Chapter 722

Hu Xiaotian appeared before Huo Shengnan with a swollen red lip; Huo Shengnan was also utterly astonished: "Sir Hu, what happened?"

Yang Xuan stood behind Hu Xiaotian, couldn't help but laugh. Hu Xiaotian sighed: "Hard to put into words……" This guy's speech is really clumsy; he clearly wanted to say "hard to put into words", but as soon as he spoke, it turned into lewd imagination.

Yang Xuan said: "Sir Hu just made a mistake and was scolded by the Princess."

By now, Hu Xiaotian could only admit that there was no way anyone would believe he hadn't been slapped.

Huo Shengnan gazed at Hu Xiaotian's appearance, feeling both amused and sympathetic, yet found it strange that the usually mild‑tempered Princess Anping would have offended him so badly as to beat him into this state. Moreover, she struck not the face but a conspicuous spot.

Since Hu Xiaotian spoke clumsily, Huo Shengnan kept her words brief, but she had to go to Cien Garden tonight to keep the Empress Dowager company, so she left the guard here to Yang Xuan.

Hu Xiaotian merely nodded; right now he tries to say as little as possible.

After meeting Huo Shengnan, Hu Xiaotian returned to the inner court, only to find that Xi Yan had shut her door tightly, giving him no chance to see her. He gritted his teeth in resentment, thinking she probably didn't want to give him the antidote, and today he'd lost a lot of face.

Returning to his residence with a heavy heart, Hu Xiaotian found Zhou Mo coaching Xiong Tianba in martial arts. Seeing Hu Xiaotian enter, both were startled. Xiong Tianba, speaking without reserve, shouted: "Uncle Hu, what's wrong with your mouth? You look like a duck!"

Zhou Mo glared at him: "Go practice martial arts over there!" He came up to Hu Xiaotian: "Third Brother, how did your lip get so swollen?"

Hu Xiaotian couldn't tell the truth, how embarrassing! He sighed: "The Princess gave me a piece of slept on……"

Zhou Mo's eyes widened in shock; this brother is really bold. He even dared to sleep with the Princess? No way, this Princess is clearly an impostor, she's a demoness!

"Fruit!" Hu Xiaotian finally managed to control his tongue and pronounce correctly.

Only then did Zhou Mo realize they were saying fruit, not slept on. Knowing something about Xi Yan, he whispered: "Could it be poisoning?"

Hu Xiaotian nodded. Zhou Mo immediately grew worried and snapped: "I'll go get the antidote from her."

Hu Xiaotian shook his head, signalling Zhou Mo not to get angry; it was actually his own fault, but he didn't fear that Xi Yan would poison him to death—she was probably just annoyed that he dared to take liberties with her, so she gave him a mild punishment. It certainly wouldn't be fatal, but this sausage‑like mouth would likely stay swollen for a while.

Hu Xiaotian returned to his room, took out a mirror, and looked at himself—his appearance was practically that of Donald Duck reincarnated. If his two lips were cut off, they'd be enough to fry a dish. However, his lips were red and swollen, not blackened.

Zhou Mo also followed him inside and said quietly: "Why not go check out the Divine Farmer's Society?"

Hu Xiaotian gave a wry smile: "How can I go out looking like this!" His tongue felt much more agile. Apparently the drug's effect was already wearing off. Indeed, after only half an hour, his lips had gone down a bit; although they still looked like a duck's, they were much better than before, and his speech became clear.

Hu Xiaotian noticed Liang Yinghao was absent. After asking, he learned that Liang Yinghao had gone again to dig the canal. Although the waterway leading out from Qixing Palace is passable, it's only suitable for Liang Yinghao; if Hu Xiaotian and the others wanted to use it, they'd need to make partial modifications. With the grand wedding only five days away, they didn't know whether this canal would be usable, but they still had to prepare thoroughly just in case.

Zhou Mo said: "In five days it will be the wedding day. What are you planning, Third Brother? Are you really intending to let her marry him?"

Hu Xiaotian said: "What's wrong with that?"

Zhou Mo said: "Aren't you worried she'll be harmful to Xue Daoming?"

Hu Xiaotian said: "She's not an idiot; I've made the pros and cons perfectly clear to her. If she truly had the Xichuan Li clan's interests at heart, she wouldn't do something so foolish." After saying that, he picked up the mirror again; his lips seemed to have gone down a little more. Gradually he relaxed, estimating that Xi Yan's poison wasn't potent, otherwise he couldn't have recovered so quickly.

Zhou Mo said: "This woman is full of tricks; if she stirs up trouble, our plan could come to nothing." Zhou Mo didn't trust Xi Yan at all; she was currently the biggest problem, capable not only of ruining their plan but also of easily destroying all their previous efforts.

Hu Xiaotian said: "What do you think, Elder Brother?"

Zhou Mo said: "Just in case, we should make her disappear beforehand!"

