounds."

"You said you came to seek relatives, but they had already moved away, leaving you alone and helpless."

"I saw your gentle understanding, and secretly developed feelings for you, binding our fates."

"How could I, Xue Jin, ever have wronged you? You are, you are repaying me like this?"

His gaze suddenly shifted to the bewildered Xue Zhiyou beside him, his voice turning sorrowful: "Zhiyou! You cared for him for three years, tending to his every need!"

"Who in the valley doesn't praise you as virtuous! How could you bear it? How could you use his life to extend your own? Where is your heart? Has a dog eaten it?"

Each word bled with tears, tearing at heart and lungs.

Ji Wanrun's panic on her face gradually subsided.

She slowly stood, brushed her beautiful hair, her movements calm to the point of elegance.

She walked slowly to the window, gazing at the little courtyard she had lived in for three years, and let out a gentle sigh.

"You fool."

Her voice was no longer soft and charming, becoming calm and icy.

"Three years ago, I came on the order of my master. I intended to become a disciple of the Old Valley Master, but he was traveling abroad."

"Meeting you was an accident."

"I devoted myself to you: first to steal the Sacred Medicine Valley's medical scriptures, second to study this 'Flower‑Transplant' life‑extending technique."

"You precious son, your foundation is pure, making you an excellent medicinal conduit; you have extended my life for three years."

She paused, her tone both compassionate and mocking: "I see you treat me with sincerity, and pity his youth, yet you never dared to take too much, only wishing for a slow, steady flow."

"Hehe, looking back now, it's truly a woman's kindness."

"That Da Xia Shen Tong had a sharp eye, seeing through my tricks at a glance, and also seeing that I hadn't given my all."

"She told me this 'Twin‑Heart Lock Key' can protect the child from life‑and‑death worries, and also help me achieve great success. Heh, I actually believed his nonsense."

Before the words finished, she moved swiftly like a feather, drifting out the window and landing in the courtyard.

Xiao Er exclaimed, "What lightness skill!"

"Next!" she said without turning her head, tossing something backward.

Xue Jin reflexively caught it; it was a small white porcelain bottle.

"If you are still willing to trust me once more, give this pill to Zhiyou to swallow." From outside the window, Ji Wanrun's voice grew fainter, "From now on, we owe each other nothing."

The voice still echoed, but her silhouette had already risen and fallen several times, then vanished without a trace.

Xue Jin stared blankly, holding the still‑warm bottle, gazing toward where she disappeared; his lips moved, but the call was stuck in his throat, turning into a heavy sigh.

Mo Zhanggeng stepped forward, took the bottle, pulled the stopper and sniffed lightly, his complexion changing abruptly.

He carefully poured the pill from the bottle into his palm; it was a perfectly round, blood‑red pill, its surface faintly glowing, emitting an exotic fragrance that invigorated the spirit.

"Nine‑Turned Crimson Pattern Regeneration Pill!" Mo Zhanggeng exclaimed, "Legend says this pill can reignite the life‑forming energy, mending the innate root! Such a healing divine medicine has long been lost! From which sect did she obtain it?"

The sun's shadow outside the window slanted westward, slicing the interior into fragments of light and dark intertwined.

Xue Jin slumped into his chair, his eyes hollow, as if all his strength had been drained.

A cold little hand gently tugged at his sleeve.

Xue Zhi Yu lifted his little face, eyes brimming with tears, and asked timidly: "Dad! Mommy, does she not want You'er anymore?"

Xue Jin shuddered all over, then fiercely pulled his son into a tight embrace.

He buried his face in the child's thin shoulders, his broad shoulders shaking violently, silently.

Everyone seeing this scene couldn't help but sigh softly.

Tuan Tuan pursed her lips, and Xiao Ze silently pulled her into his arms.

Tuan Tuan looked at him: "Third Elder Brother, will that auntie come back?"