Hold Tight to the Female Lead's Thigh [Transmigration GL] - Episode 21

Peach Blossom secretly breathed a sigh of relief, returning the longsword to the weapon rack before saying to Guan Fusha, “Senior Sister, I’ll head back now.”

“Mm, I’ll go back with you.”

Peach Blossom was a bit surprised. Guan Fusha was constantly occupied with managing the affairs of the sect, and teaching her martial arts had already taken up a significant amount of her time. How could Peach Blossom possibly trouble her further by having her accompany her back to the villa?

Thinking that Guan Fusha was worried she might not know her way around the sect, Peach Blossom said, “There’s no need to trouble you, Senior Sister. I’ll have Xiao Zhu take me back.”

Guan Fusha’s smile stiffened, assuming Peach Blossom was trying to avoid her. After a brief pause, she replied, “…Alright then. Rest early when you get back.”

“Mm, I won’t disturb you any further, Senior Sister.”

Just as Peach Blossom was about to turn and leave, Guan Fusha suddenly called out to her, “Junior Sister, wait a moment.”

“What is it, Senior Sister? Is there something else?” Peach Blossom stopped and turned to ask.

“Mm, about today—my taking you to the alchemy room and the training grounds—please don’t mention it to anyone for now.”

Though Peach Blossom didn’t understand Guan Fusha’s reasoning, she nodded in agreement. “Understood.”

“Let’s go.”

The two left the training grounds and reached a fork in the path, where Peach Blossom insisted that Guan Fusha need not accompany her further. “I’ve troubled you for so long today. Thank you very much.”

“Don’t mention it, Junior Sister. I’ll find some time tomorrow to give you a few more pointers,” Guan Fusha said with a faint smile.

“Thank you, Senior Sister. I’ll head back to the villa now.”

They parted ways, and Guan Fusha returned to her study, only to find Yan Hong had arrived at some point without her noticing.

Yan Hong was lounging lazily in a carved wooden chair, sipping hot tea. Seeing the Guardian enter, she made no move to rise, as comfortable as if she were in her own home. “Well, well, the busy bee is back, huh?”

Guan Fusha was long accustomed to this and went straight to sit behind her desk.

Yan Hong, aware that Peach Blossom had come to see her, raised an eyebrow with a meaningful smile before asking, “Where’s your little maid? I don’t see her. Didn’t she bring your junior sister to you?”

Guan Fusha shot her a glare. “As the head of the Punishment Hall, do you really need to be so concerned about the whereabouts of my maid?”

“Fine then.” Yan Hong played with the ends of her hair as she walked over to the desk. As if she’d stumbled upon something amusing, she grinned and said, “If I can’t care about your little maid, then let me care about your junior sister instead.”

Guan Fusha’s expression shifted. “Do you have any news?”

“Of course.” Yan Hong batted her beautiful eyes, giving Guan Fusha a flirtatious glance as she leaned against the desk. “Although the snake Xiao Zhu mentioned is nowhere to be found, my guess is that it’s a ‘Bronze’ snake.”

“‘Bronze’?” A flicker of surprise crossed Guan Fusha’s face before she lowered her head in contemplation.

Anyone involved in poison crafting knew that the Bronze snake held the reputation of being the “King of Ten Thousand Poisons.” A single drop of its venom, dissolved in a well, could easily wipe out an entire village. Its toxicity was extremely potent—once poisoned, the victim would succumb almost instantly, leaving no time for treatment. Even the world’s foremost miracle doctor would be helpless against it.

Most importantly, Bronze snakes typically only appeared in the great deserts of the Northern Kingdom. They were exceedingly rare and scarce, fetching prices as high as ten thousand taels of silver each on the black market. However, the Southern Kingdom’s humid climate was a world apart from the Northern Kingdom’s vast deserts, making it entirely unsuitable for the survival of Bronze snakes and nearly impossible to keep them alive.

Taohua knew no martial arts; she was merely a delicate woman without the strength to truss a chicken. Who would spend such a hefty sum to buy a Bronze Serpent just to kill her? Moreover, by the time they arrived at the villa, the serpent’s corpse had vanished. Why was that? Risking discovery to retrieve the serpent’s body—did it hold some special significance?

Yan Hong cast a glance at the silent Guan Fusha and lazily asked, “Well? Have you figured anything out?”

“Nothing,” Guan Fusha replied before asking in turn, “Aside from this, what else have you uncovered?”

Yan Hong rolled her eyes. She knew it!

“No one has purchased a ‘Bronze’ in the black market within the past month.”

“Oh?” Guan Fusha raised an eyebrow, her face alight with interest.

Setting aside the vast climatic differences between the northern and southern kingdoms, which made it difficult for Bronze Serpents to survive, the rulers of both nations placed great importance on curbing smuggling in trade. As a pivotal hub, Yan City’s checkpoints were naturally extremely strict. Something as dangerously lethal as a Bronze Serpent could not have entered unless through the special channels of black-market dealers.

“Yan Hong, what do you think?” Guan Fusha wanted to hear her opinion.

“What else could it be?” Yan Hong shrugged. “It just means the person has plenty of money, knows how to raise a Bronze Serpent, and possesses exceptional martial arts skills.”

After saying this, Yan Hong suddenly turned to look at Guan Fusha. Wasn’t the person who met all three criteria right in front of her?

Guan Fusha smiled, her eyes curving like crescent moons. “Hmm? Why are you looking at me like that?”

“No… it’s nothing.” Yan Hong averted her gaze. There was no way it could be her, right?

She casually retorted, “And what about you? What do you think?”

Guan Fusha rested her chin on her interlaced fingers, a smile on her face that made it impossible to discern her true thoughts. “Do you think this could be the work of someone from our sect?”

“…”

After a long pause, Yan Hong glanced at Guan Fusha and finally said, “Within the sect, aren’t you the only one who meets those three criteria?”

“No. There’s one more person.” Guan Fusha took a letter from a drawer and placed it on the desk. On the envelope, the name “Dongfang Wen” was written neatly and properly.

Yan Hong’s pupils dilated abruptly as she stared at Guan Fusha in disbelief. “You suspect the sect leader?”

Indeed, aside from Guan Fusha, the only other person in the sect who met those three criteria was the sect leader, Dongfang Wen. But he was now semi-retired and hardly involved in sect affairs. There was absolutely no reason for him to target Taohua. Moreover, with his formidable martial arts skills, if he truly intended to kill her, why go through the trouble of releasing a serpent? It would be both cumbersome and prone to failure.

“No, it absolutely cannot be Master.” Guan Fusha stated with unwavering certainty.

Having been master and disciple for many years, Guan Fusha understood Dongfang Wen well. He was the type of person who was straightforward to a fault. If he truly wanted to kill someone, he wouldn’t resort to such roundabout methods. Besides, Bronze Serpents were precious, and he would never waste one on an assassination.

“Hmm…” Yan Hong also felt it was unlikely to be Dongfang Wen, but she couldn’t think of anyone else.

The two of them discussed for a long time in the study but remained at a dead end. Although they had gathered many clues, they were still stuck in the same place.

Before long, A’Tian arrived with their meal. “Deputy Leader, dinner is ready. Will the Hall Master be dining with you as well?”

Her charming eyes glimmered with a coquettish sparkle as she deliberately said to A’Tian, “No, I still need to return to the hall to wait for someone.”