Hu Xiaotian naturally understood what Zhou Mo meant by "disappear." In fact, sending Princess Anping to Da Yong had already fulfilled his mission; if something happened to the princess now, the blame would fall on Da Yong. Moreover, the Dakang Court is in turmoil, even Long Yelin's position is insecure—how could he spare energy for this matter? The thought of getting rid of Xi Yan flashed through his mind and vanished; he realized he could never bring himself to harm her. Could it be that, just as he had confessed to her earlier, he had actually fallen for this strange elf‑like demoness?

Seeing Hu Xiaotian's hesitant expression, Zhou Mo couldn't help but sigh inwardly; it seemed his third brother had truly fallen for the demoness. While affection isn't inherently bad, it can ruin grand endeavors. Zhou Mo said: "He who hesitates brings disaster upon himself—don't forget that a moment's softness may plunge you into an irredeemable predicament."

Hu Xiaotian nodded and said: "I understand what you mean, Elder Brother, but she is deep‑minded and full of schemes, not easy to deal with. Even if we could succeed, she has the Wuxian Sect and the Xichuan Li clan behind her—offending either would be troublesome—so the most realistic choice is to join forces with her."

Zhou Mo said: "I'm afraid you want to ally with her, but others may not feel the same."

Hu Xiaotian said: "Before common interests, forming an alliance is hardly difficult." This guy habitually picked up the bronze mirror, looked at himself, and saw his lips had gone down even more than before; it seemed they'd fully recover soon.

At that moment, a palace maid attending to Xi Yan came to find him, saying the Princess wanted to see him about something.

Hu Xiaotian didn't delay, following the maid to Xi Yan's chamber. Seeing Hu Xiaotian now, Xi Yan noticed his lips were almost completely deflated and found it unbelievable, knowing the poison on her lips was a secret formula; without her antidote, Hu Xiaotian should have swollen up like a pig's snout, yet he had recovered so quickly.

Hu Xiaotian smiled and said: "Princess, what do you wish of me?"

Xi Yan had summoned him intending to give him the antidote, but seeing his condition now, she realized it was unnecessary. Unexpectedly, not only had his martial arts improved greatly, but his resistance to poison had also become remarkably strong—who knows what fortuitous encounter he'd had? She said coldly: "There's nothing else; I just wanted to remind you about the matter I mentioned earlier—you'd better get moving, or don't blame me for not giving you a chance."

Hu Xiaotian understood she was referring to the assassination of Wan Yan Chixiong, and he couldn't help but laugh; although his lips were basically back to normal, his laugh still lacked its usual ease and naturalness, looking a bit awkward.

Xi Yan wanted to laugh but forced herself to keep a straight face, feigning anger: "Do you think I'm joking with you?"

Hu Xiaotian sighed: "Why can't we sit down and talk things over properly? Why can't we cooperate sincerely? After all, we've performed the heaven‑and‑earth ceremony, and moreover I risked being poisoned by you to give you my first kiss—how can you be so ruthless, so cruel to a man who treats you so well?"

Xi Yan said softly: "I don't know why, but seeing you in misfortune makes me feel happy from the bottom of my heart."

Hu Xiaotian blurted out without thinking: "Because you're a pervert."

Xi Yan said: "If you want to sit down and talk properly, then let me speak frankly: there has indeed been a palace coup in Kangdu; Long Yelin has been driven from the throne by Ji Feihua, and now the affair of state is handled by the Long Prince, Long Tingsheng. As his aunt, the Senior Princess, I am of no concern to the Dakang court anymore, and neither are you. In Ji Feihua's eyes you have long lost any usable value—do you really think he still cares about your life?"

Hu Xiaotian said: "Then why don't you point me to a clear path?"

Xi Yan said: "Help me kill Wan Yan Chixiong, and I'll help you rescue your parents and send your whole family to Xichuan."

Hu Xiaotian said: "What good would going to Xichuan do me?"

Xi Yan said: "The Hu and Li families are already in‑laws; by accomplishing this you would become a meritorious official of the Li clan. Our Wuxian Sect still carries some weight in Xichuan; if I ask our sect leader to come out of retirement, he can guarantee your family's lifelong safety in Xichuan."

Hu Xiaotian chuckled: "That sounds somewhat tempting, but why would I seek help from the Li clan?"

Xi Yan said: "Aren't you the Li clan's son‑in‑law? You and the Li clan's young lady, Li Wuyou, have a Marriage Pact."

"You mean that cripple?" Hu Xiaotian's tone was full of contempt.

Xi Yan said: "Don't speak of her that way; Wuyou and I are sworn sisters. If you show her the slightest disrespect, watch out—I won't be polite."

Hu Xiaotian said: "Fine, then please tell your sworn sister, and also inform Li Tianheng of Xichuan: he and the Hu family have long gone their separate ways; that damn Marriage Pact no longer exists. He's ambitious, proclaiming himself king, aspiring to be emperor—please don't climb to power on others' shoulders, and why drag the Hu family into it?"

Xi Yan said: "What do the Hu family's affairs have to do with the Li family? It's simply that Long Yelin wants to deal with you."

Hu Xiaotian said: "And what about Li Honghan? In Xiezhou City he plotted to kill me—I'll settle that score sooner or later."

Xi Yan said: "I never imagined you'd hold such deep prejudice against the Li family." (To be continued~^~)